how did you get bit by the racing bug?

[Tom Goldman]

Growing up in the 50's and 60's around 3 uncles who were Hot Rodders .
I learned my love of Stockers and SS cars from one , Comp cars ,Altereds and Gassers from another , and customs and lead sleds from the other.
My earliest memories of going to the drags are of Vargo Dragway in '59 with my uncles '50 Old's C/Altered.
My other friends had Lincoln Logs and Tinker Toys, I had Dual Range Hydros torn apart in a pile in my Grandmothers back yard.

[Dave Ley]

My father raced and at the ripe age of 10 in 1966 he took me to Atco Dragway. I decided right then and there that this is what I wanted to be around the rest of my life !!!

[Jeff Goss]

A guy I knew in High School had a 69 Pontiac LeMans that he took to the High School Drags. Went to Seattle International Raceway in 1986 as a spectator.

Soon after I bought my first muscle car, a 1970 Chevelle SS396. It was a basket case, but I loved it. Sold it to buy a 68 Charger, followed by a 84 S-10 with a circle track 350 in it. Sold that to buy a 68 Pontiac LeMans. Then sold that to buy my first bracket car, a 64 Malibu SS.

Started racing in 1991. Been hooked ever since.

[killintime6968]

Started off in the late 60's with car models,hotwheels and magazines. Then in 69 went to the local chev dealership when i was 8 and i still have my camaro broshure. In 74 or 75 went to the old Mission raceway on a sunday to watch motorcross but picked the wrong weekend. It was dragracing. Watched it for awhile and was hooked. Been playing with cars eversince.

[Nitro Joe Jackson]

this is me right before 1964 Nationals, and also me at the 1970 nationals, i dont think i need to say how i got the bug, lol

1964

1970

[Geerhead55]

In April of '68, I'm in 9th grade and me and a couple buddies have been reading Hot Rod, Car Craft, Popular Hot Rodding and Super Stock & Drag Illustrated for about 3 years already, and I mentioned how cool would it be to go to a drag race if they had any around here. My one friend says they have a dragstrip out in Puyallup! I didn't even know it existed! None of us had a driver's license, so we talked his mom into dropping us off at the gate one Saturday, at the track, which was about 20 minutes away. We walked by the cars in tech, and found our way to the stands, and sat up front across from the tower, as the stands were still pretty empty. I remember the announcer talking to us,, asking how were we doing, if we'd been to the races before, you know, all the usual things you would ask " first timer kids".
The cars started making runs, and soon were we in sensory overload from all the noise, smoke, wheelstands, watching the gearbangers,, all really cool to us!
Some of the cars I recall from that first outing were "Wild Bill" Ireland's '66 Fairlane, Harry Holton's "Hemi Count Down" '65 Plymouth and Crazy Corky's "Charlie Brown" Javelin.
There were lots of dragsters and altereds, coupes and roadsters there too, but I can't recall any of them. It was the stockers and superstockers that impressed me the most, and its stayed like that with me all these 45 + years later.
Thats my story, and I'm sticking to it.
Danny Durham

[Marty Knox]

Freshman year of high school, we HAD to join a club. Glee club and chess club really didn't apppeal to me. Some of asked if we could have a car club. We could, but had to follow guidelines like raise money to contribute to the school, plan activities and outings, that kind of thing. We raised the money for subscriptions to Hot Rod and Car Craft magazines for the school library. Our outings were to a car dealer, speed shop, a dirt track stock car race,and Englishtown!
Hung out at Central Jersey Speed & Machine in Fords, NJ.
Senior year I took my 63 Chevy Biscayne station wagon to Englishtown. With a 230 and 3 speed they put me in U/Stock. Runner up the first time running about 20 second ET. Went home and put in a Hurst shifter, won class next 4 weeks running 19's.

[Charlie Yannetti]

I started wrenching for the Conserva Brothers on their A/MP and E/MP cars at Englishtown around 1970, and that was that...

Won my first trophy at E-town in 1974 running my 1973 Pontiac LeMans in Q/SA.. me??.. in a stocker??.. IMAGINE THAT!!!

[BKSG1198]

4 months after I was born my parents drove out to Columbus, Ohio with my Dad's F/MP Camaro...not that I remember much of the trip, but I guess you could say I was hooked then. I remember spending "Spring & Summer Vacations" not at the beach, but driving down to Gainsville doing the Gators and Walt Disney World and at E-Town parked right next to the scoreboards with the likes of Johnny Bozarth and current TAFC Racer Dan Pomponio. As a kid I used to put my chair out in the field (where the drift track and spectator parking is now) during tech for the Summernationals and wave to all the Pro Teams as they arrived for the weekend....So I guess I can blame my Dad for getting me into this sport, but I wouldn't have met so many good people and friends over the years...Thanks Dad!

[Greg Reimer 7376]

Since I'm off for six weeks recovering from double hernia surgery, I have time to read and reminisce, and came upon this thread. I grew up in Temple City, Calif, about ten miles from the original Irwindale Raceway. I went there with my brother in spring of '69 or so, it looked like fun, so in the back of my mind, I knew I wanted to race. We read Hot Rod, Car Craft, Popular Hot Rodding, Super Stock, etc. and the muscle car years were in full swing. I never had anything but cheap used cars then, even after I got married, we had good fixers. In 1976, we went to the Irwindale Fox Hunt, the cars, the crowds, the brackets, all that excitement made me decide to try it. My driver then was a '62 Impala SS with a 409 and a 4 speed, so I took it to fun and grudge night, not having any idea what to do. After some embarrasing tire smoking 15 second runs from a 12 second car, I went home and considered what it would take.In went a 12 bolt with 4.88's, an 11 inch Mc Cloud clutch, fenderwell headers, and the like, and the '09 ran a lot better. I bracket raced it after Irwindale was gone at Orange County, and in 1982, Tony Janes and I built a '61 Chevy 283 car for Winternationals. Now, with all our local tracks in So Cal about gone, that was the only show in town, so for the next several years, I raced Stock Eliminator in whatever ride I could line up. I did all my own work, (had to!) Even as a kid, I had Lincoln Logs,Tinkertoys, Erector sets, and the like,and grew up being fairly mechanical. I got an AA degree in automotive tech at Pasadena City College after high school, and went to work at a local Chevy dealer. Not a good job for a young guy starting out, you pick up too many bad habits that way. After a few years there, I left that world for both the county and the City of Los Angeles. Still racing, I've built quite a few stockers, and raced locally, made friends, met fine people,gone places, seen things, and had great experiences that money can't buy. I'm sure most of you could relate.