EVENT NEWS EVENT NOTEBOOK			EVENT GALLERY LIVE VIDEOCAST

 

SUNDAY NOTEBOOK

BUBBA TIMES TWO - Bubba Stanton, from Potts Camp, MS, qualified his new Jerry Bickel-built '69 Camaro second in NAS Racing Pro Extreme behind only teammate Jason Scruggs, then beat Michael Neal and Wesley Jones on Saturday before rain postponed the semi finals and finals for all PDRA classes to Sunday. After getting past a tire-shaking Joey Martin in the semis with a 3.707 at 212.53-mph run that earned him lane choice, Stanton met number-four starter Mick Snyder for the second-straight time in the final.

At Rockingham (NC) Dragway, Snyder's '63 Corvette failed on the starting line, allowing Stanton to make a solo pass for the win. For a moment it looked like it might have been payback time at SGMP as Stanton's car started, then fell silent on the line while Snyder performed his pre-race burnout. But after Stanton's car finally refired he made a short burnout and staged while Snyder and his Powersource Transportation crew waited patiently.

"I'm just thankful we were racing guys that don't mind waiting and let you do your thing and we got it. But I do want to thank them for waiting on us; they didn't have to do that," Stanton pointed out after running a traction-challenged 3.881 at 194.30 to beat Snyder's off-the pace 4.696 at just 112.96 mph.

"I had my fingers crossed, just hoping it would go," Stanton said. "It took off and it was shaking, but I didn't ever see him; I was just trying to get to the other end."

Snyder actually got away first with a .036 reaction time to Stanton's .052, but said that advantage quickly disappeared when his car also went into tire shake. "Once I saw him out in front of me and I started heading toward the wall I just got out of it because it's definitely not worth wrecking the car," he said. The Demotte, IN-based driver then joked it was his turn to win and Stanton obviously hadn't learned his "sharing" lessons very well.

"I can't afford to (share)," Stanton responded. "The bad thing about it is if we keep meeting in the finals I can't ever get more than one round (per race) ahead of him in the points."

THE HARRIS TRAIN ROLLS - Just as he had at Rockingham in April, Pittsboro, NC's Jason Harris qualified his '68 Firebird on top of the 16-car Pro Nitrous field. He did it in convincing style, too, running 3.779 at 200.68 mph, representing the lone pass of the weekend in the 3.70s for the nitrous class. Then, just like last time, Harris mowed through the field to set the early example for the eight-race series in 2014, the PDRA's first year in operation.

"My crew deserves all the credit," Harris insisted. "We've struggled to get it all together the last couple of years but they've got it all sorted out now with Robert Hayes Motorsports, Hoosier tires and Pat Musi horsepower. I have the easy job; I just let go of the button and hang on."

Harris set low ET in each of four rounds of racing spread over two days, as he beat George Williams III and Chris Patrick on Saturday, then defeated fellow North Carolinian Travis Harvey in the semis before taking on number-two qualifier Bob Rahaim and his Michigan-based '69 Camaro in the final.

Harris led stripe to stripe against Rahaim, leaving with a sizable .053 holeshot before posting his "slowest" pass of the event at 3.914 at 196.67 mph on a very hot and still somewhat "green" racing surface after overnight rains thoroughly washed the SGMP eighth mile. Meanwhile, Rahaim lost traction early and coasted through in just over five seconds and less than a hundred miles an hour.

"We ran an .83 at 200 (mph) again in the semis, but the track was getting really hot so we left it alone for the final," Harris explained. "We knew it was probably going to slow up a little in the heat and it rattled a little about halfway, but I just stuck with it and I'll take a .91 with a win all day long."

While still early in the season, Harris admitted he's already cautiously aware of his championship potential this year.

"I know we got a good jump on everybody in the points, but right now I just want to concentrate on things race to race. If we can keep going good like this, the points will be there at the end."

GOFORTH DOMINATES - John Montecalvo edged out Cary Goforth by just five-thousandths of a second with a 4.092-seconds pass in Extreme Pro Stock qualifying to take the number-one spot into eliminations, but when Montecalvo bowed out in round one it cleared the way for Goforth to post his sixth win in seven finals since debuting his Jerry Haas-built 2013 Camaro last fall.

"I've got very good, capable hands working on this thing, but it seems like every car we get is just a little bit better than the last one, which is really amazing because they've all been great cars," Goforth said after beating John Pluchino, Lester Cooper and Trevor Eman in the final to post his second consecutive PDRA win. "This car almost dares you to try and shake the tires, it's that good and that smooth."

Eman started his 2011 Mustang from the fifth position in the eight-car field to beat Goforth's teammate and crew chief Jeff Dobbins in the opening round. He then got past Richard Penland in a side-by-side pedalfest in the semis before running a 4.167 at 175.30 that just wasn't enough to hold off Goforth's 4.153 at 175.84 mph.

"You know, I really appreciate the PDRA sticking around today and getting this race finished here; they really didn't have to do that," Goforth said while waiting in victory lane. "It would've been real easy for the backers and the people that run it and they'd have been money ahead if they'd just called the thing when it rained last night and split up the points and the purse and sent everyone home. I think about the financial side like that and I really appreciate that they wanted to get the race finished up and hand out the money and trophies here so we can win the Georgia Drags while we're still here in Georgia."

RIGHT PLACE RIGHT TIME - Just as he had at the previous PDRA event in Rockingham, NC, Todd Tutterow took the top spot in Pro Boost qualifying for the PDRA Georgia Drags, running 3.892 seconds at 193.24 mph in his roots-blown '68 Camaro. Just six-thousandths back in second-place, though, was Kevin Fiscus of Jacksonville, FL, with his twin-turbocharged 2012 Mustang.

Tutterow made short work of Tony "Sandman" Williams in round one of racing, but had to pedal the car in round two, allowing Joe Baker to advance and eventually beat Kevin Rivenbark and face off against Fiscus in the final.

Fiscus, meanwhile, ran low ET (3.940) of round one to beat Canada's Jim Bell in the debut of a new twin-turboed '69 Camaro after Bell destroyed his previous ride at the Rockingham race. In round two Fiscus took on Troy Coughlin, who had just scored his career-first round win in eighth-mile competition when he put Clint Satterfield on the trailer.

Regardless, Fiscus beat Coughlin in the quarter finals, then Larry Higgenbotham in the semis to reach Baker and decide the Georgia Drags Pro Boost champion.

Baker took a slim .003 lead off the start, but his "Medicine Man" '53 Studebaker soon lost traction, while Fiscus pedaled his way to a 4.162-seconds win at 194.72 mph.

"The Traction Twins (Cody and Cale Crispe) did a great job getting the track back into shape after all the rain last night, but there's a little transition about 70 feet out, right where we go from our one-to-two shift, and it spun there, I pedaled it once, and got it to hook back up and got the win," Fiscus said later. "I could hear him popping and banging in that blower car and then it went away. I think I might have heard him try to get back in it, but by then I was on my way and fortunately got the win."

NEW TUNE-UP DELIVERS - After spending the off season coming up with an all-new tune-up for his nitrous-boosted Timblin Chassis Suzuki, local rider Travis Davis arrived at South Georgia Motorsports Park ready for his first PDRA experience. He turned the experience into a lasting memory by winning from the pole position. Davis earned the top step on the eight-bike ladder with a 4.096-seconds ride at 172.06 mph. He then took down Christopher Jones, the son of veteran rider T.T.

Jones who made his PXM debut at the PDRA Georgia Drags, and past class champion Ashley Owens on Saturday evening shortly before the race was interrupted and the final postponed to Sunday by rain.

"I would have loved to finish the race last night because I feel certain we could've run in the 4-ohs again because the track was good and tight," Davis said after going 4.113 at 175.14 on a hot Sunday afternoon to take the final over Ron Procopio, who posted 4.198 at 171.93 aboard his own 2010 Suzuki. "But today with the sunshine beating on it today it got pretty hot and greasy. Last night we had a 1.02 60 foot (time) and that last pass was 1.04, so we definitely lost some there. And then I felt it spin a little too not long after the start, but luckily I had enough to keep it going and get the win. I'm pretty happy."

 

ANOTHER GENERATION OF STOTT WINNERS - Dylan Stott's last big win came nearly two years ago, but the Columbus, NC, racer found his way back to victory lane at South Georgia Motorsports Park May 11, when he beat Dan Ferguson in the Top Sportsman final for the PDRA Georgia Drags.

Driving an RJ Race Cars-built '67 Mustang, Stott opened with a big win over veteran driver Bruce Thrift, then followed up with victories over Rick Hord and Billy Albert before rain put a temporary end to the event on Saturday evening and postponed the final to Sunday.

"We've struggled with this car the last couple of years, but we finally got it figured out to run in the low 4.20s and this thing has been on a string all weekend," Stott said after posting 4.311 against a 4.25 dial in for the final. Ferguson dialed in 4.17 for his '02 Firebird, but ran 4.249 in a runner-up cause.

"I never saw him (Ferguson), so I dived it a little bit at the finish line," Stott said. "Just wanted to be safe."

OH YEAH! - Brian Bednar of Ocala, FL, could barely contain his excitement as he turned off the end of South Georgia Motorsports Park's long shutdown lanes after winning the Top Dragster final of the inaugural PDRA Georgia Drags. He could be heard hootin' and hollerin' inside his helmet as his '09 Spitzer dragster rolled to a stop.

"We got one; we finally won one," Bednar happily declared after dialing in at 4.25, posting a .021 light and running 4.277 seconds to the SGMP eighth-mile stripe, while his opponent, Danny Payne, dialed in at 4.12 and left with a .020 light that led to a 4.164-seconds pass.

"I'd like to thank PDRA for putting this on; they really did a great job with the track under a little bit of adverse conditions," Bednar said. "I'd also like to thank James Munroe of KillerRons.com for the tune-up, he's awesome, and everybody who came out and was watching at home. This is a big thrill for me!"
 

 

SATURDAY NOTEBOOK

THAT’S ALL FOR TODAY - With only the semi-finals and finals left to be run for all classes at the Professional Drag Racers Association (PDRA) inaugural Georgia Drags, rain began falling about 8:30 p.m. at South Georgia Motorsports Park (SGMP), near Valdosta.

With an 11 p.m. curfew looming and more rain forecast throughout the night, PDRA officials made the decision to postpone all remaining elimination rounds, with racing scheduled to resume at 9 a.m. Sunday morning (May 11). No spectator tickets or parking fees will be required for admission to SGMP on Sunday, PDRA Race Director Bob Harris said.

"We regret having to delay the finish of the Georgia Drags, but unfortunately there's nothing we can do other than wait this out and get started again in the morning," Harris said. "It's been a great event up to this point, though, with full grandstands and some outstanding action on the track and I expect that to continue, so I invite everyone in the area to come on out and see some truly great PDRA drag racing absolutely free tomorrow."

BILLY COMING BACK? - Billy Harper was in attendance at this weekend's Georgia Drags event and the longtime Pro Modified racer told a CompetitionPlus.com correspondent he plans to return to competition by the end of the year with his trusty nitrous-injected Dodge Viper.

MADMAN TAKES A HIT - The Madman ought to be mad. For the second time in as many PDRA races, Frankie "Madman" Taylor has qualified in the top two of Pro Extreme and twice has left as a first round loser.

Alright Frankie Taylor obviously something went wrong in the burn out, just tell me what happened.

"We must have broken the crank trigger but it worked for the first qualifying lap," said Taylor. "So after the first qualifying round it starts going in and out and then it dies."

Despite what could be considered a frustrating loss, Taylor is taking the early exit in stride.

"I ain’t frustrated about this stuff it’s racing," Taylor said. "I’ve had plenty of good luck in my days and hopefully I’ll get it back but right now we’re looking pretty bad. It’s racing bud."

What about I heard you talking, the plan is you’re going to go down to the Thrown down in Tulsa. Assuming you get the car back where you want it and get ready for the PDRA race in Memphis.

The runs of tough luck have Taylor thinking about the future.

"We'll see how we are in the points before we make our decision before we go to Michigan or not," admitted Taylor. "Michigan a 24 hour ride all the way up there and if we don’t have a chance then. I’m pretty sure we’ll be there. But boy she’s almost ready to give it up, she’s giving us nothing but hell this year man but I think we’ll be alright."

TO THE EXTREME - In NAS Racing Pro Extreme, Alabama's Brandon Snider and former class champion Mick Snyder from Indiana will face off in a pair of '63 Corvettes in one semi-final, while the other finalist will emerge from a race between the 2014 Camaro of Florida's Joey Martin and the Mississippi-based '69 Camaro of Bubba Stanton, another former Pro Extreme champ.

HARRIS STILL IN THE RUNNING - Jason Harris, who won the PDRA season opener last month in his home state of North Carolina, will pit his '68 Firebird against the '69 Camaro of Travis Harvey in the semis for Switzer Dynamics Pro Nitrous, with Pennsylvania racer John Camp and his '69 Camaro also reaching the semis against Bob Rahaim, yet another past class champion in a similar ride.

THREE VERSUS ONE - The semis for the Precision Turbo/Proline Racing Engines Pro Boost class will feature the supercharged '53 Studebaker and '02 Firebird of Florida's Joe Baker and North Carolina's Kevin Rivenbark, respectively, with the twin-turbocharged 2012 Mustang of Kevin Fiscus and Larry Higgenbotham's blown Hemi-powered '57 Chevy making up the second semi-final pairing.

STRANGERS IN STRANGE LANDS - With only an eight-car field in Aruba.com Extreme Pro Stock, North Carolina's Richard Penland pulled off the upset of the day in round one when he and his 2010 Mustang got the better of number-one qualifier and former class champion John Montecalvo. Penland will face the 2011 Mustang of Aruba's own Trevor Eman in the semis, while Rockingham winner and two-time champ Cary Goforth and his Oklahoma-based 2013 Camaro will race the North Carolina-based '09 Mustang of Lester Cooper.

LOW Q DAVIS CONTENDS FOR BIKE TITLE - The nitrous-boosted Pro Extreme Motorcycle field also included only eight qualifiers, but they actually made it through two rounds of competition, leaving only number-one qualifier Travis Davis from nearby Douglas, GA, to face off against North Carolina rider Ron Procopio to determine the PDRA Georgia Drags champion.

SPORTSMAN UPDATE - In the Magnafuel Top Sportsman high-speed bracket class, Billy Albert and his '02 Camaro from Virginia reached the semis against Dylan Stott and his '67 Mustang from North Carolina, with the winner to advance against either Georgia's Edd Haddock  and his '68 Camaro or Dan Ferguson in another '02 Camaro from North Carolina. Meanwhile, Georgia racer Danny Payne will go up against top qualifier Melissa Hutson in one semi for Top Dragster, while Florida's Brian Bedman will make a solo pass into the final.

 

FRIDAY NOTEBOOK - IT'S A HOT DAY IN GEORGIA

CURFEW GOT US - A looming curfew at South Georgia Motorsports Park (SGMP) deprived the Professional Drag Racers Association's (PDRA) marquee Pro Extreme and Pro Nitrous classes of their planned second round of qualifying May 9, but Todd Tutterow (Pro Boost), John Montecalvo (Extreme Pro Stock) and Travis Davis (Pro Extreme Motorcycle) finished the day as provisional pole sitters in the pro classes after completing two of three scheduled qualifying sessions for the inaugural PDRA Georgia Drags.

An 11 p.m. curfew at the track about 15 miles north of Valdosta postponed the second round of Pro Extreme and Pro Nitrous qualifying to 10 a.m. Saturday morning (May 10), to be immediately followed by a third and final qualifying round for all PDRA classes.

GAME MANAGER - After one session, PDRA co-owner Jason Scruggs held the NAS Racing Pro Extreme lead in a field of 16 qualifiers with a 3.582-seconds pass at 216.41 mph in his '63 Corvette, followed by Frankie Taylor at 3.611 in his 2005 Corvette and Mick Snyder at 3.639 in another '63 Vette.

HARRIS RULES AGAIN - Jason Harris, winner of the PDRA season opener last month at Rockingham, NC, placed first after the opening round of Switzer Dynamics Pro Nitrous qualifying, running 3.779 seconds at 200.68 mph in his '68 Firebird. John Camp and his '68 Camaro was second with a 3.842-seconds run and Tim Savell's 2013 Camaro went 3.849 to place third after 20 cars made attempts on the SGMP eightH mile.

 

KING TUT GOES ROYAL – Todd “King Tut” Tutterow, driving a roots-blown, Tim McAmis-built '69 Camaro out of Yadkinville, NC, ran a pair of nearly identical 3.892-second passes to secure the Precision Turbo/Proline Racing Engines Pro Boost lead, with his speed increasing only a mere three-hundredths to 193.24 mph in his second pass.

"I actually had it tuned up for the second round, but then I saw a lot of guys spinning the tires in front of me so I backed it down a bit in the (staging) lanes," said Tutterow, who ran last of 22 cars in the session. "I was looking for maybe a mid-.80, but then I thought I better just be smart and make sure it got down the track."

Second with one more qualifying opportunity on Saturday was Kevin Fiscus at 3.898 seconds in his twin-turboed Mustang, followed by Tommy D'Aprile, Canadian Eric Latino and Tutterow's teammate Kevin Rivenbark. Jimmy Blackmon held on to the 16th and final qualifying spot with a 4.233 in his twin-turbocharged '68 Firebird.

MONTE HAUL – John Montecalvo, who was second with his 2012 Camaro behind the '13 Camaro of Cary Goforth after the first round, leapfrogged to first place with a 4.092 at 177.02 mph on Friday night. Still, Montecalvo said he nearly aborted his second pass.

"Really, it probably could have been an .07, but it was spinning the tires pretty good, the car felt like it was on ice and it was getting a little close to the left wall and I was almost ready to pedal it or shut it off, but I knew it was still a good run to that point so I stayed with it," the Long Island, NY-based driver said.     

Goforth's 4.097 from round one held on to second, while Brian Gahm in a 2013 Mustang was third and Goforth's teammate and crew chief Jeff Dobbins rounded out the top half of the eight-car Aruba.com Extreme Pro Stock field.

JUMPING TO THE TOP - Travis Davis, of nearby Douglas, GA, climbed from fifth to first in Pro Extreme Motorcycle with a 4.096 at 172.06 aboard his 2014 Suzuki in the second round on Friday. Another Georgia rider, Jay Fisher of Oostanaula, saw his first-round leading 4.106 slip to second, with defending two-time world champion Eric McKinney third and another past champ in Kim Morrell fourth in her first race in nearly a year.

"Over the winter we changed up everything and put a whole new set-up in it and I'm really pleased with it right now. But I think the other guys will probably step up and speed up a little bit tomorrow, but we will too, so I'm not too worried about it," Davis said.

TOP OF THE SPORTSMEN - In Magnafuel Top Sportsman qualifying, John Benoit of Montpelier, VT, led 16 entries with a potential record 3.961 seconds at 188.89 mph in his '68 Camaro, representing the only three-second run in the class. Canada's Barry Daniluk was second, with Georgia's own Bruce Thrift third.

AND A FEMALE SHALL LEAD THEM - The provisional top spot in Top Dragster went to Melissa Hutson based on her first-round 3.850 at 178.68 in her Lady Lake, Florida-based 2010 Spitzer dragster.

THE JUNIOR LEADERS - Additionally, Devin Isenhour of Lebanon, IN, ran just one-thousandth over the 7.90 class index to lead Huddleston Performance Pro Jr. Dragster, with Destiny Tindall of Royal Palm Beach, FL,, leading the Huddleston Top Jr. Dragster class after two rounds of qualifying.

GETTING HOT IN HERE - Pro Nitrous racer Robert Mathis got off to a tough start in Friday's lone session. He was uninjured in this inferno of a launch. (Roger Richards Photo)

 

PDRA HAS ALREADY APPLIED FOR NHRA ASO STATUS - While rumors run rampant at the PDRA Georgia Drags, series race director Bob Harris says there are no problems with the NHRA and its ASO (Alternative Sanctioning Organization) status which could prevent completion of this weekend’s event at South Georgia Motorsport Park.

Harris said the event will go on with or without an ASO agreement in place.

An ASO is an agreement which allows other race series to conduct events at NHRA sanctioned tracks per their sanctioning agreement. And, according to Harris, the PDRA has already applied.

“It could be a lack of communication, but we don’t have it yet,” said Harris. “We are in the midst of getting [the situation] solved. We got started late in the process.”

Harris said his group is in compliance with the NHRA’s regulations.

“We have done everything they have asked us to do,” said Harris. “We have all of our SFI certifications and have a chassis inspection program in place. We have the proper insurance and the NHRA already has the proof in hand. We have completed and provided all of the necessary paperwork they need.”

Tracks that violate the ASO status could be in danger of losing their sanction, but according to the NHRA’s Josh Peterson, this isn’t one of those scenarios.

“It’s really no different than any other event that goes on at a track,” explained Peterson. “If they’re not an ASO they merely have to abide by NHRA rules and regulations. It’s not that they cannot stage an event, they just have to comply with the rulebook.

“All the ASO process does is allow us to review their rulebook, make sure they are in line with our safety and other guidelines. If that meets our criteria, we can consider them an ASO.”

Peterson said the NHRA currently has three ASO members, and the PDRA would make it four.

“It is a big deal because the ASO means to our tracks we have studied the rulebook and put our stamp of approval on it,” said Peterson. “For a track, it means they are covered and protected. We are looking out for the well-being of our tracks.”

The PDRA has two other events scheduled at NHRA sanctioned facilities, Virginia Motorsports Park and Osage Casino Tulsa Raceway Park.

BACK IN THE SADDLE AGAIN – The last time Jeff Dobbins raced a mountain motor Pro Stock car was back in 2010 when he drove for Dingman Racing. An .007 reaction time in his first hit back proved he hasn’t lost a step.

“I guess I got lucky with that,” said Dobbins. “My foot must have slipped off the pedal.”

Dobbins, the crew chief for Goforth Racing, replaces Todd Hoerner as driver of the Goforth Racing Pontiac GXP, previously driven by Dean Goforth, who is recovering from offseason surgery. Work schedule conflicts for Hoerner forced him to step aside.

Goforth says he isn’t surprised with the success out of the gate for his new teammate.

“People like him can just get right in and pick up where they left off,” Goforth said. “I was giving him heck a few days ago about ‘man don’t you get into the sumbitch and cut an .010 right off the bat.’ And he did and he cut an .007, so I guess he listened.”

Dobbins understands he takes over driving a car very capable of running strong.

“It’s probably one of the quickest top two or three cars in the country right now and just getting the opportunity to drive a car like that is awesome,” said Dobbins. “It felt good just knocking a little bit of rust off and hopefully we’ll do a little better today.

Cary believes having Dobbins as a teammate will be a benefit for Goforth Racing.

“Of course everybody knows that it’s a very good move to have him in the car,” said Goforth. “Anybody who knows Jeff at all, knows how good he is on the tree and as a driver. He’s known for a lot of things. Tuning, he’s really to me as good of a tuner as he is a driver. Todd can’t be with us at all the races because he’s got to be at work. We understand.”

Goforth said the team is grateful to have had Hoerner for the time they did.

“He was gracious enough to give us that little bit and we’re thankful we had him,” said Goforth. “We’ve had him every race so far until now. We’ll just feel this thing out and see how it works.”

Dobbins, who has worked for the last few seasons as a crew chief, believes the chance to drive again only improves his tuning talents.

“I kind of think that being in the car and getting a feel for the track yourself and everything certainly can help you in your crew chief duties as well,” said Dobbin.

A DEAN UPDATE – Dean Goforth underwent offseason surgery to repair damage sustained while fighting a dangerous staph infection contracted in 2012. The surgery was performed in order to fuse together an ankle missing cartilage. According to his son Cary, the staph ate a lot of the cartilage away, leaving mostly bone to bone.

The surgery to the right ankle greatly impaired his range of motion.

When he does return, he will be in the cockpit of his Camaro which was damaged in a racing accident during an IHRA event in Tucson.  

“It’ll be ready this week or next week,” said Cary Goforth. “They’ve made him a special platform and a panel for his foot because the range of motion isn’t there.”

Cary Goforth said Dean is expected to return to driving for the May 23 – 24 Memphis Drags in Memphis, Tenn.

“[Doctors] told him it could be eight months to a year,” said Goforth of the recovery. “It’s just a slow go and we’re taking everything day by day. He wants to possibly be out in Memphis and if we do that, and that’s a big if still, then we’ll have three cars.”

DELAYED – Because of hot temperatures, air temp at 90 and track temp in excess of 115, Friday’s first session was delayed by an hour to 4:30 EST.

AN INTERNATIONAL AFFAIR – There are seven countries represented during this weekend’s event. In addition to those racing domestically, there are competitors from Aruba, Dubai, Canada, Sweden, Mexico and Puerto Rico.

EL GENERAL, EL NUMERO UNO - Jose Gonzales went 3.63 to lead all teams in testing Friday afternoon.