Gordie Bonin. 30th November: We were shocked to learn of the death yesterday of 1999 FIA European Top Fuel Dragster Champion Gordie Bonin. Canadian by birth, Gordie raced in NHRA and AHRA and was known to longtime fans as 240 Gordie for his 240 mph exploits in the legendary Bubble Up Funny Car. His warm, friendly, funny and approachable personality and his driving skills gained him a new legion of fans when he contested the 1999 FIA European Championship in one of Rune Fjeld's Top Fuel Dragsters with sponsorship from Prolong. Gordie was a big fan of European drag racing and all it had to offer, was a supporter of Eurodragster.com, and often spoke of returning to this side of the Pond to race. Our deepest sympathies to Gordie's family and friends. 2014 FIM Championship update. 29th November: Trakbak Racing have sent us the following important statement about the 2014 FIM European Drag Bike Championship calendar: The 2014 calendar has now been ratified by the FIM Europe Management Council. Sadly due to Tierp Arena being taken into bankruptcy, and there being no sign of a new operator being announced in time to confirm events for the 2014 season, the dates previously scheduled at Tierp Arena for 2014 are now unconfirmed. Keith Bartlett, the Promoter of the FIM Europe - Drag Bike European Championship is very keen for Sweden to hold its rounds of the Championship, however he is also very much aware that riders and teams have to confirm commitments to sponsors and need to make travel arrangements and neither of which can be left unconfirmed indefinitely. In addition, the promoter has to confirm the TV package for 2014 with a broadcaster, something which they have not been able to do for the last two years due to the reluctance of the former management at Tierp Arena to follow the TV production conventions observed by every other organiser holding a round of the FIM Europe Championship since its inception. Taking all of the above into account the Promoter has proposed the following: Tierp Arena will be allowed until the last day of February 2014 to confirm its race dates and to have those dates confirmed by FIM Europe as being part of the 2014 FIM Europe calendar. These dates will be accepted subject to a signed contract being in place to allow a TV production to be made from the race, and the Promoter receiving a written commitment confirming that all outstanding financial commitments are to be met. The official 2014 FIM Europe Drag Bike European Championship dates are as follow: Round 1: Santa Pod Raceway, England, 23rd-26th May Round 2: Tierp Arena, Sweden, 12th to 15th June unconfirmed Round 3: Alastaro Circuit, Finland, 3rd-6th July Round 4: Hockenheimring, Germany, 8th-10th August Round 5: Tierp Arena, Sweden, 21st-24th August unconfirmed Round 6: Santa Pod Raceway, England, 4th-7th September The rookie Champion. 29th November: Volkswagen Drag Racing Club VW Sportsman Champion and Rookie of the Year Jason Anslow took the title in his first season as a Club member. Jason says that his season had its ups and downs before culminating in a nail-biting finish at the UK National Finals: During the week I am a primary school teacher in Leamington Spa, and at weekends during the season I race my  2100 cc 1974 Volkswagen Beetle named Quick Release! This season started well as I managed to pick up some good results, a victory and two runners-up which included second place at my first event, Big Bang, and victory at the Springspeed Nationals at Shakespeare County Raceway. I narrowly missed out on victory at Bug Jam. Going into the UK National Finals, the Championship was tight at the top. I was in third place only ten points behind fellow rookie racer Adrian London, and VWDRC Chairman Luke Stephenson was seventy points ahead at the top. With qualifying limited to two runs due to rain and a crash on the track, I managed to qualify first following in the second qualifying session which was held in the dark! The points for this meant that I was now in joint first place going into eliminations on the Sunday. Sunday dawned with clear skies so the final push for the title was on. I got through the first round safely with a comfortable win. The next round was massive as I was up against Adrian, my main competitor for Rookie of the Year. It was going to be a tough job as Adrian had won his first round with an almost perfect ET. On the track I got a great start and was chasing Adrian down quickly. Adrian did in fact cross the line first, however he broke out giving me the round win. With the Rookie of the Year title wrapped up I was to face Luke in the final. In what many think was a first for the VWDRC both drivers went into the final equal on points ensuring that the winner would take the Championship. I had the slower car but I got a great start with a 0.09 Reaction Time and was I going well when Luke left. It was a close race with Luke chasing me down at great speed as his turbo spooled up! I managed to  cross the line to claim the event win and more importantly the 2013 VW Sportsman Championship. Both of us had broken out, but I had done so by a smaller margin with a run of 15.54/83. It has been a great season and winning two titles is a dream. I would like to thank all at Lowlife VeeDub Club in Leamington Spa with a special mention to Marc Lord and Shelly Clarke for sponsoring me and to Lyell Holdsworth for all his help working on the car. Being a member of the VWDRC is brilliant. The club has a great membership and the support for in the pits is fantastic. I would also like to say what a great experience it has been in general. It's great to see how racers and crew from all classes and of all speeds help each other out and interact. I am already counting down the days to Big Bang in 2014. With the season over I am now turning my attention to preparing the new race car which I will be running next year. Quick Release! will be sold and replaced with a 1971 Beetle which will go by the name of School's a Drag!. It will run the same 2110 cc engine but this will have had a few winter modifications to help push the speeds up! To help me in defending my title next year I am currently in need of sponsorship. There are seven Championship rounds through the summer as well as a number of other VW events. The car is seen by large numbers of people throughout the year with Bug Jam, the largest VW show in the country, having attendances of 40,000. I am specifically in need of help with engine upgrades and the fitting of a roll cage. If any business, local or national, would like to help me along the way then please get in touch at  [email protected] or call me on 07702 032832. Swift snippets. 29th November: Not one, not two, but three spy pictures for you today. Their origin not a mystery, Eurodragster.com sponsor Peter Walters Race Design, but the identity of the race vehicle remains so... ...the E-Mail containing the pictures read "Another PWRD and RW Custom Paint collaboration, due on track in 2014". If you know more, or if you would like to send your own spy picture, then drop us a line at [email protected]. We would like to say a big Happy Birthday to our good friend and Official Hug Provider to Eurodragster.com Alison Bohannon. Have a lovely day Ali. Launch pad: Florida. 29th November: Many thanks to Ian King for forwarding us French Rocket Bike pilot Eric Teboul's account of his weekend at the Haltech World Finals at Bradenton, where he set a new world record of 5.121 seconds. I spent a long time considering cancelling my trip to  Bradenton as I wanted to change something on the catalyst after the Main Event at Santa Pod in May for a stronger reaction on the motor and to make a new world record after my last three years ago. The problem was that I was not sure if I had time to complete the modification before Hockenheim then the European Finals and of course Bradenton. I decided not to change anything before the end of my bookings. But the good news came when I ran a 5.2 at Hockenheim with a good fuel reaction but at the Finals at Santa Pod the same fuel and same set-up procedure didn't give a good result with only a 5.5 and 5.4. So this gave me some concern for taking the bike to the USA for the first time. A great show for the Rocket Bike, but with a poor Santa Pod setup and with fuel not distilled by me the result was worrying. The bike was shipped directly from Santa Pod to Sweden in Rikard Gustafsson's bus and then packed into the container at Per Bengtsson's place along with Peter Svensson's bike. I arrived at Bradenton on Friday evening and the rocket bike was located  next to the MRE trailer. I had organised the fuel but now needed to check it as I did not want to take a risk if the fuel was not correct. I brought my own fuel gauge from France. After one hour checking the fuel the result was that it was a little less pure than my own distilled product but with the higher temperature in Florida it could work and so I decided to run. After somebody told me that the track had the same length of braking area as Santa Pod I decided to use the same set-up from Santa Pod. The result was a new world record with a 5.12 and only a thousand feet of thrust from the rocket! The problem was the braking area, I was too fast to stop without a chute and I locked up the front wheel. I tried to let off but when I applied the brakes again I was reaching the end of the track and I prepared to jump off. But with very hard work limiting the braking I stopped just before the end! At that moment I didn't know what time I had run and I was alone on the track. After five minutes or so my brother Bob Feeler arrived and said "Are you crazy, you just ran a 5.12!". Wow, a new world record but the bike stopped pushing at 1000 feet! When I returned to my pit everyone wanted to shake my hand. I ran as quick as John Force in a Funny Car but only on two wheels, unbelievable! For the next two runs on Sunday I knew that if I put in two litres more fuel I could run a four-second pass but the risk was too great to stop without a parachute at more than 264 mph. For the first run on Sunday I proposed to Jay Regan to set a new eighth mile world record with less fuel so that I could stop safely. The eighth mile was 3.3 seconds, I started braking at 1000 feet and ran 5.80 on the quarter mile. The bike stopped very easily between the finish line and end of the track. For the last run I decided to run the quarter mile again but with only 250 metres of fuel and the rest with no power for safety. I ran 5.30 with safe brake control. It was a very nice weekend for my team but I can't wait for the bike to return to start to make the motor modifications to run a four at Santa Pod or Hockenheim. A big thanks to all of the fans and teams and to the Manufacturers Cup! Elected to the Club... 29th November: Peter and Sören Svensson and the Team STARTA Top Fuel Bike team are now back in Sweden after their Bradenton adventures, with the container holding their bike together with Per Bengtsson's Supertwin and Eric Teboul's Rocket Bike due to commence its journey home any day now. Sören sent us an account of the team's time in Florida: Our team got to the track a week before the actual race in order to be able to make some test runs together with all our friends on Per Bengtsson's Supertwin team in order to be well prepared for the last race of the 2013 season. On Friday 1st November we got a warm welcome from Jay Regan and all of his friends when we had lunch at their favourite restaurant the Wing House together with Pro Stock Bike racer Bo Thorselius whom we met at the parking lot outside the restaurant. After the lunch Jay Regan and Larry Burgey drove down to Bradenton Motorsports Park where we met all the great guys at the track, started to unload the container and to set up our camp. Early Saturday morning we got ready for testing at the Art Malone Memorial Race, and after the two exhibition runs which we made on Saturday and Sunday we made some changes in our set-up to be able to make further runs on Monday when we had rented the track together with Per Bengtsson. During the test session on Monday we discovered some serious problems which had to be fixed before the actual race and together with all our hard working team members Pippi, Jeff / Allen / Todd at BMP and others we were able to fix the problems we had and we were ready for the race. We qualified in number one spot with an early shut-off at 5.80/217 during the second qualifier on Saturday which showed that we were able to cope with the totally new circumstances of warm and humid air which we don't have over in Europe. The 5.80 run made us really proud since it admitted us as the seventh member of the famous MTC Five Second Club, the first European team, and this makes our team unique since we are the only team in the world which has run a five-second pass on two different continents. In E1 we had a bye run and Peter clicked off the throttle early, resulting in a 6.25, and on the other side of the ladder David Vantine ran a 6.24 when he won over Sam Wills which gave him lane choice in E2. We made some changes to our set-up in order to get ready for E2 against David who preferred the left lane. David and Peter left when the green lights came on, Peter got past David at around the eighth mile and took the win light but after this he had problems, got out in to the grass on the right side and hit the concrete several times after finally stopping at the very end of the track braking most of the way with the rear brake. Back in the pits we started to clean the bike of all the debris and grass which had stuck to the fairings and frame, and after at short turnround we were ready for the finals against Larry McBride. After some waiting we were called to the lanes as dusk fell and both riders made great burnouts. The light came on and Larry hit a fantastic Reaction Time, about a tenth ahead of Peter who kept the throttle open just past the eighth mile then had to shut off having difficulties seeing in the darkness. Larry headed on to great run, winning in 5.76 seconds, Peter ran 6.02 and this is the quickest side-by-side Top Fuel Bike run ever, making it an historic run. Good job Larry and team, we won in 1998 and this time it was your turn making it even 1-1. We really must say a big Thank You to everyone we met during our stay in Florida, all the helpful and friendly people we met both before and during the race, and all the great guys at Roaring Toys who helped us with our clutch hub on Saturday night in order to be ready for eliminations on the Sunday. We would also like to say a big Thank You to all of the participants in the STARTA Conference, to all our friends from Sweden visiting the race, to all our American friends and fans who joined us during the race, and also to all our fellow racers that put on a great show. A big Thank You to those who make this possible: STARTA Produkter, supplied by Sollebrunns Oljeservice PR Husbilar, one of the largest companies in the western region of Sweden selling RVs HPS Supechargers, number one when it comes to superchargers Samek Tool AB, who make some of the best moulding tools in the automotive industry in Sweden Real Form, product development within mechanical design Goproactive, supplier of PC and network solutions, outsourcing, on-line services, communication systems, security and more Swecomposite, number one when it comes to bodywork for drag racing and many other areas using the same technique Temec, one of Sweden's leading companies selling hot runner systems and much more for moulding tools Pippi, number one when it comes to marketing Roaring Toys, for all your help at the Haltech World Finals All our fans and family members who support us towards new achievements every year! For more information about our previous achievements and updates please visit www.billetracing.se (in English). Surprised by a customer. 29th November: Trevor Langfield of Eurodragster.com sponsor The Wizards of NOS says that although everyone is familiar with the use of his company's kit on the street and in drag racing, LSR and drifting, even he is sometimes surprised by reports from customers: A customer in Slovenia contacted us recently to tell us of the sub ten-second times which they've been running over there. Two cars are producing times in the 9.8 region at about 248-250 kmh. The first is an Opel Kadett with an Audi 4.2 turbo V8 and WON nitrous,  whilst the second car is a road-legal Audi S2 (1500 kg), with a V6 turbo and WON nitrous. The Opel racer is certainly unlikely to run out of nitrous with a bottle that big - he could be at least a tenth or two quicker if he replaced it with a smaller one. You can see a video of the Kadett in action at www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BANUX28FBQ and of the Audi at www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cR2i4BmqMs. Retro race car sought for Show. 28th November: Santa Pod Raceway are looking for a retro or classic race car to represent them at the Race Retro Show at Stoneleigh Park, Coventry on Thursday 20th-Sunday 23rd February 2014 (Thursday being set-up day). If you would like to volunteer then please contact Phil Bennett at Santa Pod at [email protected] or call him on 01234 782828. Swift snippets. 28th November: We would like to wish a very Happy Thanksgiving to our large and loyal band of readers in the United States of America. Have a great day guys. A Nevadan weekend. 27th November: Our good buddy John Hackney and his friend 9.50 Bike racer Joe Elliott took the long trip to Las Vegas to attend the recent Street Car Supernationals. For Hackers it wasn't just a spectating trip, though, as he found himself a steed and competed in one class: We arrived at LVMS early on Wednesday morning to help Mel and Heather set out the PSCA stall, but they had already set up. So we went to help Mel and Sally at the gate with the pitting arrangements. It was great to meet and greet racers, most commenting on what part of Texas or Australia we were from. Then it was off to Tech with the rented Mustang GT: Tech consisted of a quick walk around the car and then the tech sticker was applied along with the Street Muscle race number 27. Testing was just starting at around noon, so I went to the gate to purchase my three runs then off to the staging lanes. There were four different queues for different Tree configurations so I joined the 0.5 Sportsman queue. I had quite a wait because the sportsman queue was considerably shorter than the 0.4 tree queue as so many Pro Mod and 10.5 cars were testing. My first run netted a 13.91/104, no burnout and footbraking from the line with a 0.162 light. Second run was a 13.92/103 so quite consistent, third run a 14.16/103 with a 0.001 red light. The first cars on the track on the first proper day of competition were the Outlaw and Legal Pro Mod cars, most of them not just going for test launches but full-on passes. My first pass in qualifying was a 13.67/105, so I picked up a bit of ET and speed, and my reaction was 0.151. On to the second qualifying pass, which was a 13.72/104 with a 0.001 reaction time, what a great feeling. The next two runs in qualifying were both in the 13.5s with speeds at 105 mph. The class in which I was competing was running a reaction-based qualifying ladder so there I was entered in a big show for a bit of fun and I was number one qualifier against bracket racers who race a car every weekend. Going into eliminations there were forty two cars in the field. The first round pairings were random with a bye run for the number one qualifier if there were an odd number of cars. If one didn't turn up then Yours Truly would get a bye. I was pulled out to one side of the line either to pair up with the last car or get the bye. After a long wait I got the "You're on your own" finger, or at least that's how I took it. I pulled round to the line and once again Al Tucci announced I was from Raunds, Canada even though by now I had put a message on the rear window. The car now decided to run a 13.34/107 on my predicted 13.52. That was my last run of the day so I went to the stands to watch the rest of the cars qualify. Pro Mod has the low ETs and top speeds, but you cannot beat XDR and Wild Street for pure entertainment. Wheelstands on every pass (You reading this Carla and Rick? - Ed)! After racing ended most evenings the place to head was Paja and Jason's pit area as the one and only Mikel Bader was barbecuing some gorgeous food. Thank you Mikel and Andrea for cooking every night. Eliminations day and I was presented with my Number One qualifier award of a shirt, car care products and a $250 voucher towards a Spec Rite torque converter. After leaving the stage I was congratulated by the one and only Camp Stanley, what an honour and well done to the team on the 5.6-second passes! I proceeded to the lanes and I was paired up with a very nice nitrous street-legal Corvette. I dialled a 13.3 to be safe and ran a 13.5 ending my day early, but as I only entered for a bit of fun I was most pleased with the outcome. I went off to the stands to carry on watching the racing. To anyone thinking of going to a doorslammer event, this is the one to attend. There are not many events which run a full quarter for Outlaw cars and it was great to see two cars in the 5.6-second bracket. Monday was spent having a browse around Hot Rods and Horsepower facility. The place is stacked high with used race cars and also a lot of very reasonably priced used race and street car parts. If you need anything then give them a call or find their Facebook page, there are some great deals to be had. Big thanks to Mel, Heather and all at PSCA for the hospitality, Ruthie, Ron and Ron Pister for the loan of the helmet, Mikel and Andrea for all of the superb food, and the Kepharts for looking after me within their pit space. For information on next year's events visit www.streetcarsupernationals.com or find their Facebook page. Swift snippets. 27th November: Matt Atkinson has been in touch with a reminder that the Topspeed Automotive Street Eliminator Dinner Dance will be held on Saturday 18th January 2013 at the Mercure Brandon Hall Hotel and Spa in Coventry. The event will consist of an AGM in the early afternoon followed by a three-course meal and awards ceremony in the evening. Adult tickets are £33 children £8.95. The final date for payment is this coming Friday, 29th. For more information contact Matt on 07894 270348 or E-Mail [email protected]. Current Santa Pod Racers Club and Avon Park International Racing Association Perpetual Award holders are asked to make arrangements to return their trophies so that they can be prepared for the 2013 winners. Please contact SPRC on 01933 313625 or [email protected], or Shakespeare County Raceway on 01789 720180 or [email protected], to get the ball rolling. On the subject of Perpetual Awards, the traditional annual vote for the APIRA / SPRC Perpetual Awards will commence here on Eurodragster.com next Monday (2nd December). The first category will be SPRC Most Promising Newcomer and nominations will be opened for the SPRC Alex Brachtvogel Memorial Trophy. We will be running our traditional Christmas Gift Mart news item on Saturday week (7th December). If you are offering products or services which would make good Christmas presents for Eurodragster.com readers be they racers or fans then please send a paragraph with details and, if you like, a single picture to [email protected]. Wild Bunch fête winners. 25th November: Claire Meaddows writes that the Wild Bunch held their eighteenth annual Prize Presentation at Drayton Manor Park on Saturday, and that a great evening was had by all: Guests of Honour were Wild Bunch co-founder Roy Wilding and former Nitro Funny Car driver Lesley Prior. All of the Series winners were presented with their awards, with the Wild Bunch Series win going to Adam Price of Team Gridlock with the Go Hard or Go Home!!! altered. Many congratulations to him and the team on their third Wild Bunch Series win in a row. The Wild Bunch also held the thirteenth running of the Series for their main contingency sponsor Real Steel Performance Parts, and this was also won by Adam Price as well as the the Springbridge MSA Challenge Series, held over the four MSA events at which the Wild Bunch compete, and the Roy Wilding Nostalgia Race Cars Series. The team also won the APIRA Series, with trophies to be presented in February at the joint SPRC / APIRA Prizegiving Dinner. Various presentations were made during the evening thanking Wild Bunch Chairman Chris Hartnell, Race Co-ordinator and Treasurer Claire Meaddows, website author Ed Yates, and newsletter editor Josh Coulsell for all their hard work. There was also a special token of thanks for Mark Coulsell and Linda Williams for their help with Pit Running and Co-ordination at several events. Presents were given to all the lovely ladies of the Wild Bunch who do so much to support their teams. Flowers were given to Lesley Prior and Claire Meaddows, kindly donated by Mark Coulsell of Team Limited Funz. And of course there were mementos for Roy and Lesley as Guests of Honour. In addition the winners of all the Wild Bunch Merit Awards were announced, and are as follow: Big Bang Trophy: Dave Williams Green With Envy and Darryl Howells Chemical Reaction Best ET: Bob Hawkins, Time Traveller, 7.990 seconds Fastest speed: Bob Hawkins, Time Traveller, 167.30 mph Fastest time by a British-engined dragster (sponsored by Martin Holgate): Sag Southworth in  Daddy Cool, 8.948 seconds Best Newcomer: Mark Mills, Xenomorph Best Altered: Dick Sharp, Dorset Horn (six-time winner) Best Slingshot: Chris Hartnell, Backdraft (six-time winner) Best Radical / Dragster: Sag Southworth, Daddy Cool Best Turned Out: Keith Crampton, Soultown Shaker Best Achievers: Team Gridlock, Go Hard or Go Home!!! Perseverance Award: Darryl Howells, Chemical Reaction Daddy Cool Sag Personal Achievement: Sarah Howells Derek and Brenda Annable Trophy: Carla Pittau and Rick McCann C & C Sportsperson: The Marras - Rob and Pete Brown from  Ballbreaker and other teams The Don Garlits Spirit of Drag Racing Shield: Team Tiki Munki with the Tiki Munki slingshot coupe A full list can also be found on the Wild Bunch web site at www.the-wild-bunch.co.uk. Awards notable to Eurodragster.com readers were the Daddy Cool Sag Personal Achievement Trophy which was awarded to Sarah Howells for her recent Great North Run completion and mammoth fundraising for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research in memory of Paula Marshall, and the Derek and Brenda Annable Trophy which this year went to Pro ET racers Carla Pittau and Rick McCann in recognition of their dedication, professionalism and fighting spirit, as well as their great overall contribution to drag racing in Europe. The greatest accolade of the evening was, as always, the Don Garlits Spirit of Drag Racing Shield, the most prestigious award in the Wild Bunch which represents sportsmanship, achievement, commitment, presentation and a host of other attributes. This was awarded to Scot and Gina Durrant and the whole team of the Tiki Munki slingshot coupe, who achieved increased success this year, whilst putting on a great nostalgic show, helping other racers and demonstrating great commitment to the Wild Bunch and drag racing in general. Big congratulations to the whole team, a very well-deserved and popular win and many congratulations to all our winners. We can't wait until 2014 to be back out at the drags for our nineteenth year, and to be racing with such a great group of people and cars! Best wishes for a Merry Christmas and a Happy, dry, safe and quick New Year to all racers, marshals and officials, track and safety crew, photographers, media, promoters, managers and of course the Eurodragster.com staff, who work so hard at Santa Pod, Shakespeare County and York Dragways, for this sport of drag racing which we all love so much. Thank you all for everything you do (Thanks, you're welcome - Ed)! See you all at the drags next season! A Floridian week. 23rd November: Swedish Supertwin racer Per Bengtsson and the Beast team are now back on home soil after a tremendous week's racing in Florida. L-O Jonsson writes: The team started with a testday on the Monday before the Haltech World Finals at Bradenton Motorsports Park, together with Peter Svensson and the Starta Racing team. The test runs continued during Thursday's Test and Tune session and carried on in to Friday's tests before first the first qualifying session on Friday evening. "We got fourteen runs in one week but the fifteenth run, the final, was unfortunately not to be", says Per. "That was a disappointment but I think we put on a good show for the Americans with our unusual parallell twin engine and the characteristic sound with very big header flames during the night session. "We got a lot of attention both from race fans in general and people and companies in the dragbike business. Many had seen us in Valdosta last year and they really liked the Beast, as you could see a lot of Beast T-Shirts around the track over the weekend. "The creation of the new Pingel Top Fuel Twin class is something which is very important for the future and a big reason for us to ship our operation overseas. I think that if the promoters could present the race schedule a little earlier then more teams from Europe would follow along since the logistics worked out very well in co-operation with Hapag Lloyd and DHL Global Solutions. We would love to see more American Top Fuel Twin racers next year and once again if the race dates could be announced early I think the class will develop. "The whole team has comes back to Sweden with a lot of new inspiration and memories of a historic fishing trip." Per Bengtsson and the Beast team would like to say a big Thank You to Manufacturers Cup Promoter Jay Regan, the staff at Bradenton Motorsports Park and especially Jeff Miller who gave us a very good racetrack and helped us with different equipment, Donna and Wayne Pingel for sponsoring the Pingel Top Fuel Twin class, Don Plesser from PR Factory Store for interesting discussions and correct information at the right time, Eric Hochstetler from MTC Engineering for lending us two Portable Shade tents, Ed O'Connell for an excellent Eurodragster.com coverage, Tog at the Eurodragster.com HQ in the UK for the support and publishing over the weekend (Thanks, you're welcome - Ed), our friends from Tallahassee who served us foods and drinks the whole weekend, Marcus Möller for T-shirt sales and IT support, Pippi for all enthusiasm and good commentary during the event, the Svensson brothers and Team Starta Racing for pleasant company, and Bert Jareblom at Red Line Oil in Sweden for excellent support and the very best products. We would also like to say a very Big thank you to all our sponsors and partners who made the US tour to Bradenton possible. They are Liqui Moly, Red Line Oil, Persåkers Speed Shop, Swedcut, Gates/Lönne, Ulvsgården Ab, Fanhultstvätten Älmhult, Autoexperten Växjö, Bilservice i Åseda, Larssons Bilverkstad Lenhovda, Rävemåla Bilservice, MMR, Svemo, Bentec Engineering and Flexoart. For more information please visit the Beast web site at www.bentec.net. Swift snippets. 23rd November: The latest spy picture to arrive at the offices of Eurodragster.com came with the words "The build is looking good! Our new car for 2014". If you know more, or if you would like to send your own spy picture, then drop us a line at [email protected]. Steve Dudley writes that the fourth slot drags of the 2013-14 season at MrD Raceway will take place at 8:00 pm on Friday 6th December at The Cathedral Primary School, Victoria Road, Chelmsford, Essex CM1 1PA. "There is a small car park in the school grounds which should be able to accommodate us all", says Steve. "Entry and racing are free, all we ask is that you make a donation of a couple of pounds to help toward the hire of the hall, although it's not obligatory. I have loan cars for anybody wishing to try out this exciting form of slot car racing. We try to run a couple of elimination races during the evening to add some element of competition / tension to the meeting. Come and have a go, it's great fun!" Web site updates. 23rd November: Our good buddy Alan Currans has updated his excellent Acceleration Archive with a thirty second Readers' Gallery. "This gallery consists mostly of images taken by Tim Claxton way back when", says Alan. "There is a good mix of UK shots together with a number taken by Tim on his numerous visits to the USA. I was intrigued by one of his photos which shows a rear engined Top Fuel Bike. This led to some interesting correspondence with the owner and builder who kindly supplied a number of additional pictures". You can check it out by following the What's New link at www.theaccelerationarchive.co.uk. Big Block for the Muscle. 22nd November: Surrey Muscle welcomed a new member in 2013 in the person of Jason Dodd who plied the track in a 1978 Trans Am purchased from a former Club member. After the usual teething problems things started to come together for Jason, but only briefly before disaster struck. Jason's dad Paul writes that Eurodragster.com readers may be able to help: Jason's first attempts at racing did not go too well due to initial gremlins with the car. Along the way we discovered electrical problems, the intake manifold gasket was blown and the fuel pump was playing up. Once all sorted it all came together at the Mopars where he ran 11.8 with a 180 hp shot of nitrous injected into the original Pontiac 400 engine, and we were well chuffed with that. We went out again to the Saturday Night Special in October and the car ran well again. As we drove home that evening we were just reflecting on a good first year of racing and starting to look towards next year when a rattle started from under the bonnet. Jason slowed down, then before we knew it there was a loud bang and the car came to a grinding halt. As we stood there on the hard shoulder watching oil and water streaming along the road I knew it was bad, and closer inspection confirmed that this was indeed a terminal failure: there was a big hole in the sump with a rod sticking out of it. To say that we were gutted is an understatement, but that's racing I suppose and you have got to pick yourself up and start again so that is exactly what we are going to do. The 6.6 litre engine was not one of Pontiac's best and obviously not strong enough for the abuse we would intend to give it so the plan is a new engine based around a Big Block Chevy. We have already scored a four-bolt main block which is a great foundation for a strong engine but filling it with the necessary goodies and all the extra parts and ancillaries required to make it run - well, the list is as long as your arm and none of it comes cheap. So before we get in too deep, if any of you out there know of a good Big Block Chevy for sale, or have any of the parts required from the sump pan to the carb, starter motor to dizzy etc, then please get in touch on 07775 681673 or E-Mail [email protected]. Super Pro party still open. 22nd November: UK Super Pro ET racer and Eurodragster.com sponsor Peter Walters says that bookings are still being taken for the Super Pro ET End of Season Party which takes place on 1st March 2014: The venue is the Oliver Cromwell Hotel, High Street, March, Cambridgeshire PE15 9LH. There will be a disco and a hog roast / buffet. There will also be a small number of trophies up for grabs as end of season prizes.  Tickets are £15 per person which includes food. Cheques should be made payable to Super Pro ET Group or you can pay by bank transfer to account name Super Pro ET Group, sort code 20-85-26, account number 73900320. There are only two rooms left in the hotel at £70. To contact the hotel call 01354 602890 or E-Mail [email protected]. Other hotels within five minutes' walk are the King William (01354 653375), the Old Griffin (01354 652517) and the Causeway (01354 650823). We can also arrange motorhome / RV / caravan camping if need be. Swift snippets. 22nd November: If you've ever tried to find a blown fuse in the dark recesses of a fuse box you know how frustrating it can be, but the latest offering from Connectomotive provides the answer: "Our range of fuse boxes come with a transparent cover. There is a 5 mm positive power feed to feed all the fuses, and each fuse has a 6.3 mm male blade terminal and a red LED indicator light which glows when the fuse has blown. These are available in four, six or ten fuse configurations and have holes for easy surface mounting". For more details visit www.connectomotive.com. Top Sportsman ride in PMR queue. 22nd November: Paul Marston Racing are in the process of putting together their very own purpose-built entry for the two UK Top Sportsman rounds in 2014, which take place at the Mopar EuroNats on 25th-27th July and at VW Action on 29th-31st August, both at Santa Pod Raceway. PMR hope to début the new car in mid-2014. Paul Marston explains: The new car is in a queue. There is the PT Bruiser which is currently being finished off and which will run mainly in Super Pro ET in the 2014 UK National Championships. There are no plans to run the Bruiser in UK Top Sportsman; I truly would love to but it's a logistics thing as PMR organise the UK Top Sportsman events and I simply cannot organise and drive. That's not to say that someone else might not drive one of our cars but nothing's finalised yet. Next in line is the usual housekeeping on the PMR Drag Race Driving School race cars. The Whoopass Monza and Grumpy's Dodge got a lot of use in 2013 and are scheduled for some servicing. After all that is done then there is the assembly of the Calibra to finish off. It is currently patiently awaiting its turn at Drag Race Engineering. There are a lot of options with this particular car. Super Pro ET is easily do-able. Interestingly it was built for Pro Modified by Hauser Race Cars. I have checked and it is not unrealistic to run this car in UK Top Sportsman and Pro Modified if there was the incentive to do so. For example if a driver with funding was looking for a way into Pro Mod, that is something we would definitely consider. PMR have the experience and expertise to run such an entry. If a serious opportunity arose we can move the Calibra project forward and potentially run the whole 2014 Pro Mod season. On the Top Sportsman news front, I have over the past week been in talks with four doorslammer teams who are upgrading or building brand new entries. One will be a very welcome return with a complete monster of a set-up, another is a good friend who will be coming home after some time away from heads-up doorslammer racing. Add to that two more brand new entries and 2014 is certainly shaping up to be a very exciting year for UK doorslammer racing. For more details of what UK Top Sportsman, the no-rules ultimate Sportsman doorslammer class, is all about, check out the Series' web site at www.topsportsman.co.uk. Grothus repeats on WoN. 22nd November: Trevor Langfield of Eurodragster.com sponsor The Wizards of NOS writes that customer Team Grothus' recent Pro Mod Bike win was not a one-off fluke: Brunsen Grothus has made it to three final rounds of eliminations at three consecutive events with one win. Brunsen, assisted by his vitally important Wizards of NOS pulsoids, made it to the final round of elimination in the Pro Comp class - equivalent to the ADRL Pro Extreme class - at the Manufacturers Cup Bradenton finals last weekend. In the process he became Pro Comp National Champion and posted consecutive PBs culminating in a 4.085-second pass over the eighth. Brunsen started the weekend neck-and-neck on Championship points with fourteen-time Pro Mod World Champion Billy Vose, so the scene was set when the ladder produced a Grothus V Vose semi-final. The winner of this round would secure the Pro Comp National Championship and advance to face veteran Paul Gast in the finals. Brunson jumped in to an early lead with a great 0.015 Reaction Time to Vose's 0.027. The Grothus Dragbikes WoN-assisted Suzuki GS-powered machine then outran the MPS/Thyen Hayabusa to sixty feet with a 1.035 and continued to pull away for the win when an unknown problem, later found to be a loose ignition plate, caused the bike to backfire before the finish line. The backfire forced Brunson to get out of the throttle a little early but his lead was just enough to turn on the win light and secure the Pro Comp National Championship by 0.008 seconds! Unfortunately the loose ignition plate wasn't picked up on between the semi and the final, so it was inevitable that that would adversely affect the bike's performance, preventing Brunsen from taking what would have been an easy win against Paul Gast, as Paul struggled and slowed to 4.40 whilst trying to avoid hitting the wall. WoN would like to congratulate the Grothus Dragbike team on their Championship win and look forward to developing and supplying a full state-of-the-art WoN nitrous system for next season. 2013 VWDRC AGM. 20th November: Volkswagen Drag Racing Club Chair Luke Stevenson writes that after such an awesome year of racing it's time to wrap up the season with the VWDRC Annual General Meeting, open to members and non-members. The AGM takes place at 12:00 noon on Sunday 1st December at: Jurys Inn Midsummer Boulevard Milton Keynes MK9 2HP Luke adds that this coming Friday (22nd) is the closing date for nominations for the VWDRC Perpetual Awards the Becky Sutton trophy (for services to the VWDRC) and Driver and Car of the Year. VWDRC members are asked to send nominations, plus any points for discussion at the AGM, to [email protected]. Dreamin' of California. 20th November: Dave Riswick of John Woolfe Racing Ltd tells us that California Dreamin', his album of drag racing sounds and music co-written and produced with Nick Hogarth, has been digitally remastered and is now available for download. The album, originally produced in 1998, includes eight tracks with high-quality sound samples from 1970s UK events and the remastering, directed by Dave's son Tyler Riswick, marks the forty fifth anniversary of the founding of John Woolfe Racing. To stream the album free or to purchase a download visit johnwoolfe.bandcamp.com. A night on the town. 20th November: The Allard Chrysler Action Group attended the International Historic Motoring Awards at the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel last Thursday having been nominated for some of the trophies. ACAG Chair Brian Taylor writes: We didn't win any of the awards but it was great to see our dragster up on the screen as the nominations were read out. It was even more fantastic to get lots of wows when people walked past the Allard which was displayed in prime position by the front entrance. ACAG stalwarts Syd McDonald, Kev Roberts and Stu Bradbury provided the ACAG Road Show,  talking the talk while Bev Bradbury pointed the camera. I mingled inside with the great and the good of the industry. James Hunt's car was our neighbour. We made lots of new friends as well as cemented relationships with others. The latest issue of our on-line magazine ACAG Update features news about the project including the event in London. There is also lots of information about recent British Drag Racing Hall of Fame activities plus other nostalgia topics. With the Festive Season coming on fast all the ACAG merchandise is listed and priced. Profits go towards completing the restoration and now help with operational costs as well. Work on the clutch and others items starts between Christmas and the New Year. You can check out the latest ACAG Update at www.drceurope.co.uk/acag/dec2013. Swift snippets. 20th November: Not exactly a spy picture but a word to the wise that if you want to mess with Eurodragster.com US Correspondent Kathy "I'll have his fruit" Hileman (top left) then you firstly have to get past her bodyguard made up of various members of the UK bike racing fraternity, seen here at Bradenton last week. You have been warned. No news update yesterday so we were unable to say a big Happy Birthday for yesterday (Tuesday) to Bob Day of SPRC's start line and safety crews. Hope you had a great day Sir Bob. Santa Pod Raceway are again offering 20% Early Bird discount on tickets for events in 2014. Both gate and grandstand tickets are available at a discount until 31st January 2014. For more details visit Santa Pod's on-line ticket shop. Web site updates. 20th November: The latest update to Chris Dossett's superb Trakbytes UK Drag Racing History site features updates to the latter half of the Sixties and Seventies sections including the first 392 ci Funny Car to run under seven seconds, the NDRC's last meeting at Snetterton, and an ET record for a female driver which would stand for the next twenty years. You can check out Chris' unmissable site at www.trakbytes.co.uk. Continuing the Nostalgia theme of today's update, and with no apologies at all to those idiots who believe that Eurodragster.com shouldn't receive nostalgia news items, Colin Donisthorpe has updated his Flickr gallery with pictures of Funny Cars and Altereds from days gone by. "There are a few classics to be seen and I hope they bring back a few memories for the drag racing community", says Colin. You can take a look at www.flickr.com/photos/colin_donisthorpe. Swift snippets. 18th November: Our good friends Helen and Dave at Zeon TV are now selling their 2013 season review DVDs including the ever-popular Hardcore Street Topspeed Automotive Street Eliminator review, MSA Pro Modified season review, the Springspeed Nationals, the UK National Finals, Direct Plastics Top Sportsman, the Mopar EuroNats and the NSRA Hot Rod Drags. All sorts of deals are available if you want to buy more than one DVD. The covers feature some fine photography to boot. Check out what's available and for how much at www.quartermilehigh.com. All of the post-crash good wishes for Swedish Pro Mod racer Adam Flamholc paid off as he recovered enough to race one of his new mounts, an Outlaw Pro Mod Viper, at the Street Car Supernationals in Las Vegas this weekend. Adam qualified fourteenth and ran as quickly as 6.04 in the first round of eliminations. Adam is due more treatment on his hand which may affect his next scheduled outing at Bradenton in three weeks' time but that's pretty much what we thought this time last week and Adam still made it. Fingers crossed. Stephen Billings asked us to thank all the teams who turned up for his show in aid of Children in Need in Wollaston on Saturday and apologises that the show had to be called off due to problems. Stephen hopes to see everyone at Santa Pod next year. Editor's note: Apologies for the tardiness and brevity of today's news update; put simply your News Editor is shagged out. Full service will be resumed with the next update, and please keep those news items coming to [email protected]. 2014 FIM Europe Seminar. 16th November: The FIM Europe Drag Racing Commission invites all FIM Europe licenced officials to attend a seminar for Clerks of the Course, Sporting Stewards and Technical Stewards on 25th January 2014. The instructor will be Palle Lind, and the seminar will be conducted in English. The seminar will take place between 11:00 and 19:00 at the Scandic Hotel Copenhagen, Vester Søgade 6, 1601 København V, Denmark. Lunch, tea and coffee and fruit will be available during the day and dinner will be taken in Copenhagen at 20:30. One night's accommodation in the hotel for the night of 25th January is included in the seminar fee. All delegates wishing to attend this seminar should contact their own federation (FMN) for an entry form which needs to be endorsed by that FMN. The deadline for entry is 20th December 2013. Marrs' thanks. 14th November: Timing authority, Honorary Eurodragster.com Staff Member and our good friend Andy Marrs says that he is on the road to recovery after his operation last week. "It's a long, slow and bumpy road, but it's definitely a road and I'm definitely on it", says Marrs. "I have to learn to do a lot of things again, like walking. Thank you to everyone for the texts, E-Mails, messages of support and cards. They mean a lot". Missed delivery. 13th November: Multiple Top Fuel Champion and UK ex-pat Steve Read's Australian Nationals campaign did not quite go to plan when engine parts sent from America went missing on the way to Australia. Read had ordered the parts for the 48th annual Australian Nationals, held at Sydney Dragway on 1st-3rd November, after damaging an engine during Melbourne's Calder Park Top Fuel Championship round two weeks earlier. After frantic telephone calls to the US, Read was able to track the parts to Honolulu, Hawaii, but unfortunately the parts were not due to arrive in Australia until after the Nationals event had concluded. However, the Read Speed Racing / SuperCharge Batteries team were able to borrow or purchase the required parts from fellow Top Fuel teams, which allowed Read to compete in the final round of the 2013 Australian National Drag Racing Association Top Fuel Drag Racing Championship Series event.   Chasing a seventh Nationals title – Read has won four Top Fuel and two Top Alcohol titles – disaster struck in the first qualifying session when his hand brushed the emergency engine kill switch, which deployed the parachutes and switched off the engine, and that meant that the RSR / SuperCharge Batteries team lost a chance to gather vital track and engine data. In the second session Read moved into fifth place with a 4.904/286.86 pass. Unfortunately, Read was not able to improve on that time in the third and final qualifying session, finishing qualifying in sixth place. In round one of racing, Read's car lost traction at half-track, losing to event runner-up Damien Harris. "We lost vital preparation time early in the event, chasing the missing parts, which unsettled the team a bit, but with the goodwill of our fellow teams, we were able to source the required parts and get back on track", said Read. "In the first qualifier, my hand brushed the kill switch, which put an end to that session. We would have liked to have qualified several places higher than we did and go a couple of more rounds in racing. "It is fair to say that this was not our best Nationals. With the missing parts we were on the back foot before we even fired a shot, but that's racing."  Read finished the Australian Top Fuel Championship series in third place with 421 points. He won the Super 3 Extreme event at Willowbank Raceway, Brisbane in March. Swift snippets. 13th November: Best wishes to UK Pro ET and Super Pro ET racer, longtime Eurodragster.com supporter, and regular news contributor Paul Marston who was knocked off his bike this morning and is now nursing a broken collar bone. Here's to a rapid recovery Paul. Bennetts' new Boss. 13th November: UK blown-alcohol team and Eurodragster.com Bloggers Bennett Racing are very pleased to announce their latest team sponsor, Grime Boss. Grime Boss Heavy Duty Hand cleaning wipes remove oil, grease, paint, diesel, PU foam, adhesives and everyday gunk and grime, perfect for the workshop or at the race track. The 2in1 ActionScrub provides the right amount of power for any job. Dual-sided, the tough scrubbing side removes stuck-on residue and heavy grime.  The smooth side is gentle enough for cleaning hands, face and arms. Grime Boss wipes are specially formulated to provide effective cleaning but still to be kind to hands and skin. The wipes' formulation contains Aloe Vera and Vitamin E to help protect and moisturise the skin whilst you are on the go. Grime Boss are looking forward to a positive association with Bennett Racing for the 2014 season. For more information, check out www.grimeboss.co.uk Haltech World Finals notes IV. 11th November: Eurodragster.com US Correspondent Ed O'Connell has been in touch from Bradenton with notes from yesterday's race day at the Haltech World Finals: Before the start of eliminations, I visited the pit area of Supertwin racer Joachim 'Acka Riemer, where he and crewman Ziggy pointed out how easy it would be for them to win the Top Fuel Twin title. Laughing while going over the ladder, they pointed out that it was just a case of a few competitors making mistakes and a few Personal Bests by the underdogs and Acka would emerge the Top Fuel Twin Champ. In the pit area of Per Bengtsson's Supertwin, L-O Jonson explained that the aborted run in Saturday evening's third qualifying session was due to no oil pressure. This had been corrected and there had been no damage to the engine. The Beast team were ready for eliminations making no changes to the set-up. Peter Svensson explained that inspection of the engine following the third qualifying session revealed a cracked pressure plate not sitting correctly in the hub. Not knowing where to get assistance in repairing the plate, they turned to the track management who had previously offered to assist in any way. Track personnel drove the Svensson brothers around the pits in a golf cart seeking advice from local racers on a machine shop capable of performing repairs and modifications. A shop called Roaring Toys, an hour away in Sarasota, was recommended and following a few phone calls they were off to use their CNC machine to repair, modify and reinforce the pressure plate. Peter pointed out that the failure of the pressure plate was not a catastrophic type failure, but rather something that happened gradually over time similar to the timing belt failure on Friday. Both parts had chosen the worst possible time to fail. By yesterday morning all items had been repaired and were ready to go, and Peter said that he planned to use his first round bye run not as a soft test pass, but an all-out run. Prior to the first round of eliminations, an awards ceremony was held at the starting line awarding the Team Starta crew the number one qualifier bonus and induction into the MTC 5 Second Club. While displaying the large cardboard cheque, Peter was handed a plastic sandwich bag filled with $1000, a rather nice lunch. London-born top fuel motorcycle racer Chris Hand was also inducted into the MTC 5 Second Club with one slot remaining. In the first round of eliminations, Peter made a bye run of 6.251/215.98. It was discovered that partial ignition failure had prevented the magneto from fully igniting the fuel and performance fell off. The situation was corrected for round two where Peter ran 5.970/212.26 defeating David Vantine's 6.149/219.08. The stage was set for the showdown in the final round of the two fastest Top Fuel Bikes on the planet, Peter Svensson and Larry 'Spiderman' Mcbride. Prior to the final, Peter had made two five-second runs, the only of the meet so far, and Larry had been struggling to get down the track in all but one six-second pass. But the Spiderman saved the best for last defeating Peter 5.765/227.10 to Peter's 6.022/199.82. What had been billed as the possibility of the first ever side-by-side five-second run failed to happen, but it was the quickest ever side-by-side Top Fuel Bike run. In Top Fuel Twin round one, Per Bengtsson's 6.432/197.32 defeated Acka Reimer's 7.024/175.88. Unfortunately Acka was unable to stop and ran off the end of the track. After a very long and frightening delay in stabilising and evacuating Acka, good news came back from the hospital that he would be OK. I spoke with Ziggy who accompanied Acka to the hospital and was told he was in good spirits and resting comfortably despite some cracked ribs, damaged lung and bruised hand. In two or three days a decision would be made about his fitness to fly home. In the second round of eliminations The Beast's American adventure came to an unfortunate end as despite leading to the eighth mile (as best a photographer standing at the guardrail can discern), Per Svensson's bike lost power and coasted to a 10.988/76.54 loss to Rickey House who ran 6.712/214.13. Rocket Bike pilot Eric Teboul thrilled the crowd with runs of 5.806/176.29 and 5.334/228.65. After each pass Eric was surrounded by fans wanting to shake his hand and have photos taken with him. I asked about his Top Fuel Bike and he informed me it will be sold to a racer from Finland this winter. Stay tuned as we plan to post a complete gallery of Ed's shots from Bradenton in the next news update. Please join us in a big Thank You to Ed for his hard work since Thursday: four long days at the track followed by work into the small hours each night to get his words and pictures to us. Doing their Lines. 11th November: Ian and Laura Turburville of the UK's Turboville Racing had a really good year racing the cars owned by Bloodlines Racing: Together with the team principals Ian and Laura sat down and figured a rough agenda for the year beginning at Easter. Laura was doing her A-levels at college with hopes of going to university in September so they decided that her racing was the main priority as it might be her last full year for a while. Ian had re-vamped the Ramraider slingshot acquired by Bloodlines and it became Young Blood for Laura to race. It was decided that she should compete in the ultimate Sportsman class, Super Pro ET, and that Ian should be Crew Chief, putting in the odd appearance at nostalgia events True Blood slingshot as money allowed. This worked out well. Laura had a lot of fun in her rookie year as the youngest driver in the class and with the smallest capacity car. She always qualified well and showed her professional driving skills in the sometimes unpredictable slingshot. There were plenty of memorable close races against some big and scary cars but she held her own. During the year Ian had also been helping Stutz Racing prepare for Noah's licencing in Urs Erbacher's Top Fuel Dragster and as a reward Reto Stutz offered Laura a couple of hits in Noah's immaculate UltraCar dragster. Laura did not hesitate. She jumped straight in, did a transbrake launch and ran a new PB of eight seconds dead, it would have been a seven but it was decided to lower the RPM limit just in case as the car was for sale! Laura got her next stage of licence and Noah got his Top Fuel licence with honours! True Blood, resplendent with its Ed Pink blower and period fuel injection set-up, made a guest appearance at Dragstalgia and the Mopar Euronats where Laura got to do her Back-up Babe thing and had her first taste of the big car when she cackled it during the evening show. Jerry Lackey came to see the team at the Main Event and really wanted both cars at the NitrOlympX this year as he was keen on a nostalgia theme. They couldn't think of a way to get both cars to Germany but the prospect of the worlds first side-by-side race between a father and daughter in slingshots proved irresistible. This was a once in a lifetime shot so they started asking who was going from the UK. Kevin Kent, from West Ten Racing, was looking at the cars and realised that, with the back wheels off, they became long thin cars which might just fit downstairs in his big race truck, under his Funny Car. They did some calculations and lots of measuring and fit they did! Ian started networking (as he does) and Jon Crawford was coerced into driving the team over and crewing both cars with help from Bruce and Jacob Kopasz. Jerry made us very welcome and went above and beyond to help the team out. Marcus Hilt and his fantastic Swiss Pro Mod crew welcomed us to their pit for the weekend and were the perfect hosts as always. When he broke his motor after running a PB his Crew Chief and clutch girl became our team also! Andreas Howald staged Laura and the lovely Sabrina Jaccard staged Ian. Andreas and Sabrina have recently been married in Las Vegas so we wish them every happiness. Laura and Ian did a series of three match races over the weekend including the famous night show. Laura made some wild and wayward runs while Ian ran a new Personal Best to the delight of the huge crowd! If you have never been to the NitrOlympX believe me it is worth the trip, a fantastic event with a huge crowd in a brilliant facility. Back in England, Laura had more fun at Shakespeare County Raceway at the Open Sports Nationals. In September, with the help of Santa Pod Raceway, the team managed to have both cars at the FIA European Finals, a tricky feat as their race truck only takes one car! Laura was competing in Super Pro ET but Santa Pod wanted to put on a special show over the weekend with True Blood alongside Chris Hartnell's Backdraft and Roy Wilding's Chariot of Fire. Laura qualified well and lost in round one by breaking out and going too fast again, a two-edged sword as it is always good to make a quick run. Ian and Roy put the slingshots on display in the pits and did several impromptu cackles with a bit of synchronised throttle whacking for the appreciative crowd. Sunday was race day at the Finals and it dawned bright and sunny with a huge crowd eager to watch the first round of Top Fuel dragster but first they were in for a special treat! As the first pair of fuelers set up against the barn, Ian came around the corner and staged in the water box with Laura and Greg Robins ready to fire the car. Darryl Bradford then informed the crowd that back in the 1960s this was how it was done and drew their attention to the top end of the old fire-up road beside the track. Crazy Chris Hartnell was pushed down by Claire and Lee in their period-correct Suburban (as used by Don Garlits) and he started the motor right under the grandstands. Chris swung around the tower into the far lane as Ian fired his 555 ci big block. Claire leapt from the push car and sprinted to the Christmas Tree at which point Ian and Chris did their burnouts. The drama was unfolding. Ian Marshall set the Tree to green and handed over control to Claire and a union flag! Both cars were staged, the goggles were pulled down over period breather masks, and Claire pointed the flag at each driver in turn. With an almighty leap Claire threw the flag skywards and both cars wheelied off the line. Chris got the advantage but the power of the big blown Chevy reeled him in by half track and took the stripe with a career best of 8.2 seconds. The crowd went wild and both drivers pulled off the track with the biggest grins you could imagine. What a fantastic weekend and what a perfect way to keep the history of our sport alive, living the dream. Laura finished off the season at the UK National Finals in great style, more PBs and her car was sold. Bloodlines would like to wish Russ Heaven and his family the best of luck with the beautiful little dragster, treat it well and have fun! Throughout the year Laura was filmed by the BBC for a segment of their Inside Out show and this was broadcast to great acclaim recently. What of 2014? Well the team say that they will have to step back a bit after all the excitement while Laura studies for her degree, but that doesn't mean that you won't see her at the track. Ian and Laura will share driving duties of the True Blood car at selected events during the year making demonstration runs and exhibitions. The team would like to thank all the people who helped this year: Ingrid and Martin Chesworth, Tim Fountain, Tog, Greg Robins, Amanda Cox, Crunch, Stuart, Jon Crawford, Andy and Sabrina, Marcus Hilt and team, Reto Stutz and team, Kevin Kent and team, Jerry Lackey and team, Kenny Gomez, Barry and Mandy, Keith, Darren and Neale at Santa Pod, all the racers in Super Pro ET for being a great bunch, Darryl Bradford, Bob Chevy, Gates Belts, Kenny Youngblood, Terry Dutton, Ian Blackett, Dom Romney, Rockin' Ramon and the Wild'R team, Ed and the Ramraider Team, Trond Host, Samu and team, Roger Lee, and a host of others. See you all next year! Swift snippets. 11th November: The latest spy picture to arrive at the offices of Eurodragster.com came with the words "Remembering, part of a bigger picture". If you know more, or if you would like to send your own spy picture, then drop us a line at [email protected]. Further to our news item of 22nd October Stephen Billings tells us that he is OK for cars for his dragster show in aid of Children in Need in Wollaston this Saturday (16th) but that he has room for more bikes especially any Fuel, Funny or Supertwin bikes. If you are interested then please E-Mail Stephen for more information at [email protected] by Wednesday specifying Children in Need as the subject of your E-Mail. Once the world's coolest five-year-old, Tog's niece Jennipher Rogers Knight reaches the age of twenty one today. Have a very Happy Birthday Jenn and we hope you know that it's all downhill from here. We were unable to finish yesterday's (Sunday's) update due to network problems at Eurodragster.com Towers, so a belated Happy Birthday for yesterday to Team Heaven and Hell crew member Dave Buckland. Hope you had a great day Dave. Another one of the 50. 11th November: UK photographer Nigel Holland has been in touch with news of the latest tick in the box of his 50 List: Last year I took on fifty challenges to show my daughter that anything is possible. We both have the same disability and I wanted her to know that life is to be challenged. There were some crazy things on the list including learn how to make a crème brulee, wood turning and 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle to more extreme itemssuch as 0 to 160 mph in eight seconds in the Two Seat dragster, indoor skydive, scuba diving, jet skiing and more. It was a fantastic and very busy year. One of the items on my list was to exhibit some of my photos taken at Santa Pod Raceway over the last several years. The exhibition, called How quick? How fast? has now been organised and will be held at the Castle Theatre in Wellingborough from 3rd December to 31st January. Entrance is free so please come along and say hello. I have written a book called The 50 List about all the activities I got up to last year. It's published by Harper Collins and is available from WH Smiths, Waterstones and Amazon. For more information about The 50 List please visit my web site www.the50list.co.uk. Web site updates. 11th November: The Mad Welshman has updated his Flickr site with his last gallery of 2013, shots from the Saturday of the Halloween Bonfire Burn-Up at Shakespeare County Raceway. You can check out Mad's pictures at www.flickr.com/photos/the_madwelshman/sets. Haltech World Finals notes III. 10th November: Eurodragster.com US Correspondent Ed O'Connell has been in touch from Bradenton with notes from yesterday's final day of qualifying at the Haltech World Finals: Racing began at Bradenton yesterday after the removal of a large snake from the timing box on the start line. The snake had entered the box thinking it might make a nice home shaded from the sun. The timing crew found it deceased whilst setting up and thought that it may have been electrocuted or baked. The commentator said that when Per Bengtsson's Supertwin The Beast ran 6.436 on Friday night, the bike's exhaust blew the cover off the timing box and four feet into the air. While it can never be certain, I think that The Beast killed the snake. French Rocket Bike pilot Eric Teboul made his first run in the US yesterday. Eric said the promoter of this event had been trying to convince him to come over for the past three years and finally got him to commit to this date this year. While piloting the 350-pound bike Eric is subjected to forces of 8G. Eric plans to change the catalyst on the much-modified NASA rocket for better reaction times. If the modifications are completed in time he hopes to run at Santa Pod early next season. Eric left the crowd in momentary stunned silence then erupting into loud cheers after his 5.12/264.39 pass. The only British racer competing at this event is Street GT racer Sam 'The Man' Green from Warrington, England. He competes with a 915 CC Hondamatic two-speed, which usually runs dead on the dial-in of 12.33. A new motor, which is just starting to loosen up a bit, produced a Personal Best of 12.18 causing him to break out during eliminations. Sam is talking about retirement from racing, but his teammates predict he will be back. German Supertwin racer Joachim 'Acka' Riemer and his clutch specialist Ziggy (below with Eurodragster.com US Correspondent Kathy Hileman) said that while happy with Friday's test run of 7.120/199.55 the fall off of performance on the first qualifying run of 7.967/139.10 was disappointing and down to rider error. Ziggy was quick to point out the rider wasn't concentrating hard enough and did not engage the throttle all the way on the launch, upsetting the fuel timing and causing the bike to lean out. The second qualifying pass yielded a 6.905/197.00. Acka, who has thirty years' experience with motorcycles, said the best runs always felt the smoothest. For the final qualifying session the plan was to add more fuel to early stage of the run for a better time to the eighth. The result was a 6.929/183.89. Acka said "I guess I can leave now, my goal was to run in the sixes, but wait only 197.23. I guess I will stay and try to get over 200 mph." I spoke to Swedish Top Fuel bike racer Peter Svensson first thing Saturday morning. The bike was back together and ready to go. Peter said that they had found the problem which was plaguing them - a twisted camshaft which was damaging intake valves. Peter said this was unusual as the bike doesn't eat parts. All of the problems of the past two days could be traced back to the failed timing belt, which usually last at least three seasons. Peter said the bike was set up to run in the 5.80s and that this would make him happy, but it might not be possible. Peter stunned the crowd with the only five-second run of the day, a 5.806/217.70, but the clutch was damaged on that run which would cause the team to miss the final qualifying session. Swedish Supertwin racer Per Bengtsson was plagued with battery failure during Q2, coasting to a 10.825/80.62. Per noticed a problem as the dashboard display was flickering on and off before going out entirely. Realising that an ignition problem would cause significant damage, Per lifted after the hit. Examination of the engine revealed pistons, rods, wrist pins, bearings all in perfect condition. Two exhaust valves had to be replaced due to some leakage. L-O Jonsson said “Sometime it is a good idea to have an engineer riding the bike" as Per's quick assessment of the situation and lifting undoubtedly saved the engine from major damage. Upon starting the engine for the final qualifying session, oil pressure problems prevented a run. Top Fuel Bike racer Sam Willis suffered an engine explosion during qualifying (above right). I spoke with UK Top Fuel Bike racer Ian King regarding an article in the recent issue of Race Engine Technology about the measurement of power in a Top Fuel motorcycle. Ian said that they had a pretty good idea of the engine horsepower from changes in the G meter readings. He met NCT Engineering from Munich at the Autosport show in England and agreed to test their contactless torque sensors which were installed on the gearbox output shaft. When calibrated the data was sent to Ian's Racepak datalogger giving an accurate rear power output of 1440 bhp. Ian said that knowing more about the horsepower curve would aid in tuning the bike. He has hooked up the NCT Engineering people with Denmark's Andersen Racing to perform similar research on a Top Fuel Dragster. Ian hopes to run his Top Fuel Bike on the European tour next season. Entering today's eliminations, Peter Svensson is qualified #1 in Top Fuel, Per Bengtsson is qualified #3 and Joachim 'Acka' #4 in Top Fuel Twin. Eric Teboul will be making two more runs. Haltech World Finals notes II. 9th November: Eurodragster.com US Correspondent Ed O'Connell has been in touch from Bradenton with notes from yesterday's first day of qualifying at the Haltech World Finals: German Supertwin racer Joachim 'Acka' Riemer said that he had not retired from racing but that after three years of racing in Europe was frustrated that he was unable to improve due to a bad combination and parts breakage. Wanting to step up performance, he sought advice from North Carolina racer Johnny Vicker of Hawaya Racing, from whom he had been buying parts. Johnny suggested that Acka ship his entire operation over to his shop near Charlotte, North Carolina, where he could store his bike, use the shop and he would help to him work on the bike's combination. While still living near Berlin, Germany, Acka found that he could easily fly into Charlotte and race at several tracks - Virginia, Rockingham, Bristol etc - short distances away. Performance is improving step by step at each event, and he has yet to make a full pass. Improvements to the rear of the chassis and a bigger chain have yielded recent improvements. Acka said that the next area he hopes to maximize is the transmission and that he was was glad that Per Bengtsson was here, as he is running one of his Bentec transmissions. Acka's plan is to race one more season in the US, and if comfortable with his progress to return to the European race circuit the following season. In his first test run on Friday Acka ran 7.120/199.55, then in the first qualifying session he ran 7.967/139.10. Swedish Top Fuel Bike racer Peter Svensson and the Team Starta Racing crew worked well in to the night repairing the damage caused by the cam belt failure during Thursday's test session. Peter ran a 6.117/172.24 in testing yesterday but a leakdown test revealed some possible engine damage. The team missed Friday's qualifying session working to correct some cam clearance issues. Assisting the Team Starta Racing crew was Swedish Funny Bike racer Rickard Gustafsson who mentioned that he was working on his new Top Fuel Bike, just having receiving the cylinder heads from Puma. He hopes to complete the bike by the end of next season, while continuing to compete with his existing Funny Bike. Swedish Supertwin racer Per Bengtsson and the Beast team planned two test runs yesterday before the first qualifying session. The first test run was aborted when the bike overpowered the track right at the hit. As this is a bike-only event, the rubber build up creating the optimum groove is a narrow patch of rubber approximately one foot wide, located where the right rear tire of a car would be staged at the start line. Either side of the narrow rubber groove is mainly glue. The difficulty of lining up and staying in the racing groove proved to be extremely difficult. Per's second test run was more successful, a 6.436/195.10. In the first qualifying session Per ran a 6.466/226.18, a Personal Best speed. A leakdown test showed less than three per cent leakage indicating no damage to the motor. Per was pleased with the second qualifying position because it indicated they were able to repeat, which really lifted the spirits of the team. They plan to improve and expand upon this success in today's two qualifying sessions. Swift snippets. 9th November: Good luck and stay safe to Ulf Leanders and Mike Manners of Eurodragster.com sponsor Cosmo Residences who are contesting today's Top Alcohol Funny Car and Top Alcohol Dragster eliminations at the Auto Club NHRA Finals at Pomona. Ulf is qualified seventh in TAFC at 5.563/265.06 and Mike eighth in TAD at 5.386/269.94. You will be able to stay in touch with our heroes' progress courtesy of our Drag Race Central friends at www.dragracecentral.com. Haltech World Finals notes I. 8th November: Eurodragster.com US Correspondent Ed O'Connell has been in touch from Bradenton with notes from yesterday's pre-Haltech World Finals Test and Tune: The Swedish invasion of the Haltech Manufacturers Cup race began last Sunday with the arrival of Per Bengtsson and the team of the Beast Supertwin team and Peter and Sören Svensson of Top Fuel Bike team Starta Racing. According to L-O Jonsson of the Beast team, the logistics of the trip, unloading the container, and setting up the pit area all went flawlessly with help from event director Jay Regan. Both teams tested at the track on Monday, Per making five runs and Peter making two. Both teams found the track conditions very good and they were pleased with the test runs. Per Bengtsson was planning two runs during yesterday's Test and Tune with a late afternoon run at approximately the same time as today's first qualifying session. According to the Beast's Crew Chief Lars 'Putte' Tydinger the only major change indicated by Monday's test runs would be adding a little more clutch as, being a bike-only event, the track seemed to have less rubber and less glue than a race meeting with cars. Peter planned to make minor clutch adjustment and de-tune the motor a bit, as some detonation was noticed on Monday. He was pleased with the smoothness of the track as evidenced by the good output shaft readings. Peter Svensson was first out on the track just after noon yesterday, but broke right off the line when a cam belt failed. Tearing down the engine revealed more engine damage: bent valves and damage to the head. The Starta crew worked feverishly repairing the engine, hoping to get a second test run, but they were unable to get it back together before the 17:00 testing curfew. Per's first run was also unsuccessful as the rear tyre got too much grip, preventing it from growing on acceleration. Not being up on the tyre, corrections to the bike's direction were impossible and Per shut off as the bike was drifting into the other lane. With no damage to the bike, the Beast team performed routine maintenance for a second test run just before the curfew. The bike launched and coasted down the quarter mile. British Supertwin racer Chris Hannam (with SPRC's Ian Marshall and David Warren, above right) was at the track, getting around on a human powered bicycle at this meeting. He plans to run his Supertwin at all events at Santa Pod next year after making extensive changes to his bike. Switching to a B&J two-speed transmission required making changes to the motor plates and other components. Chris said that he has replaced the engine, blower, and every other component which had let him down last November. When he has the bike running consistently in the 6.50 range, he plans to compete in other FIM Europe events. He said that he will definitely not retire until he runs another six. Both teams plan on additional testing this morning prior to the first qualifying session this afternoon. Also scheduled to compete at this event is Germany's Joachim Riemer, but he had not arrived by the end of yesterday's Test and Tune session. NHRA Finals catch-up. 8th November: As well as our guys at Bradenton Jonnie Lindberg and Ulf Leanders (Top Alcohol FC) are contesting the Auto Club NHRA Finals at Pomona. Fred Hanssen was entered for the event in Top Alcohol Dragster but did not appear yesterday, whilst both Jonnie and Ulf had tyre-rattling experiences in Q1. Ex-pat UK Top Alcohol Dragster racer Mike Manners of Eurodragster.com sponsor Cosmo Residences is currently fifth in TAD at 5.386/269.94. Top Alcohol qualifying takes place today at 20:15 and 23:30 UK and at 21:15 and 00:30 European, and you will be able to stay in touch with our heroes' progress courtesy of our Drag Race Central friends at www.dragracecentral.com. It's also worth staying tuned to the Lindberg brothers' web site at www.lindbergbros.com where our good buddy Patrik Larsson is posting frequent updates from Pomona. Jackson joins BDRHoF Board. 8th November: The British Drag Racing Hall of Fame has announced that MSA British Drag Racing Championship Public Relations Officer Robin Jackson will be joining its Board of Selectors. "The British Drag Racing Hall of Fame has great plans for the future but needs help in the areas of press and sponsorship communication plus event planning and management", says BDRHoF Chair Stu Bradbury. "Robin has agreed to take on this task assisting Brian Taylor and I." Robin first encountered drag racing more than fifty years ago on the back-page of a childrens' comic (which he now wishes he'd kept). He attended his first drag race at Santa Pod on Easter Monday 1967 and made the first of many trips to America in 1974 for the NHRA Supernationals / World Finals at Ontario Motor Speedway, with side visits to Irwindale and Fremont, all three tracks long since gone. During the 1980s he photographed and reported on NHRA races for various UK publications, ranging from Autosport to Penthouse. In the 2000s he operated then-Eurodragster.com sponsor Blueprints For Travel Ltd, developing and managing overseas drag racing tours in conjunction with travel companies Trailfinders and Grandstand Motor Sports. Since 2007 he has served as Press Officer for the MSA British Drag Racing Championship and, this past season, for the European Funny Car Series. "I'm very pleased to be able to join Stuart and his BDRHoF team", says Robin. "They have achieved much since the 2006 launch and I'm looking forward to being part of their exciting future plans. The history of our sport is rich with stories about people following their dreams and they need to be celebrated. With recent sponsorship agreements in place the BDRHoF is now in a position to set new standards in communication and event organisation. To be a part of this new era is an exciting prospect." USA European weekend. 7th November: It's going to be a busy and enjoyable weekend for European fans as a number of our heroes are in competition in the USA. Good luck, stay safe, and do us proud to Fred Hanssen (Top Alcohol Dragster), Jonnie Lindberg and Ulf Leanders (Top Alcohol FC) who are due to contest the Auto Club NHRA Finals at Pomona. Top Alcohol qualifying starts at 00:30 European / 23:30 UK today and you will be able to stay in touch with our guys' progress courtesy of our Drag Race Central friends at www.dragracecentral.com and via the good offices of our good buddy Patrik Larsson on the Lindberg brothers' web site at www.lindbergbros.com. European fans have an additional racer to cheer on as ex-pat UK Top Alcohol Dragster racer Mike Manners of Eurodragster.com sponsor Cosmo Residences is also competing at Pomona. Good luck, stay safe and do us proud also to Peter Svensson (Top Fuel Bike), Per Bengtsson and Joachim Riemer (Supertwin) and Eric Teboul (Rocket Bike) who are taking part in the Haltech World Finals, the last round of the 2013 Manufacturers Cup, at Bradenton in Florida. Eurodragster.com US Correspondent Ed O'Connell will be at Bradenton starting with today's Test and Tune and will be sending us daily pit notes, reports and photographs. Stay tuned to Eurodragster.com for Ed's updates, the first of which we expect to post tomorrow morning (Friday). Supercharged Taxi. 7th November: The UK's Charlie Chivers and the Taxi Express Race Team are proud to announce that Charlie is now the owner of the ex-Ron Haslett Street Eliminator Cortina. "With Ron's Insane Creation help, our intention is to bring the Cortina back to the track in 2014 in Street Eliminator and the Supercharged Outlaws", says Charlie. "We will be using our supercharged BBC with a fuel injection system, with cooling provided by Serck Motorsport. "If anyone is interested in getting involved in the project with sponsorship or advertising on the car then please get in touch with either Ron or myself". Charlie's C10 pick-up is for sale and details can be found on our Jeff Bull Race Engines-sponsored Swap Meet. Another Wizard winner. 7th November: Eurodragster.com sponsor The Wizards of NOS are proud to report that another of their American customers has excelled in their class. Trevor Langfield writes: This time it's Team Grothus, who took the Pro Extreme motorcycle class win at the recent ADRL event at Houston. This is the first WON customer to take a win at the ultimate level of nitrous-assisted racing but, thanks to the growing number of sales to the US market which themselves are thanks to the past successes from the Cecil Towner stable at HTP Performance, it's certainly not going to be the last. Cecil Towner recently reported that he has sold WON products to approximately fifty per cent of the racers in the Pro Extreme motorcycle class, which means that we have well and truly broken the closed shop attitude which has prevailed in high-end US drag racing classes until now. 2013 has brought us some outstanding results but we can't wait to see what 2014 brings, as more and more high end US racers upgrade to WON products and improve their results as an unavoidable consequence. This report is belated because we only found out a couple of weeks after the event that the Grothus team had been using our products since April of this year. We're still awaiting a full list of our customers from Cecil, to see who else has been and is benefitting from advanced WON nitrous technology. So hopefully there will be more successes to report soon. Swift snippets. 7th November: A very Happy Birthday to Eurodragster.com News Editor, Race Reporter and Photographer Tog, who reaches his half century today (Thursday). Have a great day buddy, and many happy returns from Kirstie, Ed and Simon. The legendary Grenade returns. 5th November: 2014 is set to be quite a special year not just for UK drag racing but also for Russ Carpenter Racing as Russ' legendary Daimler V8-powered dragster will be back out on track. Russ' son, and now driver of the dragster, Andrew Carpenter writes: It is the fortieth anniversary of my father's first win in drag racing, as well as his fifieth year involved in the sport. On that fine note, after twenty five years of retirement from competitive racing and fifteen years since our last demonstration runs we are pleased to announce officially the rebuilding of the Grenade dragster and the return of Russ Carpenter Racing. My father's involvement in drag racing started at the first Dragfest meeting in 1964. Being a young man with a keen interest in anything motorised he attended the meeting at Blackbushe to view a new type of motorsport fresh from the States. All it took was one visit and he was hooked. Soon after he was introduced to a local chap called Tony Anderson, who himself had just started to participate with a Ford V6 front-engined digger called Trouble and a partnership was formed. Dad originally helped out with the engine work on the car, however it wasn't long before they would begin to build a revolutionary car new together. Having seen photos of the new rear-engined race cars in the States they decided that that was the way to go and so in 1970 work began on a new chassis. They had decided that they wanted an all-British car, and as the Daimler V8 engine had a hemi head it was the obvious choice. So at the 1972 March meeting held by the National Drag Racing Club at Upper Heyford the all-British V8 Daimler-powered More Trouble rear-engined dragster was débuted with driving duties were shared between Tony and Dad. The car was slowly refined and tweaked and in September 1974 Dad won his first race meeting at Silverstone. Shortly after, Tony hurt his back in a racing incident at a meeting at Santa Pod and due to the injury was forced to stop racing. Dad bought out his share of the car and continued the development they had begun. Improvements were continually made thoughout the 1970s lowing the speed and ET records until on 5th July 1980 at the Summer International World Series meeting at Santa Pod, Dad in the now AE Autoparts-sponsored Glacier Grenade became the first racer to break the eight-second barrier in an all-British car as well as the first car anywhere in the world under 5.5 litres to do so. Dad continued to race and to improve the car, lowering the ET and increasing the terminal speed records, until his retirement from competitive racing in 1989 having achieved a Personal Best of 7.2 seconds at 180 mph, all from a practically stock Daimler V8 engine. The car was demonstrated for a number of years afterwards in match races around Europe but it was never again raced in competition and finally mothballed in 1994. After a brief appearance in 1999, driven by my brother Garry, the car was again mothballed only coming out for display at the 2001 Goodwood Festival of Speed as well as at a few motor shows. In 2007 Dad was invited to attend a Legends of Drag Racing meet at Santa Pod's FIA Main Event and it was there that the spark of racing was once again ignited. At the 2011 Dragstalgia meeting at Santa Pod the car reappeared on show for the first time in sixteen years and the idea of running the car was brought up. However Dad fell seriously ill in late 2011 and it wasn't until he recovered in the summer of 2012 that he decided that it was time to look at reviving the car. After much discussion it was decided that I would be allowed my drive of the famous world record-breaking dragster; however there were two rather large issues. First I am a clear four inches taller than my already quite tall father, and secondly I was too heavy to fit in the car. There was only one solution for this! Dad and I made an agreement and after dieting for twelve months and losing fifty kilogrammes I slid into the cockpit and it was decided to start work rebuilding the car to return her to racing condition. We plan to run in the Supercharged Outlaws but in 2014 we will probably make demonstration runs to set up the car and to give me the chance to get a proper feel for it. Swift snippets. 5th November: British Drag Racing Hall of Fame Chair Stu Bradbury writes that the recent announcement of two new annual BDRHoF awards made it into the very heart of motor-related journalism, the Guild of Motor Writers Update (right). We understand that a deal may be in hand to save Tierp Arena which recently declared bankruptcy. Stay tuned and as soon as we hear more we will bring it to you. We would like to wish a very Happy Birthday for today (Tuesday) to former Eurodragster.com Photo Editor, and still our very good buddy, Sharkman. Have a great day Shark. Steve Dudley writes that the third slot drags of the 2013-14 season at MrD Raceway will take place at 8:00 pm this Friday (8th) at The Cathedral Primary School, Victoria Road, Chelmsford, Essex CM1 1PA. "There is a small car park in the school grounds which should be able to accommodate us all", says Steve. "Entry and racing are free, all we ask is that you make a donation of a couple of pounds to help toward the hire of the hall, although it's not obligatory. I have loan cars for anybody wishing to try out this exciting form of slot car racing. We try to run a couple of elimination races during the evening to add some element of competition / tension to the meeting. Come and have a go, it's great fun!" Congratulations to Albert Carter, son of multiple FIA European Top Fuel Dragster Champion and record holder Andy Carter and wife Sarah, who won the toughest Kart Club Championship in the UK, the TVKC Championship, at the PF International Circuit this past weekend. Won by Lewis Hamilton in 1996 at the age of eleven, the Championship was won by Albert at just ten years old. A chip off the old block and no mistake. Web site updates. 5th November: As recently promised here on Eurodragster.com, News Editor Tog has updated his personal gallery site with a set of pictures from the 1997 NHRA Winston Select Finals at Pomona Raceway. The pictures are scans of prints from very high-speed film and some are tightly cropped, so not every picture is as detailed as it could be but have some historical interest. You can check out Tog's 1997 Finals shots at eurodragster.smugmug.com. VP introduce Power Wash. 5th November: Eurodragster.com sponsor VP Racing Fuels have introduced VP PowerWash, the newest product in its Consumer Products portfolio. VP PowerWash is a powerful cleaner specifically formulated for the unique demands of powersports, R/C hobby vehicles and other applications.  Available in three formulas – Moto, R/C and Super Concentrated – VP PowerWash features a concentrated dual-action detergent that rapidly dissolves caked up dirt and mud, suspends and floats away dirt and grease, without leaving streaks or spots. The VP PowerWash Moto formula is designed for powersports applications such as dirt bikes, ATVs and UTVs, as well as bicycles, including road, mountain and BMX. The R/C formula uses a less concentrated blend for R/C vehicles of all types. Both are available in 32 ounce spray bottles. The Super Concentrated formula is packaged in gallons and can be used alone for extremely dirty, muddy and/or large applications such as off-road vehicles or dirt track cars, as well as to refill Moto or R/C spray bottles when diluted with water. "Some customers may recall Mr Moto Wash, a popular cleaner we marketed for many years to the powersports segment", said Bruce Hendel, Director-Consumer Products for VP Racing Fuels. "VP PowerWash employs the same great formula in a new, more attractive package and new blue color. Most importantly, it carries the VP brand, which as any performance enthusiast knows, means top quality. VP PowerWash is formulated with the same type of leading technology and passion for performance that our Mad Scientist brings to our race fuels." For more information or to order VP PowerWash contact your VP Regional Distribution Centre listed on-line at VPRacingFuels.com/ContactUs.html. VP PowerWash is also available for purchase online at VPRacingFuels.com. Coach ♥ Camaro. 4th November: The UK's Simon Gough spent his first season in Super Pro ET in 2013. Simon got in touch to let us know how it went: After a good winter we were ready to roll with new parts, rebuilt engine, and new crew. Festival of Power: Testing was a bit of a shock. With the new intake and carbs and an engine rebuild by Jeff Bull we shaved off .400, that's nearly half a second. With only fourteen runs in the car last year it was a whole new car again. It reacted differently, it had more power, so I had to forget what I had learnt last year and start again. We got some sort of data from testing which we hoped would stand us on good ground over the next few days of racing. We ran PBs all weekend, it was like the car and I were getting to know each other. We got knocked out in the first round of eliminations by Paul Marston. We weren't happy with losing but we were overjoyed by another PB. We used the whole event for data and testing, hoping it would give us some more understanding of the the car's set up. It was the coldest enjoyment I've ever had in my life and one which I don't want to repeat. Springspeed Nationals: Our hopes for this event were running high. We set out at about 6:30 in the morning on the understanding that we would meet up with the race lorry at a certain service station for some breakfast. Well, we met up with more than we thought. The race lorry was trying to make love to a coach in the car park. The coach driver, whose name I can confirm was Mr No Idea, got out of the coach and forgot to put his brakes on. In doing this the coach rolled downhill and crashed into my parked race truck. This resulted in our not being able to open the rear end of the lorry to get the car out, so it was game over for the race car. We had the lorry picked up and taken to the repair shop to get the damage sorted. We took the motor home to the event just to watch and support others. FIA Main Event: This event could not have come any sooner, I was itching to get back into the car again. The car was running well, didn't qualify too good but more data was gathered. We got to eliminations and we were up against Mark Adams who gave us our first round win with a red light. The second round was against Ian Hanson and we took the win with an 8.58 on an 8.53 dial-in. The third round was against Ian Powell, we took the win with an 8.63 on an 8.54 dial-in. The fourth round was against Steve Johnson, we took the win after a red light from Steve. The final round was against Barry Giles, but we lost it on the tree - in my excitement of being in the final I pulled my worst light of the season. We were over the moon about reaching the final. OK we didn't take first place, but we took a new car with only twenty three runs in it and reached the final. In my book it felt like I'd just won the lottery. SPRC Summernationals: After testing for the event we knew we had an issue. Whether it was me or the car which was at issue we couldn't work out. The reaction times were very bad, we couldn't dial the car in. Our sity foots were all over the place. So in went the Go-Pro to try to find out who was at fault, me or the car. I was always told you can never blame your tools it's always the person using them, well that statement couldn't be any futrher from the truth. In qualifying we found out the problem: the trans was on it last legs but we kept tight-lipped as we didn't know just how much more it would take. We were up against Mark Adams and my thoughts were that if we got it off the line and Mark pulled a red it's more points in the bag and we would be going into round two. This didn't happen. Mark pulled a good light and within three hundred feet the trans gave up on us. I had a quick word with Jeff Bull and he sorted it out with Kevin Cerasale, providing us with a service which I would recommend to anyone needing transmission rebuilt. Open Sport Nationals: We were a bit on the shy side to go to this event after our last trip to Shakey. Our aim was to travel there without stopping, even for red lights. It was the first time out with the car at Shakey and she loved it. Everyone was saying that they couldn't get grip, track ain't prepped right... well, what a load of tosh. I couldn't get it even to slightly slip off the line, let alone spin up. The new trans was working perfectly and the reactions were back, not back to my best but they were well on the way. We got through the first round and then we had Pete Walters in the second round. Peter beat me up, he won it by a fag paper and a Polo mint. it was close but Peter read the track well and put me on the trailer. We were happy and we now had our new trans in and everything was working perfectly. FIA European Finals: This in my book is the best event of the year. We had sixty cars in our class, so if you weren't on top of your game you were going home early. During our testing we started to hit the 00 reaction times - this is what we had been waiting for all year. As we went into qualifying round one I was on a high with my reactions so it was a case of dial it in and run it now. We ended up forteenth our of sixty of the best Super Pro racers and cars Europe. Eliminations were fun. We almost hit the perfect run, dialled in 8.48 and ran an 8.4830 with a 0.0016 Reaction Time. We got past the first three rounds and were into the quarter finals against Nick Good. We had some start line issues which resulted in me losing my concentration and I put up a big red light and lost. I asked a few questions and came away a not so happy person but we had to move forward and not let it dampen our spirits (Good atttitude - Ed). After all we had won the Super Pro ET prize for best reaction in qualifying, a nice big trophy and £350. Towards the new cabinet she said, don't think that happened. UK National Finals: We were on fire in qualifying. First one off the trailer, dialled in 8.47 and ran 8.4734. That's it, number one qualifier. This is what we had been trying to do for three years, and we did it. Then the rain came down. Whilst I was unhappy about the rain I was kind of laughing inside knowing that I would be number one qualifier for this event. Well it lasted all of eight hours and a certain Brian Pateman slipped in with a 0.0026, eight thousandths under my run. It was great while it lasted and even getting second was good in my book. Round one of eliminations was against the bullet, Rod Harrison. I knew that with him there weren't going to be any games at the top of the track, it was flat out and don't look back. I knew that even if I had looked I wouldn't even have seen him. We dialled in 8.48 and ran an 8.4794 breakout. We lost it, and I couldn't stop kicking myself for days afterwards over it. But Rod took the win and went all the way to the semi finals . All in all 2013 has been a great year for us at the Camaro Drag Racing Team, highs and lows but more highs than anything else. I would like to thank the following for all their help with our 2013 season: Kevin Cerasale, Chris Isaacs Race Cars, Opie Oils, Toomey Chevrolet, The Awning Company, Keef Herbert and all his crew, my crew Sharron, Lee, part time crew Dan Devlin, Little Chris, and Jim. Most of all I would like to thank Jeff Bull, we are sincerely grateful for his continuous support throughout this year. The build quality of my engine has been outstanding, no failures all season with fifty two runs. Jeff advised us on setting up the car and servicing the engine. So I would like to thank not only Jeff but Belinda as well, for supplying us with a perfect product. We would also like to thank everyone at Santa Pod and Shakey for a safe season. Can't wait to get back there in 2014. Thank you to everyone in the stands and on the bank who support the Sportsman classes. I raise my hands and clap all of you. See you in 2014. Swift snippets. 4th November: Our very best wishes to timing authority, Honorary Eurodragster.com Staff Member and our good friend Andy Marrs who is in hospital for a pretty serious operation. Here's to a rapid recovery and a quick return to number-crunching. UK Top Sportsman doubles up. 2nd November: UK Top Sportsman, the largest, roughest toughest heads up doorslammer event on the calender for Sportsman racers and teams, has secured a second date in 2014 and organiser Paul Marston has kindly given Eurodragster.com the scoop: As has become traditional, the first event will be held at the mighty Mopar Euronationals on Friday-Sunday 25th-27th July at Santa Pod Raceway. The second event of 2014 a second event will be hosted by our good friends at VW Action whose event falls the weekend before the European Finals, 29th-31st August. This is great news for everyone. It's a great date with good weather, a really enjoyable event, excellent track access is also guranteed and with UK Top Sportsman on the track the action will be fast and loud! I would like to thank everyone on the VW Action team for helping us make this happen. These kind of logistics always take a lot of time and effort but Sir Brian Burrows and the rest of the VW Action staff have really moved a lot of things around to accommodate UK Top Sportsman. We are very grateful for the opportunity to showcase UK Top Sportsman just prior to the FIA European Finals. The UK Top Sportsman race format will remain the same with two races over a three-day event; more details and schedules will be published nearer the date. It's a perfect fit for UK Top Sportsman, a logical step, everyone is really looking forward to it. We know that there are doorslammers out there being built just to race in UK Top Sportsman and we have been asked by competitors to try to secure more dates. Well, VW Action is our second date. Remember that UK Top Sportsman is open to any doorslammer, there are no rules other than safety. The event comprises two races, the first is a fast bracket race on a Pro tree, the second is a one-shot qualifier for a sixteen-car field running a heads-up eliminator on a Pro Tree. For full details including the rules log on to our web site at www.topsportsman.co.uk. Stay tuned to Eurodragster.com for future announcements and / or additional UK Top Sportsman dates. The invasion is underway! 1st November: With just a week left before the Haltech World Finals at Bradenton Motorsports Park, Florida, Peter Svensson and Team Starta Racing are already in the Tampa area whilst Per Bengtsson and the Beast crew will leave for Orlando on Saturday morning. L-O Jonsson writes: All of the preparations are now in place race for almost a whole week with equipment, spares, fuel, oil, PR-material, rental cars, mobile homes and so on. There are a lot of logistics to work out to make a project like this successful. Peter Svensson will make two exhibition runs during the Southern Nostalgia and Muscle Car Shootout this coming weekend and then the two teams have rented the track for a private test session on Monday. The test runs will continue during Thursdays Test'n'Tune so that both Swedish teams can be as well prepared as possible before the first qualifying session on Friday evening. Both riders are aiming for a top spot in the qualifying list and both look forward to compete against the best in the business. "We hope to put on a good show for the American spectators and we'll do our best to improve our performance as well", said Peter before leaving Sweden. Per Bengtsson, who qualified third in Top Fuel Bike during the equivalent race at Valdosta last November, is glad to be back on US soil and is looking forward to a lot of runs down the quarter mile during almost a week of racing. "We're thrilled to be back in USA and to race against the American drag bike élite", says Per. "The conditions with a new track surface and the new Pingel Top Fuel Twin class make it even more exciting and we look forward to meeting all of our race fans at the track. "The US tour is possible thanks to support from SVEMO, the Swedish Motorcycle Federation, and an extra effort from the racers' own sponsors. A big thank you for supporting us!" Eurodragster.com US correspondent Ed O'Connell will be bringing us daily reports, pit notes and pictures during the race and updates will be available on the Beast web site at www.bentec.net. You can find the Team Starta Racing web site at www.billetracing.se. Thoughts on Bootsie's 30th. 1st November: Next Wednesday, 6th November, will mark the thirtieth anniversary of the death of Allan 'Bootsie' Herridge. Brian Taylor writes: Allan, whose image is encapsulated in the British Drag Racing Hall of Fame trophy, built one of the UK's first dragsters and in a long and glorious career proved he could turn his hand to everything from managing a race track to driving race cars and building them. When Allan started to build his first dragster in there was no rule book, no drawings, just pictures in American Hot Rod magazines and Sydney Allard's 1961 Allard Chrysler. Allan being Allan was already fully engaged in the development of the sport, helping to form an organising club, writing construction rules for participants and spectators. Along with John Harrison and Brian Sparrow he formed a business called Dragster Developments and this company completed the construction of Allan's first dragster and became renowned for shortening rear axles. When Santa Pod Raceway opened its gates to the public in 1966 Allan became even more involved in the sport. British Drag Racing Hall of Fame Chair Stu Bradbury says "When I met Allan in 1963 he instantly struck me with his happy-go-lucky attitude and his enthusiasm for drag racing and hot rods. Without any doubt it was he who got me involved in the sport all those years ago as he did many others. He once said to me that he was 'just lucky' being in the right place at the right time to be offered the drive of the Santa Pod owned cars, legendary names such as Commuter, Firefly, Asphalt Alleygator, and the Gloworm, Stardust and Gladiator Funny Cars to name a few." As the sport became more popular Allan moved to live close to Santa Pod and was its full time Track Manager. On Saturday and Sunday he'd be driving fueller, Funny Car, Jet or Rocket Car and on Monday supervising the litter pickers and emptying toilets, building, advising, and modifying cars and chassis for others. Allan's character - his friendly and helpful nature, his unwavering passion to develop drag racing is still stamped right through the sport to this day. "Allan's BDRHoF trophy was the first to be awarded at the joint APIRA / SPRC Dinner Dance in February 2006", says Stu. "He would be so humbled to have the award named after him. If we still had him with us today, he would have laughed and rattled off half a dozen names of people he would think are far more deserve than him. For me and for many, many others there is no one more deserving than Allan: that's why we named the British Drag Racing Hall of Fame trophy a Bootsie." Longtime readers will remember that Eurodragster.com posted a tribute page for Bootsie on the twenty fifth anniversary of his death. You can check out the twenty fifth anniversary tributes by clicking here or by clicking on the Features, Interviews, Tributes link on the left-hand side of any Eurodragster.com page. If you would like to add a thirtieth anniversary tribute to Bootsie then drop us a line at [email protected] and we will add it to the page. Swift snippets. 1st November: Tim Fountain writes that, as part of their fund-raising for the Poppy Appeal, the Riders Branch of the Royal British Legion will be collecting at Asda on London Road, Coventry this Sunday (3rd). "We should have a race bike on display as well as giving everyone the chance to win a family ticket for the Stunt Fest at Santa Pod Raceway next February", says Tim. "We look forward to greeting you on Sunday and also offer our thanks to Santa Pod Raceway for their support." Good luck and stay safe to Ulf and Jörgen Leanders whose new Top Methanol Funny Car will be contesting its second race at the Lucas Oil NHRA Divisional event at The Strip at Las Vegas starting today (Friday). Ulf ran a stout 5.665 in testing yesterday which bodes well for the race proper. Top Alcohol Funny Car qualifying commences at 22:00 European / 23:00 UK today and you will be able to stay in touch with the Leanders' progress courtesy of Drag Race Central at www.dragracecentral.com. Earlier news