2025 Island Dragway 65th Anniversary Review

Island Dragway Celebrates 65th Anniversary & Funny Car Throwdown
Report & Photos by Rob McCabe

Island Dragway celebrated its 65th Anniversary and Funny Car Throwdown on August 3rd under picture-perfect summer skies. Nitro and Nostalgia Alcohol Funny Cars, the East Coast Fuelers, Blown Altereds, and the Mid Atlantic Nostalgia Pro Stocks all put on a show for the packed crowd.

The action kicked off with the Island Dragway debut of the Mid Atlantic Nostalgia Pro Stocks (MANPS). Four cars participated, starting with regular campaigner Steve Wegner from Maryland, driving the Grumpy’s Toy XVI ’81 Camaro with 632 cubic inches under the hood. He faced off against Caldwell, NJ’s Anthony Aromondo Sr. in a 1988 Chevy Monte Carlo SS with 500 CI. Unfortunately, this round was a bust—Aromondo left before the tree activated, and Wegner followed shortly after. No times were recorded.

Next up: Long Island’s Kyle Speizio in “The Teenager,” a 1970 Camaro, faced MANPS regular Doug Polley in the small-block-powered Grumpy’s Toy X ‘74 Vega. Speizio left first and pulled away for the win, running 10.936 at 120.34 mph to Polley’s 13.107 at 103.02.

Then came the East Coast Fuelers with a pair of blown alcohol dragsters—Jim Cummings in “Seconds of Pleasure” versus Ed Bliss Jr. in the “River Rat.” Bliss got the win with a 9.210 at 165.17 over Cummings’s 9.552 at 112.01.

The next pair featured the only altered in the group, Jimmy Danko’s “Bustin’ Loose” Fiat, going up against Jim Gloyd’s nitro-burning small-block dragster. Danko was quicker off the line but had to shut down by the 1000-foot mark, allowing Gloyd to take it with a 7.980 at 152.07 to Danko’s 9.547 at 73.27.

Altereds kept rolling with Mike Geroni lining up against “Nitro” Joe Morrison in the PennGrade High Performance Oil Fiat. Geroni completed the burnout but couldn’t get the car into reverse. Morrison took a solo pass, clocking 7.221 at 179.42 mph.

A dozen Nostalgia Alcohol Funny Cars packed the pits. Round 1 began with Chris Massarella’s “Total Insanity” Monza taking on Mike Hall in Bob Rosetty’s “Funny Farmer” ’71 Pinto. Massarella laid down a 6.790 at 202.36 to beat Hall’s 7.224 at 170.73.

Next, Cody Helger’s Rhode Island-based “Dazed & Confused” Camaro faced Matt Stambaugh’s “Generation-X” ‘74 Vega. Both laid down side-by-side passes, with Stambaugh edging out Helger 6.511 at 201.10 to 6.650 at 207.21.

Then came a Jersey showdown: Frank Barnard from Jackson in the “Poison Arrow” Plymouth squared off against Point Pleasant’s John Cerchio in the “Warpath” Buick Somerset. Cerchio jumped the beams, handing the win to Barnard, who pedaled to an 8.438 at 112.57.

Longtime rivals Dave Sano (in the Wayne Celko-tuned “Screamin’ Insanity” ’70 Dodge Challenger) and Joe Pirrone (driving the “Super Camaro”) went head-to-head next. Despite tricky midday track conditions, Pirrone pulled out the win with an 8.462 at 146.51 to Sano’s 11.563 at 66.74.

The final pair of round 1 saw Drew Sweetman in the “Frantic Ford” ’77 Mustang line up against Rob Bundy’s “Shellshock” ’72 Vega. Sweetman got the win with a 7.206 at 194.49 over Bundy’s 7.469 at 173.85.

The last car out in round 1 was defending Funny Car Throwdown champ Jon Wall in the “Cape Codder” ’81 Plymouth Arrow. Wall posted low ET and top speed of the round with a 6.450 at 211.03, earning a spot in the final against Stambaugh.

And the funny cars weren’t done yet—two nitro cars were set to clash. NHRA/IHRA nitro star and Hackettstown, NJ native Terry Haddock made the trip from Texas with his “Fool’s Errand” ’74 Vega to take on Jim Gifford’s “Svengali” 2002 Firebird. Old school vs. new school. Gifford got it done with a 6.792 at 139.59 to Haddock’s 10.070 at 92.85.

Round 2: Let’s Do It Again

Round 2 of the show cars opened with Pro Stocks again. Round 1 winner Kyle Speizio took on Scott Wegner. This time, Wegner had the upper hand, running 8.698 at 162.49 as Speizio had issues. Wegner came back later with the best Pro Stock run of the day—a stout 7.941 at 173.07.

Aromondo also got a clean pass in, running a troubled 12.744 at 65.44.

In round 2 of the East Coast Fuelers, Cummings and Bliss rematched. Bliss had the advantage off the line but ran into problems, and Cummings drove around for the win with an 8.805 at 151.02, splitting the match 1–1.

The rematch between Gloyd’s small-block nitro digger and Danko’s “Bustin’ Loose” Fiat played out just like the first time. Danko was better off the line, but Gloyd got the win and low ET with a 7.664 at just 115.90 mph, to Danko’s 9.749 at 63.94.

Blown Altereds continued with Geroni finally getting a full run. He faced Morrison, who nailed the light with a .023 and powered to a 7.207 at 179.04, beating Geroni’s 7.618 at 126.77.

Funny Car Consolations and the Final Showdown

Consolation rounds for the Alky floppers started with Massarella vs. Barnard. Barnard red-lit, giving the win to Massarella’s 8.488 at 174.05. Barnard tossed away a solid 7.060 at 181.20.

Drew Sweetman and his “Frantic Ford” lined up against Helger’s “Dazed & Confused.” Another red-light—this time from Helger—handed Sweetman the win with a 7.579 at 188.44. Helger threw away a 6.841 at 216.38.

Next, Pirrone’s “Super Camaro” squared off against Hall’s “Funny Farmer” Pinto. Pirrone showed why his car’s a force, running 6.436 at 217.32 while Hall ran into issues.

Then came a “Battle of the Shore” between Cerchio’s “Warpath” and Sano’s “Screamin’ Insanity.” Sano had the better launch, but Cerchio took the stripe with a 7.399 at 152.23 to Sano’s 7.800 at 131.57.

That set the stage for the final: defending champ Jon Wall in the “Cape Codder” vs. Matt Stambaugh’s “Generation X.” Both drivers left clean, but Stambaugh shook hard and coasted past the 330. Wall blasted to a winning 6.336 at 212.96—low ET of the event and a successful title defense.

Nitro Final & Licensing Passes

The nitro floppers came back for round 2. Both drivers fought the track, but Gifford managed to go 2–0 over Haddock with an 8.928 at 93.65 to Haddock’s 10.840 at 94.81.

Finally, Andy Good made licensing passes in the “Angry Clown” Dodge Challenger Nostalgia Alky Funny Car. He posted an 8.919 at 128.01 on the first run. The second was less fortunate—he got out of shape and took out a timing block.

With four nostalgia classes, modern muscle, NETO racers, and a car show, Island Dragway’s 65th anniversary celebration lived up to the hype. A fitting tribute to a legendary Northeast dragstrip.