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Donald Glenn Garlits (born January 14, 1932) is an American race car driver and automotive engineer. Born in Tampa, Florida, Garlits is considered the godfather of drag racing, he is known as " Big Daddy" to drag racing fans around the world. A pioneer in the field of drag racing, he perfected the rear-engine Top Fuel dragster, an innovation motivated by the loss of part of his foot in a dragster accident. This design was notably safer since it put most of the fuel processing and rotating parts of the dragster behind the driver. The driver was placed in front of nearly all the mechanical components, thus protecting him and allowing him to activate a variety of safety equipment in the event of catastrophic mechanical failure or a fire. Garlits was an early promoter of the full-body, fire-resistant Nomex driving suit, complete with socks, gloves, and balaclava.
Garlits was the first drag racer to officially surpass the 170, 180, 200, 240, 250, and 270 mile-per-hour marks in the quarter mile; he was also the first to top in the . He has been inducted into several Halls of Fame and has won many awards during his career.
In 1959, Garlits traveled to Bakersfield, California for the US Fuel and Gas Championships, later to be named the "March Meet", to show that the times he was setting were as legitimate as those set by the west coast racers. Over 30,000 people attended the event, the largest attendance at a drag race at that point. His presence helped to grow the sport of drag racing beyond its California base. In 1964, after winning the U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis, Garlits traveled to England, with TV Tommy Ivo, Tony Nancy, Dante Duce and other racers, to participate in the first International Drag Festival, a six-event series that did much to promote the sport of drag racing in the UK.
Garlits's accident was like many in the 1960s, and his new design followed several other pioneer designers of rear-engined dragsters, including Steve Swaja's Top Gas Wedge I from 1963, Roger Lindwall's 1966 Top Fuel Re-Entry, and Kent Fuller's fueller Sidewinder III from 1969.Taylor, Thom. "Tony Nancy Gas Dragster", "Roger Lindwall Re-Entry", and "Kent Fuller Sidewinder III", in "Beauty Beyond the Twilight Zone", pp.34, 38, and 42. He was aided in the construction of his new car by T. C. Lemons and Connie Swingle.
However, Swamp Rat XIV became so successful that in 1971, Garlits won two of his next three Top Fuel Eliminator titles (the Winternats and Bakersfield), and was a runner-up at Lions, all in the new car. Hot Rod, 12/86, p.28.Front to back: The rear-engine transition ( Part 1, Part 2) - Phil Burgess, NHRA, February 2015 A change so momentous had not happened since Mickey Thompson moved the seat behind the rear axle to create the Panorama City Special slingshot rail dragster in 1954. Hot Rod, 12/86, p.29 sidebar. Rear-engine dragsters have since become mainstream in drag racing.
In 1977, Ed Donovan persuaded Garlits to switch from the he had been using for the last thirteen years to the Donovan hemi , offering (in Garlits' words) "an engine deal I couldn’t refuse". NHRA.com (retrieved November 24, 2018)
Garlits took a brief hiatus, returning to NHRA Top Fuel full-time in 1984.Ganahl, Pat. "Winter Heat: '87 NHRA Wnternationals", in Hot Rod, May 1987, p.88.
Garlits resumed his career briefly in 1998, and again in 2003. His last qualifying race was in May 2003 at the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series, 23rd annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals presented by Pontiac in Atlanta, Georgia. At the age of 71 years, 5 months and 19 days he qualified 16th, setting a personal best speed in the quarter mile with a time of 4.788 seconds at 319.98 mph. Garlits had reached 323.04 earlier in the year at the 2003 Gatornationals. Mr. Garlits lost in first-round competition with his Summit Racing-Mono Winged Dragster, clocking in with a 0.064 reaction time, a personal best 4.737 elapsed time, and 307.44 mph, second only to Brandon Bernstein's (son of racing legend Kenny Bernstein) Budweiser/Lucas Oil Dragster 0.079 reaction time, a 4.615 elapsed time, at 321.42 miles per hour. The difference at the finish line was only 122 thousandths of a second.
Garlits operates the Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing on the grounds of his home in Ocala, Florida. He can also be seen from time to time on ESPN and Speed Vision doing commentary at racing events and performance expositions.
Always at the forefront of driver safety, in the wake of Funny Car driver Scott Kalitta's fatal crash and numerous other engine explosions and resultant fires, occurring in the last 300 feet of the quarter mile, Garlits declared "I am 100 percent in favor of it", regarding NHRA's proposal to trim the race distance for Top Fuel and Funny Car from the traditional quarter-mile to 1,000 feet, also suggesting that he would support a ban on rev limiters and a return to a 70/30 nitromethane to methanol ratio.[7] He has since had second thoughts.
In September 2009, Garlits returned to the quarter mile, racing a specially prepared 2009 Dodge Challenger in the Stock class at the U.S. Nationals at the Indianapolis Raceway Park, losing to Dan Fletcher in the first round.
In May 2014 at age 82, Garlits set a speed record with Swamp Rat 37, a 2,000 hp battery-powered EV dragster . At 82 Years Old, Don Garlits Sets 184-mph EV Dragster Record, Guns for 200 mph Next - Davey G. Johnson, Car and Driver, May 8, 2014 In July 2019 at age 87, he set a new quarter-mile record of with Swamp Rat 38, a 1,500 lb dragster with a battery-powered 800 hp electric motor. On July 20, Don Garlits looks to (again) make drag racing history - Kurt Ernst, Hemmings, July 23, 2019
He is a mentor of current NHRA Top Fuel racer and fellow Ocala, Florida resident, Josh Hart.
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