When testing ended at the 26th Annual Nitto Tire NMRA Spring Break Shootout, racers and crew enjoyed snacks and refreshments at the Weldon Pump Racer Appreciation party.
2X NMRA Richmond Gear Factory Stock champion Dan Ryntz spent 2019 driving a borrowed car and building a new one for himself after an off-season wreck totaled his previous machine. He is debuting the '91 Fox-Body Mustang this weekend at Bradenton Motorsports Park, but has set a new challenge before him as he makes a move to G-Force Transmissions Coyote Stock for the 2020 season.
2017 NMRA ProCharger Coyote Modified champion Tommy Annunziata and car co-owner and tuner Jim LaRocca are back for 2020 with their Cobra Jet Mustang. They will be running the 3.0-liter Whipple blower this weekend, but have plans to move up to the larger unit going forward. LaRocca expects 4.70s this weekend in Edelbrock Performance Renegade competition.
Michigan's Steve Halprin picked up Brian Wolfe's former big-block-Ford-powered, NA Mustang and with the help of Steve Pettiwit on the chassis and fabrication side and D&D Motorsports on the wiring and assembly side, has swapped in a BES Racing Engines 427ci engine and an 88mm Precision Turbo & Engine for competition this NMRA season in Vpracingfuels Madditives Street Outlaw. With the Walsh Motorsports crew helping out, the car has gone 4.66 on an easy tune up just a month ago here at Bradenton Motorsports Park during testing.
New York's Eric Bardekoff makes the move to Edelbrock Performance Renegade this year with his Cobra Jet tribute car, and the chassis builder and painter was still putting the finishing touches on the car just days ago, having added a bunch of carbon fiber parts to lose some 400 pounds of weight in his Whipple Superchargers blown Mustang.
With many of their weekends devoted to their kids' junior dragster and equestrian competitions, Chad and Michelle Scholten only get to three NMRA races a year, and they decided to escape the frigid Michigan weather and drive down to Florida to compete in the NMRA Spring Break Shootout (NMRA Season Opener) here at Bradenton Motorsports Park. Chad competes in ARP Open Comp with his mid-9-second Mustang.
2019 ProCharger Modified Street champion Brad Schehr swapped out his ProCharger blower to a bigger F1-A unit and will step up to Edelbrock Performance Renegade for the 2020 NMRA season. The rest of his small-block Ford engine combination has remained the same.
It's basically the same championship-caliper machine that Clair Stewart II drove last season, but in 2020, Drew Lyons is the man behind the wheel. He entered the 26th Annual Nitto Tire NMRA Spring Break Shootout having never raced someone else's car. For Bradenton he only adjusted the seat and moved some weight around, but he's excited about a full season campaign in G-Force Racing Transmissions Coyote Stock.
A new player in G-Force Racing Transmissions Coyote Stock is piloting a clean, classic Mustang. Shawn Olson caught the heads-up racing bug by watching Mike Bowen race his 1971 Maverick in the class. After finding the vintage pony on Facebook Marketplace last December, Olson dropped the car off at Bowen's PowerHouse Automotive for a full build. Powered by a sealed Gen 2 Coyote, the 21,000-mile car runs a G-Force 101a trans, an AJE K-member, and a CHE chrome-moly cage. Olson hopes to run competitively at the 26th Annual Nitto Tire NMRA Spring Break Shootout.
Taking over the wheel of his 2010 Shelby GT500, Dwayne Hickman heads into the Mickey Thompson Cobra/Terminator vs. GT500 Shootout with a new BES-built 5.8-liter engine under the hood. The Blacksnake's fresh powerplant has more compression and benefits from an improved underhood layout.
At the end of last season, John Leslie Jr. upgraded to a new, MPR-built Coyote engine. During the off-season, the 20-year veteran of Richmond Gear Factory Stock racing fixed some issues with his Fox coupe and made several upgrades. At the 26th Annual Nitto Tire NMRA Spring Break Shootout he is feeling confident about the 2020 campaign, right down to getting his popular wheelstands under control...
It's basically the same championship-caliper machine that Clair Stewart II drove last season, but in 2020, Drew Lyons is the man behind the wheel. He entered the 26th Annual Nitto Tire NMRA Spring Break Shootout having never raced someone else's car. For Bradenton he only adjusted the seat and moved some weight around, but he's excited about a full season campaign in G-Force Racing Transmissions Coyote Stock.
Local racer Bill Gregan enters the Edelbrock Renegade ranks at the 26th Annual Nitto Tire NMRA Spring Break Shootout with a new combo. His 1990 Mustang is a former Florida Highway Patrol car powered by a ProCharger-boosted, 434ci engine constructed by Fast Forward Racing Engines.
Joel Greathouse hadn't even done a burnout with his new Edelbrock Renegade combo before arriving in Bradenton. However, if he runs well at the 26th Annual Nitto Tire NMRA Spring Break Shootout, look for the veteran racer to be a regular on the NMRA circuit this season. His new, 8.2-deck, 310-cube engine is backed by a three-speed Turbo 400 trans.
Pete Espeut is at the 26th Annual Nitto Tire NMRA Spring Break Shootout to test his stock 2020 Shelby GT500. He hopes to run mid-10s in the car and has some sticky tires at the ready just in case.
Test hits are underway and racers are out in force for the 26th Annual Nitto Tire NMRA Spring Break Shootout. Sunny skies and cool air should make for great all-Ford racing this weekend at Bradenton Motorsports Park!