Sunday’s final-round results for the professional categories for the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway.

Allen Johnson learned the importance of family early in life.

The Pro Stock driver from Greeneville, Tenn., announced on Friday
during the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals that he will carry the colors
of Foster Care Appreciation Month in conjunction with the locally based
Free Will Baptist Family Ministries [FWBFM], a group which provides a
shelter for displaced children.

Johnson was introduced to FWBFM as a kid. Then, Johnson recalls, the
home was known as an orphanage. It didn’t take Johnson long to
understand how blessed he was to have a close-knit family.

“This is something that is near and dear to my heart,” Johnson said. “I
grew up with a lot of kids from the Free Will Baptist Family
Ministries. They take in a lot of state orphans. Maybe the kids’
parents had been sent to jail and the home tutored them and took care
of them until the parents came back.”

After two rounds of qualifying, Ike Maier of Tottenham, Ontario paced the field in the season opening Pro Modified Racing Association at the Cayuga Dragway at Toronto Motorsports Park.
 
Driving the Maier Motorsports 1963 Corvette Pro Modified, Maier set low
elapsed time of the day with a 6.310-second, 223.80-mph pass on the
Cayuga quarter-mile. Joe Boniferro of Niagara Falls, Ontario was next
in the Smokin’ Joe’s 1999 Avenger with a 6.340-second, 221.56-mph run,
while Gary Irving of Toronto took third in the Al Hinds 2004 Corvette
at 6.391-seconds, 209.17-mph. Jack Grainy of Niagara Falls, New York,
and Bruce Boland of Hamilton, Ontario rounded out the top five.
 
The PMRA Pro Modifieds will continue May 17 with its final qualifier
during the Victoria Day Weekend Challenge at noon. Final eliminations
will begin for the eight-car field starting at 2:00 pm.

In the final rounds of qualifying at the Texas Sportsman Challenge, a
round of the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series at Houston Raceway Park,
Malcolm Wahle, Claremore, Okla., moved in to the No. 1 qualifier spot
in Top Alcohol Dragster.  Top Alcohol Funny Car racer Tony Bartone,
Long Island City, N.Y., remained in the top spot in his class.  Fields
in all classes are now set for eliminations on Sunday.

Wahle moved up from the No. 2 spot with a 5.348-second, 266.21 mph
pass.  No. 2 qualifier Michael Manners of Willis, Texas, also improved
on Friday’s outing with a 5.383-second, 263.82 mph pass but it was not
enough to get him past Wahle.  Friday’s top qualifier, Dallas’s Todd
Odom, did not better his numbers and slipped into the third qualifying
spot.   Wahle will take on No. 8 qualifier Karl Brounkowski, Magnolia,
Texas, in the opening round of eliminations.

Bartone also failed to improve on his opening day run of 5.666 seconds
at 257.92 mph but it was still enough to keep him atop the field. 
Corpus Christi, Texas, racer Steve Burck moved from the No. 3 spot into
No. 2 with a 5.766-second, 249.67 mph lap.  Bartone will square off
against the defending division champion Steve Harker of Gainesville,
Ga., in round one of eliminations.

After nearly five hours under a rain delay, qualifying is complete at
the 3rd Annual B’laster Cavalcade of Stars presented by Budweiser, a
round of the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series at Summit Motorsports
Park.  Mike Kosky, Cuddy, Pa., remained atop the Top Alcohol Dragster
field while Racine, Wis., resident Andy Bohl continued to set the pace
in Top Alcohol Funny Car.  Eliminations will start Sunday at 8 a.m.

In the opening round of qualifying on Friday, Kosky laid down a
5.342-second, 266.53 mph blast to take the No. 1 spot. He did not
improve on that number today but it was enough to keep him ahead of No.
2 qualifier Bill Reichert of Owosso, Mich.  Reichert also failed to
improve on Friday’s pass of 5.371 seconds at 268.49 mph.  There were 15
Top Alcohol Dragsters vying for a spot in the eight-car eliminations
field.

Bohl did take advantage of today’s single qualifying shot, improving
his numbers with a pass of 5.623 seconds at 257.19 mph.  Mick Snyder,
Demotte, Ill., also made a better lap today and his 5.638-second,
254.86 mph effort was enough to move him from the No. 4 spot to No. 2. 
Fourteen Funny Cars were on hand trying to make the eliminations cut.

In his first race of the 2009 season, Doug Herbert qualified in the top
half of the field at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals in Bristol,
Tenn.  The veteran driver, who qualified eighth, will face No. 9
qualifier Doug Kalitta in the first round of eliminations.

“I’m really happy with how we’re doing this weekend,” said Herbert, a
10-time NHRA event winner.  “I think we did a great job.  We haven’t
raced since November and we put a crew together at the last minute, but
we still came out and ran well.”

Von Smith and the Al-Anabi Racing Pro Mod Extreme team from Oak Ridge, Tenn., wrote a thrilling, record-setting finish to their sometimes grueling season with a victory before another enthusiastic crowd at the Qatar Drag Racing championship in Doha, Qatar.

Team owner Sheik Khalid Al Thani of Qatar watched happily as Smith and
the Atomic Performance crew, led by tuning wizard Howard Moon, overcame
a slow qualifying start and then turned aside all challengers.

Ashley Force Hood raced her Castrol GTX Ford Mustang to the top of the field on Friday at the 9th annual NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals
at Bristol Dragway, to capture the No. 1 qualifying position with a run
of 4.105 seconds. That time held up as temperatures rose on Saturday
and her stellar efforts handed Billy Dotson of Clintwood, Virginia, a
new Whirlpool washer and dryer as part of the BrandSource “Win with
Force” promotion. During the 2009 Full Throttle Drag Racing Series at
select event when any one of the four John Force Racing Funny Cars
qualifies No 1 at the event one lucky winner wins a Whirlpool washer
and dryer set.

“I’ve been coming to Bristol Dragway since before they had NHRA races.
I have never missed the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals and I love John
Force Racing. I have been a fan of his forever. I never thought I would
win a Whirlpool Washer & Dryer for being a John Force fan though.
My wife is excited because we could really use a new set,” said Dotson.

First-round pairings for professional eliminations Sunday for the
Ninth annual NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway, the
eighth of 24 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.
Pairings based on results in qualifying, which ended Saturday. DNQs
listed below pairings.

Valvoline and Don Schumacher
Racing announced on Saturday during the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals a
contract extension through 2010. Under the agreement, Valvoline will
appear at 13 races this season as primary sponsor on the Funny Car
driven by Jack Beckman.

“We are thrilled to extend this relationship,” conveyed
Rob Clendening, Manager- Global Brands for Ashland. “We are like all
sponsors in that we are watching every dollar we spend. We are very
demanding in what we get back for the money we spend. We are picky
about the sponsorships we choose.

“It is critical for Valvoline to partner with teams that can provide
big wins even before the cars hit the track. DSR is that type of
partner. The team’s on-track success is not just the icing on the cake,
but it really pushes our research and development team to constantly
deliver the next technical innovation.”