Saturday
|
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 23:00 We have now posted today's pictures, which you can view via the Event Index. There are seventy pictures in all; if you do not see all seventy updated thumbnails when you load the gallery page then click on your Browser's Refresh button. Simon has also been into the pits to talk to Pro Modified racer and Eurodragster.com Blogger Andy Frost and you can find out what Andy had to say on his Alamo Rent A Car-sponsored Racer Blog by clicking here. Tune back in the morning and we'll bring you all the news from day three of qualifying. 21:00 UEM Top Fuel Bike qualifying session 2 (left lane first) Otto Knebl 11.1588/84.42, Rene van den Berg 7.1525/191.34; Ian King 6.4103/173.06, Nils Lagerlof 7.8702/116.54; Rikard Gustafsson 6.5546/210.12, Steve Woollatt 23.4793/41.13 1.1485 to sixty for Otto, headed for the centre line and shut if off by 300 feet. 1.1197 to sixty for Rene, 4.5601/158.96 at the eighth, a brief feather of the throttle and off it just before the stripe. 1.0424 to sixty for Ian, 1.0778 for Nils, Ian briefly feathered the throttle just at half track 4/0070/186.49 and then started heading for the centre line at the same time as Nils was moving across. 4.3692/142.31 at the eighth for Nils but shut it off in the second half. Ian slooked to shut it off just before the traps. 1.1349 to sixty for Rikard, Steve's rear tyre went up in smoke at the hit and he shut it off. 4.2630/176.22 at the eighth for Rikard, improvement in ET but stayed in place. Qualifying after this session:
That's qualifying done for today. Stay tuned for today's pictures, and that's not all since Simon is out getting a Blog entry from Pro Mod racer Andy Frost who is probably a happy bunny. Apologies to Pro Modified #1 qualifier David Vegter who was the victim of one of your reporter's occasional mistakes which happen under the pressure of working in real time. All sorted now and thanks to one of David's team who stepped up to tell me about it. 20:50 UEM Supertwin qualifying session 2 (left lane first) Jan Sturla Hegre no time bye; Christian J&uaml;ger 10.0055/98.39, Chris Hannam 7.9070/141.25; Nate Gagnon 6.6041/211.07, Samu Kemppainen 6.7229/211.92 1.0929 to sixty for Jan Sturla then lost drive and it sounded as if something was scraping along the track - chain I guess. 1.1145 to sixty for Christian then off the throttle, looks like shake. 1.1866 to sixty for Cannon, 4.7023/140.28 to the eighth, very close to the centre line and feathered the throttle near the finish line. Fantastic pair between Nate and Samu, 1.1515 to sixty for Nate to Samu's 1.1729, Nate to the eighth first 4.3704/176.29 to 4.4321/172.36. We believe a PB for Samu Nate consolidated his #1 spot and Samu moved up to #2. Qualifying after this session:
20:45 UEM Pro Stock Bike qualifying session 2 (left lane first) Fredrik Fredlund 7.5015/151.06 bye; Gert-Jan Laseur no time, Len Paget 7.5443/172.38; Martin Newbury 7.9277/159.61, Elivira Karlksson 7.5789/167.94; Kev Charman 7.9548/153.12 bye; Martin Bishop 7.6297/160.74, Kalle Lyrén 7.4072/175.07 1.1279 to sixty for Fredrik, motor sounded to hesitate a little. 4.6651/149.53 at the eighth, got very close to the centre line and shut it off before the stripe. Gert-Jan left before the lights ran. 1.1549 to sixty for Len, 4.7674/144.90 at the eighth, up the ladder one place. Improvements for Martin and Elvira but both stayed in place on the ladder. No improvement for Kev but a solid pass, 1.3027 to sixty and 5.0428/142.04 to the eighth. Kalle looked to shut off a touch early, no improvement Kalle or Martin. Qualifying after this session:
20:30 Fuel Funny Car qualifying session 2 (left lane first) Gordon Smith did not run, John Spuffard 12.1694/70.40 bye First look at the new MPM Oil Funny Car, very nice indeed. Equally pretty and on its first competitive run the new Showtime car in the other lane. Gordon Smith could not engage reverse after his burnout and so drive to the end of the track. 0.9910 to suxty for Spuff, shake and off the throttle but I would not be surprised if that was a planned launch anyway. Leif Helander found a blackened crank after his last run, all OK now but decided to sit out this session. Qualifying after this session:
20:25 FIA Top Fuel Dragster qualifying session 2 (left lane first) Paul Ingar Udtian 4.4270/239.72 bye; Chris Andrews 8.8036/79.12 bye; Stig Neergaard 4.1151/289.56 bye; Anita Mäkelä 5.9192/109.09, Micke Kågered 7.8678/75.07; Risto Poutiainen 4.1014/293.13, Jari Halinen 9.0972/72.30 Another licencing attempt for Paul Ingar. Nice run! 0.9430 to sixty, 2.4222 to 330 feet, 3.4881/235.95 at the eighth. Smoke then a bang and flash of flame from the motor just before 1000 feet. Familiarisation pass for Chris; very brief burnout then 0.9615 to sixty feet, I understand a planned launch. Fantastic run for Stig! 0.8828 to sixty feet, header flames high in the air. 2.2791 to 330 feet, 3.2789/254.99 at the eighth. Looked like a cylinder out just past the eighth but on the gas all the way and into #1 spot. 0.9377 to sixty for Anita, better 0.9156 for Micke. Shake and tyres up in smoke for Micke at about 200 feet, off the throttle and fluid along the track. 2.4126 to 330 feet for Anita then the tyres started to turn, Anita pedalled twice and there was a flash of flame from the right bank of her motor. Anita was off the throttle before the eighth 3.9682/134.71. Clean-up in Micke's lane and then Risto and Jari faced off. Fantastic run for Risto! 0.9074 to sixty feet, 3.2658/253.44 at the eighth. 0.8892 to sixty for Jari, shaking by the Tree and off the gas. Risto back into #1 spot. Qualifying after this session:
If you are considering buying Santa Pod's Web TV tomorrow and Monday then a free test is now being broadcast at www.santapod.co.uk/webtvtest.php. 19:30 FIA Pro Stock qualifying session 2 (left lane first) Conrad Stanley 7.7644/174.38 bye; Micke Callin 6.8240/204.40, Thomas Lindström 6.7507/206.02 Conrad pulled a huge burnout much appreciated by the crowd. The car sounded to be struggling a bit off the line, 1.1284 to sixty, 4.9557/139.52 to the eighth. PB for Micke last time out, thanks to our good buddy Christer Abrahamson for that snippet. Nice run between Micke and Thomas; Thomas had the better sixty foot 0.9974 to 1.0126, ahead at the eighth too 4.3536/162.74 to Micke's 4.3900/160.03. Jimmy Ålund is packing up and returning home after breaking two motors in two runs. Qualifying after this session:
19:25 FIA Pro Modified qualifying session 2 (left lane first) Andy Wright 6.6015/218.01 bye; Bert-Ove Olofsson 6.3368/223.36 bye; Steve Hall 6.8948/208.99 bye; Roger Moore 6.8058/210.01, Wayne Nicholson 7.3427/207.05; Andy Frost 6.9057/214.09, Graham Ellis 6.8000/224.45; Robert Joosten 13.550/71.80, Marc Meuhuizen 6.2108/230.21; Bruno Bader 6.4218/200.77, David Vegter 6.1853/232.46 Andy blows his Personal Best away, well done Andy! 1.0942 to sixty, very slight shake driven through, 4.3275/168.01 at the eighth, sounded like a very slight feather of the throttle in the second half. In at #5 after not getting a time in session 1. Excellent pass for Bert-Ole. 1,0298 to sixty, a pedal for shake, the Impala made a hard move to the right but Bert-Ove pedalled it and pulled it straight and stayed with it all the way. More to come there. Personal Best destroyed by Steve also, well done Steve! 2.0949 to sixty feet, sounded like a very slight feather of the throttle around half track 4.5168/161.92, stayed with it all the way. Smokje from the motor in the shutdown area but track OK so hopefully that means motor OK. 1.0738 to sixty for Wayne, 1.1690 for Roger with wheels up. Wayne hit shake and pedalled, 4.9111/154.20 at the eighth, meanwhile Roger was going great guns 4.4586/166.61 at the eighth. Smoke and flame from Roger's motor right on the stripe. 1.0641 to sixty for Eurodragster.com sponsor Graham, 1.2120 for Andy. Graham's 'Bird hit shake and started moving left and right, some quite violent moves but in another gutsy drive Graham hung on to it, 4.4775/152.59 at the eighth. Meanwhile Frost was going straight down the middle of his lane, 4.6154/167.30 at the eighth. 1.1109 to sixty for Robert, bad shake, off the throttle. 1.0142 to sixty for Marc, the car drifting to the left but he stayed on the gas. 4.0690/180.33 at the eighth, off the top of my head that's the quickest eighth today. Marc into #1 spot. Not much smoke off Bruno's tyres in the burnout. Great match-up between Bruno and David, the #1 spot changed hands again. Bruno got the jump 0.0954 to 0.1050, David had the better sixty foot time 1.0335 to 1.0179, Bruno then started driving through shake and the 'Vette was moving about its lane. 4.1300/174.25 to the eighth for Bruno and quickest yet to the eighth for David 4.0525/180.33. David back into top spot. Qualifying after this session:
19:05 FIA Top Methanol Dragster qualifying session 2 (left lane first) Esko Raisvuo 5.9576/244.20 bye; Dave Wilson 5.3650/265.76 bye; Chris Polidano shut off, Timo Habermann 5.4379/257.60 bye; Dennis Habermann 5.4614/259.65, Manty Bugeja 5.3753/257.59 Wild run for Esko. 1.0117 to sixty feet then shake and the dragster started to move around. Esko pedalled as the car moved hard right and when he hit it again at about 330 feet the dragster pulled a wheelie. 3.9181/178.46 at the eighth. Nice straight run for Grumpy. 0.9671 to sixty, blackstriping all the way, 3.5884/222.44 at the eighth then smoke from the motor and flame from one bank of headers as the car approached the stripe. Grumpy's run good for second spot. Chris' motor started but then he shut it off and towed back to the pits, not obvious what the problem was. Much improved run for Timo, 0.0685 RT and 0.9174 to sixty feet, drove through shake and yanked the car straight as it drifted left. 3.5511/208.81 at the eighth. Timo up to fifth. Quick check of the track in Timo's lane, all OK, on to the next pair. Fantastic run between Dennis and Manty. Dennis whacked Manty off the line 0.0591 to 0.1538, slightly quicker sixty foot 0.9201 to 0.9222 but then Manty stated to get the better of him, 3.5255/212.44 at the eighth to Dennis' 3.5875/207.04. Smoke then a sheet of flame and a big bang from Manty's motor right on the stripe. 0.0086 in it at the finish. Qualifying after this session:
Webcam sorted as promised, thanks to Maikel and the guys at Doyousee.me. Greetings to all those who very quickly deluged us with queries even though we had already explained here on the race report what had happened. Next time we'll answer all the queries instead of recovering the service and simultaneously writing the race report if that would be preferable. 18:40 Apologies for the brief downtime with the webcam service - Maikel tells us that a power failure hit the data centre. It is being sorted right now. FIA Top Methanol Funny Car qualifying session 2 (left lane first) Danny Bellio no time DQ, Rob Turner no time 0.9932 to sixty for Danny, 1.0479 for Rob, brief pedal for Rob for shake. 3.8023/199.71 to the eighth for Danny and 4.1137/179.54 for Rob. Danny got closer and closer to the centre line then hit the finish line reflector wiping out both his and Rob's time and speed. Danny then went into the field at the end of the track. Word from the top end is that Danny and the car are A-OK, not far into the field. Qualifying after this session:
18:15 Super Gas qualifying after session 5: 9.9122 for Stuart Doignie in this session on top of his 9.9102 top qualifier, you wouldn't bet against that sort of consistency. Stuart Morrice up from #17 to #10 in the last pair but three. Next pair and Pete Creswell took over the lead with a perfect 9.9002, well done Pete!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
F.I.A. Main Event 2012. Santa Pod Raceway. England.
TSI RACENET SYSTEM
QUALIFYING BY: ET
Next up is today's second Pro session. 18:05 Topspeed Automotive Street Eliminator qualifying after session 5: PBs for both Mark Todd and David Murdoch, well done both! Next pair and a big improvement for Ian Hook, in the other lane Jeff Meads drove through tyre shake to move up to #5 from #8.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
F.I.A. Main Event 2012. Santa Pod Raceway. England.
TSI RACENET SYSTEM
QUALIFYING BY: ET Pro Ladder QUALIFYING LIST
02/06/2012 18:07:08 11 STREET ELIMINATOR
Place CarNum Driver R.T. E.T. O/U INDEX MPH
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 1 BRIAN PAYNE + 0.0313 7.7650 7.7650 00.00 180.67
2 65 MARK TODD + 0.4651 7.8972 7.8972 00.00 185.13
3 34 IAN HOOK + 0.0872 8.1064 8.1064 00.00 174.40
4 6 STUART WILLIAMS + 0.2716 8.4591 8.4591 00.00 168.54
5 504 JEFF MEADS + 0.2077 8.4976 8.4976 00.00 174.39
6 33 DAVID MURDOCH + 0.2735 8.5371 8.5371 00.00 163.10
7 507 JON WEBSTER + 0.2004 8.7422 8.7422 00.00 155.22
8 666 ANDY BOND + 0.1673 8.8481 8.8481 00.00 158.52
9 56 COLIN LAZENBY + 0.1013 8.9373 8.9373 00.00 167.30
10 472 MATS ANDERSSON + 0.3815 9.0366 9.0366 00.00 156.33
11 1969 BILL MACDERMID + 0.0693 9.0534 9.0534 00.00 163.68
12 1000 ALAN COOK + 0.0181 9.1686 9.1686 00.00 162.48
* = Disqualified
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
18:00 Super Street qualifying after session 5: Improvement for Martyn Sanger in the second pair but he stayed in place.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
F.I.A. Main Event 2012. Santa Pod Raceway. England.
TSI RACENET SYSTEM
QUALIFYING BY: ET
17:55 Super Comp qualifying after session 5: Noah Stutz up into #1 spot in the third pair, another huge terminal speed for this class. Jon Giles in at #9 with a very good Super Gas time - more seat time I guess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
F.I.A. Main Event 2012. Santa Pod Raceway. England.
TSI RACENET SYSTEM
QUALIFYING BY: ET
17:35 Simon has posted his first set of pit notes, which you can check out via the Event Index page. 17:35 Martin Hill followed Super Street Bike with a storming 6.0604/276.32 in the Fireforce 3 Jet FC. Eric Teboul was next up with a 5.4432/256.14 on his Rocket Bike. 3.6238/219.02 at the eighth. We are now going into Sportsman qualifying and then the second Pro qualifying session. 17:20 UEM Super Street Bike Cup qualifying after session 1: one session to get the top sixteen in the sevens, how about that? The UEM take these guys on and they deliver. We think a new PB for Mogens Lund or close to it.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
F.I.A. Main Event 2012. Santa Pod Raceway. England.
TSI RACENET SYSTEM
QUALIFYING BY: ET Pro Ladder QUALIFYING LIST
02/06/2012 17:19:41 16 SUPER STREET BIKE
Place CarNum Driver R.T. E.T. O/U INDEX MPH
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 51 STEVE VENABLES + 0.1373 7.2674 7.2674 00.00 198.12
2 58 RICHARD STUBBINS + 0.1925 7.3732 7.3732 00.00 193.75
3 63 DAVE HOLAND + 0.2205 7.4611 7.4611 00.00 195.55
4 57 GARRY BOWE + 0.1188 7.5203 7.5203 00.00 182.02
5 59 CHRIS REED + 0.2346 7.5494 7.5494 00.00 190.52
6 14 DANNY COCKERILL + 0.0797 7.6144 7.6144 00.00 169.18
7 56 STEPHEN MEAD + 0.2050 7.6634 7.6634 00.00 190.54
8 50 NIGEL BARKER + 0.2041 7.7166 7.7166 00.00 192.23
9 52 GRAHAM DANCE + 0.3168 7.7292 7.7292 00.00 189.64
10 55 WAYNE SAUNDERS + 0.2236 7.7699 7.7699 00.00 194.69
11 54 GRAHAM BALCHIN + 0.1233 7.8119 7.8119 00.00 192.12
12 60 THOMAS GRANICA + 0.2694 7.8508 7.8508 00.00 180.00
13 155 MOGENS LUND + 0.1802 7.8521 7.8521 00.00 166.07
14 49 RICHARD HANN + 0.1182 7.8794 7.8794 00.00 179.22
15 47 MARK WELLS + 0.0950 7.8824 7.8824 00.00 186.58
16 62 PETE FIELD + 0.1738 7.9533 7.9533 00.00 185.88
17 11 NICHLAS SVERIN + 0.2130 8.0620 8.0620 00.00 186.65
18 61 ERICH GRUBER + 0.1117 8.1587 8.1587 00.00 172.37
19 48 DAVE SMITH + 0.3203 8.4930 8.4930 00.00 166.06
20 80 JAAK THUWIS + 0.4120 8.8050 8.8050 00.00 161.89
21 44 PAUL HAMBIDGE + 0.2636 8.8419 8.8419 00.00 179.24
22 27 LUCA CARBONERA + 0.2045 9.3088 9.3088 00.00 155.79
23 66 STEVE WOODS + 0.0366 9.9388 9.9388 00.00 120.44
* = Disqualified
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
17:05 UEM Top Fuel Bike qualifying session 1 (left lane first) Nils Lagerlof 8.3421/110.72, Rikard Gustafsson 6.5781/209.89; Rene van den Berg 28.7591/19.63, Otto Knebl 11.9203/108.98; Steve Woollatt 6.4359/187.43, Ian King 6.5917/183.54 Funny Bikes back in TFB this season and a pair to start the session. Nils had the better sixty 1.0894 to Rikard's 1.1035 but he was off the throttle before the eighth. 4.2924/173.54 to the eighth for Rikard, he makes this look easy. Rene and Otto off the throttle at around sixty feet, Rene never got back on the gas. Otto was on and off the throttle as the bike got close to the guardrail. Great pairing between Steve and Ian. Ian had the better sixty 1.0651 to 1.0839 but then his motor sounded to hesitate at the eighth 4.2691/178.18 to Steve's 4.1313/179.81, a yellow nitro fug from Ian's motor but he stayed with it a while longer. Both riders off the throttle just before the stripe. Qualifying after this session:
16:55 UEM Supertwin qualifying session 1 (left lane first) Nate Gagnon 6.7331/213.89 bye; Chris Hannam 7.7354/140.70, Christian Jäger 6.8129/175.04; Trond Høiberget shut off, Job Heezen 7.4418/126.66 bye; Samu Kemppainen 6.8587/207.23, Jan Sturla Hegre 10.3121/105.43; Nice poener for Nate. 1.2067 to sixty feet, 4.4711/174.24 at the eighth. Very close to the guardrail in the shutdown area, close enough to kick up a lot of dust but all OK. 1.1280 to sixty for Christian to Cannon's 1.1736/ Much better eighth for Christain 4.3754/172.77 to Cannon's 4.7316/153.11, smoke from the motor and from here you could see Cannon look down. Christian looked to shut it off a little early. Trond shut off after his burnout. 1.1222 to sixty for Job on his bye, going great guns then a bang and a flash of flame from his motor at the eighth 4.2976/165.31. 1.0836 to sixty for Jan Sturla and then shut it off, 1.1879 for Samu then 4.5025/167.80 to the eighth. Qualifying after this session:
16:45 UEM Pro Stock Bike qualifying session 1 (left lane first) Kev Charman 7.8723/167.32 bye; Ulf Ögge 7.4255/183.63, Martin Newbury 8.0734/156.35; Len Paget 7.6475/168.58 bye, Gert-Jan Laseur shut off; Gert-Jan Laseur 11.5954/74.44 bye; Elvira Karlsson 7.6436/161.33, Martin Bishop 7.4390/180.59; Kalle Lyrén 7.2437/171.75 bye; Kev's first run in UEM Pro Stock Bike. Nice 0.0974 RT, 1.2683 to sixty, 5.0299/141.67 at the eighth. 1.1163 to sixty for Ulf, 1.1891 for Martin after a nice 0.0980 RT. Ulf's feet came off the pegs at half track and he feathered the throttle for a moment although didn't seem to lose much momentum. 4.7468 to the eighth for Ulf. Gert-Jan shut off almost as soon as firing up. 1.1280 to sixty for Len, 4.8064/142.93 at the eighth, very close to the centre line in the second eighth, fag paper between him and the reflectors. Gert-Jan then took a bye as he had not burned out on his previous attempt. Motor hesitated off the line but Gert-Jan stayed with it wanting to get a time on the board. Elvira had the better sixty foot time 1.1111 to 1.1520, Martin had the advantage at the eighth 4.7443/148.11 to 4.8044/142.93. Nice run for Kalle, 0.0473 RT then 1.1063 at sixty and 4.5769/152.52 at the eighth. Sounded as if he ran out of gear just before the stripe but #1 spot for the Eurodragster.com Blogger. Qualifying after this session:
16:30 Fuel Funny Car qualifying session 1 (left lane first) Jason Phelps 8.3405/110.38 bye; John Spuffard shut off, Leif Helander 7.7578/115.97 bye; Back to the quarter mile. 1.0256 to sixty for Jason, blackstriping and the Marshall FC started to move for the centre line. Shut it off at about 300 feet, a blip of the throttle and straightened it out. The new Showtime FC stuck in reverse after firing up so never made it to the bleach box. Spuff shut off so Leif took the bye although for a moment it looked as if Leif wasn't going to get the Starkotter FC out of reverse after returning from the burnout. Languid launch for Leif, 1.0412 to sixty, the FC started to drift right and hit shake which we could feel up here in Race Control. Off the throttle at 330 feet. Qualifying after this session:
16:20 FIA Top Fuel Dragster qualifying session 1 (left lane first) Top Fuel Dragster is being contested over 1000 feet at every event this season. We understand that some of you have a problem with this as we are still fielding comments months after the announcement but whatever we think it's not going to change any time soon and it's not really Eurodragster.com to whom you need to speak about it. Paul Ingar Udtian 13.8665/62.04 bye; Duncan Micallef 4.2235/283.06 bye; Stig Neergaard 8.0619/79.54 bye; Chris Andrews shut off bye; Jari Halinen 5.1820/140.26, Anita Mäkelä 4.4132/204.81; Micke Kågered 6.7309/102.17, Risto Poutiainen 4.1761/267.75 As we understand it, a good pass for Paul and he is licenced and the run will count as a qualifier. The representative time was an interesting question since the standards in the rule book are for a quarter mile. Tyres up in smoke at the hit, 1.6635 to sixty feet, and a trail of fluid the length of the track - from here it looked like fuel not oil. Similar situation for Duncan, final licencing pass. Such a straight burnout that you could use his tyre marks as a ruler. Excellent pass for Duncan. 0.8805 to sixty feet, 2.3229 to 330 feet, the car slowly heading to the right but Duncan stayed with it. 3.3631/243.67 to the eighth and from here it looked as if he was on the throttle past the thousand-foot marker. Smoke from motor in the shutdown area and stopped short of the end of the track. Race Director Robin Shone confirmed to us that Duncan's run is good for his licence so it counts as a qualifying pass. Chris was due to run next, on a familiarisation pass in a car new to him. Motor stopped immediately upon starting a couple of times so Stig went in his stead whilst the motor was cranked over. Very brief burnout then 0.9018 to sixty and off the throttle - I am guessing a planned launch although there are shake marks in Stig's lane from about 60 to 120 feet. Chris over-staged and Crew Chief Eddie Corr signalled Chris to shut it off. Anita's motor started at the second attempt, meanwhile Chris towed back to the pits. Very, very gassy up here in our office after Jari and Anita pulled their burnouts. We love it! Anita away first 0.1445 to 0.2401, Jari had the better sixty foot time 0.8927 to 0.9357. Jari's tyres started to smoke and he was off it before the eighth 3.6211/161.75. Anita was still on it at the eighth 3.3620/244.60 but was off it immediately after the eighth. 1,0241 to sixty for Micke, shake and he was off the throttle by 330 feet. 4,5421/112.28 at the eighth. 0.9024 to sixty for Risto and he was driving through shake pretty much to the eighth 3.3279/250.00. Risto into #1. Qualifying after this session:
15:55 FIA Pro Stock qualifying session 1 (left lane first) Conrad Stanley 9.8603/166.67, Micke Callin 6.7204/206.13; Thomas Lindström 6.7358/204.41, Jimmy Ålund 26.4963/44.84 Conrad lost fire after returning from the burnout, quickly restarted. His motor hesitated at the hit and the car pretty much stopped before picking up again. 12.0029 to sixty for Micke, 4.3322/161.64 to the eighth, a carbon copy of yesterday's test pass. Jimmy in pre-stage a long time awaiting Thomas. Carbon copy for Jimmy, too, car just stopped at the hit. Great run for Thomas, 1.0031 to sixty, 4.3337/161.18 to the eighth. Qualifying after this session:
15:50 FIA Pro Modified qualifying session 1 (left lane first) Pro Modified would be a great time to send love and hugs to Paula Marshall who is tuned in from home. Home you are doing OK Paula - we wish you were here. Steve Hall 8.2050/174.39, Kev Slyfield 7.1159/211.84; Bert-Ove Olofsson 10.7053/90.70, Andy Frost 6.7140/210.81; Andy Wright no time bye, Jean Dulamon shut off; Wayne Nicholson 7.1634/164.85, Marcus Hilt 9.1331/194.68; Graham Ellis 6.9778/231.56, Roger Moore 15.9329/103.50; David Vegter 6.2793/198.90, Robert Joosten 6.4464/214.90; Marc Meihuizen 6.2803/231.67, Bruno Bader 6.4286/221.20 Steve's motor hesitated off the line, 1.3887 to sixty feet. Instant shake for Kev in the other lane and he pedalled, 1.3040 to sixty feet. Steve sounded to be feathering the throttle all the way, 5.3648/138.54 to the eighth, Kev was back on it and the Coupe was moving around its lane some, 4.7925/167.28 at the eighth. Kev;s car made a big move to the right as the chutes deployed. Fair amount of pre-stage checks for Andy, eventually Chief Starter Ian Marshall waved him forwards. Instant shake and zinged motor for Bert-Ole, 1.2094 to sixty feet and a long pedal before getting back on it, 1.1286 to sixty for Andy, straight down the middle of his lane, 4.4372/171.75 at the eighth, very easy-looking run, well done Frosty! 6.6185/111.27 at the eighth for Bert-Ove. Huge bang and Jean Dulamon's scoop blew to bits before staging, the start line crew leapt into action to put the carb fire out. Andy rolled through stage and then nailed the throttle, no Tree so no time. Marcus' usual tuner Camp Stanley unfortunately absent this weekend which has deprived us of no end of banter and non-PC humour. Instant spin and tyre smoke for Marcus, long pedal then back on it, 2.1952 to sixty to Wayne's 1.1782. 4.5772/166.68 to the eighth for Wayne but then the silver 'Vette started to make big moves left and right and Wayne eventually got off the throttle and put the chutes out. 6.5454/140.77 to the eighth for Marcus, on the throttle pretty much all the way. Eurodragster.com sponsor Graham rolled the beams as the revs went up robbing him of a fair measure of ET. 171.04 at the eighth. Roger tried to drive through shake, 1.2694 to sixty feet, but then shut it off. Fantastic pairing for David and Robert, #1 and #2 spots at that point. 1.0225 to sixty for David to Robert's 1.0517. Robert looked to be driving through shake pretty much all the way and more than once came very close to the centre line. 4.2039/170.98 at the eighth for Robert and a storming 4.0465/180.62 for David. David off the throttle early, Robert also. Great pair also for Marc and Bruno. 1.0667 to sixty for Marc, driving through shake, 1.1970 for Bruno. Marc's car looked to bounce anoud 400 feet out, 4.1391/181.18 to the eighth. 4.2350/180.26 for Bruno who was driving through shake to about 200 feet by the look of things. Qualifying after this session:
15:35 FIA Top Methanol Funny Car qualifying session 1 (left lane first) Steph Milam 6.2149/238.56 bye; Rob Turner shut off, Danny Bellio shut off; Danny Bellio 5.8274/246.50 bye; Rob Turner 6.3320/206.28 bye Gentle launch for Steph 1.1812 to sixty feet, a couple of pedals about 200 feet out, the FC started to move to the right but Steph stayed with it. 4.1426/191.95 at the eighth, feathering the throttle very slightly in the second half and a puff of smoke from the motor but Steph was on it all the way. A new PB speed for Steph, well done the She Devil team! Rob and Danny shut off on the line as the emergency crews rushed to the far end of the track. No word yet on what happened and probably none of our business. The original plan was for Rob and Danny to run after Pro Mod to allow cool-down time but everyone was happy so as soon as the safety crews were back on station Rob and Danny ran again. Danny on his way back from his burnout before Rob fired up and pulled forward but then held back allowing Danny a bye. Rob pulled his burnout as soon as Danny left the line. 0.9841 to sixty for Danny, slight shake about 200 feet out and the car made a move for the centre line. Danny yanked it straight just before the eighth 3.8382/195.30 and stayed on the gas all the way. 1.0305 to sixty for Rob, a pedal about 100 feet out and then audibly feathering the throttle all the way. 4.0934/171.68 at the eighth. Qualifying after this session:
15:00 FIA Top Methanol Dragster qualifying session 1 (left lane first) Chris Polidano 5.4000/266.82 bye; Manty Bugeja 5.3536/265.76, Esko Raisvuo no time; Krister Johansson 5.4746/262.54, Dennis Habermann 5.3744/250.59; Timo Habermann 5.8988/249.60, Dave Wilson 5.4848/251.88; Fantastic run for Chris to open the 2012 FIA European Drag Racing Championships. 0.9484 to sixty, 3.5949/218.86 to the eighth, a move right in the second half and quite close to the guardrail but Chris stayed with it all the way. New PB, well done Chris! Slight hesitation from Esko's motor on the burnout but it cleared. Stormer from Manty! 0.9420 to sixty, blackstriping all the way, 3.5137 at a huge 215.95 at the eighth, straight down the middle of the lane, huge PB and #1 qualifier. Well done the Mr Whippy team! 0.0692 RT for Esko, then a bang and the motor sprayed fuel and then stopped - it was as if the car lifted the blower if it wasn't for the fact that the car has no blower. Fantastic pairing betwen Krister and Dennis. 0.9823 to sixty for Krister and a storming 0.9027 for Dennis, faster eighth for Krister 3.6387/217.83 to Dennis' quicker 3.5067/210.54, Krister shut if off a touch before the stripe with a puff of smoke from the motor whilst Dennis stayed with it all the way, 0.0385 in it at the top end. Grumpy just started back from his burnout as Timo pulled his own burnout, quite a long one too, Grumpy waited patiently for Timo to return with all checks done. Timo got a big jump on Grumpt 0.0947 to 0.3946, Grumpy was reeling him in from sixty feet onwards 0.9896 to Timo's 1.0468. Timo's motor sounded to be misfiring all the way, 3.9637/201.48 at the eighth to Grumpy's 3.6467/217.54. Grumpy first by 0.1141. Qualifying after this session:
14:35 Super Pro ET qualifying after session 5: Tom van der Wijden up from #26 to #20 in the second pair. 0.0024 RT for Johan Oomen, doubtless assisted by the two penguins seeing him back from his burnout. New PB of 8.8591 for Roy Walker in the other lane, well done Roy! Eurodragster.com staff v former Eurodragster.com staff next pair, Photographer Kirstie crewing for Tom Atkinson and former Photo Editor and our good buddy Sharkman crewing for Pat Talbot. No changes in position for either racer. Jack Brewster next to make a move, up from #19 to #13. Big move for Rod Harrison, #21 to #5. Big breakout for Thomas Stiefel, 6.7339/205.30 on a 6.85 dial-in, crew didn't look too worried. Ashley Bell up from #31 to #23 next pair, new PB of 8.7160 for Joe Stevens in the other lane, breakout on an 8.82, well done Joe!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
F.I.A. Main Event 2012. Santa Pod Raceway. England.
TSI RACENET SYSTEM
QUALIFYING BY: ET
Next up is today's first Pro session. 12:35 We're on hold for sprinkles of rain at the top end. 12:30 Pro ET qualifying after session 5: Huge Super Stock wheelie from Nic Williams, put it down in a very controlled manner. In at #27. hans van der Spek first to make a move, up from #31 to #21 five pairs in. Next pair and Jon Turner took over #1 spot, in the other lane Billy Gane moved up to #21 from #29. Terry Robins up from #24 to #4 next pair. Paul Marston next to make a big move, up from #12 to #4. A brief hold for sports of rain then on the re-start Mark Bailey moved up from #21 to #15. Big move for Eurodragster.com sponsor Mike Lacey, in the last run of the session, up from #34 to #20 and into the ladder. 0.0965 separating the top 27, how about that?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
F.I.A. Main Event 2012. Santa Pod Raceway. England.
TSI RACENET SYSTEM
QUALIFYING BY: ET
11:30 Pro ET are in the lanes. 11:00 Pro ET and Super Pro ET are getting a one-hour call. The plan is for those classes and then today's first Pro session. Stay tuned. 07:50 Good morning and welcome to our coverage of the FIA Main Event brought to you in asociation with Alamo Rent-A-Car. The Webster Race Engineering/Nimbus Motorsport webcam will be on-line very shortly. Thanks to our friends at Doyousee.me for the provision of streaming services. A particular Good Morning again to the Eurodragsterholics, and to our good friend Ivar Kolberg who is tuned on from Norway. Jeanette Webster asked us to say a big Good Morning to all the hardworking folk (including the teachers) in Pine Class, Denfield Primary. "We are hoping to catch Jon Webster in his Mercury Comet on the webcam sometime today", says Jeanette. "Good luck to all racers". A big good morning to you kids, and remember that a good education beats pretty much everything else. A very Happy 20th Wedding Anniversary to Top Methanol FC racer and definitely not pedestrian Jonas Staflund who is celebrating the anniversary with his wife on the island of Rhodes.Jonas has I think been spending a lot of time in the hotel lobby since it is the only place in which he can get internet access. Finally a big Hello to Shaun Ward who is on a ship in the Middle East, a ship with web access luckily. We had rain overnight and the track is quite wet, but the track crew are already out there doing their thing. Stay tuned and when we have an update for you we'll be back. Reports and pictures ©Eurodragster.com |