2004 Easter Thunderball
Monday (eliminations)

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20:20

Today's pictures are now posted, you can view them via the Event Index page.

That's the end of our Easter Thunderball coverage, thank you very much for tuning in. Your reporter this weekend was Tog of Eurodragster.com, and your photographer was Sharkman of Eurodragster.com.

For their help this weekend we would like to thank Race Director Darren Prentice; Chief Marshal Steve Horn; Martin Wallis, John Hackney and Andy Marrs of Santa Pod's timing crew; Chief Starter Ian Marshall and the start line crew; Chief Fire Marshal John Cross and the safety crew; track announcers John Price and Graham Beckwith; Paula Marshall; Paul Venners; Spencer Tramm; Dave Alexander; David Anniwell; Kjell Pettersson; and David Lloyd-Jones. A big Thank You to Team Botch, Dan Buzzo, Lex Joon and Gerda Dijkstra, Martin and Ruth Curbishley, Doug and Jane Ripley and the Coffee and Pizza wagons for hospitality over the weekend.

Our next Event Coverage will be from the Webster Race Engineering Test Day here at Santa Pod on Saturday 24th April.

This weekend's Event Coverage has been brought to you in association with American Car Imports.

18:05

Final results

Pro Fuel Shootout: Andy Carter 5.049/290.75 def. Lex Joon 5.046/280.95
Top Methanol: Rob Turner 5.635/242.07 def. Doug Ripley 7.021/189.80
Super Modified: Rob Smallworth 8.030/172.89 def. Andy Kirk 8.328/160.03
Super Pro ET: Ian Tubb (7.73) 7.806/154.10 def. Derek Flynn (8.40) 8.643/143.39
Pro ET: Rick McCann (10.49) 10.520/130.83 def. Carl Burton (10.99) 10.983/121.90
Sportsman ET: Matt Glassup (14.07) 14.156/98.29 def. Linda Platt (12.80) 12.770/110.08
Super Comp: Paul Ingar Udtian 9.066/116.22 def. Colin Aldred 9.609/135.90
Super Gas: Conrad Stanley 9.970/120.30 def. Malcolm Francis 9.975/141.44
Super Street: Lee Huxley 10.676/123.63, Mark Watkins broke
Junior Dragster: Collin Morrice (9.04) 9.107/71.32 def. Andrew Herron (15.50) 15.248/40.31
Custom Car Street Eliminator: Andy Frost 8.459/166.09 was unopposed
VW Pro: Ant Lockyer (12.60) 12.907/102.25 def. Justin Aldred (11.20) 11.315/108.72
VW Sportsman: Mick Geraghty (15.40) 15.113/80.32 def. Amy Homewood (20.40) 20.090/65.48
VW Alternate Engine: Spencer Tramm (9.20) 9.222/137.92 def. Matt Attwood (13.16) 13.259/101.58

Top Fuel Bike: Steve Carey 8.155/156.26 was unopposed
Funny Bike: Neil Midgley 7.195/182.29 def. Paul Knapp 7.267/182.23
Pro Stock Bike: Dave Beck 7.517/148.05 def. Tony Clark 8.053/163.10
Comp Bike: TJ O'Brien 8.000/157.15 def. Vaughan Foster 9.816/106.64
Super Street Bike: Graham Dance 8.108/166.83 def. Mark Fisher 8.446/171.89
9.90 Bike: Fred Furlong 9.917/111.89 def. Paul Coombs broke
10.90 Bike: John Hackney 10.790/117.11 def. Andy Bird 10.464/123.64

Martin Hill followed the Pro Fuel Shootout with a 6.085/237.67 in the Fireforce 2 Jet FC, Martin went with the lights and clocked a tremendous 0.038 reaction time.

If you were tuned in this morning you will have noticed a long break in our coverage and webcam service, the reason being that Funny Bike racer Sarah Jane Head was involved in a high-speed crash at the top end. As regular readers know Eurodragster will not say anything about serious accidents until we get official word on the condition of the racer involved. The official word is that after her crash Scary was stabilised and airlifted to hospital, where she is now being treated for multiple injuries. We are sure that everyone will wish Scary all the very best for a rapid recovery. As soon as we hear any more we will of course let you know.

We're now working on today's pictures, stay tuned.

17:10

Pro Fuel Shootout final

Andy Carter 5.049/290.75 def. Lex Joon 5.046/280.95

Under the rules of the Pro Fuel Shootout, if no Fuel FCs can make the final then the second-qualified Top Fueller comes in and first to the finish line is the winner. With both Shockwave and Showtime out of commission Lex Joon got the call in the MPM Oil dragster. Just for fun Lex added a C to the TF on his rear wing. Solid burnouts from both racers, I noticed that both teams now have gloved crew members to clean the rear slicks after the burnout.

Andy was away first, 0.110 to 0.143, 0.889 to sixty feet to Lex's 0.913. The GoTalk dragster went straight down the left lane whilst the MPM Oil dragster was weaving left and right, leaving shake tracks but Lex stayed with it. Andy got to the finish line first and won by dint of his holeshot, Lex's car went left again at the stripe and he actually just crossed the centre line past the finish, the cars seemed very close together from here. There was a flash and a lot of smoke from Lex's engine in the shutdown area, the fire crews chased Lex down. We hear that there are a lot of pieces to pick up in the shutdown area but that Lex is A-OK.

That's 3-2 to the Top Fuellers, and two for Andy Carter. Congratulations to Andy on his win and to Lex for a very competent début.

16:55

Top Methanol final

Rob Turner 5.635/242.07 def. Doug Ripley 7.021/189.80

A pair of great runs, Rob Turner went straight and true, Doug was hauling but the car headed for the centre line so he pedalled briefly then got back on the throttle, a new PB and so close to the sixes.

Top Fuel Bike final

Steve Carey 8.155/156.26 was unopposed

Steve Woollatt had no back brake so he didn't make the call. Steve Carey launched very strongly but the bike drifted left so he feathered the throttle.

Next up is the Pro Fuel Shootout final and what is Lex Joon doing with TFC on his rear wing...

16:30

Super Street Bike round 3 winners: Graham Dance 8.348/161.83, Mark Fisher 8.457/172.32

Custom Car Street Eliminator round 3 winners: Andy Frost 8.574/165.45 bye. Wayne Saunders did not start and Ian Jackson broke, so Andy Frost has won CCSE, congratulations Andy!

9.90 Bike round 4 winners: Fred Furlong 10.021/125.60, Paul Coombs 10.297/116.58

10.90 Bike round 4 winners: Andy Bird 10.921/125.32, John Hackney 10.832/124.62 bye

Junior Dragster round 3 winners: Collin Morrice (9.05) 9.100/71.52 bye, Andrew Herron (15.30) 15.622/38.89

VW Sportsman round 4 winners: Any Homewood (20.20) 20.712/62.39, Michael Geraghty (15.30) 15.632/81.68

VW Pro round 4 winners: Ant Lockyer (12.60) 12.772/87.90, Justin Aldred (11.20) 11.444/108.43

Sportsman ET round 3 winners: Linda Platt (12.80) 12.828/109.26, Matthew Glassup (14.05) 14.117/97.56

16:05

Pro ET round 4 winners: Carl Burton (10.99) 10.986/121.98, Rick McCann (10.50) 10.486/130.11

16:00

VW Alternate Engine round 2 winners: Spencer Tramm (9.25) 9.321/126.79, Matt Attwood (13.32) 13.383/101.52

Super Comp round 2 winners: Colin Aldred 15.765/83.80 bye, Paul Ingar Udtian 8.935/120.32

Super Pro ET round 3 winners: Derek Flynn (8.40) 13.198/62.93, Ian Tubb (7.70) 7.757/174.55 bye

Super Mod round 3 winners: Rob Smallworth 8.047/163.36, Andy Kirk 13.156/63.64 bye

Super Street round 3 winners: Lee Huxley 10.997/119.36, Mark Watkins 10.858/118.13

Super Gas round 3 winners: Conrad Stanley 9.949/135.95 bye, Malcolm Francis 9.945/142.35

15:45

Comp Bike round 2 winners: TJ O'Brien 8.057/156.75, Vaughan Foster 8.496/148.11

Pro Stock Bike round 2 winners: Dave Beck 7.393/177.03 bye, Tony Clark 7.933/164.81

15:40

Super Street Bike round 2 winners: Graham Dance 8.192/175.71, Steve Venables 8.501/169.21, Matt Nixon 8.522/166.66, Mark Fisher 8.519/172.57

9.90 Bike round 2 winners: Paul Coombs 9.942/132.78, Fred Furlong 9.945/127.81, Wayne Hobbs 10.226/116.87, Dave Warren 10.007/138.48

10.90 Bike round 2 winners: Phil Pratt 10.961/122.86, John Hackney 10.832/115.92, Andy Bird 11.014/94.16 bye

Funny Bike round 2 winners: Neil Midgley 7.281/179.28, Paul Knapp 7.278/180.70

15:25

Custom Car Street Eliminator round 2 winners: Wayne Saunders 8.418/158.35, Ian Jackson 8.682/161.81, Andy Frost 8.580/165.47 bye

Pro ET round 3 winners: Carl Burton (11.00) 11.011/120.01, Rick McCann (10.47) 10.515/130.54, Marius Blackburn (9.39) 9.432/140.55

Sportsman ET round 2 winners: Matthew Glassup (14.05) 14.073/98.92, Mark Anderson (12.68) 12.768/105.86, Rick Denny (13.48) 13.600/89.64, Linda Platt (12.82) 12.809/109.73 bye

VW Pro round 2 winners: Ian Dale (12.40) 13.477/96.97, Paul Bate (10.80) 11.204/114.24, Ant Lockyer (12.90) 12.618/104.90 bye, Justin Aldred (11.20) 11.451/108.16 bye

VW Sportsman round 3 winners: Christos Kouzaris (21.30) 21.344/59.85 bye, Amy Homewood 920.20) 20.274/64.65, Mick Geraghty (15.30) 15.513/82.88

15:10

Super Modified round 2 winners: Andy Kirk 8.347/160.21, Mike Sergeant 9.231/147.58, Rob Smallworth 8.409/159.05 bye

Top Fuel Bike round 1 winners: Steve Woollatt 6.475/213.11 bye, Steve Carey 7.750/151.39 bye. A tremendous run from Steve Woollatt, one of the straightest TFB runs I have ever seen. Steve Carey was heading left and feathered the throttle whilst he got the bike straight.

Junior Dragster round 2 winners: Collin Morrice (9.05) 9.143/66.86, Andrew Herron (15.40) 15.390/39.33, Nick Mugridge (11.90) 12.037/50.35

Super Street round 2 winners: Lee Huxley 11.053/115.15, Mike Bentley 10.879/133.17 bye, John Grant 10.923/131.18, Mark Watkins 10.949/121.19

Super Gas round 2 winners: Conrad Stanley 9.924/135.51, Pete Creswell 9.939/147.50 bye, Malcolm Francis 8.901/147.95 bye

14:30

VW Alternate Engine round 1 winners: Andy Raw (14.00) 17.880/77.01, Matt Attwood (13.32) 13.513/92.25, Joe Williams (14.99) 15.494/89.10, Spencer Tramm (9.25) 9.739/113.88

Super Comp round 1 winners: Colin Aldred no time recorded, Malcolm Francis 9.002/134.30, Tim Adam 9.082/145.14, Paul Ingar Udtian 8.974/118.05

Super Pro ET round 2 winners: Ian Tubb (7.70) 7.721/174.57 bye, Steve Saunders (8.89) 8.969/152.50, Derek Flynn (8.40) no time recorded, Steve Johnson (7.47) 21.939/51.89 bye

14:10

Next up after the Pro Fuel Shootout was Eric Teboul on his rocket bike and what a tremendous pass it was, 5.795/200.96 with a half-track of 3.68/217.53. Next up are the VWs, stay tuned.

13:55

The last qualifying round of the Pro Fuel Shootout was contested by Andy Carter, Gordon Smith, Thomas Nataas and Lex Joon and took place with the trackside conditions at 17.7 C, 44% humidity, and 30.30 inches of air pressure.

First up were Andy Carter and Gordon Smith for a TF v FC pairing. Gordon didn't get the revs up at all during his burnout, it sounded as if it had a lot of throttle stop on. Meanwhile Andy Carter's crew were having trouble getting the GoTalk Top Fueller started. One of the race officials frantically signalled Andy's crew not to start the car but just as he was doing so the Fueller's engine burst into life. By this time Gordon was back behind the start line in the Fuel-sponsored FC, there would have been no time for Andy to pull his burnout and get back without the FC overheating so Andy shut down. Gordon pulled into stage, the car sounded as if it was set to kill when the second fuel pump came in. At the hit there was a huge bang, the body briefly lifted, and the pressure relief plate flew into the air accompanied by a few other pieces. Gordon pulled the car to the side of the track about sixty feet out as the start line safety crew sprinted to his aid. Gordon quickly got out of the car to the cheers of the crowd. Amongst other niceties we understand that the blower was split in two.

Thomas Nataas went next, on a single, whilst Andy Carter's engine cooled down. The engine started up, but then Thomas' crew could not detach the starter from its bracket. As the crew frantically tugged this way and that Thomas sat calmly looking down the track, after about a minute Rune Fjeld leaned out the engine.

Whilst Thomas' crew worked on the starter bracket, Andy Carter fired up the GoTalk Fueller again. A nice burnout and then a hard launch, 0.955 sixty feet, Andy hit shake at about 100 feet and pedalled briefly, got back on the throttle and then shut off at about 850 feet, clocking 5.793/172.46. Andy was already in the final of the Pro Fuel Shootout, but this pass confirmed it.

Lex Joon was next in the MPM Oil-sponsored Top Fueller. A great burnout and then a superb run for Lex, 0.901 to sixty feet, 3.377/237.04 at half track and then off the throttle just past half-track with the car moving around a little, 5.606/182.37 and a very happy crew!

Thomas Nataas was next up, a short burnout (understandable given that he burnt some fuel off earlier) then a very creditable 0.168 reaction, 0.983 to sixty feet and blackstriping all the way down with a cylinder out, clocking 5.883/189.13 although it looked much quicker. Just at the finish line there was a flash of flame, and the car trailed white smoke all the way down the shutdown area with the fire crew in hot pursuit. They were very quicly back to their station, though, and there was nothing on the track.

The aggregate times for the Top Fueller are Thomas Nataas 37.547, Lex Joon 26.944 and Andy Carter 16.136, and Gordon Smith and John Spuffard are both on 44.527 for the FCs. With the Showtime team out of contention we guess that Gordon is in the final if the Shockwave team can fix whatever went bang. John Spuffard commented that this was the first time in a very long time that the Showtime team didn't make the last day of an event

13:25

Doug Ripley appeared in today's Top Methanol qualifying session. With the track now nice and warm Doug pulled a great burnout then went for it, a new PB of 7.404/175.74, sounded to us like he feathered the throttle just a little. The team must be ecstatic with the first full run on their new set-up.

Doug was followed by Bert Englefield, running in demonstration in his blown-alcohol Pro Mod this weekend. Bert drove through shake and clocked 6.823/203.83.

Next up is the Pro Fuel Shootout, stay tuned.

13:15

The weather continues to improve with a trackside temperature of 15.7 C, 58% humidity and 30.30 air pressure.

Custom Car Street Eliminator round 1 winners: Ian Jackson 8.982/159.60, Ian Hook 11.049/105.40, Steve Pateman 8.586/167.22, Andy Frost 8.720/159.46, Wayne Saunders 8.333/171.80 bye

VW Pro round 1 winners: Jason Aldred 11.797/106.83 bye, Ken Blomer (9.59) 26.319/24.49 bye, Paul Bate (10.50) 11.636/111.67, Justin Aldred (11.30) 11.531/100.67, Andrew Kelly (12.99) 14.417/79.78 bye, Ian Dale (12.40) 13.464/106.37 bye, Ant Lockyer (12.90) 13.045/96.77 bye

VW Sportsman round 2 winners: Amy Homewood (20.20) 20.221/64.21, Christos Kouzaris (21.30) 21.364/59.04, Graham Fairhead (15.60) 15.792/77.06, Stuart Hinds (16.20) 16.382/77.68, Michael Geraghty (15.30) 15.178/85.91

Pro ET round 2 winners: Marius Blackburn (9.36) 9.428/131.90, John Atkinson (9.30) 9.317/146.10, Carl Burton (11.00) 11.088/120.38, Ian Brown (10.90) 10.895/120.08, Rock McCann (10.53) 10.454/130.77, Gary Springford (11.55) 11.472/118.35

Funny Bike round 1 winners: Neil Midgley staged for bye, Sarah Jane Head 7.243/175.87, Dave Bailey 7.458/177.28, Paul Knapp 7.349/178.49 bye

Comp Bike round 1 winners: Nick Daniels 10.571/104.63, Vaughan Foster 8.899/132.74, TJ O'Brien 8.053/158.45, Phil Leamon 8.314/156.80

Pro Stock Bike round 1 winners: Dave Beck 7.441/174.45, Richard Gipp 7.679/155.76, Tony Clark 8.164/162.99

11:15

10.90 Bike round 1 winners: John Hackney 11.001/114.78, Phil Pratt 11.087/112.26, Dave Burfitt 12.275/56.88, Andy Bird 10.767/91.23, Shaun Spiers 10.580/133.99 bye

Super Modified round 1 winners: Andy Hone 8.316/170.50, Rob Smallworth 8.088/170.37, Mike Sergeant 9.336/147.07, Steve Rawlings 8.094/168.53, Andy Kirk 8.375/161.21 bye. In the race against Andy Hone, Tim Garlick pulled a sky-high wheelie and headed for the centre line, a great driving job kept the car in his lane and back to terra firma. Banzai!

Super Gas round 1 winners: Tim Adam 9.955/131.98, Malcolm Francis 9.891/142.43, Stuart Doignie 9.904/135.97, Conrad Stanley 9.939/135.53, Pete Creswell 10.040/148.54

Super Street round 1 winners: Ian Brown 10.972/118.99, Leigh Morris 11.068/107.93, Mike Bentley 10.885/132.32, Mark Watkins 11.036/120.33, John Grant 10.876/134.84, Bob Lees 10.829/125.74 bye, Lee Huxley 10.717/122.92 bye

11:00

Super Street Bike round 1 winners: Grant Perrin 9.174/160.22, Mark Fisher 8.768/171.17, Pete Bellenie 8.832/157.36, Matt Nixon 9.142/123.97 bye, Steve Venables 8.832/169.18 bye, Graham Dance 8.395/175.64 bye, Richard Stubbins 9.019/152.11, Dave Smith 9.257/154.63 bye

9.90 Bike round 1 winners: Martin Walker 10.398/133.47, Paul Coombs 10.079/131.22, Wayne Hobbs 10.636/113.36, Richard Sawatzki 10.007/113.64, Steve Coombs 10.758/130.34, Fred Furlong 10.197/116.01, Dave Warren 10.259/114.79, Steve Ashby 10.206/117.17

10:35

It's warming up here, nice and sunny, 13.9 C, 67% humidity and 30.27 inches of air pressure.

Sportsman ET round 1 winners: Keith Crampton (13.00) 13.374/97.40, Matthew Glassup (13.98) 14.679/98.01, Nick South (14.05) 14.384/80.94, Mark Anderson (12.68) 12.696/105.88, Rick Denny (13.55) 13.652/86.19, Martin Lewis (15.53) 15.851/84.89, Linda Platt (12.90) 12.853/109.26

Super Pro ET round 1 winners: Steve Johnson (7.50) 7.505/164.87, Pat Talbot (7.68) 7.729/176.35, Mick Kemp (8.39) 8.451/158.42, John Tebenham (8.17) 8.267/162.52 bye, Ian Tubb (7.69) 7.785/173.88 bye, Steve Saunders (8.79) 8.912/152.48, Derek Flynn 8.857/146/60 bye

10:00

VW Sportsman round 1 winners: Graham Fairhead (15.60) 16.224/68.07, Amy Homewood (20.20) 20.243/64.35, Roy Ayton (15.90) 15.870/81.98, Christos Kouzaris (21.30) 21.415/57.60, Stuart Hinds (16.20) 16.334/82.90, Steve Rosier (13.60) 13.801/94.91, Nick Hartwell (14.90) 14.805/87.53, Michael Geraghty (15.30) 16.017/73.14, James Lake (15.00) 15.714/81.53, Chris Baylis (14.43) 14.524/89.29

Junior Dragster round 1 winners: Nick Mugridge (11.90) 12.099/46.11, Matthew Seamarks (15.60) 15.628/39.54, Collin Morrice (9.03) 9.140/72.22, Anna Stanley (13.86) 13.893/44.59, Aidan Heatley-Smith (17.20) 17.276/26.13, Andrew Herron (15.50) 15.438/39.17

Pro ET round 1 winners: Marius Blackburn (9.41) 9.360/141.59 bye, Wayne Hiscock (10.70) 10.697/127.79, Aidan Kenny (11.42) 11.460/116.55, Paul Baynton (11.37) 11.413/119.32, John Atkinson (9.40) 9.320/137.55, Dave Ward (10.17) 10.235/128.95, Gary Springford (11.55) 11.642/108.17, Carl Burton (11.00) 11.039/119.00, Ian Brown (10.80) 10.996/110.27, Darren Hulkes (11.90) 12.067/114.18, Keith Herbert (11.34) 11.379/110.83, Rick McCann (10.59) 10.470/130.39 bye

8:00

Good morning and welcome from Santa Pod Raceway. It's eliminations day at the Easter Thunderball and we're here to bring you all the news in association with American Car Imports.

The Webster Race Engineering/MPM Oil webcam is already on-line and broadcasting a picture every two minutes. You can reach the webcam via the Event Index page.

Right now it's 9.9 C trackside, 75% humidity, and 30.24 inches of air pressure. We have some high cloud but there is a fair bit of blue sky to be seen out there, and the forecast is looking good.

For the first time in 2004 we say a big raceday Hello to our US correspondents Ed O'Connell and Kathy Hileman who are tuned in from Rye, NH. Jaap of Lex Joon's crew has asked us to say Hello to his wife Henriette, and to tell Henriette that he loves her "because she seems to have read everything else on Eurodragster!". Hello also from Lex Joon to his son Martijn, and hi to Jon Best who we know is tuned in - hope you are continuing to enjoy the coverage.

We had another late finish last night but we still managed to find some pits open and racers to talk to, here is what we found out.

Super Pro ET racer Roger Moore almost gave Eurodragster's photographer Sharkman an Andy Willsheer moment as his seven-second Herald lost its prop shaft - it can be clearly seen in the picture of Roger on yesterday's photo gallery. Roger told us that the run started well enough. "It was a very good first second, it was a real flyer", said Roger. "I would have said from the data we have that it was a 7.70. I shifted and there was a bang but I am semi-used to bangs! It wiped out the axle yoke, bent the axle locator, and the engine jammed on the rev limiter. We can't get the bits we need so we are done for this weekend". Roger and brother Dave had a new carb on the engine and had done a lot of work on the intake manifold as well as fitted a new first gear ratio and treated themselves to new slicks.

Top Fuel Dragster racer Andy Carter said that the 4.9/292 yesterday was in there waiting to get out. "All the hard work since my crash in August has come together nicely", said Andy. "We've made two good clean runs with no damage at all. I am a bit rusty on the tree, I am staging the car ely and I did a terrible pedalling job on my first run. Today I'll be better, but after all eight months is a long time to be out of the car". Andy said that his crew is working together very well, with new members and a new assistant Crew Chief. "Ben Allum is working with John Ogden and they work together very effectively", he said. "The whole crew looks good on the start line, the whole package is good but of course it can all change very quickly!". Andy asked us to say a big Thank You and Hello to everyone at sponsor GoTalk and a Well Done to Derek Flynn of sponsor Gold RV who qualified first in Super Pro ET yesterday. "Thanks to Derek for his support - he supplied a new RV this weekend", said Andy. "Thanks also to Lucas Oils, Wynns, NGK, Binamic, Elite Textiles, K & N Filters, Sigma Signs, Rainbow and finally thanks to my super crew - I am looking forward to today!"

Fuel FC racer Gordon Smith said that yesterday's pass tore the clutch out of the Fuel-sponsored car. "The clutch is completely destroyed", he said. "The blower belt broke when I pedalled. The car is back together now, there was no damage to the engine. We want to make the final and we will make the final! And if I get into the final I'll win!". Gordon said that he was impressed by Andy Carter's 4.9 yesterday. "I would like to congratulate Andy and his team for that sort of performance at Easter", he said (to which Andy, who was there, replied "Thanks, I appreciate that"). Gordon asked us to say a big Thank You to Richie Warren of Fuel, Prolong, Autolite, Fram, Abac Compressors, Ringspan, Teng Tools, Bennett's and Loctite, and also asked us to say a special Thanks to his crew.

We're one down on the FC contingent this morning as the Showtime team have had to withdraw after breaking a ring and pinion. "We did try to find facilities to fix it, but you can't find many engineers who want to do that sort of work on Easter Sunday", said driver John Spuffard. Gordon Smith is perforce in the final but he said that he would not be taking it easy in today's qualifier. "We want to put a banger in it", said Gordon.

Super Modified racer Tim Garlick had a wreteched final qualifier. "The line lock gave up the ghost", he said. "I decided in my wisdom to do a rolling burnout and there was a banging noise and a hideous misfire. We found the distributor rotor arm had smashed into the cap. We've sorted the misfire and we are working on the line lock. We'll be back out today."

If you were tuned in yesterday then you will have read that Top Fuel Bike racer Ian King suffered an explosion on his first qualifying pass of the weekend - and indeed the year. It seems that this might also have been Ian's last qualifying pass for some time. "It cross-fired between cylinders", said Ian. "It snapped a camshaft, split the manifold and torched the head. It cut through the studs then welded them to the cylinder head. Oh, and it blew the bodywork apart. I think that will be it for a while. I thought I'd got over all that stuff - it was running a lot stronger with the big mag, too."

Custom Car Street Eliminator racer Andy Frost said that there was more to come from his Vauxhall Victor which clocked a new PB in the 8.3s yesterday. "There's plenty more in there, it's still really fat", he said. "Who'd have thought a lowly old Vauxhall would be number two qualifier? It was really on one, it wasn't a fluke. I want to thank my crew Tony and Steve, Deb - long-suffering wife, the venerable Jon Webster and Knight Racing Services for getting me ready in time for the Thunderball". Andy said that he would put Saturday's tune-up back into the car for today's eliminations.

Spencer Tramm is having a dream weekend with his new Volkswagen Corrado which is running in Super Gas and VW Alternate Engine, in which he is number one qualifier. ""I am very happy with the way it's gone", said Spencer. "It's great to be number one, people have been asking me 'How long have you been racing this car?' and I've been saying 'Seven runs'!". Spencer was quick to pay tribute to his team of Martin and Ruth Curbishley and Chris Isaacs, who built the car. "I've got a crack team, they make me look good!", said Spencer.

On two wheels, Super Street Bike racer Karl Larcombe is out for the weekend after stripping head studs. We understand that the Krazy Kat team already have new cases and will be fitting them next weekend.

Comp Bike #1 qualifier TJ O'Brien expressed himself uttely exhausted - so much so as to tell Ken Cooper not to put any more in his new bike because, he said, he is not sure that he can take it. "I would have been happy with an 8.0 at the end of the season and I've done it on day two!", he said. TJ is likely shagged out because he had a nightmare trip to the track after his bus broke down. After being stranded on the motorway for hours he had to be towed at great expense and then go back home and hire a van, drive back to his bus to pick everything up then drive to the track.

Top Fuel Dragster racer Lex Joon told us that his crew had given him permission to pedal on his pass yesterday. "It lost a cylinder because a pushrod had burnt, then it hit shake", he said. "It left real good, we have sped the blower up for today and should run a low five if it keeps up yesterday's performance". Lex's Team Manager Geerda Dijkstra said that representatives of primary sponsor (and joint Eurodragster webcam sponsor) MPM Oil were at Santa Pod yesterday and liked what they saw. "They said that it was the best-looking car on the track", she said.

VW Sportsman racer Dan Buzzo is unfortunately out of competition today because he doesn't want to risk exacerbating engine damage. "I'll have it fixed in time for the Big Bang", he said. Dan very kindly presented us with a number of Team Akciddento Racing goodies for which we are very grateful.

Junior Dragster racer Collin Morrice is fifty pounds better off after winning the Eurodragster.com/Speedflow Perfect Light Award in qualifying yesterday. Collin also has somewhere to put the money as Super Gas racer Conrad Stanley bought him a Santa Pod wallet for his birthday. Collin and brother Stuart's grins could be seen through their crash helmets, their Mum said, and we understand that they are considering framing the �50 note.

We are scheduled to start at 9:30 this morning with VW Sportsman, what we plan to do today is to give you the winners in each round of each class, plus full details of the Pro Fuel Shootout. Stay tuned and as soon as the action starts we will bring you all the news.