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 Ir’s day two of the NMCA Muscle Car Nationals here at scenic Beech Bend Raceway, and things will get ratcheted up as the two remaining qualifying sessions for our index and heads-up categories will go off before the close of the day. We’ve got a slight chance of showers in the forecast, but we’re going to hope the clouds in the area add up to nothing more than much-needed relief from the heat. Keep it tuned here all day for news, notes, and photos from here in Bowling Green!
A special thanks to the presenting sponsor of our same day event coverage, Mickey Thompson Performance Tires & Wheels!
Jeff Lutz stepped it up in the overcast second session of Pro Street qualifying, running straight-and-true to a 5.97 at a booming 249 mph.
John Kolivas and Jason Lee both improved in the second session of Street Outlaw, but still trail Sean Ashe's class-leading 7.41.
Lousiana native Dave Beeson grabbed the No. 1 spot from Joe Bucaro in today’s second session of Nostalgia Pro Street qualifying, rocketing to a 7.31.
Billy Glidden has struggled to get down the racetrack in today’s heat, blowing the tires off his Mickey Thompson-backed Mustang right at the hit in both of today’s final qualifying sessions. Glidden will go into tomorrow’s eliminations resting on his 6.18 best.
Leonard Long (left) is currently third in N/A 10.5 qualifying with this 8.19 best, while Andy Schmidt (right) continues to elad the way, improving to a stout 8.07 in this morning's session.
In addition to leading the Super Street 10.5W field with his quick 6.62 from yesterday, Mike Murillo has also joined the media and taken up photography this weekend. Brian Hicks remains second with his 6.75, while Brian Campbell jumped into the “sixes” today with his 6.99 effort.
For you nostalgia fans, there are all sorts of great old classics competing in the Dave Duell Classic this weekend.
Brian Campbell put his ’96 Ford Mustang on the bumper this morning and bettered his class-leading effort in Mean Street, running 9.84 at 135 mph. Don Baskin remains second with his 9.89.
That is indeed Jason Lee’s Strange Engineering-backed Street Outlaw Mustang with the wheels HIGH in the air as he neared the half-track mark. Lee’s machine had gone skyward at the hit, and after briefly touching down, began to climb once more, eliciting a huge applause from the crowd here at Beech Bend.
John Warren, who took over the Xtreme Street qualifying lead with his 7.93 this morning, bettered his standing in the final session with a 7.89.
The car show here at Beech Bend, hosted by the Bowling Green Mustangs organization, features a wide range of great cars, from classic muscle to street rods and modern marvels.
The head-turner of the car show was perhaps this unique (to say the least) 1988 Yugo that Illinois native Jerry Harris brought out. The car sports, of all things, a massive supercharged Chrysler Hemi situated in the backseat/hatch area of the infamously-small machine. However, this thing is all for looks, as the engine does not power the car.
Also on tap today was the True Street competition, in which more than 20 competitors signed up to take the 30-mile cruise and three back-to-back runs to prove who has the quickest and fastest real street car on the property.
Jason Meador had the quickest run of the True Street racers, recording runs of 8.68, 8.69, and 8.73.
John Kolivas put together a nice 7.46 at 192 mph in the final session of Street Outlaw this afternoon, trailing just a few ticks behind class leader Sean Ashe and Dwayne Barbaree at 7.41 and 7.44, respectively.
Clint Hairston stepped up big in the final session, recording a great 6.06 that moved him into second in the Pro Street order. The run came at a cost however, as damage incurred in the valvetrain ultimately broke the camshaft. Family patriarch Jim Hairston told us, “we just changed this motor we’re putting in the car out yesterday, and it’s not happy, but it’s all we’ve got.”
Like in Joliet, Jim Widener (left) isn't the quickest car in Pro Street, but it's certainly consistent. In the final sessio, Widener cruised to a 6.12, his best run of the weekend to close out qualifying third in the order. Former Xtreme Street racer Danny Shemwell, competing in Nostalgia Pro Street this weekend with a very sharp '69 Camaro powered by a 525-inch, nitrous-fed big block, enters eliminations at No. 5 with his game 7.42 best.
Final Qualifying Orders
