Dragster Mail - Letter To the Editor

DRAGSTER MAIL

Better Late Than Never

My spies in New South Wales have informed me about an article that appeared in DRAGSTER No. 502. Seems that there's some "crazy canuck" drag racer planning to come down under next year and "kick butt" in Top Alcohol. Strangely enough, the picture of the "guilty party" bears a striking resemblance to me, the chap has the same name as me and the story line closely follows my own saga. Hmm . . .

Unfortunately, no sooner than the story was committed to print and the plans outlined for the "invasion" go through some radical changes. (Arghh . . . bloody hell, etc, etc.) When I wrote the story used for the article, the financial situation was looking grim, but I was determined to press on. Yesterday, my friendly credit union stepped up and advanced the funds to complete the race car. To complete the whole project (shipping the car down and running it) however, will require more money than I can raise in the next month, in order to meet the commitments outlined in the story.

So, with some great cost-saving suggestions and offers from Ken Lowe (this guy is one of the best things to happen to Australian drag racing in the last decade - bar none), we've come up with a modified plan. I've bought a 40 ft. shipping container which will hold the car, truck, spares, tools and equipment and can be stored free at the wharf where I work. Right in front of my office, in fact, where I can keep a close eye on it. The trailer (due to its size) will have to stay at home until the 1999-2000 season. (Ken has offered the use of a flat-deck trailer for the coming season).

Then we will ship the container down at the end of February with an arrival date in Brisbane of early April. We'll fly down to meet the ship and finish the car off at Ken's shop by the end of April. He's building the intake manifold and other miscellaneous pieces required to finish the car. Then, we will have the month of May to shake down the car at Willowbank and be ready to "rock and roll" at the Winternationals.

We could possibly have made the first steps of the original schedule, but I'd probably be broke by the end of January and wouldn't be able to meet any of the other commitments outlined in the original schedule. Delaying things for a few months will make a large difference in the finances and will allow us to build a stronger, more stable base for the long-term future of my racing down under. Australia is my racing future and the long-term is where our planning must be focused.

It's more than a little embarassing to admit that I can't meet my original schedule, and surely some (many?) people will start to wonder if I really belong in the "gunna" class. Just writing this letter is painful, but I'll feel much better about the whole situation by telling everyone now rather than stalling and dropping the "bombshell" at the last minute.

In closing, I would like to sincerely apologize for making statements that I was not able to follow through (for the time being) and assure you that we will be racing in Australia in 1999. It just won't be happening quite as soon as originally envisioned. Hope you can accept my apology and not think too much less of me as a person after reading this.

Robert W. (Bob) Wilson
"Northern Thunder" TA/Dragster
North Vancouver, Canada