Steamin' San Antonio
Once again the NOPI road show landed in Texas at River City Raceway near San Antonio, and, once again, the racing was packed with high drama and record-setting performances. Thanks in no small part to excellent track conditions the records kept falling all weekend as the very best of the NDRA put on a first-class show for the loyal fans in attendance.
The Bullish Racing Toyota Solaras of George Ioannou and Ara Arslanian provided the fans with an unbelievable four 200-mph passes between them. Three of the passes dropped into the 6-sec. zone, and the crowd showed its appreciation with a standing ovation every time the crew headed down the return road.
Chris Rado looked like he's finally got the World Electronics Celica on pace after posting his best-ever e.t. with an 8.46-sec. run at 170.46 mph. The ever-flamboyant Rado was grinning from ear to ear, having finally showed the potential of the Outlaw Class Toyota. Another driver with reason to smile was local-boy Kenny Tran, who blasted to a fastest-ever 8.59-sec. run at 170 mph and proceeded to back up that pass with an 8.61 for a new class record.
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The NDRA all-motor class came down to a final round battle between Norris Prayoonto and Leslie Durst. Prayoonto's Integra set the standard for the field, and after getting a bye in the first-round of competition, Norris dispatched Larry Herring in the second round when Herring fouled out at the line. Prayoonto ran a 10.61 at 128.05 mph to clinch a final-round appearance against Leslie Durst.
Durst made it to the final by steadily building his pace as the day progressed. The first round saw Durst taking out Lisa Feheley with an 11.07 at 123.03 mph, setting up a tough second-round battle against the Dodge Neon of Scott Mohler. In that round, Mohler got the holeshot, but it wasn't enough to stop Durst from powering to the win with a 10.85 at 123.07 mph against Mohler's 11.13 at 122.58 mph.
The final-round clash lived up to expectations, with both cars running in the 10s. Prayoonto had an advantage at the light with a 0.54-sec. reaction time against Durst's 0.57. That was enough for Prayoonto to clinch the win after finishing the run with a record-setting 10.68 at 127.43. Mohler did enough to win the championship for Mopar, with Larry Herring finishing the year in second place and event winner Prayoonto in third.