The Holley NMRA Ford Nationals has announced Whipple Superchargers as the title sponsor of the all-Ford motorsport event—the NMRA World Finals and Holley Intergalactic Ford Festival—which runs September 30–October 3, at Beech Bend Raceway in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
“Whipple Superchargers is a huge part of the Mustang scene, and it’s exciting having them as title sponsor of the NMRA World Finals and Holley Intergalactic Ford Festival,” General Manager and National Event Director Rollie Miller said. “This year’s event is shaping up to being the biggest event in NMRA’s 22-year history.”
The event will feature a wide range of categories, including championship heads-up and index eliminators, QA1 True Street, Mickey Thompson Street Car Challenge Presented by Whipple Superchargers, TREMEC Stick Shift Shootout, and Bracket Showdown Finale.
Running concurrently on an oval track will be the Vaughn Gittin Jr. Fun-Haver Pro Drift Exhibition, Pro-Am Drifting, autocross competition, and Bigfoot jumping cars. A manufacturers’ midway, used parts swap meet, and the UPR Products Car Show are also planned.
Couple of things I think while arranging my TV viewing schedule around this month’s Cup Series races in Wisconsin, Georgia, and New Hampshire:
1) I think this year’s Performance Racing Industry (PRI) Trade Show is shaping up to be one of our best ever…for a few reasons. First, our host city of Indianapolis has proven to be an out-and-out trailblazer in the return to in-person events. As noted in our PRI Show update piece beginning on page 20, Indy’s provided venues for numerous sports tournaments and professional conferences dating back to last year, with “many [of those] coming in from other states that wouldn’t permit large gatherings,” noted Sherry Seiwert, the president of Downtown Indy, Inc. That momentum has continued into 2021; you’ll recall Indianapolis successfully hosted the entire NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Tournament (go Baylor!) along with an Indianapolis 500 (go Helio!) that played out brilliantly before 135,000 fans. Rest assured the city will be ready when PRI arrives in December. Meantime, demand for motorsports parts and equipment is absolutely off the charts. I’ve honestly never seen as steep or widespread a sales surge as the one manufacturers and service providers are currently experiencing. Plus, race tracks are now back to running full or nearly full schedules, and many are reporting healthy car counts in key series and classes. We all know these competitors are hungry for new products, knowledge, and solutions. And we can’t wait to see our exhibitors “feed the beast” from the aisles of the Indiana Convention Center and Lucas Oil Stadium. So, while virtual alternatives may be OK for some, they’ll never hold a candle to the value or excitement of a live event. You simply can’t simulate the opportunities for sales, networking, education, and more that PRI offers racers year after year. Get ready, because the 2021 Show will be here, in a big way, before you know it!
2) I think the racing industry is making positive strides as a career destination for women. That’s not just my opinion—it’s based on feedback from the highly accomplished female motorsports professionals we spoke with for this month’s Special Report, which begins on page 62. While women have found their place atop podiums for decades, the overarching question we had is whether those in non-driver roles face the same obstacles today as they did 30, 20, or even 10 years ago. Are the standards equal for a female vs. male CEO, track president, or engineer, or do they feel like more is expected of them? Is there more pressure to perform, or to “prove themselves” in a traditionally male-dominate field? Are there additional responsibilities, like being an advocate or mentor to other women in racing, that come with the job? Conversely, we also wanted to see where progress was being made. Were there barriers-to-entry for earlier generations of women that no longer exist? Are there more resources today that can help guide or encourage women to pursue motorsports as a profession? Are we, as an industry, becoming more inclusive? How so? Without giving away the farm, I did really like how Cara Adams, director of Race Tire Engineering and Manufacturing, and chief engineer of Motorsports at Bridgestone Americas, bottom-lined the relationship between her gender and chosen profession: “That’s the beautiful thing about motorsports,” she told us. “It’s all about results. If I develop a tire that everyone loves, nobody cares if a man or woman designed it.”
Yokohama Tire's Stan Chandgie and Heather Adelman, courtesy of Yokohama Tire
Yokohama Tire Corporation (YTC) President and CEO Jeff Barna has announced two new management changes effective July 1. Stan Chandgie was promoted from vice president of consumer sales to executive vice president of sales & support; and Heather Adelman, director of strategic accounts, consumer sales, was named vice president of consumer replacement sales.
In his new role, Chandgie, who will report to Barna, will lead YTC's consumer replacement and TBS/commercial sales groups along with Yokohama's sales support functions.
Prior to joining Yokohama in 2019, Chandgie held executive sales, marketing, and service roles at Michelin and Exide Technologies. “Stan’s deep connections to our customers, his commitment to excellence in all we do, lead by example style, high energy, and positivity all contribute to him being well-rounded and more than capable,” Barna said. “I am excited for Stan and equally excited for YTC, to see the achievements he and his team will deliver on behalf of YTC.”
Adelman, who has been with Yokohama since 2008, has extensive experience in the tire industry, including eight years with Continental. She will report to Chandgie. “Heather has held multiple strategic and leadership positions on the consumer replacement team and has worked closely with many of Yokohama's top accounts,” Barna said. “She has and will continue to play a key role in the design and execution of our strategic sales vision. Her incredible work ethic and endless determination to support her colleagues and customers make her the perfect fit to successfully lead YTC's consumer sales team into the future.”
Support for the bipartisan Recognizing the Protection of Motorsports Act of 2021 (RPM Act), H.R. 3281, continues to expand each day as members of Congress receive an outpouring of support for the bill from racers and the motorsports’ parts industry. Over the past few weeks, 17 House members have agreed to co-sponsor the bill, including US Representatives David McKinley (R-WV), Robert Latta (R-OH), Ann Kuster (D-NH), Morgan Griffith (R-VA), Jim Hagedorn (R-MN), Scott DesJarlais (R-TN), David Kustoff (R-TN), Glenn Thompson (R-PA), Carol Miller (R-WV), Matt Rosendale (R-MT), Trent Kelly (R-MS), Jared Golden (D-ME), Elise M. Stefanik (R-NY), Andy Barr (R-KY), Jay Obernolte (R-CA), Michael Cloud (R-TX), and Austin Scott (R-GA).
Rep. McKinley’s support for the RPM Act is particularly noteworthy, as he serves as the Ranking Member of the House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Environment and Climate Change, which has jurisdiction over the legislation. The Congressman co-sponsored the RPM Act bill as a result of the strong support that his constituents voiced for the legislation. Rep. McKinley also co-sponsored the RPM Act during the 2019–2020 session of Congress, as he understands the importance of the bill to the racing community in West Virginia and motorsports parts businesses.
The RPM Act must be enacted into law to guarantee your right to modify street cars, trucks, and motorcycles into dedicated race vehicles, and ensure that the industry can offer parts that enable racers to compete. It is imperative that lawmakers continue to be reminded of the importance of passing the RPM Act. Currently, 82 members of the House have co-sponsored the bill. Click here to see the current list of RPM Act co-sponsors, and don’t forget to send a letter to your US Representative asking them to support the bill and fight for it to become law.
SCCA has named Justin Barbry the interim Track Night in America program manager for the 2021 season. Barbry will fill the role formerly occupied by Courtney Rivers, who recently left the program to pursue an opportunity in motorsports closer to her Texas home. Barbry’s official start date is July 1.
“While we wish Courtney the best and expect that we’ll cross paths with her down the road, we’re happy that this program has built a team that allows people like Justin to step right in,” Heyward Wagner, Director of Experiential Programs, said. “Justin understands this program and his communications skills will keep all of our Track Night participants on the road to having fun with cars.”
Within SCCA’s Experiential Department, Barbry has served as an instructor and coach at Track Night events, and as a coach at Time Trials. Barbry is a multi-time trophy winner at the SCCA Tire Rack Solo Nationals and scored a top-five road racing at the SCCA Runoffs. Away from the track, Barbry honed his leadership, organizational, and communications skills as a 911 dispatcher in North Carolina.
Jack “Iron Man” Ingram, the winner of five NASCAR championships and more than 300 races during his career, has passed away. The Avery’s Creek, North Carolina, native and 2014 NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee was 84.
Ingram was a force in NASCAR Sportsman competition during the 1970s, winning championships in 1972, ’73, and ’74, continuing competition when the series underwent significant changes and emerged as the Busch Series (now Xfinity) in 1982.
Ingram’s nine years of full-time competition in the Xfinity Series saw him score 31 victories—a record that stood until it was broken by Cup Series regular Mark Martin in 1997.
He ended his Xfinity Series career with 122 top-five and 164 top-10 finishes in just 275 starts.
“There is no better way to describe Jack Ingram than ‘Iron Man,’” NASCAR Chairman and CEO Jim France said in a statement. “Jack was a fixture at short tracks across the Southeast most days of the week, racing anywhere and everywhere. He dominated the Late Model Sportsman division like few others. He set the bar for excellence in the Xfinity Series as its Most Popular Driver in 1982 and champion in 1985. Jack was an ‘old school racer’ and his work on his own car helped propel him to Victory Lane hundreds of times. Of our current 58 NASCAR Hall of Fame members, he is one of only six that was elected based on his career and contributions in the grassroots level of our sport. On behalf of the France family and NASCAR, I offer my condolences to the friends and family of NASCAR Hall of Famer Jack Ingram.”
Race Winning Brands (RWB), the manufacturer of high-performance engine components for the automotive and powersports aftermarkets, has announced industry veteran Vic Wood as a regional tech support manager.
Wood will be spending time servicing automotive engine builders, performance shops, and distributors throughout the Midwest in his new position. He will be based out of the Kansas City area.
“I am excited to join Race Winning Brands and look forward to the challenges ahead,” Wood said.
Wood joins RWB with over 40 years of experience in the automotive aftermarket, including involvement with several long-established racing component manufacturers such as Hedman Performance Group, B&M/McLeod Industries, WELD Wheels, as well as involvement with the SEMA Industry Councils.
Wood also has experience behind the wheel, having spent time in a 245-mph roadster at the Bonneville Speed Trials and as a winning drag racer and dirt oval midget and sprint competitor. He built many of his own engines and continues to be found in the pits today.
“In our ongoing focus of having experienced industry people calling on engine builders, this is a perfect fit for RWB,” RWB CEO Bob Bruegging said. “Vic knows his way around a race car—in the pits and at the shop—and brings tons of energy and product knowledge to our company. Calling on engine builders directly is how we learn what they need and how they learn what we can do for them.”
The NASCAR industry has announced 22 graduate and undergraduate students from across the country will begin the 10-week NASCAR Diversity Internship Program (NDIP)—the sport’s longest-running diversity initiative.
The industry-wide program offers students of color hands-on experience as well as the opportunity to network with and learn from executive leaders across one of the largest professional sports industries. This year’s class has been placed in paid internship roles across various NASCAR departments, 23XI Racing, Rev Racing, and CSM Production.
“For more than 20 years, the NASCAR Diversity Internship Program has provided a critical foundation for NASCAR’s evolving and expanding diversity, equity and inclusion platform,” said Brandon Thompson, NASCAR Vice President, Diversity and Inclusion, who in June 2020 became the first NDIP alum appointed to an officer role at the sanctioning body.
“These internships create opportunities for young, diverse talent to be exposed to NASCAR and learn about the sport, but they’re also filling a pipeline as we continue to diversify the broader industry workforce.”
The program will culminate in August as the interns return to school or pursue full-time roles within NASCAR or across other industries. Of the more than 400 interns that have participated since 2000, many were offered full-time employment following their internships and to this day NDIP alums continue to make significant contributions to the sport.
The following students have been selected to the 2021 NASCAR Diversity Internship Program class:
Diesel engines inherently see more severe combustion cycles than their gasoline counterparts. Higher compression ratio, direct injection, and diesel fuel translate to higher cylinder pressure. That gives us what we love about diesel; torque! But that intense force applied to the crankshaft will cause it to twist and rebound ahead of its natural rotation. Peak-to-peak deflection can be two (2) degrees or greater! As the engine continuously cycles, crank twisting and rebounding, we refer to this as torsional vibration. These destructive vibrations are what cause wear on critical engine components and reduce power output.
Fluidampr Performance Diesel Dampers
Fluidampr Performance Diesel dampers are made in the USA and designed specifically to minimize crankshaft torsional vibration in both stock and performance applications. As a result, you reduce wear on critical engine components, lower the risk of crankshaft failure, and improve overall efficiency. Greater efficiency means more torque and horsepower too!
"Fluidampr proved to be the best...On top of the numerical data, there was a noticeable reduction in harmonics that could be felt in the concrete floor of the dyno cell. We'll be using Fluidampr on all of our in-house builds..."
– Jeremy Wagler. Wagler Competition Products.
Kill Devil Diesel. 6.4L Ford Power Stroke
They’re also built for long-lasting durability under extreme diesel motorsports conditions. The hermetically sealed design contains an inertia ring inside a laser-welded outer housing. This prevents any outside particles or oils from contaminating the damping medium or outer housing separation in bolt-on designs. The design is so rugged that you’ll find OEM variants sub-supplied to the United States military.
“All these rubber dampers, including the stock damper, won’t do the job. Just will not. [Fluidampr] will do the job, and you can run it forever and not rebuild the thing.”
– Gale Banks, Banks Power. (https://youtu.be/vRoGMXF_Qhc?t=923)
Check the stock damper. If it shows signs of cracked, bulging, or missing rubber, it has been overworked and is not providing optimum damping. Upgrade to a Fluidampr Performance Diesel damper. If you modify the rotating assembly, your stock rubber damper may no longer be in tune to provide optimum damping. Upgrade to a Fluidampr Performance Diesel damper for broad range protection.
Fluidampr is SFI 18.1 spec for competition use. Check with your sanctioning body and class to see if SFI 18.1 spec harmonic damper is a safety requirement.
Fluidampr Performance Diesel Installation Kits
For proper fitment, use a Fluidampr Performance Diesel installation kit as recommended. These help ensure a secure connection to the crankshaft and protects against fretting.
(left) Cummins Full Power Kit p/n 300008. (right) Duramax High Strength Bolt Kit p/n 300010
Each High Strength Bolt Kit contains a diamond plated friction washer and ARP® high strength bolts. The Cummins Full Power Kit also includes a torque plate with a 5/8” hex head for barring the engine over. Last, for Cummins engines turning 3,500+ RPM, the Drill Pin Kit adds additional dowel pins to the damper and mounting flange.
Cummins Full Power Kit: Torque plate, friction washer, high strength bolts
5.9L & 6.7L Cummins
Above 700 hp, 1,250 lb-ft torque
300007
Cummins High Strength Bolt Kit: Friction washer, high strength bolts
2003+ 5.9L & 6.7L Cummins
Below 700 hp, 1,250 lb-ft torque
300009
Cummins High Strength Bolt Kit: Friction washer, high strength bolts
1989-2002 12v & 24v 5.9L Cummins
Below 700 hp, 1,250 lb-ft torque
300010
Duramax High Strength Bolt Kit: Friction washer, high strength bolt
2001+ 6.6L Duramax
Each installation
“Fluidampr is the Official Damper of the Ultimate Callout Challenge. Teams have to use the same truck in drag racing, sled pulling, and dyno run competition. It’s arguable one of the most grueling events in motorsports,” said Fluidampr Marketing Manager Brian LeBarron. “What we found early on was the top Cummins diesel teams were increasingly laying bigger and bigger torque, that the flange mounting holes were fretting. In 2017, we redesigned the outer housing by thickening the flange mount area, tightening tolerances, and developing the installation kits to keep the damper in its place. With teams now using the revised damper and proper kits, there have been no reported issues as they routinely hit over 3,000+ lb-ft torque.”
"They actually came to our engine dyno and helped us do some R&D. Checked the harmonics of our engines because we were having harmonic balance issues. We've had incredible results with the Fluidampr products."
– Lavon Miller, Firepunk Diesel. 3x UCC Champion, Diesel Drag Racing Record Holder.
New Products
Cummins 6.7L Competition Series
Many professional diesel drag racing and sled pullers have adopted the 6.7L Cummins. Their damper of choice has become the Fluidampr Performance Diesel - Competition Series. Competition Series dampers are slightly larger in diameter, contain more damping inertia mass, and forgo the accessory drive pulley.
P/N 980301 Fits 2002+ 5.9L/6.7L Cummins common rail
Tractor Pulling
Building on the success of Performance Diesel – Competition Series dampers, Fluidampr released its first true, SFI 18.1 spec, Tractor Pulling Damper. This massive 12-13/32” diameter, 37-pound damper is the largest in the catalog. Features universal fitment for taper lock hubs, overall thicker steel, internal components to handle thrust loads, plus clockwise and counterclockwise laser engraved timing marks.
P/N 1243101 Universal fit for taper lock hubs.
Duramax L5P
The 2017+ Duramax L5P promises to be competitive as more teams adopt the engine. To help achieve optimum performance, Fluidampr has released an all-new damper specific to the L5P. A six-bolt 3.2” hole pattern accommodates a custom drive mandrel.
P/N 830141 2017-2019 Duramax L5P
P/N 830151 2020+ Duramax L5P
Mountain Machine. 12V Cummins
Power + Durability
Now that you understand why and when you need to upgrade to Fluidampr Performance Diesel dampers, it’s time to start building. They’re available for all recent Dodge/Ram Cummins, GM/Chevy Duramax, and Ford Power Stroke engines. In addition, Fluidampr supports classic Ford 7.3L and GM 6.2L diesel engines as they remain popular for sled pulling and restoration projects. Find your damper and locate a distributor or dealer at fluidampr.com.
Driver registration is now open for the third running of the Driven2SaveLives BC39 powered by NOS Energy Drink, set for Wednesday and Thursday, August 18–19, at The Dirt Track at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS).
Some of the best short-track racers will battle with NASCAR and IndyCar drivers as part of one of the richest USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget Series events of the season.
Registration takes place online at thebc9.com. Fans may also purchase tickets, pit passes, and parking passes for the two-night event at thebc39.com. Tickets start at $25.
For more information on the event, including race day schedules, visit the IMS website here.
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