And it begins…

It was only a couple months ago that my 2012 drag racing season came to a close. Yesterday, it cranked back up with the first test and tune of the year, held at Brainerd Optimist Drag Strip. Unfortunately, the turnout was weak, but it worked out well for my friend Josh, who made numerous passes in his turbo Maverick. The questionable weather, and the big race in Valdosta put a damper on the turnout, but it was a great chance to get out for the first time in a while. Check out my full gallery of pictures here: http://byrdphoto.smugmug.com/Cars/Brainerd/Brainerd-Opening-Day-2013

Swap ‘N Shop

I love swap meets. Big or small, swap meets give me a chance to see some cool stuff, and possibly buy it if the price is right. My dad raised me to go after a good deal, so I’ve been going to swap meets with him for as long as I can remember. From the good ol’ days at the Corvette Expo (when it actually had a great swap meet) to our most recent adventures, my dad and I enjoy hunting down a good deal.

Best of 2012: Drag Racing

Alright, I’m running behind on this stuff, but here we go! My favorite drag racing photos of 2012!

Small block, stock suspension car doing its thing. Shot at the Bounty Race at I-40 Dragway.

The Forge Muscle Car Show

I guess this can be considered a “classic” event coverage, or maybe I could say this is “from the vault”. My dad and I attended this event back in 2006 and it still stands as one of the greatest car shows I’ve ever seen. It certainly didn’t have quantity, but the quality and rarity of the cars really made up for the overall size. It was only held in Chattanooga, Tennessee for one year, and I’m glad I had my camera with me.

One of several legendary Hemi cars in attendance. It’s incredible how simple the engines were…Hemi with two big ol’ carburetors.

Test and Tune Action at Brainerd

As if I already didn’t have enough to do, I decided to go to Brainerd Drag Strip a couple of Fridays ago. I had not yet tested the G8 GT after the new exhaust, so it was a good chance to do so, since the temperatures were cool. I heard a lot of other folks were going to be testing, so I figured I could go shoot a few pictures, test the car and shoot the bull.

Usually, when you see Dodge Vipers at the drag strip, they spin the tires and generally perform poorly. This one, however, hooked pretty good and ran 7’s in the eighth mile.

Taking a Break from Vacation

The past few months have been wall-to-wall action for me, including a very special weekend that should have been used as an anniversary trip. Instead, I worked all weekend at LS Fest, covering the event for Super Chevy magazine. Have I mentioned how much car stuff my wife puts up with? Anyway, she went to Bowling Green with me but it was by no means an anniversary trip. So, we decided to take the next available weekend and turn it into our little vacation. Somehow, I managed to squeeze a drag racing event into that vacation, too!

Robert Killian brought out his 2,000hp Model A (Uncle Jed) and made a few 7 second quarter mile passes.

Fall Bracket Bash at Brainerd

Yep…still trying to get caught up on event coverages! The first weekend of October included two drag racing events in the same day. The second half of my day was spent at Brainerd Optimist Drag Strip for the Fall Bracket Bash, which also featured the 4.70 index guys and the new 275 drag radial heads up class. Honestly, I went to this event only because of the 275 class, but was surprised at the great turnout of cars in the bracket classes. A lot of cool stuff that I’d never seen before, so it definitely made for a great event!

The 4.70 index cars are always fun to watch, especially when it involves two ’57 Chevys!

Paradise Show and Go Fall 2012

I’m still trying to get caught up on all of my event coverages, and it didn’t help that I had a double headers a couple of weekends ago. My dad and I planned to take our ’67 Camaro drag car down there to test it, and see if we could possibly sell it. Unfortunately, those plans fell through, but we still made the trip down to Calhoun, Georgia to have a good time. It’s always fun, and the Paradise Show and Go event always offers lots of excitement thanks to a wide variety of cars.

Now this is what I like to see…two flat black ’55 Chevys racing on a drag strip that was built in 1961. Which one do you think won this race?

The Chattanooga Cruise In

Man, September wore me out. The last weekend of the month didn’t require much traveling but it was still a great deal of work. I had spent months planning and promoting the Chattanooga Cruise In (formerly known as the Coker Tire and Honest Charley Cruise In) and it was time to see if the hard work paid off. I woke up and looked out the window to see cloudy skies, and rainfall…not good.

I never pass up the opportunity to take nighttime pictures in front of the Honest Charley store front.

Somernites Power Cruise

Out of all the years that I’ve heard great things about the massive cruise in events in Somerset, Kentucky, I finally made the trip for the first time last month. I didn’t actually plan on going to this particular event, but Coker Tire sponsored the Power Cruise and hosted a starting point in Chattanooga, so I figured I’d support the cause. I’m sure glad I did, because it was a great way to spend the weekend.

The Dayton gang is huddled up and ready to hop in line and head to Somerset, Kentucky.