In a couple of days, I will be making my way down to Little River Dragway in Temple, Texas for the Showdown at the River event, which you will be able to watch live here on BangShift. It’s a kind of homecoming for me…back when the track was known as Temple Academy Dragway, I used to race there during my stay at Fort Hood in the early 2000s. In fact, Temple Academy was my first (legal) drag racing experience, ever. And that brings up today’s Question of the Day: do you remember your very first timeslip?
I don’t remember a whole lot about that race…I’m not even sure if it was in late 2002 or early 2003…I do know that I went out with a couple of gearheads from work, Brandon (who had a wicked-up EJ-series Honda Civic) and Dick (known for Mustangs and 300ZXs, but I don’t think he brought out a car that night), I do know that I was the third person to tech in and I do know that in following norms, the Blazer sucked. Badly. It couldn’t have won unless the car in the other lane grenaded the engine, and my luck, that didn’t happen. 16.8 at 85 MPH wasn’t going to turn on a win light at all. That green Civic smoked me. Brandon’s Civic laid me to waste. I’m pretty sure a Mitsubishi Mirage ate my lunch. It wasn’t pretty. And that became par for the course for Temple Academy. My best run ever there was a 17.1@114MPH in my Dodge Diplomat, and that was after I stalled out on the line twice and then did a tire-annihilating launch in anger to try to make up for it. That was my first ever attempt at the quarter-mile in a manual transmission car, in case you hadn’t already guessed.
Those are my stories…now, let’s hear what you did the first time out on the strip! Can’t be any worse than me!
I was 15, crewing for my Uncle Bob in his 11 second 68′ Mustang when my Uncle Steve handed me the keys to his 15 second 69 Mustang convert! I have been going to the drags my whole life and I finally get to drive! Uncle Steve told me to put it in drive and just let it do its thing but no, I pulled it into low, launched the car, shifted to second, all good, (car had a 4.11 diff) then went for high gear and went to neautral! UGHH! I ran 16.40 @ 79 mph. The car would go 15.20 at just over 90 mph. It was embarrassing great at the same time..
Yup, still got it, and every other one too! Muncie Dragway, 1980. Was in the stands jawing with a guy that worked at Norm Day’s Speed Shop. Bought a few parts there so the guy knew what I had. I don’t remember who he knew, but he said I couldn’t beat him by 3 seconds and got us on the track. I ran a17.95 at 81.59 mph only got him by 2 seconds. The time slip is hand written and says “red car” instead of a car number. I managed to knock 6 seconds off eventually.
Yes, and I still remember what a disappointment it was. 19.8 in a slant six Dart. I think I still have the timeslip somewhere.
Island Dragway in NJ was where I made my first pass. My memory is a little fuzzy as to which car it was, my guess was the 68 Camaro conv’t. It was a stripper car, 6 cyl, 3 spd manual, no power anything except the roof!
I still have my original time slips from T.A.D. in ’95; ran high 14’s in a clapped out nova I built. Think I had a total of $500 is the small block in the car
Byron Dragway ( the Playground of Power) in 1978 on my Yamaha RD 125. Ran a screaming 18.75 ET. One of the bulbs was out on the timing display and some drunk dude followed me around in the pits telling people it was a 10 second bike. Fun times.
1993 at Wisconsin International Raceway in Kaukauna, WI, in a \’76 Nova, street car, with a 468 under the hood. Went 13.80@107 with a horrible 2.70 60\’ time due to the radials going up in smoke…. Been hooked ever since.