I’ve had a lot of cool and memorable things happen to me over the years at various dragstrips across the country, but I never thought I’d see the day when a fan was so happy about the event he’d just witnessed, that he would walk up to me and take off his own shirt and say, “Here, I want you to have this!”
[Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared in DI #187, the PRO Superstar Shootout Issue, in March/April of 2024.]
Understandably, this was unchartered territory for me, so I was somewhat stunned, but nevertheless accepted the gift. In fact, I just glanced at it as I began writing this column, as it’s hanging on the door knob of my office. Eventually, it will be framed and displayed in the garage, joining all sorts of other wall memorabilia that decorates the space.
The story of how this all went down began on a Wednesday morning in Bradenton, Florida, as I stood in line at the Quality Inn, patiently waiting my turn to check out before heading to the local dragstrip. In front of me was a new friend that I was moments away from meeting, and ironically, it was his shirt (albeit, different than the one he gifted me) that started the whole conversation.
After the gentleman checked out and was walking past me, I commented on his nice Pro Mod t-shirt, and jokingly told him that he was in town a couple weeks early, as the World Series of Pro Mod wasn’t until early next month. He laughed and told me that while he was well-aware of the WSOPM, he wasn’t going to be able to attend, but he did board a plane and fly over from his native Sweden to enjoy the SCAG Power Equipment PRO Superstar Shootout presented by JHG at Bradenton Motorsports Park.
No doubt, there was a buzz of excitement that had spilled over to several continents as race goers were eager to see full fields of nitro cars in competition at Bradenton for the first time in decades. You’d have to go back to 1988 and IHRA’s running of the Super Nationals to recall a major national event featuring nitro cars at Bradenton. Without question, the time-honored Outlaw Snowbird Nationals has stood the test of time and packs in the fans each year to enjoy a wide array of vehicles, including sometimes as many as 6-8 jet cars, but there’s just something about nitro that electrifies the senses unlike anything else in motorsports.
My new friend from Sweden told me how excited he was to be able to visit the states and witness the spectacle that was to come, and as he was leaving the hotel I told him I was sure I’d be seeing him throughout the weekend.
I’ve visited Bradenton many times over the last 15 or so years, and I can honestly say that the feeling in the air was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced at this fabled facility. Even track owner Victor Alvarez was blown away at what this event was shaping up to be, especially when Drag Illustrated Founder Wes Buck took him to the starting line to experience nitro cars for the first time in his life! I caught up with Victor a little later in the day to get his thoughts on being a few feet away from nitro Funny Cars launching with 11,000-horsepower fury. “I think it rearranged my internal organs!” he declared. “I literally felt it before I heard it!” he added, still blown away by the whole experience.
There were so many things I found noteworthy about this event, not the least of which was the wide array of celebrities on hand. As I took it all in from the staging lanes, I watched Funny Car star John Force zooming around the pits all weekend on his scooter, along with internet sensation Garrett Mitchell aka: Cleetus McFarland, as he was suiting up to make a pass in his highly-modified Corvette – in between sessions of buzzing the track with his radio-controlled airplane. A little while later, I saw DI’s own JT Hudson giving “Big Daddy” Don Garlits a ride on a golf cart, all the while wondering if Garlits had any idea of the potential danger he was in while hanging out with JT!
From a performance standpoint, the icing on the cake came on Friday night when Bob Tasca III rocked the house with his historic 341.68 mph blast!
Shortly thereafter came the aforementioned disrobing and gifting of the shirt! At the event’s conclusion, my new friend from across the ocean walked up and began to unbutton his incredibly neat and custom-made shirt, which commemorated 50 years of drag racing in Sweden…and for some crazy and unbelievably generous reason, he wanted me to have it!
I was stunned and tried my best to talk him out of it, but he insisted that it now belonged to me. I didn’t really know what to say, and honestly, still don’t. Drag racing has a tendency to provoke a lot of different emotions, and some of them are simply unexplainable.
This story was originally published on July 15, 2024. 
