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Wednesday, 29 August 2007 - (Sydney, NSW) Of all the classes that make up Professional Championship Drag Racing, Top Alcohol has in recent years become one of the most entertaining and hotly contested categories on the event program. Last season saw one of Drag Racing's most marketable young guns take the bull by the horns and leap head-first into the exciting world of Group One competition.
Aaron Hambridge, driver of the APM and Fabre Australia sponsored Top alcohol Dragster took the Brad Anderson Hemi powered monster to the final round of last year's East Coast Nationals where he faced off against seasoned Alcohol campaigner, Debbie Reed. Beating out some of the fiercest competition in the land was a steep learning curve but one which provided Aaron and his team with a valuable insight into just what it takes to survive at this level.
While an updated PSI supercharger, three-speed B&J transmission and revised Spike Gorr fuel system brought Hambridge a little closer to a level pegging with his bigger budget competitors last season, it was clear that to be able to continue the young team's inspiring form, another big step would have to be taken.
APM's Albion Park workshop has been a hive of activity in recent weeks as they hurried to prepare the all new 470 cubic inch BAE engine combo in readiness for the ACDelco East Coast Nationals and the start of the 2007/2008 Australian Drag Racing Championship. The new engine package uses state of the art BAE heads and the latest design billet block in conjunction with some serious boost from the PSI screw blower sitting on top to propel the car to speeds well in excess of 245mph.
With the original test and tune opportunity a wash-out, the pressure was on Aaron and his crew to make the most of their first and only chance at some track time and with less than a week remaining before the championship opener, that's precisely what they did.
A clear plan of attack had been set in place by Aaron and his crew chief father Steve long before the engine first fired in the warm-up area at Sydney's WSID and it was this focus that allowed the extraordinarily limited time to be used so wisely. With the initial outing a simple case of shifting second gear and buttoning off at quarter track, the team were happy that the tune-up was safe enough to push the 302-inch wheelbase dragster for the whole race distance.
The second trip down the WSID quarter mile resulted in a massive amount of tyre shake and despite the shutdown at roughly 1100ft and coasting through the traps at just 220mph, Aaron still ran a competitive 5.76 second elapsed time. The final chance to run it out the back door ended in a textbook 5.73 at more than 247mph which put a huge smile on Aaron's face as well as on the faces of his hard working crew.
With the info from the RacePak data recorder analysed, the team are confident of running consistently and competitively at this weekend's event and look forward to the opportunity to face off against some of the best in the business to show exactly what a passionate team with a huge driving talent are capable of.
ACDelco East Coast Nationals
THIS FRIDAY AND SATURDAY.
Western Sydney International Dragway
Ferrers Road, Eastern Creek
- 2007-2008 ANDRA Championship Series Opener for Top Fuel, Top Alcohol, Top Doorslammer, Pro Stock, Top Bike and Pro Stock Motorcycle.
- 2007-2008 Rocket All Stars Series Opener for all Sportsman (Groups 2, 3 and 4) brackets.
- Gate opening times approx. 9am both days.
2007 A C Delco Countdown To Go - Aaron Hambridge
Wednesday, 29 August 2007 - (Sydney, NSW) Of all the classes that make up Professional Championship Drag Racing, Top Alcohol has in recent years become one of the most entertaining and hotly contested categories on the event program. Last season saw one of Drag Racing's most marketable young guns take the bull by the horns and leap head-first into the exciting world of Group One competition.
Aaron Hambridge, driver of the APM and Fabre Australia sponsored Top alcohol Dragster took the Brad Anderson Hemi powered monster to the final round of last year's East Coast Nationals where he faced off against seasoned Alcohol campaigner, Debbie Reed. Beating out some of the fiercest competition in the land was a steep learning curve but one which provided Aaron and his team with a valuable insight into just what it takes to survive at this level.
While an updated PSI supercharger, three-speed B&J transmission and revised Spike Gorr fuel system brought Hambridge a little closer to a level pegging with his bigger budget competitors last season, it was clear that to be able to continue the young team's inspiring form, another big step would have to be taken.
APM's Albion Park workshop has been a hive of activity in recent weeks as they hurried to prepare the all new 470 cubic inch BAE engine combo in readiness for the ACDelco East Coast Nationals and the start of the 2007/2008 Australian Drag Racing Championship. The new engine package uses state of the art BAE heads and the latest design billet block in conjunction with some serious boost from the PSI screw blower sitting on top to propel the car to speeds well in excess of 245mph.
With the original test and tune opportunity a wash-out, the pressure was on Aaron and his crew to make the most of their first and only chance at some track time and with less than a week remaining before the championship opener, that's precisely what they did.
A clear plan of attack had been set in place by Aaron and his crew chief father Steve long before the engine first fired in the warm-up area at Sydney's WSID and it was this focus that allowed the extraordinarily limited time to be used so wisely. With the initial outing a simple case of shifting second gear and buttoning off at quarter track, the team were happy that the tune-up was safe enough to push the 302-inch wheelbase dragster for the whole race distance.
The second trip down the WSID quarter mile resulted in a massive amount of tyre shake and despite the shutdown at roughly 1100ft and coasting through the traps at just 220mph, Aaron still ran a competitive 5.76 second elapsed time. The final chance to run it out the back door ended in a textbook 5.73 at more than 247mph which put a huge smile on Aaron's face as well as on the faces of his hard working crew.
With the info from the RacePak data recorder analysed, the team are confident of running consistently and competitively at this weekend's event and look forward to the opportunity to face off against some of the best in the business to show exactly what a passionate team with a huge driving talent are capable of.
ACDelco East Coast Nationals
THIS FRIDAY AND SATURDAY.
Western Sydney International Dragway
Ferrers Road, Eastern Creek
- 2007-2008 ANDRA Championship Series Opener for Top Fuel, Top Alcohol, Top Doorslammer, Pro Stock, Top Bike and Pro Stock Motorcycle.
- 2007-2008 Rocket All Stars Series Opener for all Sportsman (Groups 2, 3 and 4) brackets.
- Gate opening times approx. 9am both days.
