Dream Chasers

In 1999, Ed Thomas was a proud man with a fast car. His '88 Outlaw coupe was running low 9s and he'd even seen the 8s once--an impressive 8.90 at 157 mph. As if that wasn't cool enough, Thomas didn't leave for the track without his nephew, Mike Gadaleta, right by his side. Gadaleta, a hardcore Mustang man, was enjoying the 5-liter game with his own strip Stang, a Regatta Blue LX. Together they forged a plan for Thomas to concentrate on Outlaw, while Gadaleta would make some changes and get his LX ready for the rigors of Fun Ford Street Renegade.

Gadaleta's dream was to race Renegade and bang heads with the likes of Chip Havemann and Bob Kurgan. To do so he had taken a $400 4-cylinder LX and converted it into a hot 5.0. In addition, the 18-year old Gadaleta wanted his Mustang to look good--so good in fact, that it would get noticed by a national magazine.

Like most Mustang projects, the plan moved along and after only two outings at the track, Gadaleta's LX was in the low 10s. Most importantly, Thomas and Gadaleta were racing together and having fun. The Thomas/Gadaleta racing team was on its way.

Things changed forever one afternoon in June of '99 when Thomas got news of a terrible accident. He returned home from a day at the beach to hear that a boating mishap occurred and that his nephew was missing. Sadness and worry turned to horror after they found out that the accident took the life of young Mike Gadaleta. And in that crushing moment a part of Thomas died too.

Ed Thomas was left heartbroken and without answers. He closed the speed shop where he and his nephew worked magic into their Mustangs and for months considered quitting racing altogether. Thomas was mentally beaten, but somehow he didn't quit.

"If Mike's dream was to race Chip Havemann and run Renegade I felt I had to park my car in the garage and keep his dream alive. I had to make his dream come true," said Thomas. "My new goal was to get the car ready and run the 2000 Fun Ford circuit. The NMRA didn't exist when Mike was around and besides, Chip ran Fun Ford and Mike wanted to compete against him."

Gadaleta's LX was capable of running low 10s, but Thomas was going to need more power and more traction to run with the best in Renegade. Engine updates were in order, so Thomas turned to Tim Zepp of Timmy's Race Engines in Sewel, N.J., to prepare a new Ford Racing "R" block. Once the machine work was completed the block was filled with a SCAT crank, new rods and JE pistons designed to pump out 9:1 compression. A Fast Time windage tray was added to help control oil, along with a Melling oil pump. Lastly, the bottom-end was sealed with a Fast Times racing pan.

Competitive Renegade engines make roughly 1000 horsepower (or more), so heads flowing lots of wind were needed. Jersey Cylinder Heads (also in Sewel) prepared a set of Edelbrock Victor Jr. heads with 2.08/1.60-inch Ferrea valves, Isky springs and 1.6:1 Jesel rockers. Actuating the valves is a Comp Cams custom stick designed for Renegade.

When the intake valves crack open, the cylinder is stuffed with a maximum of 27 psi thanks to the Paxton Novi 2000 supercharger. The compressed air then travels through a 75mm Accufab throttle body and into the Extrude Honed Holley Systemax intake where it's mixed with fuel supplied from a Weldon pump and 72 lb. injectors.

Sticking with simple, Thomas kept the factory Ford EEC electronics, but they are now tweaked with an Anderson Ford PMS unit. The air/fuel mixture is fired by a combination of ignition parts from Crane, Holley and MSD. Spent gasses exit through Kook's headers that are hooked to a Dr. Gas X-pipe. Backing the small-block "was" a Tremec TKO and a well-prepared 8.8-inch rear.

Thomas had the entire combination ready for the start of the 2000 season, but unfortunately the first four races were nothing short of disastrous. After making the long haul from Delaware to the season opener in Bradenton, Fla., Thomas has the misfortune of burning out the clutch, which ended his weekend. He made the necessary repairs and had the LX ready to fly, but it blew a head gasket in Atlanta at the second race. An ignition failure stopped him at the third race, and at the fourth race in Alabama he lost a piston. It was safe to say that Thomas was having a rough time in his rookie Renegade season. The answer is yes, however, there was no chance of him giving up.

Thomas regrouped and swapped out the Tremec for a C-4 built by Frank Lupo and that's when things turned around. His Herculean effort paid off in Richmond, the sixth stop on the FFW tour. For the first time, Thomas could make consecutive runs and for the first time he found himself in a final round. And when he looked over during that final he saw the blue coupe of Chip Havemann. It was at this point that he knew part of Gadaleta's dream was going to come true. He didn't win that race, but he sure did score a mental victory. "I was happy to race Havemann. He was one of Mike's heroes and I knew Mike was there with me in spirit."

Thomas kept the momentum flowing by posting a semifinal finish in Epping, N.H., at the very next race. "The car was right on up there, but it blew the blower discharge tube off against Bart Tobner in the semis," Thomas said.

The problem was easily fixed and without much rest he was off to Cordova, Ill., for the next race on the 11-race schedule. Once again, Thomas found himself lined up with Tobener, but this time it was in the first round, not the semis. Thomas drilled the tree, defeated the quick 2000 GT of Tobner, and in doing so scored his biggest round win of the season. He then disposed of Charles Calloway in the semis and for the second time in his rookie season he was headed to the final round. There he faced the ever-tough Bob Kurgan and his blown '86 GT. Thomas let it all hang out and ripped past Kurgan to claim his first-ever Renegade title. "Illinois was great," exclaimed Thomas. "It put a smile on my face and made me realize that things were good. We won and I knew I could do it again and maybe make a run for the title."

Despite those early round losses, Thomas accumulated enough points to have a shot at the 2000 Renegade title. However, there was only one race remaining and all the hitters would be heading down to Dallas to bang heads. Winning Renegade in 2000 was not easy.

"After looking at the points, I knew we had a shot. Calloway led the points, but we were in second and I just needed to go more rounds than him at Dallas. When we arrived in Texas for the last race the weather was freezing. It was really unexpected. I knew this would be good for performance, but I had to change the whole tuneup so it wouldn't lean out," Thomas explained.

The Delaware-based racer nailed the combination and qualified second with a 9.52. Tobener held the top spot with a 9.34, while Calloway stood right behind Thomas on the qualifying sheet. The way the ladder and the points worked out, every round was important because Calloway or Thomas could take the championship.

Both racers made it past first round, which meant Thomas' chance were growing slim. Then, in the second frame, Thomas got the break he needed when Calloway went out. "Second round was everything," Thomas explained in a pumped up voice. "Calloway lost but he was still ahead in points. I had to get to the final round to sneak ahead and win the championship. I didn't have to win the race, just make it to the final."

Thomas was victorious in the second round, but he needed one more round win to make it official. If he could get just one more victory he'd capture the championship by a mere eight points; if he lost, he'd lose it by only two points. His competitor in the semifinals was Dan Jaynes, but that wasn't the big problem. Despite Thomas' best efforts, the terribly cold weather made the engine run lean and the 304-inch bullet was hurting.

"At that point it didn't matter. I knew the engine was hurt so I went to the line and went for it. I left with a green light and it pulled a huge wheelstand. I pulled second [gear] in the air, but it still went up even more and then it came down really hard. Thankfully when it did I was out ahead of Jaynes so I stayed in it and somehow edged him out by .001-second. It was amazing. The car was hurt bad after that run, but I didn't care, all I had to do was stage in the final, just stage." And stage Thomas did about 30 minutes later to capture the 2000 FFW Renegade title in storybook fashion. "I really can't describe how I felt. After all that happened, I was so glad to win. It would have meant everything to Mike and it meant so much to do it for him. I just can't describe how good it feels."

Today, Ed Thomas is once again a proud man. However, these days it's for many different reasons. Hard work and the will to win paid huge dividends and made Mike Gadaleta's dream a reality. After a season filled with highs and lows, Thomas ultimately claimed the championship and the respect of dozens of racers. He clocked a best ET of 9.19 at 149.53 mph, but best of all he chased his nephew's dream and made it reality. And finally, Mike Gadaleta's LX is now officially noticed by the preeminent national magazine and quite a few heads-up racers, too.

But Ed Thomas is the real Mustang hero.