Getting Started

Over the next few months, Stock Car Racing will follow along as race car builder Sleepy Gomez builds an IMCA Stock Car. This is an ideal beginning race car for the novice car builder and driver. We will attempt to describe, in the simplest terms possible, what is being done, how it’s being done, and why it’s being done. Sleepy has been involved in racing since 1958 and over the years has become more infatuated with building cars than with driving them. He has built his share of cars, from karts and Mini-Stocks to Street Stocks. Sleepy works out of his shop, Sleepy’s Workshop, in Ferris, Texas, where he makes a living at metalworking and welding. The car should be ready for a couple of test rides at the end of this season—but the real racing begins in 2001.

IMCA is known mostly for its Modified class. It may come as a surprise to some that there is an IMCA Stock Car class. This class has run in the Midwest for about 10 years and is now beginning to catch on throughout the rest of the United States.

While similar to many local, entry-level and above classes, the series has a nationwide set of rules so cars (and parts) are standardized. This increases parts availability and decreases costs.

Welding is just as important to any good race program as driving or turning wrenches. It doesn't matter what class you race, all cars require fabrication and the occasional repair. And if your welding isn't up to par, you'd better believe it's going to show up in your results on the racetrack.

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We have all heard of time management, but is there such a thing in racing? Our Dirt Late Model build has been a bit behind the eight ball from the very start. From the bent frame that needed repair to the motor overhaul that was not anticipated, it seemed like time was not on our side throughout the first part of our build up, but now that we have it all together, things are moving along quite nicely. Here is where we have been and where we are going since our introduction article.

The use of a dyno to measure horsepower and torque is a valuable tool for the racer. If you use the dyno just to see what kind of torque and horsepower numbers your engine is developing, that may be an interesting data point and a conversation starter but it really diminishes what you can learn from this tool. The measurement of the torque the engine produces and the calculation of horsepower is only one small part of the equation.

The UFR team finished construction of the new Super Late Model car, so I made the trip up to Beloit to help them prepare for the first race of the season on May 9th. We have promised to keep you informed as to the progress of the car and how we would prepare it and set it up. The following is a detailed account of that process.

We've often wondered what would happen if one of the heavy hitters in racing would take a lower-level, short track race engine and apply all those neat ideas they pick up in the top areas of racing. Think about it. Most of the big factories in Detroit have hard core racing programs. We see the results in Indy Cars, road racing, drag racing and, of course, NASCAR. Imagine what would happen if one of those factories applied all that modern technology to something like a Midget engine.

We first presented this material in CIRCLE TRACK in early 2003. Since that time we have made reference to bits and pieces of it to illustrate other discussions. The technology presented here represents the greatest leap forward in basic automotive dynamics technology in the last 20 years or so. The basic principles that represent the foundation of this technology were developed some 60 years ago, and what you will read here is a refinement of much of what came later.

We get a lot of entries for the Young Racers' Club where brothers, sisters, fathers, and mothers write in to enter the racer in their life for a chance at one of our $250 gift certificates. But when this month's random drawing produced a letter from somebody's grandfather, we thought that was a first. Alan Bruton's grandfather, J.M., writes:

Pace American's SCX Stacker is one trick trailer that solves the age old problem of fitting your racecar over the wheel bumps in traditional trailers. Part of the Shadow GT motorsports family of trailers the Tag Stacker (right) houses your racecar above a work area just like the big money NASCAR Sprint Cup Haulers.

It is no secret that without the proper amount of Zinc Dialkyl Dithio Phospate (ZDDP), flat tappet camshafts in race engines can experience problems. The simple solution to that issue is to use the proper oil or additive as part of your racing program.

Is your inline fuel filter plugged? Sometimes it's hard to tell, especially when methanol may have been left in the lines between races.

The V-Height device was designed for one purpose-accurately and visibly measuring vertical distances underneath hard-to-reach places such as automobile chassis, machine fixtures, molded parts, or any other overhanging features. With a range from 0.75 inch to10 inches, this device provides the stroke needed to reach a wide range of measured surfaces. The numeric output can be toggled between units of inch decimal, inch fraction (1/16 incremental) and millimeter. The display is tilted upward at a 55 degree angle so it may be easily read by a viewer standing upright. In addition, the display is brightly lit for easy viewing in bright or dim areas.

Turn One has over 50 years of steering engineering/development experience. It has been providing high- performance steering systems to top race teams for the past 10 years.

Editors Note: Welcome to an all new department of CIRCLE TRACK magazine, Trucks, Towing and Toter-Homes. Now, we all know that it is prettyhard to go racing without the benefi t of something that can tow your race car. Tow vehicles range from the simple pick-up truck struggling to pull the weight of a mini-stock, to elaborate toter-homes that look like they belong at a Sprint Cup Series race rather than your local dirt track. But regardless of how you tow or what you tow with, there is some very important information that you need to know to get you to and from the track safely and economically. This new department will feature a wide variety of information on towing, different tow vehicle options and a wealth of related topics. We'll investigate not only safe towing practices, but we'll also feature new product reviews and we'll uncover techniques and practices that will allow you to tow more economically which will in turn save you money, money that you can turn around and spend on your racecar. And who doesn't love having more cash to spend on the racecar?