Phil Read was the class of the Top Fuel field top qualifying with a 4.78 and then shooting down Bob Shepherd’s 4.99 with a 4.77/316.60.
In the final off the line Read had Shepherd’s measure by a couple of hundredths but at the other end the gap had grown dramatically with a thundering 4.77/316.60 easily covering his opponent’s second four -- a losing 4.99/284.93. “The car has just been fantastic,” Read enthused. “Our 4.78 from yesterday should have been an awesome run but the car shook and I had to shut if off four seconds into the run. We ran 263 mph at half track and slowed to 251 at the finish-line – that would have been a great pass,” Read reflected on the run that got away.
In Pro Stock a great field of cars were on hand. Aaron Tremayne, in his Cavalier ended up in top spot with a 7.33. Briefly he lost to fellow Queenslander in the semis, Denis Whiting in his Pontiac Grand Am when a late reacting .242 light was followed up by an out of shape pass and he had to watch as Whiting took off into the distance with a winning 7.36.
Denis Whiting (far lane) holeshot Jon Andropolis in the Pro Stock final but Andropolis had the horsepower to win by a mere five thousandths of a second.
Whiting (far lane) pulled up next to Jon Andriopolis in his Dodge Avenger for the final. Andriopolis had qualified third and stepped up to a 7.37 in the semis in stopping Jason Grima’s Ford Probe. Whiting had hole-shot both his opponents earlier in the day and did the same on Andriopolis with a .054 to .071 leave but his 7.361 couldn’t hold back Andriopolis’s 7.339 with the Avenger winning by the narrowest of margins.
Callam Godeassi (far lane) gets the holeshot on Daniel Peaty’s K&N Suzuki but Peaty broke anyway giving the Victorian a deserved win.
Pro Stock Bike saw a full field led by Daniel Peatey’s top qualifying 7.358 on his K&N Suzuki. Wins over a red lighting Graeme Weston and Maurice Allen, both on Suzukis saw Peatey face another Suzuki rider in the form of Callam Godeassi for the final. Godeassi (far lane) didn’t follow the script, however, when Peatey’s gearbox gave up the ghost at half track with a 7.78 being enough to take out a slowing 8.60.
The ANDRA Summernationals was obviously a memorable race in more ways than one. ANDRA National Director, Tony Thornton told the assembled throng at the winners circle after the race that he thought this was the best ever race at the West Sydney International Dragway. I think that had a lot to do with the fact that this was the first race at the Sydney facility that wasn’t hideously hot or badly rain affected.
I hope I have given you some insight into what it takes to achieve world record performances under tough conditions on the other side of the world. Certainly the event was the culmination of a lot of effort by an eclectic bunch of drivers and riders.
