Articles by the author Mike Salemme, About
Drag Racing , Pro-Street cars , Vintage Drag Racing cars, Hi-Performance parts, Interviews with builders and drivers.
Street Freak Special ! This 1970 Corvette has such an outrageous custom paint job that it will blind you. The car is a time capsule bringing you back to 1975 when disco was popular, it also was a time when horsepower wasn't enough to win at shows so the people mixed street machine power with lowrider good looks. The Vette features a full custom interior, supercharged small block engine and a 4-speed manual transmission. The interior is filled with a roll bar, metallic vinyl interior accents and wood trim, finishing off the 70's vibe it rolls on classic wire wheels. The engine is a small-block Chevy 400, with a Dyers 6V-71supercharger. It has a pump gas friendly 8.5:1 CR., The supercharger is feed by two boost-referenced Holley 650 CFM carbs. Ignition is handled by a MSD products. The small-block is backed up by a Muncie 4-speed manual transmission. The fumes exit in style with chrome 4-into one side pipes that make this 71' Corvette rumble. Power
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Taylor Vetter - The Fastest Woman in a Blown Top Alcohol Dragster !
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Welcome to another installment of Women in Drag Racing. This week we had a chance to get to know Taylor Vetter. She comes from a family that has Drag Racing in their DNA.
By day Taylor works for the city of North Las Vegasas an assistant to the city Director, on the weekends sheraces in different classes of the NHRA. She races in Top Alcohol Dragster,
Top Dragster, and the Super Comp classes.
Currently she is the only Woman racing a blown alcohol Dragster and the only woman to go over 280 MPH, which makes her the fastest female in a Blown
Alcohol Dragster class.
Taylor started racing JR. Dragsters when she was only eight years old and transitioned into a full scale car when she was just twenty. At that time she started bracket racing and started to race in Super Comp, then she moved up to Top Dragster for a couple of seasons.
Taylor set her goals high and she achieved them, she licensed in Top Alcohol in 2020 and she's now competing in a Blown (supercharged) Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Dragster full time. In her first season of competition she won the National Dragster Challenge for a Wally and the Thanksgiving Bracket Nationals.
When Taylor is not racing, she states that she is very passionate about working out even when she is traveling, it helps her get a competitive edge over the competition.
Taylor's boyfriend Nick Januik races a Top Alcohol Funny Car, they travel as a team and compete at events together.
Taylor thanks her sponsors: NGK Spark Plugs,
Torco Race Fuels & Permatex for all their help throughout the season. And all of her crew members.
We did a Q&A session with Taylor so we can get can get to know her better, here are the results.
ST:
How and when did you become interested in
drag racing, and what are your goals for the future ?
TV:
I was
interested in drag racing from the time I was born. My parents were fans
of the sport and they had taken me to the races when I was a little girl. When I turned
8 years old, it was my turn to step into the racing world and be a racer myself.
My goals for the future are to find a full time sponsorship so I am able to
continue racing Top Alcohol Dragster. I love the class and I love the
challenge.
ST:
Have you thought about moving up to the Nitro classes ?
TV:
My current
goals do not include moving up to Nitro, but if the opportunity did present
itself, I wouldn’t decline. I would like to continue gaining experience and
becoming more comfortable racing in Top Alcohol Dragster class.
ST:
Can you tell me what tracks you
race at, and are there any races that stand out in your mind, like any
miss-hasps or major accomplishments ?
TV:
We race all
over the country, LVMS (Las Vegas), Pomona (California), Wild Horse Pass
(Phoenix), Pacific Raceways (Seattle), Woodburn (Oregon), Z-Max (North
Carolina), Houston Raceway Park (Texas), Lucas Oil Raceway (Indiana), Bandimere
(Colorado), Maple Grove (Pennsylvania), World Wide Technology Raceway (Illinois),
Texas Motorplex (Dallas).
One of my
favorite tracks is Bandimere Speedway and I would love to go to Chicago and Bristol.
I had two different
major accomplishments, the first one would be my first two divisional wins in Top Dragster.
The second would be making the finals at the 4-Wide Nationals in Charlotte
after we swapped motors and my crew guys worked so hard in between rounds.
Video by: jayork1347 from YouTube.
Taylor at the 4-Wide 2022
Video by: LitbyNoonroductions from YouTube.
ST:
Can you tell me more about
your current car. For example: what chassis are you using, and what is your engine
combination? Do you do any work on the car?
TV:
For top
alcohol dragster, I am running a CNE chassis. We are running a 461 cubic inch
Brad Anderson Motor with a PSI Screw Blower mounted on top. Whether we are in
the shop putting motors together or at the racetrack servicing the car, I try to jump in wherever I can.
However it can be difficult running two cars and
working on the alcohol dragster, so we bring enough crew guys to cover all of
the duties on the alcohol car.
For top
dragster, I'm running a Racetech Chassis with a 540 cubic inch Chevy with an F-1X ProCharger.
ST:
Can you tell us more about your boyfriend/ teammate ?
TV:
Nick Januik, currently races Top Alcohol Funny Car, he tunes his Funny Car and my Alcohol Dragster. He has been very successful in his own racing. Last
year(2021) he finished #7 in the world, which is amazing!
Thank you Taylor for sharing your story with us. For more information visit Taylor's Facebook page: Taylor Vetter Racing
Photo's courtesy of : Taylor Vetter & Plan B Motorsports 2022
In this installment of What's in The Garage we check out Paul Kaufmann's over the top Plymouth Arrow. What was once an old street race car from Detroit, it's now a Hemi powered street-machine that looks like noting else on the road. This one is still in the garage but its about to break free. Ten years were spent on this build spanning over four states; New Jersey, Connecticut, Georgia and now Florida. The story is extensive and Paul has many people to thank. Paul stated that this his first EFI project and its been a blast getting together. Lots of engineering went into planning and executing the build, he had two machinists, one body guy, one chassis shop, and an engine & transmission builder, the list goes on & on ! Paul states he is still wrapping up technical issues and getting ready for the road. Paul stated that the street tires and wheelie bars don't jive but he had the chassis shop build them for him so he can get her on the
Scott Robinson is from southern California and has been into cars his whole life, his earliest memories recount his time spent with his father and his friends. Scott's father raced all types of vehicles, drag boats, sand rails, and cars. These experiences made a major impression on Scott and he couldn't wait to be old enough to drive. When he was old enough, he got heavy into off-road motorcycles then when he got his driver's license all bets were off. Scott forgot about racing motorcycles and went all in and started racing cars. The first car he raced wasn't car at all, it was a 1975 Chevy van. But this wasn't any old worn out work van. This van belonged to Scott's father, it featured a destroked 400 cube small-block built by Scott's Dad, it's backed up with a TH-400 automatic transmission and a narrowed 12-bolt rear end. Scott said it was fun ride for his first car, and when he graduated high-school his father gave it to him. The father and son
This 1962 Corvette Gasser was built to resemble the car Drag Racing legend Big John Mazmanian raced in the 60's. It was a four year no expense spared build,and features the best period correct parts that could be found or they were fabricated when they couldn't . The main attraction is the all aluminum 434 CID. Chevrolet small block . It's filled with a Lunati crank, CP Carillo connecting rods and swings Ross pistons. For the top end, a set of Bodix cylinder heads, which were fully ported and filled with Manley SS valves. For stellar performance , a Dyres 6-71 blower and a pair of 650 Holley double pumpers are mounted up top. The owner stated that the combination is good for 650 Horsepower ! And it's street driven on 93 octane pump gas . This is a factory 4-speed car,so it was natural to keep the manual transmission , the Corvette now features Hurst linkage and a Hurst shifter , power is applied through Lakewood-housing and Centerforce clutch . The interior feat
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