Despite his age, 60-year-old Terry McMillen hasn’t been around the National Hot Rod Association circuit for long.
But that doesn’t mean his desire to win is any less than his competitors.
McMillen is racing in the Top Fuel series for the seventh time in his nine-year career at the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals this weekend, and he has two goals.
The first is to qualify, which he has failed to do in recent years.
Once that is taken care of, it’s a go-for-broke mentality with nothing to lose and only a trophy to gain.
"There would be nothing better than to be able to hand them the Wally (trophy) at the end of the night," McMillen said. "That’s what we’re here for."
McMillen walked away from a career as an electrical engineer to go racing, but taking the risk to pursue his passion paid off. Now, his career consists of living out his dream each weekend.
"It’s a release," he said. "It’s everything in the world to me. It’s not a job anymore — it’s what I love to do."
Although McMillen has a background in engineering, he doesn’t get to be involved with the mechanical aspects of racing as much as he would like. Instead, he spends his time working with sponsors and business partners while leaving the mechanics to his team.
McMillen puts all his faith in the team each weekend.
One minor slip up with the engine tuning could lead to a massive explosion, with the best case scenario being a wasted weekend and the worst jeopardizing McMillen’s life.
"My guys are everything to me," McMillen said. "Without them I’d be nothing, and without a driver they’d be nothing."
Even though so much is determined by the power of the car, McMillen added that he does have a significant influence on the outcomes of each race.
As a driver with experience racing underfunded cars with less power than his competitors, he learned to make up the difference in races with his own reaction-time ability.
"I could say that I could hang with the best of anybody," McMillen said. "I’ve never maybe had the fastest car, so I always had to make sure I was really good on the reaction time."
To be able to take home a trophy this weekend, his reaction time and his car will need to be top notch to defeat the legion of quality opponents. But if he can, it would mean the world to him to do it at Gatornationals.
From his perspective, there isn’t a more prestigious weekend to win.
"To me, it’s the biggest," he said.
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Top Fuel series drag racer Terry McMillen gets into his dragster during a demonstration on Wednesday at Piesano's Pizza, located at 1250 W. University Ave.
