The McMillens like the direction the IHRA is going under owner Larry Jeffers. Like Bunker Hill, the IHRA has a special place in Terry’s heart. He finished both third in the IHRA Top Fuel and Alcohol Funny Car standings in 2010, posting a speed record of 322.42 mph in his dragster. He was honored as the IHRA Sportsman of the Year, the organization’s highest honor in 2005.
McMillen talked a little about Bunker Hill Dragstrip and IHRA working hard to promote drag racing.
“Bunker Hill is the oldest track in Indiana, started in 1956. Cory and I purchased it in July of last year,” Terry said. “We’ve had a little over a year to make improvements. It’s really exciting the program that Larry has put together to bring the IHRA family back like it used to be. ”
McMillen was particularly impressed by the list of IHRA grand prizes which pushed the Summit SuperSeries World Finals payout to over $275,000. He liked the fact they were well thought out prizes including an Ezell Race Cars chassis for the Top (Box) World Champion, an enclosed InTech trailer from Flying A Motorsports for the Mod (No Box) champion, an open trailer from B&C Trailer Services for the Sportsman champion, a Club Car golf cart for the Junior champion and a swingarm from Evil SwingArms for the Motorcycle champion.
“Where they’re giving away a dragster, a golf cart and trailers to each class winner, that’s pretty amazing,” McMillen said. “Nobody else does that. It has set the ground work where Larry is taking the IHRA. That’s exciting from a track owner’s perspective.”
McMillen has put the Top Fuel car he owns on the back burner because of the growth at Bunker Hill. When they took it over the historic drag strip, Bunker Hill was averaging around 75 cars each race. Thanks to the hard work and long hours the McMillens and their staff have put in, the car count has ballooned to between 150-250 cars.
Last weekend, they took a little time to celebrate as Bunker Hill crowned the 2023 track champions. Junior Dragster champion Chas Warpenburg finished runner-up in Friday's Race of Champions.
“It was awesome to reward them for their hard work,” Cori said. “They bought into a program to excel and be able to come to the World Finals through the track championship. It’s an accomplishment, a lot of races to get here. To win the track championship at Bunker Hill and come represent us at Holly Springs is pretty incredible.”
Those track champions and others representing Bunker Hill posed with Terry and Cori for a group photo Friday. The only ones missing were Mike Pyle and Randy Wolfe who were in the staging lanes, getting ready to race.
The McMillens love how the grassroots, Sportsman racers are celebrated at the IHRA Summit SuperSeries World Finals presented by Strange Engineering. It was like old home week for Terry, but also a time for him to bond with the track’s racers.
“I’ve seen a lot of people from the old Fuel car days who wanted to stop and talk,” Terry said. “Ultimately, the best part has been getting to hang out with our racers and know them a little more. During a race weekend, it’s extremely busy so my contact with them can be limited. It’s exciting to be here with them, but also to see all the other tracks come here and unite. It’s above and beyond what anybody else is doing out there.”
You can keep up with the progress of Bunker Hill Dragstrip racers and all others at the IHRA Summit SuperSeries World Finals presented by Strange Engineering by clicking here to watch the IHRA TV channel on YouTube.
