2010 ADRL DRAGSTOCK - EVENT NOTEBOOK

SATURDAY NOTEBOOK - A DAY OF RAIN, A DAY OF INSPIRATION

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ANOTHER TIME, ANOTHER CITY - Inclement weather forced the postponement of the American Drag Racing League (ADRL) Simpson Dragstock VII on Saturday at Rockingham Night_Crowd Dragway.

The ADRL’s biggest and most prestigious race will now be completed at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, OH, which will also be the site of the Summit Racing Equipment Ohio Drags IV on Sept. 24-25.

Both events will be completed during the weekend.

A sudden and steady rain interrupted the final round of qualifying on Saturday, causing ADRL President and CEO Kenny Nowling to postpone what had already been a record-breaking event.

“Nobody wanted to finish Dragstock at Rockingham Speedway more than myself, but unfortunately we have to call the event,” ADRL President and CEO Kenny Nowling said.

“There’s no way the cars can run after all the rain. Our track crew is the best in the business, but this is just unfortunate. There’s not a lot we can do.”

Final qualifying was completed in Extreme Pro Stock, Pro Extreme Motorcycle, Extreme 10.5 and Pro Nitrous before rain halted the fourth round of Pro Extreme qualifying.
Before that, the capacity crowd at Rockingham Dragway was on its feet for most of a record-breaking afternoon.

After Frankie Taylor set a world E.T. record in Pro Extreme on Friday, becoming the first ADRL driver to reach the 3.5s (3.596), Shannon Jenkins (Pro Nitrous) and Dan Millen (Extreme 10.5) followed suit in their respective divisions.

Jenkins was incredibly impressive in a loaded Pro Nitrous field, which fielded an ADRL-record 40 cars.

The “Iceman” went 3.813 on Friday night and then backed that up with his pass on Saturday to stay as the No. 1 qualifier and set a new world record.

“This is a good car,” Jenkins said.

It was also a standout and record-breaking Pro Nitrous field that became the quickest in ADRL history, as John Bartunek qualified in the No. 16 spot with a 3.95, making it nearly .05 quicker than the previous best field.

Several talented drivers like Charles Carpenter, Dan Stevenson, Johnny Pilcher, Pat Stoken and Terry Murphy were left out, though Steve Vick snuck in with a 3.93 on his last try to put him in at No. 15.

Currently ninth in the points race, Vick needed that qualification to keep hope alive for a top eight spot at the LenMar Motorsports ADRL World Finals VI in October.

“It kept us in the chase. If we had not qualified, we would have been done,” Vick said. “I figured the field would be around a .96, so I was pretty close.”

Dan Millen’s magical stretch continued on Saturday in Extreme 10.5, as he went 3.858 at 203.09 mph to set a new E.T. world record.

Chuck Ulsch held the mark for all of one day after going 3.90 on Friday, but Millen responded with his fourth straight run in the 3-second range, all of which were better than the previous pass.

“We’re real happy right now,” Millen said. “We need points like it’s nobody’s business.”

Five drivers reached the 3-second mark in XTF, but Millen continually marveled the overflow crowd at Rockingham during qualifying.

Ashley Owens did much of the same in PXM and remained the top qualifier after his run of 4.022.

He opted to not take a fourth qualifying pass, but will have a chance to back up his 4.022 in Norwalk to set a new E.T. record. As has been the case all year, Owens was in command of his Fast by Gast bike.

“Once I crank the bike, I’m not thinking about anything,” Owens said. “That’s when I get the most relaxed.”

Brian Gahm remained the top qualifier in XPS after going 4.062 on Friday, while Taylor remained on top in Pro Extreme with a good portion of the field yet to make their final qualifying run.

Joshua Hernandez was in the No. 2 qualifying spot after going 3.658 in PX and said he’ll be prepared for the ADRL’s third double-race weekend of the year in two weeks.

“We’ll be ready to go in Ohio,” Hernandez said.

The Ohio Drags will be the final race before the World Finals in October.anot

NOTHING BUT POSITIVES - Mike Castellana, who has one ADRL win to his credit in 2010, is 107 points out the eighth and final position for the ADRL’s championship-determining Speedtech Battle for the Belts competition. While some racers might feel a sense of urgency about making up the deficit, Castellana doesn’t.

Running for the championship isn’t his most pressing need. Having fun is.

“I just want to have fun while I can come out here and race,” Castellana said. “I just want to enjoy the weekend.”

This weekend’s ADRL Dragstock VII at Rockingham Dragway marks the first time in three races Castellana has driven his Pro Nitrous entry.

Following the ADRL Independence Drags in Topeka, Kan., Castellana was diagnosed with colon cancer. According to Castellana, the doctors were able to remove the cancerous portion of the colon but not before the cancer had spread into his lymph nodes.

“I start chemo in a few weeks and the doctor says I should feel fine,” Castellana explained. “The doctor said I should feel fine to do my normal thing and if I do, I am going to.”

Castellana’s first round of chemo begins the week leading into the ADRL Ohio Drags, Oct. 24 – 25 in Norwalk, Ohio.

“If I feel good, I will be there,” Castellana said.

Castellana admits he draws a great deal of strength from the hope his participation in drag racing will help others facing a similar situation.

“The main thing I am focusing on is to keep moving forward and not let this get me down,” Castellana explained. “You can’t let this get to your head or it will make you feel sick or depressed. It’s important that I get out here and do what I have always wanted to do.”

Castellana admits he feels great despite the prognosis. One of the reasons, Castellana confirmed, was the fact he has always maintained a strong workout regimen.

“The doctor said the physical conditioning leading into the surgery was good for my recovery,” said Castellana. “They want me to keep it up. It’s important that I continue to exercise and keep doing my thing. They say it is good therapy.”

Castellana admits he’s positive because he has a lot to be positive for.

“I have no other choice but to be positive,” Castellana explained. “I have four young kids at home and a wife. I have to be positive for them. You have to keep going and not let it bog you down.”

And for Castellana, he’s all too willing to fight the negative with positive energy.

STANLEY RECOVERS FROM QUALIFYING CARNAGE - “Sucks to be us.” That was Camp Stanley’s blunt assessment on being outside the 16-car field after three Pro Extreme qualifying sessions for the ADRL’s prestigious Dragstock VII on Friday at Rockingham Dragway.

“We don’t very often blow our stuff up and almost never, ever knock the blower off of it, but we did a good job of all of it yesterday in that second qualifier (session),” the legendary crew chief from Hagerstown, Maryland, said.

Stanley explained the unique Wedge-headed motor in the Stanley&Weiss ’68 Camaro lost two cylinders on the run, one of them 1.6 seconds in and the other two-tenths of a second later. Then the supercharger popped at three seconds, slowing his driver and son, John, to a 3.93-seconds lap at just 163.51 mph.

“We got back, fixed the blower, checked and found out the valve seat had fallen out, (which is) what started it. We fixed that, swapped the head, put it back together, went to adjust the valves on the other side and found that a head had fallen off a valve on the other side. So we changed that head,” Stanley said.

“Then we went out for the qualifier last night in the best air a little over-aggressive with the clutch combo and here we sit, 19th. Sucks to be us.”

In Saturday’s lone qualifying session, John Stanley managed to break into the field with a 3.85 shot at 196.67 mph that placed him 14th shortly before rain interrupted the session.

ONLY IN ROCKINGHAM - During Saturday's late afternoon rain delay, one race fan decided a particular banner was too enticing to pass on. The fan walked up to one of the television background banners, cut a square section out, put it in her purse and returned to the grandstands. There's no word on whether authorities apprehended the suspect.

This one ranks right up there with the time the IHRA race officials were pelted by irate fans hurling chicken bones and beer cans, not to mention the major fight in the 1970s involving a one-legged man.

Carl Stevens Jr. suffered a parachute malfunction during the final Pro Extreme qualifying session. The end result was a visit with the Rockingham Dragway retaining wall.

PRO NITROUS POINTS LEADER APPRECIATES LEARNING PROCESS - Rickie Smith has a long, highlight-filled history at Rockingham Dragway, beginning in smith 1980 with making the first-ever, seven-second, mountain-motored Pro Stock pass.

When Attitude’s Competition Plus asked the current ADRL Pro Nitrous points leader about how he’s changed over the years, Smith answered, “I don’t know; I don’t know. You get older and sometimes you get frustrated maybe a heap quicker. Back then we were young, stupid, probably pretty cocky, just one of them deals, but reality comes into play and you get older and you realize what’s going on out here and how hard it really is to win.”

As a three-time winner with the ADRL in 2010, including back-to-back victories on consecutive nights in July at Houston, Smith is certainly qualified to speak. He’s qualified third for this weekend’s Dragstock VII at “The Rock.”

“We’re trying harder and we’re running good; we’ve had a good year no matter what happens,” he said. “Sometimes you’re running good and then you make a bad run and you don’t know why. That’s what frustrates me. I like to know why I made a bad run; that’s what I’ve always been pretty good at.”

After accumulating a tremendous amount of hard-fought-for knowledge through more than three decades of professional drag racing Smith said he’s learned to appreciate the process.

“You learn as you get older, that’s just the way God meant things to be. But you’re not supposed to know at 20 years old what you know at 50 years old. It’s all about growing up and learning.”

WHEN BURNOUTS GO WRONG ...

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Extreme Pro Stock racer Rocky Watford gets a little out of shape on a burnout during qualifying. Take note of how close he gets to the wall, but never touches it.

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BEGINNER'S LUCK? - His American Drag Racing League debut definitely didn’t fly under the radar.
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All Rickie Jones did on his inaugural pass in Extreme Pro Stock was set a class speed record at 179.59 mph Friday during qualifying at the Dragstock VI event at Rockingham (N.C.) Dragway.

Jones clocked in at 4.164 seconds on his record mph run. That number has him qualified in the No. 10 spot.

“That’s the first run I’ve ever made in a big motor car,” the 23-year-old Jones said. “I was the first car out, and the track was a little green and we spun pretty hard. Down track, the thing was pulling really hard versus the NHRA (Pro Stock) car, I could feel the difference. The launch was really not that much different and the shifting style is a lot different. I was just holding on and having fun.”

Jones has spent the last three years competing in Pro Stock on the NHRA circuit. Rick Jones, Rickie’s father, did compete for several years with the Mountain Motorsports group, something that isn’t lost in Rickie’s memory bank.

“I stood behind his car a long time and worked on it,” said Rickie, who lives in Galesburg, Ill. “We won races together and I enjoyed it a lot. This weekend (at Rockingham) Mark Martino and the Titan Motorsports group gave me the opportunity to drive, so I booked a flight Thursday night and flew out here Friday morning and I got in the car and here we are.”

Jones says piloting an NHRA Pro Stock machine definitely was helpful when he sat behind the wheel for his first Extreme Pro Stock lap.

“I would have to say that yes, driving a Pro Stock car is making me a better Extreme Pro Stock driver,” Rickie said. “Before NHRA Pro Stock, I didn’t have anything other than a half a dozen runs in a Top Sportsman car. The last three years on the NHRA tour, learning how to drive a Pro Stock car, definitely made it more natural to just jump in here. It was kind of a stepping stone I guess because that NHRA car is a little slower than this. It really wasn’t that big of deal, you just have to focus and pay attention.”

Rickie also doesn’t believe the window for driving Extreme Pro Stock is much larger than driving the small-block Pro Stock machine.

“These guys (in the ADRL) are really squeezing almost everything out of these cars,” Rickie said. “These guys are out here running 4.07 and 4.08s. I could have done a little bit better job shifting and hopefully I will improve on that. We had something left in the run, so I think we can run with them.”

In terms of shift points and lights, Rickie acknowledged the Extreme Pro Stock cars are more forgiving than Pro Stock cars.

“I would say that is the case just because the clutch is a little bigger and when you short shift it, the clutch is going to get hot,” Rickie said. “In the NHRA car, the clutch is real small and it heats up quicker. The larger clutch, the 10-inch clutch, is more forgiving.”

Rickie Jones actually had success in the NHRA Pro Stock class, finishing 16th and 10th in the point chase in 2008 and 2009. Presently, Jones is 15th in the Pro Stock points, despite not qualifying at Norwalk, Ohio in June and skipping the West Coast swing - consecutive races in Seattle, Sonoma, Calif., and Denver.

Jones last competed in the NHRA at the U.S. Nationals, but he failed to make the 16-car field. He was 18th with a 6.632-second run at 208.14 mph. Jones was piloting the Elite Motorsports Pontiac GXP this season in the NHRA.

None of that matters anymore because Rick Jones said his son isn’t going to compete on the NHRA Pro Stock circuit any longer.

“We’re done,” Rick said. “We have been thinking about it for a couple of weeks and at Indy we decided we were done. We didn’t make any announcements or anything, but you know it is just that we have some other opportunities we want to pursue. NHRA Pro Stock has been great to us. NHRA has been great to us. We will still be there, but you know Pro Stock over there is very difficult. It is a lot of fun, but it takes a lot of work and devotion. It takes a lot of money. I mean a tremendous amount of money. We just do not want to go over and qualify. We want to have a chance to win.”

Now, Rick Jones is exploring different options for he and his son.

“We can see a huge market for us over in the ADRL,”said Rick, who runs the Quarter-Max chassis & racing components and RJ Race Cars, Inc., business. “The Pro Mod market is a huge place, 10.5 and Extreme Pro Stock and all these cool classes is just a huge market place for us, so we’re just looking. We’re here looking again this weekend and we’re helping our customers and we will just see what happens. The marketing of our company and our business, we will build it with racing. When I first came to IHRA I had one car entered in the whole race and by time we finished racing IHRA, we had cars winning championships in Top Sportsman, Pro Modified and Pro Stock. What really helps us is when we build our own car and race it in that class, we learn a lot about it. We can obviously do a lot better research and development and build a better car. Even though you have to race your customers, we’re never worried about that because you have to race somebody.”

Rick wasn’t ready to tip his hand on any future ADRL plans.

“We haven’t started building anything yet for us, but we’re going to make up our mind very soon here,” Rick said. “You will see a change, that’s for sure. I actually haven’t 100 percent decided what ADRL class we might build a car for.”

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FRIDAY NOTEBOOK - LET THE DRAGSTOCK BEGIN

AND THE MADMAN LEADS THEM - It was a record-breaking day on Friday at Rockingham Dragway, as several drivers did their best to rewrite history at the jenkins_2 American Drag Racing League (ADRL) Simpson Dragstock VII.

None, however, did it better than Frankie Taylor, who re-established his place as the fastest man in the ADRL.

The “Madman” had hoped to become the first Pro Extreme driver to run in the 3.5s, and his bold prediction leading up to the race came true, as he went a blistering 3.596 at 210.64 miles per hour to jump to the No. 1 qualifying spot through three qualifying rounds on Friday.

“It felt good. To do it with the sun out was pretty cool,” Taylor said. “I wanted to be the first in the 50s, so that’s pretty cool, too. I’m very happy and this is pretty exciting.”

With a record-entry Pro Nitrous field that also became the quickest Pro Nitrous field in ADRL history (3.97), several other drivers stood out en route to qualifying in the top spot after one day.

In Pro Nitrous, Shannon Jenkins went 3.813 to climb to the top, while Dan Millen (3.882 in Extreme 10.5), Ashley Owens (4.022 in Pro Extreme Motorcycle), Brian Gahm (4.062 in Extreme Pro Stock) and Janna Vogler (Pro Junior Dragster) were all top qualifiers.
Jenkins, Millen and Owens all ran the quickest times in ADRL history in their respective classes and they will become world E.T. records if they can back it up on Saturday.

Taylor accomplished that by going 3.61 in his first pass. He topped that on a solo run on his next trip, bringing the huge crowd at Rockingham to its feet.

The only thing left for Taylor is picking up his third ADRL win.

“It’s just about winning (Saturday),” Taylor said. “If I go .61, .59 and .60 tomorrow and cut some good lights, I’ll be good.”

Joshua Hernandez went 3.65 to qualify second, while Jason Scruggs went 3.66 in his third pass to move to the third position.
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Jenkins dropped to the No. 2 position momentarily after Jim Halsey went 3.84 in Pro Nitrous.

But the “Iceman” responded like he usually does, going 3.813 at 198.38 mph to bump Halsey back to second.

“I saw Jim go .84 and just said ‘Here we go.’ I just got mean with (the car),” Jenkins said.

After driving teammate Mike Castellana’s car to a win in St. Louis in August, Jenkins looked impressive in his own car, which was back in Jenkins’ hands for the first time after his crash in July.

The amazing thing is Jenkins thinks it has more potential for Saturday.

“It was soft on the clutch,” Jenkins said. “It would have gone .78 or .79 easy and probably 200 miles per hour, too. We’ll just have to get it tomorrow and save the best for last.”

Millen had a day to remember in Extreme 10.5, making three 3-second passes, the first of which made him the fifth and final member of the Mickey Thompson 3-Second Club.

The Al-Anabi Racing driver celebrated that moment, but then finished the day even better, going 3.882 at 203.09 mph to take the top qualifying spot.

“I wouldn’t care if it was three 4.00 runs or three in the 3s, we haven’t had this much success since we started racing this car. We’re very happy,” Millen said.

That last run was Millen’s first going more than 200 mph, but the current E.T. record – at least until Millen can back his up – goes to Chuck Ulsch, who went 3.90 at 202.97 mph to sit in second.
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Five drivers (Millen, Ulsch, Gary White, Todd Moyer and Spiro Pappas) all had 3-second runs on Friday, but Ulsch and Millen could be on a collision course for the finals.

“I think things would work out nice if we can see him in the finals,” Ulsch said.

It wasn’t a record-setting field in Pro Extreme Motorcycle, but Owens did his best to wow everyone at Rockingham Dragway.

Making just the third pass on a new motor that debuted for this race, Owens and his Fast by Gast bike went 4.022 at 177.44 mph, which is currently .12 better than No. 2 and No. 3 qualifiers Terry Schweigert and Kim Morrell.

“I was happy with a 4.02, but I’m always trying to go a little better,” Owens said. “You always have to try to do a little better. I think there’s room for improvement.”

Owens went 4.07 during his second qualifying run and then blew everyone away – Paul Gast included – with his run of 4.02. He’ll try to back that up Saturday to re-set his world E.T. record, but a 3-second run might be possible.

“It’s possible, but we want to win first and foremost,” Gast said.

Gahm didn’t waste any time carrying over his momentum from winning the Hardee’s Gateway Drags III in August in Extreme Pro Stock.

gahm_2 On his first pass, the Ohio native made the top run of the day, going 4.06 at 175.89 mph. Gahm was certainly happy to have the No. 1 qualifying spot after Friday, but he was just as pleased with the consistency he displayed.

“It’s a good way to start. We made a good call and it seemed like it worked well,” Gahm said. “We actually made three good runs. The car is working really well.”

He’ll need that consistency in a field that is packed tightly, with Pete Berner right behind in No. 2 at 4.077.

Cary Goforth follows in third (4.079), but Gahm will be focused for his second straight win.

“If we can be consistent like that, it’s going to be good for race day,” Gahm said. “We’ll go back, make some changes and decide if we want to step on it.”

Vogler became the top qualifier in PJD after posting a reaction time of 0.003. Ryan Crews is right behind at .004 and K.J. Nowling is third with a .005.

The fourth and final qualifying session for Simpson Dragstock VII begins at 11 a.m. at Rockingham Dragway, with the first round of eliminations set to begin at 3 p.m.

MADMAN STRIKES AGAIN - Frankie Taylor had a terrible first run during the opening qualifying session for Pro Extreme, breaking and oiling the track. His second run was only terrible for the competition.

Taylor re-set his world E.T. record in Pro Extreme and became the first ADRL driver to run in the 3.5s with an incredible pass of 3.596 at 210.64 miles per hour on Friday.

Before Dragstock, Taylor, who is third in points in PX, had hoped he could become the first driver to break into uncharted territory in the ADRL.

“Everybody keeps predicting 3.50-something runs for Rockingham and I hope it’s us,” Taylor said. “A five on that second number would be cool.”

OFF OF INJURED RESERVE - Tommy D’Aprile had no idea of the magnitude of his injury.
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The ADRL Pro Extreme driver suffered injuries during a fiery crash during an exhibition run on the first day of the ADRL Georgia Drags at South Georgia Motorsports Park in Valdosta, Ga., earlier this year.

D’Aprile suffered some scratches and bruises but this was to be expected from the magnitude of his crash. However, even over time, one pain just wouldn’t go away. D'Aprile's left arm just throbbed, ached and despite doctor visit after visit he kept hearing the same thing – there were no broken bones in his arm.

“It just didn’t look or feel right,” D’Aprile explained. “They told me I had muscle swelling. So I went on to the gym after a while and worked out, often compensating for the weakness and pain in my left arm.”

Finally D’Aprile took it upon himself and visited a specialist who suggested an MRI.

The diagnosis was a tricep tendon separation.

To repair the damage, the doctors made a four inch incision in his arm to pull the tendon back down. The tendon was then anchored to his bone with three anchors.

“What I didn’t realize is that when the car impacted the wall, my arm must have hit the bar hard enough to scrape the tendon from the bone,” D’Aprile said. “That created about a two-inch gap where the tendon was pulled up into my arm.”

D’Aprile is competing for the first time this weekend since his surgery. His ability to return so quickly to racing can be attributed to his good physical shape and workout routines over the past few years.

“For two weeks my arm was straight in a cast,” D’Aprile explained. “The last two, I’ve been able to move it. I attribute a lot of that to being in shape before the accident and my body being accustomed to the recovery process.”

D’Aprile’s first pass netted a 3.834 elapsed time at 195.41 miles per hour. The run was seventh quickest of the session.

“I feel pretty good; (with) enough movement to hold the wheel and move it,” D’Aprile said. “If it was my right hand, I’d be in trouble because I do most of my work with that hand. With the left hand, if you’re on a good pass – it doesn’t move around a lot.”

His statement made, D’Aprile stopped, paused and wondered when a Pro Extreme car actually makes good, straight pass.

NOW THAT'S A NITROUS SHOW - History found a way of repeating itself in Rockingham, NC.

After two Pro Nitrous qualifying sessions at the ADRL Dragstock VII, all sixteen provisional qualifiers were in the three second zone. Rockingham Dragway yielded the same incredible performance last season.

Shannon Jenkins lowered his top qualifying time with a 3.85 and Pat Stoken is now in the No. 16 qualifying spot with his 3.992.

With more than 40 Pro Nitrous cars at Dragstock, it also marks the largest PN field in ADRL history.

Even during the hottest part of the day, several drivers turned in quick times during the second qualifying session.

Defending series champion Khalid Al-Balooshi jumped up to No. 2 with a run of 3.86 and Mike Castellana also entered the field with a strong second qualifying run of 3.89 to put him in the third position.

DAN MILLEN GETS HIS THREE – The club is now closed for new membership.
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ADRL Extreme 10.5 racer Dan became the fifth and final member of the distinguished Mickey Thompson 3-Second Club, going 3.951 at 199.20 miles per hour in his first qualifying run at notoriously fast Rockingham Dragway.

“It’s been a rough season and I have to thank a lot of people,” Millen said. “Of course, KH (Al-Anabi Racing owner KH Al-Thani) and also (Pro Extreme driver) Todd Tutterow. He’s really helped us a lot and taught me a lot about this combination. We finally got it. We knew we had something to work with.”

Millen celebrated the achievement in front of the grandstands afterward and was honored for being the final member of a Mickey Thompson 3-Second Club that also includes Chuck Ulsch, Gary White, Spiro Pappas and Todd Moyer.

Many had speculated the fifth spot would be filled this weekend at Rockingham, though Millen was the dark horse among competitors that included Billy Glidden and Jeff Naiser, who had both reached the 3-second mark in testing.

“There was big pressure on everybody else to be in the 3s. We wanted to do it, too, but we just wanted to get to the other end,” Millen said. “We were more worried about going in a straight line.

“The 3-second club is a nice touch. We wanted to get it. I’m glad to be able to take that last spot. It makes me very happy.”
Millen credited Tutterow and the rest of his Al-Anabi team for the improvements, and also noted how much he has enjoyed racing for KH Al-Thani under the Al-Anabi banner.

“I was approached by KH and after I spent some time around him, I knew I wanted to (drive for Al-Anabi),” Millen said. “He’s a smart guy and he’s great to work with, and a great individual to be involved with.

“Todd was very patient because we had a lot of struggles. We were all frustrated, but once we fixed the car, it can really go down the track.”

hossler_mishap ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT - This isn't how it was planned.

Alex Hossler was supposed to provide the Rockingham Chamber of Commerce with an exhibition of ADRL Pro Extreme racing. The Canton, Ill.-based driver probably went a little too far on Thursday afternoon at Rockingham Dragway.

Running in the left lane, Hossler’s supercharged Camaro got out of shape, crossed the centerline and made contact with the right lane retaining wall more than once. Hossler was uninjured but the car, not so good.

“We kicked a couple of rods and put a hole in the side of the block,” Hossler explained. “A little mist got out under the right slick and the tire started spinning (after that) I was just along for the ride at that point.”

Even though the car was basically out of control, Hossler’s competitive nature wouldn’t allow him to ride into the wall without a fight.

“I was just trying to keep from hitting anything,” said Hossler when asked what he was thinking during the accident. “In a case like this, you just try to steer as well as you can. The car is spinning and going over 100 miles per hour. For a moment, when I was in the middle of the track, I thought I was going to get it stopped and not hit anything. The car slowed down and shot over towards the left lane. I tapped (the wall) a couple of times but there was nothing I could do.”

F hossler_3 riday morning, the car was still up on the jack stands, a wearied crew continuing to make necessary repairs.

“We were able to half-a** patch the thing together,” Hossler admitted. “We have another bullet in the car. We’ll just have to see what happens. We are going to make a run at some point in the day,” Hossler said.

The damage to the car, according to Hossler, was primarily cosmetic to the front end. He also broke the wheelie bars and the parachute.

“We had a spare motor and Tommy Mauney loaned us a wing,” Hossler said. “We patched the front end and put new parachutes on.”

Hossler will make a run today, thanks to his hard-working crew never giving up in their efforts to repair the wounded car.

“My guys haven’t even been to bed,” revealed Hossler. “They are going to be like zombies at some point today if not already. It’s either the love of the sport or ignorance.”

Or a competitive desire which just won't let them say “uncle”.

GLIDDEN GETS HIS THREE - Billy Glidden really didn’t want to make a run.
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Almost four seconds later he was glad he did – 3.976 seconds to be exact.

Glidden, making an exhibition pass at the request of the ADRL and Rockingham Dragway’s track management for the local Chamber of Commerce, recorded his first career three-second pass just hours before official qualifications were scheduled to begin for the ADRL Dragstock VII.

“Those who were standing out there on the line knew how tough the conditions were,” said Glidden, a past ADRL series champion. “But, it’s like a Catch 22 situation.”

Though Glidden didn’t have any prior experience of what a three-second run should feel like, he know from the time he dumped the clutch his Mickey Thompson Tires-sponsored Mustang was on a good pass.

“When I got the thing into third gear and it didn’t dance around on me, I knew it was going to be fast,” Glidden admitted. “You know it’s fast when you shut off at the eighth-mile and you get to the quarter-mile in a hurry.”

He wasn’t going so fast as to miss one important element of the run.

“Oh, I saw the scoreboard,” said Glidden with a smile, who believes the hard work he’s put towards a new combination is close to yielding the big dividends.

“Like I said in St. Louis, if we keep on working and refining this combination, we are going to get competitive out here,” Glidden said. “I have two of these old dinosaur engines and I’ve worked on them a lot.”

This momentous run was the first lap following a successful test session at U.S. 131 Dragway in Martin, Mich.

“And we were very happy when we left there,” Glidden added.

The run was not made during qualifying or eliminations at an ADRL event and therefore does not count toward inclusion in the Mickey Thompson Three-Second Club for XTF.

Glidden readily admits he’d love to have the historic place in drag racing history but won’t race to the lanes to get a better shot at running a three within the parameters of the club.

“We’ll just take things as they happen,” Glidden confirmed. “My goal is to win races and ultimately that last race of the season. That’s the goal. We certainly didn’t throw anything away with this run.”