Gene was born in 1948 in the small town of Blacksburg, South Carolina.  He is the sixth child of Gabriel and Edith Fulton’s ten children.  He graduated from Blacksburg High School in 1966 and immediately joined the United States Air Force.  After four years in the Air Force which included a one year tour of duty in Viet Nam, Gene was ready to head back home to South Carolina.  Before he left Texas, however, he bought a white 1964 Chevy II Station Wagon which he intended to drive back home to South Carolina and build it into a drag racing car.  He made it all the way to the North side of Atlanta around Lake Hartwell when the oil light came on and forced him to call his sister who drove to Lake Hartwell and towed Gene and the Chevy II home to Blacksburg, SC with a rope.

Gene had a plan for the Chevy II Wagon and began tearing it down almost immediately, only to rebuild it into one of the most famous drag racing cars in the south.  Gene raced three races every weekend, Shelby, NC Dragstrip on Friday nights, Spartanburg, SC on Saturday nights and Shuffletown Dragstrip near Charlotte, NC on Sundays.  Eventually he moved up to IHRA National Events and some NHRA Events.

Gene won his first national event in Bristol, Tennessee in 1973.  He won his first Modified Points Championship in 1974.  Also won IHRA Points Championships in 1975,

1977, 1981 and 1982 for a total of five.

After winning many races with the Wagon, in 1978 Gene’s Wagon was hit by another race car after crossing the finish line in Bristol, Tennessee.  This was the end of the Chevy II Wagon which was demolished by cart wheeling as much as 8 times down the end of the racetrack in Bristol.  Gene was injured and spent a couple nights in the Bristol hospital but was not seriously injured.  Some friends allowed him to drive their race cars to keep him in the running for the point’s championship that year in which he finished second.  After a proper funeral the Chevy II was buried in the back yard of Fulton Competition, the same shop Gene credits the car for having paid for.

Gene built a Chevrolet Monza to replace the Wagon with only mild success and then his last car a 1967 Chevrolet Corvette with which Gene enjoyed his last two point’s championships.

Gene eventually retired from driving race cars in 1987, allowing him to concentrate on his engine building for many categories of sportsman racing and also pro mod racing.  In 2008 one of Gene’s engines ran the first five second run in pro mod history going 5.998 at 240.68 m.p.h. in the Jim Halsey car.

Fulton Competition opened its doors in 1972.  Gene began his business in a rented garage in Spartanburg, SC while working to build his own career as a Modified Eliminator Drag Racer in the IHRA and local drag racing circuits.

  

Gene has built engines for many great drag racers including Mike Boyles, Jerry Jennings,

Charles Carpenter, Tommy Mauney, Steve Cossis, Rich Zehring, Steve Vick, Buzz Varner, Quain Stott, Pat Stoken, Ken Regenthal, Don Plemmons, Jimmy Flynt, Carl Rossler, Greg Pizzino, Gil Mobley, Dick Lockwood, Milton Ledford, Steve Kirk, Tom Dunford, Don Burton and many more.

Fulton Competition specializes in large cubic-inch aluminum Chevrolet engines and custom nitrous systems.  Gene developed the Viper Internal Nitrous system – an original custom nitrous manifold that is often imitated but never duplicated.

Fulton Competition serves more IHRA Pro-Modified nitrous racers than any other engine builder.  Gene and his team of engine specialists bring 35 years of experience to every engine.  Fulton engines are built by current and former racers with actual hands on attention and end to end oversight by Gene.  From Street Racers, Nitrous Quick 8 and Ten inch Tire to Sportsman and Pro-Modified, Fulton Competition constructs custom engines that lead every racer to the Winner’s Circle.

Family Info:  Gene married Kay Wright in June of 1979.  They have two daughters: Kayce born in 1982 and Katie born in 1987.  Kayce graduated with honors in 2004 from Clemson University and married Nic Lane in 2007.  Katie is a 2010 Graduate at Converse College with degrees in Business Marketing and Spanish.  Gene’s hobbies are flying Cessna Airplanes, ultra-light planes and also skydiving.  He also collects classic cars and occasionally builds specialty hot rod cars for fun.