Projects DRAG SNAKE "Vintage Terror!"

AND...while we were there, I had to toss a guy out of my tent (TWICE)! You guys will appreciate this. Zoe is already looking towards the next build (personally I am too). But anyway she has been looking at some of the early female racers and thinks we should build a tribute car to one of them and SHE would drive it. I think that is a really cool idea.

So she has sort of narrowed it down to Shirley Shahan (the Drag-on-Lady) and one of her Mopars,
Connie "Bunny" Burnett and her Mustang or Barbara Hamilton and her timeless Willy's Gassser.



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Well we have been talking about it now for a while and the morning of the show, with little else to do, the topic was floating around the tent. After a bit, Zoe and I decided to go look around the show. When we got back Dad was all excited because while we were gone, a guy was looking at the Cobra. Somehow in the conversation, it came out that he built and even owned a couple of Shirley Shahan's Cars. Dad told him what we were thinking about doing and that Zoe would sure be excited to talk to him; he promised to drop back by.

So there we set maybe an hour or so later when he came back to the tent. He asked if we were the ones that were interested in building a Shahan tribute car. I said we were thinking about it. He said he built the AMC Hornets, two of them for Shirley and had owned one of them etc. I said that is really cool, but we are actually thinking about one of the early MOPARS. He said, "What!?" Why would you build one of them, Shirley didn't do anything with them, it was the Hornets where she really made a name for herself. It was obvious he was bias to the AMC units and I can understand why.

I said well we wouldn't be able to race the Hornets because they are too new. Most vintage race events hold a cut off of around the mid 1960s. That made him angry and he said look, let me tell you how you build a tribute car! Standing directly behind the Dragsnake! LMAO. He said you pick the car that the driver was most famous for and that is what you build. I said well personally until you came in the tent, I didn't even know she drove a Hornet! (I mean lets get right to point here, right?!)

I knew she drove an AMX but if you Google her right now you will see her standing in front of a Plymouth! He said that's bullshit, you have no idea what the hell you're doing and I am finished talking to you. I said good, get the f@#k out of my tent. He started to walk away and then turned around and came back in. He said if you were going to build a tribute car for Shirley Muldowney what would it be. I said a '62 Vette or one of the mid year Stingrays. He laughed and said you are so stupid, Shirley Muldowney never drove a Corvette. I stood up and suggested again, in no uncertain terms he leave the tent.

As he walked away, he said I am going to look Shirley up on the internet and prove she never drove a Corvette, he called me a dumb shit and stomped away. So about 30 minutes go by and I look up and here he comes headed to the tent, Zoe pointed him out. I am thinking surely (SHIRLEY) he is not coming back! I was wrong. He walks in and said he has looked all over the internet and called several people and I simply did not know what I was talking about. Shirley Shahan never drove a Corvette! I said I know that. We weren't talking about Shahan, you asked what car I would build for Shirley Muldowney and I told you. I added while you were gone, I looked up her Hornets and I wouldn't build one of those ugly ass cars if it was the only car she ever drove! That basically ended of our conversation. The only thing left for him would have been to take a swing but he didn't have it in him. I sat back down and he stomped away again.

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In all my years at events, I have never had anything like that happen. Zoe just sat there and laughed. I think Dad was about to crawl under the Cobra. We had a few other folks sitting in and around the tent and they all agreed that was the craziest thing they had ever witnessed. LMAO!

 

Some people's kids!

 

I got the mag back for my dragster and if I can get a new blower belt in time i am planning on bringing it to make a pass I have already put my afx to bed for the winter and it’s a lot of work to get it prepped for racing again either way if you go let me know I’ll come help

 

Will do. Thanks

 

I vote Mopar, after all, it's always a "Dodge", isn't it?

 

If randall and Zoe want to go fast they will have to step up and build a mopar lmao

 

I think that Drag Snake is too scary to drive over fairground speeds. Better just keep showing it.

 

In all my years at events, I have never had anything like that happen. Zoe just sat there and laughed. I think Dad was about to crawl under the Cobra. We had a few other folks sitting in and around the tent and they all agreed that was the craziest thing they had ever witnessed. LMAO![/QUOTE]

Meth head!

 

Randall,Zoe, I'm voting for the Willys, put a Hemi in it and make the MoPaR kids happy. I can't build the body for this one for you, But A+C cars outta Buffalo NY make a real nice body/frame that will get you going qwikly and won't break the bank.

 

Well we are still planning on Mokan tomorrow. Been a busy morning. We had to knock my semi retired performance shop owner out if bed this morning to get a union to put my two 3AN braided lines together and plumb around the pedal adjuster.

In the process we found I really did break the header back when we had the trailer incident. It had burned through the wrap and was pretty obvious once we got under there with some light. So we took it off, welded it up, rewrappedsnd got it back on before lunch.

 

I would include Judy Lilly "Miss Mighty Mopar" in your famous women racers list. Shouldn't be to tough to clone a 1968 Hemi Barracuda.

 

Snake Oil lol

My vote is for a blown sbc Willys, so she can kick the snot out of the Snake

 

Well here is the MONEY SHOT we've all been waiting for! AND...I might ad the new cover photo on my hero cards. Zoe said I still have about 600 of the original cards still in the box, but who the hell cares, she hung'em high yesterday at MOKAN and we still can't wipe the stupid grins off our faces!

 

We’ve seen pictures of the front on jack stands before, many times. Why the new one?
Just kidding! Cool, but the important thing did it make it down the track and what does the time slip have to say. Did you pee a little when the front came up? Congratulations!

 

And now as Paul Harvey used to say, here is the rest of the story:

So we started out Saturday morning early with plans of simply plumbing around the pedal adjuster and bleeding the clutch. As I said earlier, it just felt mushy up top and didn't really release anything until a millisecond before the pedal hit the firewall. Of course a 3AN Union is not something you are going to find at the local auto parts store. We tried none the less but ended waking up a good buddy, semi retired performance parts store owner etc. etc. etc.

In process, as I alluded to earlier we also discovered the header we bent AND unbent as the case would have it really was damaged. I had listened the entire time for a weld breaking etc. but none of my welds broke! It did however simply ripped a section of the 3" down tube. It was not what we wanted to do but we removed the header and welded up the tear. We rewrapped that section and by lunch time had it back on the car.

We took care of the clutch plumbing and re-bled the system. The pedal felt really good not mushy at the top etc. So We headed to the driveway to a couple of test launches. As soon as I got in the car I could tell we had not made much of a change. With the clutch pedal down you could feel it shift into the first or reverse. Not a grind at all just a bit of momentary movement, barely detectable but there none-the-less. I backed it out and it was even more obvious. My driveway has a grade to it from the street back to the shops. Not a lot but enough that a car will certainly roll etc. With the car in first, it just sat there. Not moving forward at all but NOT rolling backwards. I pulled it to neutral and it started a slow roll backwards. Back in first and it held.

I pulled it back in the shop, fairly frustrated with it. After some somber contemplation...(oh lets be real here) after a pretty good session of tool throwing...I decided to adjust the pedal. LOL. I increased the throw by about and inch and tried it again. This time there was no little movement when I shifted it and in the driveway, in first with clutch depressed, it rolled backwards.



We made a couple of half hearted launches above, only about 4 grand as we had company over and their cars were in the upper half of the driveway etc. But it felt pretty good and we figured we were good to go for MOKAN the next day.

 

What an amazing November day Sunday was here in the Ozarks. It was nearly 60 degrees and we were not the only folks with the idea of hitting the track for a bit a post season test n tune. There were 150 cars there so we knew right off the bat we were going to have limited test runs. Someone asked me if were just going to ease into today or hammer it off the trailer. I said we are going to hammer it! He said that a boy! LMAO.


We decided to allow a few cars down the track but got to visit with family that showed up to watch. Check out Zoe there in her Carroll Shelby Hat. LOL. We hung out for about 45 minutes or so and then decided to go get in line and make our first pass.


We got really lucky. It must have been the row I backed out into's turn to run because we rolled right up to the line and in a few minutes made our first pass. I cleaned the slicks and put a bit of heat in them and then rolled to the lights.


I ran it up to about 5 grand and dropped the clutch. It pulled really hard but then unloaded the suspension immediately. I let off and hit again and it did the same thing. Here is the launch in slow motion so you can really see it. Hit so hard it opened my door...LOL!



AND...as if that was not bad enough, after it finally smoothed out a bit, I tried to grab second and nothing, I could not pull it back into gear. I had to let off and double clutch it like an old dump truck. It did the same thing in 3rd gear and consequently laid down the ET of an old dump truck. BUT! It went down and it came back.

Dad was talking about how bad it unloaded the suspension but I was more concerned about shifting it. After all it doesn't matter how well it launches if you can't grab second. LOL I made a few more turns on the clutch pedal throw and actually gave it about an additional inch and half. I got in and to be honest it felt different, I could hardly get it to the floor. So after she cooled a bit and I had a track burger we gave it another shot.


It did the same thing off the line but it SHIFTED! Of course with the suspension unloading at the start and then again after a good second gear shift I lost the RPMs and we just ran it out. It ran 13 seconds at 103 and we were only at 4 grand in 3rd gear when we went through the traps. BUT...it went down and it came back AGAIN!

It was getting late and staging lanes were going to close in about 30 minutes. I decided to take a swing at the suspension. The QA1 shocks front and rear are fully adjustable both compression rate and rebound. We have never touched them, they are on the car as the came out of the box. I got semi under the rear with my phone to see the dials. Jackson and I were talking and both agreed we should slow the rebound down a bit. Because as you saw. It really looked like it was just bouncing on the springs with no shocks. I grabbed the R button and it was all the way to the left so I started clicking it off and counting them. I stopped turning it at like 14 clicks. I backed it back down to just 7 and then did the same on the other side. We also went from 20 pounds in the slicks to 15.


With the sun going down quickly we gave it one more try through the burnout box and up to the line.


I ran it up to about 5500 and side stepped the clutch.


And she launched like a rocket ship. To be honest it really surprised me. I mean the Austin always left wheels up, and I have felt like we might get a little daylight with the Cobra but nothing like this. I didn't consciously let off but between the hard launch and holding a hair trigger to abort any of these test runs if something felt strange, I did. She came back down just as quick as she went up. I lost the RPM again had to regroup and go chase the little altered all over again after 60'.



But we left with a car that went down three times and came back three times. AND for us that an accomplishment in itself. LMAO! We learned a lot too. We got the car to shift and we certainly figured out how to launch it. For me I have to learn how to drive it. I am so used to the instant RPM of a supercharged injected big block that I have a bit of a curve here to overcome.

I will tell you this. We never got the car out of 3rd gear and we ran 105 mph on the last run. If I had kept my foot in it through that launch I think she was set for one killer pass. It's a process you know, one step at a time. But even after three runs I am feeling very comfortable in the car. It goes straight. Even through the bouncing, it was still going straight. It has a ton of horse power and really good brakes. It has been a long time coming but I am very happy with it. I think I am even more excited to get back to track now than I was before.

 

First off... I'm glad someone is still calling Paul and making him wrap himself up in a phone cord. (An assumption on my part, but I'm betting big on it.)

Second... It has been quite the run to get to here. I've really enjoyed following along. Congrats on getting that rocket off the ground!

 

But outside of the accomplishments with the car, the best part of the day was getting back to the track and hanging with friends and family.


There is Dad, whom my mother and the rest of the family can never get to smile for photos! LOL


Legendary Racer and Member of The Southwest Missouri Drag Racing Hall of Fame. Ken Zellers giving some advice in the staging lanes. Now here is a guy you want to listen to...


This guy here...not so much! LMAO


Does it look like Jackson is kneeling down? You know doing the whole I am unworthy gig. LMAO.
Actually I think he is showing me (although he didn't make any amazing passes in his dragster that he still outran the Cobra but about this much)! LOL


Jackson trying to dust a few cobwebs off the front engine dragster.

 

Very happy for you.

 

Hell yeah!

Congratulations

Cheers,
Harv

 

Really glad it is getting there for you! Thanks for the ride! Gary

 

Congratulations she is Not Just a show car anymore

 

120 pages and it finally made a few successful runs down the track! Congratulations! It sure looked purtty with the wheels in the air!

 

Randall I sure am glad you made some good strides with the cobra I call yesterday a good day all around at the track everyone who was there made good passes and got good tuning runs in my digger didn’t run what I wanted it to but I made a good dent in the tune and now I know where I need to start for next year I wish I had a film crew like you did because you can learn a lot from simple videos like you had

 

How long is Mocans open for this season

 

Two more Sundays, weather permitting.

 

Congrats! Very promising first passes, so good to see you finally had some track fun after all the hard work and issue tackling. Thumbs up!

 

WHEW I thought we might be in for another austin bunny hop saga. Looks GREAT so in honor of this auspicious occasion I'm wearing my DRAG SNAKE T Shirt around the house proudly.

 

It is kind of funny. I was dropping photos yesterday of friends and family at the track on this thread. Last night I started looking for a shot of Zoe. I realized she took all of the photos and videos etc. When Jackson mentioned my film crew he was talking about her.


She was behind the scenes all day long and not just taking photos. She helped load and unload the car, helped get it and me ready to race each round. She was a total behind the scenes organizer and one reason things went pretty smoothly (at least off the track) LOL!


She helped get me strapped in and window net up and locked in place. She also had to help me start the car each time as I had to temporarily move my neutral safety switch. With all the trouble with the clutch pedal etc. I moved it up to the bottom of the steering column for this test and tune session. However after getting strapped in realized I couldn't reach the stupid thing! LMAO!


I told you she got herself a Carroll Shelby hat! LOL

 

She wore that hat very proudly I must say lol