The GSTA Rod and Custom Spectacular, which fills the State Fairgrounds Coliseum next weekend, will have a big surprise - the return of Minnesota drag racing legend Doc Halladay.

GSTA- Gopher State Timing Association - serves as the sponsor and coordinator of the event.

He's bringing another surprise. The racer who won match races against hall-of-famers John Force and Don "The Snake" Prudhomme will unveil a new version of his well-known dragster, the "Telstar" Plymouth Arrow funny car.

Halladay, who last raced in 1991, will soon return to the track as well. He hopes to compete this spring in the new Nostalgia Class, which is bringing back some of the top drag racers of yesteryear. The class also revives some of yesterday's distinctive vehicles, which appeal to modern fans because the cars don't resemble each other the way today's cookie-cutter dragsters often do.

Moving here as a teenager, Halladay started drag racing in the 1960s. He says he was nudged into the sport by, shall we say, police efforts. "After I got some tickets racing on the streets," he explains, "I decided I better take it to the track." After cutting his teeth in a 1934 Ford with a Chevy engine at Minnesota Dragways and North Star Dragway, both long closed, he started racing all over the country.

He competed against the best drivers on three circuits: the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association), now the sport's top circuit; the IHRA (International Hot Rod Association) and the AHRA (American Hot Rod Association), now racing only in Spokane. He says he did well in the AHRA match races and he narrowly lost the IHRA titles in 1989 and 1990. He had a best elapsed time of 5.416 seconds in the quarter-mile and a top speed of 267.85 mph. He also understands the sport's risks. He once blew a tire at 260 mph, he says, and "burned a car to the ground" at Brainerd International Raceway.

He quit while still competitive - reluctantly, he says - "because the handwriting was on the wall." Halladay, who raced for more than 25 years, says he "had all the fun I could afford. Costs were escalating and, without a major sponsor, it would soon be hard to stay competitive." With those sponsors hard to get, Halladay decided his business, custom building car and display trailers, wouldn't provide the funds he needed to compete effectively in the 20+ races he ran each year.

Though he won some nationally sanctioned races and a lot of match race competitions, including Memorial Day and Labor Day competitions at Union Grove near Milwaukee six years running, Halladay says he only broke even most years. But, he notes, "I don't regret the money I spent."

Halladay is returning to drag racing because the new Nostalgia Class, which allows no car body newer than 1980, keeps costs down by limiting the cars. The group has the same motors and blocks as other classes, but rules keep a lid on things like the size of superchargers and fuel pumps.

He has two "secrets" he won't divulge. One is his age, the other his real first name. "There was a guy at a track in Oklahoma who tried to find out what the name was every year. He never did," Halladay says.

Halladay actually raced longer in a Dodge Daytona and will use its color scheme on the new Telstar, which he'll "cackle" at the show next Sunday, weather permitting. Halladay came out of retirement because he misses the speed and competition of drag racing. "It's a great sport," he says. "I had a lot of great experiences and met a lot of great people. And if you can do the things you like in life," he adds, "it's a great thing."