TRIBUTE: AL HANNA
served those who backed his racing. Similarly, the“ Eastern Raider” team grew to include racing multiple vehicles simultaneously while the family itself grew to multiple team members with the additions of sons Richard and Scott.
In 1978, Al and Ellen formed Pro-Race, Inc., as the corporate image of their amazing arsenal of race cars which, at one time, included a Top Fuel Dragster, a AA / Funny Car and a BB / Funny Car. When Al and Ellen moved to thrust machines, Pro-Race consolidated the family’ s jet car teams and set new goals for jet-powered drag racing. With Rich driving a second jet Funny Car and Scott acting as team engineer, Hanna created and produced a series of races known as“ Ultra Teams Championships” the events of which were covered by CBS network television. Hanna then created Pro-Jet, an official racing organization which contested National Events with open-qualified fields of jet dragsters and Funny Cars which were covered by ESPN TV.
Eventually, the scope of Pro-Race, Inc., included everything from three operating jets,( a dragster was added in 1997), to facilities to build chassis and engines for jet dragsters and Funny Cars as well as race track jet dryers. Meanwhile, the family maintained the busiest schedule of any jet-powered team on the planet, racing as far south as the country of Brazil.
The Hanna family race cars were seldom beaten and, in fact, Rich Hanna has held the outright Jet Funny Car performance records,( 5.42 seconds, 295.08 mph in the quarter-mile and 3.78 / 219.43 in the eighth), for almost a quarter-century.
Above and beyond his storied career as a driver and team owner, however, is Al Hanna’ s standing within the community of drag racing. A husband and father,( and grandfather to eleven), Hanna embraced nearly everyone he knew as a member of his family. A man of towering physical and emotional attributes,“ Big Al” was responsible for the careers of dozens of drivers, many from his own teams as well as those from others. He cultivated the careers of both men and women as his champion pilots as well as those who learned the sport as crewmembers for the race cars of Al and Ellen. The vast majority of the many individuals involved in Al Hanna’ s racing operation considered him everything from a mentor to a father figure.
A member of four Drag Racing Halls of Fame whose vehicles are featured in the Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing, Al Hanna achieved nearly every conceivable goal. His three-car jet team was the standard of performance, engineering and showmanship by which all others were judged. He remains,( along with longtime friend, fuel car and jet driver Dick Rosberg), one of only two people ever licensed in TF, FC, Jet Dragster and Jet Funny Car.
Al Hanna loved his wife, his family, his friends and his sport. He spent an entire lifetime pursuing his dreams with all of them along for the ride. By any judgement, Al Hanna was a drag racing champion. DI
50 | Drag Illustrated | DragIllustrated. com Issue 193