2011 Race Prep

Well, yesterday I met Dave "the wrench" Lee and Autohaus Dan over at the storage yard to make a list of stuff that we need to buy/do to get ready for the 2011 race season.  Most of the stuff is pretty minor, like buying new slicks, a new supply of spark plugs, oil filters, fuel filters and the like.  Some of the items were a little more involved.  Like sending the driver restraints off for re-webbing, and having new trailer tie downs made.  We're also gonna pull the the trailer wheels off, re-pack the bearings and look at replacing the springs.  Then there was the puddle under the rear dif! Well looks like we'll be pulling the pumpkin and at least replacing seals.  All in all, it's a pretty light list.

We're getting pretty amped up for the season to start.  Big change- I am going to run D-Gas at ANRA  this year.  D-Gas is a heads up 10.60 class.  It will be fun and challenging to figure out how to get the flying pig to run the 10.60 index in all different conditions.  We're looking forward to it.  Also, the D-Gas class runs off of a .400 pro tree, which is a whole new ballgame for this driver!  So I will (have) start hitting the practice tree hard in preparation.  My first hits on the practice tree were in the .060 range.  We'll see what practice will do to improve that!

In addition, we'll continue to run Pro in the Summit Races at Famoso this year.  Still waiting for the Famoso schedule to hit the website but we do know the ANRA races are scheduled:

SEASON OPENER: APRIL 8-10
•Auto Club Famoso Raceway - Bakersfield, CA.
•Friday April 8: Parking &Tech
•Saturday April 9: Qualifying
•Sunday April 10: Eliminations
•Jr. Dragsters will compete at this event.

SPRING NATIONALS: JUNE 3-5
•Auto Club Famoso Raceway - Bakersfield, CA.
•Friday June 3: Parking &Tech
•Saturday June 4: Qualifying
•Sunday June 5: Eliminations
Jr. Dragsters will compete at this event.

SUMMER NATIONALS: AUGUST 26-28
•Auto Club Famoso Raceway - Bakersfield, CA.
•Friday August 26: Parking &Tech
•Saturday August 27: Qualifying
•Sunday August 28: Eliminations
•Jr. Dragsters will compete at this event.

SEASON FINALS: OCTOBER 7-9
•Auto Club Famoso Raceway - Bakersfield, CA.
•Friday October 7: Parking &Tech
•Saturday October 8: Qualifying
•Sunday October 9: Eliminations
•Jr. Dragsters will compete at this event.

So we have a couple months to get ready, and for once we are way ahead of schedule.  I can thank Dan (Central Coast Autohaus) and Dave "the wrench" Lee for that.  It's a pleasure to have these guys going into another season with me.  It's been too many years since I had a steady and reliable crew, and it's nearly impossible to win races without that support.  It really takes a couple years of working together to get everything to gel, and we are there. So, no excuses this year.  We are gonna put a whippin' on the field.

SLO Racer.  Out.

Videos From Famoso Raceway

Here is a bunch of raw video (Thanks Kenny!) from the last two Summit Races.  The Central Coast Autohaus Flying Pig Mustang was making some sweet runs...in the mid 10.60s to low 10.70s.  We had a blast!  I am working on uploading some video of the last ANRA race where we made a couple changes and pulled off a stellar 10.42 pass!  Stay tuned!
SLO racer. Out.

Final Summit Race of 2010

Well...September 11 and 12 marked the last two Summit Series races for Central Coast Autohaus-Flying Pig Racing.  Having worked our way up to 10th in points at mid-season, before slipping back to 14th, I had high hopes for goin' rounds in the last two chapters and recapturing a top 10 finish. 

A couple days prior, my man Dan at Central Coast Autohaus (above) installed a new pair of Rancho 9-way adjustable shocks in the rear.  According to Calvert Racing these are the recommended shocks to go along with my Caltracs traction bars.  I had been experiencing some wheel hop and spin and "porpoising" on launches.  We set the shocks to the softest setting, theoretically dampening the rebound to decrease body separation to eliminate the crummy launches.  It worked like a charm!

On Saturday we ran a 10.600 first pass, which was the quickest run ever (by about .009), and then followed that up with a 10.587, and a 10.567.  The 60 foot times dropped as low as 1.568 Saturday and a low of 1.552 on Sunday.  When compared to previous runs in similar weather conditions, the benefit of the new shocks works out to over .05 second in the 1/4 mile.  That's a huge gain in quarter mile talk! 

Saturday's first round loss was one of my strangest races ever.  I mean, I have found a million ways to lose a race, but his one was just weird!  I dialed 10.60 vs. his 10.21.  When the lights came down I red-lit by .003, that's 3 thousandths of a second.  So I glanced up at the far end scoreboard and saw the win light on his side.  I proceeded to "run it out the back door" just for fun.  When I stopped at the timing shack and picked up my time slip, I couldn't believe it!  He red lit by .116!  I had run a 10.567, .033 too quick, and he ran a 10.163, .038 too quick.  So, essentially his red light was worse AND his breakout was worse!!  But NHRA rules state "first or worst" when it comes to fouls.  Since a red light is considered a worse foul than a breakout, it is the one that counted,  and since my red light was first, that put me on the trailer!  And that's drag racing in the Summit Pro Class!  On Sunday, I lost in a not-so-close race when I cut a .091 light against his .013.  Giving up .078 at the tree is typically an insurmountable deficit in this type of  racing.  I ran a 10.62, but I could not overcome the difference at the tree and he whipped me by .03.   Not the weekend I was looking for!  But as they say... The worst day drag racing is better than the best day __________ (fill in the blank!)

With that wrapping up the Summit Series at Famoso, and with the Flying Pig team still ready for more, we are looking into racing at the ANRA finals on October 23-24.  We'll run in the "Hot Rod" class, which is pretty much identical to the Pro class in Summit Racing.  Can't wait.
SloRacer. Out.
p.s. don't forget to scroll down and click "older posts" to read more fun stuff!

Central Coast Autohaus sponsors Flying Pig

As we prepare for this weekend's Summit Series Race #5 and 6, Central Coast Autohaus has joined Flying Pig Racing as a sponsor, and we'll be flying their logo on the car.  Autohaus owners Dan and Jamie Hunt are no strangers to gofast endeavors.  Dan has fielded and driven winning cars in several classes on several west coast racing circuits, mostly of the left-turn persuasion.  But after hanging in the pits at the last three Summit races at Famoso Raceway , he's hooked on the drag race scene. 

                                                                   Dan and Jamie

Central Coast Autohaus in Los Osos performs automotive repairs on all makes and models, as well as being a certified Smog Center.  I've been using them for my daily drivers, and last year Dan handled the installation of my new Fauset Racing 557 Ford engine. 

Yesterday he completed installation of new stud girdles on the valve train.  The parts are so pretty I asked if we could come up with some clear valve covers so they could be seen! 

Blue anodized stud girdle.

                              

New tall valve cover for girdle clearance.

In the process of completing routine maintenance last week, Dan also uncovered a faulty master cylinder that was causing drag on the front brakes!  Can't wait to see what the car runs without the front brakes on! 

So we're off to Bakersfield with the best prepped car ever.  I think the flying pig is likely to lay down some stout runs this weekend.  Unfortunately, the weather is going to be pretty darn hot.  The weather gurus are calling for 95 degrees on Saturday, and a blistering 103 on Sunday.  That will hurt performance in two ways.  First, as the temp goes up, the amount of Oxygen in the atmosphere goes down, thereby robbing horsepower.  And 2, Track temps will be pushing 120+ degrees, which can make the track surface really slick.  Not good for traction, therefore reduced ETs.

Regardless, everyone races the same track in the same conditions, so the goal is to be consistent, chop the tree down, and go rounds!

SLO Racer. Out.

San Francisco

Ok. I know I said I would only blog about racing, car stuff, and day trips on the central coast...

Well this was a two-day trip! But we found some really cool new stuff in San Francisco, and what the heck...here goes.

Heading up the coast on Friday, we made the effort to get an early start so that we could knock off a couple things on the to-do list that day. But, first stop- drop off the dogs at 1000 Hills Pet Resort . Yeah you heard me. Check them out. It's the coolest doggy vacation spot yet! The dogs stay in individual "cottages" at night and run wild with all the other mutts all day! I swear, they are so worn out when we get home that they sleep for two days!

So, we rolled into the Marriott on 4th and Market around 1:30 PM, checked in, dropped our junk and took a walk down to the Moscone Center to see the 1904 Charles Loof carousel.

You have to appreciate that all of the true wooden American carousels were carved by just a handful of companies, and all done within a very short (20 year +/-) time frame. After that they began to use some castings along with some wood parts.

This particular carousel was hand carved by the Charles Loof company in 1904, and was bound for S.F. when the big earthquake hit in 1906. So it was re-routed to Seattle where it stayed until 1914. In 1914 it was moved to Playland At The Beach in San Francisco where it operated until 1972. It was then put into storage in Roswell, NM until 1984. In '84 the carousel re-appeared at Shoreline Village in California, and finally was moved to the current site at Yerba Buena Gardens in 1998. Quite an adventure! As you can see, the carousel is an amazing work of art as well as a slice of American History!

Having spent an hour or so reading the history of the carousel and watching countless kids (and a few adults) ride the 100+ year old ponies, we headed off to the Palace Hotel. Keeping with a theme I guess, the Palace was built in the 1800s and re-opened in 1909, having sustained damage in the earthquake of 1906. It's an opulent old world style hotel with an historic bar (which is what was drawing me)! There's a painting of the Pied Piper hanging behind the bar that has been there for, well, a hecka long time. Locals refer to the bar as the Pied Piper Bar, but it actually has another name- Maxfields. Anyway, here's some pics of the Palace...

It's a place worth visiting, and we'll have to look into staying there sometime to get the full experience!

On Saturday we went to the Flower Conservatory in Golden Gate Park.  They were having a special exhibit of man eating plants.  OK, well maybe not man eating...but they really do eat insects and small rodents!  That was cool, but what really fascinated me was their display of tropical forest plants, especially orchids.  Orchids I had never seen before.  Rather than drivel on, here are a bunch of photos.  But if you're ever in San Francisco, I say add all three of these stops to the tour.  Oh yeah, there was also the incredible dim sum at the New Asia Restaurant  in Chinatown, and the incomparable dinner at Maya , (south of market)!  Can't wait to do it again!!

 View from the Marriott

Chinatown

Best Dim Sum in SF

Famoso Raceway May 15th and 16th

Hit the Play button to view video.



Flying Pig Racing had a full weekend of racing. We ran Summit Race #3 on Saturday, followed by the continuation of the rained out Summit Race #2 on Saturday evening, and then Summit Race #4 on Sunday! We had a very successful weekend, winning 5 of 8 elimination rounds and landing a 2nd place in the PRO jackpot race!

Me and Dave "the wrench" Lee were joined in the pits by Dan (Central Coast Autohaus) and Barry, the bald headed, bearded wonders. Let's just call them the "twins".

Here's the wrench trying to figure out what to dial in for round number 3 on Saturday:

Oh wait. Maybe he's just trying to learn how to use his iphone!

Anyway, the twins brought a cooler full of beer and the best damn tri-tip I have ever tasted. As the rumor goes, Barry rubbed his meat for three days to acheive maximum tenderness and thourough flavor! He claims his dry rub recipe is over 100 years old...

On the track we did pretty well, including round wins against a couple of the heavy hitters, namely James Kirkman (currently 4th in points), and Jody George (currently 3rd in points). We're trying to claw our way into the top 10. Getting closer.
The big difference was in my reaction times. In races that are won or lost by a mere couple hundreths of a second, reaction time is everything. I worked the heck out of the practice tree at home the last couple weeks and it paid off in a big way. With the exception of one bad light, which came after my opponent fouled so it didn't hurt me, ALL of my lights were between .005 and .054. In other words, 5/1000 of a second to 54/1000 second from perfect. That and a consistent car, with GREAT dial in advice from the wrench and we were able to put together some great wins!

In June we have ANRA race #2 on the 19th and 20th, and Summit Races #5 and #6 on the 26th/27th. Can't wait!

Random Hot Rod Sighting

You never know where or when you are going to stumble onto a really cool, "never seen it before" hot rod opportunity. So, I try to carry my camera at all times, which never works. It seems that only when I forget the camera, does the opportunity arise! Like when I came out of the Ragged Point Inn resturant and there was a '53 Ford Country Squire "woody" Station Wagon parked right next to my 2010 Ford Flex. The owner of the CS and I both stood there marveling at how similar they were in dimension and utility. Seriously, they were nearly identical in width and length, but the woody had a taller roof line. The Flex has these horizontal lines that cut through the front and rear doors, giving a visual nod to the wood panels, and the bygone era of the woody. It was clear that there had to be some "inspiration" derived from the old wagon when the Flex was born. But I digress...

Today I did have my camera...well I went in the house to get it, because when I got home from my daily dog run, there was this 1936 International pickup in the neighbors driveway! These guys were there to wash the windows! And the rig was their equipment hauler. It was loaded with supplies and had a bunch of ladders on top! I chatted up one of the guys long enough to find out it's got a 318 cubic inch Mopar engine in it, and the proprietor has owned it since high school, some 40 years ago! The wood bed-sides are neatly engraved "Taylor's Window Cleaning 805-225-1515". The look is retro and professional. It is clearly though, a "work truck". Now this is a stylin' window washer rig if I ever saw one. Apparently, it's a family business which has been cleaning windows around the central coast since 1977. Taylor operates out of Morro Bay, and dad, Michael runs the Atascadero operation. They have 3 classic trucks that serve the business. Not a bad way to spend your working hours, eh!