The event schedule weekend was altered a bit due to residual weather from Hurricane Matthew and the main time trials and eliminations all took place on Sunday. Leading up to the main event, racers participated in Gambler’s races and “best of” awards. The participating tracks included: Carolina Dragway, Darlington Dragway, Ware Shoals Dragway, South Georgia Motorsports Park, Orangeburg Dragstrip, Green Cover Dragway, Immokalee Regional Raceway, Bradenton Motorsports Park, Palm Beach International Raceway, Savannah River Dragway, Orlando Speed World Dragway and Lakeland Dragstrip.
Main Event:
Top
Mark Cooper from Carolina Dragway and Stephen Peeler from Ware Shoals Dragway advanced to the Top final round. Both racers fouled at the line when they posted a -0.004 reaction time and a -0.002 reaction time. Cooper in his 1999 Dragster was declared the winner.
Modified
The final round in the Modified class came down to Tim Butler from Bradenton Motorsports Park and Ronny Kent from South Georgia Motorsports Park. Butler took the win when he ran a 6.201 on a 6.11 dial-in with a .006 reaction time against Kent’s 5.959 on a 5.95 dial-on, .110 reaction time.
Junior Dragster
Brad Johnson from Orangeburg Dragstrip claimed the Ironman in Junior Dragster at the Summit Team Finals. Johnson made a 7.941-second pass on a 7.93 dial-in with a .079 reaction time against runner-up Conner Smith from South Georgia Motorsports Park’s time of 8.937 on an 8.94 dial-in, .040 reaction time.
Thursday’s Gambler’s Race #1:
- Top – Mark Cooper (Carolina) 4.848 on a 4.82 dial-n, .001 reaction time defeated James Fowler (Darlington) 4.797 on a 4.71 dial-in, .019 reaction time.
- Mod – Lee Hauser (Green Cove) 7.15 on a 7.02 dial-in, .250 reaction time defeated Wayne Oxner (Ware Shoals) 8.152 on a 7.99 dial-in, .050 reaction time.
- Junior – Conner Thrift (South Georgia) 8.94 on an 8.90 dial-in, .088 reaction time defeated Jordan Baker (Darlington) 8.205 on a 7.90 dial-in, -0.221 reaction time.
Thursday’s Gambler’s Race #2:
- Top – Joey Gary (Carolina) 4.493 on a 4.49 dial-in, .02 reaction time defeated John Hodgson (Darlington) 5.616 on a 5.62 dial-in, .006 reaction time.
- Mod – Gene Shaw (Carolina) 6.734 on a 6.72 dial-in, .049 reaction time defeated Andrew Sweat (Ware Shoals) 5.758 on a 5.76 dial-in, .042 reaction time.
- Junior – Logan Westmoreland (Carolina) 8.965 on an 8.94 dial-in, .079 reaction time defeated Jordan Baker (Darlington) 7.898 on a 7.90 dial-in, .085 reaction time.
Saturday’s Gambler’s Race:
- Top – Joey Anderson (Carolina) 5.838 on a 5.83 dial-in, .019 reaction time defeated Scott Field (Orlando) 6.364 on a 6.37 dial-in, .060 reaction time.
- Mod – Dale Sweat (Ware Shoals) 5.77 on a 5.76 dial-in, .019 reaction time defeated Aaron Brock (Darlington) 6.177 on a 7.07 dial-in, .036 reaction time.
- Junior Dragster – Harrison Crawford (Carolina) 8.089 on an 8.07 dial-in, .001 reaction time defeated Hannah Taylor (South Georgia) 7.942 on a 7.96 dial-in, .080 reaction time.
Special Awards
- Best Appearing Open Bodied Car – Joel Hubbard, Darlington Dragway
- Best Engineered Open Bodied Car – Tim Butler, Bradenton Motorsports Park
- Best Appearing Full Bodied Car – Tom Vantol, Immokalee Regional Raceway
- Best Engineered Full Bodied Car – Bill Hansen, Ware Shoals Dragway
- Best Appearing Junior Dragster – Kaylee Miller, Carolina Dragway
- Best Engineered Junior Dragster – Will Woodcock, Savannah River Dragway
- Best Team Spirit – Green Cove Dragway
- Best Appearing Sponsor Banner – Ware Shoals Dragway
- Best Appearing Team – Carolina Dragway
- Best Appearing Grandstands – Darlington Dragway
Division 2 East IHRA Summit Team Finals Point Standings
- Carolina Dragway 65
- Darlington Dragway 28
- Ware Shoals Dragway 24
- South Georgia Motorsports Park 20
- Orangeburg Dragstrip 18
- Green Cove Dragway 15
- Immokalee Regional Raceway 11
- Bradenton Motorsports Park 10
- Palm Beach International Raceway 4
- Savannah River Dragway 1
