THE NUMBERS BEHIND JOE DOUTHIT’S 338 MPH JET CAR LAP
Jet car racer Joe Douthit had a career lap on New Years Day that really has the jet car community up in arms. Immediately after Agent 1320 put the speed and ET numbers up -- which we got from DRO’s own Darr Hawthorne, who attended the event -- DRO got several emails from a prominent jet car racer vehemently questioning the 4.71/338 time slip.
As we understand it, there were a couple of factors that have to be considered when looking at the numbers. First, the weather: the air temperature was in the 40’s and racers with weather stations told DRO that the air had a very low “water grain” count. Fewer grains of water mean higher percentage of oxygen. Combine that with 40-degree air and you have conditions that have historically yielded record setting performances from internal combustion powered cars. Also, when considering the validity of the numbers consider that the LACR track is about 2500 feet above sea level and the track timing computer is programmed to compensate for the track altitude. Also at the same time that Douthit ran his number the Roy and Buell Nostalgia Fuel Funny ran an all-time best speed and ET for that class of 5.61/261.015.
Are the jet car numbers legit? Well, the incrementals on the time slip seem nominal for that kind of performance. Since there are no “official” NHRA or IHRA records for exhibition jet cars and no engine, weight, fuel or any other rules that could be broken or checked, the speed and ET will stand on their own. Jet car fans can make their own decision as to its legitimacy.
In a call to Joe Douthit DRO found him basically unimpressed by the lap. He told DRO, “We had 14 shock rings (in the flame coming out of the jet engine) instead of 11, so it was on a good pass.”
Here are Douthit’s jet dragster’s incremental times: 60 ft .858; 330 ft 2.204; 660 ft 3.219/254.14; 1000 ft 4.028; 1320 ft 4.732/338.599. Draw your own conclusions. [1-4-2007]
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LADWIG TO DEBUT NEW SPORT COMPACT CAR
Champion sport compact racer Marty Ladwig will unleash a new race car for the 2007 NHRA season as the 13-time NHRA winner eyes a third championship and hopes to become the first Front Wheel Drive racer to clock a six-second elapsed time. Ladwig will compete exclusively on the NHRA Xplod Sport Compact Racing Series.
The 2007 Lucas Oil-sponsored Chevrolet Cobalt will feature a full tube-chassis from S&W and will be completed by Roush Industries. It will be powered by a 2.0-liter Ecotec engine with a Garrett GT 45 turbocharger. The motor will run on Methanol and should produce nearly 1,500 horsepower.
Last season was Ladwig’s first as a team owner/driver. He drove his Lucas Oil-backed Cobalt to a second place finish in the Pro FWD category and carded one victory (Denver) in two final round appearances. A two-time NHRA champion in the Hot Rod category (2003-04), Ladwig will serve as the owner, driver and crew chief. In May 2005, he became the first FWD racer to surpass the 200-mph barrier with his 202.02 mph blast in New Jersey. He also has a career-best elapsed time of 7.12 seconds.
Ladwig’s Cobalt will debut at the 2007 NHRA Xplod Series season-opener, the South Florida NHRA Sport Compact Nationals at Moroso Motorsports Park in West Palm Beach, Fla., March 31-April 1. [1-4-2007]
