Been doing Silver State Classic since 2010, and Big Bend Open Road Race since 2016. We ran the 150 class in May and were well north of 160 for a fair bit, but had a brake issue and had to retire from the course. Since then I finally found my persistent cooling issue (cracked block).
#1 thing for the car (after safety of course) is the ability to hold RPM. I run 2.50's in a Ford 9" behind a 727 and sit right on 5000 rpm with a 496" stroker. Plenty of power there, but the engine needs to be built to handle it. I melted a set of 1.6 ratio Crane Gold Rockers since they weren't bushed and the hot oil didn't provide enough film to prevent contact. I've gone to Comp Pro Magnums and have been trouble free ever since, at the sacrifice of lift since they're 1.5's. Wide LSA cam (110°) for good power in the 4500-5500 range, not a high-overlap drag cam. I'm constantly fighting driveline vibrations since the driveshaft is 54" long. Pinion angle has to be perfect. Good tight steering is a must, and an air dam is essential above about 125. Too much air under the car makes it WAY loose and actually causes cooling problems, or at least doesn't benefit from low underhood pressure drawing air through the radiator as much. rake angle of the car matters too. if the hood is too flat, it causes lift on the front of the hood. A little nose-down lets the air hit the surface of the hood more directly and plants the front better.
I could go on, but that's a good start on things not already covered in other posts. I actually run a plactic scraper below the metal dam you see in the picture. It rides about 2.5" off the pavement, and yes, it scrapes at speed sometimes, but it made a BIG difference.
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