Car Craft Street Race Class Update
If the first three races of the '06 season are any indication of where the NMCA Car Craft Street Race class is headed, then you can count on competitive fields. Although the class has yet to see a huge growth spurt, it is beginning to attract new racers. This influx of new blood has helped yield some very competitive races, along with three different winners so far this year-a good sign for the entry-level, single-power-adder class. What's more, the three winners in the class all have different combinations.
Mike Dezotell, last year's class champion, took the opening race this year at Bradenton, Florida, with his ProCharged 356ci Ford-powered Mustang. Newcomer Michael Fratena took the Bowling Green, Kentucky, race with his blow-through, turbocharged 355ci small-block Camaro, and Larry Hourcle scored another win for the supercharger contingent when his small-block Mustang with a Vortech T-Trim on top grabbed the win in Columbus, Ohio. Although Dezotell holds the points lead in the class, it's fair to say the battle for this year's championship will again go down to the wire.
To compete in or learn more about the Car Craft Street Race Class or NMCA racing series, visit fasteststreetcar.com. You can also sign up by calling 866/694-3475. -Scott Sparrow
The Cherry Bomb is Back!
Yes, you heard right. Remember the barrel of Bombs at the local Super Shops? Well now you can get them again. To celebrate, the Cherry Bomb guys are assembling an '06 Cherry Bomb Charger laden with Bombs and brutal Hemi parts. Better than that is the availability of the original bright-red glasspack muffler that looked way cool in front of a set of turndowns. They also have Turbo and Turbo II cans for that mellow burble and some jackets, T-shirts, and stuff. Check out the newness at cherrybomb.com. -Douglas R. Glad
Build A Monster 500ci LS1
A company called ERL located in New Albany, Indiana, has completed a product it calls SuperDeck 2. This is a plate that extends the deck height of a standard LS1 engine, allowing the engine builder to stuff a 4.50-inch crank in an all- aluminum Gen III block with a 4.200-inch bore. The SuperDeck 2 is much more than a flat plate and uses a step to locate new pressed-in bore liners to create the necessary bore and stroke configuration. Judson Massengill, head schoolmaster and owner of the School of Automotive Machinists (SAM) in Houston, Texas, is currently building one of these engines. It should thump. You can learn more about the process by logging on to erlperformance.com or calling 812/948-8484. If the SAM school interests you, dial 713/683-3817. -Jeff Smith
Billet Injection
It scares us that '80s speed stuff is starting to become nostalgic, but here's more proof. This device, which looks like a low-profile air cleaner, is actually a rudimentary form of fuel injection. Developed and marketed by B&M, the Superjection seems to have four injector nozzles located in a four-barrel-carb baseplate. The thing on the side with the fuel lines coming out of it seems to be a vacuum- and throttle-referenced pressure regulator. Don't call B&M, as the company doesn't acknowledge ever offering this gem.