Fan mail has steadily poured into ORSCA after the Huntsville race with comments similar to these:

“ ORSCA, I just want to say its been many years since I have been to a race track.  This weekend brought back memories of my younger days when I used to race back in the 50's.  Mr. Fenn, thank you for taking the time on the fence this weekend to talk with me about this crazy wild racing of ORSCA.  I saw this weekend cars that brought tears to my eyes and warmth in my heart.  I even looked at my old work truck a little bit different today, just thinking about some of the trucks I saw at your event this weekend.  It made me fill her up with High Test this morning and run her on out of the gears as I took off. Thanks to all you racers for the exciting weekend of the coolest racing I have ever seen”

... Make you wonder what you missed?

Qualifying

In Outlaw 10.5, Steve Kirk, Jr. took the number one qualifying position with a 4.509 at 164.05 mph, followed by Mike Hill with a 4.510 at 164.84. The one and only Brad Brand held 3^rd position with a 4.5443 and a record setting 171.10 mph. Michael Robinson – 4^th with a 4.5446 at 161.52, Jack Barfield in 5^th position with 4.551 at 161.12, 6^th – Craig Miller with a 4.5591 at 161.99, 7^th – Jimmy Blackmon with a 4.567 at 153.33, 8^th – Marcus Birt in with a 4.602 at 154.85, 9^th – Bobby Cole, a 4.648 at 153.48, 10^th – David Sheppard at 4.697 running 160.20, Ken Rainwater 11^th with a 4.748 at 155.28, Pruitt and Carroll falling 12^th & 13^th with a 4.81 and 4.87 at 147.54 and 130.32 mph. As you can see the 10.5 field was tight and the mile per hour speaks for itself.

Limited Street produced a 22-car field with the top 8 qualifiers running 4.8’s and 4.9’s. Jeff Cooner was the #1 qualifier, setting the first leg of a World Record in the first round with a 4.85 at 159.52 and backed that up with an unbelievable 4.810 at 160.14 in the final qualifying round. Un-heard of times out of a Limited Street car. The ORSCA 2005 World Champion, Darrin Hoyle landed 2nd, with a 4.92 at 155.16, Eric Dillard 3^rd, with a 4.917 and amazing top end speed of 161.46, Carlton Thompson - 4^th, landing a 4.96 at 153.85, “Spike” K-9 (that is his real name) - 5^th with a 4.961 at 153.85, 6^th – Tim Dunn with a 4.967 at 149.85, David Reese - 7^th with a 4.972 at 156.90, Carl Gilbert - 8^th running a 4.985 at 149.35.

Not far behind landing five second qualifying times were, Keith Szabo – 5.005, John Iannuzzi - 5.030, Mike Mitchell – 5.142, Brandon May – 5.144, Jim Etheridge – 5.15, Phillips – 5.16, Davis – 5.294, Jones – 5.36, Malone – 5.38, Scott – 5.40, Gunter – 5.46, Moran – 5.47, Haik – 5.68, and Walker – 6.05. As you can tell, George Howard at Huntsville Dragway knows how to prep a racetrack so these Outlaws can reach maximums.

Jeff Cooner & Randy Sharpston of RTS Motorsports now hold the ORSCA World Record in Limited Street.  Cooner ran an amazing 4.810 at 160.14 mph in the final round of qualifying after running a 4.85 at 159.52 mph in the first round of qualifying. The record is now official.

EZ Street didn’t lack in excitement either as 18 awesome machines entered qualifying and produced some of the most exciting wheel-stand passes ever seen by Huntsville Dragway fans. When it all came down 13 of the 18 entries managed to be within the five and a half second mark. Tommy Brewer – 5.08 at 142.00, Robbie Erwin – 5.15 at 140.85, 2005 ORSCA World Champion Shane Stack, back with Turbos – 5.16 at 142.23, Steve Crowden – 5.193 at 140.32, Donnie Key – 5.218 at 144.14, Dustin Mewbourn – 5.22 at 135.95, Tim Kincaid – 5.23 at 141.91, Kell Eubanks – 5.23 at 142.31, Al Bedford – 5.28 at 139.19, Darrell Morgan – 5.36 at 135.01, Heath Bell – 5.378 at 135.95, Dusty Bradford – 5.397 at 136.57 and falling in the 13^th position Walt Wilhelm – 5.42 at 131.39.

5.30 Index manned a 21-car field of some of the most awesome rides in the south. The top 10 qualifiers fell to Greg Mitchell – 5.302 at 132.90, Israel Deraney – 5.305 at 125.42, Glenn Dutton – 5.309 at 127.01, Jeremy Ellis – 5.314 at 132.70, Lester Pitts – 5.31 at 132.08, Steve Crawford – 5.321 at 115.27, Brad Connor – 5.321 at 131.85, Tim Jones - 5.323 at 131.04, Kenny Acree – 5.325 at 123.63 and number 10, Jimmy Johnson – 5.326 at 115.68.

6.00 Index - 35 cars out of a 50 car field dialed in a 6.09 or less in qualifying. Never has ORSCA has such and unreal group of cars falling so close to a perfect 6.00. The 10 ten qualifiers went to Darrell Hopkins – 6.0009, LeBron Hill – 6.002, David Harvey – 6.0041, 2005 ORSCA World Champion, Scott Flowers – 6.0049, Glenn Dutton – 6.005, Glenn Rooks – 6.006, Jeff Paulk – 6.009, Rob Reagan – 6.010, Will Coots – 6.011 and in the 10^th position – Richard Townsend – 6.012.

7.00 Index – An unbelievable showing of 61 cars entered first round of qualifying and at the end of 3^rd round the top 50 cars landed a 7.09 or less. Unbelievable !! These guys have studied their homework. The top 10 in 7.00 class were - Chris Smart #1 with a 7.0009, Ricky Millard – 7.001, Andy Shaefer – 7.0026, Chris Aldridge – 7.0029, Greg Gaston – 7.0034, Becky McFadden – 7.0036, David Littrell – 7.0039, Larry Miller – 7.0055, Eric McCarty – 7.0070 and Ed Bendall in 10^th position with a 7.0071.

Unreal qualifying times across SIX Classes of cars… and NASA thinks they are the only one in Huntsville that’s got rockets !!!

Eliminations

Sunday proved to be a little warmer than expected with mid 80’s temperatures, requiring new set-ups for all involved. Under blue skies, the pits were a flurry of activity prior to eliminations. Fans enjoyed browsing through vendors midway choosing their favorite T-shirt or photo to take home as a keepsake from the event. It was evident that everyone was ready for a show of raw power and the excitement ORSCA Outlaws bring to every event.

7.00 Index

Starting eliminations with fifty-nine 7.00 race teams is one heck of a show. When it came down to eight cars, the survivors were Busby vs. Howard, Bryant vs. Halbert, Buckner vs. Bendall and Sloan vs. West. The push to make it to the next round created several break-outs as Howard hit the finish line with a 6.96 to Busby’s 7.0062. Halbert broke out to Bryant’s near perfect 7.0007. Bendall had a greater break-out of 6.989 to Buckner’s 6.990 and West’s breakout of 6.96 to Sloan’s 6.98. Semi-final action left Ken “Duck” Buckner headed to the finals against Chris “Big Pun” Sloan.

The final round in 7.0 was a close one. Ken Buckner pulled the win light on a breakout with a 6.976 to Chris Sloan’s hard pushing pass of 6.964. It must have been the reaction time that gave Buckner the edge at the finish line with a .0240 to Sloan’s .0294.

Ken Buckner takes the win in his first ever ORSCA Points Series event. Congratulations “DUCK”, maybe they will leave you alone for a while now !!

Ken Buckner took the win at Huntsville Dragway after qualifying 15th in a field of 59 cars. Congratulations to the Buckner race team on their first ORSCA win!

Chris "Big Pun" Sloan landed Runner-Up at Huntsville Dragway on a double breakout, his being futher away with a 6.96 to Buckner's 6.97. Sloan qualified 17th. What a drag race !

6.00 Index

At the eight car mark we found Rooks vs. Shaw, Cowles vs. Jeter, Sanford vs. Kelly and Bolton vs. Dixon. Semi-finals in 6.00 left Cowles headed to the finals with a 6.001 over Rook’s break-out of 5.966 and Sanford’s meeting Cowles with a 6.08 over Bolton’s 5.97 break-out.

The final was a heartbreaker for Cowles as he hit the “BIG RED” off the tree and Sanford ran it out for the win with a near perfect 6.005. Hey… If you are going to mess up… at least Runner-Up is not a bad place to do it. Still in the final and you got a excuse that no one can argue with on why he beat you.

Congratulations to the Sanford race team on their victory!!

Darrell Sanford  put the moves on the ORSCA regulars in 6.00 at Huntsville Dragway to take home the money and the trophy. Sanford qualified 20th in a 50-car field.  A definite victory after a long day of racing.

Brandon Cowles had to settle for Runner-up as he pulled the "RED" off the starting line. Cowles qualified 15th with a 6.01.

5.30 Index

The only rules a 5.30 car has to adhere to are (1) Has to be a door-slammer car (2) No electronic bracket racing aids. (3) No throttle stops. That’s it!! The wild child class and pretty much anything goes. You can always expect the unexpected when they pair up.

Left standing at eight cars were Lizon “Ms. Pearl” Walker vs. Steve Crawford, Tim Jones vs. Brad Campbell, Jeremy Ellis vs. Lester Pitts and Israel Deraney vs. Jimmy Johnson. Crawford, Campbell, Pitts, and Johnson got put on the trailer.

In the semi-final Jeremy Ellis took the win with a 5.301 over Tim Jones running a 5.33 and Lizon Walker took the win over Israel Deraney who red-lighted off the line.

Finals left 19-year old Jeremy Ellis up against veteran racer Lizon Walker. Ellis managed to pull the win light with a 5.302 to Walker’s 5.309 – Talk about a close one at the lower end.

Congratulations to Jeremy Ellis on his win at Huntsville Dragway!! He definitely met the mark.

Jeremy Ellis secured the win at Huntsville Dragway after running through a heavy field of veteran drivers. Ellis qualified 4th with a 5.314 at 132.70.

Lizon "Ms. Pearl" Walker has been running the 5.30 ranks for years. Walker qualified 14th with a 5.34 at 129.35 and settled for Runner-up when the smoke cleared as Jeremy Ellis passed him in the lights.

EZ Street

This class had a rough day as four of the eighteen teams that started eliminations had mishaps with both the wall and each other during eliminations. In Round Two, Donnie Key made a hard left turn in front of Dusty Bradford, forcing Bradford to cross the track on the other side to avoid T-Boning Key in the driver’s side door at 120 miles per hour. As Key continued backwards up the wall, Bradford hit the opposite wall and at the same time, both cars came to a stop. Both drivers emerged from their cars shaken – up but with no injuries.

Donnie Key and Dusty Bradford had a tango with the wall as Donnie made a hard left in eliminations and Bradford, attempting to avoid hitting Key in the driver's door, headed for the other wall.

The second incident occurred in the semi-final round as Robbie Erwin left the starting line with problems on launch and Dustin Mewbourne, in and out of wheelstands down the track, left Erwin the opportunity to catch him at the finish line. Mewbourne made a hard right at the finish line - clipping Robbie Erwin in the driver’s side door as the digital mph on the board showed 121 mph. Erwin was sent into several spins and came to a halt as Mewborne’s lick with the wall brought him to a stop. Again, both drivers emerged un-harmed.

Robbie Erwin, a heavy ORSCA contender and Dustin Mewbourne had a encounter at the finish line which left a crimpled Robbie Erwin headed into the Final forcing Erwin to settle for Runner-Up.

There is something to be said about the safety rules that ORSCA enforces as a sanctioning body when a driver has a day like this.

The other pair in the semi-final - Tommy Brewer against Steve Crowden sent Brewer to the win and the final with a 5.10 at 139.53 to Crowden’s problem pass of 10.31.

In the final, a wounded Robbie Erwin, desperate to hold his points standing made the call against Brewer, staged on his own power and limped to the finish line. Tommy Brewer made the full pass and became the winner in EZ Street at Huntsville.

Brewer can relate. He just put his car back together with the aid of fellow racers less than a month ago, from his own tango with the wall.

Congratulations Tommy Brewer ! Not the way you would have wanted it…but you take them when you can.

Tommy Brewer in his newly rebuilt Mustang took the win at Huntsville Dragway. His opponent Robbie Erwin made it to the semi-final and settled for runner-up after a heartstopping crash at the lower end.

Limited Street

At 8 cars – on the launch pad - Keith Szabo up against the NOW World Record Holder, Jeff Cooner. “Spike” vs. Etheridge, Dillard vs. Dunn, Hoyle vs. his teammate, David Reese. After the boosters deployed and they shuttled through the smoke – left standing were Darrin Hoyle to run Eric Dillard and Keith Szabo against “Spike”. Hoyle took the win over Dillard with a 4.94 at 150.50 and Szabo took the win over “Spike” with a 5.029 at 150.05.

In the final, Keith Szabo takes the win over the 2005 ORSCA World Champion as Hoyle goes up in smoke and has to let out. Szabo turns on the win light at the lower end with a 5.03 at 154.75.

Congratulations to the “Silver Rocket” team… Keith Szabo !!

The "Silver Bullet" team with Keith Szabo at the wheel took the win at Huntsville Dragway. Szabo qualified 9th in the field. In the final against Darrin Hoyle he pulled the win light with a 5.03 at 154.75, bringing home the bucks and the trophy.

Darrin Hoyle settled for runner-up at Huntsville Dragway as the 2005 ORSCA World Champion smoked the tires in the final against Keith Szabo. Hoyle qualified 2nd with a 4.892 at 155.12.

Outlaw 10.5

Semi-Finals brought Brad Brand, top mph holder against Mike “The Hitman” Hill and Steve Kirk, Jr. against Paul Carroll in his Taylor Lassiter built 1978 Tans Am Pontiac, making its debut at Huntsville Dragway this weekend. Brand pulls the win over Mike Hill with a close one at the lower end. Brand ran a 4.619 at 167.04 to Hill’s 4.629 at 165.02. Brand’s reaction time? … .0325 to Hill’s .0485. On the other side of the ladder, Steve Kirk takes the win over Paul Carroll with a 4.58 at 162.28 to Carroll’s problem pass at 5.82.

Final action unfolded – Steve Kirk, Jr. up against Brad Brand…. And it can be written that Brand made a very impressive showing at this event. Kirk takes the win over Brand with a 4.54 at 162.98 to Brand’s 4.679 at 164.96.

Congratulations to Steve Kirk, Jr. and John Ferguson on their win. An outstanding show of power at Huntsville !!

Steve Kirk managed to run through the field and capture the win after qualifying in the number one position with a 4.509 at 164.05 mph. Hooiser was on hand to celebrate the event.

Brad Brand elected to run the ORSCA series at Huntsville Dragway and gave the regulars a true run for the money. Brand qualified 3rd with a 4.544 at a record setting 171.10 mph.

Paul Carroll out of Friendsville, Tennessee debuted his new Taylor Lastor built 706 CI Outlaw 10.5 car at Huntsville Dragway running two stages of nitrous and a Lenco. Darrell Parrott of Wholesale Transmissions in Maryville, Tennessee owns the car, which made it to the semi-final on its maiden voyage.

…And there you have it… Huntsville Dragway – In the Rocket City - Outlaw style… .An awesome event, with awesome racers !!

Next up Albany, Georgia – U.S. 19 Dragway, October 20 – 22 …  Come chat with the ORSCA racers at www.Outlawracing.com

Karen Bryant - ORSCA Media Director