Press release from ADRL:
The Bankston Boyz Racing team rolled into Houston Raceway Park for the ADRL season opener just over a week ago with new marketing partners onboard for the 2010 race season as a result of aggressive approaches at the Performance Racing Industry’s (PRI) tradeshow in Orlando back in December last year.
Adding to the team’s support from Mississippi Foundation Repair Specialists, TeaCo Geophysical, Speedtech, Reher-Morrison, Goodyear Racing, Jerry Haas Race Cars, Tim McAmis Race Cars, and David Janes Race Cars are new marketing partners Ross Pistons, Jesel Valvetrain Components, Red Line Oil, and Vicci Fashions.
The ADRL Universal Technical Institute Dragpalooza VI presented by Safety-Kleen gave Bankston Boyz Pro Nitrous drivers Stan Allen and John DeFlorian all they could handle as they arrived at the Baytown, Texas, strip with little testing in their respective rides.
Allen (above) had just come off a week of testing in Bradenton, Florida, where his best elapsed time (ET) in the David Janes-built, former “Black Ice” Camaro was in the 3.90 range and low 190s in mph. Meanwhile, DeFlorian came into the race with his ’06 Corvette untested after offseason changes dropped about 70 pounds from the car.
After three rounds of qualifying on Friday, DeFlorian had his car solidly in the top half of the field with a seventh-place 3.99 at 184.19 mph and Allen limped into the 16th and final position with a 5.21 at just 97 mph.
Saturday morning’s lone qualifying session saw Allen out in the first Pro Nitrous pair and he promptly lowered his time to a still-off-the-pace, but more respectable 4.32 at 177.88-mph pass. It was still only good enough for 16th, however, earning Allen a race date with top qualifier Burton Auxier.
Unfortunately, heavy rain arrived at Houston Raceway Park shortly before noon on Saturday, before eliminations could begin, forcing the postponement of the ADRL’s UTI Dragpalooza VI to July 23-24, when it will be completed in its entirety along with an entirely new event added by ADRL President and CEO Kenny Nowling.
Normally the arrival of wet weather is the worst thing that can happen at a race, but considering his on-track struggles in qualifying, Allen said this time it was a lucky break.
“The rain saved our team,” he declared. “I mean, we are struggling to learn this new car and the clutch. Coming into the fourth round of qualifying I was on the bump with three cars in line that could bump me out of the field. Then, after the fourth round I was still on the bump by lowering my own ET to a 4.32. So I got lucky! It’s time to go test and get ready for Valdosta (Georgia, in April).”
DeFlorian (above), on the other hand, shook the tires in his fourth and final qualifying attempt and a couple of other drivers moved up the list, leaving him ninth for raceday, when he will face off against number-eight starter Rickie Smith.
“After the second round of qualifying and having the car go left each time we looked at the video and compared it to our data from the runs and I knew exactly what change needed to be made on the four-link to straighten her out,” DeFlorian explained.
“With qualifier three on Friday night, the car went straight down the groove and I pedaled it to a 3.99 run and boy, did she leave the line—a .980 sixty-foot and if I had not got out and back into it I am sure we would have run a low 3.90! So, I guess you can tell why we are ecstatic coming into 2010.”
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