Carl’s Cool Cobalt!
Former Pro Modified ace hits the Sportsman ranks with new nitrous-powered Cobalt
Courtesy of Bruce Biegler – DragRaceCanada.com
The drag racing endeavors for Canada’s Carl “Big Dog” Spiering during 2009 might have been a more scaled down version then in previous seasons but don’t let that be a deception.
Following a shift in sponsorship commitment and in personal priorities, Spiering’s racing has evolved to a different and more local focus. Instead of remaining heavily involved within the Pro Modified class ranks as a team owner and driver, where he raced for some 12 seasons, Spiering instead has grabbed the reigns of one of the most talked about machines in Canadian drag racing last summer, a nitrous-injected Chevy Cobalt Top Sportsman car.
After acquiring the car from Rickie Smith, Spiering worked hard on the car applying much of his own unique technology and vision. The car which saw action primarily within the NAPA Parts Quick 32 action within southern Ontario, acts also a test bed for Spiering’s ongoing ERD engine development process.
“This is the Pro Stock car that Rickie Smith raced during 2007,” Carl confirmed. “It is unique in fact it has been run in NHRA and IHRA Pro Stock and also as a Pro Mod car. This is the only car that Jerry Bickel ever built that was designed specifically to do that type of swapping of engines – everything just snaps in and out.”
Carl raced the car very successfully during the 2009 season finishing a strong third in final points within the NAPA Quick 32 Sportsman Series. Using nitrous injection and one of his own 737 CID engines, the car ran very regularly within the 6.5 to 6.6-second zone.
The shift to the Cobalt racing program included both practical and business reasons.
“It’s fun to dabble with nitrous oxide again, I haven’t done that since 1998,” Carl continued. “Running this car with big cubic inches and a powerglide has proven to be a lot more user friendly. For our racing team (which includes dragsters for Carl’s girls; Lisa (18) and soon Monica (16)) the decision was made for ease of maintenance reasons. Eventually all three cars will run similar engines.”
Carl’s ERD engine facility will also benefit from the program. While a high priority of ERD remains with supercharged power plants, Spiering is striving to offer his potential customers even more engine options.
“The developmental work required with all of that necessitated that I step back,” he added. “Our blower programs will continue on but there has been a bit of a shift towards normally aspirated motors. Our customer base in Sportsman categories is growing -- that will be my new priority.”