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Schnitz
Summer Sizzler
SMITH, LOCKLEAR
AMONG SCHNITZ SUMMER SIZZLER WINNERS
Matt Smith, injured two months ago when he hit the guardwall
in his NHRA Pro Stock motorcycle, upset veteran Joseph Long
of Hialeah, Fla., in the finals Sunday and won the Schnitz Outlaw
Pro Street portion of the seventh annual Schnitz Summer Sizzler
at Rockingham Dragway.
Smith, son of six-time IHRA Pro Stock Champion Rickie Smith
of King, N.C., used a slight starting line advantage to hold
off the hard-charging Long in the final round. Smith won in
7.446 seconds; Long settled for runner-up honors despite a quicker
7.441 second quarter mile.
Other winners in the event, the third of four comprising the
Rockingham Dragway Bike Series, were defending series champion
Barry Henson of Davie, Fla., in the Velocity Racing World's
Fastest Street Bike class; Alan Fields of Climax in the Honda-Suzuki
of Sanford 5.60 Heads-Up class; Johnnie "Airtime"
Locklear of Shannon in the Mickey Thompson Performance Tires
60-Inch Sport Bike Class and Shane Ratliff of Roseville, Mich.,
in the wildly popular Cycle Concepts Heavyweight Hitters category
for riders weighing at least 240 pounds.
Henson moved into his familiar position atop the World's Fastest
Street Bike standings by turning back Dave Stewart of Mooresville
in the final round. Nevetheless, it wasn't an easy victory for
the Florida rider who needed a starting line edge to get past
Charlotte's Lee Shierts in round two.
Locklear beat No. 2 qualifier Vincent Demito for the 60-Inch
Sport Bike title after earlier using a big starting line advantage
to upset No. 1 qualifier Mike Slowe of Bensalem, Pa.
Against Slowe, Locklear used a .513 of a second reaction time
to open up a .077 second lead at the start. That made the Fayetteville-area
rider's slower 8.447 second quarter mile time a winner over
Slowe's quicker 8.389, the quickest time posted during competition.
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