|
Screamin' Eagle/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson teammates Andrew Hines and
Eddie Krawiec faced off in the final round for the first time Sunday. Hines got
the best of the situation, earning his 11th career victory and first at the
Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway.
It was Hines' 19th career final round appearance and
Krawiec's second career final. Krawiec was coming off his first ever final at
the national event in Sonoma, Calif., just two weeks ago. He only joined the
Screamin' Eagle squad this season.
"It was awesome to have an all-Harley final with the new
teammates," Harley-Davidson Racing Manager Anne Paluso said. "It was such a big
weekend for both riders in terms of earning a position in the Countdown to the
Championship so we couldn't be more pleased with how well this Screamin' Eagle
team did here in Brainerd."
Starting this year, NHRA has developed a playoff format
for all professional categories. The top eight competitors in each category will
advance to the second round starting with the Aug. 29 U.S. Nationals at
Indianapolis.
Hines was in third place and Krawiec was in 10th place going into the Brainerd
event.
The final round appearance helped both riders greatly.
Hines not only moved into second place in the NHRA POWERade Pro Stock Motorcycle
standings, but he clinched a position in the Countdown with one race left before
the points are readjusted.
With the help from back-to-back final rounds, Krawiec
has steadily moved into contention for a Countdown position. He was outside the
top 10 following six of the first 10 races of the year but has now moved into
the coveted eighth position.
"My guys just made some great tuning calls this
weekend," Hines said after winning his third race this season. "We were a little
behind after the first round of qualifying, but we figured it out. We just
wanted to qualify and be ready for Sunday.
"We were able to clinch a Countdown position and we won
the race. It was a great weekend."
Krawiec has been as low as 13th place this season and
gives credit to his crew for even being in a position to grab the eighth and
final Countdown spot.
"We've been to back-to-back finals and I'm really
excited about that," Krawiec said. "That says a lot right there about the team
we have. The guys have been giving me such a competitive motorcycle. The last
two races show just how competitive we can be. I'm lucky to have the team I do,
helping me along the way.
"My goal was to be in the top eight in my first year.
It's a tough field in this Countdown year and I couldn’t be any happier to be so
close to accomplishing that goal."
Hines beat Shawn Gann and the Race Girl/Lucas Oil Suzuki
in the first round. Hines recorded a 7.004-second pass at 190.06 mph to beat
Gann's 7.150 at 187.00. Krawiec beat Steve Johnson in the first round with a
7.051 at 188.91 on his V-Rod, beating Johnson's 7.184 at 187.47 on his Snap-on
Tools Suzuki.
Hines beat the current category points leader, Matt
Smith and the Torco Racing Fuel Buell, in Round Two. Hines turned in a 7.018 at
188.81 over Smith's 7.025 at 186.90. Krawiec beat Chris Rivas in the second
round. Krawiec's 7.054 at 187.65 beat Rivas' 7.189 at 168.35 on his Torco Buell.
Hines beat Peggy Llewellyn in the semifinals with a
better reaction time. Hines left the starting line in .039 while Llewellyn left
at .076. It mattered at the finish line. Hines' E.T. was slower, but earned the
win light because of his quicker start. Hines went 7.048 at 186.18 to beat
Llewellyn's 7.039 at 187.50 on her Klement Motorsports Buell.
Krawiec earned a trip to the finals by doing his job on
the starting line too. His semifinal opponent, Hector Arana, fouled at the
starting line and handed the win to Krawiec – who left on time.
Hines and Krawiec's first meeting in the final round
ended with a win for Hines. Hines went 7.009 at 188.20, beating Krawiec's 7.077
at 183.94.
"The bike went perfectly straight down the track all
weekend," Hines said. "We even found a few things before the final round that
had been slowing us down all day and that helped us pick up four-hundredths of a
second.
"The final was a heads up race between two teammates. He
beat me in the second round at Sonoma by out-running me and cutting a better
light. This was payback. It's fun racing your teammate because you know the team
is going to win either way. But it seemed like it took forever to get to the
finish line. But now we're even, 1-1 for the season."
While Hines, the 2005 runner-up at Brainerd, has been to
this event several times, it was Krawiec's first time making a pass at Brainerd
International Raceway. The track, Krawiec said, was only half the fun.
"It was just a great weekend all around," Krawiec said.
"Not only did I get to another final round, but I finally went to the campground
that is so appropriately named 'the zoo' here in Brainerd. This has to be one of
the most interesting and unique places that we race at and now I know why
everyone talks about this event so much. We went out to the campground, met and
mingled with a lot of fans and just had a great time. There is such a positive,
fun vibe here and it made for an even better weekend."
The next NHRA event featuring the Pro Stock Motorcycle
class is the Toyo Tires NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway in Reading, Pa., Aug. 16-19. It's the last race before the
Countdown points are reset for the top eight racers in each professional
category.
"The more runs I make on the bike, the more comfortable
I get," Krawiec said. "That just gives me and the team more confidence. The
better we do, the more excited I get about going to the next race. I really
think this team has come around in the second half of the season and it shows.
Hopefully the momentum will carry both Andrew and I into the Countdown."
Hines said the team has been working to be in a position
to win rounds on a regular basis.
"We have our combination together and we finally feel
like we're on track now," Hines said. "We struggled a bit at the beginning of
the season and now we're producing career-best 60-foot times. The bikes are
easier to ride when they leave the starting line so well and that's the key to
winning races – making nice, clean passes. Hopefully that won’t change anytime
soon."
Andrew
Hines at Brainerd
E.T. MPH RT
Q1 7.113 188.02
Q2 7.042 189.50
Q3 7.032 188.07
Q4 broke No.
3
R1 7.004 190.06 .084
R2 7.018 188.81 .047
R3 7.099 185.54 .047
R4 7.009 188.20 .034
11th career victory; 19th
career final round; First Brainerd win in two final rounds there
Eddie
Krawiec at Brainerd
E.T. MPH RT
Q1 7.112 188.89
Q2 8.164 117.47
Q3 7.063 187.00
Q4 7.075 188.60 No.
5
R1 7.051 188.91 .034
R2 7.054 187.65 .052
R3 7.099 185.54 .047
R4 7.077 183.94 .091
Second career final round;
second consecutive runner-up appearance
2007 NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle point
standings following 10 of 16 events:
1. Matt Smith, Buell 901
2. Andrew Hines, Screamin'
Eagle/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson V-Rod 718
2. Angelle Sampey, Suzuki 703
4. Karen Stoffer, Suzuki 576
4. Chip Ellis, Buell 576
6. Craig Treble, Suzuki 514
7. Peggy Llewellyn, Buell 513
8. Eddie Krawiec, Screamin'
Eagle/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson V-Rod 501
9. Steve Johnson, Suzuki 476
10. Chris Rivas, Buell 465
Screamin’ Eagle Performance Parts are inspired by and
built in the spirit of the raw adrenaline and power of motorcycle racing.
Screamin’ Eagle Pro parts are specifically designed for race-use applications,
while Screamin’ Eagle parts offer street-use performance options for the
Harley-Davidson motorcycle owner. Visit www.harley-davidson.com for more
information.
The Screamin' Eagle/Vance & Hines Pro Stock
Motorcycle team is sponsored by Ford Truck, Dunlop, Matco Tools and S100.
from Harley Davidson/Screaming Eagle
|
