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

Postby Wheelzman » Tue Mar 28, 2017 10:35 am

A video of the YeTTi in action. Now that's truckin' 8) 8) 8)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lxiYexI97ME

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

Postby Danny White » Sat Apr 08, 2017 9:20 am

My pick for Racer of the Week is Leon Plumb, from East Moline, Illinois. Leon was recommended to me by both of his sons, Steve and Tony Plumb, who are both former Racers of the Week. Thanks, guys! These folks are a drag racing family, and they are well-known and respected in the Quad Cities area, where I have found that drag racers are a close-knit family and this is one of the families like the Wilsons, the Carlsons, the Thompsons, the Freemans, the Seeleys and many more who I've gotten to know.
At this time, Steve's Top Sportsman Camaro project is ready for primer and Leon thanks Pro Stock Jim Wilson for his help in preparing the car. He said it couldn't be where it is now if it wasn't for him.
Leon sent me some messages and I'd like to read them now. Leon Plumb is in my opinion a great man. He said:
Thanks John, I am glad I got my sons into racing; there are a lot worse things they could be doing. I found that out from being a former High School Auto Teacher.
I souped up a lawnmower when I was 12 and moved into working on cars and hot rodding them from then on.
I started racing at the World Series at Cordova in 1963, I have been hooked from that first day, I did a lot of street racing back in those days, and I'm lucky to have lived through it. I was lucky to get a job teaching Auto at our local high school.
I had my sons in my class and I learned how important it was to have them involved in cars and we built the 66 Nova for a family race team. We have been racing it ever since. We have been through a lot of parts and a crash, but after all the work, we were back at it and never stopped. Our whole life has been Drag Racing and I would not have changed it for anything. I think it is very important to spend time with the boys. They have grown up to be very good men and have a great sport, that is much better than a lot of other things they could be doing with their time. It has been a great time and I am not going to give it up now.
Leon, I have exactly the same philosophy with my sons. They grew up to be artists and rock musicians. And they're very good at it, too. When I was confronted about their choices, I told the person that there's a lot worse things they could be doing. Your sons have built and are racing outstanding hot rods, and I was proud to feature all of you in my segment.
Leon and the Plumb boys, we wish you good luck, safe racing and the best of times in the future.
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Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby WildcatOne » Sat Apr 08, 2017 3:19 pm

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

Postby draglist » Sat Apr 08, 2017 5:25 pm

You got it, John! Glad to see you are back. bp
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Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby Danny White » Mon Apr 10, 2017 9:35 pm

My pick for Racer of the Week is Vinnie Barbone, from Salem, Ohio. Vinnie was recommended to me by our friends Don Turner and Gorden Jenkins of the DADs old-fashioned drag racing group. Thanks, Guys!

Vinnie Barbone is a very dynamic and multitalented individual. His diverse activities include being the Public Relations representative of the Quaker City Motorsports Park, a consistent competitor in the DADs Street Outlaws Racing group, a member of the Back-To-Basics annual car show, a participant in the Hot Rod Drag Week competition, and the owner, driver and builder of two outstanding hot rods; a 1980 Chevy Monza Outlaw Limited Street Racer car, and the incredible "Project Samsquanch", a 1995 Geo Tracker powered by a twin-turbo 454 small-block Chevy engine. This is the car he has dreamed of having since he was 14 years old, and here it is.

Project Samsquanch had been a featured car in several publications in print and on the internet, and it is something unique and exciting to watch. Vinnie is finalizing a complete rebuild of the car, with upgrades and improvements being made from stem to stern. A Geo Tracker is a sub-compact truck, a light utility vehicle, but with a 2-seater interior, a short wheelbase and not featuring a lot of aerodynamics. With Vinnie in the cockpit, however, it is a top-running drag racing machine capable of hitting 8-second ETs. He plans to win the 2017 Hot Rod Drag Week competition, which will run from September 10th-15th. The cars will be driven to 5 tracks spanning the distance between Cordova, Gateway, Byron and Great Lakes. It's a grueling 6 day road trip including racing at each track, but Vinnie is confident and well-prepared to take it on.

His work on the Geo Tracker has been nothing short of amazing. The 90" wheelbase is still a good 10" shorter than the rest of the cars in the field. The car uses a repurposed '68 Camaro chassis, aside from the up-front stretch, the body panels from the firewall back are all from the original Tracker. For the engine, Barbone went with a Blue Print Engines Chevy 454 Small Block engine and a Turbo 350 transmission. Now running the twin turbos and an EFI setup on top, he plans to bury the car in the 8s to set the all-time Geo Tracker ET record, and with the 900-plus horsepower that engine delivers, there is no doubt he will achieve that goal. He had his roll cage recertified to 7.50 so the car is good to go. Several companies have stepped up to contribute to the project. Last I saw it was around a dozen.

There is a lot more detail to this story that is described in several articles about Project Samsquanch; the Facebook page has daily updates and the article on roadkill.com have great coverage of the entire project. It's a great read that I don't have time on the show to really go too far into, so I'm posting the links to the car in the online text, which will be in JB's Take in the DragList Forum:

For the road trip, the car is equipped with a state-of-the-art stereo system and a DVD player. While all this is going on, Vinnie acquired another Geo Tracker for his fiancee that he's building from scratch and has named "Lil Conky".

It will be fascinating to see the results of Vinnie's effort coming up for Drag Week. We'll be rooting for you all the way and wishing you good luck, safe racing and the best of times in the future.
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Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby draglist » Sat Apr 15, 2017 12:41 am

Thanks for posting these, Danny, but I wonder what glitch is preventing John from accessing the board all of a sudden. He has full credentials here and everybody else is working great... bp
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Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby Danny White » Mon Apr 17, 2017 9:08 pm

My pick for Racer of the Week is Bronson Tabios, from Kaneohe, Hawaii. Bronson was recommended to me by our friend Michael Baba Balbarino, whose 808_FUEL page contains all the latest information on motorsports in the Garden Isle. Thanks, Michael!

Bronson is an outstanding young man with a passion for our sport, and his personality and hot rod are very popular and respected among the Drag Racing community in Hawaii. It is a very cool car, built by a very cool guy. Bronson sent some great information about himself and his car.

He met Michael Balbarino last September at the Labor Day weekend event and he told me that Michael's a really great guy. He does an excellent job of covering the drag racing action throughout the state of Hawaii.

Bronson is 26 years old, residing in Kaneohe, HI on the island of Oahu. He started racing junior dragsters when he was 8 years old up until 2006, when Oahu’s only racetrack, Hawaii Raceway Park, closed its doors for good. Bronson's family shipped his hot rod to Kauai in 2014 and he has been racing there ever since.

The car is a 1994 Honda Civic DX Hatchback
The engine is a B18C swap
It has aftermarket cams, intake manifold, and headers
The suspension is a set of Buddy Club Race Spec coilovers
It runs Lenso drag wheels and M&H Racemaster Slicks and Mickey Thompson skinnies

Bronson is the 2002 and 2003 Junior Dragster League of Hawaii Champion at Oahu
He is the 2016 Garden Isle Racing Assocation Sport Compact Champion
2016 Garden Isle Racing Association King of the Track Champion.

Bronson thanks his Mom & Dad, Grandma Marina, his brother Henry, Ryan Nakata of FFrontbunch Hawaii, Paul Hashimoto of PNR Innovations, SportCraft Racecar Components & Fabrication, Ken’s Race Engines, GPR Auto, Function Co., His Kauai Ohana for the help and hospitality, and he said Mahalo again for this opportunity!

Na'u ka hau'oli (the pleasure is mine), Bronson.
We wish you good luck, safe racing and the best of times in the future!
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Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby WildcatOne » Mon Apr 24, 2017 7:37 pm

My pick for Racer of the Week is "Crazy" Jason Smith, from Frederick, Maryland. Jason was recommended to me by our friend and founder of the Mid-Atlantic Street Outlaws, Duane Morris. Thanks, Duane! I'd also like to thank Lethal Shutter Productions, who have let me know that I am welcome to use any of their photos to produce Racer of the Week graphics with. I always credit the photographers when I can find photo credits, but I downloaded LSP's logo and it is always on the graphics I make for the Mid-Atlantic group. Thanks, guys!

To say that Jason Smith is a non-conformist would be a gross understatement. He's involved in more projects and activities than any 4 guys could stay busy with. I talked with Jason on the phone and we had a lengthy and informative visit. I promised to focus mainly on the car I'm featuring tonight, but it's safe to say that Jason's street-legal '27 Model T hot rod is far from the only iron he has in the fire.

He also races drag bikes, works on Steve Johnson's Pro Stock Bike team, owns and runs Right A Way Powder Coating in Middletown, Maryland, and he has involvement in several more projects that are at this time being completed, which will be announced soon. I guarantee mind-blowing results when they're done.

Jason has been racing in the IDBL for the last few years. His passion for drag bikes is second only to his love of all things hot rod. The International Drag Bike League Facebook page and website show it as the largest motorcycle drag racing series, and Jason is all in on it.

It's easy to get off topic here. Getting back to Jason's amazing hot rod. He's a winner in the MASO group, but not without some controversy. Yes, the car is street-legal, but it is registered as a 1927 Model T Roadster. Modern rules don't apply to it same as it would if it was a 1997 Ford Mustang, ya see. Some folks have complained that it's an altered with current license plates and Jason doesn't entirely disagree but the car is legal for the series and for the street. The engine powering the car to high 4-second ETs in the 1/8th mile is a 540 cubic-inch big-block Chevy with 8:1 compression, running an 8-71 supercharger, a Turbo 400 transmission, Zoomie headers (which are legal for street use according to the 1927 registration), and it uses alcohol for fuel. Jason keeps drag slicks on the car and he occasionally takes it for a spin around town, turning heads everywhere he goes with it. He said he can go about 20 miles before he runs low on fuel. I say let the good times roll.

He also told me that the series he runs in doesn't measure ETs and MPH, as it's not a bracket or class series (I hope I got that part right). It's just old-school heads-up drag racing.

He told me about his next project which is in the works at this time and will be completed within the next few weeks. The '27 T roadster will still run but wait till you see what he's going to do next! In my opinion, it will far exceed anything he's done yet, and I can't wait to hear the results.

Jason sends special thanks to Nelson Grimes. Nelson is Jason's mentor and he is also an amazing painter. This was his car many years ago and Jason is grateful for Nelson's help, input and guidance.

Drag Racing is innovation in motion, and Jason Smith exemplifies that phrase. He's well-known and respected for his work ethic, his easy-going personality and his amazing ability to think oustide the box and put his ideas into reality. I have always admired that quality in people, and I have no doubt that Jason will continue to compete and win with his complex and highly original hot rods.

Jason, we wish you good luck, safe racing and the best of times in the future!
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Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby draglist » Mon Apr 24, 2017 8:30 pm

Welcome back, John! Glad you were able to get back in! We missed you! bp
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Re: Racin' and Rockin'..."JB's Take"

Postby WildcatOne » Mon May 01, 2017 7:42 pm

Thanks, BP! It's great to be here!
My pick for Racers of the Week are Shawn and Chrissy Deters, from Moline, Illinois. Shawn and Chrissy were recommended to me by our friend and former Racer of the Week, Steve Plumb. Thanks, Steve!

The Deters are one fo the most popular and respected drag racing families in the Quad Cities area. Chrissy was recently named Sportsman of the Year from the Cordova Raceway annual awards. The Facebook graphic and intro got 180 likes, 30 comments, and 13 shares. That brings it in 3rd all-time behind Bret Kepner and Jim Wilson.

Chrissy sent me some great info about them and their history in the sport, and I'd like to read what she wrote:

A little bit of our background: Shawn and I both grew up around this sport. My dad, Pat Richardson, is the one who started this back in 1967, and he's been doing it ever since. I should mention here that Pat Richardson was Racer of the Week on September 15th, 2014. Chrissy said: Growing up, I had two choices...to either stay home and play with my friends, or go racing. I chose racing.

In 1996, I traveled the Midwest with my dad, while he was running with the MPSA (Midwest Pro Stock Association), and I met a lot of amazing people.
I was still in high school, and the comraderie of people basically speaks for itself. We were always surrounded by awesome people and racers. I like to think I learned a lot about the sport during those 5 seasons, back then.

During one of his weekends off, my dad put me behind the wheel of his 1980 Plymouth arrow, which was set up for Super Comp. He put a throttle stop on the car, so I could at least get the feel...well, that first pass went out of control, to say the least. Right along with my nerves. Somehow I managed to confuse the throttle stop button with the line lock button and needless to say the car stood up on the backend, and came down real hard, almost running my dad over. Then I decided to foot brake it off the starting line, and against the chip, (which was a sound I wasn't familiar with INSIDE the car) I lifted and decided I was better off being on his pit crew. We laugh about it now, and have for many years, but that was a moment neither of us will ever forget.

Many years later, I ended up in my '82 Olds, and taking my first real "W" on a Father's Day weekend. What an amazing day, and another one for the books.

Just this last fall, I licensed in my dad's Top Sportsman 66 GTO! To some, it's not a big deal. But to us, it most definitely is.

This past winter, I received the "Sportsman of the year" award, from our home track, Cordova International Raceway. That in itself is truly an honor. What an amazing award to receive coming from the girl many years ago, who used to sit back in the pits, and get suited up and strapped into her car, as I was afraid to be up against some of the best! Those people in turn, have become some of the greatest friends and family that a person could ever ask for!

Shawn grew up across the street from Don Speer, and has always referred to Don as his "2nd dad".

Shawn bought his first race car in 2003, and ran Super Pro, and after a few years, he traded that mustang for the Chassis Concepts dragster he has now. Over the years, Shawn has learned a lot from Don, as have I. Don was also best man in our wedding, and rightfully so.

We both have truly been blessed with the knowledge and expertise that stems from both my dad Pat, and Don. What a couple of great mentors!
My 82 Olds has a 468" BBC, and runs anywhere between 10.20's to 10.0's, depending on the kind of air we have. On a cool day, that car always seems to pick up! But I'm not complaining!

Shawn's 247" wheelbase dragster has a 555" Chevy, blown on alcohol runs 6.80 at 197 mph.
He is currently running (this year) a 632" BBC injected on alcohol, and runs 7.50 at 175 mph. He's focusing on the Quick 16 races this year, to free up time to also focus on our kids getting their seat time, since this is their first year in a Jr dragster. We are excited to see what this season brings for our family!

And thanks to Steve Plumb for referring us for this recognition. What a great friend/person Steve is!!

Chrissy asked me to send our prayers and condolences to Clyde Scott and his family in Canton, Texas. Clyde's shop, his cars and most profoundly, his father-in-law were lost in the storms that went through there Saturday night. Our prayers are with you and your family, Clyde.

Also--(please mention this if you have time)
Thank YOU JB, for always taking your own time to put together these segments! It truly gives the veterans of this sport recognition for what they've accomplished their entire life! Without people like them, we wouldn't be here following in their footsteps!

Chrissy, without DragList.com and RacersReunion Radio, I wouldn't be here to do what I do, either. We're all part of a truly great family.
Thanks for the great info, Chrissy. For you and Shawn, we wish you good luck, safe racing and the best of times in the future!

A quick shout-out to our friend Jim Jr. Sanders in St. Louis. Today was Jim Sr. Sanders' birthday. Happy birthday in Heaven, Jim Sr.!
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