Englishtown NHRA Chevy Fri. Note
22 May 1999
CHEVROLET NOTES AND QUOTES
MOPAR PARTS NATIONALS -- NHRA WINSTON DRAG RACING SERIES
OLD BRIDGE TOWNSHIP RACEWAY PARK
ENGLISHTOWN, N.J. -- FRIDAY, MAY 21, 1999
PRO STOCK TRUCK -- CHEVY S-10 -- FINAL QUALIFYING
BRAD JETER, Jeter Motorsports Chevy S-10, qualified No. 1 for the second
time this season, with a track record-breaking elapsed time of 7.571
seconds at 177.95 mph. BOB PANELLA JR., Panella Motorsports Chevy S-10, is
No. 2, with an e.t. of 7.573 and a track record-breaking top speed of
178.71 mph. With coaching from Roy Hill, Jeter had a string of good
reaction times, winning a bet with fellow S--10 drivers Mark Osborne and
Tim Freeman as to who would have the best reaction time in the final
session.
Note: Brad Jeter is now No. 1 in the Holley Denominator Duel for Pro Stock
Truck standings. This event will be held at the Fram Route 66 National in
Joliet, Ill, in two weeks.
Note: CHEVY S-10s hold the top six qualifying positions.
JETER: The Chevy S-10 has done a great job for us, the crew has been
working very hard to keep us qualified in every event. The worst I've
qualified so far is fifth. It's always great to be No. 1. We've been
there before, but sometimes someone comes in and steals one away from you
in the final session." ON COMING BACK AFTER BEING TOSSED OUT IN THE FIRST
ROUND LAST WEEK: "We tested in Atlanta on Monday, and I think we're going
in the right direction right now. Hopefully, it'll come around for us at
this race." IS THERE ANY DIFFERENCE IN LANES: Honestly, no. I didn't
see much different lane to lane. Both lanes are really smooth. It makes
our job a lot easier. YOU HAD CLUTCH PROBLEMS IN ATLANTA, WHAT CHANGED?
We had a few problems in the bell housing with the coating on the clutch,
it was coming off. We put our other clutch in it and it changed things
dramatically. The air on Monday (in Atlanta) was not real good, we did a
7.64 at 176 mph and in the second run we did a 7.62 at 177. We felt we got
the problem cured right there. ON THE TOUGH COMPETITION IN PRO STOCK
TRUCK:It's getting real tough, a whole lot tougher than I thought it
would be. I like it tough, I like the competition, it brings the best out
of the driver. That's what I've worked hard on, to be the best I could be,
especially at the starting line. We put some real good lights together
during the course of qualifying. I had a little side bet with Mark Osborne
and Tim Freeman on (our reaction times) at the tree this last run. I went
434, they were .466 and .502. We won that one, and $40, hands down." ON
RACING HALF THE ELIMINATIONS ON SATURDAY AND THE OTHER HALF ON SUNDAY:
You always want to race on Sunday. I wish we could race the whole race on
Sunday. That way you can prepare for one day of racing and two days of
qualifying. As it stands now, you have four days; two days of qualifying
and two days of racing. It makes it tough for us. But, you know, we're
just glad that we're racing.
JOHN LINGENFELTER, SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT CHEVY S-10, failed to qualify
for the first time in two seasons of Pro Stock Truck racing. His 7.667
e.t. was good enough only for No. 21 spot. John elected to run his last
year's Chevy S-10, one built by Jerry Haas, and allowed Larry Seay to run
his Rick Jones-built chassis here. Seay also did not qualify with his
7.669-second e.t. at 176.67. He was 22nd quickest.
LINGENFELTER: ON RUNNING TWO CHEVY S-10s HERE:We just wanted to compare
the two chassis to see where they really stood against each other WHAT
DID YOU LEARN? That we have a lot of work to do." BOTH TRUCKS RAN NEARLY
IDENTICAL E.T.s: "That was just a fluke.WHY DID YOU PUT LARRY IN THE
SECOND S-10? I know he is a good driver, he's a good person -- loyal --
and a person I've respected for his personal life. He's raced a lot and I
felt if we were going to put someone else on board, he was as good as
anybody." WHY DIDN'T HE DRIVE HIS OWN TRUCK? They haven't been able to
get in, they didn't have enough power." HOW DOES IT FEEL TO NOT QUALIFY?
It makes you determined to go home and work harder yet. You just look at
the competitiveness of the field, it goes from 7.571 to 7.637, that's only
six hundredths of a second difference. That's closer than Pro Stock. I'm
discouraged, disappointed. It just makes me more determined to go home and
do better. We have been struggling the last couple of races. We'll do all
we can to get it turned around." WHAT DOES IT TELL YOU ABOUT THE CLASS?
It's going to be a competitive class and you are going to have to work
hard to qualify. The problem is you have to make a damned near perfect run
to get into the field, and you can't miss the good session." WHAT NOW?
We have been testing every week. We have got to home and test some more.
We need to go and try to figure out what's wrong. A lot of it is chassis.
We will dyno all the engines on the same day, see where that stands, see if
that relates with anything that's going on down the track.
DAVE McCONNELL, McCONNELL MOTORSPORTS/PICKUPS PLUS CHEVY S-10, will not
compete in today's final eliminations. Although Dave qualified No. 14,
7.630/176.03 -- the first time he's qualified this season -- he will be
unable to race due to lack of a spare engine. His e.t. and speed are his
career best.
McCONNELL:I broke the good motor in qualifying, in the third session,
and I don't have a spare. I told Jerry Haas that he has a bye run so he
may have an opportunity to test something under race conditions that he
wouldn't otherwise. And we are going t leave here and go back so that we
have everything ready in Chicago in two weeks." ON FIRST TIME QUALIFYING
THIS YEAR: "It feels good to finally figure the thing out a little bit.
We ran within five hundredths (of a second) of the No. 1 qualifier, which
is the first time we have been this close. Clearly with the help of Todd
Bevis and Gary Jennings (chassis builders), the Chevy S-10 is working very
well so that I can fully utilize the horsepower tht Larry Pritchett has
;been providing me last year and this year. I'm excited about our
opportunities for the remaining portion of the season." WHEN DID THE S-10
TURN AROUND FOR YOU? It's a unique opportunity tht I have that I have two
outstanding chassis builders working with me and they're relentless. It
was constant picking that turned it around. And Pritchett keeps finding me
more horsepower. This weekend I ran our career best speed by two full
miles per hour, which indicates that Pritchett's hard work is paying off in
substantial horsepower gains.
FUNNY CAR -- CAMAR0 Z28 -- FIRST DAY OF QUALIFYING
CHUCK ETCHELLS, SICKLES MOTORSPORTS CAMARO Z28, is No. 5 qualifier in his
first drive of 1999, 5.034/293.03.
ETCHELLS: "It was fun to be out there again. The car ran really well.
(Crew chief) Tom Anderson and the Sickles Motorsports Team did a great job.
That is the quickest this car has run since Jim Sickles bought it. It ran
out of fuel about four to four and-a-half seconds into the run, so it could
have gone quicker. Even so, it was a pretty representative run to go out
there cold, not having run the car all year and make the best run it's ever
made. That's good, but it's got more in it. If they tune it up right,
it'll be a race car."
RON CAPPS, COPENHAGEN CAMARO Z28, is No. 7 qualifier, 5.063/281.60.
CAPPS: We were really confident after going down the track three times in
a row in Atlanta. We made a lot of ground, it showed. Both times today it
went down the track. The motor was unhappy at the top end in the first
run. We made some big changes in tonight's run. I clicked it off a little
early, but the Camaro is still showing signs of what it wants. We're very
happy. We're sneaking up on it. It's nice to get into the show pretty
decently early, so we can try some things instead of getting behind the
8-ball like we have been.
WHIT BAZEMORE, KENDALL OIL/SUPERWINCH CAMARO Z28, is not qualified at this
time. He's 20th, 9.885/84.69.
PRO STOCK -- CAMARO Z28
MIKE EDWARDS, DEWCO SALES CAMARO Z28, is No. 3 qualifier, following a
stellar run in tonight's qualifying session of 6.909-seconds at 199.49 mph.
EDWARDS: It was awesome, a great run. That was probably the best run all
season. That's not our career best, we did a 6.87 in Richmond, but it was
just a good run. The Camaro did what we thought it should do. We are
really happy with it right now. I'd like to go out on Saturday and see if
we can repeat and be close to the top again. ON THE CAMARO'S CONTINUED
IMPROVEMENT: We just keep making changes to the car and it keeps
responding to them. If we continue to get better and better we probably
can run even faster, we just have to keep working on it. ON THE RESPONSE
TO THE 800 NUMBER ON THE CAMARO FOR DONATIONS TO THE OKLAHOMA TORNADO
RELIEF FUND: It's been real good. We actually had people come by and
give us money in Atlanta. That's going to be real good for everybody. We
hope so, anyway.
KURT JOHNSON, ACDELCO CAMARO Z28, is still having trouble getting down the
track. He's 15th with an e.t. of 6.981 seconds at 200.56 mph.