Slightly off topic...pics from IHRA Rocky Mountain Nationals

[Stingy74]

I know some of you don't make it into off topic so i'll post it here too... Took some holidays from work and made it to this three day inaugural event in Edmonton, Alberta last weekend. This was the first time I had experienced nitro cars. If you've never had the oppurtunity I highly suggest it. I grew up in the car stereo crowd and thought I had heard some loud stereo systems...no comparison. My ears said somewhere around 160 decibels and that's from the stands. Anyway, here a few of the pictures I took that sort of turned out. Click to enlarge as usual. Incredibly loud stuff. The best part is waiting for the times to show up. Reserve seating wasn't until Saturday night so I was able to get right up to the fence on the first day. It's kinda hard to tell but the right lane ran 4.66@317mph. They were mixing alcohol into the nitromethane so the cars wouldn't make so much power. The track did get pretty greasy and it was hot out so I didn't get to see a world class 330mph run. 317mph was still pretty good though. The cool bus even showed up for the event. I remember seeing a video of it here on the forum a year ago or so, so it was cool to actually see it in person. There was also a wheelie truck that drew lot's of attention. I later on figured out that it probably doesn't have a reverse gear because it made u-turns at the end of the track and drove all the way back to make more passes. If memory serves they both ran mid 12's. Don't know what type of engine the bus has but it's located way at the back. The driver sits just in front of it. Yep, it's a real bus. With bus driver and everything! Nice Pro Modified burnout. These guys here are local (where I live) and race a '94 Corvette ZR-1. They had problems and only ran something like 6.79@201mph but that's the least of their worries... check out the next pic! Here's what's left of what I think is a Lenco transmission for the '94 ZR-1. Apparently the car shook so bad that it blew the tranny into bits. Can you beleive they rounded up enough parts to get another transmission together and running for the next round?!?! There was oil all over the inside of the car too. I found it really hard to take pictures of these nitro burning earth shakers. They leave the line so fast that your timing must be perfect. I'd usually try and take the picture off center in hopes that by the time I snapped the picture the car would be in the middle of the photo.

[Crash Dummy]

Cool pics. Thanks! A bus wheelstander? The drag racing community has way too much time on their hands these days. I remember years back when the alky wheelstanders started up as an amusement they would not even let you know that you were about to see a full 1/4 mile wheel stand. The only difference was that you could tell that there was a different sound to the engines. They'd line'em up right behind the alky cars and the crowd would go wild seeing the almost same cars on two wheels the whole length of the 1/4. I remember one time that one wheelstander only made it 1/2 down the track. He went through the lights.... backed all the way to the starting line and went at it again. WOW! That takes nuts.