JON ASHER: WHAT A SHOW!
Mon, 2010-07-26 16:00
Something somewhat unexpected happened at the Mopar Mile-High Nationals today – cooler temperatures resulted in a surprisingly good racing surface.
This is what drag racing’s all about – the fans. Cory McClenathan hangs with the Stainbrook kids from Gillette, Wyoming.
Had it been as warm as it was Friday and Saturday it’s likely that the mostly full grandstands would have been showered with smoke and rubber particles, but most of the fuel cars made good, straight, smoke-free runs. That had the fans cheering for more, and with good reason. The professional racers on the Full Throttle Series tour are all about the fans, believe it or not, and while they want to win, putting on a good show remains paramount in their minds. And they absolutely put on a good show here.
Had it been as warm as it was Friday and Saturday it’s likely that the mostly full grandstands would have been showered with smoke and rubber particles, but most of the fuel cars made good, straight, smoke-free runs. That had the fans cheering for more, and with good reason. The professional racers on the Full Throttle Series tour are all about the fans, believe it or not, and while they want to win, putting on a good show remains paramount in their minds. And they absolutely put on a good show here.
What can we say about Allen Johnson? Seldom has a car been as dominant as his Dodge was this weekend. He had all the numbers, from Low E.T. to Top Speed of the Meet to the Number 1 qualifying position. He topped it all off with a killer light in the finale against Jeg Coughlin of 0.004 seconds.
Make no mistake about it, this wasn’t just “his” weekend. He earned it with the horsepower his father, Roy, put between the Dodge’s frame rails. He earned it by carefully studying their notebooks from previous Mile-Highs, because he didn’t test at Bandimere as he’s done in the past. He earned it by doing what he was asked to do by the Mopar folks in terms of public relations appearances and autograph sessions, but when those obligations were behind him he concentrated solely on winning, and that’s just what he did. “Awesome” may be the most overused work in the language, but that’s what Allen Johnson was this weekend.
Yes, the engine in Jeg Coughlin’s car expired “probably in the middle of third gear,” he told Attitude Apparel’s CompetitionPlus.com. “It seemed like it had been threatening to do that for a while. We’d been losing mile an hour all day and had been scratchin’ our heads as to why, and it just told us why!”
Last night we would have picked Michael Phillips to win the race of two-wheelers. He had the quickest Suzuki on the grounds and had been riding like the pro he is. But, as usual, our ability as prognosticators was once again deemed insufficient. Michael bulbed against Andrew Hines in the semis, setting up Hines against Karen Stoffer in the finale. Stoffer eliminated Steve Johnson in the other semi when the latter’s Suzuki began swallowing its own engine internals, but she just didn’t have enough power against Hines.
“I spent 10 years living down the road in Trinidad (Colorado), so this is really my home track. It means a lot to me to win here.” With that Hines was gone, heading back to Indiana where his wife is due to deliver a new little Hines any second.
Yesterday we suggested that anyone could win in Funny Car, but we were (as usual, it once again appears!), wrong. When it got right down to it the full time touring pros made mincemeat out of the part-timers and those who appear to lack the funds to compete at the very top of the class. James Day, making his first professional start, was upside down with excitement before the race started, and that was great to see, but Robert Hight dispatched him easily in the first round. Jeff Diehl, Paul Lee and (wait for it!) Ashley Force were also first round losers, but that’s the way things go.
Losing in the first round of any eliminator is a crushing mental blow. You’ve worked all weekend to make the show, and in four seconds it’s over. A first round loss can be tougher on a driver and team than making it all the way to the finals before being beaten.
Matt Hagan almost gave the Mopar people two wins, but Hight stopped him in the semifinals while his father-in-law was sending Cruz Pedregon home. Pedregon, by the way, had an other-worldly 0.005 Reaction Time against Force. That just does not happen in Funny Car – but it did.
Force had a very credible 0.031 R.T. against Hight, but the champion’s car was markedly quicker, winning with a 4.215 to 4.386 margin. Afterwards Hight told everyone, “That guy’s tough, and he wants to win more than ever.” When the microphones had been shut down Force shouted at his son-in-law, “You’ve got a round-and-a-half to catch me (in the points). We’re gonna see how good you are!”
The best race in Top Fuel… Never mind that, the best race of the weekend came in the second round when Tony Schumacher faced Larry Dixon in a battle of giants. After almost identical Reaction Times Dixon’s car, relegated to what was considered the slower lane by virtue of the previous round’s elapsed time, ripped off a 3.966 to Schumacher’s 4.005. They were glued together from start to finish, with the win garnering Dixon the Number 1 spot in the Countdown.
So the storybook finish is Dixon going on to victory. Uh-uh, not this day. A resurgent Brandon Bernstein stomped him in the semis when Dixon’s car hazed the tires 600 feet down track. That’s all it took to put the Blue Crew into the finale against Doug Kalitta.
Grubnic has an outside shot at making the Countdown over Steve Torrance, but he’ll have to have a stellar performance in Brainerd to make that happen. Jeff Arend in the Kalitta Toyota Funny Car could also make the Countdown if he can overcome Tony Pedregon’s 33 point edge in Minnesota. Roger Brogdon would have to be a world-beater to get past Johnny Gray in Pro Stock, and in the motorcycle class it appears all but over. Karen Stoffer would probably have to be a no-show in Brainerd in order for Craig Treble to overtake her in the points.
There are 23 races on the NHRA Full Throttle Series tour, each and every one of them unique in some fashion, none more so than the Mile-High Nationals. Everything from the setting to the seating is unique at Bandimere. It’s the kind of race that every hard core fan should see at least once, it’s that cool. In 45 years of covering drag racing there are maybe a few dozen races that stand out. For some reason every Mile-High Nationals has been memorable.
This is what drag racing’s all about – the fans. Cory McClenathan hangs with the Stainbrook kids from Gillette, Wyoming.
Had it been as warm as it was Friday and Saturday it’s likely that the mostly full grandstands would have been showered with smoke and rubber particles, but most of the fuel cars made good, straight, smoke-free runs. That had the fans cheering for more, and with good reason. The professional racers on the Full Throttle Series tour are all about the fans, believe it or not, and while they want to win, putting on a good show remains paramount in their minds. And they absolutely put on a good show here.
Great Racing Proved Once Again That The Last Stop On The West Coast Swing Was The Best Stop
Something somewhat unexpected happened at the Mopar Mile-High Nationals today – cooler temperatures resulted in a surprisingly good racing surface.
This is what drag racing’s all about – the fans. Cory McClenathan hangs with the Stainbrook kids from Gillette, Wyoming.
What can we say about Allen Johnson? Seldom has a car been as dominant as his Dodge was this weekend. He had all the numbers, from Low E.T. to Top Speed of the Meet to the Number 1 qualifying position. He topped it all off with a killer light in the finale against Jeg Coughlin of 0.004 seconds.
Make no mistake about it, this wasn’t just “his” weekend. He earned it with the horsepower his father, Roy, put between the Dodge’s frame rails. He earned it by carefully studying their notebooks from previous Mile-Highs, because he didn’t test at Bandimere as he’s done in the past. He earned it by doing what he was asked to do by the Mopar folks in terms of public relations appearances and autograph sessions, but when those obligations were behind him he concentrated solely on winning, and that’s just what he did. “Awesome” may be the most overused work in the language, but that’s what Allen Johnson was this weekend.
Yes, the engine in Jeg Coughlin’s car expired “probably in the middle of third gear,” he told Attitude Apparel’s CompetitionPlus.com. “It seemed like it had been threatening to do that for a while. We’d been losing mile an hour all day and had been scratchin’ our heads as to why, and it just told us why!”
Last night we would have picked Michael Phillips to win the race of two-wheelers. He had the quickest Suzuki on the grounds and had been riding like the pro he is. But, as usual, our ability as prognosticators was once again deemed insufficient. Michael bulbed against Andrew Hines in the semis, setting up Hines against Karen Stoffer in the finale. Stoffer eliminated Steve Johnson in the other semi when the latter’s Suzuki began swallowing its own engine internals, but she just didn’t have enough power against Hines.
We love this stuff! A mom shoving her shy kid in front of Ron Capps for an autograph!
“I spent 10 years living down the road in Trinidad (Colorado), so this is really my home track. It means a lot to me to win here.” With that Hines was gone, heading back to Indiana where his wife is due to deliver a new little Hines any second.
Yesterday we suggested that anyone could win in Funny Car, but we were (as usual, it once again appears!), wrong. When it got right down to it the full time touring pros made mincemeat out of the part-timers and those who appear to lack the funds to compete at the very top of the class. James Day, making his first professional start, was upside down with excitement before the race started, and that was great to see, but Robert Hight dispatched him easily in the first round. Jeff Diehl, Paul Lee and (wait for it!) Ashley Force were also first round losers, but that’s the way things go.
Losing in the first round of any eliminator is a crushing mental blow. You’ve worked all weekend to make the show, and in four seconds it’s over. A first round loss can be tougher on a driver and team than making it all the way to the finals before being beaten.
Stan Kopejtka of Atkinson, Nebraska awaits the first round of Stock in the Mopar-dominated category.
Robert Hight’s Mustang was strong all weekend, finally toppling his father-in-law in the finale.
Matt Hagan almost gave the Mopar people two wins, but Hight stopped him in the semifinals while his father-in-law was sending Cruz Pedregon home. Pedregon, by the way, had an other-worldly 0.005 Reaction Time against Force. That just does not happen in Funny Car – but it did.
Allen Johnson’s Dodge is good looking and wickedly quick. He dominated in Denver, or maybe we should just start calling him “The Denver Dominator!”
The best race in Top Fuel… Never mind that, the best race of the weekend came in the second round when Tony Schumacher faced Larry Dixon in a battle of giants. After almost identical Reaction Times Dixon’s car, relegated to what was considered the slower lane by virtue of the previous round’s elapsed time, ripped off a 3.966 to Schumacher’s 4.005. They were glued together from start to finish, with the win garnering Dixon the Number 1 spot in the Countdown.
So the storybook finish is Dixon going on to victory. Uh-uh, not this day. A resurgent Brandon Bernstein stomped him in the semis when Dixon’s car hazed the tires 600 feet down track. That’s all it took to put the Blue Crew into the finale against Doug Kalitta.
Justice Otto, 10, from Santa Fe, New Mexico, cops some Zs between rounds of Super Gas.
This weekend was a wakeup call for the Top Fuel teams, because Kalitta Racing is now officially out of the doldrums and appears destined to play a major role in this year’s championship run. David Grubnic lost in the second round, but that was after setting both Low E.T. (3.880) and Top Speed (314.17) Meanwhile the soft-spoken Kalitta was running 3.96s like a bracket racer. Maybe he was just trying to get away from the vision of Uncle Connie wearing shorts, but whatever his reasons, another 3.96 stopped Bernstein’s four-flat in the finale.
Shane Gray (who will win the AAA Road to the Future Award, a.k.a. Rookie of the Year in a runaway) and his, Johnny, both made the semifinals on the Mountain. They will both make the Countdown, too.
Grubnic has an outside shot at making the Countdown over Steve Torrance, but he’ll have to have a stellar performance in Brainerd to make that happen. Jeff Arend in the Kalitta Toyota Funny Car could also make the Countdown if he can overcome Tony Pedregon’s 33 point edge in Minnesota. Roger Brogdon would have to be a world-beater to get past Johnny Gray in Pro Stock, and in the motorcycle class it appears all but over. Karen Stoffer would probably have to be a no-show in Brainerd in order for Craig Treble to overtake her in the points.
There are 23 races on the NHRA Full Throttle Series tour, each and every one of them unique in some fashion, none more so than the Mile-High Nationals. Everything from the setting to the seating is unique at Bandimere. It’s the kind of race that every hard core fan should see at least once, it’s that cool. In 45 years of covering drag racing there are maybe a few dozen races that stand out. For some reason every Mile-High Nationals has been memorable.
Allen Johnson was physically exhausted after the finale, but his day was far from over. There’s the winners circle, the interviews, the congrats from Mopar. It just never ends.
Doug Kalitta made a statement in Denver. He may not speak with a loud voice, but his car sure does.
A somewhat overwhelmed with emotion Andrew Hines after beating Karen Stoffer (background) for the money.
Hight and Force talked amiably after it was over, but you just know that “14X,” which is what some folks have taken to calling the 14-time champ, was unhappy in losing to his son-in-law for the first time in a finale.
Brandon Bernstein was devastated by his loss, but moments later had a big smile on his face. In a true show of class he individually congratulated each member of the Kalitta crew.
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