evolvment of the sport

enclosed are 3 pictures taken over the years. 1st is a 1967 picture in a gasser pit, you cant see the blanket but that is the flooring of this operation. my dad rebuilt the tranny in between passes at the 67 us nationals. with a blanket and basic hand tools and a couple friends holding the tranny. 2nd is the pit area of a top fuel dragster operation in 1984, note the fine aftermarket flooring over the grass. i belive that is a sheet of plywood. and seems to be the only added comfort zone of the typical pit area in 1984. now lets move to 2004 at the doug herbert pit area, note his upgraded plywood flooring. and the best of everything everywhere. unfortunatly the sport evolved to where only a select few can have the privlage to experience a ride in a fuel car. at 7000.00 being the average cost of a single pass in a top fuel car its just not in my budget this month! ya i know stop my whining and grab a tissue.

I've always marvelled at guys who rebuild an engine or change a tranny between rounds. It takes me a weekend to get the tools lined up.:D :D

I watched some guys at the Mustang Nationals change a couple of pistons in a Mustang between races. We walked over to get a beer and when we came back they were almost done. Amazing.


Don

Well, with the level of performance in all the pro classes today, it takes the best of everything to be competitive. I remember going to a national event when there were only two or three cars that had a shot at winning, and Pro Stock was either going to be Glidden or Jenkins. These days, if you make the field you have a shot at winning. Sure, it costs more money. But a lot of the pro's started with nothing and worked their way to where they are now, somebody has to replace them someday and it's going to be the guy who is willing to do all the hard work and make racing his #1 priority and is willing to do whatever he has to do to get to the top. I'm certainly no pro racer, but I sure as heck wouldn't like to go back to the days of going to the area dirt tracks with a 65 Ford 1/2 ton pickup and a 2 wheel trailer!!!!

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Originally Posted by Dave Severson

Well, with the level of performance in all the pro classes today, it takes the best of everything to be competitive. I remember going to a national event when there were only two or three cars that had a shot at winning, and Pro Stock was either going to be Glidden or Jenkins. These days, if you make the field you have a shot at winning. Sure, it costs more money. But a lot of the pro's started with nothing and worked their way to where they are now, somebody has to replace them someday and it's going to be the guy who is willing to do all the hard work and make racing his #1 priority and is willing to do whatever he has to do to get to the top. I'm certainly no pro racer, but I sure as heck wouldn't like to go back to the days of going to the area dirt tracks with a 65 Ford 1/2 ton pickup and a 2 wheel trailer!!!!

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I remember a Sunday back in '59 when Connie Kalitta came out to our little strip outside of Dayton, Ohio. That was back in the days of the true "Bounty Hunter". We had a local guy named Dick Vest taht he came to run. One of the first I know of to recieve tow and appearance money. One of the few big names I had the privilege to flag. :D

That has to be a fun one to remember, NTF!!! I remember the first time Tommy Hoover made an appearance at Thunder Valley in Marion, SD. for a funny car match race with his "Showtime" car. Can't remember who he ran, but it was a huge thrill to see the cars run!!!!

PS---Still have his autograph on a program from the track, too!!!!