Many of us lie awake at night dreaming of winning a NASCAR race in the Wood Brothers #21 or 121. Others dream of setting a World’s Record run on the drag strip with their home built Talladega.
For Mike Callahan, he dreams of doing 200 MPH on the salt flats in a 1969 Spoiler II. Mike’s dream is a little closer now. He just sent me this video of him doing 170 MPH in his street driven dream ride. This is no purpose built race car. True, Mike has made numerous improvements and upgrades. Many modifications are necessary to reach 170 MPH at Bonneville. However, he started with a car that was built by the late Lou Whitfield in his garage in California. Lou told me frequently that he never intended for the car to be raced, just driven and enjoyed. Well, now it does both.
I asked Mike if he again drove the car to Bonneville and back home as he has done in the past. His response:
“I trailered it this year. First time the car has been on a trailer. Either I’m getting older or the car is getting hotter. It was nice riding thru Wyoming with a/c. This was another step towards my goal of 200mph. I was able to get my street car thru tech and license up to 175.”
Congratulations, Mike Callahan, for letting all of us realize our dreams through your achievements and best of luck on your next goal for the old Merc.
