A lthough late-model F-bodies feature outstanding power and great looks, they certainly aren't normally considered heavy hitters in the big money games of competitive street racing. The supposed "beasts" that rule the night are more often than not light, early gen musclecars with 500-plus ci and power adders, or thinly disguised race cars trailered to and from the back-alley race tracks of America. Sure, the '96 LT1-equipped Trans Am owned by Omahar Berry of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, features an awesome purple paint scheme with custom graphics, but even after gussying up the body to look the part of a '99-'02 Ram Air TA, it doesn't hide the fact that the competition believes that it has just another LT1 or LS1 small-block between the fenderwells. But wait. The art of deception is one of the key elements for a successful street racer. With a custom license plate that reads "G-Code" and the wistful sound of a small-block spitting out boosted cacophonous melodies, something is amiss here. Ladies and gentlemen, Omahar and his purple hurricane are merely alluring sirens, gently enticing unsuspecting victims, and then proceeding to humiliate them with his F-body before liberating each and every G-note competitors have out of their wallets. Powered by a twin-turbo LT1 that runs 93-octane, this is one 'Bird that idles well and drives similarly to any mildly modified F-body; that is until a boot is planted to the gunwales and the 'Bird morphs into a 9-second hurricane.
"I purchased the 'Bird from a coworker in '99 who was moving and decided to sell," Omahar says. "She took pretty good care of the car, but the stock power of the 285-horse rated LT1 left me longing for more power. A small camshaft and a 2800-stall converter were the initial direction with the car, but the Trans Am still wasn't fast enough. After numerous bolt-ons and the installation of a 200-horse nitrous system, I decided to up the ante and build a 408 LT1 stroker motor and move to a 250 shot of nitrous. After running the combination for several years and being able to click off low 10-second quarter miles and surprise many on the streets, I wanted to see if Thunder Racing/Madman & Co. could take the car to the next level. Since Brian Jeffery, aka 'Madman,' had extensive knowledge of the LT1 and forced induction prototyping, we sat down and talked over various combinations. Ultimately, in order to have 9-second power running exclusively on 93-octane, a twin-turbo application was chosen. Rather than relying on the aftermarket to produce a kit to fill our build criteria, the design and fabrication of the system was turned over to Madman."
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Omahar Berry liberally applies power to the 'Bird, superheating the R2 compound in the Mickey Thompson ET Street Radials in the burnout box at State Capitol Raceway in Port Allen, LA. After receiving the full-on Madman suspension treatment, the 'Bird would leap into the air off of the starting line, tethered to the ground only by the strength of the welds on the Madman frontend chain limiters. | 
With a custom-built Wizard Racing six-point rollcage with swing-out side bars, the owner is encased in Corbeau Racing seats and five-point harnesses during wheels-up launches or high-speed forays into the night. |