First Divisional or National event stories

[jerry witzel]

My first ever race in Super Stock was the 2000 IHRA World Nationals. I had bracket raced and ran some occasional 10.90 for some years but I always wanted to race Super Stock, so I finally decided it was time to try it. I throw together and old 283 I had and put one of my dad's old 650 Holley 2 barrels on it to run Super Stock Production and put it in my 66 Nova. Get there and go to tech in. I didn't realize that you had to have a restrictor plate between the carb and the intake. I found an old friend that races at my local track and asked him if he had an extra one, he said no but knew someone that did. The guy reluctantly let me borrow one but adimently told me that he better get it back and every time I saw him he made sure I knew he wanted it back. I get it installed and go back to tech. The tech officials kept giving me hell saying my engine looked like a 350. They said now if we pump that are you sure it will come up to the cubic inches that you are claiming, I said yes I know it will. As I look back they were probably giving me a hard time because I was new. I finally get through that and then I hear my name being announced, they want me to come to the tower. I hike up there and they ask how did I get my competition number ? Said someone else has that number and has been getting points with it all year. I said that's the number I had asked for and was never told otherwise. Well they change my number to a 3 digit number so I had to pull off some of my nice new numbers that I had just had made. I finally make a few passes and the car just doesn't want to run, it was way slow. They call us up for class and I wasn't sure how many were in my class because I never looked at the qualifying sheet so I went up hoping I was the only one. Well there was 3 of us. We flipped coins and I was the odd man so I got the bye run. I thought well at least I'll be in the final of class. I go up to make my run, start doing the burnout and the car dies. I ran out of gas, somehow I forgot to put some in. My girlfriend at that time that I'm still friends with, still doesn't let me live that down. Since I couldn't make the run, so much for the finals of class. Finally get to the first round. I hadn't come close to the index on the few runs I had made and I knew if I dialed the index my opponent would probably know it wasn't gonna hit the number. I dialed it a tenth under and hoped for the best. I was paired up with a guy named Kevin Helms, he was driving a SS/CA 67 Corvette. He came up to me in the lanes and introduced himself and asked how the car was running. I told him that I was having carburetor problems but that I thought I had everything straightened out. We go up to run and I get a conservative green light and he red lights !!! His weekend wasn't a wash though as he won Stock in his Camaro. Second round I'm paired up with the late Danny Carr, tragically he was killed a few months later. Danny cuts a green light and beats me pretty soundly, ending my weekend. My first race in Super Stock was very memorable and quite a learning experience.

[Jack Matyas]

So it wasn't my first Divisional or National - I can't remember what year it was but the second Divisional in D1 that year and we went to Cayuga , Ontario , Canada on a Friday and after sitting in the tech line for over an hour I was getting PO'D 'cause the line was barely moving so I went up to the front to see what was up and there was Greg Xakillis .I approached carefully and asked him if he would mind getting me done so I could head to the motel.He asked if I was sick or something.I said no but i didn't want to miss that week's episode of 'Dallas'.It surely was something he didn't have words for but he did it and sent us on our way.Greg and I are still friends today ...........

[Bob Don]

1978 Sportsnationals at Bowling Green, after a godawful tow through the night, I teched in. I had put brand new pair of bright yellow Lakewood slapper bars on my U/SA Nova. The tech guy said the traction bars were too low. I got out tools and cranked the U-bolts as far as I could - nope, still too low. I ended up taking the front snubbers off and then cranking the U-bolts all the way - finally I was passed. After that race, I painted the traction bars flat black and never got a second look after that.

1979 Summernationals at E-Town. I was at a motel on Rte 18 (I think it's gone now). There were a ton of racers there. Back then, most guys took their cars back to the motel overnight. The motel was a total zoo. Guys were drinking, bench racing, partying, and wrenching their cars. There were several race cars in the parking lot in various states of disassembly. I remember everyone used motel towels as shop rags, which really pissed off the manager. I was in my room on the second floor and I heard a loud argument a few doors down. It was Dave LeBrun yelling at his brother Bob about what to watch on TV. Things got pretty heated and the next thing you know, Dave wheeled out the TV on it's cart and tossed it over the balcony and into the pool! Everyone who saw it was in total shock. Dave went back in his room in a huff and slammed the door. Fun times.

[Bill Ringer]

First time going to Indy where I was competing, 1991. Two hours before hitting the road something made me think to call the motel and reconfirm my reservation. Learned that the night manger had walked out and took all the reservations with her. This was back when it all was on paper and of course they re-booked everything and were full. Hit the road without a reservation and didn't end up sleeping in the 20 foot trailer. Asked around in the tech line and got something from another racer that had some crew cancel.
Tech was longer than usual because NHRA decided ALL SS cars would have their classifications verified. Tech was inside the 500 speedway back then (which was cool) and the verification for correct class was some guys in a van just outside the speedway with all the tech books (1991- all paper, no digital database back then). Waiting in line for classification it started to rain and I suggested they move the van a couple hundred feet under the grandstands out of the rain. All that suggestion got me was the stink eye.
Finally got to the track & pitted on a dusty road that was watered down regularly. Howard Barsky's fenderwell headers still stirred up plenty of dust so being from Division V, I felt right at home.
Five cars in my Class and one broke, then there was four. Poor guy had a piston turned sideways in his 396 Nova. Won Class, qualified well, I think 33rd. Then got sent to tear down at Paul Harvey Ford in town. Driving out the gate there were a couple of gate attendants loudly singing to everyone headed out "Paul Harvey Ford ... Paul Harvey Ford" just to mock everyone going to the tear down. Really neat to tear down at that old Ford dealership. That place had been there a really long time. Would be really good if they were still there today- I don't know. Got thru tear down without any problem and was really glad I was selected for the morning session since it got HOT and MUGGY by noon. Felt sorry for the guy next to me in tear down, he didn't make it through. In with all our paperwork was notification that they were cracking down on combustion chamber modifications. This guy's engine builder supposedly told him his motor was good and did not have chamber modifications, then he gets tossed for just that.
Made it into Monday eliminations where I was late, broke out & got to the stripe last. Still, felt really good, won class, qualified well and made it to Monday. On the way home the ground wire fell off my A/C compressor and I was without A/C for about 400 miles of I-80 in the late summer. Spotted the wire that was off when I stopped in Kearney Nebraska and had A/C the last couple hundred miles home to Colorado, boy that felt good.
All things considered this was a great and really memorable Indy trip that I'll not ever forget. Everyone should do Indy at least once. There's nothing like it.

[Ray Gottry]

My first division race was Gainesville,1996 in Super Street. I had gotten my small block, four speed Maverick to run 10.90s in late 1995. I was stationed at NAS Jacksonville, FL. on my twilight tour and wanted to get started racing on the NHRA tour before I retired from the Navy. I rolled into tech and Mike Wells came over to tech me in. He went over the car and then said "put it in gear and start it up". I thought, okay, but it will start in any gear (4 speed remember, LOL). Anyway I start the car and Mike turns off the battery switch to shut the car down. He walks up to the drivers door and says " you have to have a lock out switch on the shifter". With a scrunched up face I turn to him and say "it's a 4 speed". With a shocked look on his face he says "oh hell, I didn't even look at the shifter". He signed my tech card and sent me on my way. We had a big laugh over that one and became good friends after that. I wrecked the car in 2007 and haven't raced since, but you never forget your first time, LOL!

[Kirk Morgan]

I got hooked on drag racing in the early seventies when they built a drag strip near
my home town.I had street strip cars until the late 2000,s.Around 2005 i met RJ Sledge and talked him into letting me help him with his stocker. Needless to say i was very impressed with the performance and challenges to achieve that. So in 2008 i sold my street strip car and purchased a stocker that was a older build but had never been down the track. In April of 09 i went to my first divisional. I went to tech and got to meet Wesley for the first time. He looked over my car then told RJ to leave because he wanted to talk to me. He asked me about some casting numbers which i knew some but not all of them. We had a good conversation and he signed off on my tech card. Made my first time trial and things went well until fuel check. It would not check.The division director and Wesley said don't worry we will get this figured out. The foam in the fuel cell was contaminated so i took it out and eveything was good. We helped fix one of the new Cobra Jets and that was who i wound up with first round.Well i cut a decent light but broke out. I had a blast. I can't stand prosperity so i am building my first super stocker. .

[MEXJOE]

Originally Posted by Bob Don

1978 Sportsnationals at Bowling Green, after a godawful tow through the night, I teched in. I had put brand new pair of bright yellow Lakewood slapper bars on my U/SA Nova. The tech guy said the traction bars were too low. I got out tools and cranked the U-bolts as far as I could - nope, still too low. I ended up taking the front snubbers off and then cranking the U-bolts all the way - finally I was passed. After that race, I painted the traction bars flat black and never got a second look after that.

1979 Summernationals at E-Town. I was at a motel on Rte 18 (I think it's gone now). There were a ton of racers there. Back then, most guys took their cars back to the motel overnight. The motel was a total zoo. Guys were drinking, bench racing, partying, and wrenching their cars. There were several race cars in the parking in various states of disassembly. I remember everyone used motel towels as shop rags, which really pissed off the manager. I was in my room on the second floor and I heard a loud argument a few doors down. It was Dave LeBrun yelling at his brother Bob about what to watch on TV. Things got pretty heated and the next thing you know, Dave wheeled out the TV on it's cart and tossed it over the balcony and into the pool! Everyone who saw it was in total shock. Dave went back in his room in a huff and slammed the door. Fun times.

That is a good one!🤣

[HR9121]

Originally Posted by Kirk Morgan

I got hooked on drag racing in the early seventies when they built a drag strip near
my home town.I had street strip cars until the late 2000,s.Around 2005 i met RJ Sledge and talked him into letting me help him with his stocker. Needless to say i was very impressed with the performance and challenges to achieve that. So in 2008 i sold my street strip car and purchased a stocker that was a older build but had never been down the track. In April of 09 i went to my first divisional. I went to tech and got to meet Wesley for the first time. He looked over my car then told RJ to leave because he wanted to talk to me. He asked me about some casting numbers which i knew some but not all of them. We had a good conversation and he signed off on my tech card. Made my first time trial and things went well until fuel check. It would not check.The division director and Wesley said don't worry we will get this figured out. The foam in the fuel cell was contaminated so i took it out and eveything was good. We helped fix one of the new Cobra Jets and that was who i wound up with first round.Well i cut a decent light but broke out. I had a blast. I can't stand prosperity so i am building my first super stocker. .

Love the comment about the Super Stocker, I guess that goes for all of us!