:::::: Editorials ::::::

WEATHERING THE STORM – FOR YOU

 

OK, let’s make this point right now. We’re not patting ourselves on the back here. The sole purpose of this piece you’re about to read is simply to inform you of the effort it sometimes takes to give you top-shelf drag racing content.

If you were looking for NHRA Midwest Nationals stories and photos from St. Louis this past weekend and wondering why you couldn’t find them, there’s a one-word answer: 

Helene.

BOBBY BENNETT: ONCE AGAIN, THE CURRENT COUNTDOWN FORMAT MUST GO

 

A year ago, I wrote a commentary on the NHRA’s Countdown to the Championship, offering praise and disdain for the so-called playoff format, which has worked precisely as intended over the years. There has been more than one instance of championship battles coming down to the line. 

I also said the NHRA should make last season the final run of this format and work on something new. Here we are, a new season with a fresh batch of examples of why the NHRA should scrap the deal. Know this: It’s not going to get any better. Last time, I asked if it had run its course. Wholeheartedly, I declare it has run its course. 

Let’s go back in time and discuss how it entered our world. 

BOBBY BENNETT: ME AND GEEZER, DOWN BY THE DRAG STRIP...

We were the A-team for CompetitionPlus.com.

Roger Richards, the face of CompetitionPlus.com photography, passed away on Monday morning. He was the longest-running team member here without the last name Bennett. September would have marked 25 years of his unwavering dedication and passion for us together.

When he was at the drag strip, it was his happy place, a testament to his deep love for drag racing and photography. Four things comprised his world:

ENCORE: A LESSON LEARNED ABOUT MEMORIAL DAY

There's nothing "happy" about Memorial Day.

I rarely prefer to write commentaries, so when I do, it's something which I feel strongly.

Let me say; I am in absolute appreciation for anyone who has served our country. Additionally, I am in awe of those who have served on the battlefield. However, I do have a special place in my heart for those who served our country bravely in a war where they had zero chance to win.

Vietnam Veterans are my heroes. They were drag racing's solid hold on the 18 to 24-year-old market when drag racing could be found in popular television shows as part of network television storylines, significant media and even cartoons.

BOBBY BENNETT - WILL SPORTS-BETTING IN NHRA OPEN A PANDORA'S BOX?

In Greek mythology, Pandora is given a box filled with terrible things and told never to open it. The story tells us that Pandora married Prometheus's brother, Epimetheus, and could not contain her curiosity. She opened the box, releasing sickness, sadness, and other afflictions into the world.

While I'm not suggesting that the NHRA's venture into mainstream sports betting will unleash sickness, sadness, or other afflictions, I am cautioning that this new arena could expose the sanctioning body to a host of unprecedented challenges. 

An email informing me that I needed to complete an NHRA Gambling Policy Course administered by IC360 piqued my interest. The first thing I did was laugh at it, close it, and move on to the next of the thousands of unread emails. I am not stupid enough to bet on a drag race. 

DRAG RAGS: 1967, PART 2—OCIR & THE MANUFACTURERS MEET

Attention in the pits: We interrupt the usual programming order to bring you this special, midseason-1967 installment of Drag Rags due to two historic happenings three months apart: the grandest opening imaginable for the original Supertrack—constructed for a staggering cost of $750,000—closely followed by the inaugural Manufacturers Meet. The fact that the same young venue presented both the August and November events hinted at Orange County International Raceway's singular impact upon a young American motorsport.

OCIR's three-story, octagon-shaped timing tower with its dimly-lit nightclub of a top floor was instantly iconic at a time when race tracks' prevailing architectural style is best described as midcentury plywood. Full marching bands stomped the length of this landscaped drag strip. A stunt pilot performed aerobatics before landing on the racing surface, taxiing to cheers. Clean-cut ushers oversaw reserved, numbered seats with redwood backrests. 

An army of employees on and off the track was clothed in matching white pants and blue Hang 10 shirts. The uniforms' embroidered Indy-car logo represented the big-time road racing that was expected to top the marquee and pay the big bills, while twice-weekly drag races kept some cash flowing between envisioned open-wheel, motorcycle and sports-car extravaganzas that never materialized (nor did the rented shop buildings that founder Mike Jones expected to ensure steady cashflow). 

JON ASHER: NHRA MUST RECONSIDER SOME OF ITS RECENT DECISIONS

After having worked as a journalist covering drag racing for more than 50 years I stepped away in 2018. Despite my not having personally attended an event during the ensuing years I’ve paid close attention to what’s taken place both on and off the track. I’ve also maintained my personal relationships with numerous competitors, team owners, journalists and track owners. I’m mentioning those points just to assure our readers that I’m not firing blindly with this guest editorial, nor do I have any axe to grind with NHRA or anyone else in the sport. As I have said – and written – numerous times, I want only the best for NHRA and everyone else involved in the endeavor. Put more succinctly, a healthy and vibrant NHRA is beneficial to everyone involved.

The success of the SCAG PRO Superstar Shootout in Bradenton, Fl. should have been a wake-up call for the National Hot Rod Association’s management team, but to date, there’s been no public indication that it made an impact on them. I’m not finding fault with that, but they can’t wait too long before publicly reacting.

BOBBY BENNETT: ONE OF THE TOP FIVE EVENTS I'VE COVERED

It's one event, but right out of the gate, the inaugural PRO Superstar Shootout landed the most difficult jump for any fledgling program. The event produced an entertainment home run. 

It had close racing, record-setting times, and plenty of fans on hand to witness it. The event was much like watching Metallica play at the Whiskey-A-Go-Go. 

I've been a professional journalist for 37 years. The first thing the journalistic legends of this sport taught me was to remain objective. It's not personal, it's a job; an assignment. When the readers peruse your copy of said assignment, they shouldn't be able to tell on which side of the fence you stand. 

DRAG RAGS: EARLY 1967 - WAR OF EARLY INDEPENDENTS ENDS

From a peak of four independent national weeklies publishing simultaneously from southern California the previous year, this 1967 season opened with just two survivors: Doris Herbert's dominant Drag News, the long-established "Drag Racer's Bible" (est. 1955), and sophomore challenger Drag Digest, now tagging itself as the "Drag Racer's New Testament." 

It wasn't much of a race, in hindsight. After briefly increasing ad pages in the wake of mid-1966's back-to-back Drag Sport Illustrated shutdown and Drag World sale to AHRA, the promising newcomer increasingly showed signs of desperation as this season unfolded. Circulation claims grew wilder, less believable. Front-page headlines grew larger, more sensational. Subscriptions were offered "on credit." Founding publisher J.L. Sutton moved down the masthead one spot, signaling some sort of bailout by the unknown new guy. 

Most telling was Drag Digest's shrinking package size: down from an industry-high 64 standard-sized pages in 1966 to as few as six oversized pages now, padded with large photos. Whereas Doris Herbert had built up a network of reliable contributors and columnists across North America, plus year-'round advertisers, a rainy SoCal weekend was disastrous for a fledgling competitor relying almost entirely on race reports, pictures, and results-based advertising from that one region. When it rained, it poured—empty space. The last issues in our archive carry June 1967 cover dates.

JON ASHER - REMEMBERING TWO SUPERSTARS OF THE MATCH RACE ERA

 

I met Don Schumacher 57 years ago and honestly, wasn’t impressed.  I thought him a punk of the first order – and I wasn’t alone.  At the time Chicago was, in many respects, the center of Funny Car match racing, and Schumacher wasn’t immediately “accepted” by the touring stars of the day.  His brash personality, barely hidden arrogance and frequent references to his family’s money didn’t endear him to his peers, who were mostly up-by-their-bootstraps racers simply trying to survive in an ever-evolving world of drag racing. 

At about the same time I met another Funny Car driver – Paula Murphy.  The differences in their personalities were too numerous to elucidate,  but where Don might run roughshod over people, Paula met them with a ready smile and, more often than not, a salient response for any guy foolish enough to try and play the chauvinist card.

Ironically enough, it was Schumacher who largely changed over the years, becoming a championship driver after coming to the realization that his antics weren’t winning him trophies – or friends.  Paula never changed because she was a fully-formed individual 50-plus years ago and remained the same until her death at 95.  Don, however, was cut down by cancer in his 79th year.

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