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"My dad was going through some personal struggles and wasn't able to focus as well on driving, and he just told me I was going to drive it," said Duncan. "We were on the way home from a race one Sunday when he told me, and we went to a test and tune session that Monday night at the local track, and that was the first time I'd ever driven a real racecar on a drag strip. "The following Saturday, I ran in a Stock/Super Stock combo race at Ohio Valley Raceway in Louisville, Ky., and I runner-upped. The weekend after that, I won the IHRA points race there. I was shocked, and then of course I got the big head and thought, this is easy, I can do this every time. But I proceeded to go out at the next five Division 3 races and lose first round, and that brought me back to reality real quick."
"That was the 40th anniversary race, and that is the one that really sticks in my craw," said Duncan. "I was racing Don McCallum and his Hemi Barracuda car, and I red-lighted, but he red-lighted right behind me. If I'd have turned it green, I would have won that race. The others were just a matter of wrong place, wrong time." The others Duncan referred to are the three additional national events where he finished in the final round. In 1999, he raced Dan Fletcher in the Super Stock money round in St. Louis, and last season Duncan reached two final rounds where he missed nabbing the Wally by just a little bit: one in Norwalk in a match with Mike Walter, and then again at the Northern SPORTSnationals in Columbus, where Craig Marshall was the victor. Though a national event victory is still on the wish list, Duncan has plenty of checkmarks in the plus column, including division event titles in recent years claimed in Chicago, St. Louis and Bowling Green, Ky. He finished No. 1 in the division in both 2003 and 2005, and in 2008, he nearly doubled up at the points meet at Chicago's Route 66 Raceway, going to the final round in Super Stock in his own car as well as in Stock Eliminator driving a '98 Firebird for Irvin Johns.
Getting into a rhythm and the quick pace were things that Duncan says helped him along that weekend, and after getting a taste of nearly scoring a trophy for each hand, he's hoping to someday have the opportunity to do it again. Though the Camaro is the only racecar that the family owns - Elwood purchased the car in 1987, raced it from 1988 to 1993, and in recent years picked up running it at select national opens - Duncan has frequently been afforded the opportunity to drive for others; his most current venture in a borrowed machine was when he drove Gary Emmons SS/IA '96 Firebird at the season-opening NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, and Emmons has become a valuable resource and a good friend, acting as a sounding board and advisor after each event.
"I'm excited about the rest of the year," said Duncan. "Our goal every year is to contend for a division championship, build upon that and finish in the top 10. Right now we're working on the motor for our car so we can go to Belle Rose for the Cajun SPORTSnationals, and we're planning on doing about six national events, eight divisionals, and pick up national opens in Division 3. We'll be busy, but we're going to try to keep it simple. It's a matter of enjoying ourselves, because this is strictly a hobby for us. Our main goal is to have fun, and going rounds and winning races is definitely a part of that." Duncan thanked his father, Elwood Duncan Jr., who assembles their engines, Jeff Taylor of Jeff Taylor Performance, his two young sons who help keep things wiped down and are happy to hand dad or grandpa tools in the shop, Irvin Johns, Gary Emmons, and of course his wife Heather for "taking care of the homefront while I'm off playing drag racing." Duncan also acknowledged the contributions of their family business, Mr. Pest Control.
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