Pro Mod racer Rick Snavely.

NMCA WEST at Fontana, Calif.

Spring Nationals begin Season

Results and photos courtesy NMCA WEST

The 4th Annual Nitto Tire NMCA WEST Spring Nationals, held March 27-29 at Auto Club Dragway in Fontana, California, marked the start of the 2015 season for the NMCA WEST VP Racing Fuels Drag Racing series.

Warm temperatures greeted racers and fans alike as the event kicked off on Friday. As the weekend progressed, ET’s fell and the competition tightened up significantly as racers made their way towards the Aerospace Components Winner's Circle. The championship drag racing combined with the autocross (shown) and packed manufacturers midway made for a great event.  

The Hotchkis Sport Suspension Autocross presented by Nitto Tire brought out all kinds of cars from fully prepped Optima Challenge Camaros to first timers in their daily drivers. It was a sold-out weekend with plenty of intense competition. Most drivers competed both days for the Hotchkis Cup and challenged each other for trophies in classes like Modern Muscle, Classic Muscle, Compact Car, Exhibition Class, Fastest Lap of the Day and Fastest Lady.

Garrett Turbo Pro Mod was a dogfight all weekend long. Rick Snavely in the Turbos Direct '69 Camaro topped qualifying with a 5.197 to the 1,000-foot mark. In Sunday's competition, the field whittled down to the number-one-qualified Snavely and Mark Luton, who only recently made the switch to Pro Mod. In a close race, Luton snagged the holeshot, but Snavely was able to get around him 5.24 to 5.50 for the win.

Mickey Thompson True Ten 5 and its combination of monster power on a small tire make for a fun show. Sitting atop the field after three rounds of qualifying, with only five passes on her new car and combination in total was Dana Cook, carding a 4.647 at 159.82 mph. On Sunday, Cook continued her winning ways and found herself in the final round, where she faced Johnny Coleman and his '69 Camaro. Cook was late on the tree, and couldn't make it up on the top end. Her quicker and faster 4.67 falling to Coleman's 4.69-his holeshot earning him the True Ten 5 win.

Ryan "Toaster" Jones looked like he had the ProCharger Street Outlaw field on lock after three rounds of qualifying, sitting number one by over seven-tenths of a second. He bettered his qualifying efforts on Sunday, but so did James Lawrence, who ran a 7.36 in the semis. Jones and Lawrence were set to meet in the final round, but Jones was unable to take the beams, handing Lawrence the "W" unopposed.