Spangler Planning Return to Sick Week to Defend Dial Your Own Class Title With Big Block Fairmont
At the first Sick Week Presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive, there were drag-and-drive veterans and rookies alike, all planning for an epic week in Florida and Georgia, as well as possibly carrying home some hardware from their efforts. One competitor that rolled into Bradenton Motorsports Park with some drag-and-drive history is Bill Spangler and his ’80 Ford Fairmont. A participant in multiple events, including Hot Rod Drag Week, Drag Weekend 500, and a winner at Midwest Drags in 2021, Spangler would try his hand at the newly-formed Dial Your Own (DYO) class at Sick Week. What brought him from Ohio to Florida to try the new class? “I like the format (of Sick Week), and who doesn't like being in Florida in February,” said Spangler. “We’re old bracket racers and we try our best to be consistent.”
The Dial Your Own class is meant to show consistency over the multiple tracks, and the smallest spread in time slips between a competitor’s quickest elapsed time and their slowest elapsed time would pick up the class win. The DYO class was also broke into a Pro DYO class for cars faster than 10-seconds, and a DYO class for vehicles 10.00 and slower. Spangler’s Fairmont relies on a big block Ford powerplant, backed with a Powerglide and a Gear Vendors overdrive, and a 9-inch rear end sends the power to the wheels.
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Spangler made an induction switch from carburetor to fuel injection just before rolling into Sick Week sporting a new Holley EFI set-up. But Spangler showed the consistency that bracket racers can be known for, posting a 9.912 at Bradenton on day one (quickest run of the week), and collected a 9.935 timeslip on day four at South Georgia Motorsports Park. That meant the spread from his quickest to slowest passes was a mere .023-seconds, good enough to collected the Pro DYO class title and the special helmet.
As we’ve seen some Sick Week winners do, wearing the helmet in daily activities has become a fun thing to photo. Spangler will return to Sick Week 2023 Presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive in search of a second helmet with his co-pilot Joe Fritz, but is really looking forward to the fun of another drag-and-drive event. “The challenge of driving and racing the same car” was the response Spangler gave to what appeals to him about drag-and-drive events. “Seeing friends that we have made in the drag-and-drive community,” he continued. “It’s awesome how everyone is so friendly and willing to help.”
Written by Derek Putnam. Photos courtesy of Bill Spangler.