Mike Austin and Clint Thompson captured wins and took home trophies for the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Northwest Thunderfest at Spokane County raceway.  Medford, Ore., racer Mike Austin ran his best pass of the weekend posting a 5.483 second pass at 258.96 mph in the final round of Top Alcohol Dragster.  Austin had a bye run in the final when No. 1 qualifier Joey Severance, Woodburn, Ore., broke in the previous round and was unable to make the call for the final round.

Mike Austin and Clint Thompson captured wins and took home trophies for the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Northwest Thunderfest at Spokane County raceway.  Medford, Ore., racer Mike Austin ran his best pass of the weekend posting a 5.483 second pass at 258.96 mph in the final round of Top Alcohol Dragster.  Austin had a bye run in the final when No. 1 qualifier Joey Severance, Woodburn, Ore., broke in the previous round and was unable to make the call for the final round.

In Top Alcohol Funny Car it was a classic 1-2 final with Thompson, Klamath Falls, Ore., qualified No. 1, taking out the No. 2 qualifier Brian Hough, Junction City, Ore., with a lap of 5.657 second pass at 254.04 mph.  This was Thompson’s second final round of the year as he was the runner-up at the NHRA national event in Topeka, Kan., back in May.  Hough, who won last month in Woodburn, Ore., clocked in at 5.739 seconds at 253.64 in a great final round effort.

The event kicked off to huge crowds on both Friday and Saturday night for qualifying and time trials before moving into eliminations on Sunday with former NHRA Northwest Division champion Buff Knobs of neighboring Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, winning one for the locals in the Sportsman Motorcycle Series presented by Harley Davidson over Travis Patridge on his ’95 Kawasaki.  Another local racer in Tom Clark, Spokane, Wash., advanced to the final in Super Street before falling to Larry Miner, Sedro-Wooley, Wash., and his ’69 Camaro.

Randy Johnson, Snohmish, Wash., held off Jake Neibauer, Billings, Mont., in a great race for the Top Sportsman title winning by just three feet with a time of 7.676 seconds at 179.88 mph to Neibauer’s quicker 7.645, 178.83.  In the Top Dragster final it was Randy Pressel, Colton, Ore., over Scott Taylor, St. Isidore, Alb., CAN. picking up his first ever Northwest Division win running 7.261 at 183.97 mph.

In Super Comp it was Jim Glenn, Vancouver, Wash., winning on a hole-shot, running 9.045 seconds at 169.10 mph to Mike Shannon’s quicker but loosing 9.040, 163.20.

Wrapping up the winner’s list were four racers familiar to the act with Jeff Lane, Mark Faul, Jody Lang and Mike Ferderer each taking wins in their respective categories.  Lane, North Bend, Wash., won in Comp Eliminator over Dale Giroux and Faul, Tacoma, Wash., knocked out Steve Hanby for the Super Stock trophy.  Lang, Puyallup, Wash., beat Joe Sorensen in a battle of former division champs in Stock and Ferderer, Buckley, Wash., added another trophy to his list in the Super Gas class over Chris Cannon, Bothell, Wash.

Northwest Division racers head to Pacific Raceway for the next NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event, Aug. 20-22.

The following are the final results from the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Northwest Thunderfest event at Spokane County Raceway:

TOP ALCOHOL DRAGSTER:
Semifinals
4) Bill Edwards Jr., Sumas, Wash., broke def. 1) Joey Severance, Woodburn, Ore., broke
2) Mike Austin, Medford, Ore., 5.487, 258.76 def. 3) Don St. Arnaud, Edmonton, Alb., 5.937, 248.61
 
Final
Austin, 5.483, 258.96 was unopposed
 
TOP ALCOHOL FUNNY CAR:
Semifinals
2) Brian Hough, Junction City, Ore., '10 Monte Carlo, 5.782, 251.02 def. 3) Ken Webster, Red Deer, Alb., '10 Monte Carlo, broke
1) Clint Thompson, Klamath Falls, Ore., '06 Monte Carlo, 5.633, 254.62 def. 4) Jeff Ashwell, Keizer, Ore., '09 Mustang, 6.095, 238.89
 
Final
Thompson, 5.657, 254.04 def. Hough, 5.739, 253.04
 
COMP ELIMINATOR
Jeff Lane, North Bend, Wash., '09 Cobalt, B/SMA, 8.325, 163.08  def. Dale Giroux, Canyon Creek, Alb., '04 Cavalier, B/AA, 7.145, 192.71.
 
SUPER STOCK
Mark Faul, Tacoma, Wash., '98 Grand Am, GT/FA, 10.847, 122.03  def. Steve Hanby, Salem, Ore., '94 Camaro, SS/KA, 11.165, 118.81.
 
STOCK ELIMINATOR
Jody Lang, Puyallup, Wash., '81 Malibu, N/SA, 12.734, 98.02  def. Joe Sorensen, Woodburn, Ore., '69 Camaro, A/SA, 11.270, 109.66.
 
SUPER COMP
Jim Glenn, Vancouver, Wash., dragster, 9.045, 169.10  def. Mike Shannon, Kelowna, B.C., dragster, 9.040, 163.20.
 
SUPER GAS
Mike Ferderer, Buckley, Wash., '06 Grand Am, 10.196, 142.91  def. Chris Cannon, Bothell, Wash., '63 Corvette, 10.489, 124.55.
 
SUPER STREET
Larry Miner, Sedro-Wolley, Wash., '69 Camaro, 11.039, 138.46  def. Tom Clark, Spokane, Wash., '67 Chevelle, 11.006, 136.00.
 
TOP DRAGSTER
Randy Pressel, Colton, Ore., dragster, 7.261, 183.97  def. Scott Taylor, St. Isidore, Alb., dragster, 7.527, 179.30.
 
TOP SPORTSMAN
Randy Johnson, Snohmish, Wash., '04 Cavalier, 7.676, 179.88  def. Jake Neibauer, Billings, Mont., '63 Corvette, 7.645, 178.83.
 
SPORTSMAN MOTORCYCLE
Buff Kobs, Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, '95 Kawasaki, 7.960, 167.95  def. Travis Patridge, Kennewick, Wash., '90 Suzuki, 8.642, 151.97.