Disappointed in local car scene

[Jensanity]

I live in a small town, and have to travel 20min each way to get to a decent size town (21,000 or so.) Anyway it's hard to get anyone to play around on the streets and I hate it. I'm not condoning street racing, but quick pulls without traffic aren't a problem in my eyes. Today for instance I was waiting to turn out of the gas station with a car ahead of me and a red Viper passes by. Very rare to see a viper around here so I figured I'd give it a shot and see if he'd play. Of course the guy in front of me sits through the next opening in traffic and I'm flipping out in my mind as the Viper gets farther away. Once the guy finally pulls out I drive like a maniac through traffic to find the Viper. A mile or 2 down the road I see him at a red light as I approach he turns and I follow. The next light tries to shut me down, but it's no match for the adrenaline in my blood right now so I fly through on yellow and take the outside lane to get beside the Viper. 40mph I downshift to 2nd to let him know I notice his car and recognize it as a potential threat. We make eye contact through his badass shades, but he doesn't show emotion so I know it's up to me to get this party started...clutch in quick blip then I look again. Still nothing...punch it from 40 (2nd still) and get a little sideways. After that he got behind me and I was thinking he was going to follow me on through the light down to a pretty empty 4 lane highway. At the light I rev and give him a half wave in my rear view mirror. Light turns green, I head straight towards the open highway and he hits his blinker and turns right. My heart dropped! I proceeded to complain to myself for 5-10 minutes as I revved at every car with 8 cylinders or more, and burned some rubber off a few times till I calmed down hah. Pretty long way to say the car scene in my area sucks and I was curious how many of you guys have a hard time getting people to run you? Also, do you think the Viper would have ate me up? I'm running a 2.76"/4# combo ported with longtubes o/r x and supporting mods 20* timing on 93. If I had to guess the year of the Viper I'd say it looked like a ...well it's very hard for me to distinguish which it would be. Top was off and said viper srt10 behind the passenger wheel but I think it was laid out horizontal not stacked? Oh well this is too long as is I was bored and now I'm tired mission accomplished. New tires Wednesday watch out world. More me racing myself coming up!

 

[04Cobra03]

I understand how it is to be in an area where there are not a lot of people cruising. I went out tonight in my Mach 1 along with my buddies Mach 1 and another friends Kenne bell GT. We werent looking for races but just some cars to meet up with and such but the streets were pretty much dead or there were just big lifted trucks driving around. I revved loud at a riced out Acura Integra but he seemed to be the only car out and I think I scared him so he kept going.
I have to say though, we all know that car companies such as ford, chevy, and dodge made these cars for some back road fun, but we need to realize the danger of street racing and keep it all on the track. I know several guys will read your post and shun you for looking for races on the streets. i know we all do it to some extent but there was a member on here not too long ago that ended up killing a little girl while racing. We all want to be safe and enjoy our cars so i'll be the first to say be cautious and extra safe out there.

 

[Jensanity]

Had no idea about that incident, that's terrible. I can honestly say it's usually more quick acceleration up to speed than anything for me. Maybe a pull to a little above the speed limit, but I try to stick to secluded roads if there is another party involved or excessive speeds. I spent 2 weeks in a hospital bed and didn't walk an entire summer about 5 years ago from a car accident so I am fairly cautious. "Driving through traffic like a maniac" and such were just to add a bit of humor to the long post. I hope no one gets offended by the post or gets upset about it. Maybe I should just remove it.

It is quite frustrating to take the car for a night out to see much like you a bunch of jacked up trucks and maybe some imports with big azz mufflers haha. I see quite a few newer camaros and mustangs out, but the majority are v6 and the people driving are either girls or guys that don't seem to have much interest in the car other than it getting them from point A to point B. The 1320 videos of West Texas look awesome, but also pretty dangerous. None the less I'd like to check something like that out!

 

[oldmodman]

It must be tough with so few cars around.
Here in Los Angeles there is always someone that wants to have a little fun. On the night I drove my 03 Cobra home from the dealer three cars wanted to run. A "farm truck" (you know, lifted, exhaust, nut behind the wheel). That was fun. He tried so hard to get around me he sailed through a red light trying to stop. The second was a girl in a BMW. That was no contest and she had a very cute pout.
But the third was a guy in a Lamborghini Murcielago that I was talking to in a "show and shine at a closed parking structure.
There is a stretch of road alongside the 405 that is flat and straight and completely empty at night. It's also a mile and a half long. I wanted to start from a dig but he said only from a 25mph roll. Ran him both directions and he killed me once we passed 125. BOTH TIMES!
So even in the most traffic clogged city I have ever lived in you can still find not only someone, but someplace (that's safe) to have a go.

 

[WheelStander]

Nice read...you must be a writer. Or should be.

 

[Bdubbs]

In most of my cases it ends up being a beat up mini van or a crapped out Taurus. Most guys around here with vettes just give me the cold shoulder.

 

[Iamchris]

Been there, done that... luckily didn't get the T-shirt...

 

[Jensanity]

Lol @ cold shoulder from the Vettes, but mini vans and Tauras trying to run. Apparently they didn't follow the B-dub TVS and Fore return thread!

I too got challenged the night I brought my car home home by a CTS(not sure if it was a V, but guessing no) which I annihalted from 60-130. First race in the car I looked over as he punched it and figured I would lose from the sound of his car and way the front end lifted as he punched it. Next thing you know I'm shifting from 3rd-4th and he's busses behind. The other car riding along with him was A c5z06 I believe but as we honked it off and hit it my gf freaked because we had a diesel ahead (still pretty far) so I shut it down so she wasn't uncomfortable. Those were both coming back to Arkansas from Dallas...since then, crickets besides 1 5.bro from a dig(my first so I spun through 1st & 2nd without moving lol) where I took the L and me letting random teenagers coax me into spinning the tires a bit haha.

Glad to know I'm not alone in the struggle! Have a '1000 track 5 min from the house but I've never ran it...new tires this week so maybe I'll try it out soon.

 

[Bdubbs]

LOL nope don't think they followed my thread! I do have some buddies that are willing to run me though. And I'll have my hands full with them!

 

[03SVTscott]

There is quite a few younger guys were I live with EVOs, SRT neons, and WRXs.....that love to try and race....I don't. Became I have no idea what they've done to their car, who has done the work, the quality of their builds...or if they even know what the F they are doing....you could line up with some one and they serve on you and that's it! Guess I'm just getting conservative....I stick to car cruises with my club and cars shows every Saturday morning.....I do get a lot of looks and occasion guy that try's to run me down from a distance...for me if someone is going to swerve in and out of traffic to catch up to me and try and race me..or get along side of me....to me it says that guy will most likely drive reckless in a race as well....hey just my two sense not trying to be an asshole.....please be safe!

 

[mhinchley]

Just get to a drag strip. Plenty of competition (which will put you in your place), plenty of women, no tickets, & just good times overall. It is win, win, win. You are going to lose alot, that is the downside. Lot's of guys out there with just pure race cars, but it is still fun. It may be an empty road as you describe, but if a car pulls out in front of you or the other guy, you are going to jail for a long, long time. Does not matter who's fault it is. Plus you have to live with that the rest of your life, regardless of the jail. Not worth it. Be safe and take it to the strip. My car would get whacked by a car with 1/2 the hp because of traction anyway........and maybe yours too. Street tires will not do it justice, and that is what I tell them at the stop light. I also invite them to the local track for a run.

 

[Jensanity]

I'm a bit intimidated by the idea of going to the track to be honest. I know my car is far from the fastest (plus traction issues) even around town, and I'll get it handed to me even more so at the track! Having never tracked the car before I can only imagine how bad my first run will be lol. We only have '1,000 but plenty of people flock to it. Two times I've went from a dig out some rural highways and BOTH times I spun and spun as the other car or truck moved out haha. I try to take off at too high rpm and once I realize I am losing (simply because they are moving and I'm not) I panic and burry the pedal even farther into the floor which makes things even worse lol.

Anyone want to send some tips my way for potential first run? Like take off, shifting strategy, etc.
2.76"/4#, Ported Posi clone (slightly less egr hump removal)
Longtubes, o/r X, Steeda Cat-back
Supporting mods
New tires should be on Wednesday
NT05 in the rear 275
NT555 up front 275

I'm sure this setup has been run a thousand times...where did you guys launch etc?

 

[Iamchris]

I have no idea what they've done to their car, who has done the work, the quality of their builds...or if they even know what the F they are doing....

Yep. Reality is... you are letting a lot ride on your own ability to handle a situation, which from my experience can change from "HELL YAH" to "Oh SH1T" very quickly. But that isnt the worst of it... if the guy you are racing happens to wipe out and kill himself, kill someone else, whatever it may be... you are going to be hunted, found, and charged with some serious charges. You never know who you are racing, how responsible they are, ect... You get some meat head that wont let up when he sees traffic coming so he can look like he blew your doors off after you brake... and he wipes out an unexpected car... you are in cuffs for an innocent race... even though you did the responsible thing. Just saying.

 

[Tractionless1]

I live in a town of 160k and can't get anyone to go out or keep plans. That goes for cars and crotch rockets.

 

[po-po 5.0]

I'm not condoning street racing, but quick pulls without traffic aren't a problem in my eyes.

I drive like a maniac through traffic to find the Viper.

I have neither enough faces or palms

 

[MGC]

Maybe its just me but if you were driving like a maniac through traffic to catch me and then goosing it and getting sideways next to me I'd do the same thing and just get the hell away from you.

 

[Riddick]

Maybe its just me but if you were driving like a maniac through traffic to catch me and then goosing it and getting sideways next to me I'd do the same thing and just get the hell away from you.

^^^. It is one thing to do a quick pull but its another thing to drive recklessly and draw attention to yourself.

 

[MalcolmV8]

I live in a small town, and have to travel 20min each way to get to a decent size town (21,000 or so.) Anyway it's hard to get anyone to play around on the streets and I hate it. I'm not condoning street racing, but quick pulls without traffic aren't a problem in my eyes. Today for instance I was waiting to turn out of the gas station with a car ahead of me and a red Viper passes by. Very rare to see a viper around here so I figured I'd give it a shot and see if he'd play. Of course the guy in front of me sits through the next opening in traffic and I'm flipping out in my mind as the Viper gets farther away. Once the guy finally pulls out I drive like a maniac through traffic to find the Viper. A mile or 2 down the road I see him at a red light as I approach he turns and I follow. The next light tries to shut me down, but it's no match for the adrenaline in my blood right now so I fly through on yellow and take the outside lane to get beside the Viper. 40mph I downshift to 2nd to let him know I notice his car and recognize it as a potential threat. We make eye contact through his badass shades, but he doesn't show emotion so I know it's up to me to get this party started...clutch in quick blip then I look again. Still nothing...punch it from 40 (2nd still) and get a little sideways. After that he got behind me and I was thinking he was going to follow me on through the light down to a pretty empty 4 lane highway. At the light I rev and give him a half wave in my rear view mirror. Light turns green, I head straight towards the open highway and he hits his blinker and turns right. My heart dropped! I proceeded to complain to myself for 5-10 minutes as I revved at every car with 8 cylinders or more, and burned some rubber off a few times till I calmed down hah. Pretty long way to say the car scene in my area sucks and I was curious how many of you guys have a hard time getting people to run you? Also, do you think the Viper would have ate me up? I'm running a 2.76"/4# combo ported with longtubes o/r x and supporting mods 20* timing on 93. If I had to guess the year of the Viper I'd say it looked like a ...well it's very hard for me to distinguish which it would be. Top was off and said viper srt10 behind the passenger wheel but I think it was laid out horizontal not stacked? Oh well this is too long as is I was bored and now I'm tired mission accomplished. New tires Wednesday watch out world. More me racing myself coming up!

No offense buddy since I don't know you but it's usually jack asses like what you describe that annoy the hell out of me. I'll be out cruising with little kids in the car and some idiot's weaving cars, blowing lights etc. to come hauling up next to me revving their engine doing burnouts and trying to make me race. I've even had jackasses swerve in front of me and cut around and do anything they can to piss me off I guess and force a race. WTF is wrong with you people. Usually on a 35 mph road full of traffic too.
I'm sure the Viper turned off just to get away from you.

 

[ArmedSuspect]

while i do hunt cars in traffic, i will not do so in a reckless, aggressive manner. honestly i do my best to just blend in and creep on 'em. kinda like stalking prey.

once i've made "contact" it's more about just checking out the car than racing. a nod, wave or thumbs up and if the mood is friendly maybe even some pipes. i've met a lot of great car people this way. not acting like a jack-ass goes a long way toward making friends. (i've also met some stuck up old bastards... ****ing 125 year old Corvette driving douches. really dude, your wife looks dead. the least you could do is nod when i give you a thumbs up... ****stick)




don't get me wrong, if we end up with the room to safely (my opinion) grab a gear i'm game. in recent weeks i've bumped gears with a beautiful 1970 (i think) Fastback, a C6 Vette and a host of other decent cars. it's mostly just a quick pull and we're out of it, then lots of thumbs up and yelling "nice car" over loud exhaust.

there was a modded '13 (guessing) V6 full of girls the other night too. that particular highway interaction was fun... too bad we didn't get to stop and talk.





if someone comes hauling ass trying to catch me then starts burning up tires in "traffic", i'm out. you may get a nod or wave but you're not getting a race.







.

 

[Jensanity]

Clearly my follow up post explaining driving like a maniac was more for humor sake went unnoticed. Oh well, brought it on myself I guess. I'm actually pretty reserved in the car for the most part.

I had a guy in a 5.0 a few weeks back blow his tires off beside me then yell over the cars "I'll race you for $1,000 right now" I told him nah I'm good, I can't drive very well. He replied with "you can't be a pussy your whole life" I was far from impressed. This was at a light mind you, so I figured what they hay we'll run em for fun at least...light turns green and he TURNS and hammers it damn near losing control haha. Two highly unattractive girls giggled through the entire ordeal so I'm sure he was simply trying to assert himself as the "alpha" between us. That guy was 100% a Jackass and I definitely do not want to give the impression that is how I ACTED or ACT so I apologize guys.

I REALLY DO appreciate you guys bringing the potential risks to my attention as far as the other driver hurting themself or someone else and me being in trouble should such a thing happen. That honestly never crossed my mind. You just changed my mindset quite a bit on street racing.