How old are you and how long have you raced

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34 years old, made my first pass ever in my Scamp when I was 21...Did a short stint of race promoting for a few years trying to get grudge and no time racing off the ground here North of the Border, and the politics of it drove me to almost give up the sport for myself. Last pass down a track I was 28 years old, so its been a bit.

Sold the drivetrain out of the scamp, and started riding and building Harley's, lots of road trips to awesome roads and destinations which I am glad I experienced. The itch for racing and the car got scratched again a few years ago, when I landed a screaming deal on a built G3 Hemi and Procharger, although the build itself has really dragged on since prices to build a car have really skyrocketed from when I was 19 putting my car together, and I have really gone deep with EFI, air to water intercooler, learning to fab all my own charge piping, new fuel system, etc.

Really hoping to get it running and maybe make a pass or 3 this year, but I have a 1 year old now, and have turned my attention to working on the 77 Aspen wagon cruiser I got for us, trying to put off some of the work left on the Scamp with the little time I have for anything now. It will get done when it does, as your kids are only little once....But I realllllly hope this year is the one I am back
 
Im 62 and my first bracket race was at 59.

I got to round 3 of elliminations.

I was driving my 67 Dart Convertible with the top down and my Hawaiian shirt on! Some say my left arm was resting on the driver's door!

Start about 1:15

New video by Dana Nance


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I was car 135. The slips are in order.
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Had a blast, but was glad I lost, I was concerned the 170,000 mile ago rebuild on the trans and engine would not be happy with me!
 
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pittsburghracer said:
Probably around 1978 or so I built my first engine after waiting 13 months for a local Mopar expert to build me a 12 second engine. I promised myself that day I would never wait for another engine to be built. I broke mine in driving 45 miles to New Bethlehem Pa and beat the living piss out of it for two days. Then drove home.

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Looks familiar, 1981 here. 12.20's was the best I ever got with my 340 Hemi 4-speed out of a B-Body and 4.88 8-3/4, but had a full blue crushed velvet bench interior...LOL..

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I've raced occasionally over the years. Nothing serious. My Buddy races all the time. Too much $$$$ for me raising a family. People said racers a single or divorced. My buddy is divorced and still racing.
 
I'm 60 now and think my first real quarter mile runs were late 1998 or so. Thats when I had a car fast enough to make it worth the 90 mile 1 way trip to the track. Of course there was street racing starting in the mid 1980s. Had a couple small block nitrous A bodies. It was all fun. I wish I knew more about engines transmission and hooking up back then. I've been running a drag only car for the last 4 years. Trying to get into the 9s and fighting 1.55 60 foot times. 10.08 at 134. But it's always been Mopar for me. I'd like to try a full season of the points program. As pointed out by others the transporting back and forth can be a pain. At this point it's 5 or 6 times a year. I guess I'm slowing down a bit . This getting old sucks!
 
I had a Duster similar to yours. Black 70 Duster. Stroked 340, W2 heads, Doug Nash 5 speed, Ricaro seats, Sharktooth grill, Roof drip rail shaved off, Centerline rims like your rears.Had 355 gear. Would run an 11.6 in the 80's. Sold it to someone in Ma. wish I could find it.
pittsburghracer said:
Probably around 1978 or so I built my first engine after waiting 13 months for a local Mopar expert to build me a 12 second engine. I promised myself that day I would never wait for another engine to be built. I broke mine in driving 45 miles to New Bethlehem Pa and beat the living piss out of it for two days. Then drove home.

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first race was in 1964, 55 chev, later a dart now a duster. been racing steady since 1970. all were four speed cars. forgot, age, lol 80 here.
 
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I bought my house in late 1984 and got married in 85 or 86. She wanted to try racing so a buddy of mine was building a big block 68 barracuda and had a purple 1970 duster. He needed a converter and a bunch of parts so we traded parts and cash for his roller duster. My buddy built me a street strip type 727 and a built a 340 with some heads I touched up and a .590 solid lifter cam. That thing loved 7000 rpm so she had to work so I took it to a test n tune and ran 12.20’s. I towed my car and she drive the next Sunday and her first pass she went 15.50. Then a 15.20 so I ran up to where the “Heavy class” 12.99-14.99 parked and asked what was going on and if she was shifting at the 7000 rpm I told her. I was ordered to just go race my car and we changed her class to trophy since she was to slow for heavy. She won a couple rounds and a trophy so that night we went out on the expressway and I told her to make a pass. Then I made a pass showing the difference 7000rpm made. So then she made a pass and said wholly @@@@. The next week she was running 12.20’s. Her very last pass was when she was 6 months pregnant with Matt my now 35 year old. She never raced again. Years later Matt striped the car and I primered it. I gave it to him a couple years later. Purple car making a pass was my EX.

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qkcuda said:
I'm 69 and started racing in the mid 70's through the early 80's. I have had several cars since then, and I would always run them down the track a couple of times a year just for fun. I actually ran the Charger down the track on Saturday, but it was so slow I hesitate to call it racing.

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It certainly looks good though qkcuda!!

Cheers!!
 
My 'oldmeter' just turned to 61 last month. Made my first pass in 1981 on an XS1100 Yamaha motorcycle, best I could do with a stiff headwind was 13.465 @ 105 ish mph. Didn't have anything worth racing until the mid 1990s when I got my second 1970 Dart together, running mid 15s with a .030 over 318 4 bbl and a 904, stock exhaust manifolds and pea shooter 2 inch pipes.
I ran that car hundreds of times, eventually getting a best of 13.78 @ 100 mph with a .040 over 360, mild cam, 727 transmission and a 3.23 gear on drag radials. I could have put more gear in it and gone faster, but I really liked being able to drive that car everywhere, never owned a trailer, always driven to and from the track.
I've made a few runs since I foolishly sold that Dart 12+ years ago, but like many others, the money just isn't there to pursue it these days. I still enjoy it, but the closest track here is almost 2 hours one way and I don't have anything that I would want to race at the moment anyway.
 
74 here, and i am at a point where three outings a year is about it. I started legally racing in 1971 in my 69 Charger RT, running 14s. Now my best will be 8.50, having gone 8.60 at 156.5 mph with issues. I just love going fast, and that has been ny main quest.I have decided to not upgrade the cert to 7.50, as i don't want the FC cage to deal with, plus the added weight would slow the car a bit anyway. I hope to continue as long as i can.

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I turned 70 in April and I started seriously racing around 1983. A good deal of my racing friends are in their mid 70s and still racing. I would like to race a few more years at least then just cut back some if thats even possible ! Being born and raised in Pittsburgh ( lived there until 1973) , My first pass down a track was at an old strip just over the Ohio / Pa. border outside New Castle Pa in a 64 Dart I had then (273 , pushbutton automatic ) I don't remember the name or much about the place I think it was 1/8 mile . I only went a few times.

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When I started racing, the old Irwindale was using an electric pen to write down 1/4mile e.t., and mph, (from the tower Chrondecks) and half the time you couldn't read it. And that was ALL you got. Early 70s.
I went looking a few months back to see if I could find some of those old electric pen slips, but the oldest I could find were from the eighties..... from FIVE tracks that don't exist anymore.
 
33IMP said:
When I started racing, the old Irwindale was using an electric pen to write down 1/4mile e.t., and mph, (from the tower Chrondecks) and half the time you couldn't read it. And that was ALL you got. Early 70s.
I went looking a few months back to see if I could find some of those old electric pen slips, but the oldest I could find were from the eighties..... from FIVE tracks that don't exist anymore.
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Pens, no score boards, and no reaction times. Heck I raced at one track that we had to hold up when an airplane wanted to land.
 
33IMP said:
the old Irwindale was using an electric pen to write down 1/4mile e.t., and mph, (from the tower Chrondecks) and half the time you couldn't read it. And that was ALL you got. Early 70s.
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Same here. It was 1974 at the Keystone track, New Alexandria Pa.
Hand written,no reaction times Just 1/4 mile time and MPH.
To you that started drag racing on motorcycles,mine was a 72 CB350 Honda.
 
Darter6 said:
Same here. It was 1974 at the Keystone track, New Alexandria Pa.
Hand written,no reaction times Just 1/4 mile time and MPH.
To you that started drag racing on motorcycles,mine was a 72 CB350 Honda.
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You bikers missed the dreaded bucket and rag at Keystone. When you drove to the tower to get your time slip as you were handed it if you lost someone was on the other side of your car rapidly taking a dirty wet rag to your shoe polish on your passenger side window. One swipe and just move along. Your night is over.
 
I'm 46, I raced several times a week from 18-21 years old at Seattle international raceway. I had been going up and watching drags or being in street races with my dad or uncle lol from just a baby I was told.
Long battle with alcohol and drugs from 21-33 years old, when I got 8 years sober and decided I wanted to build a car again and about 2018 I bought the pile I'm building now.
I always say hopefully I'll have it done & that's not working but I'm plugging away when I have time & money at the same time lol. I just better get it done before I have to have my cage recertified in a few years
 
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I am 67. Probably 1st drag race around 1996 or so. Last was in 2003. Was pushing real hard back then. Got to 10.80 @ 127 mph with 4 speed. Then, nothing...damn. I still have the car and hoping to get my stuff together soon.

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Some good stories here guys. Keep them coming as we aren’t dead yet. The one thing I gotta learn is I gotta start paying guys to fix my daily vehicles. I keep telling church members I’m not a mechanic. Never was never will be. I HATE working on cars and don’t have the proper tools or training to do so. All it does is gets me frustrated and keeps me away from things I can do.
 
41, started racing in 2018 (low 13’s), got a track championship in 2019 (low 12’s), wrecked the car in 2022 (11.5’s…found the limit of the KB hyper pistons I guess), raced the tow rig in 2023, same year Bandimere shut down. Car is on a long road to rebuild, still chomping at the bit to get it back on a track. Closest tracks are 2 hours south and 2.5 hours north, so probably won’t be able to race points series until the kids (9 & 4) get a little older. Not so much burned out as I am bummed out.
 
dusterbing the peace said:
41, started racing in 2018 (low 13’s), got a track championship in 2019 (low 12’s), wrecked the car in 2022 (11.5’s…found the limit of the KB hyper pistons I guess), raced the tow rig in 2023, same year Bandimere shut down. Car is on a long road to rebuild, still chomping at the bit to get it back on a track. Closest tracks are 2 hours south and 2.5 hours north, so probably won’t be able to race points series until the kids (9 & 4) get a little older. Not so much burned out as I am bummed out.
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I thought you bought another car or am I thinking of someone else. This was a beautiful car that went into the left side wall hard.
 
pittsburghracer said:
Pens, no score boards, and no reaction times. Heck I raced at one track that we had to hold up when an airplane wanted to land.
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As recently as ten years ago, I raced a two different airports. Banning, ca, about 100 mi east of L.A., the other in Rialto, between pomona and San berdoo. First ever of my laps in my Cortina at Banning, but only one race date, before somebody found an excuse to shut it down.
Raced several times at Rialto, won a race there, but we had to stop too, when planes would take off or land, cause the live runway crossed our shut down.
There was a period in socal when we were desperate to race anywhere, there was only one track running on a weekly basis, and it was about 60-100 mi from the L.A. basin. Long closed now, like ten others I raced at.
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