Jim Dunn grew up in Montana, the son of a cowboy and bronc buster. It became clear to his dad, though, that one horsepower wasn’t likely to hold his son’s interest for very long so, after identifying an underlying passion for cars, he bought him a 1939 Ford and, on his 14th birthday, threw in a cam and carburetors with the stipulation that he install them himself. The rest, as they say, is history.
In this episode of Legends: The Series, Season Four, “Big Jim” reflects on 64 years in fuel racing, on winning the 1969 March Meet in a field of 134 fuel dragsters, on his starring turn in the movie Funny Car Summer, on “talking” to his motors, on driving the only rear-engine Funny Car to win an NHRA national event and on why he still is one of the toughest crew chiefs for whom to drive.