In what has become one of the DRO staff’s favorite annual outings, the All-Harley Drag Racing Association returned to Gateway International Raceway in Madison, Ill., for the Gypsy Rendezvous Nationals. Once again, the AHDRA presented the surprisingly large crowd with more than thirty nitro-burning machines in a fabulous show. Although rain cancelled the first day of action and qualifying sessions were completed on day two while dodging rain drops, eliminations were greeted with seventy-degree temperatures without a cloud in sight.
GIR’s exceptional track preparation resulted in seven new AHDRA World Records as competitors from thirty states and three countries waged war in one of the AHDRA’s premier events on the Screamin’ Eagle Championship tour. Here, then, is DRO’s pictorial coverage of one of the most entertaining drag racing events of each season.
Reigning AHDRA Top Fuel World Champ Doug Vancil earned his first victory of 2008 despite wrestling his Vance & Hines ride throughout eliminations. After qualifying seventh in the sixteen-bike TF field, (6.63/218.19), Vancil often had his hands full as seen on this crossed-up, tire-frying 6.88/219.90 second-round win over John Breckenridge.
Outrageous TF final round saw Takeshi “Tak” Shigematsu (far lane) launch first against Vancil before striking the tire just off the starting line. A dropped cylinder on Vancil’s bike gave Shigematsu the lead again before Tak’s bike stumbled and allowed Vancil to move ahead…all before the three hundred feet mark! Said Vancil, “I saw him, then I didn’t, then I did, then I didn’t. I was yanking the throttle over and over trying to get the other cylinder to come to life. Thankfully, it eventually did.” Vancil’s 7.79/198.00 was the second slowest winning ET of eliminations!
“Tak” Shigematsu was the star of the event and barely missed winning two nitro classes; his stunning victory in Pro Fuel came minutes before his bizarre TF final meeting with Vancil. Tak led the TF field with a 6.37/223.65 best and then unloaded 6.28/230.17 AHDRA World Speed Record on Gainesville winner Phil Schmidt in the second round. A dropped cylinder on a 6.77/211.99 semi-final rout of Mike Romine lost lane choice for the final to Vancil’s 6.59/191.35 shut-off against Mark Conner.
After a first round loss to Californian Terry Stewart in round one of Pro Dragster, David Larson made a bid for some extra cash in AHDRA’s Nitro Outlaw Eliminator which accepts all non-qualifiers and first-round runners-up from the association’s four nitro-burning categories. The Kansas racer found his mount literally pitching him off the seat two hundred feet from the starting line beginning a harrowing tumble down the Gateway International Raceway asphalt. After officials rushed to the dazed nitrobike pilot, Larson rose to his feet and, in the most classic Harley rider fashion, refused medical attention.