Tabla de contenidos para September 2016 en Circle Track

The life of a spotter isn’t an easy one. You’re not just concerned about your race car, you’re concerned about everyone’s race car. Everything happening on the track is something that could affect your driver, and you better be aware of that. I never envied the spotter, although, a few always looked calm, cool, and completely comfortable with their role on race day. Once the race begins, you may have seen a grouping of spotters as they convene at one location. Some have dubbed this location Spottersville. In that location also stands one person whose job is less enviable than that of the spotter. He or she is the constable of Spottersville. He is there to keep order, to relay messages, and in some cases, keep the peace. He is…

Flashbacks! I would love to see an old Flashback Friday of my Dad from the early ’80s. J. Michael “Muttly” Kurkowski was Rookie of the Year in 1983, I believe. He ran Chevys #2, #27, or #72. I would be so thankful to see him on your Facebook page. —Jon Kurkowski, North Carolina We’ll do you one better. How about getting this in the pages of Circle Track? We’ve recently posted a few old photos to our Facebook page. As of this writing, we were on a little ASA Challenge Series kick. It started with Bob Senneker, then went to Mike Eddy, and eventually, also showed Dave Sensiba. Most of the feedback was reminiscent of what a great series that was. We agree. It developed some awesome drivers, and made…

We love an underdog story: David versus Goliath; the little guy taking on The Man. You get the idea. Usually, those stories come from racers who find ways to do more with less. But that’s not always the case. Sometimes, you see crafty inventors who take on the establishment by creating something that can help racers find Victory Lane more often. And that’s exactly what Curtis Neumann is attempting. The trained engineer has developed a pull bar replacement called the Neu Torque Arm. Neumann developed the Torque Arm while he was a racer himself. He ran Asphalt Modifieds for years in Florida. After several years constantly developing new iterations and improvements to his product, Neumann finally believes the arm is ready to help other racers. He started his own company,…

The CT leadership has been in transition due to Rob Fisher leaving, and now, having an old friend and colleague, John Viscardo, coming back to work with us as Brand Manager (or what we used to call the publisher) of Circle Track. That is a very good thing for the future success of this longrunning publication. Viscardo is certainly no stranger to either the sport or the participants. He was a part of our sales team a few years ago, and gained a lot of knowledge about the players who make this sport a success. And he came to understand one very important thing about CT that was a little different from other racing publications. We went places with our technical presentations that were a bit bolder. We stuck our…

A Quick Connection—No Tools Required! Ideal for more compact applications, Jiffy-tite’s Pro-Compact Series is designed for applications that don’t require valve technology, but do benefit from the no-tools technology behind Jiffy-tite’s signature quick-connect fluid fittings. With its ease of use and quick installation, this product lends itself to the fastpaced short-track racing environment. All Jiffy-tite fittings, including the Pro-Compact series, are compatible with virtually any fuel, oil, water, and transmission applications. In addition, the quick-connect fluid fittings no-tool design helps minimize many problems associated with fluid transfer, such as stripping, cross-threading, over-tightening, or forgetting to tighten the fittings. Jiffy-tite Pro-Compact series sockets are available in straight 45-degree and 90-degree, which can be ordered in either the black or gold anodized finish. For more information call (888) 605-7788 or visit www.jiffy-titemotorsports.com.…

Writer’s Note: This month, we begin a series of short recounts pertaining to parts of Smokey Yunick’s life and career as a racer, builder, and car-owner, using personal experiences and slices of information that appear in his three-volume book “Best Damn Garage in Town,” penned by the man and completed just prior to his passing in March 2001 at the age of 77. We hope you will gain additional insight into this self-made man, along with periodic bits of entertainment. By 1954, Smokey had left an indelible mark on NASCAR racing, winning events on both the old course on the Daytona Beach ocean-side sand track, and four of the first eight races when the Daytona International Speedway was completed. But during this time, he was in continual conflict with NASCAR’s…

You’ve seen the evidence. You disassemble an engine and witness the appearance of deposits—or their absence—on piston crowns and combustion chambers in the cylinder heads. You can relate the presence, absence, or variations in color (density) of these deposits to combustion efficiency. But before we dig into that aspect of making power, let’s divert for a moment to discuss the combustion process itself. At any given engine speed, there is a fixed amount of time to combust, or burn, the available fuel. The rate at which this oxidation-reduction reaction occurs is a function of fuel droplet size (among other factors). Essentially, the larger the droplet, the more time required to reduce it to heat and power during the combustion process. Therefore, it’s desirable to achieve the highest possible atomization efficiency…

Whether on dirt or pavement, circle-track racing puts an immense pressure on ignition systems. Not only does the ignition need to continuously provide high-energy sparks under extreme loads on the straights, it also needs to be able to handle the abuse of the heat and vibrations race cars endure. The new E6 CD Circle Track Ignition from Fuel Air Spark Technology is designed with that kind of performance in mind. FAST is best known for their EFI systems, which have powered many vehicles in motorsports. The company’s new line of ignition controls is built to the same standards as those that have been proven in other markets. To combat the harsh racing conditions on dirt or pavement, the surface mount electronics are fully encased in a soft urethane material complemented…