It’s overtime in Bowling Green, the weather is finally clear, the racers that stuck around will go racing today. There are still a few championships left to decide, and still prizes to win. We’re not leaving until the final pass is made. Keep checking here as we finish out the 2013 NMRA World Finals.
After a few hours of intense prep work, the track surface and timing equipment are once again ready to handle all the racing action here at Beech Bend for the elimination rounds of the NMRA World Finals.
Capping the Season
Monday is proving worth the wait, with great racing in every class, and some amazing action. In factory stock a lot of competitors headed home early, giving bye-runs to many of the class leaders, including Amrine, Leslie, Jr, Williams, and Cann. Sondra Leslie did have to run it out against Dold, in a close one with a 11.268/116.49 giving Sondra the win over the slightly slower Dold with an 11.308/119.81.
It’s Sunday, which usually means eliminations. However, given that the remains of a tropical storm is passing through the area, the likelihood of getting any racing done today is slim. We’re in route to the track to find out the latest from NMRA officials, and talk with racers. We’ll keep you posted as soon as we know what’s happening.
12:00 Deadline
We spent the morning talking with racers and dodging raindrops. At 12:00 the NMRA made an announcement that they can not run races today. Even with efforts by track officials to dry the track, the last 700 feet of racing surface and the shutdown are not drying well. With another rain shower on radar, even the best efforts won’t be enough to keep things dry.
The story Monday will be who stays and who has left. Mathematically some classes have championships already tied up. Other racers though could see their positions jump by going rounds, or even winning. Cooler air will be accompanying the front that has moved in, and we could see records fall and positions in the final points standings shift.
Gates will open at 8:00 am with racing starting at 9:00, we’ll be here to bring you the latest updates as fast as we can.
It’s time to go racing. Gates open at 8:00 am and first round of qualifying rolls out at 10:00 am. Once again this morning all eyes are on the weather, the good news is there is only a 30-percent chance of rain forecast for the entire day. Temperatures will be abnormally high for this time of year, which will make it tough to set any records. With several championships on the line this weekend, many classes still belong to anyone. We’ll be covering the race all day, and won’t leave until the days events are over.
Aside from qualifying there should be a huge swap meet, vendor area, and car show, all of which we’ll be checking out to see if we can find any cool stories there to bring to you. Keep checking back our watching our Facebook page.
Big Crowd
In-spite of the weather yesterday and the predictions for tonight there is a huge gathering of racers, car show cars, and enthusiasts. The Beech Bend track staff have been working the track surface all day, making the surface extra sticky. We estimate there are over 300 cars parked at the car show, with the entire area filled and cars stretching towards the main gate. This is likely the largest car show turnout we have ever seen at this event. Spectator turnout is strong as well, with fan filling the stands and lining the fences to take in all the action.
Round 1
Round 1 qualifying is in the books, and we were on the starting line for all of the action. In Flex-A-Lite Open Comp, it’s Wesley Dalrymple in number one position behind the wheel of his 1983 Mustang. In Exedy Modular Muscle Gary Parker is currently at the top of the field, followed by Dean Snow, and Adam Cox. Detroit Locker Truck and Lightning MJ Ranchero Smith from Minneapolis is at the front of the pack.
In the Granatelli 5.0 Shootout Justin Burcham is currently leading the pack after round one with an 8.162 /166.66, following him in second position is Neslon Whitlock with an 8.49 /161.90.
The rivalry between the Terminator and GT500 crowd is always a strong one, and this year is no exception. The VMP Superchargers shootout class has shown us a ton of mean machines. We watched Shannon Gibson’s 2003 Cobra run an 8.53 at 167.68, but then our jaws dropped when Mark Meiring in his 2007 GT500 went an amazing 8.217 at 168.11.
Coyote Stock
We love the sound of Strange Engineering Coyote Stock, this is about as close as it gets to a NHRA Pro Stocker at the starting line. Leading the pack is Shane Stymiest, who ran a 10.735123.63. The field is close though with HiPo Joe Charles, Drew Lyons, and Jacob Lamb all knocking down first round passes in the 10.70’s. Coyote Stock should be a hot class to watch this weekend.
Nitto Factory Stock
In Nitto Tire Factory Stock, Matt Amrine currently sits at the top with a 11.182/122.81. Less than a bumper behind him is Alan Cann 11.188/119.03. John Leslie Jr trails by only a little bit with an 11/243/119.03.
Edelbrock Renegade
In Edelbrock Renegade Tim Mattherly is leading the pack by almost a full tenth of a second, 8.456/160.82 is the number Matherly laid down to beat. Matherly loaned his spare engine to Valerie Clements after she lost hers yesterday in testing (see Friday coverage). Clements is currently in eigth position with a 9.349/150.45 pass.
Afco Street Outlaw
In Afco Street Outlaw John Urist is proving why he’s the eight time Super Street Outlaw Champion. Urist is sitting in first position after laying down a 7.336/191/40 pass. This was after we watched Chris Groves run a 7.349/181.72 which is now only good for second place. No doubt Urist is looking to knock down the inaugural title in the new Street Outlaw class, and this race will likely come down to the wire to be decided.
Over 100 cars have shown up for Tremec True Street, the cruise is complete and we’re looking for some blazing fast times. In testing this morning Chris Gish tripped the lights with a 7.86 elapsed time. His twin turbo 1991 Coupe (which looks like an 86) looks to have the field covered. We’ll find out in a few hours When True Street is in the books.
Qualifying Round 2
Round two would be the final round of qualifying. With the weather like a ticking bomb, NMRA officials wanted to get in as much racing as possible. A brief rain shower earlier in the day sent fans and racers scattering and delayed the third round of True Street by nearly an hour. Fortunately the rain let up quickly, and once again the Beech Bend track staff busted out a top notch effort in drying and prepping the track.Nitto Tire Factory Stock
Matt Armine takes the top spot in Nitto Tire Factory Stock with a 10.913/122.79. Armine looks to have the field pretty well covered with Alan Cann qualified in second with an 11.188/119.03. Coming in third is John Leslie Jr. with an 11.243/119.75.
Strange Engineering Coyote Stock
In Strange Engineering Coyote Stock, things just keep getting closer. Jacob Lamb is the biggest story here, upsetting season dominator Shane Stymiest by qualifying number one. This is the first time this year Stymiest has not qualified number one. The field is packed tight though, with the top three separated by less than .01 seconds. It’s Lamb with a 10.722/124.37, Hi-Po Joe Charles in number two with a 10.726/125.33, and Stymiest in third with a 10.735/123.63.
Edelbrock Renegade
The name to know this weekend in Renegade is Adam Arndt. Arndt qualified first in his 1988 Mustang with a solid 8.368/162.65 effort. Right behind him is Tim Matherly with a 8.456/160.82. Reigning Renegade champion Brian Mitchell sits in third with an 8.484/159.83.
Afco Street Outlaw
It appeared that John Urist might have finally found the handle on the Afco Street Outlaw field. However, “Filthy” Phil Hines had other plans. Hines turned in a round two qualifying time slip of 7.248/189.26, following Hines in number two position is Dwayne Barbaree with a 7.281/194.86. Urist sits in third, and with night time eliminations coming due to the weather forecast for Sunday, it could be anyone’s game in Street Outlaw.
Tremec True Street
Tremec True Street is always fun to watch, and today was no different. Based on an index system, cars must complete a 30 mile cruise in real traffic and then complete 3 consecutive passes run in round-robin format to, no opening hoods, trunks, or working on the cars is allowed from the start of the cruise to the end of the last round.
Elapsed times were likely a little faster than usual due to the delay of over an hour between rounds two and three due to rain. The overall True Street winner with the fastest average of the day was Jason Meador in his 1990 Mustang from nearby Glasgow, KY. Meador was able to average 8.326 for the day. The nine second class saw Michale Newton walk away the winner with an average of 9.016. In the ten second zone, Jason Riley took home the award with a 10.108 average. David Griffin owned the 11 second index with an average of 11.055 on the day. Mike Koval hit the 12 second average just about perfect, averaging 12.003. Dakota Simon took home the hardware for the best 13 second average, best 14 second average went to Scott Ray. Belinda Moore rounded out the competition winning the 15 second average.
Night Life
Rain thwarted the planned elimination rounds for the evening. A long soaking rain, which occurred after dark drowned any chance for evening eliminations. With Sunday’s forecast of 100 percent chance of precipitation, NMRA and Beech Bend officials had hoped to get as many rounds of racing in tonight as possible. Mother nature had other plans, and we’d wager we may be here until Monday at this point.
So what do fans, and even some racers do at the World Finals when things don’t go as planned. There’s always plenty of cruising organized, and otherwise that occurs all over town. Friday night we awoke to the sound of burnouts outside our hotel. Further investigation found a local gas station owner who was allowing enthusiasts of any make or model to hang out at his gas station. He was also holding an “at your own risk” burnout fest. The local police frowned upon things and asked them to cut it out. With no laws being broken however, the station owner insisted the police exit his property and allowed things to continue into the night. There’s never a dull moment at the track or away from it at the World Finals.
We’ll be back at the track rain or shine in the morning looking for the latest word from NMRA officials and keeping you posted on what they tell us. We’ve posted the qualifying sheets and ladders below, and also check out our huge gallery page we’ve added more photos than ever for any event.
It’s the oldest and quite possibly biggest, most important race for the NMRA, the World Finals held at Beech Bend Raceway in beautiful Bowling Green, Kentucky. The stage is set for some exciting showdowns to determine the champions in several classes. The forecast calls for a chance of rain all weekend long. We’ll be here until it’s all over and in the record books. Check here often all weekend for the coolest photos, and information on all the excitement.
Rain, Rain, Go Away
We have been fighting mother nature all day. Spotty rain showers have been hampering things all afternoon. Each time the track crew at Beech Bend gets the track dry, another shower pops up and soaks the surface again. The first round of qualifying was set for 3:00 pm central time, it’s presently 4:30 and we just watched a significant shower move through and the crew is again drying the track.
Testing
We have seen a few test passes, as everyone looks to dial in their combination. The weather will make things tricky, as it’s warm today on Friday, and scheduled to be cooler later this weekend.
The biggest story so far today has been Valerie Clements. Coming off a crash at the NMRA/NMCA Super Bowl in Joliet, IL a few months ago. Clements presently has a damaged engine in her EFI Renegade car. Clements is presently second in Renegade points, and had hoped to maintain that position going into the finals. Clements told us that the engine is down a cylinder, and needs to be swapped out. Her crew is looking to swap the engine out, if they can get their hands on an engine hoist.
NMRA officials have told us that they will get the first round of qualifying in tonight.
Sometimes Mother Nature Wins
Around 8:00 pm this evening NMRA and Beech Bend officials called it a night. They had tried getting some True Street and Bracket cars down the track on eighth-mile passes only. In spite of the best efforts of the track crew falling temperatures and high humidity would not let things dry out as needed. Round one qualifying will have to wait for Saturday morning at 10:00 am, with round two scheduled for 3:00 PM.
We stayed late, but found most racers had already packed it in and were calling it a night. In the Clements pit, the crew began working on an engine swap. Valerie Clements explained to us, “After the first test pass it didn’t feel right, and on the second one we had a lot of white smoke. We found two spark plugs were burned, and a compression test showed no compression on the number six cylinder.” Fellow racer Tim Matherly loaned an engine to Clements so she can continue her weekend, and her crew is in for the long haul this evening swapping everything out. Valerie seemed positive though, and her upbeat attitude in the face of adversity is a cheerful reminder of the winning spirit of drag racers.
We’ll be back at the track tomorrow for qualifying, and hopefully mother nature will smile favorably upon us and allow things to get rolling as they should. Until then enjoy a few night time shots from True Street, and check back tomorrow for our next update.
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