Forgive the blurred status of this week\u2019s mug shot, but when you run into one of the idols of your youth, you take what you can get.<\/p>\n
In this instance, a crappy cell phone and shaky user conspired to fuzzy up this picture of me with NHRA Hall of Famer, Tom \u201cThe Mongoose\u201d McEwen.<\/p>\n
A few weeks ago, I attended the SEMA Motorsport Parts Manufacturers Council Media Trade Conference in Los Angeles. It\u2019s three days of 14-a-day meetings and one day as I was hurrying to my next meeting I caught a glimpse of this somewhat familiar looking guy out of the corner of my eye. It took a second to register who it was but when it did, I knew I had to get a photo and relate to Mr. McEwen a story that happened almost 30 years ago at the U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis, IN. The photo didn\u2019t turn out so great, but the story is kind of cool.<\/p>\n
In 1978 I was a scrawny 12-year-old who loved two things \u2014 baseball and cars. My dad\u2019s Super Stock & Drag Illustrated magazines were one of my favourite things to read and when he was done, I\u2019d pull out the posters and hang them on the wall in my room or even in my \u201ccubby\u201d at school.<\/p>\n
For some reason that summer, my dad decided he was going to rent a motorhome and spend Labour Day weekend with me, three of my friends and my younger brother, Jason, at the U.S. Nationals. My buddies and I were stoked. Avid model builders (and I guess dweebs) we decided we had to have a club and since there were four of us, the club became the Modelers Four. One of us decided we needed club T-shirts and on a popsicle run to the Mac\u2019s Milk cornerstore one summer afternoon we discovered you could buy iron-on letters for T-shirts for just a few bucks. To earn the funds for the letters and the T-shirts, we collected pop bottles and coat hangers for the deposit money. (You could get a penny a coat hanger from the dry cleaners in those days).<\/p>\n
In short order we had our T-shirts and in just the nick of time for our road trip. I don\u2019t know how my friends or brother remember it, but I remember it as one of the best trips of my life. My dad owned his own business (Denomme Automotive, still going strong after 40 years) so time off was rare. Hanging out with him at the drags was time well spent.<\/p>\n
Before the trip, I had purchased an autograph book hoping to nab the signatures of guys I had only read about until that time. In short order I had the signatures of Buddy Martin, Ronnie Sox, Raymond Beadle, Tommy Ivo and Roland \u201cThe Hawaiian\u201d Leong. The first signature in the book, however, is that of Tom \u201cMongoose\u201d McEwen. At the time he was running the English Leather Corvette and I was a big fan of Corvettes and \u201cThe Mongoose\u201d (Never did like English Leather much). Of course, McEwen and his match race nemesis, Don \u201cThe Snake\u201d Prudhomme, were well known to any kid who collected Hot Wheels in the early 1970s so a \u201cSnake\u201d signature was also high on my list that weekend.<\/p>\n
But as we wondered the pits during Day 2 of the U.S. Nationals, it was \u201cThe Mongoose\u201d trailer we first came upon. McEwen was sitting in a lawn chair inside his car hauler. I stood at the end of the ramp a little shy to walk right in, but McEwen beckoned us with an easy smile. \u201cWhat\u2019s that on your shirts?,\u201d he asked. Of course we all wore our club T-shirts that day. I probably mumbled something about models and wish I could remember his response. I know we were all thrilled he showed any interest at all.<\/p>\n
He signed all of our books, gave us some decals and told us to have a good time at the races. We had no idea his son Jamie had died of leukemia only days before the event, telling his dad to \u201cGo to Indy and beat Prudhomme\u201d setting up what would be one of the most emotional and epic funny car finals of U.S. Nationals history. Later in the day, I saw Prudhomme walking across the pits talking animately with a member of his crew. It seemed like a good time for an autograph, so as he passed I said \u201cSnake, can you sign my book.\u201d He almost passed me before he reacted. He stopped, grabbed my book and aggressively scratched his signature, actually tearing through the paper \u2014 see above pics \u2014 before bruskly giving it back to me. I was a little stunned. I got the feeling I had done something wrong, but wasn\u2019t really sure what it was. Prudhomme took a few more steps away, then stopped and turned around. \u201cI\u2019m sorry,\u201d he said. \u201cI was just trying to explain something to my chief.\u201d<\/p>\n
As a competitive adult, I understand Prudhomme\u2019s intensity that weekend and that it really wasn\u2019t that bad. But as a 12 year old, \u201cThe Snake\u201d had suddenly dropped a few places on my favourite\u2019s list.<\/p>\n
In their many years of racing each other \u201cThe Snake\u201d usually got the better of \u201cThe Mongoose\u201d. In fact, Prudhomme would win his NHRA fourth funny car title in 1978.<\/p>\n
But that year, in the final round of the U.S. Nationals, it was McEwen who took a bite out of Prudhomme knocking off \u201cThe Snake\u201d in the F\/A final, fulfilling Jamie\u2019s request.<\/p>\n
Sadly, we weren\u2019t there for the race. We had to leave Monday morning so dad could get back to work on Tuesday. So, 30 years later, in a hotel hallway on the other side of the country, I related the story to McEwen and thanked him for his kindness that weekend. He simply looked at the guy with him winked and said \u201cDid you hear that, Snake was mean to him and I was nice.\u201d Then they both laughed wryly and walked away.<\/p>\n
Even today, the \u201cmatch racing\u201d continues.<\/p>\n
So does the idol worship.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Forgive the blurred status of this week\u2019s mug shot, but when you run into one of the idols of your<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n