2007 Easter Thunderball
Friday (qualifying)
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The latest updates are at the top of the page. Click on your Browser's Refresh key to be sure of seeing the latest news. Click here to go back to the event index 21:05 Today's pictures are now posted, you can view them via the Event Index page. Tune back in the morning and we'll bring you all the news from day two of qualifying. 18:00 Steve Turner finished the day here with a familiarisation pass in the Turner Motorsport TMD. A nice but shaky burnout and then a 120 foot squirt, 1.0491 to sixty feet, the car was really charging when Steve stepped off the gas, 10.3673/70.64 at the stripe. Steve has of course driven a TMD before but it was still a very competent performance. That's all the track action for today, Simon is working on another tranche of pit notes and Roger is working on today's pictures. Tune back in an hour or two and we'll have the pictures for you. 17:50 Tethys followed on from Comp Eliminator with an 8.2650/152.09 observed run in the Paul Marston Racing dragster. Funny Bike qualifying after session 3:
Neil Midgley broke off the line, in the other lane Stu Chamberlain drove through some bad tyre shake but stayed with it. Comp Bike qualifying top five after session 3:
Kev Charman extended his lead at that point whilst Al Young moved into the top five with a big improvement and a nice-looking pass. In the penultimate pairing Gary Jones laid down a stormer to take the lead from Kev, a small puff of smoke on the finish line but nothing found on the track. Sascha Brodbeck put in his first pass of the day, backing off at about 900 feet. Next up is Steve Turner making a licencing pass in the Turner Motorsport Top Methanol Dragster. 17:40 Next up after Super Street was Jim Usher in The Mob Fuel Altered. Dave Benjamin is again in attendance this weekend. A nice half-pass, 1.1997 to sixty feet, 4.5869/149.96 at the eighth where there was a little smoke and Jim was off the throttle, 8.0808/110.62 at the stripe. Joe Bond was next in the Nuthin' Fancy blown-alcohol altered. A very nice straight burnout and then 1.1739 at sixty feet, 5.1171/117.71 at half track although he was off the throttle by then, 8.7011/113.34 at the finish. Wild Bunch qualifying top five after session 3:
Darren Law and Pete Yates both improved in this session, Pete Yates coming out on top for the improvements in #2 spot. Next up was Jonas Dantanus making his first observed run in his Pro Stock which is this weekend running in Comp Eliminator. A nice burnout and then 1.0949 to sixty feet and off the throttle, a very competent showing indeed, well done Jonas! Comp Eliminator qualifying after session 3:
An improvement for Spencer Tramm and yet another PB but he stays in position, Jon Webster is now in the ladder having made his first Comp pass of the day. 17:15 Martin Hill followed Street Eliminator with a cracking 6.2501/263.18 in the Fireforce 3 Jet Funny Car. Super Street qualifying top five after session 2:
No changes to the top five in this session. Jennifer Gustafsson is looking more and more comfortable in the Challenger, breaking out in this session with a 10.876. 17:10 Real Steel Street Eliminator qualifying top five after session 3:
A great run for Ray Tucker put him into the top five at that point. In the next pairing Ian Jackson found his way back into the eights and good for #4 at that point. Colin Lazenby ran another 8.3, improving his ET slightly to consolidate the pole position. Trackside conditions are 19.4 C, 40% humidity, 29.94 inches of air, and the track temperature is 79.8 F. 16:55 Junior Dragster qualifying top five after session 3:
Scott Hauser moved up to #2 spot. Another improvement from Anna Stanley in the next pairing moved her up to #3 at that point. Zak Johnson then bumped both Scott and Anna down a place as he moved into #2. 16:50 9.50 Bike qualifying top five after session 3:
A move up the standings for Andy Haley, up to #2 at that point whilst Mike Powell made his first appearance in the top five at #4. Next in was Jason Macan at #3, again that's a new name to me in the top five. The top nine qualifiers are in the 9.5s. 16:40 Kev Slyfield followed Super Gas with his second pass in his Pro Mod, the first being a gentle checkout pass last Sunday. A couple of goes at a burnout and then similar tp Frank Bennett earlier a lot of engine revs and not much forward movement, off the throttle at 300 feet, 21.1419/42.41. Super Street Bike qualifying top five after session 3:
A cracking pass from Ven to take over #1 spot and the first half of a new ACU UK ET record. Next pairing, Mark Fisher moved into the top five at #5 and there's more in that bike since the engine seemed to hesitate a couple of times. And then what happened? Dave Smith came back at Ven with a storming pass taking the potential record away and taking #1 spot back, well done Dave! Two pairings later Graham Balchin ran his first seven in competition. 16:25 Super Gas qualifying top five after session 3:
Christer Uhlin moved into the top five in this session, in at #4 at that point. Conrad Stanley, already #1, consolidated his lead by taking today's first trio into the 9.90s. In the next pairing Mark White moved into the top five at #4, and then Pete Cresswell rounded off the session by moving up into #4 spot. Trackside conditions are 19.3 C, 41% humidity, 29.94 inches of air, and the track temperature is 84.9 F. 16:15 Sportsman ET qualifying top five after session 3:
Martin Lewis moved into the top five followed by Nigel Holland, in at #2 at his first race, well done Nigel! Steve Partis, who got his licence last week, also moved into the top five, well done Steve! In the penultimate pairing Nick Gay came into the top five at #5. 16:10 VW Pro qualifying after session 3:
VW Alternate Engine qualifying after session 3:
VW Sportsman qualifying top five after session 3:
16:05 Super Modified qualifying after session 3:
Rob Smallworth moved into #2 spot with his first run of today and it certainly looks as if he has the clutch sorted out. A small improvement for Nigel Payne and Craig Gibbs got onto the board with a nice pass with a huge wheelie. 16:00 Super Comp qualifying top five after session 3:
Track temperature is 88.0 F. 15:50 Nostalgia Fuel Altered Association qualifying session 1 (left lane first): Clayton Round 10.2681/82.10, Frank Bennett 11.5962/69.44, Bob Glassup 12.4791/60.57 bye Clayton's altered headed for the centre line, he corrected and got back on it, meanwhile in the other lane Frank appeared to have transmission problems, lots of engine revs for not much forward motion, both racers got off the throttle at about 500 feet. Clayton's altered left oil in his lane. Bob hit shake off the line which lasted until about sixty feet, then he got off the throttle at about 150 feet. Next up we had a pair of licencing runs. first up was Freddy Fagerström in his Top Methanol Funny Car. The ex-Erbacher car is now, of course, black with flames and sporting a weathered look. A great burnout to 100 feet, crabbing along the track and then on the green 1.0289 to sixty feet then shake from there to about 120 feet, Freddy pedalled and then the car started to move around the lane, getting very close to the guardrail. Freddy backed off at about 800 feet and put the chute out in the traps, 7.1431/140.13. Eurodragster.com News sponsor Derek Flynn followed up with a licencing pass in the new Gold RV Top Methanol Dragster. A short burnout and then from here it looked as if something was flapping on the front so maybe the blower belt or throttle linkage broke, either way Derek idled up the track. 15:20 Super Pro ET qualifying top five after session 3:
Martyn Jones went closer to dial-in to consolidate his #1 spot at that point. Pat Talbot put the blue bottle back on and promptly vaulted into the top five at #3. In mid-session Ashley Bell moved into #4 spot. Towards the end of the session Paul Marston made his first Super Pro run of the day in the PT Bruiser and went straight in at #2. Trackside conditions are 19.0 C, 42% humidity and 29.94 inches of air. Track temperature is 85.3 F. 15:00 Pro ET qualifying top five after session 3:
Rick McCann moved back into the top five in this session and pulled us another nice wheelie. Not to be outdone Steve Bolton all but put his own car on its back bumper in the next pairing. 14:45 Pro Stock Bike qualifying after session 2:
A big improvement for Len to consolidate his #1 spot. Funny Bike qualifying after session 2:
Midgo hit tyre shake worthy of a Top Methanol car on his pass in this session, backing off to a 13.7629. Comp Bike qualifying top five after session 2:
Phil Leamon moved up to #2 spot in this session. 14:30 Super Street qualifying top five after session 2:
Simon Cooper profited from going rightside as it put him #2 at that point. In the next pair Charlie Chivers took the lead and Simon Cooper moved into #3 spot. Scott McCarthy briefly moved into the top five but was bumped out by Nick Griffin who took #2 in the next pairing and Chris Kenny who went #5 the run after that. Wild Bunch qualifying top five after session 2:
Darryl Howells moved into #2 in the first pairing of this session. Comp Eliminator qualifying after session 2:
13:55 Real Steel Street Eliminator qualifying top five after session 2:
Steve Pateman was blackstriping to about 300 feet on his pass and the Calibra was moving about its lane some. Ian Jackson similarly hit bad wheelspin, pedalled and stayed with it whilst in the other lane Al Simms' Cresta broke off the line, hopefully nothing serious - we briefly went to single-lane running for a clean-up at that point. Wild Stacey improved but stayed in #5 as things stood then. There is a lot left in Colin Lazenby's Chevy as his 8.3, which took #1 spot at that point, included a lengthy pedal. Next up was Alex McIntosh also with an improvement but he stayed in place. A nice pass by Jason Weir, 9.7340 which we think may be a PB or close to it. Trackside conditions are 18.2 C, 43% humidity, 29.94 inches of air. Roger at trackside reports a track temperature of 82.6 F. 13:35 Roger Goring followed 9.50 Bike with a 6.5429/191.68 checkout pass in the Firestorm Jet Funny Car. Roger shut off just after half track which he reached in 4.3209/189.79. Junior Dragster qualifying top five after session 2:
Jayne Kay moved into the top five at #5 in the first pairing of this session. The only other change to the top five came in the penultimate pairing when Joe Kellett moved into #2. 13:25 9.50 Bike qualifying top five after session 2:
Shaun Spiers moved into the top five at #2 whilst in the other lane Richard Sawatzki improved but stayed #4 at that point. A couple of pairings later Andy Haley moved into the top five at #3. Carl Atkinson is already consistent, another 9.51 to consolidate his #1 spot. The top six qualifiers are in the 9.5s. A big Hello to Peter DLM and all the guys on 200mph, if you're going to copy this stuff so shamelessly can you at least credit your source, thank you (grin). 13:15 Super Street Bike qualifying top five aftre session 2:
Nigel Barker moved into #2 in the first pairing. Sean Mills moved into the top five at #4 at that point, in the other lane Ven gracefully rode out a big wheelie and then the bike was smoking for the rest of the quarter, word came back from the top end that Ven's bike was covered in oil and we had en eighth of a mile of lubricant in Ven's lane. In the last pairing of the session Graham Balchin moved into #5 spot. 12:40 Sportsman ET qualifying top five after session 2:
Super Gas qualifying top five after session 2:
We've got the Broadband back, so the webcam is now refreshing every sixty seconds. If you are taking part in the audio broadcast experiment then you should now be able to access that too. 12:30 VW Sportsman qualifying top five after session 2:
VW Pro qualifying after session 2:
VW Alternate Engine qualifying after session 2:
12:20 Super Modified qualifying after session 2:
I guess Nigel Payne has cured his converter problem! Craig Gibbs in the other lane had his chute deploy on the start line. 12:15 Super Comp qualifying top five after session 2:
Tim Adam came into the top five in the first pairing, in at #2 at that point. In the next pairing Chris Johnson bumped Andy Williams down from fourth to fifth as he took over #4 spot himself. A couple of pairings later Belinda Bull took over the lead and then Steve Harrington moved into #2 spot, good to see Steve back in the class. In the very next pairing Shaun Lathen took over #2. Paul Knight was next up and into #3 spot to close the session. Trackside conditions are 25.3 C, 33% humidity and 29.91 inches of air, track temperature 77.8 F. 12:05 Super Pro ET qualifying top five after session 2:
Martyn Jones and John Everitt took over #1 and #3 spots respectively in the first pairing. A breakout for Craig Owen in the Mark Flavell Racing Dragster, 6.9839 on a 7.00 dial-in, but he won't be bothered about breaking out I think, well done Craig! In the next pairing Pat Talbot moved into the top five at #4, the Nitrous bottle conspicuous by its absence on the dragster. Next pairing and Rick Cooke moved into #3 spot, followed into the top five in the next pairing by Nick Spence. Ian Tubb then took over #3 spot in the next pairing. 11:50 Pro ET qualifying top five after session 2:
Carl Burton moved into the top five at #1 in the first pairing, oh so close to that Eurodragster.com/LA Racing Parts prize money. Chris Hodgkins moved into the top five in the next pairing at #5. Paul Baynton then came in at #3 and bumped Chris out of the top five. Liz Malcolm was next into the top five at #5 but was then bumped out again as John Morris moved into #4. 11:35 Pro Stock Bike qualifying after session 1:
You may remember that Len Paget was the first Pro Stock Bike racer ever to carry a Hayabusa body, Len has another first for us this weekend as his bike is now clothed in a GSX100 K7 body. Funny Bike qualifying after session 1:
Comp Bike qualifying after session 1:
That's the end of qualifying cycle 1, we go straight into cycle 2. 11:25 Wild Bunch qualifying top five after session 1:
Comp Eliminator qualifying after session 1:
A new personal best for Spencer Tramm, blasting into the eights, well done Spencer! Ian Hanson's 'Vette disappeared in a cloud of smoke at the finish line, nothing was found on the track but word came back from the top end that oil was found on the car. 11:20 Super Street qualifying top five after session 1:
A nice first run in competition for Jenny Gustafsson, lots of breakouts in this session. 11:10 Real Steel Street Eliminator qualifying top five after session 1:
Pete Smith made his first outing in the rebuilt Just Mental 'Vette and put in an easy but good-looking 13.493, the car looked very strong in the first eighth before Pete backed off. Trackside conditions are 22.1 C, 40% humidity and 29.91 inches of air. Track temperature is 63.3 F. 10:55 Junior Dragster qualifying top five after session 1:
Congratulations to Matthew Seamarks who took the Eurodragster.com/Speedflow Perfect Light Award with his 0.000. 10:50 9.50 Bike qualifying top five after session 1:
10:35 Super Street Bike qualifying top five after session 1:
10:25 Super Gas qualifying top five after session 1:
Jon Morton left some of his bonnet on the track at 1000 feet on his qualifying pass. 10:15 Super Modified qualifying after session 1:
Sportsman ET qualifying top five after session 1:
10:00 VW Sportsman qualifying top five after session 1:
VW Alternate Engine qualifying after session 1:
9:55 Super Comp qualifying top five after session 1:
First out in this session was Dave Day in the Double Trouble roadster, repaired after its meeting with the guardrail last week. VW Pro qualifying after session 1:
9:40 Super Pro ET qualifying top five after session 1:
Trackside conditions are 17.7 C, 48% humidity, 29.91 inches of air and the track temperature is 49 F. 9:30 Pro ET qualifying top five after session 1:
Rick McCann looked at the birdies on his pass as the Heaven and Hell Camaro stood up almost on its back bumper, just like Stock/Super Stock! Super Street racer Dave Cherrett on the first Pro ET pass we can remember him making stayed on the throttle all the way and clocked a fine 10.091. 8:45 Good morning and welcome from Santa Pod Raceway. It's the first day of the 2007 UK National Championships and we're here to bring you all the news 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 access the webcam via the Event Index page. Every two minutes? Yes, we have lost the broadband access here in Race Control so we are back on to dial-up. David of the Tech Crew is working very hard to sort things out and as soon as the broadband is back up we'll increase the refresh rate again. It's a very pleasant spring morning here at Santa Pod, a small amount of high cloud. Trackside conditions are 13.5 C, 57% humidity and 29.91 inches of air. Qualifying is due to start at 9:00 so stay tuned and we'll start to bring you the qualifying top fives. Reports and pictures ©Eurodragster.com |