South Mountain Raceway – It was a clear, crisp fall morning with literal frost on the pumpkin. A picture perfect day for drag racing and last event of the year at South Mountain Raceway. After a week in which owner, Mike Natoli, faced health issues, racers were pouring into the track as a show of support and love, happy with the knowledge Mountain Mike faced the challenge like any car guy would and he’s on the mend, but still missing his presence. A lot of effort went into taking over in Mike’s absence, but he’s a tough act to replace. It wasn’t quite the same, but it was still a successful day due to the hard work of Mike’s son, Anthony, and the whole staff at the track. Not to mention the support of the racers. Truly a great day for all, and a special one to end the season on. I’m sure Mountain Mike is proud of the whole gang.

Lots of variety to feed the eyes of any car enthusiast on this day. Up on the hill, there was not only an Import vs Domestic show, there was also an Orphans show to take care of cars often not thought of as being what you’d find at a car show.

Down on the track, there was Box/No Box, Jr. ATV and Jr. Dragsters, a great showing by the Vintage Eliminator group, and even a few slingshot dragsters and a nostalgia funny car.

The autumn scenery around the track during eliminations made an almost magical feeling in the air. I have to admit it made photography tricky at times with the long morning and afternoon shadows interfering with shots, not to mention the darker tones when the sun went away, but with these subjects even the bad shots looked good. I told Anthony I’d take enough shots to make Mountain Mike feel like he was there when he looked at them. With a bit of a chuckle, Anthony said Mike would remember all the smells.

The Vintage Eliminator gang stole the show with their points chase and close competition. The race, and ultimately the season title, went to Danielle Stewart, who just kept stacking the round wins. For more info on Danielle, look for “Danielle Stewart’s Vintage Studebaker-Powered Bantam Altered” on this site to get the full scoop. The Vintage Eliminator gang was so impressive, they earned their own article. Look for a separate story with photos in the following days that covers their race to the championship. Just too much fun at the track on this day to put in one article! My guess is a lot of the racers (and fans) are already looking forward to next season. Or maybe Mike is working on a scheme to race in snow.