STRAIGHT-WEIGHT PERFORMANCE
HIGH PERFORMANCE MINERAL DRAG RACING OIL
Mineral based engine oil designed to enable maximum power while providing ultimate protection under the most severe race conditions.
• Unique friction modifier system enables maximum power output
• “Stay-in-place” chemistry and 2X Zinc anti-wear system provide lasting protection
• High quality base stocks enable effective ring seal
• Advanced, proprietary additive system keeps your engine clean
• Designed to prevent separation caused by fuel dilution
• Available in 50WT, 60WT & 70WT
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF.............................................................. CHRIS BIRO EDITOR@RPMMAG.COM
V.P. MARKETING/CUSTOMER RELATIONS TRISH BIRO TRISH@RPMMAG.COM
E VENT MEDIA ..................................................EVENTS@RPMMAG.COM
E VENT SUBSCRIPTIONS COORDINATOR SHERRIE WEBER SHERRIE@RPMMAG.COM
ART DIRECTOR ............................................................ JIM MCHARG
PHOTOGRAPHIC CONTRIBUTIONS: MARK GODRAGRACING.ORG, GEORGE PICH, LOUIS FRONKIER, BLAKE FARNAN, JERRY GARRISON, EDDIE MALONEY, WES TAYLOR, STEVEN TAYLOR AND AMBER HYNES
RPM Magazine is a REGISTERED TRADEMARK of Revolution Publishing & Media Inc. RPM Magazine is a worldwide motorsports publication distributed online.
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The focus of RPM is to bring a diverse mix of high performance street and race automobiles to life within its pages including race cars, muscle cars, hot rods and street legal machines with an emphasis on the “EXTREME,” including fast doorslammer and outlaw forms of drag racing. Not familiar with these types of cars? They are considered to be the top-shelf of the industry and are on the edge with regard to design, performance, and power!
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EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTIONS: CHUCK SCOTT, MARK GODRAGRACING.ORG, TIM BIRO, STAN SMITH, GEORGE PICH, JAY MISENER, EDDIE MALONEY, WES TAYLOR, STEVE BAUR
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RPM Magazine has been a world leader in motorsports publishing for 26 Years and has support locations in Ontario, Canada, Alabama, Texas, and Virginia, along with contributing writers and photojournalists worldwide.
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ChrisBiro editor’spix
February2025
e go through life meeting a variety of people, and time, especially as we age, seems to fly by. As one of the creators and Editor In Chief of RPM Mag, I have had the pleasure and honor of meeting people in the industry from all over the world, and Kelly and Sue Cooper and their family hold a very special place in our hearts here at RPM. So when the time came to write this story, there was no way I was giving “the pen” to someone else. As you might guess, this story is about far more than just one car.
Let’s go way back to over RPM was just a glimmer in the eyes of a few hardcore horsepower addicts (and some business - smart people too) to create a car mag for the hardworking folks who make up this industry. A magazine distributed worldwide that any one of them could actually be featured in. No “old boys” clubs, no preferred treatment and no politics, just horsepower! And a year or two after that is when we met Kelly and Sue Cooper. Now, we could go on forever about how we met, but this is about them, not us. This story is about two folks who live, eat and breathe cars and horsepower and have gone above and beyond to participate and help others be part of drag racing.
Story: Chris Biro
Photos: Blake Farnan
Kelly was born into a family of car enthusiasts.
”It was somewhat inevitable that I would get the disease for which there is no cure,” he explained. “I have a memory of being propped up with pillows in the passenger seat of a ’67 Chevelle as we went out cruising and definitely did some pulls on the street.”
As he grew, so did his love of cars and building stuff and he took a serious interest in the hot Pro Street genre of the time. He would build custom Pro Street models by buying three model kits to build one. Before long, he was working on the real thing and built a small block S10 in a buddy’s garage and continued wrenching on everything that he could.
Kelly bought Sue a Test-And-Tune Tech Card for the Firebird to cure her boredom while he raced. She went out and ran passes all day with a best of 20.56 @ 68mph with the V6 and a plugged catalytic converter, but she was hooked for life! Now you will find her wheeling the ’Bird in Street275 running 5.50s in the 1/8!
The one-off carbon hood was made by Kelly from Joe VanOverbeek’s 4th Gen scoop. It’s a bolt-on hood that weighs just 17 pounds!
The Best Value in GM LS Performance.
If you’re looking for affordable LS performance, look no further than Trick Flow GenX 220 cylinder heads for LS1/LS2. Features include: Cathedral ports; 13.5° valve angles; decreased valve shrouding; increased mid-lift airflow; bowl-blended and CNC-profiled combustion chambers; improved rocker arm and valve cover clearance; and a super rigid casting design. What truly makes them special is their “Fast As Cast®” runner design that duplicates the profile of fully ported heads for near-CNC-ported performance for hundreds of dollars less! And since heads that don’t pass emissions are no good on late model cars, Trick Flow made sure the GenX 220 heads are fully emissions-legal (CARB E.O. #D-747) for 1997–present GM vehicles with 5.7L and 6.0L engines.
Your Formula for GM LS Performance!
New heads are just one part of the horsepower formula. To make it complete, you’re going to need some other components.
Track Max® Camshafts
Give your GM LS an even bigger power boost with a Track Max camshaft. Available in several hydraulic roller designs up to 230°/238° duration and .625"/.625" of lift, they are dyno proven to produce significant power increases over the entire RPM range.
Active Fuel Management and Variable Valve Timing Delete Kits
The problem: most performance camshafts don’t work on engines equipped with AFM or VVT. The solution? Ditch them with these delete kits! They include everything to completely remove AFM and VVT the right way so your engine will make the power you expect with no hiccups.
Cylinder Head Bolt Kits
Keep combustion where it belongs! These high-quality cylinder head bolt kits provide consistent clamping force. The bolts are made from premium quality alloy steel with cold-formed heads and rolled threads. The kit contains all the bolts you need to install a pair of heads.
