On Saturday, January 17, a near capacity crowd watched as some of the greatest drivers in the National Hot Rod Association performed mock runs at the PRO Winter Warmup. Now in it’s fifth year, the event welcomes Top Fuel and Funny Cars to Palm Beach international Raceway to shake down their several thousand horsepower machines in advance of the regular season. Although the field of cars was smaller than in recent years, the action on track was just as intense!
Noticeable in their absence was John Force racing, whose motorcade had, in past years, taken up the majority of space at the far end of the paddock.
This year, the IHRA’s Larsen Motorsports, whose jet dragsters compete on the Nitro Jam circuit, were on hand to entertain and educate the fans. Their five car team thrilled the spectators with a show of light, sound, and smoke as they whisked their way down the track at a top speed of 250 miles per hour.
On a normal night at the dragstrip, that would be impressive. However, the PRO Winter Warmup is no normal event! Spectators were able to experience the full sensory overload that are commonplace at a major NHRA event for less than $30/person. Feeling the very air shake as the cars zoom by; having your eyes tear and your ears throb as the teams test before each run; getting up close and personal with men and women who you only get to see on television.
On the Funny Car side, one of the quickest runs of the night came when “Fast” Jack Beckman in the Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge Charger outdid himself with a time of 4.003 at 321.58 mph. Beckman was going 273 mph at the eighth-mile mark.
Beckman’s teammates were not as lucky, and failed to make it down the track. Chad Head, who missed the first run after having to fix the firewall on his Toyota Camry, ran a strong 4.054 at 314.53 mph.
In Top Fuel, Spencer Massey brought the crowd to their feet on a 3.741, which is the quickest pass of the day, at a booming 332.02 mph. His rail was going 292.01 mph at the eighth-mile mark.
Top Fuel Best Runs Spencer Massey, 3.741, 332.01 Tony Schumacher, 3.745, 318.92 Antron Brown, 3.772, 321.59 Larry Dixon, 3.783, 322.88 Doug Kalitta, 3.803, 324.75 Leah Pritchett, 3.811, 314.17 Dave Connolly, 3.817, 284.69 Shawn Reed, 4.237, 276.92
Funny Car Best Runs Jack Beckman, 4.007, 321.58 Chad Head, 4.054, 314.53 Tommy Johnson, Jr., 8.054, 75.09 Ron Capps, 8.451, 81.71 Matt Hagan, 8.550, 81.56
It will be interesting to see if the relatively small field at PBIR translates to small fields at the national events as well. As one of the assembled crowd commented, however, it’s great to see just one run!
About Me: Adam has been a race fan since the first time he went through the tunnel under the Daytona International Speedway almost 30 years ago. He has had the privilege of travelling to races all across the state of Florida (as well as one race in Ohio), watching nearly everything with a motor compete for fame and glory, as well as participating in various racing schools to get the feel of what racecar drivers go through every week. Adam has spent the last three years covering motorsports for Examiner.com., where he had the opportunity to see the racing world from behind the scenes as well as the grandstands. He invites everyone to follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus, and looks forward to sharing his enthusiasm for all things racing with the readers of SpeedwayDigest.com.Be sure to tune in for his weekly sports talk program, Thursday Night Thunder, where he discusses the latest in motorsports news with drivers, crew members, and fans. The show takes place every Thursday at 8:00 pm EST on the Speedway Digest Radio Network.
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