The Painless Performance Outlaw Fuel Altered series thundered into Tulsa Raceway Park, headlining the 6th Annual Nitro Nationals event held on Saturday, September 24th. This marked the fifth of eight races on the 2011 schedule and first of a five week, four race stretch for the OFAA teams. A heated points battle is in the works as Jimmy Jones came into Tulsa just one point ahead of Terry Brian, with Bobby Marriott, Chris Trussell and Aaron Leyda close behind holding spots in the top five.

Cool air conditions and a reputably fast racing surface in Tulsa brought a tuning curve to the OFAA crew chiefs as drivers and crews looked forward to strutting their stuff on the Tulsa Raceway Park eighth mile. The series welcomed Roger Hennen to the mix as he made his driving debut behind the “Nitro Junkie” branded fuel altered out of Sanger, Texas.

(Roger Hennen)

A stout field of nineteen fuel altereds made the tow to Tulsa as the call went out to bring them to the lanes for the first session of qualifying. The boys and girls were playing for keeps as several teams posted strong opening laps. John Broussard and team “Purple Haze” clicked off a 3.96 at 174 mph and Terry Brian posted a 3.99 at 178 mph in the “II N’Tense” machine. Nick Poloson and Brad Rigler lined up and went side by side through the traps, Poloson leading with a 4.00 to Rigler’s 4.03.

(Nick Poloson)

(Donnie Massey)

Donnie Massey wheeled the “Showtime” nitro burner to a 4.06 at 184 mph and Aaron Leyda clicked off a 4.07 at 176 mph in his Chevy powered “Hemi Hunter” owned and tuned by Dale Wilkens. Bobby Marriott debuted his brand new “Shockwave” machined built by Ty Baumgartner and clicked off a solid 4.13 at 159 mph on his first lap in the car.

(Bobby Marriott)

Mark Bowman laid down a 4.16 at 171 mph on his opening lap in the “Blown Income” fuel altered, good for the number eight qualifying spot after session number one. Jimmy Jones, Howard Knowles, David Purifoy and Sean Belt rounded out the top twelve qualifiers as Belt’s 4.75 was the bump spot heading into the final qualifying session.

(Mary Reep)

Mary Reep used the second session to the fullest, clicking off a career best 3.92 at 183 mph in the Austin, Texas based “Grim Reeper” fuel altered, safely securing her spot in the twelve car show. Donnie Massey blasted down the eighth mile to his best pass of the season, a 3.86 at 189 mph, proving his ponies in the “Showtime” nitro burner. Mo-Kan winner Jimmy Jones improved his qualifying position with a 4.02 at 162 mph in the “Tremor” machine, good for the number four spot in the field. David Purifoy and team “Thrill Factor” stepped up to a 4.13 at 142 mph to nab the number ten qualifying position and Bobby Marriott clicked off a nice 4.04 at 185 mph to qualify sixth with his brand new machine.

(Jimmy Jones)

(Sean Belt)

Sean Belt’s 4.75 was now outside looking in as he hoped to put the “Nitro Madness” Fiat solidly in the field, but faced with nasty tire shake, posted a best of a 4.28 at 177 mph which came up just short of the top twelve. Howard Knowles wheeled the “Cheaper Than Therapy” fuel altered to a solid 4.22 at 169 mph, but that too came up just a tick short of a spot in the top twelve, but his effort was rewarded by winning the Lenco Transmissions “Outside Looking In” Bonus of $100 dollars as the first alternate.

(Howard Knowles)

DoDad Burton secured the final spot in the field with a 4.20 at 170 mph in the “Free Spirit” machine out of Tyler, Texas. Roger Hennen made his quickest pass to date in the final qualifying session, posting a 4.62 at 161 mph in only his seventh pass in the car, a solid debut for team “Nitro Junkie” who had all smiles and no hurt parts to take home to Texas. Jim Overly wheeled the “Fuelish Habit” nitro burner to his best pass of the season, a 4.55 at 162 mph, short of the bump but none the less a solid effort for the team out of Oyster Creek, Texas as they continue to improve.

(Jim Overly)

(Chris Trussell)

Number four in points, Chris Trussell, hit a streak of bad luck at Tulsa along with Howard Farris and Raymond Dawson, never completing a solid pass in qualifying. They will have another shot in just two weeks on October 8th at North Star Dragway in Denton, Texas, the next scheduled OFAA event. Terry Brian’s 3.999 (4.001) held up for the number one spot, his first top qualifier of his rookie campaign. Brian was awarded the Napa Auto Parts and Competition Sales of Dallas “#1 Qualifier Bonuses” as the top twelve qualifiers returned to the pits to prepare for what would be a stellar first round of eliminations.

(Howard Farris)

(Raymond Dawson)

Final Qualifying Order:

1) Terry Brian (New London, Texas) – 4.001 (3.999) @ 178
2) Nick Poloson (San Antonio, Texas) – 4.008 @ 166
3) John Broussard (Lake Charles, Louisiana) – 4.020 @ 174
4) Jimmy Jones (Dallas, Texas) – 4.022 @ 162
5) Brad Rigler (Heath, Texas) – 4.03 @ 159
6) Bobby Marriott (Pilot Point, Texas) - 4.04 @ 185
7) Donnie Massey (Little Elm, Texas) – 4.06 @ 184
8) Aaron Leyda (Bartlesville, Oklahoma) – 4.074 @ 176
9) Mary Reep (Austin, Texas) – 4.076 (3.924) @ 183
10) David Purifoy (Texarkana, Texas) – 4.13 @ 142
11) Mark Bowman (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) 4.16 @ 171
12) DoDad Burton (Tyler, Texas) – 4.20 @ 170
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13) Howard Knowles (Carthage, Missouri) – 4.22 @ 169
14) Sean Belt (Kansas City, Missouri) – 4.28 @ 177
15) Jim Overly (Oyster Creek, Texas) – 4.55 @ 162
16) Roger Hennen (Sanger, Texas) – 4.62 @ 161
17) Chris Trussell (Canton, Texas) – 6.91 @ 79
18) Howard Farris (Tyler, Texas) – No Time
19) Raymond Dawson (Nevada, Texas) – No Time

Bobby Marriott and DoDad Burton opened the first round with side by side burnouts. Marriott took a slight jump off the line and thundered to the win, posting a 3.94 at 186 mph to advance over Burton’s 4.41 at 161 mph.

(DoDad Burton)

(Marriott vs. Burton - Rd 1 - Video by Clipper)

Brad Rigler and Mark Bowman rolled out next and Rigler had this one from start to finish, getting a big starting line advantage and clicking off a 4.03 at 178 mph to Bowman’s 4.14 at 169 mph.

(Brad Rigler)

(Mark Bowman)

Terry Brian was out next along side Donnie Massey. This was a crucial round for Brian as he needed every point he could get in the points battle with Jimmy Jones. Brian was off the line first by a hefty margin and clicked off a 4.05 at 177 mph, but Massey used his nitro powered ponies to drive around him and take the win with a thundering 3.96 at 187 mph.

(Terry Brian)

Jimmy Jones rolled through the water box in the next pair along side David Purifoy. Purifoy could play giant killer and suddenly become Terry Brian’s best friend by taking out Jones, but it wasn’t meant to be as Jones clicked off a strong 3.97 at 183 mph to take the nod and the precious Painless Performance Products round win points.

(David Purifoy)

John Broussard and Mary Reep wheeled their purple painted blown alcohol machines to the line in the next pair. Reep was fresh off her career best pass in qualifying and was on another stout pass, but collected the cones in the process posting a 3.91 at 176 mph, giving Broussard the automatic win, while Broussard himself clicked off a career best 3.92 at 182 mph which guaranteed him a spot in the final round as one of the two quickest winners with just one pair left in the round.

(John Broussard)

(Reep vs. Broussard Rd 1 - Video by Clipper)

In the final pair, Aaron Leyda and Nick Poloson crept into the beams ready to battle for a spot in the final; the winner would need to run better than Marriott’s 3.94 to face Broussard in the last dance. Leyda had the best reaction time of the round (.022) but fell behind by half track as Poloson took the win with a 4.01 at 171 mph. Poloson and car owner / tuner Tom Wood got the round win, but Marriott held onto the final transfer spot as team “Shockwave” and team “Purple Haze” advance to the final round. Incredibly, the slowest winning lap in the opening round was Brad Rigler’s solid 4.03, proving just how tough the competition was in Tulsa as four first round winners dipped into the threes.

(Aaron Leyda)

First Round Eliminations:

(W) Bobby Marriott (.152 rt) 3.94 @ 186 vs. (L) DoDad Burton (.163 rt) 4.41 @ 161
(W) Brad Rigler (.080 rt) 4.03 @ 178 vs. (L) Mark Bowman (.284 rt) 4.14 @ 169
(W) Donnie Massey (.110 rt) 3.96 @ 187 vs. (L) Terry Brian (.059 rt) 4.05 @ 177
(W) Jimmy Jones (.040 rt) 3.97 @ 183 vs. (L) David Purifoy (.125 rt) 4.52 @ 142
(W) John Broussard (.049 rt) 3.92 @ 182 vs. (L) Mary Reep (.109 rt) 3.91 @ 176 (Foul)
(W) Nick Poloson (.061 rt) 4.01 @ 171 vs. (L) Aaron Leyda (.022 rt) No Time (Timing Error)

John Broussard was heading into his first OFAA final of the season while Marriott was making his second trip to the money round. As the clock neared midnight, after an extremely long day of drag racing in Tulsa, the teams fired up their machines for the final time of the night.

John Broussard blasted off the line with almost a full tenth of a second advantage but immediately struck the tires and had the best seat in the house to watch Marriott collect his second win of the season with a 3.98 at 182 mph pass, capping off the perfect debut event for the new “Shockwave” machine.

Final Round Results:

(W) Bobby Marriott (.117 rt) 3.98 @ 182 vs. (L) John Broussard (.018 rt) 9.64 @ 58

(Team "Shockwave" Tulsa Winners)

"I would like to thank Tulsa Raceway for inviting us to run the Nitro Nationals, it had to be the largest gathering of front motor dragsters and Fuel Altereds at this track in 40 years. We unloaded our new un-tested car not really knowing what to expect. After a short test squirt I knew we had a real hot rod on out hands. Thanks to my crew guys making the right calls and Ty Baumgartner building a great car we made it to the finals. The Broussard's had the car to beat that night, but I guess they just over powered the track, I look for John to be in the winners circle real soon. All in all, I couldn't be happier we won the race with a new car and got one of the special piston & rod trophies that Walt Meger designed and made, way cool!" said Marriott.

With their win, Marriott and team “Shockwave” tightened the gap in the Painless Performance Products points standings, with Marriott in third just twenty two points behind leader Jimmy Jones. Terry Brian is sitting strong in second just three points behind Jones and if Brad Rigler, Chris Trussell or Aaron Leyda post a win at the next outing they will boost themselves right into the hunt.

The OFAA’s biggest fan, Clipper Wallace, was in the house at Tulsa and was caught off guard with a big surprise from the OFAA teams. Brad Rigler, Bobby Marriott, Nick Poloson, David Purifoy and Jimmy Jones all pitched in to buy Clipper a ride in the two seater Super Comp Dragster at Tulsa Raceway Park. After the OFAA final round, it was Clipper’s turn to take his first ride down a drag strip, fire suit, helmet, the whole nine yards. Many of the OFAA teams and crews gathered on the starting line to watch Clipper as he rode right down broadway to a 5.20 at 120 mph. The first thing out of his mouth when he got back to the pits was, “Oh My!” as Clipper clearly enjoyed his ride, as the OFAA said thanks for the support from their biggest fan!

Don’t miss the OFAA’s next event, Saturday, October 8th at North Star Dragway in Denton, Texas. The following Saturday, October 15th, the OFAA will be at Royal Purple Raceway in Baytown, Texas headlining the Super Chevy Show. The 2011 season will come to a close the following Saturday, October 22nd at the Texas State Championships at San Antonio Raceway.

Tulsa Bonus Winners:

Good Vibrations Quick Reaction Time - John Broussard (.018)

DFW Napa Auto Parts Top Speed - Donnie Massey (187)

DFW Napa Auto Parts #1 Qualifier - Terry Brian (4.00)

Competition Sales of Dallas #1 Qualifier - Terry Brian

Lenco Transmissions Outside Looking In - Howard Knowles

Wizards Warehouse Finalists - Bobby Marriott & John Broussard