Ian King
Ian King is a record-breaking, multiple European Drag Racing champion. Ian has won twelve FIM European Championships – 10 as rider, two as Team Principal – plus two ACU British and one MCUI Irish Championships and has broken various track records and an FIM World Land Speed Record. He is the eighth member of the international MTC Engineering Top Fuel Bike 5-Second Club.
Ian built his first custom motorcycle at age 13 and became a renowned, multi-award-winning constructor of custom road bikes. He first encountered Drag Racing on a day trip to Santa Pod with the Boy Scouts. From the age of 17 he raced his friends on their road bikes at `Run What Ya Brung’ weekends, and began his formal racing career in the 1980s in the SuperBike-conceived Ultimate Streetbike series, riding his own custom-turbocharged, road-legal specials.
From the Street classes he progressed to the full competition FunnyBike class in the UK’s ACU series on a self-built turbo-methanol Suzuki before acquiring his first nitro project, a 2,700cc V8 nitro-injected Puma Top Fuel Bike in 1997. However, before the unique project could be completed, Ian received an offer he could not refuse for the unfinished machine from entrepreneur Ron Holland and used the funds generated to acquire the Quarter Scorcher 5 Puma from Phil and Frank Brachtvogel in 1999.
Updates and improvements to the bike and control systems improved its performance dramatically over a decade into a state-of-the-art machine. In 2010 Ian sold the multi-championship-winning ride and conceived an all-new, world-leading bike under the auspices of his company Puma Engineering and in conjunction with Gulf Oil International. In 2012 the Gulf Oil Drag Racing team secured the first of eight consecutive FIM European Top Fuel Bike Championships to date.
Demonstration passes took the team to unusual places away from …
Nick Davies
It was youthful spectator visits to the Dragstrip that would spur on the engineer and businessman Nick Davies to distinguished participation and intercontinental success. Passive attendance became active involvement with a 1993 foray into Super Gas, followed by a step up to Pro Modified two years later. If his association with doorslammers has defined his engagement with drag racing, it has been Nick’s ventures into more recondite regions that have fully stamped his prominence on the sport.
The foundations of Nick’s success lie at a racing venue of a different kind. In 1997 he joined forces with another future Hall of Fame member, Rob Loaring, to acquire the parts company Rooster Racing Equipment, combining it with a near-bankrupt ICE Automotive Racing Engines and transferring the new business from a farm building to a 2,500 sq./ft. facility at Silverstone circuit, where it still resides.
In 1999, the partnership won its first UK National Pro Mod championship, with Nick at the wheel, and retained the title the following season. At the same time, they played a pivotal role in the development of Super Modified Eliminator, a lower-cost but highly competitive doorslammer class which would enjoy success for a decade and which forms the backbone of Competition Eliminator today.
In 2004, Nick began managing and tuning a Street Eliminator entry for Steve Nash which, four years later, would be the first turbocharged car to win the class championship. Meanwhile, 2005 began the venture beyond the doorslammer bounds into blown, open-wheel territory with the construction of Havoc, at first propelled by methanol, later by a tip of the nitro can. Over the next several years, Nick campaigned Havoc in the Nostalgia Fuel Altered Association series, setting the blown methanol speed record at 205mph in 2005, and later drove Lawrie Gatehouse’s Chaos Altered, this …
Jeff Byne
Jeff’s Drag Bike career began in late 1970, with a 650 Triumph. It was not long before he started modifying it, adding a supercharger help move him up the ranks. The name “Hurricane” became a familiar one on the strips; and by September 1972 he had dipped into the 9 second zone on a modest 40% nitro. Making further strides forward, in 1974 Jeff recorded the quickest time by a single-engine Triumph, when he ran 9.4s at the July International. It was a successful season – and also eventful. In August, Jeff clocked 9.38s as he sheared the rear wheel spindle at over 120 mph! He still came back out to go on and win the event! A huge blowup at the end of that season destroyed the motor, and damaged the chassis, but plans were already being made for a new machine, which would confirm his reputation as a top competitor in this era.
In May 1976, a double engine 1500cc Triumph was debuted. Two motors are not an easy proposition, but a 9.6s pass first time out, and qualifying for Top Bike eliminator, showed his capabilities. By October of that same year, Jeff had recorded 8.70s on the orange machine, becoming only the fourth rider to dip below 9 seconds. He ended 1976 as quickest double-engine racer of the year.
The 1977 Jubilee meeting at Santa Pod was the first time that anyone had run eight second passes right the way through the three rounds of eliminations, as Jeff scored a memorable win.
A frightening 175mph crash at the Easter 1978 event thankfully left Jeff virtually unscathed, but the bike was badly damaged. A new chassis was required, and the following year proved to be a classic one on two wheels. John Hobbs set the quickest ever time …
John Price
John Price first commentated at Santa Pod from 1981 to 1987. He then worked at York Raceway for five or six years but also resumed commentating at Santa Pod in 1990, continuing there, except for a year at Avon Park’s Super Series events in 1997-8, until his retirement from Drag Racing in 2008.
John began DJ’ing aged 21, and it was his musical activities which would bring him to Drag Racing’s attention. He worked for Roger Squires, a mobile disco pioneer in the late 1960s/early ‘70s, presenting many gigs in his native London area, and then for a music management company whose clients included Alvin Stardust and the Rubettes.
At one of his gigs, John met Nick Shanley, then chairman of the National Association of Street Clubs. As a result, John was engaged to DJ at NASC Nationals events such as Knebworth and Bruntingthorpe, and at Gary’s Picnic when it took place at Santa Pod Raceway. During one of these events he was introduced to Ron Clarke, promoter of custom car shows around the country.
At one of Ron’s shows in Leeds (which was badly weather affected – perhaps an omen of things to come) John encountered a group from Santa Pod Raceway. Dave Prior, who organised Santa Pod’s displays, asked John to host a Santa Pod show at Milton Keynes shopping centre. Santa Pod’s owner, Roy Phelps, then interviewed him for the position of track commentator, recently vacated by Brian Taylor, and John started the job in March 1981.
Many followers of the sport at that time will recall John masquerading as Captain Chaos – on roller skates! – to promote Santa Pod’s association with the film The Cannonball Run, the launchpad for the venue’s famous series of ‘Cannonball’ race meetings.
John’s car show engagements continued. In 1982 …
Pelle Lindelöw and Gunnar Elmqvist
In a 25-year career, lifelong friends Pelle Lindelöw and Gunnar Elmqvist enjoyed one of the longest Drag Racing partnerships outside America. It began during the sport’s earliest days in Scandinavia, with a chance meeting of old school friends in 1970 at Sweden’s Mantorp Park. Pelle had never witnessed a Drag Race but was instantly hooked by the speed and power. Pelle, Gunnar and another friend, Janne Rosquist, found they shared a passion for the Renault 4CV. Having hot-rodded their little French cars with modified engines, they embarked on an inspirational road trip to England for Santa Pod’s 1972 International meet.
Impressed by the smaller-capacity vehicles, Pelle and Gunnar decided to buy another 4CV and convert it into a race car with a modified R16 Arne Berg engine. Following its debut in 1974, the pair became the team to beat in the Competition Altered ranks, defeating every American machine in sight.
British fans first saw this amazing little car at Snetterton in 1975, but the pair hadn’t bargained on the might of that staple of British Comp Altered teams, the trusty Jaguar, in particular the one campaigned by a certain Barry Sheavills, known as Stagecoach.
After a move to an injected 454ci A/Gas Dragster produced a nondescript couple of seasons in 1977 and ’78, Lee Anders Hasselström convinced Pelle and Gunnar (P&G) to take the Top Fuel challenge.
A year later P&G were proud owners of a new Kjellin Brothers chassis powered by an ageing iron-block Chevy. After breaking into the 6-second, 200mph zone, driver Pelle rolled the car on the short Mantorp Park track. Armed with another Kjellin chassis the team were soon deep into the mid-sixes.
1983 was a significant year. The team secured its first major sponsorship from Clarion Car Stereo and began clocking regular low sixes, …
Dave Wilson
Dave Wilson was involved in the Supercharged Methanol racing category throughout his career and five times became FIA European Top Methanol champion, adding several British championships and many race wins to his name.
His Drag Racing experience began with Rod George, whom Dave helped with his transmission. A chance to drive Rod’s Creeper dragster hooked him on the sport. Creeper was replaced by the famous Stormbringer car, previously the first to run a five-second ET outside America. Renamed Krypton, the car crashed at York, injuring Dave seriously.
The team regrouped and Rod sold his share. Dave partnered with Steve Martyn and helped by Dave Fletcher, built a new Krypton. Steve drove the car in 1981, qualified low at that year’s World Finals and finished runner-up.
Dave resumed driving in 1982, racing Krypton successfully until 1986. Attending the US Nationals, he learned how to run the car much harder. Back home, the improved power produced severe breakage at his first race. It took three years to repair and update the parts needed to get the car back on track. Dave upgraded gradually and by 1997 could run as quickly as 6.009sec.
In 1999 Dave teamed up with the Redstone & Gleadow team who had imported a car named Nemesis from Finland. The team joined that season’s FIA European tour and clocked fives, qualifying no.1 and winning an event. Such success attracted team sponsorship from Lucas Oil Products. In 2001 Dave bought the car from Barry Redstone and sponsored by American Car Imports, Air Sea Logistics, Sony PlayStation and 76 Racing Fuels, formed a two-car team with Wendy Baker.
Increased sponsorship from Antony Cohen (American Car Imports) enabled Dave to buy a complete Bob Meyer car in 2002. Following a US debut at Pomona, he set new ET and speed …