Larry Larson Gate-Crashes Local Heads-Up Shootout

Larry Larson and his five-second truck waxes local field of racers.

Of all the street cars you never want to see show up in the other lane, Larry Larson’s monster S10 must rank highly. The six-time Hot Rod Drag Week winner has dropped some jaws with 5-second quarter-mile passes in the truck. Recently, he randomly turned up to shake down the S10 and wouldn’t you know it? The track was holding a heads-up shootout and 1320 Video was there. Apparently on a whim, Larson entered the shootout and, predictably, cleaned up.

A cynic might suggest that Larson turned up with full knowledge of who was around, particularly 1320 Video. He recently installed a FuelTech FT600 ECU and said he told the video crew he was there to test it out. However, he made no qualms about his timeslips that, even with the lights off, showed a best 60-foot time of 0.997 second. That’s a hell of a run.

Larson’s quickest street-car rivalry has gone back and forth with another Drag Week winner, Jeff Lutz. The two have traded quickest E.T.’s on multiple occasions with Lutz’s street-registered Pro Mod currently holding the record. However, the ever-cagey Larson might be sending a not-so-subtle message about what’s coming this year. And that might be a reclamation of the quickest street-car record.

Regardless, Larson ran through the Heads-Up Shootout like the other cars were standing still. He seemed happy with how the car ran for the day, so the next question is: Where will Larry Larson be running? He’s skipped the last two Drag Weeks, although he typically registers every year just to save a spot. Will he turn up this year with serious challenges from Lutz and Tom Bailey’s purpose-built Drag Week Camaro? Or will he pass it up again?