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Friday
Results for Qualifying 1
LEICESTER, N.Y. - SUMMIT FastNews - Notes from round 1 qualifying in Top Fuel at
the 11th annual CARQUEST Empire Nationals listing lane, driver name, elapsed time,
top speed, and position in order following run:
Left Lane: Bobby Lagana Jr Runs 5.521/264.49, Now #1
Right Lane: Grant Flowers Runs 6.065/235.84, Now #2
7:34 PM Lagana, Jr. returns to the family dragster after running Ralph
White's car in several NHRA events at the site of his horrifying crash a few years
back. Flowers is a new driver to us on his first qualifying pass, finishing his
licensing runs at Cordova. Both runs were straight and relatively clean, lots of
clutch dust in their wake.
Left Lane: Steve Smith Runs 7.945/111.58, Now #3
Right Lane: Roger Dean Runs 21.473/29.03, Now #4
Dean's car smoked the tires instantly and he got out of the throttle for
almost a second, then stepped on it again and the engine hydraulicked with a loud
boom, producing a huge fireball and a trail of burning fuel down the dragstrip.
The fire eventually burned down, but there was a bright orange glow from under the
engine. Smith's car launched okay but he was out of the throttle before half
track.
Left Lane: Jim Head Runs 4.717/310.77, Now #1
Right Lane: Louie Allison Runs 13.602/77.22, Now #5
Most of the stuff on the track was fuel, so the cleanup only took about ten
minutes, mostly pieces and parts.
Allison went up in smoke instantly.
Head made a strong run, right down the groove, his quickest of the season, with a
half-track speed of 261.62 mph.
Left Lane: Jim Bailey Runs 13.533/79.91, Now #6
Right Lane: Paul Romine Runs 5.330/208.75, Now #2
Bailey went up in smoke instantly. he pedaled, lost traction again, and gave
it up. Romine went out a hundred feet or so, shook, pedaled, then shut it off
around the 1,000-foot mark.
Left Lane: Bruce Litton Runs 4.703/311.34, Now #1
Right Lane: Clay Millican Runs 4.801/304.53, Now #3
We had a bump spot, Dean's 21.473, with Louie Allison's 13.602 next in line,
so these two good-looking runs bumped those two from the field. Neither car was
particularly aggressive on the launch, with 60-foot times of 0.88 in both lanes,
but both kept all the candles lit all the way down the track, a nice side-by-side
show for the spectators. Now the bump is Jim Bailey's 13.533, with Steve Smith's
7.945 also very vulnerable.
Left Lane: Tracy Howard Runs 6.928/136.77, Now #8
Right Lane: Jerry Freeman Runs 6.521/169.59, Now #7
Both got in, but both engines were mixing the header flames up from the start
and both crossed the finish line with the engine silent. That's it, twelve cars
making runs today, the biggest field this year.
Friday
Order for Qualifying 1
LEICESTER, N.Y. - SUMMIT FastNews - Order after one round of
qualifying in Top Fuel
at the 11th annual CARQUEST Empire Nationals:
Psn Driver Vehicle ET Speed
1. Bruce Litton WIX Filters Dragster 4.703 311.34
2. Jim Head Dragster 4.717 310.77
3. Clay Millican Werner Dragster 4.801 304.53
4. Paul Romine CARQUEST Auto Parts Dragster 5.330 208.75
5. Bobby Lagana Jr Dragster 5.521 264.49
6. Grant Flowers Dragster 6.065 235.84
7. Jerry Freeman Dragster 6.521 169.59
8. Tracy Howard Dragster 6.928 136.77
--------- Not Qualified ---------
9. Steve Smith Smith Trailers Dragster 7.945 111.58
10. Jim Bailey Snap-On Racing Dragster 13.533 79.91
11. Louie Allison Vista Foods Dragster 13.602 77.22
12. Roger Dean Rupert Oil Dragster 21.473 29.03
Saturday
Results for Qualifying 2
LEICESTER, N.Y. - SUMMIT FastNews - Notes from round 2 qualifying in Top Fuel at
the 11th annual CARQUEST Empire 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: Roger Dean Runs 5.127/281.95, Now #5
Best prior run: 21.473/29.03, Was #12
Right Lane: Jim Bailey Runs 4.985/254.42, Now #4
Best prior run: 13.533/79.91, Was #10
1:45 PM Dean's problems yesterday were the result of a broken fuel line.
That starved one side of the engine and when he got back on the throttle the lean
side blew out the head gasket and ignited the raw fuel spraying from the broken
fuel line. The result was a blowtorch, burning intensely. Today his engine stayed
together all the way down the track for a career-best ET and speed. Bailey was on
a good run, but the engine erupted in flames before the finish line, the
supercharger letting go and the impeller and other parts rolling down the
dragstrip. The fire went out by the time he got the car stopped, but we're down
for a bit while the PTS crew removes all the shrapnel from the racing surface.
Left Lane: Louie Allison No Time, Now #12
Best prior run: 13.602/77.22, Was #12
Right Lane: Steve Smith No Time, Now #11
Best prior run: 7.945/111.58, Was #11
Left Lane: Louie Allison Runs 4.832/292.52, Now #4
Best prior run: 13.602/77.22, Was #12
Right Lane: Steve Smith Runs 5.174/245.63, Now #7
Best prior run: 7.945/111.58, Was #11
There was a small fire atop Smith's engine for most of the run - it never got
very big, but it stayed lit until after the finish line. Allison ran a career-best
ET on a good-looking pass, the car straight and smooth. That bumps Bobby Lagana
and Grant Flowers, putting Paul Romine on the bubble at 5.330.
Left Lane: Jerry Freeman Runs 11.316/93.79, Now #12
Best prior run: 6.521/169.59, Was #11
Right Lane: Tracy Howard Runs 6.459/241.24, Now #11
Best prior run: 6.928/136.77, Was #12
Freeman expected to test in Alabama before this event, but weather and a busy
schedule prevented them from doing so. Yesterday his engine dropped a couple
cylinders and today it did the same, raw fuel from a couple of the header pipes and
nothing from the rest. Howard's engine struggled, trailing fire on the top end of
the run.
Left Lane: Grant Flowers No Time, Now #10
Best prior run: 6.065/235.84, Was #10
Right Lane: Jim Head Runs 4.832/285.71, Now #2
Best prior run: 4.717/310.77, Was #2
Flowers' car wouldn't come out of reverse after the burnout, so he had to
shut it off. Head was on an okay run, but was a bit off the pace at half track
(3.225 seconds at 258.76 mph) and then the engine started to go away.
Left Lane: Paul Romine Runs 6.571/133.26, Now #8
Best prior run: 5.330/208.75, Was #8
Right Lane: Bruce Litton Runs 5.050/220.40, Now #1
Best prior run: 4.703/311.34, Was #1
Romine went out about 100 feet and then started smoking the tires. Litton's
car started top show signs of engine distress before half track, matching Head's ET
at that marker with a speed of 252.76 mph before nosing over and slowing.
Left Lane: Clay Millican Runs 4.715/292.27, Now #2
Best prior run: 4.801/304.53, Was #3
Millican moved around Head on the ladder with a good-looking run, clean and
straight, to close the round.
Saturday
Order for Qualifying 2
LEICESTER, N.Y. - SUMMIT FastNews - Order after 2 rounds of
qualifying in Top Fuel
at the 11th annual CARQUEST Empire Nationals:
Psn Driver Vehicle ET Speed
1. Bruce Litton WIX Filters Dragster 4.703@ 311.34
2. Clay Millican Werner Dragster 4.715 304.53
3. Jim Head Dragster 4.717 310.77
4. Louie Allison Vista Foods Dragster 4.832 292.52
5. Jim Bailey Snap-On Racing Dragster 4.985 254.42
6. Roger Dean Rupert Oil Dragster 5.127 281.95
7. Steve Smith Smith Trailers Dragster 5.174 245.63
8. Paul Romine CARQUEST Auto Parts Dragster 5.330 208.75
--------- Not Qualified ---------
9. Bobby Lagana Jr Dragster 5.521 264.49
10. Grant Flowers Dragster 6.065 235.84
11. Tracy Howard Dragster 6.459 241.24
12. Jerry Freeman Dragster 6.521 169.59
@ = Track ET Record
Saturday
Results for Qualifying 3
LEICESTER, N.Y. - SUMMIT FastNews - Notes from final, round 3 qualifying in Top
Fuel at the 11th annual CARQUEST Empire 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: Steve Smith Runs 5.198/273.00, Now #7
Best prior run: 5.174/245.63, Was #7
Right Lane: Grant Flowers Runs 5.783/263.10, Now #10
Best prior run: 6.065/235.84, Was #10
9:12 PM The bump spot for this final round is Paul Romine's 5.330. Smith
did a Funny Car-style burnout, but the car dropped a couple cylinders on the run.
Then he tagged the guard rail in the shutdown area. Flowers' "Voodooist" was
mixing the cylinders up from the start and left an oil slick in the shutdown
area.
Left Lane: Jim Bailey Runs 6.166/135.82, Now #6
Best prior run: 4.985/254.42, Was #5
Right Lane: Paul Romine Runs 4.698/318.17, Now #1
Best prior run: 5.330/208.75, Was #8
Pressure time for Romine. His CARQUEST team came through in spades,
resetting both ends of the track record. Bailey was on a good pass for 330 feet,
then the engine started eating itself, leaving an oil trail from half track
on.
Left Lane: Jim Head No Time, Now #4
Best prior run: 4.717/310.77, Was #4
Right Lane: Roger Dean Runs 11.526/81.85, Now #7
Best prior run: 5.127/281.95, Was #7
The oildown was "wide and thick," so the cleanup took quite a while. Head
made the burnout and the engine went silent, a trail of oil marking his path. He
was pushed back to the starting line so Dean could run. Dean's car was very
"fat," the engine blubbering and weak, so he shut it down and coasted through.
Left Lane: Bruce Litton No Time, Now #2
Best prior run: 4.703/311.34, Was #2
Right Lane: Clay Millican Runs 4.744/314.46, Now #3
Best prior run: 4.715/292.27, Was #3
Fortunately Head makes short burnouts, so the oil went from the water to
about 200 feet down the track. However, cold oil on concrete is the hardest to
clean up, so we had another long delay. The cause? A loose oil line.
Litton's car didn't move at the green, then went slowly down the track. Millican
left hard, posting a 0.865 60-foot time, but had to pedal it to get the tires
hooked back up, hurting his elapsed time.
Sunday
Eliminations Round 1
LEICESTER, N.Y. - SUMMIT FastNews - Results of round 1 eliminations in Top
Fuel at the 11th annual CARQUEST Empire Nationals:
W/L Driver RT ET Speed
(W) Jim Head (Dragster) 0.531 5.473 250.69
(L) Louie Allison (Vista Foods Dragster) 0.525 6.106 162.20
12:37 PM This was a pedaling contest, Head losing traction early and almost
throwing in the towel, then getting traction again just as Allison lost it.
Allison was ahead by a tenth at half track and Head went by to lead by two tenths
at 1,000 feet and then pulled away for the win.
(W) Clay Millican (Werner Dragster) 0.516 4.817 298.67
(L) Jim Bailey (Snap-On Racing Dragster) 0.520 7.528 108.85
Bailey stayed with Millican for 300 feet, then his car nosed over and
Millican was uncontested the rest of the way on a "safe" opening run.
(W) Bruce Litton (WIX Filters Dragster) 0.558 4.888 294.43
(L) Roger Dean (Rupert Oil Dragster) 0.516 5.230 279.27
Roger Dean made Litton work for this one, running his own race, but Litton
made a safe, soft run for the win, losing lane choice to Millican in the second
round.
(W) Paul Romine (CARQUEST Auto Parts Dragster) 0.488 4.866 296.05
(L) Steve Smith (Smith Trailers Dragster) 0.522 5.075 284.99
Final pair. Like Dean, Smith made Romine earn this one, stepping up a full
tenth of a second over his qualifying run, but Romine made a picture-perfect run,
smooth and soft but right doiwn the groove to win easily and earn lane choice
against head in round two.
Sunday
Eliminations Round 2
LEICESTER, N.Y. - SUMMIT FastNews - Results of round 2 eliminations in Top
Fuel at the 11th annual CARQUEST Empire Nationals:
W/L Driver RT ET Speed
(W) Paul Romine (CARQUEST Auto Parts Dragster) 0.508 4.961 289.32
(L) Jim Head (Dragster) 0.539 5.680 179.90
3:04 PM There were no upsets in the first round of Top Fuel, so four
closely-matched cars remain and the winner will be determined by which crew chief
adjusts best to this afternoon's hot, sunny conditions. Head puffed the rear tires
about 100 feet out, pedaled, started to smoke the tires again past half track, and
shut it down. Romine made a very soft run, but that was the key to winning this
round because his car showed no signs of tire smoke at any point in the run.
(W) Clay Millican (Werner Dragster) 0.492 4.966 292.46
(L) Bruce Litton (WIX Filters Dragster) 0.466 6.989 125.23
Guess what? Almost a duplicate of the first pair, but Litton threw an added
confusion factor into the game by deep staging. It went for naught, Litton up in
smoke after 100 feet or so, while Millican made a soft, smoke-free run for the win,
losing lane choice in the finals to Romine by 0.005 seconds.
Sunday
Final Round
LEICESTER, N.Y. - SUMMIT FastNews - Results of final, round 3 eliminations in
Top Fuel at the 11th annual CARQUEST Empire Nationals:
W/L Driver RT ET Speed
(W) Clay Millican (Werner Dragster) 0.453 4.822 300.23
(L) Paul Romine (CARQUEST Auto Parts Dragster) 0.493 10.463 90.10
5:23 PM This is it, the final pair of the event, matching two drivers who
are in the thick of the points race. Millican deep-staged and then Romine went up
in smoke very early in the run while Millican was picture-perfect to take the win
light and extend his lead in the points with his second event win in a row.
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