TNN Tribute

Sunday October 1st 2000 marked a historic day in NHRA drag racing. In five seconds Gary Scelzi became the only man in top fuel to win 7 times in a season, and with that very run, TNN motor sports closed an 18 year commitment to broadcast the NHRA events. The Staff of WCSL has been proud to serve NHRA over the past four years working with TNN, Diamond P Sports, and ESPN to bring the fans some of the most exciting television coverage the racing world has ever known. Over the past four years I have been privileged to experience world record runs first hand, meet and get to know the drivers and on-air talent on a personal level. I have had the thrill of standing on the line between two top fuel cars and experience my body lift off the ground at the sound shock wave of 14,000 horsepower as the light flashes green. I have shared the sorrow and emotion of having to compose myself and work like a professional when a driver lost her life in Sonoma and a parachutist lost his life in Pomona. I've prayed for Shelly and Eddie when those drivers both suffered through some of the worst wrecks of those seasons, and rejoiced over being able to look back at those events with them after recovery at later events. I've ducked for cover as Doug Herbert had the largest blower explosion of all time at Pomona, sending motor parts over our heads on the top of the press tower, raining them down on the street behind us. I've had the privilege of running sound for truly one of the best sportscasters on the planet, my friend and college, the late Steve Evans. In the past four years I've been stretched in my career beyond sound as I learned many trades in television production at the track, I've walked countless miles, I've found myself in harms way many a day, I've gone through fire, I've experience the stress of a live broadcast during dozens of shows. When it's all said and done, there's simply nothing else like this job on the planet. We look forward to the new year with our friends at ESPN as the torch is passed. This page is dedicated to all my friends involved in producing these great events and to the NHRA body, drivers and crew who produce not only the fasted and most extreme motorsport on the planet, but the safest as well! And to Steve Evans and family, who for the last couple of decades have taught us what it means to be a professional in this business every Sunday, Sunday, Sunday! So sit back and enjoy some of the photos We've taken at past events over the last four years. We have ignition!

Pomona CA - Top Fuel qualifying was halted Friday afternoon by a violent blower explosion that occurred when Doug Herbert left the starting line. His dragster traveled less than the thirty feet when a devastating supercharger blast erupted unlike any witnessed in NHRA history.

Herbert drives his injured
car from the track
©mccarthy/goracing.com

The blast was so intense, segments of the rotor casing landed hundreds of feet outside the race facility. Bill Robertson and his son Greg were across the street from the Pomona Raceway by the adjacent airport when they heard the blast while viewing the race on the giant Winston Vision screen.

"We heard the explosion and saw it on the Winston Vision and we immediately heard the pieces of metal ricocheting off the metal grand stands and then we heard the metal pieces landing in the street where we were. We started looking for the parts and we found a big one." Mr. Robertson and his son were in possession of a segment of blower rotor case three by seven inches in length.

Remnants of Herbert's blower
©mccarthy/goracing.com

Fans and racers inside the facility were showered with debris that littered the area of the return road from the starting line hundreds of feet forward. Herbert was shaken by the blast, but he stayed with the car throughout the clean up and then drove his car to the pits.

The shower of parts rained down on fans within the facility. Bob Moorer of Bloomington CA was over 500' from the blast wandering the pits when he saw a golf ball sized piece of metal land in front of him. "I heard the explosion and one good sized chunk landed in front of me."

Danny Martinev was nearly
struck by this fragment
©mccarthy/goracing.com

Danny Martinev of La Mirada CA. was seated on the east side of the track and had an experience he will not forget. "I heard this big clank beside me and a piece of the motor hit the bleachers beside me and landed at my feet." He was seated in row 31 seat 4 perpendicular to Herbert's car in the right lane where a large piece of blower rotor case landed. Herbert autographed the souvenir shrapnel for the fan.

Kris Peterson of Glendora CA. was in the grand stands beside her husband seated two rows from the top when the blast erupted.

"My husband held my head down in his lap and it was a good thing he did." Her bent over position allowed a hefty segment of blower case to come directly down on her left buttock, staining her new event tee-shirt. "If he hadn't held me down that might have hit my head."

According to NHRA reporting, fourteen spectators were treated for injuries with ten being transported to area hospitals.

It is unknown at this time the exact cause of the explosion, NHRA technical services is currently reviewing the incident.

WCSL friend, NHRA announcer Steve Evans, dead at age 58
By Paul Doty
Those of us that have worked with Steve over the years are deeply saddened today with the news of Steve's passing. Our hearts and prayers are with Steve's family as well as with the entire NHRA drag racing community. One of my fondest memories of Steve was a few years ago in Pomona at the Winternationals. I was running sound for him and I joked with him moments before going live that we were going to be live on "Sunday! Sunday! Sunday!" A couple of minutes later he opened the live broadcast with that phrase, sending a clear message to my wife Leslie 300 miles away at home that Steve's audio engineer that day was me. That was very cool of him, Steve was just that kind of guy. Steve, you will be missed.

Steve Evans, a familiar face to drag race fans for more than two decades through his outstanding television work covering NHRA Winston Drag Racing, passed away Nov. 1. Evans, 58, was discovered dead in his motel room in Las Vegas, where he was preparing for a World of Outlaws event. Evans had a long and rich history in drag racing, having managed dragstrips, served as editor of NHRA's weekly publication, National DRAGSTER, and, later, as NHRA's public relations director, and for eight years was the host of the weekly television program NHRA Today, but was widely known throughout the motorsports community for his coverage of all forms of racing.

Friends, fans gather to honor Steve Evans
by Phil Burgess, NHRA.com
11/09/2000

Steve Evans

The NHRA drag racing family -- brothers and sisters from all walks of the sport -- came together Thursday night at Pomona Raceway to celebrate the life of one of its most respected and well-liked members at a memorial service for NHRA announcer and television personality Steve Evans, who passed away Nov. 1. A gathering of approximately 500 people united as one at the Racers For Christ tent at Pomona Raceway following the conclusion of the opening day of qualifying at the Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals, filling the tent and the areas outside to listen to the friends and family of Evans share their memories and thoughts, and to offer their support, love, and grief with one another. A veritable Who's Who of drag racing was in attendance; Professional racers from all classes and all eras -- including just about every current star driver -- mixed with Evans' broadcasting peers, NHRA officials, sponsors, and race fans. Evans' longtime friend and broadcast partner Dave McClelland hosted the affair, along with NHRA Chaplain Ken Owen. Guest speakers included NHRA founder Wally Parks; Evans' son, Cameron, and brother, Roger; longtime Evans friend Jim Busby, a former drag racer and sports car racer; producers John Mullin and Tom Gee; and Don "the Snake" Prudhomme. Their tributes, often humorous and nostalgic, offered varying looks at an incredible man -- his love of movies and music; the "Evans circle" he would walk while memorizing his next lines, then delivering them flawlessly; the caring and inquisitive man who always grilled others to share with him their experiences, even off camera -- often far different and far deeper than the Evans most knew from the small screen, but one thing was clear: Everyone knew he was special. "Steve was someone everyone knew, and they felt like he was their friend," said Parks. "All of us should be very thankful and very grateful that he shared our world." McClelland then moved through the audience, offering the microphone to anyone who wanted to share their thoughts of Evans. Among those taking advantage were Ed McCulloch, Frank Hawley, Gary Beck, Shirley Muldowney, NHRA's Steve Gibbs, announcer Richard Schroeder; fellow television announcer Gary Gerould, and one of Evans' most frequent and colorful interview subjects, John Force. Force's speech, as usual, was one of the most memorable, as he recounted how Evans counseled a young, broke, and down-on-his-luck racer, and helped lead him to greatness. "Steve Evans made me," said an emotional Force. "He made all of us. I told him I didn't have a lot going for me, but I can talk. He told me, 'Shut up and just follow me. I'll lead you, because you don't have a clue. Just listen to me.' Twenty-five years of my life I followed him, and I loved him." Later, as the final speaker shared his thoughts, engines roared to life from cars parked just outside the tent, beginning with the famed Greer-Black-Prudhomme Top Fueler, then the Pro Stock Olds of 2000 champ Jeg Coughlin Jr., and finally the Castrol Mustangs of Force and Tony Pedregon. The cars idled in tribute to a man whose heart lived for horsepower and the roar of high performance engines, a man who on this night was truly missed and proudly remembered.