No-time racing is the purest form of drag racing — you line up against someone else, run what you brung, and hope you brung enough to win. If you want to be a player in the no-time racing world you’ve got to bring a big hammer to the starting line, and John Gorrie’s Camaro easily checks that box. Gorrie’s “Meth Head” Camaro is packing a HEMI-sized punch with a giant screw-type blower for a power-adder.
Gorrie started his racing career at the age of 16 behind the wheel of a 1974 small-block Chevy-powered Nova. The Nova only ran in the 15-second zone when Gorrie first got it, but with a little work, and a lot of nitrous it kept getting faster. Eventually, Gorrie stepped up his racing program and started running a 1966 Nova with a big supercharger — from that point forward nitrous was dead to him and it was all about blowers.
The 1970 Camaro Gorrie pilots was originally built and raced by Jeff Miller…yes, the same Jeff Miller who drives the Bumble Bee Camaro. Gorrie has been friends with Miller for over 30 years and scored the car from a mutual friend who was liquidating his racing operation. An AJPE HEMI with an R980 Whipple screw blower found its way under the hood of the Camaro after Gorrie purchased the car. Jared’s Garage built the headers, did the wiring, and added a few other updates to the car. The Camaro is controlled by a Holley ECU.
When Gorrie moved to North Carolina, big-tire racing was popular so he ran the Camaro wherever he could fit in on big tires. As the racing landscaped changed, so did Gorrie, and since he didn’t bracket race that meant it was time to make a tire switch.
“Small-tire and radial racing really started to take off, so we decided to give that a try. My car didn’t fit into a lot of the big-tire classes anymore and the small-tire races with the clocks off were paying well, so we started to hit those up. I like the smaller events since I have a family, so they’re a great fit. I enjoy racing heads-up…I’m not a bracket racing type of guy. No-time racing is fun because you never know what you’re going to run against in the other lane. I like to race all kinds of cars and engine combinations,” Gorrie explains.
John Gorrie’s Camaro looks like a real-life Hot Wheels car thanks to the giant Whipple supercharger sticking out of the hood, but don’t let its appearance fool you — this car is no joke. The no-time racing world is the perfect fit for Gorrie and his desire to race anything or anyone.
