Nellie and Otis had to save much of their hard earned money to be able to afford the cost of racing.
Nellie started out driving great looking funny cars from the 1968 Plymouth Barracuda to the 1970 Dodge Challenger. Nellie Goins in 2015 with the restored Mustang (NHRA) Nellie once said that drag racing was not her first passion, but she did it for her husband and family. He was very passionate about Nellie’s career and auto racing. She was a teenager when she first met her future husband. Nellie Goins and her late husband Otis hailed from Gary, Indiana. Nellie Goins' Mustang funny car recently restored (NHRA) They also use a parachute at the end of the short drag strip to bring the vehicle to a safe and complete stop. Funny cars are characterized by having tilt-up fiberglass or carbon fiber automotive bodies over a custom-fabricated chassis. Some readers may ask the question, what is a “funny car”? It is a specific racing class in organized drag racing. Side view of Nellie Goins' Mustang funny car (NHRA)
Nellie drove the funny cars, and her husband Otis led her racing team. People called Goins “Nitro Nellie”, and her car was known as the Goins and Goins “Conqueror.” Originally, the car was a 1968 Plymouth Barracuda. Mustang funny car with Nellie Goins (NHRA) Auto racing has traditionally been a sport dominated by men, but women have also made great strides in the field. I first found out about her when I was doing research on women race car drivers. Images Courtesy of Nellie Goins, Ebony magazine, NHRAĪs we celebrate Women’s History Month, I am reminded of a real trailblazer in the world of drag racing.ĭuring the late 1960s and early 1970s, Nellie Goins was the first African American woman driver in the funny car racing category. By Robert Tate, Automotive Historian and Researcher
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