Stupid Pit Tricks

[bobby]

Wifes bracket car started long enough to get it out of the trailer and into the pit spot. It died like it ran out of gas. We don't have a pressure gauge on it (we do now). I proceeded to take the pump off to see if the screen was clogged, well it was out of gas. What a d.a.

This didnt' involve fixing anything, but like Mike's lucky winning round. Raced this guy wasabout .2 slower so he got the head start, I left and broke the yoke and ujoint just after he redlite. The next race, I got to race him again, hegot another .2 headstart, he left, I left, I broke the bell housing just after he redlite. He stays away from me now.

[Rob Petrie E395]

Was not in the pits but, I changed a engine under the drive up at a Holiday Inn. We started in the back lot but when it started pouring down rain we rolled it under the covered drive up out front to finish. Everyting was fine untill a local cop stopped to see what was going on. Next thing we know there was a bunch of cop cars out front and the mangager shows up at 4am and sees all the cops there and thought hotel had been robbed or something. He was not exactly a happy camper and we were invited to leave.

[Bench Racer]

Back in the early 80's (before the wife and kids) I was going to all the IHRA races with my brother, (David) and after I got off night shift we loaded up and headed to Rockingham for the weekend with the 58 chevy wagon superstocker. The 3800+ lb wagon broke a converter during time trials and we decided to fix the issue at the motel at Southern Pines, not an issue since we had plenty of time. Later that night in the parking lot we found out that the holes in the new convertors mounting flange did not match up with the holes in the flywheel, and we also found the importance of having a drill and bits with the rest of the racing junk. After kicking our own butts for not bringing the needed tools, finding someone nice enough to loan us the tools, and leaving skin, blood ,and DNA under the car and on the parking lot pavement we finally got it back on the ground some time around midnight. David said we gotta try it out to make sure the convertor fixed it. All I could think of was I will get my first sleep in 30+ hours in jail for a noise ordinance.I mentioned the possible complications of checking the stall speed of the new convertor at the motel but was not convincing enough. He left a pretty impressive set of posi black stripes across the parking lot with the lead sled before pulling the car onto the trailer and chaining it down. We never saw any cops, but I am not sure if we made anymore noise than some of the party animals at the motel! Don Jackson

[Randy Wells]

Was at a point’s race in Sydney Nebraska a few years ago, 1st Qualifying run Bob lost oil pressure and shut the car down, towed it back to the pits, checked the sending unit and pulled the valve covers sure enough it was the oil pump. Drove 350 MI to load up and go home, that’s when Bob had an idea, lets cut the bottom of the oil pan out and fix it, some people were heading into Sydney so we had them pick us up a Melling M55 oil pump, Bob got under the car and cut a square access hole in the bottom of the pan with tin snips, I cut out a square plate, out of one of the tool box drawers, Bob took the oil pump apart and rebuilt it in the pan with parts off the M55. our neighbor in the pits had some #8 self drillers, sheet metal screws. We RTV the plate and screwed it back onto the oil pan, let it sit all night, put oil in the car the next morning no leaks, flushed it once, made three qualifying runs and went two rounds on Sunday. Took it apart when we got home welded the pan up and were still using it. People in the pits were drinking beer, and laughing there ass’s off.

Randy Wells
Well Bros
D/S 5034

[Jeff Stout]

Around 1986 with a 70 Chevelle stick shift car. My open trailer had ramps that were to short and I thought I had the front of trailer up high enough but I didn't. Pulled car forward some and got out and jacked trailer tongue higher. I had left the car in neutral and watched car role off trailer by itself. I was lucky that the header caught the back of the trailer and stopped car as it would have hit the car behind me. Same car at Super Chevy Norwalk I broke an axle in the water and staged and won when the other car redlit. I went back for next round and no burnout but no luck and lost.
My Monte Super Stocker had rubbed a hole in the rear brake line from rim and I was able to down shift and put car in reverse in the grass next to track at Union Grove. Came back to pits with no brakes and put a screw and clamp on broken line and refilled and bled brakes. Worked for the rest of the weekend .

Put a fresh motor in Monte and was wondering why I had to open holes in flexplate to converter now as I didn't have to before. What I had done was that I had 2 flexplates internal and external and had grabbed the wrong one. Needless to say after about 4 runs and wondering what was going on I pulled motor and had beat up the bearings. Then realized I had installed the wrong flexplate. As of today that wrong flexplate is still on the roof of my shop.

[Chris "drooze" Wertman]

Damm you guys and brakes....lol.

I was just talking to a friend who hold the land speed record in his class at bonneville, he was talking about the last outing of the car and said they found a pinhole in the brakes, drained the lines and ran without brakes, 260 mph with no brakes, like he said "its not like there a lot to hit out there" and well....Youve got like 8 miles to stop, the chute stopped the car dead much faster than they expected.

YOU had to have one of those "gut" moments......youre not by any chance one of the guys at 42 who insists on plowing the corn across the road a couple times a year are ya (EVERY Time I go there I look to my rt to see if anyone has been cutting corn, been a couple years since I saw any fresh cuts)

Corn apparently makes for good braking...

Originally Posted by Jeff Stout

Around 1986 with a 70 Chevelle stick shift car. My open trailer had ramps that were to short and I thought I had the front of trailer up high enough but I didn't. Pulled car forward some and got out and jacked trailer tongue higher. I had left the car in neutral and watched car role off trailer by itself. I was lucky that the header caught the back of the trailer and stopped car as it would have hit the car behind me. Same car at Super Chevy Norwalk I broke an axle in the water and staged and won when the other car redlit. I went back for next round and no burnout but no luck and lost.
My Monte Super Stocker had rubbed a hole in the rear brake line from rim and I was able to down shift and put car in reverse in the grass next to track at Union Grove. Came back to pits with no brakes and put a screw and clamp on broken line and refilled and bled brakes. Worked for the rest of the weekend .

[Jeff Lee]

I started my S/ST AMX on the lift at an AAMCO while in gear. I hit the brake pedal fast enough but the lift (this was a drive on lift) was oily. The car slid right off some 8' in the air. I guess I got lucky there was a wall in front which caught the car with the front tires off the lift! Man, did I feel like a moron! Hadn't even been to the track for the first time with the new engine yet. Slight damage to the grille and hood. Ego took it worse...

[Greg Reimer 7376]

The 2004 Winternationals came along, and Tony Janes and I have two nearly identical cars, both red 68 chevelle 2 dr.hardtops, one a Malibu that ran L/SA, mine a 300 deluxe hardtop that runs K. Tony had his good motor in the Malibu, and asked me if I wanted to use his #2 motor, good for about .25 off the mule motor in my car.I took him up on it, put the #2 bullet in the car, fired it up and we went to Irwindale for a Thursday test and tune the Thursday night before Pomona.The car flew, but the water pump sprang a bad leak on the way back, ending the TnT. I put a new pump on it,but noticed that the oil pressure never exceeded 20 psi, and would drop off above idle. Oops, pull the engine, replace the oil pump.Back in the car,same thing. Chuck Norton called, asked what oil filter I used, I told him a Fram, he said"Get rid of it.Use a Delco 1218".I did,instant oil pressure. Great. I stalled the engine against the converter, the car made a bad noise, a big lurch, and wouldn't stall above 1200 rpm. Broke the converter. I called Tony and asked if he still had my spare converter. He said,"Yes,but it's in our wagon."I came down to his house,pulled the trans from the wagon,snatched the converter,went home,pulled the trans out of the Chevelle,swapped the converter,buttoned it up,put it on the trailer late Sunday afternoon, went to Pomona ,ran the car, and on pass#4, it fell off badly.Back in the pits, there's oil all over, blowby out the valve covers, there went the ring job. Tony says," Forget it, you're through, put it on the trailer,you're done". Wrong-o.I took the car home at noon on Friday, drove it around back, yanked the engine ,put the mule back in, and was back driving it around the Pomona pits by 3:30.Round one in the AM- what to dial? I used a number that sounded good,and drew a former world champoin in Stock some years back,and he had won several Pomonas.Right away,this didn't look good. Right at the burn out box, the thought hit me"I can do this.Don't beat yourself now".Sure enough, I got an .015 light,ran it right to the line,bombed the brakes and got a win light. I didn't see the red light in the other lane.There was my time trial. Round two, I broke out more than the other guy,ending the race of the stocker that thought it was a fueler, or the flog of the decade.