SERIOUS ABOUT THE STRIP

After spending the winter preparing for the 2013 season, Wheatley was finally ready to make an official pass. At the IDRC Sport Compact Nationals presented by Buschur Racing, he achieved his objective, running several passes in the nine-second range. His quickest pass of the day was a 9.864-second pass at 151.24 MPH in the finals, his new personal best. Wheatley recalled, “Running 9.9 at the end of 2012 in practice, then placing second in my first competition while setting a new personal best were rewarding accomplishments that made the effort more fulfilling. I’ve tried to maintain most of the factory options (while compromising on others like air conditioning and air bags). The cars still has power steering, windows and locks, heat, wipers, car stereo, sunroof and a full interior. At the same time, I’ve tried to do everything to be compliant with NHRA rules since hitting the drag strip was a must. Now that I’m into the nines, I’ll be working on installing a parachute, as I aim for quicker times and faster traps.” As Wheatley continues to search for more power, he has come to realize that it never seems to be enough. What started as a daily driver in 2006 has become a race platform too nice to drive in traffic. Although Wheatley’s weapon isn’t still used on a daily basis, time spent on the street or at the strip is equally pleasurable. Of course, things may change as Wheatley will probably never lose his desire for quicker times and faster speeds.