Remembering Gas Ronda
Force vs. Pedregon 1992, Part 2
Force vs. Pedregon, Dallas '92: 25 years later
Like a Rollin' Stoned
Wally Parks, an appreciation
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Found: NHRA Member No. 1
‘The Snake’s’ Take
Ed McCulloch: Roaring down Memory Lane
'Ace' still the king of Indy Funny Cars
Racer's Scrapbook: Jim Dunn
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A deep dive into the archive
Racer's Scrapbook: Jerry Ruth
On The Road Again, 1970s-style
A farewell to friends
Salisbury’s Stake in Top Fuel history
The Beach Boys Top Fueler
Hot rodding with the Beach Boys
Seattle in the '70s, Part 2
It's Clay's day ... finally
Summernationals Time Machine, Part 2
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Summernationals Time Machine
Remembering Johnny Abbott
That was then, this is now: 1991
Pat Austin and "The Double"
Readers Choice, my favorite time of year
Seattle in the '70s, Part 1
Remembering “Gentleman Hank” Johnson
Friday at the movies
A little of this, a little of that
A work in progress
It's a Gas, Gas, Gas ... more memories of Gas Ronda
Ford drag racing icon Gas Ronda passed away recently, and is being warmly remembered by his family, friends, and fans.
Writing about heroes of the sport that we have lost has always been a curse and a blessing of this column. Naturally, any time that I have to do a “Remembering …” column it’s because time or fate has caught up to one of our heroes and one more…
Remembering Gas Ronda
Gas Ronda, one of Ford's early superstars in the Super Stock ranks in the 1960s and in the early days of Funny Cars, passed away Oct. 25 at 91, but left behind an enduring legacy in the sport.
The sport lost another of its early heroes this week with the passing Wednesday of Ford legend Gas Ronda, who was one of the Blue Oval’s early superstars in Super Stock and, later, in Funny Car. He was 91 and had suffered a pair of strokes in 2014…
Force vs. Pedregon 1992, Part 2
From forgotten interviews and smashed Happy Meal toys, more notes from one of the most intriguing points battles in NHRA history.
I had a lot of fun last week reliving the story of the tumultuous 1992 season-long battle between John Force and Cruz Pedregon for Funny Car supremacy –- capped by their crazy Dallas final round -- and judging by the volume of email, so did a lot of…
Force vs. Pedregon, Dallas '92: 25 years later
John Force and Cruz Pedregon have raced one another a remarkable 103 times, but 25 years ago this week the duo engaged in one of the weirdest and wildest Funny Car final rounds in the annals of the sport and certainly the craziest of all of their meetings.
John Force and Cruz Pedregon have raced a remarkable 103 times in their concurrent Funny Cars careers, but 25 years ago this week, the duo engaged in one of the weirdest and wildest Funny Car final rounds in the annals of the sport and certainly the…
Like a Rollin' Stoned
East Coast Funny Car racer Joe Jacono was the subject of a memorable drag racing magazine cover in the 1970s, but there was far more to him than that. Also in this week's Dragster Insider ... found: the Durachrome Bug!
It’s funny how an image can stick with you forever. More than four decades after I picked up the January 1974 copy of Hi Performance Cars magazine at my local SoCal Thrifti-Mart, I still remember vividly the insane image of a caveman and…
Wally Parks, an appreciation
The NHRA family marks today the 10th anniversary of the passing of Wally Parks, the dynamic and purposeful man who not only founded the NHRA in 1951 but led hot rodding from the dark shadows of scorn into the bright sunlight of national acceptance…
Found: NHRA Member No. 1
Every new club needs a first member, and Ken Howell was just a teenager in Southern California in 1951 when he became NHRA's first official member. More than 60 years later, we found him at the recent Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals. Or, more precisely, he found us.
Every new club needs a first member, and when the Wally Parks-led Hot Rod magazine issued the clarion call in its March 1951 issue for new members to create a national association of hot rodders, it was a pair of Southern California twin…
‘The Snake’s’ Take
Legendary drag racer Don "the Snake" Prudhomme looks back on his career and shares his thoughts on topics ranging from his best cars, best seasons, and best pals like Tom McEwen and Roland Leong.
Last week’s wide-ranging remembrances from Ed McCulloch inspired some extremely positive responses from the Insider Nation, so, as promised, here’s a similar type of article that I wrote a few years ago (2010) for National Dragster…
Ed McCulloch: Roaring down Memory Lane
Ed "the Ace" McCulloch has just about done it all. He's been a winner in both Top Fuel and Funny Car, and has become a legend and inspiration to fans and fellow drivers old and new. In this column, McCulloch reflects on some key periods of his hall of fame career.
As usually happens when I get all Fanboy talking to my heroes, my chat last week with Ed McCulloch about his Indy successes took some far-from-topic turns. I’d ask a question, he’d give me some backstory and before you knew it we're off on some…
'Ace' still the king of Indy Funny Cars
As hard as it may be to believe – and the fact might change this weekend at Indy – but Ed “the Ace” McCulloch is still the king when it comes to Funny Car victories at the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals, even 27 years after his fifth and final win there.
As hard as it may be to believe – and the fact might change this weekend at Indy – but Ed “the Ace” McCulloch is still the king when it comes to Funny Car victories at the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals.
Yes, that’s right. Even though he…
Racer's Scrapbook: Jim Dunn
Jim Dunn has been racing for more than 60 years, accumulating a series of honor and wins, first as a driver then, for the last 20-plus years, as the owner of a string of perpetually strong Funny Cars. He sat down to talk about some of the cars that have made up his career.
Jim Dunn has been racing for more than 60 years, accumulating a series of honor and wins – and drivers – first as a driver then, for the last 20-plus years, as the owner of a string of perpetually strong Funny Cars. Dunn, a former fire captain,…
A deep dive into the archive
The Dragster Insider column celebrates 10 years of telling "the stories behind the stories" in NHRA history with a deep dive into the archives to look at some of the interesting columns of the past decade.
I can’t believe I let it slip past me – heck, I can’t believe you guys let it slip past me – but a few weeks ago (July 23 to be exact), we reached the 10-year anniversary of this humble internet bench-racing bar & grill. I knew it was…
Racer's Scrapbook: Jerry Ruth
The vaunted "King of the Northwest," Top Fuel great Jerry Ruth, shares memories of some of his favorite race cars and memories from his storied 20-year career in the sport.
The chance to sit and talk with legends of drag racing is one of the real perks of my job, and for a kid who grew up following the sport from the other side of the printed page, it’s a dream come true to enjoy some one-on-one time with them. Due to…
On The Road Again, 1970s-style
Today's Western Swing can be a grind on teams, but long tows, little sleep, and lots of racing were the order of the day on the 1970s match race trail.
These days, the Western Swing is a pretty big deal, three weeks on the road with no chance to return to home base to restock and regroup. Two weeks ago I was tasked with creating …
A farewell to friends
It’s been a rough couple of weeks for drag racing fans of the Heroes of Yesteryear, with the passings of national event winners Chuck Beal, John Collins, designer/promoter Doug Kruse, and former world champ Frank Hall.
It’s been a rough couple of weeks for drag racing fans of the Heroes of Yesteryear, with the passings of Chuck Beal, John Collins, Doug Kruse, and Frank Hall, all names that should be familiar to followers of this column.
Beal had a multi-…
Salisbury’s Stake in Top Fuel history
Thirty-five years ago at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals, Dwight Salisbury scored his lone NHRA Top Fuel win in a career that was filled with many other accomplishments.
Salisbury steak: A savory dish made from a blend of ground beef and other ingredients and usually served with gravy or brown sauce.
Salisbury’s $take: A speedy Top Fueler made from a blend of a great driver…
The Beach Boys Top Fueler
No, the car had nothing to do with the band that brought us "Surfin' U.S.A." and "Little Deuce Coupe," but in a short span in the late 1960s, car owner Jim Busby and drivers Hank "the Surfer" Westmoreland and Dwight Salisbury rode a wave of popularity and a good-running car to new heights.
Last week’s little song and dance about hot-rodding tunes by the Beach Boys met with more excitement than an outside break at Trestles, which is cool considering I was just musing aloud. Apparently, the Boys are very near and dear to the hearts of…
Hot rodding with the Beach Boys
What goes good with barbecues and fireworks on the Fourth of July? Yep, that's right -- Beach Boys hot rod songs. Or maybe that's just us. Deconstructing the high-horsepower hits of America's band.
Independence Day is always a star-spangled affair, with backyard barbecues, fireworks, and flag waving galore. Oh yes, and the Beach Boys.
I’m a big ol’ Beach Boys fanboy from way back, and, because they truly are America’s band, they get a…
Seattle in the '70s, Part 2
The NHRA Northwest Nationals take center stage on the NHRA Mello Yello tour in early August. Its venue, Pacific Raceways, has been a hotbed of nitro racing since the 1970s, Here's a look back at some great photos and memories from that era.
Well, we made it through the "Eastern Swing," four back-to-back-to-back-to-back weekends of grueling racing and traveling in equally grueling weather. After the upcoming Chicago event, its right back into another stretch, the fabled Western Swing…
It's Clay's day ... finally
Clay Millican's Top Fuel win in Bristol wasn't just a breakthrough moment for him, but felt like a community event for the NHRA world, and lifted us all. NHRA National Dragster Editor Phil Burgess shares his thoughts on Millican's long run to victory.
I was one of the very few still there on a Monday in Montreal in 1987, when John Force finally broke through for his first NHRA Funny Car win after nine painful runner-ups, and I was there in Dallas in 2011 when Bob Vandergriff Jr. ended his NHRA-…
Summernationals Time Machine, Part 2
Welcome to Part 2 of our Summernationals Time Machine, looking at some late-1970s pit-area photos from Englishtown, as provided by column reader John Guzevich. Without further ado, let’s head back to E-Town, in 1978
With a trusty Kodak…
Summernationals Time Machine
The upcoming Summernationals is one of the NHRA's most iconic events, with a deep and rich history. Step back into time 40 years ago for one fan's photographic memories of the event.
Working at National Dragster affords me incredible access to decades and decades worth of photos in our vast image library dating back to NHRA’s earliest days. As you can imagine for a drag racing nut like me, it’s heaven. There are iconic…
Remembering Johnny Abbott
Former U.S. Nationals-winning Top Fuel driver Johnny Abbott, who passed away May 20, was a fierce racer and a generous human being.
We lost former Indy-winning Top Fuel driver Johnny Abbott last Sunday, ending the life but not the legacy of one of the great gentlemen in our sport. You only have to visit his Facebook page and…
That was then, this is now: 1991
The 1991 season was one of the wildest in NHRA history, with broken barriers, a nitro-shortage scare, wild crashes, overdue wins, rookie phenoms, and much more, and we've got the trivia quiz to prove it.
I had a lot of fun researching and reminiscing while creating last week’s column about Pat Austin’s double at the 1991 Topeka event, but, typical me, leafing through those old issues of National Dragster got my gears spinning.
Going…
Pat Austin and "The Double"
Pat Austin made drag racing history at Heartland Park Topeka in 1991 when he became the first driver to win in two classes at the same national event, scoring in Top Fuel and Alcohol Funny Car, but the road to fame wasn't an easy one.
The NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series tour heads next week to Heartland Park Topeka, which has been the site of a lot of drag racing history over the last four decades, including the first four-second and 300-mph Funny Car passes way back in 1993…
Readers Choice, my favorite time of year
If you’re an NHRA member or buy NHRA National Dragster on the newsstand, you’ll definitely want to check out the new issue, which went online Thursday and will be in mailboxes next week. ND Editor Phil Burgess tells you why.
If you’re an NHRA member or buy NHRA National Dragster on the newsstand, you’ll definitely want to check out the new issue, which went online Thursday and will be in mailboxes next week.
The current issue is our annual Readers Choice…
Seattle in the '70s, Part 1
The Great Northwest had some great car and great races, and some great photographers, too, as evidenced by the work of Herman Marchetti, who shares some of his images from the Seattle area in the 1970s.
My column last week about the life and career of Hank Johnson stoked me into action to begin pulling together a large multi-column project I’d been working on of photos from the Great Northwest that were shot back in the 1970s by Herman Marchetti…
Remembering “Gentleman Hank” Johnson
Sure, Top Fuel racer “Gentleman Hank” Johnson, who died earlier this week, was part of the answer to a great trivia question, but in a career that spanned more than two decades, he was much more than that.
What does “Gentleman Hank” Johnson, one of the Northwest’s best Top Fuel and Funny Car racers, have in common with fellow 1970s Top Fuel racers Bob Gibson and Gary Beck? Or with ‘70s Pro Stock hero Larry Lombardo? Or with modern-day nitro gladiators…
Friday at the movies
The internet is full of vintage drag racing footage. Here's five really cool nostalgic videos to enjoy.
Last week’s bits and pieces column elicited a lot of positive feedback, but none more so than the nostalgic video from the 1973 Popular Hot Rodding Championships. I thought that it was a pretty well-known video — if for nothing more than Paul…
A little of this, a little of that
From vintage drag cars found in hiding to some great old videos, new websites, and a resurfaced old drag racing board game, there's lots to catch up on in this week's Dragster Insider.
Back from another thrilling Gatornationals weekend – how ‘bout that Jonnie Lindberg making it to the Funny Car final in his debut? – with just enough time to catch my breath and do some scribbling for National Dragster before heading for Las Vegas…