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This weekend, the Yellow Bullet Nationals will cruise into Maryland’s Cecil County Dragway for the annual gathering of insanity. The country’s best heads-up small-tire racers will have an eye on taking names, setting records, and becoming superstars with their performances. Over the last five years it’s become one of the most talked-about races of the year, where all of the heavy-hitters make an appearance and set their bad-fast hotrods on kill. Dragzine will be on the property all weekend long bringing you same-day coverage, photos, and information you won’t find anywhere else. Stay tuned to the action starting on Friday and carrying through the weekend until the champions are crowned and the prize money is given away! Special thanks as always goes out to the presenting sponsor of your Dragzine coverage for the weekend, COMP Cams. Make sure to check out their website for the latest and greatest in camshaft and valvetrain technology.
SUNDAY COVERAGE
Left - We interrupted a meeting of the minds this morning between the Bruder boys and Mark Menscer of Menscer Motorsports. As you might imagine, the discussion was along the lines of how to manage the big DiSomma power on the hot surface they expect to see today - the conditions are markedly different than they have been all weekend. Right - Frank Soldridge has been battling the suspension on his car all weekend; the team discovered a blown out strut yesterday and replace it, but set the ride height a bit too low and the car blew the tires off last night. He faces DeWayne Mills in round one today, so he's got his work cut out for him.
Left - We caught up with John Kolivas this morning; he was pondering what to do for Charles Hull's X275 ride. The car is one of the cleanest we've seen, and we were intrigued by the use of the underhood intercooler at the right front. 'We have to add so much weight to these cars anyway - that's 50 pounds less that we need to put under the hood. It also simplifies the plumbing quite a bit,' says Kolivas. Happens to look badass too, Charles. Right - Jim Brown and the Outlaw 10.5 team from Missouri were discussing the changes to make for today's session. Brown's had quite the week - he drove the car all the way here, flew back home to attend to his daughter, who had surgery on Thursday, then flew back on Friday evening to qualify yesterday. The team broke some parts They are currently qualified #15 with a 4.27.
Doug Sones was the beneficiary of a dropout in the Outlaw Big Tire class, and he took full advantage of it by knocking off Michael Ingrossio and moving along to the quarterfinal, where he’ll face Mitch George.
The Harris Family owns this absolutely beautiful big-block ’67 Camaro, and it’s driven by son Darren – they are longtime sponsors of the Outlaw Big Tire program here at Cecil County. He moved on to round two by winning over Joseph Rivera. Number-two qualifier Tom Tarsia will be in the other lane against Harris in the quarterfinal.
Steve Gorman knocked down a strong 4.268 in the first round of Outlaw 10.5 - eliminating Tommy Mauro. Also running quickly in the heat of the day were Richard Sexton and TJ Kasper. Sexton eliminated Jeff Castala with a 4.27, while Kasper lit the boards with a 4.279 on a single.
Although Robert Abbott's crash looked pretty harsh from our perspective, the reports we've gotten the car will need a new door, quarter panel, and bullhorn, and that's about it. More importantly, Robert hopped out of the car and is fine.
Right here is where Rich Bruder (far lane) started to fall behind John Bova in 275. Bova – the number 31 qualifier -ended up on the winning side of the equation against the number-two qualifier in a huge upset.
In the heat of the day, Ron Rhodes laid down a sick 4.65/152MPH blast to put Nick Boudreau on the trailer and move on to round two.
How hot was it this afternoon? During a break in the action, the legion of photographers on the property took a much-needed recharge break.
Top three performers in the first round of Ultra Street - Shawn Pevlor's 5.134, Mark McCloud's insane 5.108, and Troy Jr.'s 5.125. We are through the first round of all heads-up classes except Pro Radial (16 car ladder), which was scheduled to run with the second round rotation of the heads-up classes.
And this is where we stand right now. Stay tuned..
Sad to report that we're all done..sheets are posted for the classes that completed. Prize monies will be split among the remaining competitors in each class. Here are the final results for the heads-up classes that ran first round today.
SATURDAY COVERAGE
Just spent the morning with Hollywood Ray Johnson and thought I’d show you a preview of his upcoming feature you’ll see on Dragzine this winter.
Left - Jerry Morgano just got here at 1AM this morning with his Outlaw 10.5 machine. He spent yesterday putting in the brand new DiSomma Boss 457 small-block Ford that's fronted with a pair of Bullseye Power 88mm turbochargers. Right - Tommy Mauro's Camaro has had a host of electrical issues since rewiring the car, but they're finally sorted out. He redid the whole front end of the car, switched to alcohol, and lost a ton of weight off the nose of the car - but not it makes 11 psi just off the brake compared to the 7 it used to make, so now he's working on the tuneup.
We caught up with THE Kevin Mullins this morning. He had a good handle on the track last night, until the gear change when the car knocked off the tires. He’s made a few adjustments and is looking forward to today’s sessions.
Outlaw 10.5 racer Dan Smith made the early-morning run to see Doug Kline from Precision Chassis to have his oil pan welded up. He’s been battling issues with the pan and windage tray flexing and splitting, and Kline was working on welding it up for him.
Left - Ronny Rhodes is battling a lack of traction. If you can believe it, he's only had his competition license for just over a year, and he's already qualified in the top four cars in his class. He's looking to squeeze into the 4s tonight if the weather holds out. Right - Jamie Stanton is back at the track for the first time in ten months in his nitroused Camaro. The car uses a BES 582 cube conventional-head engine and has been a best of 4.71 at 153 on only its fourth hit.
Wheelstand Saturday here at Cecil County- the track had teeth for everyone today from Pro Radial (Keith Berry on the left) over to Joe Serviss in Outlaw Big Tire. Also up on the back tires is Mike Berry in the Malibu.
Troy Pirez Jr. is a player in Ultra Street this weekend with his nitroused Mustang. He’s sixth on the ladder entering tonight’s final session with a 5.06 at a super-soft 137 MPH. Are there 4’s in the squeeze machine?
Since switching over to a turbo in his Mod Motor-equipped X275 machine, Ronnie “The ModFather” Diaz is working to figure out the differences between driving the turbo and his previous supercharged combination on the track .He’s stopped the timers with a big 156 MPH number, now he is working on putting together the bottom half. He’s currently 11th in X275 and feels there is much more in his Acors Performance-built machine.
Nick Agostino is making serious moves in his Outlaw 10.5 Camaro this weekend – he is sitting in third with a super-strong 4.110 at 190 MPH. He’s got one more chance to break into the O’s tonight – and it looks like the track conditions may be there. The weather has been great all day and the track will be tight.
Round Two Qualifying Sheets
Pro Radial, Ultra Street
X275, Outlaw 10.5, Outlaw Big Tire
Ronnie Diaz moved up in a big way tonight, turning on the board with a big 4.62 to land in the fifth spot in X275 – in the process setting the single-power-adder Mod Motor record in the eighth-mile. Diaz and crew chief Richard Robinson  are working with longtime engine builder Dave Guy from DGR Performance and John Kolivas and the KBX Performance crew. We all know what that means – the rest of the X275 field is on notice, the ModFather is coming!
Tommy Romeo also moved up in the final session of the day in Outlaw Big Tire. His 665-cube ’71 Nova turned in a 4.45 at 158 MPH to swap spots with Richard Shainline, Jr. Romeo is now fourth on the list in OBT.
Darren Harris, candles lit, Outlaw Big Tire. Need we say more? We will, because Darren also improved his ET in tonight’s final session from a 4.60 to a 4.56 – he stays in the seventh spot.
Ron Rhodes leapfrogged Darren Hilterbran in the final session in his Induction Solutions-squeezed Camaro. A 4.546 put him just two thou behind the second-place Bruder Brothers.
Entering the final session of X275 tonight, Mike Freeman was on the outside looking in, as he came to the line locked in the 37th spot in the 32-car field. He’s not there anymore – a stout 4.67 at 152 puts him solidly in the show tomorrow in the 11th qualified position.
Final Qualifying Sheets
X275, Ultra Street
Pro Radial, Outlaw 10.5, Outlaw Big Tire
FRIDAY COVERAGE
Nate Pritchett is hard at work trying to figure out his Outlaw 10.5 car. As the team doesn’t get much time to test, they are struggling to figure out the track in the head of the day.
Hollywood Ray Johnson is here to debut his all-new Outlaw 10.5 car. Purchased from Conrad Scarry a few years ago, Johnson had Jamie Miller Race Cars put an all-new chassis underneath. So far, he’s been 4.36, 4.36, and 4.33 on the first three hits on the car. Power comes from a 632 cubic inch big-block Ford from Proline Racing, two Precision Turbo 88mm snails, a Pro Torque converter, and help from a number of other companies.
Left - Lou Proto is running this weekend in Outlaw Big Tire with his familiar convertible Mustang. Proto has the 29.5-inch tire on the car, which is the biggest he can fit on the car with the stock framerails. In testing two weeks ago at Lebanon Valley Dragway, Louie kicked two rods out of the engine and thrashed to get it back together for this weekend. In fact, the engine was still on the dyno at 2:30 yesterday. His car features a 582-cube big-block Ford with a couple of kits of Monte Smith nitrous on top. Right - Jason Gatlin from ATF Speed brought his dog, Gunner, along to the track this weekend. Team ATF's fabricator, Danny Fernandez, was standing watch with Gunner when we stopped by the pit. Gunner was singin' the blues.
NMCA Xtreme Street hitter Eric Kenward is here running in Ultra Street. He had to add 350 pounds to the car, along with a 4.56 gear, to run the eighth-mile. At NMCA Norwalk he hurt the cylinder head and found a cam sync issue – the car has been repaired and is ready to go.
Longtime Pontiac all-motor proponent John Langer is here, racing in 8.50 Index this weekend – although his car is capable of 7.80s. Langer is using the prepped track to do research on his combination. He says, ‘If it doesn’t go fast, it might as well look good.’ We agree.
Karri-Anne Beebe and Matt Beebe made the trip all the way down with their crew from Michigan. Karri-Anne’s car uses a pair of FAST throttle-bodies and a FAST XFI 2.0 setup on top of the 638 BBC. They’re working on a new progressive dry nitrous system from Kevin Neal in Ohio and are trying to spray upwards of 500 horsepower into the Rat motor.
Left - Frank Mewshaw's Outlaw Drag Radial machine has been a best of 4.21 in competition - they are trying a new torque converter from PTC this weekend. The Nelson Competition 556 cubic-inch engine wears a pair of Precision 88mm turbochargers. He spun on the first hit and is currently trying to figure out the track before qualifying tonight. Right - Chris Evans is here racing in X275 with an engine borrowed from Frank Fulbrook. He's been racing off and on this season and thought he was out of the show after he hurt an engine recently - until Fulbrook stepped up with the loaner.
A meeting of the minds between Mark Micke, Jason Carter, and Nick Agostino (L-R), where Agostino was discussing the unique solution he devised for sealing up the engine on his stock-bore-space twin-turbo BBC.
Cecil County hitter Steve Gorman has been in the 4.0’s this year in Outlaw 10.5, but hasn’t been there since the beginning of the season. ‘We’re trying to figure out the converter to ge the right one for what we need. There’s lots of competition here this weekend,’ he says.
Outlaw 10.5 racer Tim Essick was stuck at work, so crew chief Dan Whetstine was here early with the car to get it set up for Tim’s arrival. Essick’s machine is wearing a brand-new set of 88mm turbochargers from Wild Bill Devine at Bullseye Power. They’ve been a 4.25 best with the old turbos and are looking for teens here at YB.
Left - Canadian racer John Carinci got loose at the big end earlier today and nearly put the car on the roof. His crew was packing up to go when we got there. He was on the phone, so it appears that he's fine - the car, not so much. A shame to see as it was a beautiful piece. Right - Jeremiah Lounsbury and his brother Mike Boudreau made the trek all the way here from Buctouche, New Brunswick, Canada. Yesterday they had a new 80mm cast-wheel Borg-Warner turbo put on at DMC Racing, in front of the brand-new engine from Central Auto. So far they have been a best of 5.44 in the car, and are looking for bottom 5's once they get it sorted out.
ROUND ONE HIGHLIGHTS AND RESULTS
Pro Radial racer DeWayne Mills had it set on kill tonight – with excellent conditions and big stick on the track he knocked down a record 4.06 at 196-plus. Pro Radial insanity at its finest!
It’s been a while since we’ve seen the husband-and-wife team of Brenda and Kris Paddock. Brenda wheeled her Outlaw Big Tire car to a soft 5.08 and is currently outside the bump, but she and Kris have been known to perform well in the past. We expect them to step it up tomorrow.
Tom Tarsia (near lane) put his ’70 Camaro into the second spot in Outlaw Big Tire; Ken Quartuccio (far lane) put up a 4.65 at a soft 151 MPH to claim the eighth spot.
Left - Lou Sciortino knocked out a 4.206 in Outlaw 10.5 - and was only good for the eighth spot on the list in Outlaw 10.5. The top spot was claimed by Mike Decker, who put up an outstanding 4.06 at 190 MPH from his screw-blown Camaro. Outlaw 10.5 is knocking on the door of the 3's this weekend. Richard Sexton sits second with a 4.07 and there are five competitors in the teens. Simply insane!
TJ Kasper is driving Joe Copson’s Bill Gilsbach-built Camaro. This is one of the prettiest cars on the property. TJ’s in the fifth spot with a 4.15 at 190-plus.
Mean Dean Marinis leads the X275 field so far with an outstanding 4.52 in his big-block Chevy-powered nitrous Mustang. Marinis has one of the most consistent cars here and will be hard to beat in eliminations.
Left - Matt Lombardi's Mustang has a sweet airbrushed paint scheme full of skulls adorning his ride. He's qualified sixteenth in the 32 car field with a 4.86. Right - Don't ever count out the Bruder Brothers. Rich is just fifteen thousandths behind Marinis in the second qualified spot at the close of today's festivities.
Ron Rhodes' Rhodes Custom Auto Works has three of the top four cars in the Ultra Street class running out of their stables, with these two - Rob 'Pooch' Poochigian (left) and Lane 'Fast Lane' Carey both in the 4's, with Pooch on top at a 4.96 at 143 MPH. The third Rhodes car? None other than Ronny Rhodes, Dad's protege, who turned in a personal best 5.04 tonight to lock down the fourth spot. We're here to tell you - the kid's a driver for sure.
The ‘WOOOO’ man had a little bit of ‘WHOA, MAN!’ going on in Pro Radial tonight. Keith Berry knocked off an insane 1.07 short time on his quest to get to the top of the heap, but a mid-track wheelstand forced him to lift. He says he’ll move some weight around and try again tomorrow.
Steve Crisafulli got in touch with the track tonight – a 4.16 at a whopping 194 mph puts him in the third spot heading into tomorrow in Pro Radial. Second place is currently held by Frank Mewshaw, who improved on his personal-best 4.21 to lower that down to a 4.15 in tonight’s awesome conditions.
x275/Ultra/Outlaw 10.5
Pro Radial/Outlaw Big Tire
