Willowbank Raceway hosts the Gulf Western Oil 52nd Winternationals in Ipswich on June 6-9. If you’re a first-timer at the track, here are some facts to ponder so you sound like a pro.
There are more people that have been into space than people that have raced in a Top Fueler. Top Fuel dragsters are the quickest accelerating cars in the world.
Willowbank have weekly race meets that you can race your everyday car on the same track that hosts the biggest Drag Racing meet outside of America.
One Top Fuel dragster 500 cubic-inch Hemi engine makes more horsepower (10,000 HP) than the first five rows of cars at the V8 Supercars.
Dragsters reach over 450 KPH before you have completed reading this sentence.
Willowbank Raceway events run on Volunteers, you can volunteer email Willowbank Raceway for info.
Kids can race in Junior Dragster (racers between the ages of 8 and 18 may race a half scale version of the sport’s fastest car, Top Fuel Dragster. Juniors run as follows: 12.90-slower for 8-9 year olds, 10-12 year olds at 8.90, and 13-18 year olds 7.90 and slower at a top speed of 85 mph). Thats faster than your average HSV.
It’s free to walk through the pits and look up and close at the teams working on the cars at all events, even the Winternationals and New Years Thunder.
Top fuel racers typically hit 5 Gs, or a gravitational force of five times their body weight, in a run. ( So 100kg racer would feel like 500kg pushed on him/ her) To put into perspective space shuttles zoom into orbit at about 3g.
On takeoff dragsters hit around 150db – about as loud as a Jet Plane with Afterburner 25 meters away. People at Yamanto and in town have been known to hear the drags from nearly 10km away!!
Some cars have been known to cause the equivalent of a 2.5 on the Richter scale or the same as a minor sized earthquake, it’s that intense your brain and body can’t comprehend how loud and fast this really is!!
Willowbank Raceway is part of the Ipswich Motorsport Precinct which also includes Queensland Raceway where the V8 Supercars race.
