Is there a huge difference between driving an NHRA Funny Car and the Blue Max?
Del: Oh absolutely, a monster difference. That is a 1976 body from 1976. We reinforced it and cleaned it up and did a lot of work to it, but there are no aerodynamic advantages whatsoever compared to today’s standards. That (body) is like dead stock, we even shortened-up the wheelbase of the chassis to fit the body, lowered the cage down low enough so the body looked proper.
The first thing I noticed after driving NHRA Funny Cars all my life compared to driving a Nostalgia car - I never drove an Alcohol Funny Car so I never really felt a car that didn’t have down-force -- was that right away I noticed that the Nostalgia car does not have down-force, so it glides at the top of the track and it RPM’s to no end. With the rulebook we run with, the VRA rules at the time, even with the tire rules and rear end limit rules it runs a thousand RPM’s higher than my NHRA car. I noticed that this thing (nostalgia car) is just screaming and it’s got no side windows and it’s up on top of the track like it’s on marbles. But it runs safe, it’s just real different. It has no front or rear down-force, you just kind of glide on top of the marbles.
Team Lunch
Was it different to race with a two-speed Lenco? Did it throw you a curve?
Del: The only thing is I have to remember to put it in second gear for the burnout. I am terrible about that. As far as shifting it, that has not been a problem. My mind is so set that I am going to shift this car -- it actually has a manual hand shifter, it does not have an air
bottle -- and I thought, Heck yes I can do this, it’s just fun, (shifting) it adds more to the whole excitement of it.
Is it now a family hobby for you guys?
Del: Yeah, it is. You know it’s too bad that the last year we really didn’t run very well and this year we didn’t start off very well, so we can’t put more into the Nostalgia car. But we need to keep our business going and straighten it out, so the Blue Max has kind of been on the back burner, but it will be back again.
