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Post by Franko10 ™ on Nov 13, 2004 12:27:58 GMT -5
8/14/2004 : Arend keeps qualifying streak alive
BRAINERD, qualifying: Jeff Arend kept his qualifying streak alive on Saturday at the 23rd annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway. The driver of the CMKXtreme Machine Funny Car qualified for his ninth consecutive national event and will square off against John Force during the opening round of eliminations for the second time this season.
The weekend kicked off Thursday evening with the Racers for Christ 5th annual Fish Fry, which was sponsored by CMKXtreme Machine Racing. The gathering was attended by over 100 racers and fans that dined on local cuisine and were entertained by the “Puppet-Masters”.
Arend made his first qualifying attempt at the Lucas Oil Nationals Friday afternoon. The CMKXtreme Machine Corvette launched hard off the starting line but smoked the tires near half-track, recording a 5.891 at 159.78 mph to grab the No. 9 position. The 41-year-old Canadian racer returned for his second attempt later in day, but smoked the tires right off the starting line and coasted to a 12.695 at 71.26 mph. Arend finished the first day of qualifying on the bump in the No. 16 position, with two more qualifying sessions scheduled for Saturday.
Arend and crew chief Paul Smith decided to go with their Pontiac Firebird body for the final two qualifying sessions on Saturday. The Firebird body, which the team debuted in Denver last month, provided Arend with more down force during Saturday’s warmer conditions. The CMKXtreme Machine Funny Car improved to a 5.041 at 269.13 mph on Arend's third qualifying attempt and he moved off of the bump spot and up to the No. 14 position with one session remaining.
The CMKXtreme Machine remained consistent during the final qualifying session. Arend roared to a 5.062 at 269.78 mph, qualifying in the No. 14 position. It marked the 11th time this season that Arend has qualified for an NHRA national event.
“Both runs were pretty good today,” said Arend at the end of qualifying, “we were able to get the CMKX car down a hot race track in the middle of the day. We ran the Firebird body today to get a little more down force but I think we’ll go back to the Corvette tomorrow against Force. The Corvette is a little lighter than the Firebird and we have a good tune up for it already so we’ll give it a try. I’m happy to have qualified again and I’d rather get Force in the first round then after he’s got a few runs under his belt.”<br>
The CMKXtreme Machine team once again enjoyed the support of dozens company shareholders in Brainerd. They even provided the team with a CMKX adorned Hummer to pull the car around during the weekend.
BRAINERD, qualifying: Jeff Arend kept his qualifying streak alive on Saturday at the 23rd annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway. The driver of the CMKXtreme Machine Funny Car qualified for his ninth consecutive national event and will square off against John Force during the opening round of eliminations for the second time this season.
The weekend kicked off Thursday evening with the Racers for Christ 5th annual Fish Fry, which was sponsored by CMKXtreme Machine Racing. The gathering was attended by over 100 racers and fans that dined on local cuisine and were entertained by the “Puppet-Masters”.
Arend made his first qualifying attempt at the Lucas Oil Nationals Friday afternoon. The CMKXtreme Machine Corvette launched hard off the starting line but smoked the tires near half-track, recording a 5.891 at 159.78 mph to grab the No. 9 position. The 41-year-old Canadian racer returned for his second attempt later in day, but smoked the tires right off the starting line and coasted to a 12.695 at 71.26 mph. Arend finished the first day of qualifying on the bump in the No. 16 position, with two more qualifying sessions scheduled for Saturday.
Arend and crew chief Paul Smith decided to go with their Pontiac Firebird body for the final two qualifying sessions on Saturday. The Firebird body, which the team debuted in Denver last month, provided Arend with more down force during Saturday’s warmer conditions. The CMKXtreme Machine Funny Car improved to a 5.041 at 269.13 mph on Arend's third qualifying attempt and he moved off of the bump spot and up to the No. 14 position with one session remaining.
The CMKXtreme Machine remained consistent during the final qualifying session. Arend roared to a 5.062 at 269.78 mph, qualifying in the No. 14 position. It marked the 11th time this season that Arend has qualified for an NHRA national event.
“Both runs were pretty good today,” said Arend at the end of qualifying, “we were able to get the CMKX car down a hot race track in the middle of the day. We ran the Firebird body today to get a little more down force but I think we’ll go back to the Corvette tomorrow against Force. The Corvette is a little lighter than the Firebird and we have a good tune up for it already so we’ll give it a try. I’m happy to have qualified again and I’d rather get Force in the first round then after he’s got a few runs under his belt.”<br>
The CMKXtreme Machine team once again enjoyed the support of dozens company shareholders in Brainerd. They even provided the team with a CMKX adorned Hummer to pull the car around during the weekend.
