Why race your supercar

[T Billigen]

Out of curiosity, how many people actually drag race their car at the reunion? [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/dunno.gif[/img]

[SS427]

One other item crossed my mind last night while thinking about this thread. If not for me going to the drags in the 70's and 80's and seeing these cars running, I would not be in the same place I am today and likely would never have gained the interest that I have today. My daughter sees these cars in my shop all the time and when her friends comment on "just a green car with stripes", she informs them exactly what these cars are. She is only 14 and a girl but knows the difference! If we don't let our youth experience these cars, they will never gain the interest and appreciate them. The reason rice burners are sought after ny our youth is because they are everywhere. On the streets, at the shows, at the drags and in the movies.
Rick

[T Billigen]

You are right about that! My son grew up on muscle car stories about my experiences from the sixties, I guess that is why he is a gear head today! He likes to do his thing with his 01 Camaro, he told me he would never want to take the Yenko Camaro down the strip though. "to unsafe" He never really experienced going through the traps at 120mph with slicks that had only 6lbs of air in them! What a ride! [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif[/img] Hey, still waiting to hear how many of you "Super Car" guys drag race them?

[Kim_Howie]

Tom, I raced my 427 nova for 10 years. I also went to Indy Super chevy and raced there. Mick Price, Ray Morrison and Gary Dyer showed cars that year also and NOTHING was announced about any of them. What a disapointment NEVER been back. My 70 ZL-1 will also be raced. I have the best of both worlds, I can go out and race and also show the car. Kim Howie

[Chevy454]

Without going back and looking it up, I'd say we probably average 12 Supercars at the drag strip each year. The cruise drew about double that last year.

It's interesting to see the reactions of different Supercar/Musclecar owners over the years when we bring up drag racing at the track. About 90% of the time you get the "are you crazy!" response...they usually follow this up with how unsafe it is at the track, and how they don't want to tear up their car.

But, let's stop and think about this for a second. How many of the Supercar/Musclecar owners have taken their cars out on the street and ran their cars up to their redlines before shifting, whether it be giving a neighbor kid a ride or just a short jaunt on a lazy Sunday afternoon? I'd say the vast majority. Also, I hear stories (and see pictures on this site!) of owners doing burnouts in the street, parking lot of a show, etc. How is this any different from racing? Answer: it's not. I'd rather do my thing in a controlled environment (ie. drag strip), where you have a miniumum of 30ft. in EACH lane, you don't have to worry about someone pulling out in front of you, you don't have to worry about anything (rocks, liquids, holes, etc.) being in the track, and if worse comes to worse, their is ALWAYS immediate medical personel watching each and every run.

Just curious, Tom: why does your son feel your Camaro is "too unsafe"? Have you scared the bejeezits out of him with a couple of short blasts?! [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[T Billigen]

No, but he scared the hell out me in his car! He doesn't like the steering and the brakes., also he says the steering wheel is to big! Hell, these brakes are great compared to the brake drum GTOs. He went and seen 2F 2F last night. He said they ran the wheels off the Yenko in the movie. There was an article about this car in Motor Trend Magazine: it ran 13.4 at 110mph. Not bad for something they just put together for a movie. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/burnout.gif[/img]

[JoeG]

[ QUOTE ]



I'd rather do my thing in a controlled environment (ie. drag strip), where you have a miniumum of 30ft. in EACH lane, you don't have to worry about someone pulling out in front of you, you don't have to worry about anything (rocks, liquids, holes, etc.) being in the track, and if worse comes to worse, their is ALWAYS immediate medical personel watching each and every run.
-------- On this I agee with you 110%---- I wish we had more adult guidance when I was street racing , some of my good friends would still be with us. ------ [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

[T Billigen]

I would spend 2-3 days a week at the strip and still be down on the Aliquippa Boulevard all night racing! I remember lining up on the toll bridge on the far end and race down thru the toll booth entrance! That poor guy in the booth would almost have a heart attack when he seen us coming at him at 100mph. When your going that fast those entrances seem really small. We would do this just about every Friday nite, I can't believe they did'nt have the cops waiting for us. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/[/img]

[JoeG]

Pretty exiting, but reckless times,--- I was a little younger and full of vinigar.Did some of my street racing on the waterfront-Marginal ST / 1st AVE. B'klyn. --Sometimes 1000 + spectators.GREAT 1/4 mi. stretch, you had to remember where you were and not take the race pass the 1/4 mi. line [ especially if it was close]. You see down at the end of this strip of waterfront were R/R tracks with box cars on them. If you got carried away and stood on the gas too far past the 1/4 line you can bet they would carry what was left away.Unfortunately a few got carried away and the police and fire dept closed the area down. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/[/img]

[Jeff H]

I have no problem with driving a high dollar, rare performance car, but drag racing it at the dragstrip is for the rich and famous. It's easy to say that anything can be fixed or repaired, but no insurance company is going to cover your car that gets damaged going down the strip. Since I'm not one of the rich and famous, you'll never see me running my JL8 down the dragstrip or on a road race course if I have no insurance coverage. I'll drive it on the street where it's covered. I've spent the last 5 years of my life saving money for this car and its restoration. I can see if you are the original owner of a supercar and paid 1969 prices for it and still race it today. That's different if you never plan on selling the car. I'd love to see someone running their original supercar down the track, but it won't be me. This is just my opinion and point of view.