[Rory McNeil]

I don`t know if the timing of this article was deliberate or a coincidence, but I just looked at my still in the plastic "First in the 9`s" Bobby DeArmond T shirt, and tommorow (May 6th) marks the 14th anniversary of Bobbys historic run. I was fortunate to have been one of the witnesses to that run on that chilly May morning at Mission Raceway. Many of the top "A" cars were there, including Robert Pond (67 427 stick Fairlane), Don Little (70 Hemi Cuda), Joe Alouise all the way from the East Coast (63 Max Wedge Plymouth), and a few others as well. As mentioned, after the 9 second pass , the engine came out of the car, and torn down for a full NHRA inspection. Hard to believe its been 14 years already. I`m not positive if that was the same year that Bucky Hess and Ray Barton brought their East Coast MoPars to Mission for the "Hemi Shootout", but for a couple of years, the Mission divisional race was a must attend race for West Coast Stock & S/S fans.