Beckman grabs best spot of year, No. 3, in Reading qualifying

DON SCHUMACHER RACING
2009 NHRA FULL THROTTLE DRAG RACING SERIES
Round 17 of 24
25th annual NHRA NATIONALS
Maple Grove Raceway
Mohnton, Pa.
Aug. 21-23, 2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Judy Stropus, 203-438-0501; cell, 203-243-2438;
jstropus@earthlink.net

BECKMAN GRABS HIGHEST SPOT OF YEAR, NO. 3, IN READING QUALIFYING

MOHNTON, Pa. (Aug. 22, 2009) - Jack Beckman grabbed his highest qualifying
position of the year today, No. 3, in the rain-shortened qualifying rounds
for the 25th annual NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway, outside of
Reading, Pa.

Only two qualifying sessions (of four) were completed between rain delays
and cleaning up water seeping through the track surface, and Beckman and the
Valvoline/Mail Terminal Services Dodge Funny Car team made the most of it.
Beckman came out strong in the only round on Friday, with a 4.180-second
pass at 296.83 mph, good for No. 10 at the time.

In today's only qualifying run, Beckman improved handily with a
4.134/297.68, catapulting him to No. 3. He will face his former Don
Schumacher Racing teammate Jerry Toliver in the first round of Sunday's
eliminations.

"This is where running good off the trailer makes all the difference in the
world," said Beckman, safely in the Countdown to 1 playoffs for the top 10
in points, which begin after this event and the next one in Indianapolis.

"We were comfortably in the field on Friday, so we could afford to step on
it a little bit today. We were two thousandths (of a second) away from the
No. 2 spot. That's the best we've been all year, so that's cool.

"We're going to start out at the top, we're going to get a few more points
for being No. 3, we'll have lane choice and, in theory, you get a more
favorable pairing, but they're all tough on Sundays.

"I'm excited. I think that, in the last three runs that we did in Brainerd
(Minn., last Sunday) and the two here, the car's done everything that we've
told it to do, and that had been the missing ingredient from what we had
last year.

"It just wasn't quite as predictable. I think now wešre back in that zone
where this car is predictable and now it's going to start getting quicker
every run."

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