California Hot Rod Reunion at Bakersfield

A Perfect Season for Some

Words by Brian Losness
Photos by Tim Marshall

The California Hot Rod Reunion presented by Automobile Club of Southern California, came to a thrilling close on Sunday, Oct. 19, during a busy day of racing.

TOP FUEL

Can you compare football and drag racing? Most people would say, no. Outside of the two sports having a fan base composed of people who might be considered a Type A personality.

Well, I might be going out on a limb here but you would have to consider the 1972 Miami Dolphins and the 2014 season had by the Bartone Brothers and their nostalgia top fuel team. Both were perfect for their seasons.

Tony Bartone and his brother, Michael, have assembled a team led by the legendary tuner Steve Boggs. Boggs and Bartone, who some considered polar opposites in personality, have the proper mixture of synergy that makes these two absolutely click as a team.

Friday, Oct. 17, in Q1 Bartone threw down the gauntlet as he shocked the entire field with a 5.63 at 247.84 mph. That run was a tenth and a half better than the rest of the field. In essence “Shock and Awe”, to continue with military analogies. So much so that Bartone sat out the second and final qualifying sessions.

At the conclusion of qualifying, it would only be nine-hundredths of a second better and Rick White would pull into the second position at 5.72/241.02 run on Saturday’s qualifying session.