Slideshow: First Demon Invitational Sees Owners Race for Cash
With production models now being delivered to customers, Demon owners can now line their devilish ride against their peers.
Four Devils at the Drag
When you're dealing with competitive people, almost anything can be a competition. All it really takes is more than one person and you've got a contest. This sentiment holds true with Dodge Demon owners and drag racing. Enter the 4-car Demon Invitational put on by Mass Traction. Hosted at Auto Club Famoso Raceway in Bakersfield, California the drag strip saw the 4 Demons put down amazingly consistent times. There was loud noise, tire smoke, and fierce competition. Click along to get a glimpse at the invitational event.
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Fair Competition
With 808 horsepower out of the box (840 with race gas), the competition for the $2,000 grand prize was close. Competitor vehicles were remarkably stock with modifications consisting of titanium lug nuts, a high-flow air filter, and different variations of tires. One competitor, Nephtali Garibay of Laredo, Texas, brought three wheel and tires setups to test out of the drag strip. In the end, Garibay went with a set of Mickey Thompson 305s.
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Female Demon Tamers
Among the 4 Demons fighting to be the first champion of the Demon Invitational, there were two women who ran their Mopars down the 1320. Nancy Gennarelli from North Carolina made her first passes in the Demon owned by her and her husband Al. At the start of the day, Nancy was running mid-10s, beginning with a 10.66 time. By the end of the day, she whittled her 1/4 mile time to 10.17 with stock Nitto tires. Her aspirations were to eventually break into the 9-second range. Similarly impressive was Kristin Notariano and her Demon. With zero drag runs in her Demon and only one other pass in any vehicle, Notariano was able to keep the Demon in check. She had a little help in that her Demon was running on only pump gas and a limited 808 horsepower. Note that I say that sarcastically.
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Clear for Launch
With cool and moist conditions on the strip, launches were a bit tricky. Otherwise, the Demons were at their best utilizing the factory line-lock to aid in burnouts, Torque Reserve to build boost, and Trans Brake to avoid excessive wear to the braking system. After the run, the Power Chiller cooling feature takes advantage of the air conditioning to cool intake temperatures and avoid the heat soak typically associated with supercharger engines on the drag strip.
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The More The Merrier
With only 4 Demons in competition, the rest of the field and classes consisted of a variety of Mopars. From Magnums to Hellcats, all the way to SRT Jeeps, Mopars owned the day at the drag strip. Of course, there were the occasional hiccups that come along with the strain of drag racing. An SRT Jeep blew a head gasket and a Hellcat became hydro-locked due to an untimely shot of nitrous oxide. The Demons proved their reliability on the strip and continued to impress with ETs in the low 10s.
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New Territory
The event had a built-in handicap in that the Demon is a relatively new vehicle and even the most experienced racers are still getting the hang of their devilish vehicles. For now, the competition will remain closed. Until someone cracks the code (we're looking at you John Hennessey), the Demon offers an even playing field in the 800+ horsepower range. Oh, the times we live in.
>>Join the conversation about the Demon invitational right here in DodgeForum.com.
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