Racing event adds scholarship to weekend of fun
By Andre B. Pasley
For the St. Louis American
With a history that dates back 30 years, Black Sunday is the premiere African-American drag racing event. It’s hosted every September on the East Side by the United Black Drag Racers Association (U.B.D.R.A.), a not-for-profit organization that utilizes a passion for the sport to give back to the community they love. Along with trophies and cash prizes for winners and finalists, the U.B.D.R.A. has initiated a scholarship fund giving $12,000 to St. Louis-area youth to attend college.
In 1977 a small group of black drag racing enthusiasts met at what was then Wentzville, MO’s Mid-American Raceway to race each other for bragging rights in a street rivalry. Ray Franks, William “Cat” Jones, Robert Shipp, Nelson Taylor and John “Goatman” Williams, as well as seven other black racers from the area, unknowingly were onto something special.
One year later they met again, this time with families and barbeque pits in tow. The showdown moved to the Gateway International Raceway in Madison, Ill. “People used to call it ‘the swamp’ because it use to flood quite a bit,” Ray Franks said at Gateway on Sunday as he loaded his 1968 supercharged Camaro, sponsored by Riley Ready Mix & Materials.
Over the years more and more black racers came to run in the competition and began calling it “Black Sunday.” Soon it included fast motorcycles as well as the horsepower-soaked cars and dragsters. In 1994 the U.B.D.R.A. was officially established and now is a nationally recognized organization.
U.B.D.R.A. has a chapter in Wisconsin and two brother organizations, one in Memphis, TN and another in New Orleans, LA. Black Sunday now boasts over 400 competitors and nine different classes, and more than 30,000 spectators attend the weekend-long event.
This year the U.B.D.R.A. established the U.B.D.R.A. Scholarship. Twenty-eight members strong locally, the organization is committed to giving back to the community. After going through a long list of graduates from area high schools, the committee chose five students for $1,000 scholarships: Sara Bartels of Edwardsville High School, Jessica Davie of Soldan High School, Vivianne Hatina of McClure North High School, Jalisa Ray of Normandy High School and Jessica Wesley of McClure North Hgih School.
In collaboration with Rankin Technical College, the U.B.D.R.A. also awarded $7,000 in scholarship monies to North County Technical High School graduate Byron Gather.
Overall, the weekend was great family fun. The weather was beautiful and the organization put on one heck of a show. The winners walked away with a handful of money, and those who didn’t take home the prize had an entertaining weekend to tell their friends about.
By class, the big money winners were:
—Super Pro
Dan Stone of O’Fallon, MO
—Pro Open
Rick Tyree of Staunton, IL
—Quick 16 Car
Jeff Dickey of St. Louis
—Street ET
Ricky Thomas of St. Louis
—1/8 mile Super Pro
George Atchison of Centralia, IL
—Jr. Dragsters
Jennifer Costello of Collinsville, IL
(A special shout out to little Michael Solomon of St. Louis who was a quarter finalist in Jr. Dragsters.)
—Pro Bikes
Dusty Katich of Collinsville,IL
—Quick 16 Bikes
Billy Schonfield of Bristow, OK
—Street Bikes
Janie Palm of Bunker Hill, IL
