Once the cars returned to Memphis Motorsports Park, they immediately were taken to the staging lanes and allowed a 45-minute cool-down period. During this time, a strict hoodclosed policy was in effect for the remainder of the event. Additional regulations were that each car had to start its engine under its own power, and the only change allowed to the cars was lowering (not raising!) of tire pressure and repacking of the parachute as necessary. It was during this cool-down phase that the GMHTP crew had the chance to walk around and talk with some of the folks who looked like they'd be vying for the top spots in the event, and though our inability to peek under the cars' hoods limited our ability to draw a clear picture of who might be crowned the fastest, we came across some very serious-looking vehicles nonetheless.
When the time came to hit the strip, the procedure was well known to all: every car would have to make three back-to-back passes with limited cool-down time provided in-between, and again with no hood opening allowed. Each competitor would have to make all three passes, and every one of them would count-even in the event of mechanical failure or an aborted pass. The e.t.s of the three passes were then averaged, and this final number was compared to that of all other competitors. Up for grabs was $500 to the winner plus a 6-foot trophy, and $200 and a plaque to the runner-up. Just to make sure that as many folks as possible got a share of the bounty, $200 and a plaque were also handed out to competitors whose average e.t. came closest to 10.00, 11.00, 12.00, 13.00, 14.00, and 15.00 seconds. Did we mention that all winners were also to receive a special LSX jacket? The final piece of the puzzle was easily the most exciting: if the car with the quickest average e.t. of all (NMCA class cars included) was an LS-powered vehicle, GMPP would hand out an LSX Bow Tie block to the lucky winner!
Happily, that's exactly what ended up happening: some seriously fast cars vied for the top spots, but when it was all said and done, Mike Brown's 8-second turbocharged 1999 Trans Am edged out the nearest NMCA competitor by just over 2 tenths, bringing the distinction of overall fastest True Street car to the LS camp! This made Brown technically the NMCA King, but LSX King honors still had to be handed out, and they went to David Childress and his 9-second 1998 T/A. Mike Mester went quick enough to earn the runner-up spot piloting his 2000 Trans Am, missing out on the LSX King spot by under a tenth of a second. The 10-second trophy went to Mike Meeks of Santa Rosa, Florida, who averaged 10.32 seconds (technically closest to 10.00 thanks to trophies already having been handed to Childress and Mester). Elevensecond honors went to the 1998 Trans Am of Paul Falcon, who followed I-40 all the way west from Durham, North Carolina. Tennessee native Nathan Richardson grabbed the 12-second spot in his 2001 Camaro, while Guerrero Alfredo's '00 Camaro went home to Fort Worth, Texas, with the 13-second prize. Zac Ravencraft was super-consistent in his 2006 Trailblazer SS, with all three runs being 14.0s and spanning just over 6-hundredths of a second, giving him 14-second honors. Finally, Michael Laden clearly didn't intend to go home with 15-second honors, as his first pass was an 11.0-but a so-so second pass and 23-second final pass gave him the closest average to 15 seconds, so we doubt he minded the cash and plaque!
Just a glance at the e.t. rundown of all cars makes it clear that several competitors found the track to be somewhat inconsistent on Saturday, so we applaud their efforts and thank everyone who showed up to share in the action. Check out the photo captions for info on some of the highlights and more about the cars that competed-they'll make you wish you'd been there! // chris Werner GM
 The LSX King was a man who...  The LSX King was a man who recently graced the cover of GMHTP. David Childress brought a turbocharged 1998 Trans Am from Glen Valley, PA, to go as fast as 9.90 on his way to a 10.14 three-run average. David also received honors at the car show on Sunday, proving that his ride is much more than just a track car! |  Aside from the cash and an...  Aside from the cash and an LSX block, Mike Brown was also rewarded with a 6-foot trophy and an embarrassing crowning ceremony. Fortunately for him, he wasn't the only one-LSX King David Childress was subjected to the same ordeal! |  Perhaps the most impressive...  Perhaps the most impressive True Street story was that of the orange 1999 Z28 owned by Bob Beam and entered by Exotic Performance Plus (Columbia City, IN). This 408/Procharger F1A car ran as fast as 9.12/146 before driver Ted Garvin nailed the most bumper- dragging-ist badass wheelie during time shots on Friday- and whacked the oil pan and bearings. The crew valiantly fixed their car that evening-even installing a new thrust bearing into the engine-and completed the street cruise Saturday morning, only to make one pass in competition before deciding the steering rack was bent. We're giving them the unofficial True Street diehard competitor award-and the honor of the lead photo-for their dedicated team effort and never-give-up attitude. |