Kurt Johnson admitted he was afraid.

After watching the racing surface at Gateway International Raceway
during the recently completed NHRA Midwest Nationals make a mockery of
many of his fellow racers’ combinations, Johnson had doubts.

Kurt
Johnson won the 37th event of his career, first of the 2008 season and
third at Gateway International Raceway. (Roger Richards)

If there were to be any hopes of winning his first race since February
of 2007 [Phoenix, Az.], Johnson was going to have to make serious
adjustments to his combination.

"We were scared to touch the car after running a .58 earlier in the
day," Johnson said, "but we knew we had to make some changes.  We
changed gears around, we changed the clutch around, and the whole
ACDelco crew came together and we did what we needed to do.”

Tom Hammonds, NHRA Pro Stock Car driver/owner and retired NBA player,
will take his national school program, Tom Hammonds Race for
Achievement, to Vance Middle School in Bristol, Tenn., on Wednesday,
May 14, at 12:45 p.m. EST in conjunction with O'Reilly NHRA Thunder
Valley Nationals.

Tom Hammonds Race for Achievement allows Hammonds to interact with
students through message.  Vance Middle School students will
participate in an assembly where he will speak about the importance of
education, sportsmanship, and leadership.  After the assembly, fifty
students will view the NHRA Pro Stock Chevrolet Cobalt and
transporter.    

During the assembly, Hammonds and Vance Middle School will be presented
with a proclamation declaring it "Tom Hammonds Race for Achievement
Day" in the city of Bristol, Tenn.  Fifty students meeting set criteria
will be chosen to receive an O'Reilly Auto Parts® Race Pack, filled
with goodies supplied by program supporters (GM, Goodyear, and
MacTools®), Tom Hammonds Hero Card, and two tickets to Friday's
O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals race at the Bristol Dragway.

Team JEGS drivers John and Mike Coughlin will look to continue their hot starts
to the 2008 season when the North Central Division Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series
resumes this weekend in Norwalk, Ohio. Both Coughlin’s are energized and
following a pair of wins at the season-opening event at O’Reilly Raceway Park at
Indianapolis three weeks ago. Mike claimed the Top Sportsman title while John
won in Super Stock with his JEGS.com Chevy Cobalt. It was the second time in the
last year that the Coughlin brothers have shared the winner’s circle at an NHRA
Lucas Oil Series event.
           
“That was a great way to start the
season, now Mike and I just need to keep the momentum going,” said John, who
will compete in Super Stock and Top Dragster. “Any time you have a successful
weekend, you want to keep going. The next race can’t arrive soon enough and
that’s the way we feel right now. We’re anxious to get back to the
track.”

Three winners in four events, the reemergence of reigning champion Josh
Hernandez, and a change at the top of the JEGS championship points standings are
just a few of the reasons the JEGS ProMod Challenge is experiencing one of its
best years ever.

Next on the docket is the fifth race of the 10-race
season, the eighth annual O'Reilly Thunder Valley NHRA Nationals, to be
contested May 16-18 at Bristol Dragway. It's going to be a tight field of just
20 professionals, which places extra importance on race day
success.

After an exhaustive review of 4,365 entries in a naming contest for
Lowe's Motor Speedway's new dragway, Speedway Motorsports officials
have selected zMAX Dragway @ Concord as the official name for the
state-of-the-art facility.

"We were overwhelmed by the response from race fans," said Bruton
Smith, chairman and chief executive officer of Speedway Motorsports,
Inc. "They suggested everything from Burnout Boulevard to The Southern
Slingshot to The Main Drag. Two people entered zMAX Dragway and we're
going to reward both of them."

Wanda Exum, of Greensboro, N.C., and Carl Hackley, of Charlotte,
submitted the winning entries. Each will receive two VIP tickets to the
inaugural NHRA Nationals on Sept. 11-14, four-night accommodations at
The Embassy Suites in Concord, dinner for two at The Speedway Club and
a $1,000 cash prize.

"zMAX is a quality product that has been involved in drag racing for
several years," Smith said. "This name association with the finest drag
racing facility in the world will raise zMAX's already growing profile."

Four long weekends stretch between the second and third IHRA National Events.
Many racers are using this time to test, some are attending other events, and a
few are just bidding the time between races. This weekend Pete Berner is taking
full advantage of his time off. The Quarter-Max.com machine is headed to Knoll
Gas Motorsports Park in Martin, Michigan for the National City Thunder Nationals
Saturday, May 10th.

When
given the invitation to attend the Thunder Nationals for a match race, Berner
eagerly accepted. "The Knoll Gas Motorsports Park is a top-notch facility, and
the Petersons [who manage the complex] make it a pleasure to race there," states
Berner. "I'm excited to visit the facility, and I always enjoy the competition
of a match race. We've had a couple weekends off now and it's time to get back
to the track."

CMT has released their video promo featuring IHRA Top Fuel drag
racer Terry McMillen. McMillen is part of a sweepstakes in conjunction
with CMT's Trick My Truck where a lucky winner will get to go on the
road during a race weekend with the team.

"I'm just really
excited about this program, how could you not be?" McMillen asked. "I
think this is an excellent way to open the eyes of mainsteam America to
the greatest sport on earth." 

TRICK MY TRUCK PROMO 

Effective
immediately, Johnny West has been named crew chief on the
Valvoline/Mail Terminal Services Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car driven by
Jack Beckman.

Phoenix native West replaces Rick Cassel and will work with tuner Tommy
DeLago on the Valvoline/MTS car out of Don Schumacher Racing's
Brownsburg, Ind., race shop. As is the general rule at DSR, West will
work hand-in-hand with the other DSR Funny Car crew chiefs, including
Todd Okuhara, Phil Shuler and Ed McCulloch. “We wish Rick Cassel all
the best in his future endeavors,” said team owner Don Schumacher.

West, 53, is a former Funny Car owner/driver turned tuner and has
worked with drag-racing greats such as Roland Leong, Doug Herbert,
Scott Kalitta, Don Prudhomme and, most recently, Clay Millican. He was
instrumental in Kenny Bernstein's winning the 2001 Top Fuel
championship, working with tuners Tim and Kim Richards.

Three-time IHRA Funny Car champion Rob Atchison, and his wife Julie,
the IHRA/SPEED Channel pit reporter, are the proud parents of an 8 lb.,
3 oz. baby boy born May 6, 2008. They've named their son Wyatt Robert
Atchison. Both mother and baby are doing fine.

ACDelco
Cobalt racer Kurt Johnson is a regular contributor to the Powershift XM radio show, calling in every
Tuesday prior to a POWERade Drag Racing Series national event to offer his
perspective on the goings-on in the highly competitive Pro Stock category.