Joker Machine Indy Nationals Presented By

 Indianapolis Southside Harley-Davidson

 

September 11th & 12th

Indianapolis Raceway Park

 

Sunday September 12, 2004

 

Final Round Update-

You never know in racing.  The tree makes the call in several so far and upsets in early rounds of the finals.

 

Johnny Mancuso gets the win over Vancil in the final.  Vancil had the slight holeshot advantage, but Mancusos 6.583 at 209.92mph was enough over Vancils 6.583 at 209.01.  It brought the crowd to their feet as the two were handle bar to handlebar for the final lap.

 

Dirk Higgins had a sluggish start here in Indy in yesterdays qualifying, but something turned around big for them today.  Higgins took the S & S Cycle Pro Stock win over Rick Maney and appears to have enough to back up a new national record with the 7.438 he ran in the semis.  He finished with a 7.486 to Maneys 7.519.  Records are yet to be verified from tech. 

 

John Martin grabs two in a row for Indy wins in the JIMS Pro Fuel competition with his win over Daniel Gulmre and it was a holeshot victory for Chuck Jones in Kresto Pro Drag.  Jones nailed Breckenridge at the tree with a .126 to the .202 reaction from Breckenridge.

 

Bradford got Scott Tepper for the win in S & S Cycle Pro Gas.

 

Paul Smith hammered Junior Pippin at the tree and gets a win with a .049 to Pippins .193 reaction.  Pippins 8.316 would not make the difference to Smiths 8.416 with the holeshot win.

 

Derek Poff pulls biggest upset of the day with a huge win over Joe Sternotti in Rivera Primo Street Pro.  Sternotti gets off with a big wheelie that slowed him more after his slower start to Poff. Sternotti will have to wait for Rockingham for those new records.

 

Tripp Nobles gets the win for his man Don Tilley in Screamin Eagle V-Rod, and what a finish for Joe Perry in Drag Masters Hot Street.  Perry leaves with the win and a new National record.

 

Dan DeGood grabs another win in Syn 3 ET with a win over Jake Rozesli, while Nicholas Gonatas comes back with a SEP win over Wells Hargrove.

 

Larry Guy gets a win in his Champion class-Performance Corner Super Eliminatior over Chuck Kennedy and it was a win for Ronnie Fensick in S & S Super Sport over Dave Doremus. 

 

Blake Holliday took out points leader Dale Tyson in Redline Oil Super Gas.

 

We are wrapping up coverage with Speed Channel now and the winners circle celebrations are underway.  Fantastic weekend of racing this weekend.

Thanks to Joker Machine and Indianapolis Southside H-D for providing the support to make it possible.

 

Stay tuned in the coming weeks for more information on the broadcast episodes from todays action on Speed Channel.  We will post the updates on www.ahdra.com.  The series is set to begin in the fall.

 

Good night from Indianapolis Raceway Park.

 

 

The Finals are moments away here at Indianapolis Raceway Park.  It could be one of the most exciting finishes of the season as records are on the line along with national points.  So far this has been some of the best side- by side -racing of 04.  Hang on for the big finish shortly.

 

 

 

The closer to the finals the hotter the track action.  Joe Sternotti just landed new record marks in Rivera Primo Street Pro with a 8.942 at 153.33mph lap over Travis Lummus. Lummus ran his best yet, a 9.156, but Sternotti   Sternotti will take over the 8.963 record set by Chip Ellis if he can back up the numbers in todays final over Derek Poff.  Poff upset Ellis in the semi when he hammered him at the tree and he had enough horsepower to get to the traps first.  Ellis off his normal pace ran a 9.517 to the 9.444 from Ellis.

 

Semi Round Update-

Dirk Higgins and the Jon Miller Thiels Wheels team advance to the final in Pro Stock after a record lap from Higgins.  Higgins will have one shot to back up the 7.438 ET recorded in his semi final win over Dale Raudenbush. 

No doubt the cameras will be rolling for that final round match.

 

 

Round Two Completed and the Semis are out on the track.

Mancuso takes out Stordeur and Vancil gets Romine.  Vancil and Mancuso will be todays Top Fuel Final.

 

In Drag Masters Hot Street, Joe Perry bettered his own 10.289 from yesterday with a 10.285 for another national record.

 

Stay tuned for all the semi numbers coming up shortly.

 

 

 

ROUND ONE COMPLETE IN INDY.  The Nitro Harleys are back for round two and Vancil leads off advancing over Joe Timmons.  We are out with the Speed Channel cameras today and will update the news page as much as possible.  The numbers are coming at you with the rounds- so follow the ladders on the result pages for all the action.  Back with more following the round two action.

 

 

 

Eliminations underway at Indianapolis RacewayPark.

 

The air is hot today and throws a handful of racers for a loop in todays Screamin Eagle Nitro Harley opener, but for some it worked in their favor.

 

Vancil smoked big on the launch but recovered enough for the win over Derrick Nelson.

 

Mike Romine is wearing the on board camera for Speed Channel today and he had enough to take out Dean Comunal.

 

Tii Tharpe and Tracy Kile were paired for the opener after both were off the pace in yesterdays qualifying.  Tharpe had problems unknown and after thrashing through the night discovered fuel pump problems.  Team 911 re-wired the bike in time for todays opening round and apparently found the problem after taking out Kile with a 6.737 to Kiles 7.058.

 

The numbers are up and the rounds continue here in Indy.  Stay tuned for all the action.

 

 

 

Saturday, September 11, 2004

Qualifying Ends in Indy and a new national record goes in the books for Joe Perry of Kingsport, TN in Drag Masters Hot Street.  Perry ran a 10.289 in todays first round and he had enough to back it up in todays final round (pending usual verifications of course) .

 

Doug Vancil still has tomorrows eliminations to back up the 6.338 round 2 blast after his final 6.466 was not enough in the third round.

 

Armon Furr was here giving a test ride to a brand new Pro Fueler.  With only one pass that came in the final round, Furr is in the show tomorrow with a 8.193 at 159.95, bumping Gary Stroud out with his 8.729 best.

 

Chip Ellis is knocking on the 8-second door again with a 9.011 final lap that regained him the #1 spot, while Travis Lummus is dialed in and gets a 9.167 pass in the final, bumping Sternotti to third.

 

Plenty of action ahead in tomorrows eliminations that get underway at 12:30pm.  Catch all the updates here on www.ahdra.com.

 

Good  night from Indianapolis Raceway Park.

 

 

More From Round Two-

 

Vancils 6.338 at 214.93mph led the highlights of todays 2nd round.  Vancil bumped Mancuso to the 2nd spot after the Texan did not improve his 6.516 from the first round.  Stordeur sits in 3rd and Romine is 4th.

Eleven out of sixteen riders sit in qualifying with six-second numbers in the Nitro Harley field after two rounds.

 

Tom Bradford is back in AHDRA action this weekend and he holds the top spot in Pro Gas and is in the 2nd spot in the V-Rod competition behind Tripp Nobles.  Nobles wants a win badly this weekend for his boss man and sponsor, Don Tilley.  The Statesville, NC dealer was in a motorcycle accident last week while returning on a ride from Alaska.  Tilley remains in the hospital in Canada at this time, with a broken hip that has now been replaced, a few broken ribs and a banged up leg.  He is reported to feeling a little better today and we are keeping him updated on Tripps weekend here in Indy.

 

In JIMS Pro Fuel , points leader Jack Romine holds the top spot with his 6.804.  Highlights include the return of Chris Streeter to Pro Fuel competition.  Streeter has been busy preparing a brand new bike that he debuted here in Indy.  He had to shut it off in round one, apparently with only one cylinder operating, but in round two he picked up a bit with a 7.562 pass before shutting it off shy of the traps.

A face back on the track after several years away is Armon Furr, son of Bill Furr.  Bill was back by his side to fire up a Pro Fuel ride in todays second round and after a monster burnout from the younger Furr, his machine shut off at the launch after something went away.  He has one more chance at qualifying in this weekends field.

 

In Kresto Pro Drag, Phil Schmidt is running the numbers to keep him out front, while John Breckenridge travled from Sultan, WA to keep his points chase alive.  Current points leader, Scott Truett is in the 2nd spot.

 

Paul Smith of Uniontown, OH came out big in todays opening round of Joker Machine Pro Modified action for the number one spot, but Junior Pippin charged ahead in todays 2nd round and grabbed the pole with a 8.310 at 155.87mph.  Cliff Dwy, Darren Mauldin and Lance Bonham are here on the East Coast playground and Dwy and Mauldin are in the 3rd and 4th spot while Bonham is in the 10th spot of this weekends full field.

 

In Rivera Primo Street Pro, the eight -second boys, Sternotti and Ellis are battling it out for the one and two spots.  Although there were no 8-second passes here in Indy after two rounds, Ellis led off qualifying with a 9.180 for the top spot, but Sternotti answered with a 9.179 at 150.15mph in the 2nd round to take the number one position. 

 

In Pro Stock, Dale Raudenbush is hot in Indy with a top spot over Dirk Higgins who recovered from a shut down run in the opener for a 7.555 in the 2nd round that gave him the 2nd spot.  Rick Maney coming off a record setting weekend in Woodburn, OR is in the 3rd spot with a 7.702. 

 

Wanda Poff grabbed the top spot in S & S Super Sport after two rounds when she nailed the perfect 10.300.  Mike Harrison had already run the perfect number himself in the opening round, but Poffs better mph gives her the tie breaker top position. 

 

Willie Herscheberger leaves his worries of hurricanes behind him in Florida and comes to Indy with a good racing weekend in mind.  He is out front in the Super Gas competition after two rounds.

 

Greg Kuypers took the top spot from youngster Joey Talbott in SEP 11.50 index competition.  The 16 year old Talbott already has a win to his resume this year and he will be looking to better his 11.504 to get his top spot back in todays final round.

 

Joe Perry is out front in Drag Masters Hot Street over Mike Roberts and the Hot Street Pro, Budynski is in the bottom spot at number 17.  No word on what ails his 97 Buell this weekend, but we will check it out and report any updates.

 

 

 

 

 

Round Two Update-

VANCIL makes record pass 6.338 here at Indy Raceway Park.  He has one more session and tomorrows eliminations left to back it up.  Top Fuel

 2nd round continues and all the highlights from todays round two qualifying coming up.

 

 

More from Round One ñ

Screamin Eagle Nitro Harley qualifying- Big Boom and flames from Bob Malloys H-D of Seaford bike but he checked out fine.

Jay Turner is coming up riding Bill Furrs bike and Tracy Kile has problems on his first pass.  Mancuso leads qualifying with a 6.516.  The numbers are coming right up.

 

 

Round One Update:

Qualifying moving right along.  We have reached nearly 300 bike entries so I am keeping the numbers coming at you on the qualifying pages,which in turn limits my time on this page.  The Nitro Harleys are out for their first round and with only 2 pairs down the track, the sixes are dominating the clocks. 6.50s from Vancil and Mancuso and Tii Tharpe lands in the sixes as well. 

Catch all the numbers on the result pages shortly.

 

 

 

Let us begin by extending our thoughts and prayers to families across the nation as they remember loved ones lost on 9-11-2001. 

 

Good morning from the Joker Machine Indy Nationals presented by Indianapolis Southside Harley-Davidson.

 

Drag Racing 101 kicked off the action on the track this morning.  There appears to be around 20 participants in the class sponsored by the Sportsman Racers Association with guest instructors, Maura Hall and Mike Fitzgerald.  Response is positive to the Drag Racing 101 School which has now been held at three events in the 04 season.  Thanks to Maura and Mike for their dedication to growing the sport.

 

Qualifying begins with the first round of Syn3 ET bikes at 930am, followed by remaining sportsman classes.  The Pros take the track at 11am.  All times are EDT.

 

Stay tuned for qualifying updates following todays opening round.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good afternoon from Indianapolis Raceway Park.  Test and Tune gets underway shortly.  Racers are flowing through the gates at a steady pace.  Nearly 200 pre-registered bikes with plenty more expected for a action packed weekend.  At least 5 records were broken here in 03, and conditions indicate the records could shuffle here this weekend.  The temps are in the 80s today and plenty of sunshine is forecasted for the weekend.

 

Stay tuned for all the updates this weekend right here on www.ahdra.com live race update pages.

 

 

 

 

 

Schedule of Events:

 

Friday, September 10th

2:00pm- Competitor and Vendor Gates Open

5:00-9:00pm- Test and Tune

 

Saturday, September 11th

9:00am- Sportsman Qualifying

11:00am- Pro Qualifying

 

Sunday, September 12th

9:00am- Sportsman Eliminations (as needed to narrow fields to 16)

12:30pm- Opening Ceremonies and Eliminations beginning with the Pros.