Tue, 14 Jun 2011, 11:16 PM
It Just Won't be The Same
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By Bob Frey
Photo copyright 2011 Auto Imagery, Inc.
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Jeff Byrd
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I have always enjoyed going to Bristol, and the
first time I went there over thirty years ago, it didn't take me long to learn
why they call it Thunder Valley. In all of drag racing there are very few
experiences like hearing a Top Fuel car fire up and make a run in the mountains
of East Tennessee. Of course, when I first
went there, the Top Fuel cars were going about 6.50 at around 240 miles per
hour, give or take a few on both accounts. Still, when they fired up and ran
through the hills it was magical and I've enjoyed going back there ever since.
This year, as NHRA has race number nine of the 2011 season, the Ford Thunder Valley Nationals, the cars
will be quicker and faster than ever before, the competition will be rugged in
every class and the champions will be proud to say that they won in Bristol.
But, you know, it just won't be the same, and that's because Jeff Byrd won't be there. Jeff, who was
a vital part of the drag racing scene since the mid-1970's, and who was a key
part of the Bruton Smith drag racing
empire, passed away last October at the age of 60. Jeff's passing was mentioned
at the NHRA award's ceremony last year and, again, at the Charlotte
race earlier this year, but the Bristol
race will be where he is most fondly remembered, and that's because he was so
Cowboy Bob
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instrumental in the growth of the facility. All you have to do to know and
understand how much Jeff meant to the community is the fact that Food City,
a huge sponsor of events at both the Bristol
drag strip and oval track, relinquished the naming rights to the NASCAR race earlier this year so it could be named after Jeff. Now
that's huge. I can say that Jeff had a big impact on me, and I can prove it by
showing you a picture, which as you all know is worth a thousand words. I was
hosting a banquet and Jeff wanted me to dress up in a cowboy outfit, and so I
did. Everyone had a great time, cowboys were never the same and I asked Jeff
what he wanted to do the next year, although I have to admit I was afraid to
hear his answer. He was a very special person who did a lot for the sport, the
companies he worked for and the community he lived in. So while we're all
hooting and hollering this week as the cars race through Thunder Valley,
let's remember that it's just a bit quieter this year because Jeff won't be
there.
The Bristol
track is one of the few in our sport that has hosted races under the sanction
of AHRA, IHRA and NHRA. The first big national event was held in 1965, a little
bit more than 46-years from the time we'll be there this year. The entry list
included stars like Jim Minnick who
lived in Nitro, West Virginia. Val LaPorte, a future Division 2 Hall of Fame driver, the great Jimmy Nix and the legendry Gordon Collett were also on hand as
were most of the top stars of that era. It was a great race, the first of many
at the Bristol
track, and now the Full Throttle
stars will try to carry on that grand tradition. Did you know that at that 1965 race Jimmy Nix won and lost
in the first round? As unusual as it was, Jimmy entered and was driving two
different cars, his own and the other one which was owned by the famous Carroll Brothers. He beat Danny Ongais in his car and lost to Val
LaPorte in the other car in round one. He would eventually make it to the
semi-final where he lost to Tom Hoover.
There will be a person at the race this week who made
it to the final round in 1965. Did you
know that Connie Kalitta was
the runner-up at that '65 event when he lost to Maynard Rupp in the final round?...This will be the eleventh
running of this race and all of the previous winners will be in action in the
Top Fuel class. Did you know
that none of the previous winners at this event have won a race so far this
year? Tony Schumacher, Doug Kalitta,
Brandon Bernstein and Larry Dixon
have all won in Bristol
but none of them have won four rounds on a Sunday this year. Of that group,
Tony has won four times in Bristol
including the last three years, Doug has won three
times, Brandon twice and Larry once. The big question is, will any of them be
able to get their first win of the 2011 season this weekend?...Even though he
Schumacher vs Bernstein
in last years final.
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hasn't won this year Tony continues to score points by winning rounds,
especially the first round. Did you
know that the "Sarge" hasn't lost a round one match since the Houston race in 2010?
That's 26 consecutive races that the Army
car has advanced past the first round and that is, by far, the best in the Top
Fuel class. I often say that the drivers are like the quarterbacks in football,
and by that I mean that when they win they get all the credit and when they
lose they take the blame. Having said that, the crew members on these teams are
the ones who really make it possible for the drivers to do what they do. The
Army team, under the leadership of Mike
Green, continues to give Tony a good car and it's only a matter of time
before he and they win again..Austin
Lambright is entered in the Top Fuel field this week and that will be his
NHRA debut. Austin, who works with Terry
McMillen on the Amalie team, got
his license last year and will be looking to qualify at Bristol, and then, hopefully, win a round or
two on Sunday. His boss, I assume that Terry is his boss, will be looking to
hold on to his spot in the top ten, a spot that has him just ten points ahead
of the eleventh place driver, Bob
Vandergriff. Did you know
that Bristol is
the site of one of Bob's thirteen final round appearances? He made it to the
final round in 2007 where he lost to Brandon Bernstein. Of course that was after
he went to the final round at the Top Fuel vs. Funny Car final in 1999..Look
for one of the non-winners on tour this year to win the Top Fuel class this
weekend.
Troxel vs. Neff
in 2008 final.
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Melanie
Troxel will lead the R2B2
teams into Bristol
this week and that includes her Funny Car and a whole pile of Pro Mod teams
including hers. Melanie's Funny Car has been running much better over the past
few events and she's returning to the site of her one and only national event
win in the FC class. It was 2008, the race was rain-delayed and she was facing Mike Neff in the final round, and while
the race wasn't an artistic success, it was a win for Melanie and it moved her
into that select group of drivers who had won in both fuel classes..John Force is the defending champ at
this event, and even though it is a relatively new race, did you know that no Funny Car driver has won the Bristol
race in consecutive years? John, Ron Capps
and Melanie are the only active Funny Car drivers to have won in Thunder Valley
so there will be thirteen drivers making a start on Sunday who will have a
chance to win in Bristol
for the first time. Did you know
that they actually ran Funny Cars in Bristol
in 1967 and that Tommy Grove, in his
Ford Mustang, won the event? And since I mentioned Maynard Rupp and his Top
Fuel win I should mention that it was Rupp who was in the other lane when Tommy
Grove won that Funny Car race in '67. Don
Nicholson was the number one qualifier at the '67 race and he did it with a
time of 8.23 while Jack Chrisman,
with his revolutionary Funny Car, set top speed at 183 miles per hour. A couple
of the other drivers in that field were Bill
Lawton in the Tasca Ford entry, Butch Leal and Clare Sanders. Clare, who drove a variety of cars
during his career, was behind the wheel of the "Limefire" Barracuda at the '67 Bristol race..The Funny Car class continues
Jim Head
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to amaze me since there are some very good drivers who are not in the top ten.
Among them are Tim Wilkerson (11th
place), Jim Head (12th)
and Tony Pedregon (13th).
Since we are now beginning the second-half of the regular season, the sixteen
races to determine who the drivers will be going into the "Countdown," it's imperative for every driver to get every possible point
they can. Did you know that
this is the highest Jim Head has been in the points at this juncture of a
season since 2007? That year, after a very good start that included three
semi-finals and a runner-up spot, Jim was in fifth place. He has done well this
year, even though he hasn't won a race, and he has to be considered a factor at
every event..Only four Funny Car drivers have won so far in 2011 and that's a
small amount after eight races. Did
you know that the last time we only had four Funny Car winners in the
first eight races of the season was in 2000 when Jerry Toliver, John Force,
Jim Epler and Bob Gilbertson all
won to start the year? The fewest number of winners in eight races was in 1999
when John won six races and Tony Pedregon won two.....Like Terry McMillen in
the dragster class, Tim Wilkerson
will have a teammate in Tennessee.
Daniel Wilkerson, Tim's son, will be
driving a Summit Racing backed Funny
Car. I assume this is to give Daniel some more seat-time in the car, and it
also wouldn't hurt Tim's chances to move up if Daniel qualified and beat a
driver or two on Sunday. Daniel will be making just his fourth appearance at an
NHRA event and he'll be looking for that elusive, first-ever national event
round win in the Funny Car class. I'm sure the car will be competitive, Tim
wouldn't bring it out otherwise, and the way Tim's year is going don't be
surprised if the two Wilkerson family members end up paired against each other
in round one!!...Tim went to the final round in Bristol last year and he could
use that kind of "get healthy" weekend this year to move, or at least try to
move, back into the top ten....Did you
know that Daniel recently won Super Pro at Central Illinois Dragway on the same day that his brother, Kevin, was runner-up in Street
Eliminator at the same track?
Jason Line
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In addition to the race itself, this weekend will
also be the last opportunity for the Pro Stock drivers to either qualify for an
automatic berth in the K & N
Horsepower Challenge or impress the fans enough that they will vote for
them and send them to the big race in Norwalk.
Jason Line, with his number one
qualifying spot in Englishtown, is the leader in the race for the top spot in
the "Challenge" with Allen Johnson
second, sixty points behind. Simply put, if Jason qualifies ninth or better in
the field this week he will be the top seed going into the big race in Ohio. The big battle is
for the last spot in the field, with Shane
Gray, V. Gaines and Greg Stanfield all having a shot. If
Shane qualifies fifth or better in Bristol
he's in..There is still a chance for fans to vote for their favorite driver and
all you have to do is go to www.knfilters.com/register/KN_HP-Vote to cast your vote. Last year Warren
Johnson was voted in and it will be interesting to see which driver gets
the final spot this year. Since I have only received one e-mail by a driver
requesting help, I thought I would share it with you,
Erica Enders
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after all, it never hurts to campaign for yourself. So, if you would like to
vote for Erica Enders, go to www.vote4erica.com and follow
the directions. Time is running out so cast your vote today..One of the most
amazing things that I found about the Bristol race is that Allen Johnson, who
grew up watching his father race at the Tennessee track, has never won the
race. In fact, not only has he never won it but he's never even made a final
round there. Did you know that
in ten trips to Bristol Allen has won exactly four rounds? Four!! He has had a
good car in previous years but I think this year he is coming in with the best
car that he has had in a decade. Plus, coming off the win in Englishtown, Allen
should be ready to put back-to-back wins on the board. Did you know that Allen's father, Roy Johnson, won several times in Bristol including the IHRA Stock Eliminator
title at the 1974 Springnationals and the 1972 All-American Nationals? If any
team has a home-court advantage at any race on tour, it has to be Allen and Roy
in Bristol.
They have done so well in the past few years, and while I'm not supposed to
cheer for anyone, it would be cool to see them go the distance in Tennessee, wouldn't it?....While it's not his home track
Warren Johnson has made a lot of runs down the Bristol quarter-mile, mostly in
his IHRA Pro Stock days. Warren won a total of
thirteen IHRA Pro Stock titles including the one he won at Bristol in 1979 when he beat the "General," Lee Edwards in the final round.
Hoover vs. Castellana
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The Pro Mods return to Bristol, a track where they have a great
history when the track was under the IHRA banner. Of special note is Ed Hoover, who has already won a race
this year and who had a great run on the IHRA Pro Mod tour. Along with Scotty Cannon, Shannon Jenkins and Fred
Hahn, Ed was among the top winners in the Pro Mod class and that includes
some fine showings in Tennessee.
Ed won one of the very early Pro Mod titles in Bristol
when he beat Gary Grahner at the 1991
fall race in Thunder
Valley. Since then he has
become one of the icons in the class and his win at Atlanta this year had to be
one of the best of his long career..Whoever wins the Pro Mod title this week
will certainly earn it since the field is one of the strongest that we have
seen in a while. With Melanie, Roger
Burgess, Troy Coughlin, Jay Payne and the
hometown favorite, Rickie Smith,
this promises to be a great weekend for the Pro Mod class
and the fans who come to watch them.
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