05-01-2011, 07:02 PM
(This post was last modified: 05-01-2011, 07:15 PM by broncosbybart.)
We were lined up in the first row against and Isuzu and an XJ (Cherokee). I was determined not to let either one beat a big 302 V-8 down the front stretch. Before the start, they watered it with a huge ballooned tire watering machine. It was like an earth mover with a tank on the back. When the flag dropped, the hammer dropped and off we went, skating down the slick front stretch. The Jeep was long gone, but the freaking Isuzu was close! I kept in it as long as I could. Problem came when the stopping didnât go as well as the starting. We started sliding sideways and skipping over irregularities in the ground. We hit a big rut, got it angled in the air, and got plenty of âoh crapâ comments from people spectating after the race. It landed on all 4âs, got it straightened out, and still remained in 1st. I beat on it pretty good going through the big dirt piles, then down through the rocky gulley, and then on to Achilles Heel. We were running pretty fast through the woods, but the Isuzu caught me there and stayed right there. I let him pass when we got opened up into the table top jump section. Our Bronco just has some polyurethane bump stops and some cheapie shocks on it. It rides well, but the pounding of the jumps make for a harsh ride for us, terrible abuse on the vehicle with all sorts of metallic banging sounds, and lots of bouncing like a bull riding contest.
I didnât think we could run that kind of pace and keep it in one piece. They werenât gaining much ground at their speed, as I was able to make a lot of it back in the crawling sections. By the third lap, the Bronco was doing great. I was getting used to driving it and all the gauges were good, except for one. The trans temp gauge was now reading 210. The fan is set to go on at 180. It was running, but it wasnât cooling! After that discovery, I looked in the rear view, and discovered that David G was on my bumper with his Toyota buggy. We watched his pre-run laps the day before and I knew I couldnât keep up with him. He was beating the living tar out of it!
I let him pass. A few seconds later I smelled anti freeze. We were only running water in our radiator and our engine temp was perfect. A big smile crossed my face in hopes for what might soon come. Sure enough, lap four was too long for the poor Toyota. It was done. 2 laps later I looked to my left after going through Achilles heel- there was the #22 Isuzu on the side. We were in first!!!
The next lap was mostly uneventful, with the exception being a pegged past 250 degree trans temp gauge, a UTV flipping in front of us (they had 15 of those things running a different category but on the track as the same time as us), and another funny moment. As Achilles Heel began to get ruts worn in it, the Bronco wanted to go straight rather than turn right at the top. During the race, I kept it in 4 hi instead of shifting to low range, to save time. This meant that my speed needed to stay up, as it couldnât pull the hill slowly in high range, it was too steep. On one particular occasion, I ran up a small tree. It came crashing down, coming near a spectator. It wasnât a big tree and I didnât go off course, but it gave them a good scare. From then on, whenever the Bronco went up the hill, the spectators scattered like ants!
Somewhere in there I was found running quickly in second gear, hit a wet spot in the woods, and smacked a tree almost dead center. The truck never shut off, I backed it up a few feet, and continued on. It was quite a shot! My right palm still hurts from it! That old Bronco took the beating. Afterwards we noticed that it bent the front bumper some, but that is why it is there, right?
I didnât think we could run that kind of pace and keep it in one piece. They werenât gaining much ground at their speed, as I was able to make a lot of it back in the crawling sections. By the third lap, the Bronco was doing great. I was getting used to driving it and all the gauges were good, except for one. The trans temp gauge was now reading 210. The fan is set to go on at 180. It was running, but it wasnât cooling! After that discovery, I looked in the rear view, and discovered that David G was on my bumper with his Toyota buggy. We watched his pre-run laps the day before and I knew I couldnât keep up with him. He was beating the living tar out of it!
I let him pass. A few seconds later I smelled anti freeze. We were only running water in our radiator and our engine temp was perfect. A big smile crossed my face in hopes for what might soon come. Sure enough, lap four was too long for the poor Toyota. It was done. 2 laps later I looked to my left after going through Achilles heel- there was the #22 Isuzu on the side. We were in first!!!
The next lap was mostly uneventful, with the exception being a pegged past 250 degree trans temp gauge, a UTV flipping in front of us (they had 15 of those things running a different category but on the track as the same time as us), and another funny moment. As Achilles Heel began to get ruts worn in it, the Bronco wanted to go straight rather than turn right at the top. During the race, I kept it in 4 hi instead of shifting to low range, to save time. This meant that my speed needed to stay up, as it couldnât pull the hill slowly in high range, it was too steep. On one particular occasion, I ran up a small tree. It came crashing down, coming near a spectator. It wasnât a big tree and I didnât go off course, but it gave them a good scare. From then on, whenever the Bronco went up the hill, the spectators scattered like ants!
Somewhere in there I was found running quickly in second gear, hit a wet spot in the woods, and smacked a tree almost dead center. The truck never shut off, I backed it up a few feet, and continued on. It was quite a shot! My right palm still hurts from it! That old Bronco took the beating. Afterwards we noticed that it bent the front bumper some, but that is why it is there, right?