Landracing Forum
Bonneville Salt Flats Discussion => World of Speed-specific stuff => Topic started by: m610 on October 06, 2014, 07:36:11 PM
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This was our second time to the salt in our Corvette-themed Opel road racing car, having come just for the fun and the experience. We run in the 150 MPH Club event even though there is no way we'll get to 150, but it is a 2 mile run and that's more fun than 1 mile. Anyway, I wrote it up so fellow LeMons racers and Opel fans could be made jealous enough to come out next year.
So, for a tale of life in the slow lane, on the short course -- Bonneville 2.0 (http://teamtinyvette.kstreetstudio.com/files/library/Blitz-2014-04-Bonneville.pdf)
Mike
P.S. Supposedly there was going to be a ChumpCar contingent at this event but none of them showed up.
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Thank you very much for that report. Enjoyed it all.
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Thanks.
It's probably not the story many of you would tell, although some elements might be familiar.
Oh, and some typos are more fun than others. I took care of the "4000 mph" typo in the caption under the photo of the Black Salt car.
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I enjoyed your tale m610, you gave a true sense of what it feels like to be there. :cheers: :cheers: :cheers:
I sense that you may have become addicted. :roll: :roll: :evil:
Pete
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Nice story. The caption on page 41 photo is 50% correct.
DW
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Perfect for the New York Times! :evil:
Mike
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Nice story. The caption on page 41 photo is 50% correct.
DW
Help me out with it. I was writing that part from memory of what people standing near the cars were telling me.
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Perfect for the New York Times! :evil:
Mike
I could be talked into a revision just for the Times. ;)
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It looks alot like Seth Hammond's single engine lakester.
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The car pictured is the Seth Hammond lakester. The car is single engine(Chevy) and rear wheel drive. The part about Seth putting family members and friends in the car for records is correct. Seth, wife Tanis, daughter Tegan and son Channing are all 300 chapter members. Other team members are either 300 chapter or 200 MPH club memebrs.
The twin engine car you refer to is more than likely the Danny Thompson four wheel drive streamliner that qualified at 419 for a record. The car lost a clutch on the next mornings backup run, no record.
AS someone said, your caption is good enough for those that read the NYT, not for us though.
DW
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The car pictured is the Seth Hammond lakester. The car is single engine(Chevy) and rear wheel drive. The part about Seth putting family members and friends in the car for records is correct. Seth, wife Tanis, daughter Tegan and son Channing are all 300 chapter members. Other team members are either 300 chapter or 200 MPH club memebrs.
The twin engine car you refer to is more than likely the Danny Thompson four wheel drive streamliner that qualified at 419 for a record. The car lost a clutch on the next mornings backup run, no record.
AS someone said, your caption is good enough for those that read the NYT, not for us though.
DW
Many thanks.
It needs to be correct. I'll fix it.
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Thanks for sharing! Good read! :cheers:
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Fixed it, and thanks all for the input. I'll let you know if the Times calls. ;)
My first trip to Bonneville was in 2012. We ran well until we burned a hole in a piston. As a result we had to miss our race the following weekend. It took a while, and one more motor, and one more missed race, and retiring after 5 laps at the next race, to figure out what we had done wrong. Apparently 11.5:1 compression ratio on pump gas is OK when using a wheezy downdraft carburetor, but put side-drafts on it, and boom. We didn't realize at the time that it was an 11.5:1 head. The motor was built, on the cheap, using spare and donated parts. So that is the disaster we were hoping to avoid this time, and we did.
After the 2012 event I became editor of this newsletter, and in my first issue I did stories on all the Opels I could find that had run at Bonneville, including Bill Ward, Ken Lindebak, the Black Diamond Racing guys, the Berkeley that has an Opel GT-derived nose on it, plus of course our story. If interested, I can upload those. (I sent Ellen a printed copy of that issue.)
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Here's an Opel that I drove for the Buick dealer in Livingston,Montana. This was taken at Lewistown, Mt. [About 1968]. Won Jr. Stock Eliminator. Everybody had to spot me about half the track and they just couldn't catch that little 1.9 L. Fun times.
Doug :cheers: :cheers: :cheers:
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I didn't realize they were winning at the strip. There are tales of the SCCA in effect banning them from the Showroom Stock class soon after they came out. As some people put it, they were winning every weekend. They had good power, half decent aero, and much a better suspension than the GT. The then new Ford Capri, which everyone had high hopes for, was getting beat every time. (I'm working on that story, too. ;) )
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m610 that was one of the GREATEST stories I have ever read! a fantastic account of a low budget shot at bonneville.
I used to race a pinto at riverside occasionally and the biggest thorn in my side was a guy with an opel kadett. (but! i was always a quarter panel ahead!)
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You're making me blush. (Maybe I should send the story to the NYT. ;) )
Those little cars can be feisty.
We're racing against a Pinto these days and it is getting faster. It was built by the guys that built the Model T GT (using parts for an abandoned Model A and Model T), so I call it the Model P GT.
That magical 2.4L motor may actually appear, and if it does, we'll come back and try again.
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Nice story and article. Sounds like you have a lot of fun with the car at various events.
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Thanks, and yea, we've sure gotten our money's worth out of this car (15 races, over 10,000 race miles, and 2 trips to Bonneville), unless you count up how much money we've actually spent on the car.
Oh, and a month on display at the Sacramento Auto Museum, a (botched) parade lap at an IndyCar race, and this weekend on display at the Sacramento International Auto Show.
(https://scontent-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfp1/t31.0-8/p480x480/1978587_978960952118062_1244543012795173507_o.jpg)
P.S. I sent the story to the NYT. Can't hurt and who knows.
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Here's an Opel that I drove for the Buick dealer in Livingston,Montana. This was taken at Lewistown, Mt. [About 1968]. Won Jr. Stock Eliminator. Everybody had to spot me about half the track and they just couldn't catch that little 1.9 L. Fun times.
Doug :cheers: :cheers: :cheers:
That would be at least 1971 as that was the first year the Opel Manta was sold in the US. Opel's are near and dear to my heart as my first car was an Opel Manta Rallye like the one in your photo (except mine was blue). I'd love to have one of those today.
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This was a great story! Thanks for taking the time to write and post it.
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My first car was a '71 Opel Manta Rallye as well. Blue. I need to find some photos of that car to post here.
They were considered "quirky" back then, but I sure wish I had one now.
Steve.
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Mike,
I can confirm that on the return road you was quicker than on the track :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D
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Love the photo. Got any more?
I can confirm that I wasn't much slower on the return trip.
I'm not sure if I did this already, but I did a write-up for our 2012 trip, our first time on the salt. I also tracked down other Opel GT salt flat racers and got their story. If you are interested, click the link below.
Link below: www.kstreetstudio.com/OMC/issues/Blitz-2012-06.pdf
Mike