They've got enough horsepower to smoke their tires for a full quarter-mile.
And that might just happen if there isn't enough rubber worn into the new pavement at Rolling Mix Concrete Raceway.
But if they get the grip, they'll let it rip, and that will mean 200 mile-per-hour passes in less than seven seconds.
Cal Tebb and the Rocky Mountain Nostalgia Funny Car series return to Northland Dodge Motorsports Park for this weekend's NHRA National Dragster Open points meet and they can't wait to check out the new and improved Prince George drag strip.
"We don't know what your track will be capable of but I went 199 [mph] last year I think at 7.19 [seconds] and won the event and this year we're hoping it will allow us to go faster," said Tebb, who drives a mean-looking '70's vintage Pontiac GTO.
"If everything goes well we'll be running around 205 or 206 miles an hour. If the track holds it, we'll shoot for our 6.90 index."
That track was rough and slippery last year and Tebb, whose car has a standard transmission which uses a clutch, was the only one of the six funny car drivers who made the trip able to limit his tire spin by adjusting the clutch.
Tebb, the 54-year-old president and founder of the Edmonton-based series, is the defending champion and now sits second in the standings, five points back of current leader Shane Reykdel of Edmonton. Last weekend in Mission, series rookie David Brant of Fort McMurray, Alta., picked up his first win in the final eliminations over second-time racer Landon Goudreau of Edmonton.
Nine of the drivers in the series expect to make the haul to Prince George. Last year marked the debut of the funny car series at the drag strip and Tebb said the drivers were treated like royalty.
"We loved the hospitality," said Tebb. "They have a beach and camping, and it's clean and neat and they're upgrading it. We got up in the morning and [track owner] Brent Marshall had arranged breakfast for all the drivers. It's the simplest things but it means a lot to us. We work till midnight on the cars and you get up and someone's cooked you breakfast."
Now in its fourth season, the series limits its drivers to a 6.90-second index. Any driver who breaks out and completes the quarter-mile quicker than that in qualifying will drop to the bottom of the pack. If it happens in an elimination round it's an automatic loss. There's one good reason for the 6.90-second rule.
"Money buys speed and it allows it to be affordable for the average guy," said Tibb.
The series also prohibits automatic shifters, timing controls, or delay boxes. All body styles have to predate 1980.
Prince George is the fifth of nine stops on the Trail Tire Mickey Thompson Big West Tour.
Each funny car will do two qualifying passes Saturday and then it comes down to three rounds of eliminations on Sunday.
A field of about 150 entries is expected for the NHRA event, including Marshall, debuting his sub-nine-second rear-engine dragster. Other drivers to watch this weekend from the funny car series will be Norm Kolwich, Jimmy Fersch, Al Weich, Cory Kincaid and Ron Sekura.
Street legal racing happens today from 5-9 p.m., with opportunities for all drivers to test and tune their machines in practice passes. Qualifying Saturday starts at 9 a.m., followed by a gamblers racing round. Time trials start Sunday at 10 a.m., with eliminations set to begin at 1 p.m.
