Night at the track , my TA with previous owner Mark L

MARK'S STORY

Hello all, just registered here and thought I'd introduce myself. 55 years young and newly retired. I've built a rather quick 1973 TA and usually just drive it to the strip about 40 miles one way. This time I pulled all of the exhaust system off, remove the passenger seat and trailered it down so the slicks were already on and ready to go.

Here's a post from another forum about my last night at the strip. See if you enjoy it.

Union Grove WI Great Lakes Dragaway. 10-3-07.

Imagine this. I'm pulling up to the front of the staging lanes. On my left side pulls up a full on ProStock Cuda. Big weenies on the narrowed rear. Full four link suspension. Full pretty chrome wheelie bars on the back. Wicked sounding engine of some unknown heritage cackling away with the sound of high compression pulling atmosphere thru too big ports, dumping the used high octane racing fuel out the too big chrome masterpiece headers (later found out he had a built 440 running nitrous).

I've been lucky pulling more mundane vehicles all night so this has got my blood boiling. I think to myself, well finally found that guy that they say is always faster than you. I'm thinking I hope I don't look too bad.

We stage. My trans brake has not been working all night so I am foot braking. I get staged and it takes a while for him to come up. I've been up and down several times on the brake waiting. I'm getting a little peeved as I'm wasting time wondering if they are going to run me solo or are we waiting for Mr. Prettycar.

Finally he comes up and stages. The lights start down and I mat the throttle at the last yellow, letting off the brake and hitting the nitrous in one outstanding (for me) motion. I see the Cuda jump out on me (I'm thinking I must have slept on the tree). The TA starts clawing at the sky lifting and dropping the front end once, twice, three times just as the front starts hooking to the right towards the wall. I correct, all this time holding the throttle to the floor and a good solid push on the nitrous button. I have to fight the wheel. I have the steering pulled all the way down until my thumb is almost pulled off of the nitrous button when the car finally corrects and I straightens out. No letting up on this one and I've already passed the Cuda.

The Cuda stays right at my door. 1/8th mile comes up and I start pulling just ever so slightly on him. He is 6.683 @ 106.45. I'm 6.578 @ 107.11. I hold this position thru most of the rest of the run but just start to pull him a little more going thru the lights. He hits a 10.401 @ 131.61. I hit 10.251 @ 133.80.

I'm so stoked I over shoot the turn off and have to go all the way down the extended shutdown area. (They need to fix that area up a little). After getting the time slip I realize that he actually red lit with a -.090 light and I hit a real nice, under the gun, .015. That's why he pulled out on me at first.

Well what do you think? Man what a rush.