Team BIR finishes fifth at NHRA Summit Racing ET Finals

(Sept. 18, 2011) - Scott Heintzman's runner-up finish in the Sportsman Class was the highlight for the 37-member drag racing team from Brainerd International Raceway as they finished in fifth place among the 20 teams representing tracks from throughout the Midwest during this weekend's NHRA West Central Division Summit Racing ET Finals, hosted by BIR.

Heintzman, driving a 1973 Camaro, ran up against the hottest Sportsman drag racer in the Midwest: Darrel Goheen of Hays, Kan. Goheen was looking to win this third straight ET Finals championship, and did so by marching through the six elimination rounds before lining up across from Heintzman in the finals. Goheen beat Heintzman off the starting line and at the finish line, finishing with a time of 7.654 seconds and 87.84 mph.

The ET Finals features the top drag racers from each NHRA track in the West Central Division, which stretches from Wyoming to Wisconsin and from Colorado to Kansas, including part of Canada. BIR's team members earned their way onto the team during the first four races in BIR's Bracket Drag Racing Series. The racers are at the top of their points standings in their respective classes.

More than 500 cars competed this weekend in five classes: Super Pro, Pro ET, Sportsman, Pro Bike and High School. At stake were individual and team honors, prize money and contingency awards. Some drivers even earned a trip to compete for a national championship at the NHRA Summit Racing Series National Championship in California in November.

The team title went to Cedar Falls Raceway (Cedar Falls, Iowa), which finished ahead of second-place Eddyville Raceway (Oskaloosa, Iowa) and third place Rock Falls Raceway (near Eau Claire, Wis.).

BIR's strongest showing came in the Sportsman Class, which featured 108 cars. In addition to Heintzman's runner-up finish, Kevin Rolph won three rounds before losing in the fourth. Lee Dugdale and Andy Knebel both advanced to the third round before falling. Dugdale lost to Goheen, the eventual champion.

In the Pro ET Class, where 157 drivers competed, Dave Engler battled his way through six rounds of eliminations, making it to the quarterfinals where he faced Jim Noben. Driving his 1970 Charger, Engler was a hair slower off the starting line and couldn't catch Noben at the finish line.

Todd Larson and Travis Sorokie, both from the BIR team, advanced in the Pro Class to the fourth and third rounds, respectively.

The Super Pro Class featured 134 drivers, including BIR's Rodney Thompson and Brian Johnson. They both won their first-round races but lost in the second round.

Mike Voss was the only BIR racer to make it out of the first round of the Pro Bike eliminations. Riding a 2009 Kawasaki, Voss won his first two elimination rounds before losing to Kurt Clark, who finished as runner up in the class.