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| Salsa! ©2003 Dan Kaplan Photo - Used with permission |
Across the street, a neon sign
"All you can eat - for a dollar ninety nine -
our soul stew is the baddest in the land"
But, one dollar’s worth, was all that I could stand!*
Oct. 2 thru 5, 2003
Famoso Raceway
Bakersfield, CA
Hopping back on the ol' trusty golf cart, it was "Up, up, and away!" (Or how about "Hi-yo Silver, Aw-a-a-a-y!") As we aim it directly at the crowd… give two quick blasts of the horn… and drop the hammer. Had ‘em parting like the Red Sea, too. The G-Man commented on how this place had filled up since this morning… and it’s only Friday. And he’s right. Guess the word is out on this deal. Man, there’s people everywhere! But the crowds don’t slow us down.
Glad I dropped by when I did. Got to sample homemade taquitos dipped in three different grades of salsas - Gas: for the high octane crowd - Methanol: with something a little more fiery injected into the mix - and NITRO: you know the drill by now, tip the can… label and all! These items were supplied courtesy of Dan and Kathy Kaplan. There was a rumor circulating about a secret Hydrazine formula salsa possibly making its debut next year? Time will tell. And let’s not forget the homemade beef jerky brought all the way from Northglenn, Colorado by Pete Garramone.
And then there was that Mexican style Guacamole dip… crafted from an ancient Chinese recipe handed down through countless generations. Being prepared while we watched in awe by Chef Roger Lee. Yep, the model car guy… whose craftsmanship will also be on display later this evening at the DoubleTree Hotel back in Bakersfield during the Annual Reunion Reception and Awards Presentation. Roger was accompanied as usual by his lovely wife Julie, who is one of the best storytellers you’ll ever encounter. Just ask her about her travels around the world, or about Roger’s accomplishments at model building, sports car building (the full size kind), or sports car driving. Matter of fact, Julie herself was a SCCA Driving Champ back in 1991 and Roger won the same Championship a season or two later. Cool couple, no?
One more thing about this lunch break… see if you can top this. I was on my third helping of taquitos and salsa, when the quiet of the moment was shattered by the bark of a NITRO engine coming to life, up close and personal. Parked right next to our encampment? The original Frantic Four themselves. "Stormin" Norman Weekly, Ron Rivero, Jim Fox, and Dennis Holding.
Seems like they thought this would be a perfect time to fire up their beautiful recreation of the Ron Pepmuller built giant killer. So, here I am… sitting in the shade, feet up, chowing down on some great munchies, sipping on a cold brew, AND… breathing NITRO fumes. Between occasional whacks on the throttle of the NITRO burning Hemi parked just a few yards away can be heard the sound of the Gasser’s qualifying session out on the track. Oh, and don’t forget… all the while surrounded by good friends, interesting passers by, and other assorted freaks and weirdoes. Like I said… see if you can top this. Man, we ain’t approaching Nirvana… we passed it about a half-hour ago!
Wow… got side tracked once more. Anyway, now that I’ve relished in the quality of the creative concoctions of these cunning culinarians (hmmm… sounds like real a tongue twister), it’s time to leave the safety and comfort of the shelter and do battle once more with the gathered masses. But as I stated earlier, one or two blasts from the horn, and most jump right out of the way.
Arriving safely at the John Bradley/Max Romero trailer over in South Purgatory once again, we’re greeted by the sound of the old NITRO burning flat motor in full Rondo (there it is kids… today’s esoteric word). There’s just enough time to inhale some fumes before a smiling Max gives J.B. the ‘kill it’ sign.
After John climbs out of the domestic digger I comment that it appears he found a replacement part for the magneto drive… showing off once again, my keen sense of the obvious.
"Yep," he replies.
My next question… "Who’d you get it from?"
"One of the Top Fuel teams had a few spares and gave one to us" he said.
"Which Top Fuel team?"
"Well, they never told me their names and I forgot to ask."
Sound familiar? A nameless racer stepping up to help out a fellow racer. Seems there’s always a lot of that going on around here.
Damn, this afternoon has flown right by. Seems like a good time to head back to the Vagabond Inn, jump in the shower, then head over to the DoubleTree to check out this evening’s informal car show and Reception. Part of the goings on at the Reception will be the introduction of this year’s Honorees.
Among those Honorees will be the previously mentioned John Bradley. And why not? John won his first trophy back in 1954, welded together his first dragster in ’55, and never looked back. Sometime back in the 60’s he even ran a twin Flathead powered dragster. Hell, in 1981 he ran an astounding 196 MPH at the El Mirage dry lake with a dragster/lakester! And he’s still winning races today!
Before heading out to the parking lot, we make another pass by the BankAmericar to check up on the boys. Yep, they’re still going at it. And still got a long way to go. They’ve moved some more of the pieces from their old 392 over to the 417 Donovan that was donated by Don Green (of the Rat Trap Fuel Altered) but they’ve still got that dragging oil pan problem (among countless other minor things) to overcome. Looks like it’s gonna be a long night for these guys. And it is getting late… it’ll be dark before you know it.
Out in the parking lot we wipe a thick coat of dust from the windshield of the rented Buick (Buidek?) Park Lane before heading back to Bakersfield. Would’ve been fun to ‘stretch it out’ a little but Route 65 seems to have attracted a whole lot of California’s Finest this year. Maybe later?
After dinner at In-N-Out it’s time to go take on the crowd at the DoubleTree. Now, if you think the crowd at the track is bad… you GOTTA see this crowd. It’s as thick out in the parking lot as it is inside. Out in the lot are a few hundred street rods with a few race cars thrown in the mix. Tony Nancy’s got his recently finished front engine dragster parked front and center out in the parking lot, everyone’s waiting to see if it ‘fires up’… it doesn’t. There’s a cool flame throwing Camaro parked somewhere out here attracting a lot of attention. And sitting inside the lobby entrance is the ‘Pure Heaven’ Fuel Altered. Man, you gotta feel sorry for anyone that checked into this place hoping to get a quiet night’s rest. It ain’t happening here!
Got lucky and found a seat inside the Reception Room. Usually can’t make it half way through the lobby because of the crowd… think we got here a little earlier than in the past. Wow, looking around you can’t help but notice this is a room full of Drag Racing history (and Royalty). Once again, I find myself looking around, thinking, "How to hell did I get in HERE?"
A few hours later, back at the Vagabond, I’m totally worn out from the day’s activities… but still plan on getting up about 4:00 AM to take my yearly ride to a sleeping Famoso Raceway. As I’m drifting away to sleep, a crew of hardcore enthusiasts with visions of Saturday’s Cacklefest in mind, continue to thrash away on the BankAmericar under the glare of portable lights. No rest for the weary? More old B.S. later
Badco
badco@comcast.net
