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GREAT BEND, Kan. –- NHRA championship drag racing will return to Great Bend, Kan., when S.R.C.A. Drag Strip hosts a round of the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, May 21-23. The event will feature more than 450 cars in eight categories, including 250-mph Top Alcohol Dragsters (TAD) and Top Alcohol Funny Cars (TAFC), racing for points leading to divisional and national championships. The event is the first of six in NHRA West Central division competition. Gates at S.R.C.A. Drag Strip open at 9 a.m. Friday, 8 a.m. Saturday, and 7 a.m. Sunday. Qualifying and time trials start Friday at 10 a.m. and continue Saturday at 9 a.m. TAD and TAFC will have one qualifying pass on Friday at 7 p.m., and two runs Saturday, at 4 and 7 p.m. Eliminations in all classes start Sunday at 8 a.m. TAD and TAFC will run first round at noon. Tickets for the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event at S.R.C.A. Drag Strip are $10 Friday and $15 each Saturday and Sunday. A free pit pass is included with admission. Children 12 and under are admitted free with a paid adult. S.R.C.A. Drag Strip is located at 455 W. Barton County Road; 2½ miles west of Great Bend on the old Air Force base. For more information call the track, (785) 483-1980, or visit www.srcadragstrip.com. NHRA LUCAS OIL DRAG RACING SERIES FACT SHEET WHAT: NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, where drivers earn points leading to divisional and national championships. Categories include Top Alcohol Dragster, Top Alcohol Funny Car, Comp Eliminator, Super Stock, Stock Eliminator, Super Comp, Super Gas and Super Street. The event is the first of six in West Central Division competition. The division’s Kerker Motorcycle Series, featuring the Sportsman Motorcycle class, will also run in conjunction with the event. WHERE: S.R.C.A. Drag Strip, Great Bend, Kan. Track is located at 455 W. Barton County Rd.; 2½ miles west of Great Bend on the old Air Force base. WHEN: Friday through Sunday, May 21-23, 2004 SCHEDULE: Time trials and qualifying schedule for the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series: FRIDAY, May 21 -- Gates open at 9 a.m. Qualifying and time trials begin at 10 a.m. Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car qualifying sessions are scheduled at 7 p.m. SATURDAY, May 22 -- Gates open at 8 a.m. Final qualifying and time trials are scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car qualifying sessions are scheduled at 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. SUNDAY, May 23 -- Gates open at 7 a.m. Eliminations begin at 8 a.m. Eliminations for Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car begin at noon. TICKETS: GENERAL ADMISSION/PIT PASS -- $10 Friday, $15 Saturday, $15 Sunday. Children 12 and under are admitted free with a paid adult. For more information please call S.R.C.A. Drag Strip, (785) 483-1980. PURSE: The NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series competitors will vie for cash and contingency awards of $154,010, part of the 45-race, $6.5 million series. 2003 EVENT WINNERS: Robert Perkins, Top Alcohol Dragster; Jackie Stidham, Top Alcohol Funny Car; Dean Carter, Comp Eliminator; Ricky Ray, Super Stock; Jeffrey Johnson, Stock Eliminator; Larry Piper, Super Comp; Clark Mundt, Super Gas; Pat Winsler, Super Street
BONUS PROGRAMS: SEALED POWER LOW QUALIFIER BONUS: a $109,000 overall bonus fund from Federal-Mogul’s Sealed Power brand to the low qualifiers at each of the 46 Lucas Oil events: $1000 each in Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car; $200 each in Comp Eliminator and Super Stock; and $100 in Stock. (TAD and TAFC compete at 43 of 46 divisional events.) JEG’S ALLSTARS: The best of the best from each of NHRA’s seven divisions will compete for a share of the $100,000 point fund from Jeg’s High Performance. The 2004 Jeg’s Allstars event will culminate a year-long points battle between drivers in each of NHRA’s Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series’ eight classes. The top points earner in each category will qualify to represent his/her division at the 2004 Jeg’s Allstars. Points are based on in-division races only. The winning division’s team will share $20,000 and individual awards include $7,000 each to the Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car champions, $6,000 to champions in Comp Eliminator and Super Stock, and $4,500 to the Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas, and Super Street champions. Runners-up in all categories will earn $2,000 apiece. Each Allstars competitor will also receive a share of a $20,000 towing fund to get to the event. This year, event sponsor, Jeg’s High Performance, has offered a “double up” bonus to Allstars competitors. Winners in each individual class who go on to win the national event will have their Allstars prize money doubled. NHRA KERKER MOTORCYCLE SERIES: Run in conjunction with the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, the NHRA Kerker Motorcycle Series is an opportunity for competitors in NHRA’s Sportsman Motorcycle class to earn points toward divisional championships. The $14,800 champions’ purse posted by Kerker will be paid to first, second and third place points finishers in NHRA divisions that host Sportsman Motorcycles. The top four riders from each division in the NHRA Kerker Motorcycle Series will be invited to compete in the NHRA Kerker King of the Coast competition. In 2004, the All-Star invitational will be run in November during the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas. The rider who is crowned the Kerker King of the Coast will earn $2,000. The runner-up in the 16-bike field will receive $1,000. Currently, Sportsman Motorcycles are run in NHRA’s South Central, West Central, Northwest and Pacific divisions.
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