The BME Bulletin

Bill Miller Engineering's Top Fuel blog
by Rick Vogelin

 #3: Rain Delays Bristol Bash but Doesn't Dampen BME Team's Sprit

 Entertainer Gene Kelly may have been singin' in the rain for Hollywood musicals, but hundreds of NHRA Powerade Series drag racers weren't racin' in the rain Sunday, May 7 at Bristol (Tenn.) Dragway. After days of ominous forecasts, the rain arrived just in time to wash out final eliminations of the O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals.

 The Bill Miller Engineering Top Fuel team returned to the track on Monday morning to find dramatically different conditions. The temperature had plummeted to 49 degrees and the racing surface was scrubbed clean.

 BME Driver Brady Kalivoda, qualified 12th in the 16-car field with a 4.651-second elapsed time then, faced No. 5 qualifier Cory McClenathan in the first round of eliminations. The BME dragster was first off the starting line as Kalivoda put a .043-second advantage in the bank with a quick reaction time. The engine tuneup didn't complement the cooler weather, however, and several cylinders misfired. When a head gasket failed and pressurized the crankcase, performance went downhill rapidly. Kalivoda slowed to a 4.794-second e.t. while McClenathan claimed the victory in 4.604 seconds.

 Brady Kalovoda: From The Driver's Seat

 "Bristol Dragway is an absolutely beautiful facility, certainly one of the best on the NHRA tour. It's in the heart of NASCAR country, and the fans were very knowledgeable and very friendly. The entire experience was great.

 "A weekend like we had in Bristol makes me glad I'm not a crew chief. My job remains the same, but the crew chiefs and the tuners have to adapt to different combinations and conditions, and that's the most difficult part of our sport. Bill and the crew did a fine job of adjusting to new circumstances quickly.

"This was our first weekend on Goodyear's new Top Fuel tire. All of the cars were required to run the new tire at this event but we had zero experience with it. I was pleased with our first qualifying run on Friday when the car ran 4.70 at 316 mph. We wanted to make a nice A-to-B run out of the box and we did that. Our next goal was to improve the e.t. in the Friday night session, and we accomplished that as well with a 4.65 run. I give all the credit to Bill and the team for sorting out the setup with the new tire so quickly.

"Being firmly in the show gave us the opportunity to experiment on Saturday. The weather was quite a bit warmer, and we weren't able to keep the tires hooked up on the hot track. The weather forecast had called for rain all weekend, so we were fortunate to get in all of our qualifying sessions. The forecast was the same for Sunday, and we thought that we might get lucky and run the race on schedule. NHRA did their best to dry the track, but in the end Mother Nature won and final eliminations were postponed until Monday. I take my hat off the BME crew because many of them have full-time jobs at home. Everyone did whatever they had to do to stay over. We had our full team to do battle on Monday.

"We were confident that we'd have a good drag race against Cory. The BME dragster left the starting line hard, but then the engine dropped some cylinders. I could feel that the motor wasn't running at 100 percent, but it was race day and I didn't see him, so I kept my foot on the throttle. Unfortunately the mechanical problems slowed the car and we were second at the finish line.

"All in all, it was a great weekend for our first visit to a great track. I feel very comfortable in the BME dragster, and I'm driving well. This team deserves to see some win lights, and it's going to happen soon."

The View from the Top: Bill Miller on Bristol

"We were happy to host our friends from Okuma, the world leader in computer numerical control (CNC) machine tool technology, in Bristol, and we had an opportunity to see many of our customers from the NASCAR shops. Seth Machlus, Okuma's marketing manager, and his wife Becky were honorary team members and joined us at the starting line on Friday. On Sunday, Ted Driggs, the manager of productivity development for RCR Okuma Technology Center, came out to the track. He didn't get to see the car in action because of the rain, but we spent quality time bench racing.

"The new Goodyear tire was a bit of a mystery at first, but there is always good advice in the pits if you ask smart people like Mike Kloeber and Bob Glidden. I got some pointers on initial tire pressure, and studying the video tapes of the runs helped us make the right adjustments. After we ran 4.70 and 4.65 on our first two passes, I was feeling more confident.

"The track temperature was 20 degrees hotter on Saturday than it was on Friday, and we spun the tires twice. Then a cold front arrived on Monday after the rain and the tuning changes we'd made didn't suit the conditions. We still have some issues with the fuel system that need to be sorted out, and we're learning how to cope with big swings in weather and track conditions.

"The bottom line is that we got beat in Bristol, but we'll bring experience with the new slick and a trailer full of new parts to the next race."

Next Stop: Chicago

The upcoming Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals in Atlanta is not on the BME Top Fuel team's dance card. Consequently the next outing for the black dragster will be the NHRA Route 66 Nationals at Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, Ill., on May 20-23.

"I've raced once at Route 66 Raceway in 2001," Kalivoda recalled. "My total driving experience consisted of a single engine-destroying run, so it was a less than desirable situation. The Chicago track has a great racing surface, always quick and consistent. If the weather is cool, I'm looking forward to cranking out my first 4.50 of the year there.

"Several members of the team are based in Chicago," Kalivoda noted. "It's their home track and they'll have friends and family there. We want to do a good job for all of them." 

BME Race Results

O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, Bristol, Tenn., May 3, 2004

Qualified: No. 12 at 4.651/302.82 mph

First Round: Cory McClenathan (4.604/315.78) defeated Brady Kalivoda (4.794/282.13)

 

Next Race

NHRA Route 66 Nationals, Joliet, Ill., May 20-23

TV Schedule:

Qualifying: May 22, 7 - 9 p.m. (ET) ESPN2

Eliminations: May 23, 7 - 10 p.m. (ET) ESPN2

Repeat: May 24, 1:30 - 4 a.m. (ET) ESPN2

 

The BME Bulletin  Archive

Number 1
BME Team Beats the Odds in Las Vegas
Number 2
Heads Held High in Houston
Number 3
The Bristol Bash:
Number 4
Midwest Swing no Spring Fling
.Number 5
The Left Coast Swing
Number 6
The Point of no Return
Number 7
High Drama at Indy
Number 8
Hot Times in Chilly Chicago
Number 9
Snake Eyes
in Las Vegas
  Number 10
BME Team Concludes 2004 Tour with Season-Best Performance
 

 

BME Home Page Forged aluminum connecting rods Precision Pistons
About BME Contacting BME
Copyright © 2004 Bill Miller Engineering