72 Hours with the Omlin/Alexander TF Team

By Pete Omlin with David Hapgood

Gary Omlin. Photo by Kurtis J. Wood/Quincy Valley Post-Register

Earlier this summer I asked Pete Omlin if he might be interested in keeping a daily journal at the AHRA World Finals in Spokane. His father, TF driver Gary Omlin, would be competing at the event in Dean Alexander's dragster, and there were a number of reasons why this was going to be a special occasion. First of all, it would be the team's maiden outing: Omlin had just signed on as the new driver, bringing a sponsor along with him -- DAA Motorsports and RV auction. It would also be the first time in thirty years that Omlin would drive a top fueler that was not his own. Last but not least, Alexander's car was already a two time AHRA Spokane champion -- with Terry Capp in 2000 and Craig Smith in 2003.

During its last outing the car had run within four hundredths of the AHRA top fuel ET record. Expectations were running high for the team. I knew Pete Omlin as his dad's biggest fan, and that I could count on him to provide excellent commentary throughout the weekend: he came through with flying colors. What follows is an insider's account of the trials and tribulations of running a modest TF operation. It is also a son's portrait of his father, a man who has been driving rear engined top fuel cars since 1975 and one of the sport's true 'nice guys.' Gary Omlin's career story can be found at http://www.draglist.com/stories/SOD-Jul-2002/SOD-072802.htm. The team's website is: www.topfuelrenegade.com -- David Hapgood hapgood_d@hotmail.com

S P O K A N E  J O U R N A L  2 0 0 5 -- by Pete Omlin

Thursday, 8-4-05 Houston, TX

I can't wait to get up to Spokane and see Dad race with the new team. I really enjoy watching him run his own car, but I'm very curious to see him in a role as a driver/consultant. I'm sure it will be different for him, but bottom line, if he gets to go out and drive faster than ever, it should be fun.

Dad picked me up at the Spokane airport at 6:30pm. Took him to dinner for his b-day (the 7th). Great to catch up on all the news. You can just see the excitement on his face, and I can't wait to see him drive tomorrow.

Friday, 8-5-05 Spokane Raceway Park

Photo by Greg Harvey/DAA Motorsports

First day at the track. Car looks great with the new lettering on it, and DAA Motor Sports and RV Auction (new sponsor arranged by Dad) logo. This should be a great weekend. I grew up watching my dad drag race TF cars countless times over the years, but this event should be something else. The track at Spokane is old and not conducive to the type of numbers that cars can put up at NHRA tracks, but everyone on the team has experience here, so we should do alright.

The Omlin/Alexander TF team. Photo by Greg Harvey

5:00pm. Quick safety run. Dad planned on going 300 feet, went twice that. Car went nice and straight.

Friday night's burnout. Photo by Kurtis J. Wood

First qualifying pass: Expected to run late, but didn't anticipate that it would be 11:00 before we got to run! Spokane time, I guess. Evidently there's a 10-car field. After the announcer finally got Dad's name right, he went out and ran a 5.51 at 265 mph. Not a bad 1st run. Dad, Dean, and crew were pleased, everything seemed intact, so we decided we'd head to the hotel, and get back at it Saturday.

Saturday, 8-6-05

Qualified #4 after last night's run, so there's no need to make a pass during the afternoon. Will work on tuning it, and getting ready for tonight. Dad said they ran real conservative last night, since it was his first full pass in that car, the first time the car has run in 2 years, a new crew, etc. Stepping it up tonight. They've made some adjustments to the car and are using 90% nitro, whereas last night was about 84%. Let's see.

Massive header flames. Photo by Kurtis J. Wood

Gary Omlin on his way to a career best. Photo by Kurtis J. Wood

10:30pm. Wow! We were all hoping for a good run, but this was GREAT! Ron Smith had just recorded a 5.23, so I was hoping we could run a 5.20. I set the camcorder on a tripod near the starting line, hit 'record,' and got out of the way so I could enjoy the run with my own eyes. I'd made the mistake of trying to film the run last night, and I just don't like watching through the 2" viewfinder... I like to se it live. Dad did his burnout, and they're definitely a bit different with this car. I've gotten used to his monster burnouts that drive the fans crazy. These burnouts seem much shorter, less aggressive, and I didn't know how they might correspond to the runs (Dad later explained that, "The car consumes an awful lot of fuel. I was very aware of that and limited myself to doing only what was necessary.")

Green light, Dad went, good reaction time. I knew as soon as he was at half-track that it was a good pass. He got down the track seemingly quicker than anyone else, so I was excited. The announcer sounded excited, too, when he said, "#1 qualifier," and the crowd and crew went nuts. I had to run to look at the tower clock, since everyone was so loud. (editor's note: SRP's scoreboards are mounted on the side of the tower, impossible to view from the starting line). Dad had just gotten another personal best... 5.153 at 281.46 mph! Amazing! I'll be smiling about that for a long time to come.

I stayed near the starting line to watch the other cars, and see whether or not our pass would hold up as #1. It did. Mitch King and his well-funded operation took the #2 spot with a 5.19. We're in for a rematch of last year's 1st round... Dad against CJ Nelson. Only last year CJ was the #1 qualifier and we were #8. This year we're #1. I got back to the pits and there were smiles all around and tons of Dad's friends, family, and fans had stopped by to congratulate him. What an experience. I would've loved to have seen his face when he heard the news at the end of the track. My brother Ty told him the news, and that brought a big smile.

Talked to Dad in the pits, he said he knew he was in for a great run when the tires didn't smoke at all. "The car did exactly what it was supposed to do: we had a marginal track, put a conservative tune-up in it, we found a groove and put the car down the track." Later we found out, after looking at the computer, that we basically ran on 7 cylinders most of the way. Had we had all 8, it could've been a 4.90 at or near 300 mph. Wow! 5.15 is an amazing pass on that old track. A 4.90 would have been outstanding. Nobody has ever run in the fours at Spokane.

The team with Gary Omlin in firesuit and car owner Dean Alexander standing to his immediate left. Photo by Greg Harvey

The KB 497 powerplant. Photo by Greg Harvey

I'm so happy for Dad. He deserves this. It was also great to see that the car was unhurt, and the guys were able to go to the hotel and sleep with smiles on their faces. Ty and I hung out with Brady and Ward from the crew, barbecued at midnight, and basked in the excitement. We'll be back at 8 a.m. tomorrow and ready for a great day of racing. If the track holds up maybe we can win the thing.

Sunday 8-7-05

Let's hope for some luck on Dad's birthday. Ty and I arrived at the track, and I couldn't help but notice that officials were very friendly to us... perks of being sons of the #1 qualifier, I suppose. One of the nicest compliments I received was from Annette, who was checking people in at the pit entrance. She said, "Tell Gary he's raised a couple of fine sons, and I can definitely see where they get it." I told her that if I could be half the person that my Dad is, I'll be doing well. It was nice to hear everyone wishing Dad well, saying how he's such a nice guy, deserves it, etc.

En route to the staging lanes. Photo by Pete Omlin

Time to roll. Photo by Greg Harvey

The Omlin/Alexander TF dragster. Photo by Greg Harvey

After last night, the crew, Dad, team owner Dean Alexander, and everyone else were pumped up, hoping for a great day of racing. I didn't think anything could sour our mood. So in round 1 eliminations, Dad chose to run last, and took the spectator lane. Things were looking good on the burnout. Unfortunately, his opponent CJ Nelson had mechanical issues, i.e., trouble getting the fuel pump switched to high, and it took him a lot longer than it should have to get his car staged. The adrenaline took over for Dad, and he left before the tree was activated. That's the first time in his 30-year career that he's ever done that. No red lights in 30 years. I'm sure it won't happen again.

Then the car lost a blower belt at half track, and though we didn't get an ET (since Dad took off before the tree activated) I could tell that after losing the blower belt the pass wouldn't have been fast enough to win. CJ Nelson ran a 5.74, and there's no way Dad's run was under 6 seconds. Even if Dad hadn't left early, there's no way his run would've beat Nelson. It was definitely tough losing in the first round, especially after running so well last night. I asked Dad what happened, and he said that he tried to force the race and that adrenaline took over. He kinda smiled and said, "It's been a weekend of career firsts." Two career best runs followed by the first time he's ever jumped the gun.

That first round was also his first side by side pairing in a year (both of our qualifying runs were solos). "We were fortunate to have gotten two mistakes out of the way at once," he explained. "The driver made a mistake and then 2 1/2 seconds later we broke the blower belt. If you can get mistakes out of the way two at a time, you're ahead of the game." Losing early was a disappointment but I've already moved on and it's still great to look back on last night.

I was impressed when CJ Nelson came over to our pits after the match and asked to talk to Dad. CJ apologized for taking so long to get staged, explained the mechanical issue, etc. Dad told him 'thanks,' but explained that it was his own fault for forcing things, not CJ's. Dad had actually been planning on going over to CJ's pits to wish him good luck, but CJ beat him to it. I thought it was a classy thing to do, and I was definitely rooting for him to win the event after that. Unfortunately CJ lost to Don Sosenka in the next round.

Now that the weekend is out of the way, it's on to bigger and better things. Car owner Dean Alexander was pleased with the team, and if they're serious about racing 3-4 times next year, Dad and the car will only get quicker, faster, better. Let's hope this is the start of something big. It would be exciting if I could translate my marketing experience to drag racing and help my dad's racing team with sponsor sales in the years to come (Editor's note: Pete is an executive producer for a couple of reality TV programs that are currently being shopped to networks. One of his many duties on these projects was raising money through the sale of sponsorship/product placement). The future looks bright for Gary Omlin and Dean Alexander's Top Fuel racing team.

Pete Omlin
tfrenegade@unsignedrock.com