Shirley Muldowney (born June 19, 1940), also known professionally as "Cha Cha" and the "First Lady 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 ...
", is an American auto racer. She was the first woman to receive a license from the
National Hot Rod Association
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 ...
(NHRA) to drive a
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 ...
dragster. She won the NHRA Top Fuel championship in 1977, 1980, and 1982, becoming the first person to win two and three Top Fuel titles.
She won a total of 18 NHRA national events.
Racing career
Born Shirley Ann Roque in
Burlington, Vermont
Burlington is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the seat of Chittenden County. It is located south of the Canada–United States border and south of Montreal. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 44,743. It ...
, on June 19, 1940, Muldowney began street racing in the 1950s in
Schenectady, New York
Schenectady () is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-largest city by population. The city is in eastern New Y ...
. "School had no appeal to me. All I wanted was to race up and down the streets in a hot rod," declared Muldowney.
[ When she was 16, she married 19-year-old Jack Muldowney, who built her first dragster.
]It was Jack Muldowney who first taught me how to drive a car. Jack was the mechanic. He was the guy who tuned the cars that let the girl beat all the boys. I was a kid from upstate New York with no guidance, no direction. I was headed for trouble, nothing going for me. Then I found the sport at a very young age and was able to make something out of it.
In 1958, Muldowney made her debut on the dragstrip of the Fonda Speedway. She obtained her NHRA pro license in 1965. She competed in the 1969 and 1970 U.S. Nationals
United States nationality law details the conditions in which a person holds United States nationality. In the United States, nationality is typically obtained through provisions in the U.S. Constitution, various laws, and international agree ...
in a twin-engined dragster in Top Gas Top Gas (T/G) is a former NHRA drag racing professional class.
Analogous to Top Fuel, Top Gas was a pro class, and allowed dragsters (T/GD) as well as bodied cars.
Several noteworthy cars ran in Top Gas. One of the early streamliners, ''Scuderia ...
.[ With Top Gas losing popularity, Muldowney switched to ]Funny Car
Funny Car is a type of drag racing vehicle and a specific racing class in organized drag racing. Funny cars are characterized by having tilt-up fiberglass or carbon fiber automotive bodies over a custom-fabricated chassis, giving them an appea ...
, buying her first car from Connie Kalitta
Conrad "Connie" Kalitta (born February 24, 1938) is an Americans, American businessman and former drag racing driver, nicknamed "The Bounty Hunter". Kalitta is the CEO of Kalitta Air and the owner of Kalitta Motorsports.[n 2007
N, or n, is the fourteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''en'' (pronounced ), plural ''ens''.
History
...]
" she later said.[
Muldowney won her first major event, the ]International Hot Rod Association
The International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) is the second-largest drag racing sanctioning body after the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA).
The Carrier Era 1971-1987
The IHRA was formed in November 1970 by businessman Larry Carrier. Througho ...
(IHRA) Southern Nationals, in 1971.
She stepped up to Top Fuel, getting her license in 1973[ (making her the first woman to do it), behind the wheel of Poncho Rendon's digger; ]Don Garlits
Donald Glenn Garlits (born January 14, 1932, Tampa, Florida) is an American race car driver and automotive engineer. Considered the father of drag racing, he is known as "Big Daddy" to drag racing fans around the world. A pioneer in the field o ...
signed her application, one of three signatures she needed to make it official; the other two were Tommy Ivo
Tommy may refer to:
People
* Tommy (given name)
* Tommy Atkins, or just Tommy, a slang term for a common soldier in the British Army
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Tommy'' (1931 film), a Soviet drama film
* ''Tommy'' (1975 fi ...
and Connie Kalitta.) From 1973 to 1977, she teamed up with Kalitta as the ''Bounty Hunter'' and ''Bounty Huntress'' in match race
A match race is a race between two competitors, going head-to-head.
In sailboat racing it is differentiated from a fleet race, which almost always involves three or more competitors competing against each other, and team racing where teams consis ...
s, in a pair of Ford Mustang
The Ford Mustang is a series of American automobiles manufactured by Ford. In continuous production since 1964, the Mustang is currently the longest-produced Ford car nameplate. Currently in its sixth generation, it is the fifth-best selli ...
s, hers a Buttera chassis, and his a Logghe. The ''Bounty Huntress'' Mustang caught fire at Dragway 42 in Ohio in 1973.
In Columbus, Ohio
Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...
, in 1976, Muldowney dominated Top Fuel, qualifying number-one by 0.05 second, setting low elapsed time (ET) and top speed of the meet, having the low ET in every round, breaking her own top speed record in the final, and winning the class. An unprecedented three NHRA Top Fuel Dragster world championships followed, in 1977, 1980, and 1982.
Muldowney's success met enormous opposition from those who felt drag racing (or any form of motorsport, for that matter) was no place for women. Garlits has said about her:
Now, if you ask who do I have the most respect for, I'd say Shirley Muldowney. She went against all odds. They didn't want her to race Top Fuel, the association, the racers, nobody...just Shirley.
Muldowney noted, "NHRA fought me every inch of the way, but when they saw how a girl could fill the stands; they saw I was good for the sport."[
A crash in 1984 crushed her hands, pelvis, and legs, necessitating half a dozen operations and 18 months of therapy.][ Muldowney was sidelined for a long period, but returned to the circuit in the late 1980s. She continued to race, mostly without major sponsorship, throughout the 1990s in IHRA competition, as well as match-racing events. She returned to the NHRA towards the end of her career, running select events until her retirement at the end of 2003.
Muldowney was described by longtime drag racer Fred Farndon as the "best 'natural' driver (top fuel or funny car), no question."
Her recent activities include the dictation of her memoirs, ''Shirley Muldowney's Tales from the Track'', which Bill Stephens transcribed, and which Sports Publishing L.L.C. published in 2005.
]
Health issues
In March 2016, Muldowney disregarded a cancer scare to be the official starter of the Amalie Oil NHRA Gatornationals. Having been given a diagnosis of lung cancer prior to the event, Muldowney was later given a diagnosis of histoplasmosis
Histoplasmosis is a fungal infection caused by ''Histoplasma capsulatum''. Symptoms of this infection vary greatly, but the disease affects primarily the lungs. Occasionally, other organs are affected; called disseminated histoplasmosis, it can ...
, a curable and nonmalignant fungal infection that can mimic cancer.
Shirley's Kids
Muldowney operates a charitable organization, Shirley's Kids, which helps children in need in cities where drag racing is part of the community.[Shirley's Kids](_blank)
Retrieved Apr. 29, 2018.
Film depiction
The 1983 biopic
A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of a non-fictional or historically-based person or people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from docudra ...
''Heart Like a Wheel
''Heart Like a Wheel'' is the fifth solo studio album by Linda Ronstadt, released in November 1974. It was Ronstadt's last album to be released by Capitol Records. At the time of its recording, Ronstadt had already moved to Asylum Records and rel ...
,'' about Muldowney's life and career, starred Bonnie Bedelia
Bonnie Bedelia Culkin (born ) is an American actress. After beginning her career in theatre in the 1960s, Bedelia starred in the CBS daytime soap opera ''Love of Life'' and made her film debut in ''The Gypsy Moths''. Bedelia subsequently appeare ...
. Muldowney would rather have had Jamie Lee Curtis
Jamie Lee Curtis (born November 22, 1958) is an American actress, producer, children's author, and activist. She came to prominence with her portrayal of Lt. Barbara Duran on the ABC sitcom '' Operation Petticoat'' (1977–78). In 1978, she m ...
play her; she called Bedelia "a snot," and stated, "When she was promoting the movie on TV shows, she would tell interviewers she didn't even like racing. She got out of race car like she was getting up from the dinner table."[ Muldowney had mixed feelings about the film itself, stating, "No, the movie did not capture my life very well at all, but more importantly, I thought the movie was very, very good for the sport."][
]
Awards and honors
*In 1975, she was voted the first woman member of the 10-person Auto Racing All-American team by the American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Association.
*In 1976, she was named Drag News Top Fuel Driver of the Year and voted to the Auto Racing All-American Team for the second time.
*In 1977, she won the NHRA Winston world points championship, becoming the first woman to claim drag racing's most prestigious title. She was the recipient of "Outstanding Achievement Award" from the United States House of Representatives on October 14, 1977, and was named the ''Drag News'' Top Fuel Driver of the Year for the second straight season. Shirley also was named ''Car Craft'' magazine Person of the Year during the annual ''Car Craft'' Awards Banquet, Indianapolis, Indiana. She was the first Top Fuel driver to win three NHRA national events back-to-back.
*She was the NHRA Winston world points championship for the second time in 1980.
*The next year, she won the AHRA world championship and was voted to Auto Racing All-American team for the fifth time. ''Car Craft'' selected her to the All-Star Team, and Top Fuel Driver of the Year, for the second year in a row.
*In 1982, she won the NHRA Winston points championship, becoming the first person to claim drag racing's most prestigious title three times. She was voted to the Auto Racing All-American Team for the fifth time.
*In 1990, she was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America
The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (MSHFA) is hall of fame that honors motorsports competitors and contributors from the United States from all disciplines, with categories for Open Wheel, Stock Cars, Powerboats, Drag Racing, Motorcycles, Sp ...
.[Shirley Muldowney]
at the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America
The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (MSHFA) is hall of fame that honors motorsports competitors and contributors from the United States from all disciplines, with categories for Open Wheel, Stock Cars, Powerboats, Drag Racing, Motorcycles, Sp ...
*In 2001, she was ranked number five on the National Hot Rod Association's 50th-Anniversary list of its Top 50 Drivers, 1951-2000.
*In 2004, she was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame
The International Motorsports Hall of Fame (IMHOF) is a hall of fame located adjacent to the Talladega Superspeedway (formerly Alabama International Motor Speedway) located in Talladega County, east central Alabama. It enshrines those who have c ...
.
*In 2005, she was inducted into th
Automotive Hall of Fame
*In 2008, ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
ranked her 21st on its list of the Top 25 Drivers of All Time, citing her record as the first woman to win a major racing championship.
In popular culture
Her name appears in the lyrics of the Le Tigre
Le Tigre (, ; French for "The Tiger") is an American electronic rock band formed by Kathleen Hanna (of Bikini Kill), Johanna Fateman and Sadie Benning in 1998 in New York City. Benning left in 2000 and was replaced by JD Samson for the rest ...
song "Hot Topic
Hot Topic, Inc. (stylized as HOT TOPIC) is an American retail chain specializing in counterculture-related clothing and accessories, as well as licensed music. The stores are aimed towards an audience interested in rock music and video gaming, ...
."
Samples from the movie made about Shirley are heard in the lyrics of the L7 song "Shirley
Shirley may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Shirley'' (novel), an 1849 novel by Charlotte Brontë
* ''Shirley'' (1922 film), a British silent film
* ''Shirley'' (2020 film), an American film
* ''Shirley'' (album), a 1961 album by Shirley Bas ...
on the Hungry for Stink album"
Crypto Currency
On October 7, 2022 the NHRA Coin Shirley Muldowney Edition NFT became available on the OpenSea
OpenSea is an American online non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace headquartered in New York City. The company was founded by Devin Finzer and Alex Atallah in 2017.
OpenSea offers a marketplace allowing for non-fungible tokens to be sold directly ...
NFT
A non-fungible token (NFT) is a unique digital identifier that cannot be copied, substituted, or subdivided, that is recorded in a blockchain, and that is used to certify authenticity and ownership. The ownership of an NFT is recorded in the ...
Marketplace.
References
Sources
*McClurg, Bob. “50 Years of Funny Cars: Part 2” in ''Drag Racer'', November 2016, pp. 35–50.
External links
*
Shirley's Kids
Listen to a live radio interview with Shirley Muldowney.
NHRA COIN
{{DEFAULTSORT:Muldowney, Shirley
Living people
1940 births
Sportspeople from Schenectady, New York
Racing drivers from New York (state)
Dragster drivers
Female dragster drivers
International Motorsports Hall of Fame inductees
American female racing drivers
21st-century American women