Road Rumblings

“Shockwave” Jet Truck Driver Dies In Michigan Air Show Crash

Chris Darnell, pilot of the famed Shockwave jet semi truck, tragically perished in a highspeed accident while performing at an air show in Michigan Saturday. Darnell, 40, was taking part in Battle Creek, Michigan’s Battle Creek Field of Flight Air Show and Balloon Festival, racing a pair of aircraft down a runway when an explosion occurred at the rear of the vehicle, sending the truck barreling out of control at what officials say was upwards of 300 mph. “During today’s Shockwave Jet Truck performance at the Battlecreek Field of Flight Airshow an accident occurred as a result of a mechanical failure on the jet truck. Regretfully, Chris Darnell the driver and my youngest son, passed away from his injuries at approximately 1:10 p.m.,” stated his father and the patriarch of the Shockwave racing team, Neal Darnell. “No one else was involved. I will post more information as we get it. We will provide funeral arrangements sometime this week. We are so sad. Just one month ago Chris turned 40. He was so well loved by everyone who knew him. Chris so loved the air show business. He was ‘Living the Dream,’ as he said.” The Battle Creek Field of Flight issued its own statement, commenting, “Chris Darnell, 40, died today during the air show at the Battle Creek Field of Flight Air Show and Balloon Festival. Darnell drove the Shockwave jet truck during the air show. At about 1:10 p.m. today, during Darnell’s performance in the air show, an accident happened that resulted in his death. The accident remains under investigation, with no new information available. Battle Creek Fire, Battle Creek Police, and Federal Aviation Administration Officials continue to investigate. The remaining air show performances were canceled today; the air show will return on Sunday.” The Darnell family and its Shockwave, Aftershock, and Flash Fire trucks have been a fixture on the air show and drag racing circuits for more than a decade. Shockwave, with its three J34-48 Pratt & Whitney jet engines, has clocked speeds as high as 376 mph, and would routinely top 300 mph in air show performances around the country. The truck was originally the creation of the late Les Shockley. Chris leaves behind his wife, Brooke, and two daughters.

New Owner Revives Lola Cars

LOLA Cars is being revived under the new ownership of US-based Englishman, Till Bechtolsheimer, the company announced. With the completion of the transaction, Lola Cars Ltd. now controls all of the assets of the British brand that has designed and produced nearly 5,000 race cars spanning 400 different model types for motorsport championships around the world including IndyCar, Le Mans, Formula 1, Formula 3000, Formula 5000, A1GP and Touring Cars. Bechtolsheimer is the founder of New York-based investment firm Arosa Capital, which specializes in energy, energy efficiency and renewables, including emerging technologies in the transport and automotive worlds. He is also a racer of historic cars and since 2016 has competed regularly in sportscar and endurance racing in the US. This year he is racing in the WeatherTech Endurance Championship. He has also raced at the Pikes Peak Hill climb in Colorado and last year expanded into off-road competition by taking on the Baja 1000. “I have had a lifelong passion for motorsport and, like most motorsport fans, have always loved the Lola brand,” said Bechtolsheimer. “What both Eric Broadley and Martin Birrane achieved with Lola is awe inspiring. It is a daunting but exciting prospect to try and rebuild Lola in their footsteps and do justice to their legacy.” Amanda Birrane, chairman of Peer Group plc, the Birrane family Property Company based in London, said “My family is very pleased that the Lola brand is in the ownership of a businessman and racer who will write the next chapter for this long-established British motor racing icon. My father would be delighted to see Lola back in competitive motorsport and especially back at Le Mans. We wish Till every success.” Bechtolsheimer outlined what is ahead for Lola Cars Ltd. “Our plan is to reestablish Lola as a leading design and engineering force in modern motorsport. I have built a career investing in energy efficiency and see motorsport playing a significant role in the innovation and testing of new solutions. Through Lola, we hope to develop and provide investment for some of these solutions,” the new owner said. “I have a huge amount of respect for the industry and understand that this will be a long process. We have immediate plans for substantial upgrades to the Lola Technical Centre, in particular the wind tunnel, and are actively working towards our first project to put new Lolas back on track. I firmly believe that our biggest asset is the Lola name and what it means to so many in the motorsport industry, it will help us to attract great talent and form lasting partnerships.” More details of Lola Cars Ltd’s initial projects are forthcoming.

Meet Thunder – The Ford Lightning's Big Brother

When fans of the original Ford F-150 Lightning heard that Ford was bringing back the Lightning they were excited. But when they found out it was only to be an electric truck the diehards didn't approve. That’s where Steeda Performance comes to the rescue with their new F-150 Thunder Edition.

That’s right, it’s named Thunder because it has twice the horsepower that the old Gen II Lightning had in 2002. It’s packing close to 800 horsepower from a supercharged 5.0 Liter Coyote V8, transferring that power to a heavy-duty 10-speed automatic transmission.

With custom paint-matched bumpers, "Thunder" badging, roof-mounted and liftgatemounted spoilers, and lowered suspension, this truck stands out in a crowd of boring trucks.

The Thunder goes around corners just as well as it does in a straight line thanks to a full suspension upgrade. It comes with a three-inch drop in front and five-inch drop in the rear giving a sinister stance. The front is fitted with fully adjustable tubular upper control arms, while the rear gets performance leaf spring pack and adjustable traction bars .

This bad boy rolls on Nitto LT 305/40 R22’s on all corners mounted on Velgen forged wheels finished in gloss black.

Petty’s Garage Recreates 1979 Championship Ride

When General Tire wanted to commission a resto-mod replica of Richard Petty’s 7th championship -winning 1979 Chevrolet Monte Carlo to use as a promotion during the ARCA season they knew exactly who to turn to: the man himself, “King of NASCAR” Richard Petty and his team at Petty’s Garage in Randleman, North Carolina.

The result of their efforts and expertise is a 1976 Monte Carlo featuring an iconic Petty paintjob with that signature blue hue, while adding enough modernized performance parts and amenities to make for a much more agreeable street machine than its inspiration could have ever been. Petty’s Garage General Manager, Chris Hussey found the car on eBay and fortunately it was less than a hundred miles away in Roxboro, North Carolina. At the time the vehicle was sporting a standard red color. Transforming the Chevy to the point where it resembled the racecar required the team to fabricate new fenders and quarter panels by hand, in addition to installing a custom grille and bumpers. The championship stock car-inspired exterior is rounded off with a full set of General Tire racing radials mounted on Chrome Aero 15”x10” NASCAR-style wheels. Meanwhile, the interior is home to a custom dashboard with Stewart Warner gauges that help this beast look the part both inside and out. The performance edge of this boulevardier-turned-racer cuts more than skin deep however, as its winning visage boasts capabilities to match, thanks to an LS3 engine with Holley Sniper Stealth EFI, custom exhaust featuring MagnaFlow Performance Parts, Wilwood brakes, Ridetech suspension with coil overs, custom air cleaner, partial roll cage and an aluminum fuel cell. Their main goal with the car was to keep it as true to the racecar as possible while still remaining street legal. That said, the vehicle’s future owner will no doubt be grateful that they also had the foresight to install a Vintage Air air-conditioning system to help fend off the worst of sticky Southern summers.

The guys at Petty’s Garage didn’t report hitting many roadblocks over the course of the five months or so it took to finish the build, but the biggest challenge was the tight timeline they set for themselves to get it done in time for the Daytona 500 this past February. With their mission accomplished, the Monte Carlo has joined General Tire’s promotional team for the duration of the 2022 ARCA season. Once that concludes, Petty and his team already have a buyer lined up.