CLEREMONT, Ind. (September 5, 2009) - Rick Stivers was on a great run today in his Trane-sponsored 2006 Stratus Pro Mod, but as he attacked the second-half of the quarter-mile, the car suffered a mechanical failure and blew its motor, costing him his second qualify attempt in the Get Screened America Pro Mod Challenge at the NHRA U.S. Nationals, leaving only one more chance to make the show.
"Like I said yesterday, this is a new car, and there are still some issues," Stivers said. "We did some testing in St. Louis before we got here, but we still have some things that have to be worked out - like the lean-out cable.
"Cars don't like it when you take away their gas - and that's exactly what happened today - and it really grenaded the motor. The good news is, Brad Anderson (crew chief and team owner) has a hefty supply of motors, and if there's one guy who knows how to get a car down the track, it's Brad.
"Hey, this is Indy, and we're going to make the show. Why not make it exciting, too, right? I've never been accused of doing things the easy way, and this fits right into that pattern. We've got one more shot to qualify, and that's just what we're going to do: put this Trane Stratus into the show," Stivers said.
Racing continues Sunday with one remaining qualifying session scheduled for 2:00 p.m. and the first round of eliminations scheduled for 5:00 p.m. Eliminations conclude Monday.
"Like I said yesterday, this is a new car, and there are still some issues," Stivers said. "We did some testing in St. Louis before we got here, but we still have some things that have to be worked out - like the lean-out cable.
"Cars don't like it when you take away their gas - and that's exactly what happened today - and it really grenaded the motor. The good news is, Brad Anderson (crew chief and team owner) has a hefty supply of motors, and if there's one guy who knows how to get a car down the track, it's Brad.
"Hey, this is Indy, and we're going to make the show. Why not make it exciting, too, right? I've never been accused of doing things the easy way, and this fits right into that pattern. We've got one more shot to qualify, and that's just what we're going to do: put this Trane Stratus into the show," Stivers said.
Racing continues Sunday with one remaining qualifying session scheduled for 2:00 p.m. and the first round of eliminations scheduled for 5:00 p.m. Eliminations conclude Monday.
