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Lumberjack Raceday Notes
By: Jack Korpela
Thursday
7:00 PM
- We cap off a day of the rain-postponed MRE Sunshine Nationals
with some unbelievable performances. The dropping temperatures
created ideal conditions for the naturally aspirated bikes and we
nearly witnessed the sport’s first ever six second Pro Stock
motorcycle run.
Geno Scali wowed the crowd with a pair of 7.01s to take his team
owner Joe Koenig’s 7.029 out of the record book.
The “Spiderman” Larry McBride went 6.05 nearly posting Gainesville
Raceway’s first ever five second motorcycle pass. Back in the pit
area crew chief Steve McBride said, “The key to running a five is
figuring out how to not overpower the track.”
Barry Henson recorded an astounding 7.57 on his street legal CBR
1100XX.
We will finish the remainder of the MRE Sunshine Nationals
tomorrow morning.
Friday
9:00 AM
– A beautiful sunny morning from Gainesville, FL, marks the
beginning of the much anticipated 15th running of the AMA/Prostar
World Finals. The pits are loaded with racers, manufactures, and
spectators from all over the country.
10:00 AM – The huge field of Street Et and Pro Et
takes to the track for a time trail or an elimination run for
competitors still alive in the MRE Sunshine Nationals race. Top
Fuel finalists Ron Webb and Larry McBride opt to run their final
round later this afternoon.
11:00 AM – Pro Semi finals kick off with all
attention focused on Pro Stock. Scali laid down a sub par 1.14
sixty-foot time yet puts together a blazing backhalf and beats
Suzuki mounted GT Tonglet Jr. with a rapid 7.04.
Brian Schultz collects his first career Formula Super Bike victory
by defeating Chip Ellis with a stellar .001 reaction time and a
slower 8.08 to Ellis’ 8.07.
Rickey Gadson advances to the Street Bike Shootout final with a
blast of 7.66.
1:00 PM –An unfortunate incident halts racing
monetarily. Someone in the pits suffered a heart attack and was
life-flighted from the facility.
3:00 PM – Pro Mod Kawasaki rider Charlie Farrar
clinched the championship with a win over Steve Drake in the Pro
Mod final.
Todd Doege used a .018 reaction time to defeat Geno Scali in the
Pro Stock final with a 7.11 to Scali’s 7.10.
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