Dragstock -- Woodstock for gearheads, Nirvana for drag racers, a two-day party for fans. In less than a decade, the American Drag Racing League's [ADRL] annual pilgrammage to North Carolina's Rockingham Dragway has become one of the highlights of the racing season. The cars -- Pro Mods, over 100 of them -- are outrageously fast and always fun to watch (they look like cartoon versions of street machines). Add to this a huge and happy crowd, and you've got a carnival of speed.
I had a ton o' fun last year, and I could hardly wait for this year's race -- the Simpson Dragstock VII, to give it its official name -- especially since it would be the first time since May that I'd be covering a race. A good time was all but guaranteed. Too bad about the rain.
John Edwin Mason: Pro Nitrous racer Rickie Smith performs a burnout, prior to a qualifying pass on Friday, the 10th. His 3.856 e.t. put him at number three. (All photos copyright John Edwin Mason, 2010. Click directly on any of the photos to see larger versions.)
The showers started on Saturday afternoon and never let up, forcing the ADRL to postpone the race for two weeks. (It will be completed Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, OH, in conjunction with the Summit Racing Equipment Ohio Drags IV, on September 24-25.) Fortunately, the weekend was by no means a complete bust. Before the rain, the weather had been terrific and the racers had been at the top of their game. There were plenty of surprises, including several new world records.
John Edwin Mason: Pro Extreme driver Frankie Taylor makes a qualifying run on Saturday, just before the rains came. On Friday, he set a world record e.t.
World record number one belongs Frankie Taylor, whose '05 Corvette became the first doorslammer ever to make an 1/8th mile pass in the 3.50s. To be exact, he covered the 1/8th mile in 3.596 seconds at a top speed of 210.64 miles per hour.
How fast is that? Unbelievably fast, unless you've seen it done. Taylor's Vette is arguably the quickest door car on the planet. Imagine, for instance, that you've just spent $450,000 on a new Ferrari. With enough practice, you'll be able to accelerate your sparkling red 599 GTO -- one of the most potent road cars in the world -- to 60 miles per hour in the same time that it takes Taylor to reach 210.
John Edwin Mason: Pro Nitrous racer Shannon Jenkins performs a burnout, before making a qualifying pass on Friday. Like Taylor, he set a new world record e.t.
World record number two goes to Shannon Jenkins. Running in the Pro Nitrous class, which is a step below Pro Extreme, he made a pass at 3.813 seconds at 198.38 miles per hour, which still seems to defy the laws of physics.
John Edwin Mason: Another qualifying pass, another world record. (Yes, both the conditions and track prep were that good.) This time it was Dan Millen, in the Extreme 10.5 class.
Finally, world record number three, set by Dan Millen, who recorded an elapsed time of 3.858 seconds at 203.09 in the Extreme 10.5 class. Driving a supercharged '11 Mustang, it took him a bit longer to get down the track than Jenkins, but he was going significantly faster at the end. Because they use rear tires that are (theoretically) a mere ten and a half inches across, quite narrow for a drag racers, 10.5 cars initially accelerate more slowly. But they've got a big top end (as they say at the track.)
John Edwin Mason: A fan shows her support for the CarSafe team.
Of course, there's a lot more to see a race than cars and drivers.
John Edwin Mason: Racing photographer Roger Richards captures the action as Pro Extreme driver Tommy D'Aprile shoots past.
A large part of what makes races fun for me is hanging out with other photographers.
John Edwin Mason: Pro Nitrous racer Isaias Rojas, of San Juan, Puerto Rico, performs a burnout, while flying the Puerto Rican flag, during night qualifying on Friday.
Shooting a night is always a joy. And a challenge. The combination a fast cars, billowing tire smoke, and the potential for dramatic lighting is irresistible. Get it right, and you've got some terrific pics.
John Edwin Mason: The night time is the right time for racing photography. Pro Extreme racer Terry Leggett performs a burnout in his '09 Mustang.
As much as I admire Taylor and Millen for what they accomplished at Dragstock VII, I wish they'd paint their cars a nice bright car -- something along the lines of Terry Leggett's beautiful, and fast, Mustang.
John Edwin Mason: Bert Jackson, in Extreme Pro Stock, gets plenty of air as he leaves the starting line during qualifying on Saturday.
If Friday afternoon and evening were a hoot, Saturday was a different story. All it took was one glance at the sky, from my motel window, for me to know that we were all in trouble. It was a dull, gray, heavily overcast day, as you'd guess from this photo of Bert Jackson's Pontiac GTO. (As Jackson would tell you, however, lousy days for photography are sometimes good for drag racing, as long as the rain stays away. Jackson ran a 4.110/176.17, in the Extreme Pro Stock class, to qualify in the top half of the field.)
John Edwin Mason: Threatening skies loom over a near-capacity crowd, as John Stanley performs a burnout during Pro Extreme qualifying on Saturday.
Despite the threat of rain, fans came out in droves. By midday, the nearly every seat in the grandstands will filled.
John Edwin Mason: A crew member guides Pro Extreme driver Ken Walsh, as he backs up to the starting line after his burnout during Saturday's qualifying session.
As long as the weather held, the fans got a heck of a show. And some drama, too. Ken Walsh, for instance, went into the final round of qualifying hoping to better his previous efforts. He didn't and now sits on the bubble, in the number 16 position. He won't learn his fate -- will someone run faster and push him out of the field? -- for another two weeks.
John Edwin Mason: Pro Extreme driver John Stanley's helmet rests of the roof of his car. As you'd guess from the dull light, the rains were about to start.
When the rains finally came, they started as light showers. Everyone hoped that they'd pass on and that qualifying could resume.
John Edwin Mason: Fans kill time in the pits, hoping that the rain showers will end in time for the drivers and crews to get back to the business at hand.
So, folks looked for ways to amuse themselves.
John Edwin Mason: Kids found ways to stay happy, despite the rain.
Not surprisingly, kids easily found things to do.
John Edwin Mason: Fans in vendors' row, hoping to outlast the rain.
Older people ran out of options -- there's only so much time you can spend in the pits and at vendors' displays -- and simply looked for shelter.
John Edwin Mason: My good friends at the Munchie Wagon, purveyors of the world's best track food. Seriously. It's way better than you'd have any reason to expect. It's one of my favorite things about Rockingham.
Of course, eating is always an option. It's hard to believe that the Munchie Wagon crew was still smiling at the end of the day. They were absolutely mobbed by hungry fans during the delay.
John Edwin Mason: The ADRL couldn't control the weather, but it could offer rain-soaked fans the consolation of race T-shirts at bargain basement prices.
In the end, as I've said, the rains refused to let up, and the ADRL had to postpone the race. Not a particularly satisfying result, but drag racing isn't Formula One. You can't slap rain tires on the cars and head down the track. So, some of us will head off to Ohio in a couple of weeks; others will wait for next year.
Dragstock VIII. I've already got it penciled in.
As for Dragstock VII... With a little luck, I'll bring you Part 2 in a couple of weeks.
PS, 11 October 2010: And here it is, Part 2 of my Dragstock VII coverage.