Local racers fare well at Grand Junction drag strip

RANGELY I The first two-day Western Colorado Dragway races in Grand Junction went well for local racers May 30-31.
The weekend started with the junior dragster class. Junior Drag Racing League competitors race junior dragsters — half-scale versions of top fuel dragsters. Using a five-horsepower, single-cylinder engine, a junior dragster can go as fast as 85 mph and as quickly as 7.9 seconds in an eighth-mile.
Marlena Miller runs in the 8-10 year old 12.90 class. This was her first race. She ran several 13.30 passes on Saturday, but she red lit in the first round and lost.
She re-entered the consolation class (any driver who loses in the first round has the option to buy back for money, no points are awarded). And she also red lit. Sunday, she lost in the first round. She ran a 12.85 on a 13.13 dial-in and she opted not to buy back.
Jeremy Ahrens went six rounds in the Pro ET class for the win on Saturday, and lost with a red light .004 on Sunday. A perfect light is .000. This is Jeremy’s first year with his new ‘67 Camaro with its 498 big block Chevy engine he built over the winter. This was only the second time out. If that’s any indication of how he will do the rest of the season, look out.
Wade Rusher also went five rounds in the Pro ET class on Saturday. He made it to the semifinals, but broke out. He ran a 10.26 on a 10.30 dial-in, and lost the second round on Sunday. Wade drives a 1970 Chevelle with a 427 big-block Chevy on alcohol. He says that if he could get a good light, he would never lose.
Jerry LeBleu went four rounds in Pro ET class to advance to the quarterfinals on Saturday, but had a red light and lost. He did better on Sunday. He went five rounds to the semifinals, but left too early with a .010 red light. His new motor combination is showing improvement. Jerry runs a 565 big-block Chevy in his 1970 Camaro, which makes a 3,800-pound car run 10.10 seconds in the quarter mile.
Ed Miller lost in the first round in Super Pro Class with a 9.39 on a 9.40 dial-in. Miller bought back into consolation and went four rounds for the win and some money on Saturday. He went five rounds for the win on Sunday with a perfect light .000 in his 1970 Chevy pickup with a 598 big-block Chevy engine.
The next races will be Friday and Saturday in Grand Junction, and July 3-5 there will be a special event with street legal drags on Friday night. Jim Whiteley, top alcohol dragster, will be out Saturday, along with normal races, and Sunday will be Mopar races. Come on out and support these local racers and just enjoy the races.
Western Colorado Dragway is located at 115 32nd St. in Grand Junction. For more directions or information, visit www.western-colorado-dragway.com.