Radial Fest 2K15: Spring Edition Race Coverage From Huntsville

RF15

The top radial tire racers in the nation are back at the Huntsville Dragway in Alabama for an encore performance this weekend, with a lot to live up to after making history last fall with the first three-second eighth-mile pass in history. We’ll have images and nightly wrap-up’s from the Radial Fest: Spring Edition right here on Dragzine, presented as always by our good friends at Comp Cams and the entire Comp Performance Group family!

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RADIAL FEST 2K15 WRAP-UP

RF15Spring-453With the first dry weekend the southeast has seen in over a month, it was nearly perfect weather for the Spring 2015 Edition of Radial Fest, the historic radial race that saw Brad Edwards shatter the 3-second barrier last fall. Heads-up racers from all over converged on Huntsville Dragway to compete in Pro 315, Outlaw 275, X275, Mean Street and Radial Fest’s own legitimate-street-cars-only class, King of the Street. With temperatures in the mid 70’s during the day and dipping into the 40’s after dark, and Jason Rueckert and Tyler Crossnoe tag-teaming the track-prep duties, the conditions were prime for huge numbers, and Radial Fest did not disappoint the massive crowd that turned out to watch the show!

RF15Spring-504With almost a half-second between number one qualifier Jeff Knox and the rest of the field, Radial Fest’s King of the Streets was essentially Knox’s to win or lose. Josh Elam, Knox’s final-round competition, didn’t have quite the same advantage over the competition, though by the end of the day on Saturday, he’d significantly closed the gap between he and Knox, progressively lowering his ET in large chunks. He ripped off a 5.31 in his semi final bye run, while Knox used another deep 5-second ET to take out the wheelstanding Ford Ranger of Peter Rogowski. In the finals, Knox practically gave Elam the “move”, taking an extended nap on the tree. But his 4.97 was enough to reel in Josh’s 5-teen effort.

RF2K15Sat-1321Mean Street, for those who aren’t familiar with the class, is a small-tire index class where the index is drawn out of hat before each event. It can be 5.10, 5.15, 5.20, or 5.25. It’s a great budget-friendly class that’s developing a growing following in the southeast, and the racing is always nice and close. Eric Malone drove his clean black fouth Generation Camaro to the finals on consistent times just off the 5.15 index, as did his final round opponent, Hayden Johnson in his beautiful Orange first-gen Camaro. Malone took out Chris Smith when Smith, who had also been very close to the index all day, powered into a wheelstand and had to pedal. Johnson took out Josh Ames’ clean Fox body coupe to earn his final round berth.

In the finals, the indexes are turned off and it’s baddest of the bad for all the marbles. In an awesome drag race, Malone took the win by less than a thousandth of a second, his 5.14 barely getting back around Johnson’s holeshot-assisted 5.16.

RF15Spring-586In the ever-competitive X275 class, we had a bit of a surprise with the resurgence of Shane Fisher, who had all but dominated the class just two short years ago. While most expected a Jared Johnston versus Rich Bruder final, with that tandem being the top two qualifiers and quickest two X275-legal cars in the nation, Fisher interrupted those plans with a stellar holeshot victory over Johnston in their all-KBX Performance semifinal matchup. Bruder, coming off a quarterfinal win over a wheelstanding Shannon Renfro, took out Jacky McCarty in the semis on his side of the ladder. McCarty laid down a new personal best at 4.50 to make the race one of the closest of the day, but Bruder’s blistering 4.46 punched his ticket to the final round to face Fisher.

In the final, Fisher knew he would have to push the tree to have a chance against the near-bracket car consistency of Bruder’s machine, and he pushed it a tad too far, turning on the red bulb and gift-wrapping the win for the New Jersey team. It may not have mattered anyway, as Bruder lit up the boards with low ET of the weekend, a 4.45-second blast into the damp Alabama night.

RF2K15Sat-1038Outlaw 275 competition followed a similar story line to X275, with number one qualifier Barry Mitchell marching to the finals on a string of low 4.30’s. Mitchell’s final round dance partner Robert Culver didn’t have it quite so easy, though his string of consistent 4.40’s was fairly dominant on his side of the ladder, especially in the heat of the day. En route to the final frame, Mitchell took down the pretty red Nova of Kevin Scott in the quarter finals after a first round bye, then had another bye when Shane Stack was unable to make the call in the semis, but he took his bye runs and ran deep in the 4.30’s to maintain lane choice throughout the race. Culver, battling from the bottom of the ladder, took out perennial 275 powerhouse Marty Stinnett in the quarterfinals, then ousted Bobby Kruck in the semis to earn the right to take on Mitchell in the money round.

What had promised to be a decent race turned out to be a one-sided affair as Culver’s powerplant went flat around midtrack, slowing into the 5-second range while Mitchell streaked to the win with a 4.31 — the low ET for the race in OL275.

RF2K15Sat-464In the top-billed class for the weekend, Pro 315, all in attendance were geared up for a rematch from last fall’s Radial Fest, which saw Brad Edwards streak to the first 3.99-second ET for any car on a radial tire, while Jamie Hancock stuck the nose of his ‘Vette in the wall just past half track. After launching with a quicker 60′ than Edwards, only to break loose around the 150’ mark, Hancock surely had vengeance on his mind as both cars rolled to staging for the semifinals. However that scenario would be ended right there. Edwards had either tire shake or spin just before half track and allowed Eddie Harrison to drive away to the win and one half of the final round pairing. On the other side, Hancock returned to his 2014 form as he ripped off the second quickest pass of the event, a 4.01 blast that sent Mark Micke, piloting Mark Woodruff’s C6 ‘Vette this weekend, to the trailer.

The final round of Pro 315 is a bit of a matter of controversy. We’ll not take side, we’re just going to post the video and let you decide.

FRIDAY QUALIFYING

The Pro 315 field is anchored by Brad Edwards, who laid down a blistering 3.99 to take the top spot.

Friday’s two scheduled qualifying sessions are in the books at Radial Fest 2K15: Spring Edition. Today’s racing brought out much of what was seen at the first Radial Fest event back in October: chilly temps and outstanding performances! Highlighting the day was Brad Edwards returning to the site of his barrier-shattering 3.99 and laying down an almost identical 3.99 to claim the #1 qualifying slot.

Sporting a mag setup this weekend that seems to have finally submitted to Edwards and crew chief Peter Harrell’s will after battling them stubbornly all season, Edwards appeared to be on an even quicker pass in the 2nd session when a mid-track wheelstand forced him to lift and abort the run. Mark Micke, behind the wheel of Mark Woodruff’s gorgeous C6 Corvette, resides in the #2 spot with a 4.07, a new best for the Missouri-based team. Number three on the ladder belongs to Jamie Hancock in the quickest radial-tired nitrous car on the planet with a 4.09, still a bit off the 4.01 he ran at Huntsville last fall. Rounding out the top 4 is a resurgent Kevin Mullins, laying down a pair of low 4.teen passes with a 4.12 as his best effort. Check out the rest of the field on the run sheet below.

Barry Mitchell laid down a stellar 4.33 to take the top spot in Outlaw 275.

In Outlaw 275, Barry Mitchell and Bruce Johnson took their nitrous-breathing rides to the #1 and 2 slots respectively, both running solid 4.33’s. Nipping on their heels is perennial 275 badass Marty Stinnett in his twin turbo small-block Ford-powered Mustang, claiming the 3rd spot with a 4.34. Behind them, popular outlaw racers Shane Stack (4.40) and Bobby Kruck (4.45) sit in the #4 and 5 slots.

X275 features the largest car count of the heads-up classes, as expected. Current world record holder Jared Johnston sits atop the ladder with a 4.46, just two hundredths off his record 4.44 set earlier this season at Denton, TX.

Jared Johnston continued his hot streak, laying down a 4,46 to claim the #1 spot in X275.

Jared Johnston continued his hot streak, laying down a 4,46 to claim the #1 spot in X275.

 

The X275 winner of the first Radial Fest event, Rich Bruder, made the haul from New Jersey and showed he has no intention of relinquishing his title quietly. He currently sits at #2, also running a 4.46 ET. Jacky McCarty and Shawn Ayers both ripped off 4.50 passes to take the next 2 spots on the qualifying sheet, while Darren Breaud took the 5th spot with a new All-Mopar record of 4.51. With 11 cars already qualified in the 4.50’s or quicker, the X275 field promises some tight racing come eliminations tomorrow afternoon.

Jeff Knox brought out his gorgeous Nova to compete in King of the Street. He sits at #1 with a stellar 5.02 from the nitrous-injected classic Chevy.

Radial Fest also features a King of the Street class for street-driveable cars to battle it out. Jeff Knox brought out his hard-charging Nova and took the top spot at 5.02, while Pat Hallisey holds down the #2 spot in his clean turbocharged Mustang at 5.50. Josh Elam is right behind Hallisey with a 5.51, and Clyde Carlson rounds out the top 4 with a 5.84 from his twin turbo LS-powered Nova.

In Mean Street, a hybrid heads-up/index class featuring low-5 second cars in a variety of combinations, Mikie Smith sits at the top with a 5.19 on the blind-drawn 5.15 Index. Just behind Mikie, Chris Smith drove his clean 4-eyed Fox to a 5.20 to take #2. Check out the run sheet below for the rest of the ladder, along with the 6.00 and 7.00 qualifiers. Action starts at 10:00 in the morning, and we’ll be back tomorrow with another update, along with a full post-race recap!

Pro315Fri

SATURDAY ELIMINATIONS

Pro 315 winner Eddie Harrison rolling to a stop after warming the tires on his Camaro.

Eliminations kicked off under a beautiful Alabama afternoon sky. The fans filled the stands and the racing did not disappoint as the crowd was treated to pass after pass of side-by-side racing in all classes.

Mean Street runner up Hayden Johnson's clean all-motor Camaro.

Mean Street runner up Hayden Johnson’s clean all-motor Camaro.

The King of the Street class, which featured a diverse group of entrants, all of which are 100% street legal and driveable, saw #1 qualifier Jeff Knox power through to the finals on a string of deep 5-second passes to face Josh Elam in his 4th Gen Camaro in the finals. Elam took a huge advantage off the line, but just didn’t have the power to hold off Knox’s Nova, which drove around him easily to take the win.

Mean Street saw a pair of Camaros meet in the final frame. Hayden Johnson and his orange 1st Gen took on Eric Malone’s black 4th Gen with Malone narrowly taking the win, 5.14 to 5.16 (the Mean Street Index, 5.15 for this event, is dropped for the final).

Robert Culver took home runner-up honors in Outlaw 275.

Robert Culver took home runner-up honors in Outlaw 275.

In Outlaw 275, Robert Culver lined up against Barry Mitchell in a battle of strong-running Mustangs. Mitchell took the win in his nitrous-injected fox body with a stout 4.31 to slowing 5.41 for Culver’s Procharged machine, which may have been wounded for the finals.

RF2K15Sat-1386

Rich (driver) and Nick (directing) Bruder made the long haul from New Jersey a profitable one with their win in X275.

As always, X275 featured some of the closest racing of the day, but the finals would be a bit anti-climactic as Shane Fisher redlighted away his chance to unseat Rich Bruder, who also won the October Radial Fest event. Bruder would have been tough to beat regardless, as he laid down low ET of the race in the finals with a solid 4.45 ET, just one hundredth off the world record.

In Pro 315, Eddie Harrison rode a string of 4.teens into the finals against Jamie Hancock, who was looking to step into the winner’s circle after crashing in the finals against Brad Edwards in the finals in October. Hancock was denied again when his nitrous-huffing ‘Vette coughed back through the scoop just off the line as Harrison raced to an off-pace but winning 4.40 to take home the money.

Jamie Hancock brought home runner-up for the 2nd Radial Fest event in a row in Pro 315.

Jamie Hancock brought home runner-up for the 2nd Radial Fest event in a row in Pro 315.

About the author

Jeremy Patterson

A former bracket racer, Jeremy, known by many as "Taco," stepped out of the seat in 2005 to focus on his growing family. A few years ago, he returned to the sport, this time as a photographer and a journalist.
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