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Super Twin racer Tommy Grimes from the US raced here in August 2016 and also in 2017. He won the Nordic Motorcycle Championship in 2017 on Per Bengtsson's Beast. Tommy's nitro racing career started in 2005 in Top Fuel Harley in the AHDRA and later in the NHRA. Previously he raced in Pro Stock Bike with a Suzuki, and raced for Ray Price's PSB team for ten years, winning four championships and sixteen Wallys. He was born in Winston, Salem in North Carolina and describes himself as a real redneck. 'Ray Price was a real mentor and I owe a lot to him', Tommy said. Later in the year Tommy will race again at Tierp in August, and in October he will compete at Rockingham Dragway, and then at the Manufacturers' Cup in November in Georgia, riding the Beast. Tommy likes Per's team and they are grateful to have him back after recent health issues. Pit note © Mike Kraaij.	Top Fuel Bike racer Hans Ericsson is competing with a Kawasaki Funny Bike. He started in 1993 with Super Street Bikes and moved to the Funny Bike class in 2011. After two seasons he became EDRS Funny Bike champion. He uses Gator 2.0 billet crankcases which are unique in the dragbike scene and only four have been produced. Also Hans runs a Marine crank from Florida which is 75mm stroke and 84mm bore with Hilborn injection on methanol. His best is 7.136/307kph and 4.53/275 on the eighth. His objective is to run a six and says the bike has all the potential needed for this. Hans thanks his family and friends who help him at the track. Pit note © Mike Kraaij.
Top Methanol Dragster racer Silvio Strauch has bought the Bavarian Thunder car from Peter Schöfer and has a new team crewing the car. Silvio said 'We are getting advice over the phone from the previous crew chief Wolfgang Schöfer and the setup we use is the same. I licensed three years ago at Hockenheim and my team are from the Comp Eliminator car I previously ran'. The team includes David Fornfeist (thanks for interpretation), Robert Schweitzer and Rene Menzel (all pictured) and they plan to run at Hockenheim and at the European Finals.	Top Methanol Dragster racer Daniel Jedborn is attempting to complete his licensing here, although his final pass eluded him this morning when the tyres went up in smoke after an excellent 5.44 yesterday. Daniel, who previously ran in Comp Eliminator, has supplemented his team with Jerry Darien and Ty Brown from the US, Jerry having schooled a string of racers who have gone on to win fuel class NHRA championships. He said 'I used to own parts of the car in 2000! After being constructed by Murf McKinney it started being owned by Don Prudhomme, and Larry Dixon drove it to a championship, then Mike Miller of Trick Titanium changed it to a methanol setup, then Earl Datweiler used it with unblown fuel with his family, then it was sold to Stefan Gunnarson who sold it to Daniel's team'. Jerry was last at Tierp in 2014 when he tuned Chris Polidano to a new FIA speed record of 278mph which still stands today. But this weekend's objective is to get Daniel licensed.
Top Methanol Dragster racer Jonny Lagg was delighted when he ran a new PB at Santa Pod at the Main Event of 5.39. He said 'We had a problem scuffing pistons and have resolved that by getting new heads, a new manifold and new piston rings as well as changing the oil system. We are trying new things and hope to repeat a 5.3s run here although the Tierp track is different, and less forgiving than Santa Pod to small errors in setup. We are hoping for more cars in the class'.	Pro Modified racer Michel Tooren's team was struggling with an oil leakage problem which prevented him running in the first session. He said 'We have put our spare engine in for this event following piston damage at the Main Event. We were really pleased to run three 5.9s during the weekend and to win in the first round of eliminations although we couldn't make it for the second round'.
Top Fuel Bike racer Willem Been's bike came to a sudden halt after launching in session one. Making his first pass since 2003, the crank broke on the KTM Supercharged DOHC V-twin engine, resulting in the clutch seizing up. The bike slid and Willem's riding skills were quickly needed to avoid him coming off the machine. The team, led by world's quickest Super Twin racer Jaska Salakari, will install a spare KTM engine in the bike overnight. Thanks to Mike Kraaij for information.	Top Fuel Bike racer Filippos Papafilippou has changed back from a direct drive to a two speed transmission, and changed the clutch setup accordingly. He said 'We are still experimenting, our clutch has three discs and eight levers so there are a lot of variables for settings. Any modelling on computer simulations away from the track is really a waste of time because of all of the variables. We need more track time, so it is good that we have five events this year'. An early shut-off pass resulted in a 5.936/318 in session one, so the team seem to be on the right path.
Pro Modified racer Mats Eriksson was pleased to be runner up at the Main Event, although less pleased with the car's performance. He said 'We need to get the car moving more quickly after 1 1/2 seconds, it got loose after the shift into second. We tried changing the four link but there was no improvement. The best race was against Jimmy Ålund and a crowd pleaser. I red lit against Micke Gullqvist but couldn't match his performance. I want to run a five'. He ran a 6.031/379 in session one to go fourth. Mats' pit car is an original 1956 Ford Crown Victoria, painted in matching colours to his race car.	Pro Modified racer Jere Rantaniemi is racing with Team Pro8 owned by Finn Sami Hanhisuanto and they have had success so far in the Finnish Top Doorslammer championship, winning the title in 2017 and 2018, and then winning the Top Doorslammer final in September 2018 in Sweden. They have bought and installed a new Pro Line engine for 2019, which they feel provides power at lower boost levels. Sponsored by PPF, the team feel they will benefit in sharing expertise and data with Andreas Arthursson's similar setup. Plans are to attend Scandinavian and German rounds of the FIA championship. Fluid leak problems hampered him today.
Top Fuel Dragster racer Bj�rn "Nitrobear" M�rtensson is planning to run at least two Tierp events and will look at racing at the Finals and Finland too. After a pair of very fume-filled warm-ups (photo taken between them), Björn went out and shut off early to a 6.092/180kph. The team are sourcing engine parts from PMP Premium Motorsports Products.	Pro Modified racer Stian Rusånes from Norway races a 1941 Willys first built in 2009 by Tim McAmis. The car runs a blown methanol combination using Brad Andersen engineering parts and Stage 6 heads. The gearbox is a new Rossler with a torque converter and the car was completely rebuilt over the winter with new electrics and engine bottom end. The crew chief is Jan 'Badillac' Gunnarson. The car ran a 6.494/359 in session two to go tenth, but with smoke from the engine at the top end.
Stian Rusånes has a pit vehicle with a Harley V Twin engine mounted in it. Not a lot of space for the driver's legs, but it certainly nips along...	Top Fuel Dragster racer Liam Jones was ready for session one, however the Rune Fjeld Motorsport team had a challenge on when between their three cars in the Main Event, sixteen heads had suffered damage on runs that weekend. The team helped with the repair work, but owner Rune was still finishing them yesterday, a huge effort. Gary Page of Liam's crew said 'The car seems to prefer the warmer conditions we have this weekend. We are still using a five disc clutch. The car is producing so much power, you can only back it down so much and a six disc clutch might help in that respect by providing a smoother power curve'. In session one, he shut off early to a 5.290 to place him fifth.
Top Fuel Dragster racer Jndia Erbacher was pleased that she won a round and had a new PB run at the Main Event. 'Although the car performed well, you need a bit of luck to win and we didn't have that. Having Aaron Brooks and Tony Shorthall on the crew is great and they helped change the engine before the semi final. It was the first damage in four races. The track was smooth, the car easy to drive and handle'. Her first run was a blower belt-shredding 5.419.	Top Fuel Dragster racer Tethys, pictured with his crew chief Ben Allum and event colour commentator Pelle Lindelow, suffered bad damage in today's first qualifying session when the engine exploded just off the line. That contrasts to a Main Event when the only major damage was a head gasket going at 600ft on one pass. With eleven cars entered he remarked earlier 'qualifying and running a three second pass are my objectives. We want consistency'. As Connie Kalitta said, 'This sport will make you humble.' Tethys currently is ninth, so the team will need to rebuild overnight.
Pro Stock racer Bengt Ljungdahl had a difficult Main Event as the 2017 and 2018 FIA Champion faced a renewed challenge from Jimmy Ålund. He said 'I wasn't satisfied with the car's performance and we made mistakes which we shouldn't have. But we have learned from them and are better prepared'.	Top Fuel Dragster racer Stig Neergaard remarked that a new clutch setup had produced good results from the start. 'We made two short test runs to 330ft to ensure everything was working and then made a full run on our new six disc Alan Johnson clutch and ran 3.94. We then put more weight on it, had shake and then in the first round of eliminations, the track was too cold and it spun the tyres at 1.8s'. The concern here is the adjusted altitude of 2700ft and rising through the afternoon. 'The atmospheric conditions are similar to Hockenheim so we are looking at the data from that race. We will try the same basic setup as the 3.9s pass adjusted for altitude'. He ran a 4.253 early shut off in session one to go second.
Pro Stock racer Simon Gustafsson, driving a new car constructed by Samantha Racing owners Mikael Sj�kvist and Jan J�nsson, is working with the team to get performances down to 6.6s which would make the car more competitive. He said 'There are some issues with carburettors, but the new car handles better, although the visibility for me is reduced with the lower profile and new hood scoop. Our engines are supplied by V. Gaines and we have a spare'. The team welcomes Rob Stanley as a new member. So far, his best at this event is 6.740 placing him in sixth.	Competition Eliminator racer Jens Eklund has made runs in the low sevens this event and is currently in third place with a 7.018 on a 7.80 D/TA index. In July last year he dipped into the sixes at Sundvall Raceway and then ran a PB at the Midnight Sun Festival at Piteå of 6.94/319. Using a five cylinder Audi engine, the car, along with others in the category, is a fine example of application of drag racing rules to European automotive technology.
Pro Street racer Stefan Bjöns is aged 24 and runs a Chevrolet Camaro with a NOS assisted 632ci big block Chevy and three speed Lenco gearbox, unusual for the class where the Powerglide is predominant. A 7.670 placed him 13th in qualifying.	Super Street racer Christer Gustafsson is one of ten cars qualified for the category which is still contested in Scandinavia. He races the family '70 Dodge Challenger R/T which, like most in the class, retains a stock frame and Chrysler 727 gearbox but with uprated engine of 499ci which has aftermarket parts. He is currently in sixth position with a 10.918.
Super Street racer Kent Forschner-Hell has a '84 Pontiac Trans Am which he built himself in 2010. The car has a 409ci small block engine and TH350 gearbox. He is fifth with a 10.917 ET.	Super Street racer �ke T�rnqvist drives a 3rd generation Camaro which has a small block 383ci engine and Powerglide gearbox. He is second in qualifying with 10.905 ET.
Super Street racer Ulf Axelsson has this '65 Chevy Chevelle with a big block 467ci engine and TH350 gearbox. It has run down into the 9.8s, but here he is aiming for the 10.90 class index and ran a best of 10.924 to go eighth.	Super Street racer Uffe Lundgren was 2018 EDRS champion and runs a '70 Camaro with big block 505ci engine and TH400 gearbox. He is in number one spot with 10.904.
Super Street racer Aulis H�meenkorpi is new to Tierp and runs a 408ci small block with TH400 gearbox in his Chevy Nova. He is ninth with a 11.055.	Super Street racer Isak Lagg, son of TMD racer Jonny, was runner up in the 2018 EDRS class championship. Aged 19, he has a Camaro with a 406ci engine and TH350 gearbox. He lies fourth with 10.916 ET.
Super Street racer Tomas H�gg has raced since 1986 and has a 407ci engine with aftermarket internals and TH350 gearbox. He is in seventh place with a 10.920.	Super Gas racer Christer Uhlin has run this Ford Fairlane for almost 25 years and has raced it at Santa Pod in the past. The car has a Ford big block 557ci engine and ATI gearbox. He is in seventh with a 9.943 ET on the 9.90 class index.
Super Gas racer H�kan Mattsson is a long time racer in the class and multi championship winner. His car was built almost 35 years ago with a copy body shell, and has run down into the 8.3s with its big block Chevy engine and Stig Olsson Powerglide. His 9.916 ET placed him second.	Super Gas racer Rickard Persson is new to Tierp and runs under the Rip Racing banner with FB updates being posted from the track. He has a 468ci engine and TH350 gearbox. The crew includes long time Super Street racer Halvor �verby who campaigned a Opel Kadett across Europe. He is fifth with a 9.932.
Super Gas racer Erik Jansson has a Dodge Charger with stock frame and 440ci Mopar engine with aftermarket parts and Chrysler 727 gearbox. He is in number one position with a 9.907.	Super Gas racer Kenny �sberg races this Volvo 142 with 406ci aluminium engine and TH350 gearbox, the car originally being built in 1992 by Jonas Hjalmarsson with a tube chassis tagged to 7.5s. A 9.933 placed him sixth.
Super Gas racer Stefan Andersson from Borlange is one of five new racers to the category at Tierp. He runs a '67 Chevelle with a 496ci engine and TH400 gearbox. He is third with a 9.924.	Super Comp racer Mari Udtian, aged 17 from Norway, who reached the class final at Santa Pod Raceway at the Main Event, is fifth with 8.929 ET. Her Neil & Parks car dates from 1989 and has been raced by the Udtian family ever since then.
Super Comp racer Thomas Hauge runs a Ford Mustang with stock frame and 10 point cage, stock body with fibreglass doors, hood and boot. The car is powered by a 365ci Ford engine with a Liberty gearbox. He is eighth with a 8.979.	Super Comp racer Tina Olsen Frog, aged 20 has been racing for over 10 years and her dragster was built by Spitzer Race Cars with a naturally aspirayed engine on VP109 fuel. She is ninth with a 9.027, the class being all run at this event.
Super Comp racer Pontus Garefelt, aged 16, is new to the class and a graduate of the Junior Dragsters. His dragster was built in 2003 by Mullis Race Cars and has a Merlin 555ci engine, naturally aspirated with a Powerglide gearbox. He lies seventh with a 8.914 ET.	Super Comp racer Jan Hallman made his class debut at Tierp last August and races a Volvo 142 which he built in 2010 with a tube chassis and fibreglass body. It's powered by a Chevy 383ci engine through a TH350 gearbox. His 8.937 placed him sixth.
Super Comp racer Amanda Sj�str�m Andersson, aged 23, has been in the class for four years in a car built in 2002 by Mullis Race Cars, with a big block Chevy engine of 560ci and Powerglide gearbox. She is second with a 8.912 ET.	Super Comp racer Peter Andreasson has an unusual-for-the-class three window coupe with a supercharged 414cu in Chevy engine and Powerglide gearbox. His 9.230 placed him tenth.
Super Comp racer Mikael Nilsson was the 2018 EDRS champion and built his car in 2010 using a Mark Williams chassis and 582cu in big block Chevy engine through a Hughes 'shorty' Powerglide. He is fourth with a 8.924 ET.	Super Comp racer Leif Andersson has a new colour scheme on the cowling of his slingshot dragster, which has been as quick as 7.12/302kph and was at Santa Pod Raceway for Dragstalgia in the Slingshot Showdown. The car runs a 454ci Chevy on methanol with cast iron block and Powerglide gearbox. His 8.923 placed him third.