This Camaro is a Rocky Mountain Race Week Winner, a No-Prep Contender, and Even Served as a Wedding Chariot
Some cars just mean a little more to their owners, and that can mean a longer ownership with more memories created.
The subject of this story, a 2001 Chevrolet Camaro, has been under the care of Travis Martin for two decades, and based on the memories and racing results he’s racked up, it won’t be leaving his possession anytime soon.
Affectionately known as the ‘Showmod’, this Camaro saw its first serious task as transportation for Travis and wife Amanda at that wedding, but not before some upgrades.
“I spent the last $800 I had before we got married on a Corsa exhaust so it would sound good at the wedding,” Travis said. “Amanda was pissed when she found out.”
Amanda has since found a way to forgive Travis, as she normally joins him at numerous events every year with the car.
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Travis has made his name a little more well known with impressive results at drag-and-drive events like Rocky Mountain Race Week, and has accumulated three event wins in the Rowdy Radial class.
In the last few years, the Martin family has also done a good bit of no-prep racing. “Race Week is about the only prepped racing we do anymore,” said Travis. “Usually we are doing backside (of the track) no prep racing. It's been going well so far; I've had good success in the street classes when they have it.
To give the Camaro a good chance at these events, Travis stepped up his engine program with include more cubic inches and a pair of turbochargers. A Northwest Auto & Machine-built 427 cubic inch LS engine provides a solid foundation using a Dart block and Brodix BR7 cylinder heads. A pair of Forced Performance 80htz turbos do their best to get all the air to the LS combination.
Backing the powerplant is a RPM-built Turbo 400 transmission with a Hughes converter in the bellhousing, and a Holley Dominator system controls all functions.
This year, Travis is aiming to do a little more on the drag-and-drive event side of things, even encouraging some friends to join him.
“I'm trying to talk Adam Hodson and a couple other guys I race with into doing some drag-and-drive events next year,” said Travis. “It would be just like the good old shit rodeo we used to have several years ago. I signed up for Street-N-Yeet this year too.”
Although he participated in Rocky Mountain Race Week this year, the month leading up to the event was a lot of work for Travis, Amanda and friends.
Less than three weeks before the event, the Showmod sat in the garage with an empty engine bay. Thankfully, everything came together in time, and they made it to RMRW to complete another 1200-mile trip, as well as numerous track runs, to finish second behind Matt Moore in Rowdy Radial.
“I tell others, you never learn when things are always going right,” said Travis. “This is part of the learning struggle right now; we will get through it and we will grow from it.
When I told Amanda the motor was coming out again, she said ‘yep that sucks’ followed up by ‘what can I do to help’ and ‘we aren't missing race week.’ I have a great team in my corner.”
Written by Derek Putnam. Photos courtesy of Motion Raceworks and Travis Martin.
If you have thoughts / feedback / ideas, please e-mail us at derek@sickthemagazine.com