Pro Stock at St. Louis

[Chad Rhodes]

Originally Posted by Floyd Gomez

I follow Pro Stock very closely as I have a personal interest in one of the cars. Not a sponsorship or investment just a personal interest. Mike has had an average of 6 hun to one tenth better over the averages of the rest of the field in total. (Do the math). You also claim Josh was just trying to put the scoop back on so I am guessing you didn't watch the same media coverage the rest of the world did. I have it recorded if you would like a copy. I never said Mike was cheating I only said some things are odd. So before you start name calling please be sure you know what you are talking about. As far as WJ I am glad he won the race. I have been a fan of his since I was a young kid and miss seeing him in the winners circle.

considering the intake manifold technology at hand, i don't blame them from trying to keep the cameras off if the car

[Ron Middleton]

I used to think WJ was one of the rudest and arrogant Pro Stock racers ever until I had time to talk to him at the Keystone Big Show in Atlanta a couple of years ago. He's one of the most serious racers at the track and very personable and talkative away from the track. Roy johnson is one of the friendliest engine/crew chiefs in the business at the track and way but still deadly serious about racing.
All these teams spend untold amounts of money and effort and try very hard to keep their hard work and effort within the team. It's hard enough to lose a team member to another team and have that knowledge transferred from team to team. Probably every team pushes the envelope on rules and takes advantage of any or all gray areas(that's racing just like most fast stock, super stock and comp racers do). That's racing and we all know it. Effort is what seperates the cream of the crop from the rest of em. To just blindly call a winner or former winner a cheater without being able to back up your accusations is wrong. JMT.

[Bruno 3776]

Originally Posted by Chad Rhodes

considering the intake manifold technology at hand, i don't blame them from trying to keep the cameras off if the car

So true. Anyone remember when Bob Glidden wrecked, the first thing he did was take his coat off and cover the carbs and intake because the scoop was gone.

[Stephen & Horace Johnson]

In the interview with Mike's crew chief, he was asked a question on what happened and if they had time to fix it? he said it was a cracked intake, and that if they had 5mins it could be fixed?? what could they have done to fix it in 5mins and be ready to run??

[Ed Wright]

Mike is a long time friend of mine, nearly 40 years. I know everybody on the crew.
I watched the same thing you did. I have seen that car, scoop both on and off, many, many times. There is nothing hidden. The tech officials have seen it more than I. When they have them fuel the cars at the rear of the staging lanes, the front end comes off right there in front of the tech guys.

If you think Mike has ever had a tenth of them, you may need a new calculator. If he runs a 6.58, and the next car is 6.62, that is .004, it ain't a tenth. They have closed gap that up a lot the last few weeks.

The officials going over Brogdon's car is normal, it did wreck, right? They always do that. They learn something from almost any wreck.

As for the in car cameras, who would want to mess with the camera and theTV guys tripping over things in your pits while trying to race, unless your car ownner or sponsor wanted it for more air time. Jeg's and Summit wanted them in those cars. Do you think everybody's car has Jegs or Summit logos stuck all over the inside? Other than maybe John Force, they get more air time than anybody. When they first put one in Jeggie's car a few years ago (first car to get one) the anouncer called it the "Jeg's in car camera". Summit got them in both cars of Ken Black's next. I was hanging around in Mike's pits, getting in the way on race weekends at that time. Word was then that Jeg's paid for the camera. Don't know that for certain, but it would not surprise me. Smart marketing if they did.

I never called anybody names, I did say some statements were ignorant. They were. A lot of "I heard"s on internet message boards.

[quickford1]

Some epoxy repair.

[CycloneFE]

1 Mike Edwards, Coweta OK, '09 GXP 6.640 207.82 207.82
55 V. Gaines, Lakewood CO, '10 Avenger 6.686 207.15 207.15

Let's see, I believe that is 16 cars between .046. Pretty quick field.

[BobUnkefer]

#1 Edwards 6.640
#2 Brogdon 6.644
#3 Jeggie 6.647
#4 AJohnson 6.653
#5 Krisher 6.659
#6 Anderson 6.660
#7 Stanfield 6.665
#8 Jones 6.673
#9 J Gray 6.675
#10 S Gray 6.678
#11 KJ 6.681
#12 WJ 6.684
#13 Humphrey 6.685
#14 Enders 6.685
#15 Humphreys 6.685
#16 Gaines 6.686

top 3 separated by .007
final four separated by .001
SIXTEEN car field separated by .046

BUT,
you have to study all the numbers. some cars are work better than others on different ends of the track, so it's not always apples to apples when you compare
Pro Stock is a warground. EVERY HP found is a major deal, find somthing in your chassis that works? you HIDE it from everyone else, thats why wraps that cover the rear of the cars in the pits are now so widely used.
EVERYTHING is sacred in the world of PS

Stock & SS tear down side by side in the barn, wanna see what the next guys over internals look like, just take a peek. Try that with the PS guys & gals and there would be major issues to resolve before the first Dzus button is turned
The PS cars have engine blankets that cover everything but the carbs, so when they roll into the back of the lanes to get fuel the other teams can't see their engine components...once fueld the blanket comes off just as the front end goes on.

I'd invite you guys to come by to see what I mean, but I can't let ya by the ropes....

Thanks to all that called & emailed yesterday after Rodgers crash, appreciate everyone's concern & I passed all the good wishes on to Rodger.
It's nice to see and know how close the racing world "family" really is!

Bob Unkefer
PR & Media, BrogdonRacing.com

[Adger Smith]

It wouldn't surprise me if it was out of fuel and he rushed to start it and had a lean backfire. They might have one of those small metal burst panels that is there to protect the fragile intakes. That is probably what they could have replaced in 5 min,if they had 5 min. I know they are mandatory on blower and NOS cars. Not sure about Pro Stock.
I have a couple of NOS powered boat customers that use them.
They have saved more than one intake.

[keith ohanesian]

So if one of those cars or any car with a sheet metal intake backfire on start up it most of the time will seperate the upper and lower plenium.What made it backfire could be a buch of reasons. I've seen it be driver error.

The quick fix is silicone and duck tape and it takes less than five to put it on. More than five to find it . Been there