(Jeff Burk photo)

Equally fortunately, the damage to the car was minimal, with just a crushed puke tank to tell the tale. Even so, the veteran Hale was exasperated with himself.

“Once I saw the damage was just to the puke tank I was mad at myself for letting the car get away from me,” he said.

However, both Hale and the Orange Crate team were resilient; after repairs were made to the Crate, Hale was ready to make another go of running the car.

“I had the feel for that clutch now, which is different than mine, 'cause I have a stop on my pedal and they don’t run one on this car,” Hale said just before the second round.

With repairs complete, Hale and the Crate bunch went up for the second pass, where he noticed that his loaner helmet visor was beginning to fog up on the burnout. Those who've never driven a nitro car may not realize the import of this. Obviously, a driver needs to be able to see where they're going, so a fogged visor can be disastrous. Why not lift the visor then? Because that's just asking to get nitro in the eyes, which is even worse. Faced with this dilemna, Hale decided to strive for a happy medium. He would lifte the visor as he backed up, then drive until the visor started to fog up, then shut it off, even if that meant cutting the pass short.


(Scott Bessee photo)

With a plan to deal with the visor situation, Hale began to stage. Unfortunately, another unfamiliar aspect of the car presented itself here. Unused to the much smaller front tire, Hale lit both lights unexpectedly. The green light came on and, with the finely honed reflexes of a born racer, Hale hammered the throttle. As his visor began to fog, as planned, he let off the throttle, ending his front engine experience more gently than it began.

With the run over, it was time to reflect on what he'd learned.

“First off these cars, there's a lot of commotion going on at the hit, and they are really, really loud. In the Funny Car, the body insolates you from the noise; with these cars it's right in your face. Being able to see the exhaust adds to the excitement,” Hale said. “You have to think where you want the car to go; you can’t manhandle it. You have very limited vision 'cause you're looking at the back of the injector, and you must trust your peripheral vision to keep the car straight in the lane.”

Even with the differences between the front engined dragster and his familiar funny car, Hale found himself surprised at how much easier it was to stay in the groove than he'd expected.

In the end, what was meant to be a relaxing weekend for John and Karen Hale was one of excitement, new friends made, and a chance to see how the nostalgia Top Fuel world lives. It was an adventure for sure, one to be remembered for a long time.