Warren Johnson Drives through the Drizzle to Qualify 15th in Denver
After rain washed out the first day of qualifying at the Mile-High Nationals in Denver, CO, participants were left with only two opportunities to qualify for Sunday's final eliminations. As if this was not enough of a challenge, the weather on Saturday afternoon made Warren Johnson's assignment even tougher.
On his first attempt, the GM Performance Parts Grand Am driver posted a representative 7.226-second, 191.46 mph pass, which placed him in the middle of the field. Conditions then improved for the second session, and Johnson found himself in the precarious 16th and final qualifying position as he rolled to the line. However, just as he was about to make his run, intermittent showers interrupted all on-track activities, forcing Johnson to wait.
Approximately thirty minutes later, racing resumed. Even though drops continue to hit his windshield as he raced down the track, Johnson used his extensive skills to complete the run, with his 7.218-second pass enough to secure the fifteenth starting position, as The Professor looks to defend his title from a year ago.
"The racing surface was fairly different from what it was two weeks ago when we tested here, particularly at the starting line, and with only two attempts there was little opportunity to make the right adjustments. Fortunately, our first run was fairly representative of what we thought we could do. We were using an engine that had looked good on the dyno, and it did what we expected.
"As for the showers that interrupted the second session, we basically had to grin and bear it. The fact that the truck pulling the jet dryer had its wipers on while it was drying the track was the first indication that something was awry. I knew I could get down the track, even if it was pouring rain, but the change in the track and the atmospheric conditions certainly didn't help our positioning in the field. But that's the way things go from time to time.
"We'll take what we learned today, see what Mother Nature gives us tomorrow, adjust our GM Performance Parts Grand Am accordingly and go from there."
Contact: Jon G. Knapp
TMG Sports Marketing
After rain washed out the first day of qualifying at the Mile-High Nationals in Denver, CO, participants were left with only two opportunities to qualify for Sunday's final eliminations. As if this was not enough of a challenge, the weather on Saturday afternoon made Warren Johnson's assignment even tougher.
On his first attempt, the GM Performance Parts Grand Am driver posted a representative 7.226-second, 191.46 mph pass, which placed him in the middle of the field. Conditions then improved for the second session, and Johnson found himself in the precarious 16th and final qualifying position as he rolled to the line. However, just as he was about to make his run, intermittent showers interrupted all on-track activities, forcing Johnson to wait.
Approximately thirty minutes later, racing resumed. Even though drops continue to hit his windshield as he raced down the track, Johnson used his extensive skills to complete the run, with his 7.218-second pass enough to secure the fifteenth starting position, as The Professor looks to defend his title from a year ago.
"The racing surface was fairly different from what it was two weeks ago when we tested here, particularly at the starting line, and with only two attempts there was little opportunity to make the right adjustments. Fortunately, our first run was fairly representative of what we thought we could do. We were using an engine that had looked good on the dyno, and it did what we expected.
"As for the showers that interrupted the second session, we basically had to grin and bear it. The fact that the truck pulling the jet dryer had its wipers on while it was drying the track was the first indication that something was awry. I knew I could get down the track, even if it was pouring rain, but the change in the track and the atmospheric conditions certainly didn't help our positioning in the field. But that's the way things go from time to time.
"We'll take what we learned today, see what Mother Nature gives us tomorrow, adjust our GM Performance Parts Grand Am accordingly and go from there."
Contact: Jon G. Knapp
TMG Sports Marketing
posted by David @ 1:26 AM
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