Today NMRA’s season kickoff is in full swing as the 30th Annual NMRA Spring Break Shootout ramps up with qualifying rounds in all the index and heads-up drag racing categories at Gainesville Raceway in Florida. Racers are shaking off the rust and dialing in fresh combinations in anticipation of eliminations beginning tomorrow.
The first race of the season sets the stage for the season-long championship points chase in a wide range of classes, so getting off to a successful start will give racers an edge as the season moves on.
Aside from the championship classes, this event features a range of specialty categories, including the BBK Performance Spring Break Shootout (which draws the quickest Circle D Specialties True Street machines for a battle on Sunday), the BMR Suspension S650 Mustang Stampede, the TREMEC All-Female True Street, the TREMEC Stick Shift Shootout, and the 2020+ GT500 Shootout Presented by Coastal Dyno, TREMEC, VMP Performance and ZPE GripTec.
Many Ford fans gathered this morning for a Cars, Coffee, and Cruise-In event at National Parts Depot. In addition to taking in caffeine, sugar, and a great collection of Ford machines in the NPD museum with members of the NMRA media team, including Jim Campisano, Evan Smith, and Steve Turner, along with media personality Clarence Barnes, the participants cruised up to the racetrack to take in today’s drag racing and UPR Products All-Ford Car Show action.
Tomorrow NMRA’s traveling horsepower circus adds another tent with the Saturday Thrill Festival, which adds the CJ Pony Parts Ford Drift Invitational featuring RTR Pro Drifters Vaughn Gittin Jr. and Chelsea DeNofa. It also includes the World’s Largest BIGFOOT Monster Truck, Larsen Motorsports Jet Car Exhibitions, FMX Freestyle Motocross Stunt Shows, and the NMRA Fan Experience featuring TV Personality & DJ Clarence Barnes and Miss NMRA.
So, if you love Ford high-performance, and you aren’t already here — get here! And, whether you are on the property or not you can follow this page and our social channels for updates throughout the weekend.
UPDATED DRAG RACE SCHEDULE: We got a taste this morning of how action-packed the 30th Annual NMRA Spring Break Shootout is going to be before some rain fell, but our hardworking crew is in the process of drying the track and we are shooting for a 12:30 p.m. return to action. We will go right into qualifying. Please note there is still plenty to experience throughout the pit areas, and the CJ Pony Parts Ford Drift Invitational will run at 1 p.m. in wet or dry conditions.
This is the first time NMRA is on stage at historic Gainesville Raceway, and the first time many racers will be going down the quarter-mile at this beautiful facility. In addition to plenty of palm trees, there will be plenty of action on-track and in the pit area, and there will be something for fans of all ages to experience.
NMRA ARP Open Comp racer Dennis Corn, who earned championships in 2016, 2017, 2019, 2022 and 2023, is revving up his 2024 championship chase at the first NMRA race of the year, the 30th Annual NMRA Spring Break Shootout, this weekend at Gainesville Raceway in Florida. Corn, who works for Roush Engineering and Engine Build Operations in Michigan, will have his work cut out for him among the extreme competition in the category, but he also appreciates the challenge and giving it everything he has. His wheel-standing 1988 Ford Thunderbird packing a Roush small-block Ford engine seemed to be in fine form in a time trial this morning.
It is always exciting to see lanes full of cars, and that was certainly the case this morning at the 30th Annual NMRA Spring Break Shootout at Gainesville Raceway. Several cars traversed the track for time trials before we had a bit of rain, but the sun poked through clouds and as of 11:30 a.m., our hardworking track crew is nearing the track-drying process so we can get back to action.
The 30th Annual NMRA Spring Break Shootout is multiple events packed into one event, one weekend and one track. Among the many special features is the BIGFOOT Monster Truck, which will be on display through Sunday. It is hard to tell just how big the behemoth is from photos, so we asked NMCA/NMCA Event Coordinator Anthony Galimi to step into the wheel for some perspective, and he was happy to do so. In addition to seeing and having their photo taken with BIGFOOT, fans who come out to Gainesville Raceway can see many other features and amazing NMRA racing.
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While the CJ Pony Parts Drift Invitational action keeps going until around 7 p.m. today at Gainesville Raceway, the NMRA Spring Break Shootout drag racing will be canceled for today. After a rainy afternoon, the required drying time would take us into a time frame, starting around 5:30 p.m., where the dew point with temperature will match for several hours, making it impossible to get the track in a race-ready condition tonight. The forecast looks great for tomorrow, however, and the on-track will proceed with a few updates to the schedule.
NMRA ARP Open Comp racer Dennis Corn, who earned championships in 2016, 2017, 2019, 2022 and 2023, is revving up his 2024 championship chase at the first NMRA race of the year, the 30th Annual NMRA Spring Break Shootout, this weekend at Gainesville Raceway in Florida. Corn, who works for Roush Engineering and Engine Build Operations in Michigan, will have his work cut out for him among the extreme competition in the category, but he also appreciates the challenge and giving it everything he has. His wheel-standing 1988 Ford Thunderbird packing a Roush small-block Ford engine seemed to be in fine form in a time trial this morning.
It is always exciting to see lanes full of cars, and that was certainly the case this morning at the 30th Annual NMRA Spring Break Shootout at Gainesville Raceway. Several cars traversed the track for time trials before we had a bit of rain, but the sun poked through clouds and as of 11:30 a.m., our hardworking track crew is nearing the track-drying process so we can get back to action.
The 30th Annual NMRA Spring Break Shootout is multiple events packed into one event, one weekend and one track. Among the many special features is the BIGFOOT Monster Truck, which will be on display through Sunday. It is hard to tell just how big the behemoth is from photos, so we asked NMCA/NMCA Event Coordinator Anthony Galimi to step into the wheel for some perspective, and he was happy to do so. In addition to seeing and having their photo taken with BIGFOOT, fans who come out to Gainesville Raceway can see many other features and amazing NMRA racing.
This year Ford fans joined Clarence Barnes and the NMRA media team met at National Parts Depot in Ocala, Florida, for a Cars, Coffee, and Cruise-In event. The attendees not only enjoyed caffeine and gasoline but also enjoyed the opportunity to tour NPD’s amazing collection of automobiles, which includes an array of rare and low-mileage Fords, including Shelbys, SVT Cobra Rs, and more. From there, many of the cars followed ProMedia Director of Sales and Digital Editor Evan Smith to Gainesville Raceway to join the action.
Today participants in the CJ Pony Parts Ford Drift Invitational are getting slideways and shredding tires at Gainesville Raceway. Tomorrow, RTR Pro Drifters Vaughn Gittin Jr. and Chelsea DeNofa will join the party and slay some tires in their drift-prepped Fox Mustangs.
There is already a wide range of beautiful Blue Oval machines in the UPR Products All-Ford Car Show, including a contingent of classic Fox Mustangs participating in the Fox-Body Reunion. Tomorrow we expect an even larger contingent of Ford muscle to show and shine.
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While the CJ Pony Parts Drift Invitational action keeps going until around 7 p.m. today at Gainesville Raceway, the NMRA Spring Break Shootout drag racing will be canceled for today. After a rainy afternoon, the required drying time would take us into a time frame, starting around 5:30 p.m., where the dew point with temperature will match for several hours, making it impossible to get the track in a race-ready condition tonight. The forecast looks great for tomorrow, however, and the on-track will proceed with a few updates to the schedule.
The first round of qualifying in the heads-up and index classes is canceled and will pick up with Q2 tomorrow morning, continuing to Q3 tomorrow afternoon, and eliminations on Sunday.
While Circle D Specialties True Street and TREMEC All-Female True Street will run as scheduled on Saturday, the BMR Suspension S650 Shootout and the 2020+ GT500 Shootout Presented by Coastal Dyno, TREMEC, VMP Performance, ZPE GripTec will proceed with Q2 in the morning, Q3 in the early afternoon, and Eliminations in the afternoon.
Bracket racers will still run time trials tomorrow and all eliminations will take place on Sunday.
The jet cars will run twice on Saturday, and the CJ Pony Parts Ford Drift Invitational, UPR Products All-Ford Car Show, manufacturer’s midway, and more are all running as scheduled on Saturday, so get ready for a day of fast-paced Blue Oval action tomorrow at the NMRA Spring Break Shootout & Saturday Thrill Festival.