KERNERSVILLE,
NC (July 21, 2008)
Doug Winters and the Winters Racing team went into this past weekend’s
Super Chevy Show at Maple Grove Raceway hoping to improve on their Runner Up
finish at this same event in 2007.
However, instead of improving, they repeated.
Doug lost in the final round to Tommy Gray to once again get the runner
up spot for the Nitro Coupes Class.
Something
that was different this year was the heat.
Each day the temperature was well into the 90’s with no cloud cover.
This made for a very tricky track.
“At one point Allen, my brother and crew chief, just quite bring the
temperature gun to the starting line,” stated Doug.
“I think the last time he measure the track temperature it was over 135
degrees.
With heat like that you just have to take what the track will give you in
performance.”
Doug and the team went into eliminations on Sunday qualified 4th
with a 4.20sec ET.
This put the team in the hunt with the top four qualifiers being within
just over a 10th of a second from each other.
During
first round of eliminations on Sunday, Doug got passed Kevin McCurdy with almost
an identical time to his qualifying effort of 4.20sec.
For second round Doug would face the number one qualifier Ken Walsh.
“Ken had made fast consistent passes all weekend, so we needed to
improve on our time to have a chance.
But in looking at the prior runs on our Computech DataPro-45 data logger,
we knew we were walking a fine line with what the track would hold.
We were already at the 30% maximum percentage for Nitromethane, so we
needed to look somewhere else for more power.”
With that, Doug and his crew decided to increase the blower overdrive to
compensate for the hot weather.
And just had Doug and his team feared, right off the line, they over
powered the track.
However, the weekend was not over.
Ken Walsh had red lit in the other lane giving the race to Doug.
“I did not even know I had won until I was getting out of the car.
I was so disgusted that Ken had ran a 4.21sec time and we had beaten
ourselves.
We definitely got away with one.”
For
the final, Doug was paired against Tommy Gray in his Undertaker GTO.
Tommy had qualified 2nd and made his way to the final round
with a win over Chris Russo.
“We decided we would go back to our combination that got is the 4.20s
and make sure we got down the track.
We definitely did not want to beat ourselves in the final.”
The 4.20 combination is just what they did.
The car ran 4.22sec.
Unfortunately, Tommy was able to make a great run on a tricky track at
4.14sec to take the win.
“All in all it was a good weekend.
We had some good performance on a tough track.
I think we are finally headed in the right direction.
I would like to congratulate Tommy and his team.
They had a great weekend and deserved the win.
They are really are great bunch of guys.”
Winters
Racing now turns to their next event looking to improve on this past weekend’s
results.
As
always, the team would like to thank Torco Racing Fuels, Mickey Thompson Tires,
NGK Spark Plugs, Optima Batteries, ARP, Amalie Oil, Safe Jacks, and Computech
for their continued support.
June 2, 2008
Attached are some shots from this weekend. We lost first round Sunday on a hole shot. Yes the Driver lost this one!
We struggled in qualifying on Saturday. On the first qualifying pass we spun the tires right into tire shake and I had to let off. We have been having clutch issues and this definitely was the issue the weekend. During the second pass we got just past the 60ft mark and it started shaking again. I let off the throttle and went back down on it. The car made a move to the wall and I got loss and the car shot back across the track. I was able to bring the car back under control, but in the other lane. Lucky for us the car we were running was further down track.
I think that was the closet I have come to wrecking. As I told everyone at the track. "It was a wreck that did not happen!"
So without any good runs and no baseline, we went into eliminations Sunday. Also Sunday brought rain. We finally got first round in around 1:30pm. The track was really green and we took more clutch out of the car. The car made its best pass of the weekend 4.15 sec at 175MPH. However, as I said at the beginning, we lost on a hole shot.
As always at Atlanta Super Chevy Show, the crowd was great on Saturday. For Sunday the crowd was down due to the weather in the area. The show cars at the event was quite good. My son Clay and I walked the show car area on Sunday morning and there was a large number of anything from Chevy show trucks (something that has grown) to street rods to cars that looked like they just rolled of the assembly line.
As for the fans that came by the pits, they were great as well. Our '57 Chevy really has fan appeal. Everyone Saturday afternoon that came by commented on how I saved the car from a crash. So I guess what we lacked in performance this week, we made up on excitement for the fans.
We have a few weeks off, then we head to Columbus, Ohio for the Super Chevy Show. After that on the 28th of June we are doing a charity event for a high school in Virginia. More on that next time.
Feb 28, 2008
Coming
off their partial season in 2007, Doug Winters will hit the ground running in
2008. His ’57 Chevy Nitro Coupe /
Outlaw Pro Mod will continue to carry the Torco banner for Mach Series
Accelerator even though he won’t be officially sponsored by Torco Race Fuels.
“If it had not been for Torco in 2007, I am sure we would not be back into racing. But with their help last year, we were able to put some things together and get back on the track. So for us to carry the Torco flag in 2008 was really no question. We look forward to Evan getting better this year and can’t wait to see what he and Torco has in store for their comeback in 2009.”
“Over the years of racing, I am happy to say that a
number of our sponsor are still with our team.
We establish partnerships with these companies that last and our
partnership with Torco is no different. We
plan on continuing our relationship with Torco for many years to come.”
Along with Torco, other great companies like Mickey Thompson Tires, NGK Spark Plugs, Amalie Oil, Safe Jack, Computech, Optima Batteries, ARP, and Racing Communications will be represented by Winters Racing for the 2008 season. Doug and the Winters Racing crew will compete in the Nitro Coupe class during Super Chevy Show events held throughout the United States. Other racing venues will include ADRL and some select Outlaw Pro Mod races. Please be sure to check their web page, www.WintersRacing.com, for the complete schedule.
January 17, 2008
PRESS RELEASE
Kernersville,
NC.. Doug Winters and Winters
Racing are excited to announce they will be teaming up with Performance Racing
Tools (PRT) for 2008. PRT designed
and manufactures the Safe Jack, an Air/Hydraulic Auto Lock Jack system that
provides unprecedented safety.
“We
are very pleased to have PRT join our team in 2008. Their Safe Jack system shows how they can deliver a superior
design that incorporates safety while still being affordable,” stated Doug
Winters.
“We
will be using the Safe Jack system on our ’57 Chevy Nitro Coupe / Pro Mod at
our first race in 2008. So we
invite everyone to stop by our pits to take a look.
When you compare this system to the others on the market, I am sure you
will choose Safe Jacks.”
Jim
Martinelli owner of PRT stated, “I am excited to have my company as a member
of Doug Winters and the Winters Racing team.
Doug is not only great at racing, he knows what it takes in business and
I am confident that this partnership will lead to both our success.”
Doug
and Winters Racing will compete primary at Super Chevy Shows with their ’57
Chevy Nitro Coupe. So be on the
look out for them and their Safe Jacks at a Super Chevy Show event near you.
Performance Racing Tools is located in Minden, NV and makers of the Safe Jack. Please visit them on their website for more information: http://www.safejacks.com.
January 11, 2008
Kernersville, NC.
Doug Winters and Winters Racing announced today that Computech Systems,
Inc. would be joining their team for 2008. Computech Systems Inc., makers of
Weather Station systems, Data Acquisition systems and other racing related
products, agreed to join Winters Racing for the 2008 season.
Computech will become an associate sponsor on Winters Racing’s ’57
Chevy Nitro Coupe / Outlaw Pro Extreme car.
“We have been using Computech products for years.
We have always been impressed with their technology and support of each
and every product they produce. Adding
them to our team is a big plus,” stated Doug Winters.
“We look forward to representing and marketing Computech at the races. So stop by the pits and take a look at the products we use in
our racing operations. We will also
have information available on all Computech products available.”
Doug
and Winters Racing will compete at Super Chevy Shows with their ’57 Chevy
Nitro Coupe, select ADRL, and other Outlaw Pro Mod events. Visit www.WintersRacing.com
to view their up to date schedule and activities.
Computech
Systems, Inc. has just introduced their latest data acquisition system, the DATAMAXX®
DATA LOGGER. The DATAMAXX® data logger is a complete stand-alone data
acquisition system designed to fit the sportsman racer’s budget, but with
features and sample rates that rival the most expensive systems available.
Computech Systems, Inc. is located in Charlotte Hall, MD. You can contact them on (800) 870-8383, or visit them on the web at www.computechracing.com
September 24, 2007
Accelerator ’57 Chevy Nitro Coupe takes Runner-Up at Bristol
(9-24-07) Kernersville, NC -
For the second straight Super Chevy Show event
that Winters Racing has attended, Doug Winters and his Accelerator ’57 Chevy
Nitro Coupe, made it to the finals of the Aeromotive Nitro Coupe tour.
This past weekend’s event was held at Bristol Dragway in Bristol, TN.
Unfortunately, the chance at victory ended on the starting line when the
throttle cable broke. Doug lost in
the final to Cody Barklage from Eldon, Mo.
“We hate we did not win the
final, but not is all bad considering the late start we got in the season,”
Winters said. “You like going to
finals and it feels like you accomplished something, but for two times in a row
being in the final and not pick up a victory is tough.”
With the outdoor temperatures well above what you expect at Bristol in late
September and with track temperatures above 120 degrees, it was hard for any car
to make good runs. However, Doug
and team went back to their old plan of “consistency wins races.”
The last three runs before the final, Doug ran within .01 sec of each ET,
with a top speed of 225.47 MPH. This
consistency paid off as Doug was able to win his way into the final.
The Winters Racing team will take the Runner-Up and head on looking for
their first win this season at their next event.
As always, the team would like to thank
Torco Racing Fuels for their continued support, Mickey Thompson Tires for
providing a great tire to make consistent passes, NGK Spark Plugs for the best
plugs in the business, Optima Batteries for the power to crank up the 2200 plus
hp engine, ARP fasteners to hold it together, and Racing Communications for the
radios they rely on for the team to perform.
September 11, 2007
Doug Winters and Winters Racing to run ADRL at Dragstock IV in Rockingham
Doug Winters and the Accelerator ’57 Chevy will take a break from Nitro Coupes this week to compete in the Pro Extreme class of ADRL. This is a first for Winters Racing. They have always admired the ADRL series and how Kenny Nowling has constructed the classes and racing format. “I have known Kenny since the early days of AMS Pro Mod racing at NHRA.” said Doug Winters. He went on to add “Kenny was always looking out for everyone in our sport, from the racers to the sponsors and especially the fans.”
With the rules of Pro Extreme allowing the use of Nitro
methane on a Supercharge entry, Doug and team feels they have a good shot of
being competitive with their existing setup.
“With us being able to run Torco’s Nitro like we usually do, our only
challenge we will have is to get our 1/8 ET down. Our normal setup is based on ¼ mile times.
Therefore, the gear ratios we use are somewhat higher then these guys run
which doesn’t create good ETs in the 1/8 mile.
But to change the gear and get set on a new combination would really put
us behind the curve. So we are
going to use the same setup, gears and Mickey Thompson slicks and hope the
horsepower gets us in.” Doug and
team know that the competition within the ADRL is strong.
“These are some of the toughest guys you will come up against in drag
racing. Just qualifying for this
event will be a challenge.” But
that is not stopping the team. With
Rockingham only an hour and half away from the shop, it made the decision easy
to come compete. “Rockingham has
always been our home track. We have
competed here for years in the late 1990s and early in the 2000s.
So we will have a lot of friends and family here helping us.”
Doug and team will return to the Super Chevy Show Series
the following weekend at Bristol.
Doug Winters and Winters Racing would like to thank all its partners, Torco Racing Fuels, Mickey Thompson Tires, NGK Spark Plugs, Racing Communications, Optima Batteries, and ARP Fasteners.
Monday, July 23, 2007
Maple Grove, Pa
Doug Winters and the Accelerator ’57 Chevy Nitro Coupe team headed to Maple Grove with
reserve expectations this past weekend. With
good reason, this was only the second Super Chevy Show Nitro Coupe race they
have competed in since returning to professional racing.
Recording a Runner Up finish gives them the confidence that they will
return to their winning ways from the past.
“Returning to professional drag racing to compete in
Nitro Coupes has been something I have been looking forward to for a long time.
With the help from our partners at Torco, we are back and this runner up
finish after just two races is huge,” said Doug Winters shortly after the
final. However, the road to the
final was not all that easy. Doug
and the Accelerator team had to do some major thrashing just to get to the line.
During a single in the semi finals due to Cody Barklage not being able to
get his machine started, Doug was on a good pass when the motor turned sour just
past the 1000 foot mark and broke the blower belt.
The ’57 Chevy coasted through at a 6.44 sec at only 202 MPH.
“We thought it was ignition problems that caused the engine to miss
fire above 8000 rpms”. Said
Allen Winters, Doug’s brother and Crew Chief.
However the broken blower belt did the major damage.
When it broke it hit the open butter flies on the injector hat and bent
the injector hat shaft. Allen
continued “we had no spares for the hat so we were left to trying to
straighten the shaft and the butterfly plates.”
The team was able to get them close, but for the car would not idle
properly which in fact lead to the loss in the final.
The final was set between Doug and Chris Russo’s 63 Corvette. After the burnouts, the ’57 Chevy Accelerator was idling very high, which caused a staging issue for Doug. After the launch the car went into server tire shake ending Doug’s weekend. Winters Racing will take the runner up to build upon for their next outing.
Monday, June 11, 2007
Virginia Motorsports Park
This was written by Erin on her Myspace page. Good Job! Covers it
all!
Well Race fans it was another excellent weekend for the Mach Accelerator '57 Chevy at the Super Chevy race at the Virginia Motorsports Park!!
Saturday was tricky…the track temps reached temperatures of 127+ degrees. First round qualifying rolled around and we were the last pair set to run in the right lane. The car launched and drifted to the right just a tad but we were able to run a 6.91 @ 207 mph with a 1.07 60 foot time. It was a decent run…it wasn't anything to write home about but then again this was the first full pass we have made with this car. Last weekend in Atlanta was kind of a test session for us and we were only making half track passes. Trying to dial in a car that has a potential to run in the 6 teens is tricky so we are playing it safe and slowly but surely creeping up on the numbers that we want to run. Doug and his brother Allen along with Allen's son Tyler, Doug's son Clay, a family friend Steve Thompson and of course myself comprise the crew. Doug and Allen grew up round cars and truly have it in their blood. They started off when they were teenagers running the family's 55 Chevy at local tracks. Their Dad Gordon always threatened them if they ever got a speeding ticket so instead of racing on the streets they took it to the track! Doug brings the book since to the team with an Engineering degree and Allen brings the street since with a natural feel and understanding of the sport. It amazes me how they bounce ideas off of each other and how much their ideas about the car just make since and 9 times out of 10 always work.
OK enough background…back to the race.
Second round of qualifying came around and we again were the last pair to run but this time we were set to run in the left lane. One of my jobs at the track is back Doug up and set him in the lights. With being the last pair to run I was able to get a good look at how the other cars were running…especially in the left lane. None of the cars that ran in the left lane during the final round of qualifying got down the track…except for us!! The track was hot and slippery which gives reason for every ones tire shake and traction issues. Doug launched the car and this time went into tire shake after pulling 2nd but was able to drive through it and still ran a 6.94 and 200+ mph. If we didn't have the tire shake the car probably would have run in the low 6.80's or high 6.70's. Like I said…he amazes me with his driving abilities!
Now…it's Sunday, we got the track early that morning and started setting up the car for the first round of qualifying. We were the number 3 qualifier and had lane choice. The fans were great. It was almost as if we hadn't been away from the sport for 5 years at all! Tons of people stopped by our pit to welcome us back and remembered not only the 58 Vette that we had but also the Hooters 55 Chevy. It was a great feeling to know that we were missed! This event is going to be televised (I'll update later on when to watch) so the Masters Entertainment crew rolled up with their cameras at the ready. Doug was interviewed and they also set a camera in the car for the first run. After all of the morning excitement…it was time to get serious and concentrate of the task at hand and that was to tune the car to win first round. We rolled up to the staging lanes and were all set to run in the right lane and were the 2nd pair out. Again I walk out to my spot ready to back Doug into the lights after his burnout. His burnout was short and to the point…I hopped over the wall…backed him up and while I was trying to bring him in the lights I noticed that one of the track guys was whipping up something. The OH SHIT...factor starts to build up in my chest and I could see that the substance that he was whipping up was oil. It wasn't much a small dot or two and I thought maybe it was just a leak around the gaskets…and the track guy didn't seem too concerned so I didn't panic too much. He bumped the car in…the lights turned, the car squatted and took off like a bat out hell. It was on a hell of a pass, 1.05 60 ft but just after half track the car started smoking, broke traction and veered violently toward the center line. When that happened all I could do was yelling…NO…NO…NO! Doug being the awesome driver that he is, was able to save the car and keep out of the other lane and away from the other car. I just knew that he kicked rod or something. It seemed, from my stand point and from the way it all of a sudden broke traction that he must have driven through his own oil. Needless to say we didn't win.
We all jumped in the tow car (which is an old golf cart LOL) and rushed as fast as we could down the return road to retrieve our car and driver. As we were approaching I noticed Doug sitting beside the car with a blank look on his face. At that moment my heart sank. Being involved with a race team whether you are family, crew member or owner…you experience all sorts of emotions when you're at the track. For those of you who have raced a drag car or who has had a family member race one knows what I'm talking about. But for those of you who haven't or don't let me try to explain. You go through a whole range of emotions in such a short time that for some, it can be overwhelming. It's kind of like riding an extreme roller coaster where before you even get on the ride your nerves start to build…maybe your palms are sweating the adrenalin is creeping up on you…you get on the ride and you start to second guess your self thinking, oh shit…maybe this wasn't such a good idea…it launches and your enthusiasm builds up to a degree where you are screaming at the top of your lungs the adrenalin rush is so much that your heart is about to jump out of your chest and then before you know it the ride is over. At the end of a drag race you feel one of two emotions…one, if you win you just can't control your excitement for a job well done or two, complete and utter disappoint from not winning and feeling like maybe there was something else you could have done. Well for us at this point it was the latter of the two feelings. Seeing Doug sitting beside the car absolutely broke my heart. The look on his face was just sheer disappointment and disbelief.
No one said much at this point we just wanted to get the car back to the pits to see how much damage we had. As soon as we got back the fans started to surround the car not only to see what kind of carnage we had but to show support. We pulled off the front end and everything was covered in oil. There weren't any visible sings that we had major damage…i.e. no giant holes in the block so the search continued. We were all stareing at the motor and then all of a sudden Allen yelled "Oil Line Busted". Sure enough the oil line had come loose which sprayed oil all over the motor and everything else. The back left tire was covered!! Doug was lucky!! Most guys end up in the wall when something like this happens. But Doug was able to save the car and even the motor. Allen gave the motor a good looking over and nothing was hurt. Thank the Good Lord above for that! I know God has better things to do than to make sure we don't hurt the motor or the car…but he was sure watching us on that run…so Thank You God!
All in all it was a great weekend. We set out on the weekend to achieve consistant number and runs and to hopefully bring everything back in one piece and we succeeded in that. It would have been a bonus to go a round or two and even win but it wasn't meant to be at least for this weekend. We ran the numbers after that final round and if the oil line hadn't busted loose on us we would have run in the 6.50's. Not bad for a team who has only put 4 full passes on the car and has been out of it for the last 5 years.
Keep your eyes on us cause we are going to shake things up!!
Check out the photo's from the event!
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Winters Racing ready for Super Chevy Show Event June 9-10 Jun 2007
Catch the Mach Series ACCELERATOR '57 Nitro Coupe this coming weekend during the Super Chevy Show at Virginia MotorSports Park.
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The Super Chevy Show presented by Aeromotive ignites Virginia Motorsports Park in Richmond, VA, June 8-10, 2007. The 2007 return to Richmond - marks the 11th Annual Tour stop to the Commonwealth of Virginia. We know our Virginia fans love their Chevy bowties!
The Super Chevy Show's 2007 tour is a unique blend of high horsepower racing excitement and some of the nation’s best Chevy show cars. Flavor in one of the best Performance & Restoration Midways or the RacingJunk.com Swap Meet and Car Corral, and you are in for a great weekend!
Highlighting the weekend racing action at the Super Chevy Show presented Aeromotive - is the Aeromotive Nitro Coupe Challenge, featuring the short wheelbase, ground pounding Aeromotive Nitro Coupes, found only at Super Chevy Show. The “King of the Wheelstanders,” Maryland's Bob Hall, will thrill the crowd with his Airborne Express Astrovan as he makes the ¼ mile run on two wheels - steering his 10-second pass with only his brakes. Jet Wars take off with two ear-shattering performances on both Saturday and Sunday as “Queen of Diamonds” – Jessie Harris battles “Terminator” – Lou Pereira. This is a true Battle of the Sexes at speeds over 300 mph!
Hometown heroes will shine in the Procharger Bracket One Brawl, Jeg’s Bracket 2 Battle and the DOT Street Fight. The Super Chevy Show Bracket Racing series is open not only to Chevy bodied or powered car, but also all GM brand cars. GM brand means you can also race your Saab, Saturn, Hummer or even your Cadillac!
Incredible show cars take center stage in the Incredible show cars take center stage in the TREMEC Transmission Car Show Series - the nation’s largest single-make car show series. Chevy fans will be treated to two separate shows Saturday and Sunday at Memphis Motorsports Park. Super Chevy is also celebrating the birthday of some classic cars: Danchuk Manufacturing is sponsoring a "Best of the Best" contest to celebrate the half-century mark of the '57 Chevy. At each event, every '57 Chevy entered or shown will be photographed and placed on the Internet for voting by the general public; that car then becomes the event winner which will compete against other event winners at the end of the season for a feature spread in Super Chevy Magazine. Super Chevy magazine is featuring a similar contest for the 40th birthday of the 1967 Camaro. Again, the end-of-season winner will get a magazine spread.
There really is a lot to see at the Super Chevy Show presented by Aeromotive! For more information check out www.superchevyshow.com or call AutoStar Productions, Inc. at 800.692.6230. See you in Richmond!
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