Winning International Motor Contest Association (IMCA) Modified races takes more than just making race cars fast. A powerful engine is key to that mix, but it also takes a combination of tuning skills, a good car and a sharp driver to put you in the winner’s circle. The key word is combination and Johnny Saathoff from Beatrice, Neb., has been chasing and finding the right combination for some time. Being the 1996, 1997, 1998 and 1999 IMCA Modified National Champion (the record for consecutive titles) makes him a force to be reckoned with. But being smart and open to new things, Saathoff is always looking for that edge to keep him at the front of the pack.
Enter COMP Cams Open Wheel Modified (OWM) Traction Control Camshafts, the brainchild of the engineers at COMP Cams. The concept was that consistent delivery of usable torque and power to the dirt track surface with IMCA modified race cars could be controlled through camshaft design. Currently, a huge amount of driver skill is required to keep the narrow 8-inch wide, “hard as a brick” spec tire in constant contact with the ever-changing racing surface. As tracks dry out during the day (or during a race), the surface becomes slick, forcing drivers to back off the throttle to avoid sending the tires spinning excessively.
It appeared to the COMP Cams engineering staff (the largest in the industry) that if a smooth delivery of torque could be generated, circle track drivers could be aided in walking that fine line between power that gets to the track and spinning the tires and losing traction. With state-of-the-art R & D facilities to back them up, including the elaborate COMP Cams dyno lab, Spintron and other development tools, they set out to create such a camshaft product.
Winners Come Together
As noted, Saathoff is a veteran of the dirt track racing circuit and one of the most formidable chassis builders in the business. His 276 career IMCA wins (365 total season wins) through 2006 make him one of the most successful open wheel modified racers in the country and the second all time in IMCA Modified competition. “The Jet” and his crew chief Justin Bolts have dominated IMCA racing since the mid-1990s. With a personal best of 39 IMCA wins in 1999, Saathoff is a serious dirt track racer with the skills and knowledge to dominate the competition. It was Saathoff’s obvious skills as a driver that brought him together with COMP to test and tune its new line of OWM Traction Control Camshafts. The product, although not truly a traction control device in the electronic “black box” sense of the term, does act exactly like a traction control device - smoothing out the peaks in valleys in power and torque application and placing it where it needs to be.
Johnny Saathoff has won the second most IMCA Modified competitions and has earned six wins to date this season.
COMP Cams Marketing Director Chris Douglas (himself a competitive Open Wheel Modified racer) said, “The new Traction Control Camshafts won’t make a back of the pack racer a winner overnight, but it will take a competitive racer and potentially be the difference between winning and losing. The key to winning in IMCA Modified competition is to be able to take the 8-inch wide D.O.T. spec tires mandated by sanctioning body rules and get them to apply the greatest amount of power possible to the track. All of the racers have more than enough power to create excessive tire speed. The challenge is applying the power smoothly through a combination of driver skill, and now, engine tuning.”
Impressed with Saathoff’s amazing track record, Douglas asked him to test COMP Cams OWM Traction Control Camshafts. Saathoff agreed and has collected six wins this season using the new camshafts. Without a doubt, they have aided his traction by tuning the torque delivery to help maintain tire contact better than previous camshafts he has used.
“Our JR Motorsports (Ankeny, Iowa) built engine has more than enough power and torque to blow the tires off,” Saathoff stated. “But tests on the dyno don’t always equate to winning performance. You have to take the car out on the track and drive it. Things can be very different on the track, and the engine may not be right for the car or the track.”
JR Motorsports owner Dave Johnson is well aware of the testing performed to find the right parts to build a race-winning engine for “The Jet”. Over the last several months, COMP has tested a variety of Traction Control Cams in Saathoff’s engines, trying to find just the right torque delivery for his driving style and chassis configuration.
“We have used a few different Traction Control Camshafts in Johnny’s engines, moving the peak torque around a bit to find the one that works best for him,” Johnson said. “We work closely with the technical experts at COMP to get the torque curve exactly where it needs to be. The Traction Control Camshaft concept is a good one and makes sense for these race requirements and conditions. We have a number of racers running these camshafts.”
A Cam for Every Small Block
As a result of Saathoff’s success with OWM Traction Control Cams for his engines, COMP Cams developed four different categories of these specialized flat tappet and solid roller camshafts, each one optimized for open wheel modified racing. These camshafts are built for high and standard rocker arm ratio applications, engines running Outlaw Modified solid roller cams and Outlaw Modified/Limited Late Model 4 & 7 solid roller cams. In total, 10 different OWM Traction Control Cams are offered, featuring a state-of-the-art lobe design backed by on-track testing, each focused on delivering smooth usable power.
The COMP Cams OWM Traction Control Camshafts are designed to help smooth out the torque peaks to help the driver maintain better control of the tires which aid traction throughout the course. COMP Cams currently offers 10 different OWM Traction Control Camshaft profiles in both flat tappet and solid roller styles.
“Winning races is a matter of driving the car hard and walking the fine line between watching the track for surface changes and then applying the power when needed,” Saathoff explained. “The COMP Cams Traction Control Cams have helped me smooth out the torque delivery so I can drive it hard through the corners and keep the power on down the straightaway. They really help in avoiding blowing off the tires and losing traction - and every little bit helps.”
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