Tom McEwen (January 14, 1937 - June 10, 2018) is an American drag rider who is the winner of the US National Hot Rod Association (NHRA). His racing career spanned 45 years. He was ranked 16th on the list of 50 most significant drivers of the first 50 years of NHRA. He received the nickname "Mongoose" in 1964 from machine maker Ed Donovan. It was originally used as a tool to pull Prudhomme's Don "the Snake" into a high-exposure match race.
In 1965, he faced his Hot Wheels teammate Don Prudhomme at Drag Race, Hot Rod Magazine, held at Riverside Raceway, "one of the most significant drag racing events" of the era, although the Top Fuel Eliminator (TFE) trophy went to Jim Warren.
McEwen won five NHRA events, but his talent for chatting and promotional ability made him one of the most influential and controversial sports figures.
As stated by Roland Leong, "McEwen was the smartest of the group.When he came up with the Hot Wheels deal using the Snake and Mongoose characters, it rocked the world of big time racing drags.He produced a sponsorship package that allowed him and Prudhomme to buy equipment "I hate to admit it, but McEwen and Prudhomme show the way to the future, they're much smarter than most of us who can not see past the end of a quarter mile."
Tom McEwen has three sons, two of whom are dead, (Jamie and Joe), and Tom Jr., who is involved in the entertainment industry and lives in Southern California.
Video Tom McEwen (drag racer)
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McEwen gained initial experience in various cars, beginning in 1953 with '53 Oldsmobile at Santa Ana Drags in Irvine. He then went on to race the '54 Olds at Lions Drag Strip in Long Beach.
He went from the ranks of stock to gas coupes, altereds, and finally dragsters and funny cars. Among the cars he drives are fastback Stone-Woods-Cook '50 Olds, Bader & amp; Ferrara's Cadillac-powered Crosseyed Crosley, Art Chrisman Hustler II, Bud Rasner and Gary Slusser Fiat coupe, Dick Rea Chrysler-powered, super-charged gas gasster, and Gene Adams' Albertson Olds.
Maps Tom McEwen (drag racer)
1960s
McEwen continued his relationship with Adams for several years. In 1962, he drove the Adams' Shark , which was one of the first dragsters to use a slim body with a parachute covered package. This will be one of McEwen's most famous dragsters.
In 1963, McEwen achieved his first famous success when he put up a second run against Art Malone at Bakersfield March Meet in California. He also drove the Donovan Engineering Special dragster, and it was in this car that he first ran up against Don "The Snake" Prudhomme.
McEwen won the contest against Prudhomme on the Lions Drag Strip on September 12, 1964. He beat bright orange car Prudhomme in two consecutive rounds, inspiring what might be the most famous match-race pair in the history of drag racing.
Then in 1964, McEwen drove Lou Baney's Yoodel Plymouth dragster to victory at UDRA which housed 32 cars at Fontana Raceway in Fontana. He also took the Top Fuel title on Lions Dragstrip and Pomona Raceway.
Since their first contest has received so much attention, two more races between McEwen and Prudhomme are scheduled on the Lions Drag Strip in 1965. McEwen drove his Plymouth dragster against Prudhomme and hers Hawaiian, winning two defeats from three in the first heat, but then lose both runs in the second.
Since McEwen was racing on the West Coast, he and Prudhomme faced each other once in 1966, at Winternationals, where their first national event meeting. There, Prudhomme at B & amp; M Torkmaster Special won victory, with 7.59 e.t. to McEwen 7.69. They will not see each other again for the rest of the decade.
McEwen won the 1966 Hot Rod Magazine Championships at Riverside Raceway and then went on to win the 1968 Stardust National Open in Las Vegas. He also recorded the lowest time ever passed to date with a scorching 6.64 at the Orange County PDA Meet in 1968.
Promoter
McEwen also continues to build its reputation as a colorful promoter. Plymouth Hemi Cuda which he launched in 1965 is featured in every major car magazine. He convinced the Southern California Plymouth Vending Association to support him and display cars all over the West Coast.
In 1967, McEwen took the same approach with one of the wonders of one-shot drag racing, Ford's Super Mustang. The car stole the show when it debuted at Winternationals.
Wildlife Racing
McEwen's strong promotional talents and Don Prudhomme's success on the racetrack eventually made them a national tour team, sponsored by Mattel toy companies, and in mid-1969 McEwen and Prudhomme became co-owners of "Wildlife Racing." Mattel Hot Wheels sponsorship deal lasted from 1970 to 1972. Wildlife Racing was later signed with Care Free Sugarless Gum as a sponsor in 1973. McEwen and Prudhomme disbanded their partnership at the end of the 1973 season.
1970s
In 1972, McEwen won his first major event when he dominated the Upper Fuel field at the Bakersfield Meeting in March. A year later, he scored his first victory in the NHRA national event by climbing the fastest funny car field in history at SuperNational on Ontario Motor Speedway.
He went on to win four other national events, including a dramatic U.S. car win. Nationals over Prudhomme in 1978. The victory came just days after the death of his son, Jamie, who fought against leukemia.
Next life
McEwen won the AHRA World Finals at Spokane Raceway Park in 1982, the prestigious Big Bud Shootout in 1984, and Top Fuel at the 1991 Summernation in Englishtown, New Jersey.
McEwen solved the problem of the stability of his funny Corvette car by adding a fence to the rear spoiler.
His beautiful Chevy replica of 1957 was built as a tribute to the iconic Chevrolet. It is run as an NHRA exhibition vehicle and is responsible for creating the Nostalgia Cars Fun class. This car only runs three years, and popular among fans and media.
He retired from the race in 1992, and later worked as a publisher for Drag Racing Magazine, based in Southern California.
Death
McEwen died on June 10, 2018, at the age of 81 years.
Movie 2013
Snake and Mongoose, a film depicting the story of Prudhomme and McEwen, was released in the summer of 2013. It tells the story of the rivalry between two great Southern California racers.
References
Source
- McClurg, Bob. "50 Years of Funny Cars: Part 2" at Drag Racer , November 2016, pp.Ã, 35-50.
- Burk, Jeff. "50 Years of Funny Cars: Part 3" at Drag Racer , November 2016, pp.Ã, 52-64.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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