Dragstrip Demons

Run And Gun ’01 was a celebration of four days of driving, mechanical ingenuity, camaraderie and fun, in the shadow of the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. Gateway International Raceway in Madison, Illinois, was once again the staging area, as nearly four-dozen kits, turnkeys, replicars, and original designs squared-off for a racing triathlon—autocross, championship road course, and dragstrip competition. The usual top guns smoked their tires and faced some new challengers and challenges.

To recap the action as reported in the Mar.[?] ’02 issue of Kit Car, this was more than a run of the Snakes, as Cobras were battled by a bevy of Corvette Grand Sports, a new Mustang GT350 replica, a new-design Dragon, an S1 (Lotus-inspired car), a Lister, a Dio, Ferraris, and GT40s. Top performances in the first two venues included:

Autocross: Overall winner Dennis Olthoff (Pro Big-Block) in 35.6 seconds with his Superformance Cobra; Second was Dave Borden (Prepared Power Adder) in 36.201 with a Factory Five Snake; Third was Bill Bonadio (Pro Power Adder) in 36.988 with his CARS Dio.

Road course: Fastest overall time was Chuck Beck (Pro Small-Block) in 1:06.01 [measurement?] with his Beck Development Lister; Second was John Gyann in 1:08.75 (Pro Small-Block) in his new The Chassis Shop Mustang GT350; and Third was Dennis Olthoff (Pro Big-Block) in 1:09.73.

While racing on the CART-IRL-NACSAR road course is, perhaps, the main draw to this event, the real excitement comes from the shootout on the dragstrip and the competition for King of the Hill.

These talented speed demons spun their rubber, revved their formidable powerplants, and sped down the quarter-mile at rates exceeding 130 mph. The competition was fierce.

The dragstrip competition is broken down in two ways. First, drivers pick up their best times to gain points toward Top Dog trophies for the Triathlon. Then the real fun begins. The top drivers in each class meet head-to-head for bracket racing to determine King of the Hill.

For the uninitiated, bracket racing is a great equalizing competition that rewards driving consistency rather than the fastest car. If your car is dialed in to run the quarter-mile in 12 seconds and the driver in the other lane has a car that runs it in 10 seconds, then you would get a 2-second head start over that driver. During the race, you can’t go faster than you have announced you would go and you can’t take off before you get the green light. Often, the faster car loses because the driver either red-lighted (took off before the green light) or broke out (went faster than his announced time). The final factor is reaction time. You want to take off as close to the flashing of the green light as possible without red-lighting.

Running a perfect light means that you have taken off as close to the sighting of the green light as possible without taking off too soon. A reaction time of 0.500 seconds is a perfect light. No one ran a perfect light run last year; in 1999, however, Charles Howard ran one, and Stacy Pendergrass ran one in Run And Gun 2000.

In the best-time competition, former Can Am driver Chuck Beck recorded the fastest time in his 350hp Chevy-powered Beck Development Lister; he had a sizzling 10.147 e.t. and won Pro Small-Block over Randy Schranz and his propane-powered Shell Valley Cobra (10.777). Wayne Turpin recorded the second-fastest time at 10.466, winning Prepared Big-Block in his 500hp Contemporary Cobra. Turpin beat Bob Self’s 650hp Contemporary’s 11.098 to win the class.

Rich Pickles and his 550hp Contemporary ran the third-best time to win Prepared Power Adder in 10.562, defeating Chappy Moody’s 10.659 (700hp L.A. Exotics Cobra).

Mike Miller posted the fourth-fastest trip down the strip with a time of 10.562 in his GSR (Grand Sport Replica) Grand Sport, taking Pro Big-Block honors. Miller’s 500hp Vette topped Dennis Olthoff’s 480hp Superformance Cobra, which ran 11.444.

Bill Bonadio won the Pro Power Adder class in his nitrous-aided 325hp CARS Dio in 10.61, sneaking by Greg LaPoint’s 670hp Factory Five Cobra (10.931 e.t.). Allen Tork won the Street Big-Block class in his 600hp Donavan-engined FFR with a time of 11.201. Tork edged George Anderson’s 550hp MidStates Cobra, as Anderson ran the strip in 11.901.

Bob Mustic won the Prepared Four/Six-Cylinder class in 11.4 in his 300hp Johnex Cobra, while Steve Pass was the fastest Street Power Adder at 11.427 in his 550hp FFR.

Mike Ciccotelli won Prepared Small-Block in 11.748 in his 350hp Beck Lister. Ciccotelli took his class by more than a second, as Lewis Payne posted a 12.795 time in his 350hp CMC Cobra.

Scott Gage won Street Small-Block in 12.085 with his 400hp FFR, nipping Bill Belcher’s 12.123 (375hp Superformance). Cliff Cooksey won Street Four/Six-Cylinder in 15.2121 with his 100hp Superformance S-1.

The Quick 8 Pro class came down to a Vette versus Vette challenge, with Mike Miller beating Jim Spencer at 10.529 (127.35 mph) to 11.87 (119.20 mph). The Street Quick 8 was a tense battle that saw Steve Pass slip by Doug Reed with 11.70 (119.57 mph) to 11.78 (119 mph).

The Prepared Quick 8 ended with a battle between Bill Bonadio and Wayne Turpin. Bonadio’s Dio prevailed over Turpin’s Cobra when Turpin red-lighted and Bonadio coasted home in 11.75.

The King of the Hill competition was tense. After Miller topped Clyde Bass in round one, Allen Tork edged Todd Biermann, Bill Bonadio beat Doug Reed, and Steve Pass got the better of Bob Self. In round two, Miller eliminated Tork, and Bonadio got past Self.

The final round saw two non-Cobras square off: Bonadio’s Maseratti Birdcage-inspired Dio versus Miller’s Corvette Grand Sport. Bonadio dialed in at 11.20 and Miller announced 10.50. The tree lights flashed and Bonadio smoked off with a reaction time of 0.570. Miller passed the start line in 0.774. Bonadio’s 11.225 and 112.62 mph was good enough to take the crown from Miller’s 10.679 and 126.47 mph.

For Bill Bonadio, in his CARS Dio Tip 61, the ’01 King of the Hill title was his. He bested the Snakes, the Vettes, and four-dozen friends, competitors, and fellow kit car enthusiasts. He says he will be back in 2002 to defend his title.

This year’s Run And Gun will be back at Gateway International on September 16-19. Mark your calendar and be there…and be part of the shootout. You could be the next King of the Hill—Bonadio is waiting…and so are more than four-dozen other drivers who are hungry for the crown.

For information on Run And Gun ’02 at Gateway International Raceway on September 16-19, contact:

Gail Nungesser, Gateway International Raceway, 618/875-7540

Wayne Turpin, 812/477-2355

Holiday Inn Collinsville (host hotel), 1000 Eastport Plaza Dr., Collinsville, IL 62234, 618/345-2800