Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Here's where we go to kick back after the races with our pals. Pour a tall one, punch a few buttons on the jukebox, and relax...
User avatar
WildcatOne
Posts:6732
Joined:Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:17 am
Location:Houston, Texas
Contact:
Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby WildcatOne » Mon Jul 24, 2017 6:47 pm

My pick for Racer of the Week is Robin Orthodoxou, a hairdresser from London, England. Robin was recommended to me by his son, Darren. Thanks, guys! I had an awesome chat with Robin last week. He called me when he heard I was looking for him on Facebook! We had some laughs and exchanged information, and I got some great details on him and his hot rod.

Robin built, drives and maintains a '27 T altered that is an amazing piece of machinery, engineering and talent. He built the chassis himself in his shop. He's raced the car in different forms and configurations going back to1994, and he's upgraded it regularly to where now it is powered by a 632 cubic inch Steve Schmidt Big-Block Chevy. He is a regular competitor in comp eliminator at Santa Pod, and over the years his team "The Chaos Brothers" has also earned the nickname "Entertainment" from the safety marshalls whenever he pulls up to the line...

The car has had an incident or two, the most serious of which was when Robin was running a torqueflight hooked up to a Gapp & Roush Cleveland back in 2014. Coming off the line at 8,000 rpms, the transmission totally detonated right between Robin's legs. He only suffered a bruised foot, as the tranny blanket did its job, but the explosion took out parts of the body, bent the steering shaft, and even bent over the clutch pedal.

After that, the team switched over to a Liberty 5 speed and never went back to an automatic. Not long after that happened, the Cleveland threw its rods and it, too was history. That car had run a best of 8.48 at 158. Robin decided the next step was to go with a big motor, but a new chassis had to be built in order to certify with that combination, so the car that's there now is the new version of the old hot rod.

His first love is Funny Car, and what he built with the new motor is a hybrid between a Funny Car and Pro Stock.

As well as seeing pictures of Robin sideways in an identical position to one of Willie Borsch's wildest runs (Robin also drives with one hand...people say he's crazy...I can't understand why), I watched an extremely dynamic 4-panel video on YouTube of Robin making a pass in the car, and when it barrelled through the traps at over 190 mph, all 4 wheels were up off the ground! He has run a best ET of 6.95 at just under 195 with the car, and he has a best 60-foot time of 1.01 seconds.

This guy means business, and his championship seasons of 2014 and 2015 have him standing as one of the most popular and respected sportsman racers in the UK.

Robin, we wish you good luck, safe racing and the best of times in the future!
Attachments
RobinAndWillie.jpg
RobinAndWillie.jpg (41.6KiB)Viewed 1667 times
Robin_Orthodoxou_Jul_17_2017_FB.jpg
Robin_Orthodoxou_Jul_17_2017_FB.jpg (536.63KiB)Viewed 1928 times
Last edited by WildcatOne on Mon Aug 28, 2017 9:45 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Life Is Good!
http://www.peeweebowenband.com
Support Live Music!

User avatar
WildcatOne
Posts:6732
Joined:Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:17 am
Location:Houston, Texas
Contact:

Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby WildcatOne » Mon Jul 31, 2017 7:06 pm

My pick for Racer of the Week is Brandon Baxter, from Granville, Illinois. Brandon was recommended to me by our friend and former Racer of the Week, Steve Plumb. Thanks, Steve!

Brandon's graphic and intro on Facebook comes in second, all time, behind Bret Kepner. His feature got upwards of 165 Likes, 20 Shares, and over 20 comments, all positive! He is one of the most popular drag racers in the general vicinity of Chicago and the Quad Cities. Granville Township is more or less halfway between Chi-Town and the QC area.

Brandon is a member of the Midwest Top Sportsman Association with his hot rod.

The car is a Rick Jones Pro Stock 2008 Dodge Stratus.

New for this season is a one of a kind 714 cubic inch all-billet aluminum Hemi. The engine was designed by Todd Goodwin from Goodwin competition. It runs a Coan turbo 400 3 speed transmission built by Don Baxter.

The car has run some fantastic numbers. So far the best performance of the car has been a 6.54 ET at 211 mph.

The gorgeous multi-color graphics were done by Steve Dekkenga of SD Enterprises, in Spring Lake, Michigan.

Brandon and his Dad have been running in Top Sportsman for 17 years now. His dad has raced for over 34 years.

They just switched this year to running Competition Eliminator in NHRA meetings.

Brandon sends special thanks to his Dad, Don Baxter. He said without him, none of this would be possible. He's the brains behind all of this and the money, too.

Brandon also thanked Steve Plumb, DragList.com and Racers Reunion Radio for featuring him as Racer of the Week.

Brandon, we wish you good luck, safe racing and the best of times in the future!
Attachments
Brandon_Baxter_Jul_31_2017_FB.jpg
Brandon_Baxter_Jul_31_2017_FB.jpg (533.85KiB)Viewed 1837 times
Life Is Good!
http://www.peeweebowenband.com
Support Live Music!

User avatar
Wheelzman
Posts:2396
Joined:Wed Sep 04, 2013 11:26 pm

Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby Wheelzman » Mon Jul 31, 2017 7:39 pm

Wow, the graphics just fit that car. I like it. :D :D :D

User avatar
WildcatOne
Posts:6732
Joined:Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:17 am
Location:Houston, Texas
Contact:

Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby WildcatOne » Mon Aug 07, 2017 6:48 pm

They did a beautiful job on it, didn't they? I appreciate a good graphics job on a car. That one stands out for sure! Thanks, Wheelz!
Life Is Good!
http://www.peeweebowenband.com
Support Live Music!

User avatar
WildcatOne
Posts:6732
Joined:Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:17 am
Location:Houston, Texas
Contact:

Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby WildcatOne » Mon Aug 07, 2017 6:49 pm

My pick for Racer of the Week is Bill Rotz, from East Moline, Illinois. Bill was recommended to me by our friend and former Racer of the Week, Steve Plumb. Thanks, Steve!

Bill has an awesome Top Sportsman Camaro that is a heavy competitor in the Quad Cities and Midwest racing circuit. He's a member of the Midwest Top Sportsman Racing Association, he has owned Crabby's Bar and Grill for 15 years and he recently opened a new bar called Logger house. He's 57 years old and has been married to Lori for 29 years with 3 grown daughters and now 2 foster children. He has 29 years as a machinist as well, and like all drag racers, he's living life to its fullest.

I chatted with Bill this week about his racing and he said, "Well there's really not a lot about my racing career to talk about.. most of it was local bracket racing with a few wins over a long time trying. I switched to Top Sportsman racing in 2010, and in 2011 I was the Route 66 Top Sportsman Track Champion...I guess that would be my one highlight." If you ask me, it's a highlight ever time that car runs.

The car Bill drives now is a '68 Camaro. It has a Tim McAmis chassis and it was finished by "Pro Stock" Jim Wilson. The engine is a 622 cubic inch Pontiac-headed motor with nitrous. The transmission is a BTE Powerglide...a 7.21 ET @189.9 mph in his former ride, a '63 Corvette Stingray, is Bill's personal fastest time.

Last week Bill had to pull out of the event he was running; at first he thought it was the transmission that was acting up, but as it turns out the trans is not the problem. He said he's going to have to look at the motor a little closer. When I talked with Bill this week he said it's getting better, he's sure it's just a minor issue. Bill, I expect that you'll be back in the thick of it in no time.

Bill is a man of few words, but his actions are what define his greatness. He said he's not really a spotlight kind of person. I told him I never noticed that about him, but his performance on the track with that magnificent hot rod and in his life with his diversified interests and generosity speak volumes about the character of the man I'm featuring tonight.

Bill and Lori Rotz, we wish you good luck, safe racing and the best of times in the future!
Attachments
Bill_Rotz_Aug_07_2017_FB.jpg
Bill_Rotz_Aug_07_2017_FB.jpg (546.54KiB)Viewed 1776 times
Life Is Good!
http://www.peeweebowenband.com
Support Live Music!

User avatar
WildcatOne
Posts:6732
Joined:Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:17 am
Location:Houston, Texas
Contact:

Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby WildcatOne » Mon Aug 28, 2017 8:05 pm

My pick for Racer of the Week is Jason Seeley, from Bettendorf, Iowa. Jason and I have been friends on Facebook for a while, and I recently saw the major upgrades and changes he's made to his '70 Plymouth Duster, and I decided to feature him in my segment this week.

Jason grew up in a Top Fuel family. His father was Sid Seeley, The Moline MadMan. Sid died in 1985 of lung cancer. Jason was 14 years old at that time. He said Sid's wake was a 3 day visitation, including cars from about 30 states.

He also shared some great stories with me of what it was like growing up behind the scenes in the Big-Time Drag Racing circuit during the 70s. Sid was friends with all the major racers in that era, and Jason was right there during those years. He learned a lot and he saw a lot, and it was everything we ever thought it was like, and then some!

After Sid passed, Jason spent 20 years away from the dragstrip, as he told me, running from his heritage. He joined the Marines and was on active duty from 1991-1995. It was there that he learned the confidence to face his destiny. After Jason's military service, he ended up meeting Jeff Freeman Jr. when they both worked at a local Budweiser distributor. Jeff's father and close friends introduced Jason to the wonderful world of bracket racing.

Ten years later...Jason Seeley is closing in on his first ever points championship in "Pro" at Tri-State Raceway in Earlville, Iowa. Jason told me that it's one of the best-run tracks in the Midwest, and the nicest people you could ever meet.

Jason thanks Jim Peterson, who built his transmission. He excels in 904 and 727 trannys. He also thanks Jeff Smith. Jim and Jeff are getting up in years, but they still race. Jeff's been at it for around 40 years and right now he's driving the Scare-a-van. Jason told me that he's under the impression that the first race car was when they rolled the second car off the Ford assembly line. Henry Ford drove the first one, and Jim Peterson drove the second one...and he probably has the time slip to show you for it!

Jason married his fianceé, Janelle on August 19th. They just got back from their honeymoon in the Ozarks.
He told me that his personal and racing life are just plain AWESOME right now.

He's running consistent 11.20s with the potential to go into the 10.70s and he's more than 60 points out in front with 2 races left. He's kind of nervous and anxious, as the guy in second place is a formidable opponent, but I told him just keep doing what you're doing and don't change anything. You'll win.

We're looking forward to hearing about Jason's points championship, and I'll be sure to give him a shout-out when that fine day comes to pass.

Jason, we wish you good luck, safe racing and the best of times in the future!
Attachments
Jason_Seely_Aug_28_2017_FBb.jpg
Jason_Seely_Aug_28_2017_FBb.jpg (453.37KiB)Viewed 1682 times
Life Is Good!
http://www.peeweebowenband.com
Support Live Music!

User avatar
draglist
Site Admin
Posts:13792
Joined:Wed Feb 22, 2006 7:23 pm
Location:Waldorf MD
Contact:

Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby draglist » Wed Aug 30, 2017 9:06 pm

I didn't know Jason was Sid's son until the show. The Moline Madman was a good running top fuel car from that area with success in the UDRA. bp
Bill Pratt
Draglist.com - Crowdsourced drag racing history.
Headlines and Results: http://www.draglist.com/
Drag Lists: http://www.draglist.com/draglist/draglist.php

User avatar
WildcatOne
Posts:6732
Joined:Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:17 am
Location:Houston, Texas
Contact:

Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby WildcatOne » Fri Sep 01, 2017 1:18 pm

I didn't know about that, either, until Jason told me. He inherited the "Moline Madman" name, and he proudly has it on his car. Jason told me he spent years away from the sport, but it's in his blood and he's back in it, body and soul. His sense of humor and his outlook on life makes him a treasure to know. JB

Update: Jason Seeley won the points championship at Tri-State Dragway! Congratulations, Jason! We knew you were going to do it!
Last edited by WildcatOne on Thu Sep 21, 2017 12:58 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Life Is Good!
http://www.peeweebowenband.com
Support Live Music!

User avatar
WildcatOne
Posts:6732
Joined:Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:17 am
Location:Houston, Texas
Contact:

Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby WildcatOne » Mon Sep 11, 2017 7:43 pm

My pick for Racers of the Week are Kyle and Robert Hughes, from Austintown, Ohio. Robert contacted me to feature his son Kyle a while back, but when I saw his awesome Chevy hot rod, I decided to feature both father and son in tonight's show.

Kyle's junior dragster is a quick kids chasis with a 3.25 pure power pro stock engine. It was painted by Kyle and Robert's sponsor, Greenwood Chevrolet Collision in Austintown, Ohio. Kyle was the 8-12 year-old class champion at the Hughes' home track, Quaker City Motorsports Park in Salem, Ohio for the 2016 season. He started racing at 10 years old in 2015, finishing 3rd in points that season. At the 2016 IHRA Division 3 Finals, Kyle finished runner up. He also qualified for the world finals in Memphis Tennessee in November of 2016. He lost first round with a .003 red, but his Mom and Dad couldnt have been more proud of him anyway.

This year has not gone all their way like last but that hasnt stopped Kyle. He runnered up recently, racing in his hfr chassied junior dragster. His mom Nicole Hughes is also a big help to him and without her support these gents wouldn't be where they are.

Kyle wanted Robert to explain the band aids on his car in the graphic. In 2015 on their third outing, while he was still learning the car, he had made the turn too fast to enter the track and he rolled it! He was OK, it just shook him up. They checked the car over and he on his own said he wanted to get back in that night and race. He made a pass at 73 mph 2 hours after rolling it over. The next day his uncle put band aids on the damage as a joke. They are still there to this day.

Robert asked Kyle who his favorite racer is, and he didnt say John Force or Tony Schumacher. He said "You are, Dad."

The Camaro is a '67, back-halfed with a 355 cubic inch small block Chevy. It is a lucanics chassis. It is painted GM sand drift. Robert has not raced it since 2015 and he's focused on his son, teaching him and also keeping up with the junior dragster and the funds it takes to race it. He will, however be getting back into it this year within the next few weeks.

As a family, the Hughes learned to race from Robert's Dad, David Hughes. Robert remembers as young as 6 years old being at Ohio Drag City with David racing his Dart with a 225" slant six. That thing sounded mean. He took it from almost 21-second passes to making 13-second runs. He was however forced to stop racing due to his Parkinson's Disease that he got at a young age. Now he has 3 sons and 2 grandsons racing and 5 more grandchildren waiting for their chance.

This is another Drag Racing family we're proud to feature on Racin' & Rockin' with DragList.com. Kyle and Robert, we wish you good luck, safe racing and the best of times in the future!
Attachments
Kyle_Robert_Hughes_Sep_18_2017_FB.jpg
Kyle_Robert_Hughes_Sep_18_2017_FB.jpg (442.5KiB)Viewed 1563 times
Life Is Good!
http://www.peeweebowenband.com
Support Live Music!

User avatar
WildcatOne
Posts:6732
Joined:Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:17 am
Location:Houston, Texas
Contact:

Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby WildcatOne » Mon Sep 25, 2017 7:05 pm

My pick for Racer of the Week is David Debutiaco, from Maui, Hawaii. David was recommended to me by our friend and David's lineman, Jon Fukumoto. Thanks, Jon!

David is originally from Waianae Hawaii. He started racing motocross at the age of 9, then he tried out drag racing motorcycles in the early 1990's on Oahu Hawaii Raceway Park. When they closed down the race track there, David moved to Maui 2005. It took him a while to get back into building a bracket-racing drag bike. Brock Davidson of Brock's Performance Ohio had the answer: a stock, untouched motored Kawasaki ZX10R Gen4 project would run in the 8's. David thanks Brock, Ben Knight and the staff at Brock's Performance. He did a few things to his little 998cc 2012 Kawasaki ZX10R. It is now the quickest stock-motored ZX-10 in the nation.

David's fastest 1/4 mile pass is an 8.37 ET @ 161.87mph. He sent me the time slip from that run.

Some of David's notable accomplishments are:
He is the 2011,2013, and 2017 Hawaii State Motorcycle Drag Bike Champion.
He's the 2013 and 2016 National Dragster Challenge Wally Champion.
He is the 2016 Valley Isle Timing Association ProBike Points Champion.

David told me he gives thanks: To God #1, his Wife Cindy, his Family, His Team: Jon Fukumoto and Max Renigado, and his support from Brock's Performance Ohio. He also thanks Hawaii Motorsports, LLC, Maui Kawasaki Cycle City in Maui, Magic Bullet Advance Fuel Treatment, Ted Davis Revtek in Honolulu, and Kiwicarcare in Maui.

His goals are to race one race on the mainland. I hope you can get over here and do that some fine day, David.

With a 140 point lead with 1 race to go, David Debutiaco only has to show up and break the beams to be the back-to-back Pro Bike champion for 2016 and 2017! I might add, he personifies the definition of a champion to me. Jon told me that David has a reputation as an honest, humble, hard-working guy who helps his fellow racers, loves God, his family, and his chosen sport. I believe that those are the most important attributes you could ever hope to find in a guy, and that makes him a deserving champ in my book.

David, we wish you good luck, safe racing and the best of times in the future!
Attachments
David_Debutiaco_Sep_25_2017_FB.jpg
David_Debutiaco_Sep_25_2017_FB.jpg (486.92KiB)Viewed 1534 times
Life Is Good!
http://www.peeweebowenband.com
Support Live Music!


Return to “Dangerous Bill's Cafe Noir”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 24 guests