Tommy Franklin realizes that luck can play a major role in drag racing.
Good fortunes can mean the difference between a win or a loss.

However, to Franklin, luck could have easily meant the difference between life and death.

Franklin competes in the American Drag Racing League’s Pro Nitrous
division and during the recently completed event in Budds Creek, Md.,
the Fredericksburg, Va.-based driver suffered one of the more
devastating crashes in the history of the racing series.

He was uninjured  in the crash and by his assessment, lucky.

Roger Richards Photo

Terry Haddock spent much of his Friday evening and the wee hours of
Saturday during the recently completed IHRA Torco Nothern Nationals pinpointing a cause for his massive engine explosion on the
starting line. He had the answer his was looking for by the time he
made Saturday’s first run.

Chris Rivas has quickly learned that riding for the G2 Motorsports
team, which is sponsored by aftermarket V-twin giants Drag Specialties
and S&S Cycle has more than its fair share of perks.

Rivas has experienced one of those perks in visiting this weeks Sturgis
Motorcycle rally  in Sturgis, S.D. He’ll be mingling with the thousands
of riders at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally for the first time Monday and
Tuesday, but he won’t be riding his motorcycle.

Troy Williams, Jr. had to win a race for a fallen friend and it’s
fitting he attained the feat at a track he’s experienced much success.
He scored a Top Dragster win at the annual Lucas Oil Division 3 event
at National Trail Raceway in Columbus, Ohio.
Last season, Williams left the Columbus with a pair of NHRA “Wally”
trophies, as he was triumphant in both Super Comp and Top Dragster at
the annual Lucas Oil Division Race Series at National Trails.

This one was special, though.

Remember in grade school when you were assigned the traditional “what I did last summer” essay?

Frank Gugliotta admits to using the experience of crew chief on an NHRA team to improve his IHRA Pro Stock effort. (Roger Richards)

If IHRA Pro Stock racer Frank Gugliotta were presented with the same
task, he’d fill the pages with details of working on the NHRA 500-inch
scene as a crew chief for friend Justin Humphreys; a position which
became available when previous tuner Bob Glidden retired.

Make no bones about it Gugliotta is having as much fun turning the
wrenches  on an NHRA Pro Stock as he is driving on the IHRA circuit.
And, what he is learning as a crew chief is being applied to his IHRA
effort.

Never mind the fact Gugliotta’s IHRA engine displaces 300-inches more
than Humphreys’ car, with each outing he gathers that much more
information he can use in both types of racing.

Spencer Massey admits he won’t rest until November, and then he’ll kick up his feet and watch some football and relax.

Spencer Massey took over the Top Fuel points lead by winning.

Chances are while the gridiron battles rage on his television screen,
he’ll think back to the point in the season when he stopped the
veterans at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park in Martin, Mich., to win his
third event of the season.

Along the way he’ll reflect how he kept an uncharacteristic level head
for a rookie driver. He’ll remember how he knocked off the defending
world champion and made his first foray in the 4.6-second zone.

Massey will remember that weekend. But, that’s in the future and he’s looking anywhere but there at this moment.

He’s living by cliché, one day at a time. One round and one event at a
time is the motto for the day. No fist-pumping for the driver of Mitch
King’s Top Fuel dragster.

Mike Castellana isn’t really sure what to believe regarding his
recent performance at the IHRA Torco Northern Nationals in Martin, Michigan. The veteran nitrous Pro Modified
racer knows he’s running quicker than ever, but he’s also aware his
supercharged adversaries aren’t running as quick as they could.

Regardless of the answer, the 2006 IHRA Pro Modified world champion is
doing everything he can to gain a performance advantage while the hot
summer months favor his combination.

Castellana knows that he’s got to make hay while the sun is out.

“Hopefully if we can outrun them [supercharged racers] during the hot
months of summer, when the weather cools down maybe we can just keep
pace with them,” Castellana explained. “We have made some gains no
doubt, but the racing should be a lot closer than it has been this
weekend.”

NHRA Pro Stock driver Dave Connolly will be making his minor league
pitching debut in Duluth, Minn., Tuesday night when he

Dave Connolly makes his minor league pitching debut on Wednesday.

throws out the
first pitch for the Duluth Huskies game at Wade Stadium.

And he returns to the mound Wednesday night in Brainerd, Minn., to
deliver the first pitch prior to the Brainerd Blue Thunder game at
Stewart Mills Stadium in the second of two Charter Nights with Dave
Connolly at the ballpark.

Beginning at the next NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series event in Brainerd,
Minn., Aug. 7-9, veteran nitro tuner Nick Boninfante will assume the duties of
co-crew chief on the “Big Red”, 8,000-horsepower Mac Tools Top Fuel dragster
driven by 30-time NHRA national event champion Doug Kalitta for Kalitta
Motorsports.

Boninfante begins his second stint at Kalitta Motorsports. He first worked
for the team as a clutch specialist on team owner and drag racing legend Connie
Kalitta’s Top Fuel team in 1991 and 1992. From 1993 until 1996, Boninfante
served as clutch specialist on Scott Kalitta’s Top Fuel machine and won
back-to-back world championships (1994-1995) with Scott and fellow crewmen Jim
Oberhofer, currently the crew chief on the KB Racing, LLC Top Fueler driven by
Hillary Will, Jim’s brother Jon Oberhofer, who will work alongside Nick as
co-crew chief on the Mac Tools rail, and Donnie Bender, current crew chief on
the Larry Dixon-driven Top Fuel dragster.

Andy Kelley Captures First Career Nitro Funny Car Ironman

Spencer Massey (Top Fuel), Jim Halsey (Pro Modified), Laurie
Cannister (Alcohol Funny Car) and Jeff Dobbins (Pro Stock) also claim
class championships at IHRA Torco Northern Nationals

Andy Kelley was thinking about parking his car a little early this
season. Heading into the Torco Northern Nationals at US 131 Motorsports
Park, Kelley knew his race team was up against the wall financially. He
also knew how quickly things could change.

Kelley, a Piedmont, S.C. resident, defeated Paul Lee in the Torco
Pro Nitro Funny Car final round to claim his first career national
event victory and get the financial boost he needed to be able to
compete at the Sooner Nationals later this month.