Jets light up Top Gun Raceway

No, those were not 5 .0 earthquakes you felt Saturday night.

The repetitive mini-sonic booms and fireballs felt and seen were nothing disastrous as an earthquake. They were two funny cars carrying jet engines to rocket down the quarter-mile strip at Top Gun Raceway, 15 miles south of Fallon, during the Lucas Oil Divisional.

Kyle Skidgel and Derek Snelson, making their first trip to Fallon, thrilled the medium-sized crowd with their fireball burnouts as smoke and exhaust from the J-60 turbine engines clouded behind the start line. The duo raced neck-and-neck with the Skidgel taking in a 5/1000-second victory. Both vehicles hit about 270 mph in less than six seconds.

"It's just a rush," said Skidgel, who is racing her second season with Nitehawk, a 2002 Camaro, out of Bend, Ore. "It's unique because not everyone does it. I wish I had that power in my car at home. It's really hard to go back to work Monday morning driving the Toyota."

For Skidgel, she's in elite company when it comes to jet drag racing. A pilot for 17 years with experience flying private charter planes and instructing at Professional Air in Oregon, Skidgel is one of a few women in the United States racing a jet dragster.

"Kyle's talented and does an awesome job," Snelson said. "She's the only licensed funny car pilot west of the Rockies."

Familiarity with aircraft, especially engines, made the transition to the funny car easier.

"One reason they trusted me was because of my experience with the equipment," she said. "It wasn't a hard transition. It helps when you get in with a turbine engine but it's a lot harder to start."

Two people influenced Skidgel into racing with a jet engine: Richard Smith, the team's owner who races jets less frequently, and Snelson started drag racing early.

"He's the best teacher. He's a master and has been doing it for 30 years," Snelson said. "We both came from the Top Alcohol Funny Car ranks."

Smith has won three world championships in the AHRA and ADRA as well as championships in the NHRA Division 5. Snelson, an Anchorage native, holds the land speed record for a jet in Alaska at 309 mph.

"It's always a new experience," said Snelson, who drives Warhawk, a 2002 Pontiac Firebird "I like this track (Top Gun) because everyone wants us to be here. The staff welcomed us with open arms."

Snelson and Skidgel never raced in Fallon until last weekend, but Smith was in the oasis about seven years ago. Along with the three, John Chambers, Lynn and Gregg Wiseman, and Richard Fuller are the crew members.

"I'm so proud. These guys are carrying on a 20-year tradition," Smith said. "To see Derrick and Kyle coming along, it puts excitement into me."

Unlike Skidgel, Snelson started drag racing in 1991 but said the recent rivalry with his fellow driver makes it more fun to race and pump up the crowds.

"We're teammates. It's a friendly rivalry," he said. "The first thing we do before we get into the car is give each other a shake and a hug and then say 'see you at the end.' It's the best side-by-side show in the West."



Fun Facts

Both the Nitehawk and Warhawk consumed 15 gallons of $5/gallon off-road diesel when they raced the quarter-mile track, which is about 1 mile per 60 gallons. The Nitehawk's gas tank is 20 gallons while the Warhawk's is 25.

When the jet dragsters are pulling up to the starting line, they use about 4 1Ú2 g (g-force) of acceleration, not speed, and finish with 6 g before pulling the parachutes. In comparison, a cough generates 3.5 g and a sneeze 2.9.