[coldknock]

Here's a group of cars and people that anyone in the southeast should make a trip to see. One car I'll never forget is a brown '57 Chevy wagon. 10,000 rpm launches yanking the fronts in 1-2 and 3. There's a pic of it on the site doing a wheelstand along with a bunch of other badazz cars.

http://www.classicgearjammers.org/

I boosted this from the home page cuz I'm too lazy to type it.

To anyone who remembers the early 60's drag racing days, you remember that the early days of drag racing was dominated by the "Stick Shift" manual transmissioned cars. Especially in the "Super Stock" classes. These "Stick Shift" cars; "high revving, clutch dropping, leaving the line on the back bumper, jamming gears" were a super show. Competition was tough, on cars as well as drivers. No"High Tech" here. Automatic transmissions, electronics, nitrous oxide were just not heard of yet. A"Run what you Brung", racing. To many "Real Racing".
As the years passed, the "Stick Shift" cars became dinosaurs. Almost to extinction. Many abandoned for automatic cars or converted to automatics. Many hidden away in barns and garages, "Forgotten". Untill!!!
In 1990, at Elk Creek Dragway in Southwest Virginia, the first "Stick Shift" only class was organized and presented to the spectators. The spectators loved it and wanted "More".
Thus the "Stick Shift Drag Racers" were formed. Later to become officially the "Classic Gear Jammers, Inc." in 1994. A non-profit club organized and run by it's members to promote and showcase these "Stick Shift" cars and their style of racing at tracks in the Southeastern United States.

Larry

[dh79]

At my local track there's a small group of cars that run in a class called "super shifters". I think it's great. Manual transmissions, no computers, bracket racing. I'm hoping by next year to convert my car to manual so I can bang some gears with em. I'm sick of automatics.
Here's the webpage for the group around here:
http://www.bcsupershifter.com/

[Kevin45]

Just a WARNING....if it's early in the morning or late at night don't open that link without turning the sound down. Wife just yelled in and ask WTF are you doing????? Sounds like a car just fired up in the 'puter room!!!! Caught me off guard too!!!

[poncho62]

Must be one of those 10,000 rpm launches.........................

[coldknock]

Nah, It was just a sound of an engine revving up a bit. If you doubt the validity of my statement on his launch rpm go to a race and listen. He'll bounce it up and down between 7-8K and stomp it on the fourth bulb. I asked him, after the first run I saw, what rpm he was launching at. He said "Whatever the valvesprings will allow". He opened the door and hit the playback on the tach and it showed a 9800 rpm launch. Close enough for me.

Here's a recent writeup on Mike Boyles at Competition Plus

http://www.competitionplus.com/06_17...lie_brown.html

Larry

[CET]

Originally posted by coldknock
and it showed a 9800 rpm launch. Close enough for me.



Larry

Hey, 9800rpm is right where the wifes S2000 starts making power.

[poncho62]

I jst don't see the point it....if you launch at 10 grand, what do you shift into 2nd at? Maybe 15 or 20 grand?.............not gonna happen.

[coldknock]

Well, It's a 283 in a 4000 lb car. Rpm's drop considerably when the pedal get side stepped. It revs up again on acceleration and then shift. You really oughtta see this car in action, then you'd see the point. Kinda hard to argue with his methods with 8 class championships to his credit.

Larry

[Nightfire]

That's a SWEET wagon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My mom has a stick shift, my dad an automatic. Often you'll find the automatic more comfortable and easier but whenever my mom let's me drive her car I always enjoy myself way more than with my the van's auto.
It's a real thrill riding with my bro when he's got my moms car. He just rips through those gears. That was partly to blame why he drove into a snowbank doing 50 but that's another story.
my point is, STICK SHIFTS ARE AWESOME

Mike

[Pony]

It's great to see racing like it should be.. Owned and raced a C/G 57 chevy 409 x 4 speed back in the mid 60's. Then worked on a 63 split window Vette A/MP 427 x 4 speed in the late 60's. Those were the days. As the drive trains, clutches and tires got better the launch rpms got higher. It costs me a lot of parts and money just to launch the 57 at 5,500, five years later the 63 launched at 6,000 rpms, so I can see big rpm launches now. But as my red line was 7,200 rpms a 10,000 rpm launch would scare me to death. Got to love the 4 speeds.

[UnixKid]

I love 4 speeds

I love hearing stories from my dad about him racing his 55 chevy with a built 327 and a 4 speed, when him and his brother were teens the first mod to every car they got was a tranny swap.

[BillyShope]

Originally posted by coldknock
Nah, It was just a sound of an engine revving up a bit. If you doubt the validity of my statement on his launch rpm go to a race and listen. He'll bounce it up and down between 7-8K and stomp it on the fourth bulb. I asked him, after the first run I saw, what rpm he was launching at. He said "Whatever the valvesprings will allow". He opened the door and hit the playback on the tach and it showed a 9800 rpm launch. Close enough for me.

Here's a recent writeup on Mike Boyles at Competition Plus

http://www.competitionplus.com/06_17...lie_brown.html

Larry

With those hard skinny slicks of the sixties, launch rpm wasn't so high, but Pete McNichol used to turn 10k, in the gears, with his 170 cube slant six Willys. There were some 3 inch stroke sbc's that would do the same.