'Mad Man' Takes Texas Opener
Words by Bubba Corzine
Photos by David Elrod (prestagephoto.com)
The bad boys of the Texas Outlaw Pro Mod Association opened the 2006 season at Texas Raceway with 14 cars attempting to qualify for the eight-car show. Most teams showed up with new paint, new cars, or improvements under the hood.
After two rounds of qualifying, the pole was held down by beautiful ‘53 Corvette of Bobby Booth from Crosby, TX, with a 4.108 at 174.32. The field was anchored by TOPMA newcomer Heath Harvey in his Ken Thomas-prepped '92 Pontiac Grand Prix.
The first round opened with the “Mad Man” Frankie Taylor (lead photo) posting low ET with a 4.062 at 179.23 trouncing of Rick Cates' '67 Nova.
The next pair produced the first upset of the year when Thomas "Slick" Meyers, sporting new Charlie Buck horsepower, strapped a hole shot on Gaylen Smith (shown) and powered away with a personal best of 4.177 to a slowing 4.368 for the "Texas Bounty Hunter" Camaro.
Ken Thomas's "Bad Bird" Firebird received a bye run when H.T. Wilson’s Pontiac had clutch problems and could not stage. Thomas’s bye run produced a 4.237 only to break a connecting rod in the shut down area.