Jeff Arend drove Don Nelson’s “California Hustler” tuned by Ron Swearingen to the 2018 Ignitor win.  (file photo)

Brian Losness has written his latest Getting Nostalgic about this weekend’s Nitro Ignitor at Firebird Raceway. Read what he has to say and then stay tuned to the DRO Facebook page for his look at what’s happening at the event.  [05/02/19]

The Sportsman racers kept to the regular two-lane competition at zMax instead of the ‘quads’, making it much easier for our photographer to get both cars in the frame.

Top Alcohol Dragster: Julie Nataas, 5.268, 277.49 def. Duane Shields, 5.339, 277.20.  (Chris Haverly photo)

Top Alcohol Funny Car: Tyler Scott (near lane), Chevy Camaro, 5.705, 252.28 def. Annie Whiteley, Camaro, 6.545, 227.00. (Chris Haverly photo)

Competition Eliminator: Jim Kimbrough, Dragster, 6.781, 185.92 def. Randy Daniels, Pontiac Sunfire, 8.492, 159.32. (Chris Haverly photo)

Super Stock: Monty Bogan, Chevy Camaro, 9.409, 121.28 def. Joe Santangelo, Pontiac Firebird, Foul - Red Light.  (Chris Haverly photo)

Stock Eliminator: Drew Skillman, Ford Mustang, 8.868, 148.38 def. Monty Bogan, Chevy Camaro, 10.832, 121.20. (Chris Haverly photo)

Super Comp: Jonathan Anderson (near lane), Dragster, 8.904, 158.95 def. Ray Miller III, Dragster, 8.881, 169.72. (Chris Haverly photo)

Super Gas: Joe Harper, Dodge Avenger (far lane), 9.913, 150.95 def. Shannon Brinkley, Chevy Corvette, 9.881, 158.39. (Chris Haverly photo)

Top Sportsman: Jerry Albert (near lane), Chevy Camaro, 6.732, 205.19 def. Chuck Harris, Camaro, 7.707, 177.91. (Chris Haverly photo)   [05/02/19]

Race promoters Peter Biondo and Kyle Seipel made the decision this year to limit the field of entrants to 385 by way of a pre-entry system for both of their east coast Fling events at Galot and Bristol in the fall.

For the Galot Spring Fling event, pre-entries opened up online back on March 4th, and in less than eight minutes the entire 385-car field was filled.

In the quarterfinals at Galot on Wednesday, May 1, it was round seven and the lone door car left of Jason Lynch had the RT advantage but Gary Williams took a .001 advantage at the finish line for the win light. Wes Siegel and Brian Reklaitis went at it with Reklaitis running dead on the dial with a “3” for the win. John Tolisano took a .003 advantage at the finish line for the win over Bethany Crick. And Nick Folk continued to charge on after Tuesday night’s win with another win light over Jim McDaniel.

Semifinals and Williams took .009 at the finish line to end Reklaitis’ day, while we might have seen a chink in the armor when Folk might have given back the finish line by .005 to advance Tolisano.

Final round and it was Florida versus Florida, Williams and Tolisano. Each left the starting line with matching .006 reaction times, but it was G-Dub, Gary Williams, running closer to his dial, taking a .004 finish line victory and $15,000.  (John DiBartolomeo photo)   [05/02/19]

During the final qualifying session of the Funny Car Chaos at Mo-Kan Dragway, Ronald Ooms fired up in a solo pass and things quickly turned serious when the car pitched wildly sideways during the burnout, sending Ooms out of control and into the barricade in the middle of the track that protects the timing system. At first, the relatively low-speed incident appeared to be a quick fix, but it was soon discovered Ooms had suffered serious injuries to his left leg. With safety personnel working quickly, Ooms was removed from the car and transported to the local hospital as reports came in that he had suffered multiple breaks in both his left leg and ankle.

The DRO staff joins everyone from the Funny Car Chaos and Mo-Kan Dragway to send our thoughts and prayers to Ooms and family for a speedy recovery.

See all the racing results at here.   [05/02/19]

The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) is expanding its youth outreach efforts by partnering with the NHRA’s Youth & Education Services (YES) Program. The NHRA YES Program, which began more than 30 years ago, enables SEMA to reach thousands of students in a unique environment.

Through the program, middle and high school students attend NHRA races, often for the first time in their lives. As a sponsor, SEMA is committed to supporting efforts to introduce youths to the unique environment found at race tracks and helping to grow the automotive aftermarket performance industry.

“We all remember our first time at a race track,” said Chris Kersting, SEMA president and CEO. “We never forget the adrenaline and rush watching Top Fuelers top 300 mph in a matter of seconds. It’s inspiring to see that same excitement in kids’ faces, and to watch as fascination takes hold of them.”

SEMA’s Youth Initiatives (www.sema.org/education) include several other programs, including student vehicle builds, scholarships and internships. Programs targeted to younger kids have also been added in recent years, including an automotive book giveaway for grade schools, field trips for middle schools and a mobile app that helps young people locate and connect with thousands of automotive-related activities near them.  [05/02/19]