Texas doesn't have four seasons. Texas has two: Hot and not-hot. Twice a year during the not-hot times gearheads gather on a long strip of concrete to see who can blast the fastest standing-mile time. This weekend's running of The Texas Mile brought out a Hennessey-tuned Twin-Turbo Ford GT that ripped a spectacular 257.7 mph speed.
The Ford GT tends to be the car of choice for Texas Mile supremacy. There's the occasional flip-happy Lamborghini and explosive Mitsubishi, but the sleek Ford seems to offer the best mix of tunability, value, and stability.
Mark Heidaker's digital-camo Ford GT benefits from the classic formula of racing engine + boost + boost + boost = speed. There's a 5.4-liter Accufab Racing engine with a pair of Precision Turbocharges designed to swallow 117 octane racing gas.
The whole thing was engineered by Kevin Kesterson of Hennessey Performance Engineering (every other Ford GT at The Mile appears to be blessed by Hennessey in one way or another).
Let's not short the driver. Going 200 mph is scary. Going over 250 mph is downright insane. Sean Kennedy set a new Texas Mile speed record of 257.7 mph on Sunday in the wonderfully cool and dry weather.
"I knew when I saw 204 mph come up on the scoreboard at the half mile, that it was on," said Kesterson. "I just couldn't wait to see what it was going to run out the back."
The next goal is 260 mph in October, when more oil-fueled Texans will find new ways to stay warm during the not-hot periods.