Cobra Jets Invade Norwalk at NMRA Ford Homecoming
By Dan Grippo
Photography by the author
Growing up a dye-in-the-wool Ford guy, I heard the stories and read the books about the “Total Performance” years of the 1960’s. Not being of an age to have lived through those years, I was left experiencing such exploits only through print and the occasional video.
That all changed for me and many Blue Oval fans in 2008 when Ford reintroduced the factory drag car to the public, via its Cobra Jet Mustang program. Ford racers could once again compete in various classes in multiple sanctioning bodies with a factory produced race car. Better yet, Ford fans were able to watch history repeat itself when John Calvert wheeled a Brent Hajek-owned Cobra Jet to a NHRA Winternationals 40 years after Al Joniec did it in the original. Incredibly, Calvert’s mount was lettered identically to Joniec’s Mustang.
Amazingly, 2023 marks 55 years since the inception of the original Cobra Jet program, an anniversary not lost at the recent NMRA 25th Anniversary Ford Homecoming. Among all the “events within an event” at the NMRA Homecoming, the TascaParts.com Cobra Jet Reunion celebrated the cars, people and history, both past and present. There was a massive show with Cobra Jets of all years and drag racing to show the power of the original 428 up to the most modern version.
Invited guest Brent Hajek brought a slew of special Fords, including true royalty as he displayed the winning Cobra Jets from ’68 and ’09 in the special CJ area. Making the moment extra sweet, winning drivers Al Joniec and John Calvert were also in attendance telling the tales and signing autographs.
Event sponsor Carl Tasca also took the mic and gave the history of his family involvement in the origins of these cars. Along with the racecars on display, there was some of the rarest offerings Ford ever produced. Normally, to see concourse restorations of this caliber, one must go to a National Mustang meet, or one of the big TV auctions. And to cap it all off, the Watson Racing Cobra Jet Showdown showed that these cars are not just static display. Entries from as far as California showed to compete at the special race. Pitting both old and new breed racers against each other, fans witnessed 55 years of Cobra Jet history as Ed Brown’s ’16 would take on the ’68 of Steven Hall in the final with Brown taking the win. From dog dish sleepers to the 7-second screamers, enjoy the gallery below.
By Dan Grippo
Photography by the author
Growing up a dye-in-the-wool Ford guy, I heard the stories and read the books about the “Total Performance” years of the 1960’s. Not being of an age to have lived through those years, I was left experiencing such exploits only through print and the occasional video.
That all changed for me and many Blue Oval fans in 2008 when Ford reintroduced the factory drag car to the public, via its Cobra Jet Mustang program. Ford racers could once again compete in various classes in multiple sanctioning bodies with a factory produced race car. Better yet, Ford fans were able to watch history repeat itself when John Calvert wheeled a Brent Hajek-owned Cobra Jet to a NHRA Winternationals 40 years after Al Joniec did it in the original. Incredibly, Calvert’s mount was lettered identically to Joniec’s Mustang.
Amazingly, 2023 marks 55 years since the inception of the original Cobra Jet program, an anniversary not lost at the recent NMRA 25th Anniversary Ford Homecoming. Among all the “events within an event” at the NMRA Homecoming, the TascaParts.com Cobra Jet Reunion celebrated the cars, people and history, both past and present. There was a massive show with Cobra Jets of all years and drag racing to show the power of the original 428 up to the most modern version.
Invited guest Brent Hajek brought a slew of special Fords, including true royalty as he displayed the winning Cobra Jets from ’68 and ’09 in the special CJ area. Making the moment extra sweet, winning drivers Al Joniec and John Calvert were also in attendance telling the tales and signing autographs.
Event sponsor Carl Tasca also took the mic and gave the history of his family involvement in the origins of these cars. Along with the racecars on display, there was some of the rarest offerings Ford ever produced. Normally, to see concourse restorations of this caliber, one must go to a National Mustang meet, or one of the big TV auctions. And to cap it all off, the Watson Racing Cobra Jet Showdown showed that these cars are not just static display. Entries from as far as California showed to compete at the special race. Pitting both old and new breed racers against each other, fans witnessed 55 years of Cobra Jet history as Ed Brown’s ’16 would take on the ’68 of Steven Hall in the final with Brown taking the win. From dog dish sleepers to the 7-second screamers, enjoy the gallery below.
