The inaugural Las Vegas Speed Spectacular at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway ended with a bang as Nathan “Li’l Nate” Bugg of Orange, Calif, won the AA/FC finale as opponent and No. 1 Qualifier Mendy Fry crashed in the right lane. 

Bugg defeated Steve Romanazzi’s Pontiac Firebird in the first round of competition and Jeff Utterback driving the “Pisano & Matsubara” Chevrolet Vega to face Fry in the nitro funny car final.

NOSTALGIA ELIMINATOR I FINAL ROUND

Winner: (far lane) Ronnie Lennon (Sonoma, Calif.) 1932 Bantam roadster .001 7.730 sec./169.96 mph.
Runner-up: Richard High (Lake Havasu City, Ariz.) .067 7.818 sec./185.15 mph.

NOSTALGIA ELIMINATOR III FINAL ROUND

Winner: (near lane) Lindsey Lister (San Pedro, Calif.) 1972 Shoemaker dragster .054 9.574 sec./138.30 mph.
Runner-up: John Lyon (Overton, Nev.) 1967 Gilmore dragster -.034 (foul) 9.671 sec./137.26 mph.

Eily Stafford of Mt. Laguna, Calif., won the pin-up girl contest Saturday afternoon. 

Stafford competes in the Nostalgia Eliminator 1 class and was the meet’s No. 1 Qualifier in Chuck Bayuk’s potent dragster, but fouled out in the first round.

The two-day event included a car show hosted by the Las Vegas Cruisin’ Association with live music from Danny Dean & The Homewreckers, Mad Max & The Wild Ones, DJ “Flattop Tom” Jacob.

A steady stream of Quarter Midget racers competed all weekend in a special track built behind the main Las Vegas grandstand .

A/GAS FINAL ROUND

Winner: Dave Matson (near lane) (Grass Valley, Calif.) 1967 Camaro .016 7.712 sec./171.73 mph.
Runner-up: Ken Ratzloff (Idaho Falls, Idaho) 1953 Studebaker .033 7.760 sec./179.04 mph.

B/GAS FINAL ROUND

Winner: Randy Armstrong (far lane) (San Ramon, Calif.) 1957 Chevrolet .046 8.778 sec./155.31 mph.
Runner-up: Casey Treur (Santa Maria, Calif.) 1933 Willys .092 8.701 sec./152.87 mph.

C/GAS FINAL ROUND

Winner: Mike Wortman (near lane) (Santa Paula, Calif.) 1969 Mercury .029 9.759 sec./140.11 mph.
Runner-up: Doug Araiza (Santa Paula, Calif.) 1969 Camaro -.019 (foul) 9.732 sec./142.91 mph.

D/GAS FINAL ROUND

Winner: (far lane) Alan Ross (Atascadero, Calif.) 1965 Mustang .022 10.693 sec./126.51 mph.
Runner-up: Ed Carey (La Jolla, Calif.) 1971 Camaro .022 10.691 sec./125.12 mph.

HOT ROD FINAL ROUND

Winner: (near lane) Josh Conrad (Bakersfield, Calif.) 1967 Nova .109 10.217 sec./135.73 mph.
Runner-up: Dale Thomas (Chowchilla, Calif.) 1968 Dart .061 11.806 sec./112.45 mph.

Final round of Funny Car: Mendy Fry vs. Nate Bugg and his “Lil’ Nate” Barracuda in the final. The performance advantage would have to go to the “Future Flash” machine, but anything can happen in a final round….

And does….

Mendy left on Nate, but that was when the race got interesting. In leading her pursuer, her car began slipping in its own oil, which had gathered under the right slick. At 100 feet the tires began to chatter, the rpms went to Jupiter and the connecting rods decided it was time to say “later days.” Upon which, the car made a Dale Earnhardt-right, smacked the guardwall HARD and the Charger’s momentum propelled it up the side of the wall and it began to c-l-i-m-b….

At this point – in yet another display of solidarity this weekend – as it launched towards the sky, the Charger body itself joined the connecting rods in their revolt, exiting the car while saying, “To hell with the Scab Nationals! Workers and Hardware of the World Unite! Another Blow for Freedom! Soon the drag strips will be ours!”

With the body coming to a rest behind her, and the parachutes blossoming over a bare, naked chassis, Ms. Fry hit the fire bottles and coasted to a stop 13 seconds after she hit the loudpedal.

Before the finals. Mendy had told this reporter that she had yet to triumph in a nitro car. In her first final round in as a nitro racer, Ms. Fry remained a bridesmaid, but not a casualty. Her right arm is a little bruised and she has a headache.

Nathan Bugg, meanwhile, coasted to his first win of the Heritage Series in a Funny Car, recording a 7.52 at 165 mph. His win capped a spectacular day in infamy.—by Cole Coonce, who says, “death to the bourgeoisie.”

SECOND ROUND FUNNY CAR UPDATE FROM THE NHRA HERITAGE PUNK ROCK SCAB TOUR

Second round of Funny Car… First pair is Jeff Bennett in the Bennett and Fitzgerald “Pure Heaven” entry versus Ms. Mendy Fry. Mendy’s crew chief Donnie Couch’s game plan is to go easy on the first round single and then stand on it for the semi-final. No bueno, because, as Roland Leong noted in his sage commentary in the press room, the “air is unforgiving,” Still, her 6.25, 227 mph dispatches Bennett’s 6.41. The Future Flash entry dropped a cylinder 100 feet off of the starting line, the car shook a little before calming down as the distaff driver shifted into high… but the numbers were not what Couch had hoped for...

In the first round, Utterback hurt it beyond repair. Ergo, Nate Bugg is on a single. No burnout, and Bugg stages the car then hits the fuel switch and mag switches. The car dies, but the stage light is as good as a win-light.

So there you have it, race fans: Mendy Fry vs. Nate Bugg in the final. And in a show of solidarity worthy of Lech Walesa at Gdansk, Donnie has a hand in both final round competitors, consulting for Bugg while tuning for the “Future Flash” car.—by Cole Coonce, who says, “from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.”

The “Future Flash” crew celebrates Mendy Fry’s second round victory over Jeff Bennett.

Because only 7 funny car racers ignored the mandate from NFCA Politburo to strike against the Vegas Heritage Race, that left room on the elimination ladder for a solo pass by the #1 qualifier. That would be Mendy Fry in Gary Messenger’s “Future Flash” ‘72 Dodge Charger, who reeled off a 6.13 yesterday and claimed the pole.

By virtue of the solo, the dictate from the Future Flash high command (being Donnie Couch), was to go almost to the shift point and then click it, which she did… posting a 9 second elapsed time and a
double-digit top end speed…

The first actual pair of floppers is a race between Jack “the Sheriff” Harris and Jeff Utterscab…. Errm, Utterback in Danny Pisano’s Pisano & Matsubara Vega…Utterback qualified #2 last night, while Harris, who obliterated the 5.50 barrier in his AA/Fuel Dragster at March Meet, has yet to find the handle on his Pontiac Firebird, as he toasts the Racemasters 60’ feet into the run, before pedaling once or twice and giving chase to Utterback who motored down the drag strip in what looked like a no-harm-no-foul, 6.30 @ 213 mph, which trumped Harris’ 7.34, 231.

At the big end, Utterback appeared to kick the rods out in the shut-off area, which does not bode well for further participation…

Next up Steve Romanazzi in his Warrior entry is suited up against Nate Bugg in his ‘71 Cuda…. Bugg’s car is set up soft, and he zips to the finish first at 6.61, 209 while Romanazzi shake and bakes and hula-hoops to an on-and-off-the-throttle 6.72…

The final pair features Ed Dougan in the “Nitro Psycho” Plymouth Arrow versus the Bennett Family’s “Pure Heaven” tribute flopper.  Dougan licensed yesterday, in a pass that also served as a qualifier. This is a creative interpretation of the rules, leading to a chorus in the staging lanes of “not just scabs, but ringers too!”

Regardless, Dougan laid down about half-track, while Jeff Bennett scooted to the second round in his “Famous Amos” Saterlee-tuned flopper with a 6.35 216 to Dougan 6.75, 194….

There is no truth to the rumor that NFCA Board will serenade the racers at Tucson with Civil Rights-era Bob Dylan protest songs (e.g. “Ain’t Gonna Work on Maggie’s Farm” and “No Direction Home").

There is also no truth that the race will be re-christened the “Inaugural RichGuy ShitFit Nationals”.

The NHRA liaison tells me that yesterday’s estimate of 12 to 1300 paid spectators was a little low… The actual number of turnstile-turners was 1500… Today’s crowd looks similar…—by Cole Coonce, who says: “Remember, come the revolution we’ll all be rich…”

Danny Pisano and Steve Montrelli at the “Pisano & Matsubara” funny car pit.

Steve Romanazzi warming the engine before the first round of AA/FC eliminations.

The Utah ‘Sheriff’, Jack Harris waits for this first round match against the “Pisano & Matsubara” Vega funny car.

Jeff Bennett readies “Pure Heaven IV” Camaro for his first round match against Ed Dougan in the “Nitro Psycho” Plymouth Arrow.

Darr Hawthorne, Tim Marshall, James Drew and Cole Coonce will be handling the updating chores from this weekend’s Speed Spectacular at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

It won’t be live round-by-round coverage (we just don’t do that here) but you’ll get some great photos and inside info.

Stay clicked!