March 30, 2003

Winner Mark Niver. His first win in 20 years. (Photos by Mark King: Deepstage.net)

South Western International Raceway Sunday Finals

Top Alcohol Dragster. Well, so much for the elevation and corrected air (high) coming into play as an equalizer, putting the odds in the favor of the BAD's. Based on qualifying, the atmospheric conditions looked to come into play, as most figured it would. Shields 7/100th's ahead of the nearest nitro car and Nicholson also in front of the nearest100% powered digger. Qualifying turned out to be a 180 from the usual scenario in the class. And much like the domination that has been the standard in TAD in the past few years (2003 excepted), the quickest cars in qualifying were not playing in the finals. Duane Shields defeated Fred Notzka in round one, Darren Nicholson got by Mike Austin (right), Mark Niver defeated Howard Haight (below), and Morgan Lucas edged Chris Demke to advance to the semi finals. So it was A/Fuel vs BAD in both semis. Shields took on rival Morgan Lucas and this run looked very good on paper. And it was good, as Lucas took a 4/100's hole shot but Shields (below) started to close the gap until half track, where the A/Fuel pulled away to win by a 10th, 5.62 to a losing 5.68. The other one saw Nicholson and Niver battle it out and this too was very close in ets., but, the start was another story, as Nicholson must have been distracted at the start as he was over a tenth back at the start, with a no alarm clock like .184 snooze to Niver's .079. On track it was a winning 5.551 for Niver to a losing 5.617 for Nicholson. So two A/Fuelers in the final in corrected air of around 5000 feet. They are getting their high altitude tune-up figured out. The Final was all "Billet Bullet", as Mark Niver took his second ever (the first one, 20 years ago) TAD win over one of the young guns, and favorites for 2003. Mark left first, with a .051 and ran a very consistent 5.566/246.66 to a .069 leave and 5.589/257.19 for Morgan Lucas (left). Congratulations Mark Niver and the whole Donovan powered team for this well deserved win.

 

In Top Alcohol Funny Car, the favorites showed why they are, as in eliminations as the top qualifiers all advanced past the first round. #1 qualifier Doug Gordon (left) defeated John Evanchuk (below right)in a much closer race than their qualifying efforts. Evanchuk left with a great .01 light and led for the first 600 feet until the power of the Gordon car took over and Doug went on for a two car length win by virtue of a 5.944 to a losing 6.088. Steve Gasparelli to the lead on Lawren Jones on the starting line by over a tenth and extended it by virtue of a 5.800/248 to a game 5.954/235.23. Ed Marx left on Brett Williamson and also outran him 5.83/246 to Brett's 5.99/236 charge. And finally, John Patton defeated Mert Littlefield (below) after both were slow on the tree, but Patton was quicker at the stripe 5.97/239 to a close 6.00/232 lap by Littlefield. Semis finals were very close in both match-ups, with Gordon off the line first by .05 and running a 5.96 to Patton's 5.99. The other semi, was even closer, as Gasparelli cut a great .04 light and ran low et of eliminations with a 5.81 to a very close but losing 5.82 by Marx. The final was the classic one vs two match-up but it was over by half track as Doug Gordon left first and ran 5.82/246 to Gasparelli's (right) slowing and center line hugging 6.11 at only 181 mph. Like Tony Bartone in A/Fuel Dragster Doug Gordon it looking like a real favorite in the class after three wins in a row to go 10 - 0 in eliminations so for in 2003. But, Frank Manzo has yet to make a lap this year.

Photo highlights below. The four non-qualifiers at Tucson included Mark Foster, Dale Van Gubdy, Charles McLaw, and Jeff Carroll . All photos Speedzonemagazine.com and Mark King (Deepstage.net)

South Western International Raceway, Tucson Arizona. Race #2 in Division 7's six race Lucas Oil Drag Racing series. by Dean Murdoch. Photos by Mark King Gerry Frechette and Dean Murdoch

Saturday, 5:30 pm. The qualifying was shortened to only two sessions at Tucson this weekend, due to high winds early in the day. That made the teams on the grounds (only 21 of the 31 pre-entered), have to be extra sharp in order to get in the fields. Based on my early predictions for Top Alcohol Dragster, I don't feel too bad or look like to much of an idiot, as my two favorites are qualified one and two respectively. Duane Shields after a round session 5.77 stepped up big time with a track record 5.442 at 254.42 mph. Right behind him is Darren Nicholson with a great 5.484 at 257.53 mph which he ran in the first session. His second lap, he slowed to a 5.57. In the three hole is an A/Fuel Dragster and it isn't Morgan Lucas, it is Mark Niver, my number six pick overall. Mark ran a great 5.515 / 248.75 in the second session and a very close 5.55 in the first round to show some great consistency. Chris Demke is number four with a 5.623 / 251.30. Number five is Morgan Lucas after running 5.653 / 233.24mph. In the six slot is Howard Haight after turning in a 5.691 / 235.38. Mike Austin running a great 5.694 / 244.47 to put him in the seven spot and Fred Notzka rounds out the eight car field with a strong 5.809 / 243.06. So in the first round, it's Shields vs Notzka, Nicholson vs Austin, Niver vs Haight, and Demke vs Lucas. The only non qualifier, was Mark Foster in his unique A/Fuel Dragster. I'll have pictures from today in a couple hours.

Top Alcohol Funny Car, had 12 cars on the property going after the eight spots. To no surprise, at the top of the pack is Doug Gordon and Steve Gasparelli. Gordon ripped down the track on his second lap with a great 5.767 / 245.90. His first lap was also very strong, as he ran a 5.84 in that round. Gasparelli also stepped up in session two, as he solidified himself in the number two position with a 5.815 / 248.48 after an earlier 5.88. Number three qualifier is Ed Marx after running a 5.86 / 245.54 in the second session, bettering his 5.95 first lap. Rounding out the top half is John Patton, who ran a 5.944 / 238.60 is the second round, improving by a tenth from his earlier 6.039. Mert Littlefield is #5 and ran a best of 5.993 / 230.41. Brett Williamson ran 5.998 / 235.19 and is in the number six position. Number seven is Lawren Jones after getting a best of 6.218 / 218.62. Rounding out the bottom half is Canadian John Evanchuk who struggled with a best of 6.91 / 199.91 but was better than the three guys behind him. The non qualifiers were Charles McLaw, Dale Van Gundy and Jeff Carroll. Tomorrow's matchups include, Gordon / Evanchuk, Gasparelli / Jones, Marx / Williamson and Littlefield / Patton.

(note: due to technical difficulties, (Mark forgetting his camera interface) we will not be able to look at any photos from Tucson until Sunday Night). Sorry, Ed.

 

 

Preview Tucson

The bottom of each driver preview has a few notes from Top Alcohol's youngest guru from the south, Brad Littlefield (of "Brad Stat's" fame) with his take on this weekend's event. Thanks Brad for the insight to a few of the Div 7 teams. the Ed

The weather for this weekends Lucas Oil Event looks to be perfect at Tucson Az. More then 30 Top Alcohol cars are pre-entered for the event at South West Int'l Raceway , one of the highest tracks in NHRA divisional competition. At 3000 actual elevation, the corrected air is probably going to be in the 5000 foot range which lends itself to better conditions for the BAD entered in the TAD class. That being said, with 15 TAD's entered and the split about 50/50 BAD's vs A/F, Here are the cars I feel will do battle on Sunday. (ranked in order of favorites)

TAD 1. Duane Shields: 3 to 1 odds. While only competing at his third race with the brand new car, Duane does have his stuff together.The new car has run pretty well so far, as Duane ran a 5.37 in only his second pass in competition at the Winternat's. At the Phoenix Div. race, he qualified #1 but lost in the first round as his car went bang at the 300 foot mark. He will have a high elevation tune up and should and better be around for the final, especially if he wants to challenge for this year's title.

2. Darren Nicholson: 4 to 1 odds. Darren in his second year driving for the Edgecombe team had a career year last season finishing #4 in the nation, but this year won't be any easier or even as easy to keep that #4. But this team also has their ducks in a row. They have run a 5.41 already and went to the semis at Phoenix.

 

3. Chris Demke: 4 - 1 odds. Chris is also in his second year with his current ride. He replaced Nicholson in the Maddern Peen Rite TAD. He was runner-up at Phoenix earlier, and could have won that race, as he was right with Morgan Lucas until the 1000 ft. mark, when the engine let go.

 

 

4. Morgan Lucas: 5 - 1 odds. At any track lower than 2000ft. he would be the favorite but, at this elevation, the A/F's have not yet shown they can run in the 50's - 60's consistently which is have you have to do. If the Darien teams finds a high elevation combination, then all I can say is, it will be a long year for the BAD's.

 

5. Don Hudson: 7 - 1 odds. This part time team usually can string a couple good runs together. He made the semis last year here, and could do the same this year.

6. Mark Niver: 7 - 1 odds. The Niver team has their combination working very well already this year, and Mark is even cutting decent lights. They ran a career best earlier this season with a 5.38. They made the semis here last year, and ran 60's and 70's.

 

 

7. Mike Austin: 10 - 1 odds. This Division 6 competitor is getting a handle of his tune-up and has shown a marked improvement at his past few events. Look for him to qualify and run in the 70's or 80's.

8. Larry Miersch 12 - 1 odds. At sea level he would not be this far down, but his high elevation tune-up is not there yet. Last year he qualified here with an anemic 6.45. He should get into the 5's but that won't be enough.

9. Howard Haight 12 - 1 odds: Howard will be the last of the pre entered with a chance in my opinion. Howard could get in, if only based on his vast nitro experience.

The rest of the entrants include (in order of a chance to squeak in the field). Tony Meredyk, Fred Notzka, Cliff Whitley, Randy Johnson and Mark Foster.

"Your dragster section seems to be right-on, except I think Morgan and co. will have more luck in the altitude than they would lead you to think. You would think that blown cars have an advantage due to the fact that they can produce more air, but this is not necessarily the case. Unlike the blown fuel cars, alcohol cars have a set overdrive limit and cannot simply spin their blowers faster to compensate for the air. The blown and injected cars are pretty much in the same boat everywhere they go. Darryl Hitchman won Division 5, the division with the most high-altitude races, not too many years ago with an A-fueler. It is more difficult for the A-fuel crew chief to come up with an effective combination under different circumstances, because A-fuelers are generally harder to tune. But, it can be done." Brad

TAFC

1.Steve Gasparelli: 2 - 1 odds. How can you not pick the nationals #2 points earner in 2002. Surprising non wins in either of the teams first two races will make them a little bit ornery. He ran a 5.60 and lost in the second round at the Winter's, and lost in the first round to Doug Gordon at Phoenix. Don't look for that to happen again!

"The Gasparrelli team is tuned by Bob Miner (Larry's brother) this year. They were tuned by Randy Anderson last year, but Randy is now working exclusively for Bucky Austin. Bob is a sharp guy and will get their tune-up figured out shortly. He has been working on a Fontana powerplant for the last few years, though, so he's still getting adjusted. It wouldn't break my heart too much if it took a few more races to start winning again. They're a great group of guys, but they've been a thorn in our side since we've started racing"! Brad

2. Doug Gordon: 3 - 1 odds. Two wins in two races for the Gordon team. The kid can certainly drive, with a couple near perfect lights already. They should be in the later rounds for sure.

3. Mert Littlefield 5 - 1 odds. Mert has become a force on the west coast. While he has always been a good racer, the past year has been his most successful in recent memory. And all that with a competitors blower on the car. That shows how much he likes this class. Look for Mert to be well into the field and maybe even in the later rounds. Hey, Mert you still letting Brad take a spin or two in the car?

"I have not made any passes in the car since Vegas last year. We went up to the Phoenix divisional a day early so that I could make some license passes, but it rained on us. As soon as the track called off testing for the day, guess what? It stopped raining! Oh, well. We ended up kicking the rods out first round. A piston broke at 1.5 seconds and Dad drove it out 5.3 seconds (it's eliminations). It left a pretty good mess. We had a spare, but we didn't have time left to fix it". Brad

4. Ed Marx: 6 - 1 odds. Another car that has run real well and the past couple events. Ed is a win waiting to happen. Will it happen here, not likely, but I would not fall off my perch if it happened. That is how competitive the West Coast is. The East is not even in the same league, total car wise.

5. Brett Williamson: 7 - 1 odds. Brett has won before and is a very good leaver but, does he have the equipment to keep up with the top tree or four. I don't think so, but he has pulled a rabbit out of the hat before.

"Bret Williamson does have quality parts. He has a Fontana motor with all of the latest "goodies". He runs good time-to-time, but he's not known for consistency. We're always nervous racing him, because we never know what he's going to do." Brad

6. John Weaver: 7- 1 odds. This team has struggled a bit lately, if you look at their earlier results in the 90's in this division. The Weaver family has a real passion for this class, and if it was just heart as a requirement, they would wind up in the winners circle more often than not. Unfortunately, that is not what wins TAFC in this division. They and a couple other teams would be better off in Div. 6, 5, or 4(relatively close to their home base), as the fields are substantially weaker.

7. Dennis Taylor: 7- 1 odds. Dennis Taylor's team is very capable of not only qualifying but winning at almost any events they race at. Consistency is the big problem with this team. They have not strung a bunch of good runs together. Randy Goodwin (crew chief) is getting close to having a handle on the tune up, and when he does, look out!

8. John Evanchuk: 9 - 1 odds. I have to put in the lone Division 6 car on the property. This is a team with a bunch of potential. Can they put it together at THE toughest Div. race they have ever entered. It will be very tough, but I am a bit of a homer so, I'm hoping they get in the field. The car does have 5.70-.80 power, and they do run at high elevation tracks.

9. John Patton: 9 - 1 odds. Another team that would have much better results if they took the easy way out and ran in another division. Come on up to six guys! Patton and the 'Foolish Money" team will be in a battle with the four guys right above to get in the field. Oh ya, and the four right below him here.

 

 

10. Bil Gallio: 10 - 1 odds. Gallio ran real well at Pomona with a 5.84. He hit the wall in round one there, so he has been busy with some repairs. Would not be a surprise if he qualifies.

11. Lawren Jones: 12 - 1 odds. This could be Lawren's swan song as he is going to put his kid in the car sometime in the new future. The rumored weight disparity between him and the younger Jones is said to be the main reason. A good qualifying effort and going a round or two would certainly make the "Dash for Cash" entry a happy camp heading to Vegas.

 

12. Tom Bristow: 12 - 1 odds. Tom was pre entered as a Dragster but he ran a Funny Car at Phoenix so that is where I am putting him. Don't know much about this team, other than he ran a respectable 5.93 at Phoenix in his 2002 Firebird. That in itself makes him a possible qualifier here.

"Tom Bristow drives Tom Lemon's TAFC. Lemon has raced TAFC's for many years, mostly under the name Lemon and Burr for the time he was partnered with painter and tuner Jack Burr. Bristow drove for Lemon for many of those years. In the mid-nineties, though, Lemon's car was driven by Gary Scelzi, Frank Pedregon, John Geyer, and Michael Simpson. Lemon has been sidelined for a while due to huge fires experienced when driven by Geyer and by Simpson (in a brand new car). The Toms reunited and are back with a Havoline sponsorship". Brad

13. Dale Van Gundy: 12 - 1 odds. Dale should be higher but, with all this competition, #'s 5 through 13 are all going to battle for a spot on Sunday. This team can do it, but has been inconsistent more times than it hasn't.

Other cars entered in no particular order include Jeff Carol and Charles McLaws. Jason Rupert is on the list but he will no be there. He will run at Vegas next weekend and is claiming Division 6 again this year. Bob Gallio is also entered, but I'm not sure if this is a typo (Bil) or not. If he is entered, then he is in the same category as the other Gallio (brother son or dad?).

"Bil Gallio is Bob Gallio's son. Bil is the driver, but it often gets confused on the entry lists". Brad

We will keep you up to date all weekend, as we have Mark King at this event, giving us some great photos, and a recap of the weekends event. He is staying with friends (Gale and Tom), so he will have daily stuff for us. Right Mark?

Thanks Brad for all the updates for the Top Alcohol classes this weekend. Keep in touch. The Ed

 

March 26, 2003 Big News on the Alcohol front!

As noted in the recap below, the Lucas Oil Top Alcohol Funny Cars at Memphis were more like a Mikey commercial with a couple changes: "I (Tate Branch) don't want to win, do you (Marc White) want to win? No, I don't want to win! Let's let Todd Simpson win! "No I (Todd) don't want to win, let's let Mikey (okay Kim) win! The facts of the funny car class came to light courtesy of Will Hanna of InsideTopAlcohol.com. Both Branch and White struggled in both qualifying and elimination's. Simpson and Fritts while winning in elimination's, were both destroying motors while doing so. With both teams out of parts, both "Mickey Moused" their rides back together, by taking out the broken pieces, ie; rods and pistons, removing the push rods and lifters, duct taping and stuffing rags in holes in pans and blocks and hoping for the best. The entire event was finished with the exception of the funny car final as the Div. Director knew that there would be a bunch more oil on the track, with these two confirmed leakers attempting to finesse their broken rides to the starting line. Both Fritts and Simpson managed to fire their cars and do tire cleaning very short burnouts. As they came to the line, Todd's car starting smoking and eventually gave up the ghost just short of the starting line, while Kim's car coughed and sputtered enough to get staged, and take the green light, rolling down about ten feet before the engine shut off, either on purpose or because the power plant had had enough, is not certain. But to all the racers (and apparently there was a huge crowd of both fans and racers at the fence and starting line to see this drama), it was damn entertaining. Both drivers got out of their broken rides and had a chuckle about this memorable final, the first ever win for Kim Fritts.

The Top Alcohol Dragsters on the other hand were more like "A tale of two races". The A/Fuel cars dominated qualifying like they usually do, and the BAD ended up being the dominant force in elimination's (though mainly because of the ineffectiveness of the A/F's). Notable at this event, for the divisional series (and last week at the Gatornationals), was the introduction of Norm Grimes as the crew chief for David Wells "Blue Bunny" Top Alcohol Dragster. Finally a team has taken advantage of the disbandment of the O'Bannon owned 5 time championship BAD team. Wells did buy the Santos dragster at the Finals last November, but was not able to buy the power that went with it. So to start the season Grimes came in at the Gator's and ran with the combo that Wells' had run previously. For Memphis, Grimes debuted his proven combination and went to the semis running a best of 5.49. That is a long way from the 5.39 BAD competitor Jeff Wilson ran, but within a couple races that car should be on of the top three or four BAD's out there. Don't be surprised to see Wells' be the top BAD this year. Whether or not he can run the way Santos did remains to be seen, or can he challenge the likes of Bartone or Lucas this year, we'll have to wait and see.

 

Division 4 Lucas Oil Series event #2, Memphis Motorsport Park

Sunday, The score is now A/Fuel 4 wins; TAD 2 wins.

Todays win by Jeff Wilson a blown alcohol car the series matchup is now at 4 - 2 in favor of the A/F cars. But the start of this weekend is did not appear that a BAD had a good shot. The inconsistency factor reared its ugly head for the a/f's, and they could not repeat their stout numbers posted in qualifying. In round one, David Wells in the ex O'Bannon car upset Alan Bradshaw in the worlds quickest a/fuel dragster after Bradshaw (the same car that Gary Ormsby ran in the teens twice) wheel stood the car twice in a pedaling contest. Wells ran a 5.49 in the win. Other round one match-ups saw Jeff Wilson holeshot his way to the semis with a 5.43 to a losing 5.40 win over Karl Brounkowski, Lee Callaway ran 5.70 to beat Michael Gunderson who dropped 1.5 seconds from his qualifying and ran a 6.96. In the other first round race, Brian Badgett smoked his way to a 8.42 - 9.43 win over Gene Snow. In the semis Wilson beat up on Wells 5.43 to a slowing 9.99 and Callaway had an easy win with a 5.53 over a smoking Brian Badgett's 13.26. In the final Wilson saved his best for the last as he ran a career best 5.39/256 over a game 5.47/258 for Lee Callaway. Wilson torched a head (gasket) just before the finish line, hence the 5-8 mph slower speed then normal for a 5.30 pass by a BAD. (top and bottom photos by Van Syckle)

In Top Alcohol Funny car it was a case of who could make it to the final in one piece that would determine the winner. Eliminations went to surprising form,, that is to say, the two top guns at this event Tate Branch and Marc White) ran in eliminations like they did in qualifying, "bad"! Top qualifier Todd Simpson and #2 Kim Fritts were slated to do battle in the final but it wasn't the usual great #1 - #2 matchup you like to see. Both cars had engine destroying runs in the earlier runs and not enough parts and pieces to rebuild for the final. So both fired up their mounts and hoped the other would die before them, As both started to stage after very short burnouts, Simpson's car gave up the ghost and had smoke coming out from under the body, so Fritts had a single and limped his way to the starting line, staged and them shut off for the weak win. But as the saying goes, "I'd rather be lucky then good anyday", or something like that!

The next event is next weekend in Tucson, Arizona for Division 7's race #2 in the Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series. Then, the next weekend in Las Vegas, all the classes converge for the Summit Nationals at the "Strip", and back East, Mongomery, Alabama hosts Division 2's third Lucas Oil event of the year.

March 22,2003

Qualifying is complete at the Div.4 event in Millington Tennessee this weekend. No surprise on the leader board in TAD, as Alan Bradshaw in the Randy Meyer A/Fuel Dragster (previously driven by Gary Ormsby Jr.), after struggling the their first event in Houston ripped off a 5.27 at their usual slow speed of only 243mph. In the two hole, is newcomer to A/fuel, Brian Badgett who carded a stout 5.34 @ 261mph. Michael Gunderson was #3 with a 5.39 @ 268 mph. Rounding out the top half is the lone BAD Jeff Wilson who ran two 5.42's. No.'s 5 through 8 are Karl Brounkowski, Lee Callaway, Gene Snow, and David Wells.

Only 6 cars made laps in TAFC, and the field was led by Todd Simpson who ran a 5.87 at 242 mph. No.2 was Kim Fritts, just a tick back, with a 5.89. Ron Morrison was 3rd after running a best of 6.12 at 231 mph, Ben Harper was four after a slow 6.41 second lap, but he managed to outdo Marc White (true) who ran a stellar 8.16. You might ask, who could be slower than a 8 second pass, well, it happens to be Div 4 Champion Tate Branch. Tate rumbling down the 1320 with a great (not!) 10.04 second time slip after having big problems on both of his attempts. I don't think he will have the same problem tomorrow, and this is one time that being #1 is not the spot to be if you want a soft 1st round. The same could be said for #2, as Kim has to take on Marc White. We'll have the final results tomorrow afternoon so check back

For all the results check out Drag Race Central or NHRA.

March 16, 2003

Gainesville Florida March 13-16, 2003

The controversary that has become a part of the Top Alcohol classes did not get the headlines to start this event like the other sportsman classes receive. When rains arrived at the sunshine state this winter, they decided to remain for most of their winter season. And that has caused havoc for the Gainesville swamp area race facility. Last weeks AHDRA washout carried through this weeks as the grounds were so wet that the four lower sportsman classes (Stock Super Stock, Super Gas and Super Comp) were relegated to Orlando SpeedWorld 130 miles away. Needless to say there were heated discussions from racers and NHRA staff alike. The end result took some heat off the TAD class (ongoing parity issue) at least until racing started Friday. After Friday, the debate got back in earnest, as the top five spots were dominated by the A/Fuel contingent. Leading the way was Bill Riechert with a 5.284 followed by points leader Tony Bartone with a 5.289. Surprise #3 was Richard Bourke with a great 5.31, then 2002 champ Art Gallant and Mike Gunderson anchored the top 5 with a 5.36. #6 and the first BAD car was Marty Thacker way back with a 5.43.

Saturday was a different day story though, as Thacker had a career best 5.32 @ 263 mph. When qualifying ended Marty was in the three hole behind, Riechert and T-Bone.

First round saw a one upset as Mike Gunderson was upended by David Wells in the old Santos world champ car. Wells made his best lick of the weekend with a 5.47 over a tire smoking Mike Gunderson. Of note, Shelly Howard #9 qualifier did not make her first round matchup against Jason Cannon as her husband Paul had an apparant heart attack in the pits before first round. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Howard family. For today's second round the matchups are: Riechert vs Cannon, Bartone vs Kelly, Thacker vs Gallant, and Bourke vs Wells. The four BAD's vs the 4 A/F's was a one sided affair, as all the A/Fuelers trounced the blown contingent. The closest matchup on paper (Thacker vs Gallant) saw Art dominate Marty by almost a tenth at the stripe, even with Marty's 9/100ths hole-shot. The final saw Tony Bartone get his third event title out of three races as he defeated Bill Reichert. The BAD's need some hot weather in a hurry or this years title chances are less than slim and none after only 10 percent of the events being run.

TA Funny Car was interesting just from three surprising absences. Frank Manzo, Jay Payne and Von Smith were not in attendance. 6 time world champ Manzo's new car was not ready yet and Von Smith is in limbo according to reports as he is said to be either running a Pro Mod, a nitro coupe or maybe back in an alky flopper. No word as to why Jay Payne did not make his usual trek to Florida, as he claims division 2. There is still a few hard running cars as Bob Newberry, Cy Chesterman, Vern Moats and Chuck Cheeseman all ran in the 5.60's in qualifying. All four top qualifiers advanced to the second round today and a couple other players advanced as well including Marc White, Jim Sickles (with a divisional win already), Jeff Craig with a career best 5.70 @ 253 mph and Tom (alphabet) Frickenschmidt. The final has first time finalist Jeff Craig taking on Bob Newberry. It was all Newbie, as the veteran got his 41st national event win with a great 5.64 to a losing but game 5.76. Notable was Bob Newberry's best reaction times in a while as he cut mid 0's in the final two rounds of elim's. He, like a couple other drivers have lost a number of events in the past three years, due to suspect RT's. Good for you Bob! DM

 

Exclusive interview

Morgan Lucas (March 1st, 2003)

It must be the interview part of the month, as we have another exclusive here......Top Alcohol sophmore pilot Morgan Lucas, son of Lucas Oil president Forrest Lucas. Morgan started his second year in the seat of the Darien/Meadows A/Fuel Dragster just as he finished the 2002 season in the finals at Pomona. He didn't win in the quickest side by side run in TAD histort , but he set the tone for the West Coast cars competing against him. Look Out!

(SZ) What are your feelings on the upcoming season?
(ML) Confident, but very open minded. I know it takes a lot to win a championship.

(SZ) What are your expectations for the season?
(ML) We would like to win the Championship. We will definitely be chasing the championship. But my main goal is to drive the car, get comfortable with it, and do my best. We have numerous Divisional and National Events scheduled. My hope at the end of the season is to have had a great year racing and hopefully win the Championship.

(SP) What will your duties be this season with the Team? Will you just be the hired gun, or will you have an active role in the mechanical side?
(ML) At the races my main job is to pack the chutes and fuel the car. The team likes to keep me available to run errands, interact with the Fans and sign autographs etc. Back at the shop I get a chance to get into the mechanical aspects of the Team. I cut rotors and grind clutch disks etc. I am always looking for ways to help and learn.

(SP) What are your predictions for this season as far as elapsed times in TAD?
(ML) There haven't been all that many new innovations over the off season. We have a couple of things we will try here and there, but I think to get any lower than say the low 5.20s is going to take Englistown conditions to get close to what Gary Ormsby jr. ran. I think the blown cars will pick up a couple of hundredths. They seem to every year. The blown cars are scary consistent and you have to be on top of your game when you race them.

(SZ) On your 5.23 pass last season, how close to a perfect run Did Jerry Darien think that pass was?

(ML) We feel there were a few hundredths left in that pass, as we dropped a cylinder late in the run. That just goes to show how much power these cars are making. The irony of that pass is that if we hadn't dropped that cylinder, we may not have set the record.

(SZ) So, you feel there is room to go quicker and faster then?
(ML) Without a doubt. I don't know how much quicker and faster. I honestly don't know, as I am still learning the mechanical side of the car. It just remains to be seen who will do it.

(SZ) Lets talk about parity between A/Fuel and Blown Alcohol Dragsters. Do you feel the rules the NHRA have in effect are fair in dealing with both sides?
(ML) I think the rules are close. The thing that we have to deal with is when we race in bad air conditions. That really makes it hard for us to run good. The Blown Alcohol Dragsters don't have that problem. They have consistency on their side of the fence, where as we struggle in bad air. How many years in a row did Rick Santos win the Championship? He was running with the A Fuel cars. My thinking is, why can't everybody else in the Blown Alcohol Dragster do that? Not that I am saying that they aren't trying. It's just that Santos has proven that it can be done.

(SZ) You don't feel that the A Fuelers have an advantage then?
(ML) I feel that the Blown Alcohol Dragsters can run with us. It just takes the right tune up for us in A Fuel and for the Blown Alcohol Dragsters for either side of the equation to run competitively.

(SZ) How do you think the A Fuelers will do this season?
(ML) I feel that the A Fuelers will make good progress this year, but I think the Blown Alcohol Cars will have the upper hand.

(SZ) What is Lucas Oil's Goal for the Sportsmen Racers?
(ML) I can't speak for Lucas Oil the Company, but I personally believe we are here to help the Sportsmen Racers any way we can, from a racers standpoint. I know I enjoy the companies association with the Sportsmen Classes. It gives my parents a chance to see me doing the thing I love to do. Plus the exposure we are getting is great. We have definitely noticed an increased awareness of the Lucas Oil Company through its involvement with the NHRA Sportsmen Class.

(SZ) What are your racing aspirations?
(ML) I eventually would like to run Top Fuel and one day and win the Championship. Then I would like to take a shot at Funny Car Racing. I want to drive a Funny Car in the worst way. Of course I have no way to know what will happen in the future, but this is what I would like to do.

(SZ) What do you think about the IHRA looking at A/Fuel running there in their
own class?
(ML) If done in the right way, I think it could be a good deal. I would like to see the A Fuelers have their own class in the IHRA. I think A Fuelers are exciting to watch and really have a lot of fan appeal. It is really hard to say without knowing what the IHRA's intentions are with the class.

(SZ) Do you think there should be A/Fuel Funny car?
(ML) I think it would be a neat deal to see, and another class that would be appealing to the fans, and a great money maker for the NHRA. My only concerns are the possible increase in fires in that class of car. We already see how bad they can be in Nitro Funny Cars.

(SZ) Are you still planning on racing Super Comp this year?
(ML) Actually yes, we have a new car on order right now. My mom will be working on getting her license in the car. She will most likely be running a couple of local events. I am also planning on racing a couple of divisional events as well. But my first priority is driving the A Fuel Dragster.

(SZ) What division are you claiming for 2003?
(ML) We will be racing in Division 7 this year.

(SZ) Thanks for your time Morgan, and we look forward to seeing you inflict some pain or your competition.

(ML) See you at the track

 

March 10th, 2003

The Top Eliminator West (TEW) series is a Division Seven go fast class that includes funny cars, dragsters, altereds, and door cars. Running on a 6.30 index TEW allows any motor combination and fuel type.

The basic format includes a 6.30 index with a .400 pro tree, no handicap and NHRA safety rules.

Anything in the range of a 6.50 to 6.90 can be considered a very competitive E.T. in TEW.

The class will race at both Las Vegas and Phoenix this year, although most are in California.

For more information please call:
Mike Stewart (661) 723-0081
or Al Ahten (818) 249-6878

March 10th,2003

Chaffee Motorsports is a family owned and operated TAFC team. We aspire to become one of the Manzo's, Newberry's, Payne's, and Moats of the TAFC racing world. Every TAFC race team begins their journey as a "wanna be". It's only a matter of time when the Chaffee Racing Team connects with the right engine combination, speed, talent, marketing and sponsorship money. We certainly have the "talent". My family's journey into drag racing began in 1967. In the 1990's three sons began their racing careers, in addition to my wife Barbara. This season we are going to add another generation of drag racers, as my granddaughter, Samantha will begin her first year in the junior dragster division. We have come from bracket racing to super comp to Top Alcohol. Our goal is to go Top Fuel some day. Currently our youngest son Gage drives the TAFC. Our middle son Brandon drives the TAD and our oldest son Guy is the crew chief. Our sponsors are the US NAVY and the Minneapolis Auto Auction and of course, my wife Barbara. We have won many awards this past season "best appearing crew" and "best appearing car". I have tried to attach a photo of the car we call it the American Dream it was designed and painted by our son Gage.

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January Alky Zone