DIALED IN
Level Playing Field
MICHAEL WHITE
WSC 4.90 Outlaws series offers even competition
for sub-5-second door cars By Van Abernethy
PHOTOGRAPHS BY VAN ABERNETHY
If ever there was a racing club
that’s brimming with stiff competition
and tons of diversity, not to mention dedicated
members who thoroughly love racing
together and ultimately just hanging
out together, then look no further than the
WSC 4.90 Outlaws.
The name of their game from a racing standpoint
is pretty straight-forward: see how close
you can make your car run to 4.90 seconds in
the eighth mile without going quicker, all while
leaving the starting line by way of a fan-pleasing,
five-tenths Pro tree.
The ladder of eliminations is based on a 16-car
field, but in reality it’s an all-run program so that
no one who comes to race is left out. Average
car count per event is around 18 skilled drivers,
piloting some of the most diverse race cars you
could imagine on the same property, all striving
to run the 4.90 index. Fords, Dodges and Chevys
are all represented, along with a few other rarer
model vehicles.
As long as your entry has doors, you’re welcome
to participate with this group. “It’s really wide
open and the possibilities are endless,” says Dan
Whisnant, the man who’s widely regarded as the
group’s leader, as well as a disciplined 4.90 racer
in his own right.
“Just don’t show up with a dragster with doors
cut out...we’d have to shut that deal down,” he
laughs, insisting that this is exclusively a “door
car” club. “But hey, if a guy showed up with a
pick-up truck and wanted to race, we’d love to
have him, just as we’d welcome someone with an
import car, but we’d certainly take a close look at
what he had,” laughs Whisnant.
Gender lines are also erased within this club.
“We’ve got a lady in Kentucky who’s building a
car right now and says she wants to race with us,
and she’ll certainly be welcomed.”
The performance rules for achieving the 4.90
index are very few, but some do exist. “We don’t
June 2020
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