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A
big part of the Raceway Park Thrill Shows are the monster trucks. I
didn't realize how big these things are until I stood in front of Taz.
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Now
I know how high in the air the drivers really are when they jump over
piles of junk cars, as Captain's Curse is doing here. |
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Not
to be outdone by his archrival, Adam Anderson goes
one better in Grave Digger. |
A
great aspect of the these shows is how much time the drivers set aside
to talk with fans. This is Alcohol Funny Car legend Bunny Burkett.
She's a pioneer and still going strong. You can read about her history
and see photos of the horrific crash that almost ended her life at www.bunnyburkett.com. |
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Bunny
wasn't just signing autographs. Here she is slowing from a burnout before
making a 5-second pass. |
Another
living legend. This is Al Hanna of Hanna Motorsports.
Al was in the middle of the formative years of fuel funny cars with
his Eastern Raider entries. He now has a team of jet
cars. Read about them at www.hannamotorsports.com. |
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Jill
Canuso is the driver of Hanna Motorsports' Queen Of
Diamonds jet dragster. Jill's been in motorsports forever,
and is Director of Marketing for M&R Safety Products
of Vineland, NJ. |
Here's
Jill lighting it up on the final pass of the night... |
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...and
what a pass it was. Low 5s at over 300 mph; that's a ride! |
Raceway
Park had various characters on hand to entertain the crowd. Here's one
of the Northeast's most well-known drag racing characters, James
Young, Jr. of JYR Motorsports. He was representing the Footbrake
Division...in Super Pro! |
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The
crowd gets to see a variety of race cars at the event, and they like
them all. This guy was loving every minute in the Dodge. It was like
that all night with kids (both young and young-at-heart) having a blast
sitting in the car. |
The
crowd in the stands makes it fun for us drivers, too. This was just
before a close race with eventual Pro ET winner Rick Mattioli.
Rick's .016, 10.338 on a 10.35, 131.13
mph takes the win over my .009, 10.886
on a 10.90, 119.87 mph. Ouch. |
Photos:
Stephanie Youngman / Bob Beucler |
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