Ashley Gable represented one of the few female racers in the LSX Shootout, but that didn't seem to bother her. The Mt. Airy, Maryland native pedaled her Artic White TA with the help of an L92-based 427, ET Performance heads, stout hydraulic roller, and Turbo 400. Though she prefers to keep the TA a streetcar, she certainly didn't mind setting a new best e.t. of 9.84 in qualifying, though her 132-mph trap speed failed to parallel an earlier effort of 135 mph with a slower e.t. Kevin Patterson of KFP Racing piloted Valentino Juncaj's black '95 Firebird all the way to the semifinals despite a hefty 429-cube iron block, carburetor, and 3,400-pound waistline. C5R heads were the principal reason he managed a 9.56 at 139 mph in qualifying, though the 'Bird has previously gone 9.32 at 144. A lack of traction and an issue with the valvesprings held them back initially, but the two were determined to challenge the big dogs with some low 9-second runs. Speaking of issues, the ET Performance-owned '80 Cutlass had trouble with its TH350 all weekend. Problems with staging were the result most likely of converter issues, which had them wrenching furiously before the first elimination round. R&D man Eric Von Hentschel decided to pair his Cutlass with ET owner Cary Chouinard's 920-horse, 440ci LSX and ETP canted valve heads less than a month before the Shootout. In fact, the first three passes on the Cutty were during qualifying. Former Hardcore Racing pilot and fabricator Jason McNeil was commissioned to wheel the Cutlass and build the headers. Using a FAST XFI ECU and an SB.2 intake, the combo easily revs to 8800 rpm and cut a best of 9.58 at 140 mph.
The Six Speeds Inc. Sunset Orange Camaro and SAM's Hugger Orange SS were easily the two favorites to win All Motor. Owner and pilot Joe Huneycutt took the SOM Camaro to a new best of 9.14 at 145, a record for T56-equipped F-bodies, during qualifying from a previous best of 9.26. However, the 925-plus horse 414-cid LSX-based motor broke a rod shortly after and cracked the #7 cylinder. As perhaps the most powerful non-canted valve-headed, naturally aspirated Gen III/IV out there, it will be interesting to see what this solid roller combo does in the months that follow. The SAM HO SS uses a more classic Gen III recipe of C5R heads and block with the hope of becoming the first to reach the 8s au natural. With the previous LS6 combo, pilot Judson Massingill had run 9.10s without the required 250 pounds of ballast. The new motor, however, makes 925 horses (up from 860) with a .900-inch lift solid roller cam, dry sump oiling, and sheetmetal intake. Like the Six Speeds car, Judson also chose to row his own gears, except with a more drag-race friendly Jericho 4-speed. Shifting at about 7000 rpm, Massingill surpassed Huneycutt to become the number one qualifier with an amazing 9.04 at 151. // scott parker
Ashley Gable blew a fuel line during the burnout in qualifying, but quickly bounced back and with a little luck took the bye during the first round of eliminations. With the help of Madman's expertise, she got the '00 TA suspension dialed in and staged-only to lose out to Kevin Patterson in the carbureted '95 during quarterfinals. | 
The C5R 427-motivated SAM Camaro had been battling a few issues related to the extra ballast being carried to comply with the weight regulations. Now that's what a naturally aspirated LS engine should look like! |  |