Hot Rod Drags Santa Pod 2024

Hot Rod Drags Santa Pod 2024

Words and photos by Carol Rule

Heading towards the end of season racing, the 13 - 15th of September saw the annual Hot Rod Drags at Santa Pod Raceway. Now in its 36th year, the longest running Nostalgia race meeting in Britain and Europe. Supported by National Street Rod Association at Santa Pod Raceway. 

 

The weekend brings race classes taking you through a very wide variation and variety of Nostalgia cars out on track. 



  • Starting with Run what you Brung, pre 73, always brings on some interesting and surprising cars and machinery to the track,  including the Rushden Lakes Courtesy bus, spotted in the early hours of Saturday morning rolling up the track!
  • 'Outlaw Anglias' Race class action was once again brought on with Pops, Fordsons and Prefects.
  •  'Supercharged Outlaws' with their spectacle and blown power.
  • 'The Wild Bunch' has a great mix of Slingshots, Altereds, Funny Cars and period dragsters.
  • 'Gasser Circus' inspired by the 'Gasser wars' of the 1960s. 
  • The Flathead Meltdown, back to the track, having been formed in the 80s and 90s, are period correct Hot Rods that give way to a very nostalgic presence and atmosphere, including belly tanks, roadsters and sedans. 
  • The recently formed Outlaw Outcasts brought another varied class to the weekend, including the 57 Frankenstien Gasser and the Ain't no Saint Volvo. 

 

The Dos Palmas and Mooneyes Dragsters were still to be seen prominently on display, having been brought over to the UK for 'Dragstalgia' at Santa Pod earlier this year. This enabled that final chance to be up and close with some drag racing history before taking their journey back home to the USA. 

 

There were moments of down time over the weekends racing, with oil down and the usual varied inconveniences that can occur out on track; Santa Pods crew working very hard to get the racing up and running as soon as they could. 

 

The photographs from the weekend were inspired by the eclectic mix of vehicles out on track, then with this said, trying to capture the atmosphere by being right alongside the drivers! With plenty of burn outs at the start line and a focus on detailed shots, while capturing the weekend's racing. Not forgetting the often crazy and fun costume changes of the crew! the wonderful and great supportive backup girls. Saturday saw a single, one pass, fly over the track from the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight which had been on hold since May, which was the first appearance this year of the wonderful Lancaster Bomber. 



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