|
 |
![]()
|
|
|
|
Top Alcohol Dragster Qualifying Notes, Session #1
Fri, 1 Aug 2003, 04:47 PM
Notes from round 1 qualifying in Top Alcohol Dragster at the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series,
16th annual FRAM-Autolite NHRA Nationals listing lane, driver name, elapsed time, top speed, and
position in order following run:
Left Lane: Jack Beckman Runs 6.966/181.06, Now #2
Right Lane: Garrett Bateman Runs 5.524/248.89, Now #1
1:05 PM Current weather conditions: 82 degrees, 42 percent relative humidity, the
barometer 30.02 inches. It's partly cloudy and the temps fallen slightly in the last hour. The
Funny Cars ran pretty well so lets see what happens with the long cars. Beckman's ride sounded
flat right from the git go and it never recovered. Bateman motors away for a nice
opener.
Left Lane: Chris Lane Runs 5.640/227.61, Now #2
Right Lane: Randy Eakins Runs 5.643/239.02, Now #3
The pair of A/Fuel make the usual weak burnout and are ready to stage. Hard to pick
who had the most holes out in the pair. They make almost identical runs and they were both
better on the clocks that they sounded on the starting line.
Left Lane: Tony Meredyk Runs 7.044/141.62, Now #6
Right Lane: Darren Nicholson Runs 5.478/264.91, Now #1
Nicholson becomes the first blown car we've seen in this session and he leaves
almost at an idle. Really stood out that he didn't pause before he staged. Don't know if that's
a new style but it seemed to work as he slides into the top spot. Meredyk had his problems and
clicked it early.
Left Lane: Alan Bradshaw Runs 5.370/237.46, Now #1
Right Lane: Darryl Hitchman Runs 5.393/255.53, Now #2
Fantastic side by side for the pair of injected fuel cars as they become the first
dragsters into the 30's this session. You could really see Hitchman pulling away as the neared
the stripe.
Left Lane: Don Hudson Runs 5.454/261.17, Now #4
Right Lane: Mitch Myers Runs 5.444/255.15, Now #3
Hudson is the second blown car of the session. Both drivers leave at about the same
time and they are welded together all the way down. Almost identical times but a bigger mph for
Hudson.
Left Lane: Mark Niver Runs 5.449/254.28, Now #4
Right Lane: Gary Anderson Runs 5.640/253.14, Now #8
Niver appeared to turn the tires once at the hit and then the car moved like a
rocket. Anderson was a little soft at the hit but recovered from half track on the the finish
line.
Left Lane: Chris Demke Runs 5.828/253.85, Now #12
Right Lane: Morgan Lucas Runs 5.345/269.24, Now #1
Demke looked like he stopped at about 300 feet the car jerked and came back to life.
Lucas had his own problems with tire shake but still manages to take over the top spot.
Left Lane: Larry Miersch Runs 5.560/245.99, Now #9
Right Lane: Duane Shields Runs 5.608/243.90, Now #10
The pair was side by side so the runs actually looked quicker than they were. There
was some smoke out of Shields car as he approached the finish and again as he started to make
then turnout. Miersch stopped on the track so it's taken a few minutes to get him off. Steve
Federlin is behind the water waiting and he's the final car of the session.
Right Lane: Steve Federlin Runs 5.470/259.41, Now #7
Federlin brings the car to like and makes the burnout. We have a bump and it's
Meredyk with his 7.04. This is the fourth and final run for a blown car in the first session and
he bumps Meredyk making the top half of the field. 1:38 PM
Timing data courtesy of
CompuLink
By Darryl Jackman
|
|
|
|
|
|
