Barry Mitchell started the 2024 season with a W in the win column. But as we all know, “we don’t race on paper,” so the season was still far from over for Mitchell. But Mitchell in his supercharged “’Cuda Time’” Barracuda tuned by Todd and Ty Tutterow persevered through a challenging 2024 Big Dog Shootout season at North Carolina’s Piedmont Dragway.
With Mother Nature winning the scheduled April event with rain, the party moved on to May, with Mitchell taking the event over Mike Graham, also taking low qualifier at a great 3.77-second E.T. Travis Harvey experienced motor damage resulting in a big hit to the points program for the nitrous-fed H&H Racing Corvette.
June saw the return of a very familiar name to the winner’s circle after a 12-year absence in one Dale Brinsfield. With superior driving, Brinsfield never missed a beat to qualify at a great 3.81 and defeat Cam Clark in the final. Other semifinalists were Graham and Jamie Chappell, making for a great show for the fans and competitors alike.
July was highlighted by Harvey as the No. 1 qualifier at a great 3.782 and the return of 2017 champ Tim Lawrence to the field. The semis featured Harvey over Mitchell and Brinsfield over Robbie Keziah. With a string of mid-3.70s in his pocket, the “Carolina Kid” went a fine 3.74 with a .030 light to defeat Brinsfield in a close one, with Brinsfield running a 3.76 at 200 MPH to give the spectators their money’s worth.
August had 11 cars on the property to run for the coveted eight spots, and once again, Harvey put the Corvette on the pole with a 3.766 run with Clark No. 2 at 3.794. The semis were highlighted by Harvey over Keziah and Clark over Mitchell. The final was a great run with Harvey’s Corvette recently updated by Robert Hayes running a 3.77 at 200 MPH with a .006 light. Clark was right there, but had a .001 red light to end his night.
September highlights included new records by Clark, who qualified with a 3.719 at 205 MPH to serve notice that this young man intended to take home a porcelain dog before the end of the season. Also of note was the field of 11 cars again with Lawrence returning and Wayne Chambers competing in the car formerly owned by Brett Nesbitt, then PDRA world champ Donny Urban. The semis saw Clark run an incredible 3.66 at 206 but damaging a motor and making him unable to return. Not to disappoint the crowd, Mitchell and company unloaded a 3.71 at 205 MPH on a single to win his second event and take over the points with Harvey second and Brinsfield holding on to third.
The October event, or Allstar event, played host to 14 cars with low E.T. going to Clark’s fine 3.713 with Harvey taking top MPH at 205.5 MPH. This would set the stage for a great event featuring the usual suspects competing for the last “Dog” of the season. With low 3.70s the order of the day, the semis resulted in “’Cuda Time” defeating the “War Eagle” of Jamie and Gena Chappell, and the “Carolina Kid” defeating Clark. An unfortunate red light ended the season for all with Mitchell handing the win to the Harvey team.
However, the result was a points title for Mitchell and the entire WYO Racing group over the Hunt and Harris team with driver Travis Harvey by 9 points. The margin over third was 38, Cam Clark, and 49 over Mike Graham. A total of 18 different drivers took a shot at the “Dog” that only few will attain.
This story was originally published on December 23, 2024. 
