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CLASSIC THUNDER ROLLS AT DARLINGTON
Words and photos by Ian Tocher
Rudy, SC's Jason Melton qualified his 1948
Anglia number-one in B/Gas, then went on to meet and beat Mike Peake's
Chevy-powered Ford truck in the final.
Classic Thunder nostalgia racing visited Darlington International
Dragway for the first time on Nov. 30, and while the spectator count
was a little underwhelming, the car count was good, and the on-track
action couldn't have been better.
To separate A/Gasser from B/Gasser, the quickest eight
from a field of 18 attempted qualifiers went on the A ladder, with the
next eight placed on the B ladder. Robbie Draughon, from Fayetteville,
NC, ended up on top with a 5.276 at 132.74 mph over the eighth-mile
course. To prevent sandbagging in the B/Gasser ranks, Classic Thunder
officials set a breakout index 1/10-second below the 6.456 that Jason
Melton went to pace the field with his 383 Chevy-equipped '48 Anglia.
Robbie Draughon qualified first for the Classic
Thunder A/Gasser field with his nitrous-assisted, single-carb 358-powered
1948 Thames panel truck. Draughon fell in the first round to number-eight
qualifier Frankie Gurano in a '48 Anglia, however.
Kyle Bond, who lives just a few miles from
the Darlington strip, won the A/Gasser final over Heath Daniel. Bond
ran a personal best 1/8-mile ET of 5.369 in qualifying third at Darlington,
but has gone as quick as 8.59 at 158 mph in the 1/4-mile with his beautiful
blown '33 Ford.
David Goodson towed his 1969 Camaro convertible
all the way from Anniston, AL, and grabbed the number-one spot in Super
Comp with a 5.148-sec pass at 134.60 mph. He advanced to defeat number-two
qualifier Ervin Rose's 1970 Nova in the final round.
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