In Junior Fuel, a real dogfight was shaping up among the three top qualifiers. Not surprisingly, the dominant Midwest Neil & Parks entry led the list as Scott Park recorded a 7.27/180.00 best. Hot on his heels was Pittsburgh, PA’s Stu Sandhaus with a 7.29/180.84. Unfortunately, Sandhaus hurt the car on it’s final qualifying pass and would not compete in eliminations. Brian Darcy of Newburgh, NY qualified third at 7.31/179.25. Defending Jr. Fuel Champ from NHRR-1, Pat Malloy of Buchanen, VA, qualified fourth at 7.57/179.66. The remaining qualifiers for the eight-car eliminator field trailed Malloy by 0.25 seconds or more.

In the balmy darkness of a Bowling Green summertime eve, it was time for Cacklefest! Dictionaries lack the adjectives to describe one of these. The roots of Cacklefest trace back to a two-car static firing at twilight during the California Hot Rod Reunion, paid as a memorial tribute to deceased prominent figures in drag racing. Bill Pitts with the restored Winkel & Trapp "Magicar" and Larry Anderson with the restored Hampshire/Ormsby "Vagabond" were the featured cackler’s. It was the16-cylinder drag racing analog to a military "21-gun salute." As more and more operable fuel cars were restored and/or re-created, the salute expanded to a multi-car ceremony in the year 2000. A push-start firing with a parade pass in front of the grandstands was added, and "Cacklefest" was born. The event has continued to grow ever since, in both the number of cars participating and its popularity with the racefans. This year at Bowling Green, a ‘fest involving two dozen cars was planned, rivaling last year’s Bakersfield enactment in size.

Cacklefest covers the spectrum from subtle nuance to sensory overload. There’s the excitement of the long-obsolete but once standard push start procedure, and the explosion to life of a supercharged nitro engine. The cars themselves are rolling sculptures of automotive art, and the glitter of chrome and flash of polished paint as they pass in parade are magnificent and wondrous sights. Of course there’s the dance of the headerflames and the staccato of a nitromotor ripping away as it struggles to be set free. As more and more cars are fired and join the lineup the symphony of nitro-cackle reaches a thunderous crescendo. Individual cars wing their engines momentarily, randomizing the cacophony and relighting extinguished cylinders. A misfire here, a refire there. Headers begin to glow in shades of red and orange from the heat of the nitro-fires they channel safely away. Then one by one, their fuel loads spent or their operating temperatures approaching the limit, they fall silent, sizzle and radiate. During this year’s program, the house lights were completely shut off at the halfway point, leaving the remainder of the show to play out under moonlight and headerflame. Not a soul with nitro in his veins could possibly find the experience unmoving. It is a near-spiritual experience of awe and beauty.

 The on-track scene at Beech Bend Raceway at the height of Cacklefest!

At it’s conclusion, semi-delirious fans descend upon the track to mingle among the cars and drivers and savor the the lingering scent of the conflagration. A sense of oneness with history and the afterglow of partaking in a drag racing nirvana might describe the mood. That’s Cacklefest, and without much contention, the high point of NHRR.

With the arrival of Sunday, the business of winning a race is at hand. Following the first round of eliminations, the event begins to slowly unwind as fan, racer and show participants alike begin the process of packing up and commencing the often long journey home. The attention of those remaining focuses more intently on the remaining competition.

In the fuel categories, the leading qualifiers were successful in surviving earlier rounds to face one another for the title in the finals.

Bellemeur and Lechtenberg leave evenly in the TF final.

In Top Fuel, Sean Bellemeur in the "Plaza Casino" car faced defending champ Roger Lectenberg in the "Orange Crate." It was an even start, but Lechtenberg never fully hooked up with the track, hazing the tires end to end. Bellemeur snagged the win with a 6.25/239.74 to a losing 6.54/223.06.

A redlight start by Schmidt gave Swedberg (far lane) this race.

In Open Fuel, it was #1 qualifier Martin Schmidt vs. #2 qualifier Jim Swedberg in the final pairing. Schmidt redlit away a quicker 7.14/202.76 to hand the victory to Swedberg, who ran 7.17/ 202.73.

Junior Fuel also found the defending champ in the final again, as Pat Malloy lined up against Scott Parks. Parks was the class of the field all day, and remained so in this final pairing to win with a stellar 7.21/182.95 pass. Malloy gave up the chase with a 8.08/132.99.

Winners in other categories included

Nostalgia Competition:

Tommy Cook, Columbia, Ky., 8.614, 157.50, def. David Shaffer, Lincoln, Ill., 8.221, 154.72 (foul).

Nostalgia Gas:

Tony Feil, Whitehouse Station, N.J., 8.697, 156.90, def. Ronnie Egner, Mayfield, Ky., 9.098, 137.40.

Classic Super Stock:

Butch Pritchett, Finley, Tenn., 11.011, 103.04, def. Dave Duell, Evansville, Ind., 9.793 (foul).

Oldies:

Mary Ann Cooke, Ocala, Fla., 13.263, 100.95, def. Terry Stewart, Tampa, Fla., 9.788, 116.90 (foul).

Quick 64 (note: 115 cars):

Dean Talley, Bowling Green, Ky., 12.280, 114.07, def. Keith Sadler, Louisville, Ky., 10.242, 130.87 (foul).

Grumpy Gassers:

Jim Wilkens, Brookville, Ind., 11.872, 101.57, def. Bob Mitchell, Fenton, Mo., 10.917, 123.78 (foul).

Sam Jackson, Steve Gibbs, Greg Sharp and the NHRA Museum staff, together with Event Director Bob Daniels deserve an honorary "Wally" for their absolutely outstanding job in producing this NHRR encore. All appearances are that NHRR has taken firm root as THE can’t-miss summer event in the Eastern U.S. for nostalgia racers and fans alike. The third annual NHRA National Hot Rod Reunion will be returning to Beech Bend Raceway on Father’s Day weekend in 2005. Can it get any better than this year’s? That’s awfully hard to imagine, but we’ll certainly be back to see!

We extend NitroGeezer’s thanks to Bill Groak for enabling us to provide this trackside look at the event.

An extensive photo album with more of the sights and action at NHRR-2004 is available for your viewing enjoyment. To view it, CLICK HERE.