The motorsports and automotive industry gathered in December at the 20th annual Performance Racing Industry Trade Show at the Orange County Convention Center.
This “racing-only” event attracted people from 45 countries for four days of activities, including two big race nights, informative seminars and lots of business-to-business dealings.
The event took place in the massive one-million-square-foot convention center where 4,250 company booths were filled with the latest goods and services racing has to offer.
Toyota released its 360-cubic-inch V-8 engine for sprint-car and USAC Silver Crown competition, a development that follows closely Toyota’s commitment to grassroots racing in America. Gary Reed, in charge of non-NASCAR special projects at Toyota, agrees that making a 410 engine would be a simple “bore and stroke” move, so a 410 is on Toyota’s “wish list” for the future.
Reed acknowledged Toyota “talks about” a possible NHRA Pro Stock drag-racing effort, although this class of racing is still a “want list” item. He emphasized that prior to any move into a new form of competition, Toyota always ensures it has the proper support program in place, which we translate to mean additional employees assigned to assist its racers. 
There were rumors last year that former NHRA champs and teammates Jason Line and Greg Anderson were in line for a possible Toyota deal, which may or may not be the case as Reed was mum about any specifics or timetables.
Staying on Pro Stock, I spoke with Larry Nance at PRI. The sponsorless Pro Stock driver wants back in badly. He tried to qualify his non-sponsored Chevy for just one event in 2007. Nance played pro basketball for many years with the Phoenix Suns and Cleveland Cavaliers, and literally loves drag racing. And, as Tom Hammonds, another NBA graduate, is proving with his own Pro Stock, and his own dollar I might add, former stick-and-ball players make good drag racers.
Speaking of stick-and-ball racers, remember Dan Pastorini? He threw footballs for Houston and several other NFL teams and won an NHRA Top Fuel event in the 1980s. How about baseball’s Jack Clark, who played for the Giants, Cardinals, Padres and Red Sox? He, too, drove Top Fuel for a while, but never won a big one like he hit home runs, 340 to be exact.
For you trivia lovers, Clark allowed John Andretti, he of Indy Car and NASCAR fame, to earn a license and drive his Taco Bell-sponsored Top Fuel car in 1993. Andretti qualified 12th, proceeded to defeat Joe Amato in round one and Tommy Johnson in round two before losing to Mike Dunn in the semi-finals at his first NHRA national event, the Fram Southern Nationals! Not too shabby.
We had a nice chat with former drag racing engine builder and legend from the 1960s and ’70s, Ed Pink. Pink, who has been building midget engines for years, is the main distributor for the Toyota 360 V-8 engine.
Pink, and Frank Honsowetz, who headed up the race winning Infiniti IRL Engine program until Nissan pulled the plug, work together on several of Toyota’s projects nowadays making horsepower, including the four-cylinder engines that power the winning Steve Lewis-owned USAC Midgets of Dave Darland and Kody Swanson.
 We’re happy to hear that ARCA extended its agreement with RE/MAX for another four years, and ticket sales for its 500-mile and 200-mile races at Rockingham, N.C., May 3-4, respectively, are selling well.
Spoke with internationally renowned racer and broadcaster Derek Daly at the PRI kart race, and he informs that anyone with $8,500 can buy a very competitive, race ready, kart for Stars Of Karting action. His son, Conor, finished seventh in the 40-lap feature, a few spots ahead of PRI Show organizer Steve Lewis’s son, Michael, who nabbed a ninth out of 24 starters.
Said hello to NASCAR legend and all-around-nice-guy Dave Marcis, who stopped by our table on his way out of a restaurant and told me he read, and even better yet agreed with, my column in NSSN on the ‘Business as Usual’ that appeared a few weeks back. Dave was one of the IROC test drivers who made it easier (via chassis setup and lots of laps) for the IROC superstars to feel comfortable immediately in the Jay Signore Firebirds, and run at speed quickly.
Thanks Dave, you made my day.