Rat
Nitro Member
- Joined
- May 14, 2007
- Messages
- 1,877
- Age
- 40
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- Bay Shore, NY
The following is from my out-of-print book. I own all rights. Enjoy.
Don Garlits is a name that you can mention to any drag racing fan and images of innovation, wins, championships, success and respect comes to mind. He was voted # 1 drag racer of all-time by the NHRA in 2001, he’s won a total of 17 championships and 144 events when you look at his entire career over many sanctioning bodies. In the NHRA alone he has a resume that most drivers would be envious of as he’s won 3 championships and 35 events, including 8 U.S. National Wins. Don was also the first drag racer to earn national records as the first to 170, 180, 200, 240, 250, 260, and 270 miles per hour in the quarter mile as well as being the first to break the 200 MPH barrier in the 1/8 mile. Don started his career in 1950 and once he won his first race in 1955, he made it very difficult for anyone to beat him.
After winning 17 championships, 144 events, and many match races, he hung up his helmet in 1987 to only pick it up 14 years later in the pursuit of accomplishing two things that would make his resume perfectly complete. He wanted to run a four second pass and record a 300 MPH run and at the U.S Nationals in 2001 his already well rounded resume was made compete. With the help of Gary Clapshaw loaning his equipment and his crew chief Lonnie Strode, he ran a 4.720 at 303.37 MPH. In 2002 he would again return, this time with his own equipment after an upgrade to his decade old trademarked mono-wing Swamp Rat XXXII to meet current safety specs in order to run 3 events. Don would go on to record two more 4 second passes and 1 more 300 MPH run with a 4.881, and a 4.763 with a major improvement in speed running 318.54 MPH in the Richard Hogan tuned machine.
In 2003, He worked with chassis builder Murf McKinney and designed Swamp Rat XXXIV, which was also a mono-wing. He would go on to record ten more 4 second runs (4.737, 4,776, 4.778, 4.761, 4.788, 4.790, 4.805, 4.809,4.80 4.943) and 6 more 300 MPH runs, 306.85, 307.44, 310.77, 310.91, 319.98 and a huge 323.04; again with Hogan tuning. In his brief return he did not just run a four second pass at over 300 MPH, he ended up running 13 four second passes with 8 of them being over 300 MPH, and I have a feeling that it makes Don even more proud to know that he has runs under 4 seconds and over 300 MPH in the quarter mile with his own equipment. Since his retirement he has continued to induct members into the drag racing hall of fame that he created in 1991 and has 233 members.
62 years after first stepping into a race car, he still is actively involved in the sport and makes an attempt to win 1 more event in stock every now and then. He is a founding father in preserving the history of drag racing with his museum in Ocala, FL since 1976. His innovations in safety for a driver, being the first to endorse a fire suit, to his technological innovations to the dragsters have made the sport safer for the racers. Drag racing may never have another drag racer that was not only so dominant on the track, but has given himself, his ideas, and his innovations unselfishly for the improvement of the sport. It’s easy to see why drag racers and fans alike are left in awe when they thing about how truly impressive Don Garlits really is.
PK: After the infamous transmission explosion on the starting line in 1970 with Swamp Rat XIII, you helped implement the revolutionary change where the engine would remain behind the driver in a Top-Fuel Dragster. Although you were not the first to develop a rear engine dragster, you were the first to campaign one successfully on the track. How long was the entire process from the development to the success that was found with tweaks to the suspension? In the early stages, was there ever a point where you thought that having success with a rear engine dragster was more of a dream than a reality?
DG: The process took over 3 months and in fact I had given up, built Swamp Rat XXV, the best Slingshot we ever built, which hangs in the Showroom of Summit Racing in Georgia. My wife caught me in the process and demanded I get back on the rear engine project. Two days later we stumbled on the problem, the steering was too fast and the rest is history. The fact of the matter is; I had a very nice rear engine gas car in 1957 that didn’t handle and my buddies, back then, round track racers advised me to speed up the steering which I did and my Brother was almost killed. We scrapped the project!
PK: Of all your innovations, what do you feel is your greatest?
DG: The rear engine project was my most important as to safety, but the Drag Racing Museum is more important as to saving the history of the sport.
PK: Which Swamp Rat is your favorite?
DG: Swamp Rat I is my favorite, it made me famous and I raced the car for over seven years, then in 1979 restored the “Old Girl” and took it to the US Nationals, drove it down the strip at over 165 MPH, which started the whole nostalgia thing!
PK: What are your overall feelings on the countdown and is it a good system for the NHRA?
DG: I liked the original way the points were complied, I don’t care if a team wins early, too damn bad, if you are a winner, you are a winner!
PK: What does it take to be a successful Top-Fuel crew chief?
DG: A successful crew chief today needs to be able to translate the downloaded information to the tuning of the racecar. During my championship years in ‘85 and ‘86, I built the car from scratch, built the engines, tuned the car and drove it, that is not possible today and that is why there are only a few teams competing. The “money” guys made it better! What a joke! I knew the limitations of my car and engine and I didn’t exceed those limitations! Translate that to; “Very little oil on the Dragstrip”! Oh, I forgot to mention, we didn’t have diapers to hold back small amounts of oil! Any oil at all went right on the strip! Today almost all engines put down some oil, but the diapers catch all but the catastrophe explosions!
PK: Can you provide an example of what type budget you were working with or the budget that was necessary for a championship caliber team in such as yours in the '85 and '86 seasons and
DG: Budget in 1985 and 86 was a little over 900K per year, up from the 150K to 200K the years before.
PK: The price to race in the sport's top class keeps rising and has almost kept the independent team out of racing completely. What do you see for the reason the costs have skyrocketed and what would you do to put a cap on or decrease the costs making it friendlier to small budget teams?
DG: No one will like this! No oil ever on the drag strip, plus remove the “diapers” so we really know when the engine has expired. Much smaller wings and tires, a break rule so if one car oils the strip, the other car is not beat. All rules off the engine such as cubic inches, etc. NHRA owns and controls the fuel pumps and they are reduced in size dramatically. Smaller blowers at reduced overdrive ratios. I could go on, but you see the drift.
PK: Do you race the track or the opponent?
DG: I raced the opponent, but never tried to overpower the track or overstress the engine, beat lots of faster cars this way; many went up in smoke against me!
PK: Of all the runs you made down the quarter mile, what was the most memorable?
DG: The 303 MPH run in Gary Clapshaw’s T/F Car at Indy in 2001 was definitely the most memorable!
PK: You have 144 event wins and won 17 championships; is there a single win and championship that stands out above the rest?
DG: The win at Ontario in 1975 that clinched the 1975 NHRA Winston World Championship and the 250 MPH run at this event. The record stood for 7 years! Most important, the entire NHRA Crew was against me and for Beck, there is no way I should have won. Today the NHRA has done a complete 180 and I love the entire crew from President Tom Compton to the little guys that help you park your rig!
PK: What is your favorite race track?
DG: Indy, won 8 times there and should have won 10 times!
PK: Will there ever be one last attempt in a dragster?
DG: I will never drive another Top-Fuel Dragster.
PK: What are your feelings on the sport’s decision to move to 1000 feet?
DG: I was for the 1000 foot move after Kalitta’s accident, as NHRA was going to slow the cars down. Because of the powerful, rich Top-Fuel Teams they have not been able to do this and return to quarter mile racing. The fans hate 1000 foot racing and the stands show this, but NHRA is between a rock and a hard spot, they don’t want to hurt anybody, but the teams control the technology! I could fix the problem, but all my racing friends would hate me and at the same time my fans in the stands would love me! It is a very tough situation.
PK: Would you make any improvements to today’s dragster?
DG: I would make improvements to Top-Fuel. I would mandate an enclosed cockpit such as the one Schumacher is trying to run and the one I did run in 1986. Then I would encourage the teams to run the mono-wing configuration, as it helps the cars go straight during clutch lock-up. I would also make the Top-Fuel cars run much smaller fuel pumps to help with parts attrition.
PK: The move to 1000 feet turned back the clock on the incremental performance in Top-Fuel for a short time, but the E.T. record in 1000 feet is the quickest a dragster has been to 1000 feet in the history of the sport. Spencer Massey ran a 3.728 and could add up to being the first ever 4.3 second run. Saying that we will eventually hit 3.6 and 335 MPH in 1000 feet, is there any need for the NHRA to be concerned?
DG: Of course there is need for NHRA to be concerned, I have made this statement several times; there is no place in side by side auto racing for 8000 horsepower engines. What we need is; one event each year at a really long track like Gainesville, no timers in the center of the track, one car at a time, quarter mile racing, all gloves are off, no rules except for safety and let’s see just how fast and quick we can go! You are ordered to leave the track after the first oil-down. Run as hard as you can with any parts available, but don’t blow up! No spectators past the halfway mark. No points, no money, just trophies and the record certificate. This would be kind of like Bonneville.
PK: The move to 1000 feet gave the sport an extra 320 foot window to slow down. If we stay the course with 1000 feet could the time ever come where the increase in performance for these cars ends up that they can begin to greatly diminish the extra 320 feet, thus drivers facing the same possibility of danger that they faced when it was 1320 feet?
DG: If some restrictions are not implemented very soon, we will have to go to 1/8th mile racing and then watch the paying fans disappear!
PK: Your mono-wing design has always been a topic of debate for you and the NHRA. I personally feel it looks better, but I also remember that you state it is stronger and safer that the current trend of wings. Why is there such resistance against it when we are dealing with a class where wing failures have killed racers and even had racers leave the class because of the fear of a wing failure and being a victim of 7000-12000 pounds of downforce that has no support?
DG: The mono-wing came at a very bad time; NHRA was trying to slow the cars top end speed down. My mono-wing car gained 65 MPH during the last half of the run at Gainesville in 2003 during the 323.04 run. This was a full 3 MPH more than any other car at that time. NHRA could see the handwriting on the wall, this new design was going to increase the top speed of the fuel dragsters and this was the opposite of the NHRA desired safety goals.
PK: If the sport was to return to 1320 feet, what steps would you take in slowing these cars down to make sure that a quarter mile return was a safe return?
DG: The Top-Fuel cars would have the following rules changed to allow them to return to quarter mile racing;
PK: Do you feel that the sport is on a good path for the future ahead?
DG: If something similar to what I recommend is not done soon, we will not have fuel racing very long as the big tracks will not be able to afford it any longer. My rules will increase the fields and make the racing much less expensive. I think this covers everything, but I don’t envy Tom Compton, or NHRA and the job they are confronted with to try and save the sport.
PK: What are your private rides?
DG: My personal rides, first is the 1940 Ford 4 door sedan, black with a Hemi Desoto for power, all “Old School”, no AC, Auto Trany or PS, just the way they were back in the day! Then of course for comfort and long trips, my 2011 Dodge Charger “Mopar” with all the bells and whistles, black and Hemi power, of course!
Don Garlits is a name that you can mention to any drag racing fan and images of innovation, wins, championships, success and respect comes to mind. He was voted # 1 drag racer of all-time by the NHRA in 2001, he’s won a total of 17 championships and 144 events when you look at his entire career over many sanctioning bodies. In the NHRA alone he has a resume that most drivers would be envious of as he’s won 3 championships and 35 events, including 8 U.S. National Wins. Don was also the first drag racer to earn national records as the first to 170, 180, 200, 240, 250, 260, and 270 miles per hour in the quarter mile as well as being the first to break the 200 MPH barrier in the 1/8 mile. Don started his career in 1950 and once he won his first race in 1955, he made it very difficult for anyone to beat him.
After winning 17 championships, 144 events, and many match races, he hung up his helmet in 1987 to only pick it up 14 years later in the pursuit of accomplishing two things that would make his resume perfectly complete. He wanted to run a four second pass and record a 300 MPH run and at the U.S Nationals in 2001 his already well rounded resume was made compete. With the help of Gary Clapshaw loaning his equipment and his crew chief Lonnie Strode, he ran a 4.720 at 303.37 MPH. In 2002 he would again return, this time with his own equipment after an upgrade to his decade old trademarked mono-wing Swamp Rat XXXII to meet current safety specs in order to run 3 events. Don would go on to record two more 4 second passes and 1 more 300 MPH run with a 4.881, and a 4.763 with a major improvement in speed running 318.54 MPH in the Richard Hogan tuned machine.
In 2003, He worked with chassis builder Murf McKinney and designed Swamp Rat XXXIV, which was also a mono-wing. He would go on to record ten more 4 second runs (4.737, 4,776, 4.778, 4.761, 4.788, 4.790, 4.805, 4.809,4.80 4.943) and 6 more 300 MPH runs, 306.85, 307.44, 310.77, 310.91, 319.98 and a huge 323.04; again with Hogan tuning. In his brief return he did not just run a four second pass at over 300 MPH, he ended up running 13 four second passes with 8 of them being over 300 MPH, and I have a feeling that it makes Don even more proud to know that he has runs under 4 seconds and over 300 MPH in the quarter mile with his own equipment. Since his retirement he has continued to induct members into the drag racing hall of fame that he created in 1991 and has 233 members.
62 years after first stepping into a race car, he still is actively involved in the sport and makes an attempt to win 1 more event in stock every now and then. He is a founding father in preserving the history of drag racing with his museum in Ocala, FL since 1976. His innovations in safety for a driver, being the first to endorse a fire suit, to his technological innovations to the dragsters have made the sport safer for the racers. Drag racing may never have another drag racer that was not only so dominant on the track, but has given himself, his ideas, and his innovations unselfishly for the improvement of the sport. It’s easy to see why drag racers and fans alike are left in awe when they thing about how truly impressive Don Garlits really is.
PK: After the infamous transmission explosion on the starting line in 1970 with Swamp Rat XIII, you helped implement the revolutionary change where the engine would remain behind the driver in a Top-Fuel Dragster. Although you were not the first to develop a rear engine dragster, you were the first to campaign one successfully on the track. How long was the entire process from the development to the success that was found with tweaks to the suspension? In the early stages, was there ever a point where you thought that having success with a rear engine dragster was more of a dream than a reality?
DG: The process took over 3 months and in fact I had given up, built Swamp Rat XXV, the best Slingshot we ever built, which hangs in the Showroom of Summit Racing in Georgia. My wife caught me in the process and demanded I get back on the rear engine project. Two days later we stumbled on the problem, the steering was too fast and the rest is history. The fact of the matter is; I had a very nice rear engine gas car in 1957 that didn’t handle and my buddies, back then, round track racers advised me to speed up the steering which I did and my Brother was almost killed. We scrapped the project!
PK: Of all your innovations, what do you feel is your greatest?
DG: The rear engine project was my most important as to safety, but the Drag Racing Museum is more important as to saving the history of the sport.
PK: Which Swamp Rat is your favorite?
DG: Swamp Rat I is my favorite, it made me famous and I raced the car for over seven years, then in 1979 restored the “Old Girl” and took it to the US Nationals, drove it down the strip at over 165 MPH, which started the whole nostalgia thing!
PK: What are your overall feelings on the countdown and is it a good system for the NHRA?
DG: I liked the original way the points were complied, I don’t care if a team wins early, too damn bad, if you are a winner, you are a winner!
PK: What does it take to be a successful Top-Fuel crew chief?
DG: A successful crew chief today needs to be able to translate the downloaded information to the tuning of the racecar. During my championship years in ‘85 and ‘86, I built the car from scratch, built the engines, tuned the car and drove it, that is not possible today and that is why there are only a few teams competing. The “money” guys made it better! What a joke! I knew the limitations of my car and engine and I didn’t exceed those limitations! Translate that to; “Very little oil on the Dragstrip”! Oh, I forgot to mention, we didn’t have diapers to hold back small amounts of oil! Any oil at all went right on the strip! Today almost all engines put down some oil, but the diapers catch all but the catastrophe explosions!
PK: Can you provide an example of what type budget you were working with or the budget that was necessary for a championship caliber team in such as yours in the '85 and '86 seasons and
DG: Budget in 1985 and 86 was a little over 900K per year, up from the 150K to 200K the years before.
PK: The price to race in the sport's top class keeps rising and has almost kept the independent team out of racing completely. What do you see for the reason the costs have skyrocketed and what would you do to put a cap on or decrease the costs making it friendlier to small budget teams?
DG: No one will like this! No oil ever on the drag strip, plus remove the “diapers” so we really know when the engine has expired. Much smaller wings and tires, a break rule so if one car oils the strip, the other car is not beat. All rules off the engine such as cubic inches, etc. NHRA owns and controls the fuel pumps and they are reduced in size dramatically. Smaller blowers at reduced overdrive ratios. I could go on, but you see the drift.
PK: Do you race the track or the opponent?
DG: I raced the opponent, but never tried to overpower the track or overstress the engine, beat lots of faster cars this way; many went up in smoke against me!
PK: Of all the runs you made down the quarter mile, what was the most memorable?
DG: The 303 MPH run in Gary Clapshaw’s T/F Car at Indy in 2001 was definitely the most memorable!
PK: You have 144 event wins and won 17 championships; is there a single win and championship that stands out above the rest?
DG: The win at Ontario in 1975 that clinched the 1975 NHRA Winston World Championship and the 250 MPH run at this event. The record stood for 7 years! Most important, the entire NHRA Crew was against me and for Beck, there is no way I should have won. Today the NHRA has done a complete 180 and I love the entire crew from President Tom Compton to the little guys that help you park your rig!
PK: What is your favorite race track?
DG: Indy, won 8 times there and should have won 10 times!
PK: Will there ever be one last attempt in a dragster?
DG: I will never drive another Top-Fuel Dragster.
PK: What are your feelings on the sport’s decision to move to 1000 feet?
DG: I was for the 1000 foot move after Kalitta’s accident, as NHRA was going to slow the cars down. Because of the powerful, rich Top-Fuel Teams they have not been able to do this and return to quarter mile racing. The fans hate 1000 foot racing and the stands show this, but NHRA is between a rock and a hard spot, they don’t want to hurt anybody, but the teams control the technology! I could fix the problem, but all my racing friends would hate me and at the same time my fans in the stands would love me! It is a very tough situation.
PK: Would you make any improvements to today’s dragster?
DG: I would make improvements to Top-Fuel. I would mandate an enclosed cockpit such as the one Schumacher is trying to run and the one I did run in 1986. Then I would encourage the teams to run the mono-wing configuration, as it helps the cars go straight during clutch lock-up. I would also make the Top-Fuel cars run much smaller fuel pumps to help with parts attrition.
PK: The move to 1000 feet turned back the clock on the incremental performance in Top-Fuel for a short time, but the E.T. record in 1000 feet is the quickest a dragster has been to 1000 feet in the history of the sport. Spencer Massey ran a 3.728 and could add up to being the first ever 4.3 second run. Saying that we will eventually hit 3.6 and 335 MPH in 1000 feet, is there any need for the NHRA to be concerned?
DG: Of course there is need for NHRA to be concerned, I have made this statement several times; there is no place in side by side auto racing for 8000 horsepower engines. What we need is; one event each year at a really long track like Gainesville, no timers in the center of the track, one car at a time, quarter mile racing, all gloves are off, no rules except for safety and let’s see just how fast and quick we can go! You are ordered to leave the track after the first oil-down. Run as hard as you can with any parts available, but don’t blow up! No spectators past the halfway mark. No points, no money, just trophies and the record certificate. This would be kind of like Bonneville.
PK: The move to 1000 feet gave the sport an extra 320 foot window to slow down. If we stay the course with 1000 feet could the time ever come where the increase in performance for these cars ends up that they can begin to greatly diminish the extra 320 feet, thus drivers facing the same possibility of danger that they faced when it was 1320 feet?
DG: If some restrictions are not implemented very soon, we will have to go to 1/8th mile racing and then watch the paying fans disappear!
PK: Your mono-wing design has always been a topic of debate for you and the NHRA. I personally feel it looks better, but I also remember that you state it is stronger and safer that the current trend of wings. Why is there such resistance against it when we are dealing with a class where wing failures have killed racers and even had racers leave the class because of the fear of a wing failure and being a victim of 7000-12000 pounds of downforce that has no support?
DG: The mono-wing came at a very bad time; NHRA was trying to slow the cars top end speed down. My mono-wing car gained 65 MPH during the last half of the run at Gainesville in 2003 during the 323.04 run. This was a full 3 MPH more than any other car at that time. NHRA could see the handwriting on the wall, this new design was going to increase the top speed of the fuel dragsters and this was the opposite of the NHRA desired safety goals.
PK: If the sport was to return to 1320 feet, what steps would you take in slowing these cars down to make sure that a quarter mile return was a safe return?
DG: The Top-Fuel cars would have the following rules changed to allow them to return to quarter mile racing;
- Any oil down, anytime, disqualifies the run, time trial or elimination, the same as the rear tires crossing the barrier lines.
- Much smaller fuel pumps, probably around 50 to 60 gallons per minute
- A smaller, single element wing, at least 24” lower and moved forward about 12 inches
- Return to a smaller blower, perhaps a 12-71 or even a 10-71 with blower speed restrictions
- Smaller Goodyear tires, the tires are just too good!
- NHRA needs to put the break rule into effect, if the winning car cannot return, the loser is reinstated
- 20 to 30 minutes between rounds
- In Eliminations, the engine you start with is the engine you finish with, no engine changes!
- Teams; no team can have two cars in the same class as it leads to hanky-panky. A team could field a car in every NHRA class if they wanted to, but not two or more cars in the same class.
- From this point forward, any time a car exceeded 300 MPH in the quarter mile, the fuel pumps or the blowers, for the entire fuel class would be reduced in size. I might even go so far as to take complete control of the fuel pumps by NHRA owning them and giving them out at the race and collecting them back up at the end. We would need a fuel pump factory trailer on site to handle the pumps and do the flow work on site.
PK: Do you feel that the sport is on a good path for the future ahead?
DG: If something similar to what I recommend is not done soon, we will not have fuel racing very long as the big tracks will not be able to afford it any longer. My rules will increase the fields and make the racing much less expensive. I think this covers everything, but I don’t envy Tom Compton, or NHRA and the job they are confronted with to try and save the sport.
PK: What are your private rides?
DG: My personal rides, first is the 1940 Ford 4 door sedan, black with a Hemi Desoto for power, all “Old School”, no AC, Auto Trany or PS, just the way they were back in the day! Then of course for comfort and long trips, my 2011 Dodge Charger “Mopar” with all the bells and whistles, black and Hemi power, of course!
