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Testing
Almost Pays Off in Seattle
Kent
WA - As the defending champion of the Schucks Auto Parts NHRA
Nationals, Clint Thompson, has fond memories of the near washed
out 2007 race that barely got in the books. Thompson was able
to hang on and win his third national event under dark Seattle
skies. The following week the team continued the Western Swing
to Sonoma, only to lose in the early rounds where he was the
defending champion.
Fast
forward to this year where Thompson hoped to defend his championship
in Seattle, and while the weather was perfect his Cascade Auto
Group funny car was having problems hooking up. Even so, Thompson
was still able to get in the show with an off pace 9.36 at 93.18
MPH. "We are trying some new things and the actual race
is the only place I have to do my testing. Obviously, the things
we tried in qualifying didn't work but we had to try them"
Thompson explained. Fortunately, with all the problems Thompson's
team was still able to get in the show as there were just 16
cars entered in the field.
In
the first round of eliminations, Thompson faced California rival
Sean O'Bannon. Unlike qualifying, Thompson's testing nearly paid
off as he just about pulled the rabbit out of a
hat and improved
to a 5.67 at 251 MPH. However, a slower reaction time for Thompson
lost him the race as O'Bannon had a 0.102 reaction time to Thompson's
0.116. O'Bannon was able to post a close 5.68 at 256 MPH for
the hole shot win.
Thompson
hopes that his pattern of losing one race and winning the other
on the swing holds up this year. And with the new found combination,
Thompson is optimistic he's back on track. "We're on tour
now so we still have quite a few races left where we can make
up the points including a first time trip to Brainard" Thompson
said.
Thompson Experiences Difficult First Round Loss in Woodburn

Woodburn OR - Prior to the first round of qualifying at the Les
Schwab Challenge, stop number three of the Lucas Oil Drag Racing
Series, Clint Thompson stated that a victory in Woodburn would
be a major win for his team. "We have never won a divisional
here (the Les Schwab Challenge) and for me it would be like winning
a national event" Thompson said.
With
eleven very good cars trying to get into an eight car field,
qualifying in the 95 degree heat would be challenging for any
team in the Top Alcohol Funny Car class. Fortunately, Thompson
was able to qualify his Cascade Auto Group Monte Carlo in middle
of the field with a 5.95 at 246 MPH. This set up a first round
match up with Northwest rival Brian Hough, of Junction City Oregon.
Such a first round pairing between the two powerhouse teams usually
comes towards the final round.
At
the green, Thompson smoked the tires and got out of shape forcing
him to click it off early. Meanwhile, Hough sailed down track
for the win with a 5.90 ET. Thompson was disappointed for the
early round loss and blamed it on the driver error of not engaging
the clutch and the throttle peddle in the correct sequence. "It
was driver error and a missed opportunity. We had a good chance
to catch up in the points with Sean (O'Bannon) and Brian (Hough)
as we were all on the same side of the ladder. The good news
is they have run more races than we have so we can catch up by
entering another event and doing well." Thompson said.
Thompson
won't have to wait long to get over his first round blues as
he will be racing this coming weekend at the NHRA Schuck's Auto
Supply Nationals in Seattle.
Thompson
Falls Short of Seattle Win
Kent
WA - After scoring a "threepeat" victory in Mission
and then a runner-up finish at a Woodburn match race, Clint Thompson
was on a roll and confident he would still be a contestant in
the final round of the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series held
at Pacific Raceways, June 21-23.
In
qualifying Thompson hung on to the number three position with
a promising 5.67 at 254 MPH. This would set up a first round
match up with Jason Rupert who qualified 6th. At the hit, Thompson
was out first with a 0.095 reaction time to Rupert's close 0.096.
At the stripe it was Thompson with a 5.71 at 248 MPH to take
the win over Rupert's valiant 5.79 at 248 MPH effort.
In
the semifinals, Thompson faced none other than Dennis Taylor
who was out for some revenge after Thompson defeated him at last
year's Schucks Auto Supply Nationals. At the light, Taylor got
out of the hole first with a 0.043 reaction time to Thompson's
0.071. At the same time, Thompson's dream of another win went
up in smoke as Taylor got his revenge with a decent 5.69 to Thompson's
tire smoking 6.99.
Thompson
now heads back to his home state of Oregon where he hopes for
better luck at the Les Schwab Challenge being held at Woodburn
Dragstrip, July 10-13.
Thompson
Racing Seeks Marketing Partners for 08 and Beyond
Klamath
Falls - After a great year with Dutch Bros, that included a celebrated
national event victory, Thompson Racing and the popular west
coast coffee chain parted ways due to the current economic climate
and change in strategy. "While we are disappointed that
Dutch Bros opted to go a different direction, we are hopeful
that they may pick up where they left off at some point in the
future" said team owner Clint Thompson.
While the economy was sited as the reason, sponsoring a professional
race team such as Thompson's 250 MPH Monte Carlo makes good business
sense as marketing packages come in a number reasonable price
ranges and include a number of amenities including pit-side hospitality
for company associates and clients, collector cards, t-shirts,
website advertising, on site point of sale displays, and of course
signage on the race car seen at the track and nationally on ESPN.
It's a complete multi-facet advertising package.
Like NASCAR, drag racing fans are very loyal and buy products
endorsed by popular drivers like Clint Thompson, but the cost
of advertising is a much better value than the cost of sponsoring
a NASCAR team, with the unlimited pit access at NHRA events being
a big advantage over other motorsports. For direct answers on
how we can help generate sales and positive PR for your business
Contact
us for
additional information.

Nitro
vs. Alcohol at Woodburn
Woodburn - At Woodburn Dragstrip's Fire and Thunder race they
tried something new by taking the average speeds of the funny
cars and then taking the average speeds of the dragsters and
pit the two quickest cars for a dragster vs. funny car final,
just like in the old
days of Pro Comp! The idea was a big hit!
On the dragster side, A/Fuel Winternationals Champ Branden Johnson
had the quickest average time took for the rails, and Clint Thompson
who ran a 5.89 in the first stanza against Ashwell Racing and
a 5.91 in the second round against Harder Racing. Clint's 5.89
was the low ET for the floppers and he had the quickest ET's.
In
the final against Johnson's nitro burning A/Fuel Dragster, Thompson
got a bit of an advantage at the starting line and was well ahead
of Johnson when the blower belt came off. "the car shook
at about 150 feet and then made it's move to the center line.
The car coasted after the belt came off and then all the sudden
the dragster blew right past me. It was kind of cool! All I needed
was a 6.30 to get past the finish line. If only that belt would
have stayed on just a little longer" Thompson said. Johnson's
ET was a 5.69 to Thompson's 6.83.
And how did he like racing an A/Fuel dragster? "This was
the first time in many moons I got to race a dragster and it
was a kick" Thompson said.
It's a
Threepeat in Canada!
Mission Canada - Clint Thompson, pulled off a "threepeat"
victory by winning the Lordco Auto Parts BC Nationals at Mission
Raceway convincingly over a tough top alcohol funny car field.
Thompson beat Sean O'Bannon to take his third straight title
in Mission Canada. The win gave Thompson four final round appearances
in four tries as the team did not compete at the race in 2005.
Thompson won the event utilizing an engine built by Bob Minor.
Joey Severence who races in the Top Alcohol class also won the
event using a Bob Minor engine.
Besides
winning the event for the third consecutive year, it was a meaningful
win as they were without crew member Kelly Mercier who was at
the bedside of his son Conrad Mercier, a graduating high school
senior who is recovering from heart surgery. "We told Conrad
we would go win this race for him and he said if we did he would
drag the trophy up to the graduation stage. Now, he really gets
to do it." Thompson said. Conrad is expected to be out of
the hospital in time for the graduation ceremony.
Thompson,
qualified on the pole with a 5.62 ET at 257 MPH. In the first
round, Thompson drew no. 8 qualifier Nathan Sitko from Edmonton.
Sitko stepped it up in the first round and left on Thompson with
a 0.069 light to Thompson's 0.081. But Thompson was able to make
up the difference with a 5.63 at 257.06 MPH to Sitko's impressive
5.87 at 242 MPH.
In
the semis it was a rematch of last year's final round as Thompson
met up with Oregon rival Brian Hough. This time Clint was out
of the gate first with a 0.072 reaction time to Hough's 0.103.
At the stripe it was Thompson with a 5.63 at 257 MPH. Hough was
closely behind with a 5.71 at 255 MPH. Thompson was then just
one round away from a threepeat with only Sean O'Bannon in the
Patron car standing in his way. The final round proved to be
one of the most exciting races of the day as both cars left nearly
together with Thompson getting a slight edge with a 0.090 reaction
time to O'Bannon's 0.097. At the finish line it was Thompson
by less than a fender with a 5.68 at 256 MPH to O'Bannon's close
5.69 at 257 MPH. "It was a very close race, it shook at
the top of low gear and spun the tires. Both O'Bannon and I were
both all over the track" Thompson said.
Prior
to visiting the winner's circle for pictures Thompson had a few
minutes to reflect on the successful weekend. "What a great
race for the Dutch Bros - Cascade Auto Group team. We were short
handed as it was just Tyler (Thompson), Vic (Miller), Danette
(Thompson), and I working on the car. Danette did a lot of the
duties that Kelly usually does and it sure helped us get the
car turned around between rounds. This is such a great day as
the weather was good and there were a lot of spectators here".
Thompson said. The team returns to Woodburn for the Fire and
Thunder event June 7-8. Then the following weekend they head
to Seattle for the NHRA divisional event which they won in 2005.
It's All Clint at Woodburn
Woodburn
- Clint Thompson is normally a regular at Woodburn Dragstrip's
"Chicago style" funny car races where the fastest two
cars return for the final. Last year, Clint was on the road racing
in Dallas and missed the Fall Classic but this year he returned
with a new engine combination for the Season Opener whic h turned out to be a hot one with
highs in the 90 degree range. In the first round, Clint recorded
the best run of the day, a 5.95 at 245 MPH. The team missed the
second round but because they had low ET of the event from the
first run they came back to race Randy Parker for the title.
In the final, Parker had problems so Clint went solo, but unfortunately
exploded an engine in the process at about 1100 feet into the
run.
Clint was glad to be back at Woodburn and credited the fans as
the main reason he returns each year. "We love coming to
Woodburn just to see all of our fans. I don't know all of their
names but I sure remember all of their faces and it's good to
be back here once again after being away since the NHRA points
meet last July. Photo by NW dragracing.com.
Moving on to
Mission for a Threepeat
Next,
the team will be heading to Mission Raceway Park where Clint
is looking for a threepeat. The team has won the BC Nationals
two years in a row and hope to make it three this Memorial Day
Weekend. "The people are great, the track is great but the
weather is usually wet." Clint said. We have always done
well there beginning with a match race win over Brian Hough many
years ago" Clint said.
Thompson
Suffers Tough First Round Elimination at Vegas
Las Vegas
- On track to back up a sensational final round appearance at
Phoenix,
Clint Thompson rolled into Vegas for the Summit.com
NHRA Nationals with plenty of optimism. His optimistic outlook
even turned better after qualifying in the middle of the field
with a 5.73 at 251 MPH. Considering there were 26 cars in attendance,
qualifying eight was very respectable.
In
the first round Thompson drew popular Stockton California driver
Don Hudson who had qualified ninth with a 5.74 at 250 MPH, so
Vegas fans were expecting a pretty close race. Unfortunately
for Thompson and the fans, he red lights by -0.007, giving the
win to Hudson, who moved on to the next round with a 5.76.
It
was a difficult loss for the Klamath Falls, Oregon team but the
always optimistic Thompson knows it's a long season and there
will be more opportunities to win in 2008.
Thompson
Makes First Final Round Appearance of New Year
Phoenix
- After a disappointing first round loss at Pomona, Clint Thompson
was determined to kicked it up a few notches. And not only did
he make it to the final round at the Lucas Oil Divisional in
Phoenix, but he also qualified on the pole with a blistering
5.66 at 253 MPH in the warm Arizona sun.
Earning
the number one qualifying position set up a first round match
up with number eight qualifier Rian Konno. At the hit both Thompson
and Konno shook hard while spinning the tires. Fortunately for
Thompson, he was able to recover and got his Dutch Bros Cascade
Chevrolet Monte Carlo right down Broadway with a 5.95 at 250
MPH. Konno meanwhile idled down the race course.
In
the semifinals, Thompson faced Sean O'Bannon. Now, this was a
drag race worth the price of admission as both cars were nearly
side by side all the way down the track with Thompson having
a slight advantage with a better 0.085 reaction time to O'Bannon's
0.094. At the stripe it was Thompson by about 15 feet with a
5.65 at 257 MPH to O'Bannon's close 5.68 charge at 256 MPH.
Thompson's
close win set up a final round showdown with California's Doug
Gordon. Thompson once again had the better reaction time with
a 0.066 to Gordon's close 0.068. But that didn't help as Thompson's
car got lose 60 feet into the run and got sideways. Gordon was
able to make it to 330 feet into the run before he experienced
similar traction problems and was on and off the throttle all
the way to the finish line. Thompson had no choice but to settle
for a runner-up finish.
Clint Experiences Early Exit at Pomona

At the
running of the 48th annual CARQUEST Auto Parts Winternationals,
Clint Thompson had one of those kinds of weekends that every
racer would just as soon forget. After qualifying in the ninth
position with a fine 5.71 ET, Thompson was confident that he
would get through Saturday's dreaded first round and make some
noise on Sunday. Sadly for Thompson that wouldn't be the case
at Pomona.
In
the first round Thompson faced friendly rival Dennis Taylor.
Taylor was running well at Pomona and qualified in the eight
position with a fabulous 5.69. With both cars running close together
on paper, all indications were that the win would be up for grabs.
After the burnout both cars proceeded to pre-stage. Thompson
began having difficulties staging as the clutch pedal got stuck
behind the pedal stop and would not release. At the green Taylor
was long gone and Thompson could only sit and watch the weekend
come to a quick end. "It was a real bummer. There was nothing
I could do but sit there and watch Dennis win with a 5.76. The
crew did a great job this weekend, and I just feel bad for them
and our sponsors Cascade Auto Group, Dutch Bros. Coffee, RPM
Chassis, and RPMOil.com. We will get the problem corrected and
will be in Phoenix for the Division 7 race in three weeks and
then on to Las Vegas nationals in April " Thompson said.
Photo by www.competitionplus.com
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