The challenges of the NHRA “western swing” are known to test each and every team that makes the 3 race trek thru Denver, San Francisco and Seattle. Denver demands a unique tune-up for the thin, mile-high air. The track just north of San Francisco demands the adjustment back to sea level air just days later, and then the swing concludes in Seattle at a track that is surrounded by trees that literally force feed oxygen into the atmosphere for the race engines to run on.

For Rodger Brogdon and the EDGE Pain & Performance Chips team, this year’s western swing has seen the additional challenge of dealing with some temperamental drive line components that have refused to allow the team the repeatability that they had through the early part of the season. Fighting those components has allowed the team to drop to eighth place in the standing going into Seattle, a drop that doesn’t sit well with anyone on the team, especially Brogdon.

“We’ve been chasing the same problem for several races now, and just when we think we’ve got a handle on it, it bites us again,” commented Rodger. “It certainly hasn’t been a roller coaster ride that we wanted here in the middle of the season, but in all honesty, it has forced us to really focus on all aspects of our program and once we eliminate the variable we should really be able to get after it.”

“We have literally scrutinized everything on the car since Bristol, so we know exactly what needs fixing. Working with our supplier has seen some positive steps, but as of Sonoma, we still don’t have a 100% acceptable solution. The western swing really puts the emphasis on finding the solution as quickly as possible, because we’ve got 12 rounds of competition in just 15 days. A problem like we’ve been chasing can put you behind the 8-ball real quick. So far we’ve held our own, but that’s really not acceptable. We need to get back to our early season form and we need to do it quick!”

“With Seattle, Brainerd and Indy left to set the field for the Countdown to the Championship, we’ve got to get all this ironed out as soon as possible, and right now we are looking to do just that this weekend in Seattle. Another good weekend or two like we had in Houston or Gainesville earlier this year and we’ll be right smack in the middle of the championship run. I know it’s something we can do, right now it’s just a matter of being able to get it done.”

With an almost perfect weather forecast for the O’Reilly Northwest Nationals this weekend, the EDGE Pain & Performance Chips team is anxious to secure not only their first NHRA “Wally” but also ready to secure their spot in the Countdown, for a run at the NHRA Full Throttle 2011 Championship.

Brogdon and the Edge team ready for sea level Sonoma

As the NHRA tour rolls into Sonoma CA for this week’s Fram/Autolite nationals, Rodger Brogdon and the EDGE Pain & Performance chips team are looking forward to a breath of fresh, sea level air. With Infineon Raceway sitting mere feet above California’s San Pablo Bay, the Edge team knows that they can get back to their normal tune-up and hopefully back to putting round wins in the column.

The availability of sea level air doesn’t come without its own challenges though, as the track conditions are known to change drastically throughout the running of the event. Typically warm July days normally bring a tailwind that turns into a headwind once the sun goes down and the off shore breeze kick in, but even those challenges are mild after the recent event in mile high air.

After struggling for the second year in a row in the rarified air of Denver Colorado, Brogdon and crew know they need to get back in the winning groove and are looking at doing so at Infineon. Denver marked only the second time in the 2011 tour that the team failed to qualify in the top half of the field.

“We just haven’t been able to get a handle on the tune-up we need in Denver,” stated Brogdon, “and it’s certainly frustrating. We tested well up there before the race, but this was the second year in a row that we didn’t get past the first round, and the way we’ve been running this year being out after one round isn’t our norm.”

“The race at Infineon should give Tim Freeman and the guys a chance to turn loose the power that the guys at Cagnazzi’s engine shop have been giving us, and we’re planning on getting the EDGE Pontiac back to going rounds on Sunday. With just 4 races left before we start the countdown we need to start building our momentum now to carry us through those last 6 races that will determine the championship.”

With half the season behind them, Rodger Brogdon and the RACERS EDGE team know that they are in a much better position this year for a championship run through the rest of the Full Throttle season.

As the team enters the second half they find themselves sixth in the points chase, but more importantly, only 9 rounds (174 points) out of first place. In 2010 at the midpoint of the season the team was eighth in the chase but a staggering 715 points out of first place. The RACERS EDGE team has also cut their qualifying position in half with a 4th place average in 2011 vs. their 8th place average last year, and are one of the top teams in earning the highly coveted qualifying bonus points.

At seasons mid-point Rodger and crew are also enjoying the fruits of their labor with a much improved round win record, the national ET record and a runner-up in their first final round earlier this year in Houston.

Now with the second half of the season in front of them and a shot at a championship looming on the horizon, Brogdon and crew have stocked the trailer with supplies, put in some solid test sessions and are ready to start the second half with the much anticipated western swing. Three races in 3 weeks in Denver, San Francisco and Seattle will set the pace for the second half championship run.

“There’s no doubt we’ve been a better team this year,” commented Brogdon, “But we still have a ways to go. The record in Gainesville has certainly been a plus, but coming up short in the final at Houston still ranks as the biggest frustration of the season. Our only other major challenge has been the driveline issues we’ve encountered during the last three events and fortunately it looks like they’re behind us now so hopefully we can get back to our early season form.”

“Steve Kent’s addition in the second team car has been a huge plus, allowing us to gather data from two cars rather than just one.  Unfortunately Steve’s going to miss the western swing due to prior commitments, but we’ll have him back at Brainerd and then for the rest of the year, and that should be an advantage for all of us as the season winds down.”

“With Denver’s thin air, running on the mountain is always a challenge, but everyone on the team feels certain we can get it done this year. The Bandimere’s always provide the racers with an excellent facility, it’s going to be up to the RACERS EDGE team to put it all together on Sunday for the win.”

For Rodger Brogdon and the RACERS EDGE team, racing at Bristol this year can be summed up in one word, adversity.

Although the weekend started out with an early #1 qualifying effort in Friday’s opening session, it was at that point that the challenges began to present themselves and then proceeded to snowball.

First it was crew chief Tim Freeman experiencing some discomfort in his chest that led to a trip to the onsite medical facility and then a subsequent trip to the local hospital for some additional testing that required an overnight stay. Fortunately those tests found no significant issues, but the team now found itself just a touch behind schedule for Saturday’s final qualifying sessions.

After dealing with Tim’s situation, the team then discovered that they were dealing with an unknown adversary in the driveline and it seemed that no matter what steps were taken to overcome the dilemma, the problem just didn’t want to go away.

Compounding all of the above was the weekend’s weather, and while everyone was being forced to deal with the weather, adding the weather fluctuations to the other challenges just stirred the pot a little bit more.

“We certainly were forced to deal with more than normal this weekend,” commented the EDGE driver Rodger Brogdon. “Thankfully Timmy checked out OK, and that’s the most important of all. The rest was an unfortunate set of circumstances that in all honesty, I’m glad showed themselves this weekend rather than next. We’ve got time now to get everything lined out before next week’s K&N Horsepower Challenge.”

Rodger of course is referring to the special race to be contested during this week’s event in Norwalk, Ohio. With $50,000.00 up for grabs and yearlong bragging rights for claiming a win, Brogdon and the EDGE Pain and Performance Chips team are one of eight teams that will compete for the K&N Challenge trophy on Saturday.

“K&N’s support of the Pro Stock ranks is appreciated by everyone that recognizes Pro Stock for being the highly competitive category that it is. To have earned entry for the second year in a row is a testament to everyone involved with the RACERS EDGE team. Being one of the eight contestants is an honor. Last year we had a good car but were still coming together as a team. This year we’ve got a better car, a solid team, and are looking forward to really giving everyone a serious run for the title.”

The K&N Horsepower Challenge will take place on Saturday during the running of the Summit Racing Equipment Nationals. The winner of the K&N Challenge will also have a chance to claim an additional $25,000.00 if they can win on Sunday as well.

When the NHRA Full Throttle tour runs this weekend in Bristol, Tennessee, it will mark the one year anniversary of The EDGE Pain & Performance Chips team in its current configuration. The 2010 version of the Thunder Valley Nationals saw the debut of Tim Freeman when he joined the team in Bristol for the first time.

After numerous changes and many laps down the quarter mile Rodger Brogdon and team have seen a marked change in their performance level and all the work the team has done is paying off. In the 20 races that have taken place since last year’s Bristol event, the team has effectively experienced a night and day change in their race day performance, a change that hasn’t gone unnoticed by the rest of the Pro Stock contingent.

“When Timmy came on board last year we knew we had a car that was capable of going rounds on race day, we just didn’t have the right set-up in the car,” explained Brogdon. “We had flashes of brilliance prior to Bristol, but we didn’t have any consistency. It’s taken awhile, but we have now taken our program to a level that has consistency, and we can build on and grow from there. Pro Stock, more than any other class, demands that every time you go down track you must be able to put forth a 100% effort, and that was something we were missing.”

“Since last year’s race, we’ve effectively experienced 2 seasons of racing. There have been 20 races since we were last in Thunder Valley. In the first 10 we were effectively starting all over again, and we struggled to a #12 average qualifying spot and went 3-10 in eliminations. Once we started getting back in the groove, we were able to step up our performance level and in the last 10 races we’ve improved our average qualifying position by 7 spots and have had a winning record, along with our first #1 effort and the national record.”

“Right now I think we have has competitive a team as anyone else on the tour,” Rodger added, “and the only thing we haven’t done yet is win a race. We’re sitting 6th in the points chase (130 out of first) going into Bristol and locked into the K&N Horsepower Challenge next week in Norwalk. Last year at this time we were campaigning hard for the “vote in” spot for the Challenge because we hadn’t earned a berth, we were 8th in points and were only 807 points out of first place.”

Overall the 2011 season has been a positive effort for Rodger Brogdon and the RACERS EDGE team and the rest of the year looks to be just as promising. With Steve Kent in the PISTONATOR team car now on track everyone realizes that the effort has increased, but that the overall goal continues to get closer. A win at Bristol this weekend would be another step towards that goal and a nice anniversary present too.

After another semi-final round showing at the Summernationals in Topeka, Rodger Brogdon and The Edge pain & performance chips team are still looking for that first NHRA Pro Stock victory. After rolling in deep in the 3rd round, Rodger unfortunately lit the red lite and the team came up short of their final round goal.

“We continue to qualify well and we continue to accumulate bonus points. We started the season off after Pomona in 14th and have now climbed to 5th,” stated Brogdon. “And last year at this time we were politicking for votes for the K&N Challenge where this year we should be in without any problems unless the bottom falls out of program in the next 2 events.”

“The semi-finals loss at Topeka was my fault. I was trying to just lightly bump in but I got more of a bump than what I wanted. Greg (Stanfield) and I both had good light in the previous round and I was ready for another 20 something light. And we were ready for him, he wanted the right lane and we wanted the left, as the saying goes ‘We had him right where we wanted him’. Was I frustrated, sure I was, the guys have been giving me a very solid car for literally every lap down the track. That semi-final matchup was one we feel we could have won.

“In Pro Stock though getting any win takes 100% effort from everyone on the team. Englishtown and Bristol will mark the 1 year anniversary of the realignment of the EDGE Pain & Performance chips team. Last year at Englishtown we made a major crew change on Saturday night after we once again struggled in qualifying. The guys were out early Sunday morning, and I mean real early Sunday morning to completely redo the setup in the car and we came within a thousandth of a second of stealing a first round upset win. Since then this team has given 100% at every race, and that dedication and commitment is starting to reward us all.”

“We’ll also have Steve Kent back this week in the PISTONATOR car, so we’ll be back to a 2 car team,” Rodger added. “Fortunately the Mississippi river didn’t get to his property & business’s in Louisiana so we’ll be able to gather data from 2 runs every session instead of just 1. Steve was also able to get some test runs in at the Belle Rose points race last weekend where he was also going rounds in his Corvette in Comp, so with some added seat time and the data we were able to gather in testing we’re looking for good thing to happen this weekend.”

The NHRA SuperNationals at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown NJ is considered to be one of the ‘major’ stops on the NHRA tour. Site of the historic 1st 6 second Pro Stock run in 1994, Rodger Brogdon, Steve Kent and the entire EDGE Pain & Performance chips team look to make their own history at this week’s race.