Not many people thought Funny Car qualifying would even take place, Tony Pedregon included.

Pedregon responded after the rain delay to take the No. 1 spot with a
track record 4.170-second effort during first day qualifying for the
NHRA Mopar Mile High Nationals at Bandimere Speedway located outside of
Denver, Co.

With premium track conditions in the late night second-round qualifying session, Craig Treble seized the moment.

Treble of New Orleans, came in with a 7.358-second mark, which put his
bike on top of the ladder during first day qualifying for the NHRA
Mopar Mile High Nationals in Denver, Co.

Treble is fourth in the national points standings with a 459 total.

"We're really satisfied," said Treble, who finished a career-best
second in points in 2002. "The first pass we made (Friday) was a scrub
past. We just got the motor back from Vance & Hines. It was at a
scheduled freshen up where it got a new crank, pistons and valves and
you can't go out there and whoop on those things on the first hit. We
went out there and had a very moderate setup on the first hit and got
down the track OK."

What does a woman who has won just about everything there is in drag racing do for an encore?

Keep winning more, of course.

And that is exactly what Pro Modified driver Melanie Troxel intends to
do as she looks to add another victory in yet another drag racing class
to her resume at the next two IHRA Nitro Jam national events at Grand
Bend and Martin later this month.

“I know everybody on the team is looking forward to going up there. We
have heard a lot of great things about Grand Bend and Martin and we are
excited to be a part of both,” Troxel said.

After nearly 30 highly-successful years in drag racing's Pro Stock
ranks, David Reher felt it was time to do something different.

After
decades of dominating 500-inch Pro Stock engine building, David Reher
has settled into a new home within ADRL's new Pro Nitrous division. (Ian Tocher)

Enter Shannon Jenkins.

"Shannon called me (in 2006) and asked me if I would be interested in doing an engine
program for his Pro Nitrous car," Reher said. "I have been at this
business a long time and we (Reher-Morrison Racing) had done some
previous nitro stuff with Shannon, but we had never done a complete
(nitrous) engine program.. I still thought it would be exciting to do
something different."

Reher has been the master engine builder for Reher-Morrison since his
longtime business and racing partner Buddy Morrison passed away in
December of 1998 from cancer.In 2007, Reher-Morrison stepped up its
involvement in the American Drag Racing League's Pro Nitrous class and
this season Reher-Morrison has become a dominate player in Pro Nitrous
competition.

Word comes to us from Bob Gilbertson's PR rep Bob Doerrer that sometime
between Sunday and Monday night someone broke into the team's facility
and race shop in Blacksburg, S.C. and stole their parts trailer.

Gary Courtier recently took delivery of a new 1968 Camaro built by
Jerry Bickel. The sleek ride is powered by an 886 cubic inch,

Todd Dziadosz

nitrous assisted engine from Fulton Competition.

Performance
Auto Crafters applied the paint scheme and had it ready to race in two
weeks as promised. This is the fourth car Performance Auto Crafters has
painted for Courtier and he believes the paint job speaks for itself.

Pro Modified can be just as unpredictable overseas as evidenced by this photo from European correspondent Roger Gorringe.

Veteran sportsman drag racer Todd Hoerner has been named Sales Manager at Sonny’s Racing, a leading manufacturer of mountain motor and fast bracket racing engines.

“Todd
has over 26 years of racing experience at the track, which is essential
to the right engine combination, and race car components,” said Sonny
Leonard, owner and founder.

Hoerner will continue racing in
NHRA Competition Eliminator and Top Sportsman. Most recently he set the
NHRA A/AA national record with a 6.52 elapsed time at 212 miles per
hour while using a 707-inch Sonny’s GM Hemispherical headed engine.

A trip to Grand Bend wouldn’t be complete without the storied rivalry
between two of London, Ontario’s best going head to head at

Rob Atchison and Paul Noakes (bottom), both London residents, will join recent
additions Larry Dobbs and Jason McKnight in a weekend long grudge match
to determine who truly is the King of Canada in Alcohol Funny Car.

nearly 250 miles per hour on the quarter mile.

And that is exactly what drag racing fans are going to get when the
IHRA returns to Ontario for the MOPAR Canadian Nationals July 17-19 at
the Grand Bend Motorplex.

Rob Atchison and Paul Noakes, both London residents, will join recent
additions Larry Dobbs and Jason McKnight in a weekend long grudge match
to determine who truly is the King of Canada in Alcohol Funny Car.

“I have loved watching these guys compete ever since we opened the
track 14 years ago and it wouldn’t seem right not to have them here,”
said track owner Paul Spriet. “We knew we had to do something to
showcase these amazing drivers. We also wanted to do something for the
fans as this is the only time they get to see these guys race so close
to home.”

Atchison, a three-time IHRA Alcohol Funny Car world champion, and
Noakes, last year’s AFC runner-up and a two-time MOPAR Canadian
Nationals winner, will go head-to-head all weekend long in a clash of
Canada’s best in Alcohol Funny Car.