Drag Racing Online - Martin Chronicles

Drag Racing Online brings you a step-by-step series of tech articles on purchasing, building and racing a rear engine dragster. Check back to this site for frequent updates to watch our progress .
Project 4 Link: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5| Part 6

PART 7:

"Project 4-Link" WINS the first IHRA race we enter!"
Well, we have all the parts installed. We have been out for our IHRA and NHRA licensing runs and I entered two local bracket races (managing to get my butt handed to me first round each time). By the way, who was it that said driving the finish line at 160 mph was easy? Sure has fooled me a couple times. I would be willing to bet it won't be the last time I misjudge the stripe either! While I have a "little story" to tell I will also get technical this month as well.

Here is my story of the month. Maybe one of the best memories I will ever have at the drag strip took place in June. It starts with the announcement that the group of owners who purchased Cedar Falls Raceway are planning on completely remodeling the 35-year-old facility (this is really good news when I only live three miles away). Then came the announcement they were sanctioning with IHRA, great news. Then I heard they were hosting an IHRA HCS Points Race at the end of June, WOW! I drove by the track everyday from June 1st until they were done with the concrete work. Which by the way was only five days before the IHRA race was scheduled! I was very excited to see the old place getting the major facelift and be under the guidance of one of the all-time best bracket race promoters in the country, Ron Leek.

They started their new ownership off with a "free" Wednesday night "test & tune" just to get some rubber on the start line. I went down with the "Project 4-Link" thinking there might be fifteen to twenty cars and about 50 people. No advertising had been purchased and no flyers had been mailed out. A picture on the front page of the local sports page is all I had seen that mentioned it. WAS I SURPRISED! One hundred sixty cars and about six hundred spectators, finding a parking spot was the next problem! I have never seen a "test & tune" turn out like that at Cedar Falls Raceway in over fifteen years. What a way to get things going.

Back to "Project 4-Link." I had just installed a Number One Throttle Stop under the King Demon. This was made easier because Number One Stops is owned by my good friend, Gary Heuer, and is located in Cedar Falls, IA; about 15 minutes away. I stopped by his shop and we discussed what I needed and he set me up with a C0-2 controlled Dominator-based stop. Installing it is as easy as putting on a two-inch spacer. We did discover few things that might save you some problems if you install one. First, the Goza scoop tray-mounting plate DOES NOT clear the King Demon throttle linkage. A saber saw and file cured that problem.

The next little snafu was that we had to run three gaskets between the Goza plate and the throttle stop to prevent the Demon's throttle blades from hitting the throttle stop blades. Gary was aware of the problem and told me to use some extra gaskets. I am going to call Demon Carburetors this week and see if we can get a base plate in Gary's hands so he can solve that problem.

Other than that I just had to find a place to fasten the C0-2 solenoid, hook up a wire to the Mega 400 delay box /timer and cut three pieces of plastic line to go from the C0-2 bottle to the solenoid and the cylinder on the throttle stop.

(next page)