Top Fuel driver Howard Haight
(who was fresh off a huge win at the 46th March Meet) was in
the seat of Big Yohn's Shubert & Herbert recreation. Photos &
Commentary by Robert Briggs
Push starting the car
"Old School" ..yes! This is the first burnout session.
Haight brings the Shubert
& Herbert dragster back to life ... whummMMPP!!! Big Yohns
must be grinning ear-to-ear.
Howard looks good in
the "Shubie" as people in the pits look on.
Warren Walther & Rod McCarrell
watch from the fence as Howard approaches the starting line.
I can't ID the person on the left.
The Turn. Gosh, this part of
the run is so poetic to me its beyond words. The push down ...
will the car start? Will the car keep running? Can the drivers
make The Turn without crashing into each other. Can they stage
the cars before the engines get too hot? I really miss this part
of today's contemporary drag racing.
Howard and the Shubert &
Herbert is drawing a lot of attention from some Dust Devils as
it rolls to the line. Announcer Mike English is approaching on
the left. Howard adjusts
his goggles while Big Yohns checks engine temp.
One last look. You gotta wonder
what's going through Big Yohn's mind. This is the car's first
burnout attempt ... ever [gulp].
Its put up or shut up time ...
and Howard begins Shubert & Herbert's "inaugural"
burnout. I have to confess I was shaking like a leaf with my
emotion level very high. Had to remind myself "keep pushing
the shutter button ... don't be a spectator." Ronnie Rapp
watches from the sideline.
Howard has the tires smoking
nicely at this point. Kol Johnson comes into view.
Howard has the smoke pattern
thickening. Shubert & Herbert looks straight and true ...
Smoke pattern is still thickening
and curling behind the slicks. Howard holds the line straight
and true. Crew member Marc McCormick and the Chief Cat Herder
himself Lee Schelin watch trackside. Don Prieto wearing his whites
and solar powered Pith Helmet can be seen at the fence.
Last shot in this series. Howard
flashes by. My camera's memory buffer is full and this is the
last shot it'll take. Tire smoke fools the auto focusing a bit
though Howard's helmet appears in focus. What a super run!! Congrats
to Big Yohns, Howard Haight, Kol Johnson & Marc McCormick.
Great show for the car's first burnout.
Here's Howie pulling off the
track and onto the return road after a 900' smoker. It was Fontana
1964 all over again. Patty
Peterson Photo
Later in the
day Big Yohns making the final visual check before Howard's upcoming
E-ticket ride.
After 5 or 6 seconds Howard has
the revs up and begins the 2nd track launch of the Schubert &
Herbert.
Front
wheels still up and even. Again, nice smoke pattern.
Front tires are down
and smoke is thickening ... everything looks good.
Left front tire slightly
up and no problems yet ....
Looking great but this is where
Howard said the track started getting a little slippery ...
Notice the smoke is darker now.
The rear end is sliding to the left and the guardrail must be
coming into Howard's view.
Uh-oh ...
A driver with lesser driving
skills than Howard Haight the S&H would be in a repair shop
today.
First run was a little rich.
I don't know what the actual altitude is, but I suppose around
2500-3000 feet. We bumped the Nitro 5% and put a little more
overdrive on the blower for the second launch. Even then it was
spitting a little raw fuel of a couple of pipes when Howie winged
it before the run. Big Yohns
Here are a couple of pics of
Howard Haight working on the blower drive pulleys. As I heard
it, there was an attempt to go to a slightly larger drive pulley
(maybe an altitude correction?), but the hole pattern of the
larger pulley wasn't quite the same as the original. There was
lots of filing and thrashing in the dirt, but Howard was persistent
and must have got it right.
The pic with the 2 pulleys in hand was taken about 10 AM prior
to their 1st run, according to the camera data. The other was
taken about 2 PM, between the 1st and 2nd pass. Commentary by Bob Brown
It finally happened. Riceman's
brass model of the Shubert Herbert is shown here at dusk on Saturday
with its big brother, the real car. Big Yohns, their proud owner,
is holding the display plate on which the model is resting.
Full
Model Construction
From the old to the new... Big
Yohns Racing also had their VRA Jr. Fuel dragster on hand with
Kol Johnson in the seat. Here Ron and Marc McCormick monitor
the engine during a warm-up.
Ron checks the exhaust
temp with a thermal gun.
Kol makes a pass Saturday
afternoon.
Big Yohns Racing's 2005 rig that
carries the "Big Wheel" Jr. Fuel dragster and the Shubert
& Herbert A/FD recreation.
More Inyokern
2005 |