By Tommy Lee Byrd – Images by the Author
Some might say the glory days of drag racing are long gone, but there is an organization that thrives on honoring the gassers and super stock racers of old. It’s the Southeast Gassers Association, and it has been the most authentic representation of vintage drag racing action for more than a decade. The group features a championship points series at eighth-mile tracks around the Southeast, and it’s known for its high-rpm, door-to-door, heads-up action.
Event organizers work hard to develop rules to keep racing tight without the use of dial-in, breakouts, or time indexes. True heads-up racing is part of the successful formula for the Southeast Gassers Association, as the action is intense from the moment the cars hit the track until the final pair goes down the track. The cars are split into multiple classes: A/Gas, B/Gas, C/Gas, and Super Stock are part of the points championship, while H/Gas (four- and six-cylinder cars) and A/FX are exhibition classes.
The rule book is long and extensive, but the general idea for the class breaks includes a basic pounds-per-cubic-inch guideline. A/Gas is 6 lb/ci, B/Gas is 8 lb/ci, and C/Gas is 10 lb/ci. C/Gas is the easiest to illustrate because the math is easy: a 3,000-pound car can run a maximum of 300 ci. No matter the class, every car in the Southeast Gassers Association must have a manual transmission. That means big time rpm and hard-charging action as the drivers bang through the gears.
We recently had the chance to capture the action of a Southeast Gassers Association race at the “Rumble in Ringgold” race at Brainerd Motorsports Park in Ringgold, Georgia. The track has great history, as it’s been in operation since 1964, and it’s an excellent place to see these old-school machines battle. The original race date was rained out, so it was pushed to a new date, which saw temperatures into the 90s and high humidity. Despite the elements, plenty of racers and spectators turned out for an outstanding event.
At the end of the day, the event had all-Chevy finals in all classes. Super Stock saw Rob Walden’s 409-powered Biscayne take down last year’s class champion Jerry Dean in a Chevy II. C/Gas featured a rare competition single with Todd Oden taking the win in his satin black 1958 Chevy Del Ray, as his opponent didn’t make the call to the finals. The B/Gas final was hotly contested, with Ted McKee’s orange Chevy II taking down Wayne Swofford’s “Leroy” Chevy II, which had been on a tear all day. The heavy hitters in A/Gas culminated with a couple of longtime Southeast Gassers racers: Ken Phillips in the “Silver Streak II” Corvette against Ben Christopher’s “Happy Daze” Chevy II. Christopher laid down a beautiful pass to take home the A/Gas victory.
Check out some of our highlights from the Rumble in Ringgold and visit southeastgassers.com to make plans to visit an upcoming race.
Learn more: Southeast Gassers Association
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