For those on the outside looking in, the great PRA/PRO vs. NHRA conflict of the 1970s might have appeared to be a pissing match of epic proportions. However, when details of what caused the public relations dust up almost five decades later come to light, it was more about professional drag racers demanding what they felt was their worth compared to other forms of motorsports. 

In 1971, with the Vietnam War raging, the United States motorsports community came together in a show of support for the troops during a USO tour at the request of Rear Admiral Emmet H. Tidd. The team featured the best of the best in all forms of racing and included the likes of Richard Petty, A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, and drag racing’s Don Garlits. 

Little did Tidd know, the tour would create another kind of war. 

In this five-part series, CompetitionPlus.com will explore ten races that were really great at one time, and some were famous, while others were obscure. The bottom line is they were fun and epitomized the spirit of drag racing. 

We will undoubtedly miss a few, but save your judgment until the series ends. Special thanks to Bret Kepner, Dave Wallace, Steve Earwood, and others who helped ensure this series came to fruition with their knowledge of the sport and willingness to contribute. 

They likely didn’t ask for it, but they got it. The Franklin and Steding families both secured double-up victories. 

On Father’s Day weekend, Franklin and his daughter scored a double-up victory, with him taking the Pro Nitrous win and Amber scoring the title in Pro 632 during the North vs. South Shootout in Budds Creek, Md. Not to be outdone, Kurt Steding and son Ethan taking home the Pro Boost and Pro Street titles respectively. 

Elijah Morton (Extreme Pro Stock) rounded out the top winners at Maryland International Raceway.

Comp racer Taylor Chomiski killed two birds with one stone at the NHRADivision 5 event at the new Flying H Dragstrip outside Kansas City, Mo. This weekend's first of two events marked the fourth stop on the $750,000 Rooftec Competition Eliminator Bonus Fund series [CEBF]. 

Chomiski scored his first career Rooftec CEBF, and in beating Don Thomas, he kept the curse intact, which prevented a racer from winning two of the events in the same season.  

The last time Steve King raced a major Pro Modified event in Maryland, it worked out well for him. After winning Cecil County Dragway’s $50,000-to-win Pro Mod Invitational back in May, King drove his supercharged Corvette to the No. 1 qualifying position in Pro Boost at the PDRA North vs. South Shootout

Joining him atop the doorslammer-based series were Jim Halsey (Pro Nitrous) and Jeremy Huffman (Extreme Pro Stock). 

Drag racers apparently don't have the market cornered on being resourceful. When rains deluged Odessa, Missouri, the location of Flying H Dragstrip, a significant number of racers were unable to get their cars to the staging lanes, much less unloading out of their trailers. 

Flying H Dragstrip, located outside Kansas City, debuted on Thursday as part of the NHRA's Division 5 schedule. They are hosting a double-divisional, which is two events in one weekend.

Friday morning, the racers parked in the upper grassy area woke up to flooded grounds. The initial weather report offered moderate rains wrapped into a significant thunderstorm. However, the storm dropped nearly two hours on grounds where its sod was still in the curing process. 

Flying H Dragstrip, the new facility located outside of Kansas City, MO., made its NHRA debut with the first of two Division 5 (West Central) events scheduled this weekend. With temperatures reaching into the 90s, the action on the strip was just as hot. 

The Rooftec Competition Eliminator Bonus made its first divisional debut outside of Division 4, and it was series regular Clinton Neff leading the 42-car lists with an elapsed time of 6.619, -.601 under the A/Econo Dragster standard. 

A perfect steak might be the only thing that could compare to filling out a perfect bracket. When the NHRA rolls into Virginia Motorsports Park next weekend for the NHRA Virginia Nationals, those two worlds will collide. 

As Elon Werner’s Drag Race Bracket Bonanza (DRBB) continues to grow, it will add another growing company to its list of presenting sponsors. 

The Hagan Cattle Company, a venture by the renowned four-time NHRA Funny Car Champion, is set to make a unique mark as the presenting sponsor for DRBB, the first-ever dynamic bracket competition for drag racing fans at the Virginia Nationals. 

Every time Brittany Force comes to Ohio, she will have the colors and brand of a company familiar to the state emblazoned on the side of her Top Fuel dragster.

Cornwell Tools is the primary supporter for the Summit Motorsports Park’s 47th annual Night Under Fire, and with an announcement on  Thursday afternoon, will bear the colors at the NHRA Summit Racing Equipment Nationals, June 28 - 30, at the same venue outside of Cleveland, Ohio.