don_w

1/8-Mile Drags, Barona, January 27, 2007

This turned out to be a pretty good day at the track. While the weather was a little warmer and much more comfortable than it was 2 weeks ago, the track was hooking well. The density altitude ranged from a low of 1,729’ up to 2,523’. Also, there weren’t too many cars there. In about 5 hours, Donna and I managed to get in a total of 23 runs. I guess we got our money’s worth today!

Since the DA was about 1,000’ feet higher than it was two weeks ago, I expected the car to run mainly in the 7.20s, with maybe a couple 7.1x’s. I definitely didn’t think the air was there for any chance at any new personal bests. But, I ended up being wrong. Both Donna and I each set our own all-time personal best ETs… Donna ran 7.108 and I went 7.084!! The 7.084 is the quickest run this car had ever made!!

Here are the videos from Saturday, January 27 at Barona. The vids marked with the asterisks (**) are my favorites.

Video #1, Time 10:04 am, DA = 1,729 ft:
Donna got things started by facing off against a very quick ’65 Chevy. Her 7.198 @ 97.403, 1.634 60’ was a good first run, but no match for his 6.585 @ 103.599, 1.446. At this point, I figured her 7.19 was going to be tough to beat because the air was as good as I expected it to be at 10:00 in the morning, but the 7.19 didn’t stand up for too long.

**Video #2, Time 10:09 am, DA = 1,832 ft:
Donna’s second run turned out to be an excellent heads-up race against a late 60’s Camaro. Even though he went red by 0.064, Donna cut a killer 0.006 light, and tracked him down. Her 7.132 @ 97.862, 1.608 was (at the time) her all time best ET, and it was enough to drive around the Camaro’s 7.294 @ 96.693, 1.631.

**Video #3, Time 10:17 am, DA = 1,786 ft:
Donna’s next run was against the same Camaro. And the results were very similar. She ran 7.152 @ 98.458, 1.620 to his 7.296 @ 96.618, 1.622. So much for my guess that we wouldn’t see too many runs below 7.20s. haha.

**Video #4, Time 10:26 am, DA = 1,788 ft:
Now it was my turn. I was up against a late model Firebird (basically stock), and he had a great view of what turned out to be the all-time best run my car has ever made. Seriously, I didn’t think the weather conditions were there for a 7.0 run, but sure enough, I stopped the clocks at 7.084 @ 98.113, 1.551, beating my previous best of 7.094. I don’t think Donna was particularly happy when she saw the number on the scoreboard… hehe. And even though my 60’ time was pretty good (2nd best ever at the time), it wouldn’t be the best of the day… more on that later. The Firebird ran 9.058 @ 80.352, 2.124.

Video #5, Time 10:30 am, DA = 1,853 ft:
My next run wasn’t nearly as good. I had a solo pass and it only ran 7.224 @ 96.178, 1.606. I’m not sure what happened, but I was hot-lapping and this run was only 4 minutes after the last one. Maybe there was just a bit too much heat in it.

Video #6, Time 10:38 am, DA = 2,044 ft:
Even though the DA was rising and my 60’ wasn’t as good as the previous run, it still went a couple ticks quicker. I was up against the same Firebird I had raced earlier, and I ran 7.199 @ 97.527, 1.623 to the Pontiac’s 9.207 @ 80.059, 2.238.

**Video #7, Time 11:07 am, DA = 2,020 ft:
Now it was time for Donna to lay down a killer pass! First of all, she clicked off the best 60-foot time my car has ever run (1.545! WOW!), and then laid down her personal best ET ever… 7.108 @ 98.309!! My view of the scoreboard was blocked a little, so it took me a couple seconds to see it. She was oh-so-close to a 7.0 pass!! The Corvette in the other lane managed a 9.204 @ 74.693, 2.069.

Video #8, Time 11:13 am, DA = 2,074 ft:
Six minutes later, Donna staged up against a very fast ’69 Camaro on nitrous. This Camaro is capable of mid-6 sec runs, so something wasn’t right on this pass. Donna over-powerbraked it at the line, causing the tires to break loose and spin coming out of the hole, killing her RT and 60’ time. She ran 7.315 @ 97.875, 1.716 to the Camaro’s 7.101 @ 104.749, 1.831.

Video #9, Time 11:25 am, DA = 1,905 ft:
My next run was against our friend Rich in his stock ’06 Vista Blue. Rich apparently used up his clutch on this run, and had to quit for the day. His trap speed tells the story there. I managed a 7.212 @ 97.039, 1.605 to his 9.342 @ 68.851, 2.067.

Video #10, Time 12:29 pm, DA = 2,314 ft:
During the hour-long lunch break, the DA climbed several hundred feet, so our chance for any more really good runs was over. On this run, I was up against that bottle-fed ’69 Camaro Donna had raced earlier. Except now he made he a screaming pass. My 7.224 @ 94.378, 1.606 was no match for his 6.456 @ 108.877, 1.523. I even tried to cheat by going 0.090 red. haha.

**Video #11, Time 12:35 pm, DA = 2,332 ft:
On this run I was up against an old classic Coupe DeVille. But this is not your father’s Cadillac! This one has a huge 6-71 blower on it… plus a little nitrous to boot. I grabbed better than 2/10 on the tree (0.076 vs 0.285), but it wasn’t enough to hold him off. He used all that horsepower to drive around me, and won by 0.145 sec. I ran 7.179 @ 96.469, 1.575 to his 6.825 @ 106.653, 1.691. But, it was a fun race.

Time 12:43 pm, DA = 2,280 ft:
I managed to screw up the video completely on this run, but Donna ran 7.352 @ 96.692, 1.701. The fiberglass-bodied ’69 Mustang race car (with a 900hp 427 cid motor) in the other lane, ran an amazing 5.851 @ 118.302. C’ya!

Video #12, Time 12:54 pm, DA = 2,312 ft:
Donna next lined up against an old Nova, and she easily outran him. She ran 7.253 @ 97.593, 1.655 to his 8.163 @ 85.200, 1.868.

Video #13, Time 1:00 pm, DA = 2,343 ft:
Donna faced the same yellow Vette she had raced earlier, and the results didn’t change much. Even though he left way early and she was way late. Donna ran 7.296 @ 97.131, 1.678 to the Chevy’s 8.922 @ 77.859, 2.079.

**Video #14, Time 1:26 pm, DA = 2,375 ft:
On this run, I was paired up against our friend John in his new ’07 Vista Blue. Other that ET Street tires, it was bone stock. I cut my best reaction time of the day, 0.006, and ran a 7.191 @ 97.642, 1.611 against John’s 9.279 @ 77.188, 2.156.

**Video #15, Time 1:29 pm, DA = 2,355 ft:
Even though this run was just 3 minutes later, the car ran about the same. I was racing John again, and he decided to leave way early (-0.602 red) hoping to make the gap at the end closer. It didn’t work… but it was funny!! He jumped out on me, but I pretty much had him caught by the 60-foot cone. I ran 7.200 @ 97.047, 1.614 to John’s bogging 9.504 @ 75.432, 2.237.

Video #16, Time 1:34 pm, DA = 2,395 ft:
Even hot-lapping it (just 5 minutes later), the car showed some serious consistency. After running a 7.191 and a 7.200, it came right back and ran 7.198. I was happy that the car ran so consistent back-to-back-to-back. The numbers were 7.198 @ 97.244, 1.602 against the Camaro’s 8.282 @ 90.452, 2.115. It’s always fun beating a Camaro down the track!

**Video #17, Time 1:49 pm, DA = 2,523 ft:
On this pass, Donna was up against an old Vega with a big block motor on nitrous. For the video, I positioned myself even with the Christmas tree, so I could get a nice frontal shot of Donna’s launch. This was another good race, with Donna getting edged out on a holeshot. She ran 7.244 @ 97.185, 1.644 to the Vega’s 7.350 @ 96.098, 1.757.

Video #18, Time 1:55 pm, DA = 2,492 ft:
This time it was Donna’s turn to race the Firebird. She ran 7.352 @ 97.219, 1.712 against his 9.190 @ 80.559, 2.273.

Video #19, Time 1:58 pm, DA = 2,399 ft:
Three minutes later, Donna made this solo pass. She had a great reaction time, 0.006… her second 0.006 of the day!! She ran 7.338 @ 97.725, 1.708.

Video #20, Time 2:35 pm, DA = 2,323 ft:
My next run was against John again. No funny business on the tree from John this time. I ran a 7.270 @ 95.502, 1.596 to his 9.199 @ 77.644, 2.131.

Video #21, Time 2:39 pm, DA = 2,323 ft:
My 11th and last run of the day was a solo pass. I ran 7.253 @ 97.114, 1.617.

Video #22, Time 3:10 pm, DA = 2,297 ft:
Donna’s 12th and last run of the day was against John. She also ran her slowest pass at 7.359 @ 97.236, 1.665. John ran 9.309 @ 76.863, 2.181.

70MACH1OWNER

As always Don...Love the vids of your drags racing. Must be nice to run all year round.
Scott

GRAYPNY

Great vids Don! Pretty soon Donna is going to lay down a faster time than you.

freebass55

Good vids, Don. Your car is a beast.

don_w

Thanks guys!! We love racing and we like capturing it all on video. Maybe it's because we "old folks" like to sit around and watch "home movies" hehe

The car is an absolute blast to drive at the track. I think Video #4 captures it pretty well. Donna's camera work and position gives a good perspective. The Firebird in the other lane runs about what a stock 05+ Mustang would run (give or take a couple tenths).




She's already done that before. Back in September, she set the car's best ET at 7.181. It took me a couple weeks to beat that (7.155). Now, I'm managing to stay one step ahead of her. haha. Seriously, she is 100lbs lighter than me, so she should run quicker. Once she gets her 60' times down on a regular basis, I expect her to run quicker.

tom281

Pretty cool stuff Don. Question- can you point me in the right direction to find out exactly what DA is, how it effects your run, and how to measure it.

Thanks,

Tom

don_w

Here is a scientific definition: http://wahiduddin.net/calc/density_altitude.htm Bottom line... the lower the DA, the better the air.

In practice however, you need to know the track elevation, ambient air temp, barometric pressure and dew point. If you know those, use this site: http://wahiduddin.net/calc/calc_hp_dp.htm. I get my weather data for this track from here: http://www.wunderground.com/weathers...y=27&year=2007

tom281

Thanks Don, that link to the site for calculation kicks a$$!!

Thanks again,

Tom

don_w

A couple weeks ago, there was a film crew on hand at the track doing a PR video for RaceLegal. As part of the video she was making, the lady interviewed me and then I took her for two runs down the track. On the first run, she just had the camera in my face. On the second, she pointed it out the front window. But in the edited video, she merged the two and it looks like one run. Here is a link to the full video: YouTube - Street Legal EP#2

freebass55

Haha, look at Don the t.v. star.

Now, what does pr video mean exactly?

jp's performance

looking good old man J/K.donna is getting close to that 6.9,congrats nice videos

don_w

PR = public relations



jp's performance --> <-- don_w

freebass55

I know public relations, but is that all it's gonna be used for? Kinda looks like it set up for a small segment on a t.v. show.

don_w

I haven't heard about any other use for the footage, but we'll see I guess.

SixtySix

Look's like perfect fodder for the KFMB morning show, or channel 69 promoting Race Legal in San Dog. What you really need is a 1/4 mile track down there. Can't they make Barona a little longer

don_w

Bah... don't get me started on the lack of 1/4-mi tracks here in SoCal.

And Barona has no room to expand. As it is now, the sand trap and catch net are right on the edge of a 40 foot cliff. If a car made it through the sand and net, it would plummet into a canyon!!

06GTwJUICE

Sounds to me like race legal needs to move. It wont take but one car to go over and it's bye bye race legal.

We need more 1/4 mile tracks... this whole parking lot 1/8th is silly.

don_w

Don't confuse RaceLegal and Barona. They are two different tracks.

RaceLegal (the parking lot at Qualcomm Stadium) caters more to street cars (including a slew of imports). They have a minimum ET there of 6.0... run faster and you get booted. There aren't many cars there that run in the 6's. And since most cars there are street cars, 9's and 10's are the most common ETs. I agree a parking lot is silly, but it is what it is. What the heck... I'll still run there.

On the other hand, Barona is more for trailered race cars, with a handful of street cars (such as mine). They hardly ever have any imports there. And I've seen some sick cars run there, including alcohol dragsters and funny cars running in the sub 5-second zone. In fact, a couple years ago, I watched a funny car as his chute deployed late. He hit the sand and only the net saved him from going over into the canyon. But, he was also on a 4.50-second pass too! My wife and I had just walked up to the very end of the track right before his run, so we were right there on the scene. I snapped a few pics just as it happened... a few of them are attached. You can clearly see what I mean about the next stop being a canyon!




.

SixtySix

Yikes! I wasn't aware of that!

06GTwJUICE

that definately doesnt look safe.. and that the first time i saw a picture of the track....