On his birthday weekend, Trane-backed Rick Stivers qualified No. 1, flirted with a world record and
earned a berth in his second final in two races, this time coming up just short of the win in the
Get Screened America Pro Mod Challenge at the NHRA Virginia Nationals.
Every lap Stivers made in the Brad Anderson-tuned '06 Dodge Stratus seemed to get quicker and
quicker, with four of his rounds landing in the top-ten all-time quickest runs. His best was a
5.823 blast at 246.93 mph, just short of the mark set by Ray Commisso at 5.817 seconds.
Stivers took the No. 1 spot Saturday afternoon with a 5.837 at 245.81, a number he hoped would be
a record and earn him an extra 20 points in his bid to make the top eight and qualify for the Matco
Tools Pro Mod Clash. His optimism held in the first round of eliminations as he dispatched Scott
Ray 5.835 at 246.03 to 5.998 at 235.93.
On Sunday, Stivers met Tim Tindle in the quarterfinals and used a 5.836 at 247.11 to defeat his
5.914 at 240.81. In the semis, Stivers bested Ray Commisso, 5.823 to 5.998, and set up a match with
his teammate and defending event champion Jay Payne for the finals.
"I obviously knew Jay had an awesome car, because it's tuned by Brad, too, but I also knew that my
Trane had been on a rail all weekend long. The conditions were ripe for setting that record, and I
told Brad I wanted to go for it," Stivers said.
As the two took the line, Stivers was first out of the gate and said he knew he was on a
record-setting run.
"The car had so much power, it kept the front-end up for what seemed like forever. When I hit
second, it jumped up again, and that's when things went bad. I couldn't steer it with the wheels
up, and it just drifted over to the centerline, and there was nothing I could do to keep from
crossing it."
The car took out two of the timing cones and damaged the front-end of the car, but the only injury
Stivers suffered was a blow to his pride.
"The record, the points, the win, the Clash - it just wasn't meant to be - and I'm OK with that, I
guess.
"I wanted that record so bad I could taste it, and Brad gave me a tune up that would have run a
5.70-something. The air was there, the conditions were right, but when the wheels went up after I
shifted, I couldn't hang on, and it just got away from me," he said.
"I'm happy for Jay, and I can't thank the guys on the team enough for giving me a car that was the
best of the class. Now, I'm really excited to get to Vegas for the last race of the season and try
it again, because I still know that this car is on a mission, and it's hard to stop a Trane,"
Stivers said.
