The phone rang the other day, it was Jeff Strunk calling.

Jeff asked me if I would like to drive his new 185” LandShark dragster at one of Bandimere Speedway’s bracket races. Now for those of you who know me know that a question like that is akin to asking a fish if it would like to swim. Sure I would! Truth be told I have been looking at these new cars for some time and I have wondered how they drove. So when Jeff offered me a chance to find out I jumped at the chance.

We met at the track and Jeff and his wife Linda had everything taken care of. All I had to do is bring my fire suit, helmet, gloves and a winning attitude. It was a very nice change of pace to not have to be responsible for every little detail. Jeff and Linda took care of everything, all’s I had to do was drive.

After a quick orientation I took the car out for a spin through the pits. My first impression was ‘darn those front tires are so close I can almost reach out and touch them’! A smile crossed my face as I knew that the close distance would make judging the finish line a breeze! As I drove the car I noticed how nimble it felt. No wide turns here, it turned almost as sharp as a typical door car. It felt solid too. No rattling, no banging going over bumps. Looking over my shoulder proved pleasant too, the design of the body allows unobstructed views rearward.

Time came for our 2 time trials. I was impressed with just how stable the car was at speed. Low 8 second e.t.s at 160+ mph and the car was smooth with no twitchiness at all. I made a point of watching all the timing blocks as I went by, judging them against the front end. Those close front wheels were even easier to judge than my Corvette! NICE!

I wish I could say that we won the race that day but Mother Nature had the upper hand. The rains came before first round and washed us out. Too bad because I know that this is a car that will win races…lot’s of them!

Many thanks to Jeff and Linda for allowing me to experience their LandShark car and for giving us a very enjoyable and trouble free day. Driving this car proved to me that the short wheelbase design will work and provides huge advantages in visibility and drivability. I look forward to my next driving opportunity in the LandShark car, it’s a winner for sure!

John Steffen

When approached by Jeff Strunk during the big Vegas bracket race over the Thanksgiving weekend, I jumped at the chance to drive his “Landshark”. I’d always appreciated the concept and engineering of this car, and because I was racing my own car and felt I had a good chance of winning with it, what was the harm in having some extra fun? Boy, was that an understatement!

I hopped into the Landshark Saturday morning for the first time, and immediately could see how everything was laid out for the easiest possible one-person operation. Strapping myself in was no problem, and the cockpit layout was well thought out.

I actually raced three races on Saturday; two in my Blackbird and one in the Landshark. By the end of the day I had made 22 runs and was dizzy from swapping back and forth. The cockpit in my car isn’t very user friendly, and I realized that someone familiar with the Landshark couldn’t swap back and forth as easily. Give credit to Jeff and crew for making a car that was driver friendly.

Adapting to the short wheelbase and forward driver location was much easier than I initially thought. The car was rock solid and drove like a dream. If my first time slip had read 9.20, 145 it wouldn’t have shocked me, the car felt THAT controllable. How about 7.69 at 174! Even with tons of horsepower there was no hint of “twitchiness” or control issues. Stable, responsive, forgiving, and fun to drive.

Ten runs later (the “run for the money” plus nine rounds of eliminations) I was standing in the winner’s circle, not with my familiar Blackbird that I had made 1700 runs in (I lost in the 7th round), but with a car I had sat in for the first time just 8 short hours ago-the Landshark!

I want to thank Jeff for his generosity and opening my eyes as to what else is out there in chassis development. My wife is close to getting back into racing after the birth of our son, and we just may pool our resources and split driving duties in a new “Shark”car-stay tuned!

Jack Beckman