[h=2]IHRA: Mark Sanders' car name rings true[/h] Tuesday, 12 July 2016
Steven Cole Smith (words and image)
Make no mistake, every competitor on the IHRA circuit – from the rookie weekend racer to the seasoned pro – loves to win. But if there's one driver who maybe loves to win just a tiny bit more than the other racers, we nominate Mark Sanders.
He's the driver and owner of the Mr. Explosive AMSOIL Nitro Funny Car. The Maple Valley, Wash. racer describes himself on the IHRA biographical information sheet as "100 percent pure energy."
On why he loves racing: "It brings all of our family and friends together. The competition on race day is like going to church and everybody is going to have to listen to 'The John Force of the North" – that's me! Best of all I love to see all the fans before, during and after the race for pics, questions and autographs. Make sure you come on by and say hi!!!'"
And he means it. After his win at the last IHRA Pro Drag Racing event, the Mopar Canadian Nationals at Grand Bend Motorplex in Ontario, Canada, Sanders, who won the race last year, took photos with every fan who came up to him, shook hands, hugged the women and a few of the men, and talked racing as long as the fans wanted.
"BaBoomski!" as Sanders has been known to say. That, and a lot more.
And like the aforementioned John Force, Sanders never met a microphone, or an exclamation mark, he didn't like.
"Great crowd, great place, great win!" he said.
"The car was right down the boardwalk here at the IHRA Canadian Nationals. We made five runs in the 5.70s and never hurt anything. It was a great crowd at a great place and a great win. Our car went down the left lane, but I know everybody was picking the right lane. If they say, 'What lane do you want?' I look at the crowd, and I pick the lane in front of the most people! That Ford Mustang's gonna go right down Broadway, and it did this weekend!"
But Sanders isn't just like that after a win – he recognizes how lucky he is to be doing something he loves on the weekends, and that shows through regardless of his finish. But winning, though ... icing on the cake.
Apparently his sense of humor extends to his family. After red-lighting at the President's Cup Nationals at Maryland International Speedway, he said, "I got a big red poster the next day for Father's Day – 'Dad, don't do that again!'" Indeed, family is one of the things Sanders loves about IHRA racing, and it is indeed a family affair. Wife Jody is co-owner of the car and keeps everyone on schedule at the track, and son Jake, or "Jake the Snake," is Sanders' crew chief.
Sanders says he's ready for this weekend at the Mopar Rocky Mountain Nationals at Castrol Raceway in Edmonton, Alberta – as far as Edmonton may seem for many of the competitors, it's the closest track to Sanders' home in Washington. "I love that place," Sanders said. "Great fans!"