"Summit is one of our sponsors," said Brandon, "and we were happy to make a final round showing for them at their event."

Bernstein was the No. 6 qualifier with a 3.939/300.06.

After a rain-delayed race day start, the weather conditions changed dramatically becoming very hot and humid, causing crew chiefs to scramble to make tune-up changes. The Budweiser/Lucas Oil team took the first round victory over Tim Cullinan, 4.096/279.79 vs. 5.133/127.93.

"That was a great tune-up by Rob Flynn and the team to adapt to these conditions," said Bernstein. "That run had to be strong enough to win, especially with the heat and the sun, we didn't want to give it away."

In the second round against Troy Buff, Bernstein had a nice advantage out of the starting gate (Bernstein: .077-seconds, Buff: .105-seconds). Buff lost traction immediately. The Bud/Lucas Oil dragster suffered the same fate further down track, but Bernstein used his driving skills to first drive through tire shake, and then pedal the car as it lost traction, crossing the finish line first, 4.310/249.12 vs. 10.359/76.35.

"It wasn't pretty but we got the win light," said Bernstein. "Our Budweiser/Lucas Oil team thrashed to make the call for this round. After the warm-up we had an oil leak and the team had to fix that and warm-up again to make sure we had cured the problem. That was a great job by Rob Flynn and the team under pressure."

In the semifinals, Bernstein pulled to the starting line to face Spencer Massey. Both drivers lost traction, but Massey spun the tires earlier in the run, allowing Bernstein to illuminate the win light, 4.172/260.56 vs. 4.449/105.39.

"We're all really fighting the racetrack," said Bernstein, "but we're going to the final round! With Dad watching us on television at home, and for all our sponsors, we'd sure like to win today!"

In the money round, it was Bernstein and Larry Dixon, both second-generation drivers, facing off for the 29th time in their careers. Bernstein had won their previous two final round match-ups, but this time it was Dixon who prevailed, using his quickest run of the day to take the win.

"We're hanging right there with the leaders," said Bernstein, "and that's important because we're only six races away from the Countdown to 1 cutoff. Our next race is Denver, which starts the West Coast Swing. Dad will be back with us then and maybe he'll bring that little extra mojo we need to break into victory circle."

Bernstein remains fourth in Full Throttle point standings and is less than two rounds, 34 and 37 points respectively, out of third and second place.

Kenny Bernstein update: Kenny continues with physical therapy following his May 26 back surgery, and is now able to drive and take short outings.

"We want to take a moment to thank all the fans, media, and drag racing fraternity members who have sent us well wishes for a speedy recovery," said Bernstein. "With all the modern technology, we have been able to keep up with racing in real time, but we're eager to be back on tour with the team. We're very proud of the team's performance in Norwalk. Those were tough racing conditions."

Budweiser Lager Lesson: Budweiser is brewed with the finest two and six-row barley malt, a blend of European and American aroma hops, our own Budweiser yeast and the freshest American brewer's rice, producing a medium-bodied, crisp and pure beer brewed for the perfect balance of flavor and refreshment.

Courtesy of Susie Arnold