“Some segments of the market are in huge, just unbelievable trouble. I’ve been in business since the early 70’s, and this is my fifth recession. It’s probably going to be the worst one, and I think that if you’re under 30 and you’ve never lived in a down economy, or worked in one, you need to understand that it will get better. Some parts will come back, and some won’t. That’s just the way it is.” – Chris Alston, Sr.
It’s good to be Rick Riccardi. When he’s not up to his ears in high performance parts earning his keep as Manager of the Motorsports Division at Downs Ford in Toms River, NJ – a career any Ford buff would be jealous of – he’s having the time of his life rowing the gears on his high-winding Hot Street 1981 Capri.
Since the beginning of his racing career, Charlie Booze, Jr. has taken a methodical approach to drag racing and is known for making oddball combinations go fast, winning races, and ultimately earning multiple championships. “Familiarity and knowledge of the car has paid huge dividends for us,” said Booze. “These cars have gotten progressively faster and faster since the first time we raced in NMRA Hot Street in 2003. We started out running 9.20 ET’s and now we are almost running 8.20’s. So it’s really the same car, and a second faster.”
Yellowbullet is about more than just tech, news, and bench racing – everyone’s free to have their own opinion, as long as they’re ready to be told exactly how wrong they are. We check in with the man of the hour – Monty Mikho – to see what’s up.
“Big Daddy” Dwayne Gutridge may just be the most decorated racer in drag radial history. From his early days with the NMRA to joining the six second club he has always been one to be in the spotlight. His recent trip to the ORTC was not exactly what he had in mind but he promises to be back and better than ever.
A Brief Interview with Ryan Hargett inching closer to ADRL debut of new 1970.5 Camaro
by
Andrew Wolf
on
March 1, 2010
Ryan Hargett and team are inching closer to the debut of their brand new Jerry Bickel-built 1970.5 Camaro in the ADRL’s Pro Nitrous division. The trick new car will initially be powered by a 780 cubic inch, Motec electronic fuel injected powerplant before switching to a larger 858 cubich inch bullet later in the season. We discuss with Ryan the progress on the build as well as some of the features that are being implemented.
Pat Musi is a name known all over the dragstrip. Before he made a name for himself as a Pro Street Champion with the NMCA and NSCA circuits back in the 1990s, Musi raced against the likes of Warren Johnson, Bob Glidden, Lee Shepard, and the rest of the NHRA Pro Stock legends of the late ‘70s and ‘80s. Let’s talk to Pat and see what’s shaking.
Not only is Dan Millen winning races over here in the United States, but now he is winning them in different countries. The ADRL (Arabian Drag Racing League) is another series Millen is starting to compete in. We talk to Dan about his trip to Qatar and he released some interesting information – including the sale of his Outlaw 10.5 Mustang.
“This just did not just happen. No way.” It wasn’t a reaction to running the first pass in the sixes. Instead, that was David Hance’s first reaction after spinning out and hitting the wall at the Shakedown at E-Town late last year. A great racer is not someone who can go out there a few times and run some good runs. It’s a racer who can make a few runs then fall really hard, get back up and make a record pass. That is what David Hance did and we spoke with him about the road to the six second barrier.
Paul Major started out like any other high school kid with a love for cars and street racing. His first car was a ‘72 Monte Carlo that was packed with nitrous, running in the high 12’s with a small block nitrous combination, it fed his fever early. Eventually, Major found his way to the drag strip for some legal racing, and his obsession just went from there. He’s not just a racer, but a Corvette guy through and through. We got to talk to Major and get the background on his past and what he is doing today.
Jim Blair has worked his way up from nothing into the stardom of 10.5 Tire Heads Up racing. Along the way he picked up two championships: the first in 2004 winning the NMRA Super Street Outlaw Championship and the second with the NMCA in the very competitive Super Street 10.5W 2007 season. His clean silver Mustang is one of the few small block Procharger combinations that can hang with the big boys, thanks to the help he gets from ATF, Scorpion Performance, and his crew. We sat down with Jim and got talked about his different experiences and thoughts.
It’s a rough way to earn a nickname – A nitrous-fueled explosion on the starting line in Phoenix back in 2000 added “Fireball” to the list of names people have called legendary NMRA Super Street Outlaw racer John Urist. Surprisingly, though, for a man who has won an unprecedented four championships in the class, and has successfully run practically every combination allowed by the rules, most of that list is complimentary. We sat down with Urist to get his take on the class and his future.
Heads Up racing, by its nature, is a sport that thrives on innovation and progression. It requires time, effort, and dedication, as well as money and sacrifice, to be competitive. This competitive nature drives the car owners and drivers who run in the sport to push the level of their equipment, and more often than not their upgraded components, to achieve a higher level of performance. Dan Millen fits these requirements and blows them away. Check out what he had to say in a recent interview.
