EVENT NEWS EVENT NOTEBOOK GSA PRO MODS POINTS AFTER EVENT ROUND-BY-ROUND  FINAL ROUND RESULTS			EVENT GALLERY

 

SUNDAY NOTEBOOK -  

BECKMAN DOGS THE ATLANTA FC FIELD - While Jack Beckman’s sponsor Aarons might promote the Lucky Dog theme, but on a warm day in Commerce, Ga., his performance was anything but lucky.

From the first round and each one thereafter, Beckman was the top dog in scoring the low elapsed time in each round of eliminations.

“When you get your tune-up into a zone … and you turn a knob and say we want to speed it up from 60 [foot] to 330 and soften at a certain part out, it responded exactly as we wanted it to. When I staged today, I rolled in about an inch, so you can subtract .01 to .03 and that’s how well we ran.” 

Beckman’s victory represented his eleventh career Funny Car title.He entered eliminations as the eighth quickest qualifier and defeated Melanie Troxel, low qualifier John Force and Cruz Pedregon to reach the final round. 

Being the top runner didn’t put any pressure on Beckman or his tuners Rahn Tobler and John Collins. 

“It didn’t with me, for sure,” Beckman said. “And it didn’t with Rahn or John because they just race the lane and never say “oh my gosh we need to change something” to get the win against a certain car. We knew Zippy (Mike Neff) smoked them in the semi-finals but we also know he’s brilliant and they have a great race car. So we expected it to be a good race at both ends of the track.”

Beckman beat Neff at both ends of the track, scoring the quicker reaction time and driving his way to a 4.111 second pass at 311 miles per hour. Neff lost despite a strong 4.119, 305.49 run.

Beckman said he could have run a 4.08 in the final with a shallow stage and believes Neff was gunning for a 4.07.

“The car did exactly what it was supposed to do in the finals,” Beckman added. “This race was such an odd deal. We were just a little off in qualifying, much more here than in Charlotte. That car just woke up on Sunday morning and decided it wanted to be the most consistent beast on Saturday.”

Beckman entered eliminations as the eighth quickest qualifier and defeated Melanie Troxel, low qualifier John Force and Cruz Pedregon to reach the final round. 

Part of Beckman’s NHRA Southern Nationals success could have been a track temperature that never topped 119 degrees.

“We rock on cool race tracks,” Beckman said. “The track never got as hot as some might have expected in Atlanta. Friday was nasty humid. Saturday was for part of it. Sunday was gorgeous with cloud cover. This wasn’t a typical Atlanta race.”

It was a dog of an Atlanta race, the top dog kind for Beckman. 

BROWN KEEPS SCHUMACHER WINLESS IN ATLANTA - Antron Brown made it 2-0 against teammate Tony Schumacher in 2011 with a solid start-to-finish victory over the 7-time NHRA Top Fuel Champion to take home his second special edition 60th Anniversary pewter Wally of the season, this one at the Summit Racing Equipment NRHA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway.

“This is a great day,” agreed Brown following his second win of the season. “It was tough all weekend; qualifying didn't go the way we wanted it to, of course. But, our boys just pulled together like they did in Vegas. When race day comes the game face goes on.”

Brown's crew capitalized on a solid 3.923 pass for a win in the first round over David Grubnic before stepping it up in the second round against Shawn Langdon. Brown beat Landgon easily 3.880 to 5.852, before dispatching a surging Terry McMillen in the semi's to do his part to create an all DSR final round.

Against 7-time champion Tony Schumacher, Brown was behind at the start, .056 to .045, but had closed the gap by the eighth-mile mark. Brown powered past Schumacher for a 3.856, 318.69 mph to 3.905, 315.86.

“I knew it was going to be a heck of a drag race because Tony always steps up,” said Brown, adding, “I went out there and do what I did and the team took care of the rest.

“We came out the victor in a close drag race.”

Teammate or not, Brown doesn't avoid his fellow competitors. He makes it a point to wish the best to whomever he is going to run against. 

“When you put that helmet on, the only way you are going to get beat is to beat yourself,” explained Brown. “They can't do nothing to you in the completely opposite lane. You have to go up there poised, hungry and in attack mode. If not, their taking your lunch and you are going home.”

Even with two wins already under his belt, Brown is nowhere near to counting out Schumacher and Dixon when it comes to the championship this year.

“It doesn't mean nothing,” said Brown when asked about Dixon and Schumacher not having a win yet. “The season is still long. Honestly, wins are great and I won a lot in '09 but where it all counts is those last six races. You mark my words, those two cars, will be right there in the hunt for the championship.”

The win was the second for Brown at Atlanta Dragway. In an interesting twist of fate, Brown's first victory at Atlanta Dragway came in 2008 against Schumacher. At the time Brown was driving for Mike Ashley Racing.

The win was also the 155th for Don Schumacher Racing, which was formed in 1998, and 160th for the the iconic car owner if you count his five national event wins. Antron Brown accounts for 10 of the victories, four in Top Fuel and six in Pro Stock Motorcycle. 

Brown's career Top Fuel wins stands at 11, which includes seven while driving for Mike Ashley Racing.

LINE BACK TO WINNING AGAIN - Jason Line is smiling once again, just as he did at the start of the season.

He could do no wrong then, winning as many as nine consecutive rounds of competition before losing. Then as quickly as he emerged as a dominant driver, he couldn’t seem to buy a round win, losing once in the first round and twice in the second.

On Sunday, at the NHRA Summit Southern Nationals, he let the competition know quickly he’s ready to get back to business.

“I tripped and fell,” Line explained with a laugh about his brief fall from total dominance.

Line ran a 6.600 elapsed time at 208.42 miles per hour in the final to get the best of his Summit-sponsored, KB Racing teammate Greg Anderson. The victory extended Lines point lead to 50 points over Anderson, who moved into second.

“There are some good cars out there and while most drivers want to know who they are racing each round, the truth is, I am usually racing me against me. Most of the time I lose to myself.”

This time the winning Line ran roughshod on the losing Line with a car which couldn’t be categorized as the one to beat over the course of the weekend. 

“We really needed a miracle to win because we didn’t feel like we performed as well as we should have,” said Line. “Somehow we did and Summit won.”

In the interest of fair reporting, having the second quickest car qualifying doesn’t necessarily constitute an underdog. 

“We didn’t have a bad car, we just felt something was missing,” Line admitted. “We kept making it slower as the weekend went on. We didn’t really figure it out until the second round.”

The timing was perfect as Line ran a 6.605 in the quarters which would have likely beat recent Houston winner Vincent Nobile, even without his foul start.

Line didn’t have to battle hard in the semi-finals even though he defeated largely the car to beat of Mike Edwards. Edwards secured the low elapsed time of the first two elimination rounds and became the quickest of the event in the second round with a 6.581 second pass.

Against Line, Edwards launched into almost immediate tireshake from the usually dependable left lane.

“I was shocked that he shook the tires,” Line said. “He’s normally mistake-free and he wasn’t. We were able to capitalize on it. You can’t always win by being the dominant car. Today was one of the days where we didn’t. We got it done somehow.

The victory represents Line’s third 2011 win and the 24th of his career.

Line already has a special destination in mind for his newest pewter Wally – presenting the trophy to his mother Maxine, as a belated Mother’s Day present.

“It’s going to her because I’ve never given her one before,” Line said. “It would have been nice to win closer to Mother’s Day but this was as close as I could get. 

SUZUKI DOMINATES THE PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE FIELD - He's young, he's fearless, he's fast, he's having a blast, he rides a Suzuki and his name is L E Tonglet.

The defending Pro Stock Motorcycle champion put on a winning exhibition Sunday afternoon in the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals collecting his first 60th Anniversary pewter Wally of the 2011 season.

In a perfect world, every drag race would come down to the first and second place qualifiers. It was a perfect world at Atlanta Dragway as L E Tonglet, quickest, and Karen Stoffer, second quickest and also on a Suzuki, rolled to the line to battle for the win where Tonglet mastered the veteran rider both at the tree and down the track.

Tonglet's 6.924, 191.62 along with a .05 to .075 starting line advantage, was more than enough to secure the win for the Suzuki rider moving to him to fourth in the standings.

“We're really happy with the way the Nitro Fish Suzuki is running,” said Tonglet. “It's been so smooth and just hauling. I can't thank my dad and GT (older brother) for giving me an awesome bike to ride, and Kenny Koretski for helping us out and Vance & Hines for giving us good power.”

Tonglet is a relative rookie, however he has already learned his biggest competitor is not sitting on a bike in the other lane.

“The biggest competition we have is that 'christmas tree', admitted Tonglet. “That thing is really unforgiving which I found out at Houston a couple weeks ago. I didn't want to go out like that again; so my lights were kind of soft until we got to Andrew.

“If you think about (the tree) to much you can shoot yourself in the foot. You just have to go up there and do the same thing over and over.”

Over and over for LE Tonglet has meant final round wins ever since Kenny Koretski, at his wife's insistance, stepped up to put money into the Tonglet operation.

On the other side of the coin, despite taking the loss, Karen Stoffer moved into the top spot in the Pro Stock Motorcycle point standings.

"The team is just jelling really well," said Stoffer. "We overcame a lot of adversity and got a visit from Lady Luck too. It was a great day for all of us in the GEICO Suzuki pit."

Stoffer now leads the standings by 15 points over second-place rider Andrew Hines, and reached the top on a weekend when the GEICO Suzuki wasn’t at its best.

"The bike wasn’t real happy this weekend," Stoffer said. "The good thing is we overcame a lot of issues that we haven’t been able to overcome in the recent pass. We’ve put a lot of coins in the bad luck jar over the past year and now we’re moving them back to the good luck side of the jar."

 

QUICK HITS - RACE DAY REPORTING IN RAPID FASHION

TOP FUEL

FIRST ROUND

COOL START - Doug Kalitta got the first round of Top Fuel eliminations off to a rousing start with his best run of the weekend – 3.878, 315.34; besting Doug Foley's tire smoking 8.247, 81.45 mph.  

Standing over Kalitta dn Foley at the start was NHRA legend Warren Johnson.

“It was cool with Warren Johnson up there, he’s one of my heroes,” Kalitta said. “It’s definitely good to get the win after he tells you to start your engine.”

Kalitta is now 2-2 against Foley and will meet top qualifier Spencer Massey in the second round as he tries to win his 3rd Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway. Kalitta took the Wally home in 2005 and 2006.  

THE LUCK RAN OUT - While flooding along the Mississippi River wasn't able to stop the Parts Plus Top Fuel team owned by Mark Pickens, with Clay Millican at the wheel – a pair of smoking rear tires brought the teams high hopes to a unanticipated end in the first round of eliminations in the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals.

Millican was helpless to stop local favorite Bob Vandergriff from garnering the win with a 3.954, 308.43 mph. It's Vandergriff's first round win since Memphis in 2009.

BROTHER CAN YOU SPARE A TICKET -  “I heard “can I have a ticket” about 10 minutes before I made the first round,” said Vandergriff after an easy first round win over Clay Millican. “And usually they ask for about 12 [tickets] at the last minute. That’s the good thing about racing at home; you have your friends and family. But, that’s also the bad thing about racing at home.”

HELLO CHAMP - Larry Dixon matched his best qualifying run, as did opponent Morgan Lucas, which made Dixon the winner in their first round match up and setting up a second round match against fellow Top Fuel champion Tony Schumacher.

Both Dixon and Lucas nearly duplicated their best qualifying passes in this battle.

EVEN GOOD LUCK ENDS - Shawn Langdon made a stellar run in his matchup against point leader Del Worsham, trailering Worsham in the process and keeping alive the hopes of Morgan Lucas Racing.

The loss was the first, first round loss for Worsham who entered the weekend leading the Top Fuel point standings.


QUARTER-FINALS

GETTING CLOSER – Spencer Massey moved one step closer to keeping his streak alive at Atlanta Dragway with a close victory over Doug Kalitta in their quarterfinal matchup.

Kalitta was first off the line by a scant thousandth of a second, but quickly overcame the difference to move into the semi-finals against teammate Tony Schumacher.

CHAMPION MATCHUP – Tony Schumacher, in his ARMY dragster and Larry Dixon, in his Al-Anabi dragster, met in the second round and the results were exactly what you would expect from a battle of titans.

Even though Dixon made the quicker run, 3.892 to Schumacher's 3.886, Schumacher took the win at the tree. Schumacher's .063 light beat Dixon's .078 light, giving Schumacher just the distance he needed to outrun the hard charging Dixon.

Schumacher, who rarely shows emotion unless it the final round and he's the victor, felt so strongly about defeating Dixon he was caught pumping his fist in the air following the run.

THE CINDERELLA STORY CONTINUES – Terry McMillen's Funday Sunday continued through the second round with a come from behind victory over fellow Cinderella story driver Bob Vandergriff. Vandergriff outpowered Clay Millican in the first round while McMillen dispatched Brandon Bernstein in his first round matchup.


SEMI-FINALS

AND THE CLOCK STRUCK MIDNIGHT – Terry McMillen's Cinderella story came to an abrupt end against Don Schumacher Racing's Antron Brown. While McMillen did not go easy into the night, but he was beaten both at the line and down the strip by Brown.

On the other side of the trip, Tony Schumacher showed why he's a 7-time Top Fuel champion, as he dispatched teammate Spencer Massey in a match-up made in heaven. Both drivers left the line with identical .057 lights, however 1000 feet later Schumacher was one hundredth of a second ahead of Massey.


FINALS

BROWN WINS ANOTHER ONE – Antron Brown pulled alongside of teammate Tony Schumacher knowing he was going to be in for a tough fight. Atlanta Dragway is the one track where the highly decorated Schumacher hadn’t won yet.

Brown extended Schumacher’s disappointment by overcoming a holeshot disadvantage of .011 and driving his way to a 3.856, 318.69 victory. Schumacher lost with a 3.905, 315.86 pass.


FUNNY CAR

FIRST ROUND

BRING ON THE DANCING GIRLS … EH … DANCING BECKMAN – Charlotte winner Jack Beckman danced down the Atlanta Dragway strip just like Fred Astaire cutting a rug on the dance floor. He was the low elapsed time runner of the first round with a 4.083, 311.56 to beat Melanie Troxel.

“We’re in [sponsor] Aaron’s backyard and they have a neat display with dancing girls,” Beckman said. “I originally applied for the position of dancing girl … strong white teeth, smile, pretty eyes and good physique. They turned me down and said I could drive their car instead.”

Next on Beckman’s dance card will be John Force, not known for his dancing prowess.

GET IT OUT OF THE WAY – Traditionally it’s the high qualified drivers who chose to lay back in the run order before racing in the first round. Not Mike Neff. If he has his way, he’d like to run first and get the deed out of the way early.

Neff reeled off the second quickest pass of the first round with a 4.091, 303.87 to beat John Capps.

“We had the choice of first or seventh and I just decided to go up and get it out of the way,” Neff said. “I wanted to give my teammates something to study for their runs.”

THE LONE SURVIVOR – Tony Pedregon has won the NHRA Southern Nationals three times in his storied career. He had the distinction of being the only bottom half of the field winner in the first round.  

Pedregon scored a 4.156 to 4.154 holeshot victory over Jim Head. The two-time champion is outside of the Top 10 point earners six races into the season.

“The clock is always ticking, we’re not in the top ten and we’re fighting,” Pedregon said. “We’re the first ones here and the last ones to leave. We work hard and this win is big motivation.”

IF PEACHES AIN’T HAPPY – Peaches, 15-time champion John Force’s pet name for his Castrol GTX Mustang, was in a good mood for Sunday’s first round run against fellow Ford racer Tim Wilkerson. A good mood but a bit sluggish for the No. 1 qualified Filly.

Force took the right lane, not the overwhelming choice of the top half qualifiers, and won with a 4.168, 304.19. He won the battle but lost lane choice in his second round match against Jack Beckman.

“Today, I need a win,” Force said. “I have a great race car but I am not getting the job done right now.”

Force has four consecutive No. 1 qualifying efforts but has yet to win a national event. His teammates have accounted for four victories in five events.  

REMEMBER ME? – Matt Hagan has only won first round once in the last three races headed into Atlanta. He increased the number by knocking off Paul Lee in the opening session.

“I’m just glad to get an interview; I guess my car hasn’t been running good enough lately to get to talk to someone.”

MOMENTUM CONTINUANCE – Bob Tasca III made a monster run to jump into the second qualifying position during Saturday’s final qualifying session. He continued the show of strength with a 4.133, 308.94 to beat Johnny Gray, who crossed the centerline.

“The DSR cars are tough and you have to be on you’re a-game,” Tasca admitted. “Chris Cunningham and the team have this Mustang running fast.”

Watching Tasca make the dominating run was none other than Bill Elliott, former NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion and holder of the fastest qualifying lap ever turned in a NASCAR stock car.

NOT A REPRESENTATIVE RUN – Between Cruz Pedregon and Robert Hight, the veteran drivers have three world titles. In their first round race, they put on a clinic of what to do when a race goes ugly.

Pedregon’s Toyota went up in smoke and the veteran driver pedaled. Hight followed suit with an almost identical impersonation. Pedregon rapped the throttle again as did Hight. In a football game where the last team to get the ball wins, the last driver to get back on the throttle won this one.

Pedregon’s winning lap was a 4.518, 252.24, hardly on the pace of the front runners.

He lost lane choice to his brother Tony in the second round.

AREND WINS – For the first time in awhile, Jeff Arend has a five round winning streak going on. Arend, the winner of the most recent event in Houston, scored a first round win over Ron Capps with a 4.188, 300.86.

This marks the third time in six races, Arend has beaten a Don Schumacher Racing car in the first round.

“I don’t think these guys want to race us any more in the first round,” Arend quipped.



QUARTER-FINALS

LIKE A MACHINE – When Tony Schumacher gives advice, you’d be wise to heed to it. Just ask Jack Beckman. Beckman has been following the Schumacher mantra of “becoming a machine” behind the wheel.

For the second round in a row, Beckman scored the low elapsed time of 4.107, 306.12 to beat John Force.

Force’s loss continued a trend of winning from the pole frustration. The last time a Funny Car driver won from the pole at Atlanta was 13 years ago.

“There’s no pressure,” said Beckman, the last remaining DSR Funny Car driver left in competition. “It’s inspiring to run this quick.”

BRAINFADE OR PREMINITION? – John Force just can’t escape the age thing. “You want to know how you’re getting old?” he asked.

He had an idea after speaking with Bob Tasca III just before the second round. Thinking Tasca was racing Jack Beckman, Force gave Tasca, his Ford colleague – a pep talk. “I told him, get up for this round, and go kick his a**!” Force exclaimed.

Force continued on with his encouragement until driver Mike Neff pulled him off to the side. “We’re racing Tasca,” Neff offered.

It’s kind of hard to un-ring a bell as Force found out.

TESTING PAYS OFF – By his own admission, Bob Tasca III and his crew chief Chris Cunningham have tested a few items in the early part of the season. Today the gamble appears to be paying off.

“Cunningham told me coming into this weekend that he’s never learned so much,” Tasca revealed. “I’m gonna show you this weekend.”

Tasca ran a 4.121, 306.46 to end Jeff Arend’s consecutive round win streak.

HE AINT HEAVY, HE’S MY BROTHER – Cruz and Tony Pedregon are well-known Funny Car brothers. However, when the Funny Car bodies are lowered, they become strangers in a hurry.

Cruz advanced to the second round on the strength of a 4.152, 306.33

NEFF SAID – When you’re a crew chief/driver, you tend to pay extra attention to the conditions for which you are racing on.

“The track is fine and there is plenty of rubber,” Neff explained. “When a car does a burnout, it will put down a nice bead of rubber. We don’t want to take that up so often we will burn out straddling it and then run in that nicely applied rubber.”

The plan worked for Neff as he ran a 4.126, 301.13 to beat Matt Hagen.


SEMI-FINALS

A MANUFACTURERS PARADISE - Two Fords, a Mopar and a Toyota suited up for the semi-finals.

The first battle matched up the Fords with Mike Neff winning a battle of tire-smoking Blue Ovals when he recovered better than Bob Tasca III. Neff pedaled across the stripe with a 4.560, 274.55.

Neff categorized his third consecutive final round berth as his lucky break of the weekend.

“I call that one lucky,” Neff said. “We got a break there.”

Beckman laid down his third consecutive low elapsed time on race day with a 4.095, 306.88 to eliminate Cruz Pedregon’s Toyota. Pedregon lost with a 4.15.


FINALS

STILL A LUCKY DOG – Jack Beckman scored his second win for new sponsor Aarons as he used a quicker reaction time and car to beat Mike Neff in a nail-biter of a final round.

Beckman used a .045 starting line advantage to pull away from Neff and score a 4.111 to 4.119 decision.


PRO STOCK

FIRST ROUND

UH OH – Pro Stock driver Erica Enders learned early in her Pro Stock career, focus and concentration in the midst of adversity was a must. During the first round she was given a reminder against pseudo teammate Steve Kent.

“We had a problem in the wire box and couldn’t keep the car running,” Enders explained. “I was just trying to keep the car running so I could set the brake pressure at 1,000 psi.”

Meanwhile, Kent had burned out and backed up. Enders managed a burnout, staged and ran a 6.607 – the third quickest run of the weekend. The run turned out to be overkill as Kent fouled out.

A CLOSE CALL – Robert Patrick hadn’t started an NHRA Pro Stock race since 2002 and intended to make the most of the weekend's effort. The Ford driver from Fredericksburg, Va., strapped a .08 holeshot on No. 1 qualifier Mike Edwards and nearly pulled off the most improbable win of the first round.

Edwards needed a 6.605, 209.04, low elapsed time of the round to take the win.

THAT’S FIVE FOR THE KID – Vincent Nobile, hot off of his first win in Houston, continued his success in a battle of Mopars.

Nobile won with a 6.623, 208.81.  

HUMPHREY WINS A CLOSE ONE – Ronnie Humphrey showed no ill effects from missing Friday’s qualifying to attend his daughter’s graduation from the University of North Carolina.

Humphrey was .02 quicker out of the gate and his reflexes against Ron Krisher made the difference as both recorded a 6.627 elapsed time. Though he lost, Krisher had the faster speed at 208.42.

THE STUDENT BEATS THE LEGEND, PROFESSOR – Of all the people Greg Anderson could race in the first round in Atlanta. Warren Johnson, Anderson’s former employer and the NHRA 60th anniversary legend for this race, has been an underdog against Anderson for the last decade or so.

Anderson reeled in his 25th round win against Johnson with a 6.618, 207.18

BROGDON ADVANCES – The last elimination round Rodger Brogdon ran, he lost by .001 of a second margin of victory two weekends ago in his hometown race in Houston.

Brogdon fended off Larry Morgan with a 6.611, 208.34.

“I wanted to get back in the car,” Brogdon admitted. “No difference from losing a close first round race in sportsman, first round is the toughest.”



QUARTER-FINALS

ONE GOOD TURN DESERVES ANOTHER – Jason Line admitted he liked young Vincent Nobile to the point he wanted to be more like him inside of the cockpit. The envy ended as the two left the starting line.

Nobile, the second generation Pro Stock driver, fouled ending both a five round winning streak and a four race run of final round appearances.

Ironically, Line fouled against Nobile in Houston two weekends ago.

ANOTHER CLOSE SHAVE – Rodger Brogdon has to be wondering. “What a man gotta do to win a close race?”

Brogdon lost to Greg Anderson in a 6.623 to 6.625 decision. He recorded a .02 light and left second.

In two races, Brogdon has by an average of .005 of a second.

A TALE OF TWO RACES – Allen Johnson ran a 6.618, 209.20 to score the win over Houston No. 1 qualifier Ronnie Humphrey. If only Erica Enders could have been in his shoes, she ran an impressive 6.611, 208.81 and yet she could only watch as Mike Edwards passed her in the lights with low elapsed time of the event – a 6.581, 209.20.




SEMI-FINALS

TOEING THE LINE - By his own accounts, 2011 hasn’t been the kind of season Mopar runner Allen Johnson had hoped for. Johnson entered this weekend’s event with a quarter-final finish at best.

On the other side of the coin, Jason Line has had an incredible start by winning the first two events of the season and leading the points.

Line advanced to the final round with a 6.607, 208.49.

ALL SUMMIT, ALL THE TIME – For the second time this season, Line will meet Greg Anderson in the final round. Both finals came at events sponsored by Summit Racing Equipment.

Anderson streaked to victory with a 6.627, 207.69 when No. 1 seeded Mike Edwards shook the tires at the hit.


FINALS

SUMMIT WINS – The mail order parts giant truly experienced a win-win-situation in the Pro Stock final. For the second time this season, Jason Line beat Greg Anderson in a final round.

Line was first at the hit with a .034 reaction and led Anderson all the way en route to a 6.600, 208.42 victory. Anderson made a race of it with a 6.610, 208.33 pass.



PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE

FIRST ROUND

THINGS THAT MAKE YOU SHAKE YOUR HEAD – Normally a .095 reaction time would spell defeat in the Pro Stock Motorcycle class; normally.

The matchup between Hector Arana, Jr. and Chip Ellis was anything but normal at the tree as Arana lit the top bulb first, then flickered the lower bulb all before Ellis had even moved toward the starting line.

“I know I rolled in and flickered the lower bulb so I backed out,” said Arana, who was more interested in discussing the win over the strange occurrences at the line.
“It was a great run and my son also won so it was a great start to today.”

Hector Arana, III also shook his head over the goings on at the starting line between his father and Chip Ellis. “That was weird, but dad won and we won and that's great.”

Arana, III easily out-ran Steve Johnson, beating him at both the lights and the finish line.

The father/son duo will meet Jim Underdahl and Andrew Hines respectively in the second round.

GOSH, IT LOOKED GOOD – By all appearances Karen Stoffer mowed down Mike Berry in their first round matchup after Berry won the battle at the line .035 go Stoffer's .063.

“It might have look good, but it was anything but,” admitted Stoffer. “I didn't have high gear, but we had the stronger bike and got away with the win.”

WHAT AN UPSET – Jim Underdahl pulled off the upset of the weekend as he sent Eddie Krawiec packing. Underdahl's starting line advantage, .038 to .099, was enough to keep Krawiec's stronger pass, 6.997, from sending Underdahl's 7.050 down the highway.


QUARTER-FINALS

NOT A GOOD ROUND FOR ANY ARANA – Right after namesake Hector Arana, III was forced to push out of his lane with a loose fuel line giving Andrew Hines an easy win, his father Hector, Jr., lost a close battle to underdog Jim Underdahl. Underdahl was first off the line and fastest down the strip in his win over Arana.

A WIN IS A WIN – Luck was on Karen Stoffer's side in his second round matchup against Matt Smith. First Smith redlighted and then Stoffer's bike popped all the way down the line while she made a 16.702 pass.

SEMI-FINALS

DOWN TO THE TOP TWO – In a perfect world the number one qualifier and the number two qualifier would meet in the final round week in and week out.

It's a perfect world in the Pro Stock Motorcycle class in the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals as top qualifier L E Tonglet will go to the line against Karen Stoffer to crown the weekend's champion.

Tonglet scored low E T of the meet with an outstanding 6.893 victory against Andrew Hines uncommonly slow 7.112 while on the other side of the ladder Stoffer took a wire to wire win over surprise rider of the day Jim Underdahl.

FINALS

THE KID IS HOT-IN-LANTA - The only time LE Tonglet and Karen Stoffer were side-by-side was in the moments they lit the new blue LED stage lights. Once the tree flashed green, LE Tonglet was gone like the win, leading from start to finish.

Adding to a .025 holeshot, Tonglet scored the win with a 6.924, 191.62. Stoffer finished runner up with a 6.970, 192.30.

 

 

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SATURDAY NOTEBOOK -

THIS PLACE LIKES ME - Just one look at past history has Spencer Massey liking his chances headed into final eliminations at the NHRA Summit Southern Nationals in Commerce, Ga.

Massey has reached the finals the last three times he’s competed in the event outside of Atlanta. He won the event twice in the Top Alcohol Dragster division and finished runner-up in 2009 as a Top Fuel driver for Don “The Snake” Prudhomme. 

Now he can add a No. 1 qualifier to resume of successes at the facility.

“I don’t what it is about this place, I like it and it likes me,” said an elated Massey. “To come out here and qualify No. 1 with the new Valvoline Next Gen colors on, the lucky green, everyone says green isn’t a lucky color on race cars but John Force has proven that wrong for many years. We just proved it’s not bad luck here today.”

Massey’s Friday evening 3.825, 323.19 stood through both of Saturday’s sessions. He races Pat Dakin in Sunday’s first round of eliminations.

“Two years ago, I made it to the finals and couldn’t seal the deal,” Massey recalled. “I’d like to at least make it to the final so I could have another chance to seal the deal. It’s just an honor to be out here racing again.”

Massey had only one season with Prudhomme before a loss of sponsorship parked the team leaving Massey, also the Rookie of the Year recipient, as. He was named as a driver for Don Schumacher Racing in December replacing the departing Cory McClenathan.

“Last year sitting out was tough,” said Massey. “Just to be able to be here racing every weekend with a great car like the Don Schumacher Group has given me, is unbelievable.”

RUNNING ON KILL - For the second consecutive race, L E Tonglet has walked away with the top spot in Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying.

“After that run I was coasting and everybody was saying number one and I was thinking it was Andrew because I didn't expect us to go two back to back number ones,” Tonglet said, a satisfied grin on his face as he faced the media. “After I took my helmet off it just kind of hit me that we have a really fast bike. 

“Vance and Hines has given us a lot of power and Nitrofish is backing us; so we have a good combination. We just have to keep it going on Sunday.”

Next on the checklist is not to repeat the mistake made in Houston.

“I slipped up in Houston and redlit in the first round. I feel like we have fixed that and we're just going to have to take it one round at a time and hopefully we can get the win light each run.” 

Tonglet's weekend started slow when the team hurt a transmission. In the second round the team missed the setup, but learned from the mistake to jump back into contention in the third and fourth rounds.

“That is probably everything (the bike) has in it,” Tonglet said of his final qualifying pass. “My dad is running everything on kill now because we've got Nitrofish behind us. That was probably a perfect run right there.”

Tonglet's 6.904, 192.93 was enough to keep Karen Stoffer off the spot. Stoffer's 6.929, 194.16 vaulted her into the second spot giving Suzuki the top two spots with the Harley's of Eddie Krawiec and Andrew Hines in the third and fourth spots, while Hector Arana III posted the fifth quickest run.

Michael Phillips, seventh on the grid, powered himself in the Atlanta Dragway record books with a speed of 195.34 mph.

On the outside looking in were eight riders led by David Hope and including GT Tonglet, LE Tonglet's older brother, Redell Harris and Junior Pippen.

EDWARDS PLEASED WITH ATLANTA EFFORT, SO FAR - With each day at the NHRA Summit Southern Nationals, Mike Edwards' goals change. He met those goals on Friday as the provisional top qualifier. Now he's met those goals on Saturday as he held onto the top spot and found out what not to do on Sunday.

Having garnered six points of Friday, Edwards then added two more to his total all while holding to the top spot. Friday's 6.605 at 208.55 was all Edwards needed to hold off a valiant assault by Jason Line and Allen Johnson. Line turned in an impressive 6.608, 208.84 with Johnson only slightly behind with a 6.611, 208.78.

“Conditions will definitely be good for Pro Stock racing,” said Edwards when asked about Sunday's expected weather conditions. “That is what makes these engines make more power and when they make more power they run fast.

“We've got to make the right adjustments and see what happens.” 

Edwards is hungry each race to garner every possible point. Currently fifth in the point standings, Edwards is proving just how critical each point can be. 

“It's all about points right now,” admitted Edwards, who because of a DNQ at the season opening event in Pomona, missed out on a significant number of points. “We're looking to get all we can get. I think we got the most out of the last two days; we haven't been doing that. That is a step in the right direction.

“You have to get in the Countdown to play the Countdown!”

Edwards admits the team raced the track better on Friday than they did on Saturday. Part of the reason was the effort by the team to try something a little different.

“You never want to make a mistake, but (being qualified well) gives you the opportunity to try some things; not off the wall or out of the box things. You don't want to try something to far off because there are three points to gain.”

The biggest haul of points comes Sunday when a team makes it to the final round and then wins the race, until that time Edwards is wasting no opportunity to keep his competitors from chowing down on appetizers.

FORCE HOPES TO CHARM PEACHES ON SUNDAY - Fifteen-time NHRA Funny Car series champion John Force isn’t being sexist, he just wants to win. And if understanding his race car is similar to the tendencies of a female, then so be it.

Force captured his fourth consecutive No. 1 effort of the 2011 season on the strength of his 4.072, 310.98 pass during Friday qualifying at the NHRA Summit Southern Nationals in Commerce, Ga.

The car he’s driving is actually the same Ford Mustang his daughter Ashley Force Hood, currently awaiting the birth of her first child, drove in 2010. While he admits the car is hers, he’s affectionately nicknamed the car “Peaches” because it sounds more like a female than Thor, and of course the previously suggested “Eggplant”.

“Race cars have different personalities on any given Sunday,” Force admitted. “The boys inspired me to name the car today and because it is Ashley’s car … we called it Peaches, that’s what I call the baby. We don’t know what the sex of the baby is yet but Peaches just fit. If it’s a boy, we just might have to change the name.”

Force doesn’t deny he’s struggling on race day after dominating qualifying for the last two months. He’s at a loss as to why considering the three Force combinations are nearly identical.

“Jimmy Prock and Robert struggled today, Mike Neff was fast at the last race and we ran well at this one,” Force reasoned. “You know God just moves the ponds around. That’s what we think. He doesn’t let anyone be a hero too long. I have a good hot rod. I just can’t seem to win.”
Force believes he’s not yet totally comfortable with the new, blue LED  staging lights which could contribute to his lack of success on race day. Then again, Force admits, the issue might not be solely his shortcomings.

“I’m telling you this race car is like a woman and when she wants to dance … she’ll dance,” Force pointed out. “I’ve been in love with my race car and when she gets moody, wheeew … she goes all over the place.”

There’s no amount of coaxing or sweet-talking he can do to convince the car, Miss Peaches, of his need for a win. The last time he tried to overrule his Funny Car’s intuitions, there were grave consequences.
 
“I don’t know anything about a fuel Funny Car,” Force admitted. “I used to work on them myself. I used to get a lot of television time because I tuned it and was on fire every day.”

As Force has learned, sometimes it’s best just to let her do what she’s going to do.

MUSI UPDATE - A family spokesperson has confirmed with CompetitionPlus.com NHRA GSA Pro Mod racer Pat Musi sustained a back injury during an accident on Friday during the NHRA Summit Southern Nationals in Commerce, Ga.

Musi, of Carteret, NJ, lost control of his nitrous-injected Dodge Stratus, making contact with the retaining wall in the shutdown area. Musi exited the car under his own power.

Complaining of pain in his lower back, Musi was transported via ambulance to nearby Northridge Hospital where it was later confirmed by a family spokesperson Musi sustained a fractured vertebrae.  

According to the spokesperson, Musi is scheduled for surgery on Sunday morning to insert titanium rods.

JIM YATES OUT IN GRAY PRO STOCK CAMP – Jim Yates confirmed he was released from his duties as crew chief for the Shane Gray Pro Stocker following the NHRA Spring Nationals in Houston, Texas.

Yates, the past Pro Stock champion driver turned crew chief, made the trip to Commerce, Ga., where he is assisting son Jamie Yates tuning Mark Martino’s Pro Stock effort.

“Just helping out,” Yates said. “Mark Martino and his dad purchased my tractor trailer, and they hired Jamie to help them on a race to race basis. Since my other son John and I are unemployed now, we thought we’d come over and help him this weekend.”

Yates declined to discuss the reasons for his firing. 

FINALLY! – After six fruitless starts, Melanie Troxel’s Pro Care RX-sponsored Funny Car team can finally celebrate. Troxel landed a spot in the sixteen-car Funny Car field with a 4.148, 305.15 pass. Troxel failed to make the cut in Pro Modified but she learned when good fortunes are on a roll, they can steamroll you. Troxel's Pro Modified was on the car lift en route to the top level of the hauler when word was handed down, she could race the first round as an alternate. The team thrashed to prepare the car and then rolled to the starting line where she won her first round match.

 

PATRICK FINDS SUCCESS AGAIN IN NHRA PS - Robert Patrick had to think for a moment, scratch his head and despite racking his brain couldn’t remember the last time he qualified for a NHRA Pro Stock event.

“I think it was sometime in 2002,” Patrick guessed.

The next time someone asks the same question, the answer will be a lot easier. Patrick ran a 6.700 elapsed time at 205.60 miles per hour in his Purvis Ford-sponsored Mustang to land in the No. 16th spot during the final day of qualifying at the NHRA Southern Nationals outside of Atlanta, Ga.
Patrick, of Fredericksburg, Va., teamed up with Don Beverley to make a run at NHRA Pro Stock this season. Their engine program is headed up by Sonny Leonard, an engine builder best known for his prowess in building large displacement engines.

“It feels good,” Patrick said. “We started this engine program last season with Bob Ingles and had some success testing the car where at the end of the season we started making some moves. We ended up taking it to Sonny Leonard and he took it over this season. 

“It looks like we are getting better. We found some power on the dyno and (we're) getting better with the car. We just need to make more runs.”
Patrick becomes only the third Ford Pro Stock driver since the manufacturer returned with active support, to qualify for a national event.
 
“We seriously considered not even coming to the race this weekend,” Patrick admitted. “I didn’t think we were prepared. Then again, I believed we wouldn’t fix the car by sitting at home. I knew we needed to come down and make some runs under race conditions.”

On paper, qualifying No. 16 might not look like an overwhelming achievement. For the Purvis team the accomplishment might feel like winning the lottery at least for one night.

“It’s a big achievement, only our fourth race out with this team,” Patrick said. “We went to two races last year and early this year in Charlotte. We really had a good chance of qualifying in Charlotte. We had some miscues on the set-up there. This weekend’s success is going to build toward later this season. We’ve got to start somewhere. 

“We’ve got notes for these weather conditions with this combination. We had no notes or data for this car and this engine tune-up. This is a great starting position.”

The last time Patrick qualified for an NHRA event was the 2002 World Finals in Pomona, Ca. Sunday’s start will mark the 31st for Patrick since making his NHRA debut in 1996.

SEEN IT ALL DEPARTMENT - They might have been waiting for their first round match with the hare. Or, they might have just completed a run.

For what could be a drag racing first, the Safety Safari had to pause from their duties of removing a broken down nitro Funny Car in order to return a pair of wayward turtles to their natural habitat.

Drum roll please ... they were sponsored by Turtle Wax.

Seriously, the NHRA officials returned the turtles to the nearby grass on the Atlanta Dragway property.

FLY ME TO THE … MOON SPACE SHUTTLE - “What is great about this sport is you  meet so many wonderful people. I've been fortunate to have gotten to know the Kelly family, Mark and his brother Scott. Both astronauts and both have been in space many times,” said Bob Tasca when asked about a coming Monday event – the launch of the space shuttle. “ Mark said to me, 'Tasca you're going to get to see me drive.'”

Tasca will be joined by his mother, father and my crew chief Mark Deter where they will all watch the launch from the family section.

You would think a guy who enjoys a four second burst of speed exceeding 300 miles per hour would long for a ride in a space shuttle. No, says Tasca.

“I couldn't do it,” admitted Tasca. “People say 'how can you be claustraphobic and drive a funny car?'; there is a big difference in my funny car – I can get out any time I want other than that four seconds. 

“I've been in the shuttle simulator, in the mockup – I take my hat off – those are true, true brave people who do what they do for their country. So, I'm going to leave Mark the shuttle and I'll keep the wheel of my funny car.”

NO MORE BUSCH IN 2011 – Riding his Dodge back to the pits, Allen Johnson took a moment to confirm NASCAR driver and former Sprint Cup Series champion Kurt Busch's Pro Stock endevours are finished for now.

“He's done for this year,” said Johnson, his voice emphasizing the words “this year.”

DAN WILKERSON RETURNING TO ACTION SOON - Daniel Wilkerson, son of Funny Car driver Tim Wilkerson, is at the track for the first time in 2011.
 
Wilkerson, who has been busy in his new job at a small accounting firm, says he will have an announcement in the near future concerning his continuing effort to become a full-time competitor on the NHRA Full Throttle Series in the Funny Car ranks.
 
“Englishtown,” said Wilkerson when asked just how soon his announcement could come.
 
TIME TO STOP LOOKING OVER HIS SHOULDER – Hector Arana, II, also known as Hector Jr., knows he has to cut the apron strings between himself and Hector Arana, III and do it quickly.
 
The elder Arana entered the Summit Racing Southern Nationals, the third race on the Pro Stock Motorcycle, sitting fourth in the points behind Eddie Krawiec, Andrew Hines, and Karen Stoffer. Arana went to the semi-finals in Gainesvillne, after his son failed to qualify. In Houston, Arana lost to his son in the first round making it paramount for both father and son to qualify in the top eight at Atlanta Dragway.
 
“I don't want that to happen again,” said Arana, Sr. with a grin glazed across his face, adding “right now both bikes are running really well.”
 
With the bike under the younger Arana performing well, the elder can now concentrate on getting himself back into championship form. Arana quickly admits the time spent on his son's bike has hurt his own performance this year.
 
Arana might consider turning to John Force for a bit of advice. With not one, not two, but three daughters involved as drivers in the drag racing, Force has plenty of practice when it comes to shutting out the external distractions.
 
“It isn't just about my children,” admitted Force. “Last year against Hagan I said to my guys, 'we have to win this race to put (the championship) away; everybody calm down and find focus. I talked to Neff about this yesterday – the tree. I told him last week was last week and he needs to turn off that switch.”
 
An important part of the formula is the timing of turning off the switch. Force says for him the moment of absolute concentration comes with the lighting of the top half of the blue light.
 
“That's when I shut it all out. It's just me, the car and the tree.”
 
It may help Force to know his cars are filled with veterans. Hector Arana, III is a raw rookie with but a few races under his belt.
 
“I'm really trying to put it out of my head; but its hard to do when it's your son,” admitted Arana, Sr., who then added it wasn't just a distraction on the track. Arana has been splitting his time between two bikes, and its the preparation time between rounds which wears on him the most.
 
“I'm leaving the bike preparation mostly to him this weekend and that has helped a lot.”
 
The change had helped enough to put the Arana, III in fifth and his father in fourth, easing another concern. At least the two can't meet until the finals should the both make it that far.

TASCA BODY UPDATE - The plan was to debut their new Ford body at zMAX Dragway during the 4-Wide Nationals. And then in a last minute decision, the body was left in the overhead bin of the team hauler; the body the team started the season with still on the race car.

The new body sat unused until Sunday morning when it was pulled out  and placed into service following an explosion during a Saturday qualify run.

“We had intended to debut the new body at the 4-Wide in Charlotte but made a decision to stick with what we already had in service,” Bob Tasca, III explained as his crew prepped his hot rod for qualifying at Atlanta Dragway Saturday morning. “When we blew up on Saturday we could have gone back to the shop and gotten our back-up body but we decided 'what the heck' let's put this one on and look what happened.”

What happened was a second place finish to Jack Beckman, Tasca's best finish of the 2011 season. The new body has remained in service ever since and Tasca couldn't be happier.

To say Tasca has been anything but excited with the process of finding an alternative source for the 2011 Ford Mustang initially only manufactured by Metalcrafters would be a gross mistatement. However, he hasn't allowed his excitement over the product developed and constructed by Outerlimits Offshore Powerboats, Inc., a Bristol, Rhode Island-based boat building company, overshadow his solid business sense.
 
While the new Outerlimits body is a solid performer, there is some room for improvement. Tasca climbed under the body to point out areas where the rear tires just did scrape underside of the body. At the same time, he was quick to point out areas of the body which normally are subject to damage which are showing no signs of wear.

“We'll run this body through the Topeka race and then switch back to our Metalcrafter body; which we'll run through the summer while Outerlimits builds another body making even further improvements,” said Tasca as he discussed his plans for the remainder of the 2011 season. “Once we get the next body we'll put in on the car and finish the season with it. We'll also plan on starting next season with the same body we finish this season with.”

Only two operations will be able to purchase Ford bodies from Outerlimits, Tasca and Force. Outerlimits is not looking to limit their construction to just Ford bodies; there are plans to build Dodges and Toyotas.

The draw for Tasca is simple – Outerlimits is building a stronger body at a substantial reduction in price over a Metalcrafter body. The shape of the body is, by the rulebook, identical to the product sold by Metalcrafter.
Having a new source for a body, isn't the only attraction for Tasca.

Outerlimits has plans to further the development of the product in the hopes of building a body which would be made up of separate elements so teams would not be require to replace an entire body every time damage occurred.

 

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FRIDAY NOTEBOOK -

ON THE CUSP OF WJ GREATNESS - John Force is 24 hours and two runs away from tying Warren Johnson's record of 138 starts from the top spot; which would be the fourth for Force in the first six races of the 2011 season.

Tying the record would be nice but Force considers it like comparing apples to oranges.

“I've never raced Warren Johnson and you put me in a Pro Stocker and I couldn't start it,” said Force. “It's like comparing baseball with football. But, any time you can put your name up there with a guy like Warren Johnson; I'm proud. He's just cool.”

Force actually thought Cruz Pedregon was going to take the top spot because “his stuff is really the hot rod to beat right now,” and if not Cruz, Robert Hight or Bob Tasca. Tasca led first round qualifying.

With Saturday's qualifying sessions set for 11:45 am and 2:15, Force is reluctantly confident his run of 4.072/310.98 will hold up against any challenge. The 4.072 is a track record.

“I would like to think it would,” Force said when asked if the time would hold up. “At the end of the day, if it cools down and the track is pretty good it will depend on how late we run. This is late night here. Tomorrow you'll have humidity and heat.

“I don't like to say it, because every time I say something (trouble). I ran my mouth at Kansas against Chuck Etchels one year. I said I would be the first in the fours because my old hot rod was outrunning everybody.”

As Force did his burnout a brake caliper fell of the car, ending any chance he might have had to set a new record.

“It just proves nothing is a sure thing, but we'll see (what happens tomorrow),” added Force.
 
Force was ready for the run and a half hour delay did little to improve on what the team was looking for out of the car.

“Guido told me, three cars back, he was looking to run .08 and he is pretty good at calling a number,” explained Force. “He sets it up and they'll know what it will do if it works. And, it ran an .07. Guido and Ron Douglas are really savvy on this thing. Guido was taught by Austin Coil. They don't do it unless they can do it.”

Cruz Pedregon jumped from fifth to second in the second session with a solid 4.111, while Bob Tasca, leader after the first round smoked the tires in his second effort.

Five drivers have yet to qualify, with the most notable being Ron Capps. Others include Brian Thiel, Tim Wilkerson, Johnny Gray and Paul Lee in no specific order.

GETTING INTO THE COMFORT ZONE - Second after the first round of qualifying, Spencer Massey waited out an extended second session to post the quickest pass of the day – 3.825, 325.19.  

“I knew we had a car capable of running an 82 or maybe a 79. What was nerve wracking was, after the oildown, was watching those cars going out in front of us smoking the tires,” explained Massey, who's only other pole start came right here at Atlanta Dragway.

Massey's co-crew chiefs told him not to worry and he trusted them. That trust is a statement to the level of comfort Massey has quickly developed with Todd Okuhara and Phil Shuler.

“We've worked well together since we first went down to testing in Palm Beach in December. Everybody on the team is so welcome, open and friendly. They are like family members now. We molded together and that is what you have to do out here.

“You have to be one together. There is no I in team.”

Should the run hold up through Saturday, Massey will have his first pole for team owner Don Schumacher and the second of his career (the first also coming at Atlanta). Hesitant to count his chickens before they hatch Massey admitted the odds were could the run would hold up through the third and fourth rounds of qualifying.

“I think so. Obviously tomorrow's run will be in a little more heat; so I think it wil hold up,” admitted Massey. “Knock on wood. It would nice to be sitting back here talking to you guys and then again on Sunday.”

Saturday's chore will be to make the car go A to B, in spite of the conditions.

Del Worsham, fastest in the first round of qualifying, improved on his second pass by .001 second, which was .003 seconds fewer than he needed to retain the top spot. Brandon Bernstein was third quickest followed by Millican and Antron Brown.

Sitting outside the top twelve are nine drivers, including defending series champion Larry Dixon, whose best effort of the day occurred in the first round.

WISHY WASHY WEATHER - Mike Edwards understands Mother Nature has a choice – she can be his best friend or his worst enemy. He won't know which one until she reveals which side of the bed she wakes up on come Saturday

Edwards drove his way to a 6.605, 208.55 to claim the provisional Pro Stock pole at the NHRA Southern Nationals, .015 ahead of No. 2 runner Jason Line.

“If we get the cooler weather tomorrow, this run won’t hold,” Edwards said. “If it cools off tomorrow … just look how it changed between sessions. We ran a 6.64 and then stepped up to a 6.60. We only picked up 400 or 500 feet. If we come out here in the morning and the air is 1000 feet better we will run a lot faster.”

Edwards has 36 pole positions to his credit and if the run holds, it would be his second of the season. It all depends on whether the forecasted thunderstorms, a trademark in the Commerce region this time of the year, roll in as predicted. Right now, there’s a 50-percent change of storms.

The one consistent Edwards has learned about Atlanta is how inconsistent the weather can be. One moment, the humidity can be overwhelming and ten minutes later the temperature can plummet.

“Seems like we always have weather issues at this event, and somehow or another we get the race in,” Edwards said. “I’m hoping we can at least struggle through tomorrow and make it to Sunday. Sunday looks good.”

Regardless of what he faces, Edwards believes he’s got a treasure trove of data to draw upon.

“We have several books for this place,” Edwards, a two-time NHRA Southern Nationals winner, confided.

KRAWIEC REVELS IN A ‘COMPLETE’ RUN - “Finally,” Eddie Krawiec sighed, “it came together.”

The front half of a run was as strong, if not stronger than the tail end for his Screamin’ Eagle V-Rod Harley-Davidson. It was the run he’d been looking for all season long.

The end result was a 6.933 elapsed time at 192.44 miles per hour to secure the provisional No. 1 spot in NHRA Summit Southern Nationals Pro Stock Bike qualifying.

If the run holds, it will be his seventh career No. 1 and the first in 2011.

“We’ve struggled with having two fast bikes,” said Krawiec. “It seems to me it was always hit or miss. When mine was fast, Andrews wasn’t. When his was fast, mine wasn’t. More important we are making good laps.”

Krawiec’s V-Rod went 1.06 to the sixty-foot on his first qualifying run and stepped up in the evening session with a 1.05.

“One of the things we’ve worked hard on over the winter was in improving our chassis set-up and trying to develop our full package,” Krawiec said. “If you can make everything work together, it’s only going to go that much faster.”

Friday was a tale of different weather conditions. The early part of the day was extremely humid and affected the first session. But by the time the second session rolled around, the temperature had cooled almost 20 degrees.

“We are on two different tracks, when we first came out the track was 129 degrees,” Krawiec said. “Then we came out on a cooler track and went faster. We’ve never been much of a team known to run the fast sixty-foot times. We have been known for running the 330-foot clock and on. I think it will only benefit us in the future.”

This season, the Harley-Davidsons are undefeated on race day. In  qualifying, its been another story, with both bikes unable to grab the top spot. Their past good fortunes at Atlanta Dragway could have contributed to the day’s success.

“We have just been trying to focus on having a good bike overall,” Krawiec explained. “Atlanta has always been a pretty good track for us. We like it when we come here. Andrew won here last year. This is the track for my first career win. I’m just happy to come out here and make good laps. As a team, as a whole, our main focus is race day. It seems our program always seems to turn around going into race day.

“Now all of our data starts adding up and we need to start making that early. The key is to come off of the truck and run early and don’t give any ET up.”

Saturday’s forecast calls for a high of 72-degrees with a threat of thunderstorms.

“If the weather holds, we could see some low 6.80s tomorrow,” Krawiec confirmed.



FINALLY RELIEF - Going to work as a professional drag racer seems like a day off for Clay Millican compared to the work he’s put in lately.

Millican and the Parts Plus Top Fuel team spent the lion’s share of the last two weekends at their Millington, Tn., shop racing against the threat of flooding from a swollen Mississippi River. The threat officially passed on Tuesday of this past week.

Millican and members of the Mark Pickens Enterprises Top Fuel team loaded into their team van and rode to an area seven miles downstream called the “bottoms”.

“I’ve never seen anything like this, the older people back home said flooding like this happened in the 1930s but I wasn’t old enough to see that,” Millican said.

The flooded “bottoms” is comprised largely of farmland and no housing, an area where Millican first learned to drive. Seeing this area flooded was a reminder of how fortunate the team was. Almost a year ago the MPE shop sustained major damage in a flood.

“We were prepared for a flood this time,” Millican said. “For the last three weeks we’ve had water in the buildings directly across the street. I spent all night long working many nights; even called in some of the guys to help me move.

“We were prepared at a moment’s notice to put the trucks under the trailers and pull them out. We were ready to move them to parking lots on higher ground.”

Millican said every piece and part for the team is packed up and stored away. He describes it as a mess, but an organized mess. And for Millican, last May’s flood provided an excellent guideline for what to pack and what to leave alone.

“We’ve got a real nice reminder of the flood after we rebuilt the shop last year,” Millican said. “The shop used to be all white but from the water line down, it is all gray. Now everything we have is above that water line.”

While the team received a reprieve from the flood waters, in the midst of the preparation nearly experienced a tragedy. The team’s mascot, a pit bull named Jolie, ingested rat poison uncovered in the haste of packing.

“She ate a huge chunk of it,” Millican explained. “That turned Wednesday night into a long night. We were able to get her to throw up using hydrogen peroxide. I learned a pit bull will allow you to open her jaws and brush her teeth. The poison was all in her teeth. I also learned my wife can drive a duallie really fast while holding a pit bull’s head.

“But Jolie is doing fine. You have a routine you get into in life and when weeks like this happen, they throw you for a loop. Unfortunately for a lot of people in Memphis there are a lot of people who aren’t as fortunate as us. When the water got in our shop last year, it was tough to deal with that. I couldn’t imagine that being my home.”

GREASE ‘EM UP - If the squeaky wheel gets the grease, Pro Stock Motorcyle rider Shawn Gann, who rides a Buell, is ready to make more than his fair share of noise regarding the Harley-Davidson combination.

Suffice to say Gann isn’t a fan of the domination Harley-Davidson has shown in the first two races of the 2011 season.

“They come out of the trailer with their chest poked out like they are the s*** when everyone else in the class has their hands tied behind their backs,” Gann erupted. “You can really be the s*** when you’re racing like that. That’s a real fair a**whipping contest.”

Eddie Krawiec and Andrew Hines have won the first two events of the sixteen-race Full Throttle Series. In qualifying, a Buell [Gainesville] and Suzuki [Houston] have paced the fields.

“They have the most technologically advanced bikes on the property while the rest of us are still mowing the grass with our 1941 John Deere lawnmowers.”

Gann doesn’t take kindly to the advice of those who suggest the other combinations need to work harder.

“That’s the biggest bunch of bulls*** I’ve ever heard,” Gann exclaimed. “That’s a clam. Hide behind that bs they let you hide behind. They can do what we can’t. It’s all covered up in the rulebook. If you let a Ford do what they did and not a Chevy, there would be a fistfight in the pits. Because it’s a motorcycle and Byron [Hines[] it’s okay.”

RED CROSS RIDER - At the same time a tornado was ravaging his hometown, Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Steve Johnson was busy enjoying the fruits of being a drag racing celebrity during a pre-race appearance.

Johnson, who lives in Birmingham, Ala., was signing autographs and greeting race fans when his phone began to ring. One call was followed by another, almost non-stop to the point he believed his cell unit was going to explode.

The calls were from home describing a devastating storm cutting a path through Alabama and leaving death and destruction in its wake. Johnson sympathized and was very concerned, but the reality of a tornado was something he couldn’t understand. A transplanted Californian, Johnson understood earthquakes. But twisters? He couldn’t relate.

“Word came to us that tornadoes were rolling through Alabama and tearing up everything in sight,” Johnson recalled. “My crew chief (Tim Kulungian) and I are from California, and even though we’ve heard the tornado sirens go off at home, we never got to see one. We’re used to the earthquakes. We saw the news reports and it never sunk in. Then we got home and in seeing the home next to Tim’s erased, trees uprooted like weeds and those people who died — then it hit me.”

The sight of the destruction has inspired Johnson, a championship contender on the NHRA Full Throttle Series, to join efforts with the sanctioning body to raise funds for the victims through the Red Cross’ Tornado Relief Fund for the Southeast.

Fans will have the opportunity on Saturday of the event, after the second round of qualifying, to not only donate, but get their favorite drivers’ autographs, as a special autograph session with some of the biggest names in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing series — including Johnson, Larry Dixon, Del Worsham, Bob Tasca, Spencer Massey, Allen Johnson, David Grubnic, Cruz Pedregon, Jeff Arend, L.E. Tonglet, and more — will take place next to the Red Cross booth.

Johnson’s bike won’t be hard to spot in the midst of the hundreds of race vehicles participating in this weekend’s sixth race on the 22-event NHRA Full Throttle tour. He will be the only competitor with a vehicle bearing a dedicated Red Cross theme.

“I looked at the full scope of things and what we could do to raise the most money for this — and doing this came to mind,” Johnson said. “Our Facebook response has brought lots of support and Jeff Taylor at the Red Cross is very proud of it. The response has been overwhelming. I just didn’t think a little sticker on the side of the bike was enough. If we can get some television time, it will be a big reminder to those sitting at home to donate toward the devastated families.”

Win or lose, Johnson wants his point driven home for those, he says, who are lucky enough to have one.

“If you’re lucky enough to have a bed tonight, think about those who don’t.”

 

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