TEAM REPORT NO.3 Compiled by Dwight Drum Images and web work by Larsen & Drum
Pro Modified Drag Racing Cars
Cool Old Cars
Stivers Trane is back on track, Notches Win in Charlotte
"This Trane is back on track," said Rick Stivers, driver of the Trane '06 Pro Mod Stratus. Stivers drove with bracket-car consistency to win the Get Screened America Pro Mod Challenge presented by ProCare Rx at the NHRA Carolinas Nationals at zMax Dragway.
Stivers qualified No. 3 with a 5.940 at 240.85 mph and then ran like a bracket car at 5.927, 5.913, 5.919 and 5.908-seconds to earn his second-ever trip to the Pro Mod Challenge winners circle and first of the season.
After being sidelined by a crash in early May, Stivers attempted a comeback at the U.S. Nationals earlier this month, but was unsuccessful because of setup issues with his new car. This event is the first time the car has made consistent passes, and for Stivers, the wait was excruciating - but well worth it.
In round one, Stivers dispatched Dennis Radford, and then moved on to take out No. 2 in the points Roger Burgess followed by points-leader Burton Auxier.
In the final, Stivers rode his Trane past Melanie Troxel in a thrilling side-by-side drag race by running a 5.908 at 241.89 to Troxel's 5.946 at 242.36.
Stivers said, "That was a great final round, Melanie is an awesome competitor, and I think the fans got a great show all day long. We were on a tear, all weekend long. Brad Anderson had this car hopped up, and we had the car to beat.
"This weekend has been some of the best racing anytime, anywhere, and I have to thank my entire team, Brad, my wife Jill, and my son Rick Jr., who couldn't be here this weekend but who I know was listening on the Internet and was screaming with us as I took the stripe.
"We've got this Trane back on track, and all I have to say is, boys, don't count your points just yet. We've still got a chance to make the Matco Clash - and that's what we're going to try to do," Stivers said.
Stivers has one race remaining, October 9-11 at the NHRA Virginia Nationals in Richmond, Va., to earn qualifying points for the $35,000 Matco Tools Pro Mod Clash to be contested in Las Vegas at the final race of the season. With his win in Charlotte, he is 59 points or less than three round-wins out of the eighth and last qualifying place.
Pro Mod
It's Bruce Boland again
Pro Modified veteran captures third consecutive PMRA Championship
Bruce Boland of Stoney Creek, Ontario, defeated Mark Nielsen of Brantford, Ontario, in the final round to win his fourth PMRA Pro Modified event of the season and captured his third consecutive Pro Modified Racing Association Point Award Series Championship on Sunday.
The PMRA Challenge presented by Motorsport 1320 on the Cayuga Dragway at Toronto Motorsports Park in Cayuga, Ontario was the sixth and the final event of the 2009 season.
Boland ran a 6.121-second, 232.47-mph in his 1967 Chevy Nova SS in the final to defeat Nielsen's 1968 Yenko Camaro who finished second in the Championship Point Award Series.
Boland, qualified number two for the event, defeated Pete Farber from Baldwinville, Massachusetts in the first round and Eric Latino of Scarborough, Ontario in the semi-finals. While Nielsen, the number one qualifier defeated Luis Custodio of Ajax, Ontario in the first round and Gary Mater from Petrolia, Ontario in the semi-finals.
Other teams qualifying for the elimination rounds were Jeff Roth and Joe Boniferro.
Bruce Boland won the Championship Point Award Series standings with 1595, while Mark Nielsen finished second with 1482 and the PMRA Top Five also included Jeff Roth in third with 1438, Eric Latino fourth with 1410 and Jason Kalso in fifth with 1409.
In Quick 32 Sportsman Series action, Buddy Forrest drove the Morgan Forrest Racing Top Dragster from Rochester, NY to the win over the Top Sportsman team driven by Dan Aitken Jr. of Belle River, Ontario.
Forrest defeated Gary Basaraba of Sudbury, Ontario in the Top Dragster final and Aitken beat Maurice Campolucci of Woodbridge, Ontario in the Top Sportsman final to advance to the Quick 32 Sportsman Series overall final.
Kevin Wicke's K&K Racing Team of Stratford, Ontario won the Quick 32 Sportsman Series Championship Point Award Series presented by NAPA Auto Parts with 1114 points. Jamie Bridge of Napanee, Ontario was second with 1096, Carl Spiering of Jordan Station, Ontario was third with 1079, Michael Kalin of Youngstown, New York was fourth with 1065, T.J. Schippling of Shakespeare, Ontario was fifth with 1032 and rounding out the Top Ten were Darrin Grubb, Michael Hinbest, Spencer Hyde, Mitch Elliott and Darryl McMillen.
The PMRA and Quick 32 Sportsman Series Championship Point Award Series winners will be honored at the Champions Banquet on Saturday, November 14, 2009 at The Best Western Cairn Croft Hotel in the Oak Room in Niagara Falls, Ontario.
G-Force Race Cars
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