The phrase "Drive One" resonates much louder today in the corporate
offices of NHRA as it was announced that the world’s largest
motorsports sanctioning body has signed a multi-year agreement with
Ford Motor Company, designating the legendary automaker as the
"Official Car and Truck of the NHRA."

NHRA will be transitioning all official vehicles to the renowned blue
oval. As Official Car and Truck of the NHRA, Ford will provide support
vehicles for NHRA trackside, including the NHRA Safety Safari presented
by Automobile Club of Southern California, to allow them to perform
their important trackside duties.

The Kentucky Motorsports Hall of Fame will induct nine new members later this month.

The Class of 2009 for the KMHOF will include Don Bowles, Army
Armstrong, Joe Williamson, Randy Walls, Bob Nowicke, Harry Hyde, David
& Charles Garvin and F. William Swope.

IHRA Pro Stock racer John Montecalvo has found a new home.

Montecalvo, of Center Moriches, N.Y., scored his second consecutive
final round appearance at the IHRA Northern Nationals in Martin, Mi.,
on Sunday. He’s been in three finals thus far in 2009.

The good fortune has elevated his team to second in the championship
point standings in one of the tightest battles in the history of the
class.

Montecalvo’s latest showing wasn’t without adversity as he and the crew
battled the car the entire weekend, changing motors twice along with
many other parts on the car.

When you are the head of a major racing operation and a driver as well, the pressure can sometimes be a bit overwhelming.

Especially in your first year on the job.

But whatever you do, don’t tell Richard Freeman that.

Despite being in his first year at the helm of the three-car Elite
Motorsports Pro Stock operation, Freeman and his team haven’t had the
typical bugs associated with a first year operation.

In fact, through six races this season, the Elite Motorsports bunch are
first, fifth and seventh in points, with Freeman and points leader
Frank Gugliotta right in the thick of the championship hunt.

All Melanie Troxel needed was a little seat time.

The former nitro standout turned Pro Modified racer scored her best
doorslammer finish Sunday afternoon reaching the semifinals at the IHRA
Northern Nationals in Martin, Mi.

This was only her third race behind the wheel of the R2B2 Racing “Voodoo” Corvette.

There is plenty that can happen in a race car as it hurtles down a
strip of concrete and asphalt for 1000 feet propelled by an 8,000
horsepower nitro methane-fed time bomb.

Ask any Top Fuel or Funny Car driver and they'll be happy to spend
several minutes talking about what can go wrong in four seconds or
less. And, the veterans will talk about making decisions based on pure
instinct when something does go wrong. It is for that reason NHRA
officials have mandated the use of a safety device which shuts off the
ignition, shuts off the fuel pumps and deploys the parachutes if the
burst panel, located on the manifold, is blown.

Steve Gasparrelli put the Gasparrelli Motorsports Top Alcohol Funny Car
’08 Mustang in the winner’s circle with a string of runs in the 5.50’s
and a best 5.578 second, 258.42 mph pass in the final for the win at
this weekend’s NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Division 7 event
presented by Korbel at Infineon Raceway.

Gasparrelli, West Covina, Calif., had been on a dry spell before taking
the win last month at the Lucas Oil event at Pacific Raceways near
Seattle.  This marks his second win on the year as he outran Keeter
Ray, Newport Beach, Calif., who held off No. 1 qualifier John Lombardo
and veteran racer Jay Payne on his way to the final against Gasparrelli.

In Top Alcohol Dragster it was Cody Perkins, Bluffdale, Utah, taking
the easy win when fellow finalists and No. 1 qualifier John Ahten,
Saugus, Calif., broke in his semifinal round win and was unable to make
the call for the final round.

Martin, Michigan’s beautiful U.S. 131 Motorsports Park has always been
known for great racing and record runs, but perhaps at no point in the
track’s long history have more records been broken in one weekend.

Two world records were reset over the course of the weekend and nearly
half a dozen track records were toppled as well as Del Cox Jr. (Top
Fuel), Kenny Lang (Pro Modified) and Frank Gugliotta (Elite Motorsports
Pro Stock) all survived the wild weekend and picked up Ironman trophies
on Championship Sunday at the IHRA Northern Nationals presented by Dart
Machinery.

Along with the trio of professionals, over half a dozen sportsman
champions were crowned as well as Ricky Adkins (Top Sportsman), Rick
Schneider (Top Dragster), Larry Cummings (Super Stock), Jim Marshall
(Stock), Luke Bogacki (Quick Rod), Jim Linter (Super Rod) and J.J.
Brock (Hot Rod) also picked up IHRA Ironman hardware.

While there were plenty of exciting races and record runs throughout
the weekend in Elite Motorsports Pro Stock, there was little

Roger Richards

doubt who the winner was going to be after Saturday night.

After all, there simply wasn’t anyone who could keep up Frank Gugliotta.

Gugliotta, who never faltered even once in putting up consistent chart
topping numbers lap after lap, defeated John Montecalvo in the final of
the IHRA Northern Nationals presented by Dart Machinery Sunday in
Martin, Mich.

“That is my crew and a good car. We made good calls all weekend long
and I drove halfway decent and we just had some consistency and that is
what it takes to win,” Gugliotta said.