Funny Car rookie Spencer Hyde started his drag racing career in his hometown of Stratford, Ontario, racing junior dragsters at his local track. As a young boy he was influenced by his grandfather’s cousin Jack Hyde who took on a grandfatherly role in his life. The elder Hyde was also a drag racer, campaigning a green stocker, named Jack and the Green Stock, a play off the English fairy tale Jack and the Beanstalk, in the 1960s and 1970s. This weekend for the second time in his career Hyde will race a Jack and the Green Stock themed race car at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, June 26-29, to honor his now 83-year-old family member who was a major influence on him as a young boy in Canada.

“I grew up a mile down the road from Jack and when I was a kid, I used to go down to his place and help him cut grass,” said Hyde, the front-runner for NHRA Rookie of the Year. “He was a farmer so as I got older, I'd help him take crops off, combine and run the buggy for him, and then I'd go racing with him.”

The original Jack and the Green Stock ran from 1966 to well into 1970 and had a 427 with a four speed in it. It was sold and Jack was unable to find it when he wanted to get back on the racetrack 33 years later. The new race car had a big block 540 in it with an automatic transmission which was more convenient for Jack, who was in his 60s at the time. The new Jack and the Green Stock car raced in the local nostalgia class. Spencer used to go watch that car run when he was 12 years old before he raced junior dragsters. He would go with the crew and help with the tire pressure, fuel or whatever else was needed. 

“In 2017 or 2018, I was with Jack and he said, ‘You know I've never watched my car go down the racetrack. Would you drive it?’ I raced it in the Ontario Nostalgia Drag Racers Series in Canada, and we won the first race I drove it,” said Hyde. “He was pretty pleased. After that, he didn't want to drive it anymore, he only wanted me to drive it.” 

In Hyde’s hometown there was a local event called the Stratford Spectacular. Their local town has a significant drag racing presence, and many of the local businesses in Stratford donate to put on a community sponsored event at the local track.

“In 2022, my dad (Peter) and I decided for Jack’s 80th birthday, we're going to wrap my Pro Mod car just like his Jack in the Green Stock,” said Hyde. “We did it just for fun and I didn't tell him. I had it all wrapped and I had him show up to the shop. We had his Jack and the Green Stock car beside the Pro Mod. When we lifted the garage door to show him, he was blown away. We took it to the Stratford Spectacular where we did a side-by-side pass together and everybody loved it.”

The success and support Hyde received at that event led him to decide to leave his Pro Mod wrapped as Jack and the Green Stock for the rest of the year. Then in early 2023 he had his breakthrough moment when we won the World Series of Pro Mod, piloting the Jack in the Green Stock Car. 

“Now that I am in a nitro Funny Car the closest we get to home is Norwalk, Ohio, so I thought it'd be cool to wrap the Funny Car with Jack and the Green Stock and surprise Jack again,” said Hyde. “He is coming to the race and we are going to surprise him in the pits on Friday. It means a lot to me to be able to honor him and keep that family tradition going.”

Hyde views Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park as his American home track, since it’s the closest U.S. track to his hometown. He’s raced Pro Mod there, and he has known the Bader family for a long time. 

“Jim and Head Racing call Ohio home, so it's a pretty special event for all of us,” said Hyde. “I'm trying to make it special for my local people as well. In a perfect world, it would be amazing to get my first Funny car win in this specialty car at my favorite track in the world.”

His rookie Funny Car season has also shown Hyde that he is coming into his own with a Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenger win at the Las Vegas Four-Wide Nationals and a runner-up finish at the NHRA New England Nationals. Hyde is on the cusp of breaking into the Funny Car Top Ten in points and this weekend’s race in Norwalk could be a big opportunity for the Canadian.

The Jack and the Green Stock Funny Car will make two qualifying passes on Friday night at 6:00 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. and then will have two more qualifying passes on Saturday at 12:40 p.m. and 3:10 p.m. A stacked Funny Car field of 21 entries will be vying for the 16 spots in Sunday’s eliminations which kick off at 11:00 a.m. The race will be broadcast on FS1 and FOX. For tickets and more information fans can visit www.nhra.com.