Sat, 8 Oct 2011, 06:52 PM Racers Are So Creative

By Bob Frey Photo copyright 2011 Auto Imagery, Inc.

Allen Constantine

Over the years drag racers have been known to do some very creative things. This ranges from the cars they race, the names they choose and the paint jobs they apply to their cars. In an effort to make cars quicker and faster they have tried everything from hanging engines over the front of the car to streamlining the bodies to using all sorts of fuel additives, some legal and some not so legal. Multiple engines have also been tried with varying degrees of success as have a wide variety of air intakes, tire combinations and gear ratios. And while most of these fads have come and gone racers will still try whatever it takes to go fast. As for the paint jobs, in a lot of cases they seem to be a reflection of the driver's personality, although these days it can be more of a sponsor thing. Jim Dunn's Funny Car has a great paint job but I don't think it reflects his personality as much as it does Rislone's objectives. Warren Johnson has never been a candidate for "Best Appearing Car" but he sure has done some great things on the track. "It's a drag race, not a car show," he once told me, and while that's correct, don't tell that to Allen Constantine. You see, Allen has a car that runs really well, is quick and fast and also is a real showstopper in the looks department, and if I may say so, those looks defy description.

Constantine hits the wall with his Top Dragster. Photo copyright 2011 Robert Grice

Unlike a lot of racers who have been involved in the sport for a while Allen is a relative newcomer to the sport. "I used to go to the races with the Cummings family, the Levatino's and others but I wasn't driving," he said. "A few years ago I finally decided that if I'm going to spend that much time at the track I might as well race." And so a career was born. After the purchase of a Super Comp car Allen was off to the races, but his career didn't exactly start the way that he wanted. "It was my second year of racing and it was a little after midnight and I was lining up against Britt Cummings. Everything was going well until about a thousand feet when I started skating around and then hit the wall. Slate (Cummings) was at the finish line and I couldn't figure out why he wasn't coming over to my car." The reason for that was simple, while Allen was hitting the wall on one side of the track, Britt was hitting it on the other side. "I couldn't believe that we both crashed on the same run," Allen said. The accident was, obviously, quite a blow to Allen's budget but it did give him a new respect for the tech people at the track. "I used to absolutely hate going into the tech line," he said. "I used to say that you just checked my car last week why do you have to do it again? But after the accident I had a new respect for the tech guys and the job they do and now they can check me and my car all they want." As bad as the accident was Allen came away with only minor injuries. "I always tighten my belts real tight, and after the race I did have to have some surgery on my shoulders. I'm not saying that it was a result of the crash but it sure didn't help." Like all racers, veterans and younger racers, Allen wasn't out of action too long. "We went out and front-halved my car and I was back racing it two weeks later."

Constantine vs. Phil Unruh in the Top Dragster final at Dallas.

When Allen lined up in the final round of the Top Dragster race at Dallas you couldn't help but notice the unique paint job on his car. Even with Phil Unruh in the other lane, a guy who always has beautiful cars, a lot of the attention was on Allen's. "I don't know what it is but I have always liked skull scenes and things like that. I have a lot of tattoos on my body and a lot of art work on the car. When I first saw this car, which was previously owned by Tracey Dennis, I told him and his son that I loved it and I would buy it if ever they wanted to sell it. One look at it and I knew that it was definitely me. A little while later the opportunity came up and I bought the car and it's a great match for my Super Comp car." His Super Comp car is also covered with designs, and a close look at it and you will find that it's different on both sides and there are even unique designs on the top of the car. "I hadn't even seen that car when I sent my friend to pick it up. He called me and asked if I knew how it looked, and then he said that he was seventy years old and he wouldn't drive a car with all that stuff on it. When I told him that it was supposed to have a "voodoo" look to it he assured me that it did and I told him to bring it home. I love it."

Constantine with a big wheelstand in his Super Gas car at Indy.

Something else that he loves is the Top Dragster class. "I have raced a lot in Super Comp and have probably had more success in that class but I absolutely love racing in Top Dragster." A couple of things contribute to Allen's excitement about the class and the first thing is the sheer speed of the cars. "Let me tell you, when you come off the line and you go 1.00 in the first sixty feet it's a real rush. Then when you're going down the track at full speed with no throttle stop it's just so cool." Another thing that he likes about the class is the people. "Maybe because it's a smaller group than the Super Comp class, there seems to be a lot more friendship among the Top Dragster racers. We talk to each other, we visit with each other and after the races we eat and drink with each other and it's just fun to be around the people." When he mentions his success in the 8.90 category as well as racing in general, Allen also talks about how he wouldn't be where he is today in racing if it weren't for the entire Cummings family including Britt and Slate, the Moser Engineering clan, and of course his wife JoAnne who is with him at every race, right by his side cheering him on. He also mentions one person he really admires as a racer. "I'm in second place behind Tommy Phillips, and let me tell you, if you have to be second to someone it's no shame being behind him because he's such a good racer and such a class individual." Allen mentions how helpful Tommy has been to him and he said that he knows that if you ask Tommy a question you'll get an honest answer. "If you were racing him in the final round and asked him how fast it was out there he'd tell you and you could believe him. He's so confident in his ability that he has no problem helping other racers."

Constantine in his Top Dragster.

As far as the final round was concerned Allen feels that he may have let one get away. "My car had been running pretty well all weekend, and Britt, who was back home in Hammond, Louisiana, and Slate and Jody who were at the track, were all helping me out with the dial and things like that. We had some trouble spinning the tires and Slate told me that if it spun I could run it all out, but if it didn't spin I would have to scrub a little off at the end of the track. I made my slowest run of the day in the final and I guess I made the wrong decision at the end of the track. Still, it was a fun weekend." And there will be more fun weekends for Allen before the year is over. "I'm in the top ten in the division in Top Dragster and second in Super Comp, so we'll run a few more races. It's been a good year." When he's not racing, Allen will be at work in the family business, a ready-mix concrete business that has been very successful. "We've been blessed and have had a good year," he said. Just a suggestion, if he wants to increase business, why not paint some of his trucks the same way he paints his race cars? Then again.....