2014 Holley LS Fest Results: Biggest Event Yet!
More than 10,000 people attended the 2014 Holley LS Fest, which makes it the biggest one yet. Now in its 5th year, over 500 LS-powered vehicles participated in the many events that included over 10 classes of drag racing presented by Scoggin Dickey Parts Center and Engine Power TV, the Lucas Oil Drift Challenge presented by WreckedMagazine.com, the autocross presented by QA1 and Vette Magazine, the 3S Challenge presented by Baer Brakes and Super Chevy Magazine as well as the Dyno Challenge presented by ERL Performance Inc. and Bangshift.com, Car Craft Engine Swap Challenge, the Show-And-Shine presented by Snap-On Tools and LS1Tech, and the Bowler Performance Countryside Cruise & Scavenger Hunt.
There was an event of every flavor and in addition to serious awards and trophies, there were some special awards as well, like the Holley LS FS Grand Champion award, given to the best scoring vehicle in the drag racing, autocross, and the 3S Challenge, with bonus points going to participation in the Countryside Cruise and the Show-N-Shine. Of course there was also the Optima Batteries Spirit of the Event Award.
Seriously, if you haven’t made the Holley LS Fest yet, consider it mandatory for any GM fan. Whether you like LS-powered drag vehicles, Pro-touring setups, drifters or spotless show cars, the LS Fest is the event to attend.
In fact, it’s so awesome, it should be apart of any Gearhead’s bucket list, no matter their brand affiliation. Here are some highlights from the 5th Annual Holley LS Fest, but for the full story, visit the Holley LS Fest Website HERE.
Drag Racing presented by Scoggin Dickey Parts Center and Engine Power TV
The headlining class was the Chevy High Performance Magazine LSX Drag Radial class that brings some of the fastest 1/8 mile LS drag cars in the country. Mark Carlyle brought home the trophy in his Atomic Fusion C6 Corvette Z06. Mark beat out last year’s champion Mike Brown in the final round, running a 4.577 at 173.38 mph, besting Brown’s 4.915 at 168.89 mph.
The School of Automotive Machinists LSX All Motor class features the fastest naturally aspirated LS powered ¼ mile drag cars on earth. Judson Massingill, the director and founder of the School of Automotive Machinists (SAM), once again showed he had what it takes to bring home the title as his SAM Racing Camaro SS ousted Don Baskin’s Chevy II in the finals by making the best All Motor pass of the weekend with an ET of 8.198 at 165.52 mph.
RCI Performance LSX True Street brought out the baddest LS-powered street cars in the world. To prove their roadworthiness, all participants had to complete a 30 mile cruise through the surrounding area without support before a brief 30-minute cool-down period that culminates with back-to-back-to-back passes. Chris Bishir’s twin turbo S10 took top honors by posting an 8.981 average elapsed time to win his second consecutive True Street win.
The Lingenfelter Performance Engineering C7 index introduced many brand-spanking new C7s to the drag strip. Brent Malone met Haley Bounsavall in the finals and took the win when Bounsavall broke out by .04 seconds, handing the win to Malone.
The PAC Racing Springs Pro Extreme LSX class was the closest thing to the old racing adage, rung what you brung, allowing almost any LS-powered car on the planet to compete, as long as it could keep pace. David Adkins came out on top with a 4.773 1/8 mile pass at 150.77 mph.
Dyno Challenge presented by ERL Performance Inc. and Bangshift.com
The dyno challenge had both a naturally aspirated class and a power adder class. Anthony Cooper’s 2002 Camaro brought home the naturally aspirated crown for the second year in a row by putting down 564 horsepower. Anthony Peck’s LS-swapped 1988 Ford Mustang outclassed the rest of the power adder field by 415 horsepower, putting down an amazing 1300 horsepower.
3S Challenge presented by Baer Brakes and Super Chevy Magazine
The speed, stop, and steering challenge was the perfect blend of drag racing and autocross. Competitors had to navigate the short course and come to a stop within the designated braking area. Since there are two lanes, one featuring a left turn, and one featuring a right turn, drivers’ times are a cumulative total between their best passes in the left and right lanes. Danny Popp edged out Josh Leisinger by 0.2 seconds with a 22.3 cumulative time to become the 3S champion.
Autocross presented by QA1 and Vette Magazine
The autocross challenge was divided into two portions; The first was an all-run format in search of the single fastest time of the event. Danny Popp repeated his autocross performance from last year, securing the number one overall time despite some fierce competition. Popp held a 0.295 second advantage over second place.
The five fastest cars then moved on to the autocross shootout, where each driver made three runs, and their cumulative time decided the autocross shootout champion. The top five raw times were posted by Danny Popp (33.604), Johnny Cichowski (33.899), Josh Leisinger (33.974), Tyler Powell (33.982), and Mike Dusold (34.175). In the autocross shootout, Johnny Cichowski managed to repeat his performance from last year, beating the defending Grand Champion by 0.093 seconds with a 100.826 cumulative time.
Car Craft Engine Swap Challenge
The engine-swap challenge pits two-man teams against one another to see who can swap an LS engine into a previously running non-LS car the fastest. This year, Mike Edwards and Tyler Lauters from Tuscaloosa, Alabama mastered the G-body shuffle in two hours and nine seconds. They edged out a great effort by Will Meyst and Martin DeGumbia from Middletown, Connecticut to win the challenge and the engine.