Nostalgia drag racing is a form of
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 c ...
using cars from the 1950s, 1960s and lately the 1970s.
The cars raced are a mixture between restored originals, while others are re-creations of older cars.
[ Today, nostalgia drag racing events are held in the United States from coast-to-coast run by organizations, groups, tracks along with the ]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 motorsp ...
and IHRA. Nostalgia drag racing is gaining in popularity as the original drag racers become old. There are many nostalgia drag racing teams trying to preserve the vehicles and racing culture of the 1960s and 1970s.
History
After Henry Ford started making automobiles more affordable for Americans by manufacturing them on an assembly line, it wasn't long until people started racing them. Drag racing is defined as straight line speed races. Initially highly illegal, the first legal drag racing track was set up on an Orange County Airport runway in 1950 by C.J. Hart in Santa Ana, California.[ In 1999 he also joined the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America.][
Though 'drag racing' began with the meeting of the first few automobiles, its real allure began in the 1950s, fueled by such writers as Henry Felsen and the need for excitement not hindered by war and the Great Depression. ]Chuck Klein
Charles Herbert Klein (October 7, 1904 – March 28, 1958), nicknamed the "Hoosier Hammer", was an American professional baseball outfielder. Klein played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies (–, –, –), Chicago Cubs ...
revived the 50s nostalgia of this era with set-in-the-fifties hot rod intensive books ''Circa 1957'' and ''The Way it Was, Nostalgic Tales of Hot Rods and Romance'' and his columns in ''Street Rod Action Magazine'' and ''Nostalgia Drag World''.
Drag racing has continued, with six types of cars used: Top Fuel
Top Fuel is a type of drag racing whose dragsters are the quickest accelerating racing cars in the world and the fastest sanctioned category of drag racing, with the fastest competitors reaching speeds of and finishing the runs in 3.62 seconds ...
, Funny Cars, Pro Stock, Pro Stock bikes, Top Fuel Dragsters and Pro Stock trucks.nitromethane
Nitromethane, sometimes shortened to simply "nitro", is an organic compound with the chemical formula . It is the simplest organic nitro compound. It is a polar liquid commonly used as a solvent in a variety of industrial applications such as in ...
fueled, can accelerate from 0 to 100 mph in under a second and can reach 330 mph.[ Funny cars are fueled by nitromethane and ]methanol
Methanol (also called methyl alcohol and wood spirit, amongst other names) is an organic chemical and the simplest aliphatic alcohol, with the formula C H3 O H (a methyl group linked to a hydroxyl group, often abbreviated as MeOH). It is a ...
, use a forward mounted engine on an aerodynamic carbon fiber car body.[ Pro stock bikes are nitromethane-powered motorcycles which are regulated similarly to pro stock cars. Top Fuel Dragsters were built specifically for drag racing, use 90% nitromethane and 10% alcohol with an engine just ''behind'' the driver and use a parachute to slow them down at the end of a race.][ Pro stock trucks use gasoline.][
Nostalgia drag racing started in California in 1981 when old racers started using their front-engine "slingshot" dragsters, funny cars and Super Stockers to race again at Fremont drag strip also known as Baylands raceway park where the N.D.R.A. "nostalgia drag racing association" was formed by Tom Prufer along with partners Brian Burnett & Ken Foster in 1981 kicking things off with a match race between T V Tommy Ivo's Rislone jet dragster vs. the " California Kid" 32 ford from the movie of the same name staring Martin Sheen
. After Fremont closed in Dec. 1988 the W.C.T.A. "west coast timing association" was formed by the same 3 people at Sacramento raceway and a competing series was introduced at Sears Point raceway.]NHRA Museum
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 motorspo ...
started the Hot Rod Heritage Series, which has races across the U.S. with most of the points races on the West Coast. The Cacklefest features push starts with flames shooting out of the zoomies and the smell of nitro in the air everywhere. The March Meet The March Meet is an independent drag race held at Famoso Raceway, a dragstrip located approximately ten miles north of Bakersfield, California. It began in 1959 under the sanction of the "Smokers Car Club" and was initially known as the "US Fuel & ...
at Famoso Raceway
The Famoso Bakersfield Raceway dragstrip is located in McFarland, California just north of Bakersfield, California, and is known historically as the home to the annual March Meet, also known as the U.S. Fuel and Gas Championships.
The strip, loc ...
is the biggest sporting event in California every March.
Marion County Nostalgia Funny Car Nationals
File:MarionCountyNostalgiaFunnyCarNationals.jpg, 2010 Marion County's Nostalgia Funny Car Nationals
See also
* Historic motorsport
Historic motorsport or vintage motorsport, is motorsport with vehicles limited to a particular era. Only safety precautions are modernized in these hobbyist races. A historical event can be of various types of motorsport disciplines, from road ...
References
{{reflist
External links
Great Lakes Nostalgia Funny Car Circuit
Nostalgia Drag Racing Association
Nostalgia Drag Racing League
Old photos of nostalgia dragsters, and other race cars and boats
Nostalgia Drag World
Goodguys Rod & Custom Association
American Nostalgia Racing Association Inc.
Nostalgia Drag Racing – Spence Family Racing
Drag Racing Events
Sandhaus and Sheppard Nostalgia Dragster
Supporting Nostalgia Drag Racing – Eagle2Team.com
Hot Rod Heritage Series
Drag racing
Historic motorsport events
Nostalgia in the United States