5.30 INDEX
The Slidell, LA-based team of car owner Larry Haik and driver Scott Pennington combined to earn their first number-one start in Southern Truck Parts 5.30 index action with a 5.303-seconds run at 129.05 mph. Pennington had a free pass for round one and Lester Pitts broke out against him in round two, but a better reaction time by Kenny Acree in the semis ended the day for the 496 c.i. Chevy-powered ’69 Mustang.
Number-four qualifier Ron Clark appears to be describing his first-round win over A. Vinson with his crowd-pleasing ’75 VeeDub Bug. Clark went red against Acree in round two, however.
Kenny Acree, the 2006 ORSCA 5.30 champion, started 5th at Huntsville and made it past Jeff Tankersley, Clark and polesitter Pennington before taking on STP teammate Paul Baxter in the final round. Baxter left first in his ’86 Monte Carlo with a .005 light against Acree’s .020, but his 5.347/132.00 combo was no match for the 5.309 at 129.83 by Acree’s 1994 Lumina. “His car slowed down a bit and mine was right on the money,” Acree stated.
When Jeremy Ellis (shown here at Huntsville in April) and closest points rival Lester Pitts both lost in the second round, it clinched this year’s 5.30 championship for Ellis and his Phenix City, AL-based ’67 Chevy II.
