It was a tragic weekend for the racing community. Tony Roper lost his life to that savage crash at TMS Friday. In addition, Wayne Bailey, an IHRA top fuel drivers lost his life after a wreck in qualifying at the Red River Dragstrip in Louisiana.
Condolences go out to the families and friends of all the deceased.
26 different drivers took their turn at the point during the Talladega race in 1986. Note both those events took place before the advent of restrictor plates. The secret to the marvelous Talladega races of the 1980s were unrestricted engines, and big boxy cars that punched a huge hole in the air. The spin-meisters want to paint a Happy Face on this one, but the fact remains the new rules package failed to meet its goal. Yes, it was an exciting race, as are most events at Talladega.