By sheer luck, the weather that was expected to spoil the fun of the Jegs NHRA SPORTSNationals at Beech Bend had all the ferocity of a kitten mewling. Things might not have looked cheery at first light…the remnants of a random thunderstorm were only just leaving town…but instead of the monster deluge that was expected, the skies actually cleared up as the system missed the track entirely. Sometimes, we wonder if the Jones family has some kind of bubble over the place. This meant that all of the racers who showed up to let it all hang out could go straight into competition and get through the eliminations in a quick manner…and quick it was. Minus a random track check and one quick oildown, the racing was moving quick…blink, and you’d miss the next pair of cars. And you didn’t want to miss them, because the selection of iron was encompassing, to put it mildly. A 1993 Camaro against a 1994 Olds Achieva? Yep, that happened. A 1978 Dodge Challenger hazing the hides off? That happened, too. We even saw not one, not two, but three Mopar F-bodies (that’s Aspen/Volare) running the track, with the two coupes hanging hoops at launch. And just in case you thought it was just old cars, there was a Drag Pak Challenger taking on a legit FR500 Cobra Jet Mustang.

Click on a photo below to sort through what else we saw at Beech Bend!