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The 2013 NMCA West season draws to a close this weekend at Auto Club Famoso Raceway in Bakersfield, California under clear skies and predicted temperatures in the low 60 degree range. We’re going to be on the scene all weekend long, and we’re not just bringing you same-day race coverage: We’re actually in the hunt for a class championship in the 275 Drag Radial class with LSXMag’s Project BlownZ.
Keep your browser pointed here all weekend long for updates, photos, and results!
Friday Pit Notes
We took a walk around the pits to see who and what was going on. Here are three cars that caught our attention.
'Papa Joe' Furiani came ready to rock with his 1979 Oldsmobile Cutlass. Sporting a 522 Chevy big block with a 1050 carb, Edelbrock manifold, Eagle Rods, JD pistons, and much more, this old coupe could really tear down the track, with a best of 9.42 144 MPH. For testing and tuning, Furiani hopes to achieve 9.67 @ 139.9. We'll see how he does in the races come Saturday.
Eric Carlstedt's 1970 Camaro, running in the Outlaw 8.5 class, is a sweet rig with a 427 SBC and 300 shot of nitrous. His eighth-mile runner started out as a simple street car in 2006, but over time has added things like a Hughes ProGlide 2-speed and Global West suspension to make it the 'boom and go' drag car it is today. He's hoping to qualify with a run in the 5.40s. Good luck, Eric!
Lee Smith's 1967 Mustang Pro Mod was undergoing some tuning and repairs when we found it. Nonetheless, this thing can sprint a fearsome 232 MPH when push comes to shove, thanks mainly to its bitchin' Alan Johnson PLR 481X motor, rated for 4000+ horsepower. Talk about badass! It sits on a grade-A chassis and body construction built by Larry Jeffers Race Cars, and should definitely prove a car to be reckoned with as the weekend progresses.
The Championship Chase
Thanks to the short, four-race NMCA West season, the fact that competitors get to drop their worst race, and bonuses for participating in three or four races, the championship picture for most classes going into the final race is complicated.
This weekend, Mike Bowman is being followed around by a crew from Discovery Channel Canada, home to popular reality shows like 'Ice Road Housewives,' 'Pawn, Eh?' and 'Pimp my Moose'
In Pro Street, Joe Lepone Jr. has the lead with 1980 points, followed by Scott Oksas at 1805 and defending champ Mike Bowman at 1720. All three are on the property as of Friday, and the reality of the car count means that if Lepone qualifies towards the top of the ladder and makes it out of the first round unscathed, it will be very difficult for Oksas or Bowman to catch him, even with a perfect weekend.
Al Jimenez (left) and Rick Snavely prepare for a side by side run in testing.
The current True 10.5 standings are led by Al Jimenez at 1700 points, with Rick Snavely trailing by a full three rounds worth of points at 1400, and Mark Luton a distant third at 1130. While on paper that looks like a lock for Jimenez, there’s a catch – Snavely didn’t attend the season opener, and therefore will remain at 1400 points going in even after the drop, while Jimenez will have to discard his 200 points from round 2. That brings Snaveley within one round of the lead, so he doesn’t need much good fortune to close the gap.
Artis Houston (in the blue Nova) and James Lawrence
In 275 Drag Radial, Artis Houston is the man to beat at 1550 points, and Power Automedia’s own James Lawrence is in second at 1325. Kevin Young rounds out the top three at 1225, and with a likely car count of less than a half-dozen, it will be very difficult to generate a significant swing in points. However, once again the drop will play a major role – Young gets to drop a missed-race zero, while Lawrence loses 250 and Houston 400, putting them at 1075 and 1150, respectively.
Tony Aneian
The Naturally Aspirated 10.5 class will come down to a battle between Bryan Cobbett, Tony Aneian, and Randy Jones, sitting at 1575, 1400, and 1225 points, respectively. Defending champ Aneian is the big beneficiary of the drop rule here, getting to discard the 50 points he earned in Vegas, while Cobbet will have to dump 225 and Jones will lose 200. That makes NA 10.5 anyone’s class to win this weekend.
Finally, the Outlaw 8.5 class is currently led by Ryan Jones, who holds more than 5 rounds worth of points in the bag over number two George Raygoza, and two more on Kevin Keller. Jones hasn’t lost a pairing all season, while Raygoza and Keller both have a runner-up finish apiece. Still, this is a well-populated class, and the drop will hurt Jones more than his competitors, so keep an eye out for a last-minute swing this weekend.
More to Come
The sun is setting, the lanes are closed for the evening, and we’re calling it a day, but we will be back again tomorrow with more photos and news, plus full qualifying results. Don’t forget to click through to our gallery page to see more shots from the track.
