Schucks Nationals

Pacific Raceway, Seattle Wa.

July 18-20, 2008

July 24, 2008

Weekend recap

courtesy Bill and Dianne Jeffery

Gallery two

Gallery one

After leaving Vancouver early Friday morning in beautiful clear blue skies, Dianne and I arrived at Pacific Raceways to find overcast and threatening skies. Shades of last year's event crept in to my mind. However, the first pairing of cars quickly erased any concerns and although there was one brief moisture delay, the rest of the day was frankly, spectacular. The unseasonably cool air conditions converted to incredible elapsed times throughout the day and while the gray skies did not bless the photographers, fans were treated to an onslaught of track record breaking passes in almost all classes.

Most notable were the carbureted factory hot rods. The Pro Stock class put on a show that will not soon be forgotten by this photographer. It was capped by an incredible 6.57 charge by Dave Connelly on Friday, which held for the rest of the weekend. Several other cars ran better than any previous pass at this facility. What a spectacle.

Not to be outdone were the many other classes including Top Alcohol Funny car and Top Alcohol Dragster. In spite of the many oil down delays Friday, both these classes saw the track records fall. Of note was the outstanding 5.17 pass by Duane Shields. I predicted a 'teen from this team and they did not disappoint. However, in talking to the team afterwards, it would seem that they were more than a little surprised at the run. Their best pass prior to this event was a 5.20.

Now on to the Nitro show. Curiosity was high as this was the second event under the new 1,000 foot rules and the first event at near sea level conditions. Again, fans were treated to some absolutely outstanding runs by most of the top touring teams. It may have been my imagination but it sure seemed like the cars were launching even harder than normal (check out some of the wheels up shots of the Top Fuel cars).

There is no question that the decision to change to 1,000 feet is controversial, but I believe that most people understand and agree with the reasons for now, including me. Of course many say that NHRA should force the National Event tracks to lengthen the shut down areas instead of shortening the quarter mile, but there are many other factors to consider as well. The bottom line is that fans are still treated to the incredible power of these machines, with speeds of over 315 MPH in 3.8 seconds (yes, 3.8 seconds) and thunderous, chest pounding shock waves to the body. Believe me, the place still went crazy when the first 2 pairs of cars blasted down the track. Even with my ear protection I could clearly feel and hear the shouting and cheering of the huge crowds in the stand, with many first timers watching in stunned disbelief. As one fan exclaimed a couple of years ago, "that's some bad-ass horsepower, right there". And let me tell you, if you thought these nitro pilots had pressure on them before, this shorter format has just upped the anti big time. Reaction time is what it is all about now as many of the teams are running almost identical numbers. It's like a Pro Stock class now.

Finally a couple of other notes about the Nitro teams. First of all, there were 17 nitro funny cars on the property. Who would have thought that John Force and Tim Wilkerson would be fighting it out for 16th place? Not many. But that was the reality in qualifying round #4 and John needed to run a 4.15 or faster in the heat of the day (Saturday was beautiful and hot). Unfortunately for him, his 4.18 didn't cut it. It was hard to believe that I wasn't reading the qualifying sheets upside down in the media center, with John the lone non-qualifier. But John is a champion in so many ways and he didn't run and hide. He still rode down the return road Saturday afternoon on his pit bike, arm in the air, waving to his fans as he made his way back to the starting line to watch Courtney make her first round appearance in TAD. She won by the way and Dad, Mom and sisters all had huge smiles on their faces.

Secondly, what can I say about the Army team? Alan Johnson is with out question the best in the business and he proves it time and again. Another #1 qualifying effort by this team on a weekend where significant rule changes definitely affected the tune-up required to take the #1 spot. Unbelievable. Inspiring. Awesome.

That's it for now. More from Sonoma next weekend (it is supposed to be a scorcher).

Sunday Eliminations

KENT, Wash. --

After a shaky first half of the season that included six DNQs, Tony Bartone raced to his first NHRA POWERade Series victory Sunday at the 21st annual Schuck's Auto Supply NHRA Nationals after more than six years of professional racing.
Bartone defeated veteran driver Ron Capps, also looking to break out of a winless streak that dates back to Richmond 2007, in the final round. Bartone powered his Canidae Pet Foods Chevy Monte Carlo to a 4.454-second pass at 238.17 mph to get the long-awaited win, while Capps posted a 4.708 at 227.46 in his NAPA Auto Parts Dodge Charger R/T.

Tony Schumacher and Jason Line also were winners at scenic Pacific Raceways, the 14th of 24 events in the NHRA POWERade Series.

Before beating Capps in the final, Bartone outran Gary Scelzi, Mike Neff and Tony Pedregon in earlier rounds.

"Looking back at last weekend in Denver, we had an extreme amount of trouble getting down the track," Bartone said. "We blew up and were on fire many times, and we were able to turn our program around and put together a pretty good racecar to race with today and we went the four rounds and brought home the bacon. We made the qualifying passes on Friday and we chose to sit out yesterday in the heat, and we were lucky enough to come up with a good race-day tune-up today. It wasn't perfect, but it went rounds."

A standout in the Lucas Oil Series, the developmental league for NHRA pros, Bartone won 25 events and one world championship title in Top Alcohol Funny Car in the 1990s. However, he said his win today for legendary team owner Jim Dunn tops his list.

"This is what you dream about - this is what you wait your whole career to do, is win in the pro ranks," Bartone said. "It's the old adage - you never say die, you never give up, you keep plugging and things like this happen."

Despite losing in the first round to No. 1 qualifier Robert Hight, Tim Wilkerson maintained his points lead and earned his spot in the Countdown to the Championship.

There was no less drama in Top Fuel, where Brandon Bernstein looked to unseat Schumacher as a regular resident in Seattle's winner circle. On Sunday Schumacher won his third consecutive event at Pacific Raceways, and his fourth out of the last five at the track. He had already qualified No. 1 with a solid performance on Friday and handily won in the final round, driving his U.S. Army dragster to a 3.902 at 309.98 to Bernstein's 4.056 at 291.19. Schumacher became the first driver to clinch his position in the Countdown to the Championship in Denver last week.

"It's a blast," said Schumacher, who defeated Steve Chrisman, Dave Grubnic and rival Rod Fuller in the opening rounds. "We've been a pressure team for years. Under pressure we step up; we do good. Right now, for whatever reason, we're just having a great time and the car is running good. When you get on a roll like this, watch out. You see those football teams, when they start smiling and start playing together really as a team, like we do, we're hard to beat. It's been outstanding."

Schumacher, who also won last weekend in Denver, could become the sixth driver in NHRA history to sweep the Western Swing with a victory at the FRAM-Autolite NHRA Nationals next weekend at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif. Only Joe Amato, John Force, Cory McClenathan, Larry Dixon and Greg Anderson have accomplished the feat previously.

"We're setting records that nobody thought possible," Schumacher said. "We're doing amazing things together. It's hard to believe, but it's great to be part of."

In Pro Stock, Line earned his first victory in Seattle and his second win of the season and the 15th of his career, charting a 6.659-second run at 208.10 mph in his Summit Racing Pontiac GXP to better Allen Johnson's 6.664 at 207.78 mph in his Team Mopar/J&J Racing Dodge Stratus.

"It feels great to win, especially here in Seattle," said Line, who beat Warren Johnson, Kurt Johnson and Greg Stanfield in the first three rounds. "I've been out there before I don't know how many times. I've even been out here in my Stocker (Lucas Oil Series) and just never had any success whatsoever, so it feels really good to win here and feels even better to drive good. It's a good day for all of us. We did not have the greatest car. We had a lot of issues. We tested some parts along the way which was kind of cool, but you don't want to be testing parts at a national event. But it all worked out good."

On Saturday, Line's teammate Greg Anderson punched his playoff card by qualifying higher than 12 - and although Line is comfortably in the Top 10 at third place, he's anxious to seal his own invitation to the Countdown to 1.

Sunday's final results from the 21st annual Schuck's Auto Supply NHRA Nationals at Pacific Raceways. The race is the 14th of 24 in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series.

Top Fuel -- Tony Schumacher, 3.902 seconds, 309.98 mph def. Brandon Bernstein, 4.056 seconds, 291.19 mph.

Funny Car -- Tony Bartone, Chevy Monte Carlo, 4.454, 238.17 def. Ron Capps, Dodge Charger, 4.708, 227.46.

Pro Stock -- Jason Line, Pontiac GXP, 6.659, 208.10 def. Allen Johnson, Dodge Stratus, 6.664, 207.78.

Top Alcohol Dragster -- Mark Niver, 5.411, 260.81 def. Duane Shields, 6.118, 262.69.

Top Alcohol Funny Car -- Brian Hough, Chevy Monte Carlo, 5.728, 253.52 def. Steve Gasparrelli, Ford Mustang, 5.721, 252.19.

Competition Eliminator -- Alan Freese, Pontiac Firebird, 7.489, 179.25 def. Rob Harrison, Chevy Cavalier, 7.821, 170.43.

Super Stock -- Mark Faul, Pontiac Grand Am, 10.282, 126.34 def. Brad Plourd, Chevy Cavalier, 9.062, 149.80.

Stock Eliminator -- Mike Lewis, Chevy Corvette, 10.509, 124.80 def. Toby Lang, Chevy Chevelle, 11.938, 108.35.

Super Comp -- Don Sefton, Dragster, 8.916, 171.99 def. Dennis Kooker, Dragster, foul.

Super Gas -- Curtis Geise, Pontiac Trans Am, 9.880, 161.50 def. Gene Heaton, '27-T Ford, 9.950, 146.30.

Super Street -- Jeff Jackson, Ford Mustang, 10.955, 146.51 def. Wayne Linder Jr, Chevrolet, foul.

Saturday qualifying

KENT, Wash. --

Tony Schumacher has been in the final round in Seattle every year since 2004. Out of four consecutive final rounds here, he's won three. He looked primed to add a fifth after qualifying No. 1 Saturday at the 21st annual Schuck's Auto Supply NHRA Nationals, piloting his U.S. Army dragster to a 3.802-second pass at 316.90 mph in prime conditions Friday for his fourth No. 1 qualifier of the season and the 51st of his career.
"We've been lucky at a lot of tracks," Schumacher said. "Indy's (O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis) another good track for us, and this is one. If you can hand-pick a few, the Western Swing is a beautiful place to have a good streak on and so is Indy. I'm not going to complain about it and I'm sure not going to look for answers. I'm just going to let them ride out the storm here and enjoy it. It's fantastic."

Robert Hight and Dave Connolly also will lead their respective categories into Sunday's eliminations on the power of the No. 1 qualifiers they earned during prime weather conditions of the first day of qualifying, on Friday.

Schumacher and competitors in every category got a sneak preview Saturday of what race conditions may be like on Sunday at the Pacific Raceways dragstrip in the NHRA POWERade Series event when final eliminations start at 11 a.m.

"I guess I'd have to say I'm real glad it got hot out (Saturday), and we got to make that run because it's not going to be the conditions we've had all weekend (on race day)," said Schumacher of his final qualifying pass. "We're good when it's hot out. We backed it down (on the fourth run), we just didn't back it down enough, but had that been the first round we would have been in trouble. It's always good to get that tire smoke out. I've always said it - I love that full throttle, going down the track four times -- but we've got to find the limit when we do that. It's good to be able to do that, good to have good computer data on that run on this track and we'll be able to go back and evaluate it."

Hight also hung on to the No. 1 qualifier spot with his Friday performance of 4.056 at 304.39 in his Auto Club Ford Mustang for his third consecutive No. 1 qualifier in Seattle. Hight faces NHRA POWERade Series points leader Tim Wilkerson in the first round of eliminations. Wilkerson became the second driver to secure a spot in the 2008 Countdown to the Championship, and the first this year in Funny Car, by entering this event.

Hight's boss, team leader and driver John Force, did not qualify for the event. It was the first time since Sept. 3, 1979 that he will not start in Seattle on Sunday.

"It's not that big a deal when you haven't capitalized on (qualifying No. 1), and went on to win on Sunday," Hight said. "A lot of times you get four shots in qualifying, and sometimes you can throw one down and get at the top, but that doesn't mean you can win on Sunday, and that's what this whole game is about. Luckily this week we have a pretty big chance here. It's no secret Tim Wilkerson is way out in the points lead, but if we can capitalize on how he qualified - we can't rely on the other guys to take him out, and he took me out last week so I didn't do my job either. If we can get him tomorrow first round and win this race, it's a little more realistic in catching him before this Countdown.

"With John not qualifying, I feel like it's mine and Neff and Ashley's job to try to stop some of these guys and make this as little bit of a damage to his team as we can, because we want all four of our cars in this Countdown and he could take a bit hit tomorrow if some of these guys behind him win. So we've got to do our jobs and try to take them out."

Connolly was just 53 points out of playoff contention entering this event despite missing the first five races of the season. He took advantage of Friday's conditions to drive his Charter Communications Chevy Cobalt to a 6.573 at 209.49 for his second consecutive No. 1 qualifier in Seattle, his second of the year, and seventh of his career. Perhaps more crucial are the points he earned for leading the pack.

"We'll see what happens tomorrow," Connolly said. "Sunday's the most important day...We're playing catch-up right now, so we have our work cut out for us, but by way things are going this weekend, we just hope to continue making good runs like we have. What a difference a week can make, from last week to this week. Our team morale is at a high right now, so for GM and Chevy, we got to keep this Cobalt in the No. 1 spot and we'll see what tomorrow brings."

Greg Anderson became the first Pro Stock driver to secure a spot in the playoffs by qualifying No. 2. He needed only to qualify higher than 12th to secure his position in the Countdown.

Friday qualifying

KENT, Wash. --

Dave Connolly entered the 21st annual Schuck's Auto Supply NHRA Nationals near Seattle 53 points below the Top 10 cut in the points - the line that in just one month will separate those who will battle for the 2008 world championship titles from those who won't.
Since his return at the Atlanta event in April, Connolly has hunted his way up the point standings with one win in three final-round appearances and it appears he's not ready to stop. Connolly turned in a blistering track-record time of 6.573 seconds at 209.49 mph behind the wheel of his Charter Communications Chevy Cobalt to lead the Pro Stock field into Saturday's final qualifying sessions Friday at Pacific Raceways, where Tony Schumacher and Robert Hight also were qualifying leaders in their respective categories.

"We're on the chase to try to make it in the Top 10 now and we missed the first five races of the season, so we have our work cut out for us," Connolly said. "To be honest with you, I think last weekend (in Denver) we let a good opportunity slip away on top of that mountain. We struggled from the time we got to that track and we come here and looked over everything from head to toe...it's a complete 180 from last weekend, and that makes the driver feel good.

"Even though we have a great car right now, we still have tomorrow morning's sessions just to get by and try to hold on to this No. 1 spot for Charter Communications."

Hight paced the Funny Car category in his Auto Club Ford Mustang, recording a 4.056 at 304.39.

"You really don't know where you're at, coming here," Hight said. "Denver is so much different from anywhere else we race. It's hard to come out of Denver (where Hight advanced to the semifinals) with a lot of confidence, when we're coming back to sea level, and we have had engine gremlins all year, not making it even to 1,000 feet cleanly. It runs really good to 1,000, then it was burning itself up and just making a mess of it. Honestly, this new format I think is kind of helping us. Get to 1,000, not hurt it, and work on our tune-up."

The race distance for Top Fuel and Funny Car was changed from the traditional quarter-mile to 1,000 feet as an interim safety measure after the death of the late Funny Car driver Scott Kalitta in Englishtown.

"It's going up and down the track a lot," Hight said. "That's what you've got to do. That's why Tim Wilkerson's leading the points. He's way out there, but it's still not unattainable to catch him."

Schumacher is on track to earn his fourth No. 1 qualifier of the year with a 3.802 at 316.90 in his U.S. Army dragster. Schumacher's no stranger to success in Seattle - he comes to this year's event riding a streak of four consecutive final-round appearances.

"Our team is so good at being calm and cool and doing what we have to do," said Schumacher, who clinched his spot in the Countdown to the Championship last weekend in Denver. "I oversimplify this and I say it every week - the fact is, the light comes on and you push the pedal down. You react to the light. I don't want to get out and go 'oh, the third cylinder did this and that' like you hear some of the drivers do. It doesn't matter.

"It's not going to help you drive your car. Drive it like you know how to do - push the pedal down and let your body do what it knows how to do."

Qualifying continues Saturday at noon and noon and 2:30 p.m. for Sunday's 11 a.m. eliminations.