29th Annual Nitto Tire NMRA Ford Expo - Capital Punishment

Winner
In K&N Filters factory stock, it was Bennington, Indiana's Steve Gifford all the way. His modular-powered '97 Mustang GT qualified number one on Saturday with an 11.32, and while number-two qualifier Jeff Schmell took the holeshot lead with his '03 Mach 1 in the final round, it wasn't enough, as Gifford drove around him with an 11.40 to Schmell's 11.74.

Winner
Jacksonville, Florida's Kevin Fiscus has been hacking away at the Drag Radial contingent this year with his new machine. Throughout the year, he made numerous low-eight-second hits. With a little help from his fellow Drag Radial competitors, he was able to put it all together in Columbus and take home the win. After spinning out at the top end during his first qualifying pass on Friday, Fiscus got things together and stepped up to take the top qualifying spot in the 13-car Drag Radial field. Upon finding metal in the transmission pan, fellow DR racer Tony Akins went through the transmission for Fiscus before the first round. After defeating current points leader John Kolivas in the final, Fiscus almost gave away the win when his car wouldn't restart in the shutdown area. Apparently, the wire on the starter solenoid had fallen off and the hot headers weren't aiding the repair. In a true show of sportsmanship, Kolivas came back to fetch Fiscus and made sure to tell him not to tow the car, otherwise he could be disqualified. Fiscus finagled the wire's return to the terminal and the car fired right up, ensuring his win status.

Winner
After a Saturday morning trip to the nearby Jegs retail outlet, Kevin Fiscus was able to get another pair of BFGoodrich drag radials to replace the one's he flat-spotted with his on-track donuts at the top end. Fellow DR competitor Pete Johnson stopped by to show Fiscus the quick way to change tires in the pits. Without having a tire machine handy, the car trailer's hydraulic leg knocked the bead off the rims in no time flat. That'll be $19.95 per tire, please.

Winner
While John Kolivas may have come up short in the Drag Radial final against Kevin Fiscus, he did come away with the TCI Shootout win and a fat bundle of cash.

Justin Curry had put the SAM-built '95 Cobra at the top of Edelbrock Hot Street qualifying with an 8.79 performance, but it was Mike DeMayo who took him down to square off against Tim Eichhorn in the finals. DeMayo left first and never looked back as Eichhorn fell off the pace, 8.91 to 12.86.

Winner
SevenTH-qualified Ron Anderson of Lexington, Illinois, proved victorious in Tremec Pure Street after using a holeshot start to take the win over Jimmy Wilson with a 10.368 to Wilson's slightly better 10.366.

Winner
Detroit Locker Truck and Lightning brought out 12 tough competitors. In the finals, Columbus native Bob Cochran gave the win to Mike Motycka due to his -0.018 red light.

Rocky Mason of Goshen, Ohio, took his former street car and placed it on top of the Tremec Pure Street qualifying sheet on Saturday with a 10.34 elapsed time. The '89 Mustang features a BES short-block with Trick Flow heads, a Holley intake manifold, and a Pro Motion T5 trans.

The car show was kickin' all weekend long, with more than 200 cars on hand. Columbus really brings in the old iron, all of which were looking their best.

The Capri Club of North America calls Columbus its home for the club's annual get-together. Members from New York to Kansas came for the event. The Ford Capri was manufactured by Ford of Europe, and some were eventually sold over here in the early '70s. Eventually it was phased out and replaced with the Fox-based Mercury Capri.

When we spotted Chris Jackson's "Eleanor" Mustang II, we didn't know what to make of it. Not being Mustang II fans ourselves, we have to admit that the workmanship is beautiful and the execution spot-on.

Young Mustang owners such as Kettering, Ohio's Amanda Crossley are keeping the hobby alive and new. We caught up with her at the car show where she had her Chrome Yellow '99 GT. Seeing as how Amanda works full-time and carries a full college schedule, she doesn't have much time to enjoy the Saleen supercharger and built Two-Valve engine that her Pony is equipped with, but she and her parents do hit the occasional car show from time to time.

In the words of AC/DC's Brian Johnson, "F-I-R-E!"