Well the ride down went smooth and friday night I crashed in a Pro Fuel trailer that is owned by Mr. Sower. Saturday morning came quick and qualifying was right around the corner. After some breakfast with Ziggy, Top Fuel racer, and the guys it was time for my first pass.
It was hot and humid as hell. The air was terrible and there wasn't one bike that wasn't affected by the climate. My first pass in qualifying went ok, I missed second gear but cut a .05 light and salvages a 13.45s run. The second pass went better with no missed gears but I red lighted and didn't really learn much from the run. My last pass of the day I got everything together, cutting a .021 light I hit every gear and ran a 13.22.
Even though my times weren't great I qualified ninth out of 39 bikes thanks to the .021 reaction time. After my last pass I went into the pits to relax for a while and talk with the guys from Capone Racing.
After some well deserved rest Saturday night in someone eldest hotel room I was ready to do some racing. Sunday morning was absolutely gorgeous, it was slightly overcast and the temperature only in the sixties. Today was going to a fast day.
Opening ceremonies were held and then it was right into the Top Fuel Nitro Harleys. The air was great and some of the fastest passes of the weekend were made those first few minutes of racing.
The E/T class was finally called and I was out on the line. My first race I dialed in at a 13.45. I wasn't sure what to do because I hadn't really learned anything from Saturdays runs. I was lucky and my opponent red lighted which opened the opportunity to see what I could do. I ran it as hard as I could and crossed the line at 13.05 running 100mph.
The next race luck was on my side yet again. My opponent red lighted giving me another chance to run it hard. I set a new personal record at 12.87. I now had two rounds under my belt and was ready to send some more racers packing.
After a good break and talking with the guys round three was about to start. I made my way to the staging lane and started to get focused. I found my opponent and we were off to the burnout box. After getting the tire warm we were pre staged. I brought the bike to 4500rpm and staged. The lights came down and off I went. It was my worst reaction time of the weekend, a shameful .221, but I was still in it because my opponents reaction wasn't much better. The time flew by, as I neared the finish line I checked behind me and saw I was being chased down. We crossed the line with him just a hair in front. When I got my time slip I was shocked to see I was beat by only 9 hundredths of a second.
I may not have made it to victory lane this weekend but I did set a new record and learned an awful lot about the higher end Harley drag bikes.
I would like to thank Reno, Kim, Ricky, Clarence, Ziggy, Junior, Pop, Nate, Gardner, the boys from Tennessee, all the great people at Capone Racing, and anyone I may have forgotten for a great weekend and the much appreciated support!
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