DRAG RACING ON THUNDER MOUNTAIN

Adrenaline courses through your veins as the nitro cars pull past the water box, preparing for the first burnout on the Mountain at the 2022 Dodge Power Brokers NHRA Mile-High Nationals at Bandimere Speedway.

- HEIDI ELZAS

Crew members focused on their jobs at hand, taking in every aspect of the car and the track. You catch a whiff of nitro, hinting at what's to come. The sudden crack of the throttle and the deafening roar from the exhaust is followed by the immediate burn in your nose as the undeniable smell of nitro overwhelms your senses.

The next thing you know, the first staging bulb is lit, leaving barely any time to brace for the rattling vibration of the race that is about to shock your body. Bulbs drop, and three feet of flames shoot up directly in front of you, then streak past with a fury not even noise-canceling headphones can deafen. In less than four seconds, the moment is over. Now hit repeat on that sensation each time Top Fuel or Funny Cars come to the line.

Bandimere Speedway, also affectionately known as Thunder Mountain, likes to throw a few curveballs for the race teams to navigate around. The most obvious and talked about oddity is that the elevation of the track is a bit more than 5,800 feet above sea level. The higher the altitude, the thinner the air, typically leading to slower track times. Additionally, warmer weather led to the track temps ranging from 117 degrees on the cool part of the track up to 137 degrees in the sun.

All four Pro Classes-Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock, and Pro Stock Motorcycle-had different strategies to combat the regular demands of competition and tackling Thunder Mountain's air deficiency. This year, Leah Pruett, Robert Hight, Matt Hartford, and Matt Smith stood as winners on the podium in Denver proudly holding their Wallys. Smith even managed to overcome the thin air and heat to break the Mountain's motorcycle speed record at 190 mph with his Pro Stock bike.