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NMCA West Pomona 2013 Same Day Coverage

NMCAW22013SUN [1]

Good morning race fans! We’re gearing up for eliminations here at Pomona, and looking forward to great weather and exciting racing. Due to an oildown two pairs into last night’s Pro Street Q3 session, we bumped up against the 7PM curfew, and the qualifying results after the second round will stand, with Joe Lepone atop the ladder.

In an interesting deja vu moment, just as he did in Bakersfield, Lepone suffered a bit of a nitrous sneeze at the top end of the track, launching another carb scoop into a suborbital trajectory. We’ll be checking in to see of the damage will keep him out of the hunt, or if once again it might be the lucky omen that presages a trip to the winner’s circle.

Keep it right here all day for ongoing updates to results, photos and news from the track!

Pit Notes:

We caught up with Joe Lepone who tells us that there was no engine damage as a result of the nitrous chuff yesterday, though he does say, "We're done with hood scoops..." [2]

We caught up with Joe Lepone who tells us that there was no engine damage as a result of the nitrous chuff yesterday, though he does say, “We’re done with hood scoops…”

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The car show corral has some pretty interesting rides - the NMCA always has something to do or look at between rounds.

Scott Oksas' close encounter with the reflector blocks in yesterday's qualifying did leave a mark; though the blocks are made from foam, hitting ANYTHING at 200 MPH is going to be messy. Racer tape to the rescue! [7]

Scott Oksas’ close encounter with the reflector blocks in yesterday’s qualifying did leave a mark; though the blocks are made from foam, hitting ANYTHING at 200 MPH is going to be messy. Racer tape to the rescue!

 

Round One Eliminations

Garrett Turbo Pro Street

IMG_9412 [8]Round one of the pros started off with a messy matchup between Mike Bowman and Gary Ross, with Bowman coming out ahead in the Dance of the Smoking Slicks. Next up, Scialpi and Mihovetz paired up, and again violent tire shake was the norm, with Scialpi driving through the bone-jarring ride and Mihovetz shutting off. With Greg Seth-Hunter a no-show, Cremo needed to merely break the beams and take the green to advance.

The Walker-versus-Oksas pairing was a wild one – Walker hit the bars so hard that something broke, and dragged the damaged scaffolding all the way down-track but still ran a 7.468 at 122 with one parachute out from half-track, while Oksas put down a respectable 6.139, the quickest Pro pass of the round. Ron Weems, unable to make the call, gave Durden an uncontested drive into round two, running 6.355, and a heartbreaking -.005 redlight from Roubicek gave the win away to underdog Hammi. Finally, Scoopless Joe Lepone got another test and tune run when Patrick redlit, running 6.208 and demonstrating that the giant Pat Musi nitrous mill was unharmed during yesterday’s incident, and unhindered by his split Dominators hanging in the breeze.

e1ps [9]

Mickey Thompson True 10.5

IMG_9418 [10]Jimenez and Dow kicked off eliminations for True 10.5; The race was over before it started, though, with a teeny, tiny -.002 redlight for Jimenez, making three reds in a row for the snakebit left lane. Next up, it was Kuhls over Heck in a contest to see who could pedal their throttles more effectively, with that dubious honor (and the round win) going to Kuhls.

Mark Luton did some pedaling of his own to get past Coleman, who broke early and limped down track to a high seventeen, while Kyle gave the highlight of the round with the best pass of E1, running 7.223 at just over 200 while Henry struck the tires in the opposite lane. The odd car field meant top qualifier Rick Snavely needed to only see a green light to advance, but the team elected to try their luck in the less-favored left lane with a wobbly-but-informative half-pass, coasting to a 7.694 at 150.55.

e1tt5 [11]

Lucas Oil NA 10.5

The first pairing in the naturally-aspirated 10.5 class started out with a wheelstand by Valentino and a win light in Cobbett’s lane, but then things ground to an immediate halt to clean up fluid deposited on Valentino’s side of the track past the finish line. Once that was tidied up, the next pair matched up Randy Jones and Vic Brum, with Jones advancing 8.16 to Brum’s 8.32. The final pass for the first round was a single for top qualifier Aneian, who cruised to an 8.22 at 166.

That will pair Aneian and Jones in the semis to see who will meet #2 qualifier Cobbett (who gets a semi-final competition bye) in the final round.

e1na [12]

ProCharger Drag Radial

The opening match in Drag Radial paired rookie racer (and my boss) James Lawrence against Armen Maghdessian, and despite giving up the holeshot, Lawrence made it up down track and moved on to round two. Next up were Mark Orban and Kevin Young – with Orban pedaling and Young on a pass, the race was decided in the first 330 feet. The final pairing in the six car field saw Jeff Young make two hard jinks right off the hit, and Artis Houston putting together his best pass so far this weekend. That allowed Houston to steal the number one qualifier bye, sending him straight to the finals where he will face either Lawrence, or defending class champ Kevin Young.

e1dr [13]

ARP Outlaw 8.5

In a late start, the first round of Outlaw 8.5 began with Ron Shaw and Matt Sendejas breaking the beams – Shaw rolled through early to a redlight loss, a gift for Sendejas, who backfired and stalled at the line and had to be pushed back to a hard-luck win. Keller advanced when McGhee hazed the tires on the hit, and Jones won fair and square against Carlstedt in one of the cleanest and closest matches of the round. Another good drag race between Raygoza and Van Tol saw Raygoza victorious.

Gustafson drove through a hard cut just past the tree to get past Wallace, with a fire at the top end adding insult to Wallace’s injury. That left just DJ Reid, who got a bonus single when Outland didn’t make the call, coasting to an easy seven second joyride into round 2.

e185 [14]

 

Round Two Eliminations

Garrett Turbo Pro Street

Round two of the Pro Show offered some good matchups, starting with Bowman versus Scialpi. Bowman drove around a bit of a holeshot to set the new quick time of the weekend, running 6.04 to Scialpi’s 6.23 and securing the first spot in the semis. Cremo laid down a .006 light against Durden, but didn’t have a six in reply to Durden’s 6.35 – Cremo will be on the trailer, and Durden will have the opportunity to play giant-slayer against Bowman in the semis.

Oksas got an unexpected bye run when Hammi couldn’t make the round, and went for a full pull but lifted after a pop and a puff of smoke at half-track. That just left Scoopless Joe’s ladder bye run, which he hammered out to a 6.14 on his way to face Oksas next round.

e2ps [15]

Mickey Thompson True 10.5

The second round of TT5 only offered a single real pairing – Kyle, qualified second, took the green and idled away to cash in his ladder bye, while Luton got a broke bye when Dow couldn’t make the call. That left just Snavely and Kuhls, with the number one qualifier cruising to a one-second lead at the finish line. With the ladder bye in the semis going to Luton, that means it will be Kyle versus Snavely in a 1-2 qualifier battle to see who will face him in the finals.

e2tt5 [16]

ProCharger Drag Radial

The semis in Drag Radial witnessed a wiggle-and-lift from big block nitrous pilot Houston in his single pass, while James Lawrence just plain got beat by Kevin Young, lifting at half track and setting up a turbo versus blower final round.

e2dr [17]

ARP Outlaw 8.5

DJ Reid continued his quest for the winner’s circle with a second round win over Gustafson, who laid big smoke as he trailed the Afromaro. Keller pedaled twice trying to keep pace with Jones, and ran a quicker ET, but was asleep at the tree and couldn’t overcome Jones’ .005 reaction time. Finally, Sendejas spun off the line, giving the go-ahead to Raygoza, but Raygoza let out a few big pops before seeing the win light into round three.

e285 [18]

Round Three Eliminations

Mickey Thompson True 10.5

The TT5 semi finals pitted Snavely against Kyle to determine who will meet Luton in the finals – Kyle double-pedaled looking for traction, but fell to Snavely’s bracket-consistent 7.11. Luton, in his single, ran it out in a hunt for lane choice, but started laying smoke at the 1/8 mile mark and lifted, possibly ending his hopes of a victory here in Pomona.

e3tt5 [19]

 

FINAL RESULTS

finals [20]

Garrett Turbo Pro Street

Controversy marked the conclusion of the Pro Street class, with a staging issue leaving the title in doubt until well after the stands had emptied and the fans had gone home. Setting the stage for the pending drama, in the semi-finals, Scoopless Joe Lepone had gotten past Scott Oksas, 6.243 to 6.493, when Oksas, behind the wheel of his new Camaro (which we understand was a former Mike Maggio chassis) gave up the leave and ran out of track before his turbo top end kick had the chance to catch the nitrous-fed Plymouth. On the other side of the ladder, John Durden laid down a spectacular .006 light against defending class champ Mike Bowman, but started laying smoke at the thousand foot mark, thus establishing the Lepone-Bowman showdown at sundown.

Even before both cars had cleared the starting line, Bowman's starting line crew were already in disbelief... [21]

Even before both cars had cleared the starting line, Bowman’s starting line crew were already in disbelief…

After the burnouts were complete, Lepone, in the right lane, moved up to stage first, but overran the staging beams and immediately backed out again. Bowman jumped forward to try to get his own prestage bulb lit before Lepone could get clear of the beams and trigger an autostart staging violation to earn an automatic win, but by the time he had moved forward Lepone was clear and all Bowman achieved was a “double bulb” on his own side of the tree.

With Bowman’s entourage already lobbying the starting line staff for a Lepone DQ, the Duster slid into the beams, the tree dropped, and both lanes got the green, with a two-tenths reaction time advantage going to Bowman. Down track, Lepone closed the gap, running 6.230 to Bowman’s 6.610 and triggering the win light in his lane.

Back at the starting line, confusion reigned – the fans in the stands, not understanding what had just happened, grumbled in displeasure, and the arm waving and harsh words between the lanes continued for a few moments before the PA announced that the win had been belatedly awarded to Bowman. That wouldn’t be the end of the story, though; after things cooled down a bit, and the NMCA staff and race director had a chance to review the logs, the decision was reversed and the original results were left standing.

fps [22]

Mickey Thompson True 10.5

Turns out that the smoke signals laid by Mark Luton’s Mustang in his semi-final single pass were indeed a message indicating he was done – when the call came for the True 10.5 finals, only Rick Snavely answered, turning the pairing into a 7.108-second victory lap for the Turbos Direct [23] team.

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ftt5 [26]

ProCharger Drag Radial

The 275 Drag Radial class came down to blower versus nitrous in the finals, with defending class champ Kevin Young in his third-gen Camaro squaring off against Artis Houston’s Nova at the end of the day. For Young, it was a shot at redemption for kinfolk, as Houston had taken down Jeff Young in their first round pairing, and at the tree the pair were almost dead even, with Houston just seven thou quicker. By half track it was over, though – the Nova coasted through the traps with an 8.730 at just 132, while Young stayed on-pace with a 7.43 for the win and the Wally

MG3_1182 [27]

fdr [28]

Lucas Oil NA 10.5

IMG_7183 [29]

NA 10.5 Winner Bryan Cobbett

fna [30]

ARP Outlaw 8.5

Outlaw 8.5 champ Ryan Jones [31]

Outlaw 8.5 champ Ryan Jones

f85 [32]

K&N Pro Comp

IMG_9572 [33]

fpc [34]

Hedman Hedders NSC

IMG_7076 [35]

fnsc [36]

Burns Stainless Open Comp

IMG_9588 [37]

foc [38]

Granatelli Mustang Madness

IMG_7252 [39]

fmm [40]

Edelbrock Super Quick

fsq [41]

Calvert Quick Street

IMG_7259 [42]

fqs [43]

Bracket 1

fb1 [44]

Bracket 2

fb2 [45]

NMCAW22013SAT [46]Good morning race fans! It’s qualifying day here at Pomona, the sun is shining, and cars are going down the track. We’re coming up on the first round for the heads up classes, so keep it here all day for updates, photos, and results, and don’t forget to page down for Friday’s test and tune notes.

Saturday Pit Notes:

Mad respect to the guy who flat-tows to the track... [47]

Mad respect to the guy who flat-tows to the track…

 

Here's an interesting detail from Scott Oksas' new Pro Street Camaro - a single-wheel offset wheelie bar. [48]

Here’s an interesting detail from Scott Oksas’ new Pro Street Camaro – a single-wheel offset wheelie bar.

 

Always good advice... [49]

Always good advice…

 

Ed Crow is stacking nitrous on top of a pair of rear-mount turbos in search of an eight-second timeslip in True Street. After fighting electrical gremlins yesterday that led to an Exxon Valdez incident in the staging lanes when the turbo scavenge pump stopped working, it seems like he's got things better sorted today with a 9.40 pass in time trials. [50]

Ed Crowe is stacking nitrous on top of a pair of rear-mount turbos in search of an eight-second timeslip in True Street. After fighting electrical gremlins yesterday that led to an Exxon Valdez incident in the staging lanes when the turbo scavenge pump stopped working, it seems like he’s got things better sorted today with a 9.40 pass in time trials.

 

Those who know import and sport compact racing history will recognize OG Honda racers Lisa and Gary Kubo, who we caught checking out Rick Snavely's True 10.5 Mustang in the pits. [51]

Those who know import and sport compact racing history will recognize OG Honda racers Lisa and Gary Kubo, who we caught checking out Rick Snavely’s True 10.5 Mustang in the pits.

Round One Qualifying

ARP Outlaw 8.5

Q185 [52]Yah, you saw that right – DJ Reid pulled off a 5.096 at 151.46 MPH in what was a 5.30 class… The rest of the Outlaw 8.5 field will have to find another half-second over the eighth mile if they want to hang.

Lucas Oil NA 10.5

Randy Jones leads the pack in NA 10.5 qualifying after the first round, with an 8.264 at 164.29 MPH. [53]

Randy Jones leads the pack in NA 10.5 qualifying after the first round, with an 8.264 at 164.29 MPH.

q1na [54]

 ProCharger 275 Drag Radial

placeholder [55]

Jeff Young sits atop the Drag Radial qualifying after one round, owner of the only seven-second timeslip in the class so far. The track is proving to be a bit of a puzzle for the tire-limited class, but we expect to see more competitors to dip below eight flat in the next round.

q1dr [56]

Mickey Thompson True 10.5

One car in the sixes so far in TT5 - Rick Snavely's 6.975 holds the current leader spot in qualifying, but a number of other heavy hitters in the class are still looking for a hooked-up pass. Stay tuned for round 2... [57]

One car in the sixes so far in TT5 – Rick Snavely’s 6.975 holds the current leader spot in qualifying, but a number of other heavy hitters in the class are still looking for a hooked-up pass. Stay tuned for round 2…

q1tt5 [58]

Garrett Turbo Pro Street

Randy Walker, quickest in yesterday's test and tune, ran 6.692 to lead qualifying, followed by Gary Ross (shown here) with a 6.751 and carrying almost 20 MPH through the traps on Walker's El Camino. Scott Oksas is in third with a 6.816, with the next three cars stretched through the mid sevens. [59]

Randy Walker, quickest in yesterday’s test and tune, ran 6.692 to lead qualifying, followed by Gary Ross (shown here) with a 6.751 and carrying almost 20 MPH through the traps on Walker’s El Camino. Scott Oksas is in third with a 6.816 with the next three cars stretched through the mid sevens. Expect to see more representative low-sixes as the track comes around a bit this afternoon in the second round.

q1ps [60]

Index Qualifying Round 1 Sheets

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True Street Results:

 truestreet [67]

[68]

Unfortunately as we began to finish up Pro Street, Joe Roubicek would end up oiling the entire track down. The delay to clean up the mess will likely kill the third round of qualifying today.

Round Two Qualifying

ARP Outlaw 10.5

q285 [69]

Lucas Oil NA 10.5

q2na [70]

ProCharger 275 Drag Radial

q2dr [71]

Mickey Thompson True 10.5

q2tt5 [72]

Garrett Turbo Pro Street

q2ps [73]

Final Qualifying

Garrett Turbo Pro Street

Joe Lepone's second round [74]

Joe Lepone’s second round 6.233 cost him another hood scoop due to a nitrous backfire at the finish line, but earned him the top qualifying spot for eliminations. A third qualifying round cut short by the curfew meant that Lepone’s second pass would remain as the quickest of the meet so far.

q3ps [75]

In the second round of qualifying, Scott Oksas got a bit loose on the top end and sent a few reflector blocks flying, but managed to reel it back in and avoid anything more dangerous than foam. [76]

In the second round of qualifying, Scott Oksas got a bit loose on the top end and sent a few reflector blocks flying, but managed to reel it back in and avoid anything more dangerous than foam.

lps [77]

 Mickey Thompson True 10.5

Placeholder [78]

Jeff Kyle wasn’t able to knock Rick Snavely off the top of qualifying in True 10.5, with both racers maintaining their relative positions through round 3, but he did claim top speed honors, hinting that he has the power on tap to make a run for the money in eliminations.

q3tt5 [79]

ltt5 [80]

ProCharger Drag Radial

In a Sign of the End Times, Power Automedia (the company behind fine web titles like Dragzine.com) founder James Lawrence found a seven-second pass and got the world's quickest magazine project car into second [81]

In a Sign of the End Times, Power Automedia (the company behind fine web titles like Dragzine.com) founder James Lawrence found a seven-second pass and got the world’s quickest magazine project car into second place in Drag Radial qualifying, slotted between Jeff Young in first, and Kevin Young in third.

q3dr [82]ldr [83]

Lucas Oil NA 10.5

After getting pushed back in a previous round, Tony [84]

After getting pushed back in a previous round, Tony Aneian put together an 8.110 at 167.70 to earn top honors in NA 10.5 qualifying.

q3na [85]

lna [86]

ARP Outlaw 8.5

Placeholder [87]

DJ Reid remained at the top in Outlaw 8.5 qualifying, though Ryan Jones dipped into the five-teens to challenge his early dominance of the class.

q385 [88]

l85 [89]

Index Classes:

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  • [92]
  • [93]

NMCAW22013FRI [94]

Race Classes:

  • Garrett Turbo Pro Street
  • Mickey Thompson True Ten 5
  • ProCharger 275 Drag Radial
  • ARP Outlaw 8.5
  • Lucas Oil N/A 10.5
  • Granatelli Motorsports Mustang Madness
  • Burns Stainless Open Comp
  • Hedman Hedders Nostalgia Street Car
  • Calvert Racing Quick Street
  • Edelbrock Super Quick
  • K&N Filters Pro Comp
  • TREMEC True Street

The NMCA West tour returns to the birthplace of drag racing this weekend for the 3rd Annual JE Pistons NMCA West Coast Shootout, presented by Lucas Oil [95]. Just an hour or so up the road from our Power Automedia SoCal headquarters, the Auto Club Raceway at Pomona is the oldest venue on the NHRA pro circuit, and thanks to residential encroachment over the past 60 years, it only plays host to a handful of drag races each season.

Fortunate indeed, then, are the racers who get to battle it out on this historic track in five heads up classes, six handicapped categories, and True Street. The predicted weather is excellent, and we’ll be on-site all weekend to bring you news and results from the track.

IMG_5769 [96]

Friday Pit Notes

Overcast skies and cool temperatures have been the order of the day so far – good test & tune weather, if not the best for photography. Here’s what’s happening so far:

IMG_8838 [97]Pro Street racer Scott Oksas is out with his brand-new second-gen Camaro – the Hemi-powered twin turbo sled is the replacement for his previous Mustang, lost to a crash in Bakersfield at the previous NMCA West race. His first-ever pass in the new car was a bit shaky, with a close encounter with the tree during the burnout, followed by heavy smoke at half-track. We’ll keep an eye on him throughout the day and see how things are sorting out with the new ride.

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Bull horns (exhaust outlets angled upwards to provide downforce) are common for turbo cars, and aren't that unusual for blower combinations either. But Kevin and Jeff Young, last year's #1 and #2 in Drag Radial, have gone to the trouble of getting theirs routed ahead of the front wheels on both third-gen Camaros.

[102]While the fleet of Roush drag Mustangs has been a common sight at NMRA and NMCA events east of the Mississippi, this is the first time we’ve seen them at a NMCA West event. Don Bowles (below, right) and Susan Roush McClenaghan’s ROUSH Mustangs are fueled by propane, which is not only very clean-burning but also has an octane rating comparable to race gas.

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It might be wrong-wheel-drive, but the lone Honda on the track today is running low tens... [105]

It might be wrong-wheel-drive, but the lone Honda on the track today is running low tens…

  • [106]
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While most of the Pro cars have been having issues or shutting off intentionally before the thousand foot cone, John Mihovetz showed how it's done with a 6.05 at 241 and change.

With that, we’re done for the day, and looking forward to more fast passes tomorrow – see you then!