Reichert and his team entered the Brainerd, MN event sitting just outside of the number one spot in Top Alcohol points, a fact that Reichert was determined to change by the end of the weekend. The team would set out to a strong start, qualifying their Rislone Engine Treatment dragster fourth. "After qualifying we knew we needed to pick up some time," said Reichert. "Fourth definitely wasn't bad, but time split between us and the number one car told us we needed to be a bit more aggressive with our tune-up."

In his 19th start at Brainerd International Raceway, Reichert would defeat Darren Nicholson in round one, with a time of 5.371 to Nicholson's 5.437. That time would be Reichert's fastest of the weekend thus far, showing that the team was indeed dialing their way into some quicker territory.

Reichert would lead off the top of the second round, this time facing a quicker competitor in the form of Edwin Schmeeckle. This would prove to be a very tight race, with Reichert leaving the line first but Schmeeckle holding the lead until half-track at which point Reichert's car lunged forward and drove around Schmeeckle, earning Reichert a trip to the semi-finals. Reichert would defeat his opponent with a 5.335 pass, an improvement over his first round time.

The semi-finals would prove to be Reichert's toughest challenge yet, as he would face number one qualifier, Brandon Lewis. Lewis may have had a 2-0 record against Reichert in eliminations heading into Brainerd (including the semi-finals at the 2008 Brainerd event), but Reichert would turn that "zero" into a "one" as he would promptly drive right around his foe as Lewis would go up in tire smoke very early in his run. Reichert's time of 5.302 showed a marked and continued improvement in the team's tuning for the day, and would grant Reichert lane choice in the finals.

"I knew going into the semis that we were going to have to run our best time of the weekend," said Reichert. "When Brandon smoked the tires, we knew we had gotten a bit lucky, but we'll take good luck any day. That let us sneak into the finals, which is exactly where we wanted to be."

Due to the fact that the entire Top Alcohol race would take place on Sunday, the teams were under a time crunch as the day wore on to finish the event, as the Brainerd track does not have adequate lighting for post-dusk racing. "We really had to rush to get the car ready for the finals, as we had a burned valve in one head that we had to change in order to be able to run the finals," explained Reichert. "Dave Hirata (who lost in Rnd. 1) and his crew were helping us thrash to get the car ready, and we definitely appreciated the help. Sportsmanship truly still is alive in the Top Alcohol pits."

As the sun began its decline in the sky, a mere 10 to 15 minutes of daylight remained as the stage was set for the finals. The story of the final round would read very similar to that of the semi-finals for Reichert and his team. Reichert would face number six qualifier Dan Kracht, the first time the two drivers have met in eliminations. As both cars left the line, the outcome of the race would be decided almost immediately as Reichert's Rislone Engine Treatment dragster would sprint off to an easy win as Kracht's car would go up in tire smoke almost immediately. Yet another win for Reichert and his Rislone team, who now once again sat atop the Top Alcohol leader board.

"We had a really great Sunday!" said Reichert. "We ended up running the entire Top Alcohol race on Sunday due to the rain problems we had over the weekend. We weren't the fastest all weekend but our Rislone team had what it took to keep going rounds and to bring home that win," explained Reichert. So what of the number four qualifying effort? "I was defiantly happy with the number four spot," said Reichert. "But seeing our times against those of the number one guy definitely told me we needed to pick up some time. Fortunately, we were able to sneak up on quicker times as we went as opposed to having to find it all at once."

"I'm definitely glad to be back in first," said Reichert. "There's a lot of races left this season, but I'm confident we'll be the champs if we can keep running the way we are."

The flagship Rislone product is Rislone Engine Treatment. America's best-selling engine treatment has been enhancing automobile engine performance for more than 85 years. Rislone Engine Treatment reduces friction & wear, quiets noisy lifters & valves, and removes & prevents sludge build-up. New Rislone products include: Rislone Compression Repair with Ring Seal, Rislone Oil Stabilizer with Engine Treatment, Rislone Transmission Stabilizer with Stop Slip and Rislone Power Steering Stabilizer with Stop Leak. Find out more at http://www.Rislone.com

Based in Holly, Mich., Bar's Products is an ISO 9001:2000 certified company. For more information about any Bar's Leaks or Rislone products, visit http://www.barsleaks.com

Courtesy of Kyle Doyle