Hayes Southeastern Mopar Meet Results
by Tim Glover
Photos
Commerce, GA - September 10) The 21st annual Hayes Southeastern Mopar Meet 2005 was enjoyed by thousands of spectators and hundreds of racers. In addition to the "Mopar versus the World", Junior Dragster, SRT and Diesel Shootout races, there were many other things to see and do on the grounds at Atlanta Dragway. Mark and Tim Hall brought their Dodge Monster Trucks, Raminator and Rammunition, and even had a monster show truck that gave spectators free rides around the car crushing course. Later in the day, they brought out Raminator and Rammunition and took turns flying in the air over the two sets of cars.
Mopar racers Gary Scelzi (NHRA Funny Car), and the Dodge Boys, Richie "The Kid" Stevens and Allen Johnson (both NHRA Pro Stock) were on site, meeting and greeting the fans, signing autographs and posing for pictures. Scelzi had his show car on display near the Mopar trailer, and was also spotted walking around the compound during the day socializing with many people, and stopping many times for pictures. Stevens and Johnson made several 6.8 second, 200 mph plus passes to thrill the crowd. Yes, that was Bob Glidden on the starting line with another of the Mopar Pro Stocks. His son, Rusty, who hasn't driven Pro Stock in seven years, was making license passes in one of the Mopar cars. He didn't mess around either, turning in a best on Saturday of 6.86 at 202 mph.
Another exhibition car that generated excitement was the Cummins Diesel powered Scheid Diesel dragster driven by Eric McBride. McBride piloted the car to several mid eight-second passes, including a best of 8.52 at 157.20 mph. As many diesels do, the dragster left a plume of black smoke in the air. The announcer added, "That black smoke don’t mean trouble, it means GO!"
The Hayes Wholesale Parts booth was located on the manufacturer's midway, which stretched down the track behind the grandstands for nearly a quarter mile. Year One also had their restoration parts booth on the midway, along with many other new and used parts sellers.
Garmon's Diesel Performance brought their chassis dyno to the track, giving free dyno pulls on a first come, first serve basis, courtesy of Hayes Dodge Chrysler Jeep.
Pritchett Tire sponsored the burnout contest, where contestants had one minute to put down all the tire smoke they possibly could. Lebron Hill was popular, with his '94 RAM 2500, but perennial winner Dianne Minette from Hiwassee, GA wound the 440 engine up to the stratosphere in her '76 Dodge Maxi Van, winning the contest again for the fourth year in a row! For her efforts, Minette was rewarded with a new set of tires from Pritchett Tire.
A huge car show was held again in the paved pit area, and a Car Corral was held in the adjacent area. One Atlanta Dragway racer, Toby Collins from Blairsville, GA, entered his '99 Avenger in both the race and the car show. Other interesting show cars on display included Ron Gibson's ’28 Dodge 4-door Street Rod, Larry Brown's '69 Dodge Xplorer Camper Van and Ken Feist's '71 Plymouth Roadrunner. The Car Corral featured cars for sale, from the rust bucket variety to cars that would have been equally at home in the car show.
Prior to the drag race's start, a Run for the Money competition was held, where the racer who ran closest to his posted dial in time would win. Andrew Wheeler put a 12.80 dial on his No Electronics '73 Challenger, and hit it close with a 12.802. (Bill Boomhower also went dead-on with a two in his '65 Belvedere, but Wheeler's better react was the tiebreaker.) Russ Glover won the Electronics portion of Run for the Money with his Team PTI / Hedman Hedders ’81 Speedcraft dragster.
Three Mopars remained in Super Pro competition at the quarterfinal round, but by the time the final was contested, only Team PTI racer Clay Fancher’s Conyers, GA based '98 Horton dragster and Joe Cheek's '65 Chevy II remained. Fancher enjoyed his best reaction time of the day, (a perfect .000 second react), and turned that into his second 2005 Atlanta Dragway win light with an off the throttle 5.35 at 127.65 mph pass. Cheek, who hails from Lavonia, GA, also had a great react, .007 seconds, but his car slowed to a 6.83 at 100.44 mph. Stan Sinack ('68 Dart – Lilburn, GA) and Bubba Rich ('02 Firebird – Gainesville, GA) were the semi-final finishers. Fancher had considered not coming today, but decided he wanted to spend some time racing with his Southern Truck Parts friends. Fancher thanked God, his wife and family, partner George Turner and also Johnny Turner, who crewed for him all day. He then thanked sponsors Fain and Mitchell Properties, and Tara Fine Jewelry.
Only one Plymouth was still in the field by the time the Sportsman quarterfinal round came around, but there was another Mopar powered vehicle, a lime green '68 Volkswagen piloted by Brian Massingale from McDonough, GA. Massingale put his eleven second combination together a little over ten years ago using a Mopar 360 crate motor, a 727 Torqueflite transmission and a Chrysler 8-3/4 inch rear end. After scoring a near perfect win in the quarters (he had a .000 react and went 11.792 on an 11.79 dial, and his quarterfinal opponent, James Rice, also had a .000 react but broke out), Massingale enjoyed a semi-final bye run. He then received a broke bye run in the final round after Robert Wilbanks' car blew a radiator hose and was unable to return for the final round. Bill Boomhower ('65 Belvedere - Walhalla, SC) finished his day as the lone semi-finalist. "I've had some good luck here. I wish I could do this at my home track," said a happy Massingale.
"This feels wonderful," stated 17-year-old Trophy Street winner Robert Wilson from Winder, GA, who won his first race on his first try. (Wilson did have a good coach and mentor, as his dad Harold Wilson competes in Sportsman class.) For the final, Wilson took on the '99 Durango driven by John Oliver, a regular at Atlanta Dragway. Oliver did cross the big end stripe first, but broke out with a 16.23 at 81.11 mph (16.25 dial). Wilson crossed the stripe .016 seconds later with a 14.98 at 91.69 mph (14.88 dial). Melanie Vineyard from Lawrenceville, GA finished her day in the semi-final round. After Wilson's mom, Stormie, saw the trophy, she commented, "You'll have to get a U-Haul to get that trophy home!"
Matt Gillen from Gainesville, GA recently turned 14, and celebrated it with a win in 13-17 Jr Dragster. Gillen had the reaction time advantage, and took full use of it, pedaling his car to an 8.10 at 77.27 mph (8.03 dial). His opponent, Scott Digby (14 - Walhalla, SC) crossed the finish line moments later with a 7.93 at 81.98 mph (7.91 target). Danielle Krause (14 - Peachtree City, GA) earned a semi-final finish. Gillen, a former two time track champion then said, "I want to thank God, Mike Gruber of Valvoline and the Hayes people for putting on a wonderful show." He then got together with 8-12 winner Joshua Sisson and 13-17 runner up Scott Digby, and all three announced they were donating their winnings to various Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.
8-12 year old Jr Dragster points leader Joshua Sisson (12 years old - Gainesville, GA) pulled off the win in his class today, winning for the second race in a row. Sisson had a great .024 react, and carded a 0.02 over 8.96 at 70.79 mph for the win. Sisson's final round opponent, 10 year old Dylan Kent from Acworth, GA, was a bit off in the reaction time department and also ran off his number, running 9.01 at 71.17 mph (also 8.94 dial). Eight year old Cole Wood, a new racer, finished his day in the semi-final round. Sisson thanked his sponsors (C.L. Landscape, TRI Refrigeration, Randy Kinsey Construction, Specialty Lawn Service, Mingledorff's, Mulberry Farms and America's Finest Car Wash) his parents and Granny, Papa and Uncle John, who called after every round to keep track of his progress.
The DHRA (Diesel Hot Rod Association) Pro-Street Diesel contingent brought some fast diesel powered trucks to the track. Whigham, GA racer Philip Palmer had the quickest truck at the end of the day, putting up a 10.83, 125.36 mph pass on the winning scoreboard in the heads up, no breakout race with his '94 Dodge RAM. Kevin Meredith from Bowling Green, KY earned the runner up spot with his '01 Dodge RAM, turning in a 10.97 at 123.32 mph. Jeff Garmon ('95 RAM – McDonough, GA) and Buck Spruill ('03 Chevy – Roper, SC) were the semi-final pair.
The Diesel Shootout featured street driven diesel vehicles that were still plenty quick. Bowling Green, KY racer Earl Talley turned on the final round win light with his '03 Dodge RAM, finishing with an on-the-brakes 14.08 at 89.79 mph (13.85 target), due to a huge holeshot advantage. Randal Cobb's Canton, GA based '00 RAM was also a bit off the pace, carding a 14.26 at 95.33 mph (14.15 target). Lebron Hill ('98 RAM 3500 - Newnan, GA) and C.J. Campbell ('05 RAM – Fair Play, SC) ended their day in the semi-final round.
Kitt Hock made his trip from Hayesville, NC worthwhile with a win in the SRT class. A 13.17 at 107.61 mph in his '04 SRT-4 was good enough for the win after opponent Jerry Dobbs went red with his Hiram, GA based '96 Viper. Hobb's run was also off, 12.10 at 117.35 mph (11.80 target). Dave Garrett ('00 Viper – Alpharetta, GA) was the lone SRT semi-finalist.
Photos
Commerce, GA - September 10) The 21st annual Hayes Southeastern Mopar Meet 2005 was enjoyed by thousands of spectators and hundreds of racers. In addition to the "Mopar versus the World", Junior Dragster, SRT and Diesel Shootout races, there were many other things to see and do on the grounds at Atlanta Dragway. Mark and Tim Hall brought their Dodge Monster Trucks, Raminator and Rammunition, and even had a monster show truck that gave spectators free rides around the car crushing course. Later in the day, they brought out Raminator and Rammunition and took turns flying in the air over the two sets of cars.
Mopar racers Gary Scelzi (NHRA Funny Car), and the Dodge Boys, Richie "The Kid" Stevens and Allen Johnson (both NHRA Pro Stock) were on site, meeting and greeting the fans, signing autographs and posing for pictures. Scelzi had his show car on display near the Mopar trailer, and was also spotted walking around the compound during the day socializing with many people, and stopping many times for pictures. Stevens and Johnson made several 6.8 second, 200 mph plus passes to thrill the crowd. Yes, that was Bob Glidden on the starting line with another of the Mopar Pro Stocks. His son, Rusty, who hasn't driven Pro Stock in seven years, was making license passes in one of the Mopar cars. He didn't mess around either, turning in a best on Saturday of 6.86 at 202 mph.
Another exhibition car that generated excitement was the Cummins Diesel powered Scheid Diesel dragster driven by Eric McBride. McBride piloted the car to several mid eight-second passes, including a best of 8.52 at 157.20 mph. As many diesels do, the dragster left a plume of black smoke in the air. The announcer added, "That black smoke don’t mean trouble, it means GO!"
The Hayes Wholesale Parts booth was located on the manufacturer's midway, which stretched down the track behind the grandstands for nearly a quarter mile. Year One also had their restoration parts booth on the midway, along with many other new and used parts sellers.
Garmon's Diesel Performance brought their chassis dyno to the track, giving free dyno pulls on a first come, first serve basis, courtesy of Hayes Dodge Chrysler Jeep.
Pritchett Tire sponsored the burnout contest, where contestants had one minute to put down all the tire smoke they possibly could. Lebron Hill was popular, with his '94 RAM 2500, but perennial winner Dianne Minette from Hiwassee, GA wound the 440 engine up to the stratosphere in her '76 Dodge Maxi Van, winning the contest again for the fourth year in a row! For her efforts, Minette was rewarded with a new set of tires from Pritchett Tire.
A huge car show was held again in the paved pit area, and a Car Corral was held in the adjacent area. One Atlanta Dragway racer, Toby Collins from Blairsville, GA, entered his '99 Avenger in both the race and the car show. Other interesting show cars on display included Ron Gibson's ’28 Dodge 4-door Street Rod, Larry Brown's '69 Dodge Xplorer Camper Van and Ken Feist's '71 Plymouth Roadrunner. The Car Corral featured cars for sale, from the rust bucket variety to cars that would have been equally at home in the car show.
Prior to the drag race's start, a Run for the Money competition was held, where the racer who ran closest to his posted dial in time would win. Andrew Wheeler put a 12.80 dial on his No Electronics '73 Challenger, and hit it close with a 12.802. (Bill Boomhower also went dead-on with a two in his '65 Belvedere, but Wheeler's better react was the tiebreaker.) Russ Glover won the Electronics portion of Run for the Money with his Team PTI / Hedman Hedders ’81 Speedcraft dragster.
Three Mopars remained in Super Pro competition at the quarterfinal round, but by the time the final was contested, only Team PTI racer Clay Fancher’s Conyers, GA based '98 Horton dragster and Joe Cheek's '65 Chevy II remained. Fancher enjoyed his best reaction time of the day, (a perfect .000 second react), and turned that into his second 2005 Atlanta Dragway win light with an off the throttle 5.35 at 127.65 mph pass. Cheek, who hails from Lavonia, GA, also had a great react, .007 seconds, but his car slowed to a 6.83 at 100.44 mph. Stan Sinack ('68 Dart – Lilburn, GA) and Bubba Rich ('02 Firebird – Gainesville, GA) were the semi-final finishers. Fancher had considered not coming today, but decided he wanted to spend some time racing with his Southern Truck Parts friends. Fancher thanked God, his wife and family, partner George Turner and also Johnny Turner, who crewed for him all day. He then thanked sponsors Fain and Mitchell Properties, and Tara Fine Jewelry.
Only one Plymouth was still in the field by the time the Sportsman quarterfinal round came around, but there was another Mopar powered vehicle, a lime green '68 Volkswagen piloted by Brian Massingale from McDonough, GA. Massingale put his eleven second combination together a little over ten years ago using a Mopar 360 crate motor, a 727 Torqueflite transmission and a Chrysler 8-3/4 inch rear end. After scoring a near perfect win in the quarters (he had a .000 react and went 11.792 on an 11.79 dial, and his quarterfinal opponent, James Rice, also had a .000 react but broke out), Massingale enjoyed a semi-final bye run. He then received a broke bye run in the final round after Robert Wilbanks' car blew a radiator hose and was unable to return for the final round. Bill Boomhower ('65 Belvedere - Walhalla, SC) finished his day as the lone semi-finalist. "I've had some good luck here. I wish I could do this at my home track," said a happy Massingale.
"This feels wonderful," stated 17-year-old Trophy Street winner Robert Wilson from Winder, GA, who won his first race on his first try. (Wilson did have a good coach and mentor, as his dad Harold Wilson competes in Sportsman class.) For the final, Wilson took on the '99 Durango driven by John Oliver, a regular at Atlanta Dragway. Oliver did cross the big end stripe first, but broke out with a 16.23 at 81.11 mph (16.25 dial). Wilson crossed the stripe .016 seconds later with a 14.98 at 91.69 mph (14.88 dial). Melanie Vineyard from Lawrenceville, GA finished her day in the semi-final round. After Wilson's mom, Stormie, saw the trophy, she commented, "You'll have to get a U-Haul to get that trophy home!"
Matt Gillen from Gainesville, GA recently turned 14, and celebrated it with a win in 13-17 Jr Dragster. Gillen had the reaction time advantage, and took full use of it, pedaling his car to an 8.10 at 77.27 mph (8.03 dial). His opponent, Scott Digby (14 - Walhalla, SC) crossed the finish line moments later with a 7.93 at 81.98 mph (7.91 target). Danielle Krause (14 - Peachtree City, GA) earned a semi-final finish. Gillen, a former two time track champion then said, "I want to thank God, Mike Gruber of Valvoline and the Hayes people for putting on a wonderful show." He then got together with 8-12 winner Joshua Sisson and 13-17 runner up Scott Digby, and all three announced they were donating their winnings to various Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.
8-12 year old Jr Dragster points leader Joshua Sisson (12 years old - Gainesville, GA) pulled off the win in his class today, winning for the second race in a row. Sisson had a great .024 react, and carded a 0.02 over 8.96 at 70.79 mph for the win. Sisson's final round opponent, 10 year old Dylan Kent from Acworth, GA, was a bit off in the reaction time department and also ran off his number, running 9.01 at 71.17 mph (also 8.94 dial). Eight year old Cole Wood, a new racer, finished his day in the semi-final round. Sisson thanked his sponsors (C.L. Landscape, TRI Refrigeration, Randy Kinsey Construction, Specialty Lawn Service, Mingledorff's, Mulberry Farms and America's Finest Car Wash) his parents and Granny, Papa and Uncle John, who called after every round to keep track of his progress.
The DHRA (Diesel Hot Rod Association) Pro-Street Diesel contingent brought some fast diesel powered trucks to the track. Whigham, GA racer Philip Palmer had the quickest truck at the end of the day, putting up a 10.83, 125.36 mph pass on the winning scoreboard in the heads up, no breakout race with his '94 Dodge RAM. Kevin Meredith from Bowling Green, KY earned the runner up spot with his '01 Dodge RAM, turning in a 10.97 at 123.32 mph. Jeff Garmon ('95 RAM – McDonough, GA) and Buck Spruill ('03 Chevy – Roper, SC) were the semi-final pair.
The Diesel Shootout featured street driven diesel vehicles that were still plenty quick. Bowling Green, KY racer Earl Talley turned on the final round win light with his '03 Dodge RAM, finishing with an on-the-brakes 14.08 at 89.79 mph (13.85 target), due to a huge holeshot advantage. Randal Cobb's Canton, GA based '00 RAM was also a bit off the pace, carding a 14.26 at 95.33 mph (14.15 target). Lebron Hill ('98 RAM 3500 - Newnan, GA) and C.J. Campbell ('05 RAM – Fair Play, SC) ended their day in the semi-final round.
Kitt Hock made his trip from Hayesville, NC worthwhile with a win in the SRT class. A 13.17 at 107.61 mph in his '04 SRT-4 was good enough for the win after opponent Jerry Dobbs went red with his Hiram, GA based '96 Viper. Hobb's run was also off, 12.10 at 117.35 mph (11.80 target). Dave Garrett ('00 Viper – Alpharetta, GA) was the lone SRT semi-finalist.
posted by David @ 12:47 AM
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