McClenathan has FRAM AirHog No. 5 at Atlanta Dragway
CARRIER BOYZ RACING FRAM AIRHOG DRAGSTER 25TH ANNUAL NHRA SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT SOUTHERN NATIONALS ATLANTA DRAGWAY – COMMERCE, GA. MAY 12-15, 2005 Qualifying: Session 1 Friday: 5.051 seconds at 275.17 mph (#11) Session 2 Friday: 4.559 seconds at 322.34 mph (# 2) Session 1 Saturday: 4.594 seconds at 325.14 mph (# 2) Session 2 Saturday: 4.566 seconds at 326.87 mph (# 5) McClenathan has FRAM AirHog No. 5 at Atlanta Dragway COMMERCE, Ga. (May 14, 2005) – Cory McClenathan drove the Carrier Boyz Racing FRAM AirHog Top Fuel dragster to the No. 5 position as qualifying came to an end for this weekend’s NHRA Summit Racing Equipment Southern Nationals presented by Pontiac, the first of six races in seven weeks. In the first qualifying session on Friday, the 130-degree track made for a slippery track. After pedaling twice, McClenathan crossed the finish line in 5.051 seconds, good for the 11th spot. After the run, clutch specialist Bob Bauer indicated that they learned a lot regarding clutch set up for the Saturday runs. He said “that you can always learn something from a run, even a bad run.” But first came the Friday night session, the session that many teams look forward to during the summer months because the track temperatures are usually much cooler after the sun goes down. Prior to the run, crew chief Todd Smith said he planned to throw everything at the track to see if the FRAM AirHog dragster could post a good number. McClenathan then proceeded to blaze the Atlanta Dragway in 4.559 seconds holding the top spot until the final pair, as Tony Schumacher pushed Carrier Boyz Racing back to No. 2. As the team prepared for the first Saturday qualify session, McClenathan said that last evening’s run was good for momentum and team morale, but you can throw that run out the window as you need to adapt for the hot weather conditions expected today and Sunday. Using what they learned in the heat of Friday’s first session, Smith and Bauer tuned the Carrier Boyz race car accordingly and McClenathan ran the second quickest time of Saturday’s first qualifying attempt, a 4.594 second pass at 325.14 mph. Then for the second time during the final professional qualifying session the rains came and this time interrupted the Top Fuel qualifying with approximately half the field, including McClenathan, still waiting for their fourth qualifying pass. After a delay of approximately two and one-half hours, Top Fuel racing resumed and the dragsters were flying. Even though he ran a pass of 4.566 seconds at 326.87 mph in his final qualifying run, McClenathan was bumped to the No. 5 as Morgan Lucas, David Grubnic and Brandon Bernstein moved by the FRAM AirHog. Tomorrow, when eliminations begin, Cory Mac will look over and find Scott in the other lane. Not Scott Weis, who he has faced in the opening round the last four races, but Scott Palmer. Palmer qualified No. 12 with an elapsed time of 4.712 seconds. “We threw a lot at the car that final pass and I expected a better time than I saw on the time sheet,” said McClenathan. “Since I thought we had a shot at the pole, I was disappointed. The downside to it all was that with the other guys stepping up, it knocked us down a few spots. Don’t get me wrong, the FRAM AirHog Is running good enough to win races and that’s exactly what this Carrier Boyz race team is going to try to do tomorrow.” Upon the conclusion of the Summit Racing Equipment Southern Nationals, the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series moves to Columbus, Ohio, next weekend, then to Topeka, Kan., the following weekend. After a week off, the series begins back-to-back-to-back races in Joliet, Ill. (June 9-12), Englishtown, N.J. (June 16-19) and St. Louis (June 24-26). ELIMINATIONS: McClenathan begins his quest for the Top Fuel title tomorrow with eliminations for all classes getting underway at 11 a.m. All times are eastern time (ET) and subject to change at anytime. TELEVISION: ESPN2 will air same-day television coverage of eliminations from 7 until 10 p.m. on Sunday evening (May 15). The elimination show repeats on ESPN2 early Monday morning, May 16, from 2 until 3:30 a.m. Television times are Eastern Time (ET) and subject to change at anytime. Check local listings. Headquartered in Danbury, Conn., FRAM®, the official filter of the NHRA®, is a unit of Honeywell Consumer Products Group, which manufactures and markets the FRAM AirHog™ air filter and other quality FRAM automotive filters. The Honeywell Consumer Products Group also includes Prestone® antifreeze/coolant and car care products, Autolite® spark plugs and ignition wire sets and Holts® car care products. For additional information visit the following websites: FRAM at www.fram.com and FRAM AirHog at www.framairhog.com or call 1-800-862-7737. For 2005, Carrier Boyz Racing and primary marketing partners FRAM and Honeywell welcome the support of our associate marketing partners: American Racing Wheels, Autolite Spark Plugs, Bendix, Fabtech, GMC, Mac Tools, Prestone and PurePower Oil. Visit our website at www.carrierboyzracing.com for the most current team news, race results and team merchandise.