As much as we like to poke gentle fun at the Mopar crowd for their intense devotion to their brand, we have a lot of respect for the whole lot of crazies as well. The eyes of Mopardom looked toward Maple Grove Raceway last weekend for their Mopar Action event, and photo contributor Joe Grippo was there. He captured nearly 500 photos from the event from wheels up launches to disassembled race Hemi engines in the pits.
There were seven race classes and more than 20 show classes. Don Garlits was there. He was both racing his 2009 Drag Pack Challenger and judging the car show. Garlits has always been closely aligned with the Mopar brand (Dodge was a sponsor of his for what seemed to be decades) so he’s a great choice for judging. He’s also not a guy who takes stuff lightly and he reportedly worked hard to make his picks at the show.
We’ve heard that the track was happy with the turnout and competition. That’s good news, as the “Mopars at the Strip” event in Las Vegas has been such a big deal for so long, it would be neat to have an eastern version.
On to the photos!
MOPAR GALLERY: 2011 MOPAR ACTION AT MAPLE GROVE
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Nice pics Joe! Wish I could have been there…
BKB
My brother-in-law asked if I wanted to go, and I thought about it, but I went fishing instead.
Great shots as usual Joe. Thanks for sharing.
Great turnout of Hemi Cudas and Darts, Max Wedges, A/SA’s including Big Daddy !!! And look at those grandstands………Was everybody back in the pits, or in line at the concession stands ? Gotta be nerve wracking to offer a show like this, and only have a couple of hundred folks attend.