Spring Speed Festival

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Spring Speed Festival May 1 - 3

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Wild Bunch ResultsSpringspeed Nationals1st - 3rd May Real Steel Series Round 2. APIRA Series Round 1. MSA Points Challenge 2.

The “Springspeed Nationals” was the second event of the WB season. It was Real Steel Series Round 2 and APIRA Series Round 1 as well as the 2nd round of the MSA Challenge. There was a field of 6 Wild Bunch cars competing: 4 Altereds, 1 Slingshot and a Rear-engine dragster.

Wild Bunch Points
Pos	WB	Driver/Team	Car	Points
1	109	Andy Murphy	B-Sting	8
2	2	Chris Hartnell	Backdraft	6
3	11	Dave Williams	Green With Envy	5
4	40	Darren Law	The Wicked Lady	3
5	4	Dave Rowlands	Destinys Angel	2
-	99	Adz Price	Go Hard or Go Home	2

MSA Points
Pos	WB	Driver/Team	Car	Points
1	109	Andy Murphy	B-Sting	400
2	2	Chris Hartnell	Backdraft	320
3	11	Dave Williams	Green With Envy	240
4	40	Darren Law	The Wicked Lady	150
5	4	Dave Rowlands	Destinys Angel	130
6	99	Adz Price	Go Hard or Go Home	110

Spot Prizes
	WB	Team/Driver	Car	Detail
Closest To Dial-In	2	Chris Hartnell	Backdraft	0.29 off
Best Reaction	109	Andy Murphy	B-Sting	0.096
Best Appearing Team	99	Team Gridlock	Go Hard or Go Home
#1 Qualifier	109	Andy Murphy	B-Sting	0.005 off
Quickest ET	40	Darren Law	The Wicked Lady	8.985

The Wild Bunch welcomed back Andy Murphy and the “B-Sting” team, who joined the other 5 teams who had competed at the “Easter Thunderball”. Sadly, we were two teams down, as Ed Yates in the “RamRaider” slingshot was unable to attend due to a temporary back problem, and Terry Clifford had trouble with the transbrake in the new gearbox on the “Ratcatcher Resurrection” slingshot. So we hope they can join the Bunch at the next event! The teams were hoping the weather would be better than the forecast, so they could get some qualifying runs in before Finals day. Qualifying SaturdayThis was a qualifying day and there were scheduled to be 3 qualifiers. It was cloudy and wet first thing, so the track crew had to get to work to dry and prep the track. The first classes were called to the pairings lanes and racing began around noon. As we were 21st and last on the running order, we had quite a long wait! But we eventually got our first round in at about 2pm. All 6 teams qualified at the first time of asking. Our second round was at about 4:00pm, with all 6 teams taking part, and amazingly, we all had a third at around 5:30pm, so a full day's qualifying took place. Sunday There were scheduled to be yet 3 more qualifiers on Sunday, and again the day started wet after a lot of overnight rain. Again the track crew worked hard to dry the track, and qualifying started at about 12:30pm. The temperature was much colder than on the Saturday. The Wild Bunch got our fourth qualifier at around 2:20pm, with the fifth taking place at around 10 past 4. All 6 teams took part in both of these, and 4 of the teams took part in the 6th qualifier, at about 5:30pm. It was a really good half dozen rounds, with the #1 Spot being occupied by 4 different teams at one time or another. The figures were good too, as these were the differences to Dial: .005, .009, .023, .027, .029 and .630 (but this team had a .001 breakout on one round, so very nearly a lot better!)
WB 2	‘Crazy’ Chris and the team began qualifying with a Dial-in of 9.15 in “Backdraft”, and were pleased to run a 9.183 at 142.90mph on the first qualifier, which put them temporarily into 2nd place. They kept the same Dial for the second round, and ran even closer, with a 9.179 at 143.12mph, but dropped to 3rd place, as others were also getting closer to Dial. They raised the Dial for the 3rd round to 9.17 and Chris posted a 9.206 at 141.79mph. On Sunday, Chris participated in 2 of the qualifiers, recording a 9.322 at 144.18mph on a 9.17, with a nice double wheelie, and a 9.500 at 142.80mph on a 9.22, on the cold track. He sat out the last round and finished in 5th place overall for qualifying.
WB 4	Dave Rowlands was raring to go, after having won the ‘Easter Thunderball; with the “Destiny's Angel” altered. He began Saturday with a Dial-in of 9.70, and ran a solid 9.727 at 141.56mph, to claim the top spot after the first round. He kept the Dial for the next run, and recorded a 9.828 at 141.82mph. He modified the Dial to 9.75 for the 3rd round, and posted a breakout 9.732 at 142.46mph. On Sunday, he lowered the Dial-in to a 9.72 and ran a 9.812 at 139.57mph. And for the 5th qualifier, Dave raised the Dial to 9.80, and ran a 9.993 at 139.22mph. Dave also sat out the last qualifier and qualified in 4th place overall, with a mark that would have taken #1 at the previous event!
WB 11	saw Dave Williams start the weekend with a Dial-in of 11.70 in the “Green with Envy” altered. He broke out by some margin, as he recorded a solid 11.545 at 116.12 mph. Linda then lowered the Dial to 11.53 for the second qualifier, and Dave ran a great 11.553 at 117.75mph, to take the top spot after that round. They refined the Dial-in to 11.54 for the next round, and Dave went straight out and ran a new Personal Best E.T. of 11.510 at 116.86mph! On Sunday, they went back to the 11.53 Dial for the 4th round, and Dave ran another close 11.590 at 115.83mph. Again, they tweaked the Dial to an 11.56, and Dave ran another PB of 11.504 at 116.42mph! Once more the Dial was adjusted, this time to an 11.51, and once more Dave ran a new PB, by a bigger margin, of 11.382 at 116.57mph! Fair play! He qualified in 3rd place overall and he and Linda were pleased with the car's performance.
WB 40	Darren Law was on good form, after his Runners-up placing at the ‘Easter Thunderball’, with “The Wicked Lady” rear-engine dragster, which was on a really quick pace early in the season. The team began with a Dial-in of 9.15, and Darren broke out straight away with a 9.084 at 145.38mph. The team lowered the Dial to a 9.00 even, for the next round, which they hoped would prove another breakout! Darren recorded a new Personal Best E.T. of 9.033 at 145.27mph, shaving a thousandth off his previous best. The team kept this Dial, as one to aim for, and Darren posted a strong PB of 9.009 at 144.92mph, getting ever closer! This took Darren to the #1 Spot overnight. They stuck with this Dial-in all day Sunday, and Darren ran 9.081 at 143.98mph, 9.095 at 129.96mph with a red light, and 9.025 at 144.89mph, a good consistent set of runs, but still not the ‘8’ yet! Darren qualified in 2nd place overall, and the team were really chuffed with the quick runs.
WB 99	Adz Price was in his second MSA event, with the “Go Hard or Go Home!!!” Topolino altered, and the team had had some engine work done since the ‘Easter Thunderball’ by the guys from ‘Paul's Place’, who were also on hand at the track to help with the tune-up. Meanwhile, Dex and Val had some drama, when they were delayed by the volcanic ash cloud for a week after their holiday in the Dominican Republic! When they were at one point told they could get on a flight on 6th May, you can imagine Dex told them in no uncertain terms that this would ‘not be an option’! But once again, the team overcame the obstacles and made it to the track. They started the weekend with a Dial-in of 10.90, and Adz ran a 12.634 at 113.05mph, testing the new combination, and running a Personal Best Speed at the same time! They raised the Dial to 11.20 for the 2nd round, and posted a slightly better 12.557 at another best speed of 113.85mph. The Dial was raised again, to 12.33, and Adz went straight out and ran a new Personal Best E.T. for the new car of 11.926 at 115.21, another best speed. On Sunday, they changed the Dial to 11.23, and Adz ran another PB of 11.860 at 113.10mph. They raised the Dial again, to 11.73, to try to get closer, and Adz ran both ends of the PB again with an 11.679 at 115.97mph. The Dial-in was lowered to 11.50 and, you guessed it, Adz ran another double PB of 11.499 at 118.16mph! Breaking out by just the thousandth! So close! The team did not mind one bit that they qualified in 6th place, as they were just ecstatic about the great set of successively better runs, and the steady improvement, with no breakages or problems.
WB 109	Andrew Murphy was in his first event this season with the “B-Sting” Topolino altered. The team dialled in blind for the first qualifier, at 10.40, and Andy put in a solid 10.608 at 120.75mph for his opening bid. The Dial-in was raised to 10.55 for the 2nd round and Andy posted a breakout 10.528 at 121.78mph. The Dial was lowered again, to 10.50, and Andy ran another breakout of 10.455 at 125.99mph. On Sunday, the team started the day with the same Dial, and Andy ran a close 10.513 at 124.78mph, to move up to 2nd place at that point. They kept the Dial again, and in the 5th round, Andy recorded a 10.505 at 125.29mph to become #1 Qualifier! They stuck with this Dial for the 6th qualifying round, and Andy equalled his best ever run with this new car of 10.381 at 126.24mph. He remained in the Top Spot overall, and the team were pleased with this early good performance.
Sample Title Paragraph text. Paragraph text. Paragraph text. Paragraph text. Paragraph text. Race Day Monday (Eliminations) Monday dawned brighter, and the track opened around 10:30am, right on schedule! So we waited for our turn for our Quarter-finals. The day turned out quite difficult, as there were numerous delays for small amounts of drizzle, and even a couple of bouts of hail !! There was also an oildown to contend with, so we were not called to the pairings lanes til about 2:45pm! Quarter-FinalsAll 6 Wild Bunch cars had qualified for eliminations, so there were due to be 3 good races in the first round, the Quarter-finals. We were moving down in the queue and got to the end of the fireup road at about 10 past 3, and Crazy Chris had just fired the engine of “Backdraft” when the signal came to shut down, as there had been an oildown! This turned out to be a lengthy cleanup, and some more rain fell in between, making the job more difficult for the track crew, who worked tirelessly to clear the track, and make sure it was well-prepped for racing. We were all chuffed when we got a 10-minute warning at about 5pm! And hopeful of at least getting one round in, thanks to the Shakey track crew. The first pairing saw Crazy Chris matched up with Darren Law, with Chris choosing a 9.28 Dial, and Darren and the team opting for a 9.00 even (well, a 9 with a pair of Moon Eyes on the chalkboard!). The reactions were about even, with Darren having a slight advantage, and charging hard down the quarter-mile. The team couldn’t believe it when that first magic ‘8’ came up on the scoreboard!! Darren had run an 8.985 at 145.02mph! The team were over the moon (eyes!). In the other lane, Chris had a Wild Bunch “Closest to Dial-in” run of 9.309 @ 144.18mph, with the exact same difference as his best qualifier, an .029. Chris advanced to the Semis, and hoped there would be time for that round. In the next pairing, Dave Rowlands faced Andrew Murphy. Dave went for the 9.70 Dial, and the “B-Sting” team chose their 10.50. Dave pulled an uncharacteristic red light on this round, and ran a 10.949 at 133.21mph handing the win to Andy, who posted a 10.615 at 114.36mph. Andy had the “Best Reaction” for the Bunch on this round, with an .096, and advanced to the Semis. The third race saw Dave Williams matched with Adz Price. Dave went for a considered 11.52 Dial, and Team Gridlock chose an 11.46. Unfortunately for them, Adz's altered bogged off the line and stalled, and he was pushed back, whilst Dave marched on to the next round with an 11.633 at 115.61mph. Team Gridlock were voted the “Best Appearing Team” by the commentators which topped off a great weekend for the team. Darren was awarded 4th place by the rule of ‘Closest to Dial-in’ without breaking out, or redlighting, of the Runners-up in this round. Adz was not in the equation as he did not make a run (and since both instances happened, the ‘first the worst’ basis takes effect, so the red light was the first infringement, and the place went to the driver who, though he broke out, did not red light!). Semi-finalsAfter the quarter-finals, there was no wait at all until the Semis, as the Bunch were being called to the pairings lanes as they were returning to the pits! The teams refuelled and towed down as soon as possible. By now, it was nearly 6pm! This time, Andrew had a Bye run to the Final, as he had been #1 Qualifier, and he dialled in at 10.50 again. The car was running well, and he recorded a 10.465 at 128.00mph, near his best ever speed. The only race of the round was between Chris and Dave Williams. Chris kept his 9.28 Dial, and Dave opted to keep his 11.52. Chris took over half a second reaction time advantage on this run, and chased Dave. In the end, they both broke out, with Chris posting a 9.196 at a slowing 123.95mph, and Dave running an 11.396 at 116.98mph. Chris had broken out by the least, so he took the win, to progress to the Final ... if there was time! Dave finished in 3rd place for the weekend, after another good performance. Final As expected, all Finalists were being called to the pairings lanes as Chris and Andrew arrived back in the pits. Chris and the team had to do an oil change, and the “B-Sting” team had a minor problem with their battery! They both got ready as soon as possible, and made it to the pairings lanes, where the marshals and track crew were doing a great job of trying to get all the racing completed. They had run about 12 of the 22 classes, by about 20 to 7, and were determined to try to finish all Finals. But then a rain shower fell at the top end, and with the time so late, and no chance to dry, they were forced to call an end to the event. Such a shame! The shower did not last long, but there was literally no more the Shakey crew could have done. So fair play to them for all their efforts! The weather deprived us of a good Final, so the result was decided on ‘Closest to Dial-in’ without breaking out on the previous round. Well, as both Chris and Andy broke out, the win then went to the lesser breakout which was Andrew's -.035 to Chris’ -.084! Many Congratulations to Andy and the team on winning their first event for some time, and for being right on the pace straight off the trailer. Well done to all the teams, who really put on a great show, with some exciting qualifying and racing. Another great performance from the Bunch! Overall it was another good event, despite the weather. Once again huge thanks to the track crew, marshalls and officials who worked really hard to prepare the track and tried to complete eliminations. Thanks to all at Shakey for the improvements on site, and best of luck for the rest of the season. We are now really looking forward to the first Wild Bunch Series round of this our 15th season, which will be the ‘Spring Nationals’, also at Shakey on May 15th & 16th. This will be the 3rd Real Steel Series round of 2010. It should be another great event! Hope to see loads of the Bunch out for this one!