Howard Haight and Butch Blair’s team qualified fifth with 6.041 at 245.94 and removed Rick McGee in round one with a 5.951 at 232.39. So how can you lose with a round two reaction at 0.499 coupled with a 5.969 at 253.18? A .429 with a 5.868 at 253.33 from Jack Harris will do the job. There were plenty of changes going on with the old school fuelers out west with Dale Emery not with Jim Cullen’s car, Steve Tazni of Erson Cams joining forces on Chuck Tanko’s team with crew chief Pete Jenson and Steve Night and new teams like John Rodeck’s “Cheetah” AA/ Fuel Dragster with a set back blower and Terry Cox behind the pedal. Rick White in the Autopower car was new on the scene during the March Meet with a 400 Rodeck between the rails clocking a 5.974 at 245.94, qualifying fourth. Sean Bellemeur rumbled through the (B Field) in Top Fuel with crew Chief Brett Johanson on his second outing with the “Master Cam”. How’s about a 6.072 at 242.19! Top speed sent Bellemeur to the win light and a thrilled crowd loved it!

John Rodeck

I’ve said before to watch out for Bill Dunlap; he will quickly take on the competition like a stealth fighter knocking them all down before you know what happened. With a terrible qualifying start (try a burnout breakage and oil down) a dejected Dunlap stepped from the car, but I watched these guys turn the tough luck around like only Mike Fuller and his team can do. Dunlap trailed Jim Murphy with a 6.033 at 231.16 to a 6.136 at 211.53 and continued his attack using a 5.989 at 235.19 mph on Jeff Diehl in the beautiful new RB Entertainment digger. Diehl’s respectable 6.087 at 246.44 is no dice.

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Bill Dunlap pulled a 5.889 at 249.21 to shorten the 1320’ in the final, but Jack Harris laid down the law at 5.839 at 255.48.

Over in the Funny Car ranks, Jeff Utterback put his E-ticket Nostalgia ride to good use in Jeff Gaynor’s 426 powered ‘70 Cuda. The Mike Demarest tune-up put “Mr. Pammy” into the number three spot with a 6.595 at 213.94 mph right behind the 6.494 at 219.15 blast by Mike Savage. Nate Bugg led the top three Mopar-bodied floppers with a low e.t. of 6.368 at 229.27.

Mike Adams was a gun slinger in every round! A .448 quick draw on the line by Adams put away a sleepy .752 reaction by Randy Walls in round one. A 6.542 at 211.06 by Walls to a 6.616 at 217.88 in the Adams Corvette could only give Walls a view of Adams’ chutes at the big end.