Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last six months, you’ve either seen or heard of the quirky new internet sensation known as the Harlem Shake which, if you happen to be from Harlem, is not the same Harlem Shake dance that originated there in 1981. This internet meme has exploded with popularity, to the tune of more than 40,000 Harlem shake videos on YouTube garnering more than 175 million views as of early February. And now, even the drag racing community is getting in on the fun.
To get those of you under a rock up to speed, the present-day version of the Harlem Shake involves a large group of people performing a comedy skit of sorts that’s accompanied by a roughly 30 second excerpt from the song “Harlem Shake” by recording artist Baauer. The video typically begins with a scene in which everyone is going about their usual business, aside from one character – often wearing a helmet or some sort of head gear – unabashedly dancing around them. When the bass drops, the video cuts to the crowd doing a convulsive dance using strange props, costumes, and anything else they can to create a wild scene. From large crowds at sporting events to a few guys sitting around an office, it seems everyone is doing the Harlem Shake these days.
NHRA Funny Car competitor Tony Pedregon and his American Racing Wheels-backed team joined the ranks of this insanely viral phenomenon last week after they produced their own version of the Harlem Shake in their Brownsburg, Ind. shop. As his crew works away on the race car, Pedregon dons his helmet and begins to dance for the camera. What ensues is pure hilarity, as members of his crew can be seen doing the “Worm” in a Spiderman costume and dancing in a Panda suit, among other things.
Popular jet dragster pilot Elaine Larsen and her crew also produced a video recently. The video begins with Larsen, in full racing garb, dancing in the shop while her crew works on the race car. Like Pedregon’s, what follows is a comedic scene of the entire crew dancing around the race car – with the jet engine firing burner pops all the while.