MILAN, MI (June 2007) – What do you get when you let 14 fun-loving auto journalists loose on a dragstrip in a variety of Ford Racing modified vehicles? You have the inaugural "Ford Racing Invitational" – a unique event that was held this summer near Detroit in conjunction with the NMRA Nationals at the Milan (MI) Dragway.

Ford Racing had partnered with the National Mustang Racer's Association (NMRA) to hold a special bracket-racing class for attending journalists to compete for bragging rights in Ford Racing-equipped Mustangs, F-150's and Ford-powered Factory Five roadsters. The result was a fast, fun-filled weekend battle of reaction time and racing wits.

For the journalists, it was a chance to test their racing skills in a casual setting while gaining real-world experience in drag racing production-based Fords equipped with current Ford Racing Performance Parts. No formal power-point presentations in a hotel ballroom here – it was time-slip car talk with sandwiches, pop and chips in a trackside tent where the goal was to connect with "grassroots, not the suits." And who knows? With a little luck they walk away with a cool Ford Racing Trophy to boot.

For Ford Racing, it was a great way to have influential auto writers experience its lineup of modified vehicles and performance parts in a way that everyday enthusiasts use them – at the track. It also helped to put a face on Ford performance in a fun, no-stress atmosphere.

The field of journalists included: Paul Huizenga of Race Pages magazine; Evan Smith of Muscle Mustangs & Fast Fords magazine; Mike Galimi of Ford Performance Trucks; Steve Turner of 5.0 magazine; Ray Wert of Jalopnik; K.C. Colwell of Car and Driver; Don Roy of Modified Mustangs magazine; Larry Jewett of Mustang Enthusiast magazine; Daniel Pund of Edmunds.com; Bill McGuire of Hot Rod; Mark Houlahan of Mustangs & Fords magazine; Miles Cook of Mustang Monthly magazine; Shaun Bailey of Road & Track; and John Gallagher of Car Craft. They all met at the track on a Friday afternoon to draw for their respective race vehicles and get some test-and-tune runs behind the wheel to help dial-in their times and prepare for the Saturday eliminations.

Greeting them at the Ford Racing compound set up along the tower side of the track was Jamie Allison, Manager, Ford Racing Performance Parts. After lunch in the hospitality tent, he gave the journalists a glimpse of the special Ford Racing Invitational winner's trophy, which featured a Ford Racing tach with the needle set on the redline. The racers then drew names for their respective vehicles, and everyone got in three full rounds of test-and-tune before the first round of qualifying came up just before nightfall.

To ensure that spectators got to see their favorite magazine writers in action, the NMRA had the Ford Racing Invitational class qualifying runs slotted between the Pro-5.0 and the Outlaw classes – in other words, they were in with the big dogs! After qualifying was over, all headed back to the Ford Racing tent for a barbeque dinner and some good-natured smack talking about flubbed passes, reaction times and hot time slips. Then it was off to the hotel for some much needed rest for a full day of no-holds-barred bracket racing on Saturday.

There were two more rounds of qualifying Saturday morning, and as the sun rose higher and hotter, off-the-line traction soon became an issue. But there would be no switching from street tires, as the Ford Racing team didn't want to see anyone dip near an 11.50 ET, where the rules would require a cage. Yet even without drag radials, Steve Turner still turned an impressive 11.89 run in his GT500 coupe. The No. 1 qualifier spot went to Mark Houlahan with a superb 0.0559-second reaction time.

Eliminations in our Ford Racing Invitational Class took place Saturday afternoon so that it would free up the journalists who wanted to cover the NMRA event finals on Sunday. Others had the option of continuing their competition experience as a guest of Ford Racing at the NASCAR Nextel Cup race at nearby Michigan International Speedway. Team Ford Racing (TFR) offered them an opportunity to experience NASCAR the way TFR members can – with special passes for the Ford Racing suite and a grandstand ticket for the race. (Call www.TeamFordRacing.com or call 877-TFR-CLUB for more info.)

The on-site Ford Racing staff got a kick out of seeing the various auto writers really get into the racing spirit during eliminations. They'd return from a run and lay out their time slips, comparing notes on launching techniques and asking Paul Svinicki of Paul's High Performance what he thought their dial-in should be, etc. (Paul's HP provided tech and service support for the Ford Racing fleet at the track. He was pleased to report there were no failures of any kind with any car throughout the entire weekend of racing.).

Not completely surprising was the fact that three automatic-equipped vehicles, driven by Galimi, Bailey and Gallagher, made their way through to the semifinals – with Paul Huizenga the lone manual-transmission car in the semi's. Of course Paul lives and breathes at drag strips across the country providing coverage for Race Pages, so maybe it was the smell of all that starting-line rubber that pumped him up!

But the consistency of the automatics prevailed, pitting the two supercharged F-150s against each other in the Bailey vs. Gallagher final, and leaving the rest of the field to insist that next year's Ford Racing Invitational should feature vehicles with manual transmissions only!

The title victory went to Car Craft's John Gallagher, who was overheard reminiscing with event organizer Jesse Kershaw at the evening dinner party about being an NMRA racer when that group had first started. Although it had been many years ago, it's apparent that drag racers never forget how to fender race – just like riding a bike.

All involved with the first-annual Ford Racing Invitational agreed that it was a fun and rewarding way to become immersed in the racer experience. And they all wanted Ford Racing to make the Invitational an yearly event. In fact, there were rumblings from many of the guys that next summer, they're bringing their tech editors along to act as crew chiefs. From how serious they took to the racing action this year, we wouldn't be surprised to see them include head sets and tire pressure gauges in their helmet bags the next time around.

Story courtesy of Ford Racing, by Jesse Kershaw and John Clor.
Photos courtesy of Dale Amy.