Columnist Larry Dixon: Off-season plans differ among drivers

Larry Dixon

Thursday, April 6, 2000 | 10:29 a.m.

Larry Dixon, driver of Don Prudhomme's Miller Lite Top Fuel Dragster, is writing a daily column exclusively for the Las Vegas Sun in conjunction with the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

The NHRA Winston Drag Racing season begins in early February and ends in mid-November, leaving a very small window of time during the off-season.

Most of the teams out here use nearly every minute of the time off building new engines, ordering new chassis, stocking up on parts and updating sponsor decals -- and still must try to find time for some test sessions before the first race of the year in Pomona. So with all that going on, you would think that most drivers would want to slow down as much as possible over the winter.

But not me.

Two years ago, I spent my off-season time getting married to my wife Ali in her home state of Michigan. As soon as we got back from our honeymoon, I was behind the wheel of the Miller Lite Dragster for test sessions in Arizona.

This past off-season didn't see me get any extra time for lounging around, either. After spending more than 200 days on the road last year, I decided that I needed to spend more time at home, regardless of where I was living.

Because team owner Don "Snake" Prudhomme's second race shop is located in Indianapolis, I decided to move to Indy. So I get to be around the car and the crew more than before, plus I am able to spend less time flying home now compared to when I lived in San Diego.

Having been born and raised in Southern California, there were quite a few of my friends who couldn't believe I would leave the warm weather for a place like Indy. I can't lie: I am looking into getting a snow blower.

But a great thing about being a transplanted Hoosier is that people in Indiana just love basketball. While I never played on a team, I am a huge NBA fan, especially of the Boston Celtics and, now, the Indiana Pacers. I still like the Celtics, but Larry Bird is the man.

I had a chance to meet him a couple of years ago at a Miller Brewing function -- there I was, sitting right across the same table as Bird. I never, ever, get star struck, but I couldn't manage to say a word. I mean, this is Larry Bird!

While I am enjoying Indy, there just are certain things that I can't live without. Just last night as I was riding to the hotel from the airport, Ali was looking out the window at all the bright lights and excitement surrounding the casinos. You know what fired me up the most? In-N-Out Burger, right across the street from the hotel! Indy is great, but you can't find a Double-Double anywhere.

Also, I love the weather here. I think that this weekend is going to see great conditions for some side-by-side racing. A few of the teams might have a tough go of it at first due to the heat, but I am sure by Sunday all the crew chiefs will have worked out the kinks and all the teams will be ready to go.

I can't wait to get out to the track. Having been in town for a few days now and talking to people, I can sense just how exciting this race is going to be. I know one thing for sure: None of the drivers will be taking any time off this weekend. This is the one race that we all would like to win.