 | |
| Company type | Private company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Automotive aftermarket |
| Founded | Tallmadge, Ohio, USA (1968) |
Key people | Scott Peterson, President & CEO Al Noe, CMO |
| Products | Automotive parts |
| Website | summitracing.com |
Summit Racing Equipment is an automotive parts retailer with four retail stores and distribution centers located in Tallmadge, Ohio; Sparks, Nevada; McDonough, Georgia; and Arlington, Texas. Summit Racing Equipment is also involved in motorsports and other events as a sponsor.
 | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (November 2020) |
Summit Racing Equipment started in 1968 [1] in Akron, Ohio and grew to over 100 employees by 1993, with their mail-order catalog driving their performance auto parts sales. [2]
In 2016, Summit Racing announced it would open a warehouse and retail facility in Arlington, Texas; their fourth location after McDonough, Georgia; Sparks, Nevada and Tallmadge, Ohio. [1] [3]
Summit Racing Equipment currently sponsors NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Funny Car driver Tim Wilkerson, [3] Top Fuel drivers Antron Brown [4] and Clay Millican, [5] and Pro Stock drivers Greg Anderson, Deric Kramer, Matt Hartford, Kyle Koretsky, Dallas Glenn, and Rodger Brogdon.
Team Summit Legends (former Team Summit racers and friends of the company) include the following friends of Summit Racing Equipment: Don Garlits, Frank Hawley, Jim Oddy, Mark Pawuk, Connie Kalitta, Kenny Bernstein, Bob Chandler, Dan Runte, the late John Lingenfelter and the late Scott Kalitta.
Summit Racing Equipment supports the following sanctioning bodies (including series/points competition within many of them) to promote drag racing, circle track, road and vintage racing, autocross, and tractor pulling:
Drag Racing: National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) and NHRA Summit Racing Series, International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) and IHRA Summit Super Series, [6] Australian National Drag Racing Association (ANDRA), European Drag Racing Series (EDRS), [7] Loose Rockers, Mid-West Drag Racing Series (MWDR), [8] Professional Drag Racers Association (PDRA), [9] South East Gasser Association (SEGA)
Jr. Drag Racing: Midwest Jr. Super Series, [10] NHRA Jr. Dragster Racing League (JDRL), [11] IHRA Jr. Super Series
Circle Track: International Motor Contest Association (IMCA), Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, [12] United States Modified Touring Series (USMTS), [13] SRE USRA weekly racing program, [14] Summit Racing Modified Nationals
Road Racing/Endurance Racing/Autocross: American Endurance Racing (AER), [15] Sports Car Club of America (SCCA), [16] Sportscar Vintage Racing Association (SVRA), [17] Trans-Am Championship, [17] Ultimate Street Car Association (USCA) / Optima Challenge, World Karting Association (WKA) [18]
Tractor Pulling: Lucas Pro Pulling League, [19] National Tractor Pullers Association (NTPA) [20]
In addition to sponsoring series/points competition within many of the sanctioning bodies listed above, Summit Racing Equipment sponsors a variety of motorsports events and shows including:
Events: Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, [15] Summit Racing Equipment Midwest Drags Drag-n-Drive Event, [15] and Summit Racing Equipment Autocross Week
Shows: International Show Car Association (ISCA) Indoor Car Show Series, [15] Summit Racing Equipment IX Piston-Powered Auto-Rama, [21] Goodguys Summit Racing Equipment Nationals, [15] Goodguys Summit Racing Equipment Lone Star Nationals, [15] Hot August Nights [15]
In 2007, Summit bought the naming rights to Norwalk Raceway Park, becoming Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park (often shortened to Summit Motorsports Park, though it is still sometimes referred to simply as "Norwalk"). The track hosted its first NHRA national event upon becoming an officially sanctioned track the very same year.
Drag racing is a type of motor racing in which automobiles or motorcycles compete, usually two at a time, to be first to cross a set finish line. The race follows a short, straight course from a standing start over a measured distance, most commonly 1⁄4 mi, with a shorter, 1,000 ft distance becoming increasingly popular, as it has become the standard for Top Fuel dragsters and Funny Cars, where some major bracket races and other sanctioning bodies have adopted it as the standard. The 1⁄8 mi is also popular in some circles. Electronic timing and speed sensing systems have been used to record race results since the 1960s.
The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) is a governing body which sets rules in drag racing and hosts events all over the United States and Canada. With over 40,000 drivers in its rosters, the NHRA claims to be the largest motorsport sanctioning body in the world.
A dragstrip is a facility for conducting automobile and motorcycle acceleration events such as drag racing. Although a quarter mile is the best known measure for a drag track, many tracks are eighth mile (201 m) tracks, and the premiere classes will run 1,000 foot (304.8 m) races. The race is begun from a standing start which allows three factors to affect the outcome of the race: reaction time, power/weight ratio, and traction.
Memphis International Raceway was an auto racing park located near the Loosahatchie River in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, approximately ten miles south of Millington, and a few miles north of the city of Memphis.
The International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) is the second-largest drag racing sanctioning body after the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA).
Raymond Beadle was an American drag racer and auto racing team owner.
Nostalgia drag racing is a form of drag racing that uses cars from earlier eras of drag racing, as well as cars built to fit the guidelines of earlier eras using parts that would have been available in that era.
Pro Modified, also known as Pro Mod, is a class or division in the sport of drag racing used in the NHRA and FIA (quarter-mile) and the Professional Drag Racers Association (PDRA) (eighth-mile). It is similar to the Top Doorslammer class as defined by the ANDRA.
Scott D. Kalitta was an American drag racer who competed in the Funny Car and Top Fuel classes in the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Full Throttle Drag Racing Series. He had 17 career Top Fuel wins and one career Funny Car win. At the time of his death, due to an accident during race qualifying, he was one of 14 drivers to win in both divisions. He was the son of veteran NHRA driver and crew chief Connie Kalitta.
Summit Motorsports Park, formerly Norwalk Raceway Park and Norwalk Dragway, is a drag racing facility located at 1300 State Route 18 near Norwalk, Ohio. It has been a National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) sanctioned facility since 2007 and annually hosts the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals an NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Event and the Cavalcade of Stars, an NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Regional Event. As well as the national events, the facility holds regular local competition throughout the season.
Alaska Raceway Park is a motorsports complex conducting races from Mother's Day to Labor Day. It is located in Butte, which is near the Knik River, and Knik Glacier at Mile 10.4 of the Old Glenn Highway, about 41.5 miles northeast of Anchorage, Alaska, US. Nearby 6,398-foot Pioneer Peak looms over the finish line, providing a scenic racing venue recognized worldwide among race fans. The track sits at an elevation of 63 feet above sea level, offering excellent air pressure for racing.
Simpson Performance Products is an American motorsports parts supplier that manufactures safety products such as gloves, helmets, harness systems, driver's suits, head restraints, and shoes. It is marketed to racers ranging from participants at local track days to international Formula One and NASCAR teams. It was started by Bill Simpson as Simpson Drag Chutes.
Maple Grove Raceway is a quarter-mile dragstrip located near Mohnton, Pennsylvania, just outside Reading. It opened in 1962 as a 1/5-mile dragstrip. It was eventually lengthened to its current quarter-mile length in 1964. The track has been sanctioned by the National Hot Rod Association for most of its existence. It has hosted an NHRA national event since 1985. The other key events include the American Drag Racing League, the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, the Geezers Reunion at The Grove, the Super Chevy Show, Mopar Action, Fun Ford Weekend and the NHRA Pennsylvania Dutch Classic.
Virginia Motorsports Park (VMP) is a 1/4 mile dragstrip in Dinwiddie County, Virginia, just outside of Petersburg. It opened in 1994 and originally hosted the NHRA's Virginia NHRA Nationals. It has a seating capacity of 23,000 spectators. After a brief time with IHRA beginning in 2010, the track returned to NHRA in 2012.
Bruce Larson (1937) is an American retired drag racer from Camp Hill, Pennsylvania. He became nationally known for his match races. He quit funny Car racing in 1972 after a bad fire and raced in the Pro Stock class for 2 years. He then returned to the Funny Car class and match racing until 1987 where he fought his way to the NHRA Funny Car Championship in 1989. He led the points chase from start to finish collecting 6 National Event wins, 5 runner ups and the Car Craft Funny Car Driver of the Year award. That championship car is now one of only 2 drag race cars in the collection of the Smithsonian Institution, the other being Don Garlits' rear engine dragster. He was inducted into the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame in 2006. Larson is remembered for his red, white, and blue USA-1 Chevrolet Camaros.
Palm Beach International Raceway was a motorsports facility located west of Jupiter, Florida. The facility had a quarter-mile drag strip, a 2.043 mi (3.288 km) road course, 7/10-mile kart track as well as mud racing tracks. The road course at Palm Beach International Raceway was a 2-mile, 10-turn circuit constructed of hot-mix asphalt and set on an aggregate base. It was 40 ft (12 m) wide with a 1/3-mile section measuring 80 ft (24 m).
The NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series is a drag racing series organized by the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA). It is the top competition series of the NHRA, comprising competition in four classes, including Top Fuel Dragster, Funny Car, Pro Stock, and Pro Stock Motorcycle.
Alexis DeJoria is an American drag racer who competes in the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Funny Car category. She previously drove a Toyota Camry for Kalitta Motorsports, sponsored by Patrón Spirits Company. She returned to competitive racing in 2020 with a new team led by crew chiefs Del Worsham and Nicky Boninfante. As of 2019, she was the third richest female athlete in the World, and as of 2022 the second richest with a net worth of $100 million.
The NHRA Factory Stock Showdown (FSS) is a class of drag racing designed to showcase the Chevrolet COPO Camaro, Dodge Challenger Drag Pak, and the Ford Mustang Cobra Jet.
Strutmasters is an American automotive parts manufacturer that specializes in suspension parts. It was founded by Chip Lofton in 1999 and is headquartered in Roxboro, North Carolina. Strutmasters invented an air-to-coil suspension conversion kits.
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