Northeast Juniors take third in Maryland

By Wendy Curling

The IHRA Junior Dragster Team finals were held this past weekend at Maryland International Raceway and Team Northeast Dragway was there with one hundred percent participation.

All twenty points racers and their families traveled to Maryland for the three day event where they competed as a team against ten other tracks from along the east coast.

The all Junior Dragster event featured a full day of racing and fun Friday and Saturday before getting down to serious competition on Sunday.

Danielle Hill won first place in the 15-17 year old points bearing race on Sunday which pulled the team from a tie for fourth into a solid third place overall finish.

“I hadn’t had good lights (reaction times) all weekend until today”, said Hill. “My worst light today was a .530; I was really having a good day.”

“I’m so excited”, she continued “I think I’ll even be in Drag Review”, referring to DRM, the IHRA drag racing magazine.

Hill, who is tied for first in the points chase at Northeast, relies on her father and crew chief, Scott Hill, to keep her car running smooth and the obvious pressure that weighs upon both driver and crew chief in such an event can be overwhelming.

When asked about her father’s reaction to her winning the biggest race of her drag racing career, Hill said simply, “He cried.”

Hill, a rising junior at Western Branch High School in Chesapeake, was awarded the prestigious IHRA Iron Man trophy and five hundred dollars for her win.

Lauren Arledge placed in the 8-9 year-old bracket and was also awarded a trophy and a saving bond for her quarter-final finish.

Lauren’s sister Erin qualified her “Daddy’s Girl” dragster second fastest for the Quick 16 event on Saturday where she went out first round.

Cole Phthisic ,Julie Ainsley, Diamond Davis, Megan Poyner and Hannah Winslow all went rounds and earned team points as they raced in the 12-14 year age bracket.

Standing out against the rest in flashy lime green and black matching t-shirts, Team Northeast was presented with a plaque for “Best Appearing Team” for the third time in the track’s team racing history to round out the successful and memorable weekend.

The Junior Dragster racers will return to their home track this weekend to compete against each other as they vie for top standings in the race for Junior Dragster track champion.

The track will attempt to make up Points Race number eight that was cancelled due to rain last Saturday.

Gates will open at 3, time runs begin at 5, followed by eliminations at 7 p.m.

Friday night Test and Tune will be held from 7 to 10 p.m.

Log onto www.northeastdragway.net for more information on these and other upcoming events.