Spevco’s Tii Tharpe powered “Maddy” past Bob “Opie” Malloy for the first-ever NHRA Gatornationals Top Fuel Harley win. Malloy had the early advantage, his bike sashaying a bit under power while Tharpe’s was straight and contained. But Bob dropped a hole and nosed over at the eighth mile, allowing Tharpe thundered to by with a 6.313 at 230.29 miles per hour to Malloy’s 6.546 at 172.89.
Here’s an interview with Tii, Mike and Maddy Lehman, and Jay Turner:
Tracy Kile (far lane) was 11th in the order MORE NHRA TOP FUEL HARLEY PHOTOS Armon Furr was one of many who did not make the small 8 bike field. Armon was 12th with a 6.86. MORE NHRA TOP FUEL HARLEY PHOTOS Excitable fans who hoped for a 5 second TF Harley pass saw those hopes dashed when Tak Shigematsu only made 13th in the order MORE NHRA CANDID PHOTOS Mike Scott was 14th in the order MORE NHRA TOP FUEL HARLEY PHOTOS Mike Scott in the staging lanes MORE NHRA CANDID PHOTOS Lyle Newton was 15th in the order MORE NHRA TOP FUEL HARLEY PHOTOS Chris Streeter and his brother Matt have always been two of my favorite people to run into at the races—a pleasure I haven’t had for many beers—uh, I mean years. They’re learning a new-to-them Top Fuel bike, having moved up from their old high gear Funnybike. Chris sandwiched himself between Jay Turner Racing customers Lyle Newton and Randal Andras in 16th. MORE NHRA TOP FUEL HARLEY PHOTOS
Saturday: Vancil #1 in Strong Gators TF Harley Field
Doug Vancil powered to a 6.28 at 233 mph for #1 Top Fuel Harley qualifier at the Gators. This pic is from his Friday night pass, where his chute failed to deploy and he showered the top end with sparks from bike and boots. MORE NHRA TOP FUEL HARLEY PHOTOS Mike Romine’s building and tuning has Vancil running like 10 years away from the game never happened. MORE NHRA CANDID PHOTOS Vance & Hines’ backing sure doesn’t hurt. Here Doug and Julie Vancil enjoy a staging lanes sunset with Matt Hines. MORE NHRA CANDID PHOTOS
Vancil back in the game sets a natural rivalry (some might call it a bitter war) with defending champion Jay Turner, Dorothy Olson, and Spevco’s Tii Tharpe. Phoenix winner Tharpe is qualified with a 6.32, while an unusually inconsistent Turner sits 5th with a 6.36. MORE NHRA CANDID PHOTOS Bob “Opie” Malloy’s strong 4th place 6.34 means that he and Turner with race each other in E1—a brutal first round pairing. MORE NHRA TOP FUEL HARLEY PHOTOS
Kirby Apathy and crewman Kevin Zdunczyk showed up with a high-gear only, injected 150″ bike. It’s a Don “DJ” Johnson-built piece formerly piloted by Tracy Kile and the late, great Drums Brancaccio. Apathy didn’t make the field and expressed his frustration with flying without carbs. MORE NHRA CANDID PHOTOS
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