Watch what Larry Dixon does.
CK5
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All things Drag Racing.
- Thread starter 500$k5
- Start date
Ok. We took the 70 Nova to the track again. The fuel system changes worked well. No more lean/ flameout after the launch. Still fighting traction problems on about half of the passes. We did get a personal best 1.73 60ft time. The quest for a consistent car still escapes me. It will run 113 mph on one pass, and drop clear down to 105 mph on the next pass. Car will be "lazy" above 4000 rpm on every gear. I can't feel a miss, or anything out of the ordinary, just doesn't push you into the seat like it should. When it doesn't spin off the line, it runs 1.73 to 1.76 60ft times. The missing mph seems to be at all points on the track. the low mph doesn't seem to correlate with the spin, or no spin. I was thinking valve springs, and then it threw out another 113 mph pass later in the evening. Crazy car for sure. 11.98 one pass, and a 12.46 the next. I would pull my hair out, but I'm just the driver......LOL
It does. pro billet dist, blaster coil, 6al box
I was going to say check the ignition system, and plug wires.
I have an MSD 6AL box in the truck that's 27 years old and still working great, I've had good luck with them.
But that doesn't mean the one you have is great, so If you are having issues like that and all your plug wires are solid I would try a different box.
I don't recommend not running a CDI box with any decent aftermarket cam and/or compression. Because with some valve overlap and/or increased cylinder pressure the CDI box helps keep the plugs burning clean from idle to redline.
I have an MSD 6AL box in the truck that's 27 years old and still working great, I've had good luck with them.
But that doesn't mean the one you have is great, so If you are having issues like that and all your plug wires are solid I would try a different box.
I don't recommend not running a CDI box with any decent aftermarket cam and/or compression. Because with some valve overlap and/or increased cylinder pressure the CDI box helps keep the plugs burning clean from idle to redline.
This problem has been there all along. 30 passes. Plug wires are new. (2 different complete sets). Cap and rotor are new. Now that we have gotten rid of the lean bog/fuel slosh problem, I would like to get the car more consistent. If we can get both ends of the track at the same time, we should be in the 11.80's
That doesn't mean it's not the ignition system. Is it the same CDI box the whole time?
I had that same problem in my car nearly 20 years ago. One run it would go 12.50 and then it would run 11.90, it was either or, nothing in between. It started when I swapped from my old 6AL to upgrade to a Digital 6+ that had a timing retard for nitrous. I was tired of moving the timing manually to run the giggle juice. At the same time I changed the trans to an OD with a transbrake so it was better to drive to the track on the highway, part of me wondered if it was the trans. This was back on the carb with the iron headed 388 SBC, no delay box.
Of course I changed the whole car around after so I never confirmed that's what it was, but I wondered. Still have the same trans, everything else is different.
I'll never forget I went to do some testing back in the day, and there was a huge "Michigan State Finals" bracket race they called it that weekend I was unaware of. Was only an extra $30 to enter, I thought, what the hell, I'll enter the race for the first time ever, I'll get at least 1 more run on this busy day! ha ha
Car would run 11.90, 1st round I won, felt good, was not a stellar run, had a slow .028 light or something, but enough to win that round.
2nd round I get up there, guy goes red against, me, won again. But the car was slow, 12.50, changed spark plugs and double checked timing and everything. dialed 11.90 because sometimes driving the car to the track with the race carb would foul plugs, and went back up there for 3rd round, big mistake. As soon as the car took off I knew it was not fixed, I could feel it was slow, I felt like I was a sitting duck. Then around 1000 ft the opponent flew past me and broke out, I was thinking, I left a huge window and he took it all and then some, but I'll take it!
Went back to the drawing board, took the carb apart, found a chunk of something in the needle and seat!
Went back up for 4th round, and I was .004 on the tree and ran dead on with a 8 for a 12 pack, won that round and finally felt like I deserved it. Thought the problem was fixed.
5th round I was feeling good, just had a .004 light, and the car ran what it was supposed to previous round. So I dialed the 11.90. This time, guy went red, but my car was slow again, man I was lucky!
So 6th round I go park in the staging lanes, and I was pacing, trying to figure out what to try next. Track official says, what's on your mind? I said, I'm just not sure what car is going to show up..." He says, "this is all of them, there are only 4 left". I said, no I mean my car, it seems to have a mind of its own tonight... he laughed.
Then I thought, WTF, how did I make it down to the semifinal on my first race ever with a car this inconsistent! At this point it was getting dark. And I thought, I am going to unplug the fans, maybe they are causing an electrical issue. So I unplugged the little thermal switch so they would only turn on manually, and I left them off during the run, which I should of been doing the whole time for consistency. I stupidly dialed the 11.90 time thinking I wasn't good enough to judge the finish line. However, if the car was slow I would of locked myself out of winning pretty much, rookie move.
I let go of the button on the bottom bulb, I knew I was late. I thought, ****! But the car was running, running good! I thought, go baby go! At about the finish line I see the opponent creeping up on me, and then tap the brakes, I knew immediately I screwed up, in all the ruckus I forgot to dial back as the air temp dropped and I broke out running an 11.89 or something, car ran the fastest time of that summer day, but I lost at 4 cars, I won some money at least, paid for the day of fun is all. The guy that beat me won the whole race.
Was a good time even with the spontaneous car. ha ha
I had that same problem in my car nearly 20 years ago. One run it would go 12.50 and then it would run 11.90, it was either or, nothing in between. It started when I swapped from my old 6AL to upgrade to a Digital 6+ that had a timing retard for nitrous. I was tired of moving the timing manually to run the giggle juice. At the same time I changed the trans to an OD with a transbrake so it was better to drive to the track on the highway, part of me wondered if it was the trans. This was back on the carb with the iron headed 388 SBC, no delay box.
Of course I changed the whole car around after so I never confirmed that's what it was, but I wondered. Still have the same trans, everything else is different.
I'll never forget I went to do some testing back in the day, and there was a huge "Michigan State Finals" bracket race they called it that weekend I was unaware of. Was only an extra $30 to enter, I thought, what the hell, I'll enter the race for the first time ever, I'll get at least 1 more run on this busy day! ha ha
Car would run 11.90, 1st round I won, felt good, was not a stellar run, had a slow .028 light or something, but enough to win that round.
2nd round I get up there, guy goes red against, me, won again. But the car was slow, 12.50, changed spark plugs and double checked timing and everything. dialed 11.90 because sometimes driving the car to the track with the race carb would foul plugs, and went back up there for 3rd round, big mistake. As soon as the car took off I knew it was not fixed, I could feel it was slow, I felt like I was a sitting duck. Then around 1000 ft the opponent flew past me and broke out, I was thinking, I left a huge window and he took it all and then some, but I'll take it!
Went back to the drawing board, took the carb apart, found a chunk of something in the needle and seat!
Went back up for 4th round, and I was .004 on the tree and ran dead on with a 8 for a 12 pack, won that round and finally felt like I deserved it. Thought the problem was fixed.
5th round I was feeling good, just had a .004 light, and the car ran what it was supposed to previous round. So I dialed the 11.90. This time, guy went red, but my car was slow again, man I was lucky!
So 6th round I go park in the staging lanes, and I was pacing, trying to figure out what to try next. Track official says, what's on your mind? I said, I'm just not sure what car is going to show up..." He says, "this is all of them, there are only 4 left". I said, no I mean my car, it seems to have a mind of its own tonight... he laughed.
Then I thought, WTF, how did I make it down to the semifinal on my first race ever with a car this inconsistent! At this point it was getting dark. And I thought, I am going to unplug the fans, maybe they are causing an electrical issue. So I unplugged the little thermal switch so they would only turn on manually, and I left them off during the run, which I should of been doing the whole time for consistency. I stupidly dialed the 11.90 time thinking I wasn't good enough to judge the finish line. However, if the car was slow I would of locked myself out of winning pretty much, rookie move.
I let go of the button on the bottom bulb, I knew I was late. I thought, ****! But the car was running, running good! I thought, go baby go! At about the finish line I see the opponent creeping up on me, and then tap the brakes, I knew immediately I screwed up, in all the ruckus I forgot to dial back as the air temp dropped and I broke out running an 11.89 or something, car ran the fastest time of that summer day, but I lost at 4 cars, I won some money at least, paid for the day of fun is all. The guy that beat me won the whole race.
Was a good time even with the spontaneous car. ha ha
Leah Pruetts tribute to Bandimere
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Leah Pruett
It’s Denver weeeeeek! I began racing here when I was eight years old, mostly through my early teens, and captured many of my first ever Wallys at this track. One downside… (besides the mountain...
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We made our pilgrimage to thunder mountain this afternoon. Had to wait for my son, but we caught the final qualifying top fuel rounds tonight. Got to see Brittany Force break the track record that will probably stand forever since the elimination rounds will be in the heat of the day.
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Jet cars ended the night.
The pits were hopping. Clutch was still smoking when he pulled it.
I wasn’t planning on going but I’m happy we did go.
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Jet cars ended the night.
The pits were hopping. Clutch was still smoking when he pulled it.
I wasn’t planning on going but I’m happy we did go.
Bandimere Family Announces Intentions For New Track In 2025 | Drag Illustrated
This weekend marks a significant milestone as Bandimere Speedway hosts its final Mile-High Nationals ahead of its closure later this year. The family-owned track, however, is far from ending its legacy in the world of drag racing. According to The Denver Post, John Bandimere Jr. announced plans...
dragillustrated.com
That is cool. I hope it works out.
Clay Millican and Mat Hagen won the finals at Mile High.
There was a lot of the same info on the local news about the “intent” to open a track near DIA.
Call me a skeptic but had they intended on moving the facility they would have already bought the land and been breaking ground. To me it seems like they got an offer they couldn’t refuse for the existing land and now have to find a place to go. It still doesn’t have any guarantee that they will build anything and just cash the check either. The little blurb about the new track not having their name is another clue that they might be less involved.
I guess I’ll believe it when I see them working dirt east of town. Crossing my fingers but I’m not holding my breath either.
Call me a skeptic but had they intended on moving the facility they would have already bought the land and been breaking ground. To me it seems like they got an offer they couldn’t refuse for the existing land and now have to find a place to go. It still doesn’t have any guarantee that they will build anything and just cash the check either. The little blurb about the new track not having their name is another clue that they might be less involved.
I guess I’ll believe it when I see them working dirt east of town. Crossing my fingers but I’m not holding my breath either.
I’m kind of in the same mindset about this. But old man Bandimere has always been part Steve Forbes in part PT Barnum. It’s hard to sell T-shirts if there’s not a lot a mystery and if people knew that there was already another track underway they probably wouldn’t spend money this year like they had. That said be a pretty good time to cash out and NHRA won’t let someone else build another track on top of one that exists
It’s odd to me that they are promoting more about the 65th anniversary and less about the last year. Though there were shirts for sale for the “last” mile high nationals being sold.
There’s so much money at play it’s hard not to think they cash in though. Factor in John JR’s brother Dave with his alleged Ponzi scheme investment tendencies and it’s part of the reason I’m skeptical.
Both of the brothers had been honorary members of our local Nomad club before the club disbanded a few years back. Money from the club and some members was “invested” with Dave and after it hit the news about the alleged scheme he quietly and quickly made the club and members whole again.
Not quite what you’d expect the brother of the track president to be doing but the whole thing went away without too much press. It’s out there if you google it. But it certainly tainted my outlook on the business dealings of Dave at least.
They have to reinvest all of that money somewhere, or just give most of it to the government.
Martin
Martin
Finally got dads car in the garage over the weekend, running out of time to get it to the track.
