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Well...looks like we're losing another dragstrip.

alkygto

alkygto

New member
Gateway International in Madison, Ill
Gateway International Raceway may face closure
This is the second track local to me to close, we lost Mid America Raceway in Wentzville in 2004. I ran my GP there once, but never had a chance to run the GTO, now I'm probably have to travel over 3 hours to get to a track.
Car should be ready for spring, I just need some rear coilovers.... And an NHRA rulebook. I'm not sure if I'll be legal for......?
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It's a 45 minute trip for me to Gateway. Sadly it's been a while since I ran a car there.

Love the Goat. Dont even mind the BB chevy. Personal preference or didn't want to bother finding a pontiac engine?
 
man that blower make it look like a small block, manual brakes too, that must be a ***** to stop at the end of a 1/4 mile lol, sweet ride , nice
 


Golgo13 said:
It's a 45 minute trip for me to Gateway. Sadly it's been a while since I ran a car there.


Love the Goat. Dont even mind the BB chevy. Personal preference or didn't want to bother finding a pontiac engine?
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I used to go to MAR almost every weekend. It was a great little country 1/4 mile track. Park-like atmosphere, real laid back, lots of fast cars. It was like, 10 minutes from my house and I could hear it every Sunday morning. I really miss it. This is the track where Arnie "The Farmer" Beswick got terribly burned in 2002. I was'nt there that day, but the accident was felt throughout the local community. Arnie is one of my Hero's, a true gentleman and a hardcore Pontiac racer.


The original drivetrain is in my basement, I plan on rebuilding the matching #'s motor some day , Unfortunately I've got to do a rebuild on my GTP first.

The BB Chevy is just about the cheapest way to get ludicris power for cheap. The first time I put the motor together I had $4500 tops in the whole motor carbs to pan. And thats with a roller cam and H beam rods. I spent about half that on the new heads alone.

I did paint it Pontiac Blue! :th_thumbsup-wink:
 
alkygto said:
I used to go to MAR almost every weekend. It was a great little country 1/4 mile track. Park-like atmosphere, real laid back, lots of fast cars. It was like, 10 minutes from my house and I could hear it every Sunday morning. I really miss it. This is the track where Arnie "The Farmer" Beswick got terribly burned in 2002. I was'nt there that day, but the accident was felt throughout the local community. Arnie is one of my Hero's, a true gentleman and a hardcore Pontiac racer.


The original drivetrain is in my basement, I plan on rebuilding the matching #'s motor some day , Unfortunately I've got to do a rebuild on my GTP first.

The BB Chevy is just about the cheapest way to get ludicris power for cheap. The first time I put the motor together I had $4500 tops in the whole motor carbs to pan. And thats with a roller cam and H beam rods. I spent about half that on the new heads alone.

I did paint it Pontiac Blue! :th_thumbsup-wink:
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Arnie has balls..nuff said for me.

Yeah I don't blame you for building a BB chevy at all. Happy to hear to kept the original Drivetrain though.

I'm still running the factory 455 in my 76 T/A. But I'm not going to touch it. Everything is still orignal. I found a good 400 block last year and I figure I might build it down the road. I need to find another car to put it in first I guess. Then when I win the Lottery, I'll be giving Butler a call.
 
I'd love to put one of those Monster KRE twin turbo motors in it. Just need an extra $40,000....:rolleyes:

Tell me you at least put true duals on that 455 and opened up the shaker. That's my biggest problem, leaving well enough alone. Probably why the GP has a broken piston. :th_laugh-lol2:
 
shaker has been opened, no true duels though. I did empty the cat pellets though.

Real hard to get into a stock class at the T/A nats already. The open shaker put us into a modded class. But yet restored cars with new stickers and chalk marks can get in...wtf

I know I know, drive it and enjoy it. But it has been in the family since new.
 


Join the club.. We used to have i believe 5 or 6 1/4 tracks? (correct me if i'm wrong) but being it's CA, the car hating capital of the world. We either have Bakersfield (3 hours from me), Fontana (Only opened to the public on rare dates in the year), and Sacramento (9 hours from me)
 
I don't know, kinda the point of the thread, all my local tracks are closing and cuz I'm cheap and lazy I have'nt taken car to the track yet.

I really need to have an NHRA tech look at my car and tell me what I need to do to make it track legal. I'm afraid that my motor combo is going to "technically" make it a AA/FC requiring excessive and expensive safety equipment. It's the combination of the methanol and blower with the magneto ignition. Maybe I'm misreading the rules but that's what it looks like to me. :th_scratchhead: :th_shrugshoulders:

On the positive side... I keep hearing rumors that someone is possibly going to open a track around Eolia Mo. which is real close to me, just up hiway 64, hell I could drive it there. Anyone heard anything about that?
 


bluegtp91 said:
You can just come to KCIR you woman and race with us :D

LOL
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That could happen. That's what the trailer is for.

I really would like an NHRA tech to look at it and tell me what I need to go 9.90's at least. How strict are they on tech though? I'd hate to get up there and not be able to run.

If that happens, can I make a few passes in your car :th_laugh-lol3:?
 
Meh, depends on who tech's ya. There is a old fat guy and this young asian dude...and they know nothing. There was a '03-ish V6 Mustang there with a cut open hood and a M112 Cobra blower bolted on it...sticking THROUGH the hood...and he told them it was factory, which...the blower might have been...but the car wasn't lol...and they were like hmmm, OK. Also, they don't check battery's or anything...my buddy ran his Subaru with a shoestring tying it down. On the other hand...the rest of them know their sh1t. And don't put up with any crap LOL
 
Well now, it looks like ya'll might have to come down and see me! :D

www.midamericaracewaypark.com


This is great news for the racers in this area and it will only be 27 miles from me.

As far as I can tell though, they have'nt turned a shovel yet so a 2011 opening sounds pretty optamistic. Sounds like pretty much a done deal though. This area has some of the countries premier chassis builders, Jerry Bickel, Jerry Haas, and Tim McAmis all have shops local to me. Bill Kuhlman used to live in Wentzville (First Pro Stock to hit 200 mph) and actually lived about a half mile from the old MAR and tested there frequently. My daughter saw her first Top fuel dragster there when she was but 2 years old and we were sitting about 20 feet from the track (she had ear muffs on).
 
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