DON GARLITS 6 Imagine winning the first official race you ever entered Now imagine you were driving a car that you built Long before he became known as Big Daddy Don Garlits did just that in 1955 at age 23 Three years later Garlits moved to the big-time circuit of drag racing He drove the first of 34 race cars he would nickname Swamp Rat Garlits won 144 races overall and 17 season championships including eight in the NHRA National Hot Rod Association Garlits had many firsts in his career He was the first man to drive a top fuel dragster to speeds more than 200 mph 322 km h He was the first to mount a wing over the engine Then he became the first driver to go faster than 250 mph 402 km h Garlits also developed the first full-body fire-resistant racing suit He was a true pioneer Big Daddy remained a fixture in drag racing for more than 40 years
8 82 Don Garlits’s age in 2014 when he briefly came out of retirement to drive an electronic car at a record speed of 184 mph on a drag strip If there hadn’t been a Don Garlits maybe there wouldn’t have been an NHRA said John Force another great drag racer Garlits raced for more than 40 years He loved the speed the competition and the way his dragsters shook the ground as their noisy engines fired up I liked the idea of two cars lined up side by side not bumping into one another he said It was one person against one person one machine against one machine There was a winner and a loser In 1970 Garlits’s car exploded in a race in Long Beach California He was so badly injured that he lost part of his right foot The crash inspired Big Daddy to design a dragster with the engine in the back to help keep drivers safer in crashes Soon he was back on the track winning more races
9 DON GARLITS Hometown Tampa Florida Birth Date January 14 1932 Race Circuit NHRA 1958 2003 Race Wins 144 Series Championships 17 Don Garlits had plenty of opportunities to celebrate at the finish line
