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04.04.09-23:45 FlA QUALIFYING FOOTNOTES
      (1) On Friday, due to rain, very high winds, and a major Christmas tree malfunction, there was only one round of Funny Car and Pro Stock qualifying held. NHRA tried to have one round of Top Fuel qualifying but in the first run(solo) Arley Langlo's engine exploded and caught fire(see next post) leaving a large oildown on the track. By the time the track was cleaned up NHRA decided to cancel the session due to very high winds and it was starting to get late in the day. Langlo dropped out of the event. There was some outstanding qualifying on Saturday particularly Pro Stock and the final round of Funny Car.
      (2) Also on Friday, Bob Bode qualified No. 1 with a career best time. He had an excellent second round of qualifying to remain #1. In Bob's third and final round of qualifying he lost traction, resulting in a poor ET, and dropped to fifth which was still his best showing this season. - See next 2nd post
      (3) The last two years John Force DNQ at the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals and he has never won the event. When Force didn't qualify for the 2007 Summit event, it ended a record streak of 395 consecutive starts in the NHRA pro series, one that began in 1988. When he again failed to make the show last year, it marked just the second time in his 31-year NHRA career that he's missed a race in back-to-back seasons.
SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals
Top Nitro Drivers Than Did Not Qualify the Last Two Years
2008: John Force 5.020 306.05
2008: Scott Kalitta 5.049 307.02
2007: John Force 4.852 318.47
      (4) Urls Erbacher is running his old backup Top Fuel dragster this weekend. His crew chief estimated the massive explosion last Sunday at the Spring Nationals did $120,000 worth of damage to his new car. With the short turnaround time between Houston and Las Vegas there was no way they could properly inspect and get the new car ready to make Vegas on time. More Déjà vu: Like the Spring Nationals, tomorrow in the 1st round of Top Fuel Final Eliminations Larry Dixon is again up against Urs Erbacher. Last Sunday, it was the first round against Dixon that Erbacher had his massive engine explosion. Urs is basing his U.S. drag racing operations out of Houston. So we will call the Switzerland born European drag racing wonder a "provisional Texan" *lol*.
      (5) Last Sunday, Ron Krisher won the Pro Stock "Wally" at the Spring Nationals.
      (6) In Pro Stock, Houston home girl Erica Enders is 100% consistent this season. She DNQ for the fifth straight NHRA event.
      (7) Sunday's Las Vegas Forecast: Sunny, High of 72 degrees, Winds NE 5-10 mph, Humidity 13-16%, and a dome of high pressure will be over "The Strip". A+ drag racing weather conditions are forecast that are almost identical to last Sunday for the NHRA Spring Nationals at Houston Raceway Park in Baytown, Texas. The only difference is the humidity was 15-20% higher last Sunday, which was very rare for Baytown/Houston in the Spring where humidity is usually 50-100%. However, there is one major difference between the two cities. Las Vegas is 1,994 feet higher above sea level than Baytown, Texas. The increased LV altitude reduces a drag racing engine's maximum output making them harder to tune and run full power passes.

See Footnote #3 - There is another funny car driver that is tearing up the track this weekend.

John Force had great rounds of qualifying yesterday. It's the first time "Brute" has qualified for this event in three years and he has never won it. John has both Team Force Robert Hight and Mike Neff on his side of the FC Final's ladder. I doubt he will lay down for them like John did for Ashley last weekend. Hope everything is going fantastic for ya! ~ fla

ESPN’s coverage was grand. It is so nice when the race is broadcast in the afternoon and some of it is live. What is the capacity their? Many empty seats. Wonder if Houston still had the largest season attendance last Sunday.

Have you seen this? Thoughts?
Charlotte-based Sonic Automotive, one of the nation’s largest auto dealers, reported staggering fourth-quarter and full-year 2008 losses Tuesday. The Fortune 500 company also said it may have to file for bankruptcy protection because of outstanding debts during a recession that has severely curbed car sales. The company’s fourth-quarter loss was $685.6 million, compared with a $23 million profit a year earlier. For the year, the loss was $685.9 million — or $17 per share — a huge swing from a $95.5 million profit in 2007.

Bruton Smith’s Sonic Automotive considering bankruptcy
http://www2.mooresvilletribune.com/content/2009/apr/01/bruton-smiths-sonic-automotive-considering-bankrup/

Bruton Smith says dealerships aren’t bankrupt
http://www.fannation.com/truth_and_rumors/view/97952?eref=sircrc