How did you get started in Drag Racing?

[Rose Racing]

Well my dad never raced. The hook was set in 1996 I watched the Winter Nationals and then the GatorNationals on TNN when I was 3. He started taking me to watch that spring and I followed it ever since. I got a Junior Dragster in 2003 and competed in it till 2009 always being the slowest in the class and always leaving first as my dad said if we dont get a fast engine for it we can sell it and get a doorslammer. After we sold it I got a 460 powered No-Box Pinto that I still race today. I first really noticed Stock Eliminator at the 2009 Nationals at Norwalk. I had gotten a 4 day pass on Thurs from the Aragona Brothers while talking to them about Comp as I always followed Super Stock, IHRA Modified and Competition Eliminator. I took notice of Nick Reiter's Charger, Tim Gillespie's GTO and Ben Wenzel's Camaro and thought thats the class for me. I bought my Stocker project in 2016 and I am looking to debut it this April.

[Ed Carpenter]

My dad raced for a long time. First memory is going to Tri City Dragway in Saginaw in 73’ been hooked ever since.

[Terry Cain]

Originally Posted by jimmyparker

Attended the '57 US Nationals at Okla City as a 14 year old paper boy, been hooked every since. Won my first trophy there in '61. I see other racers adding a bit more info so i will do the same.
The race I won my class at in '61was a NHRA Regional, the precurser to divisionals. I won J/SA, still have the trophy, clipping out of the local paper with results and some pages of the ND that covered the race. NHRA added quite a few stock classes in '61 with "L" being the lowest, my Oldsmobile ran "E" in '60.
I remember Dale Ham being at least one OCTA meeting in that era explaining the next years rule changes.
Okla City only lasted a couple or three more years after that with the closest track 70 or 80 miles away.
When I was drafted in Dec, '65 i was sent to Fort Benning, Ga. I asked a local about drag strips and he named off about three that was in the immediate area with 3-4 more in withine 100 miles. That was music to my ears so I, with a little luck spent my whole tour at FB and been here since.

Your tour reminds me of a racing guy I meet at my local track. I was running a M/SA 69 Impala. While under the hood working on it this guy walks up with a uniform on (stationed at Ft. Knox) and a hell of a southern draw. Starts talking about his car he has "back home" . Well, page forward to Indy US Nationals and I see this guy again. We get to talking again and I finally catch his name. Don Wolfe. lol

[Billy Nees]

Originally Posted by Keith 944

Billy Nees, we are waiting for your story….

Well Keith, I'll try and keep it short. In my mid teens, a friend and I went to Island Dragway in 1966 with the big kid in the neighborhood in his spanking new '66 Impala, big block 4 speed car. I would always watch any racing that I could find on TV and I would always get all of the magazines but that trip really did it.
My first run down the track? I went with another friend to watch and talked him into letting me race his '68 Volkswagen in A/S Volkswagen (yes, Island had two stock VW classes) and I won the trophy. Racing that VW might explain a few things!

[Chipper Chapman]

Second gen racer here. Mom's baby shower was held in the tower at our local track, so I geuss it was destiny lol. We raced a lot as I was a young kid and dad had a 67 Camaro E/SA at that time. He had gotten hurt and couldnt work, had to sell everything off and we stayed away a while. We were glued to any racing we could find on tv and the national dragster, car crafts etc during off time. Late 90's life was getting back to normal for us and as a pre-teen I questioned if we could start going back to the track. We went to to watch one weekend and dad asked if i would want a junior, or a big car project. The next week we had project in the yard. Later that summer we were at the track. Thing evolved some over the next few years, and in 2002 at age 15 I got to make my first passes in our 69 Camaro (dad was track announcer and pulled some strings!) going 12.0's with the secondaries blocked off. As time went on a I built and sold a few rides, always keeping an eye on class racing, knowing I'd be there someday. In 2012 got my current 69 Chevelle and cant wait for the winter to be over!

[JP1738]

3rd Generation racer here, and I took the natural route most might say. Started in Jrs at 8, raced them until I was 14, started driving a junkie backhalf car at 15 and bracket/index raced it until now. Now I'm building a stocker so I can have something that is completely my own. Brand new class, car, and friends

[Ellis V Buth]

My dad raced when I was little. Going to the track to watch him and/or my uncle race was how the hook was set. Going to the US Nationals to watch my uncle (and then later my dad as well) run stock was how I got hooked on stock eliminator.

We got my first junior when I was 9 years old and I raced those until I aged out, but started racing my street truck in sportsman class at the local track occasionally as well. Since then, I've been actively racing on some level in door cars every season.

[bigshow2966]

Watching Wide World of Sports in 1970 saw the brand new Pro Stock class and got hooked. Started buying all the car rags to follow Da Grump and Sox. I was 12. Went to US30 as a spectator in 74, made my first pass in 76.

Met up with a buddy of Lyn Smith's in the early 80s and started following Stock and SS.

Helped Mike Jeffrey with his Diplomat for awhile.

Still bracket racing, got most of the stuff to build a nice V/SA car, maybe when I retire in a year or so.

[1700camaro]

My Dad & Stepmom used to take my sister & I to Martin 131 Dragway in the early 70's to spectate a friend racing. It always left an impression in my mind that I wanted to try it when I got older.

Fast forward to 1990, my 1st year to race (brackets). I was book smart & had watched/observed bracket racing. I won a track championship my rookie year. My good friend/racing buddy was a rookie also. I taught him what little I knew & he took 2nd for his 1st year.

As a side note, I went back to Martin 131 Dragway in 2015 to race. My sister & brother in-law went along. We both shed a tear, because our dad /stepmom had passed well before. They were both there in spirit.

[426gtm]

My Dad took me and some friends to Island Dragway in 1963, I was 14 at the time. Dad was a friend of Pete Tritak (later Tritak and Morgan) who drove a 1963 Plymouth MaxWedge for the dealership he worked for Tri-Town Motors in Passaic NJ.

Kids weren't allowed in the pits in those days, so my Dad got Pete to drive the Plymouth over to the spectator side. Well. one look at that engine never mind the sound got me hooked.

I later traveled with Pete and Bill to many races with the "War Wagon" , ended up partnering with Ron Rizzo who had bought the wagon in 1970 and have been racing ever since.

Gary Siderits