Flame and Fury - Linkage Mag

THE MARCH MEET, the California Hot Rod Reunion, the Winteranationals and the Nitro Revival all have one thing in common: a blend of nitromethane (90%) and methanol (10%) used to fuel the supercharged and fuel-injected Chrysler Hemi-based engine.

Nitro enables the powerplant to deliver more power per stroke and methanol helps suppress detonation, which makes the fuel more stable. The mixture process is critical to blend at the proper ratio, as it is mixed by weight, which is dictated by temperature. The result: screaming big-inch V8s, low quarter-mile times and white-hot exhaust flames.

Today, Nitro burning dragsters and vintage racecars have become the cornerstone of the “Nitro Revival” — the nostalgic grand celebration of drag racing’s golden age.

As it was

The Revival was created by former NHRA VP of Competition Director Steve “Big Hook” Gibbs, his daughter Cindy and the late Ron Johnson in 2017. They shared a passion for drag racing that led to the development of a “stars and cars” Revival, where they could honor the innovators of the drag racing world.

The 7th edition of the Nitro Revival was held November 8 and 9 at Irwindale Dragstrip on the grounds of the Speedway Complex in Southern California. The event was blanketed with restored Nitro-burning dragsters, Funny Cars, Fuel Altereds, nostalgic Gassers, and AFX muscle cars performing wheel standing shows and long, smoky burnouts on the 1/8-mile dragstrip.

“Nitro Revival brings back the sights and sounds of the early days of hot rodding. It lets fans experience a drag racing museum come to life, with the presence of many of those who built and drove those cars at the tracks,” said Gibbs.

Lions, Orange Country Raceway, Riverside, San Fernando, Bakersfield, Pomona, Irwindale and many others were where front-engine dragsters were the kings of the quarter mile. Here, these cars filled the paddock, with over 60 nitro-burning machines on-site. It was said that the Reunion “celebrates the way things once were in drag racing when cars were home brewed, and racing was more unpredictable.”

A gathering of Diggers

The first Nitro Revival was held at Barona Dragstrip near San Diego, the second edition took a trip to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, where “Big Daddy” Don Garlits made a rare appearance. The third and successive Revivals moved to the rebuilt Irwindale Dragstrip in the San Gabriel Valley in California.

This 7th Annual Nitro Revival hit the pinnacle of achievement, bringing young enthusiasts and hundreds of old-time drag racers and their nostalgic machines together to share stories of the heritage of drag racing. Nitro Revival is “about the people,” said Gibbs, “as well as the racing cars.”

A significant highlight at the Revival was the all-star autograph session, where about 50 racing legends assembled to sign posters and anything a fan brought. Among the luminaries were Don “The Snake” Prudhomme, “TV Tommy” Ivo, “Fast Jack” Beckman, Ed Pink, Linda Vaughn, 103-year-old Ed “Isky” Iskenderian and more. The Hot Rod Hangout drew huge crowds, and the Outla Gassers stood strong and showed their wheels-up power on the track.

Cackling glory

After an In-N-Out Burger bash and static fire-ups on Friday night, exhibition runs and “bench racing” continued all weekend, which brought an eager crowd to the Saturday evening cackle fest. There, an on track mass fire up of about 60 nitro-burning nostalgic machines cackled in a line of fire, with bright orange header flames lighting up the night sky.

Don Garlits’ Swamp Rat 3 was there, along with Tony Nancy’s Sizzler, the Vagabond, Astro, the Freight Train, Pure Hell Funny Car and Tommy Ivo’s last dragster. Then, a brilliant, colorful fireworks display exploded in the sky, while everyone wiped away the “tears of joy” from the nitro fumes. On track, Steve and Cindy Gibbs celebrated bringing the “geezers” together one more time before the closure of Irwindale Speedway at the end of this year.

Of course, that’s not the end. Gibbs states confidently, “Talks are now in progress regarding alternative sites and plans for 2025.” Cindy adds, “There most certainly will be Nitro Revivals next year. We will be posting updates on Nitro Revival Facebook and Instagram.”