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AMAIProstar U.S. Drag Racing Championships Round 4: Norwalk Raceway Park STORY AND PHOTOS BY MATT POLITO NORWALK, OHIO, JUNE 28-30 l1)J or the first time in two years, the l! AMA/Prostar tour returned to motorcycle-rich Ohio for the Norris Motorsports Cyclefest at Norwalk Raceway Park. For years, Prostar held events at National Trail Raceway in Columbus, Ohio, but the date was pulled from the tour due to schedul· ing conflicts and a typically lessthan-anticipated turnout. The popular Norwalk facility, sought after by Prostar, was unavailable due to a long-standing agreement with rival association lDBA. The recent scaledown of the !DBA schedule left the door open and Prostar signed a multiyear commitment with Norwalk. The Norris Motorsports Cyclefest was only the second event of the season not affected by rain, and saw the conclusion of the postponed Virginia finals. Top Fuel action saw initial performances that were a bit soft despite the tight Norwalk racing surface, as the competitors were concerned with the relatively short shutdown area. Larry "Spider-Man" McBride continued to be the star of the show, leading with strong performances and taking a pair of wins. McBride led the pack throughout, initially holding the pole with an early shutoff 6.45 at 162 mph, and improving it with a final qualifying effort of 6.26/184, during which he shut the bike off at just over five seconds into the run. Friday's action saw McBride take the Virginia win over Chris Hand, 6.48 to Hand's struggling 8.32. A notable qualifier was Barry Van Hook, who purchased the fuel bike from five-time champion Tony Lang earlier this year and ran his first six with it, qualifying with a 6.90 at 195 mph. 56 JULv24, 2002' c u e . e McBride and brother Steve turned the wick up in eliminations, running a 6.13/206 in the first round against Van Hook and scoring low E.T. of the meet in the final against Hand, 6.11/208 to Hand's 6.50/214. In the Orient Express Funnybike Class, three-time champ Gary Clark stepped up to the number-one qualifying position with a 6.693/201. Clark met Team Kawasaki's Chip Ellis in the Virginia final and, in a barn-burner, took the win, 6.80 to 6.89. Clark and Ellis met again in the Norwalk final, and after getting the holeshot, Clark shut off down track. The miscue gave the consistent Ellis, riding Steve Rice's turbo ZX-II, his first win in nearly a year, with a 6.826 timeslip. The Fast by Gast Pro Modified series had its share of drama in Ohio. Ashley Owens took the top qualifying spot at 6.93/194 and won the Virginia final when Louie Grist redlighted away a quicker 6.81 to Owens' 6.99. The pair met in the semifinals of Norwalk eliminations, with Owens bringing a wounded motor to the line, hoping for misfortune on Grist's part. Owens had the opportunity but did not take advantage of it. Owens made a soft pass while Grist's bike caught fire, forcing Grist to shut off early. Grist still got to the finish line before Owens, but Grist's bike was destroyed by the fire, giving John Sachs a final-round single. Sachs beat Toby Troyer in the semifinals. The Lectron Pro Stock series saw veteran Paul Gast take a pair of wins against the sport's rising stars. Reigning champion Todd Doege brought the Ward Performance Hayabusa to the pole position with a 7.115, followed by current record holder Joe Koenig at 7.190, Gast at 7.194, and multi-time Pro Mod Champ Billy Vose at 7.212. Gast took the Virginia final over Koenig, getting the holeshot and pulling away, 7.18 to 7.26. Performances stepped up for the Norwalk eliminations and Gast kept pace, using a combination of quick reac- tions and strong elapsed times to make the Norwalk final, getting by a redlighting Doege in the semis. In his second final of the weekend, Gast got the tune-up in line with the track and atmospheric conditions, running lowe.t. of the event at 7.110 seconds to turn back Koenig's 7.236 time slip. In the Mickey Thompson Streetbike Shootout class, reigning champ Kent Stotz, riding the Hahn Racecraft turbo Honda Blackbird, looked to keep his undefeated season alive, and he did so early, taking the Virginia final over Alphonso Thompson on Allen Price's GSX-R with a strong 7.87/180 to Thompson's 8.09/176. For the Norwalk event, Rickey Gadson came alive on the Muzzy turbo ZX-12R, taking the number-one qualifying position and the win. Gad· son edged out Stotz for the pole with a 7.88 as Stotz ran a best of 7.94. The number-three qualifier was Barry Henson on the Velocity Motorsports turbo Hayabusa with an 8.05. The anticipated Gadson-Stotz match-up never occurred as Stotz bogged against James "Duck" Lauer on the Flo-Tee nitrous GSX-R in the semifinals. Earlier in the event, Lauer got out of control on a burnout when the front wheel locked from track debris and ran over bike owner Craig Hansen, breaking Hansen's leg. Lauer got the holeshot in the final but had trouble down track as Gadson took the win with the low E.T. of the event, a 7.80 at 186 mph. Jim Carroll, riding the Team Kawasaki/Adams Performance ZX-12R, continued to dominate the Formula Superbike field. Carroll took the Virginia win over the Muzzys ZX-12R of Ryan Schnitz and grabbed the pole position for Norwalk with an 8.07 at 164 mph. Carroll, who has had a huge performance advantage all season, easily got through early Norwalk elimination rounds before meeting Schnitz again in the final. Bike builders Coby Adams and Chip Ellis turned the wick (Lett) Veteran Pro Stock rider Paul Gast scored a pair of wins and set low E.T. for the class in the Norwalk final, with a 7.110 elapsed time. (Below) Multi-time sportsman champ Mike Konopackl became the first rider in Prostar history to win three classes in one event. Konopacki took victories in Top Gas, Super Gas and Pro E.T. n e _ so