Best Car/Way to Start for LSR/Texas Mile

[freepistol]

I would like to start on a car to get into LSR/Texas mile.  I have been hooked since seeing the Spirit of America and the Blue Flame when I was a kid.  I built untold rocket and Pusher .049 powered cars as a kid (also a model sled to run on the snow!)  I would like to have a lakester, but I would be happy to have any four wheeled vehicle to start with.  I wish there was an LSR version of a go-kart.  I have tried to read all I can find on the subject, but I'm not getting any younger.


Thanks,

Dwight

[Gary Perkinson]

Get a rule book from whatever organization you're interested in running with, buy a full-face helmet with a 2010 Snell certification, and then take whatever street car you own and enter it into a couple of events in a street, time-only, or sub-130 mph class (which will allow you to run with three-point seat belts and no cage). This will let you to get your feet wet safely, plus you'll have a lot of fun, see a lot of cool cars, and meet a lot of cool, knowledgeable people...

[freepistol]

That is a great idea,  I have a 240Z and a 370Z  that are both capable of 130 pretty easily.

-D

[SPARKY]

There have been a ton of folks that started salt racing at the USFRA 130 club who then progressed to the 150 club, hung out watched, cruised around the pits talked to folks, burned lots of film---now storage devices--- and then decided what they wanted to build, or get involved with as an eng partner or whatever.

This is not a rant or a slam

Some of us are serious about as much speed as we can afford-- others get serious about vintage 4s, flatheads or Jimmys  or bikes---nearly all of us chase what ever buzzes our needle!

 Me I love Special Construction---with the operative word being construction,  I enjoy the build--I am not a metal artist, but I have studied and studied nearly all of the things that it takes one to go fairly fast, fairly safely.  What you will learn that nearly all of us have OUR opinions, some of us will share what we have learned, other maybe not.  But what I think you will find if you become a student of LSR:

WE are a small nit family who understand and accept each other with a few old grouches for flavor---who try to help and look out for each other in our "Wonderful Sick ADDICTION" 

When you ask racer question you will get a racer response---when you ask a FAN question you will most likely get a standard fan response, if any at all---in other words---start reading these builds, learn from others, make a list of questions, Then research and see if you can answer your own questions ---formulate others and repeat--
try to find out for your self ---there are lots on here that will help---

The greatest resources is the history  on this site:  can save you time, money and maybe even your life  get involved and study study study! 

I look forward to maybe seeing you on the salt some day---

most of ALL HAVE FUN---life is short

[Sumner]

Well I can't add much to what Sparky said (you got a secretary you dictating to now Sparky?  That was a lot of typing  )

I think the 130 mph car is a great idea and you might be able to run it at other venues (get their rules).   If you are having fun and haven't run out of money the next step I'd take is build the car to the SCTA rule book.  Doing that you could run it about anyplace and get through tech.  The 150 mph club almost requires about everything that the SCTA rule book will require so just build to it in the first place (after the 130 club).

I think when I ran the 130 you were allowed 4 passes and maybe more if you paid again.   The USFRA site....

http://saltflats.com/

..... will have the info.  130 isn't as easy as some think as you only have a mile.  My truck will run higher, but I couldn't do it in the mile with the gearing I had.  Overdrive didn't accelerate fast enough and 3rd was fine but only good for about 125 before I was past the HP curve on the cam.  It was fun once but if you like it you will want to go faster than 130 on the salt  ,

Sum

[TNTHEMIENGINES]

Build a truck. Lots of classes, easy to work on, records from 100 MPH to 250 MPH, lots of open records and the Truck committee guys are cool.

[SPARKY]

95-98 GMC Ex cab long bed is about as AERO as one can get with a full size truck 

[kiwi belly tank]

Yep, what they said Dwight, 130 150 club is the way to get your feet wet without buying an ocean liner. You could be running next year if you wanted to & you're never too old. Look at Sparky, he's a thousand!
  Sid.

[SPARKY]

dog years, dog years!!!!!!!!!!!! 

[greyduck]

My buddies started at the 130/150 clubs a few years ago and the usfra has been great to them. They even drove all their cars to and from utah, with minor hickups from mn/ wi. Yeah baby! Good chance to get going without going broke, and good way to gain the valuable experience.

All the cars passed tech for 130 club with little work, and as a few guys said already, the 130 mile wasnt just a walk in the park for them. Guess lots of "fast" street cars dont always make it!

Ive been wanting to go race a car out there to get going, but have had hesitations about the salt abuse. Im not ready to write off a good street car just yet, so im in the boat of either getting a beater or building my own "something". Im leaning currently on just getting some nice heavy 2x6 rails and just building a entry level lakester or streamliner. I love the fabrication and creativity side as well and dont see 350mph+ in my budgets anytime soon. My thoughts are get a basic rear engined setup built and test er out in 130 club with option of bumping into 150 club if it passes tech and shakes down alright. Then go back install fire suppresion, chutes, and the rest of the safety gear to make the jump into the big leagues get licensed and hope for 200s. I just dont see any production car that will be as easy to maintain, or modify as easily as a special construction. Or go as fast with mild engines.
If im wrong someone please kick me in the rear so i dont start going down the wrong path before i start building. But thats my plan into lsr world..

[jacksoni]

I don't have a USFRA rule book so can't really comment on the 130/150 club rules. If you run a ECTA meet with a street car you can run without the full up safety equipment, with a speed limitation. I believe all SCTA meets and ECTA where you have a "race" car which includes lakesters/streamliners and production cars of any vintage modified to fit a class, you MUST have all safety equipment in place and safety equipment such as fire suit, fire extinguisher systems, parachute etc that match the current record in the class. Doesn't make any difference that you have no way to reach that record speed.  I believe am correct in these statements but of course someone may correct me if I am wrong.

Anyway, that said, you would be better to start with some sort of street car- beater if you need to considering the salt etc-, consider the safety regulations for the street classes at Wilmington/Texas/Loring or USFRA 130 club and do that before embarking on a major ground up build. Also, be aware that hitting these apparently modest speeds in what amounts to a 1 mile drag race (hey, I've been 130+ on the street etc) is easier said than done. That street speed used up a lot more territory than you think.

Not at all am I trying to dissuade you from entering LSR. It gets in your blood as all the participants here will tell you. But as has been said, get rule books, study, study again, go to a meet or two and talk to folks, see what you want to do from there. Have fun and be safe.

[Sumner]

..I don't have a USFRA rule book so can't really comment on the 130/150 club rules......

http://saltflats.com/I50_Club_2009.html

Sum

[greyduck]

I dont have a rulebook on me, but i dont recall anything saying that the car needs to be a registered street legal car for 150 club- maybe for 130 club tho. Ill have to double check that. You might be right on that aspect of the question.

Either way in terms of "best car" to start with, if a guy has a goal of a reliable, easy to work on 200mph car wether its a mile or 5... would it actually be better to start with a "street car" or just invest the money into a special construction build or used lakester/streamliner.

My old background was in car audio competition and major focus was always placed on ease and speed of serviceability of each component. So safety being number 1, service should be up there closely on the list for best car to start from. I personally hate working on cars at the track that ya cant work on, and have to remove this and this to get to that, and we all know how fun working on anything inside ur cage is.. racing is fun, but spending hours trying to fix stuff sucks! Thats where its tough to say what makes the best platform for a land speed car

[jacksoni]

Sumner has nicely pointed out that USFRA rules are available online. 130 club here: http://saltflats.com/I30_Club_2009.html and yes for the 130 club needs to be licensed and insured. Don't see that for 150.

"Either way in terms of "best car" to start with, if a guy has a goal of a reliable, easy to work on 200mph car wether its a mile or 5... would it actually be better to start with a "street car" "

Sorry, I consider the above an oxymoron. No such animal. 

[SaltRat]

In my experience:
Texas mile: easiest (safe car and go run, just don't fall off the black part)
150 club:  some safety stuff and maybe gears - you get two miles to work up the courage hahahahaha
130 club: by far the hardest

Anyway you go, it is big time fun!

and you can listen to Sparky.  AKA "Mr. Hat"