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Dragstock III: A Drag Racing Cultural Icon?
9/19/06
 Photo by Ian Tocher |
I didn’t get to upstate New York in the late ‘60s for Woodstock. I wanted to go but I was doin’ sex, drugs and rock and/or roll in Texas in those years, and upstate New York was just too far away. So I missed it. I sometimes think that I was the only hippie from that decade that didn’t go. Judging from the number of grey-haired geezers with pony tails that claim they were there, at least two million freaks found their way to that farmer’s field and heard Jimi Hendrix play a psychedelic version of the National Anthem. They were there when the thousands just tore down the fences and turned the pay-to-see event into a free-for-all happening that was a legendary and seminal event of the 1960’s -- one of the defining moments of a generation.
Now you are probably asking, “Alright, Burk, what the hell does Woodstock 1969 have to do with drag racing 2006?” Well, my fellow drag racing junkies, let me explain. Just as Woodstock ’69 was a defining moment musically and culturally for that generation Dragstock ’06 may become a racing and cultural milestone for a generation of drag fans and racers.
I’ve seen a few historic races in my career as a journalist and racer. The 25th U.S. Nationals, the IHRA Winter Nationals in Darlington when Bill Kuhlmann broke the 200-mph barrier for door cars, and later at that same track when Mitch Stott made the first 5-second doorslammer pass, and the IHRA event at the Texas Motorplex when Texas racer Eddie Hill made the first sub 5-second pass in drag racing history. But I have to tell you that in my opinion none of those compare as a race to what I witnessed at the American Drag Racing League’s Dragstock III at Rockingham Dragway. It was an event that if you missed will be one that as a drag racing fan you will always wish you had attended.
We all knew that something special was happening when fans and racers were lined up to get in the track before the gates opened at around 9:00 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 15. By 4:00 p.m. the pits were jammed with over a hundred “Outlaw” Pro Mods and 10.5 cars. (That number doesn’t include the cars that couldn’t pass the safety inspection and, yes, the ADRL does have strict safety rules that are enforced.) There was also already a good crowd in the grandstands. Veteran track owner/operator Steve Earwood looked out at the crowd, then leaned over and whispered in my ear, “Son, we might be in a little trouble here. I never thought we’d attract this kind of crowd.”
By the time the first round of qualifying was done that night more than 11,000 people had showed up just to watch Pro Mods and 10.5 cars qualify on the eighth mile. There wasn’t a nitro burning dragster or funny car on the grounds. It was already evident to ADRL president Kenny Nowling, guest announcer Dave McClelland, Earwood, the racers, and the Burkster that something special was happening. But no one, and I mean no one, could have predicted what would unfold at this North Carolina drag strip the following day and night. What did happen was that like Woodstock almost 40 years before, Dragstock III became truly one of the historic and seminal events in drag racing history.
Kenny Nowling had done something that many promoters have done before and that was to give away a huge amount of free tickets to the event through promotions, hoping to help fill the grandstands. What happened is unprecedented. Not only did a large amount of fans use the free tickets, but an equally large amount bought tickets, especially on Saturday. As a result, track owner Earwood had to close the gates to the track at 6:00 p.m. Saturday because the stands and parking were literally full to the brim -- he had no seats or parking left. People filled the seats in the grandstands an eighth of a mile past the finish line. The look in Earwood’s eyes when he told me he had to close the gates was one of complete shock and disbelief. I have to tell you that when any promoter closes his gates and quits selling tickets that borders on Twilight Zone material. According to drag racing historian Bret Kepner, who was also at the event, closing a track to spectators had only happened twice before (that I know of): once at the NHRA World Finals when it was held at Orange County and once at U.S. 131 Dragway for a John Grivins race.
But, just like Woodstock, closing the gates didn’t stop the Dragstock fans. They broke down fences and climbed over gates on both sides of the track and just kept pouring in. Just like Woodstock there weren’t enough bathrooms or concessions to handle the overflowing crowd. Just like woodstock people patiently waited in line for both relief and food for very long periods with almost no fights or arguments. It was obvious that many of the fans were new to drag racing and were there to see and experience everything the sport had to offer.
What the fans at Dragstock III witnessed was drag racing at its best. The show was both fast paced and just plain fast. Thanks to an immaculately prepared Rockingham track surface and a great starting line crew most eighth-mile Pro Mod records in all classes were re-set. Jason Scruggs’s ‘Vette ran an astounding 198+ lap in just 4.81 seconds and backed that performance up for both the speed and ET records in Pro Extreme. Records were also set in Pro Nitrous and Pro 10.5.
The fans were also treated to practically non-stop action which saw two qualifying laps for three classes and eliminations for two 16-car fields and an eight-car field completed before 9:00 p.m. despite two serious oil downs.
There were many, many significant events that occurred over the two days of Dragstock III, but there were three that are burned in my memory. The crowd is the first. Rockingham Dragway was filled to capacity and more with a crowd that came to see fast doorslammers race on the eighth mile. That should forever kill the myth that fans won’t come and watch eighth-mile racing in big numbers.
Second was the look of absolute disbelief of the face of the great Dave McClelland at what he was witnessing. This from a man whose experiences include just about every significant event in drag racing history.
Last but not least was the classic match-up between two of the most legendary drivers in Pro Mod history. “Trickie” Rickie Smith and Shannon “Iceman” Jenkins squared off in a semi-final race. For years these two men have dominated doorslammer racing in the South. They have squared off against each other on some of the shortest, darkest, narrowest, and slickest tracks you can imagine.
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Racing for side money, purses and pride, driving down tracks where the spectators literally stood at the edge of the track. Now these two titans of Southern run-what-ya brung racing were going to duel in front of 20,000 fans. And they gave the crowd what they came to see: a classic race complete with staging dual and mind games. Smith left on Jenkins by a thousandth and Jenkins just got by Smith at the stripe by .009 of a second. That race represents the true spirit of heads-up racing and still gives me chills just writing about it.
They never had another Woodstock like the first and Dragstock III may have been one of those magical once-in-a-lifetime deals, but what happened that weekend in September at Rockingham will have a major impact on the sport for years to come, and eighth-mile heads-up racing will never be viewed the same way by racers, fans, the press or promoters.
