The world’s largest motorsports sanctioning body celebrates its 60th anniversary.
I was too young to drive in 1951 when Wally Parks signed off on the paperwork creating the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA). Like so many aspiring car guys of that era I spent as much time as possible reading and re-reading car mags like HOT ROD, Road & Track and Speed Age, and dreaming about drag strips and the dry lakes in California, Bonneville and sports car racing on makeshift airport courses. And, of course, counting off the days until I could apply for a driver’s license. In New York City the legal age for a full license was 18. I had been a closet car guy since I was around 12 years old.
I wished that one day I would own a hot rod and belong to a real hot rod club, like the ones I read about on the Left Coast. Not long after getting my license I had a ’33 Chevy Cabriolet and a ’40 Mercury convertible sedan and became a member of the Draggin Wheels, above, a club that campaigned blown Cadillac rods. The Chevy and Mercury were later replaced by an MG-TC powered by a bored and stroked Flathead Ford V8-60!
I certainly never imagined that I would become a photojournalist and then Editor of enthusiast magazines (CARS, Custom Rodder, Car, Speed & Style, VETTE, etc) and write books about performance cars. While we raced at NHRA tracks during the late-1950s, it took two friends to remind me that NHRA was actually 60 years old. And that I was even older!
My pals Chris Switzer and Ray Guarino, hosts at MOTOR MOUTH RADIO, send me a note with a link to NHRA’s Anniversary video. Chris and Ray broadcast twice a week on WHPC-FM (90.3) on Long Island, NY and I had just been a guest on their show, better known as the automotive talk show that can’t be stopped!
When I was Editor of CARS Magazine in the 1960s and early 1970s, we often sponsored cars that set NHRA records. Both the Baldwin-Motion Gen I and Gen II, Camaros, driven by Bill Mitchell and Dennis Ferrara, above, respectively, set Modified Production records every year they ran. The CARS logo was emblazoned in gold leaf lettering on the cowl of the blown Hemi-powered Pacers Auto Tasmanian Devil (“Taz”) AA/A, an NHRA National record holder in 1963, 1964 & 1966. Built and campaigned by Charlie Dodge and George Snizek, Pacers Auto in Oceanside, NY, the fuel-burning Altered, below, was a terror in NHRA’s Division I.
Today, the Taz II Tribute Fuel Altered, built and owned by Jerry Joaquin, Glendale, AZ is a regular on the nostalgia drags and Cacklefest circuits and like the original, is show-ready at all times. And George Snizek, who drove the original Devil and his family rarely miss an event. Son Scott is a friend and runs the official Pacers fan site. Charlie Dodge passed away in 2002.
What began with a simple signature by Wally Parks in March 1951 has evolved over the last six decades into the fastest and most powerful and fan-friendly motor sport in the world. NHRA is marking the 60th anniversary of Parks’ formation of NHRA with a yearlong celebration that pays homage to the evolution of the hot rod, the impact of the sport’s legendary racers, and the lifeblood provided by the many millions of loyal and passionate NHRA fans.
“Wally created NHRA for the hot rod enthusiasts, and the 2011 season, our 60th anniversary, will be a yearlong celebration in their honor,” said NHRA President Tom Compton.
In addition to presenting John Force and Larry Dixon and the nitro-fueled thunder of their modern-day machines at each of the 22 events on the 2011 schedule, NHRA officials is showcasing the sport’s rich history with vintage car shows, Cacklefests, tribute-car races, and meet-and-greets with the legends of drag racing, like Don "Swamp Rat” Garlits.
Race fans can frequent www.NHRA.com or simply “Like” the NHRA Facebook page to receive updated news regarding details of the many 60th-themed ticket promotions being offered and specific activities planned at each of the events on the 2011 schedule.
For more information about Pacers Auto and the Tasmanian Devil Fuel Altered, please visit, http://pacersauto.typepad.com/blog/
To check out what Chris & Ray, the unstoppable Motor Mouths, are up to, please visit, http://www.motormouthradio.com/
To view NHRA’s Anniversary video, check out, http://www.nhra.com/nhra60video/