Jim Davis smiles when reminded that he was a part of something great.
This summer will mark the 45th anniversary of the day he and Monk
Reynolds made the calculated decision to upgrade their weekly racing
newspaper to a full-fledged, newsstand magazine focusing on doorslammer
racing on the east coast and beyond.
Until that time, their racing newspaper was seasonal, with Davis
working part-time and Reynolds full-time through the racing season. Reynolds would seek an outside job to fill the void until racing season
began again.
Reynolds suggested they do a year-round publication, Davis agreed, and
thus was born one of the greatest hardcore drag racing magazines to
ever grace the newsstands.
“At the time (Monk) made the suggestion, the Super Stockers were real
big on the east coast,” Davis recalled. “Most of the magazines were
based in California and covered what was going on out there. There were
a few New York-based publications but they mimicked what the west coast
magazines were doing.”