In the mid ‘80s my wife and I were at Indy and hanging with our friend Galen Rogie. It was his last race, as he had gotten married and his new wife hated him racing. Anyway, he told me that the previous year, while finishing second in Division 1 in Top Alcohol Dragster and sixth in the whole country, he and partner John Campany had a combined income of only $21,000. And Campany had been married long enough to have a kid already. It blew me away! Galen made $12,000 as a truck mechanic and John made $9,000 as a meat cutter.

The car had early Veney heads on it and lots of good parts, but the only major spare parts were one rod and one piston. The trailer was home made and the tow vehicle was an early ‘70s Suburban. By the way, the Veney heads on Rogie and Campany's car were bought used from Art Gallant, who won the Gator Nationals this year.

What you can't do with a very little money, a lot of skill, and a ton of desire.