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High Octane Action at the Silverline Power Tool Drag Racing Event!
Sunday 13th September saw the Silverline Power Tool Drag Racing event take off in mega style! The action packed day featured some incredible feats of engineering and lots of fun was had by all.
The crazy sport of power tool drag racing involves engineering hand held power tools into drag racing mean machines! There are two sides to the event - ridden (funny car) and non ridden. The funny car class takes place on the outside track and allows competitors to develop custom machines able to carry one or more rider(s) along the track. Commonly used tools in the funny car class are petrol chainsaws and leaf blowers. The drive from the tool to the ground can be direct via the tool bit, custom gear, sprocket, axle or tyre system. Some competitors start with the frame of an existing vehicle such as a go kart, while others start from scratch. The non ridden side of the event takes place on an inside track and involves the use of smaller power tools, this class does not require the dragster to be ridden and consequently, smaller tools such as belt sanders, angle grinders, drills and circular saws are commonly used. There are three sub classes within the non ridden competition; stock, modified and super modified. Tools of choice can either be left in their original state and entered in the stock class, or geared up (with spikes, spoilers or any other potentially aerodynamic features), and entered into either the modified or super modified class.
Saturday 12th September was a practice day for competitors - with free use of the tracks for testing and the start of a healthy bit of competitor rivalry. Competitors enjoyed a barbeque together on Saturday evening and camping facilities were available for people to stay overnight.
Race day (Sunday 13th September) began with a competitors breakfast between 08:00 and 09:00, this was followed by a drivers briefing, then the indoor racing began! First up were the qualifying heats within which each dragster raced three times, the best of these times was recorded and a list of finalists was produced. Competitors went to great effort in making their dragsters and there were some absolutely superb entries across all classes with lots of well thought out and colorfully decorated dragsters. Competitors of all ages took part in the races, with people ranging from as young as seven to over fifty.
Following on from all the fun and excitement of the indoor races came the funny car qualifying rounds. This years entries came in all shapes and sizes, some looked like cars, some looked like bikes, some looked like go karts and others bared no resemblance to anything you would have ever seen before! Competitors in this class came from all corners of the globe, one competitor came all the way from America. Tension mounted throughout the qualifying rounds and each competitor became more and more hell bent on making it into the final. There were some very close calls, with timing coming down to a tenth of a second between standings.
After the high octane action of the funny car qualifying rounds, the finalist list was set with four competitors; Channel 5’s The Gadget Show, Toolstation, Silverline Tools and Robo Challenge - all four finalists were literally jumping for joy! The formula for qualifying seemed to come in the form of petrol chainsaws, as all four finalists had made them their tools of choice.
As competitors stopped for lunch, the four finalists were quickly back on the track, tinkering with their machines before the final. The Gadget Shows entry used the chassis of a go kart and the power of three Sthil chainsaws. The bumpers were bright red and emblazoned with The Gadget Show logo. Toolstations entry was also based on the chassis of a go kart, with eye-catching yellow bumpers and the power of two Makita chainsaws. The quirky Silverline Tools entry, a custom made trike complete with gears, was the favorite to win, putting in the best times during qualifying. Robo Challenge also steered away from the go kart route, their entry was based on the frame of a mini moto bike. This lightweight frame of choice was no doubt a major factor in securing a good power to weight ratio.
Tension mounted as the finalists lined up on the track, each determined to claim the winners title. The crowd watched with excitement as the sound of chainsaws filled the air. First up was The Gadget Show who crossed the line in 10.2 seconds. Next was Robo Challenge who despite encountering technical problems during lunch were back up and running, achieving a time of 9.6 seconds. Then it was Silverlines turn, the trike was rearing to go and put in an awesome time of 9.0 seconds. Last but evidently not least was Toolstation, who crossed the line in 8.9 seconds, stealing the show and claiming the winners title. In light of the super fast time from Toolstation, the Silverline Trike was placed second and Robo Challenge were third.
Following the win of the Toolstation, Makita powered go kart and speaking of the days action, a representative from Makita said: "Its been a fantastic, action packed day - I’ve had a brilliant time! The drag racing has been really great fun and some of the entries are really awesome. Anyone who has an interest in engineering, power tools or drag racing would be well placed here and I’d urge them to take part in next years event. Once you have a go you will be hooked!" Scott Thompson, Makita UK.
Once the cheering for the funny car winners had stopped it was back to the inside track for the indoor finals. First up was the stock class which proved profitable for the Cooper household - James Cooper claimed first prize reaching a speed of 18mph and Nick Cooper claimed second with a speed of 15mph, third place was achieved by Ian Lewis for young competitor Darcie who came in with a speed of 14mph. In the modified final, John Reid achieved first place with a speed of 31mph, Grant Cooper came second with a speed of 28mph and Michael Oates was placed third with a speed of 22mph. The last final of the day, super modified, saw Nick Lynch come first with a speed of 38mph, John Reid was a close second with a speed of 36mph and Gary Cairns was third with a speed of 33mph.
Commenting on the events success, James Goddard-Watts, CEO of Toolstream (the company behind Silverline Tools) said: "The 2009 Silverline power tool drag racing event has been a massive success, everyone has had a fantastic, action packed day. The amount of effort competitors have put into making their dragsters is highly commendable and there have been some truly awesome engineering triumphs here today. Every year the event gets bigger and better, its now onwards and upwards to next years event, with plans already underway. I am certain the 2010 event will bring a whole host of even more amazing entries, its an exciting prospect and I am very much looking forward to it." James Goddard Watts, CEO, Toolstream Ltd.
Why not build your very own power tool drag racer and take part in next years event? You can enter on your own or get a team together and combine your brain power! The indoor drag racers are really easy to make, in particular, the stock class requires hardly any work at all. If you are feeling brave you can enter the modified and super modified classes and if you have a real passion for engineering why not have a go at making your very own funny car.
For more information e-mail: powertooldragracing@toolstream.com
Please click images above to enlarge.
