Super Twin racer Tommy Grimes rode Per Bengtsson's Beast at Tierp last August. The arrangement was relatively last minute and the team wanted to prepare well for the Tierp Internationals. So Tommy flew over the Wednesday before the event and tested at Malmö which holds a regular test and tune on Wednesdays. Bike owner Per Bengtsson had carried out a couple of launches as well. The result of preparation were great passes of 6.67/358 and 6.41/316. Team manager L-O Jonsson said 'We plan to run the EDRS Pro Series and then take the bike to Valdosta in November'.

Top Fuel Dragster racer Timo Lehtimäki who raced at Alastaro and Tierp (August) in 2016, ran a solid 4.22/452 at the start of qualifying to go fifth. Crew chief Ulf Hultholm said 'We are really testing to see if the car runs ok, we had tyre shake so will give it more power for the next run'.

Top Doorslammer racer Åke Eliasson suffered a major explosion in qualifying in session three. It was the Procharger which disintegrated into a large number of pieces, which we haven't ever seen at the track. The force of the explosion was enough to puncture and distort the fuel tank and Åke, although unhurt, is out for the rest of the event.

Pro Stock racer Richard 'Nixxon' Sundblom ran a 6.7941 to go sixth. He said 'It's good to be back after I just did two rounds of the championship in 2016 at Alastaro and Tierp in August. We have updated the car over the winter, nothing major and there was nothing wrong with the car, I need to drive it better as it has run a 6.58 and should be there'.

Pro Stock racer Thomas Lindström is busy with racing and publishing Street & Strip, Sweden's leading drag racing magazine which is being published six times a year. 'We are looking to promote the sport and a dedicated magazine which has a print run of 10,000 is important to raise awareness and communicate to teams'. on the track, he ran a 6.6512 to go fourth.

Pro Stock racer Sampso Palos did not run in the first qualifying session because of a carburettor problem. Crew chief Marko Someroja explained 'The carburettor was providing too much fuel which was flooding the heads. The rear plugs looked very dark and the idle after the burnout didn't sound right. The engine is fine otherwise'.

Pro Stock racer Michael Malmgren was happy with a 6.647 to go third after the first session. He said 'It's a good baseline and the track is good'. His second pass was an improved 6.640 to consolidate his third place.

Pro Stock racer Tommy Lundström is fulfilling a dream. He said 'I have been drag racing doorslammers for the last twenty years, starting on the street and then in Super Gas for several years. I built a Cuda for Comp Eliminator with a SBC and Powerglide. But this was my first ever competitive pass in Pro Stock. I bought the car which had crashed, and rebuilt it from scratch. I am using Bob Ingles engine, which Michael Malmgren helped me with, and a 6 1/4 inch three disc clutch. My best time so far is a 7.10 so I was pleased to run a 7.12 in qualifying; we want to run a six and will do if I do the right things. I was a little nervous and will remember my first pass in this car for ever. I couldn't have done all this without my team'.

Pro Stock racer Tommy Leindahl, who raced in the class from 2002, last raced in 2014. He said 'I have rejoined the circus'. The car has a new third member, gearbox and engine from Jimmy Karlsson of JAMS who I have an engine programme with, they have experience with a racing programme in the 1990s. We are running Hoosier tyres which are unusual for this class, and Lövén Speed Shop have supported me by supplying wheels and tyres. We plan to race at Tierp, Alastaro and possibly the Finals this year.

Pro Stock racer Hannu Kalliomäki is at his first Pro Stock event having raced for thirty years. 'I ran Super Pro Street and Outlaw and then purchased this car from Greg Stanfield in the US - he had raced it until 2012. The car came in April and so we had a short time to prepare and many thanks to Nick Ferry of Elite Motorsports for his advice and help. We are using our spare engine, the best one is stil lin the US. I am really pleased with a 6.82 which is a really great start'.

Pro Mod and Pro Stock racer Jimmy Ålund is the first drag racer to drive a Pro Mod and Pro Stock car in the same event. He said 'The Pro Mod would have run a great time if it had gone down the track in the first pass, the first 330ft was great but then it got out of the groove and it was wisest to lift. In contrast with the Pro Stock there is a lot more to do down the race track and you have to drive it with more finesse. The Pro Mod is brutal and has more power than you can ever use. So I have to drive the cars in a different manner and at least on one car I knew what to do'. In session two he proved he knows exactly what to do in both cars as he ran a 5.945 in the Pro Mod and 6.55 in the Pro Stock to go first in both categories.

Top Methanol Dragster racer Jonny Lagg suffered a fire when a lead going into the MSD short circuited and caught fire. Crew chief Krister Johansson said 'The lead arced with a gap at the end of it, but there was no damage and we changed the lead and are ready to go'. The second pass was a troubled 11 second with shake and cylinders out. Support for the car includes sponsorship by Tierp Arena owners Badhotellet.

Top Fuel racers Duncan Micallef and Liam Jones had mixed fortunes in session one. Liam suffered a broken cam follower on a 4.15 run which caused fuel system problems and a torched head. Duncan Micallef had a cleaner run with little shake on the launch. Liam missed the second session as the team repaired the car and Duncan ran a shake filled 6.59.

Super Twin racer Svein Olaf Rolfstad, riding one of three supercharged machines in the category suffered a failure of an adjusting screw which resulted in the exhaust valve not opening as it should. 'That led to another couple of problems, and the belt broke. The rear cylinder was ok but the front not, and we will have to tear it down to see if there is any damage to the case'. The flames out of the bike were spectacular but not as they should have been.

Super Twin racer Anders Hörnström was fourth with a 6.948/329, a massive improvement in PB from his previous 7.588 set last June. His ex-Jay Turner bike has a PRP engine.

Super Twin racer Pettri Mattsson is back after taking over two years off and now has a Fastlane Racing V60 engine in common with Samu Kemppainen and Roman Sixta. The new combination worked well straight away with a new PB of 6.73/280 in session one, but he crossed the centre line in the second session.

Super Twin racer Trond Jostein Høiberget suffered problems off the line and lifted early on both passes. He is qualified 12th and there is a field of eight bikes to qualify for.

Top Fuel Bike racer Jan Sturla Hegre had to lift when the bike headed towards the centre . In the second session he rode out fishtailing and went 6.355/338 lifting early.

Super Twin racer Erling Opheim is riding Svein Olaf Rolfstad's old bike minus supercharger. This is his third year in the class, after making his debut at the 2015 Drag Challenge in Gardermoen.

Super Twin racer Roman Sixta's bike would win a show and he ran well at the Main Event, running a 6.89 . He improved on that with a 6.74 to go third in qualifying. He is running a Nitro V60 engine from Fastlane Racing.

Super Twin racer Greger Johansson ran a best of 7.514 to go fourth after two sessions. His blown bike has a Side By Side engine, Venolia pistons, Karling crank and Bentec clutch and gearbox.

Super Twin racer Vidar Ravnsborg, racing Ton Pels' former Godfather bike, had the rear tyre go up in smoke in session one and then a bolt flew off in the second half, Vidar coming off the throttle at that point.

Super Twin racer Samu Kemppainen is defending EDRS Pro Champion and has new parts on his unblown bike, a new crank, a American Liberty clutch and B&J gearbox. Samu retains his links with Ron Houniet of Fastlane Racing for whom former European Champion Nate Gagnon works. 'Ron gives me really super service and is very quick on parts delivery' said Samu. On track, the bike went up in smoke on the first pass and had handling problems on the second as well, Samu having to lift.

Top Fuel Bike racer Peter Andersson (from Älvkarleby) ran a best of 8.03 on his Funny Bike but had to lift on both passes.

Pro Stock Bike racer Kalle Lyrén said 'We have been busy with Parts Europe over the winter and we had a baby girl a week and a half ago'. A 7.06 in session one was followed by a 7.03 in session two but Kalle parted company from the bike in the shutdown area. He is unhurt apart from bruising but the bike is damaged.

Pro Stock Bike racer Thomas Olsen ran a 8.02 in the first session, lifting when the bike got close to the wall, and also lifted in the second session when the bike got close to the centre line. The bike has a Vance & Hines engine and gearbox, the whole field of Pro Stock Bikes being Suzuki at this event.

Pro Stock Bike racer Fredrik Kempe did not start in session one and struggled off the line in session two.

Super Street Bike racer Ida Johansson is in 14th place with a 9.863. She is 20 years old and her bike was built by Rawhill Kustom Kreations with a body from Rick Stubbins, and 1300cc engine with Autoverdi pistons and Gen2 clutch. Her sponsors are listed on her web site.

Super Street Bike racer Mark Hope travelled from the UK with dad Chris and Pro Stock Bike brother Alex. Mark's turbo Suzuki ran a best of 7.6052 to go seventh at the end of two qualifying sessions.

Super Street Bike racer Kim Hilander ran a PB of 7.7178 to go eighth. He is from the island of Å and his Hayabusa has a Wossner turbo, Bosch 44 fuel pump, MTC Gen2 clutch, Undercut gearbox and Evil Swingarm.

Super Street Bike racer Pelle Lakmaker ran a best of 9.810 to qualify 13th. He has a best of 7.694/299, but the bike he is running here is owned by Björn Friström; before this event he had tested at Gardermoen running 7.86.

Super Street Bike racer Robert Nilsson, at his third race in five weeks, is qualified second with a 7.3049. His team mates from their trip to the UK, Bianca Nilsson and Mathias Bohlin are in Super Comp Bike and Super Street Bike and qualified fourth and sixth respectively.

Super Street Bike racer Dag Wagenius from Norway had troubled qualifying sessions with a 10.3401 to go 15th. His bike is a turbo Hayabusa with Wössner pistons and Heinz clutch that has run a best of 7.58/314.

Super Twin racer Lasse Leponiemi from Finland, who is new to the class suffered ignition problems and didn't make the qualifying today, but there are two sessions tomorrow. His bike is has a Overkill engine of 160ci and direct drive.

On Thursday evening and Friday morning, FIA Head of Medical Affairs Sandra Silveira Carma gave a well attended presentation on the FIA's anti doping programme. Topics covered included an overview of FIA's anti doping values which derive from rules at the Olympics, what to do to avoid an anti doping rule violation, a list of prohibited substances, and the application process for medical exemption. An e-learning course and quiz are here.

Pro Street racer Seppo Raussi, 2016 EDRS class Champion, is qualified no.7 with a 7.6308. He is from Vantaa, Finland and runs a Purple Pontiac GXP. The cat was self built in 2011 using a Tami Brander chassis. It is powered by a petrol fuelled BBC of 632cu in on NOS, with Dart block, Brodix heads, Ross pistons, Lunati crank, Magnafuel pump and Powerglide gearbox.

Pro Street racer Gideon Liljegren is new to the class in 2017 and is qualified 14th with a 7.7833. His Pontiac Grand Prix uses NOS and has a Dart block, and Big Chief heads.

Pro Street racer Peter Nordlund's '61 Ford Starliner went into no.2 with a 7.605 on the class index of 7.60. His car was built by Pat Bennett race cars in Virgina with a 652ci engine, Leanders clutch and Lenco gearbox. He was 3rd in the 2016 championship.

Pro Street racer Johan Källberg uses a SBC engine. He is qualified fifth with a 7.6145.

Pro Street racer Peter Trång runs a Pontiac Firebird built in 2001 by Worthy Racecars. The engine is a Chevy 582cu in on NOS, and the gearbox is Powerglide. He is qualified 8th with a 7.6415.

Pro Street racer Mikael Norén runs this familiar looking banana coloured Dodge Demon that previously won the championship in Super Comp with Bosse Ragnebro driving. He is qualified fourth with a 7.6107. Mikael has a 580cu in Mopar engine on NOS, with Mega block, Indy heads, Magnafuel fuel pump, Turbin clutch, and JW Powerglide.

Pro Street racer Fredrick Gravningen from Norway is aged 22 and runs this Chevrolet Pick Up. He is qualified 13th with a new PB of 7.7577, following problems with tyre shake yesterday. The truck has a methanol fuelled blown BBC of 540cu in, with Brodix aluminium block, Ohio crank, PG gearbox, and Ford 9 inch rear. He was championship runner up in 2016.

Pro Street racer Kenneth Lingvald is in 17th with a 8.5861. His Chevrolet Camaro has run a best of 7.70/307 and has a blown BBC of 526ci with Dart Big M block, Dart 360 solid heads, Ross pistons, Callies crank, ATI Converter and Superglide 4.

Pro Street racer Lars Berglund qualified 12th with a 7.708. He drives a Pontiac Grand AM built in 2004 by Lars himself and Rickard Wiksten. It is powered b NOS BBC 632cu in, NCP block, Dart heads, Diamond pistons and TH400 gearbox.

Competition Eliminator racer Hannu Flink from Finland went 6.6366 on a 7.27 A/PM index in session five to go fifth. He runs a '41 Willys built by Brander Race Cars in 2013.

Competition Eliminator racer Krister Adeen went 6.6074 yesterday to set up the first half of a new CT/A class record which he backed up today. The turbo Volvo powered car was built by ME Racing Service in 2013-15.

Competition Eliminator racer Angelica Bäckman, aged 20, moved up from Super Comp in 2015 and became EDRS category runner in the 2016 championship. She is eighth with a 7.1148 on a 7.61 B/D index, her PB being a 7.008. Her dragster was built in 2004 by Danny Nelson and has a DRCE2 engine of 500 cu in with Diamond pistons, Crower crank, Magnaflow 500 fuel pump, BTE clutch and PG gearbox. Mark Williams supplied the rear axle.

Competition Eliminator racer Matti Rajam¨ki went straight into the no.9 spot with a 8.8437 on 9.26 index. He said 'We had a few minor problems which prevented us from running yesterday'. Matti started racing 20 years ago, the same year that his Mustang II was built by Warren Brogie.

Competition Eliminator racer Jesper Stenberg, new to the category in 2017, runs AN/A with his Firebird. He qualified 17th with a 7.4003 on a 7.00 index. The car was built in 1997 by Bevis Racecars and has a gasoline fuelled 598cu in Pat Musi engine, including Dart Big M block, Edelbrock heads, and Abruzzi Powerglide. His PB is 6.98/322

Competition Eliminator racer Stig Olsson was no.1 qualifier at the end of Thursday with a 6.6565 on 7.38 index but got bumped to second in this morning's session. Stig, a transmission builder by trade, has run A/D in his Neils & Park slingshot since 2006, with a PB of 6.481/337. The car has a Chevy DRCE2 engine of 500cu in, and a self built PG.

Competition Eliminator racer Jim Bergström is racing his AT/A Corvette on a 6.89 index and carded a 7.6969 in his first run of the event this morning to go 18th. His ’63 Vette was built by Jerry Bickel and has run a best of 6.86/327. The car's twin turbo LSX engine has Diamond pistons, Callies crank, and transmission is via a Powerglide to a Ford 9” rear.

Competition Eliminator racer Pär Eriksson is seventh with a 6.7122 on 7.23 index for CT/A, close to his PB of 6.677. the Volvo C70 was built ten years ago by the team and runs a Volvo-based 2791cc turbo methanol engine, with billet block, Venolia pistons, SPM crank, Aeromotive fuel pump, and Liberty gearbox.