Fri, 19 Oct 2007, 06:06 PM Pro Stock Qualifying Notes, Session #1

By David Gerard

ROCKINGHAM, N.C. - Notes from round 1 qualifying in Torco Race Fuels CompetitionPlus Pro Stock at the 2007 Knoll-Gas Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series, Universal Technical Institute World Finals listing lane, driver name, elapsed time, top speed, and position in order following run:

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Left Lane: Tom Lee Runs 6.570/208.42, Now #1
Right Lane: Andreas Karampelas Runs 20.448/25.19, Now #2

5:36 p.m. Weather conditions: air temperature 78 degrees, relative humidity 77 percent, barometer 29.29 inches, adjusted altitude 2,368 feet, track temperature 94 degrees.

Karampelas makes a hard move toward the guard rail and he has to lift.

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Left Lane: Bert Jackson Runs 6.494/212.23, Now #2
Right Lane: Adelbertus Kelkboom Runs 6.490/212.43, Now #1

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Left Lane: Rocky Watford Runs 6.622/209.10, Now #4
Right Lane: Sylvester Barnes Runs 6.701/208.52, Now #5

Both cars make clean passes, but no where near their best.

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Left Lane: John Bartunek Runs 6.506/212.79, Now #3
Right Lane: Chuck DeMory Runs 6.515/213.00, Now #4

Bert Jackson is the current "Last Man Standing". DeMory is all over the track at the hit, but gathers it back up to complete the pass. No problems for Bartunek.

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Left Lane: Ron Miller Runs 10.022/87.40, Now #9
Right Lane: Anthony Paone Runs 6.570/207.82, Now #6

Miller's car powers to within a few feet of the centerline and he has to jerk it back into his lane. He wisely gives it up. No issues for Paone.

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Left Lane: Larry O'Brien Runs 6.457/213.06, Now #1
Right Lane: Dan Sweeney Runs 6.465/213.87, Now #2

Nice passes a pair. O'Brian gets past the tough part of the left lane and steals the "LMS" position. Sweeney slides right in behind him for the current #2 spot.

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Left Lane: Jeff Dobbins Runs 6.406/217.00, Now #1
Right Lane: Elijah Morton Runs 10.422/140.87, Now #13

The tire shake gets to Morton and the back in of the car steps out. Dobbins makes his pass without drama and takes over the Quarter-Max ProStock Challenge "LMS" #1 spot.

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Left Lane: Cary Goforth Runs 6.442/213.16, Now #3
Right Lane: Bob Bertsch Runs 6.439/213.91, Now #2

Two more quick passes to near the top of the ladder. Bertsch cards a strong 0.998 sixty foot time and just misses the top spot.

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Left Lane: Rickie Smith Runs 6.466/213.16, Now #6
Right Lane: Dean Goforth Runs 8.949/103.37, Now #15

Goforth is way loose and slides to the centerline before horsing it back into the center of the lane. He has to lift to keep the shiny on the car. No drama for Smith.

Ron Miller is on the bump spot at 10.022.

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Left Lane: John Nobile Runs 6.425/214.08, Now #2
Right Lane: Rob Mansfield Runs 6.429/214.11, Now #3

Nobile gets close to the top spot and Mansfield is right behind him.

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Left Lane: Steve Spiess Runs 6.434/212.19, Now #4
Right Lane: John Montecalvo Runs 6.914/145.09, Now #18

Sylvester Barnes is on the bump spot at 6.701. Montecalvo was on a reasonable looking pass, but dumps the chute early for no apparent reason Spiess moves well into the show.

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Left Lane: Brian Gahm Runs 6.377/216.72, Now #1
Right Lane: Frank Gugliotta Runs 6.431/213.13, Now #5

Rocky Watford is on the bump spot at 6.622. Gahm gets close to the centerline in the lights and still runs well enough to take over the new top spot. He had a 0.119 light, so he won't be the "Last Man Standing" tonight. Tom Lee is on the bump spot at 6.570.

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Left Lane: Robert Patrick Runs 6.354/213.91, Now #1
Right Lane: Pete Berner Runs 6.372/213.98, Now #2

Berner got to the finish line first and is your new "Last Man Standing" for tonight and the number 2 qualifier. Patrick had better numbers and a worse RT to get the top qualifying spot.

5:59 p.m. John Bartunek is on the bump spot at 6.506.

Timing data courtesy of CompuLink