Mon, 16 Feb 2009, 12:58 PM He Likes It Fast And Safe

By Bob Frey Photo copyright 2009 Auto Imagery, Inc.

Dennis Taylor

When I was a kid the only way I could find out about what had happened at the Winternationals was to wait a few weeks for National Dragster to come out so I could read all about it. I loved finding out who the winners were, and since there was no internet at that time (honest, kids) that was usually how I learned about what went on at the season-opening race. In addition to checking the results I also got my first glimpse at a lot of the new cars in the pro and sportsman classes. It wasn't until I started working for NHRA that I got to attend the Winternationals and see, first hand, what all the excitement was about. For an east-coast guy to get to walk through the pits in Pomona for the first time was quite a treat and it's something I still enjoy to this day. And, as an east-coast guy, I really looked forward to seeing a lot of the cars and drivers that I only read about, the ones who never travelled back east. Dennis Taylor is such a guy.

Dennis has been racing since the early 1970's when he had one of the very rare econo-Funny Cars that were in the rule books back then. "I always grew up loving Funny Cars," he said during one of the many rain delays at this year's Winternationals. "And this car was as close as I thought I would ever come." Dennis's dream car was a big block, Chevrolet-powered car with a four barrel carburetor and a Turbo 400 transmission. It had a flip top Vega body and he thought it was so cool. "Jay Payne and I each had one of these back in the late 1970's and I used to bracket race mine all the time at Orange County." Dennis built that car after spending some time on the road with the legendary Green Elephant Funny Car that Rob Bruins drove. After a few seasons with the econo-car he stepped up to a Top Fuel dragster that he campaigned with his partner, Dave Braskett. "We'd only run four or five races a year with it. I got my license in 1981 and I started driving in 1983 and we ran it for a few years after that until we just couldn't afford to keep up." Dennis qualified for one event in Top Fuel, the 1985 Phoenix Fall Nationals.

Taylor in the Top Fueler.

"Ironically, our car was an ex-Dick LaHaie car and the one race we qualified for we raced Dick in round one." You can guess how that one came out.

Next up for Dennis, who admits to giving up a "very promising musical career" to pursue drag racing, was a stint behind the wheel of a Top Alcohol Funny Car. "The first one I drove was for the team of Ken Head and Jerry Crawford, and Jerry is actually still with me on my car today." This was the "Say No To Drugs" car that came about because Ken was a captain with the Fullerton police department. "Ken built a really nice 'Say No To Drugs' program and that was the first real alcohol car that I drove. I had never driven a clutch car before and that's part of what keeps me going today, the challenge that it takes to drive one of those cars. It's fun to rev 'em up, swap feet and shift them on time." Dennis was, by his own admission, "just the driver on that car" and he didn't own any of it. Then, as the team progressed and as his business picked up he was able to buy into the operation, buy some better parts for the team and become more involved with the entire operation. The team did very well, winning several division races, finishing as high as second in the points in Division 7 and making it to the final round at the

Taylor in the Head and Crawford car.

Seattle national event in 1996 where they lost to Randy Anderson. All of that began in 1991 and Dennis has been racing in the alky class even since. His first Winternationals was in 1992 and he has been at every season-opening event since then with the exception of 1997 and he won the 2004 race. "I always get kidded because we didn't run anyone in the final round that year since both of the cars in the other semi-final round broke. I'll always remember (ESPN's) Dave Rieff telling me that we just won the race after our semi-final round. It was unbelievable." Dennis thinks that solo run in the finals may have been a little pay back from what happened only months before at the same Pomona race track. "We made it to the final round and then got shut off on the line before we could race Bucky Austin and he got to solo for the win. So if you believe in karma, maybe that was it."

Dennis, like so many racers, knew that his ultimate goal was to own and campaign his own race car and that's why he wasn't racing in 1997. "I took some time off to save some money and put a few things together with some of the same guys who are with me now and that was twelve years ago. It really is the knowledge, the know how, the experience and the better parts that make you more competitive in this class." And, over the last few years, Dennis has had a car and a team

Taylor and crew celebrate '04 win.

that have been as competitive as almost anyone else in the class. As an added bonus, he hooked up with Alan Johnson a few seasons ago when Alan asked if Dennis would like to serve as a "house car" for his alcohol parts. And, as all good racers would have done, Dennis immediately said yes to Alan's helping hand. "How could you say no to a guy like Alan Johnson, a guy who is probably one of the brightest and most forward-think guys in drag racing?" The answer is simple, you can't. And even though the team struggled initially for a year or so, in the long run it has turned out to be a very good arrangement for both parties. Alan also sent Terry Morrow, one of his employees at the shop, to work with Dennis and that really turned the team around. All you have to do to see the fruits of their labor is to look at the numbers from 2008, a year that saw Dennis record a superb 5.540 elapsed time, the second best time in the class last year behind only Frank Manzo. He also clicked off a couple of runs over 260 miles per hour and only a handful of teams have ever done that in the alky funny car class.

When he is not racing Dennis runs Taylor Motorsports, a company that designs and builds safety equipment that is used by racers in a wide variety of classes. "We manufacture safety equipment, and about the only thing we don't do is helmets." The lineup of products from Taylor Motorsports includes fire suits, gloves, shoes, boots, all the restraints that go on the cars, diapers, seat

Taylor in '08.

belts, transmission blankets and more. "In essence, I'm working when I'm at the track racing," he said. "I get to deal with my customers at every race that I go to, and I have to tell you, I really enjoy going to work every day because I've turned my hobby into my vocation." The business, which came about after Dennis ran an upholstery shop in the late 1970's, now is one of the primary manufacturers of safety products in all of auto racing. When he's not racing or working, Dennis also finds time to do some tech tips for the Lucas Oil sportsman shows on ESPN 2. "I really enjoy that and I look forward to doing some more this year. I think the fact that I have raced these cars for so long now enables me to give the viewers a little insight into the cars and the competitors and we've received a lot of very favorable response from those pieces."

Dennis Taylor is one of the west-coast standard bearers in the alcohol funny car class and he has raced against some of the best drivers in the sport and their sons. "I raced against Brad and Randy Anderson, Lou and Steve Gasparrelli, Mike and Doug Gordon and some others. My son

Taylor at Pomona.

would like to drive eventually but I don't think I'm quite ready to step out of the seat." For now, he plans to race at about ten to twelve races this year and then see what the future holds. "Everyone knows the economy is tough and means that we'll have to scale back on our plans a bit." What he won't cut back on is the effort to continually go quicker and faster and to continue to make things for the cars that will help keep him and the drivers he races against safe."

Dennis has had great support over the years from his wife, Carolyn and their four children. He would also like to thank Ken and Cheryl Meadows of Plumbing Concepts who has been with his for the last twenty years. "And thanks, too, to BTO Sports, an on-line motorcycle parts and accessory retailer. We're working on some crossover marketing for the power sports enthusiast." One more thing, besides his normal schedule and his "day job," Dennis will be driving a nostalgia funny car this year at five or six races. "It's the Future Flash car of Gary Messenger and it will be tuned by Bob Brooks of AFT clutch fame. I'm really looking forward to that." And we're looking forward to seeing Dennis, on the track and on the TV screen for many years to come.

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