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economist suntribune wheels thursday july 25 2002 25 it was a frozen moment in time sometimes you your path in life maybe if dave mcclelland hadnt been there on the back of that flatbed trailer that night in 1 959 hed still be waiting for the good times to roll maybe hed still be wondering when his dream would detour into reality thinking back it was kind of a dream after all how could the dragracing announcer that day at the old airport track in carlisle ark have frozen up when art malone and eddie hill screamed down the track how could the announcer have flubbed his chance forgot his lines or swallowed the microphone the way he did how could dave mcclelland have been so fortunate it was a match race mcclelland told rod custom magazine last october and as the first run came up between malone and hill the announcer froze at the micro phone he didnt say a word the track owner who i knew pretty well was just standing there looking at the guy he knew i worked in radio so i asked him if i could give it a try the track owners response you couldnt do any worse mcclelland remembered with a smile as it turns out drag racing couldnt have done much better for more than 40 years one familiar sound has echoed throughout drag strips across the nation he was the voice a poet with great pipes all the charisma without the cliches from that fortuitous day in 59 when a rookie stumbled into the start of a legendary career to eventually become the lead announcer for the national hot rod association nhra mcclelland has always hit the right key at the right time he is mr quartermile he is the music the face and the symbol of drag racings evolution he still counts himself fortu nate i never expected to be doing this 40 years later he said two years ago at a celebration of his 40th anniversary calling the us nationals but theres a lot about this business that sometimes we just never imagine with a love of cars that began in little liberty kan a town of 26000 just north of the oklahoma line mcclellands pas sion for all things that revved was crystal clear from the long dusty nights at the oval tracks in lakeside and riverside to the drag strips in kansas city and carlisle he was the kid who always wanted to drive but had to settle for a better seat on the side one trip to kansas city in 1 955 to take in an event designed to promote sanctioned drag racing had him stuck on the sport a trip back a year later to see the nhra nationals had him really hooked he said a career in broadcasting would pull him away from drag racing one night would set him up for good who knew id begin my raceannouncing career on the back of a flatbed trailer he said who knew what happened next would turn out so good after a series of smalltown tv and radio stops from shreveport la to little rock ark mcclellands chance encounter would come at the carlisle raceway when an announcer went numb mcclellands work that night at the old airport track even tually led to one gig then another and another he was still news director at a tv station in shreveport yet he was also doing some of the biggest jobs on the dragracing circuit by 1961 mcclelland was announcing the us nationals in indianapolis ind by the mid60s he would become a fixture everywhere engines whined calling a race somewhere across the country every weekend during the season in between tvstation gigs and jobs running race tracks in louisiana and dallas tex mcclelland kept up his dragracing work and eventually caught the ear of nhra president wally parks within a week mcclelland was working for parks who was quite impressed with what he heard by 1971 mcclelland was doing fulltime work for the nhra the organization he admired most knew then drag racing was something i was never going to leave ultimately he didnt when the nhra needed someone to spearhead public relations mcclelland was the perfect voice when it expanded and needed a tv personality two years later he was the perfect face he would continue with commerciajs promotions and syndication producing many nhra events when i think about it he told rod custom its hard to believe i actually did all those things and he would keep announcing even after joining a california hotrod publication in the late1970s even when he kept up his streetnodding hobby as a member of the leg endary la roadster pub by 2000 he had done the us nationals for four decades and he hasnt let up last year for his contributions to drag racing mcclelland was the recipient of the 2001 don prudhomme award given by the nhra to an individual who has made a profound impact on the growth and positive image of drag racing the charismatic kid from kansas could only smile its amazing to think where ive ended up he said especially when you think where i started its even more remarkable to see what he keeps on doing mcclelland is still involved in many broadcasting projects including a role as host for hot rod magazine tv speed channel hes still the master of ceremonies at the hot rod museums monthly car cruises in pomona calif and com petes in nostalgia and super compclass drag events and once a month he still pulls the tarp off one of his best hot rods rolls it out for a show n shine and wonders where he would be had it not been for one frozen moment in time drag racing could wonder the same jason stein is a feature writer and the editor of wheelbase communications raceweek racing page he can be reached at jsteinwheelbasecomcom wheelbase communications supplies automotive news and features to newspapers across north america back to a single day an hour or maybe even a second by jason stein for wheelbase communications your toronto area mazda dealers 2002 mazda 626 lxi4 performance designed to impart the spirit of mazda thecarconnectioncom spffl security deposit n0 charge extended warranty or no payments on purchase financing until 2003 apr n0 charge extended warranty lease from 279 per month48 months or cosh purchase from 20995 20ld0hc16valve engine 4wheel 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