Winner Two-time Pro Mod 5.0...
Winner
Two-time Pro Mod 5.0 champion Billy Glidden (left) entered his familiar '90 Mustang in the Pro Outlaw ranks. He qualified number one and won the event with a 6.90 at 202 mph. His weekend, however, was not without problems-a broken Third-gear slider in Round 2 of eliminations required a trackside repair. Glidden welded the broken component, crossed his fingers, and hoped it held together for two more rounds of racing. He then had to thrash on the engine after a semifinal win-an intake valvespring snapped. Glidden easily beat Ed Rice in the final for the $10,000 payday.
The Outlaw Drag Radial ranks grew when Ryan Martin had problems on the Wild Street cruise. He quickly entered this eliminator, qualified fourth, and ran as quick as 7.81 in eliminations-which is moving for a street car. His Cinderella story ended in the semifinals when his '92 GT smoked the tires. Newcomer Nick Owens of Lafayette, Louisiana, took home the big prize of $5,000 by defeating Corey Berry and his '03 Cobra-7.96 to a traction-limited 9.61.
WFC officials took the popular MM&FF True Street Challenge and added a little twist. The group performed the 30-mile cruise and the industry standard of three consecutive passes without the benefit of a cooldown. The average e.t. of those performances is used to qualify the racers, which are then run off in eliminations on Sunday. It has been affectionately nicknamed Wild Street, and Nitto Tire stands behind this category. The participants compete heads up and go for the glory in no-breakout elimination rounds. Some competitors have actually run in the mid-sevens in years past, but this year's group of racers was solidly in the eight-second zone. The last man standing was New Mexico's Frank Varela and his turbocharged '91 Mustang GT. He knocked down low-nine-second runs as he fought to keep his DOT-tire-equipped ride hooked up on the tricky track surface.
While the heads-up action was blazing hot, WFC also features a large bracket showdown category, sponsored by Performance Automatic, with a variety of classes to suit all types of racecars. The Open Comp eliminator rewarded the winner with a hefty $3,000 check. Paxton Modular Street followed the Open Comp-style format and pitted modular-powered Mustangs against each other. Our very own Ford Performance Trucks magazine sponsored three truck categories: Street Lightning, Pro Lightning, and Diesel Challenge.
If racing isn't your thing, then the massive show grounds is sure to have a group of Fords that interest you. WFC also offers a huge manufacturers' midway that was packed with sweet deals and a chance to meet face-to-face with manufacturer and speed shop representatives.
World Ford Challenge continues to carry the torch as the annual bash that brings together both NMRA and FFW racers to see who's king of the strip in the Ford world.
Team Aruba's driver, Bert...
Team Aruba's driver, Bert Kelkboom, went to the finals while driving this Escort. Jon Kaase provides the power and Kelkboom ran 6.50s at 215 mph en route to the runner-up finish. Kelkboom beat Mangrum first round, Alex Viscardi in Round 2, and defending WFC champ John Nobile in the semifinals. Unfortunately, the naturally aspirated 814ci engine was no match for the nitrous-powered Chuck Samuel entry in the finals.
Our vote for the baddest car...
Our vote for the baddest car on the property goes to the Saitz family's Pro Mod 5.0 entry. The Jerry Haas-constructed, Pro Modified-style Shelby GT500 is flawless. Two Precision 88mm turbo-chargers and a giant aftercooler are connected to a Kuntz and Company 434ci engine. Saitz did the wild plumbing job at his shop, Hyperformance Motor-sports, which specializes in turbo and supercharger fabrication services and all things EFI and wiring related. The Shelby race car shows off the shop's unique capabilities.
Team Aruba had two cars in...
Team Aruba had two cars in competition-the one driven by Kelkboom is the team's primary race car. The second is campaigned by Trevor Enman, a college student and son of Team Aruba's managing partner Ven Enman. Trevor relies on a 632 big-block Ford with three stages of Edelbrock nitrous. He competed under the watchful eye of Edelbrock's Motorsport Director and owner of Induction Solutions, Steve Johnson. They eased into the new combination and ran several 7.00 runs throughout the weekend. Keep an eye on this team, as they will be one of the front runners on the NMRA Pro 5.0 tour once they get the bugs worked out of the combination.
Brian Carpenter was the defending...
Brian Carpenter was the defending WFC Pro Outlaw champion and had problems in the first round of eliminations. The Minnesota racer was the victim of ever-changing track conditions. The twin-turbo Pro Line Race Engine piece dumped 2,000 hp to the ground, but the 33x10.5W tires didn't hold traction on the boiling-hot track surface. Carpenter is a regular 6-second player in Outlaw 10.5 trim but smoked the tires and ran an 8.38 in his Round 1 loss.
This is what lies beneath...
This is what lies beneath the front end of Gary Rohe's Pro Outlaw Mustang-nothing but a pair of Precision 88mm turbos and a small-block Ford powerplant.
John Urist showed up with...
John Urist showed up with a reverse-rotation ProCharger F3R blower. It mounts in the center of the engine, and the impeller is fed air directly from the front of the car. The reverse mounting location added significant horsepower due to the ram-air effect and less power needed to turn the supercharger. The New Mexico racer quickly realized there wasn't enough time to sort out the new blower combo and quickly converted back to his side-slinger ProCharger blower. A broken header pipe prevented him from going rounds on Sunday. He did crack off a 7.54 at 188 mph during a test-and-tune hit.
Winner Street Outlaw racer...
Winner
Street Outlaw racer Sam Vincent was deadly consistent and ultra-quick at WFC X. His teal coupe is powered by a 438ci running on three stages of nitrous oxide. Vincent's best run was a 7.41, but it was removed for minor technicalities. Later, he ran a best of 7.47 and then nailed down two more 7.48s in eliminations along with another 7.47 to claim his first WFC title.
One of the more unique vehicles...
One of the more unique vehicles in Wild Street belonged to Ryan Talcott of Sioux Falls, South Dakota. His '93 Mustang Cobra is equipped with a twin-turbocharged 5.4L modular engine. The innocent-looking Cobra is stock appearing save for the full cage (hidden nicely inside) and a parachute hanging off the back bumper. The red Cobra unleashed a 10.07 at 142 mph in Round 1 of Wild Street eliminations.