Tue, 16 Jul 2013, 18:04 PM
What A Return
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By Bob Frey
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Shawn Cowie set low E.T. and qualified No. 1 on his
first
pass in competition after accident.
Photo copyright 2013 Bob Johnson Photography
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While the
NHRA Mello
Yello tour took a very well deserved week off there was a development in
the sport that I thought was as significant as any we have seen in a while,
especially on a personal level for one driver and one team.
Shawn Cowie, who was in a near fatal
accident a little over two years ago, returned to action for the first time
since that near fatal day and he looked like he hadn't been away at all.
Driving the family's car, one of the best blown alcohol dragsters in the
country, Shawn made it to the final round at the Division
6 Lucas Oil event in
Woodburn,
Oregon, and if that wasn't enough
he beat
Chris Demke to take his
first win since the accident. Just the simple fact that he was back at all was
significant, but the fact that he won the race was even more impressive. Shawn
was at the NHRA national event at
Pacific
Raceways last year and told
ESPN that
he would be back behind the wheel as soon as he was physically capable of doing
so, and the fact that it was almost a year since he made that statement, and
more than two years after the accident that almost claimed his life, is a
strong testimony to the type of person he is and the character that he has.
Cowie and crew celebrate win.
Photo copyright 2013 Bob
Johnson Photography
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After the accident there was talk that he may never walk again, let alone drive
a race car again, but Shawn was determined to prove everyone wrong, and he did.
His entire ordeal reminds me of what
John
Force went through in 2007 after his accident in
Dallas. The only real difference is the fact
that John's was on the race track and Shawn's happened while he was enjoying a
leisurely ride on his motorcycle while on his way to a race. He is a wonderful
and courageous young man and it's great to see him back behind the wheel of a
race car. But better than that, it's just great to see him alive and well and
enjoying life again, because for a while we weren't sure that would ever be the
case. Congratulations Shawn and thanks to his family, friends and fellow racers
for all of their support. It's this kind of story and this kind of person that
makes our sport so wonderful, especially when it has a happy ending..By the
way, did you check the results from that D-6 race and did you see the quality
of cars they had especially in the two alcohol classes? It used to be that if
you wanted to score some easy points in the alky ranks you stopped by a D-6
event. Well, if you try that these days you are in for a rude awakening because
their fields have been great both in quantity and quality..Speaking of that,
did you see what
Todd Miller did
with his AA/AM entry at Woodburn? How about a 6.270 in qualifying? Now that's
some run for a car like that in Competition Eliminator and it's well below the
existing national record. They have Comp at the upcoming
O'Reilly Northwest Nationals so let's hope Todd and his nasty
little car show up because that should be fun to watch.
York Dragway Reunion
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One of the things that I enjoy doing in my spare time these
days is going to events that I was never able to attend because of my work
schedule. One of those events was the Muscle
Car Madness and York Dragway Reunion that is held at the York Expo Center. They have held this
event for over a decade and it is spearheaded by former NHRA Division Director Darwin Doll and his wife, Pat. I had heard that it was a lot of
fun but never knew that it would be as great as it was. Hundreds of cars,
thousands of fans and millions of stories, some that were even true,
highlighted the two-day event. For me it was an opportunity to catch up with
some old friends, like the 1965 Super Stock Nationals winner Bob Harrop, and renew some old
acquaintances like 1972 NHRA World Champion Jim Walther. It was a wonderful event and I wish I had more than
just one day to enjoy it, but enjoy it I did. Next up on my "to do" list is a
visit to Bruce Larson's annual open
house in November. I can't wait..I also attended an event as a "worker" or a
guest and that was the big 4th of July event at Eddyville Raceway. With help from everyone at Musco Lighting, which is based in Oskaloosa, Iowa,
they had a wonderful race complete with Nostalgia Funny Cars, jets,
wheelstanders and much more. "Big Daddy"
Don Garlits made his first appearance ever at the track and to say that he
was a big hit would be an understatement. Scott
Gardner and his entire team run a great operation and they are the same
ones who will be putting on the latest version of the World Series of Drag Racing at Cordova in August. If you have never
been to that event you should put it on your calendar because it's a blast.
Mike Edwards
Photo copyright 2013 NHRA
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OK, vacation's over now get back to work! After four races
in four weeks everyone, and that includes racers and workers, needed and got a
well-deserved week off, but that's over and now it's on to the famous "Western
Swing" that features three more races in as many weeks and the tracks aren't
exactly right next to each other. Denver, Sonoma and Seattle
will be the three stops on the Mello Yello tour and by the end of that stretch,
besides being tired, we should have a much clearer picture of which teams are in
and which teams need to improve in order to be in the "Countdown" to the
championship. I know for me it always seemed like once we finished the "Swing"
we were in the home stretch of the season, but the fact is there will still be
races in Brainerd and Indy before we set the field for the "Countdown."..Mike Edwards has already secured his
spot in the "Countdown" and he can take it easy between now and Charlotte, the first race
in the "Countdown". He can, but he won't. Mike will bring his Chevrolet to Denver in an effort to
win the race and put more pressure, at least mental pressure, on the other Pro
Stock teams. The one thing that most of the Pro Stock team won't have to worry
about over the next few races is qualifying. Did you know that, as of the time I wrote this article,
A. Johnson defeated Gaines
in the final last year.
Photo copyright 2013 Auto Imagery, Inc.
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there were only sixteen cars entered for the
Denver
race and eighteen each for
Sonoma and
Seattle? That means that
the contenders for the "Countdown" in Pro Stock can actually use Friday and
Saturday in Denver as test sessions, and in the interest of fair reporting,
they probably won't have a lot to worry about when they go to the next two
races on the schedule. Be that as it may, the leaders will all be gunning for
all the points they can get in order to secure a higher spot once the "Countdown"
actually begins...If you had to pick a favorite this week you would probably be
wise to pick one of the
Mopars that
are entered in the field.
Did you know
that the
Dodge drivers hold eight of
the ten quickest runs in
Bandimere
Speedway history?
Allen Johnson
himself holds seven of those time slips,
V.
Gaines and his Dodge has one while
Jason
Line and
Mike Edwards are the
only GM drivers to crack the list. When you add in the fact that Allen has made
it to the final round in each of the past six events at Bandimere Speedway, and
won four of those races, it's easy to see why a Mopar, or more precisely
Allen's Mopar, looks like a good pick this week. As good as he has run at
Bandimere
did you know that
there has only been one other Dodge to win at the Mile-High nationals?
Darrell Alderman won in 1994 when he
beat
Mark Osborne in the final
round. And the only time that there were two Dodges in the final round was last
year when AJ beat the hometown favorite, V. Gaines for the money..As far as the
"Countdown" is concerned V. Gaines currently is in tenth place and his closest
competitor,
Greg Stanfield, is 172
points back. I know there is a lot of racing to go but I believe we know which
ten drivers will be in the "Countdown" this year..
Brandon Bernstein
Photo copyright 2013 NHRA
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Top Fuel looks very interesting
with spots at both the top and bottom of the top ten still up for grabs. When
you consider that Brandon Bernstein
is in eleventh place and David Grubnic
is twelfth it just shows you the depth of the field this year. Of course
Brandon lost ground when he had to sit out because of his back problems, and
while there is still time to make the "Countdown" he will have to get very hot
over these next few races, that is if he drives at the next few races..Shawn Langdon leads Tony Schumacher by a point for the best
mark in Top Fuel and both have to be considered threats at every race. Tony has
won this race a couple of times but not since 2008, and for the Army team that's like a huge drought.
When you add in the five other finals that he has been in at this event it's
easy to see that Tony, Mike Green
and the crew love coming to Colorado.
Must be something in the air, or the lack of it..Antron Brown is the defending champ and he will try to accomplish a
Last year's winners.
Brown, Beckman, Johnson and Krawiec
Photo copyright 2013 Auto Imagery, Inc.
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couple of things this week. Obviously he would love to defend his title, but
that's not easy to do.
Did you know that
the last Top Fuel driver to win back-to-back races at Bandimere was
Joe Amato? And if he can't win the race
Antron would at least like to win a few rounds this week. In 2013 he has already
dropped seven round one matches but he has also been to three final rounds, so
the way it looks it's either all or nothing for Antron this year..Racers often
look forward to coming to certain tracks and I think Antron loves coming to Bandimere.
Did you know that in fifteen
previous trips to the track, including ten in the motorcycle class and five in
Top Fuel, Antron is 13-2 in round one? And he has never lost a first round race
in the dragster class so maybe this is the get-healthy race and track that he
needs. We'll see..When Antron joined Allen Johnson in the winner's circle last
year they shared the stage with
Jack
Beckman and
Eddie Krawiec and
that meant that all four winners in
Denver
went on to win the NHRA World Championship.
Did
you know that was just the second time that happened at the
Mopar Mile High Nationals? The other
time was 1994 when
Scott Kalitta,
John Force, Darrell Alderman and
Dave
Schultz all used the
Denver
race as a springboard to the championship.
Robert Hight
Photo copyright 2013 NHRA
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The defending champ, Jack Beckman, will be just one of seven
former winners of the event to race in Denver
this weekend. In the long history of this race only John Force and Tony Pedregon have won in consecutive
years so the reigning champ has his work cut out for him. Since I mentioned the
"Countdown" it should be pointed out that Robert
Hight is the odd man out right now and that may be the surprise of the
season. With a lot of good quality teams in the class Robert, who has won this
race twice, trails Bob Tasca by just
three points and he can make that up with qualifying points. He can, I'm not
saying he will, but he can. Del Worsham,
who has been running well lately, is in ninth place and he is forty-five points
ahead of Mr. Tasca, so the battle for the last spot in the "Countdown" is going
to be one to watch over the next few races..Speaking of Del it was his
teammate, Phil Burkart, who won the
race in 2004 in one of the wildest weekends ever on the mountain. Did you know at that race all of
the drivers who were in the top ten, with the exception of Phil, lost before
the semi-finals? The third round included Phil, Cruz Pedregon, Tommy Johnson
Jr. and the Australian driver, Robert
Schwab. That was one of the wildest weekends ever at Bandimere, a race that
traditionally goes to the front runners in the class. I'm not sure there has
ever been what you would call a major upset in the Funny Car class, other than Schwab
making the semi-finals.
Andrew Hines
Photo copyright 2013 NHRA
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If Robert Hight being out of the top ten right now is big
news the fact that Andrew Hines is
twelfth in the standings rates banner headlines. The new rules in the Pro Stock
Motorcycle class, which I'm sure some teams love and others hate (and you can
figure out which is which), have the two-wheel teams fighting and clawing for
every point they can get. The rules have changed so much in the bike class over
the years that runs that were made years ago still rank among the best at Bandimere.
Did you know that the Bandimere
track record in the bike class is 186.54 miles per hour? Now you might think
that was by one of the Harley-Davidson
riders in the last two years but that would be incorrect. Ryan Schnitz set the record and he did it in 2005, and the second
fastest run was made by Michael Philips,
a 186.41 mph blast that he did three years ago...For years there have been some
suspicious speeds in the bike class, and that phenomenon goes way back, and
that can be caused by a lot of variables, but whatever the case Ryan's run
still stands as the Bandimere track record. By the way, did you know that the Brainerd track record in the bike
class was also set in 2005? Andrew Hines ran 196.82 and that still stands as
the fastest run ever at the zoo, I mean Brainerd...With the new rules in the
bike class it's no surprise that we have seen a batch of new winners this year.
As dominant as the Harleys were last year did
you know that Michael Ray is
the only motorcycle rider to have won a race in each of the last two years? At
least, so far.
Ray Connolly celebrates Norwalk win.
Photo copyright 2013
Auto Imagery, Inc.
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With the mention of the Division 6 race I should point out
that two of the most prolific winners n the Lucas Oil tour won at Woodburn. Jimmy DeFrank picked off the Super
Stock title while Jody Lang won
Stock Eliminator. Did you know
that both of those drivers are in the top twenty all-time on the division
winner's list?...And I don't think I mentioned this before, but I should have.
When Ray Connolly won Super Gas at
the Norwalk
race he became the first driver in 322 races to win Super Gas at back-to-back
national events. Did you know
the last guy to do it before Ray, who also won in Chicago,
was Rod Fuller who did it at Maple Grove and Topeka
in 1999?
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