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Coming
Full Circle When
the street-legal drag racing scene began to pick up a head of steam among
grassroots racers in the mid-1980s, it was just what the name implies –
a place for people with street-driven performance cars to strut their
stuff on the quarter-mile under controlled conditions.
Sounds
simple, right? Well, you have to remember that racers are racers, no
matter if they’re driving the family grocery getter or a full-blown,
all-out racing machine. The need to go faster and quicker is just inherent
in their physical and mental make-up. Otherwise, they would have bought an
economical little station wagon instead of the GTO, Charger, Super Sport
or Mach 1 that passed for, however transparently, a daily driver. With
that in mind it isn’t hard to see why the original objectives of the
first organizers of street-legal racing in this country, the National
Muscle Car Association, were soon shrouded in a cloud of burn-out smoke.
Car owners who considered themselves kings of their favorite cruising
spots back home quickly grew dissatisfied with the performance levels of
their hot rods once they were matched up with some of the country’s
biggest hitters. a
d v e r t i s e m e n t Predictably,
what followed was a frenzied rush by many competitors to build faster,
more technologically advanced race cars. Things eventually spiraled out of
control, and before long many of the top classes became the domain of
tube-chassied, full-blown race cars, capable of covering the quarter-mile
is six-seconds at over 200-mph. Naturally, only the most well-heeled among
the racers were able to make the substantial financial commitment
necessary to remain competitive, so many of the people who were originally
lured to street-legal racing simply went back to cruising on the streets.
Recognizing
the fact that the high cost of racing in what were now semi-professional
classes was alienated a large portion of their original racer base,
organizers of street-legal competition made changes to their programs
designed to bring these people back into the fold. Introducing a number of
nostalgia classes eventually proved to be the most effective way to
achieve this goal. Nostalgia Super Stock, Pro Nostalgia and Nostalgia Pro
Street, among others, all soon began to tempt racers back to the track. As
successful as these programs were, however, they were still aimed at cars
that were much more then the average street-driven machine. More classes
were added in later years in an attempt to provide a place to race for the
daily-driven high-performance street car, with the National Street Car
Association’s American Muscle Car being a prime example. Most of these
cars were hauled to the track in trailers, however, and the majority of
them hadn’t seen local boulevards for years. a
d v e r t i s e m e n t All
of which brings us to the subject of this piece. The latest attempt to
bring some truly impressive, legitimate street cars to the track is called
Pump Gas Racing. Simply put, this category of competition is primarily
based on the theory that a car capable of racing on unleaded pump gasoline
is street-legal.
Racing
street-legal cars that run on pump gasoline is considered by many to be
the true measure of a car that can be used for cruising around town or for
general transportation. The dual purpose capabilities of these vehicles
are what make Pump Gas Racing so exhilarating, because it defines the
“king of the street” concept. Those who drive these cars are secure in
the knowledge that they are behind the wheel of the fastest and most
powerful cars on the road. In
2004, Hot Rod Magazine got the ball rolling when they sponsored the first Pump
Gas Drags at Memphis Motorsports Park, which ironically was the place
where the first NMCA event was held back in 1992. On
hand for the inaugural competition were plenty of sub-10-second
quarter-mile machines from around North America. To add credibility to the
fact that the cars involved were true street-driven vehicles, in addition
to counting the average of three elapsed time runs at the track the racers
were forced to endure rush hour traffic on a 32.5-mile road trip. Last but
not least, all cars were limited to 15 gallons of fuel for the entire
event. a
d v e r t i s e m e n t
As mentioned, the premise of the
competition was to bring street-legal cars together to compete for top
honors as Pump Gas Drag Champion. To pull this off, Hot Rod partnered with
the people at COMP Cams, who had put together the original "Fastest
Street Car Shootouts" of the ’80s with the original NMCA. The overall winner of the event was the
Chevrolet-powered machine of Robert Schmitt. His Chevelle logged an
average time of 9.44 seconds making it the winner on the day. Based
on the popularity of the inaugural event, Hot Rod held the 2005 version of
the race. Here, in part, is what they wanted any racers who thought they
had the baddest street machine in the land to be aware of before they
signed on the dotted line. You have
to prove that you've
got a real street car. Not a wimpy daily driver, but a brawler that can
hit the cruise nights and still run a number-a number in the neighborhood
of 10s at least, thanks. Then again, if you're closer to the 7s than to
the 9s, you've got some big talkin' to do to prove that your ride isn't
just a bogus Pro Stocker with headlights. The Pump Gas Drags is all about
bringing reality back to the street-legal drags.
Now another group has jumped into the fray. The
National
Street Car Association put their The Pump Gas Challenge program into place
in late 2005, and already some very impressive numbers have been posted.
Here are some details from the NSCA: The
Pump Gas Challenge is a heads-up drag race series for street legal, high
performance muscle cars that run and race on 94 octane pump gasoline. This
race series is intended to bring back that era when a muscle car owner
could enjoy a great day of drag racing by driving or towing their street
legal car to the drag strip, running down the track and then driving or
towing it home. Pump
Gas Challenge race series is not just about how fast you go; it's about
how you go fast in a street legal car that runs and races on gasoline that
is regularly available nationwide, with a maximum (R+M/2) 94 octane
rating. The Pump Gas Challenge is more than just a race. It’s an attitude with the understanding that the rules and regulations have been designed to maintain the street legal status of high performance cars entering race competition. That means the cars must use street legal gasoline that is regularly available nationwide, with a maximum (R+M/2) 94 Octane rating. This fuel requirement is necessary to demonstrate that the car is capable of driving and racing with gasoline that is street legal and commonly available at regular gas stations.
To further demonstrate their street-legal status, high performance cars wishing to compete in this race series must be capable of participating in a minimum 10 mile cruise, to prove the car can be driven for extended periods on unleaded pump gasoline. This
race series serves as an invitation to all hardcore high performance
enthusiasts to demonstrate the level of performance that they can
ultimately achieve in the Pump Gas Challenge. This is the ultimate
street-legal race that will help to determine the real performance
capability of these pump gas muscle cars.
It will serve to showcase the talent and skill of the owners,
drivers, tuners, engine builders, performance shops and race teams that
are in competition to be the quickest, fastest and victorious in each
class of pump gas racing. When
the NSCA tour rolled into Mid-Michigan Motorplex outside Stanton, Michigan
recently, some super-quick street cars showed up to take a shot at the new
program. Foremost among them was Chicago-based Nick Tucci, who had his
innocent-looking all steel and very real 1969 Chevelle on the grounds.
Tucci’s car was the epitome of the kind of machinery the new class was
designed for, and his performance that weekend was outstanding. Tucci
paced his vinyl-roofed Chevy to a best pass of 9.113-seconds at 148.58
mph. The
Pump Gas Challenge race at Mid-Michigan Motorplex was a true blast from
the past, with real hardcore street machines duking it out for glory and
bragging rights. It was a look back at days gone by as well as a glimpse
into what should become a large part of the future of street-legal drag
racing. |
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© Competitionplus 2005
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