TODD MOYER

Have you ever wanted to try other kinds of racing ?

I have no desire to do anything other than drag racing . Back around ’ 98 , me and my wife , Kathaleen , got into dirt tracking for two years . I did a deal called “ Thunder Bombing ” - it ’ s a demolition derby at 50-70 mph . Some nights , we ’ d have 80 to 100 cars running on a 3 / 8-mile dirt track . They ’ d be lined up three wide all the way around for the 100-lap race . It taught me how to drive a car better . I thought I was pretty good until I got on a dirt track on street tires and tried to go 70 mph . My first few weeks , I looked like a clown . I was always backwards or spinning out . I drove an ’ 83 Delta 88 with a 403ci Oldsmobile motor in it , and that thing rolled ! We had a $ 500 carb on it and tricked it out a little . I drove it with the big bench seat in it , with my left hand , and my right arm up over the back of the seat for support . That sounds pretty wild . Any good stories to share ?

Once a car hooked bumpers with me , and drug him around the track . His steering broke and that ’ s why he hit me , so when he broke loose at 50 mph , he went up the wall , hit the fence , and crashed his car so bad . Why ’ d you stop dirt track racing ?

I got hit by an axle . It came through the window , hit my helmet and split it open , gashed my head , and knocked me out cold . I said ‘ that ’ s it , this is dangerous ’. Tires and rims were always coming off cars and flying through windows . It was too much . What ’ s the Texas racing scene like right now ?

Honestly , it ’ s not like it used to be . The only place that ’ s really got it going on now is North Star Dragway in Denton , Texas . Down here at Baytown , they don ’ t do a whole a lot . And then we have Houston Motorsports Park , they do a lot of grudge racing . No prep and grudge racing are the biggest things here right now . Who are the people that make your racing life possible ?

Without my wife ’ s help , I couldn ’ t do this . We ’ ve been married since ’ 93 . A lot of times the shop is so busy that I shouldn ’ t be leaving to go racing , but Kathaleen will stay to fill in my shoes . She ’ s a good woman . Right now I have 39 jobs here . It ’ s a challenge , but she does a great job keeping control of things . As far as racing goes ,

my main crew chief is Steve Benoit . He works on my cars during the week and drives the rigs . Then I have Joe Oplawski , my tuner , who I work with and he ’ s great . What ’ s it like to be Todd Moyer in real life ? What ’ s an average day like for you ?

I ’ m pretty much a workaholic . I get to the shop at 6:30AM and work until 7:00PM every

evening . I ’ m the guy that runs the show . I have myself and eight mechanics that I guide to diagnose vehicles and work on things . About 70-percent of what we do is automotive diesels . We do a lot of air conditioning work , check engine lights , just routine maintenance , but we stay busy . I really love going to work . It ’ s where I want to be . Where are you going to be for the rest of the season ?

We ’ ll follow the PDRA calendar for Pro Boost with the Camaro , and then we ’ ll probably go to Denton for the big Small Tire Nationals race there in September , they ’ re paying $ 20,000-to-win in Radial vs . the World . Then there ’ s a big no prep race in Baytown in September , the Lone Star Resurrection . PDRA is the focus , but I ’ ll be out at other events now and then . DI

PHOTOS : JAMES SISK , IAN TOCHER