Friction is the resistance created when parts rub against each other. In an engine, more friction usually means more heat and faster wear, which can hurt power.
Piston rings are small metal bands on the piston that help it seal and control oil inside the engine. If they don’t move smoothly against the cylinder wall, they create friction that can make the engine run hotter and wear out faster.
Total Seal is a company that makes piston rings for performance engines. The idea here is that their rings are designed to reduce rubbing and help the engine last longer.
Red Line Oil is a brand of engine oil made for performance use. They’re claiming it’s designed to help engines run better and last longer under hard use.
This is an insurance company that focuses on racing teams. Racing stuff can get damaged fast, so having the right coverage can keep a team from going broke.
A torque converter is a part that helps an automatic-style drivetrain move power from the engine to the transmission. It helps the car get going smoothly, and in racing it can be set up to launch harder.
“Drive line” means the parts that move power from the engine to the wheels. It’s basically the power-transfer system, and in racing it’s treated like a whole package.
Jesse Converters is mentioned as part of the racing build. They’re likely the company that supplies torque-converter parts that affect how the car launches.
Redline Synthetic Motor Oil is a branded engine oil product. In racing, oil choice matters because high heat and high RPM increase stress on engine lubrication systems.
Copper gaskets are special sealing parts made from copper. They help stop leaks between engine components, and some racers prefer them for high-heat situations.
Company
Bernie's Speed Shop Foggett
This is a speed shop being thanked. Shops like this usually help race teams with parts, work, or setup.
The “Winter Circle” is where winners are celebrated after a race. If someone is “back in the Winter Circle,” it means they won or placed at the top again.
“Nitro” means the car uses nitromethane fuel. That fuel helps drag-race cars make a lot of power very quickly, which is why it’s common in fast classes.
Maxi Motorsport is the racing team/organization mentioned as helping recreate the Nitro Ninja for Spencer. In drag racing, teams like this handle the practical build and setup work that turns a race car into a competitive entry.
The entry list is the official list of who shows up to race at the event. If there are a lot of entries, it can be harder to advance because there are fewer spots.
Concept
getting bumped
In drag racing, “getting bumped” means you can get pushed out of the next round or out of the spots you were counting on. It happens when the event is crowded and the rules/qualifying shake out.
Manifolds are the plumbing that moves air or exhaust gases to and from the engine. Changing them can help the engine breathe better, which can make the car faster and more consistent.
Injectors are the fuel nozzles that deliver gasoline to the engine. If you’re making more power, you often need injectors that can supply more fuel reliably.
Composite Specialties is the company the speaker says they got the new fuel injectors from. Different injector brands can be chosen to support more power.
Concept
375
They’re talking about race times—how fast the car runs down the track. Going from one time goal to a faster one usually costs more money because the car needs bigger upgrades to keep working under harder conditions.
Concept
373 eighties
This is more race-time shorthand. They mean the car is running in a tight range of very similar times, which is what racers want for consistency.
Concept
pitted next to each other
“Pitted” means the teams are parked in the pit area near the track. That’s where they get the car ready between runs.
The “starting line” is where the race officially begins on the track. In drag racing, getting staged and ready right there matters a lot for how the run starts.
Qualifying is the practice-and-timing part where racers try to post their best times. Those results decide who lines up against who next.
Concept
radial versus the world
This is about drag racing tires—specifically how cars running radial tires stack up against everyone else. Tires can change how well the car hooks up and how consistently it runs.
Concept
Woodstock style event
They’re comparing it to the Woodstock festival to say it feels like a big, fun community event. In this case, it’s about the atmosphere around the racing.
Concept
duck races
“Duck races” are a fan/charity-style side event commonly associated with some motorsports gatherings, where participants compete in a playful race format (often involving rubber ducks). In the context of the transcript, it’s used to describe the event’s festival-like atmosphere beyond just racing.
A Top Fuel car is the top class in NHRA drag racing. It’s built to be insanely fast in a straight-line sprint.
Concept
pro-stocking person
“Pro Stock” (spoken here as “pro-stocking”) refers to NHRA’s class of drag cars that are closer to production-based designs than the nitro classes. The cars are built for racing, but the category is generally associated with more “stock-like” roots and tuning for performance.
NHRA Drag Racing is a popular U.S. drag-racing event series. Cars race in a straight line to see who can accelerate the fastest.
Concept
345 on the dot (drag racing milestone)
They’re talking about a big achievement number in drag racing—something like “345 on the dot.” The hosts say it’s the kind of exact milestone that gets attention even from people who don’t follow the sport closely.
Traction is tire grip. In drag racing, better traction means the car can launch hard without the tires just spinning.
Concept
340 to 345 really didn't take very long
They’re talking about a big speed milestone in drag racing. The point is that the cars reached that level fast, which suggests the teams figured out what worked.
Air deflectors are small aerodynamic parts that help the car “cut” through the air better. In drag racing, that can help the car stay stable and go faster.
They’re using a nickname for a speed milestone—basically, a group of cars/teams that have reached a certain very high number. It’s a way to talk about achievements without getting too technical.
It means they’re trying to get as close as possible to the car’s maximum capability. In racing, that’s where things start to get risky—traction and reliability can become the problem.
Funny cars are a type of drag race car. They’re built for quick, straight-line runs and are famous for huge power and fast launches.
Concept
milestones matter
In motorsports, a “milestone” is a standout performance benchmark that changes what competitors think is achievable. When one team hits a new level, others often respond quickly with new setups, tuning, and development to reach or surpass it.
Concept
outdo each other
They’re talking about drivers on the same team competing against each other. In racing, that usually means each person tries to improve the car and get the best results as fast as possible.
The Subaru 360 is a very small car made in Japan. It’s known for being light and compact, which makes it interesting to people who like unusual or classic cars. In a racing discussion, it may be mentioned because it’s easy to imagine using several of them in a fun, competitive setup.
Term
steamroll the entire field
It means one team seems like it could dominate everyone else. In racing terms, that would look like consistently winning rounds, not just having one great run.
Tony Stewart is a famous race driver. Here, they’re mentioning him as an example of someone who had a notable moment that could change how the season plays out.
Drag racing times are measured from the start to the finish line. An “elapsed time milestone” is a big target time—like a certain ET number—that racers try to beat.
2JZ is a specific Toyota engine that’s popular with drag racers. People track how fast cars with that engine can run, like record times for that engine type.
Pro Modified (often abbreviated as “PM”) is a drag racing class with highly modified cars, typically featuring forced induction and purpose-built setups. The hosts’ reference to “pro modified running in the fours” points to cars achieving ETs in the four-second range.
Route 66 Raceway is the dragstrip where the event is happening. The hosts talk about how important it is to keep the track going and bring good events there.
A “street race” is a racing event that happens on city streets instead of a purpose-built track. It’s usually done to get more people interested in the sport locally.
“Traction” means how much grip the tires get so the car can launch hard. If local racers do well, it also helps the sport get more attention in that area.
Topic
NHRA Route 66 Nationals
They’re talking about an NHRA drag racing event on Route 66 and how the recent win and media attention set things up for the weekend.
VHT is a sticky coating drag racers put on the track. It helps the tires grip better so the car can launch harder without spinning.
Term
PJH
PJH is another name they’re using for the sticky track stuff drag racers apply. The goal is the same as VHT: better tire grip for launching.
Term
PROC experiments
“PROC experiments” sounds like the team is trying out new ideas to make their race car work better. Drag teams constantly test changes to improve how the car launches and runs.
Clutch discs are part of the clutch system that helps the car hook up and transfer power. In drag racing, teams may swap them to get the launch to feel right and repeat consistently.
In NHRA, the “countdown” is the part of the season where points matter most and the playoffs are coming. It’s basically the run-up to the championship battle.
In NHRA-style fields, “part-time cars” refers to entries that don’t compete in every event of the season. They may show up for selected races, which can affect how often they score points and how they’re perceived relative to full-time teams.
Top Fuel is the fastest class in drag racing, and “Top Fuelers” means the race cars in that class. They’re built to go as fast as possible in a straight line for a very short distance.
Pro Stock Motorcycle is a drag-racing class for bikes. Teams tune their motorcycles for fast, consistent runs under class rules.
Topic
Vance and Heinz and Matt Smith racing
Term
A list engines
They mean the best engines the team has—basically the top performers. In racing, teams often keep more than one engine ready and choose the strongest one for competition.
Concept
run 200 miles per hour
They’re talking about the bike’s top speed during the race run. Hitting 200 mph requires the whole package—engine power and setup—not just one thing.
Term
home track
A “home track” is the venue where a racer is based or has the strongest familiarity and support. In drag racing, that can matter because teams know the track’s surface and conditions and can fine-tune the bike or car more confidently.
In drag racing, “door slammer” means a car that’s more like a normal production car—basically something with doors and a full body—rather than a specialized dragster. It’s a way racers describe the type of car they’re running.
“Outlaw Street” is a drag-racing concept that’s meant to feel more like street cars and street culture, but still in a racing event. It’s basically a different kind of drag-racing setup than the standard classes.
Zevo refers to an electric vehicle effort connected to drag racing. That means it’s built to go fast in a straight line using electricity instead of a traditional gasoline engine. It’s mentioned because people are trying to bring electric cars into NHRA-style racing.
An internal combustion engine is the kind of engine that burns fuel inside the engine to make it move. The hosts are saying Fogget is for that type of engine.
Fogging oil is a protective oil that helps leave a coating inside the engine. It’s used to help prevent wear and corrosion when the engine is stored or not running.
Comp Eliminator is a drag racing class. The host is saying Gary builds engines for that kind of competition too.
Concept
Supercomp World Champion
“Supercomp” refers to a drag racing class, and a “Supercomp World Champion” is a driver who wins the top championship in that category. The segment uses it to establish Gary Stinnett’s credibility and experience in NHRA-style drag racing.
Top Dragster is a drag racing class for dragsters. The host is saying Gary builds engines for that high-performance dragster competition too.
Term
500 RPMs
RPM is how fast the engine spins. When they talk about “500 RPMs,” they mean a big change in the engine’s target speed, which can change how the car launches and runs.
Wright Trailers is referenced as a sponsor/partner connected to the “Outlaw Street” race segment. In NHRA contexts, trailer companies often support teams or special fan-facing events, helping make logistics and promotions happen.
LIVE
The number one source of friction in your engine is not what you think.
Piston rings rubbing against the cylinder walls generate more friction than any other
part of the engine.
More friction and temperature means more wear and less horsepower.
Fortunately, the team at Total Seal knows how to reduce friction and wear through innovative
piston ring design.
If it takes a piston, Total Seal can build a better ring.
Red Line Oil, formulated to win, proven by me.
Formulated to win, proven by me.
Proven by me.
Proven by me.
This is WFO Radio.
Hey everybody, welcome back.
WFO Radio is on the air.
We're getting ready for the Route 66 NHRA Nationals.
That's right, headed to Chicago, baby Juliet.
You know, we always say Chicago because everybody in the world knows where Chicago is.
But Juliet, home of the Blues Brothers in prison, is the home to Route 66 Raceway.
And so that community is the community that we should be shouting out as much as we can.
So we're headed to Juliet and it's going to be great.
And we are going to celebrate NHRA legend Chris Caramassini, the Golden Greek, and his
granddaughter, Krista Baldwin, is going to be racing.
And we're going to speak with Krista.
But I got to tell everybody, I got you, I made, I have done something not good.
Not good.
Krista is down there in the ready room.
She's wondering what it is.
And I'm going to tell you all what it is.
But first, I got to tell you about the people who make it possible.
Now you're you're interested, right?
You're interested like Larisse Motorsports Insurance.
These guys will talk about them in detail a little bit later on in the show.
But if you've got a racing operation, you should have it covered by insurance.
I know I couldn't afford to just replace my stuff.
So Larisse Motorsports Insurance, check them out.
Of course, the folks at FTI Performance Transmissions and Tour Converters,
the transmission and torque converter and project Pontiac.
Everything I've done in the drive line is FTI performance.
Thanks to the guys at FTI, the land, Florida, great stuff, helping you get it right.
Like not just selling it to you, but working with you to make sure it is perfect
so you can go out there and win races.
FTIPerformance.com, check those guys out and appreciate them greatly.
Of course, Jesse Converters, Eric Latino, Matt Latino.
Great job with those guys.
You heard a little bit about Redline Synthetic Motor Oil.
We appreciate them.
HussiePerformance.net, not just copper gaskets anymore.
Bernie's Speed Shop Foggett.
Gary Stinnett wins his first race since having covid being on a ventilator for over 20 days.
He's back in the Winter Circle this past weekend.
We will be talking about that later on in the show.
But now it is time to ring on the guest of honor and I will tell her what I did wrong.
Krista Baldwin, Krista, welcome back.
What's up, you guys?
OK, Joe, spill it.
What'd you do?
All right, so here's the deal in the world of like talk radio booking.
There is like this courtesy that you should extend to others,
especially shows on your own network.
And even in general, like if I know that you are going to be a guest on other people's shows,
then I should just let you be on those shows.
I shouldn't try to double book you, right?
But this particular week, I admit, man, I am I am weak, not WEEK, W-E-A-K.
And I'm a little under the weather.
I got sick. I went to a concert last week.
I'm not thinking great like Krista, man, Chicago.
I got to have Krista on the show.
Fire it off the text.
Of course, you're like, yeah, I'd come on WFO.
You're booked already for Life's a Drag.
Sorry, Elon, you're booked for Shakin' Bake.
I saw that. Sorry, Courtney.
Sorry, Lyle.
Sorry, guys, probably some other shows that I don't know about
because we all have the same idea.
Hey, I'm sorry.
It's a mistake.
But to the benefit of my audience, we get first crack at you to make it even worse.
We're going to ask you all the questions, right?
We're going to just root it for everybody.
Guys, I'm sorry.
It's my fault.
I accept responsibility.
You're probably going on with loans.
You have who else are you going on?
Plug all new appearances right now so I can atone for my sins.
I've been trying.
OK, wait a minute.
So this is my first time back in the car since September, right?
So like it's a big deal.
And not only am I the driver in the owner,
but I'm also my self-promoter and my own PR team.
And so when I send out the text and the emails
and the press release and all the cool things that I have going on,
like I feel honored that all of you guys want to have me on your show.
Like it is so cool because most of the time
I'm just like regular old Krista, nothing, nothing exciting.
But now I have something cool to share.
And I can share up until like a little bit
because I can't share the actual race car until Q one.
And that part's been very difficult, very, very difficult.
Because like I want to put it out there and show the people
like how cool this race car looks and I can't.
They got to come to the race.
They got to buy a ticket, people in the community.
This is about your grandfather.
And so to again, this is my last apology
to my wonderful friends and colleagues who do shows like this one.
Elon, especially, you know, Elon, you shouldn't have sent a calendar.
And that that ruined it.
Right. It's like I got an email counter.
Krista Baldwin, as you're signing on, I'm thinking about that.
Oh, that's right. Elon sent the calendar to final apology.
Hey, I'm sorry.
There's so much of Krista that we're going to dig deep.
And the car, right?
Like you get to honor your grandfather.
Your whole life has been honoring your grandfather.
The there's no way to disconnect from the legend.
Of course, your father, a legend as well.
But this is like the moment.
And so we've got to be excited about that car.
We can't put it out. We can't leak it.
Are you confident we definitely can't leak it yet?
Because I just it's going to be such a cool moment.
And like grandpa is going to be on the starting line.
And we're going to unveil it right before the run.
And all the cool things are about to happen.
And so even that part of it, you know, obviously,
I've been a fan of Drag Race in my whole life.
And so whenever there's like a cool, you know, unveiling on the starting line,
like I've always thought like, how fricking cool is that?
Like you like right before you go on the track
and you get to show all the hard work that you've done,
you get to like create this moment of like
electricity of like going through the venue
and like showing off what you've been working on.
And so this is I'm like super excited for him.
I'm super excited to honor him shoot over 70 years in drag racing.
Obviously, I have a very long time to drive
and do all the things I need to do.
But it's just cool to be in this moment right now.
And the fact that like I get to honor him in this way,
where a lot of people don't have the opportunity,
I'm I'm super grateful.
And it's going to be fun, like I'm ready to go right now.
Like, let's go.
I know, I know, it's man,
I I hope we can get you side by side with Matty Gordon at some point,
just so that the world explodes on enthusiasm,
on positive energy and enthusiasm, because the two of you, I don't know,
maybe the world will rotate backwards on its axis for a moment
or two with all that positive energy.
Your brand for for years now, I do want to go backwards, though,
and find out where we are right here, because I know a whole bunch of stuff
that may be people who are fans, casual fans don't know,
like like Ron Douglas is your crew chief.
You got red line oil helping you out.
Give us the vitals.
Spencer bought a car and he needed a full time crew.
What what, you know, what can you do to catch everybody up
on where you've been since last appearance?
Yeah, it's been actually wild this off season.
So Spencer, OK, back up.
Spencer Massey is my absolute favorite driver in the world.
Like I am the biggest Spencer Massey fan.
I don't think anyone else is bigger than me.
I've been his fan since I was a kid.
Like he is always the one that I picked to win the race.
So I have like huge adoration for Spencer Massey.
So when he was driving Pat Dakin's car,
he would rent the car from Pat Dakin.
And then when I bought the car from Pat Dakin, I asked Spencer,
like, hey, I'm totally OK if you continue to rent from me.
Like I think it's awesome and it's a cool full circle moment.
And I absolutely love racing with him.
And I love racing with his fiance, Danielle and little Corey and Lyndon and all
then like it's been such a cool little family atmosphere that we've made.
So over the off season, Spencer purchased the Nitro Ninja from Dom Lagana.
And it was funny because he's like, I think I'm ready to make the plunge to be
to you, motor. I'm like, dude, it is not what it's cracked up to be.
It's kind of tough.
But obviously, Spencer has so much experience,
way more experience than I do in this.
And so him and Scott Graham and Dan Minnick and all of them, they went
and they're recreating the Nitro Ninja for Spencer and Maxi Motorsport.
So it's super cool to see.
And I love to like I love that I was part of his history and a part of like
what he did because now I actually love this.
So in National Dragster, in the first issue of the year, they send out,
you know, every driver of the category.
And you know what Spencer says?
It says driver for Jean Snow, Don Prudhomme
and Don Schumacher and Krista Baldwin.
So that part is extra cool.
Wow, that is cool.
Right? That is.
Yeah, I get it.
I get it. Wow.
Those other guys, they're pretty good.
Oh, yeah. And I get to be there.
Like, right?
Like that's like that's such a vibe in itself.
So I'm super proud of what we were able to accomplish together
and we still accomplish things together.
I mean, we're still friends and I still treat those guys like family.
And so anyways, when he bought that, he the whole crew went with him
because he's more on a full time basis than I am.
And so I literally just had to start over again
and kind of like big deep like, all right, so what is the plan for this year?
How are we going to get to the races?
What are we going to do?
And so I called my friend, Ron Douglas up and I'm like, hey, man,
I got to go to Chicago like, nope, if and the best, I'm going to Chicago.
I'm funded like I just need someone to help me get the car down the track
and to bring a crew.
And so Ron and Doug Wilson have been working out at the shop
for the last couple of weeks to get my hot rod ready.
And I'm just I'm excited for this next era of KVR.
Like it's ever changing, but it's a ride that I will never miss.
I mean, granted, I wish I had a little bit more stability,
but the stability comes from my marketing partners and to have people
like Red Light Oil and Lincoln Electric and Justice Brothers
and composite specialties come on board, especially for this second
home countrack tribute to Grandpa and all the cool things.
It's going to be a vibe this weekend.
I literally can't wait.
No, I can't wait as well.
And you got some new parts and pieces.
You're not coming out.
As I understand it, there's 15 cars on the entry list.
And so, you know, getting bumped, you know, knock wood.
Well, it's Tuesday, so we're good.
You're going to be able to use this opportunity to go out there
and you got new parts, new pieces, new systems.
What can you share about that?
Yeah, so we over the course of the winter,
me and my husband, Bobby, we've, you know, continued to make this program
better, safer, faster, all the things.
So we've changed out some manifolds.
We got some new injectors from composite specialties
and just a few things where, you know, we we just want to continue to be
the best that we can in the in the price range that we are.
So that's one thing that I don't know if the fans totally understand is that
yes, I can run a 375 and I hope it be consistent
and every run is in a 373 eighties.
But the second that I want to go faster than 375
It's a totally different price tag in a sense of
when you push it harder and you want to go faster, the part nutrition is greater.
So even though, you know, from a 375 to a 370
doesn't look like a lot, but it is a lot on the on the team owner side.
And so I'm just trying to race in my budget.
It's so it's tough.
But we're we're getting there and we fired up the car on Mother's Day.
My mom was here and we just wanted to make sure that all the systems were a go.
And, you know, now that the new team, new crew chiefs, different routines.
So Ron and I have been talking the last couple of days of what our routine
together is going to be.
He's asked me what I do with, you know, what I feel comfortable with.
And I asked him like, hey, I can mold to whatever you want, man.
Like I I've had this distinct pleasure of driving many different cars
and many different teams.
And so like I've been able to like be like a Jello and like mold to wherever I'm at.
So. Oh, well, I think it's great.
And you know that everybody supports you and wants you to do well,
but especially on this given weekend, you know, even if you got to go in your pocket
a little bit to pay tribute to this guy, you know, the the the golden Greek.
Chris Caramacini's like he's connected to my drag racing fandom in that
my dad used to always tell me about him.
Like we would go to the Gator National since 1980.
Everybody knows that story, right?
But like the Greek is one of the guys that my dad would always tell me about.
You know, 201 Joe, this guy, you know, he used to do
be known for all kinds of stuff and and, you know, doing handstands on roll cages
and and just my dad would tell me stories from way back in the day.
And my dad loved him and so I loved him. It's just that simple.
You know, there's people who don't have good relationships with their parents.
And then there's people who have great relationships with their parents, right?
And I'm one of those guys.
And so if my dad liked it, I liked it. It's just that simple.
So the Greek Greek was one of the first people to put a WFO sticker on the nose
of his dragster. Yes, I remember. I remember when that happened.
So Marvin Marvin, Rodac and Bobby Graham, like they I don't know if they
force it upon him. I don't think he can force anything upon.
But like, you know, watching him defy.
A logic when it comes to aging.
One of the best things that I can do for everyone is like, share that story.
Like, man, he told me in his one WFO appearance.
I think we were on the phone at that time.
If memory serves me right, we were doing audio only.
He says, just, you know, shut off the TV, man, get out there and do it.
And he has he continues to have a productive, positive life.
Like, who wouldn't want to do who wouldn't want to be like the Greek?
Exactly. Exactly.
No, he he literally goes to the shop every day to go and tinker on something.
He still has a shop up in Chicago.
We the canopy car that his last car, the first car I drove,
we gave it or put it back in Chicago.
So he's been tinkering on it and doing whatever he does during the day
outside of calling me and yelling at me.
But about what, what's he yelling at you for?
Well, it's so funny.
Like every time I go to a race, like there's no escaping my grandpa.
Like I can't do anything without someone telling my grandpa what I'm doing.
So there is no hiding from him, even though, you know, he may be 96 years old.
He still knows every single thing that I do in this world.
And like my mom said, that's the same thing that happened to her when she was a kid.
He would be out in California for six months racing and he would call back home
and be like, Hey, I heard you were hanging out at this, your friend's house or whatever.
And my mom's like, how do you even know you're not even in the state?
Same thing. Like I can't go one place out of Brownsburg without someone telling
my grandpa what I'm doing, which is cool.
You know, like it's really fine and not that I'm doing anything sketchy at all.
But no, we literally talk almost every day, still talking about the race car,
still talking about how we can better the program.
And he still gives me all his advice warranted or not warranted.
But it's a cool dynamic that I have with my grandpa and not a lot of people have that.
And in fact, people around us are jealous because of he called me all the time
and we talked about the race car and he doesn't have that with, you know,
a lot of my other family members.
So that part is super cool.
Like I like not that I'm the chosen one, but like I understand what he's doing
because he understands what I'm doing and that's the coolest part.
The chosen one.
I mean, I am the only granddaughter, so I guess I am the chosen one.
Well, to have to have that legacy, the family that be involved in drag racing,
which we love drag racing, but drag racing, you know, like we want it to be so big.
But really, it's kind of small, especially these we're trying to push it bigger.
But the fact that your grandfather and Snake had that story that's in Snake's book,
like we went to Chris and he's the one who taught us like, oh, no, this is how you're doing.
It's like, wow, man, this guy is connected to everything.
Recently, I sat down with Garlets and Darryl Gwynne and they're talking.
And it's like, man, this is really a small network we're in here, Krista.
It's a small network and you get to go out there and represent your grandfather this weekend.
I know a lot of people are going to be pulling for you.
Since we've last spoken, I'm under the impression
that you also are married, like you got married, married, right?
Like you had a ceremony.
I saw your name.
I saw a name on Facebook is like, that's not I know.
So are you on the track?
You're Krista Baldwin, but in private life, you're Krista Lane.
Krista Lane. Yes.
So my husband, Bobby, he's the supercharger specialist on Austin Proctor Car.
And so, yes, we did get married.
We got married on December 5th and we had a super awesome ceremony and little party.
And it's been it's pretty funny because I would say so.
Let's see, December 5th.
So we're six months into this marriage and it's been nonstop race cars.
Not that it wasn't like that before, but, you know, like Bobby switch teams
with the prox went over to Taska and ever since then, it's been a whirlwind.
Like our lives have nonstop and we just keep going.
And that's the cool part because I get to share all of this with him
and he understands where I'm coming from and I understand what he's doing.
So like that's the cool part of our relationship is that neither of us are worried
because we both know that we're both working really hard.
That's why we're not talking to each other.
That's well, that's drag racing and it is and they got a lot going on over there.
And that was a big undertaking.
And the people who had, you know, I'm going to say the courage to go to
something new like Bobby, like that's, you know, there's there's always risk.
But where there's risk, there can be reward as well.
So is there anything I did not ask you about?
And just so everybody knows, because I know that I made the mistake
of the triple booking quintuple booking, Crystal, like what's what's Katie going to be wearing?
I don't want to know.
Leave that for one of the other shows.
It revealed that on Life's a Drag or Shake and Bake are all of that.
But whenever you guys are at the track, it's it's better.
It's better for all of us.
But is there something that you want the WFO universe to know specifically?
That you want to put out now some place to follow go?
Somebody to see before we let you go?
Yeah, so the NHRA has like such a cool.
Schedule for my grandpa this weekend.
So you get to come and see him.
So myself and Jim Head, which Jim Head is my grandpa's best friend.
We're going to be pitted next to each other.
And there's going to be like a hospitality trailer and all of my
grandpa's friends get to go hang out with him and he's bringing out two of the race cars.
He's bringing out the 204 dragster, which is the first to go 200 miles an hour in 1960.
He's also bringing out his twin engine car.
He's going to be up on the starting line and he's going to be on an autograph session
and all kinds of cool stuff.
So like there's if you wanted to meet the Greek, this is probably the weekend to do it.
And I'm just excited to have him at the track all weekend with me because it's been
you know, obviously, I go to different areas of the United States and he doesn't always come with me.
So it's always cool when I'm in Chicago and he's there too, because now he could just yell at me
in real person, not on the phone.
That's it.
No, it is great.
So like the one the one thing that, you know, it's not.
I would love to do it, but I don't want to ever
impose or inconvenience, you know, like that's the thing that I fight always.
And but and we've talked about it.
It's like, I know that there's a certain type of scotch that your grandfather really likes.
I don't know if it's chivis or whichever it is.
It's doers, doers. OK, to.
And I've been told by others, you got to get the Greek
with some doers away from the pit, you know, like where he's like chill.
And you know that I know there's a bar that has taken special appreciation
to your grandfather and just to just to be a fly on the wall
when he's got no pressure on him and he's just like being the Greek like that.
And you, I know, have experienced that.
It's like it's just your regular life.
But that's got to be the ultimate like drag race insider moment.
Oh, yeah. Like if you get him at J.C.'s bar
on a Tuesday night in McCook, Illinois, it's a fun time.
Like he he's relaxed and he's hanging out with all his buds.
And it's like when I think of my grandpa,
I think of this personality that, you know,
life is for the living and like you can't waste any of it, right?
And so to see him just enjoy life in all aspects.
I mean, even a bad day at the racetrack, he's still enjoying life.
And so I take that to heart and I try to, you know,
incorporate that into my daily mantra of just enjoy life.
Like you're only here for a little bit.
And so, but to get that side of grandpa, totally different than at the racetrack
because at the racetrack, he is working.
Like you got to remember that like he is a one man band.
When he had his race car out there, he was the one servicing the racks
and he was the one servicing all the other parts.
And so it was difficult for him to get pulled away from his work
because he is there to race.
And so a lot of the fans, I feel like he's snubbing them or whatever it may be.
It's not true.
Like he was a man, one man band, and he had to focus on what he was doing.
And so, but to get him like at a chill environment like J.C.
's pub, you're going to get some stories.
Or we're going to have to we're going to have to try to make that happen
in the future at some point.
Hey, look, Mark is out there from Red Line Oil shouting out to you.
Krista makes us better.
Red Line Oil, baby.
Thank you, Mark. Appreciate you.
And yeah, we're not going to talk about anything about the car.
But I wish you good luck.
We're going to come find you.
Obviously, we're going to talk.
We're going to talk to your grandfather about World War Two veteran, by the way,
was a guard at the Nürburgrin trials.
Yeah, like serious, serious stuff got shot, right?
Yes, he got shot in the foot.
And then when he came home from World War Two, that was 1950s, whatever.
He literally started drag racing.
And so he's literally been drag racing since he's come home from Germany.
Yeah, the whole 75.
Like he's been here for the whole 75 of N.H.R.A.
Yeah, and then some while.
Yeah, like guys, you know, research the Greek, right?
Like he was he was in a tank and one of the engines wasn't running
and he goes in there and fixes it and and crazy stuff.
It's almost, you know, he's got so many amazing stories
that a whole bunch of ones that we would love.
He probably doesn't even think to tell.
There's yeah, there's so much behind my grandpa that, you know,
that's so much deeper than just being the drag racer or being,
you know, the engineer for strange events.
I mean, he helped Bob Stingy develop strange events back, you know, in the 70s.
So like there's so much more to what the surface of grandpa is.
And it's cool when you finally get to hear a couple of those cool stories
and like you get to cherish those.
And it's like, wow, this guy's done a lot in his life.
He's lived a lot.
He's seen a lot.
He's done a lot.
He's crashed a lot.
He's gone fast.
Like it's how do you not a fire to be like him?
How I do again, that those words like turn off the TV.
How do you how do you live?
What do you what advice do you give to people turn off the TV?
Go do something instead of watching someone do something
which we want people to watch us this weekend.
Come watch us and and that's different
because it is an experience.
You are actually doing something.
So come do it this weekend.
All right, I feel like I have left a lot of meat on the bone for everyone else.
And I'm sorry, but I had to connect with Krista.
Come on. Look, I appreciate it.
And like, you know, behind the PR brain of me, it's like, how do I show
corporate America that I am the correct brand voice for them?
And so it's obviously getting all these media hits.
And like, this is all part of a bigger plan that I'm trying to push for.
I mean, obviously, that's still the goal is to be a championship
winning driver in the NHRA.
And I just got to keep moving forward.
I can't stop.
And we're going to help you and everyone's going to help you.
And they are helping you here this week.
So there's no such thing as overexposed Krista Baldwin.
It doesn't exist.
All right, Krista, go get ready for your next hit, which will be, I believe,
on shake and bake earlier this evening or more and life to drag tomorrow
and everywhere. Krista, thank you.
We'll see you this weekend. Thanks for taking the time.
Thanks, guys. There she goes.
Krista Baldwin with us here on WFO radio.
Exactly. Everybody could talk to Krista.
She cannot possibly convey all that positive energy in one media hit.
And so, you know, ESPN has got the car wash, right?
Where like you go on every one of their shows in the drag racing world.
I think she's going to do the full car wash here today.
And a lot of not bland seven tonight.
There it is, the not bland show. Sorry, Dugenei.
I did not mention that the Greek, one of my favorites.
I actually got to watch her grandfather years ago in Juliet.
Hope the very best for you this weekend.
Good to see she's doing well.
Congratulations to Krista on her marriage.
Love her energy.
And that's it. The chosen one that chose within her family.
Don't apologize about it.
You deserve it, says C five feet.
Well, she is continuing the legacy, taking the risk, spending the money.
That's a big part of it, too.
Spending the money.
All right, Josh Hatchet, he's not spending the money.
He's making the money, but we'll talk to him, too.
He's coming up next.
N.H.R.I. Insider extraordinaire from the N.H.R.I.
Communications Media Department.
Josh is a good guy and a friend to do.
He's been added to the roster of experts in the WFO radio.
N.H.R.I. Nitro show is going to be great.
We're going to bring on Josh in a second.
But first, I want to tell you about our great friends at hussyperformance.net.
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pro-modified cars, cars like Project Pontiac.
Reach out to David Allen and the team 412-716-4872.
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They don't have to bring their manufacturing back because never left.
It's just that simple.
They've got great customer service and they can turn it around very, very fast.
Reach out to David Allen.
Tell him you heard about it on WFO radio.
All right, when we come back, we'll hear from Josh Hatchet
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All right, so let's talk about 66NHRI Nationals in a minute, but I want you to double back.
We haven't had you on the show for a while, and let's go back to South Georgia. Now that you've
looked back and you've reviewed the event and the way it all worked out, my feeling is
totally positive, but what about you guys when you look back?
100% positive. I thought it was neat. I was at the first
Epping race in 2013, and then obviously got to go a couple of weeks ago in South Georgia, and
I found very similar sentiments. Everyone there was just so thankful that we were there,
and they just kept saying thank you and so happy to be here. It felt very similar to
when we first went to Epping and just kind of that excitement to have something in town and
just what it brought to the community with hotels and all that good stuff. Obviously,
we can talk about the stuff on the track, but just the general sentiment within the community
was very cool to see. It's fun to kind of get that feeling, and I feel like we're going to get
that a lot this year. You'll definitely see that in Maryland and Martin, Michigan for sure, and
Rockingham, and it was just neat to forget from time to time just how important this stuff is to
the fans, and you go to a lot of the same places year after year, and obviously they're grateful
and they love it, but for someone who's never been to it and it's the first time there, you really
see kind of a different energy, and they battled through a lot. I mean, Saturday was rough for
everyone with the rain, and they stuck it out to the end to just watch one round of qualifying and
get some autographs. They were there all day getting autographs from all the drivers. Sean
Langdon's line was as long as I've ever seen it after that 345 run on Friday, so yeah, I thought
it was a blast. I thought certainly there's a lot to work on. There's stuff to improve, stuff to get
better at, so on and so forth, but I thought it was a very good first effort at a place where
really you had no idea. We had never been there and never really come close to racing there,
so you never knew, and I thought it turned out great. So Lones had been telling me for years
with all the radial versus the world and the duck races that it's crazy, and it's like this
Woodstock style event. I got to go there once when Beau, Randy Linn, Jason Lyne, they promoted that
Southern Sportsman Showcase event, but that was very different because there wasn't a massive
crowd. There was just a lot of cool race cars there, so having seen it full, two days of
packed capacity was really wild, and seeing Glenn Cromwell and Evan Jonatt, like Glenn is the
president of NHRA, and he is out there parking cars, like waving people in because they knew,
and I think the local community maybe didn't fully understand what was coming. They didn't
really get like, no man, this is the National Hot Rod Association. 75 years is a professional
organization. They're going to come in and they're going to run a major event in this area,
and we didn't want to put cars like for hours out there on that two-lane highway,
and we didn't. It was pretty wild. I'm coming in and they're waving me like, is that Glenn?
It's Glenn. There he is. Right, and even on the way out, I thought it was,
some people had to wait a little bit, but it wasn't like some of the crazy stories you heard
the first year in Epping, where people are like leaving their cars on the side of the road,
they get to the track, and stuff like that, so I thought it went fairly well. I mean,
you got tons of rain, and so that limited kind of parking there as well, but I thought it was
handled pretty well, and you're right about just the fan base. The radio stuff is
awesome and has crushed it there, lights out for years, but it is a different fan base, and
maybe hopefully some of those people came and watched NHRA, but I think what I saw,
and what I heard a lot of was just a lot of first-time fans who have maybe watched it.
You saw some fans from the Atlanta area come down, because obviously we haven't been to Atlanta
in several years, so you got some of that, but you got a lot of people who had never actually
seen a top-fuel car in person, or a funny car in person, or a pro-stocking person.
So I think that was awesome, and the kind of environment there is you're right on top of
the action. Obviously, it's smaller than a Gainesville or whatever, but I thought it was a very
interested crowd. They stayed in their seats the whole time, probably because they didn't want to
lose them part of it, but I thought it was a very interested, excited crowd.
Yeah, I was wondering about that, because nobody, it was raining still, and people were in there
more like attention people. You can move, and they're like, no, man, we're not moving.
Whether it was a reserved seat situation or what, but yeah, they should do some reserved seats,
and they should charge a little more. It does prove to me that as much as digital and marketing
and watching on TV and all that is important, that things are regional, that people from an area
where NHRA Drag Racing has been coming for years learn to like the sport and be interested in
the sport, and if it moves away from the region, the region loses interest. I've seen it here in
South Florida. We used to have all kinds of NHRA related stickers on cars going around because we
had two and three tracks, and when the tracks went away and NHRA Drag Racing cars, race cars on
trailers went away, people lost connection. You posted the Jeopardy question where Bob Taska's
funny car is up there, and had to drive you nuts when nobody knew what it was.
Right, right, like losing that connection with what is this even?
Yeah, yeah, you're right. I mean, that's important for these markets that we go to,
that we kind of reestablish that in Georgia, which I know we're only a couple hours from Gainesville,
but I think we saw a lot of people who didn't go to Gainesville. There's a lot of brand new people
that were reintroduced or reintroduced to the sport. I think we'll see that a lot
at everywhere we go, up next to Maryland for sure. People will drive
an hour, do something that they maybe have never done before. They're really probably not going
to drive like two and a half to three hours, and that's the thing. And this Valdosta area,
and I'm pitching it for everybody because Raoul and Jennifer and even Don O'Neill,
who is my buddy, I take shots at them all the time, but just for fun. They work real hard,
and they've got a good track in a world where we're talking about tracks are not plentiful anymore.
That's a great one. And you've got a perfect community of hotels and restaurants that really
exist for no reason other than, I don't know who it was who called it a truck stop. It's like
a spot on the highway where everybody decides they're done for the night,
and they're going to take a break. Like if you're driving from Miami to Chicago or back,
that's like the halfway point. You know, we're going to take a break. They've got everything
before Atlanta or you go through Atlanta and then you're like, all right, I gotta take a break.
That's it. And so they've got everything we need, and we are providing a reason to go there.
It's great. And I think that event is going to get better and better. And Gainesville
Raceway, who used to have the worst traffic in the history of all traffic. I have sat in Gainesville
post Gainesville traffic for three hours. No, yeah, people getting stuck in the mud.
That problem has been alleviated. And so what about the 345? Can you quantify what that meant
for drag racing? You know, when the New York Times and the athletic and these outlets that
rarely cover Sean Langdon for winning a race, cover Sean Langdon for a major milestone like
345. What did, you know, what did the metrics say?
Well, I think it was just a lot of like planets aligning, you know, like it was,
we got great traction out of out of that last year with with Brittany and you know, resetting
records pretty much felt like every race. But you know, 343 doesn't sound quite as cool as 345 on
the dot. You know, 345 on the dot is an easy thing for someone who may not follow the sport.
That's an easy thing to digest 345. Oh, wow. So I thought it was it was awesome. So just kind of
like perfect alignment. So kudos to that team for running it on the dot. But I thought it was
awesome. I mean, it kind of, you know, I felt like as I was leaving the track that day, it started
to like pick up steam. I was getting a few email messages and texts and calls about
certain things of where it was starting to show up. And, you know, the Associated Press
called me to check on a couple numbers. And is this really what happened? Is this the record?
Yeah, yeah, yeah. And, you know, quickly it was on the wire and then it just kind of took off,
you know, all across the country. You know, it was all over. And it was really awesome to see.
I mean, we had pick up and like you said, New York Times, ESPN, TV stations all across the
country. So it was really cool. A big win for drag racing, for sure. You know, we're in the space
where kind of we know where we are as a sport. Obviously, we're trying to grow, trying to get
more traction in certain areas. But you need stuff like this for people to maybe, you know,
find out about it. You know, it's not always going to be a win. You know, you need something
spectacular to kind of separate yourself a little bit for some attention. And that definitely did.
And that, you know, put us on the map a little bit, even if it was kind of a quick run, a quick
three-day run in that regard. But it definitely helped. It was huge for us, for the sport, for
Sean, for Coletta, for everyone. Yeah, I agree. I agree. Well, that's why those milestones, you know,
you want to keep them coming. That having been said last week on the show, like I put out a plea
to everybody, like, let's just enjoy this for a little while before people start talking. What
about 350, man? We got to get to it. No, no, we don't. We don't. It's five miles an hour. That's a lot.
But people's imaginations are running wild because 340 to 345 really didn't take very long.
That's true. It just happened like that. But there were some things, the air deflectors coming off
that all worked together to make that happen. I'm right where we are right now, where
drivers are getting their first 340. Maddie getting 340, becoming part of that informal 340 club.
That's cool. The, you know, let's call it league leaders like Sean Langdon,
the fastest man in the world, whatever you want to call them. 345 is out there like pushing
the edge of the envelope like what's possible. And, you know, everybody else beneath that just
trying to do their best. The funny cars, you know, we haven't seen this revolution happen in the
long time. Very exciting because in and around that people are trying to win races.
And, but it's just, it shows that milestones matter. Yeah, 100%. And it's, it matters to the
drivers too. I mean, you, it was cool to see like the very next day, Sean does that on Friday and
Saturday. Like he had a lot, like he signed straight for like an out, like the line was long,
like everyone went right to, they saw Sean get there and they're like,
everyone who was there or heard about it was there like the next day, you know,
just wanting his autograph. I thought that was cool. And yeah, and they all were saying 345,
340. I mean, it like, it spread pretty quick and that was, that was pretty neat to see for sure.
I also thought it was neat. He said after he won, which was kind of a sweet capper to the weekend,
like him, you know, between Allen and Brian, they're like, you know, Doug and Allen won in
Charlotte and kind of up the ante. And then it's Brian's turn to take a swing and they did that.
And it's just like a pretty cool back and forth within teammates to like see who can top each
other. And now, you know, what's Doug going to do this weekend in Chicago if the weather's right,
you know, what's Allen going to try to do to top this, you know, maybe it's not, you know,
345, but, you know, maybe it's a bunch of 360s to get a win. And it's pretty neat kind of where
that friendly competition is. And it got a good laugh out of Sean, where, you know, you can go
listen to the interview, but he had a few funny, funny references to it of how he explained it.
But it was, it was pretty neat to see kind of where they're at. They're both, you know,
trying to outdo each other, which kind of says where that two car team is, where Colette is right
now. Well, exactly. And it could be trouble. Like I'm, I'm vacillating from, oh, my gosh,
Coletta is going to steamroll the entire field this year. Right. With, with some moments, Tony
Stewart had a moment, you know, maybe Maddie will have a moment, maybe Leo will have a moment,
maybe we'll have a couple of moments. But really, when it comes to championship drag racing, there
are two cars that are head and shoulders above the rest to maybe not, we're just going to have
to let it all play out. Got to mention Antron Brown, if he's out there, you know, got to, got to
let it all play out. And that's what's interesting about this season. You know, I think about like
Charles Lindbergh, right? Like the guy flew across the Atlantic and, and people that that's what made
you famous back in the day. Like you did something that nobody else could do that nobody else did
a historic first. And Sean Langdon, that could be the last speed milestone in drag racing. That
could be the 3599 elapsed time milestone is now on people's radar. Like, okay, like that could be
the last milestone in drag racing, unless we're talking about the quickest run for a 2JZ or the
quickest run for a six cylinder or the quickest run for, you know, like pro modified running in the
fours. But when it comes to like pure unadulterated numbers, that could be one of the last.
It could be. I mean, I think, you know, I wouldn't be surprised if Alan and Doug are aware of that.
Like, can we run 359 if it's perfect? You know, I think it's out there, right?
Oh, yeah. It's, oh, it's out there. It's been out there a couple of years. It's just, it's got to
be perfect. Yeah, gotta be perfect. We're about 200s away. Yeah, it can happen. But again, it's,
it's not always about that. Alright, so headed to Route 66 Raceway and a track that I say
unabashedly that every year we go back, we're trying to save the track with a great event,
because it's not, you know, it's not guaranteed. Like once upon a time, that place was the the
Bellagio of Dragstrips. And then they built D-Max. And but it's an awesome track. And the fact that
we were able to save it a couple of years ago. And now we go back and I feel like we've had some
good, strong events the past couple of years, hoping to have another one. We got the Dragon Drive by
Peak. A lot of stuff. Tell us a little bit about what sticks out in your mind from this weekend.
Yeah, I think I agree. I totally agree about just kind of we've had good momentum there. I think
this will be the fourth year that we've come back. And the tracks, tracks awesome. I think what's
one thing that that is going to help, at least just kind of awareness wise is obviously NASCAR is
racing there at Chicago Land Speedway. Again, they're racing there. I think July 4th weekend,
they'd done the Street Race in Chicago the last couple of few years. I think going back there
just kind of helps awareness. Everyone knows a little bit more that hey, it's out there,
it's functioning, it's running stuff. For a couple of years, we were the only
thing going on there the entire year. So it set dormant 361 days of the year or something crazy
like that. So I think as more and more activity takes place there, I think can only help. And
we kind of get to kick that off with this race this weekend. I think it's been a very good date
to be in May where before everything else gets heated up, we're in that kind of sweet spot
late spring where it's usually strong weather and you're not in football season, you're not in
summer where summer and that part of the area, everyone's focused on getting to the water or
doing something outside. So I think we're in a good area and I think it's a good time of year
to be racing in Chicago. I think a lot of good momentum there. So I think it's going to be another
great event for sure. I certainly hope so. And we're going to have the Greek out there. Obviously
you heard about Chris. I also want to mention TJ Zizzo, the hometown hero. The Ziz getting a
little right up in like as a drag racer and paint and body magazines like this guy has,
I don't know, you know, they cut back the schedule a little bit, but they got work,
they've got other things, but I couldn't win the race, you know, but hasn't happened. Like,
what do you think a TJ Zizzo would success would do for that region? Oh, I think it'd be huge,
right? For just a local guy, I think that's one, another kind of unique way for traction to build
in this sport is when your local guys do well. TJ did some stuff at WGN last week for us. So that
was cool. So yeah, he's obviously well known kind of within the Chicago market, just a great
personality. So that helps a lot. So people kind of know him or where he's around there. So I think
him doing well would certainly create some, some good headlines for the sport for us in
Chicago area. We had, you know, we did some fun stuff with Tony Stewart in markets a couple weeks,
few weeks ago, had TJ do some stuff. Jordan Vandergrift's throwing out the first pitch with
the White Sox tomorrow. So perfect timing there where he comes off his first win. And I was going
to throw out the first pitch with the White Sox, got a nice press conference Thursday. So I feel
like we've got a good build up to this race. So yeah, I think it'd be good. You mentioned Jordan.
Okay, let's go back a little bit to the run. All right. So as a media guy, like what do you make
of that? Right? Like, so I hope that fans of the Bachelorette, like Jordan, every time I say the
Bachelorette, Jordan kind of like, it looks like he winces on the inside, like things that I did to
get to where I am. But you got to mention it. There's a lot of people that know him just exclusively
because of that. Like the majority of his social feed probably know him exclusively because he was
one of those guys. And he had fans and now he's driving a funny car and now he's winning races.
And now he's running back on the track. What kind of response do you think that received?
I think it was fairly positive. It felt like the track was longer than I anticipated.
The run took a minute, right? But I think overall is good. It's a good highlight
for him to share. I think it played well for sure on social. He said he was going to do it.
He knew he was going to do it as soon as he won. So he had it in his mind. So I think it played well.
Yeah. And he came on last week. I liked the way he said he said, this is why I did it.
Yeah. There's a story behind it. I'm sorry. I'm not going to do it again.
Ever again. I did my one thing to tie the circle together for his family. And you know,
for me, I'm okay with that. Yeah. Was it was the track seem longer than you thought?
Yeah. And the boot seemed heavier. He started mentioning the glue. He goes and then I got to
the VHT and I'm like, or the PJH, excuse me, sorry. You know, like the things that you didn't
consider. Right. That's great. I always felt like he was in great physical shape. Apparently not.
Uncle Bob went right back, man. Uncle Bob made it to the starting line.
You know, I didn't I didn't get him with that though. Oh, look at this. The pits podcast says
that Zizo is going to be on with them tomorrow. Pacific time way to go pits podcast. See, like
that said, oh my gosh, there's so many podcasts about drag racing. Love it. I love it. So we are
we are a sport that we have a lot of ways to learn about it for certain.
I think so it's it's funny you mentioned this. So like the goal is always to get the sport bigger
and you know, you see a huge podcast. You know, we were we did self with Barstow with Tony. We've
we had Tony on Pat McAfee show. You know, you're always thinking of what's this? What's the next
huge podcast we can do? But what I think is really key for our sport too is we've got all these
drag racing podcasts that continue to grow and build. And I think it's so important to like
support them and make sure our racers are doing them and seeing them continue to build. Because I
think that's, you know, we need people reporting on the everyday happenings of the sport and talking
to people every each and every week. And, you know, it just makes the racing matter more like we
want to, you know, everyone sees the speeds and the explosions and the crashes and crazy stuff that
happens when you've got top fuel and funny car going through and 40 miles an hour and stuff like
that. But I think it's important to have all these great shows that talk about who won the race,
who's doing well, who needs to improve, what are the the the rivalries going on right now? Who's
this and the point stains? I think the results matter. And I think it's great to like, you know,
you kind of led the way on this job. But we're seeing all these new shows kind of come up these
last few years. And I think it's so crucial to the growth of our sport. I agree. I agree. And,
you know, I saw it when I went to NASCAR radio on satellite radio, and they were doing what we
call, you know, niche programming at the time, like people thought they can't be a 24 hour a day
NASCAR channel. Like who cares about NASCAR that much? And it's like, no, it's one of their most
subscribed channels. Like the reason people were buying XM in the early days was because they wanted
to listen to NASCAR 24 hours a day. And now you do have, if you just subscribe to the podcast, you
have certainly 10 hours a day of NHRA content between, you know, among all of the shows that we
have. Certainly I want to stay in there, everybody. Thank you. But you got a diversity of opinions,
either there's bracket racing, there's oil series racing, you know, there's a whole bunch of different
stuff, whatever type of drag racing you want to hear about, you can hear about it. And it's great.
We just need people to get into that funnel, right? Like from the Pat McAfee audience,
we need some of those guys to say like, wow, man, Tony Stewart, that's really interesting. I'd like
to follow that on a more regular basis, and hopefully start logging on to our stuff to hear
about Tony Stewart and Leah and the first time that they're going to race each other and all that.
All right, let's talk funny car. The PROC experiments. All right, there's an interesting
story. Like I think it's good that they're struggling to a point to build up the moment.
Like I looked past first round last week, and I saw a Jordan Austin round two potential. It didn't
happen. It didn't happen, but I'm looking at it. I can't be the only one that's looking ahead.
But now Austin PROC, like these guys, they, they have got the spotlight burning into them.
They're sorting out new parts, new pieces, new clutch discs. And it's, it is definitely not
easy. We're, we're clearly finding that out. I think it's, it's definitely not easy. You're
right about that. That's for sure. And I don't know that it's necessarily testing their patience.
I mean, I'm sure they're upset that they're not winning. You know, you want, you're not going
there just to show up. They want to win rounds. They want to run well. It's probably a thin line,
right? Between like total irritation and frustration and just kind of staying the course.
I think they'll be fine. They'll figure it out. They've kind of shown that all year. I think
Val Dosta was a, South Georgia was, was a good showing. They ran well and qualifying.
A little bit surprising that they didn't win that first round, but I think that's probably
coming. And you know, maybe it doesn't happen in Chicago, but I feel like some early season
successes right around the corner, you know, they, they've only got, you know, what,
what are we talking three and a half months till the countdown? But, you know, I think they've
made a lot of strides in three and a half months already. So I feel like they'll be just fine,
but it is very compelling to watch this process. And, and everyone has kind of put a spotlight on,
on Austin is like, you know, the guy who crushed it the last two years dominated everybody.
Like, is he going to handle this run? Okay. Like after everyone, people like want to see
his reaction. And you know, that's a pretty tough spotlight for him to be on. And I feel like,
for the most part, he's, he's handled it pretty well. And then it's kind of put his best foot
forward. Isn't it great? And, you know, sorry, Austin, but this is your choice. And you're the
right guy for it. Isn't it great that there's a drag racer that people actually care how they react?
Like they're looking at him, maybe with an unrealistic expectation of perfection,
or maybe they want him to be mad, you know, like, Oh yeah, that's it. I'm a John Force fan.
I love that you're feeling, you know, feeling Austin. Yeah, you guys.
And Jordan's success like makes that even more glaring, you know, right? But they were hanging
out at the autograph session. Like that's what people go. There's no animosity between those two
at all. It's just, that's the car, you know, how much fun can it be? It just, we got to get there.
Yeah, we got to get there. Yeah. I mean, they'll, they'll get there for sure. And,
you know, once, once that happens, I mean, you're gonna, I mean, funny car is just crazy loaded
how stacked it is this year, you know, with Chad Green running well, JR, obviously, and running
extremely well, leading the points and hasn't won a race yet. I mean, that shows you how
consistent they've been. I feel like every year, you know, funny car just gets a little bit deeper.
And I think you're seeing that for sure this year. Absolutely. And look, you know, Justin
Schriefer, Bobby Bodie, Chris King, we're gonna have some cars out there that are part-time cars.
Chicago right in the middle. It's a big track. We got a, we got a full field, like a 15 top fuelers.
You know, I am getting all I want, given all that's happening in the world. I think that
that's pretty good entry list. Agreed. Yeah, you're right. There's a lot of things to consider this
time of year or right now, as you mentioned, going on in the world. So right now, all right.
What about pro stock? We got Cody Anderson, the new, the new fresh face. I'm giving him some,
you know, time and some grace before I apply any kind of anything to the young man, right? He's an
athlete. Does he, does he spark your interest as, you know, the air to the Anderson legacy
over a transitional period? Yeah, I think so. But a lot of it, honestly, is like, we've got
like another young standout driver in pro stock. And, you know, a lot of people there will talk
about just how that wasn't the case, you know, 10, 15 years ago or whatever it may be is like,
we've got like a lot of young like killers out there, you know, driving in this class, Dallas,
Aaron Stanfield, TJ, now Cody, you know, Erica, you know, we've got a lot of great,
you know, young standouts in this class. And I think that's a cool thing that you can build
around is like these guys are, are young, they're interested in cars, they love like working on
the cars, you know, all that stuff that, that people say is kind of missing in the sport. I
agree. It's, it's going to be cool pro stock Joe will check with the Ford powered home built Ford
that debuted last year in Brainerd that we got a lot of views on our video. He's going to be out
there. That's exciting. A lot of good stuff. And in pro stock motorcycle, I think that one is,
you know, the usual suspects as in, you know, Vance and Heinz and Matt Smith racing. But there
are others that are kind of poking their way in there like the Kelly Clontz situation and flying
Ryan Ehler has got like flying Ryan, my gosh, man, they have had to have been up every hour of every
night to get their A list engines back going because, you know, he wants to run 200 miles per
hour at his home track. Yeah, yeah, they've made a huge strides the last couple races. That's really
great to see and throw in brain Davis on that team. And I think Clayton Howie has made huge strides.
So, you know, I think you just need a few more in that field to make things really
dangerous. You know, Matt obviously controlled things in Val d'Astha. We know about Gage and
Richard and what they've done the last couple years. So we've got, you know, we've got the
usual suspects. But if you can get a Clayton, a Braden, a Ryan Ehler, Gianna, all that stuff to
kind of add to this. And then you're talking about eight to 10 really, really, really good bikes.
And then I think that's great for the class. You know, it feels like,
you know, and even Matt admitted this in South Georgia, but they're definitely a step ahead of
everyone right now. Matt Smith racing is definitely a step ahead. And I think
for what we saw the last couple years, it was obviously awesome to see Gage dominate and
everything and Richard win his first championship. But, you know, the more parody there is in the
class, I think the better it is for depth and competition. Absolutely. I just texted flying
Ryan to see if he's going to have his good engines back in there for his home race. I would imagine,
you know, how do you let that happen where you showing up kind of half power to your home race?
And that's what's cool about the local community. Also, we got the drag and drive
display presented by peak. This is kind of interesting with Alex and the family coming out
last year. Tom Bailey went to 70 and quietly became the fastest like door slammer on the planet.
That was like, Oh, what? Oh, yeah. That was just the fastest door suspended door slammer
to ever go down. Oh, wow. Kind of a different discipline of drag racing, right? But they bring
their, they bring their fans. Yeah. And that's what it's all about. You know, obviously you want to
introduce NHRA to their fans, but I think it's more about, you know, their fan base. They have a
very dedicated, different type of fan base and, you know, getting them out there to see them first,
but then also, hey, while you're here, check out everything else is going on. It's kind of the
whole key when you kind of team up for things like that. And they've done a great job with that,
undoubtedly. And one more thing, I'm going backwards a couple of races to Charlotte,
since you're a guy who knows, right? And I like to, you know, I like, I like this like the media
angle that these conversations are taking right in your area of expertise. You know,
they do a lot of that. But the Outlaw Street, the Wright Trailers Outlaw Street experiment
that we had in Charlotte, now that you've had some time to debrief on it, I can tell you leading
into it. And I saw Sean Murdanova's, you know, he did like a 45 minute debrief podcast on it.
And in that podcast or video, he said like, man, like, I don't know if we did a good enough job
of telling the world that we were going to be here. And I would agree with that, like before,
but it's hard for the first one. Now we've seen it work. And so now we know what we'll be promoting,
right? Like we know, like, no, man, we saw this, this is good. So I think the next one will be
much better. But how do you think that worked out?
I agree with kind of those sentiments pretty much on the nose. I think it was great initial
excitement when kind of the thing happened at PRI and shortly after we announced the first race
was going to be in Charlotte. And then, you know, just kind of figuring out like some different ways
to get new fans. This whole thing is about giving them a place to race, but bringing their fans
into to introduce them to, to everything, you know, you'd be hard pressed to, to find someone
who didn't know about street outlaws, especially when it was in its prime. So I think those guys
are, they're kind of maybe a little more aware of that of what they need to do to like really push
their fan base to come because as they stated, they had a great time, you know, in Charlotte,
they had fun racing, seeing the fans, they, you know, I think everyone was treated,
treated awesome. I think everyone had an enjoyable experience having them in the media center,
like on a Friday with doing some availability. I think there's a lot of people interested in that
and they were just kind of just great people, great energy, great personalities to, to work with.
And I think a lot of people saw that and I think it was, you know, it's whatever,
you know, thing you had in your head about, oh, this is never going to work. These guys said this,
these guys said this, you know, that's years and ago. And I think everything
is different now. And we align on far more than, than people will definitely realize. So I think
that became more evident as this race played out. And I think that can only be helpful for,
for the next one in Brainerd. And I think you're definitely going to see a very good reaction
to that. I think they're going to get really involved in bringing out their fans and,
you know, if they get to Brainerd and enjoy themselves, it could be a wild weekend.
Oh man, you know, so, listen, I admit, okay, my dad watched that show every show, every show,
because he was at home, you know, he's kind of like, had a medical situation. And so they let
him be at the track without being at the track. And so he knew the whole deal and I would come
in there and my eyebrow would go up. I got confessed, right? For 100, for 100 reasons,
but I still respect the mechanical side of it. So this thing, I wanted to see it play out,
but went over there and they were all great. Everyone was super cool and respectful and
eager to learn and share. Because I don't know everything, right? Like I'm, I'm not that,
I think it worked out great is what I think. I think it worked out great. But whoever decided
that Brainerd is the place to bring them to the next one, like Brainerd, you're going to lose
these guys in the zoo, man. It's going to be, it's going to be awesome. It's going to be, yeah,
it's going to be awesome. What if they don't show up the next day? Like come on. And then it
has work to do in the morning. We got Brainerd and we got Indy. And then what's the final one?
Dallas. Dallas. Oh, Stampede Speed. Oh my gosh. They got their own in woven content right there.
All right. Is there anything we didn't talk about that you want to talk about? Anything you want
to tackle? Any issues in drag racing that you think we need to address before we let you go?
No, I think we're on a good, a good path. I think we've got good momentum built. I think as the
summer, you know, we're going to hit Chicago a week off. And then we've got three in a row, then
then Norwalk, then two, you know, I think we're going to hit a good stride here. And I look forward
to that. You know, we've got, you know, we've battled some weather, but I feel like we're in a
good spot for this 75th. There's been great kind of energy for even next year and 50 years of force.
So I feel like it's, it's in a good place. You know, if we can get some good weather breaks,
you know, throughout the summer, I think we're going to have a great summer, so much looking
forward to, to go into Maryland. You know, I think, I think these new races are bringing some great
new energy into the track, into the, to the NHRA scene. And I feel like that's, that's helping
everyone, honestly, kind of looking at doing things new ways as we go to, you know, Bristol
and Epping and Norwalk and everything. So I feel like, I feel like things are in a good spot as we
keep going here. No, I agree. I agree. They knew track energy. There's, we haven't had a lot of it.
New England was the most recent. And there's something about it. It's fresh. It's exciting.
Like whatever it is, it can become a little stale. And if you just do the
same thing every, every week, that's why the NFL has their throwback uniforms and they're
constantly trying to mix things up. NASCAR with the Roval. Now we're back on the oval at Charlotte.
For us to have Rockingham and, you know, the Potomac Nationals, I get to fly into Reagan
National to go to a race. Like how crazy is that? I get to do that, like right after South Georgia
flew in there and did some, some media with, with Jasmine and Gianna and, and I was like,
we're here in Washington D.C. Like we went and did media and then went to the Lincoln Monument.
It was, it was so cool. It is so cool. Well, that's a fly in the flying Reagan National for
anybody like get the window seat coming in or coming out because it's just beautiful. Our nation's
capital is amazing. Josh, thank you very much. Appreciate it. Great job jumping on here for
a little analysis on WFL radio. Appreciate what you do and thank you for coming on the show.
Appreciate it. Thanks, Joe. Just so you know, the numbers, they went up. They continued to go up
even though you were here. Yes. Oh man. Yeah. So it's just like you, you're not a show killer.
Don't worry about it. My show stealer yet? No. No, not. Well, you got to keep, maybe
keep working. I'm working on it. There he goes. Josh Hatchett with us here on WFL radio. Thank
you, Josh. Doing a great job. Josh Hatchett. Great friend. Extremely knowledgeable drag racing
personality. And, you know, we're pulling him from behind the scenes into the front of the scenes
because he's got so much great information. And for those of you who are wondering, like, you know,
once upon a time, maybe I'll just pick eight to 10 years ago, there was talk about
NHRA really needs to do more to promote their drivers. You might recall that. And
you really don't hear that anymore. I don't hear that anymore. Certainly, the reason behind that
is because they are hustling, man. They are hustling. And it's the blocking to make some
metaphors, the blocking and tackling that make the difference. Reaching out, connecting. Like,
just throw a ton of money at it or whatever it was necessary to get the local community interested,
you know, like there's a lot of great stories about what they were doing back in the day
to get sports writers interested in our sport. There's a lot of great stories about the things
that they were offering to get people to come and to be interested. Now, it's like you got to be real
official. And they're doing a great job, whether it be McAfee or the social media guys,
what in a way, Sean, like these guys are not only interested in NHRA drag racing, they're
interested in becoming part of drag race. So, all right, drop your comments in the comments
section, guys. Drop your comments in the comments section as we are getting ready to get out of
here. Yeah, but a little under the weather this week. I'm trying to, it's on its way out. I'm
going to be great by Chicago. I'm super excited about going to Chicago, but I've got a couple of
final thoughts we're going to drop after you hear about Fogget.
Fogget is a high performance fogging oil design, especially for internal combustion engines.
Fogget can be used by everyone. If you have a lawn mower, a jet ski, a motorcycle, a tractor,
a high performance car, a classic car, racing vehicles, if it has a cylinder wall, it needs Fogget.
That guy is Gary Stinnett. Gary Stinnett is a four-time Supercomp World Champion. He builds
engines in all categories, Comp Eliminator, Stock Superstock, Top Dragster. His engines have won
championships, and he actually is the person who helped spearhead the whole Project Pontiac
situation. Years ago, in 2020, 2021, somewhere around there, I was doing this thing called the
Engine Performance Expo. Gary and Steve Williams had just launched Fogget as a brand, and it was
brand new. It was brand new. Gary and I have been talking at the track for a couple of years, and
he had asked me about my car and everything, and this Fogget brand was going and kind of coming
along. And this guy was as positive as anyone I'd ever met. In fact, reminded me a lot of my dad,
you know, like the can-do-get-em-gung-ho attitude. We're going to do it, right? And has had great
success and is really one of the greatest sportsmen racers of all time and all that. Well, at this
event, not only Gary, but others got COVID. And Gary ended up on a ventilator for more than 20
days. I think the number is 26 days. It might be 28 days, but it's irrelevant to this exact detail.
And so here, this great racer, who is a wonderful person, friend of so many out there,
is in the hospital. And I remember like, oh my gosh, Gary and I had been hanging out
at one of the airport lounges talking about what might happen with Fogget and how excited he was
and next thing you know, days later, I find out this guy is on a ventilator and he's not,
he's probably not going to make it. He's not. You don't go on a ventilator for more than 20 days
and make it, except somehow, some way, and this is more his story to tell than mine.
And I thought of inviting Gary on the show today, but it's just like me being not 100%.
Today wasn't the right day, but he has been on in the past. And anyway, for a while, Gary thought
he was not going to win another race. He hadn't won, like, got the big check. You know, he had
gone deep into eliminations and had great success, but he had not gotten the big check
at any race since being on the vent. And that was messing with his head a little bit, I think.
Well, anyway, this past week at the Tyler Bohannon Twin 50Ks bracket race that happened
at Worldwide Technology Raceway, one of the best tracks that we go to in St. Louis.
There was a 64 car shootout on Wednesday. You know, the specialty race paid 10 grand and Gary
Stinnett got it done and he won the race, guys. And I am so proud of this person. I am so proud
of Gary because of the hard work that went in to getting back and not accepting like, you know,
man, maybe maybe it's not going to happen for me. Maybe I'm just, you know, since the the COVID or
whatever, you know, I had a hospital thing or I'm older or whatever. Dude, it's been in the gym and
he's been working out and he's been training getting his like mind right and like
really threw himself into this thing and got the win. And congratulations, Gary. You probably
should be working right now. But if you're watching WFO, I am super proud of the accomplishment.
And I would say, watch out, everybody. Watch out, because when it comes to the style of racing,
like these things, and, you know, I have been accused of, you know, I don't want to position
it wrong, caring too much about the Lucas Oil series racers. And, you know, who would say such a
thing, right? It's not about caring too much. It's about there's only so much attention and how
much attention should be given to the Lucas Oil series instead of like the Mission Food series
and that ratio and all of that. And it's because of the people that I know and how hard they work
and how seriously they take it. And I can tell you that there are racers, Gary Stinnett is just
one of them. Justin Lamb is another one. There are countless who expend just as much effort to win
a Lucas Oil championship as Ron Caps is to win the Mission Foods championship. There is no difference.
There is a difference in the expense, certainly, just cost of parts and cost of getting there and
the amount of people that come to the track. When it comes to desire and will and effort and
attention to detail and, you know, minutes on task, like how many minutes a day are
you spending trying to win a World Championship, right? They are the same.
So congratulations, Gary, getting back in the Winter Circle. It's a big freaking deal,
big freaking deal. Also, Bailey Ferraro. You know, I talk about the Big Money Braga racing too often
here on the show, but I do pay attention. This past weekend, I was watching a considerable amount.
Bailey Ferraro goes out there and wins Sunday, wins the $50,000, $50,000. Bailey's dad, Mike Ferraro,
is like a South Florida bracket racer. Got me thinking the other day on our Monday motivation
for Patreons. Got me thinking just about the centers of the universe for drag racing and how,
you know, you got Texas and you've got California Kansas English
town area. Like they're of drag racing in general and also bracket racing, but there are a couple
of major hubs and that man like Mike and Renee had kids, Bailey and Nick, who these guys are going
on to be killers, man. Bailey Ferraro won $50,000. Congratulations, Bailey. That is amazing. That
is amazing. And, you know, staging up for 50 grand, you think about Gary, Williams and Troy and all
those guys, Gage Birch, Gage's dad, you know, used to race for years, Bradenton, Sunshine,
they've connelly those guys. Like that was a big hub for the thing that is now big money
bracket racing all started thanks to Dick Moroso and the Moroso Five Day, which happened
Palm Beach, Florida, a track that no longer exists. It's just sad, man. That's just sad.
But let's not turn a happy thing into a sad thing. Let's see what you guys got. Final
comments in the comments section, guys, before I get on out of here. Where did I get sick?
Last Tuesday, I got a phone call late in the day. I was done for the day like, hey, man,
you want to go see Guns N' Roses? Five minutes from your house? Floor seats?
Yeah, I'll go. And this is the remnant. Was it a was it worth it? Can anyone afford to drive
from city centers to Fontana is the question talking about California? Can anybody afford
to drive anywhere? That's is the question. Look, guys, you know, the price of gas and the price
of this and the price of that, there's always going to be something, you know, we avoid
all those topics on WFO. Like if you want to do it, you're going to do it.
So credit cards are for you want to do go to a race?
You can go to the race. And you should go to the race because tomorrow you might not even be alive.
It's the reality of it all. You got to be responsible because you can't do that with
everything. You know, you can't go to Capitol Grill every night of the week and just charge it
because eventually the bill is going to come due. But if it's something you really care about and
you really want to do it, you're going to do it. We're a world at war right now.
But you got to take that serious. You got to take that serious.
Let's see. It's going to be a lot better. Thank you for your show. Appreciate everything you do
for any terrain drag race. Well, I love it. You know, mom's home guys. This is
week two of mom being home. That's a big deal. Let's see.
What is happening with Chris Bostic and ProStock Motorcycle? Wish him well. We wish Chris well
also. I think my understanding is he's like reorganizing his own team is my understanding.
Joe, tell them how racers get on your show for the newbies. Well, you win races or I select you
or some nice person, you know, reaches out and puts us together. It's pretty much that simple.
The Garlets Gwynn interview was epic. But the WFO that Ron Merkel, thank you, Ron.
And thank you for bringing that up. Things that are in the review mirror as opposed to out the wind
shield. Regarding Gary, WFO started in 2009, right after the XM Serious merger. When XM
and Serious merged, we're talking satellite radio now guys, when they merged, I was at XM
satellite radio doing very well, had a very successful show. But the corporate merger resulted
in the firing of everyone that worked at XM for the most part, not every single person,
but large numbers. I remember a day where 190 people found out they got fired by accident.
I was on the phone with my buddy Tommy Noodles and somebody had gone in to see their vacation time
and they saw their vacation time and they also saw their termination date in the future
that everyone was terminated. So they all started running around and trying to find out
who was right and wrong and they all found out they were terminated in the future.
They'd all been fired, 180, 190 people. So I got a phone call from Tommy Noodles. I was like,
oh man, so we're all going to be fired. What do we do? I did was I sat here in
this wonderful WFO studio that used to broadcast to XM satellite radios NASCAR radio and on their
XM SportsNation channel and I realized like, I'm not moving to some small town. I'm not moving to
do another AM talk radio station just to build an audience and then be fired again because
a new guy comes in and he doesn't know me, which is really all that it is. That's all that it is
in that industry, right? Does the person know you? Are you their guy? No, you're not. I'm going to
bring in my guy. It makes perfect sense because if I got the job, I would fire your ass and hire my
guy. So it makes perfect sense. So it was in that moment that I decided, you know what man,
I'm going to start podcasting from here and I'm going to talk NHRA drag racing because nobody
is talking to the winners on the show each week. Nobody. There was nowhere to hear long form
NHRA drag racers of any kind. There wasn't. Randomly, like little radio shows, I don't
want to call them little, maybe some of them were big, but around the country there would be
guest appearances by drag racers probably, you know, like Josh sets up, but nationally there
was nobody. So I started doing, I moved the show to podcast form and then we were on race talk radio
for a little while. Dennis and his squad kind of adopted the show post-serious or post-XM
because I never worked for serious, worked for XM. We're part of the XM people, not the serious
people. And you know, I still own some shares, but really the way that they do it is very different
than the way XM did. And I'll tell you what that was. XM was about the art
and the creative and serious was about the money. It's no doubt which one would win out
in the world, right? The management staff. And you know, I guess they're still alive and so that's
a good thing and I want them to stay alive. I do. I want them to stay alive, but the way that they
approached it was very, very different. But I digress. So we started doing WFO radio and yada,
yada, here we are. I got a call to work for the NHRA. I did some work for master's television.
I've done some NHRA on Fox, but this is the number one thing, WFO radio. And the bit was because,
you know, I'm not that creative. If you win the race, you get on the show generally. Now that
there's more and more shows. We don't do four hour shows and we don't do we, you know, I'm going to
hog up every winner. And honestly, you know, we just don't have every winner like Sean Langdon did
not come on this show because Sean and Brian Hueson did a worldwide media availability last
weekend to talk about their 345 and everybody got a piece of them in that. But the next win,
maybe we'll go back and we'll get Brian Hueson. But this week, it was about Krista,
where I just stepped on everybody's toes. Probably made some enemies. Sorry, guys.
Oh, here we go. Total subject change. NASCAR should sell the last part of Fontana. Yeah,
and get out of here. Let's see. Engine performance expo videos are great to continue
to click on the ones that I haven't seen even today. You know, the whole project Pontiac engine
machining is part of that. Fogged on all the carts, Montana carting loves Fogged. Thank you very
much. Can you get Ryan Martin on for a winter view? I think I could. And the good
news about that is since we have to brainer, we've got a little time. Those guys didn't spend too
much time talking about it. They were great. It's like, man, I got a deep
opinion on that. But I am hesitant to mention it because it's so backward thinking. WFO, I'm not
driving. I doubt you'll see. I don't get this. Make diversity, having a manufacturer with them
considering people like Brutomasa lost his manufacturer's deal. It seems tough. You know,
I don't know about this week on the hear from Heiner show, Michael Heiner interviews Kyle Bates,
one of the crew chiefs from Elite Motorsport. So it's an interesting dynamic since Michael
Heiner is like a KB Titan crew chief for the get biofuel car. And Kyle Bates is like right in the
center of the team elite deal. Hearing them go back and forth about the new rules change was
really exciting. But if you love pro stock, learning about Kyle Bates and what he thinks about the 500
RPMs for Fords and Dodges, that was really interesting. If you want to watch that, you've
got to become a WFO Patreon. And you know, you might wonder, like, why isn't that for the broad
audience? It's not for the broad audience on purpose. Because this is, you know, some
privileged information that gets shared. Just that simple.
So what I was going to say was back when this Outlaw Street thing happened. And what it was was we had
NHRA had because not we NHRA had a relatively new corporate media communications person.
Right. And I remember the gentleman, he was a nice person.
And in the, you know, like I would say the first year of the tenure,
as everyone is kind of adapting to the situation, this show is blowing up and doing really well.
And a decision was made. This is years ago. And it just went over like a lead balloon. It was
turned out to be not right. And all kinds of atonement happened. And then, you know, big chief
came out to the US nationals and everybody, I think, worked really hard to move past that.
And I think have clearly moved past it. But now to have Ryan Martin and Sean and all those guys
come out and be there and see it and see that this fabrication that there's like,
you know, a guy in like an Oxford who wants to kick people out of their country club, you know,
judge Smales for you caddy shack fans out there who want to keep the undesirables out.
That's not the reality of what NHRA is. That's not what it is. NHRA in general,
um, they love their racers and they want to do a great job for everybody who races with them.
And it's really great if you can bring fans to make the thing even bigger because as big as it is,
it could be bigger. And that's it. So race two for the Outlaw Street guys,
Wright Trailers, Michael Scott from Wright Trailers is doing a really good job. And he's like
making this thing happen, willing it to happen. And it's Scott Taylor, they got together,
they came up with an idea, they made the idea happen. The idea happened. The first one may be
a little under promoted because who knew exactly how it was going to go. That's why they have soft
openings anyway. So let's call it the soft open. And in the rear view mirror, it turned out to be great.
And those guys are, you know, now we got eighth mile racing. So we got quarter mile, we got
1,000 foot, we got eighth mile. I know some people don't like that. I don't know. I like it.
This guy's better late than never, never way to go derail derailing the show.
Glad you do this, Joe. Thank you, Ron. Appreciate it. Ron Merkel, thank you for those photos,
by the way. The original Podfather.
You know, it's a story. It's a story.
Yeah, I'm looking at some of the comments.
This one's cool.
So, like, the Gary Kerry says we've got 60 watchers. Like, I don't know where you're
watching on the YouTube, but the number I see right now is 288. And we got a lot of
live views that come from X. That's where a lot of our live views go. Facebook, man,
guys, I'll share with you. Like, I am so disappointed. Facebook says we've got like
20,000 people like our page and like four of them are watching. I know I'm doing either something
wrong. I think what it is is because we stream to all these multiple platforms.
And Facebook doesn't like that. I think they want us to stream just to them. And then they'll jazz
us up a little bit. Heck with that. That's why you are our marketing program. You're going to see
a bunch of ads for WFO all over the place. Tell your friends, this is the show. This is where it
all goes down. Tomorrow, Life's a Drag, they're going to be on. Wonder what they're going to talk
about on Life's a Drag. I'm sure it's going to be very interesting. Yeah, it'll be great stuff.
You definitely want to sign on to Life's a Drag. What about Abby? Yeah, that's a big thing happening
in the world of drag racing media, right? The addition of Abby to Life's a Drag and Jason
Logan, now unchained. Who knows what he's going to say? Thanks to Krista. Thanks to Josh. Thanks
Frank Hollies, all of our supporters. Appreciate you guys WFO.
About this episode
Hosts welcome Krista Baldwin and Josh Hachat ahead of the Route 66 NHRA Nationals, then dig into what’s changing for the weekend. The conversation moves from engine wear basics—“Piston rings rubbing against the cylinder walls generate more friction than any other part of the engine”—to winter upgrades like manifolds and injectors. Krista and the crew tease a new car reveal they “can't leak,” while the show also covers NHRA entry pressure, traction, and community energy at the track.
#NHRA #DragRacing #NHRAschedule
The 75th season of NHRA Drag Racing rolls into Route 66 Raceway this weekend. Krista Baldwin will join WFO Radio as she gets ready for her first race of the season celebrating her Grandfather Chris "The Greek" Karamesines. NHRA's Director of PR and Communications, Josh Hachat stops by to preview the race with host Joe Castello,
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