The sport of drag racing lost two of its greats this week with the passing of Lou Gasparelli and Joe Mondello.
Gasparelli, a long time West Coast Division 7 runner, died on Monday at the age of 68 after a long bout with cancer. Lou collected several national event wins and divisional championships in Top Alcohol Funny Car in the latter part of a career that spanned several decades, later stepping into an ownership role in 1998 while his son, Steve, took over the driving chores. Although he largely campaigned within his home division, Gasparelli was widely considered to have one of the best running machines alky floppers in the country. In 1971, he was one of the first on the West Coast to construct a purpose-built car for the then gas-powered BB/FC class.
Lou Gasparrelli is survived by his wife Vickie, brother Michael, son Steve, daughter Shari, daughter-in-law Janina, and grandchildren Jillian and Tobin.
Mondello was the first high performance manufacturer in the 1960’s to create a national parts distribution program for hardcore racing parts, with vendors that included Speedway Motors, Gratiot Auto, New England Speed Warehouse, and others. His cylinder heads were the first in drag racing to exceed 200 MPH, as well as the first to break the 7, 6, and 5-second barriers from Top Fuel to Top Gas. From the Bonneville Salt Flats, to LeMans, sprint cars and boa racing, Mondello’s cylinder heads have been a part of it. Discuss the automative aftermarket and the conversatio will inevitably include references to Joe.
Born on August 6, 1936, Mondello is considered to be the high performance leader in the Oldsmobile segment and in fact, his tech manual on 1964-1990 Oldsmobiles was given a GM part number. His lifelong love of the automobile has provided countless contributions in technology to the industry, and his level of integrity and professionalism were second to none. Joe was a 2006 inductee in the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame and is enshrined in four other Halls. He most recently relocated to Crossville, TN, where he taught his craft at his Mondello Technical School. He was 74.
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