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October 15, 2004 - Attendance records exceeded expectations and the action on the track was the quickest and fastest of the season at Rockingham Dragway on October 9th and 10th.
Wasting no time setting the pace, Steve Stordeur of Goshen, OH, came off the trailer in Saturday's Screamin' Eagle Nitro Harley opening round with a 6.357 at 216.69 mph, bettering the E.T. record of 6.378 he set himself in 2003. Fans didn't wait long to see the number backed up for the official record when he followed with a 6.392 at 215.62 mph in the second round.
In the final round of qualifying, satisfied and confident in the #1 position, Stordeur sported shorts and sandals and would take a spectator's position for the last- chance round, with 6.50 numbers being second best so far from his competition.
Prior to the final round, an unheard-of situation was looming for Doug Vancil of Albuquerque, NM. He was not in the show. Struggling early, the best mark he had was an 8.657. Proving why he's the champ, and why his wife and crew chief, Julie, touts the "wrench of the year" award, the Drag Specialties/Vance and Hines team came out with a jaw-dropping 6.331 at 215.20 mph, bettering the record and stealing the #1 spot from Stordeur-who while sitting out the round could only watch the numbers light the boards.
Advancing from the "outhouse to the penthouse," Vancil was in the show, with a chance at backing up the national record and gaining much-needed marks in the points race. Stordeur was second with the 6.357, teammate Johnny Mancuso was third with a 6.430 best, and Mike Romine was fourth with a 6.581 best.
The conventional wisdom is that it's anybody's race on Sunday. And indeed it was when Vancil was ousted early by Dean Comunal and was unable to back up the record. Still on pace, however, Stordeur advanced to the semis, where he took out his team leader Johnny Mancuso for the final round matchup with #4 qualifier Mike Romine, who in turn easily beat Comunal in the semi round.
Romine (of Sturgis, MI) was coming off a huge weekend in Joliet, IL, where he made the quickest pass in history (6.260) in the Screamin' Eagle Nitro Harley exhibition at the CarQuest Auto Parts NHRA Nationals. Stordeur was staged to seal his championship title lead with a win.
Romine was off the line with a .035 to a close .040 reaction time from Stordeur, and it was a battle to the traps as Romine got there first with a 6.460 at 214.72 mph to a 6.472 at 216.41 mph finish from Stordeur.
In JIMS Pro Fuel action, Mike Lehman of W. Palm Beach, FL, dominated qualifying with six-second numbers. He finished the day on Saturday with a 6.696 at 202.09 mph blast for the #1 spot. John Martin was second with a 6.812 and Jay Turner was third with a 6.930 best.
Lehman battled through the field for a matchup with Turner in the final. With nearly identical reaction times, the pair ran a tight race with Lehman finishing first and setting a new 1/8-mile record of 195.25 mph—a record that had stood at 192.60 mph since 2001 when it was set in Rockingham by Tim Kerrigan of Navato, CA.
Dave Feazell of Hudson, IA, and "The Rock" go hand-in-hand. Feazell holds plenty of records and wins at the track, and once again he followed suit this year in S & S Cycle Pro Gas competition.
He opened his day in qualifying with a 7.338 at 176.28 mph that bettered the E.T. record of 7.357 set by Tom Bradford earlier in the year. He followed in round two with a 7.331, improving the record number with plenty to back it up.
Frank Dove made one pass in qualifying, a 7.633 at 174.03 mph. Dove (of Hughesville, MD) is in the record books himself with a 178.28 mph mark set in 2001. Apparently hurting parts, it was Dove's only pass of the day, but it was good enough for the #2 spot.
Feazell and Dove were on top going into Sunday's eliminations and the pair advanced for the final round. Feazell finished first with a 7.608 at 175.21 mph to Dove's 7.798 at 172.45 mph pass. In addition to Feazell's 1/4-mile E.T. record, he also took the 1/8-mile marks at 4.657 at 150.05 mph.
In Rivera-Primo Street Pro, Travis Lummus made a huge return to the winner's circle and an even bigger return to the record books. The four-time champ from Asheville, NC, has had a less than satisfying season, with only one win coming into Rockingham and trailing in the points for the first time in years.
Trying new tuning combinations throughout the year, the Gene Lummus Harley-Davidson team came loaded with a new motor and plenty of talent from the crew, laying down the quickest numbers recorded in Street Pro racing: a 8.834 in the quarter mile and 5.652 at 125.96 mph in the eighth mile.
Lummus beat points leader Joe Sternotti of Blackwood, NJ, in the final. Sternotti's hard work and consistency will give him the 2004 title and Lummus's newfound return to success will make the upcoming final event in Vegas a must- see finish for the pair.
The Gene Lummus Harley-Davidson gang celebrated additional big numbers when Junior Pippin of Conyers, GA, captured another win in Joker Machine Pro Modified and landed the eighth-mile record at 131.13 mph. Pippin will also be displaying the #1 plate in 2005 after locking up the title in Rockingham.
The record books have changed hands rapidly in Drag Masters Hot Street, and this time it was Mike Roberts changing the numbers. Roberts was the #1 qualifier with his 10.170 record mark in the 1/4-mile and a 6.427 in the eighth.
Roberts (of Akron, OH) was paired with Kingsport, TN's Joe Perry in the final. Perry held the record marks before Roberts reset the pace and it was Roberts taking the win with a 10.218 at 125.45 mph over Perry's 11.822 at 79.99 mph finish.
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