Fred Farndon is a name drag racing fans have been hearing for over 50 years.

The 70-year-old has been racing for years, everything from boats to Top Fuel dragsters, and is still going strong after decades behind the wheel.

So what keeps a man that should be sitting on a beach somewhere sipping tropical drinks racing in a 300 mile per hour dragster?

Fred Farndon is a name drag racing fans have been hearing for over 50 years.

The 70-year-old has been racing for years, everything from boats to Top Fuel dragsters, and is still going strong after decades behind the wheel.

So what keeps a man that should be sitting on a beach somewhere sipping tropical drinks racing in a 300 mile per hour dragster?

“Just the people. You can’t find people like this in any other sport,” Farndon said. “Everybody helps each other out, it is like a big brotherhood and the IHRA has a platform that lets us race without being too uppity. My crew and the people out here are what keep me going.”

And Farndon showed he still has it during Friday’s opening round of qualifying with the second fastest lap of the evening at over 266 miles per hour, good enough to put him in fourth heading into the final day of qualifying.

“We had it set on mush, it was pretty soft. We just wanted to go down the track,” Farndon said.

Now he will try to hold off a hard charging crew behind him that includes the drivers who are currently second and third in points Del Cox and Bobby Lagana Jr. If his times hold, Farndon will qualify for his first IHRA race of the season in four tries.  

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