BangShift.com John Force

John Pressure was not JOHN FORCE in 1984 however his star was definitely on the rise and his residing was being made within the seat of the Coca-Cola humorous automotive you’ll see within the video under. Pressure was racing as typically as he may and wherever that may let him throughout this time of his profession and it was paying off. He could be the 1984 AHRA humorous automotive champion and through the identical yr he would additionally attend 12 NHRA occasions, 10 of which he truly certified for. It was additionally the yr that Pressure’s uncle Gene Beaver launched him to a man named Austin Coil. That partnership modified the face {of professional} drag racing endlessly. This occasion was the AHRA Grand American Nationals held on July 6-8, 1984. There could be yet another “actual” AHRA occasion earlier than the group folded.

As an apart, the automotive within the different lane is the St. Moritz flopper owned by Oklahoma based mostly Dick Mortiz and pushed by longtime humorous automotive pilot Jim White.

Whereas the Pressure connection to this video is fairly cool and exhibits him on the upside of his profession, it’s the actual reverse with regard to the properly groomed and good trying facility he’s racing at. US 30 Dragway in Gary, Indiana would shut and by no means reopen only a few months after this video was made. The monitor remains to be “there” and undoubtedly you may have seen one of many zillion photographs that has been snapped through the years of the ever extra light AHRA defend that was painted within the heart of the monitor.

The AHRA itself was in collapse mode by this time in its life and on the finish of the 1984 season it just about self immolated and went away as a collection. There have been a number of lawsuits flying round, monitor operators abandoning the group to begin their very own (ADRA), and when the 1984 season concluded at a just about empty strip in Eunice, Louisiana the destiny of the group was sealed. Orville Moe would run an “AHRA World Finals” occasion annually at his monitor in Washington, however that was it.

So what we had right here was a meteoric star on the rise, a monitor that was heading in the direction of loss of life, and a company that was lifeless and simply wanted to be told of that reality. 1984 was additionally the yr that Don Garlits made his triumphant return to pull racing on the NHRA US Nationals (and received) a transfer seen by many as saving the highest gas class which had been within the doldrums of participation and curiosity through the earlier years.

So why did US 30 shut down on the finish of the 1984 season? The monitor operators couldn’t negotiate favorable lease phrases for the property on the shut of the season, the property proprietor noticed the hunk of land as being much more priceless as one thing different then a drag strip, and mainly that ended the monitor’s life. It has been closed ever since. In 1994 a gaggle tried to revive it was a strip however was unsuccessful. As we speak the land remains to be on the market and there’s not a damned factor on it.

Press play under to see John Pressure run his Coca-Cola humorous automotive at US30 –