How I Got (back) Into Drag Racing (1 Viewer)

[glofria]

I just wrote this on Facebook and thought I would share it here too:

I was at the 1999 March Meet; the first drag race I'd been to on over 25 years. Had the opportunity to stand on the starting line during the final round between the Mastercam car and WW2. Jim Herbert had just pasted away a week earlier. As the cars backed up and started to move forward, someone grabbed a fire extinguisher and sprayed the left header of the Mastercam car as there was flames coming out behind the flange. They sprayed it again, but the flames kept coming out. Finally, the car was shut-off and Jim Murphy and the WW2 car would single for the win. I remember Bill climbing out of the car and wanted to be mad, but couldn't be. All I can remember after that was everyone on that starting line was full of hugs and tears. That was the moment that inspired me to get into nostalgia drag racing. I'd never experienced the human element of such camaraderie before. Friendship before rivals.

Someone else responded by saying, "I was there also - it was Larry Sutton at the starter position using the fire extinguisher on the header flange - Larry was iconic !!"

 

[Sherman, Sherm, & Sherm Gun]

In the Winter months of early 2007, I made the one long drive to Dale Suhr's shop to look at their brand new Neil & Parks chassis that they just brought home from Kansas. To my knowledge, this was my first time meeting Dale. On the other hand, I had known Radar basically my entire life. I had recently gotten divorced, and a family/racing friend suggested I hook up with Dale, and go back racing again to help clear my head. The next three years were a learning experience, a lot of work, and the most fun I have had in my life. I owe Dale so much for allowing me to tag along and learn about fuel racing from the inside. I quit crewing in 2010, and have been beyond the number one fan of the Nostalgia Top Fuel class since. So much so, that I bought Dale's very first NTF car earlier this year. I won't be running Nitro, but I sure hope to get back out and see my racing friends again.

 

[glofria]

The Orange Crate was always a strong runner coming out if Iowa.