Matt Scranton fell in love with big, fast, loud cars on his way to school every morning.
Thirty years later that love has made him one of the most successful Pro Rear Wheel Drive racers in the nation as he prepares for the National Hot Rod Association's Sport Compact Nationals in Palm Beach Gardens this weekend.
Even as he labors to find more horsepower from his Toyota race car in his 4,100-square foot-shop in Land O'Lakes, he can't help but remember how it all started on those rides to Miles Elementary in Tampa with his father, John, and brother, Jay, now his crew chief.
"My dad had a 1968 Shelby Mustang GT500 KR," Scranton, 32, said. "He bought it from Bill Curry when he was on Florida (Avenue). So hot-rodding was kind of neat to us. It was cool to have a fast car.
"We'd drive Fletcher (Avenue) to Florida and that was when it was pretty much a two-lane road. It might open up to a four-lane section and somebody would want to show you they had more power than you."
They rarely did then, and they rarely do now.
Since racing their hot rods as teenagers at Sunshine Speedway in St. Petersburg, the brothers have increased their commitment and involvement in drag racing from passionate hobby to family business. They set the National Muscle Car Association Super Street Car world record when their full-bodied Mustang ran a quarter-mile at 197 mph in 2000. That led to a chance to compete in the NHRA's sport compact series for heavily modified street cars.
Scranton thrived, winning all 10 races he ran and a championship in 2002 and collecting his 11th NHRA victory in finishing third overall last season. He has twice set the quickest run in class history and in 2002 became the first to surpass 200 mph (202.25).
"A lot of people don't quite grasp to go 200 mph in a Toyota Celica with basically a Supra engine is pretty hard," he said.
Getting more than 1,350 horsepower out of a turbocharged six-cylinder engine takes skill, and help from the Toyota Research and Development center, which supplied complete engines to the team until last season. When the Scrantons added a second car this season, TRD suggested they build their own, which forced the brothers to add employees. An operation that once managed on $20,000 a season now requires $750,000 to be competitive.
More hassle, more pressure, certainly, but the memory of those rides in the Mustang, and the thrill of sending his car down a straightaway, keep it fun.
"We're living a dream, man," Matt Scranton said. "Maybe if we keep having a lot of fun we'll keep doing this until we're 70. It's one cool ride."
DIFFERENT TRACK: NASCAR announced Monday that Jim Hunter, former vice president of corporate communications, will add oversight of the circuit's Regional Touring and Weekly series to his responsibilities. Don Hawk, former president of Dale Earnhardt Inc., was named director of regional racing development.
BUSCH WHACKED: Zephyrhills' David Reutimann started 15th but finished 25th on Saturday, eight laps down, in the No. 87 NEMCO Motorsports Chevrolet in the Busch series race at Nashville Superspeedway. Reutimann, a Truck series regular, is sharing time in the Busch car with owner Joe Nemechek.
RE-TIRE: Beginning this weekend with the opener at Long Beach, Champ Car teams will be issued eight sets of tires, six standard models suggested as best for the course by Bridgestone and two optional sets of a softer compound allowing for greater grip and a better chance of passing slower cars. Teams must use at least one optional set, which will bear special markings to inform fans when cars are likely to pass.
W. BURTON ACCIDENT: NASCAR driver Ward Burton escaped serious injuries Monday when his sport utility vehicle ran off a highway near Danville, Va., struck a guardrail and overturned. Burton did not require treatment.
- Information from Times wires was used in this report.
