SKULL GEAR IHRA World Nationals
Norwalk, Ohio
by Susan Wade, Bobby Bennett; Photos by Roger Richards and Bryan Epps

SUNDAY FINAL - Millican defends turf in SKULL GEAR IHRA World Nationals Top Fuel final; Castellana, Sickles and Spiess post professional victories

(8-28-2005) – When it looked like a high-horsepower bully was going to come in and sweep away his traditional accolades, multi-time IHRA Top Fuel champion Clay Millican stepped up and defended the honor of his crown. Millican, of Drummonds, Tenn., stopped dominating Cory McClenathan in the final round of what could easily be labeled as one of the most exciting Hooters IHRA Top Fuel events ever.

Also scoring impressive victories were Mike Castellana (Torco Race Fuels Pro Modified), Jim Sickles (Funny Car) and Steve Spiess (Torco Race Fuels Pro Stock).

Millican and his Werner Enterprises team weren’t the quickest and fastest in qualifying, nor were they in the rounds leading up to the finals. Then again, they didn’t have to be. Just knowing how to win at Norwalk proved to be the most invaluable weapon in Millican’s arsenal.

Millican performed an excellent pedal job in the first round by running a 5.187, 275.17 to beat Bobby Lagana, Jr. He then reeled off a 4.741, 305.63 to beat Doug Foley.

For his part, McClenathan opened Sunday’s eliminations with an easy 5.055, 276.69 that defeated Rick Cooper. He then earned lane choice in the final round with a 4.726, 308.35 victory over T.J. Zizzo.

In the big showdown, Millican's 4.752, 303.98 pass took out McClenathan, who fought traction problems to end up in the runner-up spot with a 4.901, 285.59 effort.

In Torco Pro Modified, there was a stampede that greatly resembled the one witnessed two weeks ago in Martin, MI. Castellana’s Western Beef-sponsored nitrous-injected entry looked like one of the hulking bovines in the running of the bulls as he defeated all challengers en route to stopping first-time finalist Steve Bareman in the final round.

Castellana began his march to the final round with a 6.193, 229.66 to take the measure of Steve Engel. He then used a 6.213, 223.80 to defeat Scott Cannon. Castellana needed only a 6.270, 226.09 to get around a tire-shaking Carl Spiering.

Bareman was basking in the glow of his first career trip to the elimination rounds, and he made the most of the opportunity by stopping Shannon Jenkins, Steve Vick and Jim Halsey. Unfortunately, he broke after the burnout for the final round, affording Castellana an easy run to the winner's circle.

Bareman is best known for owning the largest dairy farm in Michigan. He became a mid-season replacement for Oddy’s previous driver Al Billes, who crashed two team cars last month.

In the Funny Car division, a driver familiar with the Norwalk Raceway Park winner’s circle visited again. 2002 winner Jim Sickles made his intentions clear in the early going and confirmed them in the end with a convincing victory over Rob Atchison in the final round. Atchison's car tried to swap lanes at the hit, and he wisely shut it down.

Sickles produced the low elapsed time of the first round with a 5.769, 245.54 that eliminated Melinda Green-King. He maintained his 5.7 pace with a 5.799, 245.72 that defeated Mike Comella.

For his part, Atchison established a torrid pace early on with a 5.776, 245.58 to eliminate Chris Foster and a 5.867, 245.67 on a single when Fred Tigges broke.

In Torco Race Fuels Pro Stock, the one-man band from Illinois continued his demoralization of the class. Steve Spiess was on a mission for the fourth consecutive event as he defeated Rick Jones in the final round, 6.477, 216.83 to 6.504, 216.24.

Spiess entered eliminations as the top qualifier and used incredible performances to eliminate Jon Konigshofer (6.483), Ed Machacek (6.489) and Doug Kirk (6.537) before meeting Jones in the finals.

Jones was the sixth quickest in the Torco Race Fuels Pro Stock field and after winning a battle of the chassis builders against Jerry Haas in the first round, went on to defeat Brian Gahm and Rick Jones.

The next IHRA Hooter Championship Drag Racing event is in two weeks with the Amalie Oil IHRA North American Nationals at New England Dragway in Epping, NH.

Sunday's final results from the 28th annual Skull Gear World Nationals presented by PPG Automotive Refinish at Norwalk Raceway Park. The $1.1 million race is the ninth of 12 in the 2005 Hooters IHRA Drag Racing Series:

Top Stock (contested Saturday) -- Monty Bogan Jr., Pontiac Firebird, 9.877, 133.25 def. Sid Bonnecarrere, Plymouth Duster, 9.875, 133.14.

a d v e r t i s e m e n t

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Final round-by-round results from the 28th annual Skull Gear World Nationals presented by PPG Automotive Refinish at Norwalk Raceway Park, the ninth of 12 events in the 2005 Hooters IHRA Drag Racing Series (note: Professional categories only, Sportsman categories are still being contended):

TOP FUEL:

ROUND ONE -- T.J. Zizzo, 8.786, 93.62 def. Bruce Litton, foul; Clay Millican, 5.187, 275.17 def. Bobby Lagana Jr., 8.153, 134.78; Doug Foley, 4.747, 279.09 def. Dale Creasy Jr, 9.215, 122.44; Cory McClenathan, 5.055, 276.69 def. Rick Cooper, 6.014, 167.51;

SEMIFINALS -- McClenathan, 4.726, 308.35 def. Zizzo, 8.937, 97.12; Millican, 4.741, 305.63 def. Foley, 12.056, 86.62;

FINAL -- Millican, 4.752, 303.98 def. McClenathan, 4.901, 285.59.

PRO MODIFIED:

ROUND ONE -- Harold Martin, Pontiac Grand Am, 6.296, 225.37 def. Mike Lockwood, Chevy Corvette, 6.493, 222.22; Scott Cannon, Studebaker, 6.257, 228.27 def. Quain Stott, Corvette, 6.513, 224.88; Dennis Radford, Corvette, 6.315, 222.84 def. Burton Auxier, Corvette, foul; Steve Vick, Corvette, 6.573, 175.14 def. Billy Harper, Dodge Viper, foul; Steve Bareman, Corvette, 6.276,
229.90 def. Shannon Jenkins, Chevy Camaro, 6.286, 222.77; Carl Spiering, Corvette, 6.232, 229.47 def. Milt Decker, Corvette, 11.202, 81.15; Mike Castellana, Chevy Cavalier, 6.193, 229.66 def. Steve Engel, Corvette, 6.291, 227.80; Jim Halsey, Camaro, 6.201, 227.42 def. Pat Moore, Corvette, 6.901, 158.99;

QUARTERFINALS -- Bareman, 6.205, 232.23 def. Vick, 6.264, 224.73; Spiering, 6.199, 231.16 def. Radford, broke; Halsey, 6.193, 227.00 def. Martin, 6.330, 226.16; Castellana, 6.213, 223.80 def. Cannon, 6.264, 228.73;

SEMIFINALS -- Castellana, 6.270, 226.09 def. Spiering, 7.320, 148.97; Bareman, 6.211, 232.07 def. Halsey, 6.224, 226.81;

FINAL -- Castellana, 6.613, 168.30 def. Bareman, broke.

FUNNY CAR:

ROUND ONE -- Rob Atchison, Pontiac Firebird, 5.776, 245.58 def. Chris Foster, Dodge Avenger, 5.953, 235.68; Mike Comella, Chevy Corvette, 5.933, 237.84 def. Terry Munroe, Chevy Monte Carlo, 5.958, 235.31; Jim Sickles, Monte Carlo, 5.769, 245.54 def. Melinda Green-King, Avenger, 5.928, 236.59; Frederick Tigges, Chevy Camaro, 5.853, 242.19 def. Mark Thomas, Avenger, 5.975, 235.80;

SEMIFINALS -- Atchison, 5.867, 245.67 def. Tigges, broke; Sickles, 5.799, 245.72 def. M. Comella, broke;

FINAL -- Sickles, 5.802, 246.39 def. Atchison, 22.034, 38.30.

PRO STOCK:

ROUND ONE -- Ed Machacek, Chevy Cavalier, 6.575, 209.26 def. Larry O'Brien, Dodge Stratus, 6.681, 210.93; Pete Berner, Ford Mustang, 6.486, 213.57 def. John Nobile, Ford ZX2, 6.511, 214.69; Rick Jones, Chevy Cobalt, 6.499, 214.59 def. Jerry Haas, Cavalier, 6.545, 213.57; John Montecalvo, Cobalt, 6.540, 212.66 def. Daniel Seamon, Ford Escort, 6.529, 214.18; Doug Kirk, Mustang, 6.538, 214.01 def. Tony Gillig, Mustang, 7.502, 143.80; Brian Gahm, Mustang, 6.480, 216.34 def. Bert Jackson, Cavalier, 6.643, 212.19; Frank Gugliotta, Escort, 6.487, 215.44 def. Chuck DeMory, Escort, 6.528, 213.50; Steve Spiess, Cobalt, 6.483, 215.44 def. John Konigshofer, Mercury Cougar, foul;

QUARTERFINALS -- Kirk, 6.537, 213.81 def. Montecalvo, 6.589, 211.96; Gugliotta, 6.490, 216.34 def. Berner, 6.506, 212.79; Jones, 6.500, 214.69 def. Gahm, 6.500, 215.03; Spiess, 6.489, 215.96 def. Machacek, 6.539, 213.77;

SEMIFINALS -- Jones, 6.528, 215.68 def. Gugliotta, 6.509, 216.93; Spiess, 6.456, 217.11 def. Kirk, 6.552, 214.66;

FINAL -- Spiess, 6.477, 216.83 def. Jones, 6.504, 216.24.

SUNDAY NOTES - Streaking Steve Spiess' Wild Dreams; Sickles' Third At Norwalk Denies Atchison His Fifth In Row; Pro Stock's FBI In Force; Here's To The Preppies

(8-28-2005) - Records set -- Jim Halsey set the Pro Modified elapsed-time record with a 6.165-second run in qualifying. The Funny Car class was the only one in which the track records didn’t fall, although winner Jim Sickles did equal his 5.769 elapsed-time mark. Finalist Rob Atchison also ran a 5.769-second E.T., but according to IHRA media statisticians, Sickles has the official mark because heran a faster speed.

Wild dream comes true -- Steve Spiess became the 10th different Pro Stock winner at Norwalk in the last 10 IHRA regular-season races here. He said adding that prestigious Skull Gear World Nationals title to his resume had been almost unfathomable.

"Never in my wildest dreams . . . winning this here . . . I never dreamt I could do something like this. Everybody's just doing their job good, and it's just running great. I feel like maybe I'm a young surf guy -- goin' to ride this wave as long as I can."

"The car was perfect from the first time we let the clutch out. We've had to do only very minor changes. It has just made the whole job easier. We've learned enough the last two years to be consistent. And that's the key."

"There's going to be a gremlin come in here sooner or later, but I hope -- [because] we're getting so accustomed to going right down the track -- we'll be able to fight it. I mean, I've had my share of bad luck and I've had a lot of gremlins in my life. I can almost say that when you think nothing more can happen to you, I guarantee you it can. So you've always got to look over your shoulder."

"It's kind of a relief," Spiess said of the victory. He was referring to the fact he retained his lead in the standings after entering the event with closest challenger Robert Patrick just 122 points behind. Patrick, a two-time winner of this event, failed to qualify.

"I do feel sorry for Robert," Spiess said, "because I've been racing with him for a long time. And anytime you don't qualify, especially when you're on the top, it's like getting kicked in the belly."

The parity of it all – The largest of all controversies seems to be a non-issue these days when it comes to Torco Race Fuels Pro Modified. The nitrous troops are holding their own in conditions that are most conducive to their performance. The qualifying battle was won by the bottle rockets as they put ten cars into final eliminations. However, there were two of each in the semis.

Cat’s in the cradle – Scotty Cannon is not shy about admitting that he’s a proud father. His son, Scott Jr., made his IHRA debut earlier this month in Martin, MI., and left with an eighth-place qualifying effort and a quarterfinal finish. This weekend the second-generation racer qualified in the No. 7 spot and again drove to a quarterfinal finish.

Cannon’s consistent qualifying endeavors have placed him fourth thus far in the 2006 Torco Pro Modified Shootout standings. The elder Cannon still stands as the winningest driver in the class. Scott was a crewman on Cannon’s final championship team.

“It’s neat to be racing the same places that he did,” Scott said. “It was really fun back in those days. I still have a long way to go but I’m having fun in the learning process.”

Cannon is driving in his second of three events with backing from Torco Race Fuels SKULL Gear brand.

Spiess starts new streak -- Spiess had set the Pro Stock class' low elapsed time for 30 consecutive qualifying and/or elimination rounds. But Frank Gugliotta broke Spiess' remarkable streak in Saturday's first qualifying session.

"It's my own fault," Spiess said. "We messed up on that streak, so what can I say? It was fun while it lasted." He said he realized how impressive it is. "That's very unusual. I'm sure it has happened to somebody somewhere down the line, but that's a lot of runs in a row to be the quickest each round."

FBI dossier -- It was an all-FBI final round in the Pro Stock class: Steve Spiess against Rick Jones, who came up with the label "FBI" for the six drivers who think of themselves as the Fast Boys from Illinois. Other "agents" in the group are Mike Bruno (Frankfort), Pete Berner (Crete), Chuck Demory (Glen Ellyn), and Tony Gillig (Lake Bluff).

Spiess, of Manhattan, Ill., beat Jones in the all-Chevy Cobalt final round Sunday with a 6.477-second elapsed time at 216.83 mph to the Galesburg, Ill., fabricator's 6.504/216.24. (Berner lost in the quarterfinal, Gillig and Demory exited in the first round, and Bruno failed to qualify.)

Spiess -- who earned his third straight victory and set both ends of the track record with a 6.462-second E.T. at 215.96 mph during qualifying -- said of Jones. "He did just a fantastic job. We've helped each other out all year long. He was struggling a couple of races ago, and he's come to life. He had a rash of first-round losses and I don't want to see that. They're good guys, and he bends over backwards for me. When we need something, we've got it immediately."

Jones is noted for his excellent reaction time, but Spiess said he wasn't intimidated by that. "Right now, I'm still a couple hundredths faster than everybody. I've been practicing -- I do good in the basement when I practice. I don't know if there maybe isn’t something in the car yet that we could pick up that we need to go search for. If I can cut (.0)50-60-70 lights consistently, that'll win some races.

"Power helps" he said. "It makes everything so . . . You just feel more comfortable. I can't wait till the air gets better. I tell you what, I think we're going to fly." He said he thinks the class will see some passes in the 6.30-second range even before the mid-September race at Budds Creek, Md. "Next race," Spiess predicted.

And the family was here! -- Pro Mod winner Mike Castellana took his Chevy Cavalier for a solo pass in the final round (a 6.613-second elapsed time at 168.30 mph, for the record) to claim his second straight victory of the season and third in the last four races. The victory allowed him to overtake racing and business partner Shannon Jenkins as the points leader.

Jim Halsey, the No. 1 qualifier who lost to Bareman in the semifinals, improved from third in the standings to second, and Jenkins dropped to third.

Finalist Steve Bareman, making just his second appearance in Jim Oddy's '53 Corvette as Al Billes' replacement, broke after the burnout and was pulled from the starting line, leaking oil. That forced Top Fuel finalists Cory McClenathan and Clay Millican to wait about 20 minutes to make their much-anticipated run.

"We came in here real confident, Castellana said. "We hurt the motor in the second round and changed it. When you make a change like that, you just don't know what's going to happen. We ran OK, not as good as we wanted to. So we made some changes for the final round. Shannon and the crew really did a great job getting this car to where it's at."

It turned out he didn't need to worry about it. But he indicated he would rather have raced Bareman. "You know, you don’t want to win like that at any time, but sometimes that's what happens and you go with it. It goes both ways sometimes. You lose on things like that, and hopefully it balances out and you wins some like that. And this was one of those times."

He said he isn't feeling particularly smug because he has the points lead. "We made a pretty good move. We're No. 1. It's tough, though," he said. "We have three races left, and anything can happen."

Castellana said he dedicated his energy to winning a first series championship, to try to catch up with Jenkins' three. However, he said he didn’t think both he and Jenkins would be 1-2 in the points like they were before this event or both in the top three, as they are now.

"I had a new car this year, and with a new car, usually it takes us a little bit to get the bugs worked out of it and get a feel for the car," he said. "We kind of started out a little bit slow. I did, anyway. I wasn't even in the top 10 the first couple or three races. And then things started clicking. hannon was No. 1 and now we've caught up with him and passed him. If we can finish 1-2, that's our goal."

Castellana also took the lead in the standings for the 2006 Torco Pro Mod Showdown. "It's always good to have something in your pocket," he said.

What made him the happiest, he said, is that he got to share the moment with his wife and children: Marianne, 11; Maria, 10; Mikaela, 10; and Michael Jr., 5. "Just having them come during the summer and to win with them [present], it means more than winning the championship or anything, just having them here for things like today," the Westbury, N.Y., resident said.

Bareman gets record -- Steve Bareman naturally was disappointed because of the mechanical failure that prevented him from making a final-round run. But and team owner Jim Oddy and the crew waved graciously and appreciatively to the Norwalk Raceway Park crowd that cheered them on as they towed their wounded car up the return road toward the pits. Bareman, who hadn't won a round of Pro Mod eliminations before Sunday, won three and set the class' track speed record at 232.23 mph in his quarterfinal victory over Steve Vick.

Three-peat 'a big deal' -- Funny Car winner Jim Sickles said his three-peat at Norwalk Raceway Park was a special accomplishment. "Three in a row here is a big deal," the Chevy Monte Carlo driver from Caledonia, N.Y., said. "I've got the same guys I had three years ago. And it's a great facility. We needed a little shot in the arm, and here we go, back to Norwalk to pull us up."

The No. 3 qualifier defeated points leader Rob Atchison in the final round, chipping away at the Canadian's advantage in the standings. But Sickles didn't get the race he had anticipated. He won easily with a 5.802-second elapsed time at 246.39, while Atchison got out of the groove when something broke and halted his '02 Firebird at about half-track.

That denied Atchison a fifth consecutive victory. The London, Ontario, resident is a six-time winner this season who's going for his third straight series championship. Surprisingly enough, he was making his first final-round appearance at Norwalk.

Sickles said Atchison's breakdown that left him with an ugly 22.034-second E.T. at 38.30 mph surprised him a bit. "I knew that we were probably going to be OK if I did my job on the driving and Atchison probably was going to run around an 80 (a 5.80 E.T.)," he said. "It honestly would have been a drag race. He cut a 19 (a .019 reaction time), and I cut a 33 (.033), so it could have been an issue there. He had the pressure on him, too. He was behind the eight-ball going into this round. Cool stuff.

"Atchison was running extremely well. That (5.)76 he ran [Saturday in qualifying] definitely woke us up," Sickles said. "He's trying some different stuff, and we had a new blower on this weekend. We actually tested it here a week ago Thursday and got it figured out. We're starting to run some good, solid numbers consistently."

He said crew chief Tom Anderson "has been around the sport a long time. He's a smart racer. When he gets on a game, he's going to be hard to break. He won't beat himself." He said since 2003, he "hasn’t run the numbers" he wants to post but said that Sunday, "we were running numbers. I think we're onto something now, not just because we won this race. We were running numbers here today. Once we get our 60-foot (time) settled down here and figured out, we're going to have a hard-to-beat car. Hopefully that's around the corner."

Great expectations -- Jim Sickles won three Funny Car races last season, despite his limited schedule. He decided to step up to a full schedule this year, and he has won twice. He also was champion at Grand Bend, Ontario, at the fourth race on the 12-event schedule.

Was this the season he had envisioned when he decided to return fulltime? "We're doing OK," Sickles said. "Frankly, we sucked a little wind early in the year. The first three or four races were disastrous for us. But we came back in the second half here. But Atchison, he's just had a Cinderella year. You can't take that away from him. That guy's racing good, he's driving good, and the car's running good. And he deserves the championship, which it looks like they've pretty much got tied up here now."

As for his own showing for the season, Sickles said, "Second's OK."

In praise of track preppers -- Jim Sickles said following his Funny Car victory that the track was superb this weekend. "IHRAs got their act together --there's no getting around it. This [track] is as good as its gets across the country," he said.

Sickles said he was extremely impressed with the conditions Saturday night, when he tried an extreme exercise with his clutch in the final qualifying session. "We just really threw some clutch at it. I was waiting for something to break in the car, the car shifted so hard. But the race track was so good. It was stellar. I've been on a lot of NHRA tracks that are killer, but this track is probably about the best I've seen of any track -- ever. And this place has got a groove to it."

No Top Fueling around -- Dale Creasy Jr., of Beecher, Ill., said car owner Evan Knoll has told him the Torco Dragster ride is his for 2006. The longtime Funny Car driver got his IHRA Top Fuel license at Martin, Mich., prior to the race before this one. He said when the schedule permits, he will do some testing in the dragster here and hopes to do some at Route 66 Raceway at Joliet, Ill.

Loves Cory Mac -- IHRA President Aaron Polburn said much was made of Cory McClenathan, a regular on the high-profile Powerade Drag Racing Series circuit, entering the Top Fuel mix at his sanctioning body's most prestigious event.

"When Cory Mac first came here on Friday, you know what his biggest worry was?" Polburn asked. Then he answered his own question: "He was worried that he might screw up the IHRA points chase. We all hear about Cory Mac getting amped up. He's a serious racer. We've all seen it on TV. But I thought, 'Here's a guy I can do business with.' He was worried about messing up our championship race, and he meant it. It wasn't B.S."

Said Polburn, "Let's not kid anybody. They were here testing [for the Powerade Series' marquee event, this weekend's U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis], but that's OK."

He said brothers Mark and Andy Carrier, who own the Carrier Boyz Racing team that McClenathan represents and whose father Larry founded the IHRA, experienced a sort of homecoming at Norwalk. "They loved the atmosphere," Polburn said. "They probably had more fun here than they have had at a drag race in a long time. They fit right into what we do. It was neat that they became part of our family."

Lance Larsen, a key crew member for Top Fuel winner Clay Millican, said before eliminations Sunday that the Werner team wasn't terribly exercised about McClenathan's presence. He said Millican, a four-time IHRA series champion, does the same, participates part-time in the Powerade Series races. "We go over there to theirs," he said. Millican has competed in the other series on a part-time basis for eight seasons.

"Besides," he said, "we'd rather take out the people we need to take out in the early rounds." That helps Millican in his pursuit of an unprecedented fifth straight title.

"I learned along time ago," Larsen said with a smile, "not to worry about things that I can't control."

IHRA's turn to shine -- "Its our race track . . . Our sanctioning body . . . Our champion!" the public-address announcer declared immediately after IHRA four-time defending Top Fuel champion Clay Millican defeated Powerade Series "interloper" Cory McClenathan in the final round.

For Millican, Sunday's final round was no more than another final round he wanted to win to move one step closer to winning a fifth championship. He said he wouldn't have cared who was in the opposite lane. He said he wasn't thinking it payback time, even though it was, in a way.

The previous time the two met was at Atlanta Dragway at the Powerade Series' Southern Nationals in May 2004. McClenathan won, making Millican 0-3 in consecutive final-round chances. That, ironically, was the last time McClenathan -- known to drag-racing fans as Cory Mac -- won a race. He also defeated Millican in the opening round last November at the Auto Club of Southern California Finals at Pomona (Calif.) Raceway. (The two haven't met in Powerade Series competiton this season.)

Moreover, Cory Mac erased Millican's Norwalk track-record elapsed time of 4.631 seconds in his first qualifying pass -- his first-ever in IHRA competition.

But Millican, the quickest-talking and quickest-driving Tennesseean, also is at least one of drag racing's quickest to forget any on-track disappointments.

So when he beat Cory Mac (4.901/285.59) with a 4.752-second E.T. at 303.98 mph in a final the crowd had been salivating for -- the two quickest and fastest Top Fuel dragsters in IHRA history -- Millican didn't gloat.

"It was cool," he said of the match-up with McClenathan. "He beat me over there, and I figured it's only fair that I beat him over here. He was a gracious guy." Millican said that at the top end, "We had a big hug down there. We had a big laugh. The cool things was there were no points between the two of us. Obviously I needed the points.

"It was just stand on the gas and go to the other end of the race track," Millican said. "We got out and laughed. We had fun. And that's the way racing's supposed to be. And that's actually how it is for me most of the time, win or lose. Cory is very intense but I don’t think people even have a clue what all realize what he does to be a Top Fuel driver. I absolutely admire him.

"I thought it was really cool that those guys came," Millican said. "And of course, this is not the first time we've had guys [from the rival sanctioning body] show up. Everybody's been wanting to know all weekend, 'Are you going to beat Cory Mac?' Well, those guys run really quick and really fast. They proved that. But there's always one thing that I always feel confident about, and that's Mike Kloeber, especially when it’s hot and greasy outside."

He said he and his team are "struggling a little bit with making the thing run on eight cylinders, but that's coming around." One wouldn’t know that by looking at the statistics. Millican won the first five races of this season and after stumbling at the next two, picked up his second straight victory to push his 2005 total to seven.

"We're one race close to that fifth championship," Millican said. "It's a total team effort. Mike makes my job so easy, and the guys are flawless."

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SATURDAY - Another Big Mac day as McClenathan paces Norwalk Top Fuel field

(8-27-2005) – Cory McClenathan may have wondered if he was back in his McDonalds-sponsored car because every run he made down the Norwalk Raceway Park quarter-mile ended with him uttering the fast food chain’s famous catch phrase, “I’m loving it.” McClenathan was flawless in his Carrier Boys-owned, Fram-sponsored dragster during the final day of qualifying for the SKULL GEAR IHRA World Nationals.

Joining McClenathan atop their respective professional categories were Jim Halsey (Torco Race Fuels Pro Modified), Rob Atchison (Funny Car) and Steve Spiess (Torco Race Fuels Pro Stock).

McClenathan ran strong 4.60s today but held onto his Friday 4.568, 323.43 to claim his first career IHRA Hooters Top Fuel pole position.

“I think it’s cool to see the way everyone pushes their equipment to the limit over here,” McClenathan said. “These guys are very serious about winning. I even had an incredible race with Clay Millican in the last session. I look forward to racing tomorrow.

“God willing if we could win this race tomorrow, I’d love to win it for Mark and Andy. Seeing the way they were honored tonight it would be a perfect way to cap things off. We really want to make those who have invested their hearts and souls in the IHRA proud by running our best.”

Earlier in the evening, Mark and Andy Carrier’s father, IHRA founder Larry Carrier, was honored for his commitment to the birth of the IHRA.

The second quickest run of qualifications belonged to Doug Foley with a 4.589, 310.77. Defending World Champion Clay Millican was third with a 4.635, 296.83.

A last ditch effort by Rick Cooper saw him put his Torco dragster on the bubble with a 4.789, 307.86. This marked the second consecutive time that all six Torco-sponsored Top Fuelers qualified for final eliminations.

Halsey remained the top runner in the Torco Race Fuels Pro Modified division with his 6.165, 227.04. He managed to follow up his impressive Friday performance with a 6.17 during Saturday’s evening session.

“We missed out on it in the first session today,” Halsey said. “That prohibited us from really being aggressive in the final session. I felt comfortable with a 6.20 and we just set the car up to run the same way we did on Friday. The 6.17 was a pleasant surprise.”

Mike Castellana remained second with a 6.172, 229.39 while Carl Spiering’s 6.188 remained third.

Rick Moore was on the bubble of the sixteen-car field with a 6.273, 221.49. A score of surprise DNQ’s belonged to defending event champion Pat Moore, Ed Hoover and defending world champion Mike Janis.

Atchison rose to the top of the qualifying list after finishing third on Friday. During Saturday’s opening session, Atchison stormed to a 5.769, 238.17 to overtake Terry Munroe’s Friday 5.786. Munroe failed to improve on his first day accolades.

Atchison was happy to be on top again.

“We stumbled a bit at first, but I guess that’s a Norwalk thing,” Atchison said. “Everyone seems to stumble here every once in a while. We knew we had a fast car and despite my screw up on Friday night’s run, we came through when it counted.”Jim Sickles was third with 5.803, 243.55. Chris Foster rounded out the eight-car field with a 5.957, 237.34.

Spiess maintained his stranglehold on the Torco Pro Stock qualifying ladder. Despite having his unblemished performance streak broken in the first session, Spiess retained the top qualifying spot on the strength of his Friday’s 6.462, 213.27. His best run on Saturday was a 6.49 in extremely humid conditions. Spiess ran the Friday low qualifier in 90% humidity.

“We had much worse conditions to work with tonight than last night,” Spiess said. “We had to put more gear into it because we were down on horsepower like everyone else. There was hardly any mile per hour today. It’s so humid that running a car out here is like trying to race in a swimming pool.”

The second and third spots remained unchanged with Frank Gugliotta (6.465, 214.31) and Brian Gahm (6.473, 213.91) filling the positions.

Chuck DeMory rounded out the program with a 6.576, 211.06. The most notable DNQ belonged to defending event finalist Robert Patrick.

The Skull Gear World Nationals presented by PPG Automotive Finish will conclude Sunday at Norwalk Raceway Park. Professional elimination rounds in Torco Pro Stock and Torco Pro Mod are scheduled to begin at 11 a.m.

First-round pairings for professional eliminations Sunday for the 28th annual Skull Gear World Nationals presented by PPG Automotive Refinish at Norwalk Raceway Park, the ninth of 12 events in the 2005 Hooters IHRA Drag Racing Series. Pairings based on results in qualifying, which ended Saturday.

Top Fuel -- 1. Cory McClenathan, 4.568 seconds, 323.43 mph vs. 8. Rick Cooper, 4.789, 307.86; 2. Doug Foley, 4.589, 310.77 vs. 7. Dale Creasy Jr, 4.784, 311.34; 3. Clay Millican, 4.635, 319.82 vs. 6. Bobby Lagana Jr., 4.781, 311.34; 4. T.J. Zizzo, 4.650, 312.93 vs. 5. Bruce Litton, 4.686, 316.52.

Pro Modified -- 1. Jim Halsey, Chevy Camaro, 6.165, 227.04 vs. 16. Rick Moore, Pontiac Grand Am, 6.273, 223.76; 2. Mike Castellana, Chevy Cavalier, 6.172, 230.02 vs. 15. Steve Engel, Chevy Corvette, 6.271, 227.84; 3. Carl Spiering, Corvette, 6.188, 230.76 vs. 14. Milt Decker, Corvette, 6.268, 224.55; 4. Shannon Jenkins, Camaro, 6.198, 227.54 vs. 13. Steve Bareman, Corvette, 6.267, 227.92; 5. Steve Vick, Corvette, 6.210, 224.47 vs. 12. Billy Harper, Dodge Viper, 6.259, 224.70; 6. Dennis Radford, Corvette, 6.231, 225.60 vs. 11. Burton Auxier, Corvette, 6.253, 223.36; 7. Scott Cannon, Studebaker, 6.236, 227.84 vs. 10. Quain Stott, Corvette, 6.251, 230.17; 8. Harold Martin, Grand Am, 6.241, 225.79 vs. 9. Mike Lockwood, Corvette, 6.249, 223.39.

Funny Car -- 1. Rob Atchison, Pontiac Firebird, 5.769, 240.38 vs. 8. Chris Foster, Dodge Avenger, 5.957, 237.34; 2. Terry Munroe, Chevy Monte Carlo, 5.786, 232.35 vs. 7. Mike Comella, Chevy Corvette, 5.955, 235.93; 3. Jim Sickles, Monte Carlo, 5.803, 243.55 vs. 6. Melinda Green-King, Avenger, 5.940, 235.76; 4. Frederick Tigges, Chevy Camaro, 5.878, 240.72 vs. 5. Mark Thomas, Avenger, 5.922, 240.04.

Pro Stock -- 1. Steve Spiess, Chevy Cobalt, 6.462, 215.96 vs. 16. John Konigshofer, Mercury Cougar, 6.579, 212.39; 2. Frank Gugliotta, Ford Escort, 6.465, 215.86 vs. 15. Chuck DeMory, Escort, 6.576, 212.19; 3. Brian Gahm, Ford Mustang, 6.473, 214.79 vs. 14. Bert Jackson, Chevy Cavalier, 6.576, 213.20; 4. Tony Gillig, Mustang, 6.478, 212.39 vs. 13. Doug Kirk, Mustang, 6.551, 213.81; 5. Daniel Seamon, Escort, 6.513, 214.11 vs. 12. John Montecalvo, Cobalt, 6.545, 213.33; 6. Rick Jones, Cobalt, 6.513, 214.89 vs. 11. Jerry Haas, Cavalier, 6.536, 213.43; 7. Pete Berner, Mustang, 6.515, 213.06 vs. 10. John Nobile, Ford ZX2, 6.535, 214.38; 8. Larry O'Brien, Dodge Stratus, 6.529, 213.06 vs. 9. Ed Machacek, Cavalier, 6.534, 213.37.

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SATURDAY NOTES - Baker does double duty; Holy Leapin' Pteradactyls!; Scotty Cannon's Sow; Surprises in All Fields

In demand -- A week or so ago, Carl Baker was minding his own business, trying . . . to mind his own business. He had just left Richard Penland's Pro Stock operation and didn't have a car to work on. This weekend he has had two.

Jack Collins evidently had too much time on his hands while sitting on the beach in Mexico and thought he might want to start another Pro Stock venture with Baker. So he and Baker hastily assembled a ride that went to Jack's son, Jason Collins.

Then Rob Mansfield, who hadn't planned to compete at Norwalk, had considered testing his new Chevy Cobalt. And Baker suggested to him that he bring the car to Norwalk, where he would be able to run four passes on a race-prepped track that would yield more useful data. He took Baker up on the offer.

So Baker served as crew chief on both cars. Neither Mansfield nor Collins were able to crack the tough field this time around, which was not totally unexpected considering the extreme competitiveness of the class and the relatively short time both teams had to prepare. On the other hand, Penland also failed to make the show.

Cory Mac bugged -- Down in Lake Havasu City, Ariz., the insect world is different than it is in Northern Ohio. That's what No. 1 Top Fuel qualifier Cory McClenathan discovered Saturday night. While packing his parachutes after the final qualifying session, a giant praying mantis kept trying to leap into his 'chutes. "What the (bleep) is that?? A pteradactyl ?!"

Last-ditch effort -- Rick Cooper came all the way from Boise, Idaho, and nearly had to go home empty-handed. But the Torco Dragster driver jumped into the Top Fuel field in his final chance, posting a 4.789-second elapsed time at 307.86 mph.

Going for three-peat -- Melinda Green-King will be Jim Sickles' first obstacle Sunday in his bid for a third straight Norwalk victory. Sickles, who is second in the Funny Car standings and has just four races to close a 145-point gap between himself and leader Rob Atchison, qualified third. Green-King will start from the No. 6 spot.

Two-time winner Mark Thomas and Sickles are the only two previous winners in the starting lineup Sunday.

Later, Gator & down in the mouth -- Terry McMillen, with his Amalie Oil InstiGator Avenger Funny Car that carries an alligator-themed appearance, failed to qualify for the eight-car field. McMillen was ninth, and Thomas Carter, a San Antonio-area oral surgeon was 10th.

Elite company -- Shannon Jenkins and Quain Stott are the only two Torco Pro Modified class winners from the past 10 Norwalk races who'll compete Sunday. Jenkins is a three-time winner (2002, 1998, 1996). Stott won in 2000, beating his brother Mitch, and was runner-up in each of the past two years.

Defending race champion Pat Moore, on the bubble at the close of Friday, was the quickest of the unqualified, being sent home as the No. 17 driver. He missed the cutoff by .015 of a second. Ed Hoover, the 1999 Norwalk winner (and 1997 runner-up), was 18th in line to make the 16-car grid.

Mike Janis, who clinched his second IHRA championship at this event last year, failed to make the field. Pro Mod pioneer Charles Carpenter also DNQd.

Atchison comes on strong -- Funny Car points leader Rob Atchison knocked Terry Munroe from the No. 1 spot in the order in the first Saturday session. With a 5.769-second run at 238.17 mph in his 2002 Pontiac Firebird, the London, Ontario, driver improved from third place.

Fred Tigges, last year's runner-up at Norwalk, got into the eight-car field after finishing Friday as the No. 9 driver. He went into the final session in fourth place with a 5.87-second elapsed time at 236.84 mph in the '97 Camaro.

Tigges' early-Saturday pass bumped Terry McMillen and the Amalie Oil InstiGator Avenger from the grid.

Atchison entered this event with a 145-point advantage in the standings over Jim Sickles but indicated that he knew the importance of continuing to accumulate points. "IHRA Funny Car is a tough class loaded with talent, so no lead is too large to overcome. Last year we trailed by the same amount of points that we are ahead, and we fought our way back to win the championship," he said.

Said McMillen, "On one hand that gives us encouragement, on the other hand we know that those guys aren't letting up for a minute. Unless they're going to start using an anchor for a wheelie bar, it's going to be up to us to race around them."

In that third overall session, Sickles improved his time from 5.883 seconds to 5.856 but dropped a spot.

Patrick out -- Two-time Pro Stock event winner Robert Patrick, who registered the first of his back-to-back victories 10 years ago, missed the cut this weekend. He moved up to 19th early Saturday after being buried deep in the order in both Friday sessions. But he could do no better than 20th as his Ford continued its pattern of assorted mechanical troubles.

Fabricated rivalry -- When the Nos. 6 and 11 qualifiers square off in Sunday's first round of eliminations, the Pro Stock class will see a battle of the fabricators. Rick Jones, who drives one of only three Chevy Cobalts in the 16-car line-up, drew Jerry Haas, who'll be in a Chevy Cavalier.

FBI Report -- Manhattan, Ill., driver Steve Spiess, with a 6.462-second blast and a top speed of 215.96 mph from Friday that set both ends of the track record, led the Pro Stock field -- and the contingent of drivers who collectively call themselves the FBI: the Fast Boys from Illinois. Other FBI "agents" Tony Gillig (Lake Bluff), Rick Jones (Galesburg), and Pete Berner (Crete) were fourth, sixth, and seventh, respectively. Chuck DeMory (Glen Ellyn) was 15th among the 16 qualifiers. But Mike Bruno (Frankfort) missed the grid.

Cannonized -- Scotty Cannon has had memorable milestones at Norwalk Raceway Park.

He won the Pro Modified title at this event 10 years ago. Two years after that, in 1997, he experienced his career-first failure to qualify. This year, his 26-year-old son Scott made the Pro Mod lineup at Norwalk for the first time, earning the No. 7 position.

Scott Cannon is driving a Hemi-powered '53 Studebaker that Murray Anderson built in 1997 in Australia. Scotty Cannon took delivery of it and broke it in by match-racing in Australia against Victor Bray. Then he shipped the car to the United States and won about a half-dozen IHRA national events.

It is the successor to the '41 Willys in which Cannon DNQd here.

Following Scott Cannon's 6.236-second, 227.84-mph effort Friday, his dad said, "We put lipstick on this ol' sow, and she flew!"

As for the Willys, it gave him the willies. It became so aggravating with its mechanical quirks that Scotty Cannon's frustrated crew urged him not to sell it (for that would mean pawning the bad karma onto a fellow racer) but rather to push it over a cliff and destroy it. Instead, Cannon sold it to Hugh Scott, an outlaw Pro Mod racer and often his match-racing opponent. Hugh Scott drove the Willys in a match-race in Alabama, where it went out of control, skidded off the end of the dragstrip, and crashed through the front porch and living room of a nearby resident.

Zizzo fourth but impressive -- Top Fueler T.J. Zizzo started out second, then slipped to third Friday. And by the end of qualifying Saturday, he had to settle for a fourth-place start in eliminations. But the Round Lake, Ill., driver continues to impress in one of four Torco-sponsored dragsters. In his first-ever IHRA race, earlier this month at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park in Grand Rapids, Mich., he advanced to the semifinals.

Zizzo said he had been disappointed with Friday's runs, a respectable-enough 4.650-second elapsed time at 301.40 mph followed by a 4.694/312.93. He said the car "was on a real nice run until it put out a cylinder near the end and I had to click it off. It would have gone in the 4.50s if I would have driven through the entire run. But I didn't want to damage the motor."

He said he was disappointed with that second run: "I thought we would have put up better numbers. We threw a little more at the car to try to step up the performance, but it ended up being just a dead solder. We kept all the candles lit on the pass it was just slow and weak out of the hole."

He couldn't break up the Cory McClenathan-Doug Foley-Clay Millican troika and will face No. 5 Bruce Litton, who won this event in 2003 and was runner-up in 2002 and 1997.

As Zizzo said about his anticipation of Saturday's qualifying, "We'll just have to sleep on it and we will really go after it tomorrow."

Giving a Hoot(er) for the Troops -- Diane Parker, of Millsbury, Ohio, said she wanted to give her son, Josh McRobbie, and his friend Brian -- Marines stationed in Iraq -- a special memento from home. They have been there since January, and their tour of duty is expected to end in three weeks. So Parker said she thought they might like a T-shirt signed by the Hooters Girls. Competition Plus photographer Roger Richards, an Army Vietnam War-era veteran, stepped in to perform a patriotic chore and document the military mission, of the Hooters Girls scribbling their signatures. "No sacrifice is too great for our men in uniform," Richards said.

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FRIDAY - Carriers lead IHRA again as Cory Mac paces Top Fuel; Halsey, Munroe and Spiess lead SKULL GEAR World Nationals qualifiers

(8-26-2005) – IHRA founder Larry Carrier would have been proud of his boys tonight. Carrier, who passed away earlier this year, gave his blessings to sons Mark and Andy to field a drag racing team a little over a decade ago. Their driver Cory McClenathan was the quickest competitor on the grounds during the 25th running of the SKULL GEAR IHRA World Nationals at Norwalk Raceway Park.

Other low qualifiers included Jim Halsey (Torco Race Fuels Pro Modified), Terry Munroe (Funny Car) and Steve Spiess (Torco Race Fuels Pro Stock).

Mark Carrier was just a teenager when his father teamed up with Bill Bader to promote the very first IHRA World Nationals in 1981. He couldn’t help but get emotional when McClenathan snagged the provisional pole. “I know he was looking down on us,” Carrier said. “Bill Bader has a wonderful facility. If he has a race and needs me here, I will be here. When the times were tough at the IHRA when Dad owned it, we could always count on Bill to be there for us.”

McClenathan thundered to a mark of 4.568 at 316.30 mph to lead the Top Fuel division. Last season, McClenathan attended his first Hooters IHRA Drag Race at this same event, but rescheduling conflicts from the rain-delayed race prevented him from returning.

“I think my tuner Todd Smith made a statement,” McClenathan said. “I’m just the lucky one who got to drive the car. I hated that we didn’t get to run this event last year because of the rain. There isn’t a lot of pressure on us worrying about points. We are able to relax and what you saw tonight was the result of that.”

Doug Foley was the second quickest of the evening session with a 4.589, 310.77 and that put him ahead of T.J. Zizzo’s 4.650, 301.40.

Louie Allison was the eighth quickest with a 4.829, 298.27.

Halsey led a nitrous-injected assault on the Torco Pro Modified field as he reset the Norwalk Raceway Park track record with a 6.165, 227.04. Halsey’s run vaulted him from fourteenth to the top spot.

“We were off a bit in the earlier run,” Halsey said. “The driver wasn’t on his game and once I got it together for the second session, the car responded. I think we could go even quicker tomorrow. I think the key to that is going to be the weather. We could potentially see the quickest nitrous run in history.”

Halsey’s run was followed closely by fellow nitrous campaigner Mike Castellana. Castellana, who won recently in Martin, MI., blasted out a 6.172, 229.39. Best of the blower contingent was Carl Spiering, who grabbed the No. 3 spot with a lap of 6.188, 230.17.

Munroe was the class of the Funny Car field as he claimed the top spot in both Friday sessions. His 5.858, 232.35 set the pace early for his later 5.786, 232.07, which earned the quickest of the day honors over Jim Sickles, who had an early 5.883, 241.76.

“We have it running pretty good,” Munroe said. “I actually lifted early, so we have more power that we haven’t used yet. We didn’t hurt a thing, so we are in good shape.”

Defending World Champion Rob Atchison, who was unqualified after the first session, slipped into the third spot with a baseline 5.919, 238.72.

Terry McMillen is on the bump spot with a 5.962, 236.51

Spiess nailed the provisional top spot in Torco Race Fuels Pro Stock with an early shut-off 6.462, 213.27 effort during his Friday evening pass. That marked the 30th consecutive round in a row that the construction magnate has lead either a qualifying session or an elimination round in terms of performance. Prior to 2005, Spiess had never been low qualifier.

"It looks like we are making up for lost time," Spiess said. "A lot of how the cars run this weekend will be determined by the weather. When we made our run the humidity was nearly 90%. That just killed my car. Some guys did a better job out there because they got after it and found what they needed. I lifted a bit early. If I hadn't, I think I could have been a .43 or .44.”

Finishing two and three in the Torco Race Fuels Pro Stock division were Frank Gugliotta (6.465, 214.31) and Brian Gahm (6.473, 213.91). Engine builder Jon Kaase built the engines for the top three qualifiers.

Tommy Franklin anchors the field with a 6.590, 212.49.

The Skull Gear World Nationals presented by PPG Automotive Refinishing will continue Saturday morning, with sportsman qualifying continuing at 9 a.m. The first of two professional qualifying sessions is scheduled for 3 p.m. Eliminations in all classes will take place Sunday at Norwalk Raceway Park.

Results Friday after qualifying for the 28th annual Skull Gear World Nationals presented by PPG Automotive Refinish at Norwalk Raceway Park, ninth of 12 events in the 2005 Hooters IHRA Drag Racing Series. Qualifying will continue Saturday for Sunday's final eliminations.

Top Fuel -- 1. Cory McClenathan, 4.568 seconds, 323.43 mph; 2. Doug Foley, 4.589, 310.77; 3. T.J. Zizzo, 4.650, 312.93; 4. Bruce Litton, 4.686, 316.52; 5. Clay Millican, 4.711, 319.07; 6. Bobby Lagana Jr., 4.781, 311.34; 7. Dale Creasy Jr, 4.805, 289.26; 8. Louie Allison, 4.829, 298.27.

Pro Modified -- 1. Jim Halsey, Chevy Camaro, 6.165, 227.04; 2. Mike Castellana, Chevy Cavalier, 6.172, 230.02; 3. Carl Spiering, Chevy Corvette, 6.188, 230.76; 4. Dennis Radford, Corvette, 6.231, 225.60; 5. Scott Cannon, Studebaker, 6.236, 227.84; 6. Harold Martin, Pontiac Grand Am, 6.241, 225.79; 7. Mike Lockwood, Corvette, 6.249, 223.39; 8. Shannon Jenkins, Camaro, 6.250, 227.54; 9. Quain Stott, Corvette, 6.251, 230.17; 10. Burton Auxier, Corvette, 6.253, 223.36; 11. Billy Harper, Dodge Viper, 6.259, 224.70; 12. Steve Vick, Corvette, 6.261, 224.47; 13. Steve Bareman, Corvette, 6.267, 227.92; 14. Milt Decker, Corvette, 6.268, 224.55; 15. Steve Engel, Corvette, 6.271, 227.84; 16. Pat Moore, Corvette, 6.288, 221.16.

Funny Car -- 1. Terry Munroe, Chevy Monte Carlo, 5.786, 232.35; 2. Jim Sickles, Monte Carlo, 5.883, 241.76; 3. Rob Atchison, Pontiac Firebird, 5.919, 238.72; 4. Mark Thomas, Dodge Avenger, 5.929, 240.04; 5. Melinda Green-King, Avenger, 5.940, 235.76; 6. Mike Comella, Chevy Corvette, 5.955, 235.93; 7. Chris Foster, Avenger, 5.957, 237.34; 8. Terry McMillen, Avenger, .962, 236.51.

Pro Stock -- 1. Steve Spiess, Chevy Cobalt, 6.462, 215.96; 2. Frank Gugliotta, Ford Escort, 6.465, 215.86; 3. Brian Gahm, Ford Mustang, 6.473, 214.79; 4. Tony Gillig, Mustang, 6.478, 212.39; 5. Daniel Seamon, Escort, 6.513, 214.11; 6. Pete Berner, Mustang, 6.515, 213.06; 7. Rick Jones, Cobalt, 6.522, 214.89; 8. Larry O'Brien, Dodge Stratus, 6.529, 213.06; 9. Ed Machacek, Chevy Cavalier, 6.534, 213.37; 10. John Nobile, Ford ZX2, 6.535, 214.38; 11. Jerry Haas, Cavalier, 6.536, 213.43; 12. John Montecalvo, Cobalt, 6.545, 213.33; 13. Doug Kirk, Mustang, 6.551, 213.81; 14. Bert Jackson, Cavalier, 6.576, 213.20; 15. John Konigshofer, Mercury Cougar, 6.579, 212.39; 16. Tommy Franklin, Cavalier, 6.590, 212.49.

FRIDAY NOTES – Macky’s Back in Town, FBI on the Prowl, Dobbins’ New Ride, Hola Norwalk and Zizzo Zips

Cory Mac impresses in IHRA debut -- Aside from the sentimental aspect of this weekend's trip to Norwalk Raceway Park, Cory McClenathan said he genuinely was eager to take to the IHRA's most storied dragstrip. But he knew how much this showing in the Carrier Boyz Fram Airhog Dragster meant to team owners Mark and Andy Carrier.

And he rewarded them with a 4.630-second, 323.43-mph pass that set both the track elapsed-time and speed records in Friday's first qualifying session. That erased Clay Millican's E.T. mark (4.631) by one-thousandths of a second. His speed, though, shattered Paul Romine's previous record of 320.66 by nearly three miles an hour (2.77).

In the night session he cemented his provisional No. 1 position by lowering the E.T. record to 4.568 seconds at 316.30 mph.

McClenathan missed the chance to race at Norwalk last year. He was here, but rain washed out the originally scheduled action, and he was unable to return on the rescheduled date because of Powerade Drag Racing Series commitments.

It rained Friday, too, forcing a two-hour, 20-minute delay. But that did nothing to dampen McClenathan's anticipation. He had said he was "looking forward to meeting all the fans and racing at Bill Bader's facility. I already know it stacks up with the best of tracks." And it did nothing to dampen his performance.

McClenathan, ninth in the Powerade Series, introduced himself with that record-breaking run, and proved in the night session that he had the heart and the horsepower to come back and regain the top spot. Defending event winner Doug Foley, driving the Torco Fuels Dragster, trumped McClenathan temporarily with a career-best 4.58-second pass in the second session. Cory Mac responded with his 4.568 three pairs later.

"I think Todd Smith made a statement tonight," McClenathan said, referring to his crew chief. "I'm just the lucky one who gets to drive it. We really wanted to come back here and run this race. I tell you, the IHRA people really put on a good show here. And the officials are great. The fans have been very polite and good.

"The pressure's off for me, not having to worry about the point situation in NHRA for a week," he said. "We're taking the Carrier Boys back to what their daddy started. We're just excited here, especially for Skull Gear. We're excited to be able to come out and run the numbers that we are. Our car's starting to come around . . . And be more consistent."

McClenathan said he'd like to leave a strong impression of the Carrier Boyz Team on the IHRA crowd. "Millican is the king here, so to run as good as him or better than him makes me happy. I think we have a little bit more to prove at times. Maybe it's testosterone or something. I don't know," he said with a laugh.

Larry Carrier -- Mark's and Andy's father, who passed away in June -- founded IHRA in the early 1970s. He and Bader were business and personal friends for years.

"I know it will be especially tough this year as a result of Dad's death a couple months ago," Mark Carrier said. Bill was always a strong supporter of our dad." Said Andy Carrier, "This whole team is elated that we had the opportunity to return this year, but . . . It won't be the same without our dad."

Feels natural now -- Until this season, Steve Spiess, Pro Stock's provisional No. 1 qualifier, never had been low qualifier.

"It looks like we are making up for lost time," Spiess said after coaxing a 6.462-second run at 213.27 from his Rick Jones-built Chevy Cobalt.

"A lot of how the cars run this weekend will be determined by the weather," Spiess said. "When we made our run, the humidity was nearly 90 percent. That just killed my car. Some guys did a better job out there because they got after it and found what they needed. I lifted a bit early. If I hadn't, I think I could have been a .43 or .44."

Mansfield still struggles -- Rob Mansfield's promising Pro Stock season took a disappointing turn early in the year. By the second race of the season, at Rockingham, N.C., his Wilson Manifolds Pontiac Grand Am wasn't making the grade. So he hauled it home, saying the myriad problems it had shown in the first two races would begone and the car would run strongly once again, like it did in 204. That's when he raised eyebrows about halfway through the season, three DNQs at the beginning of the 12-race schedule. In his official debut in this race at Norwalk, Mansfield recorded the first of three consecutive top-qualifying positions. The Winter Park, Fla., driver set both ends of the track record in both his second and third events, at Boston and Budds Creek, Md. And he was runner-up at Boston.

But this year has gone from disappointing to sad to frustrating. Then his car owner passed away. And Friday, in his first appearance since the Spring Nationals at Rockingham.

He's baaack -- almost -- Pro Stock's Jeff Dobbins, who crashed in the first pair of pro qualifiers at the April season-opener at San Antonio and expected to sit out the rest of the 2005 schedule, took delivery of his new Ford Escort this weekend.

He isn't competing this weekend but said he plans to run at the next race, the Sept. 9-11 Amalie Oil North American Nationals at New England Dragway in Epping, N.H.

Dobbins got some help from a couple of his Pro Stock class rivals. Rick Jones, who was fifth in the opening round of qualifying here, built the new car at his shop in Galesburg, Ill. And Chicago-area resident Steve Spiess, the early leader Friday, hauled the car to Norwalk.

Dobbins' crew members jokingly have referred to it as the "Evil Twin," although that might apply more to the version that left San Antonio Raceway in pieces.

A stiff wind clocked at 40 mph caused one of Dobbins' parachutes to hook onto Dan Seamon's car in the opposite lane. That spun him around, triggering a barrel roll. The car caught fire and hit the wall, stopping upside down and still in flames. Dobbins was uninjured in the accident.

Lucky No. 7 -- Terry Munroe is seventh in the Torco Pro Stock standings but was No. 1 on the class list Friday night. He was quickest in both sessions in his Chevy Monte Carlo. He improved his first run of 5.858 seconds at 232.35 mph with a 5.786 at a slightly slower 232.07.

New Undertaking -- Tommy Gray normally campaigns the '53 Corvette Pro Mod nicknamed "The Undertaker." However, at this event, he is driving Jim Halsey's second car, a '63 'Vette.

FBI Report -- Rick Jones came up with the name. FBI sounded authoritative, he figured, and it was fitting, for these are the Fast Boys from Illinois. Charter members of the FBI, besides Jones of Galesburg, are Mike Bruno (Frankfort), Pete Berner (Crete), Chuck Demory (Glen Ellyn), Tony Gillig (Lake Bluff), Steve Spiess (Manhattan).

Each of the "agents" sports an FBI decal on his car.

Look for the FBI Files on Competition Plus during the Skull Gear World Nationals and throughout the remainder of the season.

Bruno and Gillig had a bit of mechanical trouble in the first session Friday and didn't crack the 16-car line-up. But Spiess was No. 1, Berner No. 4, and Jones No. 5. Demory was in the lineup at 14th. In the second session, Gillig had jumped to fourth place with two more qualifying runs to go, but Bruno and Demory still were unqualified. Demory was just one-thousandth of a second too slow at 17th. Spiess retained his lead with a track-record E.T. of 6.462 seconds.

Berner slid to sixth, and Jones dropped to seventh. So the FBI so far has four drivers in the top half of the order.

At the previous event in Martin, Mich., three of the four semifinalists were FBI members. Spiess captured the Pro Stock victory, his third of the season.

Zizzo zips along -- T.J. Zizzo will remember his first run down the Norwalk Raceway Park quarter-mile.

"I understand that it is one of the nicest tracks in the country," the Round Lake, Ill., resident had said before his visit to the Northern Ohio IHRA mecca. It turned out to produce one of his more exciting Top Fuel runs of the season for him. He posted a 4.650-second elapsed time at 301.40 mph in the Torco Racing Fuels Dragster to take the No. 2 spot behind record-setting Cory McClenathan in the first session. He ran a slightly slower E.T. but improved speed at 4.694/312.93 in his second chance. That left in the No. 3 spot with two sessions remaining Saturday.

"We have been struggling," Zizzo said before his run, "so our plan is to first go from Point A to Point B. If we can qualify on the first or second pass, then we can experiment with the set-up on the car the rest of our qualifying runs." While an eight-car IHRA field puts a bit more pressure on Zizzo than trying to make the top 16 in the Powerade Drag Racing Series' races, Zizzo had plenty of leeway to do that.

"We need to keep all eight candles lit and all eight cylinders and rods in the engine," he said. "At our last event, we went from dropping cylinder to dropping cylinders out of the bottom of the motor. I am confident that the Zizzo Racing team has solved our motor issues." It appeared Friday that they had.

He said the IHRA drivers offer some tough competition: "These guys on the Hooters IHRA Drag Racing Series are real tough at the tree. They cut good numbers, so I know I have to be on my game when I go to the line."

Despite referring to his Norwalk effort on the "off" week for Powerade Series drivers as a "test and tune session for most of us who are preparing for the U.S. Nationals," he said, "Now our goal is to win this show."

Adios, Mexico; Hola, Norwalk -- Donna Baker and Sherry Collins had some fun with a T-shirt Friday. It easily could have said, "I lost a week off my vacation on the beach in Mexico and all I got was this lousy T-shirt." That would have been perfect for Sherry Collins.

Jack and Sherry Collins, who own and operate Alabama International Dragway in Steele, Ala., had decided to quit drag racing and turn over their business to son Jason, a former standout Pro Stock driver. Their plan was to build a home on the beach in Mexico. However, just last week, when they were in the third week of a month-long visit, Jack Collins was lounging on the beach, sipping a beverage. The thought occurred to him, "I have a Pro Stock motor that's taking up space in my garage, and Carl Baker has a car without a motor."

So Collins called Baker, who recently left his crew-chief job for Richard Penland (on amicable terms). Collins proposed that they pool their resources and head for Norwalk. Baker liked the idea, and the Collinses returned to the United States and scrambled to gather the necessary equipment. That included a trip near Atlanta to have the motor freshened.

All the parts and personnel arrived this past Monday in Norwalk, and they began thrashing to prepare the Cougar for Jason Collins to drive in Pro Stock competition.

Jason Collins ended up dead last among the class' 26 entrants in Friday's first qualifying session. When he shifted into third gear, the transmission broke, shearing all the bolts on the flywheel. He coasted to a halt.

When someone asked Jack Collins about his decision to return to racing, Donna and Sherry displayed the T-shirt bearing the explanation: "It seemed like a good idea at the time."

Booby prize to Patrick -- Robert Patrick, the Torco Pro Stock winner in June in the fourth race of the year at Grand Bend, Ontario, ended the day last among 26 entrants. In the opening session, the Fredericksburg, Va., driver's engine flooded and he had to settle for 22nd place. In his second run, his car broke a driveshaft.

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