PMRA featured during this weekend’s IHRA MOPAR Nitro Jam Nationals at Grand Bend
By: Tim Miller
With a rookie leading the points race, two different winners in the last two races, and one of the regular PMRA competitors setting a North American Pro Modified speed record, this weekend’s Pro Modified Racing Association event during the IHRA MOPAR Nitro Jam Nationals promises to be one of the best in the history of the drag race series.
This weekend’s racing will be held at the Grand Bend Motorplex in Grand Bend, Ontario.
“We’re now into our sixth season. We have a solid series and a great group of dedicated teams” said Bruce Mehlenbacher, Director of Operations for the PMRA. “Our car counts have increased dramatically, and our shows are very popular with the fans.
“And at our last event, one of our regular competitors, Mike Stawicki’s G-Force Race Cars entry of Medina, NY, put down a 5.803, 255.25, which is the quickest Pro Modified pass ever in Canada, and the speed is the highest ever in North America. So we’re certainly providing the fans with some top-notch Pro Modified racing.”
PMRA event winners of 2010 Derek Hawker of Corbyville, Ontario in first and Eric Latino of Port Perry, Ontario in second in the Pro Modified Racing Association 2010 Championship Point Award Series presented by Magnum Auto Parts and Patio Passport, followed by Mike Stawicki. Fourth is Terry Brown of Caledonia, Ontario, and fifth is Sam Andreacchi of Toronto, Ontario.
Hawker is a former Top Sportsman racer who moved up to the PMRA for 2010. The Corvette driver has had an outstanding year so far, placing second in the fist PMRA event, and winning the last event.
Also of interest in this year’s PMRA competition are the problems three-time and reigning champ and defending IHRA event winner Bruce Boland is presently having. The Hamilton, Ontario driver has only qualified for one of two races so far this season with his new 1963 Corvette. He is currently eighth in points in the field which features over two dozen of the world’s fastest door-slamming race cars.
One PMRA qualifying session is scheduled for Friday at 7:00 p.m. Two more qualifying sessions will be made by the PMRA Pro Modifieds Saturday night during the Nitro Jam rounds at 7:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. The first round of eliminations for the PMRA will begin at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday, with the rest of eliminations taking place during Sunday’s Nitro Jam professional rounds at 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m.
The PMRA group will run alongside Nitro Jam’s regular nitro classes made up of Top Fuel and Pro Fuel Dragsters and Prostalgia Nitro Funny Cars. Also competing during the weekend will be Nitro Harleys, Alcohol Funny Cars, Jimmy DiAngelo’s wheelstanding fire truck and the Ontario debut of side-by-side jet trucks as the Shockwave battles the Super Shockwave under the lights.
For information about the IHRA MOPAR Nitro Jam Nationals at the Grand Bend Motorplex, call (519) 238-7223 or visit www.grandbendmotorplex.com
For more information contact Bruce F. Mehlenbacher at Bruce@PMRA.ca
About the Pro Modified Racing Association (PMRA):
The Pro Modified Racing Association, www.PMRA.ca, was organized late in 2004, started racing operations in 2005, and is entering its sixth year of operation in 2010. The PMRA is a self-governing organization with input from its teams, and adheres to the technical and safety rules as outlined by the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) and the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA).
In 2010 the PMRA will compete at Toronto Motorsports Park in Cayuga, Ontario and the South-western Ontario track of the Grand Bend Motorplex.
Cars in the PMRA capture the true spirit of hot rodding, and the class is one of drag racing’s most exciting and colorful classes, offering a diverse group of race cars with 2,500-horsepower-plus engines in supercharged, nitrous-powered, or turbocharged format.
Combining classic body styles and modern equipment, constructors are permitted, within established rules and parameters, to modify and enhance the cars in both appearance and performance. The cars are fuelled by gasoline or methanol, propelling them down the quarter-mile in low six-second times at over 230 miles per hour. The PMRA provides drag race fans the opportunity to see, hear, and experience the popular Pro Modifieds, known as “the world’s fastest door slammers”.
Several of the PMRA events are run in conjunction with the Quick 32 Sportsman Series presented by NAPA Auto Parts, www.Quick32.ca, offering fans a great show of drag racing.
Photo Credit: Dave Erauw Photography and CanadianDragRacingPhotos.com