A HUNKA, HUNKA BURNIN' CARS AT MEMPHIS

Notes by Jeff Burk, Chris Martin and Ian Tocher.
Photos by Jeff Burk and Ian Tocher

CLOSE CALL FOR DIXON AND A MOTORHOME
Bob Sanders was just an ordinary race fan who thought he'd beat the traffic leaving Memphis Motorsport Park at the conclusion of the 13th annual AutoZone Nationals presented by Pennzoil. Instead, he got caught up in one of the most dangerous off-track incidents in recent NHRA history and wound up leaving long after most fans were well on their ways.

Sanders, 49, said he'd just settled into the driver's seat of his motorhome, turned on the radio to listen to the Top Fuel final, and pulled back the drapes from the windshield just as Larry Dixon crashed his Miller Lite-backed dragster. Then he saw the rear tire from Dixon's stricken machine sailing toward him.

"It was comin' fast," the Campbell, MO, resident said. "I didn't even have time to think about it."

On what would have been an event-winning pass over Gary Scelzi, Dixon's car had suddenly folded like a hinge and crashed at 270 mph near the 1,000-foot mark. The left rear wheel departed the axle and sailed perhaps 200 feet up and into the fan's parking area. The wheel and tire assembly initially landed just a few feet in front of a slow-moving, white Ford pick-up truck and bounced at least twice more before striking a glancing blow along the side of Sanders' camper, well more than a hundred yards from the track. Fortunately, there were few people in the area.

"It made a ton of noise when it hit," Sanders recalled with remarkable calm. "I was surprised to see there wasn't more damage."

A couple of would-be souvenir hunters immediately chased down the tire, but Sanders said he stopped them from taking it because he figured NHRA or Dixon's team would want it back. He was right. He said race officials arrived within a few minutes and carted off the wheel with little comment.

"The whole center was ripped out of it, completely gone," Sanders told a small crowd of curious fans shortly afterwards. He also said the tire appeared inflated when it was confiscated.

"I would never have thought something that big could make it this far back," Sanders marveled. "It could've easily killed someone."

The powerful sparks of these ignitions will ignite high revving, high compression engines to produce great throttle response, a clean idle and incredible power throughout the entire rpm range!



	Capacitive Discharge design produces powerful sparks through high rpm.
	Every spark is at full power, even each multiple spark, for complete combustion.
	Adjustable soft touch rev limiter for engine saving overrev protection.
	Multiple spark series lasts for 20° of crankshaft rotation.



	3-Step Rev Control.
	RPM Activated Switch.
	4-Stage Retard System.
	Start Retard Circuit.

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