Six-time NHRA champion Kenny Bernstein has turned the final page and closed the book on his career as a competitor and NHRA racing team owner. Japanese Top Fuel racer made waves, scored upsets in 2002, 1971: Garlits goes 'Big,' Funnies go 220, Sox goes wild, and NHRA goes to Canada, Welcome back, and welcome to my great drag racing debates, Exclusive book excerpt: Don “the Snake” Prudhomme: My Life Beyond the 1320, Swamp Rat 14 rides again; the history of one of Top Fuel's most important cars, Everything you always wanted to know about 'Snake' (but were afraid to ask), Reliving the U.S. Nationals Top Fuel final that no one will ever forget, Remembering Fuel Altered pioneer Leon Fitzgerald, Pro Stock's Sonny Bryant, Fan Fotos: A Texas-sized collection from three decades of photo greatness, Down the video rabbit hole: Watching 1970s match racing on the small screen, Roll players: A look back at the era when cars were fired up with roller starters, The day that Mario Andretti went drag racing in a Tasca Ford-prepped Mustang, Farewell to a brother editor, Jim Edmunds. Dale Armstrong, my crew chief, he tells the story, he looked up and saw the lights, saw the 4.82 seconds. I was pretty disappointed because I thought it was a No. "Normally, I would have lifted, but I told myself to drive it all the way out the back door because it might be the run. The coolness of the day was good. ), 50 years, 10 manufacturers, 84 body styles: A guide to Pro Stock diversity, Yuichi Oyama. The advent of the 300-mph era began when Kenny Bernstein and his Budweiser King Top Fuel dragster eclipsed the barrier at 301.70 mph. Kenny Bernstein became the first drag racer in history to reach the 300 mph during qualifying for … He and Cerny toiled hard between races, altering the insides of the magnetos to raise their power without burning up the points. On March 20, 1992 in Gainesville, Fla., Bernstein forever cemented his name into drag racing infamy when he recorded drag racing’s first 300 MPH run. In this archived interview, Bernstein … I'd feel that way no matter who did it.". Bernstein collected a check for $50,000 from Slick 50 for becoming the sport's first 300-mph driver and although the money probably is already in the bank, Bernstein still hadn't taken full deposit of the feat he had accomplished. "I'm just glad that we ran 300 mph at an NHRA National event in front of all the fans and NHRA officials, so there's no doubt," he added. Like I said, I was a little disappointed. Segrini’s mount was quickly up in smoke, giving Bernstein the stage all to himself. The ‘King of Speed’ Kenny Bernstein has done a lot during his decades of involvement with the NHRA, but his most notable accomplishment is the day he earned his nickname by breaking the 300 mph barrier in Top Fuel, 20 years ago. Kenny Bernstein (born September 6, 1944) is an American drag racer and former NASCAR and IndyCar team owner. All logos and images are reserved. When the 4.82 came up, I said, 'Yeah!' "I've always been one of the people who felt that a dragster can run 10 mph faster than a Funny Car," he said. Thanks again for reading. The handwriting was surely on the wall but had only been penciled in by hopefuls like me. The first thing I thought was that he meant we qualified No. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Kenny Bernstein 300mph record breaking run includes 2 autograghs shirt & knife at the best online prices at eBay! At first, all was relatively quiet in Gainesville. You are bidding on an XRARE 1:24 Kenny Bernstein BUDWEISER 1992 FIRST 300 MPH RUN NHRA Top Fuel Dragster. "Some track workers were holding up three fingers as I drove by, and I thought they were trying to tell me that I had moved into third on the qualifying ladder. "It definitely proved we were the fastest motorsport and had some of the most dominant teams. Then it hit me that this might have been 300. He was first to break the 300 mph barrier, first to win NHRA championships in both Top Fuel and Funny Car, and first to collect wins in NHRA, NASCAR, and CART as a team owner. Free shipping for many products! Armstrong knew then that 300 mph was within reach. Car is in new condition and unwrapped for these pictures. "Normally, I would have lifted, but I told myself to drive it all the way out the back door because it might be the run. In fact, it took a whopping seven years for all 16 places in NHRA’s 250-mph club to be filled. GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 10, 2012) – Six-time NHRA champion Kenny Bernstein, appearing at Gainesville Raceway for a 20th anniversary celebration of his first-to-300 mph barrier-breaking run, announced that he is donating his personal treasure trove of racing collectibles and memorabilia to the Darrell Gwynn Foundation. He held up those three fingers. "Unexpected, but well-remembered. No one – not even “Big Daddy” – topped 250 mph in 1976 (Shirley Muldowney’s 249.30 was the year’s fastest speed), and there were fewer than a dozen 250-mph passes through the end of the decade. Garlits broke the 270-mph mark just two years later -- again in Gainesville – with his spoon-nosed, enclosed-cockpit Swamp Rat XXX, and just a year and a half later, Amato became the first to exceed 280 during qualifying at the 1987 U.S. Nationals. Twenty-eight years ago today, on March 20, 1992, Kenny Bernstein broke the 300-mph barrier at the 1992 Gatornationals. “We have poured our hearts and souls in motorsports for over 30 years and that’s a full time job. Austin reset the track record to 292.39 during Thursday's qualifying, breaking Bernstein’s 289.57 from 1991. "I'd been saying from day one that to do this, conditions would have to be perfect and everything on the car would have to be just right," said Bernstein. Armstrong has experienced many great moments in his drag-racing career, first as a 12-time National event-winning alcohol and fuel driver and later as the crew chief who tuned Bernstein to four straight Winston Funny Car Championships. In Houston, at the event just prior to the Gatornationals, Bernstein ran 296.93 mph despite dropping a couple of cylinders. Even Bernstein's former competitor, Robert Hight, said he thinks so, too. Jun 8, 2016 - Explore JOHNNY B's board "Kenny Bernstein....." on Pinterest. By the end of 1990, Ormsby had run 296.05 mph, in Topeka that September. Travel to and from the East Coast is always a day-killer, so I'm not yet even going to promise a column for next Tuesday, either. ", (Bernstein was dead-on -- a cylinder stopped firing four-tenths of a second, or about 200 feet, before the finish line. "It has sunk in some because of the hoopla and media attention, but I think later this week it will really hit hard," said Bernstein after losing to Eddie Hill in the final two days later. KING OF SPEED: Kenny Bernstein flashes his 301 mile-per-hour speed after breaking the 300 mph barrier in 1992. I'm hoping that in just a few days we might see more history in Gainesville, perhaps the sport's first 200-mph Pro Stock Motorcycle pass. I was scared to turn around and look at the scoreboard again. In 1983, he doubled up at the Big Bud Shootout (which he was instrumental in creating) and the U.S. Nationals. And with good reason. From that moment forth, Bernstein was and will forever be known as the “King of Speed.” He credited crew chief Dale Armstrong, Wes Cerny, who he hired as Armstrong's right-hand man at the end of the 1991 season, and the rest of the Budweiser King crew with making it possible. Not much happened in Friday’s first qualifying session, either, but Bernstein was in the first pair of cars down the racetrack in the second of two qualifying sessions that day. There isn't any question at all. "This is it; this will be the one that people remember," he said proudly. run at Pomona--Bernstein’s had come during qualifying in New Jersey, Indiana and Texas--and the first in side-by-side competition in the National Hot Rod Assn. As Wes Cerny, left, and Dale Armstrong looked on, Kenny Bernstein made drag racig history March 20, 1992, with the first 300-mph pass. I coasted to the turnoff area. From that point on, it was just ecstatic, as you can imagine, it was craziness. When I turned on the turnoff, the guy that helps you, one of them was holding up three fingers. This car is limited to only 2500 made and Beckett lists it for $100.00. "When we came up for the next run, I was hoping I'd taken enough out of it, but on the other hand I was hoping I didn't take too much out of it. But I turned around and there it was: 301. He took part last week in a national NHRA teleconference and talked at length about the accomplishment and where it rates in his career. Again, it was so unexpected that we were going to do it, anybody was going to do it, that day. See more ideas about nhra, car humor, drag racing. When Armstrong and Cerny began to dial in that combination this year and a 4.84, 296.93 popped up on the boards at the Slick 50 Nationals just two weeks before the Motorcraft Gatornationals despite the engine dropping two cylinders, Armstrong sensed that the kill was at hand. 3. I knew it was going to be a good run. Bernstein’s three-decade run with Budweiser was on its final legs not long after the brewer was acquired by InBev. Cerny was instrumental in developing the combination that powered Roland Leong's Jim White-driven Hawaiian Punch Daytona Funny Car to Record-setting speeds last season, including the class' National speed mark of 291.82. Bernstein's elapsed time on the run was 4.823, the quickest ever until Hill went 4.801 two days later in eliminations. “The conditions were ideal,” Bernstein said. “But I know everything I need to know about Kenny Bernstein right now. The ‘King of Speed’ Kenny Bernstein has done a lot during his decades of involvement with the NHRA, but his most notable accomplishment is the day he earned his nickname by breaking the 300 mph barrier in Top Fuel, 20 years ago. Bernstein's ground-breaking career in the late 1960s by … The Gatornationals have the title of being the drag race to see the first 260-mph Top Fuel and Funny Car runs in 1984 by Joe Amato and Kenny Bernstein respectively, and the first 270-mph and 300-mph Top Fuel passes by Don Garlits and Kenny Bernstein in 1986 and 1992, respectively. "After we ran the .91, we shook the tires on the next pass, so I actually went back and took some power out of the car," Armstrong admits. In Gainesville, we get the luxury when the conditions are good there, a lot of trees, oxygen. Please do not pay until you receive an adjusted invoice. I knew I was going pretty fast because I had to drive farther than I normally do to make the turnoff. Kenny Bernstein (born September 6, 1944) is an American drag racer and former NASCAR and IndyCar team owner. At the same event, Mike Dunn ran 297.12, the fastest pass in drag racing history, and Pat Austin reset the national record to 295.27. Using a design suggested by IndyCar engineer Eldon Rasmussen, Joe Amato crew chief Tim Richards (above left) mounted a wing higher than and further behind the rear wheels than ever seen, taking advantage of the simple principle of leverage to get downforce without drag. Bernstein (as you will read later) initially didn’t know he had made history but made it official when he backed up the 301.70 for the national record with a 299.30-mph blast in the quarterfinals of Sunday's eliminations after running 298.30 in the first round. in class history, but also its first 300-mph pass. He has also been nicknamed " The King of Speed," because he was the first driver to break 300 miles per hour in the standing-start quarter mile. The life and times of Denny Savage, a Funny Car driver's Funny Car driver, Passings of original NHRA DD Darwin Doll, car owner Dale Creasy Sr. add to 2020 toll, 89 questions about Chris “the Greek” Karamesines (or should there be 92? Thanks for reliving that great moment with me. That's the one thing that everyone seems to remember across the board, whether it be drag racers or just the normal person that follows the sport in general that knows a little bit about racing. Kenny Bernstein was nicknamed "King of Speed" after topping 300 mph in the quarter-mile on March 20, 1992. I remember that although it was a much-anticipated barrier breaking, it wasn’t expected, at least not that early in the decade. Then came 1984 and the introduction by Joe Amato and crew chief Tim Richards of the now-mandatory laid-back tall rear wing that took advantage of leverage to provide ample downforce with less drag and quickly pushed Amato past the 260-mph mark at that year’s Gatornationals (are you sensing a trend here surrounding Gainesville?). "The car left good and was running hard in the middle of the track, but the engine got a little sour right in the lights," said Bernstein. 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