This beautiful reproduction poster has been re-mastered from an original 1969 advertisement featuring the 9th annual NHRA Winternationals in Pomona, California, held on January 31 – February 2.
The vibrant colors and detail of this classic image have been painstakingly brought back to life to preserve a great piece of history.
The high-resolution image is printed on heavy archival photo paper, on a large-format, professional giclée process printer. The poster is shipped in a rigid cardboard tube, and is ready for framing.
The 13"x19" and 24”x36” formats are excellent image sizes that look great as a stand-alone piece of art, or as a grouped visual statement. These posters require no cutting, trimming, or custom framing, and a wide variety of these frames are readily available at your local craft or hobby retailer, and online. The 24”x36” size has a 1” white border.
A great vintage print for your home, shop, or business!
HISTORY OF THE NHRA WINTERNATIONALS
The NHRA Winternationals (commonly called the Winternats) are an annual drag racing event held by the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona, California.
In 1962, under pressure from Peggy Hart (wife of track owner "Pappy" Hart) and Mickey Thompson, as well as fellow racers Shirley Shahan and Roberta Leighton, Carol Cox was the first woman allowed to race at an NHRA national event. Cox drove a 1961 Pontiac Ventura with a 348 cu in (5,700 cc) V8, which was driven (not trailered) to Pomona. Cox won the title in S/SA, making her the first woman ever to take a win at an NHRA national event; the 9 March 1962 issue of National Dragster recorded her as a "crowd favorite," with a winning pass of 13.06 seconds at 107.65 mph (173.25 km/h), but says nothing about it being a first for a woman, dismissively calling her a "'powder puff' handler." Some racers believe a class win is more difficult to achieve than a handicap (eliminator) win.
At the 1966 event, Shahan was the first woman to claim a national event eliminator crown, by taking Stock Eliminator. The win put her on the cover of National Dragster.'
NHRA debuted the new Top Fuel Funny Car (TF/FC) class at the Winternationals in 1969; Funny Car Eliminator (FCE) would be won by Clare Sanders, teammate of "Jungle Jim" Liberman. The 1969 Top Fuel Dragster field had eight drivers: Larry Dixon (#1 qualifier), Don Prudhomme (#2 qualifier), John Mulligan, Jim Dunn, Bennie Osborn, Connie Kalitta, Jim Warren, Leroy Goldstein, and Tom Larkin. A number of top names attended, but failed to qualify, including Tom McEwen, "TV Tommy" Ivo, and Don Garlits.
Larkin lost in round one to Mulligan, Warren in round two, Osborn in round three. Dunn was defeated in the semi-final by Prudhomme, while Mulligan beat Goldstein. In the final, Mulligan took the win, and a US$6,900 purse.
In 1970, Top Fuel Eliminator (quickset fuel car of the meet, digger or flopper) went to Larry Dixon,
The AA/FC winner was the 1970 Dodge Charger, Hawaiian, of Larry Reyes (driving for Roland Leong). Barrie Poole became the first Canadian to win an NHRA national event, taking the 1970 Super Stock title.
The Funny Car Eliminator title at the 1971 Winternats would go to Leong's Hawaiian. with Butch Maas at the wheel. Don Garlits' novel rear-engined dragster appeared at the Winternats that year, qualifying with 6.8; his best time of the meet was a 6.70, over Jim Dunn's 7.58, in the semi-final: Garlits would win, when Kenny Safford broke in the final. The last Top Gas Eliminator crown, before NHRA abolished the class, went to Walt Stevens, at the wheel of Ken Theiss' twin-engined Odd Couple TG/D. The year's award for Best Engineered Car went to Jim Busby, with a dragster powered by a pair of injected 255 cu in (4,179 cc) DOHC Ford Indy V8 engines. (Hank Westmoreland failed to qualify the car, and it never ran again.) Canadian Barrie Poole repeated his 1970 Winternats win in Super Stock, in a Sandy Elliot Mustang. Don Enriquez (in Gene Adams' A/FD) won Competition Eliminator, turning in a pass of 7.34 at 199 mph (320 km/h), quicker and faster than Steve Woods' hemi-engined BB/Gas Ford Anglia; the field also included twin-engine straight-six-cylinder-powered D/Ds, and AA/FAs.
The 1971 meet was marred by the death of "Sneaky Pete" Robinson, who wrecked his TF/D in qualifying, with a 6.77 pass.
Altereds were so popular in the 1960s and 1970s, at the 1977 Winternationals, more than 75 drivers contested for the Comp Eliminator title. Among them was Ed Prout, who brought his A/Altered from Connecticut.
At Pomona in 2014, Alexis DeJoria became the first woman ever to make a sub-four second pass, with a 3.997-second e.t.
In 2018, Top Fuel Dragser went to Doug Kalitta, Top fuel Funny Car to Matt Hagan, and Pro Stock to Bo Butner.
