Editorial Pgs May
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you’ve got to wonder what this char- acter could do if they let him play with eight whole cylinders. As driver, Byrnes also earned a lifetime membership in the 200MPH yy Club, but he is equally quick to note that none of his elation would have come to pass had it not been for his many sponsors, crew, family, friends and well wishers who provided the yy requisite financial, emotional and physical assistance. Let’s go back to 1997 where Byrnes reactivated his retired ‘87 speeder when Garrett Turbochargers yy Fuel For Thought said it would support him with the latest technology available. Steadfast with “Landspeed Louise” Ann Noeth that any racing would have to be done without going into debt (read: family first) he parked the car when yy rain dashed all hope for the ’97 season needed a dyno for developing the The Anatomy of a Land until Chicago Rawhide, Fel-Pro and BF basic calibration and called Paul’s Goodrich jumped on the sponsor wag- High Performance in Jackson Michi- on joining Watson Engineering, gan,” explained Byrnes. Good Speed Record Reider Racing/Precision Gear, Center- thinking, because the fuel delivery force, Autolite, and Bosch in the choked when the rear wheels spun The thing about land spring of ‘98. past 400HP. Moreover, this Byrnes fel- speed racing is that there is Because Byrnes’ day job was at low must be a real charmer because plenty of room for dreams Ford, his name and abilities were Paul and his wife Rhonda signed on as to come true. Whether one already well known to the future sponsors. has a daring grand plan to sponsors. The solution would be to run a push past 400 MPH, or For the 1998 racing season, pair of pumps plumbed in parallel simply squeeze 100 MPH Byrnes completely rewired the XR4 that provided 700 PPH plus of fuel out of a ridiculously small and upgraded the engine control sys- flow. This also meant the whole fuel amount of cubic inches, tems. He was lucky enough to have a system had to be changed. After trad- the elation that accompa- pal who gave him a calibrated Accel ing $800 Washingtons for some nies the triumph is the DFI computer that had run on a very stainless tubing and braided line he same, the satisfaction isn’t highly boosted 4-cylinder engine simi- burnt lots of midnight oil replumbing. enhanced by speed, but by achieving stinkers in the sport, but so very few. lar to his. “I will never, never, never go rac- a goal -- sometimes set years and years Unlike most other forms of “I wanted every safety system to ing again without spending some time ago. motorsports, where spectators are kept function just like production,” said with Paul on his dyno,” he gushed, The best part of this process, one away from the racers by fences, walls Byrnes, “John Paluch, an engineer then added seriously, “a chassis dyno of the main reasons that I remain fas- and rope dividers, in land speed rac- with Cadillac Motor Car Co, and Bri- is not the answer to everything, but cinated with the sport, is its populous. ing curiosity is your “full-access” pass. an Chomicz, an engineer with Borg you learn things you could never The people give land speed racing Of course there are safety controls in Warner were responsible for the vehi- learn at the track, and like boost, if a such a vibrant, multi-idealistic person- play that must be respected, but many cle systems, while Brian Jones of little data is good, and more is better, ality, that it makes walking the a spectator has ended up on a pit crew Roush Technologies and I handled the then too much must be just right.” staging lanes, or through the pits a because no speed record has ever been DFI installation.” The next test session brought the discovery expedition. Everyone who set by a “lone ranger.” It takes a dedi- Next, Jones and Visteon calibration great news that the car had 600 HP at makes the effort to attend a speed cated team of cooperative folks and engineer 6500 RPM with 518 Lbs Ft of torque at meet has the opportunity for interpre- the best reward is not the setting of a Kevin Flan- 5500 RPM at the rear wheels. Also, the tation, taking away from the record but rather the life-long bond of nery began air cooling worked better than hoped, experience his or her own snippet of friendship forged as you work togeth- looking at temperature in the intake manifold understanding, amusement, shock er with others toward a common goal. the calibra- plenum was a mere 60 degrees Fahren- and awe. RB Motorsports, the high-speed tion and fuel heit, with an ambient temp of 80 I sometimes struggle to compre- heartthrob of Michigan resident Rick requirements degrees F. The bad news was at those hend why it has become popular for Byrnes, is a poster child for speed because power levels the car was running out some folks to embrace the wholesale deeds. Starting with a four cylinder Byrnes was of fuel pump again. slaughter of others they have never turbocharged Mercury Merkur XR4Ti, fearful that A third pump was added inside met, bearing witness to the harmony he and his jolly crew earned a 204.952 his high flow Bosch fuel pump (230 the fuel cell -- all three plumbed in in humanity that percolates up and MPH class record in 1998 that includ- LPH @ 10 Bar) would not be able to parallel and individually wired direct- out of land speed racing eases my ed a one-way fastest mile of 208.389 keep pace with flow demands at 200 ly to one of the batteries through a heart and fortifies my spirit. No MPH. Byrnes likes to point out this miles-per-hour. high current solenoid – with control Pollyanna perspective here, there are was done with “only half a motor” so “Having nowhere to test this through a production Ford inertia beast for sustained high speed, we switch that will shut it all off in case Page 14 May 2004 of an unwanted incident. drier course, the 4,230 ‘race ready’ difficult because as you go faster trac- Julie Campbell and Lou Caira poundage with 865 pounds of ballast tion becomes as big a variable as attended to the many detail items, stalled the car 3 times and just before Horsepower and/or Aerodynamics. tool and equipment organization, fin- the second run while completing the Although the car had settled down at ishing construction of a “war wagon” safety checklist Byrnes noticed the speed, it was still drifting. Not fishtail- so that hard to handle pit equipment remote water pump flange was leak- ing, or threatening to spin, but like it can be pulled from the trailer easily. ing. Wonder of wonders, he had a had a mind of its own – a common The plan to leisurely drive across spare, but when they got to the start- phenomenon of wheel spin at high Wanting to warm the engine the country to the salt evaporated ing line for the third time, the engine speed. because making a pass on a cold with sorting out the fuel system that refused to start. Lightening struck the short course engine invited rod failure, Byrnes now exceeed 900 HP. This included a The crew spent hours making timing lights just before Byrnes ran allowed another car to go off before set of Bosch 160 PPH injectors many tedious adjustments so the again putting all 100 racecars onto the him, which took so long to leave he installed with base pressure set at 42 engine would run, but now Byrnes remaining operational course. After an was staring an overheating situation PSI. That’s right 160 pounds per hour. had to “relearn” how to drive the car. elongated wait, he was flagged off for in the face and didn’t dare stall the EACH. These units were reportedly left Sigh. Breathe deep, get back in line his 5-mile drag race. The car fishtailed 156 CID/2.59L engine, as it would not over from the Buick Indy car days and wait. He had learned the hard in the second mile and went sideways restart. when flowing methanol was two way why many salt racers push off the before Byrnes had sense enough to Off at last, the final pass was less times the volume for equal HP to line. back out of the throttle and thus eventful (or was Byrnes getting used gasoline, but the benefits such as On this attempt he fiddled with avoid a spin. Reducing the boost he to going real fast?), but he noted that much cooler exhaust gas temperature the boost while in 3rd gear and was squeezed the loud pedal again, the car the run was “Not scary fast, just very on a turbocharged engine are quite a treated to total wheel spin and com- accelerated like never before and by fast, and I was not sure the car went benefit and less taxing on the fuel plete lack of control, just like on snow the 5th mile the needle crossed 6700 more than 200 MPH.” delivery system. or slush, yet calmly dialed back the rpm ending with a spectacular 208 Safety sweep crew Ed and Chris The Merkur ran about 1700 to boost and shifted into 4th. The car mph. Shearer arrived with the news that the 1850 EGT, the comparable Methanol was hurtling hard, but at the end of At the time it was absolutely the 5th mile was at 201.516 MPH and engine runs at 1200 to 1400.