Drag Racing Was... Well... Kind Of A Drag
As part of Jim's new "gig" as a stay-at-home dad (...to our two DOGS!) and owner of Squeaky Wheel Marketing, Jim helps crew for Terry McMillen at IHRA drag racing events. 
He managed to talk me into going with him this time... under the premise that we'd combine it with a fun stay on the beach afterwards.
All Work And No Play?
We started with an 8 or 9 hour drive from Nashville to the track in Milan, Michigan.
(It's pronounced "MY-lun", but I like to say it wrong: "mi-Laaaan", cuz it sounds much more extravagant... like Milan, Italy -- and I felt inclined to try & turn this "work part" into something of a vacation as well!)
When Jim wasn't filming Terry being interviewed by the press, taking photographs, and other PR & Marketing kinds of things, he and the rest of the crew busted their butts working on Terry's drag racing car -- building it up, giving it a spin, then tearing it down. Only do to it over... and over... and over again. Nothing was wrong; it's just what you do with a racecar.
To some, this is fun. For us girls, this meant a LOT of sitting around, twiddling our thumbs, taking some pictures, selling some souvenirs, and sitting around. (...and if this butt is seated, there best be a computer* in front of me, or else I'm bored.)
The Life Of A Racecar Driver
In reality, that's how EVERY weekend goes when you're part of a crew team for a racecar driver... especially with drag racing. It's hours and hours of repairs, modifications & fine-tuning -- preparing for your moment of glory which amounts to just 6 SECONDS of time on the track! (...unless you're REALLY good, then you only get 5 seconds!)
Repeat that a half-dozen times (cuz there are a few qualifying rounds, followed by the elimination rounds -- over the course of 3 days)... and there's something oddly anti-climatic about this whole drag racing thing. To me, it seems like an awful lot of work for less than 30 SECONDS on the track in any given weekend!
So, that pretty much sums up my experience at the racetrack on THIS weekend. That, and I sold a couple t-shirts for the team.
You Win Some, You Lose Some
By the way, our car didn't win. So the crew packed it all up and prepared to head to some other track in two weeks and do it all over again -- hours, days, even weeks of fine-tuning that car, all for 30 seconds of "game time" on some OTHER track.
...Oh, and did I mention that it RAINED the entire weekend?!
Fortunately, the skies got brighter when the "vacation part" began...
What I Learned Today:
*My best friend on this trip became the local McDonald's. No, not for their McNuggets... For their McWi-Fi!
Who knew that the only place I would manage to find some Internet access in this dinky little town would be at this state-of-the-art McDonald's in Milan Michigan?! (see... now "mi-Laaaan" sounds more appropriate, right?)
It's supposed to be something like $3 for two hours of use, but they gave us two free passes, so we could check our e-mail & stuff on our laptop during the two days we were in town. (...I don't think they get many takers in Milan, Michigan for this sort of thing.)
--- > Need help finding Wi-Fi Internet access when YOU're out and about?... Try these hotspot locators.
I still really love racing ~ but it was the drag racer who turned out to be a drag. Please remove my comments from your site. Thanks!
Hi, Jim ~ Thanks for your encouragement!
I only hope Lynnette learns to enjoy drag racing l/2 as much as I do. The World Drag Racing Expo is being held l/20 and l/21, 2007. here in Schaumburg, Il. This 1951 Henry J will be a showcased car ~ invited by Drag News Magazine. If you are in the Chicago area, please join us! Would love to meet you. (Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center) www.rememberwhenracing.com
Hey Kathie:
I've been trying to talk to Lynnette and help her understand. Maybe you can do a better job than me...
You go girl
I am a girlfriend of an NHRA/IHRA Top Sportsman
Drag Racer and found your article would have been very similar to something I would have written until I got into drag racing and understood what it's really about. It's a passion - an expensive one at that ~ but when you witness drag racers together, acting as a very close family would - lending each other parts/tools, etc., whatever they need whenever they need - even though these are the very guys they compete with ~ it's amazing to see. At the start line, yes, it is a different story. Most drag racers spend their lives in the garage doing what they love. It's the "NEED FOR SPEED". True, they build them up and tear them down -- that's the ONLY way to be fast. The "6" seconds of fame is a culmination of determination, dedication, love of the sport, and the burning desire to be # 1.
Costs a fortune to race ~ it's not the prize money that inspires these guys/women They do what they love. It is never boring to me ~ never has been ~ and never will be.
Check out the Henry J. See what a beautiful car it is ~ and maybe you will see the love that went into making that remarkable, unique, and rare car.
I have been introduced into a World I never knew anything about -- Had no clue what it was until I was there. Talk to some drag racers if you ever get the opportunity. They are THE most "down to Earth" people you will meet in your life -- and, by far, the most fun. But when they hit that button and fly down the track at speeds that could kill them in a second, it is the most serious sport in the World. Boring? Never.
1951 Henry J Top Sportsman
Driver: Dave Granger - Tinley Park, Illinois USA
Fastest Steel Body Henry J in the USA