2009 Gatornationals: The exchange probably went something like this. . .
Don Garlits(L): "Look Don.... I'm (NHRA) number 1 and always will be".
Don Prudhomme(R): "You may think you're The Don but get a Top Fuel team out here and I'll kick your butt back to Ocala". *puts his other earplug back in and walks off. . . grinning from his "show"* - fla
ESPN Video Note: At the second race at Phoenix, behind the line, John Force was talking to Don Prudhomme about something. The ESPN TV crew came over and Don stopped talking (he's not big on unannounced TV cameras ). Force yaps "this is my 25th year here at Phoenix. . . . I'm older than you are Snake". Don half-grinned and gives John this "righttttt... boy" look and turned away. I got a good laugh out of that. No one gets the better of The Snake - fla.
Seventy-seven years young Don Garlits (NHRA No. 1 Greatest) was honored at the '09 Gatornationals for 60 years of drag racing. - fla
01.14.09: Happy Birthday Don Garlits - - The man considered by many as the father of drag racing, Don Garlits, was born on this day in 1932 in Tampa, Fla. Aside from his wins and champions, "Big Daddy" probably made his greatest contribution to the sport by helping perfect the rear-engine top-fuel dragster after losing part of a foot in an accident. He was also one of the first drivers to get behind the idea of racers wearing fire-proof uniforms, socks, and gloves to increase safety. While his safety innovations are recognized and appreciated by both racers and fans alike, it was his ability to wheel a car down a dragstrip with the aid of his Swamp Rat machines that will forever mark him as one of, if not the, greatest drag racer ever. Garlits was the first driver to top 170, 180, 200, 240, 250, 260, and 270 mph down a quarter-mile and the first driver to break the 200 mph barrier on the eighth-mile. During his hall-of-fame career, Garlits earned 144 Nationals wins, along with three NHRA titles (the first driver to do so), and three world championships.
I saw Don race this dragster. - fla
GATORNATIONALS 1986: In the weeks leading up to the 1986 event, Don Garlits had been finishing work on his streamlined Swamp Rat XXX dragster. With its enclosed front end and cockpit, it looked like it could do 270 mph standing still. "Big Daddy" broke the 270-mph mark in the semifinals of that event, beating former NFL quarterback Dan Pastorini with a stunning speed of 272.56 in what was then the quickest side-by-side race in history, 5.40 to 5.49, surpassing the old mark set by Gary Beck and Gary Ormsby (5.39 to 5.54) at the 1983 Golden Gate Nationals. Garlits then beat Dick LaHaie in the final for his last of four Gatornationals wins. The only hitch in Garlits' weekend was the front "tire" setup, which featured generator belts wrapped around aluminum discs. The belts repeatedly exited the "wheels" at the top end of every pass when "Big" pulled the chute, and they were replaced at the next race by small aircraft tires, which became all the rage for a few years before the teams realized that what they gained in aero advantage was lost on less rollout. - Credit NHRA
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