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07/31//00 A big, belated happy birthday (July 30) to the one, the only Rich Carlson. Send the old fart an email eh! And while I'm on the subject send one to Bobby Wilson of Northern Thunder fame tomorrow for his big FiveOh! Gawd, I feel like a teenager...
I'm also reminded that due to the number of nasty on-track incidents recently, it's always advised to send our friendly local DRAW rep, Darlene Evans, notice so she may get her considerable ball of support rolling. I know it's difficult at such times, but that's what she's there for. Please don't let her efforts go to waste.
Seattle PI - Bazemore TRASHES TRACK! Read it HERE
Seattle Times HEADLINE: SIR Operator Trades Insults With Driver "He talks about the racetrack being disgraceful," Rockstad said. "Talk about being disgraceful. He's the top qualifier, with the lowest e.t., and he can't even get out of the first round. That's disgraceful." Times Coverage HERE (HHnote: Jeez, if this kind of mainstream media coverage keeps up, Bob Wilson will have nothing to write about...)
The HH Most Original Headline Award to Tacoma news Tribune 'What a Drag'
Thanks very much to Casey for his great reporting for us this weekend. Despite this being the first time he has ever done such stuff, I'm sure you'll agree he managed to do it the way we like it around here, short, to the point, fun ...and a little different. Gret Job!
Another HH 'insider' sent us this link. Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy!
Am still on some other stuff for the remainder of this week, will update as items comes in.
Casey's NW Nats Report
With all things said and done, this weekend at the Northwest Nationals, was perhaps the best I have experienced. The new rules for the fuel cars made a most definite improvement in the quality of the show. Last year there were several protracted delays caused by oil downs from fuel cars.
This time around the only major oil on the ground came from the Alcohol ranks. I feel some rule and/or penalty changes in the wind for the Federal Mogul cars. Some really wild things went down in the first rounds of top Fuel today. How about David Grubnic going a few rounds? Albeit, most of round wins came from the big red bulb, it was still a very impressive outing from the Montana Express bunch.
Round 2 for Top Fuel had some other interesting developments. First, no one in the whole round won out of the left lane. Also, the first two cars down the left side in Round 2 went red with an almost identical R/T's. (.300 something's) During his losing effort in Round 2, Kenny Bernstien, in the left lane, tore up the right-rear tire something ugly at the finish line. He coasted to a stop without incident, but during the post run interview, crew chief Lee Beard reported that, "There's a ski jump out there in the left lane. I wish they'd fix it!" I noticed as they towed the car back past the grandstands, that the chassis looked tweaked seriously. To the extent that the rear wing had a big angle left-to-right in it. At first I thought that this was because of the dead tire, but it looked inflated and level. Also, any ideas as to why the Bud King's golf cart carried an extra mounted Goodyear on it?
Also, last year I thought the valve cover restraints became mandatory. At first, I saw a few teams without them, but figured that there was some leeway granted to integrate them. This weekend I saw the whole gambit of them. Some teams had the ballistic restraints on the covers (infect, Arley Langlo seemed to have big metallic ones on every flat surface), I saw some metallic covers which seemed to be formed from tin, as well as some cars without them at all. Bob Vandergiff was one of the cars that lacked them and, while I would not be surprised to see that on one of the privateer efforts, Bob is a major player and sees a lot of events.
Funny Car saw its fair share of upsets as well, with Tommy Johnson Jr. taking out the number 1 qualified Whit Bazemore in the first round. Also, Frank Pedregon had his best outing in sometime, ending with the runner up finish to John Force. In Pro Stock, Richie Stevens took out Jeg Coughlin, in the final. And, I could be wrong, but I am almost sure I heard that Richie had removed his WJ built motor for this event, and had reverted to last year's chassis and engine combo for this weekend.
On a more somber note, the motorcycle exhibitionist that the NHRA had booked in, whom was referred to only as 'Reno', had a pretty ugly accident. He was about three-quarters of the way through his routine, then while trying to pop a wheelie while sitting on the handle-bars, managed to fall from the bike and land on his head. He tumbled a few times, then was taken by the medics. This raised the question to mind of why the NHRA thinks it is necessary to hire these folks. Are the races not exciting enough? Do we really need to see the guys jump from a plane with the flags, again?
I also need to concur with Larry's applause of the fellow Division 6 racers who found themselves in late rounds this weekend. I had a hell of a good time and, it was mostly in part to the watching the local folks I have watched and raced in the past beat up on some of the big dollar national teams. Good Show Everyone!
07/30/00 5:00pm Div Sixers Lead The Way at S.I.R
Division Six drivers enjoyed considerable success at their own NHRA National Event today at Seattle International Raceway. In Federal Mogul Funny Car, Bucky Austin proved his win a week ago at the MOPAC National Open at Mission was no fluke as he laid down consistent 5.70s on his way to victory over Steve Gasparrelli in the final round. Abbotsford, British Columbia's Mike Giuliani enjoyed his best ever day behind the wheel with a semi final finish.
In Federal Mogul Dragster The Legend Aero 'Impatience' car of Steve Federlin came out runner-up. It was his best outing in a long time, and coming in front of the local fans and sponsors is just wonderful.
Also enjoying a fabulous outing at home was Pete Kost who runnered-up in Super Stock. The 'Godfather' from Seattle came from the number 21 spot in the 28 car field.
In an all Northwest Stock final it was Hillsboro Oregon's Gary Waldo defeating Toby Lang from nearby Auburn, Wa. Waldo, from the famous family of Ford Stock racers (dad Jim & brother Eric) was behind the wheel of (oh my) his 1968 Nova!
Former World Champ Mike Henderson from Tacoma runnered-up in the stout Super Comp category, while Paul Nero from down I5 in Eugene Oregon took his AT&T sponsored Mustang to the big win in Super Street over home town boy Jim Glenn in his familiar '69 Firebird.
Hopefully we will have some exclusive coverage later tonight or early tomorrow.
Quote of the day...so far:
"There's a ski jump out there in the left lane. I wish they'd fix it!" -Lee Beard, Budweiser King TFD
07/29/00 12:30am Update My pal Casey sends in his second report of the weekend, and please note his sometimes 'biased' opinions are not necessarily those of this website...sorta as this webmaster has never been accused of having an attitude eh...
Today was a short day for me, as there is no way I could make all three days when I have to hike half-way around the road-course to get to my cooler and some shade. I did catch the majority of the professional round three qualifier, and a few other interesting sights around the pits.
My day began with the 2 mile-long line of cars on Highway 18 leading into the event. I managed to do some creative maneuvering in the surrounding neighborhood, but I did notice that a FM/D tow car was not so lucky. The highpoint of the day was when I came onto the entrance road, and spied my 'good' friend Rick Huey directing traffic in the sweltering heat! (Rick, myself, and my little BMW have a bit of a checkered past, to say the least.) I shouted congratulations on the job he was doing, and he in turn muttered something obscene to me. I had always heard that Jim Rockstad and Crew were not allowed on the property, but I had no idea they relegated them to the freeways.
My advise to future spectators of the Northwest Nationals: DO NOT COME AFTER 8AM!!! I hit the track at about 10 AM and ended up parked damn near on the freeway.
The qualifying I saw was relatively uneventful, with several exceptions. In Pro Stock, Ron Krisher improved on his pole-setting effort with a 6.907 at 199.32mph. This was amazing considering the blast furnace-like weather, which slowed most teams. Ricky Smith sits on the bubble, with a 6.959. Several big names sat on the bottom of the ladder by the end of the day, such as Tony Gillig, Tom Hammonds, and Brad Jeter.
Top Fuel found Arley Langlo in the Titan Express Dragster make hit first hit, yielding a non-qualifying 5.888 at 229.39mph. He kept those funny looking tires glued, but the motor kept mixing cylinders. Gary Scelzi, still sits at the top with a 4.652 at 312.64mph. Alan Johnson said in an interview today, that Team Winston's strategy for SIR is to run hard the first 400 feet, and then just coast the rest of the track. Rhonda Hartman-Smith just barely swapped places with 'Techno' Tim Gibson for the bubble with a 4.855/300.80mph lick. Those on the outside looking in, include Bobby Baldwin, Gina Ferraro, and Joe Hartley.
Whit Bazemore set a track record for the Fuel Coupes yesterday with a 4.875. That pass stood to hold the pole today as well. Louis Sweet made a surprise showing as the number 6 qualifier at 5.015. Additionally, and again surprising, was both Cruz Pedregon and Tommy Johnson Jr. qualifying on the bottom of the ladder with a 5.219/233.60mph holding TJ JR's number 16 spot. Non-qualifiers for tomorrow's elimination's include Bob Gilbertson, Gary Densham, and Dale Creasy Jr. Perhaps the most amazing development in the fuel ranks, was the fact that people actually DID NOT qualify for the race! And at Seattle of all places! This seems to be happening at less and less venues.
During the pro-qualifier I overheard a VERY unhappy and vocal Don Elgin talk about his displeasure with the first round of Stock, while sitting in the racer/crew/sponsor reserved seats. I use the term "seats" loosely here, as they were next to the spectator gate at approx. 1000 feet. (e.g.: as far as possible away from the super-category pits.)
As I headed out today on the trek to find my car, an elderly man in a golf car approached us and asked if we would like a ride to the car. Not to look a gift-horse in the mouth, I accepted, and then proceeded to ask why he offered. As it turns out, the NHRA hired he, and some others, to help the disabled spectators negotiate the parking lots. Why he stopped for us I do not know, but I am somehow still troubled by itŠ
I will leave you with a troubling sight. Right before you make the last left towards the pits on the entrance road there are some big billboards which advertise upcoming events. Half of the sign today said, " Thank you all for coming out here all these years." And was signed, Jim Rockstad. I will let you imaginations run wild with thisŠ
07/28/00 11:30pm Update Of the three Seattle 11pm newscasts, two featured NW Nats coverage. KIRO used their own stuff, most of it Funny Cars from behind the fence on the spectator side showing nice shots of the guardwall, even so, their long pit shot of Mike Seekins Super Comp dragster was cool. KING used the cookie cutter NHRA stuff, showing three runs by the top qualifiers in the top three classes. Nobody had Worsham's body tossing run in the final session though.
From the thriving metropolis of Odessa Washington comes Craig Smith, the lone local professional fuel car qualified into the program in the 12th spot with a 4.786 292.65. We can maybe give him a tenth and a shot at Vandergriff in round one on Sunday, but it'll take some 'Edmonton horseshoes' to get him by probable opponent Larry Dixon in round two. Whatever, it's way cool to see a Northwest car in the big show.
Update 4pm You can bet there will be a party in Edmonton tonight...regardless what happens in round two of Federal Mogul Funny Car tomorrow, as the number 16 qualifier John Evanchuk leaves on, then defeats Pat Austin in round one!! I think the flopper fans in Abbotsford will be a jumpin' too when they hear that Mike Giuliani defeated Larry Minor in the opening stanza. To make it probably the biggest round ever for Canadians at this race, Calgary's Roger Bateman also advances. We like to be as neutral as possible around here, but when the Canucks do this good, we simply gotta pound it a bit eh?
Over in FMD it appears our only hope is with Steve Federlin who will have to step up at least a tenth and a half and Mark Hentges who defeated that Oakwood car in Boise, so why not here as well?!?
Comp may be tough for the 'Leaders' while we have a bunch of people in the other classes. Look for more here as we get it.
8am Congrats to current NHRA Federal-Mogul National Point Leaders Pat Austin in Federal Mogul Funny Car and Jody Lang in Stock. The two Div. 6 boys are mong the most respected racers we have, and here's cheering for them bigtime this weekend as they go on in an effort to pad those leads in front of the home town crowd!
Once again I'm sorry to have been not posting emails that have come in, but am still experiencing intermitant connection glitches, among other problems. A recent major video hardware failure makes me wonder just whet else can happen, but am hanging in there, as thanks to some great friends, am able to continue on a massive project that I hopefully will be able to announce in a week or so. LP
EXCLUSIVE HH Insider Report From Seattle!
Well, I never thought that it would ever come to this, but Don Elgin painted his car. Living down the street from him for several years, I have often admired the "Worm's" once black N/SA Pontiac, which is now adorned in white, with blue and red accents. It is very sharp, and seems to be working for him as he qualified second (13.30 12.205 -1.095) out of 55 cars in stock. Additionally, there is a surpassingly small field of 28 is Super Stock.
Congratulations to Van Watson, fresh of his win at Woodburn, for running a 9.901 straight off the trailer with a new trans/converter setup! Not soon after, during the first qualifier for Super Gas, Chad Barclay went into a huge wheel-stand for the first 60-feet, only to come down hard and leave some sparks on the surface. He was able to return the next round.
There were a large amount of Alcohol cars on the SIR grounds today. The 19-car field of Federal Mogul Funny Cars was lead by (big surprise here!) Pat Austin with a 5.764 at 252.05mph. Edmonton's John Evanchuk holds down the bump spot with a 6.039. Also, during the first qualifier for the FM/FC's Dale Van Gundy did some amazing driving. After blowing the tires off just past the 1/8th mile marker, Van Gundy's car proceeded to fishtail violently several times as it crossed the finish line. Amazingly, he managed to stay in his own lane and out of the wall.
In the Federal Mogul Dragster ranks, Brandon Henkelman leads the field with a 5.395 at 261.62mph hit in his A/Fuel Dragster. The quickest Blower car in the 12-car group was, of course, Rick Santos with a 5.477 at 255.73mph.
Another amazing car count was found within the fuel ranks, with 42 cars making qualifying runs today. Several teams, such as Paul Romine, Rhonda Hartman-Smith, and Don Lampus, made their first trek out west to Seattle. In Fuel Funny Car Whit Bazemore set the pole at 4.875/306.81mph, while Bob Gilbertson sits on the bubble with a 5.339. Gary Scelzi leads the 20-car AA/Fuel field, with a 4.652 pass at 312.64mph. The Top Fuel bump is a 5.063 set by Gina Ferraro driving the Peek Brothers rail.
As an interesting side note, I spied the Titan Express Top Fuel Car in various stages of preparation, but never saw it make a pass. The stand out feature on the car were the 18+ inch rear wheels, which has a hard sidewall "TMT" tire that was square with the width of the wheel. The look more like a stock car tire than anything, and at one point I saw a crew kid take a paint roller and a gallon of VHT to themŠ Wild to say the least.
Now the absolute best, as well as most amusing, thing I saw all day, has to be the crack SIR bleacher repair crew. I spent some time in the tower side stands, the ones with the seat backs, ya know. While I was taking in the latest batch of repairs management has made to the stands, (which seem to be crumbling under their own weight, mind you) the stairs and platform leading to my section collapsed! The railing fell off! In comes the bleacher safari, armed with some hammers and a few sticks of dimensional lumber. I left an hour later, as they were still trying to mount the railing. And then the repairman kicked through a board. It was a riot!
Come on back for more of Casey's HH reports later in the weekend. LP
NW NATS LINKS
Official NHRA Event Result Page
Summit Racing NHRA Result Page
Tacoma News Tribune Austin Story (Click on Sports then Top Stories...GEEZ I love trying to link to framed pages...)
Seattle Times Del Worsham Story
07/26/00
Do me a favor, bookmark this page so I get some more hits, and use it as a portal to all your NW Nats web coverage. This way you won't have to sit around and wait for those horribly slow menus to load from the NHRA homepage. Each day HH will post the easiest and biggest list of direct race links you'll find ANYWHERE on the net. Geez, if we're gonna stay home, we better give ya sumpthin' eh?
Racehomepage index here:
http://www.nhra.com/events/2000/race15/index.html
Race results:
Official NHRA Event Result Page
Summit Racing NHRA Result Page
HH will also post links to all the Puget Sound newspapers who often cover the event with a much different slant than does the NHRA site.
And you though the WWF was kids stuff...
Surely you jest...HEY don't call me...
Div 6 Federal Mogul Points HERE I just wish they would post more than the top ten.
Some additional web pages feature this past weekend's MOPAC NHRA National Open at MRP:
http://nhra.com/fedmog/2000/news/july/072501.html
http://nhra.com/wklynews/2000news/july/072501.html
http://nhra.com/wklynews/2000news/july/mission.html
As well a few pics below in yesterday's piece.
My access to web & email seems ok, but am still having to use a rather bogus connection setup given me by tech supp. Feel free to email now, and good luck and safe racing to everyone at Seattle this weekend. LP
07/25/00
A week later and my system is back up...sorta. I am unable to send email, but can receive...I think, so if I don't get yours, or don't answer it, that may be the reason. Hopefully everthing will be fine a day day or two. I will post something here when it is confirmed all is ok. Regardless, it was a bit my own error, but I am simply not impressed with Rogers support. All I can say is that if you have the choice between cable and ADSL it's a complete and TOTAL no-brainer. Go with the Telus system...if you can get it, but that's another story.
While I sit here working on videos (they pay, this site does not) I must say that it was a big wakeup call for me when I realized how much 'real' work I got done while down.
Now, onto this past weekend's NHRA MOPAC National Open at Mission.
It was the kind of performance bash the old track has not seen in a long, long time. Was it coincidence that nearly every one of the amazing performances came in the left lane. A lane that I understand was not scrapped each night due to the request of one Warren Johnson. (Whom it could be said was paid for a tire-testing session here). In addition I don't know if the right lane was shaved anytime during the three days.
One person told me this track is not what it once was, this weekend's numbers could turn that statement into quite the argument, but there is no doubt many racers want the tower side if they have a choice. Also regarding the left side, I have not heard any complaints from the many who were quite vocal a while back regarding 'weird' numbers at MRP. Not since the roll-out in the left lane was re-checked and found to be out...substantially.
Also while on the lane controversy, I replayed my video of the Super Stock final over and over and must conclude that either runner-up Bill Stewart staged well out of the groove on the right side, or the previous clean-up was not up to par. He defiantly spun the tires hard for the first time all weekend. Also of note was that every winner but one from that point on came from the left lane, and the one that did was much later in the order. I simply must question if the clean-up was done well.
A number of performances were impressive however. From Dale Carlson's 5.453 to Hentges 262.00mph, they rank as simply awesome blown alcohol times, and congrats go to the crews who helped make them possible. Bucky Austin's 5.769 in the final and Roger Bateman's thundering 255.75 in a semi final single were also notable.
How about Glen May showing up on short notice and hammering out a pair of 6.38s both times shutting down well before the 1320 marker on the left side. This appearance came about after Ricky Stevens came down with an illness and the Dick Sherman hauler broke down in the Dakotas. That's the way it goes when you book in the big boys sometimes and kudos to BCCCA for making the effort to bring in something for the fans.
One particular big number that came in the right lane was Ron Houneit's amazing 6.76/206.84 on his new Fast Lane Top Fuel Harley. Not his quickest pass (6.74) but his fastest by nearly two mph. The new machine shows plenty of further potential, especially at this track. Mark down Sept. 9/10 for the next time the CMDRA comes to MRP.
Then there was Don Murray whose 7.59 came as a shock to everyone. I do not recall the speed but it too was a new mark for the local street crowd to shoot for. This awesome performance came from a system that has much more potential, but this writer for one, fears these speeds are just a little scary. On a 181mph run the car lost the chute and had a rather 'exciting' time coming to a stop. What this does to the local 'war' is obvious: It is probable that nobody, Glen Braid included, can match or surpass these numbers. It's obvious the substantial step-up will be very difficult for anyone else to duplicate. The mouse is about maxed out, and with the possibility that Murray could well run 40s it appears the current 'war' has been won. It was won with huge cubic inches, light weight, nitrous and a team of people who know what they're doing. A combination that has proven itself time and again on strips all over North America. It was damn impressive, but I do worry about cars like his going that fast. Not to question the safety of the cage or his driving ability, but the car has appeared very squirrly at the top end when the laughing gas is injected in large amounts, more than once. I would calmly suggest Don maybe consider leaving the mark where it is until somebody gets close. We have had a bunch of bigtime crashes lately. I'm simply saying that safety should never come before performance, and when you have everybody covered by so much, why push it?
As for the winners this weekend, Hentges won FMD over Carlson. Bucky, in FMFC over Bateman, while the Giroux family doubled up with dad Dale taking Top Comp over Ken Kennedy and his son Aaron winning Junior over Danny Barton. Bill Bushmaker took Combo (after some confusion as to if Comp cars could run) in a repeat of the June 25 FMDRS here that Stewart won. Jeff Woodbury claimed Super Comp gold over Mike Ferderer who was also won Super Gas against Joe Mura in a repeat of last year's NW Nats final that saw Mura win. Rob Mason won Super Pro with Martin Rachel runner-up, while Quinten Chambers took Pro over Martin Jackman and Brad Potter took his big 66 Pontiac convertible to victory in Sportsman against Clint Steele.
Including all feature cars a total of 274 machines ran.
Updates here will continue to be slim for awhile as I work on videos. LP
Lezlee & Mark Hentges
Bill Bushmaker
Bucky Austin
Ron Houneit
Warren Johnson
Don Murray 'chuteless' at 180mph
07/17/00
PLEASE NOTE: Until I have the time to sort out the absolute mess my NHRA pages are in, all info, results, etc. will be posted here. LP
NHRA MOPAC Canadian National Open/Round NOTES
July 20 Thursday
Gates Open 6pm to 9pm for parking
July 21 Friday
Gates open 8am to 3pm
Gates reopen 6pm to 9pm
Tech 2pm to 7pm
NHRA License & permanent number sales 2pm to 7pm
Test & Tune 9am to 4:30pm
Open ONLY to vehicles racing this weekend. ALL drivers
in ALL catagories MUST have an NHRA number. Call NHRA
Office 360-698-3828 to obtain numbers. Do NOT call the
track for numbers.
July 22 Saturday
Tech 7am
Jr Dragster time trials 8am (2 runs)
Time trials/qualifying 8:30am (3 runs)
Run order: Sportsman, Pro, Super Pro, Super Stock/Stock
Combo. Super Street, Super Gas, ET Snow/Bike, Super Comp
& Top Comp)
Federal Mogul Dragsters 1pm & 4pm
Federal Mogul Funny Cars 2pm & 5pm
Top Fuel Harleys 2:30pm & 5:30pm (Ron Houneit vs.
Steve Heidner)
Pro Stocks featuring Warren Johnson 3pm & 6pm
Secure Track 6:15pm
Autograph Session 6:30 to 7pm
July 23 Sunday
Jr. Dragster Eliminations 8am (rounds 1 & 2)
Eliminations 9am
Junior Dragster round 3
Pro Stocks Noon, & 5pm
FMD 12, 2 & 4pm
FMFC 1,3 & 5pm
Nitro Harleys 1 & 4pm
NOTE: All times approximate.
Friday Test & Tune $50
Brackets for Sat. & Sun $60
Classes for Sat. & Sun. $100
For more info call Mission Raceway at 604-826-6315
- No Hot Rod class at this event.
- This event is round two of the B.C. Provincial Bracket Challenge
- Super Comp, Super Gas & Super Street will be laddered for the first round of eliminations
- All Bracket classes will be random paired in first round of eliminations.
Word of yet another bad accident comes from Bremerton. Top Comp racer Brandon Hutalla got loose and rear-ended an unidentified roadster resulting in fire from a broken fuel line and much damage to both cars. Both drivers were burned, but were back at the track later in the day. This is all the info I have at this time. Coming on the back of the nasty crash at Woodburn the previous week, maybe it's time we all sat back, took a breath, checked up on all your safety equipment, and make that extra effort to ensure you are doing everything possible to stay safe out there.
07/16/00 9:30pm
Houneit Wins, Claims Four CMDRA Records in Debut of New Fueler
Mission Raceway Park - Haney, B.C.'s Ron Houneit
debuted a new Top Fuel Harley in spectacular fashion here
today as he not only won the event over a stellar field,
but set both ends of the Canadian Motorcycle Drag Racing
Association's 1/4 mile and 1/8 mile Top Fuel records.
After a 7.50 single in round one that saw him get out
of the throttle and run a 7.50...at 200.53 mph,
he put away Jeff Carney in round two with a 6.866/202.20
followed by a semi final 6.84/199.91 win over Jim Flower
culminating with a 6.83/200.71mph blast in the final against
Edmonton's Ken Kent who ran a 7.43/162. Houneit's Fast
Lane machine was only completed the night before this
event began.
After qualifying number one in Top Fuel, Marysville, Washington's
Steve Heidner lost in the opening round, but went on to
win in Pro Fuel defeating Jeff Carney of Kirkland, Wa.
10.54/143 to a 10.80/132.
Lee Uhrich from Abbotsford was simply awesome in Pro Stock
running times of 8.17 and 8.16 in the final to get by
Rick Dawson of Yorkton, Sask who went 8.38.
Other winners included George Welch of Edmonton running 7.65/166 to defeat Langley's Chris Gartman in the Pro Dragster final, Greg Coen from Springfield Oregon getting by Ross Cuthbertson in Modified 9.11/143 to a 9.33/143. In Super Gas, John Fyvie of Airdie Alberta ran a 10.26/126 to defeat Mo Coen who ran 10.36/130 on the 10.20 class index. Renton Washington's Steve Tuggle won Pro Modified running 8.18/166 to get by a broken Dan Boeum of Edmonton. Dan Tempel of Chilliwack won Superbike over Abbotsford's Mike Sheehan 9.225 on a 9.22 dial to a 10.05 on a 10.00 dial-in for Sheehan. Mission's Dave Galbiati took Street over Coquitlam's Dave LeBlanc 10.09 on a 10.00 dial to an 11.07 on a 10.81 dial. Trophy Bracket went to Troy Smith from Maple Ridge running an 11.87 on his 11.75 dial to win over Abbotsford's Ron Rowse who had an 11.36 on an 11.05 dial.
For complete results on today's CPSA race please check their website. In the unofficial battle of the area's quickest street cars it was a near tie with Glen Braid winning on Saturday night, then Murray winning their race today, when Braid popped the burst panel. Braid went 7.72, Murray 7.75 in separate rounds. This battle is just getting better and better every week, as both drivers say they can go quicker. The seven sixty zone should be blitzed at the next MRP/CPSA race August 5/6...which is the same weekend the CMDRA runs at Ashcroft.
9:00am
Interesting stuff on Bill Evans' Grapevine.
Notes from Mission this weekend include a Friday non-injury crash of the former Bob/Val Davenport Pro Mod car resulting in near total destruction of the new ride. Did not get a driver ID, but understand the throttle stuck, car got crossed up and went into the guardrail about halftrack very hard.
CMDRA action from yesterday saw the show go well past 10pm. Lights had been brought in and it was quite the deal with the evening ending with two dozen nitro bikes and a wild match race between Glen Braid and Don Murray. Braid did a pair of wheelstands high enough to bend the bars, Murray (with new nitrous system) launched hard ahead of the peddling Braid, then got squirrly down track allowing the blown ride to drive by for a very close win. As for the CPSA portion of the program a ton of the street legal cars broke making them look like real race cars. Ron Houneit was out with a brand new Top Fuel bike, and Julie Boyd was running her and hubby Dave's blown fuel Suzuki. I believe a Pro Gas record was set in the evening, but non of the nitro bikes were able to tame the hot surface to any extent, though we did see a bunch of squirrly runs, a few big wheelies and some rather interesting crew members...and JR Carr was out testing his Pro Stocker.
Am not sure if we can have video done due to other projects, but we'll see once I get back tonight. Until then slap on lotsa sunscreen.
07/13/00
Bill Evans' Grapevine now includes a reply from Chris Blair regarding the at Woodburn 'checkup'.
Home from Oz, Jim Grant has final review up on his www.1320racing.com site.
I still do not have a defiant answer as to when exactly the racing starts tomorrow out at MRP. It's gonna be a nice day, so just make sure you're there. Heck I've been reminded by more than a few guys that the lady watching at the bike drags on sunny days is worth the price of admission alone...that is if you're into leather 'n such...hmmmm.And I suppose you'll want photos too...
And don't forget the NHRA Northwest Division E.T. Circuit of Champions at Bremerton Raceway. Say hi to Rich Carlson for us.
Finally tonight, I'm sorry to the many who have sent in emails, photos, etc that I have not posted. I will asap. I'm currently working on a project that I dare not mention as it would surely jinx me beyond anything it already has. Stay tuned and keep your fingers crossed for me.
07/12/00
This weekend finds a big double-header out the valley in Mission.
A fine field of fuel bikes will be on hand and with some decent air (re: cool) could flat fly down the Mission quarter mile. Always a fun, laid-back affair, the CMDRA race is always a good one.
While not actually advertised as a night race, expect them to run well into the evening. Gates open at 9am, and to the best of my limited knowledge, racing does not begin until 3pm. The bikers are famous for not being 'morning people' so sleep in, then have a decent mid-day meal out somewhere near the track (support those locals eh).
Since it will be in the cooler night air, be aware that mosquito season is back, and though not nearly as bad as the high-water year of '99, the pesky lil critters are out and about so bring the deet.
Sunday will be a 'regular' day schedule with gates at 7, qualifying at 9.
Also on tap this weekend is a CPSA points race. Despite some scheduling 'glitches', the event will go on with about 20 cars running. Don't show up with your streeter unless you are a paid up member and have already received confirmation you are in this race.
The Friday practice is full, as it is a high school race, and they get priority on such days.
For more info call the track at 604-826-6315 or check the MRP website.
If I can get any info on next week's show, I'll post it.
07/11/00
And you were wondering what's happening on the future of Seattle International Raceway...
Devices??? We don't need no stinking devices...see Grapevine for more...
Word on the street, from non-official sources, says Warren Johnson, Richie Stevens and two other Pro Stocks will be at the Mission MOPAC National Open July 22/23. I also have it from the horses mouth that Jeff Lane will be behind the wheel of a P/S for the first time at the same event. At this date no nitro cars are on the menu...at this time...today...yesterday...know whatumeen...exclusive HH hint: Remember what Jim Dunn used to do at those Seattle 64 flopper shows...no not the burnouts from the finish line...what he used to do that lead up to those...
your cards and letters are welcome.
PS: Happy birthday Flyin' Phil Elliott!
email him HERE flyinphil@home.com
Spoke to Joe Aluise Sr. this morning. Has hired is own in-house engine person (no further comment), and expects to have the car into the nines at the next available quick event...can you say Dutch at Maple Grove? Yes, this despite the current appeal to NHRA. Having spoken to enough Stock engine builders over the past few years, I personally feel that suspensions are not the answer. Take away any record runs and make 'em start over with new parts. Check 'em again as usual after a record run, and if they are not right, send 'em back to try again next time. As one much wiser person that I once said "Unless the rules are crystal clear, they are open to my interpretation". Ehmen.
Racer note: Larry P .will not be attending the NW Nats this year.
DIVISION SIX WILL HOST THREE WESTERN CANADIAN
EVENTS IN EIGHT DAY PERIOD
Due to rain forcing a re-scheduling the June Canadian
National Open at Budweiser Motorsports Park in Edmonton,
Alberta, the NHRA Northwest Division finds itself with
a busy week of activity in early August. Edmonton will
now host a rare mid-week event between the originally
scheduled Prince George, British Columbia and Calgary,
Alberta Division Six Canadian National Open Series events.
North Central Motorsports Park will kick off the first ever Western Canada Speedweek with the Canadian Bracket Nationals on August 5 & 6. Drivers competing in the B.C. Provincial Challenge will battle in Super Pro, Pro, Sportsman, E.T. Snow/Bike and Jr. Dragster. In addition, the event will also feature the U.S.A. versus Canada Jet Car Showdown. For more information please phone 250-967-4130.
Two days later the Canadian National Open Series returns to the Budweiser Motorsports Park in Edmonton. BMP will host a test n' tune on Tuesday, August 8 and event qualifying will begin on Wednesday, August 9 at 10 a.m. Three rounds of qualifying and time trials will be held prior to the first round of eliminations at 3 p.m. The evening show concludes with a "Night of Fire" featuring Federal Mogul Dragster, Funny Car and Jet Car Exhibition. Sportsman categories include Stock/Super Stock Combo, Super Comp, Super Gas and Super Street as well as all bracket classes. For more information please phone 780-461-5801.
Race City Motorsports Park in Calgary will wrap up the busy week with NHRA's biggest National Open event. The Race City National Open gets underway on Friday, August 11 with tech, test n' tune and Quick 32 Competition. Qualifying and Record Runs gets underway on Saturday with final eliminations on Sunday, August 13. Like Edmonton, Calgary will host competition in all NHRA Sportsman and Bracket classes. For more information please contact Race City 403-272-RACE.
"It's definitely going to be a busy week for the drivers, crews and officials," said Division Director Chris Blair. "We hope that the fact that we are presenting so many opportunities to race in such a short period of time will encourage racers from the U.S. and Vancouver, B.C. area to make the trip and enjoy these great facilities."
Dear Racers:
Perhaps the most difficult aspect of preparing for the Prolong Super Lubricants Northwest Nationals presented by Napa is the sportsman parking. In 2000 we will follow the same formula as the 1999 event which seemed to work.
We will allow cars to begin lining up in the campground/parking area located just inside the main gates of S.I.R. on Monday morning prior to the event.
We will begin the official pit parking process on Wednesday promptly at 12 noon.
We will distribut more information regarding the National event at the upcoming Mission National Open and via Horsepowerheaven and The Grapevine.
Thanks for your support of the sport.
-- Chris Blair
NHRA Championship Drag Racing
E-mail: nhradiv6@worldnet.att.net
Recent Links of Interest
http://www.speedvision.com/pub/articles/racing/09commentary/000707.html
http://www.speedvision.com/pub/articles/racing/09commentary/000705.html
http://www.stockcarnotice.com/
http://www.jglennmiller.com/teammission/index.html
07/10/00
The following are the final results from the NHRA Federal-Mogul Drag Racing Series event at Woodburn Dragstrip:
FEDERAL-MOGUL DRAGSTER
Quarterfinals
1) Brandon Henkelman, san Jose, Calif., 5.543 seconds,
256.26 miles per hour def. 8) Brad Hansen, Bellevue, Wash.,
9.710, 73.26
2) Duane Shields, Las Vegas, Nev., 9.830, 83.18 def. 7)
Kim Parker, Graham, Wash., no show
3) Mark Hentges, Federal Way, Wash., 6.931, 166.97 def.
6) Steve Federlin, Oregon City, Ore., 13.118, 58.31
Dale Carlson, Olympia, Wash., 5.624, 253.16 def. 5) Paul
Jones, Stockton, Calif., no show
Semifinals
Henkelman, 6.333, 211.86 def. Carlson, 6.494, 234.74
Hentges, 5.613, 249.58 def. Shields, 18.584, 46.09
Final
Henkelman, 5.578, 252.52 def. Hentges, 5.611, 250.83
FEDERAL-MOGUL FUNNY CAR
Quarterfinals
1) Pat Austin, Tacoma, Wash., '99 Firebird, 5.785 seconds,
250.55 miles per hour def. 8) Steve Gasparrelli, Covina,
Calif., '99 Firebird, 6.174, 207.80
5) Ed Marx, Stockton, Calif., '95 Avenger, 5.815, 245.43
def. 4) Larry Miner, Woodbridge, Calif., '98 Avenger,
5.852, 245.56
7) Russ Parker, Salem, Ore., '00 Avenger, 5.849, 244.43
def. 2) Bucky Austin, Fife, Wash., '00 Camaro, 5.904,
239.04
2) John Hyland, Springfield, Ore., '00 Camaro, 5.891,
243.17 def. 6) Dan McGlone, Oregon City, Ore., '99 Camaro,
5.923, 243.63
Semifinals
Austin, 5.790, 250.90 def. Marx, 10.321, 86.67 Parker,
5.833, 243.90 def. Hyland, 5.964, 240.00
Final
Austin, 5.883, 245.96 def. Parker, 5.914, 241.22
COMPETITION
Quarterfinals
9) Tom Tucker, Bend, Ore., F/A '92 Lumina, 9.275, 154.53
def. 1) Brian Hyerstay, Eugene, Ore., G/D dragster, 10.763,
73.14 (foul start)
4) Jim Warter, Fox Island, Wash., B/SM '92 Camaro, 9.027,
132.58 def. 12) Mike Pessemier, Graham, Wash., B/D dragster,
7.162, 167.84 (foul start)
6) Schuck Jr., Eugene, Ore., C/ED dragster, 8.898, 104.52
def. 2) Fred Gross, La Crescenta, Calif., D/A '96 Pontiac,
16.558, 49.50 (foul start)
3) Nick Jondahl, Battle Ground, Wash., G/A '92 Firebird,
8.952, 150.40 def.
6) Randy Jones, Monarch Beach, Calif., B/A '00 Firebird,
7.375, 187.50
Semifinals
Tucker, 8.654, 155.92 def. Warter, 8.913, 151.82
Jondahl, 9.537, 103.56 def. Schuck, 7.471, 160.57
Final
Jondahl, 8.989, 149.15 def. Tucker, 8.695, 155.95
SUPER STOCK
Steve Wann, Modesto, Calif., GT/TD '98 Dodge, 10.704,
122.74 def. Gary Rouse, Bremerton, Wash., SS/LA '64 Chevrolet,
11.183, 111.00
STOCK
Jody Lang, Puyallup, Wash., M/SA '79 Malibu, 12.790, 97.13
def. Don Little, Westley, Calif., A/SA '70 Barracuda,
10.352, 128.22
SUPER COMP
Kyle Seipel, San Lorenzo, Calif., dragster, 8.915, 143.83
def. Emmett McKillop, Lynnwood, Wash., dragster, 8.924,
160.51
SUPER GAS
Van R. Watson, Tukwila, Wash., '70 Nova, 9.908, 139.68
def. Chuck Glanz, Myrtle Creek, Ore., '34 Chevrolet, 9.922,
152.56
SUPER STREET
Gary Erickson, Portland, Ore., '84 Mustang, 10.905, 135.68
def. Craig Bickle, Courtenay, B.C., '67 Camaro, broke
TOP COMP
Gary Olson, Hillsboro, Ore., '95 Lumina, 7.741, 169.26
def. Ken Kennedy, Port Coquitlam, B.C., dragster, 7.676,
182.66
PRO SPORTSMAN MOTORCYCLE
Jerry Stinson, Medford, Ore., '84 Kawasaki, 8.966, 153.00
def. Brian Hudson, Kennewick, Wash., '80 Suzuki, 8.892,
144.41
SUPER PRO
Nick Bresaw, Beaverton, Ore., '69 Mustang, 11.670, 102.13
def. Howard Baron, Forks, Wash., '68 Nova, 10.175, 142.04
JUNIOR DRAGSTER LIGHTNING
Adam DePeel, Gladstone, Ore., 9.182, 72.00 def. Candice
Engelgau, Silverton, Ore., 10.700, 59.23 (foul start)
JUNIOR DRAGSTER THUNDER
Sean Kennedy, Bellevue, Wash., 11.498, 52.37 def. Kyle
Knudtson, Albany, Ore., 11.734, 53.25
WOODBURN, Ore. - Can anyone stop
Pat Austin?
That's the question racers are asking in the NHRA's
Northeast Division after the Tacoma, Wash., driver scored
his third-straight victory of the season, this time at
the Les Schwab Tires NHRA Federal-Mogul Drag Racing Series
event.. "We were lucky to win this one," said Austin,
who defeated Salem, Ore.'s Russ Parker in the final round,
5.88 seconds to 5.91 seconds. "The car began shaking the
[rear] tires and never settled down; it kept bouncing
all the way down track. "We left the door open for Russ,
who was running great this weekend. I hate it when that
happens." Austin's two other victories both came at Mission
Raceway Park in Mission, B.C., in May and June. With a
101-point advantage over second-placed Parker the Northeast
Division title is all but locked up. Displaying driving
savvy beyond his years, 20-year-old Brandon Henkelman
of San Jose, Calif., out-drove Federal Way, Wash.'s Mark
Hentges to claim the Federal-Mogul Dragster victory. With
both cars heading down track, Henkelman's dragster began
to spin the rear tires, forcing the driver to momentarily
get off the throttle. Hentges, meanwhile, strayed out
of the racing groove and had to drive his dragster away
from the centerline. Had he crossed it Hentges would have
received an automatic disqualification. Henkelman got
to the finish line first, 5.57 seconds to 5.61 seconds.
"The car was shaking the [rear] tires real bad through
the middle of the course, and I could feel it was trying
to spin them," recalled Henkelman. "All sorts of things
were going through my mind: what I would do if [the car]
didn't stop shaking the tires; what I would do if it started
to spin the tires. Fortunately it settled down, hiked
up the front end, and took off again."
07/03/00 HH site will not be updated until I get caught up with videos. No other reason, and currently no idea when that will be, maybe weeks not days. Will not be at Woodburn for FMDRS, and please excuse if I don't answer email for awhile for same reason. The life of this site and more rests on me getting these videos done, so please give me some space for awhile.LP