I arrived at Phoenix's Firebird Raceway on Thursday night, the day before my two sons, Mike and Marc were to meet me. Mike flew into Tucson from Augusta, GA on Friday, and the two of them and my grand daughter Laila drove up to Phoenix Friday afternoon. They are staying at Aunt Claudia & Uncle Marty's house in Chandler for the weekend, where Claudia fixed dinner for all of us on Friday and Saturday night. Yesterday, I picked up the boys in the morning, and we had breakfast at Cracker Barrel, before heading out to the race track. The weather this weekend is almost perfect, in the mid 70's, no clouds and more importantly for the boat racers, no wind with glass smooth water. Drag boat racing has always been a passion for the 3 of us, ever since we first watched a race at Turlock Lake, outside of Modesto, CA in the mid 1970's. There has never been a lot of money in drag boat racing, so the racers have always been true enthusiasts who participate in the sport, not because their is a potential pay off, but because they just love to go fast, down the liquid quarter mile. There are quite a few entries, for this final race of the season, but the number of Top Fuel Hydro's is less than normal, with the entry number at only 5. We watched one of the big boys detonate a motor yesterday, and when we got over to their pit, we witnessed exactly what mass destruction really is. Almost every part of the motor was destroyed, costing the owner tens of thousands of dollars in a heartbeat. Considering that the payout for winning Top Fuel is ten thousand dollars, it's easy to see that these guys aren't here for the money. There was one spectacular crash in Blown Alcohol Hydro, but with the safety capsules that are mandatory in the faster boats, the driver was recovered quickly, and appeared to have not suffered any injuries. It was a good day, and fun to share the enjoyment with my two favorite guys.
I arrived at Phoenix's Firebird Raceway on Thursday night, the day before my two sons, Mike and Marc were to meet me. Mike flew into Tucson from Augusta, GA on Friday, and the two of them and my grand daughter Laila drove up to Phoenix Friday afternoon. They are staying at Aunt Claudia & Uncle Marty's house in Chandler for the weekend, where Claudia fixed dinner for all of us on Friday and Saturday night. Yesterday, I picked up the boys in the morning, and we had breakfast at Cracker Barrel, before heading out to the race track. The weather this weekend is almost perfect, in the mid 70's, no clouds and more importantly for the boat racers, no wind with glass smooth water. Drag boat racing has always been a passion for the 3 of us, ever since we first watched a race at Turlock Lake, outside of Modesto, CA in the mid 1970's. There has never been a lot of money in drag boat racing, so the racers have always been true enthusiasts who participate in the sport, not because their is a potential pay off, but because they just love to go fast, down the liquid quarter mile. There are quite a few entries, for this final race of the season, but the number of Top Fuel Hydro's is less than normal, with the entry number at only 5. We watched one of the big boys detonate a motor yesterday, and when we got over to their pit, we witnessed exactly what mass destruction really is. Almost every part of the motor was destroyed, costing the owner tens of thousands of dollars in a heartbeat. Considering that the payout for winning Top Fuel is ten thousand dollars, it's easy to see that these guys aren't here for the money. There was one spectacular crash in Blown Alcohol Hydro, but with the safety capsules that are mandatory in the faster boats, the driver was recovered quickly, and appeared to have not suffered any injuries. It was a good day, and fun to share the enjoyment with my two favorite guys.
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