At the risk of being shunned...

[28HopUp]

...I took my SSP to the dragstrip last night!

As background, I should state that the entire reason I started looking for a 5.0L Fox Mustang was becasue I wanted another 5spd car to race at the track. I missed banging gears and excercising my left leg after selling my 2006 Mustang. Hearing my complaints, a friend suggested that I look for a 5.0L/5spd Fox to race with. Two weeks later, my older son's gym teacher approached me and said he was looking to sell his CHP Mustang that had been sitting in his garage for a long time. A deal was struck. Although the initial intent was to make it a streetable weekend racer, the SSP history changed my direction a bit, and since then I've been working on makin' my CHP a fun all-around car. The car has been back on the street for about 3 months now, and I continue to work on it. But I hadn't raced it yet.

So last night the stars aligned so that I was free on a Wednesday with nice weather. Jack (13yo) and Ray (12yo) served as my pit crew, and we drove about 35 minutes to Cecil County Dragway (in Rising Sun, MD) for their Test & Tune. Paid at the gate, and went straight to the staging lane for tech. The place was pretty crowded, although I've seen it worse. Ray is a foster child that came to us over the summer, so this was his first visit to a dragstrip. The sights and sounds had him jumping around every time he saw a cool car. While Jack and Ray walked around, I stayed fairly close to my car after "passing tech" (CCD is fairly loose in how hard they inspect the cars) in case I needed to move my car towards the line. I talked with quite a few people in the staging lanes, despite what my parents taught me about talking to strangers!

As I said the place was crowded, and people kept breaking down and scattering parts/fluids on the track. Finally, I was able to stage for my first (AND ONLY!) pass. Driving on 255 BFG street radials, I just did a quick spin after driving around the water box. Pulled up alone to the tree (officials were cleaning up parts from the other lane), and staged by lighting the first beam and stopping just as I tripped the second beam. Watched the ambers drop, revved up to 1800, and slowly eased the clutch out. Ahhh, the sound and feel of a 5.0L was so awesome! Sorry to say that my scanner won't pick up my slip, but I'll give you the details:


60' . . . . . . . 2.403
1/8 . . . . . .10.048 @ 70.64mph
1/4 . . . . . .15.489 @ 91.21mph


No surprise or disappointment here. I babied the car off the line to avoid wheelspin. There's an easy 4/10ths wasted at the line. I also granny shifted at 5K RPM's, and held on to 3rd gear through the traps. Yup, the car is still running those highway gears (3.27:1 ratio). Also, as near as I can tell the motor has never been rebuilt after over 160K miles. And it needs a tune-up. And I was running full street weight (with spare tire and tools). And I hadn't dropped my rear tire pressure. And I had 3/4's of a tank of gas. [I know - EXCUSES EXCUSES! :P ] Given the numbers, a driver mod (ie getting more than one in for more experience), and track conditions, I know the car has 14's in it without throwing any new parts into the mix. All in all I am so happy with how the car ran. I just wanted to see what the car would do, and it was so much fun banging gears too.

Reflecting back on the night, there were TONS of Fox Mustangs there. But the lady in the timing shack held up the cars behind me to ask about my CHP Mustang. She even yelled over to her helper to come out of the shack and look at the car. I was happy to give them details - hope the racers behind me didn't mind waiting a few extra moments for their slips.

I guess my petition into the UASSP will be black-balled now, huh? ;)

[CHP8336]

...I took my SSP to the dragstrip last night!

As background, I should state that the entire reason I started looking for a 5.0L Fox Mustang was becasue I wanted another 5spd car to race at the track. I missed banging gears and excercising my left leg after selling my 2006 Mustang. Hearing my complaints, a friend suggested that I look for a 5.0L/5spd Fox to race with. Two weeks later, my older son's gym teacher approached me and said he was looking to sell his CHP Mustang that had been sitting in his garage for a long time. A deal was struck. Although the initial intent was to make it a streetable weekend racer, the SSP history changed my direction a bit, and since then I've been working on makin' my CHP a fun all-around car. The car has been back on the street for about 3 months now, and I continue to work on it. But I hadn't raced it yet.

So last night the stars aligned so that I was free on a Wednesday with nice weather. Jack (13yo) and Ray (12yo) served as my pit crew, and we drove about 35 minutes to Cecil County Dragway (in Rising Sun, MD) for their Test & Tune. Paid at the gate, and went straight to the staging lane for tech. The place was pretty crowded, although I've seen it worse. We adopted Ray over the summer, so this was his first visit to a dragstrip. The sights and sounds had him jumping around every time he saw a cool car. While Jack and Ray walked around, I stayed fairly close to my car after "passing tech" (CCD is fairly loose in how hard they inspect the cars) in case I needed to move my car towards the line. I talked with quite a few people in the staging lanes, despite what my parents taught me about talking to strangers!

As I said the place was crowded, and people kept breaking down and scattering parts/fluids on the track. Finally, I was able to stage for my first (AND ONLY!) pass. Driving on 255 BFG street radials, I just did a quick spin after driving around the water box. Pulled up alone to the tree (officials were cleaning up parts from the other lane), and staged by lighting the first beam and stopping just as I tripped the second beam. Watched the ambers drop, revved up to 1800, and slowly eased the clutch out. Ahhh, the sound and feel of a 5.0L was so awesome! Sorry to say that my scanner won't pick up my slip, but I'll give you the details:


60' . . . . . . . 2.403
1/8 . . . . . .10.048 @ 70.64mph
1/4 . . . . . .15.489 @ 91.21mph


No surprise or disappointment here. I babied the car off the line to avoid wheelspin. There's an easy 4/10ths wasted at the line. I also granny shifted at 5K RPM's, and held on to 3rd gear through the traps. Yup, the car is still running those highway gears. Also, as near as I can tell the motor has never been rebuilt after over 160K miles. And it needs a tune-up. And I was running full street weight (with spare tire and tools). And I hadn't dropped my rear tire pressure. And I had 3/4's of a tank of gas. [I know - EXCUSES EXCUSES! :P ] Given the numbers, a driver mod (ie getting more than one in for more experience), and track conditions, I know the car has 14's in it without throwing any new parts into the mix. All in all I am so happy with how the car ran. I just wanted to see what the car would do, and it was so much fun banging gears too.

Reflecting back on the night, there were TONS of Fox Mustangs there. But the lady in the timing shack held up the cars behind me to ask about my CHP Mustang. She even yelled over to her helper to come out of the shack and look at the car. I was happy to give them details - hope the racers behind me didn't mind waiting a few extra moments for their slips.

I guess my petition into the UASSP will be black-balled now, huh? ;)


OOOOOOOHHHHHH My gosh Bill!! Thats right, the Black Ball is rolling your way! lol lol lol ......I am happy to see your car is getting a little workout. The CHP ran your car that way every day of its in service life. Maybe in other states the ssps were run easy but in Ca these cars get run very very hard no babying the cars here. FYI my 1985 ran 15.02 in the quarter with the 302 engine and world iron heads on it at Sears Point raceway. So if 8395 runs 15.48 thats really good! Its nice to see you restored your car and you are having fun with it as well. As you well know my car CHP# 8336 will soon be 100% CHP correct in service look and CHP equipment. BUT it has the 351 engine and Griggs suspension. I will be autocrossing my car from time to time as well as showing it at Ford/Police events. I need the 140 spedometer lol lol lol .....Good luck getting your car in the 14teens range next trip to the track and as always .........HAVE FUN WITH YOUR CAR!!! Rich

[E435300_SMPV]

...I took my SSP to the dragstrip last night!

As background, I should state that the entire reason I started looking for a 5.0L Fox Mustang was becasue I wanted another 5spd car to race at the track. I missed banging gears and excercising my left leg after selling my 2006 Mustang. Hearing my complaints, a friend suggested that I look for a 5.0L/5spd Fox to race with. Two weeks later, my older son's gym teacher approached me and said he was looking to sell his CHP Mustang that had been sitting in his garage for a long time. A deal was struck. Although the initial intent was to make it a streetable weekend racer, the SSP history changed my direction a bit, and since then I've been working on makin' my CHP a fun all-around car. The car has been back on the street for about 3 months now, and I continue to work on it. But I hadn't raced it yet.

So last night the stars aligned so that I was free on a Wednesday with nice weather. Jack (13yo) and Ray (12yo) served as my pit crew, and we drove about 35 minutes to Cecil County Dragway (in Rising Sun, MD) for their Test & Tune. Paid at the gate, and went straight to the staging lane for tech. The place was pretty crowded, although I've seen it worse. We adopted Ray over the summer, so this was his first visit to a dragstrip. The sights and sounds had him jumping around every time he saw a cool car. While Jack and Ray walked around, I stayed fairly close to my car after "passing tech" (CCD is fairly loose in how hard they inspect the cars) in case I needed to move my car towards the line. I talked with quite a few people in the staging lanes, despite what my parents taught me about talking to strangers!

As I said the place was crowded, and people kept breaking down and scattering parts/fluids on the track. Finally, I was able to stage for my first (AND ONLY!) pass. Driving on 255 BFG street radials, I just did a quick spin after driving around the water box. Pulled up alone to the tree (officials were cleaning up parts from the other lane), and staged by lighting the first beam and stopping just as I tripped the second beam. Watched the ambers drop, revved up to 1800, and slowly eased the clutch out. Ahhh, the sound and feel of a 5.0L was so awesome! Sorry to say that my scanner won't pick up my slip, but I'll give you the details:


60' . . . . . . . 2.403
1/8 . . . . . .10.048 @ 70.64mph
1/4 . . . . . .15.489 @ 91.21mph


No surprise or disappointment here. I babied the car off the line to avoid wheelspin. There's an easy 4/10ths wasted at the line. I also granny shifted at 5K RPM's, and held on to 3rd gear through the traps. Yup, the car is still running those highway gears. Also, as near as I can tell the motor has never been rebuilt after over 160K miles. And it needs a tune-up. And I was running full street weight (with spare tire and tools). And I hadn't dropped my rear tire pressure. And I had 3/4's of a tank of gas. [I know - EXCUSES EXCUSES! :P ] Given the numbers, a driver mod (ie getting more than one in for more experience), and track conditions, I know the car has 14's in it without throwing any new parts into the mix. All in all I am so happy with how the car ran. I just wanted to see what the car would do, and it was so much fun banging gears too.

Reflecting back on the night, there were TONS of Fox Mustangs there. But the lady in the timing shack held up the cars behind me to ask about my CHP Mustang. She even yelled over to her helper to come out of the shack and look at the car. I was happy to give them details - hope the racers behind me didn't mind waiting a few extra moments for their slips.

I guess my petition into the UASSP will be black-balled now, huh? ;)

Thumbs Up!!!!!!!

[Fatrabbit]

That is good to hear that there will be no beheading or other wise maiming of people who actuall race their SSP's. I am breaking in a recently reworked motor that is begging to be run. In fact the best I can tell from previous owners is that my SSP was actually raced hard for a while. That would explain the 4:10 gears and the big cam. I will be heartbroken if the car does break something, but I just have to know how it runs. Besides, my son is putting the smack down bad mouth on the SSP, saying that it will not come close to beating his 2001 GT. So for one night and one night only the FHP will be on duty at the strip.

[E435300_SMPV]

Well there was a reason why CHP went to these cars and I dont think it was intimidation. Having a car restored and using it..............Thumbs Up!! Its nice to take the car out and remind people these cars had the look and could back it up. Having several projects in the past, it was hard to put blood sweat and tears into something and then leave it in the garage. While you can be proud of what you have, you can take it out and play once in a while.

[CHP 3705]

Cecil County Dragway. That brings back some memories. When I was in training at Aberdeen Proving Grounds we used to go there every chance we got. Had alot of fun. Doug

[28HopUp]

As you well know my car CHP# 8336 will soon be 100% CHP correct in service look and CHP equipment. BUT it has the 351 engine and Griggs suspension.

Rich

Rich, what hood did you end up going with to cover the taller 351 motor? Your car will look great - just in time for Halloween!

[CNTLOSE]

Congrats on taking it to the track and having fun. I agree sitting in the garage or in a parking lot for people to stare at can get old. I would guess the FHP is in the same ball park as you, but I have not took it to the track. (Probably won't, that is what my '94 is for.) Now the WSP car I had I bet it would have ran low 14's with ease and 13's with some drag radials.

[CHP8336]

Rich, what hood did you end up going with to cover the taller 351 motor? Your car will look great - just in time for Halloween!

Bill,The hood is still the same mach 1 by cervinis.The hood is going to stay on the car for the time being. My funds are just about .10 at this time lol lol ....on a positive note......The car looks awsome in my opinion. I stated I would post pics of the progress and have taken pics but with my dads passing in the past few weeks I have not had any time to post them. I am going to pick up the car today and I will post pics as soon as I can. I am off to the paint shop now so I will talk to ya soon............ Rich

[ImEvil1]

First off...great stories, and sorry to hear about your Dad, Rich.

I don't think there will be any "shunning", but I'll offer a perspective shared by many in this hobby.

These cars were beat to shit and back by many of the officers who drove them. To most of them, they were a tool to be used on the job, just like any other. Many cops, just like regular people, aren't "car guys". Some cars were taken care of better than others, but IMHO, it's a miracle that as many survived their service lives as have. I drove one in-service, and I saw some of this first hand.

That said, many more were ruined, wrecked, or crushed after being sold to the public when they came out of service.

So, if someone here wants to take a chance on the track with their SSP, to each their own. Gregg H. did that once and I'm sure still regrets what happened to his FHP car.

This website is about preservation....which everyone in this thread is doing. Deciding what level of restoration to take a car to is another story, but I'm happy that we can all share our opinions on it here without it being negative. :thumbsup:

[Unmrkd]

So, if someone here wants to take a chance on the track with their SSP, to each their own. Gregg H. did that once and I'm sure still regrets what happened to his FHP car.
:

I highly recommend NOT swapping directions and backing into the opposite lane's concrete wall at 80 MPH +!!! My right shoulder reminds me every day.:doh:

[Andy]

http://i33.tinypic.com/9icwg3.jpg
Listen Mister
I've seen your kind around here before
Wheelie Hoppers
Tire Spinners
ET Cutters
Tire Smoker Wheel Hoppers
Gear Slapping Hop-up ers
You Name it and i've seen it All
your times are good but your
never satisfied just one more second
off your ET and you will Quit.
But you never will
it's always next time ...Just one more
until one day you wake up in Delaware and
oh wait......you live in Delaware
Never mind.









:D

[Texaspony87]

I need an aspirin and some nitro........ Jiiiiiiiim!

[SparkSVT]

Mike I never heard about Greg H's mishap. What happened and did the car survive?

[MOstang]

Although I used to own FHP 1164 with its 347 Stoker I'm personally not into the quarter mile racing thing, but I have been known to enjoy watching the Pass Time show on the SPEED channel from time to time. Equally I'm not into the shunning sort of thing with people either.

For me preservation is the key driver with my SSP's just as Mike mentioned above. Doing anything to risk that is just too great a risk and something I'm not willing to do. I didn't know about Gregg's mishap so that only reinforces why for me that's not the way to go.

[NoDrama43]

DISCLAIMER.......Being the type of person that speaks his mind I gave this thread the 24 hour rule (x3). I see some very positive in this thread and also some negative.

First off I believe that spending time with our kids is THE MOST IMPORTANT ACTIVITY WE AS PARENTS CAN DO !!!! So I think it is great that the boys were included at the track. I am sure it was a perfect time and probably one the boys will remember. I would also be willing to bet that when the boys get older they will want their own mustang to drive. IMO this type of activity sure the hell beats sitting on the couch playing dungeons and dragons etc. Hats off to Bill for including them !!

I also understand that not everybody has trailer queens that they baby and keep covered as some of our members drive them and enjoy them which is great. In a perfect world all us would have a big garage, with "extra" mustangs to exercise at the track, but that just isn't the case. In the big picture your car is yours to do what you want. While everyone recognises this, I believe the majority here would rather our members give these old cars a quality "after duty" life and not work them to hard. I am not saying they shouldn't be driven agressively from time to time, but I disagree with someone that mods and thrashes an SSP. I don't believe that is what was done here though. In reading the original post though it sounds as if the car was NOT thrashed off the line and NOT redlined / speed shifted.

I know I would hate to blow up an original drivetrain car or total one like Gregg did. I have some of the parts off that car and have had several conversations with Gregg about the incident, plus seen all the pictures. The car was destroyed and the last time I saw the car it was sitting in the weeds in a junkyard in central Georgia. A sad ending for a great old car. I am also pretty sure that Gregg will NEVER take his Missouri, or South Carolina cars to the drag strip. It was a just one pass, just to see what she would run like, and it happened. Thankfully Gregg survived it.

All this said I would add that my focus on these cars is saving them and restoring them. For me personaly I would rather read about the guy that found one being raced, bought it and took off all the mods and put the car back orginal.

As for "shunning" members I believe that it is ok to disagree from time to time. If it becomes obvious that someone is trying to stir discontent, or purposely engaging in some sort of negative rhetoric to inflame and incite members here, then the mods step in and do what needs to be done. Here recently things have been fairly quiet. I think that is a testament to the changes made over the past 6 months.

Lastly I will say that I hope these types of threads are kept to a minimum based on the purpose and focus of this website in it's entirety. My blood pressure gets elevated when I log on and read about drag racing ssp cars. It reminds me of other web sites where they openly post about "beating on" the cars, and members are allowed to post up videos of SSP cars doing donuts on public streets (with e-lights flashing), or engaging in fake pursuits in parking lots etc.

as always I want to thank everyone for their positive contributions here. I hope I havn't offended anyone with my post. :thumbsup:

Long Live the UASSP.

[E435300_SMPV]

I don't think this is a negative thread by no means. Sharing some great times with your car is good memories. A once and a while time at the track is by no means beating or thrashing a car. Now, sideshows, donuts, rubber coating the fender wells, lack of maintenance or just not respecting the car was a SSP is more of something to shun. Bottom line everyone needs to respect the other persons level of restoration and preservation of these SSP cars. For the ones who have completely restored there car and just keep it as a trophy, i give kudos to you. I have been there and know how much time, money and work it is to do such a project. But taking the car to another level and bench testing it takes that pride of owning the car to another level.

[28HopUp]

Mike & Jim,

I think you both know me well enough to understand that I wasn't trying to stir the pot or looking to cause discontent among the membership. The story of my trip to the track does touch on the family aspect of taking my SSP out and enjoying it together, and that is an important aspect of the story that I wanted to get across.

I am saddened to hear about the demise of Greg's FHP. Crashes are scary, and I'm glad to hear that he didn't suffer any serious injuries from the incident.

My story can also be viewed as a survivor story, as it relates to my SSP. I bought it from a gentleman who didn't care who he sold it to - he just wanted the car gone so he could use the funds to pay for the new interior of his 56 Chevy. Had he sold it to the guy before me, this car would have permanently disappeared from the landscape within 1 year I'm sure.

Even though my intention was to build a weekend racer outa it, YOU GUYS changed my thoughts about the car. Rather than spend my time and money on speed parts, I decided that the car was worth returning to a version of its former glory while in-service. It now is an extra daily driver with authentic CHP parts (unmarked) that maintains the SSP aesthetic and honors its history as such - it's a rolling tribute to all police officers in general, and CHP officers in particular.

But my CHP Mustang has not been brought back to life to be a trailer queen. I had a show car once and never fully enjoyed the car in its restored form because of fear that it would be scratched/damaged. What a shame to restore a factory 390/4spd '67 Mustang convertible that you're arfaid to drive.

So here I am amoung a group of SSP enthusiasts whom I respect, as I too want to preserve my car while enjoying it on the road. Frankly, I am more scared to drive the car around on the streets than I am about putting it into a wall at the track. Have you seen how people drive??? Two weeks ago I nearly broadsided a sedan that turned in front of me and stopped as I entered the intersection at about 45mph. No airbags and no ABS in my 85 either. Somehow God helped me steer around the car (BTW, the other driver didn't stop after I pulled to the shoulder). Even yesterday, I had 3 drivers dart in front of me during the course of an hour. Is my car invisible? I know SSP's are small, but hello! - I'm driving an old cop car.

So the question comes - Can you preserve an SSP and still drive it? I like to think I can. Perhaps I'd feel differently if my SSP was from an agency with only a handful of cars ever in existance. If I had one of the 10 Delaware State Police SSP's, I don't think that I'd go the same route as I have with my 85 CHP (1 of 155, with a good handful of known, restored 85's floating around).

Sorry to be long winded. But I love this car. Its ownership/restoration has taken on a scope I never considered, and that's because I've learned to appreciate the car as most of you do yours. But I'm putting it out on the road so the general masses can view and appreciate it. Perhaps others will see it and decide that they want to restore or own an SSP themselves, thus benefiting the hobby further. I'd like to think so.

Cheers!

Bill

[28HopUp]

...and thanks for the laugh Andy! :)

[stadair]

At least he took it to the track instead of public roads (street racing).

[NoDrama43]

...and thanks for the laugh Andy! :)

+1 on the laugh from Andy. He is a funny guy for sure.

Bill,

It's all good. I appreciate what you have done with the car and the fact you changed course after realizing what you had. Many of these cars got beat into oblivion by ricky racers and it is great yours has been saved. :2thumbs:

[FlyinTiger]

Nothing wrong with a leisurely trip down the track or some time spent doing laps at an open track show. Glad that you had a good time. :D That is what owning a Mustang is all about. Enjoyment is different for all people. I will be bolting up my 17" Speedlines on FHP 198 for the Biltmore show for some enjoyable mountainous sprints. ;)