JIMS Las Vegas Nationals Presented by Barnett Clutches

November 12th & 13th

The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway

 

 

The Big Day..The Grand Finale!

Elimination Day at The Strip

 

7:55pm

The JIMS Las Vegas Finals are complete!  Mike Romine takes the event win and he celebrates  the 2005 ScreaminÕ Eagle National Championship.  (A very supportive #2 plate finisher, Doug Vancil, showered the newly crowned champ with champagne in the winners circle).

 

Other highlights to this grand finale  - Obviously the championship titles,  which included a father son Championship year- our 2nd female National champion- and much more but for the ScreaminÕ Eagle gang- they saw the newly distributed V-Rod Destroyer ride to three finals during competition this weekend..taking two wins and a runner-up finish.  Tripp Nobles accomplished that on a Las Vegas H-D sponsored bike!!

 

We are busy preparing to work through the night figuring the final points positions for everyone involved right now as we set the stage for tomorrow nights 2005 Championship celebration.

 

CongratulationÕs to all of you that worked so hard this year.  You are all champions.

Stay tuned for more on the Championship finals later in the week.  Until then.  Good night and thank you.

 

 

 

6:30pm

We are set to start the finals of the JIMS Las Vegas Nationals.  It has been as exciting of a final as many have ever seen.  It appears that Mike Romine will take the Top Fuel title-( I always like to wait for the official word).  Chris Streeter has taken the JIMS Pro Fuel title- Michael Ray  appears to be the SSC 124 champ and as we head into the finals Karen Wagner will be taking on the S & S Pro Gas champ, Mike Lozano in the final.  ThereÕ lotÕs of exciting runs ahead- stay tuned for the numbers.

 

(I understand that several of you are having trouble loading the result pages- most have been AOL users.  We are not sure what the problem is at the time, but will continue to search out the problem).

 

4:00pm- VANCIL RESETS RECORD IN 2ND ROUND.  A 6.30!!  ALREADY BACKED UP BY YESTERDAYÕS 6.33.  A LIGHTING FAST 2ND ROUND CONTINUES.  Check out the numbers on the ladder pages shortly.

 

 

3:00pm

Round one still continues here at The Strip.  It opened up with blazing nitro runs including a now confirmed new National record for Doug Vancil.  That gets him 20 bonus points, and Mike Romine will need each and every round remaining for a chance at the title.

 

The results are posting very timely so far.  Stay with the result ladders for the results of your favorite class.

 

 

1:43pm

Here we are fired up at the JIMS Las Vegas Nationals and a huge crowd saw one of the fastest opening rounds of the season here at the Strip.

 

Vancil led off with a 6.36 to stay in and yes, Romine is still in the battle after a 6.410 advanced him.  Jay Turner hit the 30Õa (6.38) to start his day on the Mancuso HD ride.

 

The media is plentiful here and with nearly 400 bikes competing, we will concentrate on keeping the ladder pages updated in a timely manner.  We will check in from time to time here if time allows with any breaking news.

 

Stay with us for a nail biting finish for many of the championship contenders!

 

Moreno wins it..$12,000 and Nobles gets $3,000 in the ScreaminÕ Eagle High Stakes Shoot Out.

An exciting start to the day here at The Strip.

The final:

Tripp Nobles     .127  9.68  9.619

Gary Moreno    .034  12.50  12.558**

 

Semi-Final

Tripp Nobles     Breaks the beam on the bye.

Bye

 

John Binns       -.101    11.20   18.768

Gary Moreno    .079     12.50   12.587**

 

Round Two- Tripp Nobles gets a bye to the High Stakes Shoot-Out final on the new V-Rod Destroyer.  John Binns and Greg Moreno will battle for the other lane in the final.

 

M. McLaughlin             .159  11.18  11.285

Tripp Nobles                 .096  9.68  9.764***

 

John Binns                   .049  11.20  11.222**

Sean Conner                 .183  10.61  10.794

 

Gary Moreno                .024  12.50  12.683**

Keith Burley                  .056  10.30  10.506

 

 

 

12:27pm

Round One of the High Stakes Shoot Out:

 

Mark McLaughlin          .184  11.18  11.798**Õ

Robert Muller                -.008  13.11  13.257

 

R. McConnell                -.021  11.50  11.526

Tripp Nobles                   .252  9.70  9.651***

 

 

Richard Caruso             -.093  11.86  11.859

John Binns                   .111  11.20  11.196***

 

Sean Conner                 .060  10.61  10.843**

Doug Lehner                -.016  12.77  15.818

 

Gary Moreno                .051  12.55  12.531***

Larrry Edmondson Jr.   .040  9.90  9.703

 

Jack Wagner                 .075  12.55  12.347

Keith Burley                  .115  10.30  10.300***

 

It seems like it was only a few hours ago since my final post last night, but after a little rest we are back at The Strip under bright and sunny skies- ready for a exciting day of racing.

 

We are underway with a jammed packed Syn3 ET class at the moment.  We are narrowing the field to sixteen, along with other sportsman classes in preparation for todayÕs start at 1:00pm.

 

Prior to the regular eliminationÕs today, it will be the anticipated ScreaminÕ Eagle High Stakes Shoot Out.  The final twelve shoot it out at 12 noon.  We will carry the results on this page.

HereÕs a look at whoÕs in the running.   (Tripp Nobles is in on the action and riding the newly released V-Rod Destroyer)

Mark McLaughlin

Robert Muller

 

Robert McConnell

Tripp Nobles

 

Richard Caruso

John Binns

 

Sean Conner

Doug Lehner

 

Greg Moreno

Larry Edmondson Jr.

 

Jack Wagner

Keith Burley

 

Stay tuned for coverage of todayÕs show.

 

Qualifying Day at The Strip:

11:00pm

Late, but complete and most important-safely.  Bill Draffin captured the SEP front spot with a 11.507 and James Hill edged out David Hope with a perfect reaction time in Syn3 ET.  Hope was just shy with a .001.

 

ThatÕs a wrap from The Strip.  We will be back with more action tomorrow.  Follow the results right here on www. ahdra.com.

 

10:34pm

Mike Roberts is set to take his championship title home as he finished first today in Drag MasterÕs Hot Street.

 

 Robert McConnellÕs 10.903 nailed him the #1 spot in Performance Corner Super Eliminator.

 

S&S 124 Challenge left Joe Sternotti at the top with Michael Ray in the #2 position.  They will play the championship finale out tomorrow.  A couple of nods to the North Carolina pair here this weekend.  Kendall Johnson gave the 124 class a try today and finished in the 7th spot.  Chris Scism, also from the CarolinaÕs finished just ahead of his pal, Johnson in the 6th spot.

 

 

 

10:20pm

Rucker Performance Super Gas finished with a new #1 qualifyer.  Scott Martin grabbed the spot with an 9.725 from Joe Boyd who led for two rounds. 

 

In S & S Super Sport- LetÕs hear it for the girls!  Valerie Thompson will make her first appearance on the starting line for #1 qualifyer driver introductions.  She finished with a 10.311 best while championship contender, Julia Holliday moved up the ladder to the #2 spot with a 10.370 best lap.  We are still afraid to make the call official on her lock on the title.  They are still working on that end of things up here in the tower.

 (Remember last year- David Hope went from 5th to 1st.  A lessoned learned- it ainÕt over til itÕs over sometimes!)

 

9:27pm

Add JIMS Pro Fuel to the completed for the day list and for Mike Lehman it ended in his favor. He ran his best of the day- a 6.747 for the top spot, moving Turner to the 2nd position.  LehmanÕs opponent for the championship, Streeter is in the 3rd spot with the 6.798.

Lehman commented earlier that either way the championship title falls is fine with him.  ÒChris Streeter has done a great job and he deserves the title just as much as we doÓ, was the comment from a very sportsman like competitor.

 

And this just in.  The pressure is off of Becky Froehling.  She needed a 8.91 to pass her license test and get in tomorrowÕs Kresto Pro Drag show.  Earlier we heard, she wasnÕt going to run the final round, which at the time was needed for any chance at a full field tomorrow. Out she came despite that report- and clocked a 8.465 for the #12 spot in the field that earlier was depending on her progress for a full field.  They ended up with enough bikes at the end of the day whether she ran or not, but Becky made sure to seal the deal just in case.

Congrats to Becky.

 

S & S Pro Gas is wrapped for the day and another recent licensed lady- Karen Wagner took the field by storm in the final, moving to the #2 spot behind incoming Champ- Mike Lozano.  WagnerÕs best of the day (in the final) was an 8.323, and LozanoÕs best was his earlier 8.008.

 

In Samson Pro Modified, the night air agreed with Ainsworth.  He got his best lap of the day with an 8.231 to keep the top spot, but it was Mark Venia conquering the field after an earlier center line infraction cost him positioning.  He answered in the final with his best run- a 8.281 for the #2 spot.  The reigning and returning champ- Junior Pippin did not improve in the final run and is in the 3rd spot on the run order.

 

More to come in todayÕs (or tonightÕs I should say) wrap up from The Strip!

 

9:00pm

Yep- we are still at it.  The final rounds are underway and ScreaminÕ Eagle Nitro Harley has finished the day.  Vancil held on to the top spot with his earlier 6.33 and Romine didnÕt improve either.  A lot of eyes will be on Vancil tomorrow- if he backs up the 6.33 record pass, it could be a nice advantage in the points battle with Romine.  A national record gets you a cool 20!

The bump spot for todayÕs show ended with a 6.879, courtesy of Ken Kent.  Mike Bahnmaier had his best, a 6.887 at 203.89, but an alternate position for tomorrowÕs eliminations is only shot at getting in the show.

 

S & S Pro Stock has completed the final lap of the day as well and Dale Raudenbush is king of the day with the #1 spot as he prepares to take his seat on the Pro Stock throne for 2005.

 

And as we were underway with JIMS Pro Fuel final runs- ouch- another oil down.  Stay tuned.  ThereÕs still a full round left in remaining Pros and all sportsman classes.

 

 

6:38pm-

More round two notes:  Mark Venia gives up a #3 qualifying spot in Samson Pro Mod after taking timing devices along the way (on an  8.40 run).  He takes the #9 spot instead. 

 

With sportsman qualifying still underway in 2nd round, Valerie Thompson jumped to the head of the class in S & S Super Sport  (A 10.311 run against the 10.30 index).

 

More later.

 

 

6:00pm

Round two is still underway and has been filled with its share of delays- oil downs and those agonizing timing device knock-downs.  In any case we are just now getting to the 2nd round of sportsman qualifying.  The bike count from the tech trailer is 350-plus competing here this weekend!  Over 100 bikes went down the track in the opening round of ET.

 

Round Two note- Greg Byrnes jumps to the top of the chart in Kresto Pro Drag with a 7.415 and slides Breckenridge to the 2nd spot.  The scenario in this class for the bump spot puts slight pressure on Becky Froehling who is trying for her license.  Becky sits in the 14th spot in the 14-bike field with an 8.962.  In order for this to remain a full field, Becky needs to get her license.  To accomplish that she will need to run a 8.91 or better in the final round.  If not- the class cuts to 8.

More from The Strip following the conclusion of a marathon round two.

 

 

4:22pm-

VANCIL ANSWERS ROMINE WITH A  6.33 in the second round.  ThereÕs no one giving up easily in this race for the championship.  Vancil has taken the top spot in qualifying with that better than the record pass.  Romine didnÕt improve on his 2nd pass, but his 6.38 is nothing to complain about.  Romine is now the #2 quaiifyer and Tommy Grimes moves to the 3rd spot.  Stay tuned for the numbers from this Top Fuel round on the result pages.

2nd Round qualifying in all remaining categories is now underway.

 

 

3:15pm

The shoot out has resumed after an oil spill on the starting line.  Two more rounds to go before we resume regular qualifying-Round Two.

 

A few other notes from todayÕs first round for those of you watching the points race.

 

 After Julia HollidayÕs round one pass (which landed her the #3 spot), I believe she has now secured the national championship in S & S Super Sport.  I will make that official a little later, but early calculations indicate that all she needed was a valid qualifying pass to secure the title.

Holliday would be the 2nd female ever to hold an AHDRA Championship title.  The first was Karen Wagener of Escondido, CA.

 Holliday has run a close battle with Desert Dawg RacingÕs- Greg Krenik for the 2005 top spot.

 

In the S & S 124 Challenge class- it is Joe Sternotti and Michael Ray going for the title this weekend.  Sternotti leads qualifying after one round, with Ray in the 2nd spot.

 

In Performance Corner Super Eliminator, Donnie Huffman is looking for a 2nd national championship for 2005.  HeÕs facing off with Greg Kuypers.  Huffman has the better qualifying position after one round and puts himself closer.

 

In JIMS Pro Fuel, Jay Turner is coming off a successful weekend in Rockingham where he took double category wins.   HeÕs  the #1 qualifier after one round here in Vegas, but it isnÕt enough to get him in the JIMS Pro Fuel points race.  That belongs to Chris Streeter and Mike Lehman who sit #2 and #3 respectively after todayÕs first round.    This one will play out throughout the weekend.

 

The ScreaminÕ Eagle High Stakes Shoot Out is now down to the final sixteen!  HereÕs the line-up for tomorrowÕs dash for cash.  $12,000 for the winner and $3,000 to the runner-up.

 

 

Mark McLaughlin

Robert Muller

 

Robert McConnell

Tripp Nobles

 

Richard Caruso

John Binns

 

Sean Conner

Doug Lehner

 

Gary Moreno

Larry Edmondson Jr.

 

Jack Wagner

Keith Burley

 

Congrats to the final sixteen.  The ScreaminÕ Eagle Nitro HarleyÕs are back on the track for todayÕs start of Round 2.  Stay tuned for the results followng the round.

 

1:51pm- Qualifying Update

 

With a few oil mishaps and breakage, round one has now been completed for all categories.

For Mike Romine, it was as exciting as it gets in ScreaminÕ Eagle Nitro Harley.  Romine clocked a 6.357, a perfect match of reigning Champion, Steve StordeurÕs 6.357 National record pass in 2004( at Rockingham Dragway).  While Romine has a chance to take over the mark in the record books with a back up number this weekend, his real focus is winning enough rounds to catch leader Doug Vancil for the Championship crown.

 

RomineÕs record matching run gave him the top spot in qualifying in a field that consisted of 27 entries in the first round.  Vancil ran a 6.548 at 218.09mph for his opening shot- for the #3 spot. 

 

In the #2 spot was rookie fueler, Tommy Grimes on the Samson-Ray Price H-D ride.  Grimes, who holds a Top Fuel record of his own (set at NHRAÕs Joliet, IL event) has taken the #2 qualifying spot with an 6.428.  Grimes recovered very nicely from a scare during yesterdayÕs test and tune session.  A bright flash of fire and a big boom was the result of a manifold gone bad.

Grimes suffered some bruising to his arm and says he is a little sore, but there certainly was no sign that it hampered his performance in todayÕs opening round.

 

If you have checked out the top half of the run order- you may have noticed a name all too familiar to the line-up. .  Bill Furr has taken the #6 spot in his first six-second pass of his heroic return to Top Fuel drag racing.  Furr has made limited passes since his 2004 accident at Texas

Motorplex. His first ride back in the saddle in Bristol ended with the bike in flames and since then, things have progressed conservatively for the veteran rider- but all signs indicate the ÒSothern SonÓ is indeed back!

 

The ScreaminÕ Eagle High Stakes Shoot is in full swing right now.  The count on first round was exactly 100.  We are narrowing them down to 16 today and we will then resume qualifying for 2nd round competition.  We will reverse the run order and lead off round two with Top Fuel.

 

Stay tuned for all updates and results right here on www.ahdra.com.

 

Good morning from Las Vegas Motor Speedway.  The grand finale has arrived and it appears everyone has decided to join in on the celebration.  At least 300 have gone through tech.  The track went hot at 9:10am with the opening round of Syn3 ET qualifying.  There are a heap of them!

 

Also expected to fill the staging lanes is the ScreaminÕ Eagle High Stakes Shoot Out field.  Over 100 entered and counting for the chance at the $15,000 purse.

 

With the high volume of bikes and the Shoot-Out to squeeze in, the run order is going to vary greatly today.  Everyone will make one qualifying pass prior to the Shoot-Out.  Once the Shoot-Out is complete, qualifying will resume beginning with the Pros.  The Pros will run in reverse order –Top Fuel first.  This will be the case for 2nd & 3rd rounds. 

 

Over 30 Top Fuel entries so far, along with a good field of Pro Fuel and Pro Drag bikes.  The schedule will adjust as needed to prevent the fuel bikes from running late, should the temperatures get too cool later tonight.

 

Last nightÕs test and tune drew a big load of bikes- some new and others just making adjustments for todayÕs qualifying.  One thing appears to be certain- Mike Romine and Doug Vancil are going to leave us all waiting until the end to see who will take the 2005 ScreaminÕ Eagle Nitro Harley Championship title.  Vancil clocked a 6.41 at 216mph during last nightÕs test and tune, while Romine answered with a 6.46 at 213mph.  Both are obviously fully capable of  capturing the crown.

Stay tuned for this championship battle and several others this weekend.

 

Get ready for a full day and night of racing here at The Strip.  Qualifying results will follow the opening round.

 

 

Schedule of Events

 

Thursday, November 10th

AHDRA Nitro Party at Las Vegas Harley-Davidson (South Eastern Avenue)

4:00-7:00pm

 

Friday, November 11th

10:00am- Gates open for Racers and Vendors

12noon-9:00pm-  AHDRA Tech & Registration Open

2:00-7:00pm- AHDRA Test and Tune Session  $50

9:00pm- Gates Secured

 

Saturday, November 12th

7:00am- Gates Open

9:00am- 1st Round Qualifying- ALL Classes

12noon- ScreaminÕ Eagle High Stakes Shoot-Out:  (1) time trial run followed by eliminations until 16 bikes remain.

2:15pm (or immediately following the Shoot Out) 2nd Round Qualifying resumes beginning with the Pros.

4:00pm- 3rd Round Pro Qualifying

 

Sunday, November 13th

8:00am- Gates Open

9:30am- Sportsman Eliminations as needed to achieve 16-bike fields.

12noon- ScreaminÕ Eagle High Stakes Shoot-Out: The Final Sixteen

12:45pm- Opening Ceremonies for the JIMS Las Vegas Nationals –Eliminations

1:00pm- 1st Round of Pro Eliminations

3:30pm- 2ndRound of Pro Eliminations

5:00pm- 3rd Round of Pro Eliminations

6:00pm- Finals in all classes

 

Monday, November 14th

6:00pm- AHDRA Night of Champions:  2005 Awards Banquet

SamÕs Town Hotel & Casino