Off Season Now-Then (1 Viewer)

[TopFuel@Lions]

Interesting and quite different the off season that we are living thru in 2020/2021 for NHRA National events. Wasn't to long ago that it would come to a halt about the 2nd weekend in November, then fire back up usually the 1st weekend in February at Parker Avenue. Quite the short season, now as we all know the season ended in Vegas and does not start until March in Florida. Did not count em up but is that over 100+ days of down time. Longest I ever recall.

Back in the day, using 68 or 69 as an example and focusing on So-Cal as the weather permitted a longer season. The nation's big-3 would run like jackals all thru November into December with Lions, Irwindale and Orange County usually running until the 3rd week and change in December and wrapping up just days before Xmas. Then it was just maybe a 6 or 7 day hiatus until Irwindale started it up on New Years day with a 16-car qualified open field of nitro funny cars.

Dad and I attended each and every New Years day show at the Dale that they ran. My mom would roll her eyes thinking that at some point we would have our fill of racing after all the events we had attended.

After Irwindale it all kicked in with a fury as Lions, and Orange County all threw up big shows leading up to the Winternationals. Other California ,Arizona, and Nevada strips got into the act as well. Nitro cars could race for 5 weeks straight, even multiple shows per weekend, it was a glorious time folks.



TopFuel@Lions

 

[4onthefl4]

Bob Dylan sang it a a song "for the times they are a changing".

 

[Cliff]

I think Lions had The Grand Premiere and that was their season kick off race, usually in Jan. When Lions closed, the race (and starter Larry Sutton) went to Irwindale. That was always the race to go to. All the new cars would be there & you could see who was running what. The year Tommy Ivo crashed at Pomona - 1973???, he'd debuted his new car at Irwindale. Car didn't have decals on it & I watched Ivo put on on the decals at the track. That was the car that had wheel pants on it. Some current T/F racer named Prock had a grandfather who raced T/F back then & it was a competitive car. Ya know, my drag racing memories are some of the best of my life.

 

[Cliff]

Bob Dylan sang it a a song "for the times they are a changing".

Jimi, you had to post this..... heh heh

 

[ocdart]

Interesting and quite different the off season that we are living thru in 2020/2021 for NHRA National events. Wasn't to long ago that it would come to a halt about the 2nd weekend in November, then fire back up usually the 1st weekend in February at Parker Avenue. Quite the short season, now as we all know the season ended in Vegas and does not start until March in Florida. Did not count em up but is that over 100+ days of down time. Longest I ever recall.

Back in the day, using 68 or 69 as an example and focusing on So-Cal as the weather permitted a longer season. The nation's big-3 would run like jackals all thru November into December with Lions, Irwindale and Orange County usually running until the 3rd week and change in December and wrapping up just days before Xmas. Then it was just maybe a 6 or 7 day hiatus until Irwindale started it up on New Years day with a 16-car qualified open field of nitro funny cars.

Dad and I attended each and every New Years day show at the Dale that they ran. My mom would roll her eyes thinking that at some point we would have our fill of racing after all the events we had attended.

After Irwindale it all kicked in with a fury as Lions, and Orange County all threw up big shows leading up to the Winternationals. Other California ,Arizona, and Nevada strips got into the act as well. Nitro cars could race for 5 weeks straight, even multiple shows per weekend, it was a glorious time folks.



TopFuel@Lions

It certainly was!
Somebody get me a Time Machine and enough AA batteries to run it.

 

[junglevsbrutus]

I'm looking at quite possibly the most minimal souvenir program OCIR ever offered. It's only a 11"x17" sheet of paper folded in half to create 4 pages. The event was Orange County's season closer, their West Coast Wheelstand Championships and FC Invitational, held on December 5, 1970. The cover featured 2 photos, the Fugitive Vette wheelstander and recent Mfrs. Meet champion, the Blue Max Mach 1.

Other wheelstanders included: Hemi Under Glass, Chuck Wagon, Paddy Wagon, Moon Shot, Rare Bear, American
Flyer and bringing up the rear, the Back-Up Pickup (pun? ). Since I don't have the ND report I can't say who won that portion of the event. But the best thing about this modest OCIR program? I got it autographed by Leroy Goldstein and Jungle Jim!

Plus, I did carefully hand write the 8-FC elimination chart so I can share that.
RD. 1:
Jungle Jim 7.54 def. Dunn & Reath
Diamond Jim 7.02 def. Ramchargers
Blue Max 6.94 def. Midnight Skulker
Super Duster 7.32 def. Fighting Irish
SEMI FINALS:
Diamond Jim 6.99 def. Ramchargers
Blue Max 6.83 def. Super Duster
FINAL:
Blue Max 6.91 def. Diamond Jim-Snively

NOTES: This was the same Blue Max that won the Mfrs. Meet a month prior but was now being driven by Richard Tharp. Jungle Jim drove his first blue Camaro, the one that was often photographed in SoCal doing fire burnouts (seen in the PHR and CC centerspreads, plus the Revell box cover). The Fighting Irish Camaro was very new w/ this perhaps being its second event after a Supernationals debut. The Ramchargers made a rare non-Mfrs. Meet appearance in SoCal. Finally, the Super Duster was the prettiest ever. For most of the season the Super Duster was painted a bright candy blue and white w/ gold accents. However, it was repainted in OCT to a much darker blue and white w/ orange accents. Additionally, the Duster was decorated w/ soft airbrush "sunburst" splotches in pale blue, yellow and red. These fun color spots danced down the top center stripe as well as several minor lettering areas. This Memphis funny did indeed look sharp!

The same OCIR program announced that the Super Strip would reopen on Sunday, December 27th. This would be the All-Pro season opener. Six years before NHRA would institute their season-long Winston World Championship OCIR hosted their 4-race series based upon a points system. It ran from late DEC to MAR of the following year. The All-Pro events featured open qualifying for 8-car TF and FC fields. Like Irwindale's early season events they were Sunday afternoon races. Qualify in the morning, race in the early afternoon! It was a smart way for OCIR to take advantage of the touring stars who remained in SoCal for the winter and give the fans 3 week intervals of nitro. However, we had used up all of our meager earnings by the end of the year to attend most of those early year events. So I didn't attend the Winternationals until '71, a good 4 years after my first drag race. However, we did make the '69 and '71 All-Pro Finals in March.

 

[Cliff]

Lions was always (well, most of the time) Q in the afternoon & race at night. Might have had 3 Q runs before elims started. Same engine, maybe same tires, did change the oil, 7-8 passes in one day. Ah yes.....