MUSTANG MADNESS IN CENTRAL GEORGIA

Words and photos by Ian Tocher

You have to feel a little concerned when you get off the Interstate and at the first gas station you come to, the girl who works there has never even heard of the place where you're headed. Now granted, she probably wasn't a geography major in junior college, but that's how it was Apr. 7, on my way to the sleepy, little town of Reynolds, GA. As I drove on through the flatlands and pecan groves and yards with rusty Mercury Montegos and K-cars up on blocks, I have to admit to wondering what I would find at Silver Dollar Raceway, where the National Mustang Racers Association (NMRA) was holding its second Ford Nationals event of the year.

A crowd of at least a couple thousand lined both sides of the strip at Silver Dollar Raceway on Sunday, where Derrick Smith (near lane) squared off against Don Walsh Jr. in the Pro 5.0 final round. Apparently, Saturday's crowd was even bigger.

What I found was Mustangs; lots and lots of Mustangs. And oh yeah, fans. Lots and lots of drag racing fans who put to rest any notion that diversity on the starting line is what sells tickets. To be honest, I couldn't tell you the difference between an Open Comp and a Pure Street entry -- they all look like pretty much like Mustangs to me -- but a lot of the NMRA's fans could. Sure, I could identify a couple of the faster classes, but I've gotta' admit, the knowledge and enthusiasm of the fans for the entire spectrum of NMRA racing was impressive.

The show was run very efficiently, too, probably helped along by the absence of blown alcohol and nitro breathing motors that sometimes have a tendency to spill their guts at the most inopportune times. That doesn't mean there's no speed, though, as three of the eight Mr. Gasket Pro 5.0 qualifiers (NMRA's fastest class) went faster than 200 mph, and the top-three qualifiers each ran sub-seven-second passes.

Defending class champion Billy Glidden set the pace with his nitrous-assisted, carb-fed small-block 2001 Mustang going 6. 911 secs at 200.31 mph. That time held up for low E.T. of the meet, but Glidden lost out to Brit Floyd's 7.304 in round one of eliminations due to a bad case of tire shake at about half track. Top speed of the weekend was set by Doug Mangrum's 203.52-mph qualifying effort in his supercharged Stang.

Eventual Pro 5.0 finalist Don Walsh Jr. strapped a .412 reaction time on Brandon Switzer in the first round that allowed his 7.079 at 195.27 combination to beat Switzer's slightly quicker and faster 7.060 at 195.69 mph.

(next page)