First NHRA Funny Car driver to run 300 mph in a 

 sanctioned National Event:


Epler first to reach 300 mph in Funny Car

Reprinted from the Oct. 15, 1993 issue of National DRAGSTER 


TOPEKA, Kan. -- Of the two Sears Craftsman Nationals barrier busters, Jim Epler's 300.40-

mph blast Sunday morning was the most stunning.

Chuck Etchells (5.04) and John Force (5.01) recently had come close to making a four-

second run, but no Funny Car was in the same county of a 300-mph run. The best speed 

before the explosion at Heartland Park Topeka was Freddie Neely's 295.27-mph national r

record, and that was run only once. Top speed at national events this season had ranged 

from roughly 289 to 292 mph.

Epler landed his first haymaker on the collective consciousness of the Topeka fans and 

racers when he put a 5.13, 299.90 on the boards at 2:18 Friday afternoon. After a moment of 

shocked silence, the crowd exploded in cheers.