FIA European Finals
Friday (qualifying)
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22:20
Today's pictures are now available; you can get to them from the Event Update index.
Andy Marrs of Santa Pod's timing crew tells us that of 11:22 hours in all today we have had 7:25 of race time, and 3:57 downtime (24 separate pauses for various reasons), and that 507 vehicles have made passes down the track.
Here are the top two qualifiers in all classes which we have not been covering in detail:
Comp Eliminator (index): 1. Bruno Bader -0.583 (7.697/174.07), 2. John Tebenham +0.091 (8.511/156.71)
Super Pro ET (own dial-in): 1. Martyn Jones +0.019 (7.719/170.74), 2. Barry Giles +0.058 (7.748/167.71)
Pro ET (own dial-in): 1. Mats Andersson +0.002 (10.752/122.96), 2. Ray Perkins +0.003 (10.803/120.69)
Sportsman ET (own dial-in): 1. Mick Smith +0.015 (14.515/92.58), 2. Rick Denny 13.797/95.76
Super Comp (8.90): 1. Mark Fairhurst 8.912/146.80, 2. Paul Marston 8.930/160.84
Super Gas (9.90): 1. Peter Lane 9.902/141.12, 2. Dave Townsend 9.915/136.67
Super Street (10.90): 1. Conrad Stanley 10.908/128.99, 2. Leigh Morris 10.941/117.93
Junior Dragster (reaction time): 1. Yvonne Bader 0.547, 2. Adam Gleadow 0.557
9.90 Bike: 1. Paul Watson 9.904/133.99, 2. Desmond Mauricia 9.915/133.68
10.90 Bike: 1. Darren Winnard 10.907/127.52, 2. Glenn Randles 10.993/123.75
A special mention must be made of the naughtiness which is going on in 9.90 Bike where a number of Super Street Bike riders are merrily breaking out. Graham Dance, currently bottom qualifier with a 1.225-second breakout, is the finest exponent so far this weekend although that is his best run, at one point he was a whole second and a half below!
For the benefit of our readers outside the UK here is a run-down of how your fellow countrymen are faring:
BELGIUM
Patrick van Hal #3 in Super Comp 8.942/165.38
FRANCE
Jean Dulamon #3 in Comp Eliminator +0.172; Patrick Dubois #10 in Super Comp 9.126/124.25; Eric Angeloni #13 in Super Comp 8.899/134.43
GERMANY
Jan Hardekopf #14 in Super Gas 10.053/131.53
GREECE
Filippos Papafilippou #9 in Pro ET +0.042 (11.642/112.84); Zman #17 in 10.90 Bike 12.156/118.67
HOLLAND
Floris Hilgerroord #4 in Super Gas 9.920/144.84; Robert Joosten #9 in Super Gas 9.933/137.84; Eric Pellegrom #12 in Super Gas 9.962/133.16; Paul Vrind #15 in Super Gas 10.059/122.63; Desmond Mauricia #2 in 9.90 Bike 9.915/133.68; Hensley Eugenia #13 in 9.90 Bike 10.105/121.43; Abi Jaeobus #18 in 9.90 Bike 10.285/135.14; R Renita #28 in 9.90 Bike 11.172/125.96; Reina Machalon #13 in 10.90 Bike 11.306/125.23
SWEDEN
Joran Persaker #15 in Super Pro ET +1.348 (7.648/174.51); Lina Aberg #4 in Junior Dragster 0.581; Emil Leijer #10 in Junior Dragster 0.701; Robin Lantz #14 in Junior Dragster 0.765
SWITZERLAND
Bruno Bader #1 in Comp Eliminator -0.583; Yvonne Bader #1 in Junior Dragster 0.547
That's all for today. Tune in tomorrow when we'll have had a quick turn round the pits and can bring you the latest news.
21:20
The FIA, FIM and Pro Mod session got going at 5:00 pm but we have had a few hold-ups for sprinkles of rain, oil, and unfortunately an incident at the top end when Freddy Fagerstrom's blown-alcohol Pro Mod pick-up got out of shape and hit the guardrail just after the finish line. Freddy is fine and we understand that the truck is not too badly damaged.
FIM/UEM Pro Stock Bike qualifying session 2
Michal Ponca broke, Anders Larsson 7.51/177.16, Oivind von Essen broke, Helen Curran 7.96/161.77, Martin Newbury 9.26/144.67, Ray Debben 8.62/151.04, Martin Bishop 7.94/164.62, Nick Pepper 7.77/165.10, Janne Antiaien 7.81/163.40, Len Paget 12.13/86.84, Chris Tombleson 7.80/166.04, Chris Hope 7.71/156.91, Roger Pettersson 7.49/175.20, Richard Gipp 8.53/132.60
Pro Stock Bike qualifying standings after session 2:
1. Roger Pettersson 7.497/175.20
2. Anders Larsson 7.513/177.16
3. Chris Hope 7.573/172.78
4. Oivind von Essen 7.637/175.92
5. Nick Pepper 7.775/165.10
6. Chris Tombleson 7.806/166.04
7. Janne Antiaien 7.816/163.46
8. Martin Bishop 7.941/164.63
9. Richard Gipp 7.947/163.66
10. Helen Curran 7.967/161.77
11. Ray Debben 8.494/154.16
12. Martin Newbury 9.260/144.67
13. Michal Ponca 11.022/116.51
14. Len Paget 12.130/86.84
FIA Pro Stock qualifying session 2
Jacob Ferrer 7.06/194.76, Christer Andersson 7.24/189.86, Michael Malmgren 7.01/194.64, Kenneth Soderstrom 7.30/186.35, Jan Muren 8.54/114.32, Jari Konola 7.21/190.28
Pro Stock qualifying standings after session 2:
1. Michael Malmgren 7.017/196.84
2. Jacob Ferrer 7.036/194.53
3. Jan Muren 7.125/192.59
4. Christer Andersson 7.209/190.52
5. Jari Konola 7.210/190.28
6. Kenneth Soderstrom 7.305/186.35
FIA Top Methanol Funny Car qualifying session 2
Urs Erbacher 5.84/243.77, Micke Kagered 8.29/110.58, Steph Milam 6.89/216.46, Arvid Grodem 6.59/223.68, Leif Helander 6.02/231.95, Jorg Johnsson no time recorded, Ulf Leanders 13.60/66.87, Leif Andreasson 6.38/162.14
Top Methanol Funny Car standings after session 2:
1. Urs Erbacher 5.832/240.36
2. Micke Kagered 5.902/226.89
3. Leif Helander 6.021/234.66
4. Lex Joon 6.115/188.61
5. Ulf Leanders 6.182/232.10
6. Leif Andreasson 6.386/162.14
7. Arvid Grodem 6.397/223.68
8. Jorg Johnsson 6.829/182.68
9. Steph Milam 6.890/216.46
FIM/UEM Supertwin Top Fuel Bike qualifying session 2
Erik Nielsen 8.26/115.74, Svein Gottenberg 7.87/161.07, Ronny Aasen 7.71/137.13. The other four times for this session were blurred by rain on our notebook but tune back and we will put in the full standings soon.
Supertwin Top Fuel Bike standings after session 2:
1. Per Bengtsson 6.796/182.60
2. Ton Pels 6.981/193.75
3. Svein Gottenberg 7.615/173.90
4. Ronny Aasen 7.717/137.13
5. Kai Selkamaa 7.866/140.79
6. Erik Nielsen 7.914/164.18
7. Rob van Geffen 8.084/130.72
8. Jamie Millership 8.881/160.10
9. Anders Karling 11.808/64.32
NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified qualifying session 3
Patrick Wikstrom 11.10, Freddy Fagerstrom 6.71/183.38, Bert Englefield 10.44/92.15, Roger Johansson 6.51/208.94, John Ellis 7.35/169.44, Hakan Nilsson 14.67/53.57, Henri Joosten 8.20/109.77, Stefan Pettersson 6.98/199.03, Jallo Makimaa 6.84/200.59, Robert Koper 8.56/141.26, Thomas Nataas 7.27/139.55, Andy Robinson 6.64/203.14
Pro Modified standings after session 3:
1. Roger Johansson 6.517/208.94
2. Freddy Fagerstrom 6.557/213.12
3. Thomas Nataas 6.586/206.30
4. Patrick Wikstrom 6.612/212.82
5. Andy Robinson 6.624/207.55
6. Jallo Makimaa 6.836/201.20
7. Henri Joosten 6.966/196.35
8. Stefan Pettersson 6.969/198.97
9. Micke Lindahl 7.188/190.63
10. John Ellis 7.356/169.44
11. Robert Koper 8.031/151.60
12. Bert Englefield 10.446/92.15
13. Hakan Nilsson 13.957/56.86
FIA Top Fuel Dragster qualifying session 1
Peter Lantz 5.05/no speed recorded, Darryl Bradford broke, Micke Kagered 5.21/265.45, Susanne Callin 5.40/226.10, Tommy Moller 11.29/70.73, Barry Sheavills 6.91/114.77, Kim Reymond 11.73/69.14
Top Fuel standings after session 1:
1. Peter Lantz 5.055/no speed recorded
2. Micke Kagered 5.214/265.45
3. Susanne Callin 5.406/226.10
4. Barry Sheavills 6.913/114.77
5. Tommy Moller 11.298/70.73
6. Kim Reymond 11.736/69.14
Fuel Funny Car qualifying session 1
John Spuffard 11.74/73.70, Gordon Smith 7.58/114.40
Fuel Funny Car qualifying after session 1:
1. Gordon Smith 7.585/114.40
2. John Spuffard 11.743/73.70
FIM/UEM Comp Bike qualifying session 2
Paul Knapp 8.22/151.42, Sarah Jane Head broke, Nils Ole Lund 7.17/178.59, Shaun Branch 7.67/170.47, Neil Midgley 8.35/166.78, Gary Jones 10.31/87.16, Eric Teboul shut off, Neil Diggens 8.11/138.28, Ken Cooper 7.87/125.43, Tim Blakemore 7.13/182.94, Mike Chislett 8.23/172.72, Martyn de Haas 12.67/100.98, Jon Leret 13.26/62.10, Jean-Claude Draperi 11.14/88.61
Comp Bike qualifying after session 2:
1. Sverre Dahl 6.309/213.95
2. Roel Koedam 6.568/212.11
3. Jon Leret 6.770/199.59
4. Tim Blakemore 7.130/182.94
5. Nils Ole Lund 7.176/178.59
6. Mike Chislett 7.488/172.38
7. Shaun Branch 7.499/174.30
8. Eric Teboul 7.590/136.63
9. Neil Midgley 7.648/165.59
10. Dave Holland 7.664/162.42
11. Ken Cooper 7.877/125.43
12. Neil Diggens 8.011/172.62
13. Paul Knapp 8.228/151.42
14. Jean-Claude Draperi 8.578/144.36
15. Gary Jones 9.030/120.89
16. Sarah Jane Head 9.512/129.11
17. Martyn de Haas 12.670/100.98
FIA Top Methanol Dragster qualifying session 2
No cars appeared for this session.
Top Methanol Dragster standings after session 2:
1. Rob Turner 5.666/244.15
2. Peter Schofer 5.667/239.98
3. Lindsay Deuchar 12.443/58.84
Tune back for the top two qualifiers in the classes which we are not covering in details, plus today's pictures which we are now working on.
15:20
NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified qualifying session 2
Roger Johansson 6.83/205.22, Patrick Wikstrom 6.61/212.82, Bert Englefield 11.62/67.24, Stefan Pettersson 6.96/198.97, John Ellis 9.21/142.58, Robert Koper 8.03/151/60, Henri Joosten 6.96/196.35, Andy Robinson 6.62/207.55, Jallo Makimaa 6.83/201.20, Freddy Fagerstrom 6.55/213.12, Micke Lindahl broke, Thomas Nataas 6.58/206.30
Freddy cemented his lead, whilst Thomas Nataas and Patrick Wikstrom overtook Andy Robinson even though he improved too. This was my first look at Bert Englefield's new car and it is very nice indeed, looks even better trailing a hundred feet of burnout smoke! Micke Lindahl broke after his burnout, the car stranded on the track whilst Freddy put in his pass.
After session 2, NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified stands as follows:
1. Freddy Fagerstrom 6.557/213.12
2. Thomas Nataas 6.586/206.30
3. Patrick Wikstrom 6.612/212.82
4. Andy Robinson 6.624/207.55
5. Roger Johansson 6.831/205.22
6. Jallo Makimaa 6.836/201.20
7. Henri Joosten 6.966/196.35
8. Stefan Pettersson 6.969/198.97
9. Micke Lindahl 7.188/190.63
10. Robert Koper 8.031/151.60
11. John Ellis 9.211/142.58
12. Bert Englefield 11.623/67.24
13. Hakan Nilsson 13.957/56.86
14:55
FIA Pro Stock qualifying session 1
Kenneth Soderstrom 7.35/183.94, Christer Andersson 7.20/190.52, Jari Konola 8.43/118.11, Magnus Hansson no time recorded, Jacob Ferrer 7.03/194.53, Jan Muren 7.12/192.59, Michael Malmgren 7.01/196.84
Still a very stiff headwind here. Jari Konola rode out a wicked swerve, keeping the car in his own lane. Meanwhile in the other lane Magnus Hansson left before the lights ran, and then all of a sudden the car started to trail smoke, eventually disappearing in a huge cloud as we all held our breath. The car was stopped in the shutdown area but the engine would not shut down, seemingly stuck on full throttle. We'll let you know what gives as soon as we hear.
After session 1, FIA Pro Stock stands as follows:
1. Michael Malmgren 7.017/196.84
2. Jacob Ferrer 7.036/194.53
3. Jan Muren 7.125/192.59
4. Christer Andersson 7.209/190.52
5. Kenneth Soderstrom 7.335/183.94
6. Jari Konola 8.431/118.11
FIA Top Methanol Dragster qualifying session 1
Lindsay Deuchar 12.44/58.84, Rob Turner 5.66/244.15, Peter Schofer 5.66/239.98
Lindsay's dragster crept off the line and he was only on the throttle for a very short time. One cylinder was out but there were no obvious problems. Both Rob Turner and Peter Schofer put in hard, straight passes and only a thousandth of a second apart.
After session 1, FIA Top Methanol Dragster stands as follows:
1. Rob Turner 5.666/244.15
2. Peter Schofer 5.667/239.98
3. Lindsay Deuchar 12.443/58.84
Next up is the second round of NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified qualifying, stay tuned.
14:45
FIM/UEM Comp Bike qualifying session 1
Jean-Claude Draperi 8.57/144.36, Jon Leret 6.77/199.59, Roel Koedam 6.56/212.11, Martyn de Haas broke, Sverre Dahl 6.30/213.95, Mike Chislett 7.48/172.38, Ken Cooper 8.37/98.97, Tim Blakemore shut off, Dave Holland 7.66/162.42, Eric Teboul 7.59/136.63, Neil Diggens 8.01/172.62, Gary Jones 9.03/120.89, Shaun Branch 7.49/174.30, Neil Midgley 7.64/165.59, Nils Ole Lund broke, Sarah Jane Head 9.51/129.11, Paul Knapp 8.73/141.32
This session took place into a stiff headwind and we were mightily impressed with Roel Koedam's pass until Sverre Dahl stepped up to the plate! Tim Blakemore was shut off on the line for a fluid leak whilst Nils Ole Lund broke off the line.
After session 1, FIM/UEM Comp Bike stands as follows:
1. Sverre Dahl 6.309/213.95
2. Roel Koedam 6.568/212.11
3. Jon Leret 6.770/199.59
4. Mike Chislett 7.488/172.38
5. Shaun Branch 7.499/174.30
6. Eric Teboul 7.590/136.63
7. Neil Midgley 7.648/165.59
8. Dave Holland 7.664/164.42
9. Neil Diggens 8.011/172.62
10. Ken Cooper 8.372/98.97
11. Jean-Claude Draperi 8.578/144.36
12. Paul Knapp 8.732/141.32
13. Gary Jones 9.030/120.89
14. Sarah Jane Head 9.512/129.11
14:20
FIA Top Methanol Funny Car qualifying session 1
Dennis Wratten broke, Steph Milam 8.46/161.00, Arvid Grodem 6.80/206.93, Leif Helander 6.02/234.66, Jorgen Johnsson 6.82/182.68, Ulf Leanders 6.18/232.10, Leif Andreasson 11.39/68.54, Urs Erbacher 5.83/240.36, Lex Joon 6.11/188.61, Micke Kagered 5.90/226.89
Dennis Wratten's FC broke off the line. Urs Erbacher has been running 5.8s more or less all season and makes it look very easy. Leif Andreasson hit bad tyre shake almost immediately, pedalled but the FC wasn't having any of it so Leif got off the throttle. Lex Joon was off the throttle at about 900 feet. A certain amount of baselining going on here too I think.
After session 1, FIA Top Methanol Funny Car stands as follows:
1. Urs Erbacher 5.832/240.36
2. Micke Kagered 5.902/226.89
3. Leif Helander 6.021/234.66
4. Lex Joon 6.115/188.61
5. Ulf Leanders 6.182/232.10
6. Arvid Grodem 6.801/206.93
7. Jorg Johnsson 6.829/182.68
8. Steph Milam 8.462/161.00
9. Leif Andreasson 11.395/68.54
14:10
FIM/UEM Supertwin Top Fuel Bike qualifying
Per Bengtsson 6.83/190.95, Ton Pels 6.98/193.75, Anders Karling 11.80/64.32, Svein Gottenberg 7.61/173.90, Rob van Geffen 11.53/72.50, Ronny Aasen 8.62/108.07, Kai Selkamaa broke, Erik Nielsen 7.91/164.18
A very nice pairing between Per Bengtsson and Ton Pels, side-by-side sixes and both bikes looking very strong. Anders Karling's bike blew off its inlet manifold at about 300 feet on his pass. Kai Selkamaa's bike is now carrying sponsor colours, the bike unfortunately broke before the burnout.
After session 1, FIM/UEM Supertwin Top Fuel Bike stands as follows:
1. Per Bengtsson 6.831/190.95
2. Ton Pels 6.981/193.75
3. Svein Gottenberg 7.615/173.90
4. Erik Nielsen 7.914/164.18
5. Ronny Aasen 8.623/108.07
6. Rob van Geffen 11.530/72.50
7. Anders Karling 11.808/64.32
14:05
NDRS Bilsport Pro Mod qualifying session 1
Stefan Pettersson 7.00/198.53, John Ellis broke, Robert Koper 8.51/141.24, Andy Robinson 6.69/201.01, Jallo Makimaa no time recorded, Thomas Nataas 7.09/182.97, Freddy Fagerstrom 6.62/204.51, Micke Lindahl 7.18/190.63, Roger Johansson 6.86/205.39, Patrik Wikstrom 7.77/113.59, Hakan Nilsson 13.95/56.86
This session was interrupted by a very brief rain shower. John Ellis broke on the burnout, the revs went up but the tyres weren't turning. Jallo Makimaa left before the lights ran. The match-up between Patrick Wikstrom and Hakan Nilsson promised a lot, but Patrick's parachute came out at about 100 feet, and the track crew were picking pieces of Hakan's drivetrain up after the run.
After session 1, NDRS Bilsport Pro Mod stands as follows:
1. Freddy Fagerstrom 6.620/204.51
2. Andy Robinson 6.694/201.01
3. Roger Johansson 6.861/205.39
4. Stefan Pettersson 7.002/198.53
5. Thomas Nataas 7.093/182.97
6. Micke Lindahl 7.188/190.63
7. Patrick Wikstrom 7.770/113.59
8. Robert Koper 8.519/141.24
9. Hakan Nilsson 13.957/56.86
14:00
FIM/UEM Pro Stock Bike qualifying session 1
Martin Newbury 13.78/66.75, Helen Curran 7.96/163.02, Nick Pepper 7.78/170.96, Ray Debben 8.49/154.16, Martin Bishop 8.19/148.56, Chris Hope 7.57/172.78, Janne Antiaien 7.87/150.51, Richard Gipp 7.94/163.66, Chris Tombleson 7.83/166.23, Anders Larsson 7.59/174.76, Roger Pettersson 7.52/175.27, Oivind von Essen 7.63/175.92, Michal Ponca 11.02/116.57
This session took place under gloomy skies and I would say that there were a lot of baseline passes here. The bump spot is down to 8.197 after one session and it's headed lower yet. After session 1 Pro Stock Bike stands as follows:
1. Roger Pettersson 7.521/175.27
2. Chris Hope 7.573/172.78
3. Anders Larsson 7.592/174.76
4. Oivind von Essen 7.637/175.92
5. Chris Tombleson 7.835/166.23
6. Janne Antiaien 7.874/150.51
7. Richard Gipp 7.947/163.66
8. Martin Bishop 8.197/148.56
9. Ray Debben 8.494/154.16
10. Michal Ponca 11.022/116.51
11. Martin Newbury 13.780/66.75
9:00
Good morning and welcome from Santa Pod Raceway. It's the end of the European Championship season and we're here to bring you all the news in association with American Car Imports. It's a bright and breezy morning, the track is looking just great and the pits are heaving.
We realise that there are a lot of you stuck in offices today relying on us to alleviate the boredom, so we will do everything we can to get results to you quickly. On that subject a big Hello and a special message to Lynda, Michaela, Natalia and Malcolm in 1 Horseguards: Got power?
A few other Hellos before we get going. Hans of Henri Joosten's Pro Mod team has also asked us to say Hello to Liesbeth; Lex Joon says Hello to his son Martyn; a big Hello to Nikki Pilkington; and Hello to all the fans in Greece and Malta who are tuned in this weekend.
Track announcer John Price has asked us to say a big Thank You to the Brachtvogel family, who have presented him with a Jaguar Drivers Club car badge which the late Alex Brachtvogel found and intended to give to John.
One of the great pleasures of the FIA European Finals is coming to the track the afternoon before the race starts and taking in the atmosphere as racers arrive and get pitted up and organised. Your reporter arrived here at 5:30 yesterday afternoon and it took him no less than six hours to get not even halfway down the Pro pits. So here is what we found out last night, in the order in which we met the racers concerned.
Top Methanol Funny Car racer Leif Helander believes that he has found the cause of the problem which has been following him around Europe this season: some of the blower pressure was going into the oil pan, not into the cylinders. "We lost seven pounds of pressure in Finland", said Leif. "In Hockenheim we blew up the oil pan and we discovered the problem. Before that the sixty-foot times were bad so we were working with the clutch, but then we found out that the pressure was leaking through the manifold. I've only made two runs this year when everything worked properly, and those were at the Main Event, so effectively we are back to square one". Leif and the Kaxig-sponsored team worked on the motor and the clutch before leaving Hockenheim, and then left their rig in England for this race. Leif told us that the TMFC is now for sale. "If we run well this weekend then someone may want to buy it!", he said. Leif revealed that the reason for the sale is that he is hoping to put together a Fuel Funny Car for 2003.
Switzerland's Urs Erbacher and his Quaker State-sponsored TMFC team have given the car a routine service since the Nitrolympics. "We put in new springs, freshened the heads, and I cut my hair!", said Urs ("Not very much" observed your reporter). Urs feels that he has had a good year although it got off to a bad start. "We came to the private test and it was rained out, we spent time finding the set-up with our new stuff", he said. "But it has gone right since then".
Lex Joon comes to Santa Pod with a shot at the FIA European Championship. The week got off to a good start with a new track record of 4.1 seconds for the eighth-mile at Drachten. "If we had another run, it would have been a three", said team member Gerda. "Usually at this time of year we look to see where in the top ten we are going to finish in the Championship, but we have come here with a chance of the Championship! When was the last time that a non-Swede won it I wonder?".
Just along the TMFC pits, Ulf Leanders was showing off a revolutionary new rear fin on his TMFC body. There are no spill plates on the back of the body, instead there is one upright fin running down the middle of the rear deck (we'll endeavour to get a picture for you). "It works very well", said Ulf. "We tried it in Germany. It's there for stability, and it certainly looks different!". The Leanders Brothers team have fixed all the damage caused in Norway when the FC got out of shape and ran into the timing equipment at the top end - that equipment including a battery secured by steel plates - with results which you can imagine. "The body is barely fixed", said Ulf. "It's not pretty but it's OK. We had to put in two new tubes under the engine, and a new front wheel and tyre. The worst damage was to the chassis two feet in front of my foot". The car is carrying sponsorship from CC Systems, who provide computers for industrial applications.
The Turner Racing Top Methanol Dragster team have put a new carbon fibre injector hat on their dragster. "It might not ice up so much" said crew member Ricky, who is one of the famous Turner Racing de-icer relay team which has lately numbered three.
Next door, American Car Imports Racing TMD owner Anthony Cohen revealed that a story we had been told about the team last week was not a wind-up (we thought it was, which is why we didn't publish it at the time). The story in question is that the ACI TMD will not be running today because driver Dave Wilson's daughter Anne is getting married. "It was all arranged a year ago when everyone thought that the race would be next weekend", said Anthony. With the FIA Championship close we asked Anthony what he would think if it were to rain on Saturday resulting in Dave not qualifying. "If the season ended now I would be very satisfied and so would the crew", he said. "The only thing which is stopping us from running 5.40s is that we are overpowering the track between one and one and a half seconds into every run. It just needs a bit of fine tuning."
The Showtime Fuel Funny Car team have three complete engines at their disposal this weekend as they look to secure the 2002 British Nitro FC Championship. "We marked the crank at the Fallnationals", said driver John Spuffard, "but we took it out and polished it and everything is OK". Crew Chief Bob Jarrett is seeing engines in his sleep having spent the last few days building them. "We did some bearing damage at the Fallnationals so we hooked that engine out and put in another - it was easier", said Bob. "The engine now in the car is the one which was damaged at Shakespeare County Raceway in May". Bob said that the Showtime team would dial-in their standard baseline tune-up for this evening's qualifying session, which should net them a 5.3-second pass.
The Showtime team have the very latest Chrysler Grand Voyager as their tow/service vehicle this weekend. It has been supplied by Myltons of Bedford who provide a vehicle to the team for every race. Karen of Myltons showed us around the vehicle which has the best of everything including self-opening doors and tailgate, and a Playstation 2/DVD player with drop-down screen. It is the sort of vehicle which a generous Chrysler dealer might well loan to a drag racing journalist as a mobile office for a weekend if we said enough nice things about them, don't you think so guys?
Top Methanol Dragster racer Lindsay Deuchar is fighting a cylinder pressure problem. "We've made the best of a bad job", he said. "I can tell you what it isn't, but I can't tell you what it is! We also think that we may have a dead mag, and we have our spare set of heads on after valve train damage. We've got a Pro Mag which we have to get working, but first we have to get in a pass to get into the field."
Michael Malmgren and the AC Delco Racing Pro Stock team are quietly confident with their Championship lead going into this race. "The car is fine", said crew member Magnus Cato. "We hurt our engine O'bej at Mantorp so we swapped to the number two short block which has proven better for terminal speeds. Hopefully we will run two hundred this weekend although that is not the main aim of course. We won't be trying anything silly, of course". The team had their traditional bus trouble coming to Santa Pod, a broken throttle linkage which the team fixed with a piece of electrical conduit.
A few pit bays down, we were advised not to pop into Jari Konola's Pro Stock pit as the team were busy. Given Jari and Sussie's recent nuptials we naturally assumed that it was one of those "If the trailer's rockin'..." moments, but we understand that an engine seized on the warm-up and that a spare was being put in place. Jari has reportedly sold the Dodge Avenger to a Swedish Comp Eliminator racer. We will pop back and see him when things are less fraught to get the whole story.
Fellow Pro Stock racer Kenneth Soderstrom didn't run at Hockenheim because of electrical and chassis problems, his crew chief Hakan told us. "There were a lot of small faults, but we think that the car will run well this weekend", he said.
Top Methanol FC racer Leif Andreasson is in experimental mode this weekend in the Kamasa Tools-backed Camaro. "We are so far behind in the Championship that we're just trying things out to see how fast we go", said crew member Anders Magnusson. "We're putting new cylinder heads on, and replaced the clutch pack. We have a whole new combination to try out."
Top Fuel Dragster Championship leader Kim Reymond has a new block in the USA Autodele car. "This block has come from Tony Schumacher", said Kim. "We don't want to break any more of those!". Kim doesn't have a particular game plan to secure the number one plate. "It's difficult to make a plan in drag racing", he said. "We will start slow, check things out and then go for gold! If we qualify first then we will have a lead of two rounds. As long as we win then I am not worried about the ETs we run. We know how to run 5.0s, so a good reaction time will do it."
Steph and Dave Milam think that their She Devil Top Methanol FC will go much quicker than the 6.7-second pass which Steph recoreded at Shakespeare County Raceway two weekends ago. "On the 6.79 Steph was on and off the throttle", said Dave. "We're convinced that it has a lot more in it. We are stepping the blower up, and the clutch should hold the extra power. We are trying to be cautious, but we have to step it up to get into the field in this race."
Pro Mod racer Patrick Wikstrom comes to this race one point behind NDRS Bilsport Pro Mod Series leader Hakan Nilsson. "It would be good if the title was decided in the final round as long as we win!", he said. Patrick is taking the points chase so seriously that he had some bad news for us on the burnout front. "I love doing the long burnouts but I don't want to lose the championship", he said. "Long burnouts mean that the engine is on high revs for too long", added crew member Krister Pettersson. "In any case this track is so good that it is difficult."
Vincent Pels, crew chief of Ton Pels' Zodiac Racing Supertwin Top Fuel Bike, told us that the engine has not had to be taken out of the frame at all this season. "It's the same rods and the same bearings all season", he said. "All we break now is little stuff. We had a faulty tyre at Hockenheim which was making it go out of shape, and on one run dad hit the timing lights. We put the old tyre back on it and it went straight."
It's a Dutch enclave in one part of the pits as a number of their Supertwin Top Fuel and Pro Mod racers are pitted together. Pro Mod racer Henri Joosten is awaiting a pretty crucial spare part before he can qualify tomorrow - the engine. There is a big gap in the front of the car whilst the team await their repaired motor which is coming here with one of the Swedish Pro Mod racers. "We want to run tomorrow so we have to wait for the engine to arrive and then we will put it straight in", said one of Henri's crew signalling a late night for the team. "Henri can always drive it in Fred Flintstone style" suggested Ton Pels.
Funny Bike racer Shaun Branch, who is running in FIM Comp Bike this weekend, is quite pleased with the outcome of the changes which he tested out at Wednesday's press day. "The new clutch is working", he said, "and now I'm fiddling with the fuel system. The clutch locked up on the second pass and pulled the revs down. So I am giving it more boost - we need more horsepower to win the national championship. If we lose it I'm going down fighting! Shaun has had a TV crew with him this week following him in his day job and riding the bike.
Junior Dragster racers Charlotte and Tom Watts also have a TV crew with them today, filming for a programme called 'Inside Out' which is to be screened on BBC1. "They came to our house to film us racing our bikes in the street and they bought us ice cream!", said Charlotte.
Qualifying is about to start. The first FIA, FIM and Pro Mod session is scheduled to start at 11:00, tune back a while after that and we'll bring you all the news from that session.