Friday Night Drag Racing

Clarksville Speedway

June 13^th, 2009

Tyler O’Donnell

Dirt track racing got back into action on Friday night as the rain managed to elude the track.  Drivers were competing in order to either win the footbrake, street trophy, or the sportsman’s street class. 

In the Street Trophy finals, Wesley Svatba took on Jimmy Bannister Jr.  Bannister Jr. took on the win timing in at 11.36 with a dial in of 11.4000.  Svatba had a faster ending time, with an 11.34, but could not match his dial in of 10.8118.  Svatba also did not have a very good reaction time when the tree fell, which proved costly.  Bannister Jr’s winning speed was 54.21 mph.  Svatba still leads the street trophy in points despite the loss.  Bannister is not far behind in fourth. 

In the footbrake class, the final round saw Terry Krantz and Ty Lynch competing.  Krantz came into the final round with a dial in time of 5.8919, nearly four seconds lower than Lynch with a 9.613.  It was Krantz who would end up on the winning end, having a finishing time of 5.87 compared to Lynch who had a 9.50.  Krantz’s winning speed was clocked in at 115.96 mph.  The two drivers might have been the underdogs coming in because they are not found in the top ten in points.  With the win, Krantz is now 28^th in points and runner-up Lynch, is 26^th. 

Lastly, the street class took the track.  Bannister Jr. also went on to win this event, having to compete against Jamie Mitchell in the finals. Bannister Jr. had an 11.3670 dial in compared to a 8.5032 dial in for Mitchell.  In the race, Bannister Jr. raced down the line in 11.35 seconds while Mitchell ran it in 8.50 seconds.  Bannister Jr. had the better reaction time which helped in the win.  Bannister Jr’s winning speed was 81.67 mph and he is now seventh in the points.  Mitchell is third.