Drag Illustrated Issue 147, August 2019 | Page 66

DIALED IN GREAT LAKES DRAGAWAY back in 1968. “I’ve only missed a couple Memorial Weekends here at Great Lakes since I first came here more than 50 years ago,” Hutchens reveals. Another fan favorite is “Diamond Dave” Miller, who’s been attending this event for decades with a line-up of vintage nitro-burning front-engine dragsters. Some of Miller’s favorite Great Lakes memories involve match racing Tom McEwen eons ago. For the 2019 running, Miller squared off against the front-engine dragster of Jason Greenwood, who hails from just a few miles away in the town of Kenosha. Minnesota’s Doc Halladay was also on hand with his popular Telstar 1978 Plymouth Arrow- bodied nitro Funny Car. “I ran big-show cars back in the late 1980s to early 1990s in NHRA 66 | D r a g I l l u s t r a t e d | DragIllustrated.com competition, and have also been coming to Great Lakes for probably 40 years,” says Halladay. Jet car fans also show up in droves, knowing they’ll be treated to a spectacle of horsepower, the likes of which can only be delivered by these fire-breathing monsters of thrust. It was at last year’s running, in fact, that Great Lakes Draga- way saw its first-ever side-by-side 300 mph pass when Scotty Heat driving his “50 Cal” jet dragster blistered the quarter mile alongside Danny Sul- livan, who also went over 300 mph, sending the grandstands into a frenzy, followed by a standing ovation as they taxied down the return road. Just one year later, though, disaster struck on Friday night during Heat’s second run, which resulted in a horrific top-end crash. “I was racing the ‘Hot Blade’ jet when he passed me nearing the finish line, and I could feel my car dip down on the right rear and then the car veered toward the wall,” says Heat, who suffered a broken back in the crash. Amazingly, Scotty returned to the track the following day wearing a back brace and greeted fans, vowing that he would return to driving jet cars as soon as possible. For vintage doorslammer fans, the Midwest Nostalgia Pro Stock Association was also on hand to deliver a dose of drag racing from yesteryear. Many participants of this group have experienced this fabled drag strip being woven into the fabric of their childhood, and there’s no greater example than Arlee Williams III, who drives his parents’ 1980 Plymouth Arrow. Williams, who currently resides in suburban Milwaukee, has enjoyed life- shaping moments here at Great Lakes Dragaway. “I met Shirley Muldowney here when I was just a little kid. She invited me over for a photo and before it was over I was sitting on Shirley’s lap holding her small dog while she held me!” he Issue 147