Thread: Top Fuel!!!!!!!

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First exposure to nitro was in 1959[?] up at Montgomery NY drag strip......The man was Don Garlits putting on a show. I believe he set a new ET record on that day in July of 9.73! Camero's do that now a days.......I can recall the tires smoking and the sweet smell of burning fuel as he went by!
I sure do miss the old timers and the things they did for the love of the sport!
It to a big pair of balls to squeeze into the cockpit, sit your butt on a 9 inch and put your feet around the bellhousing of over the limit screaming V-8! Grease, oil fuel and fire possibly flying back into your face! True pioneers.......
But that's just my opinion........
Kolie

Originally Posted by Kolie

First exposure to nitro was in 1959[?] up at Montgomery NY drag strip......The man was Don Garlits putting on a show. I believe he set a new ET record on that day in July of 9.73! Camero's do that now a days.......I can recall the tires smoking and the sweet smell of burning fuel as he went by!
I sure do miss the old timers and the things they did for the love of the sport!
It to a big pair of balls to squeeze into the cockpit, sit your butt on a 9 inch and put your feet around the bellhousing of over the limit screaming V-8! Grease, oil fuel and fire possibly flying back into your face! True pioneers.......
But that's just my opinion........
Kolie

Yup, pioneers for sure!!! and racing wouldn't be what it is today without them. As a sidenote, Garlits still walks with a limp and Jimmy Nix......well let's just say Jimmy didn't have any more kids after the driveline exploded in his slingshot!!! The best cars of the day IMO were the AFX cars and the Altereds, guardrail to guardrail excitement!!!!!

We always started our alky-burning super comp altered with pump gas. Wouldn't start worth crap on methanol. Squirt bottle right into the injectors.

Never ran nitro, but I've been around it a lot. Cars on fuel have that "crackle" that doesn't come from anything else.

Being strapped in the seat of a short wheelbase altered the first time, sitting over the driveline and right behind the motor is a sho-nuff eye-opener. Pure methanol blowing back in your face is no picnic either . . . but when you hit the "Go Pedal" its worth it.

We ran alcohol in our Super Comp dragster but I don't remember any trouble getting it started.

You are absolutely right about the wild ride of a short wheel base altered. I ran one in the early 80's and it was all you could do to keep it between the lines and the wall. We switched to 125" and that made all the difference in the world. When we went to a 230" dragster it just wasn't any fun.

Back in the 80's I did the clutches and rearend maintanence on a top alchohol dragster.

The company I work for sponsored a Top Fuel car for the last 5 years, the driver was Clay Millican. Well after winning his 2nd IHRA Championship. THe Team brought the T/F dragster to our home office and fired it up for the CEO. Well, it was raining that day and they pulled the car into a building so they could make the presentation of the trophy to our CEO.
Well, I was standing there and was watching them spin up the motor befor eturning on the ignition. All of the people around me were edging in closer to see what was going on. The 6000 hp motor fired up and they about jumped out of their skins. I just stood there smiling thinking that you aint seen nothing yet.

Then, they turned on the 2nd pump and switch to Nitro, the old feelings started to come back. The eyes burned, ears rang, chest pounding. I looked around because I knew that a huge Burp was coming. Just as they burped the motor, people were starting to run away as they couldn't handle the fumes and the noise. I just stood there and smiled.

It got this old tired heart a pumping and I had a smile on my face for the rest of the day.

Well, thats about enough of my rambling for now.

Standing between two fuel funnys at launch.....Yowza.....

Originally Posted by techinspector1

Standing between two fuel funnys at launch.....Yowza.....

Richard, the only thing that I can think of that would be better then that is BEING IN THE SEAT of a fuel funny getting ready to launch!!!!!!!!

Originally Posted by Dave Severson

Richard, the only thing that I can think of that would be better then that is BEING IN THE SEAT of a fuel funny getting ready to launch!!!!!!!!

Like I heard one guy say, "I wouldn't get out of the electric chair to drive that thing"

Originally Posted by techinspector1

Like I heard one guy say, "I wouldn't get out of the electric chair to drive that thing"

Now thats funny!

Originally Posted by techinspector1

Like I heard one guy say, "I wouldn't get out of the electric chair to drive that thing"

Good one Richard!!! But I'd still love to be in the seat!!!! Heck, I drove 85" wheelbase sprinters and lived through it with....well, some damage!!! I should be able to get at least half track before the wall slappers commence!!!!!