Thursday, August 29, 2013

Momentum with a bullet; Interview with DSR Driver Spencer Massey

This weekend is the biggest of them all, The US Nationals takes place at Lucas Oil Raceway Park, the event that determines who makes the countdown and who doesn't. Coming off the win in Top Fuel at Brainerd Minn, DSR Battery Extender Driver Spencer Massey has momentum going his way heading into the event known as "The Big Go"


1. The win at the Lucas Oil Nationals has to be such a momentum builder for you and your Battery Extender Team heading into the countdown?


     ' The win at the Lucas Oil Nationals in Brainerd definitely gives you a tremendous amount of momentum heading into the US Nationals, which has our team pumped. We tested at Indy last week and ran very well, and that has the DSR Battery Extender team excited, ready to win the US Nationals



2. The Battery Extender car was very consistent throughout eliminations, 3.791 3.799, 3.820, and the final round 3.811. In capturing the win at Brainerd. Talk about each of the 4 runs



     ' Looking back to the 2011 season, this particular car (sans canopy) went 40 runs in a row without smoking the tires, we still have Todd Okuhara & Phil Shuler as crew chiefs, the same driver and tune up; It is a very consistent car. As a Top Fuel driver, you just have to sit back and enjoy stepping into a car such as this, realizing how good it is on every run down the race track.'



3. That fireball in the first round was a scary one. Bet it Must feel much safer with the enclosed cockpit canopy.


     ' I had no idea there was a fire. If that same fire occurred while running the more traditional dragster, some of the fire plus oil from the engine would have made its way into the cockpit; Thankfully none of that happened. By far, this car is a joy to drive, i feel so much safer behind the wheel.' 
     

4. This year by far, has been one of the best in your career. 4 wins, which is the most that you have had in an entire season


    ' It has been an amazing season up to this point for everyone on the team. The win at the ZMax 4-Wide Nationals at Charlotte (first win of season) was a great win due to the fact that we run so well there, plus it's such a cool race to win. We are fortunate to have won 4 times this season, we hope the wins keep on coming to help us stay in the fight for the championship.' 



5. This 2013 season, you have any number of Top Fuelers that can win. Thinking back, could you have imagined Top Fuel being so close this season?


     ' Over the last few seasons, championships have come down to the last event, plus the fact that the competition has become even tighter. When you look at the Top Fuel field, there are any number of race cars that run so well and are so consistent pass after pass, anyone can win. That is something i'm not surprised by with Top Fuel being so close this year.' 


6. One more question. Name one thing in your lifetime that you have yet to do but would love to?

     ' It would have to be winning the Top Fuel Championship, There is no life outside of drag racing for me, LOL.'

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Shawn Langdon Interview: An Eye On The Prize! (originally posted on rpm2night.com)

    Expectations are high when a driver comes and joins one of the most dominant teams in drag racing, Al Anabi and Alan Johnson Racing. Mira Loma, CA native Shawn Langdon knew full well the expectations in becoming a driver for its top fuel car

 
Gary Nastase Photo
"With 4 event wins and a 121 point lead, It indeed has been a great year up to this point. When any driver joins a very successful team as Al Anabi has been for the last few seasons, those types of results are to be expected."


    But, it is clear, that the 2012 season for Shawn and the entire team is one they would soon like to forget.


    " Without doubt,  the 2012 season was a fairly tough one for us. There were quite a few things that I as a driver learned along with the team from last season. " Shawn said " It only served to help us prepare for 2013, to appreciate and enjoy the success that everyone at Al Anabi/Alan Johnson Racing has had so far this season. "

          
    It also doesn't hurt to have one of the greatest tuners in Drag Racing as manager, plus having an avid car enthusiast for an owner, whose clear intent is to win championships


    "When his Excellency Sheik Khalid put together this extraordinary group of individuals, it was done so with the full intent to win championships that both Larry Dixon & Del Worsham were able to accomplish. Said Langdon " The fact that the car has been running well upto this point in the season is a testament to the hard work that everyone at Al Anabi is putting in. Crew Chief Brian Husen has been in the position of chasing the championship many times. What a driver such as myself tries to do is  learn as much as possible from a crew chief with that level of experience. Couple that with the fact that the team is committed & focused with one goal in mind, becoming Top Fuel Champions for 2013 hopefully will make us a team that's hard to beat "


     Shawn admits the crew behind him is what makes the early season success worthwhile

   
     " You want to surround yourself with a great group of crewman that have been at the top of their game, that truly enjoy the sport of NHRA Drag Racing. I feel very fortunate to be associated with such successful people as these guys. What makes them an awesome group is that they know how to win with class and lose with class, which is something that I have tried to emulate from day one, the moment that I stepped into a Jr. Dragster, it's just at another level.


    Even for a top fuel veteran of 5 years, the learning process continues


     Learning from an individual such as Alan, who has worked alongside some of the greatest names in the sport and has driven as well, serves not only to help me to improve as a driver, but the improves the team as well. For example, if I impart to him that a certain thing happened during a run such as dropping a cylinder, or if I drove it out of the groove, he will understand the situation and do his level best to explain what can be done to remedy the situation. That's such a tremendous asset to have. " Langdon then added " As a driver, you learn as much as you possibly can on every single run, trying to improve yourself in certain situations, but I never thought of myself being a good driver. What I have tried to do is to surround myself with good people, always learning, always observing because a driver in any particular class is never going to be perfect. "


     Big speeds are a big part of the NHRA experience. Last season at the Maple Grove event, Langdon ran an ungodly 334 mph speed in 1,000 feet, but Rev Limits have put the kibosh on that


Ron Lewis Photo
     " At the moment, I don't believe we will see speeds rise much higher than what Top Fuel is currently running. If the conditions are right, a team could push and hit 330 MPH on a run. But in the interest of safety, rev limiters were put in place to prevent accidents such as the one Antron had at the Winternationals in Pomona in February. At the same time, Goodyear has put in a tremendous amount of work in making a safer tire that exhibits good traction. But as the season wears on, the elapsed times will climb, so the possibility of a 3.69 still exists. But the speeds will likely stay at around the 328-330 mark when we get to tracks such as Texas and Maple Grove."


     But one thing is for certain, the competition has been close with 8 different winners this season


" It does not matter where one car qualifies, every run must be as perfect as possible. Along with that, of course you must have some racing luck on your side due to the fact the competition being so close" Said Langdon "A prime example was running Troy Buff in the first round in Seattle. Though we got the win over Troy, he ran an 3.86 to our 3.82, which goes to show how close the top fuel class is. "


     The Mira Loma CA Native will be the first to say it's not cool being beaten on a hole shot


      " That is just how close the top fuel class has gotten over the years. Morgan Lucas became the most recent winner in Brainerd, making him the 8th different winner in top fuel this season. Said Shawn "When you put together 12 strong cars, plus those who may race from time to time, any number of cars are capable of winning at any given time. The reason for that is because every team is running the same parts and pieces on their cars, so the crew chiefs job is made just a bit tougher, working their magic to bring home the win. " He added " There were a few times this season where we could have certainly won more than we have, those are some mistakes that you learn from along the way, making our team stronger in the end. We are fortunate to have won four times this season, but we realize that there is much work to be done to continue the success we have enjoyed so far. "


     The driver of the Silver Al Anabi Top Fueler is firmly locked as the number one seed, but even he knows not to rest and take it easy going into the countdown


     Though we have clinched our position in the countdown, we still want to win. Building momentum in this sport is of the utmost importance, trying to win as many races as possible before the countdown begins, thats what it will take to win the championship.


      He added the significance of a US Nationals win would be amazing


 " You want to win the biggest race of the year, Indy is our Super Bowl, our Daytona 500. It is a race that any driver wants to put on their resume, and for me the hunger to win it is most definitely there. Look at some of the names that have won the "Big Go".   Names like Prudhomme, Garlits, Schumacher, John Force, Ashley Force Hood, Bob Glidden. The list goes on and on, and it would be amazing to add my name to that list of greats that have won the US Nationals

   
   

   

   


   


     

Friday, August 2, 2013

Untethering the debacle in Somona

     This past weekend, the NHRA Mello Yello Drag racing series made its annual stop in Sonoma California, race number 2 in the Western Swing, The Sonoma Nationals. What started out as an exciting event for all drag racing fans and officials, quickly turned into one sore subject, overiding one of the most competitive weekends in the sport.

     On friday night qualifying, 2011 Funny Car Champ Matt Hagan, ran the 3rd quickest elapsed time to 1000 feet in funny car history, a 3.986 over 320 MPH. But Saturday afternoon in Sonoma, would paint an entirely different picture.

     Let's go back to April at the Z-Max 4-Wide Nationals. During Saturday qualifying, Robert Hight's Mustang Bodied Funny Car's engine exploded, sending the fiberglass body flying into the grandstands. Thankfully, no one in the crowd was injured. The NHRA then designed a tether system,  to keep the body atop the frame rails. Though it was well intended, the consequences of it were something that no one saw coming.

     In the final qualifying session, Bob Tasca III ran against Robert Hight.  Both ran nearly identical elapsed times, with the edge to Hight (4.076 to Tasca's 4.078). Just as both cars crossed the finish line, the burst panel on Tasca's Mustang exploded into the air as flames began to erupt from underneath the fiberglass body. As the Rhode Island Native exited his car, he motioned to the Safety Safari for a fire extinguisher and to lift the body from the chassis. Needless to say, it was a rather harrowing experience for the Motorcraft/Quicklane driver.

     Sunday during the second round of funny car eliminations, Pitch Energy driver Johnny Gray faced off with 15x Champ John Force in the Castrol GTX Ford Mustang. As both cars reached 1/2 track, Gray's engine exploded, as Force went on to capture the win. The firewall of the Pitch Energy Dodge blocked Johnny's view as he safely brought the car to a stop just passed the finish line.  Here is video of the incident below courtesy of the NHRA and ESPN:

     Johnny Gray Engine Explosion

     Ive long been a fan of making the sport of racing, be it Drag Racing, Nascar or any form of auto racing. Of course, safety is paramount, but making knee jerk reactions when it comes to keeping a funny car body on the chassis and the Safety safari cant figure out how to lift it? A better design must be made, or training on how to quickly unlatch the new system must take place immediately.

     Both Bob Tasca III, Johnny Gray and crews were right in voicing their displeasure in the new tethering system. If there were to be an engine explosion with the body being contained by the tether system, then not being able to lift the body in time, drivers lives' could be in serious danger. Greater care must be taken in devising a way to quickly unlatch the new body fasteners on the front of these funny cars.

     First and foremost, Take care of the drivers properly, then the racing wil, take care of itself