Roger, since you have been there ,blown that, and raced that, and your responses are interesting and such good reads, what are your 3 to 5 favorite "on-track" moments? What are your favorite stories from the track? Thanks in advance.
TopFuel@Lions
Have to think about that. The first one was about the time when I got my License after being the Tuner / Motor guy. I was putting together a Chrysler with a blower on it after trying to run an injected Small Block and the guy who owned the chassis decided to quit. So - This guy comes into the Shop where I was working and says "I heard you are going Top Fuel racing. My name is Jerry (Crotts) and I work on the Cerney - Manke & Lins car. "They just had a new car built and I bought the old chassis. It is a Logghe car and an exact copy of the "Giant Killer"". I told him that it was going to be a Gas Motor because I started building it when the Nitro Ban was still on. We agreed to start out on gas and then go to Fuel later. Big day comes and he wants to drive. We push the car down the fire up road and when it starts it looked like it was on fire with all the smoke. Go back to the Pitts (San Fernando) and try to figure out how to set the Barrel Valve on the Scott Injector. Wala - The Guy across from us had a Scott injector and he ran pretty good so I go over and say I'm lost. He sticks out his hand and says I'm Frank (Pedregon). He walks over and immeadiatly says " I see the Problem - You have Gasoline in there". Frank then turns around and gets into the trunk of a
Lets Say well used Cadillac and comes out with a piece of gas station bell ringer hose and says take off the fuel line at the Barrel Valve. He loosens the arm lever and turns it with a screw driver while blowing into the hose he shoved over the fitting. Next Frank says "Here - You blow on it" so I did. He then says " you need to blow and adjust until your Ears pop - but not until yo S--t your pants with a grin. That is how I met Frank and he kind of checked on me after that. Anyway - we push down - fire her up and we are in business. Jerry goes to the starting line and eventually gets staged. Flag man pulls up the flag and he leaves at an idle, stomps on the Gas and lifts before the back wheels cross the starting line. The car manages to to get up to probably 70/80 MPH and he crosses the finish line at 36 MPH. To keep this story real the finish line traps were 132 feet apart (66 before the finish line and 66 feet after then, which is where the term
Driving it out the Back Door came from). When the car stopped still on the track Jerry pulls the chute cord and the pilot chute flops out and stands straight up in the air. We drive down the track to him and he is shaking like a
Chippie in Church. I asked what happened and he says "I am going to have to get a little more used to this". At that point I looked at my wife and said " I am going to have to get a license".
I buy a Fire suit (Shiny Silver) and get me a Tony Nancy face covering which was a sewed up leather deal that covered up your face like a fencing shield with elastic holding it on with 2 eye holes. Next week it is San Fernando time again and track operator Harry (Hibler) says get 2 licensed drivers to watch and you make 3 runs - 1 launch + a couple of hundred feet - 1 past 1/2 way and then 1 full. I got Bill Martin & John Mitchell to watch along with Harry. Since there was only markers at the Start line and Finish line back then I asked Harry "How do I know where those points are?" and he says "If you don't know you have no business in a race car". Well I passed the first 2 OK and now it is time for a full pass. As I'm getting into the car Mitchell walks up with his signature gallon bottle of Red Mountain wine, sticks it out and says and says "Your not going out there alone are you?".
One of the guys that helped me (Phil Coons) has a nephew that writes Drag Racing Books has put this story in one of his books but changed it to the Smirinoff car with Dixon but that is not how it happened. I make the full pass at 179 MPH with Harry at the starting line, Bill Martin 1/2 way and Mitchell at the Stripe. It is all good but Bill says "Why were you sawing on the wheel so hard, the car was going straight". I explained to him that there was about 1/4 of turn freeplay in the steering box and I just kept alternating until I felt it touch on both sides. They signed the license app and Harry said you have a new steering box on there by the next time you get here. I don't drink but I did take a big hit of the "Red Mountain Boys" (Mitchell and Yabsley) finest that day. The great thing about that is I got to know all those guys and even drove Bill Martins car for him a couple of times. I also drove the
Howard Cam Rattler after both Pedregon and Mitchell, but it was the Back Motor car that I welded up and not the cars that they drove.
