Drag Illustrated Issue 135, August 2018 | Page 36

MOVERS & SHAKERS NEW GUY ON THE BLOCK William Tharpe is excited to be at the helm of the historic Atlanta Dragway. Tharpe developed a proven track record of successful programs during his extensive manage- ment role at Ohio’s Kil-Kare Dragway, and is now looking forward to imple- menting his ideas as the track manager in Atlanta. LASER FOCUS Tuner Jon Salemi looks on intently as Steve King prepares to make a record-breaking 5.71-second blast at 257 mph in Gene Pilot’s ‘69 Camaro dur- ing Friday night qualifying at the NEOPM’s June race at Capitol Raceway. #MRALLACCESS Hype man Jason Logan demonstrates the “Face the Cookie” challenge for a pair of young contestants hoping to win a prize pack during a brief break in on-track action at the PDRA Fire- cracker Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park. YEAR OF THE DRAGON The ever-positive Ric Fleck and his South-Carolina based team enjoyed their best outing yet in PDRA Pro Boost at the Firecracker Nationals, where Fleck in the “Dragon III” ‘41 Willys qualified No. 2 and earned his first PDRA victory. Wild Bunch The Wild Bunch from Virginia is a fun-loving group of racers that began traveling together a few years back. Founding members include Stuart Patterson (who owns the Olds Cutlass) and his brother, Gary Holmes, along with many friends, family and other racers, including Delton Hairfield, who once won a 10-grander with the Cutlass. 36 | D r a g I l l u s t r a t e d | DragIllustrated.com Issue 135