Ohio Super Chevy Show - Super Chevy Hits The National Trail

Up and at 'em! Danny Johnson had the only '57 that we saw on track on Sunday. When we gave him an Editor's Choice drag race award, he told us he would give us a killer wheelie with his ride. Danny, you did not disappoint. That's some serious sunlight underneath his '57.

Up and at 'em! Danny Johnson had the only '57 that we saw on track on Sunday. When we gave

Say, what happened to all the Ohio gassers? While roaming the grounds at the legendary National Trail Raceway in Columbus, Ohio, for the 2007 Super Chevy Show, we noticed an absence of some of the vehicles that made Ohio famous in the 1960s. While this genre is becoming popular for street machines, we saw not a one on our recent trip. Oh well, maybe next time.

Rains on Saturday kicked the rods out of that day's program, but Sunday was a whole different day, however, as racers and spectators aplenty showed up to participate in the horsepower hijinks at the quarter-mile track. And they were not disappointed. Tony "The Sandman" Williams, who took the Memphis Super Chevy Nitro Coupe crown, also took the gold this weekend. With a reaction time of .035 and an e.t. of 6.520 at 218.94 mph, the Rum Boogie Cafe Camaro is kicking some asphalt and taking some names.

In Bracket 1, Bill Webb was top eliminator in his dragster and won it with a final run of 7.972 at 138.39 mph (on a 7.75 dial-in). Mike Rehl took the Bracket 2 trophy home and he also came in second place in our inaugural Super Chevy/Tremec True Street competition with his '85 Monte Carlo. Interestingly enough, Mike turned down the chance to be featured in Popular Hot Rodding magazine because he couldn't stop competing. In Mike's own words: "Being in a magazine would be nice, but I came here to race." We love that attitude, Mr. Rehl! Put that in your pipe and smoke it, PHR! Oh yeah, we forgot to mention that in the DOT bare-knuckle brawl, Brendan Elam took the trophy home in his Bow Tie-powered Firebird.

Blast off! The inaugural running of the Super Chevy/Tremec True Street Challenge.

First-Time FunThe inaugural Super Chevy/Tremec True Street Challenge

So you think you have the fastest street-legal Chevy around? The Super Chevy Show organizers have sent out the invitation for you to come and flex your muscle. For all those trash talkers who race their mouth more than their car, it's time to put up or shut up!

National Trail Raceway provided the stage for the first-ever running of the Super Chevy/Tremec True Street Challenge. Racers converged from different locations around the country in order to compete. Mother Nature provided a couple hours of dry weather, and in that time the six brave souls who hung around began the True Street festivities by going on the 30-mile cruise through the lovely pastures of Ohio.

Upon returning to the track, the cars were lined up in the staging lanes. The track officials almost had the track dry until the sky opened up again. The remainder of the Saturday session was canceled.

Smoke Loar broke the rear in his '70 Chevelle during round one competition, leaving him disqualified. At least he was able to enjoy a Sunday drive beforehand.

Smoke Loar broke the rear in his '70 Chevelle during round one competition, leaving him di

Sunday morning was bright and sunny, a fitting backdrop to the continuation of the True Street Challenge. After each driver completed three back-to-back runs, their averages were calculated. When the tire smoke cleared, it was Phil Cooper of Urbana, Illinois, who took the crown with his tubbed-out, nitrous-breathing '66 Nova. Runner-up and lowest 10-second average went to Mike Rehl of Heath, Ohio, with his '85 Monte Carlo SS.

As an added bonus, the cars with the eight quickest averages from the True Street field compete heads-up. Since we only had six total, it was the buzzin' half-dozen. No surprise, it was Cooper and Rehl in the final. Mike's Monte didn't have enough steam to overcome Phil's 9.51 e.t. Brad Schmidt earned honorable mention in his LS1-equipped '98 Camaro. Brad was a semifinal loser, but did win the award for having the lowest 11-second average.

To alleviate any confusion, we spoke to Super Chevy Show officials and they said that you may run True Street along with the DOT Street Fight class. As long as your car fits into class rules for both and you can make your lane calls, it's alright to run two classes.