BECKMAN: I MADE A MISTAKE AND GOT AWAY WITH IT
Mon, 2009-06-29 08:01
When it’s your birthday there are a few exceptions fate allows you to get away with, like a .001 reaction time
behind the wheel of a Funny Car.
Jack Beckman pulled off the feat at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio. The unfortunate victim of his chance encounter with near perfection was Bob Tasca III.
“Had to cut the final round reaction time to bring up the day’s average,” Beckman said, smiling. “I made a mistake and got away with it.”
Beckman’s second Funny Car victory of 2009 followed a trend that he’s remained close to in his seven prior national event victories. He flies under radar all weekend long and when once in the final round, he goes for the jugular.
behind the wheel of a Funny Car.
Jack Beckman pulled off the feat at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio. The unfortunate victim of his chance encounter with near perfection was Bob Tasca III.
“Had to cut the final round reaction time to bring up the day’s average,” Beckman said, smiling. “I made a mistake and got away with it.”
Beckman’s second Funny Car victory of 2009 followed a trend that he’s remained close to in his seven prior national event victories. He flies under radar all weekend long and when once in the final round, he goes for the jugular.
“[Don] Prudhomme always used to he liked to rip their throats out by qualifying No. 1 and winning,” Beckman said. “Because of the way the track was you weren’t going to see that kind of a performance out of anyone. This was the hottest track we’ve raced on all year.”
The combination of a hot track [132-degrees] and green asphalt on the second half of the strip limited the Funny Cars to a 286.07 top speed throughout the weekend. The fastest Beckman ran all weekend was 277.
“It was slippery down there,” Beckman explained. “When you’re sitting in the car, strapped in to run, and I kept hearing about other drivers smoking the tires … I kept reminding myself to be ready to catch it.”
Beckman admittedly wasn’t himself all weekend as he fought the symptoms of a cold. He entered the event ranked sixth in points and rolled to the starting line having advanced to fifth. The victory vaulted him into fourth at the mid-point in the season.
A win is a win, whether a driver qualifies No. 1 or in Beckman’s case, sixth but running just good enough to win on Sunday.
“I’ve always said that there are no asterisks on trophies,” said Beckman. “There aren’t any on the checks we cash.”
TIPS FROM THE BEARD – Beckman's return to competitive form can be attributed to input from team manager Lee Beard, an accomplished nitro tuner who stepped in to look at how the team was using their data.
“We were trying some things,” Beckman explained. “You start heading in the direction you believe the car is telling you to go and it is easy to get out in left field. You think you are one or two runs away from fixing it but the problem is that it’s too hard to step back.”
Stepping back is counter intuitive for crew chiefs.
“Lee stepped in a few races ago and while he didn’t make any major changes he helped us to look at the data on the computer in a slightly different way,” Beckman said. ‘His perspective is unique and his experience has helped out a lot. He hasn’t told [crew chief] Johnny West which knobs to turn … he’s just made some suggestions. It looks like it’s paying off.”
DID YOU KNOW? – Beckman’s first Norwalk victory came on a day that John Force holds as sacred. On June 28, 1989 John Force scored his first career national event victory in Montreal, Quebec.
Beckman outran the fourteen-time champion in the semi-finals.
Roger Richards
Jack Beckman pulled off the feat at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio. The unfortunate victim of his chance encounter with near perfection was Bob Tasca III.
“Had to cut the final round reaction time to bring up the day’s average,” Beckman said, smiling. “I made a mistake and got away with it.”
Beckman’s second Funny Car victory of 2009 followed a trend that he’s remained close to in his seven prior national event victories. He flies under radar all weekend long and when once in the final round, he goes for the jugular.
When it’s your birthday there are a few exceptions fate allows you to get away with, like a .001 reaction time
Roger Richards
Jack Beckman pulled off the feat at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio. The unfortunate victim of his chance encounter with near perfection was Bob Tasca III.
“Had to cut the final round reaction time to bring up the day’s average,” Beckman said, smiling. “I made a mistake and got away with it.”
Beckman’s second Funny Car victory of 2009 followed a trend that he’s remained close to in his seven prior national event victories. He flies under radar all weekend long and when once in the final round, he goes for the jugular.
“[Don] Prudhomme always used to he liked to rip their throats out by qualifying No. 1 and winning,” Beckman said. “Because of the way the track was you weren’t going to see that kind of a performance out of anyone. This was the hottest track we’ve raced on all year.”
The combination of a hot track [132-degrees] and green asphalt on the second half of the strip limited the Funny Cars to a 286.07 top speed throughout the weekend. The fastest Beckman ran all weekend was 277.
“It was slippery down there,” Beckman explained. “When you’re sitting in the car, strapped in to run, and I kept hearing about other drivers smoking the tires … I kept reminding myself to be ready to catch it.”
Beckman admittedly wasn’t himself all weekend as he fought the symptoms of a cold. He entered the event ranked sixth in points and rolled to the starting line having advanced to fifth. The victory vaulted him into fourth at the mid-point in the season.
A win is a win, whether a driver qualifies No. 1 or in Beckman’s case, sixth but running just good enough to win on Sunday.
“I’ve always said that there are no asterisks on trophies,” said Beckman. “There aren’t any on the checks we cash.”
TIPS FROM THE BEARD – Beckman's return to competitive form can be attributed to input from team manager Lee Beard, an accomplished nitro tuner who stepped in to look at how the team was using their data.
“We were trying some things,” Beckman explained. “You start heading in the direction you believe the car is telling you to go and it is easy to get out in left field. You think you are one or two runs away from fixing it but the problem is that it’s too hard to step back.”
Stepping back is counter intuitive for crew chiefs.
“Lee stepped in a few races ago and while he didn’t make any major changes he helped us to look at the data on the computer in a slightly different way,” Beckman said. ‘His perspective is unique and his experience has helped out a lot. He hasn’t told [crew chief] Johnny West which knobs to turn … he’s just made some suggestions. It looks like it’s paying off.”
DID YOU KNOW? – Beckman’s first Norwalk victory came on a day that John Force holds as sacred. On June 28, 1989 John Force scored his first career national event victory in Montreal, Quebec.
Beckman outran the fourteen-time champion in the semi-finals.
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