Gasser Reunion V

Thompson Raceway Park

Thompson, Ohio

  June 2, 3 & 4, 2006

 by Vic Cooke

 

 

 

Somewhere it must be written that whenever a large group of Gassers shall congregate in Ohio for purposes of a drag race, so shall storm clouds and enough rain to completely douse the whole affair. What other explanation can there be for rain bedeviling this event for the third year in a row? Meteorologists really ought to look into this phenomenon, as it seems to be a more reliable method than cloud seeding to produce precipitation!

 

It wasn’t always this way, especially in the heyday of Gasser racing when hordes of this class of racing car were the mainstay of Ohio drag racing week in and week out. That’s one reason why it has always seemed so appropriate that Gasser Magazine, in organizing the annual Gasser Reunion, chose Thompson Raceway Park in northeast Ohio as the site for the event. The fickle Buckeye Springtime weather has no respect for tradition, or things would be altogether different.

 

Perversely, the dates of this year’s Gasser Reunion marked a return to the early-June scheduling of the first two events, which concluded high and dry. Proximity to other major events on the racing calendar, and conflict with another area meet, prompted a rescheduling into mid-July for Reunions III and IV. The inhospitable weather at these runnings was one of the chief reasons for a return to “Plan A.” So much for trying to outguess Mother Nature.

 

    Lunges off the line like this are always an attraction of Gasser racing at each Reunion.

 

How bad was it? Well not as bad as a couple of the major West Coast races on the Nostalgia Racing calendar this year, which were complete washouts. At least there were a few hours of time trials on Friday and Saturday at Thompson, and a partially salvaged racing program on Saturday evening (albeit only eighth-mile racing due to damp portions in the far shutdown area of the track). The program-lost exceeded the program-completed, however, due to all the downtime for track drying and the washout of all of Friday night’s planned racing, half of Saturday night’s program and all eliminations on Sunday. Included in the cancellation column was some of the “race within a race” contests planned as special features of the event, such as a “shootout” among the racing members of the “Gassermadness” internet group, a heads-up open race for “period correct” A/GS cars, and exhibition match races involving “Pro” AA/GS, Nostalgia Top Fuel and Nostalgia Funny Cars that are also booked into the event to boost spectator support.

 

The bottom line for all this is, frankly, a mixed report. There’s certainly disappointment that the car count was down and that the weather crimped so much of the racing activity. But the spectator count was actually up despite it all, and all the efforts to build front gate support seem to be slowly succeeding. In our mind, the former was the bigger concern, as we ran out of fingers and toes (and knuckles too) counting no-shows from past events we hoped to see again. Was it just the weather and rescheduling issues, or some other sort of dissatisfaction causing a “been-there-done-that” indifference? That would be a shame.

 

   Among the casualties of the weather-shortened event was a heads-up match race for wingless Nostalgia A/GS cars like “Classical Gas.” Six entries met the design constrained rules.

 

We count ourselves among the “enthusiasts” for this event, and like others who have attended all or most of the Gasser Reunions find it a great atmosphere with plenty of friendly and like-minded folks to share the experience with and a lot of beautiful automobiles representing the allure of “Gassers.” Those who come with the attitude of just wanting to have an enjoyable time will invariably find it.

 

Can this event ever really “gel” into one of the pre-eminent events on the Eastern racing calendar? Will it ever be the “can’t miss” event for every Gasser racer within a two-day tow of Thompson, Ohio? Maybe, and maybe not...and maybe there’s no real cause for concern. There’s much to be said for keeping it the modest, low-key meet it now is with the emphasis on the “reunion” aspects for enthusiasts rather than a something-for-everyone megaevent.

 

Overcast skies (except for a couple of hours on Saturday) didn’t stop us from taking photos attempting to capture the flavor of this year’s event. We hope you’ll enjoy browsing through to see for yourself what we mean about the “allure” that keeps bring us back. Given the circumstances, it’s an abbreviated photo review, but you can see it by.........CLICKING HERE.