RIEGER GOES 6.50'S IN NMCA PRO STREET
Bob Rieger and his Jerry Bickel-built, turbocharged, small block-powered '57 Chevy coupe continue to thrash the troops in NMCA Pro Street. Rieger won the NMCA Pro Street race at Route 66 Raceway just outside of Joliet, Ill. During actual eliminations he ran a 6.65/210 mph which was a record low elapsed time. Agent 1320 hears that in testing before the race the '57 coupe ran 6.59/215 which would easily set both ends of the class record. The Agent wonders just how quick and fast the '57 might run if Rieger replaced the turbocharged mouse motor with a turbocharged 500-inch rat which, under the current rules is allowable.

IHRA STANDS FAST ON NEW PRO MOD RULES
At the IHRA event held in upstate New York no supercharged Pro Mod qualified in the top half of the field; as a matter of fact, the three cars that made the field qualified at the bottom. The nitrous cars had a clear tenth of a second advantage in performance although a supercharged car did manage to get the final round. Agent 1320 heard that IHRA pres Bill Bader promised the supercharged contingent an adjustment before the race in central Michigan, but as this is being written nothing has been changed. If the weather is as hot and humid in Michigan as it usually is, it is possible a supercharged car won't make the field.

ODDY TO BUILD A NITROUS CAR FOR 2002 SEASON!
Jim Oddy has been racing and winning with supercharged engine powered race cars for nearly forty years and has competed in IHRA Pro Modified with a supercharged car since the class was formed. Now Agent 1320 has learned, Oddy has begun a nitrous engine research and development program with the idea of campaigning a nitrous car in 2001.

"The IHRA rules regarding supercharged engine combinations which make it so difficult and expensive to be competitive, combined with all of the engine and drive-train options available to the nitrous racer, has forced me to at least try to build a nitrous oxide injected engine," Oddy said.

Oddy will finish out the IHRA season with his supercharged combination in the Summit Racing Equipment-sponsored '54 Corvette that driver Fred Hahn has driven to three IHRA National Event victories and the current World Championship points lead.

"We are going to do everything we can to make our supercharged combination competitive the rest of this season and hopefully win the championship for ourselves and our sponsors," Oddy continued.

When asked if he thought he could develop an engine program that would make a nitrous car competitive Oddy answered, "Currently NHRA 500 inch gas burning engines are making over 1300hp and IHRA Pro Stocks are making over 1600hp. The guys building those engines are restricted to gasoline and carburetors. IHRA rules allow me to use fuel injection, burn alcohol as a fuel, and use nitrous oxide injection. I think I can make enough horsepower with those options to be competitive."

According to Oddy, he has been given the go-ahead by his sponsor Summit Racing Equipment to start the new program.

"I've started ordering parts for the new engine already and I've got six months to be ready for next season."