Drag Illustrated Issue 151, December 2019 | Page 107

MIKE MULLANEY
■ MIKE MULLANEY grew up five
minutes away from Old Bridge Township
Raceway Park in Englishtown, New Jer-
sey, but the only problem was he was the
only one in his family who liked drag rac-
ing, enraptured by the sights and sounds
of the cars going down the track.
His father also had two other rules: no
tattoos and no motorcycles, something
even more ironic considering Mullaney’s
choice of ink and occupation. An entire
sleeve fills his left arm and he’s also a
standout chassis fabricator for Vance &
Hines, home to the standout NHRA Pro
Stock Motorcycle team of Andrew Hines,
Eddie Krawiec and Angelle Sampey.
He built the chassis on Hines’ and Krawiec’s
Harley-Davidson bikes this year as Hines has put
together a dominant, championship-winning sea-
son in the class. It was Mullaney’s biggest project
yet, and he’s proven worthy of the task as his star
continues to rise.
“This was a huge year for me,” Mullaney says.
“To have Andrew come out and dominate, it’s
been amazing and I’m truly speechless. It’s truly
been a cool deal. To have three of the best rid-
ers ever in the class and they ride your bikes, it’s
pretty awesome.”
The tattoos and motorcycles are now fine with
dad, too, likely in part to how skilled Mullaney has
proven to be. He was hired at Vance & Hines in
2014 and Mullaney learned on the job, developing
a natural fit on the fabrication side.
“I’m more of a hands-on type of per-
son, but I didn’t know how to do any of it
when I started,” Mullaney admits. “I grew
up watching Monster Garage and Over-
haulin’ and that’s the type of stuff I want-
ed to learn. I was pretty green and they
molded me and showed me what to do.”
Mullaney has taken that ball and be-
came a key piece of Vance and Hines’ in-
credible track record. He has been part
of four championships and nearly 50
victories, working solely on Hines’ bike
at the track.
He enjoys the family atmosphere of
the Vance & Hines team, while the 2019
30 Under 30 recipient also lauds the work of so
many young people in the sport.
“In my opinion, it’s the future of the sport,”
Mullaney says. “There’s a whole new age coming
into the sport with knowledge in technology. At
our trailer, if I see a kid that’s interested, I pull
them into the pits and have them look at the
bikes.” – J O S H H AC H DI
AT DI DI
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December 2019
DragIllustrated.com
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