Steve Justice was a regular around the drag strips in
So. Cal in the 60's and worked at Lions for a while, but family
obligations took him away from the sport for many years. He returned to the
famed March Meet in 2005 and below is this thoughts on the subject after his
years of absence. Some very cool reading, so check it out,
George
The March Meet……..Then and Now;
Return to the ‘Hallowed’ Ground By Steven Justice
The rites of spring. Its baseball players picking up mitt and bat and drag racers picking up gloves and helmet. Stadiums are filling up as the baseball players take to spring practice and prepare for a long and grueling season. And, motor sport enthusiasts are heading to the racetracks as drag racers button-up the engines, apply the last coat of lacquer, acquire the necessary inventory of parts, and check the status of their bank account.
The March Meet was this weekend’s destination for those "nitro" junkies who last had a whiff of CH3NO2 November past. Begun in 1959 by the famed Smoker’s Car Club of Bakersfield as a test of mettle between East Coast vs. West Coast competitors for drag racing bragging rights, it has survived the test of time and remains one of the premier drag racing events on the sport’s calendar. Lured away from Florida by the hype of the first U.S. Gas and Fuel Championships, Don Garlits soon realized that his carbureted, nitro-burning Chrysler dragster was no match for the powerful, supercharged Hustler I owned by Art Chrisman and Frank Cannon. Art would go on to defeat local Tony Waters in the first final. Gary Cagle drove the Cagle/Herbert Cam Special to a top speed of 180.36. His 180.00 back-up run made him the first man to run back-to-back runs exceeding 180 mph. One week later, Garlits would have his Swamp Rat dragster out-fitted with a GMC 6:71 top-mounted supercharger. But, it wasn't just Garlits. There was a long list of Midwest and East coast notables that wanted to take a crack at the California boys. From Chicago, there was Chris "the crazy Greek" Karamesines, Bob Sullivan and Rod Stuckey from Missouri, Bobby Langley and Vance Hunt from Texas, Art Malone from Florida, Connie Kalitta and the Logghe Bros. from Michigan, and Lou Cangelose and his "Missouri Mule". Just a few of those who made the long tow west. West of the Rockies, there were also some heavy-hitters. The "baddest of the bad" Thrifty Auto from Spokane, Dean Turk from Arizona, and, of course, the famed Speed Sport AA/FMR. But, it would take five years for an out-of-stater to de-throne the California dominance. In 1963, Art Malone beat Tom McEwen, 8.33-183.23 to 8.31-180.72, to become the first non-Californian to win this prestigious race.
Leap frog to 1965 and forty years ago. Garlits would show-up with a pair of dragsters. Runner-up to Connie Kalitta in 1964, Garlits was determined to show the Left Coast racers that the original reason for holding the race was a good one. Running a new format where 64 cars ran on Saturday and the winner sat-out Sunday, and 32 cars ran on Sunday ( Saturday’s winner then raced Sunday’s winner), Garlits left no room for the opposition, winning Saturday with his car and Sunday with team driver Marvin Schwartz. Don’t know about any team orders, but Tampa Don outran old 'Starvin’ for what would be the first of five Bakersfield titles. The euphoria of the 64-car field was short-lived and the show returned to a 32-car format in 1967. For Mike Snively and the Hawaiian, it was a better result than 1966, and they showed the field how to do it, beating a crossed-up Beebe-Mulligan in the final. Fast forward to 1975, thirty years ago. From James Warren at number one (5.922-223.70) to John Zendejas at number thirty-two (6.396-217.91), this would be the beginning of a three-year run by the Warren-Coburn-Miller team. After 16 years of racing this event, James Warren would totally dominate, running five 5s and beating Jeb Allen in the final. And, significantly, two top fuel pilots from that event today remain competitive nitro drivers. On that week-end, Howard Haight qualified the Cochrum-Haight fueler number twenty- four at 6.209, and Denver Schutz the Valley Muffler car number twenty-seven (6.268).
Though no longer the U.S. Gas and Fuel Championships, this race remained special for spectator and racer alike. However, with the escalating costs of racing and a new fixture in place (NHRA Winston Championship series), the event started to get "squeezed" between the season-opening Winternationals and the Gatornationals in Florida. What gave the event such premier status, the appearance of formidable out-of-state teams, could no longer be sustained. The March Meet began to see a little tarnish on its finish as it moved through the 1980s. Although Gary Beck and Don Garlits would continue to patronize and win, Butch Blair won the last race in 1988; the "then" was over, a stretch of 30 continuous years.
I had not seen a March Meet final since 1980, when Connie Kalitta finally returned to the winner’s circle after a 15-year hiatus. A "rite of spring" re-newed. What would "now" be like? I-5 south from the Bay Area through Stanislaus, Fresno, Kings County, was amazingly un-changed. Would the race be the same? Exit at state Hwy 46 east through Wasco toward the 99. Wow, Wasco has a new K-Mart and a Rite Aid! Lettuce in the fields. What happened to the roses? Things have changed! Serpentine onto Famoso-Woody Rd., but now it’s just plain ole Famoso Road. Closer and closer to the track. Hope to see just three landmarks: Gate One, Gate Two, and Gate Three. Never pick any other than Gate One. Unreal! Just the same. Now, smart talk yourself into the pits even though you have no race car, no show car, and no credentials. For a relatively stiff tariff, I get in and manage to slip onto the vendor road and by-pass the federales’ check-point. Safely away from scrutiny, home away-from-home is set-up.
‘Now’ is a 16-car top fuel show, and the engines are back in front of the driver. This is nostalgia top fuel racing and FEDs are, again, king. Unlike NHRA top fuel racing, these front-engined monsters have ignition and supercharger restrictions, not to mention just 12" tires. With 26 cars on the premises and only 2 qualifying passes, this made for stout qualifying sessions. After Friday’s late afternoon session, relative newcomer, Brad Thompson, leads the pack with a stout 5.89. Howard Haight in Butch Blair’s new car goes 255 mph. The usual suspects; Bill Dunlap, Jim Murphy, and Rick McGee are also in the thick of it. Things will be tense for the second session, especially with reigning champion, Jack Harris (with son Brett in the seat), outside looking in. Saturday morning. Things immediately heat-up, and I don’t mean the air temperature (and, that was almost 80). John Blanchard’s driver, Adam Sorokin, son of ’66 winner, Mike Sorokin, drops the "bump" to a 6.41, and that starts a list of cars that would, in the end, get devoured. Even Adam doesn’t survive the feeding frenzy, and Utah’s Scott Mason ends up on "the bubble" with a 6.17, fastest 16-car nostalgia field in history. In comparison, the 16th car in the ’75 field was Dennis Baca with a 6.191.
Eliminations. No mercy for the recognized pace-setters. Gremlins remain in Brad Thompson's engine thrash to repair earlier carnage, and Scott Mason upsets the pole-sitter. Bill Dunlap flinches and red lights against Mendy Fry whose race car devours itself at 1000’. Rick McGee (.104 light) is uncharacteristically late against Sean Bellemeur (.029 light) and throws away a 5.94 losing effort. Terry Cox announces his presence and runs 5.91, low for the round. And, Brett Harris’ car is disabled and shut-off after problems on the burn-out. The race is wide open. But, Jim Murphy and Howard Haight seem to have a little more than the rest of the field. The Barrick Gaming cars, Bellemeur and Fry, are still in, but want to self-destruct at 1000’. The showdown. Semi-finals and Murphy vs. Haight. Great light by Murphy and the race appears over, but as the clutch grabs hard, the tires haze and Howard drives by as Murphy valiantly tries to save the run. On the other side, McGee, back in for Richey, advances to his second final since the California Hot Rod Reunion, deposing of a wounded Bellemeur with a stumping 5.92-238. Considering Haight’s 5.95-237, it’s a call’em race. Thirty years after that no. 24 qualifying effort at the 1975 race, Howard Haight earns the biggest victory of his life, winner of the 46th March Meet.
But, the March Meet was much more than just the top fuel cars. Over 500 race cars pack the pits and the racing is constant all three days. Nostalgia Funny Cars bring back memories of Prudhomme's Army car, Gordie Bonin's Bubble-Up, and Bob Pickett's "Pete's Lil Demon". The presence of Dale Pulde in these pits reminds us that he won this race in 1975 driving the Eastern Raider. Low E.T. that year? Don Prudhomme at 6.089-235.60. ‘Then’ and ‘Now’. They’re both good. In 1966, Jess Sturgeon won No.1 Eliminator on the day The Surfers flattened the opposition. Today, Mike’s son is shoeing Blanchard’s top fueler, and Jess is racing Nostalgia Eliminator No.1. Though ‘The Patch" looks smaller than I remembered it, all was still there. The stands, the pits, the tower, and the track; even the fruit orchards. Far away from the urban landscape, still. A nostalgia track for a nostalgia race.
