Félippe Lafrenière MESA, Ariz. — Félippe Lafrenière . . . What a beautiful, lyrical name.
Relatively few in the drag-racing community are familiar with it.
But the sport needs Félippe Lafrenière, because he represents the passion behind the whole industry. Sounds dramatic, but it isn’t. It’s true.
The French-speaking gentleman from Quebec with the perfectly fitting hockey name wants to be in the drag-racing world.
Here’s what Lafrenière wrote in a social-media post as he anticipated an upcoming race at Napierville Dragway:
“This weekend, I’ll have the chance to fulfill my biggest dream as a young man: to be a mechanic on a high-level racing team. Since I was a kid, I’ve dreamed of living this experience, and the time has finally come,” Lafrenière wrote in French. “Thank you to Dan Mercier and the Mercier Racing Top Fuel team for giving me this opportunity. Is this the beginning of a great adventure? One thing is for sure, the best is yet to come.”
His buoyant tone, his craving to immerse himself in something bigger than even his imagination, and his sense of hope all are signs that drag racing is alive and fulfilling. And that’s the joy that those in the sport need to exude – and to their credit, they often do.
How many other sports are brimming with that sort of inviting pleasure and contentment?
This fellow, Lafrenière, wants to get his hands dirty. He isn’t gushing about the glory of driving 340-plus mph in a three-second run down a dragstrip. He isn’t fantasizing about fans lining up for his autograph or a shared photo. He simply is thrilled to be part of the operation. How refreshing is that?
An article by Madelyn Zaron that was published in Drag Illustrated opened with this: “As Ohio’s Right to Race legislation advances to the state Senate this fall, lawmakers recently had the opportunity to experience firsthand exactly what they are being asked to protect.” So a group of lawmakers visited the NHRA’s recent Summit Racing Equipment Nationals at Norwalk, Ohio, accompanied by representatives from the Specialty Equipment Market Association and Performance Racing Industry.
There at Summit Motorsports Park, track owner Bill Bader invited them to observe drag racing, meet industry leaders, and see for themselves in a practical way just what a deep impact motorsports has on communities across the state and nation.
And no one can embody that better than Bill Bader, with his ice-cream-eating contest, ice-cream-scoop-themed trophies, his fireworks shows that can put Disney to shame, his patriotic displays, his well-trained staff, and his professionally groomed facility.
What those legislators discovered went well beyond that. According to Zaron, they “witnessed firsthand the thousands of fans who travel to Norwalk each year, filling hotels, restaurants, campgrounds, gas stations, and retail stores. Most importantly, they experienced the personal connections that make facilities like Summit Motorsports Park far more than just a racetrack. They saw firsthand how these venues bring people together, foster lifelong friendships, and create traditions that span generations.”
At every NHRA national event, playing over the race-day public-address system is the iconic Louis Armstrong version of the song “What A Wonderful World.” And the words are so appropriate:
“The colors of the rainbow, so pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces of people going by
I see friends shaking hands, saying, ‘How do you do?
They’re really sayin’, ‘I love you.’”
Corny? Maybe, but what do you expect from Ohio and the Midwest?
Actually, it’s true all across the country, from Pomona, Calif., to Epping, N.H., to Gainesville, Fla., to Seattle. It’s a cliché that “Racing is a family.” The Ohio legislators saw it literally in action: super-bubbly Maddi Gordon won her first Top Fuel race just minutes after her father Doug Gordon won the Top Alcohol Funny Car trophy and immediately after her boss and longtime family friend Ron Capps won the Funny Car final.
And that’s what Félippe Lafrenière wants so passionately to be a part of, this crazy quilt of personalities and skills and appreciation for this symbiotic man/machine sport that lives of the jagged edge of danger and triumph, this recurring family reunion with its rivalries, its absurdities, and its suspense.
Welcome, Félippe Lafrenière.
