NHRA drag racing legend Eddie Hill had his fair share of crazy rides over the years but few of them compared to this nightmare that happened in 1997 at Sonoma Raceway. Driving his Pennzoil top fuel dragster, Hill crossed the finish line and as he was doing so the rear tire failed and that’s when the bad stuff started. With the tire “tread” acting as a giant flail, the car was ripped to pieces starting with the wing and then the rear end. The nose of the car folded up like a cheap suit and while literally wrapped up in a cocoon of his own steel tubing, Hill careened down the track with absolutely nothing to do but to hold on.
It is freaking nuts to watch the rear end housing and the two huge slicks bouncing and flipping down the track behind him but that is only half the story. Hill was airlifted out of the track and then he got checked out at the closest hospital that they could get him to. Released by doctors and back at the track a couple of hours later, his crew already had the backup car out and was working on it.
At the time, the rule book stated that you had to race the car you qualified so because Hill’s car was destroyed, he was unable to appear in the first round and Skip Gorr got a freebie into round two. Eddie and Ercie came to the starting line and watched. Eddie then staged with his foot after Gorr made his run and the crowd went nuts.
The rules have subsequently changed so backup cars can be used by teams during a race weekend if they mangle their primary car. Yes, it is known as the “Eddie Hill Rule”.
The NHRA will be at Sonoma Raceway this weekend for the second of three stanzas of the western swing. Be There!
