People, Places & Racing News

Here is a brief look at some of news and updates from around the specialty-equipment industry. Companies featured this week: Power Automedia, Automotive Lift Institute, Petty Garage, BrakeQuip, Racer Media & Marketing Inc., Car Guy Nation, Over The Hill Gang Car Club, AMP Research and more.

Despite chilly temperatures and high winds, more than 30,000 people (60,000 over the course of the event) poured into Johnson Valley OHV area last Friday to witness Randy Slawson and his co-driver and brother Mike make history at the Griffin King of the Hammers (KOH) presented by Nitto Tire.

Mickey Thompson Performance Tires & Wheels returns to the Top Truck Challenge (TTC) again this year as an official sponsor. This year marks the 21st year for this annual event produced by Four Wheeler magazine, held in June in Hollister, California.

News and updates and from SEMA's councils and committees. 

Here is a brief look at some of news and updates from around the specialty-equipment industry. Companies featured this week: Alpine Electronics, Brenton Productions, Classic Recreations, Design Engineering, Lincoln Technical Institute, Motovicity, PlastiKote, University of the Aftermarket Foundation and more.

The third annual Hot Rod Magazine Championship Drags, held in June 1966, was a scorcher. On the track, that is. All the big names in drag racing came to Riverside loaded for bear: McEwen, Chrisman, Landy, Leal, Ongias, Swingle—and records tumbled.

2013 International Drag Racing Hall of Fame Induction Dinner Anticipates Huge Crowd
According to Donna Garlits, general manager and CFO of the Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing, demand for tickets has been high for the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame’s latest class induction dinner and ceremony, presented by the National Hot Rod Association and Summit Racing Equipment. The event is to be held March 14 at the Gainesville, Florida, Paramount Plaza Hotel & Suites.

NEWS NUGGETS

SCHUMACHER COMMITS TO THIRD TOP FUELER WITH FULL SPONSORSHIP FROM SCHUMACHER ELECTRIC CORP.: Don Schumacher Racing (DSR), with financial backing from Don Schumacher's Schumacher Electric Corp., will start the 2013 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series with the same number of teams it ended with last year, including the third-ranked Top Fuel team. In addition to reigning world champion Antron Brown and the Matco Tools Top Fuel team and Tony Schumacher and the U.S. Army team, which finished seven points behind Brown last season, DSR will field a third team with crew chiefs Todd Okuhara and Phil Shuler and driver Spencer Massey when the season begins February 14–17, with the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals presented by Super Start Batteries in Pomona. The dragster that finished last season ranked third in points with four event titles will carry the banner of Battery Extender Powered by Schumacher. The status of DSR’s third-ranked team from last year was left in limbo for 2013 when longtime NHRA and DSR sponsor FRAM/Prestone opted last summer to not continue motorsports sponsorships upon the conclusion of the 2012 season. For more on this story, visit www.nhra.com.

News and updates and from SEMA's councils and committees. 

Here is a brief look at some of the recent news and updates happening in the specialty-equipment industry. Know someone who is moving on or moving up? Have some company news you would like to share? Let us know and the news may appear in an upcoming issue of SEMA eNews. Send your items for consideration to editors@sema.org.