2004 FIA Main Event
Monday (eliminations)
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20:50
Today's pictures have now been posted; you can reach them from the Event Index page.
That's the end of our FIA Main Event Coverage. Thanks very much for tuning in, we hope you have enjoyed it. Your reporters during the last week have been Tog of Eurodragster.com (Pre-Event testing and Main Event race reports and pit notes), Simon Groves (Main Event daytime pit notes) and Christer Abrahamson of Svensk Dragracing (Main Event pit notes). Photographs this week have been by Sharkman of Eurodragster.com with pitside contributions from Christer Abrahamson.
For all of their help in FIA Main Event week we would like to thank Race Director Darren Prentice; Chief Marshal Steve Horn; Martin Wallis, John Hackney, Andy Marrs and Sharon Norris of Santa Pod's timing crew; Chief Starter Ian Marshall and the start line and track crews; Chief Fire Marshal John Cross and the safety crew; track announcers John Price, Graham Beckwith, Björn Sundqvist and Benni Voss; Paula Marshall; Kjell Pettersson; Spencer Tramm; David Anniwell; Roger Gorringe; Jim Broome; Dave Alexander; Keith Bartlett, Caroline Day and David Lloyd-Jones; Sue Morris; and Erik Zettervall and Per Olaf Eriksson. Thanks for hospitality this week to Pat and Stephen Talbot; Ian Turburville; Mark Pointer and Sharon; Gerda Dijkstra and Lex Joon; Andrea Wucher; Michael Malmgren; Martin and Cindy Newbury; Anthony Cohen; Leif Helander; Gittli Koller; Åsa Kinnemar and Micke Kågered Racing; Martin and Ruth Curbishley; Chris Johnson and team; Pete the Sweet; and the staff of the Coffee, Pizza and Acorn Hog Roast wagons.
Eurodragster's next Event Coverage will be from the Power Nationals at Shakespeare County Raceway on 12th-13th June.
This Event Coverage has been brought to you in association with American Car Imports.
18:50
Final results in all classes
FIA Top Fuel Dragster: Tommy Möller 5.500/185.26 def. Andy Carter 11.179/51.25 red light
FIA Top Methanol Dragster: Dave Wilson 5.477/247.45 def. Peter Schöfer 5.686/251.67
FIA Top Methanol Funny Car: Urs Erbacher 6.377/235.43 def. Dan Larsen 6.874/219.34
FIA Pro Stock: Michael Malmgren 6.938/198.27 def. Jimmy Ålund 6.989/199.17
NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified: Peter Wacker 6.900/197.15 def. Patrick Wikström 7.561/128.61
Fuel Funny Car: John Spuffard 6.087/156.81 def. Leif Helander 14.196/43.78
Super Pro ET: Barry Giles (7.63) 7.632/169.84 def. Steve Johnson (7.55) 7.770/149.56 red light
Pro ET: Ian Brown (10.85) 10.873/119.73 def. Rick McCann (10.38) 10.374/125.74 breakout
Sportsman ET: Nick South (14.05) 14.130/96.56 def. Mark Anderson (12.64) 12.693/105.86
Super Comp: Paul Letchford 9.100/123.28 def. Colin Aldred 9.657/132.31
Super Gas: Frank Mason 9.866/127.73 def. Al O'Connor 9.860/131.18 lesser breakout
Super Street: Mike Bentley 10.945/130.18 def. John Grant 11.005/133.18
Junior Dragster: Robin Kadi (15.75) 15.859/38.65 def. Jay Hauser (10.28) 10.477/60.30
FIM/UEM Top Fuel Bike: Roel Koedam 7.929/112.71 def. Eric Teboul broke
FIM/UEM Supertwin: Hans Olav Olstad 7.292/190.67 def. Ronny Aasen 14.545/63.29
FIM/UEM Pro Stock Bike: Roger Pettersson 7.372/167.30 def. Paul Watson 7.688/167.30
9.90 Bike: Fred Furlong 10.222/139.31 def. Richard Sawatzki 9.891/118.12 breakout
10.90 Bike: Phil Pratt 10.917/119.64 def. John Hackney 11.090/120.64
We're now working on today's pictures, stay tuned.
18:45
NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified final
Peter Wacker 6.900/197.15 def. Patrick Wikström 7.561/128.61
Peter Wacker gets the dream ending with personal bests over the weekend and now the event win. Peter
left first, 0.044 to 0.137, Patrick looked from here to be getting alongside Peter at half track, but then
Patrick got off the throttle and Peter went through for the win.
18:30
Final results in Sportsman classes
Super Pro ET: Barry Giles (7.63) 7.632/169.84 def. Steve Johnson (7.55) 7.770/149.56 red light
Pro ET: Ian Brown (10.85) 10.873/119.73 def. Rick McCann (10.38) 10.374/125.74 breakout
Sportsman ET: Nick South (14.05) 14.130/96.56 def. Mark Anderson (12.64) 12.693/105.86
Super Comp: Paul Letchford 9.100/123.28 def. Colin Aldred 9.657/132.31
Super Gas: Frank Mason 9.866/127.73 def. Al O'Connor 9.860/131.18 lesser breakout
Super Street: Mike Bentley 10.945/130.18 def. John Grant 11.005/133.18
Junior Dragster: Robin Kadi (15.75) 15.859/38.65 def. Jay Hauser (10.28) 10.477/60.30
9.90 Bike: Fred Furlong 10.222/139.31 def. Richard Sawatzki 9.891/118.12 breakout
10.90 Bike: Phil Pratt 10.917/119.64 def. John Hackney 11.090/120.64
Martin Hill's last run of the day in the Fireforce 2 Jet FC was a 6.063/264.79.
We're just waiting on the final of NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified, stay tuned.
18:10
Fuel Funny Car final
John Spuffard 6.087/156.81 def. Leif Helander 14.196/43.78
A very strong pass from Spuff to begin with, 0.894 to sixty feet and nitro flames high in the air, then
he got off the throttle at about half track. Leif's car left relatively lazily, 1.043 to sixty feet, then
his clutch broke in a shower of sparks at about 300 feet and he pulled over to the guardrail and rolled through.
Thanks to British Nitro FC Championship Co-ordinator Jim Broome for giving us the Championship standings after this race, which are:
18:05
FIA Top Fuel Dragster final
Tommy Möller 5.500/185.26 def. Andy Carter 11.179/51.25 red light
Andy left early by 0.181 handing the win to Tommy. Tommy was on a good pass, 0.899 to sixty feet, then his blower belt
broke at half track.
18:00
FIA Pro Stock final
Michael Malmgren 6.938/198.27 def. Jimmy Ålund 6.989/199.17
Jimmy Ålind waited patiently behind the start line whilst Michael's crew adjusted the wheelie bars.
Jimmy got away first by 0.030 seconds, but Michael quickly caught him and a move to the right by Jimmy
at half track cemented Michael's lead, taking the win by 0.020 seconds or just under six feet.
17:55
FIA Top Methanol Dragster final
Dave Wilson 5.477/247.45 def. Peter Schöfer 5.686/251.67
Peter got away first by five thousandths but Dave had caught him before sixty feet, some shake up to that point
but then the ACI Racing dragster was pulling away and Dave even had the chutes out before the line, win margin
0.203 seconds.
17:50
FIA Top Methanol Funny Car final
Urs Erbacher 6.377/235.43 def. Dan Larsen 6.874/219.34
Big burnouts from both racers, especially Dan who went past 300 feet. On the green it didn't take
long for both racers to hit shake, Urs got through it better as Dan's rear tyres went up in smoke and
his car was all over the lane, moving about very violently. Urs got straightened out and a little judicious pedalling got him straight
and through the top end first.
17:45
FIM/UEM Pro Stock Bike final
Roger Pettersson 7.372/167.30 def. Paul Watson 7.688/167.30
Paul got away first, 0.069 to 0.130, but Roger was past him by 330 feet and takes the European season's
first final.
FIM/UEM Supertwin final
Hans Olav Olstad 7.292/190.67 def. Ronny Aasen 14.545/63.29
Hans Olav takes his first event win with a straight, solid pass. Ronny's bike was really labouring off the line and
he idled along the track.
FIM/UEM Top Fuel Bike final
Roel Koedam 7.929/112.71 def. Eric Teboul broke
Eric was shut off after his burnout, leaking oil onto the track. Roel was on the throttle to about half track.
17:40
NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified semi-finals
Patrick Wikström 6.466/218.26 def. Håkan Fallström 6.853/203.60
Håkan only pulled a short burnout and his Crew Chief was not happy about something, shaking his head.
Patrick went right down the middle of his lane whilst Håkan went the long way round which must have
lost him a little time. The track crew found a small amount of oil on the top end of the track in
Håkan's lane.
Peter Wacker 6.849/214.45 def. Håkan Nilsson 6.424/214.45 red light
Håkan and Peter were shut off after their burnouts when oil was found in the lane which Håkan
Fallström had just used. After the restart H&arng;kan pulled a 0.338 red light handing the win to
Peter Wacker who is having a dream weekend.
17:00
Junior Dragster eliminations round 3 winners: Jay Hauser (10.24) 10.337/68.57, Robin Kadi (15.72) 15.866/38.10
Super Comp eliminations round 3 winners: Colin Aldred 10.709/87.19 bye, Paul Letchford 8.912/143.75
16:45
Simon Groves has been into the pits for us again and managed to grab a word with a number of racers.
Top Fuel Dragster finallist Andy Carter said that this was the GoTalk team's best weekend to date. "We are confident of repeating in the final", he said. "We've got a good tune-up for Santa Pod. We will need a totally different set-up at Alastaro where the air, track and temperature conditions are better."
Fellow Top Fuel Dragster finallist Tommy Möller said that he noticed that Thomas Nataas redlit. "We have no problems", said Tommy. "We will step up to run a 4,8 by putting more fuel in it."
Gittli Koller of Peter Schöfer Racing said that the team have had problems with the set-up Werner Top Methanol Dragster but no mechanical problems. "We badly need to step up for the final, it's all or nothing", she said.
"It's an honour to beat Freddy Fagerström", said Pro Mod racer Peter Wacker. "We have a good car and crew, and we will need more performance. Håkan is beatable!".
Fellow Pro Mod racer Håkan Fallström said that the car which he is racing has been beautiful. "It's a brand new car", he said. "The crew built the chassis and body and I provided the Brad Anderson Stage V motor, built by US Pro Mod racer Chip King. The potential is for 6.2s."
Pro Stock racer Michael Malmgren said that to choose the left lane for his second round bye was a bad call. "It is a little bumpy", he said. "I expect that Jimmy will put us there in the final. We're not pleased with our performance."
Pro Stock Bike racer Roger Pettersson said that the Veidec team had taken out a little power and clutch on his 7.3-second pass. "We're looking to repeat in the final", he said. Roger added that the bike was ten pounds heavier this season because of rule changes.
16:35
NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified round 2 re-run
Håkan Nilsson 6.435/214.38 def. Henri Joosten 6.723/203.01
Henri Joosten successfully appealed the outcome of his pairing with Håkan Nilsson which was
disrupted by the discovery of oil in the shutdown area. Håkan took the win with another 6.4.
Super Street eliminations round 3 winners: Mike Bentley 11.118/124.67, John Grant 10.974/126.40
Sportsman ET eliminations round 3 winners: Nick South (14.05) 14.092/94.75, Mark Anderson (12.65) 12.648/104.47
10.90 Bike elminations round 2 winners: Phil Pratt 10.957/118.18, John Hackney 10.741/124.67
9.90 Bike round 4 winners: Richard Sawatzki 10.005/111.61, Fred Furlong 10.000/120.32
Super Gas eliminations round 3 winners: Al O'Connor staged (bye), Frank Mason 9.880/137.53
Pro ET eliminations round 4 winners: Ian Brown (10.85) 10.921/117.81, Rick McCann (10.46) 10.470/114.84
Super Pro ET eliminations round 4 winners: Barry Giles (7.60) 7.667/163.05, Steve Johnson (7.55) 7.555/175.80 bye
16:05
Junior Dragster eliminations round 2 winners: Charlotte Watts (14.85) 14.972/40.06, Jay Hauser (10.28) 10.318/60.80, Robin Kadi (15.89) 15.789/38.82, Nick Mugridge (8.12) 8.231/77.08
Martin Hill followed the Juniors with a 6.031/253.85 in the Fireforce 2 Jet FC.
15:50
FIM/UEM Pro Stock Bike round 2 eliminations
Roger Pettersson 7.351/178.58 def. Martin Bishop 7.841/165.46
Martin got away first 0.048 to 0.090 but the Veidec power quickly told and Roger was past him and into the 7.3s for the
first time this weekend.
Paul Watson 7.694/164.66 def. Chris Hope 7.996/168.57
Paul away first as Martin's bike appeared to have problems briefly at half track.
Sportsman ET eliminations round 2 winners: Rick Denny (13.50) 13.548/97.89, Linda Platt (12.75) 12.860/108.20, Mark Anderson (12.65) 12.784/96.34, Nick South (14.10) 14.059/97.63
10.90 Bike eliminations round 1 winners: Phil Pratt 10.942/123.59, John Hackney 10.807/112.75, Shaun Spiers 11.406/108.99
9.90 Bike eliminations round 3 winners: Richard Sawatzki 9.844/117.48, Dave Hall 9.979/134.39, Steve Coombs 9.999/123.89, Fred Furlong 9.804/138.91
Super Comp elimninations round 2 winners: Paul Knight 9.012/129.23, Colin Aldred 9.660/125.55, Paul Letchford 9.001/138.05, Tim Adam 8.927/146.06 bye
15:35
FIM/UEM Top Fuel Bike round 2 eliminations
Roel Koedam 6.492/211.24 def. Neil Midgley 6.827/186.01
Neil got away first and it was a close thing in the first half of the track. Neil was headed left most
of the way down his lane and Roel headed right, they got a good view of one another towards the end.
Eric Teboul 21.963/65.52 bye
Eric on a bye due to Shaun Branch's disqualification and Antonio Ferretti's no show, takes it easy to
save parts.
Super Street eliminations round 2 winners: John Grant 10.870/133.89 bye, Ron Haffenden 10.864/107.86 bye, Lee Huxley 10.976/117.80, Mike Bentley 10.982/120.97
15:25
Pro ET eliminations round 3 winners: Phil Toppin (11.82) 11.863/106.91, Rick McCann (10.30) 10.382/128.56, Ian Brown (10.85) 10.953/118.84, Terri Lee (10.62) 10.699/122.59)
Super Gas eliminations round 2 winners: Al O'Connor 10.102/108.97, Frank Mason 10.065/117.81, Steve Wells 9.828/131.24
Super Pro ET eliminations round 3 winners: Barry Giles (7.60) 7.706/155.05, Ian Tubb (7.72) 7.839/171.17, Steve Johnson (7.55) 7.559/177.08
Simon Groves took a walk round the pits for us after the first round of FIM/UEM and this is what he found out.
Martin Bishop said that he was surprised with his first round ET since he and his team had taken some clutch out and only got proper drive in top gear. "We're just looking at the clutch plates", he said. "Look out Roger!".
Ronny Aasen said that his first round race was boring. "We waited to run for a long time, but the run itself was OK except for too much aggression in the clutch which caused the tyre to spin", he said.
Chris Hope compared his first round win to going shopping at Asda. "We need to go quicker", he said. "Over the weekend we've had a couple of problems with the clutch, piston rings and valve stems and we worked until 1:00 am. The next race is the hardest of the event for me."
Shaun Branch's victory in the first round of FIM/UEM Top Fuel Bike was disallowed as he crossed the centre line. "We have comprehensively broken the blower drive and the crank", he said. "Sorry for the oildown!".
15:15
FIM/UEM Supertwin round 2 eliminations
Hans Olav Olstad 7.412/185.77 def. Anders Karling 11.617/64.07
A shock as the #1 qualifier goes out, Anders was off the throttle by 300 feet, nothing obvious wrong.
Hans Olav went past and booked a final round appearance.
Ronny Aasen broke (bye)
Ronny got the bye because of the double disqualification in round 1. The engine went bang off the line
and Ronny cruised to a stop at half track. He took the green, though, so he is through to the final.
15:05
FIA Top Methanol Funny Car round 2 eliminations
Dan Larsen 5.877/239.01 def. Arvid Grødem 6.098/235.64
Arvid was away first by five thousandths, but he hit shake and had to pedal a couple of times.
No such problems for Dan who went straight down the middle of his lane and even had the luxury of getting
off the throttle and putting the chutes out early.
Urs Erbacher 5.763/246.08 def. Ulf Leanders 6.265/171.06
Ulf was away first and was in the lead to nearly half track, then there was a bang and
the relief panel blew off the IronCAD FC. Urs was catching him by this point and powered past with
another 5.7 pass.
14:55
FIA Pro Stock round 2 eliminations
Michael Malmgren 7.002/197.55 bye
A straight run for Michael, but maybe taking it a little conservatively given the bye.
Jimmy Ålund 6.946/199.11 def. Magnus Hansson 7.034/195.87
Jimmy got the jump on Magnus, 0.058 to 0.154 and there is more in that combination since the
car was shaking a little to 300 or so feet.
14:50
FIA Top Fuel Dragster round 2 eliminations
Andy Carter 4.832/306.33 def. Micke Kågered 10.539/54.01
Micke Kågered rolled to almost 1000 feet after his burnout, it sounded as if the throttle was still
open on very low revs. He got back very quickly, though. On the green this was all about Andy Carter, 0.856 to sixty feet,
another new European ET record and backing up his 306.36 from qualifying. Well done Andy and team! Micke's
tyres went up in smoke at about 300 feet,
he must have had some terrible shake as a chute deployed through the smoke and he was a spectator from
that point.
Tommy Möller 9.104/80.79 def. Thomas Nataas 8.002/102.24 red light
Very short burnouts from both racers, their tyres and the track plenty hot enough from the glorious
weather I'd imagine. It sounded as if Thomas hit the throttle twice on launch, and his tyres went up in smoke
at 330 feet, but no matter as it was a 0.146 red light handing Tommy the win. Tommy was on the throttle to
about 400 feet.
14:30
NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified round 2 eliminations
Håkan Fallström 6.855/199.86 def. Roger Johansson 7.726/126.74
Håkan Fallström reinstated after Bert Englefield was disqualified for a technical
infringement in round 1, and goes on to take a shock victory over NDRS Champion Roger Johansson. Roger drove through
shake in the first 200 feet or so then the Mustang suddenly turned hard right. Roger had his hands
full controlling the car and despite a great driving job eventually had to give up.
Peter Wacker 6.814/193.13 def. Freddy Fagerström 6.917/162.45
We had a long burndown before this race, Chief Starter Ian Marshall turned away whilst the
two cars sat there. Peter eventually staged first and got away first 0.065 to 0.159. Freddy hit shake but nothing
looked out of the ordinary, he was ahead at half track but he got off the throttle and had the chutes out
before the finish line, Peter got past and got to the stripe first by 0.197 seconds. Oil was
found on the shutdown area in Freddy's lane whilst the next pair, Håkan Nilsson and Henri Joosten,
were burning out. Henri had broken and pulled across to the guardrail after his burnout so
presumably he will not take part in the re-run.
Patrick Wikström 13.076/68.90 bye, Peter Kunc no show
If you were tuned in earlier on you will have read that Peter Kunc suffered piston damage, so he did not appear
for this round. A three hundred foot burnout from Patrick before the pass, at the hit the tyres spun and went up
in smoke, Patrick pedalled but the same happened again so he got off the throttle and cruised through.
Håkan Nilsson 6.473/209.15 bye, Henri Joosten broke
As mentioned above, Henri shut off after his burnout in the first attempt at running this pairing so
he was out of competition. A nice consistent pass from Håkan who meets Peter Wacker in the semi-finals
whilst Patrick Wikström meets Håkan Fallström.
Martin Hill followed the Pro Mod session with a 6.093/245.71 in the Fireforce 2 Jet FC.
14:05
Fuel Funny Car round 1 eliminations
Leif Helander 9.806/75.03 def Gordon Smith 10.103/93.75
Identical reaction times for both Leif and Gordon, 0.270, Gordon to sixty feet first at 0.893 and 330
feet, Gordon tried to drive through shake, some impressive blackstriping on the track, but he was off the
throttle at about half track. Meanwhile Leif drove through
shake and was also off the throttle early, he was under power a little further than Gordon and his
momentum got him to the finish line first, winning his first competitive round of Fuel FC.
John Spuffard 10.046/84.63 bye
A soft launch, 0.984 to sixty feet, the Showtime FC started to drift towards the guardrail and got very close
indeed, Spuff was off the throttle at about 330 feet. He meets Leif in the final, Leif has lane choice.
13:40
FIA Top Methanol Dragster round 1 eliminations
Dave Wilson 5.458/255.57 bye
Dave has new tyres on the American Car Imports Racing rail, the tyres didn't light on the burnout. His pass,
the quickest of the weekend in TMD, reignites the debate about how necessary burnouts are! Hardly any
sign of shake, a solid run for Grumpy and into the final.
Peter Schöfer 5.742/230.73 def. Rob Turner 7.078/114.21
Rob got away first 0.142 to 0.230 and looking at the incrementals was ahead of Peter until just before half track,
where the engine of the Netcall-sponsored dragster started to smoke and then there
was a bang and a ball of flame. Peter drove through a small amount of shake (probably the acceptable amount) and drove
past Rob to go into the final. Rob has a few burns on the back of his neck but is otherwise A-OK.
Trackside conditions are 20.1 C, 44% humidity, 30.06 inches of air, track temperature 101 F.
13:35
FIM/UEM Pro Stock Bike round 1 eliminations
Roger Pettersson 7.490/175.71 def. Helen Curran 8.081/155.73
Helen away first 0.112 to 0.148, at about half track it sounded as if Helen's bike had trouble changing
gear but Roger was already ahead at that point and he goes through to round two with a consistent pass.
Martin Bishop 7.785/166.63 def. Richard Gipp 7.858/156.81
Martin was wired to the Tree, 0.069 to 0.161, and Richard tried hard but couldn't catch him.
Chris Hope 7.624/171.00 def. Herman van Driel 8.343/124.38 red light
Herman threw this one away on the start line, a 0.250 red light handed Chris the win on the Pinnacle-sponsored
machine.
Paul Watson 7.651/169.21 def. Remo Nasci 7.861/159.48
Paul regains his qualifying form, leaves first and doesn't look back.
13:30
FIM/UEM Top Fuel Bike round 1 eliminations
Roel Koedam 7.147/214.33 def. Gary Jones 7.758/160.63
Almost an upset! Gary pulled a 0.276 to 0.628 holeshot on Roel, Roel's rear tyre went up in smoke off the line,
Roel got off the throttle and on again and chased Gary down. Gary was ahead at half track but Roel caught him
and got there first by 0.259 seconds.
Neil Midgley 6.933/184.94 def. Nils Ole Lund broke
Nils was shut off after his burnout, Neil into the sixes again and flying the flag for the Funny Bikes
into the second round where he will take on Roel Koedam.
Shaun Branch 8.925/96.34 def. Eric Teboul 14.812/44.73
Shaun got the jump on Eric 0.134 to 0.180, Eric's tyre went up in smoke after sixty feet, he tried to
feather the throttle to get traction but had to give up. Shaun's engine started to smoke at half track
and then the blower belt and blower pulley came off and he left oil on the track. Shaun got there first
by 5.239 seconds, that's two Funny Bikes into the second round. Assuming that Shaun can fix the engine
he will take on the winner of the race between Steve Woollatt and Antonio Ferretti.
Antonio Ferretti 7.165/181.29 def. Steve Woollatt 7.397/202.89
Steve got the jump on Antonio, 0.152 to 0.315, but his rear tyre went up in smoke off the line. Steve
got off and on the throttle and shot down the track after Antonio, who had no problems on his pass and
got there first by 0.068.
12:40
FIM/UEM Supertwin round 1 eliminations
Anders Karling 7.410/167.14 def. Joachim Riemer 8.053/117.20
Anders was going great guns on this run until the bike started wriggling again at about half track,
he got off and then back on the throttle. Joachim started heading towards the guardrail, got off the throttle
then probably realised that Anders was also off the gas so he got back on the throttle for a moment but
Charley stayed ahead. Joachim got very close to the guardrail at the top end.
Hans Olav Olstad 7.549/185.27 def. Svein Gottenberg 8.310/113.91
Svein was well ahead until his bike started to drift to the right, at half track, Hans Olav rode
round him and went through to face Charley Karling next round.
Stefan Junerud v Ton Pels, both disqualified
There was a staging duel before this race, Stefan left as soon as Ton staged and Ton left when he heard
Stefan go. The Tree never ran so both are disqualified. Stefan's engine dropped oil from half track to the
first turn-off.
Ronny Aasen 6.912/199.18 def. Willem Been 8.051/163.00
Ronny rode through a little shake but had Willem well covered. Ronny gets a bye in the semi-final.
12:35
During the downtime from Stefan Junerud's oildown, Simon Groves went out into the pits for us again. The first racer he encountered was Top Fuel Dragster racer Thomas Nataas, who said that the Batmobil team had not put in as many runs as they would have liked this weekend. "We have minor problems with the fuel and ignition", he said. "We were lucky in the first round but Tommy Möller is really fast. The car is all new but we want to develop it gradually."
Fellow Top Fuel racer Micke Kågered said that the Bahco Tools team's weekend has not been too good. "We have got to get a good combination", he said. "All of the major parts are new. Alan Jackson is figuring it out and it is getting better, but we are on a learning curve."
Jorgen Leanders, Ulf Leanders' Crew Chief, said that two cylinders ran hot on this morning's run and that the team are changing two pistons. "The burst plate went but the blower is undamaged", he said.
Next door, TMFC racer Dan Larsen is doing routine maintenance. "Arvid has lane choice but the lanes are even", he said. "We'll need to run 5.7s to win."
Peter Kunc told Simon that he is out of the next round of Pro Mod with a broken engine. "We were off the throttle but broke a piston", he said. "It's a brand new engine so we don't want to risk any more damage."
Henri Joosten is hoping that second round Pro Mod opponent Håkan Nilsson pulls a red light as he did in their last encounter. "Håkan is a little anxious on the lights!", he said.
Nick Davies of our Home and News page sponsor ICE Automotive, who is providing tuning advice to Pro Mod racer Peter Wacker, said that Peter has run his first six-second passes this weekend. "We have sorted out the existing engine and put in a two-disc clutch", he said. "I would like to say thank you to Nick Davies and Rob Loaring", said Peter.
Pro Stock racer Magnus Hansson said that he still has not run as well as in last week's testing. "Before the last qualifier we put in our number two engine, which was built by Barry Grant", he said. "It's going to be tough against Jimmy Ålund!".
We're not far off restarting now, stay tuned.
11:15
FIA Top Methanol Funny Car round 1 eliminations
Dan Larsen 5.945/236.84 bye
No taking it easy on the bye for Dan, a brief bout of shake at sixty feet or so which he drove straight
through and stayed with it all the way down.
Arvid Grødem 5.922/240.75 def. Leif Andréasson 6.113/222.79
Arvid was pretty merciless with Leif, 0.069 RT to Leif's 0.159, quicker to sixty and 330 feet, Leif
hit tyre shake from sixty feet and the car went out of shape, Leif pedalled and tried to chase Arvid down
but couldn't make it. There was a mist from Arvid's FC towards the finish, but it was Leif's lane which
got a clean-up. Arvid takes on #1 qualifier Dan in the next round.
Urs Erbacher 5.751/244.69 def. Jurgen Nagel 7.186/196.47
Urs told us that he thought a 5.7 was possible today and he didn't take long to deliver on it. Away first, not a hint of
shake, and again accelerating hard towards the finish line. Jurgen gave it his best shot but was off
the throttle before the finish.
Ulf Leanders 6.352/161.95 def. Niclas Andersson 5.877/240.38 red light
Is Ulf being set up for the fairy-tale ending? Niclas red-lit by 0.018 seconds handing Ulf the win. Ulf was
on a good run until popping a burst plate just after half track. Ulf meets Urs next round.
10:55
FIA Pro Stock round 1 eliminations
Jimmy Ålund 7.192/196.71 def. Kenneth Soderström 7.214/190.63
Jimmy was away first 0.048 to 0.144, drove through shake and never looked back, 0.118 margin at the stripe.
Magnus Hansson 6.995/196.68 def. Jackie Hansen 16.344/38.65
Magnus has been searching for another six since testing last weekend and found it at just the right time.
Magnus was away first 0.102 to 0.113, Jackie had the quicker sixty foot time but he was off the throttle by 330
feet - it sounded as if he couldn't find a gear. Magnus went straight as you like and into the next round
to face Jimmy.
Michael Malmgren 6.986/197.39 def. Tommy Leindahl 7.104/193.11
Michael in his new car faced off against Tommy in his old car. A brief burndown before Michael went into
stage first, Tommy got away first 0.097 to 0.149 but Michael was ahead before half track and gets the
second round bye.
10:45
FIA Top Fuel Dragster round 1 eliminations
Andy Carter 4.888/245.74 def.Smax Smith 4.963/286.56
This was an excellent race, Andy went straight and hard, 0.846 to sixty feet, 0.884 for Smax who was
taking the long way round, drifting further and further right - at half track Smax was yards from the guardrail
but stayed with it, blackstriping the length of his lane. Andy clocked 248 mph at half track, off the throttle just after 1000 feet but got there first by 0.074
seconds and backed up his ET record of 4.877. Congratulations Andy! Something flew off Smax's car at the finish line and he had no chutes,
but he had it stopped no problem.
Micke Kågered 5.297/211.63 def. Jon Webster 7.731/95.53
Jon got away first 0.159 to 0.197, but Micke got through shake and was ahead by half track by which time Jon
was off the throttle. From here it looked as if Micke pedalled more than once, and he was off the throttle long
before the finish line, but he was way ahead of Jon at the stripe and goes through to meet Andy Carter
in the next round.
Thomas Nataas 14.191/70.96 def. Jöran Persåker shut off
Jöran was shut off on the line as Chief Starter Ian Marshall noticed a restraint missing from the engine.
Thomas idled down the track and into the next round.
Tommy Möller 5.064/272.65 def. Lex Joon 5.294/221.53
0.150 RT for Tommy to 0.151 for Lex, Lex was first to half track but the MPM Oil dragster started to
weave left and right, at least one cylinder out. Lex hung on to the car with a superb driving job, it
just did not want to go straight. Tommy drove past Lex and took the win to meet Thomas Nataas next round.
10:05
NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified round 1 eliminations
Peter Kunc 6.886/164.34 def. Mats Eriksson 6.551/212.27
Peter pulled a huge 0.270 to 0.686 holeshot over Mats, Mats ran his quickest time of the weekend but it wasn't
enough to catch up and Peter took the win. There was a mist from Peter's car towards the top end and we stopped for
a short clean-up.
Henri Joosten 6.681/203.56 def. Micke Gullquist 6.675/208.53
0.055 reaction time for Henri got him ahead of Micke's 0.338, and he got to the stripe first by 0.277 seconds.
Peter Wacker 6.872/192.13 def. Marc Meihuizen 6.964/206.26
Peter got the jump off the line and Marc chased hard all the way, driving through shake and wrestling
the car, but Peter took the win by 0.148 seconds.
Bert Englefield 6.632/216.66 def. Håkan Fallström 7.348/192.43
Håkan was all over his lane, missing the centre line by inches, wrenching it straight only to
go out of shape again. Bert went straight and hard and set a new Personal Best speed.
Roger Johansson 6.671/200.73 def. Norbert Kuno 7.310/137.61
Norbert got the jump on Roger 0.154 to 0.208 but Roger was already catching him when Norbert got off the
throttle and put the 'chutes out, Roger took the win by 0.584 seconds.
Freddy Fagerström 6.565/216.20 def. Robert Koper 7.567/155.05
Robert away first 0.063 to 0.112, Freddy drove through shake and was way ahead by half track, Robert
got off the throttle and put the 'chutes out at half track as Freddy sped into the distance.
Håkan Nilsson 6.441/209.40 def. John Ellis broke
John Ellis had a nitrous burp as he went to pull his burnout, Håkan had already done his burnout
as John restarted and followed Chief Starter Ian Marshall's instruction to pull a short burnout. John then
had another nitrous burp and shut off, so Håkan took the bye with the low ET of the round so far.
Patrick Wikström 6.389/216.26 def. Andy Robinson 6.384/182.77 red light
The usual long burnout from Patrick, he must also be the European speed record holder for backing up.
Andy pulled a 0.127 red light but he would have had a job on to catch Patrick.
Wikström v Kunc, Johansson v Englefield, Nilsson v Joosten and Fagerström v Wacker next round.
09:30
The pre-race ceremonies are underway right now, we'll be off with the first round of NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified. Our pitside reporter Simon Groves is back after his day off yesterday and he popped in to see a few racers.
Pro Mod racer Håkan Nilsson told Simon that the car had not performed as well as expected. "We have a handle on the set-up", he said. "We are going down the track well with no shake. We've changed the gear ratios, the four link and the tyres from last year. Our first round settings are fairly soft to get a baseline for today. How much we step up depends upon others' performance."
Pro Stock Bike racer Helen Curran faces teammate Roger Pettersson in the first round of Pro Stock Bike. "There are no team orders and I am there to win the Championship", she said. "We will be happy with a 7.70 and ecstatic with a 7.5. We've had a lot of teething problems as the bike and engine are new to us, but we are getting it together."
Pro Stock racer Jackie Hansen best his personal best of 7.19, set in Comp Eliminator eleven years ago, with his 7.07 qualifier. "We have the right engine to run 6.85", he said, "but we need time to develop it. The track is so good. On our first run we had a lot of tyre shake. We have changed the clutch."
Trackside conditions right now are 16.5 C, 66% humidity, 30.06 inches of air pressure, and Martin Curbishley's gun tells us that the track temperature is 82 F. Stay tuned and we'll bring you the Pro Mod results as soon as racing starts.
08:00
Good morning and welcome again from Santa Pod Raceway for our coverage of eliminations day of the FIA Main Event in association with American Car Imports.
The Webster Race Engineering/MPM Oil webcam is on-line and broadcasting a picture every two minutes. You can reach the webcam from the Event Index page.
If you've looked at the webcam then you will have seen that it's a beautiful day here at Santa Pod. Hardly a cloud in the sky, if you're anywhere near then you know what to do - get in the car or on the bike and get down here.
The traditional raceday Good Morning to our US correspondents Ed O'Connell and Kathy Hileman who are tuned in from Rye, NH. Hello also to Andy Bissett and his fiancée Jennifer who we are sure are tuned in from wherever they currently are on the planet. A big Hello also to Magnus Cato, it's not the same without you here buddy.
This morning we are very pleased to announce the induction of two new Honorary Staff Members to Eurodragster.com, our good friends Christer Abrahamson and Erik Zettervall of Svensk Dragracing have joined our honorary staff roster. For a moment they thought we were serious when we told them that their staff membership meant that they would be doing today's event coverage.
It was another late finish for us last night, gone half past ten by the time we made it to the pits with Christer. There were a lot of dark pits but we found a few nightbirds to talk to.
The Leanders Brothers Top Methanol FC team were set for a late night after Ulf Leanders' fire yesterday. Crew Chief Jorgen Leanders showed us the block, which had literally split clean in two from front to back. "We had made 170 runs on this block, I don't think there is anything left on the guarantee!", said Jorgen. Christer asked Jorgen if anything could be salvaged from the engine. "The crank and a couple of bolts are usable", he said. We were very pleased to see Ulf in one piece. "I'm OK", he said. "It was really moving and then there was a bang. It was a big fire for a while - it was pretty exciting! I was sure I was on a good run".
Whilst the Leanders Brothers crew were looking at the wreckage, who should turn up at their pit but Pro Mod racer Freddy Fagerström, toting a complete alcohol engine. "Freddy said 'Take the engine and do what you want with it - we need you out there tomorrow'", said Ulf. We left the team putting together a new engine from a combination of Freddy's parts and their own.
TMFC #1 qualifier Dan Larsen suffered a damaged body from shake but has fixed it. He is also suffering problems with his ignition which has forced him to bypass his pickup. "If we stay consistent tomorrow we have a chance", said Dan.
Next door, fellow TMFC racer Urs Erbacher said that everything was OK. "We're still shaking a bit", he said. "I'm still pedalling but if we can get through the shake then this set-up should do 255 - 260 in 5.58 seconds. I think 5.6 will be possible if the weather holds". Urs said that he was running a new fuel system and blower, with overdrive set to USA rather than European limits. "I could run more overdrive but I don't want to", he said. "We also have last year's set-up in the trailer."
Niclas Andersson thought that the Sandflex-sponsored TMFC has a good chance. "We've been consistent", he said. Crew Chief Emil agreed. "The guys who ran fast last year all had problems", he said. "I think we have a handle on it". Christer remarked to Emil that he looked tired. "We've done two runs today and it feels like we have done eighty five runs!", he said.
Thomas of Micke Kågered's Bahco Express Top Fuel Dragster team said that he was confident about today's eliminations. "We've fixed a few problems", he said. "It's a new car, you get a few problems."
Top Fuel #8 qualifier Smax Smith was busy on his car when we passed but earlier on he had told Christer that he was familiar with his situation. "It was the same last year", he said. "I was the bottom qualifier and won the event! We'll take it from here."
Johnny Mac of the Canto Recruitment Top Fuel team said that they found a diaper full of oil after Jon Webster's 5.4-second pass yesterday. "We're having a very late night", he said.
Top Methanol Dragster #1 qualifier Dave Wilson said that the American Car Imports Racing team had had problems with rear tyres. "We've used two different makes of tyre in two days", he said. "It's not just us, it seems to be a general problem. Engine-wise we have changed the heads to freshened heads, we have done eight runs on these". Dave said that the ACI Racing team achieved their aim of getting the first round bye this morning. "We're working our way back to the European set-up", he said. "It is very different and we have to nibble away at it."
Next door in the Peter Schöfer Racing TMD pit, team member Gittli Koller said that the team hoped that they had solved their problem getting the car down the track. "When the track changes temperature that changes everything", she said.
We have a presentation at 9:00 this morning and then we will be straight into eliminations so stay tuned and we will bring you all the results as they happen.