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The Wally
''The Wally'' is the trophy awarded to winners of an NHRA national event. They have been handed out at national events starting with the 1969 NHRA race season. With an antique brass plating over a standard metal mix and a solid walnut base, the "Wally" (named after NHRA founder Wally Parks) is 18 inches tall and weighs 12 pounds. Contrary to popular belief, the Wally trophy does not feature Parks himself, but is rather modeled after Top Gas racer Jack JoneAccording to the June 30, 1995 edition of National Dragster, in early 1969 Jack Jones was at his day job, and got a call from Wally Parks. Parks asked him if he would be willing to pose for pictures for a trophy at Pomona Raceway. Pomona is a 16 minute ride from Glendora where the NHRA is based. Jack agreed and a number of pictures were snapped, including the now iconic photo of him with his safety equipment and a tire. Later that year, the famous Wally trophy was introduced. It is the same design as in 1969. Background The NHRA w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
NHRA
The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) is a drag racing governing body, which sets rules in drag racing and hosts events all over the United States and Canada. With over 40,000 drivers in its rosters, the NHRA claims to be the largest motorsports sanctioning body in the world. The association was founded by Wally Parks in 1951 in California to provide a governing body to organize and promote the sport of drag racing. NHRA's first Nationals was held in 1955, in Great Bend, Kansas. The NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series, the national event series which comprises 24 races each year, is the premier series in drag racing that brings together the best drag racers from across North America and the world. The NHRA U.S. Nationals are now held at Lucas Oil Raceway in Brownsburg, Indiana and are officially called the U.S. Nationals. Winners of national events are awarded a trophy statue in honor of founder Wally Parks. The trophy is commonly referred to by its nickname, “Wally”. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joe Amato (dragster Driver)
Joe Amato (born June 13, 1944 in Exeter, Pennsylvania) is an American dragster driver, who won the NHRA Top Fuel championship five occasions and scored 52 event victories, most of them with crew chief Tim Richards. He was the first driver to exceed 260 mph and 280 mph in competition. Early life and education Amato began racing cars as a teenager, when he worked at his family's auto parts store. He dropped out of high school to help run the store when his father had serious heart problems; eventually, Amato built the business into Keystone Automotive, a large and successful automotive wholesaler and distributor. Racing career Between 1982 and 2000, Amato finished in the Top 10 every year and, in 1983, earned his first Top Fuel victory in Montreal in 1983. His final career victory came in Reading, Pennsylvania in 2000. Eye surgery forced him to retire from competitive driving at the end of the 2000 season. He then participated as a team owner until selling the busines ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Drag Racing
Drag racing is a type of motor racing in which automobiles or motorcycles compete, usually two at a time, to be first to cross a set finish line. The race follows a short, straight course from a standing start over a measured distance, most commonly , with a shorter, distance becoming increasingly popular, as it has become the standard for Top Fuel dragsters and Funny Cars, where some major bracket races and other sanctioning bodies have adopted it as the standard. The is also popular in some circles. Electronic timing and speed sensing systems have been used to record race results since the 1960s. The history of automobiles and motorcycles being used for drag racing is nearly as long as the history of motorized vehicles themselves, and has taken the form of both illegal street racing and as a regulated motorsport. History Drag racing started in the 1940s. World War II veterans were prominently involved, and some early drag races were done at decommissioned aircraft b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tony Pedregon
Tony Pedregon (born March 8, 1965) is a 2-time NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Funny Car Champion from Torrance, California. He is also the youngest of the Pedregon brothers. His brother Cruz Pedregon is the 1992 and 2008 NHRA Mello Yello Series Funny Car Champion. Racing career Early Days In 1993 Pedregon qualified for his first NHRA event driving a Top Fuel Dragster. In 1995 he ran a limited Funny Car Schedule for car owner Larry Minor. John Force Racing Days In 1996 Pedregon made his debut at John Force Racing driving a funny car. In his first season with the team he made seven final round appearances, winning his first career event at Atlanta Dragway, Atlanta and finishing 2nd overall in season points under car owner John Force. He was also named the inaugural winner of the Automobile Club of Southern California Road to the Future Award. In 1997 Tony beat brother Cruz in the first ever funny car final between brothers. He was also the number one qualifier in three events ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gary Scelzi
Gary Scelzi (born August 11, 1960) is an American dragster racer and midget car owner who has won the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Top Fuel championship on three occasions and the Funny Car title once. In 1997 he won the title in his first full year of competition, after replacing Blaine Johnson, who had been killed at the 1996 US Nationals, while leading the top fuel championship, in the Johnson family-owned car. He has not competed in NHRA competition since the 2008 season. Racing career Scelzi was hired by Alan Johnson to replace his brother Blaine, killed in a crash at the U. S. Nationals in 1996. Ironically, Mike Neff, Scelzi's crew chief for the 2005 Funny Car championship, moved to John Force racing to drive starting at the 2007 ACDelco Las Vegas Nationals to replace Eric Medlen, who was killed in a testing crash after the Mac Tools Gatornationals in 2007. Scelzi went on to win three Top Fuel championships, but at the end of the 2001 season, with the Alan Johns ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Don Prudhomme
Don Prudhomme (born April 6, 1941 in San Fernando, California), nicknamed "The Snake", is an American drag racer. He was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1991. Racing career Prudhomme crewed for "TV Tommy" Ivo on Ivo's twin-engined slingshot in 1960. In 1962, Prudhomme was a partner in the Greer-Black-Prudhomme fuel digger, which earned the best win record in National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) history,''Hot Rod'', 12/86, p. 29 sidebar. before switching to Funny Car. He would win the NHRA FC championship four times in his 35-year career. He earned the nickname "The Snake" in high school. He was the first Funny Car driver to exceed . After trouble getting the "vaunted" Gilmore Engineering-chassied '' Donovan Engineering Special'' dragster sorted out, Tom McEwen quit, and was replaced by Prudhomme, then owner-driver in the B&M Tork Master-sponsored car. In 1965, Prudhomme faced Hot Wheels teammate McEwen at the Hot Rod Magazine Championship Dra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Hight
Robert Hight (born August 20, 1969) is an NHRA drag racer and president of John Force Racing, and driver of the Auto Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car. He is a three-time NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Funny Car champion, with titles in 2009, 2017 and 2019. His 2009 title gave the JFR team its 15th championship, while his 2017 title was the team's 19th crown. Hight has finished in the top 10 in points in all but one of his 14 competitive seasons (the exception being the 2020 season, when JFR only ran two championship rounds due to the COVID-19 pandemic). Hight grew up in Alturas, California but now lives in Yorba Linda, California. Early career After a number of years as a fan, Hight eventually joined a team, and became a clutch specialist for John Force Racing in 1995. He worked as a crew member until 2005, when he was named a driver, teaming up with John Force John Harold Force (born May 4, 1949 in Bell Gardens, California) is an American ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jason Line
Jason Line (born July 24, 1969 in Wright, Minnesota) drives the KB Racing Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro Pro Stock car in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. Line resides in Terrell, North Carolina with his wife, Cindy, son, Jack and daughter, Emma. Living just a few miles away from the Brainerd International Raceway in Brainerd, Mn, Jason became an avid drag racing fan as a kid while learning engine repair and performance tricks from his dad who was considered an "ACE Mechanic" and Muscle Car enthusiast in the area. Jason acquired a 1970 Buick GS as a teenager and went to work on perfecting it in its stock form, took it to the track, and quickly began cutting impressive reaction times and consistent wins. In a short time he won the locally coveted 1993 NHRA Region 5 championship and went on to win the NHRA National Stock Championship that same year. Awards *51 career NHRA wins (49 in Pro Stock as well as 2 in the Sportsman Classes) *Has a career best E.T. of 6.455 seconds, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Andrew Hines
Andrew Hines (born May 25, 1983 in Villa Park, California) is a six-time National Hot Rod Association Pro Stock Motorcycle champion. He was the flagship Screamin' Eagle/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson V-rod. Andrew follows in the footsteps of his brother and crew chief, Matt Hines (NHRA Champion 1996, 97, 98). The team is headed by the legendary duo of Terry Vance and Byron Hines. Career statistics 2014 *Secured his fourth world championship during the season ending event in Pomona *raced to six wins *posted two runner-up finishes during the year *won the inaugural MiraMonte Records Pro Bike Battle in Sonoma 2013 *Raced to only victory of the season at Charlotte 2 *Posted a semifinal finish at Denver *Qualified a season-best third at Houston * Finished outside top 10 points standings for only second time in his career 2012 *Had career-best season with six wins in 11 final round appearances *finished second in championship points standings 2011 *Set his career-best E.T. and spee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Antron Brown
Antron Brown (born March 1, 1976) is an American drag racing driver, currently driving the Matco Tools Top Fuel dragster for AB Motorsports in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series. Brown is the first African American champion in drag racing history, winning the Top Fuel dragster championship in 2012, 2015 and 2016. Early life Brown lived in Trenton, New Jersey until age six, when his family moved to his grandmother's 10-acre farm in rural Chesterfield Township, New Jersey following the death of his grandfather.Caldwell, Dave"Sprinter Turned Driver Is a Quick Study in Acceleration" ''The New York Times'', August 30, 2009. Accessed November 26, 2013. "Brown, a 33-year-old native of Chesterfield, N.J., could become the first African-American to win a major N.H.R.A. championship.... Brown lived in Trenton until he was 6. When his grandfather died, his family moved to his grandmother’s 10-acre farm in Chesterfield, in the rural part of Burlington County." His father Albert ran ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wally Parks
Wallace Gordon Parks (January 23, 1913 – September 28, 2007) was an American writer. He was the founder, president, and chairman of the National Hot Rod Association, better known as NHRA. He was instrumental in establishing drag racing as a legitimate amateur and professional motorsport. Biography Parks was an accomplished automobile writer and hobbyist, and co-founder and first editor of the magazine ''Hot Rod'' in January 1948. He was also instrumental in the founding of ''Motor Trend'' magazine in September 1949. As editor of ''Hot Rod,'' he began to promote safety in the organization of drag racing, both in the magazine and by organizing "Safety Safaris," the first of which toured the United States in 1954, teaching drag race organization and safety at tracks around the country. This was the first concerted effort in getting racers off the streets and onto controlled race tracks. In 1951, he founded the National Hot Rod Association, which stands today as the largest mot ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kenny Bernstein
Kenneth Dale Bernstein (born September 6, 1944) is an American drag racer and former NASCAR and IndyCar team owner. He is nicknamed the "Bud King" for his success in the Budweiser King funny car and dragster. He has also been nicknamed the "King of Speed," because he was the first driver to break 300 miles per hour in the standing-start quarter mile. Bernstein owned King Racing, which he drove for in the NHRA and fielded various cars in other racing series such as IndyCar and NASCAR. Bernstein retired from full-time competition in 2002 and moved his son Brandon into the Bud King Top Fuel dragster, but returned to finish the season in place of his son after Brandon suffered a severe injury. With the exception of a brief return to Funny Car in 2007, Bernstein did not return to the car and instead continued to run his team until the end of the 2011 season when he left drag racing altogether. Early life Bernstein attended Monterey High School in Lubbock, Texas; he played o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
