Updated 1/1/07:  Allow me to give you a short update about my racer in case you've not heard, read or witnessed this past year's happenings.  I cannot begin to tell you how awesome those first rides down the eighth and quarter mile race tracks were, after all the parts and pieces finally came together on the Tiger race machine so it could propel itself to the starting line once again.  It's impossible to describe the experience of sitting in the driver's seat; mashing the foot-feed and pulling those shift levers, feeling the incredible G's that the Tiger is capable of thrusting on a human body.  Only the ride itself can truly describe the experience.  I'm sorry I can't come up with the words to describe those rides.  If there is a greater feeling or high that a human being could experience on this earth, I don't know what it would be.  Nothing can match the experience.  For those that didn't read or witness the times the Tiger turned, they were in the neighborhood of 7.19 to 7.49 at 186 - 196 mph.  What kinds of numbers are in the Tameless Tiger for 2007?  I think we all could be pleasantly surprised.  My crew chief, John Holmes, had not much more than a bunch of tired pieces to bolt into the Tiger to make it fire up this time around.  Let him get his masterful hands on something a bit newer and fresher.  When asked what he can pull out of his brew tank with better pieces, he only seems to give you that mysterious smirk.  Oh yes, I really like that mysterious smirk when  he's asked that question and I've got to tell you that I can't wait for the 2007 season to arrive to get a better feel of what that smirk is all about. Peace, Love and good Health along with a big thanks to all for your friendship and support through the years.  To those who were able to stop by my race hauler at any of our 2006 race and car show events, a special thank you for your purchases and your best wishes.  Here's wishing you all a safe, happy and prosperous New Year.     See you in 2007 - Arnie, Evelyn and the Tiger Crew         Updated 5/22/06:  It's official.  Perennial Pontiac racer Arnie "The Farmer" Beswick now sits with nine others among those recognized in the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame for contributions to the sport.  Please watch ESPN 2 at 11:00 a.m. est/10:00 a.m. cst on June 4th for coverage of this induction ceremony.  A true pioneer in the popular pass-time, Arnie began in the early fifties at nearby Cordova Drag Strip amid his Morrison, Illinois farming chores.  Cordova later hosted the popular ongoing World Series of Drag Racing event.   There have been other famous Pontiac drag-racing names and certainly bigger budgets but Arnie Beswick was always there...usually more than a little ahead of the pack due to his ingenuity and smart use of very limited racing dollars.  For some folks, his nickname was an early lame-attempt at a demeaning label but it soon became a respected identification.  Arnie won many Top Stock Eliminator titles with 1960-64 Super Duty engine Pontiacs at Daytona's annual Speed Week competition and elsewhere eventually becoming known as the "King of the Stockers".  He raced what was likely Pontiac's first 4-speed transmission car in '60, one of fourteen "swiss-cheese" frame/aluminum body component cars in '63 and a factory-lightweight '64 GTO project car.   Arnie was also a winner in the first NHRA Nationals ever held at Great Bend, KS in 1955.    It is amazing what Arnie has accomplished through sheer determination with such limited funding  and outside support...staying with Pontiac hardware long after others jumped to more lucrative arrangements.  Loyalists appreciated this, trusting that he would continue to cover the nameplate with glory and he did not disappoint.  His '64 GTO racer was the first stock-bodied car into the nine and then eight-second quarter-mile brackets.  And for every Pontiac enthusiast saying:  "way-to-go, Arnie", there were many more "brand-x" folks moaning:  "gol-danged farmer"...he put a lot of the known factory-money cars back on their trailers.  Arnie was an "independent".  He was a determined prime-time giant-killer and race promoters loved him because they always knew he came to race and fans were going to see high-level competition at its rambunctious best.   The ceremony was enjoyed by all in attendance and Arnie was very honored not only to be one of the inductees, but also for the fact that all of his immediate family as well as many friends from many parts of the country were there to celebrate with him.         Update 12/13/05:  Congratulations to Arnie as he is being inducted into the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame in March, 2006 at the Paramount Plaza Hotel & Suites in Gainesville, FL, along with 9 other inductees which include the likes of Shirley Muldowney, Bruce Larson and Steve Gibbs.               This page was updated on 1/1/07.