Nitro Fuel Altered Dragster

[kenmerc]

I crew on this Nitro Fuel Altered dragster www.venomracing.co.uk/ and this Easter was our first full weekend of racing not only this season but with this car as it was brand new and built last year but we didn't take delivery of it until September and only got in three test runs last year so we are still learning how it reacts, so with that and the rubbish weather and cold track over the Easter weekend we managed to get out for 2 runs Sunday and 2 runs Monday with the first one on Monday making us the fastest Altered all weekend with a 6.5 second @ 221 mph pass which is 3 mph faster than last years Altered top speed, as last season someone clocked a pass @ 218 mph which put us in the final, but unfortunately the car we were up against in the final took a bit longer to stage than us and we were sitting in stage a little bit to long and at about half track we blew a spark plug on cylinder no 5 so had to settle with second place but that's racing, so not bad for our first time out this year and we WILL be the first ever Nitro Altered outside of America to get a 5 second run this season..

 

[verytalldave]

That is simply fabulous.
The sound it makes must shatter eardrums............
Like the colour scheme as well............

 

[stats007]

Just don't get drag racing .

Lovely looking machine though!

 

[kenmerc]

What dont you get.

 

[kenmerc]

That is simply fabulous.
The sound it makes must shatter eardrums............
Like the colour scheme as well............

Your right about the noise,it's not to bad when we are warming it up on Meth but when we feed in the Nitro you need ear plugs and a good gas mask, it's fantastic.

 

[stats007]

What dont you get.

The whole point of going quickly in a straight line...

 

[wemorgan]

fastest Altered all weekend with a 6.5 second @ 221 mph pass which is 3 mph faster than last years Altered top speed,

At that speed I imagine aerodynaimcs are important. Your car looks as if it has a higher drag coeffecient than it needs? Also, is it just the photo or is the engine sitting rather high?

Best of luck in the racing.

 

[wemorgan]

The whole point of going quickly in a straight line...

Sounds like you, me and BlackC55 need to start their own karting team

 

[GordonTarling]

OK, frighten us and tell us just how much Nitro is used for one run? Did you know that the car appears to be eating someone in your second pic? Maybe that's what makes it go so fast!

 

[st13phil]

...fastest Altered all weekend with a 6.5 second @ 221 mph pass

That's quick

I haven't been to watch drag racing at The Pod since the the late 1970's. Back then I was lucky enough to witness both Clive Skilton's first 5-second run outside the USA and also Dennis Priddle's fastest ever slingshot rail 6.03 second pass (everyone in the USA was switching over to rear engine for safety reasons about then). Truly awesome stuff at the time.

Just don't get drag racing .

Have you ever spectated at a Fuel event? I ask because most people that "don't get it" haven't. Years ago, one of the Funny Car racers was asked what was so skillful about driving fast in a straight line. He replied that it was akin to pulling away and driving the most powerful car you could imagine, with bald tyres and a grabbing clutch, up a 1-in-3 hill covered in ice. The sheer explosive nature of Fuel drag racing really does have to be seen at close quarters to be believed.

 

[Uberwagon]

Awesome

Those cars are utterly viscious, much respect to keeping it rubber side down!

Dave!

 

[Niks]

Thats awesome stuff! A friend of mine in LA used to be into drag, I think he had a 426 Hemi block which was majorly overhauled with a blower and everything. Don't know what happened to the car but I remember standing next to it when he switched it on and its the most vicious engine sound I've ever heard.

I'd love to see your drag car in action though

 

[BTB 500]

Spookily I've just been reading a 1982 book on drag racing in the UK ("Quarter Mile" by Steven Myatt). I remember hearing the drag racing at Blackbushe in the mid 70s from several miles away

 

[Niks]

Several miles away? That must have been some sound!

 

[kenmerc]

At that speed I imagine aerodynaimcs are important. Your car looks as if it has a higher drag coeffecient than it needs? Also, is it just the photo or is the engine sitting rather high?

Best of luck in the racing.

Drag coefficient doesn't really play a major part in Drag racing as long as you get good down force, and it's not that the engine is sitting high in the frame, it's because it is just a massively tall engine.

 

[kenmerc]

OK, frighten us and tell us just how much Nitro is used for one run? Did you know that the car appears to be eating someone in your second pic? Maybe that's what makes it go so fast!

At the moment we are running a mix of 88% Nitro & 12% Methanol and we have a 25 gallon per minute fuel pump, and use about 16/18 gallons a run.

 

[kenmerc]

That's quick

I haven't been to watch drag racing at The Pod since the the late 1970's. Back then I was lucky enough to witness both Clive Skilton's first 5-second run outside the USA and also Dennis Priddle's fastest ever slingshot rail 6.03 second pass (everyone in the USA was switching over to rear engine for safety reasons about then). Truly awesome stuff at the time.

I would have given anything to see that.

 

[st13phil]

Apologies, my memory was a little off: it was actually Pete Crane that did the 5.977 run at the Easter 1976 "Spring Nationals", and Skilton went on to win the Top Fuel Final (well, I was there all weekend, and I have consumed a shedload of beer since then...)

Anyway, enjoy the fun as the ITV footage starts off with an interview with Don Garlits:[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/pXWvFUxHAa0&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/pXWvFUxHAa0&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]

 

[kenmerc]

It's official we are now the fastest Altered Dragster outside of America at 221mph (FIA confirmation), 3 mph faster than the Chaos Dragster speed set last year at 218 mph :bannana: