And a bonus video! (With bonus Katie talking)
What does it take to outrun Don Garlits’s 10-second, 1000-horsepower Hellcat Redeye? How about a low-buck hotrod, a Pontiac Sunbird whose engine was considered junk just two weeks prior. Total budget for that build? Just two grand.
Welcome to the Grassroots Motorsports $2000 Challenge, an event created 20 years ago with a simple goal: Show the world that racing doesn’t need to be expensive. This year’s cap for all teams was just $2000.
Nearly 70 teams registered for this year’s $2000 Challenge, held October 25-26 at Central Florida’s Gainesville Raceway. In addition to the drag racing, the competition included autocross and concours judging.
Top Honors: After two days of activity, the overall win went to Travis Turner’s 1980 Datsun 210 wagon. The retro paintjob and box flares covered the entire running gear from an Infiniti G35, from the twin-cam V6 to the wishbone suspension. When his name was announced as the overall winner, the crowd broke into a standing ovation. His prize haul included a Miller Millermatic 211 MIG Welder.
Top Speeds: The top time at the drag strip again went to the Nelson family. Calvin Nelson drove their turbocharged LS-swapped Pontiac Sunbird to a 9.847-second E.T.
Top Camaraderie: Once again, this event showed how the Grassroots Motorsports community is more than trophies and bragging rights. One regular, John Welsh, added 400 miles to his trip just so he could help a get a fellow competitor’s RV to the event. Another long-time participant, Seth Lemke, created, organized and managed an entire subclass, even when last-minute surgery kept him home and bedridden. Other Challengers set up an entire taco bar for charity, raising nearly $1000 and feeding the field in the process.
Top Shine: Georgia Tech’s Wreck Racing, a fixture at the event for 15 years, showed up with a V8-powered BMW 5 Series, a motorized couch, and an army of 40-plus student engineers. For winning the concours, their haul included a CRC Industries SmartWasher BenchtopPRO, a self-contained parts washer.
Top Creativity: Sometimes you have to look outside the box. Hong Norr Racing, a fixture at the $2000 Challenge back the early years, spied a Cadillac CTS-V offered via the Grassroots Motorsports message board. The car sported nearly 300,000 miles on the odometer, while only the first four speeds worked. The asking price was $3800–too much for the budget cap but still intriguing. The team haggled the car down to $2000. Then they gutted the interior, buffed the paint, and added hand-cut graphics that recall Cadillac’s factory race effort.
Top Action: This year’s $2000 Challenge attracted amazing builds, super-fast cars and smiling faces–some we haven’t seen in a few years. Check out the photo gallery below, and Subscribe Now to read the full story in the April issue of Grassroots Motorsports.
Top Support: In addition to Grassroots Motorsports, CRC Industries and Miller Electric, the $2000 Challenge was backed by Copart and White Pony Absorbent Products.
Can I say I'm not a fan of the removing half of the body work idea that I've seen lately.
Love the Egg. Looking good guys.
Ooh, an NX!
I'm curious to know more about the z3... it's doing remarkably well!
In reply to sleepyhead the buffalo :
During the drags it was mentioned it had a $300 purchase price.
New photos just added!
bmw88rider said:Can I say I'm not a fan of the removing half of the body work idea that I've seen lately
If you're talking about the red mustang, the removed body work was all accident damaged.
One day I really need to make it out for the Challenge... I think I will spend half my work day scouring for a cheap used car to build.
Only today did I wonder if a parachute is exempt safety equipment.
mazdeuce - Seth said:Only today did I wonder if a parachute is exempt safety equipment.
Only been one guy that makes that a real question. Lol.
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