Racing...It's Still Fun

The other weekend we made the inaugural journey to the season opener at Thunder Mtn raceway. The car was in fine form and we managed to get a ton of passes over the course of the weekend. Saturday night brought out the tuners from K-town for the instant green street drags and we decided to show them what real cars were all about with our street machines. We mostly kept to ourselves and tried to match race like minded V8 Mopars and each other.



Graham's '63 must have seen twenty passes over the weekend and despite a few tranny issues, it ran like a champ. I had done a bunch of mods to the tow rig and was really itching to see some time slips. Despite an unexplainable off idle bog (perhaps running over 4000 feet above sea level) it ran great, pulling a best e.t. of 10.15. With a better tune, open exhaust and some lower gears it should easily be in the high 9's. Best of all, I got Chris to pilot the big wagon for the night so Gabe and I got to hang out in the tower with camera and secret libations to watch the whole thing unfold. Eliminations found us all on the trailer early but there wasn't a sad face in the pits. We came, we raced, we drank over 150 beers and we didn't blow anything up. How's that for a slice of fried gold.

Swing and a Miss

Well we packed up the wagons last weekend and headed off for Osoyoos. It's a new 1/8 mile track and they were only running on Sunday. I spoke with the director and he told me that if we showed up on Saturday then we could get a bunch of hits in the afternoon. We arrived around 2:00 and there was nobody in sight. We paused for a safety meeting and somehow came to the ridiculous conclusion that we should drive five more hours and meet our friends from Wagons of Steel South in Mission who are racing in their first NHRA divisional race of the season. So I handed the tiller to Dangerous and proceeded to hit the cooler. We found the boys immediately at the track in Mission and proceeded to exchange stories and drinks. These divisional events are a big deal and we were more than out of our element. From the get go we were off to a bad start showing up on a Saturday afternoon and hoping to run on Sunday. They finally agreed to let us run in the super pro (electronics) category for the full price of the three day weekend with no qualifying pass. We said sure, why not, we've already driven ten hours, why not do one pass for $130.00. But it didn't stop there, the tech inspectors did not want anything to do with our behemoth and had no qualms about letting us know. Everything was wrong according to them and there was nothing we could do to fix it. We tried for several hours to prove them wrong but it was all in vain. Eventually we just gave up because no matter what we did they would always find something wrong. NHRA =1 WOSN= 0. We finally gave up, cracked some beers and watched some racing. Our Pal Gaffo won his first round on Sunday but put himself on the trailer with a red light in the second. It was fantastic to hang out with the Vashon Isl. crew and see their wheel standing stock eliminator car in person. Gaffo also writes for an on line magazine called Mopar Max under the fictitious name of Chris Barnes, and he was gracious enough to post some photos of our rag-tag team admitting defeat by the evil empire that is the NHRA. Our next race is scheduled for June14&15 at Thunder Mtn raceway. It should be a good one so pack up the camper and head on up.

I know it doesn't look like much but here is the new platform for our next race car. It's a '64 Plymouth Belvedere and as rough as it looks we're going to make this sucker fly. The interior is half gutted so we're already on our way. We have a 440 slated for installation with ported iron heads; the ever sturdy 727 automatic transmission and an 8 3/4 rear with relocated super stock leaf springs. Our plan is to travel with a two car race team since we have to go so far to race and only usually log a few runs. This way we will all get more seat time and our team presence will be strong in the pro class. When we're not running two cars in pro we'll also have the option of flogging Graham's '63 and my '64 in Sportsman. These cars will both be driven to the track. I'm really excited about seeing these two Poly powered gems go head to head.

The New Flag Ship

It’s been two years since I made the deal with our friend Gaffo Jones from Vashon Island to trade a 1965 Dodge Coronet wagon that we had for a 1964 330 wagon that he picked up. The ’64 Dodge is one of my all time favorite platforms from Mopar in the early ‘60s. They were the cars that were remembered best as the all too familiar candy striped “Ramchargers” as well as countless other famous drag cars like the “Hemi Wagon” and the “Color Me Gone” cars. Because of traction issues in the early days of racing, the wagon had an advantage due to the extra weight over the rear wheels. Unfortunately it also added overall weight and only came in a four door model. We love wagons for any number of ridiculous reasons so Gaffo agreed to hook a brother up with this baby.

Importing and exporting vehicles sucks, so if you have to do it then do your home work and contact the border you plan on crossing directly. I had a paper trail a mile long for both sides so my crossings went smooth. We ventured out on a Thursday morning with the basic plan of pushing the old car off, loading the new (even older) car on the trailer, having drinks and catching up with our old Vashon buddies then maybe watching them race at the Halloween drags on Sunday for the season closer. What we plan and what really happens rarely coincide with each other. The ’64 had been sitting in a field for over three years that we know of. There was at one time a mouse infestation that would rival the rats of Nimh. There were no brakes and the previous owner threw every tune up trick that they knew at the motor with no success in making it run. We flushed and bled all the brake lines to make them work; made sure the motor wasn’t ceased, it wasn’t. The fuel line was split at the pump which meant the tank was empty and not full of sludge so we replaced the hose and filled the tank with gas and of course a new filter. Next was a new set of points and condenser then guess what, it fired right up and idled like a big grumpy kitten. The next task at hand was to clean or rather gut the interior which meant no stone goes unturned. Due to the former rodent army we had to take absolutely everything out and that meant seats, headliner and what used to be a floor. Gabe laid some tin on the driver’s side and the rest got pizza boxes and carpet. Now that we were down to our race weight we needed to address the exterior which got a good hot bath, and then since Gaffo has the use of a vinyl cutter we lettered it up like a super stocker from back in the day. A set of Cragars set of the wheel department and voila, you have an instant (looking) race car. Next we had to do some test runs, so we burned around the streets a bit lighting the tires and doing some test launches. It looked and drove like a real car so we figured since we’re going to Pacific Raceway with a car on a trailer that runs we should probably race it. With its stock two barrel, 2.76 sure grip rear end (how stoked am I) and no oil change the E.T. guesses went from 17.5 to 19 respectively. The field was huge so we didn’t run until 11:00 a.m. or so. We planned on vice gripping the rear brake lines for a poor man’s line lock but with the gutted interior and a water box I just rocked the old fashioned brake stand until I could see smoke in my side view mirror. The launch was soggy to say the least and seemed to take forever to start making revs but eventually it happened so I punched 2 on the keyboard with what I thought felt like 4500 then right before the traps hammered the final button. Slowing down was interesting to say the least, sort of like a Dash-8 landing with skate board wheels. But alas the old girl ran a 16.42 @ 83 mph. Way better than any of us could have hoped for. I got knocked out in the first round of eliminations with a big ‘ol red light. So with a mixture of exhaustion and exhilaration we loaded on the trailer and began our long trip home. I will be doing an ongoing update with this car beginning with the power train and moving back from there. None of this would have been possible without the generosity of Gaffo, Dr. Big Block and all of their eclectic entourage. Not to mention Gabe and Chris who always aid in spoiling my liver and splitting my sides.

Polara Pat

It's not all racing....is it?

I realized that it's been almost a year since our last proper update so I thought I would post some shots of our other wagons that are lovingly revived and often times rescued from the crusher. We have a total of nine wagons including the race car and if I ever get organized I plan to create a section detailing these beautiful wagons and their owners.
As far as racing goes we've been to the track in Kelowna three times so far and actually went rounds last weekend during a double points weekend. On Saturday we found ourselves in the third round only to get defeated by last years points leader Ralph Poole. Talking to Ralph after the race, he informed me that he's been racing the same '67 Cuda since '71. I didn't feel bad anymore about losing. Sunday we we're pitted against some heavy hitters in Pro and managed to go all the way to the semi-finals. It's always a good feeling to be still racing at the end of the day when most everyone else is packing up their gear. Then they look over to see the big, bad wagon head to staging and the look on their faces just says "those guys are still in?"
Our next race is in Mission on July 28/29 for the Nostalgia weekend. We look forward to this weekend more than any other in our short little season. We will of coarse be towing the big beast with my '67 Polara and hope to be debuting our new support vehicle The Atomic Six. ('ll have photos soon) The Mighty Atomic is a '66 Belvedere wagon sporting a one barrel slant six. A little economy in our otherwise gluttonous fuel consuming lives.

Presenting....Our Newest Sponsor

Ladyluck, originally uploaded by Wagons of Steel North.

Introducing.....Lady Luck Tattoo studio....the newest addition to our outstanding line-up of WOSN Sponsors. Donovan and his crew are avid car fans and we are happy to have them on board for the 2007 race season. Go check out their site....Lady Luck

Pat Wins...Other Guy Blows up

Here is a video clip of a pass made last weekend at the old time drags in Mission. Thanks G2.

Farting in the face of adversity tour

Air time, originally uploaded by Wagons of Steel North.

A wiser man than me once said “if you don’t know where to start; a good place might be at the beginning.” So our story unfolds on Friday July 28, 2006 at 5:30 am gearing up for the big trek from Wagon’s of Steel North HQ. Although we’ve done this sort of trip a million times, something just didn’t feel right. I started the day by forgetting the proper receiver hitch in town that needed to be retrieved, and then promptly made a pot of coffee all over Chris’ kitchen floor. We finally got under way with all jinxes to our back. About twenty minutes out of Grand Forks while powering up a hill in the mighty Polara we heard a sound that could only be described as smashing bottles with a chain. Chris and I glared at each other in fear and pain. We immediately pulled to the side in time to see oil spewing from the back of the pan….she’s done. Not being the quitting type, we sent the boys off on a mission for cell service and rescue in Grahams 330 support wagon. It was now 9:00 am so I had a beer and waited. A little while later the team returned with news that a friend was borrowing Mode’s (team member not present) ’78 Jeep wagoneer and was coming to our aid. Within three hours, help had arrived and poor Malbotia was dragged back to HQ for further analysis.
Back on the road and all is well, right…well…pretty good I guess, except our maximum speed is maybe 45 mph and every hill means fuel vapor lock. We did manage to figure that one out by resting a full bag of ice on the frame rail over the incoming fuel line, atta boy Chris. Needless to say we made our destination in under 15 hours….well worth the extra time I assure you!
Saturday morning always comes early for me knowing that the race car needs to be checked over and jets changed for racing at sea level. Racing also starts early due to the high car count and the fact that they want everyone to get at least three passes in. Tech went smooth even though our belts were expired (woops) and we were off to staging almost immediately. First pass was a mid 11.70 followed by two slightly quicker runs, the last being an 11.63. Cocktail hour ensues and we fade to black.
Sunday morning the entire grounds awoke to torrential rain, it was a dismal sight to say the least and I felt sick to my stomach. Around 12:30 it was clear and they had the track dry but we sat in this bubble of passable weather that could change at any moment. We all went straight to elimination because of the time, no qualifying pass for us. Everyone seemed to be going faster and red lighting so caution was the word of the day. We dialed our same time as our last pass of 11.63 with plans of lifting if need be. The first two guys handed me the win with a red light and round three I won like a champ by lifting huge and almost nailing my dial. My last pass I broke-out big time even though I lifted (too late apparently) and still ended up going our fastest E.T. of 11.51 and our quickest sixty foot of 1.59. Had I stayed in it I may have run an 11.48 but we’ll never know. We made it to the last six cars standing in our field going four rounds at our all time favorite track. The team was all a-glow and we all went our separate ways, reminiscing on the events of the day.
p.s. editor’s note….the 1st official record of the front tire leaving the ground on launch!

Polara Pat

Victory on Thunder Mountain

467_6771
Originally uploaded by Wagons of Steel North.

It has been a long time since we've made a quality and informative update to our loyal readers, so here it is with fantastic photos as usual, by Mr. Jones. We just returned from race weekend #3 in Kelowna and despite an emergency head gasket swap on Saturday morning, everything seemed to go off without a hitch. The great and powerful Demonaco performed beautifully and managed to run consistant 7.80-7.85 all weekend long. Shaw Cable was on site Sunday to do a life-style piece on drag racing and decided that I would be a good candidate for a private interview (silly fools). Race #2 saw us in the semi-finals, landing a number three spot and a plaque. It was nice to finally break the first round curse. The real star was shining this last weekend as our own Graham Jones raced his '63 330 wagon like a champ cutting his first .000 light and going on to win the second round of King of the Hill awarding him with $90.00 cold cash that he respectfully donated back into our cause.

Our next race weekend will be in Mission on July 29-30 for the Langley Loafers Old time drags. This is of coarse our favorite and most high profile race of the season. Anyone in the lower mainland for this weekend should try and make an effort to come out and watch the festivities. You'll see front engine dragsters, altereds, Willeys, and if you're lucky full sized Dodge station wagons.

See you in the pits,
Polara Pat

Morning Dew

467_6717
Originally uploaded by Wagons of Steel North.

I-bent-these-with-my-hands

I-bent-these-with-my-hands
Originally uploaded by Wagons of Steel North.

Sweet pipes.....“Rocktopus”

RACERS AGAINST RACISM

Pretty...Beefy
Originally uploaded by Wagons of Steel North.

Well, you’re all probably wondering what’s happening with that old station wagon team from the Kootenays? And why are they so shitty at updating their site? I’ll tell you why. You see, the team has been busy building and thrashing since the car was stowed last Fall but its kind of boring to look at photos of dismantled transmissions and engines. Now we actually have some cool ass progress shots that look like we’ve been doing something. The motor has been gone over and re-assembled; the tranny has been rebuilt. We’ve had a custom chrome-moly driveshaft made with the biggest U-joints known to man. We have built a new 3rd member with 5.38 gears, new spool, bearings, heavy-duty yoke and straps. These should prove to be the ultimate eighth mile secret weapon. We added a set of 7:1 roller rockers to our valve train and installed an SFI approved super dampener. But the biggest news of all is seeing headway on our new three stage equal length headers. This has been kind of a pet project for Gabe and Mode since proper C-body headers are ridiculously expensive and still not right for our application. Many, many long hours have been poured into this project and if nothing else, they look cool as hell. We’ve actually gone so far as to name them the “Rocktopus” cuz damn, look at the freakin’ things. So that’s it for now, racing starts soon and there’s still so much to do. Fear not loyal followers for we all have strong backs and the will get the job done.

Polara Pat

click on photo for more photos......

Our Newest Sponsor

Hi Race Fans. Just letting you all know about our newest sponsor. Our other friend Graham(G 2) has started his business called Thunderbucket Speed Equipment.
He offers original graphics on clothing, custom designs and skate decks. His stuff is dope and you'll see the WOSN team wearing his stuff around town and at the race track.

In other news....if you stop by Chris' shop on Saturday you'll find the whole WOSN Team working on Demonaco. Its going to be a big work day an I'm sure Polara Pat will update with details soon.

Cheers,
Graham (G 1)

Patch

Patch
Originally uploaded by Wagons of Steel North.

OK these are sweet. The WOSN team has to thank Gabe for this great Xmas present. These bad boys will be displayed proudly on our new uniforms. The WOSN team will be the envy of the pits.

Preventative Maintenance

As promised to our readers and beloved Demonaco we moved the mother ship into the heated shop at WOSN H.Q. for a full shake-down and evaluation of any damage that may have ensued from our aggressive '05 season. It's been a long time since our last race so the team was excited to get our hands back on the big machine and annoy Chris' neighbors for one last time before Spring. The quick removal front clip that we came up with last year makes life extremely simple and accessible for maintenance and engine removal. So out comes the 440 and the 727 transmission that will both get treated to a mild overhaul and definitely some tranny upgrades. For now the wagon gets put to bed for the season while the crew works diligently on assessing the situation, beer drinking and settling for bench racing (sigh). So our to do list is as follows: purchase racing harmonic balancer; build back up 8 3/4 chunk with new spool and 5.36 gears (yowza); get custom driveshaft built with heavy-duty u-joints that we already have (thanks Jack); build custom fender well headers; upgrade carb with newer components; and the aforementioned motor and tranny massage. So as you can see it will be a busy Winter, but come Spring the sleeping giant will awaken and local domestic pets will once again cower in fear of the incomparable Demonaco.

Your host,
Polara Pat

View from the driver's seat

cockpit9
Originally uploaded by Wagons of Steel North.

Click on this photo to see all the Kelowna season finale and all our other race photos.

Triple 0 light!!!!

Alas the '05 racing season must come to a close, but it couldn't have happened on a better note, except for say...winning? As we all know, winning is for losers...right? Anyways, our final frosty weekend happened at the ever so lovely Thunder Mountain for some eighth mile madness. Saturday afternoon ended up getting cancelled by a torrential downpour, but since we already had three passes in the morning we couldn't bitch too much. Later that evening it got so cold that all the tents and race cars were covered in a thick sheet of ice. We all managed to try and negate the cold by destroying no less than twelve cases of beer and a mickey of 'Golden Wedding'. I know you don't have to drink to have a good time, but it sure helps and it makes sleeping in my frosty wagon tomb a lot more tolerable. Sunday was beautiful weather wise, though still really cold and the race program seemed to be moving slower than molasses in...well...Thunder Mtn. The car was in her glory and managed to pull off our best E.T. of 7.84 and fastest speed of 89.4 mph. Knowing full well that we always slow down after lunch we dialed in at 7.90 hoping to understand the mood Demonaco would be in. Alas, the moons of Jupiter were in a line and a strong tail wind sneakily picked up. I staged a little deeper than usual to cut a perfect .000 reaction time and since it was running better than ever I simply couldn't bring myself to sandbag and broke out huge with a 7.85. It wouldn't have really made a difference since my opponent managed to nail his dial bang on; besides, I really don't mind losing with a break out and a triple 0 that some racers never manage to achieve. It almost makes it look like we know what we're doing; we'll try not to let it go to our heads but we're so damn giddy over it. We actually managed to get twelve race days in this season which is great since we're so far from every track. Now the big machine goes into storage and we begin our Winter shake-down and upgrade list. Look forward to updates and the new wagon owners profile page. Until next time thanks to all of our sponsors and friends for supporting us and we hope to see you all for the '06 season.

Your pal,
Polara Pat