Coming off the best showing yet for the new Charter Communication Pro Stock team in Bristol Tennessee, Rodger Brogdon and crew will
be flying the colors of the National Guard during the running of the
2009 NHRA O’Reilly Summer Nationals at Heartland Park Topeka this
weekend.

As the NHRA Full Throttle tour closes out the first third of its
season, Brogdon looks to this weekend’s event to continue the momentum
the team has been building over the last few races and knows that
having the National Guard on board will add even more incentive to
everyone on the team to win one for those that serve and protect our
country.

Aeromotive has teamed up with Joe Hartley and Hartley Racing for a one
race sponsorship of the Top Fuel Dragster team. Aeromotive will be the title sponsor for driver Joe Hartley at the 2009 NHRA O’Reilly Summer Nationals in Topeka, Kansas May 29-31

“We’ve known the Hartley crew for several years now and we couldn’t be
any more excited to be getting involved with them. We wanted to show
them our full support on their first full season, especially at our
home track in Topeka, Kansas.” said Steve Matusek, Aeromotive President.

Driver Joe Hartley is coming off of several good performances and
returning to the same track where last year, he qualified No. 1. In
addition to Hartley’s recent successes, Aeromotive hopes to capitalize
by celebrating their 15th Year Anniversary. They plan to commemorate
the occaison at this year's Topeka event with a huge bash for some of
their loyal supporters as well as the debut of their new Ford powered
Cobra Jet Dragster that will race in Super Comp driven by Matusek.

By definition, you only get to make an official debut once.  For Daniel
Wilkerson, after many years of sportsman racing, including an

Roger Richards Photo

NHRA Division 3 Top Alcohol Funny Car championship, as well as a few
non-NHRA endeavors in 2008 after earning his nitro Funny Car license,
the moment for his professional debut on the NHRA Full Throttle circuit
is finally in sight.  This weekend, the 21-year-old son of popular
Funny Car contender Tim Wilkerson will etch his name in the archives as
a professional nitro Funny Car driver, at the O'Reilly Summer Nationals
in Topeka.

The younger Wilkerson earned his FC license back in 2007, but with his
college education at the University of Illinois - Springfield a
priority, his mother and father were not willing to shortcut the truly
important things for a quick shot at glory.  Instead, Daniel made only
two appearances in 2008, starting on the IHRA circuit where he burst
onto the scene with a No. 1 qualifying position and a runner-up finish
at Milan, Mich., followed by an appearance at the biggest match race of
the year, in Norwalk.  There, he simply won the event over Ashley
Force, running 4.173-seconds in the process.

NHRA Full Throttle Pro Stock racer Larry Morgan will complete the
full circle of the Big Three as he plans to run a Ford Mustang Pro
Stocker in 2010. Morgan raced a GM in the 1980s and 1990s before headed
to a Mopar.

“We are very excited to be involved with Ford Racing and think
this is a great opportunity for myself and everyone here at Larry
Morgan Racing Inc.,” said Morgan, in a press release posted on NHRA.com. “I am
looking forward to working closely with Ford Racing Engineering in the
design of new cylinder heads and blocks necessary to bring their Pro
Stock program to the top of the class.”

Top Fuel driver and drag racing school owner Doug Foley recently made a
special appearance on SPEED TV's wildly popular Pass Time show, which
airs 7:30 p.m., Monday-Friday.

The Pass Time crew was filming several episodes at zMax Dragway in
Charlotte and Foley was at the track conducting his school at the same
time. When Pass Time host Brett Wagner and his sidekick Ken "The House"
Herring heard Foley was on the property, they quickly tracked him down
and invited him to take part in the show.

Needing little coaxing, Foley jumped in one of the Dragster Experience
rails he uses at his school and wheeled the 400-horsepower dragster
over to the set. After some good-natured ribbing from Wagner and
Herring, who wondered aloud whether he could handle the speed, Foley,
whose career-best speed in a Top Fuel dragster is 331 mph, took to the
track and raced down the strip.

Leading human papilloma virus (HPV) expert Maura Gillison, MD, PhD, was
officially named to the Jeg Coughlin Sr. Chair in Cancer Research
during a special ceremony Wednesday night at the Longaberger Alumni
House at The Ohio State University.

"This is a dream come true for all of us," said Coughlin, who was
surrounded by his four sons and many members of the extended Coughlin
family. "This Chair represents a legacy that will continue forever.
Cancer research takes commitment from a financial aspect and more
importantly from a research and development side. Dr. Gillison has
accomplished so many things already and we truly feel the best is yet
to come."

Gillison recently joined OSU's staff after a successful stint as
associate professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in
Baltimore, Md., where she was a member of the Sidney Kimmel
Comprehensive Cancer Center. She now serves as professor of medicine in
the division of hematology and oncology at OSU and is a member of the
Cancer Control and Viral Oncology Programs at the Comprehensive Cancer
Center.

While much of the focus surrounding the upcoming Nitro Jam race at
Dallas Raceway has been about the track itself, it is the drivers

Kenny Lang (right) congratulates Tim Tindle following his Rockingham victory.

that will walk away from this weekend’s event with the fame and glory that comes with winning a first-time event.

And
defending IHRA Pro Modified champion Kenny Lang hopes he is the one
hoisting the inaugural Amalie Oil Texas Nationals trophy Sunday night.

“We
are really looking forward to the Dallas race. It will be a big race
for us and could set the tone for the rest of our season,” Lang said.
“It looks like an incredible facility and we can’t wait to get there.”

Over 14 years ago, Jeff Arend, driver of the DHL Toyota Solara Funny
Car, began his dream of racing against the world’s best drag racers when he entered his first NHRA Funny Car event in Gainesville, Fla.

This weekend, May 29-31, Arend will compete in his 100th NHRA Funny Car
event as part of the O’Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals at famed Heartland
Park Topeka in Topeka, Kan. Arend is reflective about the lessons he
has learned over the past 99 events, and he is excited and optimistic
about his straight-line career at this point and forward.

To compete in Top Dragster and Top Sportsman in 2009, big power, with
the diversity of running naturally aspirated and nitrous is not an option,
but a requirement. Finding a 1600-horse 632-inch power plant is common
in most fast cars today, but with high price of everything racing
related, and longevity on the forefront of every racers mind, Pat Musi
and Vic Edelbrock have put their best foot forward.

Building 1200 naturally aspirated horsepower and 1600 nitrous assisted
horsepower for under $27K is what the goal is. But proving it works is
another. That’s why when they approached Scott Hall about testing their
new engine he agreed to the challenge.

Pat Musi has brought together Edelbrock’s “Big Victor” cylinder head,
matching intake manifold, complete nitrous system, stainless steel
merge collector exhaust, and with the help of Jesel and Moroso, has
what will be the economical answer to big power with well developed
reliability.

Marking the half-way spot in the ten-race season, drivers in the Get
Screened America Pro Mod Challenge presented by ProCare Rx will venture
into uncharted territory this weekend as they compete for the first
time ever on the venerable quarter-mile at Heartland Park Topeka in the
O'Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals in Topeka, Kansas.
 
Smack-dab in the middle of the country, the Topeka event will feature a
baker's-dozen of the best Pro Modified cars in the land, all vying for
the Get Screened America Warrior trophy and the $10,000 purse as well
as the extremely valuable championship points in a tightly-contested
race. Scheduled to compete this weekend are: Burton Auxier, Joe Baker,
Roger Burgess, Mike Castelana, Raymond Commisso, Chip King, Mike
Knowles, Taylor Lastor, Jay Payne, Brad Personett, Danny Rowe, Tim
Tindle, and rookie Kirk Wilmes.