SOLO SHOTS

THE DAY THE ORANGE BARON SHOT DOWN A SNAKE

(DRO file photo)

4/8/05

n January 1, 1976, and on the lip of the San Francisco Bay, the late and lamented Fremont Raceway held its annual New Year's Day show which, as in past seasons, featured eight nitro and alcohol Funny Cars. The bought-in stars ran for two rounds with the two low elapsed times coming back in the final for the overall eliminator title. To the surprise of many, the two finalists were not defending 1975 NHRA Champ Don "the Snake" Prudhomme's Army Monza or the number two '75 finisher, Gary Burgin and his "Orange Baron" Mustang II. Burgin lost two of his three races (a consolation round was held in concert with the final), and Prudhomme mortally wounded his mount in his first pairing of the new year, a rod-bending 6.55, 207.85 nod over the aforementioned Mr. Burgin.

With the 20-20 historical hindsight that history provides, little did anyone realize at the time that these two would later stage possibly the greatest NHRA Funny Car final of the time when they met to decide the 1976 U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis.

As most recall, certainly those in their 30s and beyond, 1976 was one of four most brilliant years enjoyed by "the Snake," the second of four consecutive NHRA Funny Car World Championships, and as in the earlier year and following two, you could see it coming. Prudhomme savaged the NHRA competition. He began by winning the Winternationals with a 6.02 best, on the heels of his first Funny Car 5-second run at Ontario Motor Speedway a few months earlier. He then routed fields at the Gatornationals, the Springnationals, the Summernationals, and the annual Canadian boozefest, the Le Molson Grandnational in Montreal to remain undefeated in NHRA competition going into the U.S. Nationals.

(DRO file photo)

His 1976 exploits were not constrained to just NHRA national events, because he also gangstered the match race circuit as well. In the "W" column were the Irwindale 64 Funny Car show, NHRA pro points races at Fremont, Seattle, and Cincinnati, and the Super Stock Magazine Nationals in York, Pennsylvania. In one incredible stretch from the Springnationals on June 10-13 to an August 6th match race with "TV Tommy" Ivo's Nationwise/Rod Shop Dodge Sport, Prudhomme lost exactly one race, that being a Martin, Michigan final to Ivo when he had to shutoff a hundred feet past the starting line. In that time period, Prudhomme's win-loss mark was a spine-cracking 30-1. Obviously, he was THE favorite in any Funny Car final, NHRA, match race or IHRA.

Which brings us to Burgin. The Stanton, Calif., driver, as noted, finished second in 1975, but did not win a single event. Moreover, he didn't make a final, but he was a very competent racer who could rack up the round wins, enough wins that kept him ahead of the Ed McCullochs, Gordie Bonins, Tom Procks, and Raymond Beadles of the world. As good as he did in 1975, Burgin concentrated more on the IHRA circuit in 1976, although he made most of the NHRA races as well. For Burgin, this proved to be a wise move.