Best of the Best in 2020 Part 1
/Over the next couple of weeks, I want to take a look back at the 2020 season and highlight some of the best that the drag racing world had to offer. As usual, I am sure there will be some things left out, or even some things added that you don’t agree with. This is my Best Of for 2020 in no particular order.
Donald Long pulls off 5 races in 2020
Anytime that we talk about accomplishments in 2020, you have to give props where props are certainly due. There were a lot of organizations and promoters that had to pull the plug on events in 2020 because of restrictions and other things. Always one to figure out a way, Donald Long, who has revolutionized the world of drag radial racing did something most others couldn’t. Not only did he manage to pull off his three usual races, Lights Out, Sweet 16, & No Mercy, he also added two more two-day races in Orlando this season. Kudos to Donald for going strong and figuring out a way to give racers an opportunity to race.
Ron Muenks just wins
Domination is not something that we tend to see nowadays in drag racing. There is a lot more evenness across the board when it comes to combinations and setups in drag racing. Apparently, no one told the Purple Gorilla that this year. The plan was for Ron, Dave, Jeff, Ryan, and the rest of the team to just run a part-time schedule in 2020. That “part-time” schedule turned into winning just about everything that they entered. Ron and the team amassed a 23-1 round record this season, with their only round loss coming to the two-time PDRA World Champion Jim Halsey at the PDRA World Finals. The team went on to become the Mid-West Drag Racing Series Pro Mod World Champions, and just rack up round win after round win.
Joel Greathouse secures NMRA Championship
Most of you that are into Mustang drag racing already know the name, Joel Greathouse. Joel is someone that is usually pretty soft-spoken and keeps to himself. This year Joel’s year in NMRA Renegade class though. He fought all season for every point and it all came down to the NMRA World Finals in Bowling Green, Kentucky. While Joel wanted the Championship, he also wanted a win at Bowling Green, which he stated had always eluded him in this style of racing at his home track. I had the personal pleasure of being at the top-end of the track when the pass that locked up the Championship came. You don’t understand the emotion a team like that goes through until you are standing there and seeing for yourself.
Jackson & Reese chase to 3.40’s
There aren’t a lot of barriers left that haven’t been broken within the world of doorslammer drag racing. Big tire pro mods have continued to be the only ones in the hallowed ground of 3.40’s. Even a few years ago no one thought that 3.40’s on a radial tire was anything but a long-winded delusion. The closer we have gotten with the radial tire, the more excitement we have seen surrounding it. This really ramped to a fever pitch in Virginia this fall when both Stevie Jackson and David Reese were on the property to run RvW. Would we see the first 3.40’s pass? Would we see the first 3.40’s side-by-side pass? While neither happened, you couldn’t have gotten any closer than the two of them did. Now that the rules have changed, David has put his car up for sale, it will be interesting to see when this barrier is broken in competition. For now, we can close our eyes and remember the two of them chasing it and what it would have been like to see a side-by-side 3.40’s on radials pass.