End Of An Era: The Book Closes On Shakedown Nats After 10-Year Run

All great things must come to an end.

It’s a fact of life that we all have to face at some point, and it’s a fact that hit the drag racing community hard last week when popular racer and promoter Dave Hance announced that the 10th annual Shakedown Nationals at the storied old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown, N.J. would be the last.

Said Hance in a prepared statement on the Shakedown Nationals website:

“I would like to thank all of our racers, sponsors, fans & vendors for supporting the Shakedown Nationals drag race event for 10 great years. The Shakedown race started out as a 12 car shootout and ended in its 10th year with 271 high powered teams doing battle down the famed E’town 1/4 mile drag strip. There have been many record setting moments over the last 10 years, and I will cherish them all. The Shakedown race was never perfect, and please know we always did what we thought was best for the race.

Our 10 Shakedown events & single Palm Beach event were awesome. However, to continue promoting additional events at this time is not feasible for my family and me.

We thank Englishtown for the opportunity to work together for 10 great years.”

The announcement blindsided the drag racing faithful, who were still riding high from a another spectacular Shakedown just a few days earlier. This year’s rendition wasn’t without its frustrations however, as a mass computer malfunction caused a five-hour delay in the Saturday qualifying program, followed Sunday by the premature end to eliminations as the county-imposed curfew came and went. Nonetheless, the Shakedown was Shakedown, headlined by Tim Lynch’s all-time quick 4.02 blast in Outlaw 10.5, the 5.78 posted by Pro Modified racer Jose Gonzalez, and great racing across the board.

The Shakedown Nationals, formerly known as the Shakedown at E’Town during its first nine years of existence, had become one of the premier heads-up drag races on the planet — an event that attracted the top doorslammer racers from all across the nation for a record-setting affair that simply had no equal. From historic moments to near tragedy, the Shakedown had it all. Unlike many events, however, that run their course and fade away, the Shakedown only gained traction in popularity and racer numbers during its ten-year run.

As we’ve seen time and again, nothing is impossible or forever in drag racing when you bring a few determined minds and some money to the table, and while the Shakedown Nationals would appear to be dead in the water for 2013, we’ll reserve ourselves from calling the Shakedown gone entirely. At least we hope not.