Last weekend at the Nitto Tire NMCA WEST World Street Finals at Auto Club Famoso Raceway in Bakersfield, longtime west coast doorslammer racer Mike Bowman (who often traveled out to compete on the east coast) was the first NMCA West racer to eclipse the 5-second barrier in Pro Street. Bowman scooted his familiar Chevelle to the quickest run of its life during qualifying at 5.971-seconds at a booming 254.32 mph to pace the 11-car Pro Street field by several hundredths of a second. For complete coverage of the event, click here.
Bowman bettered those numbers in eliminations with his Camaro propelled by a twin-turbocharged, 522 cubic inch Brad Anderson powerplant, running 5.952 at 253.85 mph in round one and following it up with a 5.994 in round two and a 6.007 in the semifinals. Unfortunately, the Oak Hills, Calif. native couldn’t turn the big numbers into a Wally trophy, as that honor went to Joe Lepone Jr., who ousted him in the final round, 6.16 to a slowing 7.15. The 5.97, followed by the 5.95 however, was quick enough to reset the NMCA WEST class record that is now quicker than the NMCA Pro Street record held by Clint Hairston at 5.970.