For those who have served our nation, a grateful sport says "Thank You" 

In the 1960s, America's muscle-car craze just about guaranteed that the growing National Hot Rod Association had the attention of young men 18-30 years old. Then the Vietnam War hit and the weekend warriors became simply warriors.

That turn of events plunged the nation into protest, angst, and divisiveness. It left scars on many of those one-time drag-racing enthusiasts. A lost interest in quarter-mile competition became the least of their worries.

But NHRA team owner Evan Knoll has been able to heal some of those hurts that have lingered for nearly 40 years. One of his drivers, Melanie Troxel, is rallying America's once-maligned or forgotten soldiers this season with the Vietnam Veterans/POW MIA Dragster.

And at Madison, Illinois, last weekend, she recorded her third career Top Fuel victory but her first for the veterans in Knoll's tribute dragster. She also improved from ninth in the standings to fifth, in ideal position to qualify for the Countdown to the Championship.

For those who have served our nation, a grateful sport says "Thank You" 

 

 

RELATED ARTICLE: VIETNAM VETERAN PRESENTS KNOLL WITH HIS SERVICE MEDAL 

 

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In the 1960s, America's muscle-car craze just about guaranteed that the growing National Hot Rod Association had the attention of young men 18-30 years old. Then the Vietnam War hit and the weekend warriors became simply warriors.

That turn of events plunged the nation into protest, angst, and divisiveness. It left scars on many of those one-time drag-racing enthusiasts. A lost interest in quarter-mile competition became the least of their worries.

But NHRA team owner Evan Knoll has been able to heal some of those hurts that have lingered for nearly 40 years. One of his drivers, Melanie Troxel, is rallying America's once-maligned or forgotten soldiers this season with the Vietnam Veterans/POW MIA Dragster.

And at Madison, Illinois, last weekend, she recorded her third career Top Fuel victory but her first for the veterans in Knoll's tribute dragster. She also improved from ninth in the standings to fifth, in ideal position to qualify for the Countdown to the Championship.

Naturally, Troxel credited crew chief Richard Hogan. "Today, we weren't the best car, but it's nice to come out here and have a weekend where breaks went our way. Richard did a good job of getting the car down the track," she said. "I think this is just what we needed to energize the team and start moving in the right direction."

However, she might have had a special good-luck charm riding with her. At the previous race, at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Georgia, Denny Fenstermaker, an Air Force munitions specialist during the Vietnam War, gave her a safety pin from a bomb fuse. He said each soldier in his unit wore one attached to his boot and the unit never lost a man in combat. Troxel told them she would wear it on her driving boot. Fenstermaker also presented Knoll with his Vietnam Service Medal.

By no means is Fenstermaker the only Vietnam veteran who has rallied behind Knoll's tribute dragster.

Ben Humphries, shipped to Vietnam in 1968 with the U.S. Army's "Big Red One" (the First Infantry Division), was wounded by a grenade the following month and awarded a Bronze Star. He is one of about four dozen Vietnam veterans who attended the ACDelco Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway.

"I haven’t been to a Top Fuel race since the 1960s," Humphries said. "I've never been much for crowds since I went to Vietnam. I have avoided them. I've been to one football game, and it was with a vet group. This has taken me awhile. So when I heard about this car, I was not going to miss it – crowd or no crowd. This is the least I can do to support it.

"I just want to thank Evan Knoll for recognizing my fellow brothers and sisters. Words can't describe the feelings we have for someone who recognizes us as he has. Hopefully this exposure will prevent another generation from encountering that same kind of hell that we went through coming home," he said. "Thank God for Evan Knoll."

Also on hand to watch Troxel in Florida -- following suit from a group at Pomona and Phoenix and setting a precedent for veterans at Houston and Las Vegas -- were Kevin Ruhl, Gerry Beecher, and Craig Tonjes.

Ruhl is a former U.S. Marines Master Sergeant and current board member of the Florida Vietnam Veterans Assistance Foundation; Beecher a decorated Navy jet fighter pilot and a VVA chapter president in Wesley Chapel, Florida; and Tonjes, a Fort Meyers, Florida, resident, is a former Army helicopter crew chief with two tours of duty in Vietnam and the Bronze Star and two Medals of Valor among his honors.

Joining them were Allen and Susie Stephens-Harvey, representing POW/MIA families and Special Forces Staff Sergeant Stephen Geist, whose aircraft from the 74th Aviation Company was lost on a mission north of Minh Thanh, Bhin Long Province.

"I was barely born when we were fighting over in Vietnam," Troxel, 34, said, "but I tried to educate myself and understand what happened over there. So many people today are so behind our veterans and troops. You may not agree with the war, but you support them. This wasn't the case when our Vietnam veterans came home. They didn't get a hero's welcome home.

"This is one small thing we can give back to them," she said.

Funny Car driver Jack Beckman, a 40-year-old former Air Force Sergeant, has his own salute to today's troops with his Don Schumacher-owned, Mail Terminal Services-sponsored Dodge Charger that happens to be the fastest in drag-racing history at 333.66 miles an hour.

In a "Mail From Home" program that began at the season-opening Winternationals at Pomona, California, Beckman's car highlights a different war-zone camp in Iraq or Afghanistan at each race. Postcards that fans have signed at Beckman's pit or at the U.S. Army's interactive display at the track have gone to such bases as Camp Liberty, Camp Phoenix, and Camp Muleskinner.

"The troops are doing a tremendous job, and they just need to be thanked," Karen Comstock, who owns Weston, Florida-based Mail Terminal Services with husband Rodger, said. "We just want our troops to know 'You are great, and you're doing a great job!' And we can help people do that at no charge to anyone.

Some cards are blank so fans can write their own messages, and some have pre-printed sentiments, such as "Your service to your country is sincerely appreciated and respected," "Thank you for all you have sacrificed," and "We look forward to your safe return to the United States and all that you protect."

Said Karen Comstock, "We're not trying to sell anything. There's nothing for you to buy. We're not collecting names or addresses or phone numbers. It's not a political campaign. We're not making money off it. It's just a smile program."

In addition, owner/driver Doug Herbert continues to host Marines at his Snap-On Tools Top Fuel pit.

Fellow Top Fuel driver Cory McClenathan visited troops in Germany as part of a General Motors contingent on a USO-sponsored tour of U.S. military installations -- a group that included Troxel and her husband, Funny Car driver Tommy Johnson Jr., as well as Pro Stock champions Warren Johnson and Jim Yates. Afterward, McClenathan said, "Nothing in my life even comes close to comparing to the sacrifices that these men and women make in serving our country."

Said Troxel after a trip to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, "The hospital visit made the biggest impact on me," said Troxel. "What amazed me the most was the unselfish desire of these wounded troops to get back with their buddies and their dedication to getting the job done."

"It truly is amazing to see the commitment and enthusiasm that all of the personnel have toward achieving their mission," Warren Johnson said. "Seldom in everyday life do you see the kind of dedication exemplified by the U.S. Armed Forces; and the ability and perseverance of these men and women is what impressed me the most. Theirs is the ultimate testament to what teamwork can accomplish."

The U.S. Army has had a major presence since 2000 as sponsor of reigning and three-time Top Fuel champion Tony Schumacher.

He has parachuted with the Army's Golden Knights, gone through the paces of boot camp, mingled with generals and rank-and-file G.I.s alike, spent New Year's Eve with troops in cold and desolate Afghanistan, and paid respects at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery. U.S. Army Pro Stock Motorcycle teammates Antron Brown and Angelle Sampey have done so, as well. So they know what these soldiers do in the name of liberty.

Schumacher said he is proud that his dragster signifies freedom rather than hawking motor oil, beer, razors, auto parts, tools, sunglasses or sport drinks. "We're selling a way of life," Schumacher said.

"We're asking our troops to put themselves in harm's way so that we can have the freedom to come out here and do what we do," he said.

"Some people say, 'Oh. The Army. I couldn’t do that.' Well, thanks to these people, you don't have to," Schumacher said. "You should love them even more for that."