At the recent Summer Nationals at Santa Pod, England, Jndia Erbacher, daughter of multi-time European champion and former NHRA tourist Urs, completed her licensing requirements with a 4.094 at 272.83 mph.

See the rest of the results here.  [07/05/17]

Keystone Raceway Park in New Alexandria, PA, will host the July 7-9 IHRA Summit Sportsman National Championship.

In addition, the event will be broadcast on ESPN3 beginning at 1 p.m. (Eastern) Saturday and noon on Sunday with announcers Fabian Brown and IHRA president Mike Dunn.

The Super Rod winner on Sunday will receive a $5,000 bonus. Other classes running at this event are Top Sportsman, Top Dragster, Super Stock, Stock, Quick Rod, Hot Rod and Jr. Dragster. [07/05/17]

Jay Hartunian, former driver and the longtime owner of the Whiskey River Top Fuel Hydro boats, passed away on July 1. Hartunian is at left with Top Fuel boat and dragster driver Scott Palmer.  (Tim Marshall photo) [07/05/17]

Pro Open bikes transfer even more power to the track through big drag slicks, leaning back hard on wheelie bars and carrying their front tires in the air the whole 660 feet. Chris Cutsinger, from nearby Corydon, Indiana, rules this class and only the bravest show up to challenge his turbo ‘Busa Funnybike.  (Tim Hailey photo)

The NHDRO returns to Ohio Valley Dragway’s eighth mile just outside of Louisville, KY, for the Grudge Reunion on July 7-9.

There are plenty of classes available, and promoter Brian Welch promises to find a class for every motorcycle that attends.  [07/05/17]

Since the acquisition of Jiffy-tite by the Oetiker Group in March, 2016, the companies have made significant strides in combining resources to strengthen their position as a global leader for high-end connecting solutions in the vehicle industry.

With the full integration of the company scheduled for later this year, they have decided to adopt the Oetiker (www.oetiker.com) name. The company name will change from Jiffy-tite Co., Inc. to Oetiker NY, Inc. on July 1, 2017. Product and packaging, signage, literature and business documents are also in process of being updated and will feature the Oetiker brand.

Along with the change in the company name and logo, there will be a wider range of connecting solutions that extend beyond quick connectors into clamps, rings and straps for applications like cooling and heating, air intake, exhaust and occupant safety to name just a few.  [07/05/17]

A couple more racers have added their cars to the list for the DRO AA/FC Challenge on July 14-15 at Cedar Falls, Iowa.

The “Iowa Punisher” of Anthony Bronge and “Down-Under Thunder” driven by Bazz Young will be among the cars vying to knock San Antonio winner, Paul Romine, out of the points lead in the second event of the season.

The nitro cars will be running under the lights with qualifying set for 7 and 9 p.m. on Friday and elimination rounds on Saturday at 6, 8, and 10 p.m.  (Jeff Burk photo)   [07/05/17]

When Norm Fox bought the historic Salem, Ohio track in 2011, it was in dire need of tender, loving care. Six years later, he and the staff led by his son, A.J., have turned the IHRA-sanctioned facility into a showplace for the racers in Northeast Ohio and surrounding states like Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

“When we bought the track, it was run down in spots,” said A.J. Fox, who serves as general manager. “You could hit a pothole in a dragster and bend the wheel. It got to the point where the whole place needed a fresh coat of everything. It has been a long road, a lot of money in the asphalt and concrete work alone. But, it’s starting to shape up. Once we get the staging lanes up to the water box, it will finally be done.”

There has been a laundry list of improvements which have included: repaving and concreting most of the facility, installing concrete walls the entire length of the track, and adding concrete on the starting line, the shutdown area, the return road and the pit area. The staging lanes were scheduled to be finished earlier this year, but wet weather in the spring delayed the project.   [07/05/17]

This week marks the 11th anniversary of the BTE World Footbrake Challenge presented by Yukon Gear & Axle taking place at Bristol Dragway’s Thunder Valley.

“This year marks the 11th anniversary of the World Footbrake Challenge in July at the famed Bristol Dragway in Tennessee,” said Coalburg Promotions co-promoter Jared Pennington, “and for each of those years, we are so proud to have the support of a great company like BTE and Yukon Gear & Axle. Both companies believe in the backbone of the sport and our customer base is of extreme value to them.”

With three separate races, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, the winner’s take is $10,000, $20,000 and $10,000 respectively.

The action actually begins on Thursday with the World Footbrake Gamblers race for a $3,000 win. On Friday after the main event, another World Footbrake Gamblers race takes place, bringing the total number of races of the weekend to five. In addition, random round prizes from a number of sponsors and manufacturers makes this event one of the best in the “World” in the footbrake/bracket racing arena. While not necessary, pre-entries for the event have been piling up since the beginning of the year for a discounted entry fee. Last year’s event saw entries over the 300 number and this year more of the same is expected.  [07/05/17]