2002 OFAA Race Results
Text and Photos by Chris Graves
The Race to Decide a Champion
October 25th and 26th, 2002
The Royal Purple Outlaw Fuel Altered Nationals were held October 25th and 26th at Texas Raceway. Nine of the best cars in the organization came to battle it out for the championship. The points standings were very close heading into the event. Larry Reep, Donnie Massey, Jerry Williams, and Bobby Marriott were all in contention for the 2002 Outlaw Fuel Altered championship.
Qualifying Friday night went well and Mitch King, driver of the La King’s Top Fuel Dragster on the NHRA Top Fuel tour, took the pole with a 4.30. Larry Reep was right behind King with a 4.32. Jim Pruett also secured himself well into the eight car elimination field to be run Saturday.
The first pair of cars on Saturday fired around six o’clock. The points leader Donnie Massey in “Showtime” was paired with Eric Buchanan in “No Fear.” Massey had to win this round to keep his championship hopes alive. Buchanan had problems and Massey took the win with a 4.47 at 153 mph. Jerry Williams and Larry Reep laid down huge side by side burnouts in the next pair. Reep and Williams were tied in points for second, this race was huge for both drivers. Williams got a little over anxious at the line and turned on the red bulb giving Reep the win. Reep’s 4.73 at 133 was off pace with Massey’s time from first round and the team knew that had to step it up in round two.
The next pair found the two real ground pounders of the circuit Bobby Marriott and Mitch King. Both the cars running high nitro percentages creating huge amounts of power and plenty of fumes for the fans. Marriott got the jump off the line and around the 200 foot mark King’s “Bone Bucket” caught fire underneath. Marriott didn’t see King’s problems and started to drift towards the guardrail. Marriott’s car got into the grass at the top end and within inches from the gaurdrail. King got his car stopped at the top end and put the flames out. Marriott took the win, but had damage to his fiberglass nose piece. It was one of the most exciting races the circuit has ever seen. The last pair saw Jim Pruett paired with Tom Butherus out of Goddard, Kansas. Pruett was disqualified when he failed to light the stage bulb seven seconds after Butherus did. Butherus took the win and would be paired up with Bobby Marriott in round two.
The championship would be decided in the first pair of second round. Larry Reep and Donnie Massey lined up for one of the biggest races of the season. Massey got a huge advantage off the line and never looked back. Reep, who ran quicker, couldn’t catch Massey who ran 4.53 at 155 to Reep’s 4.40 at 163 mph. Tom Butherus in “Rude Rat” surprised everyone when he took out Bobby Marriott in the other pair of round two. Marriott’s 4.87 at 160 was no match for Butherus’ 4.76 at 154 mph. The final would be Donnie Massey and Tom Butherus.
In the pits after round two Donnie Massey discovered a problem with the “Showtime” altered and could not make the final. Knowing he had the championship, he let Larry Reep (the quickest looser from round two) to take his spot in the final instead of Massey just staging the car and giving Butherus the win. Butherus, in his first final of his career, was very excited about the final round vs. Reep. The “Grim Reeper” got the advantage off the line and never looked back. Reep’s 4.68 at 151 mph easily defeated Butherus’ 5.60 at 91 mph.
The Royal Purple Outlaw Fuel Altered Nationals saw some very exciting and intense side by side racing. Reep ended the season with a win, Massey took the championship, and Butherus made his first final of his career. Mitch King said farwell to the Outlaw Fuel Altereds and put his car for sale. King will now focus on his Top Fuel operation for the 2003 NHRA Top Fuel season. The Outlaw Fuel Altered circuit would like to thank Royal Purple and Wizard’s Warehouse for their support in the 2002 season. The circuit would also like to congradulate Donnie Massey and his team on their championship. See you next season!
Marriott Wins the Thunder in the Valley Nationals
August 17-18, 2002
The Thunder in the Valley Nationals were held August 17th and 18th at Thunder Valley Raceway in Noble, Oklahoma.
Racing began Friday night as the sun was setting in the distance. Beautiful weather for some nitro pumping racecars to do their thing. The Outlaw Fuel Altereds know how to get a crowd going, long burnouts! Bobby Marriott led the pack after round one with a 7.05 at 192 mph. Jerry Williams in “Wild Thing II” sat second right behind Marriott with a 7.08 at 198 mph. Jack Hodgson in “Blown Smoke” also ran well in round one with a 7.37 at 180 mph which put him third after one session. Jim Pruett in his brand new ’23 T bodied altered had a hair raising encounter with the left lane guardrail. Pruett debuted this car at Noble after wrecking his other altered at the prior race at Texas Raceway. A steering problem that Pruett discovered after the run caused him to drift over to the left and tag the guardrail. Thankfully, only the header of the car was damaged and he could continue racing at the event.
The performance stepped up in session two and the qualfying order got shuffled big time from round one. Donnie Massey, the points leader, in “Showtime” ran a 7.11 at 192 mph to put him third early in round two.
Kent Basnett, making his first appearance in two years, driving the “Almost Funny” flamed Fiat ran a 6.99 at 193 mph to put him number one halfway session two of qualifying. Ted Elrod, in his first Outlaw Fuel Altered event, proved he could run with the big dogs when he ran a 7.01 at 196 mph in his “Killin Time” ’48 Fiat. He sat between Marriott and Basnett in second place with one pair to go in round two of qualifying. Larry Reep and Jerry Williams, both winners of events this season, were the last two cars to run. Jerry Williams did not improve on his earlier 7.08, but Larry Reep stepped up in a big way running a 6.87 at 209 mph. Reep would lead the eight car field into eliminations on Saturday with Basnett (6.99), Elrod (7.01), Marriott (7.05), Williams (7.08), Massey (7.11), Kirkpatrick (7.30), and Reichmann (7.31) all blood thirsty for a win.
Saturday, eliminations got started around five in the evening. Everyone was very excited about the first round pair between Larry Reep and Jerry Williams in Outlaw Fuel Altered. Both drivers were heavy into the points battle with Donnie Massey and Bobby Marriott. Reep used a holeshot to defeat Williams with a sluggish 7.27 at 207 mph to Williams’ 7.23 at 197 mph. Ted Elrod, Donnie Massey, and Bobby Marriott also advanced into the semi-final round.
The semi-final saw Ted Elrod paired with Larry Reep and Bobby Marriott against Donnie Massey. In the Elrod vs. Reep battle, Elrod cut a holeshot on Reep and it was just enough to beat Reep’s hard charging 6.63 at 216 mph to Elrod’s 6.73 at 202 mph. Bobby Marriott stepped into the six second zome defeating Donnie Massey’s 7.18 at 191 mph with a 6.86 at 189 mph. The final was set to be Marriott vs. Elrod. Unfortunately, in the semi-final round run, Elrod damaged his engine beyond repair. The circuit rules went into effect and Jerry Williams, the quickest looser in round one, took his spot in the final against Marriott.
The Outlaw Fuel Altered final was one of the closest and quickest in circuit history. Both drivers are origional members of the altered circuit and are good friends off the track, but Marriott saw nothing but the win light. Marriott left on Williams and never looked back. A 6.80 at 193 mph took out Williams’ 6.83 at 200 mph. Marriott took his first win in almost two years and catapulted himself back into the points battle with one race left in the season.
The Thunder in the Valley Nationals was an action packed nitro pumping weekend of racing that everyone enjoyed. I wanted to say “Get Well Soon” to a friend of many in the racing community. Dick Demets, was injured in a freak accident when a front engine bracket car reversed into the racecar, tow vehicle, and crew of Eric Buchanan’s “No Fear” Outlaw Fuel Altered team in the staging lanes prior to a test run. Both Demets and Ms. Buchanan were sent to the hospital for treatment and both are on the road to recovery and will return to the track very soon. Look for the Outlaw Fuel Altereds to settle the championship October 18th and 19th at Texas Raceway. Thank You to Royal Purple and Wizards Warehouse for their support of the Outlaw Fuel Altered Association.
Reeper Wins in Shreveport
June 22nd, 2002
The second half of the double header weekend for the Outlaw Fuel Altereds took place at Red River Raceway in Gilliam, Louisiana just outside Shreveport, June 22nd, 2002.
The great condition of the Red River Raceway pit area and quarter mile racing surface had everyone heavily anticipating the first round of qualifying. With no threat of bad weather the night was sure to be packed with awesome ground pounding action.
Eric Eoff made his first appearance of the 2002 Outlaw Fuel Altered season in his 90% nitro altered and prior to first round gave the Louisiana race fans a quick fix of nitro in his pre-race warm-up. Eoff was the first car lined up to run in session one but an unknown mechanical failure prevented him from firing his car and sidelined him for the evening. Bill Riechmann out of Missouri in his third Outlaw Fuel Altered race of 2002 took the number one spot early with a 4.78 at 145 mph, but that probably wouldn’t hold with cars like Reep, Williams, Marriott, and Massey still to run. Howard Knowles, the other Missouri based altered, grabbed the pole position from Riechmann with a 4.48 at 156 mph. Larry Reep and Jerry Williams were the last two cars to run in session two. The two ’48 Fiat bodied altereds took away the number one and two spots from the Missouri cars. Williams ran 4.34 at 163 mph to take second spot behind Larry Reep’s “Grim Reeper” who ran 4.21 at 174 mph. For the second time of 2002, Larry Reep would advance to the final still searching for his first win of the season.
In between rounds, Larry Reep fired up for his pre-race warm up and a crowd quickly formed as a little cloud of nitro made its way around the “Grim Reeper” pit area as he had a little extra something in his fuel tank and planned on making a low four second pass to get him a good combination for the final. Donnie Massey took the top spot early in round two of qualifying posting a 4.62 at 153 mph. Bobby Marriott in “Shockwave,” who was bumped out of the final late in round two the day before at Texas Raceway, posted a 4.44 at 158 mph to take the top spot from Massey with one pair of cars left, Jerry Williams and Larry Reep. The fans anticipated a very low four second elapsed time out of Reep, who had already secured his spot in the final from round one, and they got what they wanted. Reep blasted down the Red River Raceway eighth mile at 4.06 at 179 mph, but right beside him Jerry Williams posted a 4.26 at 164 bumping Marriott out of the final for the second time of the weekend. The final would see long time friends and circuit members, Jerry Williams vs. Larry Reep.
Williams, making his fourth final round of the season, knew Reep had an advantage in performance and tried to make it up on the line. Williams cut a .170 reaction time and gave the win to Reep who ran 4.08 at 179 mph to Williams’ 4.65 at 160 mph. Larry Reep took his first win of the 2002 season and the “Grim Reeper” team had grins from ear to ear on their faces. They had been searching for this win for five races and finally got their wish.
Massey Takes Second Win
June 21st, 2002
The Outlaw Fuel Altereds started off their double header weekend at Texas Raceway June 21st, with a thirteen car field of the southwest’s finest outlaw altereds. It was the beginning of one of the most action packed and best racing the circuit has seen this season. The cars were lined up to the main road filled with people wanting to get their fix of nostalgic altered racing at it’s best.
The cars were ready, the fans were ready, the track was ready, so the action got started with Tom Butherus in “Rude Rat Too” who ran a 4.64 at 153 mph. Donny McSwain made his first Outlaw Fuel Altered appearance and ran 4.67 at 147 mph after picking the wheels up two feet in the air on the launch. Jerry Williams, undefeated at Texas Raceway so far this season, in “Wild Thing” ran second quickest with a 4.42 at 159 mph, but the story of the round involved Jim Pruett. Pruett, with his brand new car for the 2002 season, raised everyone’s eyebrows with a 4.21 blast at 165 mph. Unfortunately, Pruett encountered a parachute failure and ended up using the trees at the top end of the track to stop his car. Unbelievably, it took less than twenty four hours for Pruett to buy a new car out of Oklahoma and he plans to return to action as soon as possible. John Tappan, also competing in his first race of the season with the Outlaw Fuel Altereds, driving “Time Warp” proved he would be a force to be reckoned with running a 4.68 at 134 mph in his Ford powered altered. Freddie Kirkpatrick was paired up with Larry Reep in the first round but neither of the cars got a time because Kirkpatrick had a brake problem and rolled through the lights. Reep, instead of backing up and re-staging, launched down the track and his time also didn’t count. This just added to the frustration and disappointment the “Grim Reeper” team had been facing all season. Howard Knowles out of Missouri in “Cheaper Than Therapy” tripped the clocks with a 4.57 at 145 mph which would be good enough for the fourth spot after round one. The competition was heavy and ten of twelve cars ran in the four second zone after round one with Jerry Williams, who was second quickest, taking Pruett’s spot in the final.
With such a close field after the first session, the second session of qualifying was going to be a battle for the last spot into the final. Eric Buchanan in “No Fear” put fear in the eyes of his competition at the beginning of the second session laying down a 4.51 at 159 mph. Jerry Williams, making sure he had a good combination for the final, stepped up running 4.32 at 161 mph after an amazing eight hundred foot burnout that drove the Texas Raceway fans into a frenzy. Bobby Marriott in “Shockwave” took the number one spot of round two with a 4.41 at 160 mph but the last car down the track was one of the hottest cars of 2002. “Mr. Consistency” Donnie Massey out of Little Elm, Texas ran a 4.44 at 158 mph in round one and stepped up in round two with a 4.40 at 159 mph bumping out Marriott from the final. Again, all but two cars ran four second elapsed times. Even though only two cars could advance, the rest of the altered teams were very pleased with the performance of their cars and the condition of the Texas Raceway racing surface. So the final would see Jerry Williams against Donnie Massey, a rematch of the April Outlaw Altered event. Williams was shooting for a drag racing version of a “hat trick” attempting to get his third win in a row at Texas Raceway in 2002.
After some thrashing in the “Showtime” and “Wild Thing II” pit areas it was time to kick the tires and light the fires. For the fans that stuck around for the final it was well worth it. Jerry Williams of course laid down another amazing burnout in his ’48 Fiat. Donnie Massey in his ’23 T bodied altered got off the line with a slight advantage (.534 to .571). Williams made a race out of it but Massey’s consistent string of 4.40 elapsed times would help him prevail and take the win running 4.40 at 159 mph to Williams’ 4.44 at 157 mph. Donnie Massey took his second win of the 2002 season and first at Texas Raceway.
A special thanks goes out to Royal Purple and Wizard’s Warehouse for their continuing support of the Outlaw Fuel Altered circuit.
Wild Thing Strikes Twice in Kennedale
May 17th, 2002
The Outlaw Fuel Altereds made their second appearance at Texas Raceway in the fourth race of the season on May 17th. Thirteen cars came to battle down the eighth mile and earn those precious points towards the 2002 Outlaw Fuel Altered Championship.
Jim Kelly and Tom Butherus made the trip from Kansas, Howard Knowles made his first appearance of the season out of Missouri, and Jimmy Todd came down from Oklahoma to mix it up with the Texas boys in his first race of the season.
The Outlaw Fuel Altereds have decided to run their events differently for the rest of the season. There will be two qualifying sessions as usual, but instead of bringing back one quick car from each session the quickest four cars from both sessions will come back to form a semi-final round. Then the winners from the semi-final round will run in the final. This gives the racers better odds of making a final and gives those nitro crazed Texas fans another chance to see those wild and crazy Outlaw Altereds.
The first session of qualifying was also the final round from last month’s race at Texas Raceway that was postponed due to track curfew between Donnie Massey and Jerry Williams.
With a cool breeze blowing it sure didn’t feel like May in Texas, but Howard Knowles in “Cheaper Than Therapy” raised everyone’s eyebrows even more with a 4.48 at 154 mph to put him in the number one spot after three pair. Jack Hodgson in “Blown Smoke” ran a career best 4.88 at 139 mph on a solo pass to place him second quickest, but he had three big hitters right behind him. At the last event at Texas Raceway Larry Reep tagged the wall damaging his ’48 Fiat and putting him out of the race, so Reep was hoping for better luck this weekend. Reep tripped the clocks after lifting early and still ran a 4.78 at 129 mph. Reep had a spot in the semi-final with one pair left. Jerry Williams and Donnie Massey pulled into the water box for their final round laying down side by side burnouts for the roaring Texas Raceway crowd. Massey, hot off his win in Mississippi, was looking to make it two in a row in the “Showtime” altered. Jerry Williams in “Wild Thing II” got off the line first and never looked back. Williams ran 4.41 at 159 mph to defeat Massey (4.54 at 155) and take his first win of the season.
Williams also advanced to the semi-final along with Howard Knowles, Donnie Massey, and Larry Reep because they were the quickest four cars in session one.
After some intense fun and grudge racing the track announcer called the altereds to the lanes for session two. Howard Knowles had everyone’s attention after his first lap in the low four second zone and was expected to do well the whole night. A mechanical failure in his transmission caused him to loose the run in session two and his spot in the semi-final as the problem could not be repaired at the track and he was sidelined. Bobby Marriott and Jack Hodgson were the next two cars to run in the session. Both cars dipped into the four second zone, Marriott at 4.68 at 158 to Hodgson’s 4.82 at 182 mph. Marriott’s elapsed time would have bumped out Larry Reep for the fourth spot into the semi-final, but Marriott cut a .357 reaction time and the run didn’t count. Jerry Williams who was number one after session one proved he was a force to be reckoned and that he had a good conbination with another four second elapsed time, 4.58 at 154 mph. Next was Larry Reep, who tripped the clocks at 4.682 at 152 mph securing his spot in the semi-final. Donnie Massey followed right behind Reep and as consistent as the car has been this season the number one spot was still up for grabs. As expected, Massey ran a low four second elapsed time, 4.39 at 158 to shuffle Williams and Reep down one spot and put Massey on top of the list advancing to the semi-final.
Due to Knowles’ broken car being out of competition, the fifth quickest car advanced in his spot who was Jack Hodgson with a best elapsed time of 4.82 at 142 mph. The pairs would be Donnie Massey vs. Larry Reep and Jerry Williams vs. Jack Hodgson.
The semi-final started out with the hottest car in 2002 paired up with the hottest car in 2001. Donnie Massey has been the most consistent car through the first three races and Larry Reep was the champion of 2001. Reep was out of the gate first with a .486 reaction time to Massey’s .569. Reep carried the wheels and ran quick elapsed time of the event with a 4.39 at 163 eliminating Massey (5.29 at 88 mph). The next pair found underdog Jack Hodgson up against the red hot Jerry Williams. Hodgson was extremely pumped up about making it into his first final, but maybe a little too pumped. Hodgson ran another career best elapsed time of 4.79 but left the line too soon giving the win to Williams who got out of shape and would have lost had Hodgson not left to soon. The final was set between the two big dogs of the circuit, Reep vs. Williams.
The crews for the “Wild Thing” and “Grim Reeper” looked like little ants running around trying to get the final in before the track curfew. Reep and Williams pulled into the water box and lit up their Goodyear’s side by side in true Fuel Altered style. Reep who had been struggling so far this season was very excited to make it to the final and planned to keep Williams, the oldest member of the circuit, from doubling up in the win column. The “Grim Reeper” left the tree before it was activated handing the win over to Jerry Williams who ran 4.50 at 156 to take his second win of the night.
The night would definetely be a night to be remembered for the “Wild Thing II” team. The Outlaw Fuel Altereds have a month off before the next event at Texas Raceway Friday June 21st and then the next night Saturday June 22nd in Shreveport, LA. Many cars are planning on attending the double header and the circuit expects to see the biggest field of altereds so far this season at these next two races.
Lena, Mississippi - May 4th, 2002
The Outlaw Fuel Altereds made their longest tow in years to Tuscola Motorsports Park in Lena, Mississippi for the third of ten races in the 2002 season. This was the farthest east the circuit has traveled since it started. After a beautiful twenty mile drive through the back roads of Mississippi the track finally appeared.
“It makes me wish I had my Harley,” said Bobby Marriott as he took the scenic drive to the track. With overcast skies and the thought of rain in the back of everyone’s mind the first session of qualifying started. Bobby Lee Marriott in the “Shockwave” was paired against Bill Reichmann in his “Bat Out of Hell” altered making his first Outlaw Fuel Altered appearance. Bobby ran a 4.56 at 145mph and burnt a valve on the run putting him out of the race while Riechmann ran 5.56 at 143 mph. Donnie Massey in “Showtime” laid down a 4.54 at 158 mph to take the number one spot from Marriott. Larry Reep in the “Grim Reeper” struggled to find traction in the first session running only a 5.54 at 98 mph. Jack Hodgson in “Blown Smoke” ran a respectable 5.04 at 137 mph, but still hadn’t dipped into the fours in competition yet. Donnie Massey advanced to his second straight final with the quickest time of the first session.
The “Shockwave” crew was hard at work but just couldn’t repair the car and were out of the race. After a pair of Pro Mods and an alcohol funny car made passes session two of qualifying for the altereds got underway.
Donnie Massey’s new nickname should be “Mr. Consistancy.” Massey laid down a 4.76 at 154 mph outrunning Jim Pruett’s 5.30 at 147 mph. Pruett also ran a 5.30 at 149 mph in the first session and after making a few clutch adjustments hopes to be a threat at the next race at Texas Raceway. Freddie Kirkpatrick in the “Outlaw” ran a 5.00 at 140 mph and was the quickest of session two, but Larry Reep was in the pair right behind him. Reep had struggled in round one and his troubles continued in round two. A chassis part in the front end broke and Reep ran 5.56 at 123 mph advancing Kirkpatrick into the final. Larry Reep’s chassis could not be fixed and he joined Marriott on the sidelines. The final would be Donnie Massey vs. Freddie Kirkpatrick who was appearing in his first final of 2002.
Prior to the final Jack Hodgson in the “Blown Smoke” altered made a pass in hopes of running his first four second E.T. Hodgson was pumped and cut a .415 reaction time and tripped the clocks at 4.99 at 137 mph achieving his first four second elapsed time. The “Blown Smoke” team his very confident heading into the next race May 17th at Texas Raceway in Kennedale, TX.
Freddie Kirkpatrick and Donnie Massey followed right behind Hodgson in the final. After side by side burnouts Freddie cut a .514 light against Massey’s .588 and had the advantage off the line. Massey quickly caught Kirkpatrick and took over the lead at the 330’ mark.
In one of the closest finals in Outlaw Fuel Altered history Donnie Massey took his first win of his career with another great run, 4.58 at 158 mph to Kirkpatrick’s 4.87 at 142 mph. Donnie Massey will try to make it two in a row at the make-up final May 17th at Texas Raceway against Jerry Williams after it was rained out last month.
“I really like the track and hope we can come back next year,” said Donnie Massey after his win. The Outlaw Fuel Altereds hope to make another trip back to Mississippi next year.
Kennedale 1 - April 19th, 2002
The Outlaw Fuel Altereds knew they had to pack the Texas Raceway bleachers April 19th, 2002. This was the second event of eleven scheduled races for the 2002 racing season. The track had just announced a 6 race agreement for the altereds. Every third Friday through October the Outlaw Altereds will be running at Texas Raceway (except in July, the altereds run July 5th). A total of fourteen cars showed up and the line to get in was a mile long. Fans were dying to get a dose of nostalgia altereds.
Several cars made shakedown passes prior to round one. At dusk, the first pair of altereds fired up. Donnie Massey in the “Showtime,” who has been running consistent four second E.T.’s for several races, laid down a 4.49 at 153 mph. Larry Reep in the “Grim Reeper” carried the wheels past sixty feet and got off to the side and tagged the guardrail damaging the beautiful ’48 Fiat body beyond repair and they were finished for the evening. Reep still ran a 4.62 at 116 mph. Bobby Marriott tripped the clocks at 4.54 at 160 after avoiding the wall when he lost traction right at the lights. Jerry Williams in “Wild Thing II” ran a 4.66 at 150 mph. Unfortunately, Mitch King, the winner of the Altered vs. Promod Challenge April 5th at Lonestar Raceway, couldn’t run the first session. Donnie Massey had the quickest E.T. of the first session putting him in his first final of his altered career.
The “Showtime” pit area was very excited anticipating the final round. Bobby Marriott’s pit area was packed between rounds as fans watched the “Shockwave” crew work frantically to fix the car for the next session. Mitch King’s altered was repaired and he started off the second session. Mitch just came off a career weekend the week before beating Larry Dixon in the first round of top fuel at the O’Reilly Spring Nationals in Houston in a tire smoke filled pedaling contest.
After laying down side by side burnouts with Donnie Massey the fans expected a low four second or maybe a three second elapsed time from Mitch King. At sixty feet something let go in the “Bone Bucket” altered and Mitch’s car went dead. After making the tow from Galveston and missing first session, the “Bone Bucket” crew now had a broken part causing them to miss the final. The second pair of round two fired up and a sudden shower moved in over Texas Raceway. The fans scrambled and the cars were towed to their pits. The rain was light but steady and the track was finally dried at 11:45 P.M. Second session continued and Jack Hodgson in “Blown Smoke” ran the best E.T. of session two at a 5.20 at 131 mph. Freddie Kirkpatrick, who almost took out the tree in round one, had another wild ride but managed to keep his “Outlaw” altered off both guardrails running a 5.65 at 115 mph. Jerry Williams and Donnie Massey will square off in the final at the next race at Kennedale May 17th. The final couldn’t be run due to the track curfew.
Outlaw Altered vs Promod Battle
(April 5th, 2002 - Sealy, TX - Lone Star Raceway)
Altereds vs. Pro mods, can it get any better? April 5th at Lone Star Raceway Park in Sealy, TX the biggest and the baddest of the Texas Outlaw Altered and Pro Mod worlds came to do battle. A total of twenty seven cars made the tow, twelve altereds and fifteen pro mods. The weather was perfect, the track was excellent, anticipation was high, and muscles were tense. It was time to answer, "Who is the baddest in the south?"
The big battle was of course, "King Nitro" Mitch King vs. Frankie "Mad Man" Taylor. Mitch and Frankie had been exchanging verbal battles for weeks prior to the race. With both teams exchanging glances towards each others pit area and listening to the drivers comments in a pre-race interview, it was obvious these two racers were ready to go for kill.
Mitch had his LaKing's top fueler on display for the fans, or maybe to try and intimidate Frankie, who knows. The crowd was getting thick and the snack bar was packed. Over a thousand race fans made it out to Lone Star Raceway Park. The cars began to do their pre-race warm-ups and nitro fumes were in the air around the Mitch King camp. Soon after, the call went out for the first round of qualifying to begin. The first round saw a pair of altereds, Jim Pruett and Eric Buchanan. Buchanan was driving the "Flame Thrower" that was driven by Bob Vorin last year. Bob hung up his helmet and Buchanan volunteered to drive the race the new driver, a Flame Thrower crew member, hadn't received his license yet. Jim Pruett after a forget able 2001 season, with no test passes on the new car, ran a respectable 5.58 at 131 mph. The first altered vs. pro mod match up found Bobby Lee Marriott in the "Shockwave" vs. Tommy Adams in his Camaro. It was a very close race and Marriott took the win with a 4.58 at 157 mph to Adams' 4.79 at 147 mph. Also in the first session Larry Reep in the "Grim Reeper" laid down a 4.23 at 164 mph, but he had plenty more in store for those pro mods. Newcomer to the Outlaw Fuel Altereds Jack Hodgson, who will team up and have a two car team before the season's end, driving the "Blown Smoke" ran a nice 5.15 at 132 mph to prove he will be a contender this season. Pro mod racer Shawn Davis tripped the clocks with a 4.61 at 155 mph in the first session. The last two pairs of cars in the first session were the two match races that had been established between Gaylen Smith and Brandon Holcomb, and of course, Mitch King and Frankie Taylor. The "Texas Bounty Hunter" of Gaylen Smith and the new flamed altered of Brandon Holcomb fired their engines and laid down long smoky burnouts. Out of the gate Brandon left on Gaylen with a .496 light, but Gaylen's Camaro came charging around Brandon and ran 4.83 at 132 mph to Brandon's 6.02 at 91 mph. Brandon would have one more chance to beat Gaylen in the next round. Nitro fumes were in the air for the last pair of the first session when Mitch King laid down a monster burnout with his skull flags mounted on the front wing of his altered. Frankie and Mitch had been ready for this for quite a while and both drivers were pumped for this run. Frankie drilled Mitch off the line with a .555 light to Mitch's .766 and it was enough to hold off the altered. Frankie ran a 4.08 at 172 mph, but Mitch shocked everyone with a new track record 3.95 at 179 mph. Even though Mitch ran quicker, Frankie was credited with the win due to the better reaction time.
The first session saw many great races and the Mitch King vs. Frankie Taylor battle was intense. The line for the snack bar was to the bleachers, the trucks were backed up along the track all the way down the track, and the fans were loving every minute of it. Mitch King's pit area was swamped with people buy t-shirts, looking at the top fuel dragster, and smelling nitro. Cars began warming up and the heavily anticipated second session of qualifying was about to being. Everyone was ready to find out if anyone could give Frankie and Mitch a run for their money.
The second session started out with a pair of Outlaw altereds. Donnie Massey in "Showtime" against Jim Pruett. Massey crossed the line at a 4.89 at 145 mph beating a great 5.26 at 135 by Pruett. Bobby Marriott ran next on a solo pass blistering the eighth mile to a 4.28 at 172 mph. Larry Reep was up next and everyone knew he could sneak up and lay down a big number. Reep carried the wheels one hundred feet and tripped the clocks at 4.06 at 180 mph. Not quite enough to beat Mitch, but he got everyone attention and proved he would be a contender this year. Brandon Holcomb and Gaylen Smith were up next. Gaylen left before Brandon but got out of shape and had to lift. Brandon charged by to a 5.67 at 135 mph to take the win. To that battle is in a tie right now with both drivers having one win. Another pair of altereds pulled forward, Jerry Williams in "Wild Thing II" against Tom Butherus in "Rude Rat Too." Jerry, the oldest member of the Outlaw Fuel Altereds, is known for turning out some big numbers. Butherus made the tow all the way from Goddard, Kansas in his new flamed "Rude Rat Too" altered. Jerry edged out Butherus running 4.37 at 160 mph to Butherus' 5.49 at 101 mph. Pro mod newcomer Brian Doss and big bad Bobby Booth were paired up. Booth, who struggled in first session, was expected to run in the fours. Booth stepped up and ran 4.55 at 149 mph to Doss' 4.70 at 147 mph. Tommy Adams on a solo pass turned in a 4.65 at 151 mph on the last run of the session earning him the eighth quickest E.T. of the night.
The top eight included four altereds (Mitch King #1, Larry Reep #2, Bobby Marriott #4, and Jerry Williams #5) and four pro mods (Frankie Taylor #2, Shawn Davis #6, Bobby Booth #7, and Tommy Adams #8). Since no one outran Mitch and Frankie's E.T.'s from the first session, they would be the finalists.
The call went out for the final round. Mitch King had plenty of nitro in the tank and he was ready to rotate the earth on this pass. The fans were on Mitch's side and with his skull flags waving in the air he laid down a fresh layer of rubber down his left lane. Frankie followed right behind in the right lane with a long smoky burnout.
Backing up Mitch King was pumping out thick nitro fumes into the Sealy, TX night sky. Car alarms were blasting as the earth shaking cars prepared to stage. The tree flashed and butterflies opened. Mitch immediately with the wheels in the air was heading right toward the centerline. Mitch wasn't about to lift and give Frankie the win so he kept the pedal down and flames pouring out of the headers. Crossing the centerline and taking out the 330' cone Mitch finally lifted. Frankie, with a window full of nitro flames had lifted before Mitch got into his lane so the cars didn't collide. Mitch ran a 4.19 at 136 mph to Frankie's early shutoff run of 4.68. Again, Mitch ran quicker but was disqualified for crossing the centerline giving Frankie the win. Knowing Mitch, there will be a rematch in store for these two guys. Mitch and Frankie would both like to have a clean, fast, and straight rematch to really set the facts straight of "Who is the Baddest in the South?"
The next two dates on the Outlaw Pro Mod schedule are April 12th at Texas Raceway and April 27th at Navasota. The Outlaw Fuel Altereds just booked a special deal with Texas Raceway. The altereds will run every third Friday of each month at Texas Raceway, starting in April and finishing up in October.
Outlaw Fuel Altered Schedule:
April 19th - Texas Raceway - Kennedale, TX - 1/8th mile
May 4th - Lake Slip Away Dragway - Lena, Mississippi - 1/8th mile
May 17th - Texas Raceway - Kennedale, TX - 1/8th mile
June 21st - Texas Raceway - Kennedale, TX - 1/8th mile
June 22nd - Red River Raceway - Shreveport, LA - 1/4 mile
July 5th - Texas Raceway - Kennedale, TX - 1/8th mile
August 16th and 17th - Thunder Valley Raceway - Noble, OK - 1/4 mile
September 20th - Texas Raceway - Kennedale, TX - 1/8th mile
October 18th - Texas Raceway - Kennedale, TX - 1/8th mile
After one of the most anticipated, most advertised, and most thrilling races in Outlaw Racing history you could argue both points. That Mitch in the altered ran the quickest both runs, or that Frankie took the win in both runs. Right now it's not really obvious who the baddest is, but after a rematch the boys will be separated from the men.
Click here for 2003 Outlaw Fuel Altered results.
Click here for 2004 Outlaw Fuel Altered results.
Click here for 2005 Outlaw Fuel Altered results.