After 5-hour rain delay, Scelzi is No. 8 in Bristol

DON SCHUMACHER RACING
NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series
Mac Tools Thunder Valley NHRA Nationals
Round 6 of 23
Bristol (Tenn.) Dragway
Saturday, April 26, 2003


Contact: Judy Stropus, 203-438-0501, cell 203-243-2438

AFTER FIVE-HOUR RAIN DELAY, SCELZI QUALIFIES NO. 8 IN BRISTOL

GARY SCELZI, OAKLEY TIME BOMB DODGE STRATUS R/T, will start tomorrow's final
eliminations from the No. 8 position by virtue of his 4.869/320.43 lap
established in the first round of qualifying on Friday, and will face Dean
Skuza in the first round. He finished today's first session in No. 7 spot,
with a 4.964/305.08 pass, and after a five-hour rain delay, in the final
session he hit the wheelie bar, struck the tires and coasted to a
13.820/78.05 pass.

"We learned a lot the last couple of days: weather changes, really good race
track, happy motor, happy horsepower, drive under control but make prevision
moves. We tried to calculate everything we did. We tried to move it a little
bit quicker on the .85 to run a low .80. It didn't; it slowed down a little
bit in today's first session. We didn't have enough clutch on it. We thought
we had enough; we didn't. The motor was actually ahead of the clutch, which
made it slip more, which slowed it down from an .86 to an .87 instead of
going from an .86 to an .81. We're trying to find a happy medium in this new
clutch and it looks like we're getting there. Tonight it hit the wheelie
bar, unloaded the tires. We're just going to throw tonight out. Tonight's
fantasyland anyway. Conditions will not be like this tomorrow. So, tomorrow
we'll come back with our race-day tune-up and see what the weather brings.
If it's cool, if it's sunny, whatever it is, I think we're ready for them.

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