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Welcome to the July 22nd, 2002 edition of "On The Road with Kenny Racing,"
the bi-weekly newsletter featuring the Landa Pressure Washers Super Comp
Dragsters of Alan and Jason Kenny.
Wednesday, July 10th, Dad & I pulled into the gates in Rochester. When we
pulled in, we were very surprised to see that the pits had been upgraded,
including the paving of the road where the Quick Rod class was to pit.
There is one negative about IHRA's pit parking policy. All classes are to
pit together. Therefore, our Kingston friends, Tommy Bryce and Dan Doolan,
were not allowed to pit anywhere near us. We loaned them our golf cart for
the weekend, as it was about a half-mile walk from their trailer to the
starting line.
The Dorr family arrived Thursday night and were within walking distance of
our rig . which always comes in handy on those late nights.
IHRA national events feature qualifying for the .90 classes. First round
lane choice is given to the competitor who is higher qualified. I ended up
in the 14th spot, while Dad qualified 39th out of 79 cars.
First round was run Saturday afternoon. Dad unfortunately lost to Jason
Lynch. This makes two IHRA national events so far this year, and Dad has
drawn Mike Fuqua and Jason Lynch in the first round of those events. Fuqua
and Lynch are among the very best in the 8.90 category.
For the first time this season, I was running against something other than a
dragster. I left the line first, holding a .430 to .446 advantage, and then
proceeded to "wheel him," running an 8.93 to his 8.94.
Super Comp 101 -- To our non-racing readers, when you "wheel" an opponent,
you catch him/her fairly early, and maintain that small lead/margin
throughout the rest of the track. I tapped the brakes twice, once around
the 900' mark, then again around 1100', before lifting (both feet) at about
1250'. (The track is 1320' long) I took .025 stripe, meaning I got to the
finish line .025 seconds before my opponent. This is acceptable, because I
had tapped the brakes early in the run, pretty much ensuring I was going to
be slower than the 8.90 index. Normally, we'll try to tighten up the .025
distance (approximately six feet) a little more, but when we tap the brakes
early, we want to ensure we get to the finish line first. It is much easier
to tighten the stripe against cars you know will drive it out the back door.
Both Rich & Dick Dorr also won round one in Quick Rod, and Tommy Bryce also
got the victory in his opening round of Hot Rod. 3 out of 4 dragsters
winning the first round in Quick Rod is a record for our group. We often
joke that we should all be at the back of the staging lanes, awaiting our
classes call, so that we can be first in line and therefore race each other
. ensuring that 2 of the 4 would advance to the next round.
Unfortunately, second round wasn't as friendly. Once again, we all decided
to save parts for the next race. I was horrible on the starting line as
Scott Jahren took a .443 to .470 starting line advantage. I still had a
chance at the top end, but my dragster was much faster than anticipated. I
lost a double breakout by .004 seconds, 8.890 to 8.894.
Tuesday, July 16th was a day none of us will soon forget. We then learned
of the tragic passing of Jeff Rapp's 17-year-old daughter Emily. Emily was
killed in a car accident Tuesday morning.
We spent Friday, Saturday, and Sunday with the Rapp family talking about
Emily and "the good ole days". Emily would annually make a visit to
Englishtown for the Matco Tools Supernationals in May. She was always very
determined, and Mike Baldwin shared a story describing her as such. As
everyone knows, the John Force trailer always seems to be surrounded by
hundreds of autograph seekers. Emily wanted to get his autograph and when
Mike said it would take forever to get an autograph, Emily walked right
through the crowd. According to Mike "Two minutes later, out she came with
a big smile and wouldn't you know it . his autograph too."
Jeff and Dad became great friends through racing, and Jeff was later the
best man at Mom & Dad's wedding in April of 1978. I hear thousands of
racing stories, but it always seems I'm hearing a new one all the time.
Sunday, we watched two 1993 videos of Jeff winning NHRA national events
driving for Steve Carter. After repeated jokes directed at his hair/hat,
Jeff went downstairs and came back up with the "Crower Clutches" hat that
had been the subject of all the jokes. He gave it to my sister with the
instructions (1) you have to wear it when you win and Samantha's favorite
(2) you can never wash it.
Then, just as we were about to leave, he gave me the medallion he received
for winning the Memphis national event. It shocked me. I consider myself
very highly motivated for each and every round. I am motivated to race more
rounds, gain points, recognition (free parts), and of course, the cash never
seems to hurt. Yet, when he gave me the medal, Jeff added "You have to give
it back when you get your own." Now, all of a sudden, I can't wait to get
to the next national event . which happens to be Indy. I just have to win.
Motivation comes from the weirdest places.
This Thursday, we'll head off to Numidia, Pennsylvania for our 6th Lucas Oil
points race of the season. Both Dad & I are in need of late-round finishes
here to improve our positions in the Division 1 points standings. Our goal
of getting both cars in the Top 10 is still not out of the question, but we
need to get hot . and soon. Friday may feature a "Top 16" race for Super
Comp. With a reported 6:00pm curfew, here's hoping the first two time trial
sessions go "down-time free."
Tentative 2002 Schedule
July 26-28 = NHRA Divisional Event @ Numidia, Pennsylvania.
August 3-4 = Bracket Race @ Grand Bend, Ontario.
August 9-11 = NHRA Divisional Event @ Englishtown, New Jersey.
August 17-18 = Bracket Race @ Grand Bend, Ontario.
August 22-25 = NHRA Divisional Event @ Rising Sun, Maryland.
August 31-September 1 = Bracket Race @ Grand Bend, Ontario.
September 6-8 = IHRA National Event @ Epping, New Hampshire.
September 12-15 = NHRA National Event @ Reading, Pennsylvania.
September 26-29 = NHRA National Event @ Chicago, Illinois.
October 10-13 = NHRA National Open @ Reading, Pennsylvania.
October 24-27 = NHRA National Event @ Las Vegas, Nevada.
October 31-November 3 = NHRA Divisional Event @ Las Vegas, Nevada.
November 7-10 = NHRA National Event @ Pomona, California.
November 13-17 = Bracket Race @ Bradenton, Florida.
November 20-24 = Bracket Race @ West Palm Beach, Florida.
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