GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 15) - Rick Stivers drove his Trane-sponsored '06 Stratus Pro Mod to a semi-final finish in the Get Screened America Pro Mod Challenge season opener at the ACDelco NHRA Gatornationals, earning the low-elapsed time of the event and duly serving notice to the other racers that "it's hard to stop a Trane."
Stivers qualified No. 3 with a 6.010/238.17 and dispatched Mike Knowles in round one with a career-best 5.987/240.25 to 9.051/96.93. He had a bye in round two when Harold Laird failed to make the call, but ran a solid 6.011/239.91 to earn lane choice over Burton Auxier in the semis.
Auxier grabbed a slight advantage off the starting line (.053 to .087) and held on to beat the quicker Stivers for a holeshot win: 6.019/236.55 over Stivers' quicker 5.989/239.87.
"You can't win them all, but this was one hell of a way to start the season," Stivers said. "Brad had that car tuned incredibly, and it ran straight down the track like it was on a string - every time.
"I've got to thank Brad and Jay Payne and the whole team - Andre, Donnie, JR, Meatball, Richard, and of course Little Rick and Jill too. I also want to thank Roger Burgess for all his hard work putting this series together. Everything is top-notch, and it has definitely put the Challenge on a new path.
"Now, we've just got to get things ready for Houston - it's going to be a great season!" Stivers said.
Next on the racing agenda is the Get Screened America Pro Mod Challenge event March 27-29 at the O'Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals at Houston Raceway in Baytown, Texas.
Stivers qualified No. 3 with a 6.010/238.17 and dispatched Mike Knowles in round one with a career-best 5.987/240.25 to 9.051/96.93. He had a bye in round two when Harold Laird failed to make the call, but ran a solid 6.011/239.91 to earn lane choice over Burton Auxier in the semis.
Auxier grabbed a slight advantage off the starting line (.053 to .087) and held on to beat the quicker Stivers for a holeshot win: 6.019/236.55 over Stivers' quicker 5.989/239.87.
"You can't win them all, but this was one hell of a way to start the season," Stivers said. "Brad had that car tuned incredibly, and it ran straight down the track like it was on a string - every time.
"I've got to thank Brad and Jay Payne and the whole team - Andre, Donnie, JR, Meatball, Richard, and of course Little Rick and Jill too. I also want to thank Roger Burgess for all his hard work putting this series together. Everything is top-notch, and it has definitely put the Challenge on a new path.
"Now, we've just got to get things ready for Houston - it's going to be a great season!" Stivers said.
Next on the racing agenda is the Get Screened America Pro Mod Challenge event March 27-29 at the O'Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals at Houston Raceway in Baytown, Texas.
