Northern UK Chassis Day planned. 31st January: UK Tech Inspector Geoff Martin says that another Northern Chassis Day is under consideration this year after last year's success. "Mark Norton will do the same again this year, providing enough interest is shown", says Geoff. "The date has yet to be decided, but the last week in February is being considered. If anyone requires a chassis check, either new or re-cert, Mark can be contacted on 01865 400812 or 07881 456314. ©Eurodragster.com "Chassis re-certs will also be carried out at the SFI Day at Santa Pod Raceway, whose date has yet to be announced (We're expecting this from SFI very shortly - Ed)." Swift snippets. 31st January: UK racers please remember that this Friday, 3rd February, is the deadline for submitting agenda items to APIRA or SPRC for the 2006 UK Riders' and Drivers' Meeting, which takes place at 1:00 pm at the Diamonds Centre in Irthlingborough on Sunday 12th February. For more details including how to submit agenda items please see our news item of 6th January. ©Eurodragster.com If you are attending this Saturday's joint APIRA/SPRC UK Dinner Dance and Trophy Presentation then please remember that the evening starts with the Club Championship presentations at 6:30 pm. Please be sure to be in your seat for 6:30. Willowbank dreams. 31st January: UK Wild Bunch racers Sarah and Darryl Howells have returned from a trip to Australia waxing lyrical about their experiences at the races. "We went to Willowbank Raceway and I highly recommend anyone travelling to Australia to pay them a visit", says Sarah Howells. "I've come to expect nothing less within the world of drag racing than enthusiastic, friendly and highly-motivated people and Willowbank is absolutely no exception. Jeff Rice, the Facilities Manager for Willowbank whom we sort of met at Santa Pod earlier in 2005, was an exceptional host and spent his valuable time touring us proudly around the facility and pretty much gave us the run of the place. "The racing itself was fantastic with the Hollywood Pits including Aussie Dave Grubnic who now drives for the Kalittas and of course 'Pommie' Steve Read who drives for Santos. Four-second runs were on the cards from the word go! I've never been at a race track where an oil down occurs at 23:21 with an immediate clear-up attempt - if it hadn't been for a downpour then we would still have been watching racing at gone midnight but the rain did put an end to an otherwise fantastic day's racing. ©Eurodragster.com "Another great bunch of people we met were the team behind Cruzin magazine and the Nostalgia Drag Racing Series. Flamin' Wayne and Harry Rowsell gave us contacts galore - one of which was Doc Clayton, another ex-pat - but there's only so much of Australia you can cover in a short space of time so we're going have to go back to see those guys on our next visit! We went to visit the Drive Publishing offices and had a wonderful time swapping stories, photos and generally chatting about all things hot rod, nostalgia and drag racing! It was lush! Yet another thank you goes to Kerstyn Dance of Travelaire Tours and eight-second rear-engined Flash Dance fame who put together our tour to Brisbane and Willowbank. "We're putting together an information area which will include details of Willowbank Raceway, Travelaire Tours, Cruzin' magazine and the Nostalgia Drag Racing Series to display within our Wild Bunch pit for the forthcoming season - it's a link that we'll endeavor to strengthen over the years and you never know, if we win the lottery we could be doing a round of Wild Bunch Down Under! "We must also thank Darren Prentice and Kjell Petterson of Santa Pod Raceway as I know that Jeff Rice spent a lot of time with everyone at Pod and was so impressed with everything there and the way they took him under their wing whilst he was over here. Jeff spoke very fondly about everyone he met over here and at Mantorp - he was very insistent that anyone visiting Australia shouldn't be shy about contacting him so that they can enjoy the Willowbank experience in full! "As far as this season goes, I think I'm lucky enough to have secured the drive of Destiny's Angel again - well, at least until the other girls are less busy, and Darryl is just about to start a chassis rebuild on Chemical Reaction. When Chemical Reaction comes back out it will be tagged and running as a Junior Fueller, which will make three from the Bristol stable of slingshots: Backdraft, Chemical Reaction, and the long awaited return of Ramraider." Black Box repeat XWI lighting deal. 31st January: Paul Marston Racing have announced that principal sponsor Black Box Sound and Lighting will once again be offering a good deal on lighting of vehicles and displays at February's Xtreme Wheels International. "As per last year, as a special deal Black Box will light any car at the bargain price of £50 per car", says Paul Marston. "This proved extremely successful last year as every single car we lit won a trophy. We do not take any glory away from the cars but I am sure our lighting helped a little. There are also special deals available for stands with several cars which, dependent upon size, are cheaper than lighting individual cars. ©Eurodragster.com "If you are interested then please contact Black Box either by phone on 020 8597 4575 or mobile 07970 029424 and ask for Tony. We would appreciate people letting us know as soon as possible so that we can ensure that we have sufficient stock to cover needs. We will bring a surplus stock to the show but last year that was used up within ten minutes of arriving on build-up day. "We would once again like to thank the Xtreme Wheels International team and hope that our small offer will help to continue to promote the growth of this great show." Web site updates. 31st January: The Racing History page of the Andy Robinson Race Cars web site at www.robinson-race-cars.co.uk has been updated with some pictures of the Eurodragster.com Home and News sponsor's early racing career. "Many thanks to Jerry Cookson for finding the pictures for us even though it reminds us how long Andy has been racing", says Bob Roberts of ARRC. ©Eurodragster.com Feature: Turners prepare Carter TF. 30th January: If you were tuned in on 13th January you will have read that multiple MSA British Drag Racing Champion Rob Turner will be driving Andy Carter's spare Top Fuel Dragster at three events in 2006. Immediately after Autosport International the dragster was taken to the premises of Danny Bates and Dave Bryant's Adrenaline Race and Performance where Steve Turner is bringing the car up to 2006 spec. For the latest of Eurodragster.com's occasional series of features we spoke to Steve Turner about the work involved in turning a show car into a current-spec Top Fuel Dragster. ©Eurodragster.com Click here to check out our feature or click on the Features and Interviews link on the left-hand side of any Eurodragster.com page. Flynn fired up! 30th January: UK Super Pro ET racer Derek Flynn and the Gold RV Racing team have rebuilt his six-second dragster's engine and fired it up for the first time on Friday. "It was really neat to be back in the office again and to hear and smell that blown V8", says Derek. "Roll on April, we just can't wait!" "2005 was a steep learning curve for us, and whilst we eventually got the performance from our car we lacked consistency. We are all really excited about this year. We hope to add consistency to our performance, after all this will be the first year the team have had the same configuration to work with, only just though. "I don't think it is any secret that I have a very keen interest in Top Methanol and Top Fuel, with good friends in both the Turner Motorsport and Carter Motorsport camps. Both Gold RV and I are pleased to be involved with such winning combinations. It is going to be a really challenging and exciting year for both these great teams, and we would like to wish them all the best for 2006. Although very tempted to take a step up performance again this year, it just never really seemed to come together and deep down I feel that as a driver and a team we still have so much to learn before we can go to the next level of car. Also the level of professionalism and commitment required to run such beasts has been fully demonstrated to us by the likes of the Turners, Andy Carter and Dave Wilson, all of whom have assisted us and have shown us exactly what is required to win. Thanks all, it is very much appreciated. ©Eurodragster.com "It is great to see more sponsors in the National Championships in 2006 - thanks to everyone concerned in achieving this. Our Championships are some of the best in Europe, and represent excellent marketing opportunities for so many types of businesses. Gold RV not only sponsor our own race operations but we are proud to announce that our logos will again be carried by both the Turner Motorsport and Carter Motorsport teams and we have also continued with our track sponsorships as well. We would also like to take this opportunity to thank our many drag racing customers and friends (you know who you all are) and would like to wish them all the best for their respective Championships. "In our own Super Pro ET Championships the level of both performance and consistency achieved by so many teams is quite astonishing, and with bigger and faster fields cars each year we shall have to do very well if we are to finish higher than we have before. That’s our goal, along with hopefully being one of the quickest in our class. "Don't forget that Gold RV not only supply a great range of new and used American and Canadian Motorhomes at www.goldrv.co.uk but we also offer a complete range of race car trailers at www.goldrvracing.co.uk/trailers_racecar.htm. It it is still not too late to sort you out with a new rig for 2006." Swift snippets. 30th January: Santa Pod Raceway's track crew had the clear-up of all time to carry our before yesterday's Run What You Brung when they found the track underneath a coating of snow (right, picture courtesy and ©Martin Wallis). Needless to say they got down to the job in their usual manner and just before lunchtime we heard that the track was "Nearly ready". Eurodragster.com Swap Meet sponsor Jeff Bull has asked us to wish a very Happy Birthday to his wife Belinda Bull on behalf of himself and all of their friends. No sooner said than done, have a very Happy Birthday Belinda. Jeff and Belinda's Super Comp pick-up is ready to go with just sponsor signwriting to be completed. "The truck will be at Xtreme Wheels at the end of February and we will have a large selection of engine parts, transmissions, converters and Goodyear front runners and slicks for sale at special show prices", says Jeff. ©Eurodragster.com Robbie Grabham, Assistant Crew Chief of the UK's Freddy's Revenge NFAA altered, is also celebrating a birthday today, his fifteenth. Dave Grabham asked us to wish Robbie a very Happy Birthday on behalf of the crew, which we are very pleased to do. Don't forget that 23:59 UK tomorrow night (Tuesday) is the deadline for entry to the contest to win £1000 in sponsorship from Gleeson Wright Security. To enter the contest, and for the full rules and conditions, click here or click on the £1000 sponsorship to be won! link on the left-hand side of any Eurodragster.com page. Gay's early start. 28th January: UK Sportsman ET racer Nick Gay has already started testing for the 2006 season, having attended last weekend's first Run What You Brung at Santa Pod Raceway (right). Nick tells us that there are a number of changes to test. "My main aim for this year is to improve the reliability of the car, and to achieve this the engine is being rebuilt with the latest specification liners and the bottom end is currently being balanced at Owselbury Crank Shafts", says Nick. "We suffered with gearbox problems last year, so we went to Santa Pod last weekend to test a different linkage set up. Tthese tests proved inconclusive so further modifications are being made, which may include changing the gearbox to a Rover PG1 unit, as fitted to the MGF. ©Eurodragster.com "We have been fortunate that LUK have agreed to support our race programme making it possible for us to make this upgrade. I have been using their clutch assemblies for the past two seasons with no problems, although the engine is producing double the torque of the standard unit. The car will be displaying the LUK company logo at all events this season. I would recommend anyone fitting a new clutch to check out their local dealer to see if they stock the superior LUK range. We will continue to be supported in the 2006 season by Willans Harnesses, Regal Auto Sport, Owselbury Crank Shafts, Viking Garages, Kingstons and Jim Parker at Southampton Special Purpose Workshop." As if the racing doesn't keep him busy enough, Nick tells us that he is now DJing on local community radio station Skyline 102.5 FM. Nick's spot includes a motorsport-biased sports programme and he would be pleased to hear from any racers local to the Southampton area who would like a plug on the air. If you would like to star in Skyline then drop Nick a line at nick@skylinecommunityradio.co.uk. Another sponsor for Mr Spokehead! 28th January: UK Supertwin Fuel racer Ian Turburville has announced that the impressive roster of sponsors for his new bike Mister Spokehead has been joined by Ron Houniet's Fast Lane Racing. "Ron has helped all through the build of Mr Spokehead, which is fitting as he is also a friend of Phyllis McClure", says Turbo. "Ron has put on an impressive performance in recent years in the CMDRA, AHDRA and NHRA, and he also helps other teams tune their bikes. He has provided a steady stream of quality parts and advice for which I am very greatful. Welcome to the team Ron! "Thanks to Ron, the bike is nearly finished and on-track for early season testing as soon as it is warm enough for nitro - speaking of which! We now own the most awesome Supertwin drag bike in the country and will do our level best to impress this season, but we really do need just one more sponsor to join the team so if you fancy joining us, drop me a line. We need a barrel of Nitro at least to get us through the first half of the year and you will get access to the most spectacular promotional machine in the country! Building these machines is expensive in the extreme but so is running them so we could do with a little help!" If you can help Turbo with fuel then please drop him a line at topfuelturbo@ntlworld.com. Turbo adds that we should watch this space for the début of his new bike. We've seen the workshop shots and it is a stunning piece of kit - we can't wait to see the finished article. ©Eurodragster.com Swift snippets. 28th January: If any of the guys from the UK's Taz Racing, or anyone who knows them, are tuned in then Nick Connor needs to speak to them urgently on a subject of benefit. "I can be contacted on 07989 316408 or njconnor@hotmail.com", says Nick. ©Eurodragster.com See Hill for Coldfire. 28th January: UK Jet Funny Car pilot Martin Hill writes with news of interest to racers with Coldfire suppression systems fitted to their vehicles. "It is possible to get the Coldfire system SFI certified with some modifications", says Martin. "If you have a Coldfire system and are looking for SFI certification then please contact me at martin@fireforceracing.freeserve.co.uk." ©Eurodragster.com Martin says that he is looking to be able to supply Coldfire systems and recharge bottles, and to carry a full range of spares, in time for April's Easter Thunderball at Santa Pod Raceway, but that it depends upon interest in the product. "Prices have yet to be confirmed, but 5 lb and 10 lb bottles will be available", he says. If you are interested then please contact Martin on the above address. Carter tied up with RCS Cables. 27th January: UK Top Fuel Dragster team Carter Motorsport are proud to announce a new sponsorship deal with RCS Cables. The deal was completed at Autosport International earlier this month and will see RCS join the steadily growing list of companies keen to be involved with Andy Carter's high-profile team. "We are delighted to welcome RCS on board for 2006", says Carter Motorsport PR Dan Welberry. "We are really looking forward to working with the company as we seek to save weight and increase quality in every area of the car." RCS manufacture and supply the highest quality and best performance cables and controls to every type of Industry. With their knowledge and experience in design and development, they lead the way with cutting edge cable and control solutions. RCS offers a dedicated motorsport division designing and producing cables and controls to provide the best solution for every application. Gearshift, throttle, anti-rollbar and every type of control cable required can be manufactured to give racers an advantage over the competition leading to the success they desire. From Karts to Single Seaters, Sports to Saloon and Off-Road to Top Fuel Dragsters, RCS have the ability to enhance the performance of a race vehicle. You can find the RCS Cables web site at www.rcscables.com. ©Eurodragster.com Swift snippets. 27th January: We were very sorry to hear of the death of Barbara Parks, wife of NHRA founder Wally Parks, at the age of 82. Barbara had been fighting cancer for a long time and passed away on Wednesday. You can find a detailed obituary on the NHRA web site at www.nhra.com. Our deepest sympathies to Wally, and to Barbara's family and friends. ©Eurodragster.com Ian Marshall has been in touch to ask if any Eurodragster.com reader knows the current location of the classic 1970s Gladiator Funny Car, especially the Vega body (later Hustler and Rain City Warrior). If you can help then please call Ian on 01933 315236 (days). Carolina Classics expanding. 27th January: Nigel Taylor tells us that Hampshire's Carolina Classics have been up to their eyeballs in classic US cars in the last few months and that their premises have expanded. "We've had a 600 bhp Impala, 410 bhp El Camino, a twin tunnelled ram Dodge Challenger, a 440 Dodge Charger, an all steel Model B pick-up, a 7.6-litre '51 Chevy truck, '67 Fastback Mustangs, Trans Ams, Camaros, Buicks, Cadillacs, '57 Chevy, Corvettes etc. It's been manic!", says Nigel. Carolina Classics has had to expand again due to the amount of work coming in. We have now taken on a classic "We serve you fuel" station named The Enham Service Station in our local village, and we have just acquired another new venture, Grumpy's Paint and Custom body shop, which is now all up and running doing all House Of Kolor paints. We now have an old-fashioned panel beater doing a class job and a twenty one-foot paint oven ready for big jobs. If any Eurodragster readers need a price on a paint job, service, MoT, parts,diagnostics or any other yank-related probs then give either myself or Cliff Hepton a call on 01264 321170 and we will do our best to assist." Nigel says that last year's Charity Day, which was held at Thruxton, will be taking place again this year but will be a two-day event and may also include a truck show. "If any drag racers out there fancy a change from the norm, we are in talks with Thruxton officials to see what amount of action and noise we may be able to get away with", says Nigel. "Watch this space for details and dates as soon as we know!" Nixxon's new car. 26th January: Finnish Pro Stock racer Richard 'Nixxon' Sundblom will be contesting the 2006 season in a brand new Chevrolet Cobalt built by Tami Brander. The car will make its public début at the Finnish Hot Rod Association's American Car Show and Tuning Show in Helskini at Easter. "The car has again been built by Tami Brander of Brander Race Car", says Cobalt Motorsport team member Mikko Österberg. "Tami is Richard's Crew Chief and is a long time race car builder and driver. He last raced in his Pro Mod Mondeo which he also built himself, and he built last year's Cavalier." Miko says that the close competition in Pro Stock led to Richard acquiring a new car. "In the USA the new Cobalt body has proven to be faster than old Cavalier body - after all it was designed in a wind tunnel", he says. "Pro Stock is so tight that we need to do everything we can to win races. Every driver is a threat!" ©Eurodragster.com After Richard's successful appearance in Bahrain, where he set a new Personal Best of 7.04, the engine was sent to the USA to be modified for unleaded race fuel which is required under FIA rules. After the Easter unveiling in Helsinki Richard plans to test before the FIA Main Event at Santa Pod Raceway and then to contest the entire FIA Tour. Cobalt Motorsport have launched a very nice-looking new web site at www.cobaltmotorsport.com featuring details of last year's Cavalier and this year's Cobalt, team page, sponsor links, and a gallery including two excellent video clips of Richard in action in Bahrain. Swift snippets. 26th January: Further to last Sunday's Swift Snippet, NFAA Promoter Lawrie Gatehouse has been in touch to let us know that Fay Radcliffe and Jim Usher both earned their competition licences at Frank Hawley's drag racing school. Congratulations to Fay and Jim. ©Eurodragster.com Santa Pod Raceway will be exhibiting their ex-Ian Turburville Supertwin Fuel Bike at this weekend's London Motorcycle Show at Alexandra Palace. Rick Cuthbert of Trakbak Racing tells us that the aim is that visitors take one look at their Supertwin and at Martin Newbury's stunning Pro Stock Bike and say "Wow! Where can we see these running?". Web site updates. 26th January: Andrew Kirk's Drag, Rod and Classic Review magazine has been re-launched with a great new look. "There are a number of new zones and added features within the site including improved navigation", says Andrew. "Readers might be interested in checking out our in-depth story about data logging on a Top Fuel car, plus there's a report from last weekend's Grand National Roadster Show and a story covering a gorgeous 440 'Cuda". Check it out at www.drcreview.com. ©Eurodragster.com Meca Pro Test entry open. 25th January: Entry is now open for the Pro Test and Tune at Malmö's Meca Raceway on 6th-7th May, writes Christer Håård, President of Skånes Racers Ideella Förening. "The entry fee is €545 and the participants will get no spectators and peace and quiet in the pit area, fully-prepped race track, 3.8 second breakout, full security, pit electricity 380v/16 amp, lunch and breakfast for five team members included and additional personnel at low cost, and twenty free admission tickets for sponsors and so on", says Christer. ©Eurodragster.com "Last year we had more than twenty participants and a number of record-breaking runs in all classes. So to get off to a flying start, we will meet at Meca in the first weekend in May!" For more details or to enter the Pro test and Tune, check out the Tävlings anmälan link on the Meca Raceway web site at www.mecaraceway.se. Super Pro Tour attracts sponsor. 25th January: UK Super Pro ET racer Mark Flavell has the pleasure of announcing that Total Seal Piston Rings, through their European agent Performance Unlimited, have confirmed that they will post $2000 to the winner of the Super Pro ET tour to the Drachten Internationals on 14th-16th July. "If you are in the market for piston rings please call Dave Powell at Performance Unlimited on 01904 489332", says Mark. ©Eurodragster.com "There's a real gang of us setting sail in July, if like us you fancy trying something a little different and not too far from home, then get involved come and race, or come to support us at this inaugural Super Pro Tour. The line-up includes the best of British Super Pro and promises a great weekend's racing, now with the support from the guys at Total Seal and Performance Unlimited this will be a trip to remember." If you would be interested in going to Drachten then please drop Mark a line at mark@flavellwelding.co.uk. Swift snippets. 25th January: We were very sorry indeed to hear of the death of the legendary Stock, AFX, Funny Car and Pro Stock racer Dyno Don Nicholson in the USA yesterday at the age of 78. You can find an excellent obituary on the NHRA web site at www.nhra.com. Our deepest sympathies to Don's family and friends. ©Eurodragster.com Race cars sought for Charity fair. 25th January: Registered charity The Jetstream Club is seeking race cars to appear at a charity fair on Sunday 30th July at the old Speke Airport in Liverpool. Organiser Roy Coates says that although the display will have to be static, there would be no objection to engines being fired up. "We are a group of volunteers who own and maintain a Jetstream 41 aircraft", says Roy. "Our aim is to both preserve the aircraft and make it available to as many people as possible. Last year's fair was attended by over a thousand families and raised money not only for the Jetstream Project but also for our local Marie Curie Cancer Hospice and the RSPCA. Our real goal is to provide a good family day out and to get people and especially youngsters close to things they wouldn't normally see. ©Eurodragster.com "In addition to the Jetstream, we are expecting several historic fighter cockpit/nose sections, several helicopters both on the ground and in the air giving short pleasure flights, vintage and american cars and motorcycles, fun fair for the kids, Aviation Art exhibition, flight simulator vendors and other displays such as armed forces, police and fire brigade. "Since we cannot provide a closed track, all car exhibits must be static although engine runs would be welcomed - but they must be V8s! Anyone who can help us by bringing their race car would be very welcome." If you would like to take your race car along then please call Roy on 07721 638311, and for more information on The Jetstream Club check out their web site at www.jetstream-club.org. Thanks to Gary Cottingham for putting Roy in touch with us - Ed. SPR JD taking bookings. 25th January: If you are aged between eight and seventeen and want to try out Junior Dragster then Santa Pod Raceway's Junior Stock Dragster is available for hire, writes David Lloyd-Jones. "Hire can be for one day with full tuition at a Run What You Brung, or for two to four days at a Championship round", says David. "To race at a Championship meeting you must have completed your tuition and obtained your competition licence at a RWYB. A single day at a RWYB is £119 plus VAT which includes all equipment and attire, admission, sign on fee and tuition. Available early dates are 12th February, 18th February, 26th February, 12th March, 19th March and 25th March. Other dates are available throughout the year to suit birthdays etc. ©Eurodragster.com "A race meeting is £199 plus VAT including all equipment, attire, admission and race entry fee. Race meetings start with the Easter Thunderball on 14th-17th April, and the FIA Main Event on 26th-29th May." If you have any queries, or to book your Junior Dragster experience, contact David at david@santapod.com or telephone 01234 782828. Smokin' Thurston the Purfleet hero. 25th January: Regular Run What You Brung participant Jeff Thurston saved the day for drag racing at last weekend's Oval Racing Expo at Arena Essex in Purfleet, writes Paul Marston. In his usual organising rôle for what was formerly the Brentwood International Racing Car Show Paul had arranged for a couple of race cars to be on display, but they were unable to get through the crowds so Jeff stepped in. "Two spots were set aside on Sunday for some live track action from the drag racing representatives, but with the exhibition marquee very busy it soon became apparent that neither Danny Allen with his VW Pro Beetle nor I with the Whoopass Monza would be able to get outside for our demo slots", says Paul. "One of the great things about our beloved sport is that there is always a hero to save the day. Our hero was none other than Jeff Thurston and his nine-second 1967 Mustang. Ably assisted by my old mate and fellow Damn Yankees Car Club Member Paul Bentley Jeff put on an awesome demonstration of power with some of the longest rolling burnouts I have ever seen. No wonder Jeff is pleased with the 565 ci Big Block Ford he flew over the Pond last summer. Event organiser Vince O'Connor roped me into commentating whilst Jeff and Paul were out on track. It's fair to say Jeff did drag racing proud last Sunday, so once again on behalf of everyone there thank you, you made the difference. ©Eurodragster.com "The two race cars featured in the exhibition marquee matched perfectly in bright orange and drew quite a crowd over the two day event. The video wall went down well with both VW Pro and drag racing tutorials being shown. The Santa Pod race calendars, Xtreme Wheels flyers and all the other flyers we had on the drag racing stand flowed nicely over the two days. Judging by the response we received, I know for sure we will be seeing quite a few people re-visiting Santa Pod Raceway and Alexandra Palace. "Being a brand new format, everyone was eager to see what this new mix of exhibition and live action would produce. Saturday at the Brentwood Centre was always the quieter day. The Saturday at Arena Essex was comfortably busier and the day passed quickly, good weather is always welcome and the sun shone for most of the day. Sunday's crowd dwarfed Saturday's with the marquee packed all day. The Swap Meet area did some very brisk business with some real bargains to be had. "Next year's Oval Racing Expo will be bigger and better. The show was unaffected by the change of venue and in fact benefited from it straight away. Make a note not to miss it next year. As always our sincerest thanks to the event organisers for inviting us and treating us all so well, we will all look forward to next year's show." Web site updates. 25th January: Our good buddy Alan Currans has updated his excellent Acceleration Archive web site with a fifth page of artwork and photographs by Mark Gredzinski. "It's time for another mixed batch including pictures of cars progressing from artwork through to the finished result", says Alan. "There are a few oddball one-off pictures and some forgotten cars in there too. As usual the pictures are well-complemented by Mark's informed and very interesting captions". As ever we've eagerly checked out the update for ourselves and we can confirm that it is well worth a look in at www.theaccelerationarchive.co.uk. ©Eurodragster.com Hall of Fame set to open. 24th January: At next week's joint APIRA/SPRC Dinner Dance the first inductees will be admitted to the new British Drag Racing Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame has been set up to honour those who have made a significant contribution to drag racing, or who have been involved with the sport for a long period. Hall of Fame members will be presented with a glass trophy which incorporates an image of the late Allan Herridge and which is informally known as a "Bootsie". Bootsie #0000 is planned to form part of a display in a motorsport-related museum together with a wall plaque listing Hall of Fame members and their pictures, and it is also hoped that a race vehicle will form part of the museum display. Negotiations are ongoing with venues for the Hall of Fame and we will of course bring you its location as soon as it has been finalised. ©Eurodragster.com Six members will be inducted into the Hall of Fame annually, five from the UK and one international. The exception is this year's inaugural group which will have ten inductees, some of whom will be named at next week's joint APIRA/SPRC Dinner Dance with the others to be named at the Easter Thunderball at Santa Pod Raceway in April, Santa Pod's fortieth birthday event. Starting next year, nominations for the Hall of Fame can be sent by E-Mail to the Selection Panel for consideration. The Selection Panel is made up of representatives of Clubs, race officials, promoters and media. The Panel members are (in alphabetical order) Keith Bartlett, Stu Bradbury, Jerry Cookson, Phil Cottingham, Phil Evans, Roger Gorringe, Ian Marshall, Darren Prentice, Tog, and Lesley Wright. Stay tuned to Eurodragster.com for news of the first inductions to the Hall of Fame. Prestige date for Newbury. 24th January: UK Pro Stock Bike racer Martin Newbury will again be flying the flag for drag racing at the London Motorcycle Show at London's Alexandra Palace which runs from this Saturday (28th January) to 5th February. Martin and Cindy will be displaying their stunning Pro Stock Bike on the showpiece Motorcycle News stand. ©Eurodragster.com "After a good weekend at the National Motorcycle Show in Manchester, we came back to a phone call from Motorcycle News, asking if we would bring the bike along to Alexandra Palace to be part of their stand", says Cindy and Martin. "Although we are currently extremely busy, we felt that we couldn't refuse the offer as it is an ideal opportunity to involve a leading Motorcycle publication in the sport of drag racing and, you never can tell, they may take more interest in the sport over the coming year!" You can read more on the Psycleworkz web site at www.psycleworkz.com as well as news of including new products and special offers. Swift snippets. 24th January: Swedish Pro Mod racer Ulf Rapp hopes to contest all of this year's FIA Pro Mod rounds. His chassis is now toting an ex-Roger Johansson Mustang body and an ex-Jörgen Johansson Fulton 706 ci engine (right). Ulf tells us that he is also working on his bus as well as finding time to work on extending his house and look after wife Helen and family. ©Eurodragster.com We have received a few enquiries about E-Mails purporting to come from Eurodragster's BT Internet address which appear to contain a virus. Needless to say these E-mails are not coming from Eurodragster.com since all of our computers are protected. In addition we never send E-Mails with just "eurodragster.com" as the sender. If you get any dubious-looking E-Mails with three pictures attached then just delete them. The culprit could be anyone with our BT Internet address in their Address Book, which narrows it down very slightly... Our ISP Selfnet have apologised for this morning's downtime and explained that it was due to a power and UPS failure at their facility at 04:00 their time (Selfnet being located in Ohio). DSD Drag School success. 24th January: Paul Watson of Eurodragster.com Home and News sponsor Dynospeed Developments says that the inaugural DSD Drag School, which took place at the premises of Tangerine Transport Services Ltd in Wembley on Saturday, was a success. "We had more than twenty from the 200mph.org Bike Club attend", says Paul. "The class started at 10.00 and finished at about 15.30. We covered all the basics such as the track, lights, classes, timing tickets, mental attidude and awareness, basic bike set-up for different tracks and finally a quick guide to basic explanation and set up for the lock-up clutches. We also looked at the use of dataloggers as they seem to be becoming more popular in the Sportsman classes too. "I would like to thank Ken Cooper, who came in as a guest speaker, and Simon Payne, director of Tangerine, for all the help and advice and the use of his facilities." ©Eurodragster.com Bellhousings: the next generation. 24th January: "If it doesn't say Probell it's just a can" is the strapline for a new range of products on sale by Eurodragster.com Home and News sponsor Andy Robinson Race Cars. ©Eurodragster.com "Probell bellhousings are available to SFI 6.1, 6.2 and 6.3 standards for pretty well any drag racing class", says Bob Roberts of ARRC. "They feature many detail improvements over other products and represent the next generation in SFI-compliant bellhousings. The changes have been made as a result of user feedback and serve to improve performance and usability. For more information visit www.robinson-race-cars.co.uk or www.probellracing.com. "If you already have a Lakewood, McKinney, Browell or Trick Titanium can then ARRC are authorised to inspect, work on and recertify it." £1000 sponsorship to be won! 23rd January: Eurodragster.com Home and News sponsor Gleeson Wright Security has teamed up with Eurodragster.com to offer one racer £1000 in sponsorship for the 2006 UK National Championship season. The sponsorship will be awarded in the form of £125 payments to the chosen racer at each of this year's eight UK National Championship rounds. The sponsorship offer is open to Doorslammer racers in Super Modified, Super Pro ET, Pro ET, Sportsman ET, Super Comp, Super Gas and Super Street. The chosen racer will be supplied with Gleeson Wright Security decals and will be required to qualify and to make the first round of eliminations at each 2006 UK National Championship event. ©Eurodragster.com To be in with a chance of winning the sponsorship, all you have to do is to answer three simple questions and then in one sentence explain why you deserve the Gleeson Wright Security funding. To enter the contest, and for the full rules and conditions, click here or click on the £1000 sponsorship to be won! link on the left-hand side of any Eurodragster.com page. Entry closes at 23:59 UK time on Tuesday 31st January. Many thanks to Gary Gleeson and Matthew Wright for their generosity. Swift snippets. 23rd January: The UK's Wayne Nicholson is seeking contact details for US engine manufacturer Fontana. "I understand that Fontana make a front mount drive for a magneto for a big Chevy motor", says Wayne. "I know other companies such as RCD make them but they have back orders, and the Fontana item sounds more like the one we need". If you can help then please E-Mail Wayne at belindanicholson@btinternet.com or call 07818 014720 ©Eurodragster.com Luke Bennett tells us that he will be picking up his T-bodied Wild Bunch altered from engine sponsor RPI Engineering this week and has just a few jobs to finish on the car before its appearance at Xtreme Wheels at the end of February. The Bennett Racing web site at www.bennettracing.co.uk has been updated with more historical pictures. "Thanks to everyone who lets me use their photographs on the site", says Luke. Super Street Bike racer Jamie Sneddon kicked off the pre-season testing with mid eight-second passes in far from ideal conditions at Santa Pod Raceway's first Run What You Brung of the year yesterday. Eurodragster.com sponsors Nick Davies and Rob Loaring with their Havoc altered and Jon Webster with his Street Eliminator MG also attended. Web site updates. 23rd January: Swedish Pro Modified racer and race car builder Mats Eriksson has an updated web site at www.meracing.com. The very professional-looking web site covers both Micke's race car business and race car and features services on offer, biography, pictures of the chassis shop and Mats' race cars, videos including a clip of a burnout by the Green Goblin in the street, and more. ©Eurodragster.com The Zannetec Motorsports web site at www.bootsoop.freeserve.co.uk has been updated with the latest off-season gossip from the Bristol Doorslammers. ACU UK Pro Stock Bike Champion Dave Beck has launched a web site at www.davebeckracing.com. Dave's web site details both his racing activities and the products and services available from his performance parts business. WRE to hold SE discussion. 22nd January: Joint Eurodragster.com webcam sponsor Jon Webster says that he is to hold an informal meeting to discuss the future development of Street Eliminator at the Rushden premises of Webster Race Engineering at 11:00 am on Sunday 12th February, preceding the UK Riders' and Drivers' Meeting. Present, past and future Street Eliminator racers are invited. "The intention is to create an opportunity to discuss the future development of the class", says Jon. "Since Custom Car magazine has not been involved, a few of the racers have given informal but valuable input to help the class continue, and I would like to get as many of us together as possible to formally create an Association or Club so that any information that is required or needs to be relayed can go through the relevant channels, thus helping everyone concerned and making it easier for potentially-interested parties to obtain the information they require. ©Eurodragster.com "The class rules have now been ratified by the MSA and have been included in the White Book so they will now be widely available. This also means that future rule changes now have to go through due process for inclusion and with twelve months' notice unless safety-related. "More information will be discussed at the meeting". For more information call Webster Race Engineering 01933 315236. Swift snippets. 22nd January: UK Nostalgia Fuel Altered Association racer Dave Grabham and the Freddy's Revenge team have taken advantage of the mild weather to follow their traditional Christmas/New Year fire-up by stripping and painting the altered's chassis (right). The team are seeking funding for a new transmission and would still be pleased to hear from anyone with any information on the current whereabouts of the Boss Cat altered. Also on the subject of the NFAA, Promoter Lawrie Gatehouse tells us that Jim Usher of The Mob AA/FA team and Fay Radcliffe of the Burning Desire BB/FA team are headed to Frank Hawley's Racing School for initial training prior to earning full race licences. "Jim is slated to be the shoe for The Mob for the 2006 season", says Lawrie. UK Supertwin Fuel racer Ian Turburville says that legendary piston manufacturer Arias have joined his impressive roster of sponsors, joining S&S Cycle, Custom Chrome, Red Line Oil, Zodiac, Jims, Gates, Sprint Dampers, Pro-Mod engineering, Curbishley Automotive and King Racing. "Thanks guys, couldn't do it without you, welcome to the Turbo Ville team!", says Turbo. ©Eurodragster.com Jaap and Henriette Selles have been in touch to tell us that Gerd Habermann Racing Team's Jet Dragster and Jet Funny Car will be appearing at the Drachten Nationals on 16th-18th June, marking the return of jets to the Netherlands after an absence of more than twenty years. You can find more details on the eXplosion web site at www.explosiondragracing.com/JetCars.htm. NAST Press Release. 22nd January: The UK's National Association of SuperTwins is delighted to be putting the finishing touches to its plans for Xtreme Wheels International at London's Alexandra Palace on 25th-26th February. "We’ve got a good selection of bikes from the Championship series to display on the stand this year", says NAST Vice Chair Les Harris. "Xtreme Wheels is brilliant, it gives the public a chance to get right up close to these machines and to talk to some of the guys and girls who build and race them. Later in the year, when the racing season starts people can see, and hear, us all in action at Santa Pod and Shakespeare County Raceways but Xtreme Wheels is special - we love getting up close and personal!" NAST has run the SuperTwins Championship Drag Race Series since 1993. There are four racing classes all for twin-cylinder motorcycles, starting with Street bikes which are technically road-legal and gradually getting more extreme through Street Modified and Top Gas Classes to Top Fuel where anything goes. Each race bike is a hand-built, unique original. Currently competing are bikes based on Ducati, Suzuki, Yamaha, Cagiva and Harley Davidson motors there are even some scary two-strokes out there! Each bike reflects the creativity, imagination, skills and experience of its owners and builders. Many SuperTwin race bikes have elements and components designed, modified or tuned by other Club members as well as the owner/rider. Everyone pulls together 'til we're out on the track...then it gets serious! With just two wheels and two cylinders these machines cover a quarter mile in well under ten seconds - 9.98 is the Street record crossing the line at 139 mph and the quickest twin ever is 7.22/186...double quick! Make a point of finding the SuperTwins stand at Xtreme Wheels...it'll be worth a second look! ©Eurodragster.com Web site updates. 22nd January: The official web site of the UK's Showtime Fuel Funny Car has been updated with news of a new sponsor, an account of the FC's recent double-handed appearance at Autosport International, and a very interesting Technical Spec page. Check it out at www.showtimeracinguk.com. 2005 ACU UK Super Street Bike Champion Steve Venables has launched a web site at www.venracing.co.uk. Ven's very nicely-designed web site features a biography, technical details of his seven-second bike, list of achievements, race calendar and sponsor list. Andy Field has updated his web site with an excellent video clip of a couple of very rapid passes by brother Steve's Black Pig Wild Bunch altered. The video clip is mostly made up of on-board footage and can be found at www.mankymonkeymotors.co.uk/hotrods.htm. ©Eurodragster.com Our good buddies Johnny Hall and Bill Felstead have changed the name of their race car construction company to B+J Race Cars, and have therefore changed their web site address to www.bjracecars.com. The Driver Blogs section of the National Hot Rod Association web site at www.nhra.com includes Top Fuel Dragster racer Doug Herbert's account of his recent trip to the UK, complete with pictures of Eurodragster.com Swap Meet sponsors Jeff and Belinda Bull and Kenny and Bev Coleman of EDA. Scary out of the frame. 20th January: We were very pleased to hear from UK Funny Bike racer Sarah Jane Head that the supporting metal framework has been removed from her right ankle, which was very badly damaged in her top end crash at the 2004 Easter Thunderball. Scary is already walking on the relatively unsupported ankle with the assistance of a stick and she says that she should be able to walk on it unaided. "It hurt a bit when they unscrewed some of the rods because they were through the bone", Scary told Eurodragster.com yesterday. "I was shouting and screaming and someone almost got a kick! I've now got a thin cast on my ankle. We have just been to see if I can get some Doctor Martens modified to put zips in the back so that I can slide my foot into them. So I will be wearing DMs at the Dinner Dance in February!" ©Eurodragster.com Scary still needs treatment on her right arm and she said that this may entail another trip Down South to Stanmore. In the meanwhile she and partner Dave Varey are getting used to their new puppy, or more accurately wolf-in-training, Lupo and preparing their two Pro Mod Bikes. "There is work to do on both bikes", said Scary. "Dave's bike has got bodywork and nose fairing, but he has to work on the engine and he's had no time to do it. That might be out at Easter. My bike has to be painted and the engine has to be stripped and parts sent to Roger Upperton and Dave Branch. Neil Midgley is going to ride my bike to put some numbers on it just in case we have to sell it." Mickey Thompson back UK Championships. 20th January: Lee Child of joint Eurodragster.com links sponsor LA Racing Parts has announced a contingency sponsorship deal with Mickey Thompson Tires for six of this year's eight UK National Drag Racing Championship rounds. £50 cash will be presented to the winners in Super Gas, Super Street, Super Pro ET, Super Street Bike and 9.50 Bike at the Power Nationals, Easter Thunderball, Shakespeare Nationals, SPRC Summernationals, Custom Car Magazine Allstar Nationals and UK National Finals. Racers must be using Mickey Thompson tyres, must carry MT decals, and must present to LA Racing Parts proof of purchase of the tyres from an official UK distributor. "The deal was put together by Roger Everson and Nigel Underhill of Avon Motorsport", says Lee Child. "Nigel has been involved in motor racing for a long time and has developed a big interest in drag racing. I am very grateful to Nigel for his assistance and technical advice at the track for several years." Mickey Thompson Tires will also be sponsoring the Japanese Street Fighter Championship at Rotorstock at Shakespeare County Raceway at the end of May. The winner and runner-up of the event will receive cash awards again subject to running Mickey Thompson tyres, carrying decals, and presenting proof of purchase to LA Racing Parts. Cannon back where he belongs! 20th January: The UK's Chris Hannam has had a strong urge to get back on a race bike since he sold his Top Fuel Bike to Athol Williams in New Zealand, and he says that he has finally cracked and acquired a Funny Bike and also plans to build a new Top Fuel Bike as well as jointly campaign a Super Street Bike. "I wasn't sure if I should sell the Top Fuel Bike but I did", says Cannon. "In the meantime I have been doing track days in my 600 bhp Evo which is entertaining but didn't replace the desire for a bike. Lots of things have happened since the bike went. The main thing was Neil Midgley saying that he was quite happy to be Crew Chief on the Fueller, now I had a Crew Chief and no bike. This is when I started activley looking over my options. A Pro Mod car was an option, as I think the Pro Mods are awesome, and I even spoke to Andy Robinson at length, but the crew issue backed me out of this one. "Next up was build a new Fuel Bike. I made the neccesary calls and was to build a Larry McBride/Jimmy Brantley clone, but to get out in time was going to cost more than I was willing to pay. Having spoken with Frank Bratchvogel and Midgo I decided on a different route and have bought Tom Perry's methanol-injected Funny Bike with three motors and a ruck of spares with more if I want them. The plan is to race for fun and construct a Fuel bike alongside the Funny Bike with the bulk of the work done by myself, Midgo, Frank, and Tony Kershaw. With Tom Perry also building a Fuel Bike things look good. "The main aim is to go racing on a budget and try to pop a six on the Funny Bike as there ain't any chance of beating the Funny Bike front runners with me on, the bike. We now have the bike in my workshop ready to adapt to suit me. We are going to cut the body to suit me, then the bike will go off to Dave Branch for a new seat rail and footpeg move and the installation of Dave's own air slider clutch. Whilst the bike is there Dave will be making drawings as rumour has it he is to copy my frame for Dave Holland. In the meantime I will be taking the bodywork to to Martin at Curbishley Automotive where I hope he will work his magic on the paint. ©Eurodragster.com "If that wasn't enough I have also started a project with Jack at Holeshot Racing. We are to build a seven-second Hayabusa Super Street bike, this is my bike but Jack will ride it and hopefully get it in to the sevens. I will then ride the bike from time to time at selected events to chase my goal of an eight-second pass and 220 mph on flyers. This bike will be top spec and will be for sale at the end of the year. "Funds permitting we will hopefully start to build the new Fuel bike with full spec McBride motors and fuel system so we can hit the ground running, and all this on top of work - I just don't know how it all fits in. "Lastly I would like to thank Tom Perry and Andy Dawson for their part, but the big shout has to go to John Dellar of Aviation Services and Logistics who, from calling him from the contact details on the King Racing web site on the afternoon of Monday 9th January had the bike in my workshop at 9:00 am on the 17th January and at a price which was twenty five per cent less than some and seventy five per cent less than other quotes. John has his own planes and also has his own race car team and is a very big player flying race cars and bikes around the world. John can be contacted on 07941 732211 or by E-Mail at avsal@hotmail.com." Swift snippets. 20th January: Thanks to Ann-Marie Lazenby for letting us know that UK Street Eliminator racers can now register for 2006 on-line on the class' official web site at www.streeteliminatoruk.com. Luke Bennett has been in touch to ask for Eurodragster.com readers' help in locating the Bennett Family's Phantasm Ford Pop (right). "The last I heard, it was in a breakers' yard somewhere in Cornwall", says Luke. "If anyone knows then please get in touch, mainly those of you in Cornwall!". If you can help then please drop Luke a line at bennett418@btinternet.com. ©Eurodragster.com UK Junior Dragster racer Matthew Seamarks tells us that having sold their previous race car, Gingerman Racing will be fielding a new 2006 Half Scale Superlite ST Dragster this season. "We received the car yesterday", says Matthew. "We have upgraded the motor to a JR Race Car 8.90 motor". Matthew thanks The Curry Garden of Church Street in Rushden for continued sponsorship and adds that other sponsors are in the pipeline. The team will be raising money with Cancer Research UK at selected 2006 events. Eurodragster.com Home and News sponsor and Pro Stock Bike racer Paul Watson is headed to Frank Hawley's Drag Racing School next month. "Apparently Angelle Seeling and Antron Brown will be there, how cool is that?", says Grumpy. The Two Ians. 20th January: Two Ians will be representing UK Street Eliminator at Xtreme Wheels International at Alexandra Palace on 25th-26th February. Both Ian Jackson and Ian Hook will be displaying their street-legal race cars at the London venue. Ian Jackson will be débuting the latest incarnation of his 2004 Championship-winning 1964 Corvette (right), now fitted with a twin-turbo 427 ci Small Block Chevy. "Some of the competitors are making in excess of 1400 hp and it required some radical action to compete with the best", explains Ian. "At Xtreme Wheels we will debut our 'work of art' equipped with twin turbos and intercooler. Having invested so much time and money into the development of the car it is exciting that we are able to unveil the finished article to a large and enthusiastic audience at February's show." The Stingray is comprised largely of carbon fibre sitting on a Webster Race Engineering modified chromoly chassis. Double adjustable front and rear shocks allow the car to pitch when over 1500 ponies are let loose on the tarmac. A pair of ceramic ball bearing Turbonetics turbo chargers sit on WRE-fabricated stainless headers with Turbonetic wastegates controlling the boost. Spent gasses are spat down a dual four-inch exhaust and through Flowmaster silencers whilst the boosted air travels back through the car to an air over water intercooler fed from an ice-box in the boot. Frozen air is then sent back to the engine (picking up water injection on the way) before passing the 'Godzilla' dump valve and Wilson throttle body and then finally hitting the 427 small block via the FAST fuel injection system. ©Eurodragster.com Ian 'Fatty' Hook will be displaying his more traditional 1934 Ford Coupe hot rod. The 575 ci Big Block Ford-powered car is also a winner having brought back the 2005 Toyo Tires King of Europe title from Belgium last June. The car was also one of four to represent the UK at the World Street Race in Louisiana last year - a well-travelled machine indeed. "We don't have the budgets or the equipment of many of the teams in Street Eliminator but we do have bundles of enthusiasm and the abilities within our team to do much of the work ourselves - the '34 is almost entirely home-built, from chassis to paint" says Ian Hook. "We'll be doing our best this year to defend our King of Europe title and to improve on our 8.36 best ET. I'm pleased that we have the opportunity of the Xtreme Wheels Show to present our car and the Street Eliminator class to the interestingly mixed audience that this event attracts." Tickets are now on sale with discounts offered to advance purchasers. Go to xwi.crash.net/products.asp purchase on-line or call the Credit Card Hotline on 01483 236363. See ARRC for Firefox. 20th January: Racers should be aware that SFI 17.1 fire systems are mandatory in all FIA classes which require the fitting of a system and also in cars running nitro, writes Bob Roberts of Eurodragster.com Home and News sponsor Andy Robinson Race Cars. In 2006 this will include Pro Mod and the Nostalgia Fuel Altered Association for the first time. ©Eurodragster.com "Compressed gases are regarded as hazardous goods which must be declared and shipped separately to non-hazardous", says Bob. "It will be much more difficult and expensive for racers to arrange to purchase these kits from the USA themselves and to date there is no manufacturer outside the USA with SFI approval. Andy Robinson Race Cars have now been appointed official distributor for Firefox systems and will be arranging a shipment of systems to arrive in February, in plenty of time to be fitted for the racing season. We are planning on keeping a spare bottle in stock at all times so that we will be able to help racers who have discharged bottles and need an emergency replacement. "We are in the early stages of discussing the recertification procedure when this is required. Please call for pricing, or you can find more details on our web site www.robinson-race-cars.co.uk." Web site updates. 20th January: 2005 FIA European Top Fuel Dragster Champion Lex Joon has updated his web site with an 2005 season comparative performance analysis. Check it out on the Latest News page at www.lexjoonracing.nl. ©Eurodragster.com Nataas' dilemma. 19th January: Norwegian Top Fuel Dragster racer Thomas Nataas (right) has told Eurodragster.com how he found himself the unwitting victim of organised crime. Two Edvard Munch paintings, the world-famous The Scream and Madonna, which were stolen from a museum in Oslo, were hidden in Thomas' Bat bus by one of the gang, leaving Thomas in between a rock and a hard place and in fear of his life. "One of the accused worked for me some years ago", Thomas told Eurodragster.com. "I heard from him occasionally after that. In August 2004 I saw him and he asked if the bus was in the usual place. I said "Yes" and didn't give it any thought. The gang stole the paintings, and he put them in the bus, and then some of the other robbers came and moved them later. The gang was caught in a big bank robbery in which a policeman was killed." Thomas explained to the police that although he knew that the pictures were in his bus, he could not go to them because he knew that the gang would quickly work out who had told them. "This was a big organised crime gang, very serious people", he said. "They had done big bank robberies as well as stealing the pictures. I knew that the pictures were in my bus but I was in fear of my life if I spoke up. I told this to the police and they understood." ©Eurodragster.com With the trial approaching Thomas has been on the receiving end of a lot of media attention and he took the chance to tell his side of the story. "I had to go on TV and in the newspapers to explain what happened", he said. "I gave them what they wanted, and it gave me the chance to tell my story. I said that anyone in that situation would do the same. It could be one picture, or it could be a hundred pictures, but your life is more important. It can happen to anyone if you know the wrong people." The trial will commence shortly and Thomas is not concerned about the result. "The police understood that I was an innocent victim, and now I have to explain it in court for the judges", he said. "I had nothing to do with it, and I have never been in trouble before - this was the only time in my life that I have been spoken to by the police. So I am not worried about the outcome. It has been a year and a half and I am glad that it will be over soon." Metamorphosis to a two-car team. 18th January: The UK's Metamorphosis team have had plenty to be getting on with over the closed season, with work done on the the eponymous Pro ET Camaro and the addition of a 2006 Mustang which is headed for Sportsman ET. "We hope that Metamorphosis will be running better and more consistently this year", says Mike Lacey. "We've gone with a stiff sidewall tyre as we tested at the end of last year with inner tubes with very good results, proving that a heavy car like mine needs a harder tyre. The car has stock wheel arches and not tubed. Launching was a real handful last year, with the tyres just about coming of the rims. Shocks were another problem as I got through three sets! The first set was Monroe gas, but with worn leaf springs the car was collapsing at the rear and rubbing on the arches. Then I fiitted some air shocks which I had lying around. They fixed the wheel arch problem but they didn't work that well. A new set of leaf springs and Caltracs, Moser spool, and a trip to Spax who made me a set of adjustables and they worked better but still not right. I've just bought a set of Strange double adjustables, and they'd better work! So hopefully the rear end is fixed. ©Eurodragster.com "The intake is all changed. The tunnel ram -dinosaur - has gone and a Team G with QFT 1050 Dominator is now proudly aboard. A lightweight steering box and away we go...nines? Well, we are hopeful. Our best ET so far was a 10.140 at Shakespeare County Raceway last October, with the inner tubes." Mike's wife Anna will be driving the new Metamorphosis II Mustang (right). "As if our hands weren't full enough already - we badly need crew!", says Mike. "It seems that we will be OK for Easter as my good friend Nobby Hills has offered to help out while preparation continues on his Fuel car." Mike says that the sponsorship from Alleyjax continues and indeed has widened as, as previously reported here on Eurodragster.com, the company is sponsoring the 2006 UK National Championships. "We wish all racers the best for the coming season", says Mike. Chaos in the NFAA. 18th January: Nostalgia Fuel Altered Association Promoter Lawrie Gatehouse will be fielding his own nitro-burning altered in 2006. Lawrie hopes to début the Chaos stretched Topolino at Easter in the hands of a driver yet to be confirmed (I've got a race licence - Ed). "The 125-inch Chromoly SFI 10.1D chassis and Topolino body were acquired from Phil Cornish", says Lawrie. "The mill will be a 417 ci Donovan sporting Alan Johnson heads and an 8-71 Littlefield blower topped off by a nostalgic 'Shotgun' injector (right). Drive will be via a two-speed Lenco with a Crower three-disc clutch pack, to the nine-inch Ford fully-floating rear end, activating thirty six-inch Weld Pro double beadlock wheels. "Body mods are currently being made, chassis brackets being fabricated and a myriad other details have to be dealt with, all of which take time and money." ©Eurodragster.com The construction work is being carried out by Frank Griffin and Ollie Burn and crew, the latter being responsible for crew duties in 2006 along with those of The Mob. "The engine and drivetrain combination is aimed to be interchangeable with that of The Mob", says Lawrie. "The common parts ensure that spares are available if needed." A paint scheme is being designed and it is hoped that the car will be ready to join the NFAA wars at Easter. "The aim is to entertain and have fun at our seven scheduled meetings in the 2006 series", says Lawrie. Frost adds sponsor. 18th January: UK Street Eliminator racer Andy Frost has announced a sponsorship deal with Nimbus Motorsport. "We will be using a number of products from the Nimbus range including Hyperco coil springs, DEI and Thermo-Tec thermal tuning products, Nimbus heat shields and of course Torco oil products", says Andy. "In addition, Torco transmission oil is now available from Penn Autos/Andy Frost Race Transmissions. ©Eurodragster.com "One thing is for sure, we pride ourselves on using the best products from around the world. This tie-up with Nimbus Motorsport will ensure that we will have the very best equipment to carry on as we left off last season. A huge thanks to Steve Clark for his foresight and investment in one of the premier street legal race teams in Europe." You can find the Nimbus Motorsport web site at www.nimbusmotorsport.com. Swift snippets. 18th January: Germany's Kath Brothers Drag Racing Team celebrate their fifteenth anniversary this year and will continue to contest Pro Modified and Comp Eliminator. "We changed to carbon fibre brakes and changed nitrous bottles to save weight on the Pro Mod", says Torsten Kath. "We have changed from a Powerglide to a four-speed Lenco with clutch on Jürgen's car. We are staying in AN/A but should be much faster". ©Eurodragster.com Bob Roberts has been in touch to remind racers that Eurodragster.com Home and News sponsor Andy Robinson Race Cars can inspect and re-certify SFI-rated Stroud racing equipment. "We can also arrange repairs if we cannot re-certify", says Bob. NSCC AGM set for March. 18th January: The National Street Car Challenge Annual General Meeting and Trophy Presentation will be held at Hacketts York House Hotel in Blackpool on Saturday 11th March, says HotRod Gazette Editor Shaun Wilson. "The function room is booked from 7:00 pm with a bar until 1:00 am", says Shaun. "The meeting will begin at 7:30 pm. All are welcome to attend to discuss the forthcoming season's rule book, events and ideas. Trophies will be presented after the AGM and a general night of revelry is assured for all. ©Eurodragster.com "The hotel is offering discounted rooms to HotRod Gazette readers at £25 for Bed and Breakfast or £29 including evening meal. The venue is on the promenade at Blackpool, so pretty easy to find!" You can read more at www.hotrodgazette.com. Santa Pod in London! 18th January: Santa Pod Raceway, the home of European drag racing, will be at London's Alexandra Palace on 25th-26th February for Xtreme Wheels International, the UK's premier display of extreme cars, bikes and motoring madness! In recent years the Northamptonshire raceway, with its roots in the drag racing and the Hot Rod world, has seen dramatic growth in popularity from the import and modified scene. Santa Pod's Run What You Brung speed trials attract more than 15,000 cars to the track each year. Santa Pod Raceway's major presence at Xtreme Wheels International reflects the show's importance as the Capital's only international event to attract, under one roof, the very best exhibits from all sectors of customisation and performance. The Santa Pod display will include their own Top Fuel Dragster and Funny Car, and Fireforce 3, Martin Hill's jet fighter-powered car which achieved a speed of 336 mph to establish a new world record. "Xtreme Wheels International is a great show for motoring enthusiasts and families alike and a show where we simply have to have a presence", says David Lloyd-Jones, General Manager of Santa Pod Raceway. "It's one of the largest and best shows to be involved with and past experience has shown that being a part of what's going on is highly valuable in helping to promote Santa Pod Raceway as well as the world of drag racing." Advance tickets for the XWI 2006 show are available at www.xwishow.com or by calling the Credit Card Hotline on 01483 236363. ©Eurodragster.com Web site updates. 18th January: Our good buddy Alan Currans has updated his excellent Acceleration Archive with a third page of Kelvin Fagan's photographs. "The accent is very much on two wheels", says Alan. "There are pictures of some of the American riders who visited us in days of yore including Sam Wills, Bo O'Brochta, Ken Annesley and Marion Owens. The UK's top riders are not forgotten with shots of John Hobbs, Johnny Munn, Rod Pallant, Brian Johnson, Eamon Hurley and Paul Rose. There are even a few pictures of cars to round off the page". You can check out Kelvin's superb pictures at www.theaccelerationarchive.co.uk. ©Eurodragster.com The Topnitro fan site at www.topnitro.co.uk has been updated with a feature on Simon Barlow's Outlaw Anglia Orange Pop. Sheavills gets real. 17th January: UK Top Fuel Dragster racer Barry Sheavills says that he is unlikely to be racing in 2006, or for the foreseeable future, unless he secures "Sponsorship or a lottery win" in the next month or two. "For the first time in my racing career, I am being realistic", he says. "When we started Fansfueler we realised that we wouldn't fund the whole Tour from pledges", Barry told Eurodragster.com at Autosport International. "We also needed to find corporate sponsors, but most doors are closed. We're no further forward now than we were three years ago. I am very grateful to everyone who pledged and made Fansfueler a success: we could cover the team running costs on pledges received but not the costs of the car itself. But I can't afford to keep promoting Fansfueler because that in itself takes money, so it is on hold until we can find corporate money." Barry said that the rising cost of Top Fuel is an issue. "Each year you're needing to find more and more money as people get more and more better parts from the USA", he said. "I don't know how I am going to get a state-of-the-art car to compete with Urs Erbacher, Tommy Möller, Thomas Nataas in Rune's car, and the others. So that pretty much looks like it for this year." Barry told Eurodragster.com that he is frequently asked why he does not hire a drive. "I finished at the top, and I'm not going to be able to get back there", he said. "Peter Knight, John Wright and now I have realised just how much it takes to get to the top. I'm not going to be there just to make up the numbers. I have won Championships, and when you get up there the only way is down." Barry said that he feels the best option may be to become a Team Owner. "Sponsors are looking for younger and prettier people so maybe I should run a team", he said. "I am in total limbo at the moment. I have had other offers but not Top Fuel, and where do you go after you've driven Top Fuel? I have spent more than half of my life drag racing but this is the first time I have realised it's slipping away a bit." Stripping The Strip. 17th January: Lee Child of LA Performance Services recently went to The Strip at Las Vegas and says that he discovered a lot about track prep which will be put to use at Shakespeare County Raceway this season. "Chris Blair, the Senior Director of Drag Racing, made me feel very welcome" says Lee, who jointly sponsors Eurodragster.com's Links pages through LA Racing Parts. "Chris allowed me to access all areas. On arrival at track on the Friday evening, Track Manager Mark Dawson introduced me to some of the staff and gave a brief on what was happening. The weekend's event would start with Midnight Mayhem, a Test and Tune for street cars and bikes starting at 8.00 pm and finishing at 1.00 am, which l must say was great to witness. I left the track at 1.30 am and after five hours' sleep I was back for a 7.00 am start for track prep for the PSCA Street Car Supernationals (Pro Street is Pro Mod with lights and weight). ©Eurodragster.com "Mark's knowledge of track prep is awesome, with a history of prepping many NHRA tracks from the National Trail Raceway to Pomona. He is now full-time at Las Vegas. The job was to scrape the track, which was done in a completely different way l have never witnessed before, with no heat involved (right). With sweeping and gold dust laid, a lot of sledging followed. Cliff, who is also involved in track prep at LVMS, has been prepping tracks for the last twenty nine years. He asked me "What dos the track feel like" and l said "Just awesome". And then they glued it. Never in my life before have l feared for my shoes, the track was so sticky that it was catching the drivers out. "The saying "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" is not the case. l am looking forward to putting into place what l have learned, and to keep the track surface at Shakespeare County Raceway improving all the time. A big Thank You must go to all the guys for making me feel so welcome at The Strip: Chris, Mark, Cliff, Nick, David and Nathan. These are great guys." Radcliffe aims for NFAA. 17th January: Major upgrades are being carried out on Pete Radcliffe's Burning Desire blown-alcohol altered to make the car eligible for the Nostalgia Fuel Altered Association in 2006, writes Fay Radcliffe. "The upgrades include chassis work, a completely new engine (right) and clutch, bodywork, and better living quarters!", says Fay. "Mark Norton came to tag the chassis in November. We were concerned about the actual metal used for the chassis, so it was a little tense in the unit as if it wasn't chromoly then we would have had nothing to work with! Luckily every thing went smoothly, and the car will be tagged to spec for the first meeting in 2006. ©Eurodragster.com "The new motor is a 526 cubic inch twin-mag Stage 6 Keith Black with a rear gear 14.71 blower, and running an 110/1100 fuel pump. "We are aiming to be out for the Easter Thunderball at Santa Pod, but whether time will be on our side is another question!" You can find out more about Burning Desire on the team's official web site at www.burning-desire-drag-racing.moonfruit.com. Terri's diary and diet. 17th January: UK Pro ET racer Terri Lee says that the off-season is as busy as the race season, if not more so. Terri's blown Escort Van is to be the subject of a regular magazine feature and the team are having new bodywork painted as well as finding weight to shed from the race car. "The off-season started off with half a dozen meetings with people regarding the future of Terri Lee Racing", says Terri. "I can't divulge all of our plans at present, but the first which worked out very well is with Fast Car magazine. We met with them to talk about a feature on the van and now they are going to do a month-by-month diary on the team this year. I am very very excited about that so thanks to Gez and Trevor and the rest of Fast Car for having the faith in us. ©Eurodragster.com "Our other success was with Sparky of Wackyshack, who is going to lay a new paint scheme on all the fresh panels of the van once Ian and Richard have finished making them all out of fibreglass and carbon fibre. The main thing we are concentrating on is shedding weight, and Ian has made it very clear that that includes me as well! "You can read all the details on our web site at www.terrileeracing.co.uk." Swift snippets. 17th January: Ann-Marie Lazenby has become Membership Secretary and Treasurer of the UK's Street Eliminator class. You can contact Ann-Marie at lazenbyam@aol.com or on 07754 394908 for membership renewals, copies of the 2006 rulebook, or updates to the racer database. Most recent renewals sent to Dale Reardon have been forwarded to Ann-Marie; if you are unsure about your membership then please get in touch with Ann-Marie. UK Top Fuel Dragster racer Andy Carter is to be featured in this week's issue of the UK's Motorsport News, which is published tomorrow, and tomorrow's issue of the UK's Daily Telegraph. ©Eurodragster.com Nigel and Julian of Santa Pod Raceway's radio station Nitro FM would like to hear from readers with suggestions for enhancements to their broadcasts. "We want constructive ideas, and all ideas which can be achieved will be added", says Nigel. "This season we would like more teams to come on the radio and let us know what they are doing". If you have any suggestions then please E-Mail Nigel at nigelfitzmaurice2000@yahoo.co.uk. If you were tuned in just before Christmas you will remember that we published a feature on ICE Automotive's Havoc blown-alcohol altered. We have now updated the feature with an extensive Photo Gallery, which was held back in an agreement with Custom Car magazine. You can view the additional pictures of Havoc by clicking here, or by clicking on the Features and Interviews link on the left-hand side of any Eurodragster.com page. International rescue! 17th January: Glenn Ramsden of UK Event Safety has been in touch to thank Werner Habermann and family for their help when he and Ronnie Picardo took two of Ronnie's jet-powered vehicles to the Essen Motor Show in Germany. "The artic tractor unit developed a clutch fault over two hundred kilometres from Stuttgart", says Glenn. "We contacted Rico Anthes who in turn called upon the assistance of the Habermanns, so we managed to get the exhibition vehicles to the show in time. The Habermanns' generosity has been outstanding, not only did they feed and accommodate two weary travellers who had gone thirty eight hours without sleep, but they also took Ronnie's trailer with the show vehicles to Stuttgart and then took the trailer back to Frankfurt for safe keeping!" ©Eurodragster.com Glenn says that Werner and Timo (right) Habermann, along with fellow German racer Jürgen Schomann, are kindly repairing the tractor unit in Germany ready for Ronnie to return later this month. "Ronnie and I would like to say just how helpful the Habermann family were over the days we were with them", says Glenn. "Had it not been for them we would have still been struggling, and we would have missed the entry for the event. A very big Thank You goes to Werner, Heidi, Timo and Dennis for their hospitality (and vast quantities of Bacardi!), and to Jürgen Schomann for his technical expertise." Web site updates. 17th January: The Drag, Rod and Classic Review magazine at www.drcreview.com has been updated with a report from Autosport International. Editor Andrew Kirk tells us that the web site will be relaunched on 23rd January. ©Eurodragster.com Erbacher back, followed by Fueller. 15th January: Switzerland's Urs Erbacher and the Fat Attack team are back in Switzerland following Urs' first Top Fuel Dragster outing in the USA last weekend. Team member Andrea Wucher says that the 2005 FIA European Top Methanol Funny Car Champion's dragster is following Urs to Switzerland after its purchase from Doug Herbert. "The container will arrive in Europe at the beginning of February, and we will move things around in our shop to make enough space for it", says Andrea. "The Funny Car is there but who knows, someone is probably picking it up before then." Andrea says that on his first run (right) Urs got a real surprise. "The track at Morresville is quite narrow and only an eighth of a mile", she says. "That's why we just did some sixty- to three hundred-foot runs - we wanted to take it home in one piece. On the second run, a 0.870 sixty foot time was a promise of the direction it will go this season. Kambi, Wini and Robin turned the car around together with Doug's crew and went out there for a third run. Urs started to work on his reaction time. Everything was OK and our crew felt good handling the car in warm-ups, start line preparation and staging." ©Eurodragster.com Further to our interview with Doug Herbert last week, Andrea knows why so many European racer buy their cars and parts from Doug. "For us it is great to do business with Doug", she says. "He is honest, keeps his promises, is very professional, and is a nice guy. You can't take these things for granted but Doug never ever disappointed us. It is a miracle how this man does all his business in twenty four hours and is still so relaxed, he is always helpful and friendly. "Today we have our first crew briefing about the new season accompanied by a nice Swiss cheese fondue." Eurodragster.com interview Keith Bartlett. 15th January: In what is becoming an annual feature, Eurodragster.com caught up with FIA and FIM/UEM European Championship promoter and Santa Pod Raceway Chief Executive Keith Bartlett at Autosport International. We asked Keith about the 2006 and future European Championships, developments at Santa Pod, and more. ©Eurodragster.com Click here to read our interview with Keith Bartlett, or click on the Features and Interviews link on the left-hand side of any Eurodragster.com page. VP Group double up again. 15th January: Sweden's Velocity Performance Group will again be fielding two TMFCs in 2006, says Ulf Leanders. "We have re-signed our sponsors apart from IronCad, we are still negotiating with them and hoping to keep then", Ulf told Eurodragster.com at Autosport International. "Martin Lundqvist is separately looking for sponsors for his Funny Car. We will be running the same chassis and the same bodies as last year." ©Eurodragster.com One sponsor to increase involvement is hydraulic valve company Nordhydraulic. "Nordhydraulic are restructuring and we have been to teach them about problem solving and teamwork", said Ulf. "We've shown them that wherever you are in the team you are important." Ulf said that he and Jörgen are developing parts on a CNC machine and promised to keep us up to speed with developments. Swift snippets. 15th January: We are indebted to our good friend, photo-journalist Roger Gorringe for sending us some snippets from his day at Autosport International on Thursday. Veteran US Fuel Altered driver Ron Hope, who pilots the spectacular Rat Trap Fuel Altered, told Roger of negotiations with Santa Pod Raceway’s Kjell Pettersson to bring the car and Nanook, which is driven by Rick Hough, for a possible European tour in 2007. The machines, which are capable of turning in low sixes at well over 200 mph, would be an instant hit with race fans old and new. ©Eurodragster.com Swedish Supertwin racer Anders 'Charley' Karling is building what will prove to be another stunning piece of engineering for the Supertwin wars. Charley sat out most of the 2005 season but hopes to come back with vengeance this year. He told Roger that the bike has Top Fuel technology including twin magnetos, and rerouted exhausts to make the bike more stable under power, as the force of the exhausts can push the bike in directions it should not be taking. Autosport International report. 15th January: We have now posted our report from Autosport International in association with American Car Imports. ©Eurodragster.com You have already seen the fruits of our encounters with racers at Autosport International here on the news page, but we checked out Santa Pod's display and found a number of Industry people to speak to, and you can see what we found out by clicking here or by clicking on the Event Coverage link on the left-hand side of any Eurodragster.com page. UK Dinner Dance booking closed. 14th January: Santa Pod Racers Club Secretary Paula Marshall has been on touch to let us know that booking is now closed for the joint APIRA/SPRC Dinner Dance and Trophy Presentation on Saturday 4th February. "Because of the layout of the function room we simply cannot accommodate any more people", says Paula. "Saying that, we have received well over four hundred bookings so it is going to be very busy! ©Eurodragster.com "Tickets and directions etc. will be posted out within the next few days. "We are very much looking forward to the first Joint Dinner Dance between APIRA and SPRC, which is now only three weeks away! We look forward to seeing everyone on Saturday 4th February - remember that everyone to be seated for 6.30 pm - don't be late!" Mottershead on Tour. 14th January: UK Super Gas racer Nev Mottershead will be contesting two more classes in 2006 and is also planning to embark on a seven-week European tour. Nev's Valvoline-sponsored Toyota Supra is now equipped with an engine acquired from Swedish Comp Eliminator racer Torben Stenström and Nev plans to contest Super Comp, Comp Eliminator or Super Gas depending upon the week's location. "The new engine is a 377 ci Small Block Chevy", Nev told Eurodragster.com at Autosport today. "The engine has run 8.23 in Torben's Anglia, I thought 160 mph sounded exciting! The engine arrived in December, just in time for Christmas. We decided to leave Torben's combination as it is because it would have been sacrilege to take the twin carbs off! The Toyota is now undergoing an overhaul with the necessary updates for the horsepower such as gearbox and rear end gearing." The deal was sealed when Nev and wife Libby visited Torben in Sweden in November. "Torben made us very welcome", said Nev. He took us to visit all the local racers and also showed us around Meca Raceway. "One evening we were sitting watching videos of the car and Torben kept saying "That's your engine doing a burnout!" and "That's your engine running an eight!". I pulled the money out of my pocket and slapped it down on the table and said "Now it's my engine!". ©Eurodragster.com Nev said that he, wife Libby, crew Chief Andy Williamson and Andy's wife Sharon will be focusing their efforts on a European tour this year. "We were originally going to go for the UK Championship, but we want to get everything right for the European tour", he said. "We start by going to Drachten with Mark Flavell's Super Pro ET group in July. From there we will go to Meca Raceway in Malmö for a Wednesday night special on the way to Mantorp Park. On the following weekend we will go to Gardermoen, and then back to Meca for another Wednesday night event. Then we may go to the next Drachten event and then on to Hockenheim. "The plan is for twenty days of racing in forty nine days, back home in time for a quick rod change in time for the European Finals!" Turbo already frit! 14th January: UK Supertwin Fuel racer Ian Turburville is very pleased with his new bike, but says that it's already got him worried. "The bike looks very nice (We've seen pictures and it is a pearler - Ed)", Turbo told Eurodragster.com at Autosport International today. "I've just got the paintwork back from Martin Curbishley and it's looking stunning. I am very pleased with it, but it's scaring me before it even moves! The bike is a tribute to Jim McClure, hence the name Mister Spokehead." Red Line Oil have confirmed their sponsorship of the new bike, and Turbo will have a new crew in the persons of Brum and Dukes. "We are planning to test the weekend before Easter, or at Easter", said Turbo. Swift snippets. 14th January: In conversation with Eurodragster.com at Autosport, FIA and FIM/UEM Championship Promoter Keith Bartlett has confirmed once and for all that the opening European Championship round scheduled for Bahrain International Circuit in April is definitely not taking place. "The BIC has not got its FIA Grade A Track Licence", said Keith. Stay tuned to Eurodragster.com News and we will publish our full interview with Keith on tomorrow's update. ©Eurodragster.com The legendary Gary's Picnic, for customs and hot rods, is to return to Santa Pod Raceway on Saturday 15th July. A Run What You Brung takes place on Sunday 16th for which Picnic participants will be able to camp overnight on the Saturday. Santa Pod developments. 14th January: Santa Pod Raceway's Track Manager and occasional dragon David Lloyd-Jones took a few minutes out from his Autosport duties to bring us up to date with the latest developments at Santa Pod. "Darren Prentice started as a full-time employee of Santa Pod Raceway on Thursday", said David. "It has been his lifetime ambition to work for Santa Pod and he is our new Event Co-ordinating Manager. We will make use of Darren's expertise on the track, that's where he will primarily be involved, but he will also work on management and promotion, working on shows and new drag racing events. Darren's knowledge will be an asset and he is widely-respected." ©Eurodragster.com David said that Darren's projects will include a new scrutineering shed for which Santa Pod already have outline planning permission. Jamie Sneddon of JBS Roofing will be working with Santa Pod on the new shed. A planning application is to be submitted this month for a 1500-seat grandstand to replace part of the spectator bank. The fire-up road is to be resurfaced before the Easter Thunderball and additional toilets are to be installed on the spectator side of the track. A new truck show takes place in August and Santa Pod Raceway will be looking for vehicles to put on drag racing demonstrations. Finally, David confirmed that the Showtime Fuel Funny Car will be appearing at the Easter Thunderball, FIA Main Event and FIA European Finals. Autosport International pictures. 14th January: We have now posted our photographs from yesterday's Press Day and today's first Public day of Autosport International at Birmingham's NEC. ©Eurodragster.com We will be posting our report and our interview with Keith Bartlett tomorrow after we have got back to base, but in the meantime you can check out our American Car Imports-sponsored Autosport International pictures by clicking here, or by clicking on the Event Coverage link on the left-hand side of any Eurodragster.com page. Carter and Turners' double act. 13th January: UK Top Fuel Dragster racer Andy Carter and multiple MSA British Drag Racing Champions Turner Motorsport have announced that the B&Q Top Fuel team will be fielding two Top Fuel Dragsters at selected events in 2006. Rob Turner will be contesting the Easter Thunderball, FIA Main Event and FIA European Finals in Andy's spare Top Fueller, which has been used for promotional appearances since 2003. The Turners will be running two cars at these three events as they also plan to contest the 2006 MSA British and full FIA European Top Methanol Dragster Championships. "This has been in the offing since 2004", Andy Carter told Eurodragster.com at Autosport this morning. "Steve, Rob and Carmel came to take a look at the car and to discuss running in 2005. We started talking again in August. Rob has tried the car for size, and the fit is not too bad. "The Turners have been good friends since I ran my blown-alcohol Pop. I was struggling and they came to help, and when I got my first Top Fuel car in 1994 they helped me to put the car together. I really respect Steve as a tuner and Rob as a driver." Steve Turner said that he is looking forward to tuning a Top Fueller, even though he will have two cars to look after at each event. "It's going to be hectic!", he said. "However we will have a crew for each car and I will be overseeing both. I have tuned a Fuel car before but nothing like this! It will be hard work but we wanted to run the FIA tour in the Top Methanol car this year because we don't want to let the class down." ©Eurodragster.com The car is going to the workshops of Adrenaline Race and Performance this Monday morning, when Steve Turner will start the necessary work on the cockpit shield, chassis diagonals and wing brace to bring the Top Fueller up to 2006 spec. The plan is for Rob Turner to make his licencing passes at the Peak Performance Day at Santa Pod Raceway the weekend before Easter, so that he can go straight into competition in the Pro Fuel Shootout at the Easter Thunderball. "We're not looking to run mega times", said Steve. "We want to run consistently and not hurt parts, and let Rob get a feel for the car". Both cars will run identical B&Q livery and also the names of all of Carter Motorsport's sponsors, with the Turner Motorsport dragster also carrying the names of their sponsors G Max Racing Fuels, NGK Spark Plugs, James Lister Hoses and Fittings, CT Autoparts of Rushden, Fuchs (Silkolene) Oil, PSI International, Gold RV, Eternal Image Tattoo of Rushden, and Rushden Graphic Company. "We would like to thank B&Q and all of our associate sponsors for making this possible", said Andy and Steve. Whilst we're on the subject of the B&Q team, Andy Carter added that he is to be the subject of a feature in the Daily Telegraph next Wednesday (18th January). Wrights' Top Fueller for sale. 13th January: After several months of deliberation, John and Lesley Wright have put their Wright Racing Top Fuel Dragster up for sale. John and Lesley tell us that they are upset that the decision to sell has had to be made, but the European Top Fuel world is moving too fast to keep up with on an unsponsored budget. "I've always had the philosophy that you should never get attached to your parts", says John Wright. "With so much interest in Top Fuel at the moment, the best thing to do is sell what we have and hope that when my business commitments are a little less pressing we may be able to campaign another car in the future. It probably won't be Top Fuel though. ©Eurodragster.com "Mass Racing Engines is going from strength to strength and it would be foolish not to concentrate on the historic and classic race engine building and dyno workload which are dramatically increasing day by day." You can find the Wright Racing Top Fueller for sale on Eurodragster.com's Jeff Bull Race Engines and Performance Parts-sponsored Swap Meet. Web site updates. 13th January: Jouni Westerlund tells us that the Dragrace.fi web site now has a store on-line at www.dragrace.fi/catalog. "At the moment our partners are Zodiac International and tuning and dyno-center Bike Doctor", says Jouni. "We are also trying to get as much Finnish Dragbike teams' merchandise as possible in our store - and why not international teams too. If you are interested in co-operation then please contact me at info@dragrace.fi or call +358 44 7199537." ©Eurodragster.com Joon's big plans. 12th January: 2005 FIA European Top Fuel Dragster Champion Lex Joon has already made his plans for his title defence. Lex aims to set records at the Easter Thunderball and then to maintain the #1 position throughout the FIA Championship tour before contesting two NHRA National events in the MPM Oil-sponsored Top Fueller at the end of the season. "We will be racing at the Easter Thunderball", Lex told Eurodragster.com. "There are a lot of racers interested in going (we've heard it is touching double figures - Ed), but we're in a better position this year. Last year we were getting used to the car at Easter but this time we'll just take up where we left off at the European Finals. If the weather is with us, then we are planning to set some records. We won't take any prisoners because we want to show everyone that we mean business. The car is about ready, just some little things to do, so we are looking for another trailer at the moment." Lex said that 2006 is going to be a record-setting year in the FIA European Championship. "We want to win the title again, we've got the equipment and the people", he said. "Eddie Corr (Crew Chief - Ed) and I agreed that we want to be number one qualifier at every race now that we have the car sorted out. Number one qualifier is the best place to be. We've now been to every track with this car and we know them all, so we want to run fours on every run. I only lost one round of actual racing last year, to Thomas Nataas - I got shut off by the start line crew in the other race." ©Eurodragster.com Lex and Team Manager and partner Gerda Dijkstra are working on their plan to race in the USA. "We are planning to run at Las Vegas and Pomona", he said. "One of Eddie's ambitions is to race in the USA and he said that if we go then he will make us number one qualifier. I told him that I know that he can do it but I need time to organise it so that we can do it properly - it's a challenge to get these things sorted out. MPM are already interested, though. We are very serious about going: one of the reasons that we ran 85% nitro and NHRA spec last year is so that we can take the car out there. It would have made no sense to do that if we weren't serious about going. We will race in Vegas and Pomona and then leave the car in the USA to race there again at the start of 2007." Lex was very pleased to hear that fellow FIA European Champion Urs Erbacher has moved to Top Fuel Dragster. "We're looking forward to seeing Urs out there in Top Fuel", he said. "But when I saw him at the FIA Banquet I told him that it's the last time he will be there for a few years!" You can stay in touch with the latest from the MPM Top Fuel Team on Lex's official web site at www.lexjoonracing.nl, and stay tuned to discover whether Lex has won Zaandam council's Sportsman of the Year, for which he has been nominated. Banzai! It's Krivan. 12th January: Swiss Top Methanol Funny Car racer Dezsoe Krivan is to make a very welcome return to racing in 2006 with a new TMFC (right, click on picture for another angle). Dez tells us that although he and his team sat out 2005 after a workshop fire, they were not sitting around doing nothing. "After losing the racing operation in the fire, we required a new race car. Hmm, decisions decisions", says Dezsoe. "Looking around in the US I found a possible answer and after lots of phone calls and E-Mails I secured the new car. We can now let the Jap out the bag: the body is based on a Toyota Celica. These bodies were developed in the US by Toyota to try and to gain interest for imports in the US drag racing scene." ©Eurodragster.com Dez has done his own bit for the import scene with a team whose members come from a number of countries: Dez and his wife Iris (Switzerland), Adrian Hunziker (Switzerland), Marcel Stauffer (Switzerland), Steve Wilson (UK), Rob Mckinnon (Canada), Laurent Mille (France), Olivier Mille (France), Lou Maiello (USA), Armin Roth (Switzerland) and Joachim Haslimeier (Switzerland). "So that we all understand each other, the team talks are in Mandarin (do you speak Orange?)", says Dez. The Toyota body is headed to Dieter Loeffler's CAL Paint Shop at the end of January. "Krivan Drag Racing would like wish everyone and especially the Eurodragster.com staff a successful 2006!", adds Dez. Swift snippets. 12th January: Santa Pod Raceway have reminded us that their first Run What You Brung of 2006 takes place on Sunday week, 22nd January. "So all you eager racers wanting to try out your new gadgets bought for Christmas, come along and put yourself and your cars or bikes to the test!", says Jo Harris of Santa Pod. For more information, check out Santa Pod's Run What You Brung web site at www.rwyb.com. ©Eurodragster.com Cath Napier has been in touch to ask us to say a big Happy Birthday and Happy Anniversary to her husband, Pro ET racer Tig Napier. We're very happy to do so, hope that you had a great dat, Tig, and that the pair of you had a very happy anniversary. Ian Turburville tells us that he is now offering Simpson Chicane shoes and Chrome Barracuda and Black Cobra crash helmets from Craft. For more details check out Turbo's web site at www.turboville.com. Easter Thunderball update. 12th January: Santa Pod Raceway's Marketing and PR Executive Jo Harris tells us that plans are well advanced for Santa Pod's fortieth birthday which is to be celebrated at the Easter Thunderball on Friday 14th-Monday 17th April: There will be a host of drag racing legends and heroes attending the Easter Thunderball on Saturday 15th April as VIP guests of Santa Pod Raceway to acknowledge their continued support for the sport. There will also be a display of some older vehicles from the earlier days of drag racing, and there will be an opportunity to speak to the drivers to get a glimpse of life as a successful drag racer. Further anniversary celebrations will include a web pictorial and printed pictorial magazine, presenting many images through the years of drag racing at the Pod. A special limited-edition Easter event programme will be produced, including a copy of the first Easter event programme from 1966. This has kindly been donated by Bernard Newbury who raced at the 1966 event himself in a Mini and is still racing today in his VW! As well as all this, we will have limited edition merchandise available celebrating forty fantastic years of drag racing at Santa Pod Raceway, available from the Pod Shop and, of course, on-line. New for 2006 is four-day racing! At the Easter Thunderball, racing will now start on Friday 14th April at 12:00 noon with Sportsman classes and, of course, the mighty Jet Car. Saturday will see the Pro Shootout competition kick off, but alongside the racing we have stunts and Monster Truck displays and other demonstration vehicles galore! This is an area where things are really growing for 2006 to create high-octane excitement both on and off the track for a true motorsport extravaganza. To pack this lot in, we will be running until dusk, with a firework show on Saturday night! Santa Pod once again presents the most action-packed event this Easter! Visit www.santapod.com for all the ticket prices and for regular updates. And don't forget you can camp over free with a weekend ticket, and that under-sixteens go free! ©Eurodragster.com Saturday night is Xtreme night! 12th January: The hottest show in town will now be followed by the hottest party, as the Ace Café on London's North Circular confirms that it will host an Xtreme Wheels party on Saturday 25th February, starting at 7:00 pm. The Ace Café, one of London's most famous cafés and meeting places, is steeped in the history of the fifties and swinging sixties, bikes, cars, automobilia and music. Its tie-up with Xtreme Wheels International, a show packed with automotive power, style and the best examples of customisation in Europe, seems totally appropriate. Both venues warmly welcome petrol heads, non conformists, the rebellious and authentic! The Xtreme Wheels party night is open to anyone attending the show over the weekend. Entry tickets to the 2006 Xtreme Wheels International show (admission or exhibitor passes) must be shown to gain access to the Ace Café. The Ace will be serving its full range of foods and drinks until 11:00 pm and the evening's entertainment will feature DJ Bill Guntrip and The Surfin' Gorillas. Xtreme Wheels International takes place at Alexandra Palace over the weekend of the 25th-26th February and brings together the world's finest custom cars, drag racers, American muscle, hot and street rods and the best from the UK's hot hatch and modified scene. The show provides one of Europe's most impressive gatherings of the stylish and the streetwise and includes trade stands, interactive displays, live demos, glitz and glamour! Tickets are now available from the official Xtreme Wheels web site at www.xwishow.com, or by calling the event organisers on 01483 236363. ©Eurodragster.com More UK National sponsors. 11th January: Ian Marshall has been in touch with more news of sponsors for the 2006 UK National Drag Racing Championships. Aluminium trolley jack manufacturer Alleyjax will award a £50 voucher to both the winner and the number one qualifier in Super Modified, Super Pro ET, Pro ET, Sportsman ET, Super Comp, Super Gas, Super Street and Street Eliminator at every UK National Championship round. ©Eurodragster.com Engine builder and performance parts supplier Engine Data Analysis will award £50 cash to the winner of Super Pro ET at every UK National Championship round. "On behalf of the racers I would like to thank Mike Lacey of Alleyjax and Kenny Coleman of Engine Data Analysis for their continued support of the UK National Championship in 2006", says Ian. Francis hooks up with Toyo Tyres. 11th January: Eurodragster.com Home and News sponsor Malcolm Francis says that his Air Sea Logistics Super Comp/Super Gas Pontiac Grand Am will be on display on the Toyo Tyres stand at this weekend's Autosport International at Birmingham's NEC. "I am very pleased to have been invited by Toyo Tyres to have our car represent drag racing on their stand at this year's show and for their continued support of drag racing in the UK and investment into developing new drag race tyres", says Malcolm. "I was involved in some tyre testing with Toyo Tyres towards the end of last season for a new range of drag racing slicks which they are introducing to the market this year. The performance of the Toyo tyres in testing was excellent. Post-burnout tyre temperatures from side to side were much closer than on other tyres I have run, and tyre wear was good. I would certainly recommend Toyo Tyres to other drag racers." Malcolm adds that rear slicks and front tyres will be available in a range of sizes, and that details of authorised UK dealers will be available soon. Eurodragster.com will be at Autosport International on both Friday and Saturday and we will be reporting from the Show in association with American Car Imports. If you're there then be sure to say Hi. SPR set for Autosport show. 11th January: David Lloyd-Jones of Santa Pod Raceway has been in touch with the latest news on Santa Pod's display at this weekend's Autosport International. "The new Fireforce 3 body will be on Martin Hill's Jet Funny Car", says David. "We will be holding an autograph session with Martin Hill, John Spuffard and Andy Carter on both Saturday and Sunday, and special guest Barry Sheavills will also be present on both days. "Nitro the Dragon will be making an appearance and goodie bags will be handed out to kids. ©Eurodragster.com "Santa Pod's new calendars and the Easter Thunderball flier will be available (We've seen these and they are excellent - Ed). There will be limited merchandise on sale but the 2005 season DVDs will be available." Santa Pod Raceway's display will be in Hall 12, stand 12040. We're all going on a... 11th January: UK Super Pro ET racer Mark Flavell says that the racing trip which he is organising to Drachten in July is proving very popular with Super Pro and other racers. "Running Drachten II in July sure appealed to a lot of people", says Mark. "Our friends at the eXplosion Club are very welcoming. At present, sixteen Super Pro teams are heading that way and I think it would be fair to say that this includes all the top guns. Dragsters, Altereds and Doorslammers alike are all off to do battle at this International event. I've also had a lot of enquiries from other classes who will all be made very welcome. ©Eurodragster.com "We have a ferry deal which I believe to be second to none, and I would advise booking sooner rather than later as the event coincides with a lot of people heading for the Continent as the school holidays come in to play. "So whether you are Super Pro or not, if you want to plug that hole in our domestic Championship calendar then drop me a line at mark_flavell@msn.com and I'll keep you informed." Web site updates. 11th January: UK Street Eliminator racer Andy Frost has updated his web site with a review of the 2005 season as well as photographs of the build of his turbo-assisted engine for 2006. Andy adds that he has made some changes elsewhere around the site including the History page. Check it out at www.redvictor1racing.co.uk. ©Eurodragster.com Chris Blows tells us that, as promised, the latest Emagine Productions documentary has been added to the Nobby Hills Racing web site at www.nhracing.com. "Check out the Video section of the Gallery to see the latest film along with the other two produced last year", says Chris. Eurodragster.com interview Doug Herbert. 10th January: The latest in Eurodragster.com's occasional series of interviews is with US Top Fuel Dragster racer Doug Herbert, who is currently in the UK on a series of visits with the Motorsport Industry Association. We asked a jet-lagged but still very chipper Doug about the condition of his Crew Chief Wayne Dupuy who suffered a bad car accident in December, his long-term relationship with sponsor Snap-On Tools, his steady supply of race cars to European racers, and more. ©Eurodragster.com Click here to read our interview with Doug Herbert, or click on the Features and Interviews link on the left-hand side of any Eurodragster.com page. We must thank Jeff and Belinda Bull for their help in organising this interview at short notice. Web site updates. 10th January: The official web site of Nobby Hills Racing at www.nhracing.com has been updated with a brief report and photograph from the weekend's get-together in Biggleswade. Webmaster Chris Blows tells us that Emagine Promotions' latest video will be availalable on the web site shortly. ©Eurodragster.com Luke Bennett tells us that the Bennett Racing blown-alcohol altered web site has had a major update, and it's good news if you like video clips. "We found some videos of the Topolino over the years 1992-2002, and have started to put them on the web site", says Luke. "So far there are fifteen videos on the Downloads page, including three hundred-foot burnouts and low sevens. We also found video of the Funny Car we ran in Super Pro ET in 1997. I'd also like to say a massive Thanks to Jerry Cookson who provided a superb history and photos of my 23T Altered". You can check it all out at www.bennettracing.co.uk. Feature: Matthew Wright's C10 pick-up. 9th January: The latest race car to roll out of the Skunk Works of B+J Nostalgia Race Cars is Eurodragster.com Home and News sponsor Matthew Wright's Chevy Cheyenne C10 stepside pick-up (right), now with a full tube chassis and sporting an all-new 572 ci Chevy. For the latest of Eurodragster.com's occasional series of vehicle features we went along to the workshops of B+J Nostalgia to check out Matt's pick-up, and we got the low-down from Matt on one of the most intimidating-looking race cars we have seen in a long time. ©Eurodragster.com Click here to view our feature and photographs, or click on the Features and Interviews link on the left-hand side of any Eurodragster.com page. As well as the obvious thanks to Matt we must thank Johnny Hall and Bill Felstead of B+J Nostalgia Race Cars for their help with this feature. White: It's black. 9th January: The UK's Raging Ray White says that his blown-alcohol Mark 1 Zephyr Pro Mod Lethal Zephyr 2 is almost ready to meet the public. "The chassis for the Zephyr is painted and totally detailed", says Ray. "The body is going to be back on next weekend, and the plan is to have the car ready for Xtreme Wheels at the end of February, and to test at the beginning of April." ©Eurodragster.com Ray tells us that after talking to some of his future colleagues in Pro Mod he has decided upon a strategy for the Zephyr's paintwork. "We're going to bring the car out in black primer for the start of the season, because 2100 bhp in a Mark 1 Zephyr might take a bit of setting up", says Ray. "With the compexity of the paint a glance off the wall would be a disaster, and with the amount of body mods it make sense to let the body settle and see what the cracks after the tyre shake. It will also give the crew a chance to pull the car apart with out being worried about paint damage. Trust me, it will be worth the wait even unpainted. "See you all soon, have a happy and fast 2006, and Freddy - I'm after your burnout record!" A very social soirée. 9th January: Biggleswade's best-known drag racer Nobby Hills hosted a Thank You evening on Saturday for everyone who has given help in one form or other on the new Houndog Funny Car, writes photo-journalist Andy Willsheer: Held at the Weatherley Centre in Nobby's Bedfordshire hometown, the evening's entertainment kicked off at around 8:00 pm and included a slide show, movies and an inevitable quota of torrid tales and bench racing. Aside from Nobby, wife Anne and daughter Katie, there was a cross-section of the quarter-mile sport's luminaries, including former Pod promoter Roy Phelps and Roz, commentator John Price and family, renowned graphic designer Darren West of Power Race Graphics, former Nobby Hills Racing shoes Owen Hayward and Allan Bates, plus the crew members who will be an integral part of the 1320 operation (right, click on picture for larger version) which will hopefully make its long-awaited track début this season with Junior Olley twisting the butterfly tiller. Pro ET campaigner Mike Lacey of Metamorphosis Chevy Camaro fame was telling me that wife Anna will be joining him in the straight line wars, driving her brand new Ford Mustang which already bears a discreet Metamorphosis II moniker on the hood. Harking back to the subject of AA/Funny Car, the ranks have certainly been depleted in recent years and the sooner fans of the short-wheelbase, blown-nitro, flip-body machines get to hear the unmistakeable bark of Nobby's Camaro-cloaked pooch, the better! ©Eurodragster.com Swift snippets. 9th January: UK Sportsman ET racer Dan Page and his sister Heide have purchased a 427 ci BBC-equipped '67 Pontiac and plan to contest Pro ET in 2006 under the Page family's Panic name. "The previous owner used the car for Run What You Brungs and has run high elevens with it, so we hope to run elevens and race in Pro ET", says Dan. "We are hoping to get out and test at a RWYB so that Heide can get her licence." Many thanks to our good friend Patrik Jacobsson for letting us know that Seppo Saapola's Pro Mod is now in the hands of Sweden's Tee Cee Racing Comp Eliminator team. You can see more on the team's web site at www.teeceeracing.se. ©Eurodragster.com Kate Robinson writes to ask us to wish a very Happy 18th Birthday to Stefani Robinson, daughter of Kate and UK Pro Mod racer and Eurodragster.com Home and News sponsor Andy. No sooner said than done, Kate: have a very Happy Birthday Stefani. 2005 Championships DVD review. 9th January: As reported last Wednesday, the 2005 FIA and FIM/UEM European Championship and NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified Series season review DVDs are now available. Jo Harris of Santa Pod Raceway kindly sent us a set of DVDs to check out. Our one review covers all three DVDs since they are produced by the same production company (Lima) and so their presentation is identical. The FIA European Championship DVD lasts two hours and forty minutes, the FIM/UEM European Championship DVD two hours and ten minutes, and the NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified Series DVD one hour. They are intended to cover each entire Championship Tour but you don't need us to tell you that a number of last season's races were severely affected by the weather which limits what can be shown from some events. The on-track coverage is extensive. A number of camera angles are used, a typical set-up is "wandering" cameras around the start line, another camera on the stage line, a camera approximately halfway down the track, a camera at the finish line, and a camera at the end of the shutdown area for interviews. In addition at Santa Pod there is a camera a couple of hundred yards down the shutdown area which is good for parachute shots and for seeing racers hanging off the sides of their bikes. The picture quality is generally very good including great night footage from the FIA European Finals, and the editing is well-paced. The camera crews also manage to keep up with the vehicles at speed at the top end, which anyone who has tried to photograph at the finish line will tell you is not at all easy. As with last season's coverage a lot of care has been taken to get timings right. It was not unusual in the past for Pro Stocks to apear to run five- or nine-second passes due to sloppy editing, but again with this season's DVDs we timed some races and compared them to the ETs shown, and they tallied pretty well. John Price and Darryl Bradford again provide the commentary: John in his usual authoritative style which renders anything he says incontrovertible fact whilst Darryl provides colour including giving us the benefit of his own racing experience. It is clear from the first race onwards that both John and Darryl have done a lot of research in advance of recording the voice-overs since both have a plethora of facts, figures, and news from the pits to pass on to the viewer. They do have an occasional habit of giving away the result of a race as soon as the vehicles leave the line, which takes away some of the suspense, but the high factual content of the commentary is to be reckoned against this. Another strong aspect of these DVDs is the interviews. One particularly good idea repeated from last year is small inserts with racers' thoughts about the coming race over the burnout, back-up and staging routines. This allows the burnouts and other pre-race routines to be shown when in the past they have been the first to be sacrificed in favour of full-screen interviews. The post-race interviews are well-managed, too: personally I hate to see microphones stuck in racers' faces almost before their vehicles have come to a stop, but here the racers are obviously given a moment to unstrap or get off, take a deep breath, let the adrenaline drain a little, and collect their thoughts, and it makes all the difference to the subsequent interview. One particularly enjoyable post-race interview is during the FIA European Finals coverage when Pro Mod racer Andy Robinson is told that he has just run a 6.3; his face lights up and at least one viewer couldn't resist smiling with him. Top Fuel Dragster racer Andy Carter gets extra points for mentioning his sponsors in every interview, a habit which not all of his colleagues have yet developed. The interviews are not just limited to the #1 qualifiers and race winners. Racers new to a class and crew members are also interviewed in the pits. A lot of the success of the post-race and pitside interviews is down to Christer Abrahamson who is again a revelation. Christer gets the best out of his subjects, and also delivers a few informative pieces to camera - and let's not forget that English is Christer's second language. Christer is also immaculately turned out, as indeed are those racers and crew interviewed all of whom are wearing team attire, presenting a very professional image. Given the weather problems this season, the production team should be given a lot of credit for not resorting to blatant and/or irrelevant filler material to make up the time: not for Lima an extended plug for a rock band of whom no-one has heard in a drag racing programme, which was famously used to cover a rain-out some years back. A lot of the missing race time is made up with extended interviews, which as mentioned above is a strong aspect of the coverage. The downside of the weather problems is that with qualifying generally not filmed, some events get little or no coverage because nothing happened on race day. One wonders whether it would be possible to have even a single camera present during qualifying, but that's easy for your reviewer to say as I am not paying for it. ©Eurodragster.com The packaging on all three DVDs is eye-catching, not quite as 'neon' as last season but again featuring the work of Eurodragster.com Photo Editor Sharkman. Tommy Möller, Hans Olav Olstad, and Henri Joosten and Freddy Fagerström are the racers on the front covers. We did find a few issues. The first of these is that the picture quality of the FIA Main Event coverage, but only that event, on all three DVDs is not broadcast standard. Your reviewer did not see this event when it was broadcast on TV but was told at the time that it had the quality of a Real Video display on a computer monitor. That was a pretty good summation, as the picture is grainy. I don't know whether it is connected, but the Pro Stock semi-finals are missing from this event due to "Technical difficulties" and two of the Pro Mod first round races are also missing. However, it is watchable, and the quality of the picture from Alastaro onwards is very good. After an improvement in last season's DVDs, errors in captions occur frequently throughout all three DVDs this season. The FIA Main Event is captioned as taking place at "Sant Pod Raceway". Racers' names are frequently misspelt, and not just once: Top Fuel Bike racer Steve Woollatt for example has three different spellings of his name in the space of a few minutes in the coverage of the FIA Main Event. The NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified Series is erroneously captioned in each event's opening title as the NDRS European Drag Racing Series. Also on the subject of Pro Mod, the second round of the 2005 NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified Series which took place at Meca Raceway is not even mentioned - action going straight from the FIA Main Event to the FHRA Nitro Nationals which is described in the commentary as "Round two" but captioned as Round 3. Danny Cockerill, who went into the sandtrap and lost an engine there, will have an opinion on whether or not the Meca round took place. The DVD cover lists the Norwegian round as lost to adverse weather, which suggests that the production team have not been keeping up with the situation at Gardermoen since Norsk Dragracing Gardermoen announced here on Eurodragster.com last winter that there was to be no Norwegian NDRS round in 2005. Another regular point repeated here is that it is often difficult to hear the vehicles. Even allowing for the commentary the engine noises are mixed quite low, especially on the FIA DVD. One of the big joys of drag racing is the ground-shaking noise produced by the cars and bikes but for the Nth year in succession it is not readily apparent. The above issues are not enough to stop drag racing fans from buying the DVDs. They provide a good record of what was a difficult season at very good price, especially given the length of the FIA and FIM/UEM DVDs which make them terrific value. The FIA European Championship DVD is priced at £16.99, the FIM/UEM European Championship DVD costs £14.99, and the NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified Series DVD is priced at £14.99. For more details and to download an order form check out Santa Pod Raceway's web site at www.santapod.co.uk/m_merchandise.php?Category=2 or call 01234 782828 (outside the UK +44 1234 782828). These DVDs will also be available from the Santa Pod Raceway display at Autosport International this Saturday and Sunday (14th-15th January). Little Ole news update. 9th January: Andrew Gibb has been in touch with the latest news from the UK's Little Ole '38 Racing Sportsman ET team. "Firstly, the deal to distribute the products for MPM Oil has come to a rather rapid halt", says Andrew. "After many meetings with potential purchasers here in the UK, it has become apparent that although the products are of superior quality, the unstable price structures within the oil market mean that we could not compete realistically price-wise, so we have had to take decision to withdraw from the proposed venture. Obviously we wish all at MPM Oil continued success in their continued growth across Europe. ©Eurodragster.com "On a similar thread, it is with a heavy heart that I have had to take the decision to withdraw from the MPM Top Fuel team for the 2006 season. Having just set up a new road haulage company, there just will not be enough time to fit in another European tour alongside the demands of the new company. I wish Lex Joon and the guys success in their Championship defence, just as long as they don't rest on their laurels - after all, last year's title could just as easily gone elsewhere. This season will be one of the hardest in Top Fuel, there are a lot of teams hungry for the number one, some old, some new, so good luck to all! "As for me, you may well see me helping out on an alky car as well as our Opel and Junior Dragster. On that note, Happy New Year to all racers out there and also to you guys at Eurodragster (Thanks! And to you - Ed). Roll on Easter!" Web site updates. 9th January: The web site of Eurodragster.com Home and News sponsor Power Race Graphics has had a mini New Year update with new illustrations and logos which you can find at www.powerracegraphics.com. Darren West also tells us that there is also a pile of new material waiting to go live which he hopes to add following Xtreme Wheels International. ©Eurodragster.com A lot of truck with Belinda. 8th January: UK Super Comp racer Belinda Bull has announced that she will be contesting the 2006 season in a new race car. Belinda says that husband and Eurodragster.com Swap Meet sponsor Jeff will also be having a go. "Jeff and I are now the proud owners of the ex-Bob Panella, ex-Robert Joosten, Jerry Haas-built S10 truck", says Belinda. "Jeff has been busy installing a Transmission Specialties Proline 5000 transmission and a Super 8" converter, but everything else will stay as it is, including the "Panella" paint scheme...why would we want to change it? I'll be campaigning the truck in Super Comp this year, and I'm sure that Jeff will be having some fun in it too!" ©Eurodragster.com Belinda adds that she and Jeff have a new wing and other parts to repair their Super Comp Camaro, in which she tagged the guardrail at the Flame and Thunder Show at Santa Pod Raceway. "The car will soon be going back to Curbishley Automotive for a bit of a makeover", she says. Racers: It's not too early to let us know about your 2006 plans. Drop us an E-Mail at news@eurodragster.com and we'll post it here. Swift snippets. 8th January: Further to yesterday's lead news item, 2005 FIA European Top Methanol Funny Car Champion Urs Erbacher has made his first runs in the Fat Attack Top Fuel Dragster newly acquired from Doug Herbert. No less an authority than Doug Herbert himself told Eurodragster.com that Urs made three passes, going as far as 300 feet under power, and that he got a bit of a surprise when he hit the throttle for the first time! You can find a few words and a couple of workshop pictures on Doug Herbert's blog on the NHRA web site at www.nhra.com/2005/nhrablogs.asp?blog=herbert. ©Eurodragster.com Jon Best would like to hear from any UK racer planning to run a blown slingshot dragster (gas, alcohol or fuel) during 2006. If that's you, then please drop Jon a line at nitrohemi69@hotmail.com and he will explain what it's all about. Erbacher first-footing. 7th January: 2005 FIA European Top Methanol Funny Car Champion Urs Erbacher will be starting his Top Fuel Dragster career in Georgia this weekend, says Fat Attack team member Andrea Wucher. "Urs, Kambi, Wini, Robin and Horst have been at Doug Herbert's shop in Lincolnton", says Andrea. "Doug Herbert has given them all the training they need to run the Top Fuel Dragster and turn it round between rounds. They fired it up for the first time on Thursday night so the Fat Attack Top Fuel Dragster is alive! ©Eurodragster.com "Yesterday they drove and flew down to Valdosta, Georgia to make some test runs, so Urs will be making his first run in a Top Fuel Dragster. It is great that we are getting so much support from Doug and his team." Andrea has promised to let us know as soon as she gets any news from the USA. UK sponsorship from JW, Centerline. 7th January: Ian Marshall of joint Eurodragster.com webcam sponsor Webster Race Engineering has announced that JW Transmissions and Centerline Wheels are to sponsor the UK National Drag Racing Championship in 2006. "JW Transmissions are world-renowned for their racing transmissions, transmission components and as manufacturer of the Ultrabell bellhousings", says Ian. "JW will sponsor Super Street, Super Gas, Super Comp and Super Pro ET with vouchers for $100 to the winner and $25 to the runner-up in each class. The vouchers are redeemable through Webster Race Engineering, UK dealer for JW products and services. You can see JW Transmissions' extensive range of transmissions, converters and internal stock and race transmission parts at www.racewithjw.com. ©Eurodragster.com "Centerline Wheels, manufacturers of the finest race and road going wheels on the planet, are to sponsor Super Modified in 2006. The winner will receive a $500 Centerline Wheels voucher redeemable against any Centerline product through Webster Race Engineering, UK dealer for Centerline products. A complete line-up of all Centerline products can be found at www.centerlinewheels.com. "I would like to thank Centerline Wheels and JW Transmissions for their participation within the UK National Championship and look forward to a long future together." VP: No worries here, either. 7th January: Further to Thursday's news items about the supply of nitro, Jim Kelly of Eurodragster.com Home and News sponsor VP Racing Fuels says that European racers need have no worries. ©Eurodragster.com "VP customers can continue to count on us and our European distributors for top-quality nitromethane and methanol", says Jim. "While on the subject of distribution, any companies which might be interested in carrying our line of race fuel products, jugs and accessories should get in touch with us at vpatlantic@aol.com. While many Eurodragster readers may know us as being the official fuel supplier to the NHRA we are also very popular with rally, road race, motocross and jet ski teams on both sides of the Atlantic. We produce NHRA, FIA, FIM and a variety of other unleaded and leaded race fuels. "Best wishes to all for a safe, healthy and prosperous 2006!" 2006 UK Riders' and Drivers' meeting. 6th January: Many thanks to Santa Pod Racers Club Secretary Paula Marshall for letting us know that the 2006 joint SPRC/APIRA UK Riders' and Drivers' Meeting will be held on Sunday 12th February in the Kimberley Suite of the Diamonds Centre, otherwise known as Rushden and Diamonds' football ground, in Nene Way in Irthlingborough (click here for a map). The meeting will commence at 1:00 pm with a break at approximately 2:30 during which tea and coffee will be available for a small fee. Items to be discussed include the 2006 UK National Championship (ratification of dates as well as Championship matters), event entry fees and prize funds, as well as Any Other Business. ©Eurodragster.com "Racers are invited to submit items for the agenda", says Paula, "but please note that your item will only be discussed if you actually attend the meeting." If you have any items for the agenda of the 2006 Riders' and Drivers' Meeting then please send them either to Paula Marshall or to APIRA Club Secretary Wendy Talbot at the following addresses by Friday 3rd February: Paula Marshall Santa Pod Racers Club PO Box 12 Rushden Northamptonshire NN10 0ZU E-Mail: paula.marshall@btconnect.com Phone: 01933 313625 Fax: 01933 355558 Wendy Talbot Avon Park International Racers Association 121 High Road Wortwell Harleston Norfolk IP20 0EN E-Mail: wendy@apira.org.uk Phone and Fax: 01379 740100 UK Championships Dinner Dance update. 6th January: Paula Marshall has also asked us to ask those wishing to attend the joint APIRA/SPRC Dinner Dance and Trophy Presentation, which takes place at the Northampton Park Inn Hotel on Saturday 4th February, to make their bookings as soon as possible. "I will not accept any more bookings after Friday 27th January, which is one week before the Dinner Dance", says Paula. "Those people who have already contacted me but have yet to send in their forms should do so as soon as possible please." ©Eurodragster.com Paula adds that some of last year's Perpetual Award winners have yet to return trophies to the Clubs. If you currently have a Perpetual trophy from last year then please return it to Paula Marshall or Wendy Talbot as appropriate so that they can be engraved in time for this year's presentation. You can find the booking form and information on the Entry Forms page of the Santa Pod Racers Club web site at www.eurodragster.com/sprc. If you have any queries then please contact Paula Marshall at SPRC on 01933 313625 or E-Mail paula.marshall@btconnect.com. Swift snippets. 6th January: Joe Bond tells us that his blown-alcohol altered, which is currently under construction, is now sporting a Topolino body. "It's beginning to look like a race car now!", says Joe. "Thanks to Paul Bland at Avondale Composites for making the body for us, it was definitely worth the nine-hour round trip to Anglesey to get it". You can see several pictures of the car with its new body at fuelaltered.fotopic.net. ©Eurodragster.com Rick Cuthbert of Trakbak Racing tells us that the representative of the Jap scene on Santa Pod's display at next week's Autosport International is likely to be Andy Barnes' 9.6-second Sumo Power Nissan Skyline R34 (right). "This car won the JapShow Finale event in 2004", says Rick. Voting for the 2005 Santa Pod Racers Club Perpetual Awards closes at 23:59 UK tonight (Friday). To view the shortlists and to place your votes check out the official web page which you can view by clicking here or by clicking on the SPRC Perpetual Awards vote link on the left-hand side of any Eurodragster.com page. Voting is open to all Eurodragster.com readers and not just SPRC members. Whilst leafing through this week's edition of Autosport magazine, Simon noticed that the winner of the Practical Photography/LAT competition was a shot of Dave Jones' Supertwin Street Harley Davidson. Congratulations to Ian Blackett of Northampton for getting drag racing into Autosport. You can find Ian's winning entry on page 55. Nitro: No worries. 5th January: This morning's Swift Snippet about nitromethane (below) has elicited a quick response from Antony Billinton of G-Max Racing Fuels, who says that he is very pleased to be able to reassure all of G-Max's Nitromethane customers that there will be no problem at all with supply of nitro from G-Max. "The current news release from the USA will not affect our products at all", says Antony. "We will always be in a position to supply nitromethane which includes our T/F 1.0 and T/F 0.9 Racing Fuels range. Our nitromethane is used in a variety of industries which we have been supplying for over thirty nine years and we always hold large stocks at all times of year and are in a secure position to continue to do so. Our nitromethane also exceeds specifications of the racing nitro in the USA. ©Eurodragster.com "If anyone has any further concerns they can call me at G-Max on 01832 731555 (outside the UK +44 1832 731555) or E-Mail gmax@enterprise.net. "G-Max would also like to wish all of their customers a safe and fast New Year!" We suspect that it will be the same story from the European distributors of VP Racing Fuels and Sunoco - if you're reading this, guys, then do not hesitate to get in touch. Swift snippets. 5th January: 2005 FIA European Top Fuel Dragster Champion Lex Joon is seeking an extra crew member for his 2006 title defence. The candidate should have good mechanical skills, be able to work as part of a team, and be able to work under pressure. In return the MPM Top Fuel Team are offering the chance to work with an 8000 hp Top Fuel Dragster and to become part of a proven Championship-winning set-up. For more details check out Lex's web site at www.lexjoonracing.nl. ©Eurodragster.com Thanks to Lawrie Gatehouse for alerting us to a statement by the US' Angus Chemical Company, which produces the Nitrofuel brand of nitromethane, that as of 1st January it has ceased to sell nitromethane-based fuel anywhere other than at NHRA-authorised venues in the USA. Angus' statement claims that this will only affect a small number of customers in Europe. 2005 NDRS Twinlab Super Gas Champion Mats Lindqvist has announced that he is to quit racing. You can read more on the Svensk Dragracing web site at www.dragracing.se. Lee Child of LA Performance Services has been in touch to let readers know that the Swap Meet scheduled for this Sunday (8th) at Shakespeare County Raceway has had to be cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances. The next Swap Meet goes ahead at SCR on Sunday 12th February. Web site updates. 5th January: Updates to our good buddy Alan Currans' Acceleration Archive never disappoint and Alan's latest posting is no exception. "The name of Jeremy Cookson will be familiar to many drag racing fans because he has been actively involved in the sport in various capacities for many years", says Alan. "Jeremy has brought together a magnificent collection of his own pictures and those of his friends, and combined them with in-depth commentaries which you will find compulsive reading. Jeremy's first page contains a picture of Stirling Moss in a Top Fuel Dragster, dramatic pictures of Pelle Lindelöw grenading an engine on the start line, Dennis Priddle's streamlined Top Fueller, and much, much more". Check it out at www.theaccelerationarchive.co.uk. ©Eurodragster.com European Championship DVDs available. 4th January: Rick Cuthbert of Trakbak Racing writes to confirm that the 2005 FIA, FIM/UEM and NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified Championship DVDs are now available from Santa Pod Raceway. The FIA European Championship DVD comes in at two hours and forty minutes and is priced at £16.99, the FIM/UEM European Championship DVD clocks two hours and ten minutes and costs £14.99, and the NDRS Bilsport Pro Modified Championship DVD lasts one hour and is priced at £14.99. ©Eurodragster.com For more details and to download an order form check out Santa Pod Raceway's web site at www.santapod.co.uk/m_merchandise.php?Category=2 or call 01234 782828 (outside the UK +44 1234 782828). These DVDs will also be available from the Santa Pod Raceway display at next week's Autosport International at the NEC in Birmingham. Racers: What makes you tick? 4th January: Longtime readers of Eurodragster.com will know that Rhonda Cohen, wife of American Car Imports Racing Team Principal and Eurodragster.com sponsor Anthony Cohen, is working on a PhD on the psychology of drag racing. Rhonda would now like to solicit direct input from racers. Rhonda has set up an on-line personality survey made up of fifty seven Yes/No questions and would be very grateful if as many racers as possible could take part. Your News Editor, who holds a race licence, has taken the survey and found that it takes a couple of minutes at most to complete. ©Eurodragster.com You can find Rhonda's survey at freeonlinesurveys.com/rendersurvey.asp?id=125227. If you race in whatever country then please help to support one of Eurodragster.com's sponsors by taking the time to fill in the survey. Swift snippets. 4th January: Jerry Cookson tells us that the February issue of American Car World magazine features reports from the UK National Finals and Flame and Thunder Show at Santa Pod Raceway as well as the Halloween Showdown at Shakespeare County Raceway. Also included are features on Nigel Swift's street and strip 440 Road Runner, Alan Williams' street-racing '67 Mustang Fastback and Julian Gardener's awesome Pro Street Camaro. ACW is now on sale for £3.50 at selected Speed Shops and high street newsagents. ©Eurodragster.com Entry to this year's Goodwood Festival of Speed, which takes place on 5th-7th July, will again be by advance ticket only. We are not currently aware of drag racing involvement in the Festival, but for more information and tickets you can find the official web site at www.goodwood.co.uk/fos. School's in at PMR. 4th January: Paul Marston Racing are already well into planning their 2006 campaign and there are plenty of places in the PMR School if you fancy taking part yourself, says Paul Marston. "There are some exciting new developments to look forward to at Shakespeare County Raceway in the way of one-day Bracket Races as well as a full roster of UK National Championship events at both Santa Pod and Shakespeare County", says Paul. "2005 was a fantastic season for Paul Marstons Drag Race School and UK drag racing as a whole for that matter with record entries in most Sportsman classes. The good news is after its 2005 expansion the Drag Race School still has some seats available in the school race cars Grumpy's Dodge, the Whoopass Monza and the Insanity Vega, and Gary Springford of Drag Race Engineering is soon to début his brand new Super Gasser at some of events in 2006. "There are spaces available in Super Street, Super Gas and Pro ET, and maybe Super Pro ET and Super Comp (to be confirmed). It is not too late to start from scratch, book a teaching course, complete it and then compete at National events this year at either Santa Pod or Shakespeare County Raceways. The course packages are extremely good value for money, particularly when compared to running your own single race car, team, maintenance, transport, tools, plus the logistics and time involved. ©Eurodragster.com "It's a fact of which everyone in the crew at Paul Marston Racing is justifiably proud that every single driver who raced regularly with PMR last year is already signed up for the 2006 season. The PMR crew have a really good team atmosphere where learning becomes second nature and everyone helps everyone. There is a great variety in the mix, the depth of experience and advice available from some of the more experienced crew and drivers, the new technology which is being constantly introduced to the race cars, it all helps. This has at times - with track conditions, tactics and the widely acknowledged advantages of pooled information attained by running multi-car teams - simply made the difference between going and not going rounds. "But above all, everyone at Paul Marston Racing has a great time doing all this. Yes, it's hard work and yes, it's stressful and yes, at times you do question your sanity, but that is what life is all about - pushing yourself to the limit to see what you can achieve as a team, none of us would miss it for the world. Come the Easter Thunderball this team will be ready. "If you want to be considered to be part of Paul Marston Racing for the 2006 season, whether driving one of the School race cars, taking one of our infamous Passenger Rides, or just crewing, get in touch. Either E-Mail at office@pmracing.fsnet.co.uk, call the office on 0208 597 4575, or call my mobile on 07831 650230." Web site updates. 4th January: The official web site of the European Pro Mod Association at www.promod.nu has been updated with a report of the Lindahl Brothers' adventures in the USA. Our good buddy Patrik Jacobsson asked us to thank Ulf Stadig for the English translation. ©Eurodragster.com 2006 NAST schedule. 3rd January: UK National Association of Supertwins Chairman Don Irvine has been in touch with the NAST schedule for 2006: 17th-18th March: Test and Tune, Shakespeare County Raceway 1st-2nd April: Championship round 1, Power Nationals, Shakespeare County Raceway 29th-30th April: Championship round 2, Shakespeare Nationals, Shakespeare County Raceway 17th-18th June: Championship round 3, SPRC Summernationals, Santa Pod Raceway 15th-16th July: Social ET Competition, Shakespeare County Raceway 26th-28th August: Championship round 4, Allstar Nationals, Shakespeare County Raceway 16th-17th September: Championship round 5, Extreme Performance Bike Weekend, Santa Pod Raceway 30th September-1st October: Championship round 6, UK National Finals, Santa Pod Raceway 28th-29th October: Halloween Showdown, Shakespeare County Raceway 4th-5th November: Flame and Thunder Show, Santa Pod Raceway ©Eurodragster.com "Remember that both Santa Pod and Shakespeare County will have Run What You Brung sessions throughout the year, including the National Sprint Association event at Santa Pod on 24th September and some bike-oriented sessions at Shakespeare County on 10th June and 14th October", says Don. You can stay in touch with all things Supertwin, and find out how to compete in the NAST classes, on th National Association of Supertwins web site at www.supertwins.co.uk. Swift snippets. 3rd January: UK Pro ET racer Marius Blackburn tells us that he is still seeking reports and information from his fellow racers so that the Pro ET web site can be updated. "With two more sponsors already announced for the new season, it would be good if a few more of you could forward something for the new sponsors to read", says Marius. "Come on guys...help us to help you!". You can get in touch with Marius at mariusb@fsmail.net. Carey closes the stunt show. 2nd January: UK Top Fuel Bike racer Steve Carey says that he has a number of changes planned for 2006. Steve addds that his plans do not include a repeat of his trip up the guardrail on his last outing. "We have taken delivery of a new Owens two-speed spragless transmission for the Purple Princess 2, 'wall of death' Top Fuel Bike", says Steve. "If anybody else is interested in an Owens transmission, Scott Owens can be contacted in the USA on 001 559 539 2925. The new gearbox was brought over to the UK by Richard Alder of Alders Automotive Services, of Hailsham East Sussex, so thanks to Richard for arranging the shipping. ©Eurodragster.com "We have a few other changes planned for 2006. Dave Field is making some titanium parts, and I will try to match the weight saving from the parts with a weight loss of my own. "I haven't got any stunt shows planned for 2006, so the UK National Finals back in October should be my last! "I'd also like to say thanks to Paul, Ken, Bob and Annette for their help and support in 2005, and I promise to try and keep it all upright in 2006. Happy New Year to all at Eurodragster (Thanks! And you - Ed)." Building character in Sydney. 2nd January: Ex-pat UK Top Fuel Dragster racer Steve Read had a "Character-building" experience at Western Sydney International Dragway last week, says Heather Bond. "It was a drama-filled few days!", says H: "Christmas Day started at 5.15 in the morning, which was good as there was a lot to do. We eventually had lunch together and quickly packed our bags for the trip, then off to the airport to meet other racers for drinks in the bar. We had a small drama with the tickets which took half an hour to resolve and then when we got to Sydney we found there was no hire car booked for us and the rest of the crew who were arriving from Melbourne an hour later. We eventually managed to get a four seater car for the five of us and all our luggage. An hour later we got to the hotel and devoured a few more bourbons which had the desired effect of bringing down the blood pressure. Thankfully they closed the bar at midnight and we retired ready for a fresh start in the morning. "The morning sky was bright blue with not a cloud in sight and the temperature was on the rise. We got to the track at 8:00 am ready to set up the awning and get the car ready. Our qualifying slots were 5:00 pm, 7:00 and 9:00 so the plan was to start the car around 3:00. The guys tried to fire the car up and found that two of the batteries on the starter were dead. A quick load of the starter pack from one of the other Santo cars got her going. During the warm-up it dropped a valve so we made a quick change and then the towed to the track. By this time the air was very warm and humid and the track temperature was getting hot. The car smoked the tyres off the line and blew the burst plate. ©Eurodragster.com "On getting back to the pit the crew got stuck in and turned the car round, were ready to warm up again and discovered two dead coils. This is why the car didn’t make the second qualifier. For the third qualifier it smoked the tyres again but even with those two poor runs we qualified fourth. We left the track at 1.30 am too tired to get to the bar but lightened the spirits with thirty minutes of Jerry Springer on TV. "Next morning we got to the track at about 10:00 am and the guys finished putting the car together ready for the first round at 5:00. We were racing against Santo’s third car which is driven by Luke Shephard. It was nice to see the two red and white cars leaving the line together but Steve’s car developed a lean spot and blew another burst panel, while Luke's car threw a belt as he went past and took the win. Luke lost in the semis but Santo’s new car, driven by Scott Kalitta, went through to win the final against Dave Grubnic so he was very happy. "The following evening we joined the American teams on a cruise around Sydney Harbour which was very nice. The following day we collected our friend’s race transporter ready to drive it back to Brisbane for him. On collection we were told that the air-conditioning in the truck had packed up, the UHF radio didn’t work and various other things didn’t work but we would find out as we went along. The temperature at 10:00 am was already thirty degrees and we had an eleven-hour drive ahead with no air. We managed to get four hours up the road and had to stop so Steve could try and sleep but there was no breeze to cool us down so no sleep was had. Instead, I stocked up with cold water at the garage and we got going again. We stopped again a little further up the road and Steve managed to get thirty minutes' sleep and at that point I suffered heat exhaustion which I can safely say is not nice. "After a while I got back in the truck and Steve decided to check the race car in the back, only to find the two large tool chests had fallen over on their sides and that the Funny Car had come a little loose. After tightening up the straps on the car it was decided to leave the tool chests where they were as they couldn’t fall any further. Off we set again and eventually got home after a few more pit stops en route. "That is why we decided to name the event 'character-building', and to cap it off we are going to do it all over again this weekend coming at our home track, Willowbank Raceway. Fingers crossed that The Pom will put down some better numbers and hopefully not encounter many dramas." Swift snippets. 2nd January: Voting for the 2005 Santa Pod Racers Club Perpetual Awards closes at 23:59 UK on Friday of this week. To view the shortlists and to place your votes check out the official web page which you can view by clicking here or by clicking on the SPRC Perpetual Awards vote link on the left-hand side of any Eurodragster.com page. Voting is open to all Eurodragster.com readers and not just SPRC members. ©Eurodragster.com Asserbo holds the Crowns. 1st January: If you were tuned in on Friday then you will recall that the organisers of September's Mosten Race Days were offering five hundred Danish Krone to the first racer to register for this year's event. Danish Top Fuel Bike racer Finn Asserbo was quickest off the mark, registering one minute and forty five seconds into the New Year to take the Krone, beating Supertwin racer Svein Olav Rolfstad by ten seconds. Hans-Jørgen Hitz tells us that the top seven quickest registrants were: Finn Asserbo 00:01:45 Svein Olav Rolfstad 00:01:55 Ronny Aasen 00:02:18 Peter Andersson 00:06:50 Vidar Ravnsborg 00:14:24 Sverre Dahl 00:24:18 Svein Gottenberg 01:17:14 You can find more information about the Mosten Race Days at www.mosten-mc.dk. ©Eurodragster.com Web site updates. 1st January: We were very pleased to hear from Chris Dossett that his highly-popular Trakbytes UK Drag Racing History web site is back on-line at www.trakbytes.co.uk. "The site returns in exactly the same style and format as before and is at the stage we had reached before it all went wrong in 2004 (yes it was that long ago)", says Chris. "All the usual features are back including the Hall Of Fame, Vehicle Files and Help Us Find.... I will continue to update the site as much as is possible and, as before, invite visitors to submit material for inclusion." ©Eurodragster.com Happy New Year! 1st January: Tog, Sharkman and Simon would like to wish all of our readers a very happy, safe, successful, quick, fast, healthy and prosperous New Year. Thank you all very much for your support. ©Eurodragster.com Earlier news

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