PRO STOCK BIKE
(Ron Lewis photo)
Andrew Hines turned in his 16th consecutive run in the six-second range to earn his second consecutive and 15th career win on his Screamin' Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson.
"The V-Rod's just going straight, making good runs," Hines said. "It's the same engine we ran in Atlanta. We tried a different engine on Friday and it just didn't seem to have as many ponies as this one. We wanted to get back the No. 1 qualifying spot and we put the engine back in yesterday and just couldn't find the set-up because it was making so much horsepower here in St. Louis.
"It was throwing us for a loop...but winning from the No. 3 spot, that still means a lot. Four races in three finals and two wins, it's just a tribute to how good my team is."
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Chip Ellis's semifinal match up against Hines was a repeat of the final round one week ago in Atlanta, which Hines won. The Schumacher Electric Suzuki was first off the starting line with a .015 to .021 reaction time advantage for Ellis, who posted a 6.941/187.34, but it wasn't enough to hold off Hines' 6.905/192.72.
"We had some good runs today, but I have to give it up for those Harleys," said Ellis of Hines's bike. "They've done a great job over there and we just didn't have enough for them. But I'm happy about the way I've been riding and cutting good lights, and I think our team is happy about it. We've been to three semis and a final round and it's not going to be long before we win one.”
In the second round Angelle Sampey met Hines's teammate Eddie Krawiec, who lost to Angelle on a holeshot the previous week in Atlanta. This time Eddie was ready, and a small but identifiable problem robbed Angelle's Buell of the power she needed to drive around him.
"We were going to go fast, but we had a vacuum leak," reported tuner George Bryce. "A hose vibrated loose. We had twenty inches of vacuum in the first round, then the leak brought us down to twelve inches. That's worth about four to eight horsepower loss, or three or four hundredths of a second. Everyone slowed down second round but we slowed more, and we lost by six feet.”
"We had six great passes," agreed Angelle. "The bike went straight, we had something to tune on, and I worked real hard on my reaction times. George and the crew work so hard on the bike, and I really feel like I have to hold up my end on the track."
It was ladies first as Cordis Johnson (far lane) got the Comp win over Michael Johnson. (Linda Brock photo)
Peter Biondo got the Super Stock win. (Linda Brock photo)
FINAL ROUNDS
Top Fuel: Rod Fuller, 4.525 seconds, 328.70 mph, def. Tony Schumacher, 4.583 seconds, 325.45 mph.
Funny Car: Tim Wilkerson, Chevy Impala, 4.874, 317.27, def. Mike Neff, Ford Mustang, 4.886, 321.58.
Pro Stock: Kurt Johnson, Chevy Cobalt, 6.631, 209.30, def. Dave Connolly, Cobalt, 6.651, 208.78.
Pro Stock Motorcycle: Andrew Hines, Harley-Davidson, 6.882, 194.13, def. Matt Smith, Buell, 8.098, 114.02.
Competition Eliminator: Cordis Johnson, Chevy Cobalt, 8.977, 148.30, def. Michael Johnson, Chevy Cavalier, 8.611, 150.51.
Super Stock: Peter Biondo, Chevy Cobalt, 8.776, 139.30, def. Bret Voges, Chevy II, 9.675, 132.53.
Stock Eliminator: Gary Stinnett, Chevy Camaro, 10.378, 120.71, def. Donnie Beeler, Camaro, 11.260, 116.82.
Super Gas: Brina Splingaire, Chevy Corvette, 9.912, 156.86, def. Ryan Bolin, Ford Mustang, 9.893, 141.65.