The overpowering aroma of burning rubber and racing gasoline filled the air in Beaver Springs, Pennsylvania, as Mopar racers from the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast converged at Beaver Springs Dragway. On June 3rd and 4th, the 5th Annual Mopar or No Car Nationals celebrated all things Mopar on the track and in the pits. The two-day event entailed a test and tune Friday night session, and the Saturday main event featured four eliminators of solid gold ground pounding.

The quickest eight Mopars on the grounds competed in the 1/8th-mile Pro Mopar class, which utilized a .400 pro tree. The remainder of the competitors navigated the ¼-mile leaving off a .500 full tree. Cars running elapsed times quicker than 11.99 seconds ran the HiPo class, a 12.00 second or slower vehicle ran in the Cool class, and late-model Mopars competed in the Modern Muscle class.

Last year’s winner, Darlene Straub qualified #1 for the Pro class with a 5.37 at 126.19 mph in her ’26 roadster. Straub worked through the field where she met the #2 qualifier Tim Vislosky in the finals. Vislosky ran a 5.658 on a 5.61 dial in his ’69 Charger to take the win over Straub’s breakout 5.346 run on a 5.35 dial.

As has been the case for years, the HiPo class had the most significant car count of the event. In the fifth round, Scott Slusser in his ’67 Barracuda ran a 9.725 on a 9.70 dial taking the win over a red lighting Chris Shaffer. The Cool class found defending class champion Adam Mowery wheeling his ’70 Dart to a second consecutive win. Runner-up Rick Kershner made a valiant effort in his Diplomat, but Mowery’s .011 reaction time left little wiggle room for Kershner at the top end of the strip.

In the Modern Muscle class, John Wise, in his Hemi Challenger, parlayed a slightly better reaction time to claim the win over Luke Kaiser in his Magnum wagon. Regrettably, again this year, no owner of a Demon was able to claim the bonus dollars for a sub-10 second run.

If the on-track performance couldn’t keep your attention, the car show featuring rides ranging from the latest Detroit offerings back to the start of the muscle car era was filled to capacity. Sponsoring this year’s car show and racing event were the long-time sponsors Butch Gummo and Surplus City, and the Beaver Springs Zoo Crew.

When planning next year’s racing schedule, be sure to block off the first weekend of June 2023 on your calendar for the Mopar or No Car Nationals. In the meantime, check out the remaining 2022 Beaver Springs schedule, which contains Nostalgia events (including the East Coast Gassers and the Northeast Timing Organization), Heads Up, and No Prep racing.

Final Round Results

Pro Mopar (1/8th mile) Dial RT ET MPH Car
Winner – Tim Vislosky 5.61 .050 5.658 123.22 ’69 Charger
R/U – Darlene Straub 5.35 .032 5.346 127.01 ’26 Roadster

HiPo Mopar (1/4 mile)
Winner – Scott Slusser 9.70 .008 9.725 136.40 ’67 Barracuda
R/U – Chris Shaffer 9.38 -.008 9.488 127.51 ’66 Fury

Cool Mopar (1/4 mile)
Winner – Adam Mowery 12.63 .011 12.769 96.92 ’70 Dart
R/U – Rick Kershner 13.57 .064 13.693 98.77 ’80 Diplomat

Modern Mopar
Winner – John Wise 13.50 .079 13.525 95.06 ’10 Challenger
R/U – Luke Kaiser 13.77 .100 13.830 99.36 ’05 Magnum

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