Drag racing fans who've been starving for the return of top-fuel funny cars are in for a feast.
As part of bracket racing at Northland Dodge Motorsports Park this weekend, five hot rods from Rocky Mountain Nostalgia Funny Cars will be thundering up the local quarter-mile strip. The body styles of the automotive masterpieces are representative of the pre-1980s muscle car era, and the cars will be turning times in the high six-second to low seven-second range.
Oh, and the drivers will also be performing some of the most impressive smoke shows ever seen in these parts.
"We don't have the television John Force 300-mile-an-hour runs," said Joey Steckler, Rocky Mountain co-founder and driver. "What we do is we bring an entertainment package to people. We're showmen. We do long, smoky burnouts and we all run pretty close for times.
"Some of our best showmen are going [to Prince George] and it's nothing for them to do thousand-foot burnouts," Steckler added. "Even this past weekend, we were all in Provost [Alberta] and we were running on a runway which didn't have a whole lot of traction but we were all conscientious of putting a show on for the fans so we put 'em in high gear and we did burnouts like the 60s from one end of the track to the other."
In between races, fans are always encouraged to get up close to the machines and their pilots.
"Everybody is there to interact with the fans," Steckler said. "Kids can go ask to sit in the cars and somebody will put them in for a picture."
Five drivers are expected to be here for the Saturday and Sunday event. They include: Rocky Mountain co-founder Cal Tebb with his fire-orange GTO; Ron Sekura, in a 1969 Camaro or a 1968 Chevy Nova; David Brant and his 1977 Firebird; Cory Kincaid, who will be in the cockpit of a 1955 Chevy Bel-Air; and Hank Weultjes behind the wheel of a 392 Hemi-powered kit car.
Rocky Mountain Nostalgia Funny Cars has a stable of 14 drivers and is based in Edmonton.
Time trials on Saturday and Sunday will start at 10 a.m., with racing to follow. The funny cars are scheduled to make their passes at 11:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. each day.
Landon LeDuke, track manager at the local strip, said bringing the Rocky Mountain drivers to town carried a price tag of about $8,000. Much of the cost was covered by local sponsors Jack Schultz Autobody, Interior Offroad, Prince George Yamaha, Queensway Auto World and Vision Management and Construction.
As for the bracket racing, close to 75 cars have entered.
Admission is $10 per day for adults, while kids aged 12 and under can watch for free.
Northland Dodge owner Brent Marshall assumed control of the drag strip earlier this year. Prior to that, it was struggling to stay operational because of declining car-counts and dwindling fan interest.
By the time next season starts, LeDuke said close to $150,000 will have been invested in the facility. One of the planned projects is the installation of a new, 200-foot concrete launch pad.
"That will replace the 30-year-old pad we have, and we're looking at stuff like jet-engine track dryers," LeDuke said. "All the work is getting done this fall."
Northland Dodge Motorsports Park is located off of Chief Lake Road.
