2007 NHRA Finals in Pomona

Our Trip to Pomona,
Thursday Round 1

Have I ever I said that I love the smell of Nitro in the morning? Well I do and after shopping at all the various vendors on the grounds we went to our seats. The last race of the year is a good one to get t-shirts and sweaters on sale as the teams are getting new sponsors and drivers and losing the ones tey have. we bought a few shirts for $10. The racing was awesome in rounds 1&2 and Kenny Bernstein ripped off a wicked run.


Fri, Round 2

At the finals in Pomona they run 1 qualifying round 1 on Thursday and one on Friday then two on Saturday. A little different from the format of most national events. So as Friday morning arrives we are up and at em at 6:00am cause I love the smell of nitro in the morning and want to get to th etrack to get a good spot near the pits for some good inhalation spots! I tell it is a cool in the morning here in SoCal but it is a hell of alot better than the snow we left back home. By 11:00 am there is no need for a jacket anymore as it is getting hot. I bought a new Kenny Bernstein T-shirt and a couple for my new racing buddy (granddaughter), I hope she likes them. John Force's cars ran pretty weak in Round 1 on Thursday but by Friday round 2 they all had it nailed down pretty good all running in the 4.81 sec range and within top 6 in order. John Force was at the side of the track to watch his cars as he used the aid of a walker. It is pretty sad to see one of the icons of the sport on the sidelines with a walker in the shape that he is in but we all know he back racing again one day hopefully sooner than later.
Another casualty of the day was my wife. After 9 NHRA events together she finally succumbed to nitro fumes as her eyes were burning pretty bad. Believe me that the fumes from nitromethane racing fuel does burn the eyes pretty good but fresh air usually cures it. But hers lasted a and didn't go away so we had to a medical attendant for help to get her eyes washed out. As she coudn't see well she missed part of round 2 funny car qualifying. Don't know what I am going to do with her, guess she still needs to be seasoned some more to get used to the fumes. Hey babe the nitro content is going back up to 90% next year! Better bring a gas mask! Actually alot of fans do bring gas masks to the pits for warmups. Anyway after a golf cart ride from the NHRA member hospitality tent to the medical trailer she finally got her eyes washed out from the medical staff. They also said that part of it could be due to some ash particles in the air from the fires in the area, others said it could be smog! Hmmm maybe, one person we met said he got hit by a piece of hot porcelain that hit him in the chest while he was sitting in the Top eliminator club. Aren't spark plugs made from porcelain? Cool! Anyway I had to take a pic of the wife at the medicaal station cause I thought it was cool. I love the smell of nitro in the morning but I guess it doesn't mix with smoke and ash.

All pics on my Flickr site

2007 NHRA Finals in Pomona

Our Trip to Pomona,
Arriving in California

After a 7 hour trip waiting in between two flights and a layover in Denver to change planes we finally arrived in Ontario, California. I think flying this way rather than flying into LAX was the way to go as everyone else told us the same thing. And was a breeze driving to the hotel from Ontario. Driving from LAX would have been a nightmare apparently and the day we left the traffic to LA was backed up to Ontario on I-10 at 5.30 am! Not to say the I-10 traffic wasn't busy but still was easier than flying to LA, and our bags weren't lost either!

Day1 NHRA museum

Today we went to the NHRA museum and let me tell ya there is so much history there that it is overwhelming. It almost comes alive when you enter it. It was kind of a solemn mood as the founder Wally Parks has recently passed on a few weeks ago and the memorial ribbon on the Wally statue says it all. But you know he will always be looking down apon us making sure the NHRA community stays true to it's form. Anyway I was still excited to see Don Prodhomme's Top Fuel dragster and Kenny Bernstein's T/F dragster as well as some older cars from years gone by. Lots of old pictures and memorabilia there to as well. The museum is situated in a beautiful setting on Fairplex Drive with palm trees all around and green grass landscapes across the road, it is truly breathtaking. Here are some pic collages.




All pics on my Flickr site