This week has been a return to glory for Bryant Goldstone as he rebuilt his beloved 1973 AMC Javelin after a harrowing crash during last year's HOT ROD Drag Week. His first runs in the revamped car took place the day before official tech-in, shaking the cobwebs off after being out of the car for almost a year. The few easy runs down the track got Goldstone back in the groove as he prepared to chase the Ultimate Iron category.
The opening day was relatively uneventful as he turned in a solid 7.15 at 199 mph time slip, not the quickest run for the potent Ultra Tech 572ci powerplant, but a solid first round. It was clear that HOT ROD Garage co-host Alex Taylor would be his toughest competitor, she jumped out quickly with a 7.05 at 201 mph performance.
Day 2 at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park proved to be a turning point for Goldstone as he solidified himself as the leader, turning in a career-best time slip that reads 6.63 at 217 mph. The high speed came at a cost, he lost the door skin as he pulled the dual chutes at the finish line. The driver's side lexan window peeled outward and acted as a lever, popping off the door skin. The freshly painted carbon fiber door shattered upon its return to terra firma.
Brian Robbins, co-driver and crew chief for the Javelin, collected the pieces and they reconstructed the skin like a giant puzzle. That is the good news, the bad news is they wouldn't play puzzle-time until they got to the hotel that night. Goldstone proved it isn't just a "Jeep-thing" and completed the near 300-mile road tour, sans door. A late night jam session proved that a box of screws and duct tape can fix anything. Robbins also added an extra step during the staging process, he duct tapes the door window edges to prevent the same problem from happening again.
The third day of Drag Week was a struggle as the temperatures soared at Byron Dragway and the Javelin's big-block was running on just seven cylinders. Down on power and the challenging tracks conditions resulted in their longest day. They made three runs before feeling satisfied with a 7.23 at 191 mph. The slow-ish run pushed the three-day average to a 7.00 at 202 mph. Taylor posted a best of 7.10 at 203 mph, creating her second place average of 7.12 at 201 mph.
Goldstone held a strong position going into the fourth day but the team knew they had to fix the dropped cylinder. They got to the hotel before midnight, giving them time to evaluate their troubles. In the end, they found a valvetrain issue that was the root cause of their problems. Day 4 at Cordova Dragway was significantly cooler with density altitude falling below 500 feet, meaning it was going to be a fast day.
The first run was filled with disappointment as a new problem emerged—the boost went to 15 psi on the transbrake but immediately fell to zero as soon as Goldstone released the button. It forced a thrash in the pits to search for the missing manifold pressure. They took a guess and swapped in new wastegate diaphragms while crossing their fingers. The problem persisted and the best the team could muster was a 7.88, until finding an unplugged injector and hustling back to the staging lanes to make one last pass in dramatic fashion. Goldstone ran a 6.73 at 215 mph, solidifying his lead over Alex Taylor, who was experiencing troubles of her own.
The Friday scenario in Ultimate Iron will be the battle of the least breakage to see who comes out on top!
FULL HOT ROD DRAG WEEK COVERAGE
HOT ROD Drag Week is the ultimate test for street-legal drag racing cars: Not only do competitors have to race on four different tracks over five consecutive days, they have to drive their race car between each venue on specified routes, with photo checkpoints, that average over 1,000 miles throughout the week. What's more, racers can only use the tools and parts they can carry in their car or in their optional trailer—towed by the race car. Head to the MotorTrend YouTube channel to watch each day's live stream (and replays)!