Labor Intense NMRA Weekend

WINNER
ProCharger racer Don Shobe took the Super Street Outlaw win, breaking the string of non-supercharged SSO class winners that dates back to the last race in 2004. Shobe is deadly on the racetrack, with times in the 7.60 zone and speeds around 184 mph.

The NMRA tour stopped at National Trails Raceway in Columbus over Labor Day Weekend--a time when Americans are supposed to take it easy. But for several hundred racers, it was hardly a weekend of rest. Don Walsh Jr. may have lost to newcomer Burt Kelkboom in the finals of Pro 5.0, but he walked away with this third straight series title. The Columbus edition of the NMRA schedule also saw the emergence of the Drag Radial category. The DOT-tire-restricted racers attempted to apply 1,200 hp in a mid-eight-second battle.

Columbus fans also witnessed the first victory for a blower car in the Super Street Outlaw category in 2005, an interesting stat considering the blower combo was so dominant last season. This year, the nitrous and turbo racers were responsible for the first seven class wins, with the eighth final round going to the ProCharger-blown ride of Don Shobe. Despite losing the final round of competition, Manny Buginga clinched his first Super Street Outlaw title during this event.

In a surprisingly rare finish, Mike DeMayo outran Charlie Booze Jr. in the finals of Hot Street. DeMayo sported a brand-new Roush Racing bullet under the hood, and it pushed his LX into the eight-second zone and a class victory. In addition to the NMRA's normal lineup of heads-up cars, bracket categories, and show car classes, MM&FF teamed up with Nitto Tires to bring an '05 Mustang Shootout to the Columbus race. The results and rundown on that free-for-all can be found in the February 2006 issue of the magazine.

Long, smoky burnouts have become a tradition for Manny Buginga and his Super Street Outlaw notchback. Here, Job Spetter Jr. (left) is ready to open the door and get the car tuned up for action, making a few last minute adjustments on the laptop, which is mounted inside the cockpit, and turning on the data recorder. Buginga ended his weekend as the runner-up in his racing category.	Wheels-up launches is how Brian Meine lives his life in Open Comp racing. Unfortunately, the early-model Mustang was unable to start for the final round. That handed the automatic victory to Mike Sodano.	WINNER It doesn't happen often, but Charlie Booze Jr. got outrun in the Hot Street eliminator. Remember the name Mike DeMayo--we have a feeling he's going to be a championship contender in 2006. He was sporting a new Roush Racing bullet under the hood and a chassis tune-up from Roush's Ben Mens. The results were several eight-second runs and a class victory.
WINNER What started off four years ago as a group of friends racing together for fun has turned into a championship-contending team. The Swill Racing group captured its first EFI-Renegade class victory. After four straight number-one qualifiers and two final-round appearances, the Swill boys took the win over George Seeger. They got it done with 8.70s performances.	Some said it couldn't be done, but Jay Mingolelli was on a mission to prove the critics wrong. He took a Four-Valve modular engine and pushed into the 8-second zone in EFI-Renegade trim. That means he competes without an aftercooler/intercooler and uses an eight-rib drive system for his ProCharger F1R blower. The engine is tiny, too, as it checks in at 281ci. Mingolelli qualified with a 9.00 but has run 8.80s in Renegade competition.	WINNER Craig Baldwin smashes the boost into his 306ci engine via a Vortech SQ-Trim blower. A stock camshaft and unported heads are also a part of the Real Street equation. Baldwin was victorious over Tim Matherly in the finals--9.83 to a 9.88.
WINNER The Pro 5.0 winner, Burt Kelkboom, hails from the island of Aruba. The car remains stateside, but the team flies in and out for races. Kelkboom shocked the field with a record 210-mph run and beat Don Walsh Jr. in the finals. Power comes in the form of a new-generation Jon Kaase 814ci behemoth that runs au naturale.	Don Walsh Jr. may have lost the battle, but he won the war, clinching his third straight NMRA Pro 5.0 title. The ProCharger-blown ride has set the class performance standard for the past few years. This year, Walsh made the 6.70 zone as the benchmark standard of excellence.	Former NMCA champion Dan Paolini Jr. totes the wheels a few feet in the air. His naturally aspirated Hot Street racer runs nine-ohs with its Tim Davis-built 360. Paolini and his father drew on their vast experience in heads-up racing to build this chassis in their garage. From the height of the front end in this photo, we say they definitely know how to make a car hook hard.