Shirley Muldowney - Like Husband, Like Wife

Jack Muldowney's longtime interest in high-performance cars began to wear off on his young bride. She began by attending races with her husband, and cheering him on when he raced. He taught her to drive after they were married, and Shirley became intrigued with the world of drag racing, and very familiar with all aspects of the sport, from the technical requirements of driving to the particulars involved with getting a car on the track. Drag races usually run on a quarter-mile track, and are paired head-to-head; the faster of two racers wins the race, which is over in less than fifteen seconds. The cars come to a stop with the aid of a parachute that ejects from behind to slow them down. Drag racing is so-named because drivers "drag" out through each gear shift.

Muldowney soon asked her husband to let her race, and he gave her her first car, a 1940 Ford running on a Cadillac V-8 engine. She entered local competitions in the regular stock car category and, though she did not win, she occasionally made it to the finals. She became more competitive in the early 1960s with her next two cars, a 348 tri-powered Chevrolet and then a 1963 Super Stock Plymouth. She hit just over 100 mph when racing, while drivers who raced low slung, specially-outfitted drag cars were reaching speeds of 170-180 mph. Her husband built her a Chevy-powered dragster and she soon caught up.

Muldowney had no problem proving herself on the track in amateur races. But drag racing's sanctioning bodies, including the NHRA and American Hot Rod Association (AHRA), had reservations about granting professional status to a woman. Muldowney and fellow female racers Judi Boertman, Paula Murphy, and Della Woods launched a campaign to be allowed to race professionally. In 1965, Muldowney was the first woman to receive her license to drive dragsters. There were naysayers who predicted one serious crash or fire would spook Muldowney off the track, but after several, she was always ready to get back in the car. She escaped what could have been a very serious crash in 1967 at the Orange County International Raceway without a scratch, and with a great deal of respect in the sport.