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Top Alcohol Funny Car Qualifying Notes, Session #2
Fri, 1 Aug 2003, 09:03 PM
Notes from round 2 qualifying in Top Alcohol Funny Car at the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing
Series, 16th annual FRAM-Autolite NHRA Nationals listing lane, driver name, elapsed
time/top speed this round, position in order following run, best prior elapsed time/speed,
and position in order prior to run:
Left Lane: Mark Woznichak No Time, Now #9; Best prior run: 8.177/111.01, Was
#10
Right Lane: John Weaver Runs 6.570/147.91, Now #3; Best prior run:
5.786/248.02, Was #3
5:29 PM Current weather conditions: 77 degrees, 42 percent relative humidity,
the barometer 29.92 inches. We have had a long wait while they cleaned up Kalitta
little deposit on the track. Both cars are slow off the line and The Woz drifts over and
tags the 660 foot ET cone. Weaver may have seen him coming, as he clicks it off at
virtually the same time.
Left Lane: Bret Williamson Runs 5.773/244.92, Now #3; Best prior run:
16.693/63.05, Was #13
Right Lane: Doug Gordon Runs 5.792/244.78, Now #6; No Prior Run
Two of the better West Coast Funny Cars come to the line. We have a strong
head wind now and it may be helping the down force, as both cars are able to move into the
current top half of the field. Neither car was strong off the line, but they ran side by
side from one end to the other.
Left Lane: Clint Thompson Runs 5.864/242.67, Now #8; Best prior run:
6.794/148.71, Was #12
Right Lane: Bill Gallio Runs 6.448/229.74, Now #10; Best prior run:
6.268/225.41, Was #9
We still don't have a full field yet, so no bump spot. Gallio is slow off the
line again and doesn't improve. Thompson did his homework and picks up almost a second in
his ET and 100 MPH in his speed to move into the top half of the field for now.
Left Lane: Bucky Austin Runs 5.737/250.18, Now #3; Best prior run:
5.717/256.02, Was #2
Right Lane: Jay Payne Runs 5.673/254.42, Now #1; Best prior run: 6.574/144.40,
Was #11
These two have meet at the line many times before. Payne wins the burn out
"contest", stoping after half track. He "wins" the session so far and runs well into the
current #1 spot. It's expensive, with a lot of smoke out from underneath the car after the
lights. Austin slows slightly from his last pass and slips back to the current #3 spot. No
oil on the track, so we are still running.
Left Lane: Steve Gasparrelli Runs 5.667/252.95, Now #1; Best prior run:
5.692/255.00, Was #2
Right Lane: Ron August Jr Runs 5.712/249.72, Now #3; Best prior run:
5.789/248.66, Was #6
Payne losses the top spot to Gasparrelli in just over five and a half seconds
of track time. August did his homework too and runs right with Steve and into the current
#3 spot.
Left Lane: John Patton Runs 5.791/244.92, Now #7; No Prior Run
Right Lane: Jason Rupert Runs 5.849/244.21, Now #10; Best prior run:
11.298/72.56, Was #14
Patton will make fifteen funny cars, if he can get it down the track. He does
so with style, as he drive trough the tire shake and into the current top half of the
field. Rupert is able to improve a ton and then has a big puff of smoke from the engine
right after the lights. No oil on the track.
Left Lane: Dale VanGundy No Time, Now #13; Best prior run: 6.084/238.43, Was
#12
Right Lane: Ed Marx Runs 5.813/246.71, Now #10; Best prior run: 9.946/84.28,
Was #15
VanGundy was way loose and drifted over to punch out the two mid-track cones.
Marx reviewed his tune up from the first session and made a respectable pass to move way
up the field. 5:56 PM
Timing data courtesy of
CompuLink
By Dave Gerard
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