FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SHOEMAKER, SWAYNE BEAT SHOWERS, COMPETITION

   WOODBURN DRAGSTRIP, Woodburn, Ore. -- In between the
showers that interrupted qualifying throughout the day,
John Shoemaker and Pete Swayne found enough time and
traction to be the early leaders at the Les Schwab Tire
Centers/Dairy Farmers of Oregon/KPTV 12 drag racing
event at Woodburn Dragstrip, the fifth of six events in
the NHRA Northwest Federal-Mogul Drag Racing Series.

   Shoemaker, of Sacramento, Calif., leads the Federal-
Mogul Dragster field with a 5.82-second run at 232.91 mph.

   Said Shoemaker of his pole-setting run, “We had the car
set real soft for that run.  I wanted to get [the car] off
the starting line then bring in the power downtrack.  The
track’s okay now, but it will get better and I’m sure
you’ll see the elapsed times come down.”

   Orange, Calif.’s Swayne is the provisional pole-sitter
in Federal-Mogul Funny Car with a 5.91-second lap at 239.68
mph, a tenth-of-a-second ahead of Dan McGlone of Gladstone,
Ore., who recorded a 6.01-second, 236.96 mph run.

   “I really didn’t think that run was as quick as it
ultimately proved to be,” said Swayne.  “The car was moving
around at the 300-foot mark and I missed my [gear] shift
points, so when the crew told me I’d run a 5.91 I was
surprised.”

   Qualifying will continue in all categories on Saturday
beginning 8:00 a.m., with Federal-Mogul Dragster and Federal-
Mogul Funny Cars scheduled to receive two more qualifying
laps at 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m.

   WOODBURN, Ore. -- Provisional qualifying results Friday
from Woodburn Dragstrip, the fifth of six events in the
1998 NHRA Federal-Mogul Drag Racing Series, listing driver,
hometown, state, vehicle, elapsed time in seconds, and
speed in miles per hour.

FEDERAL-MOGUL DRAGSTER
1. John Shoemaker, Sacramento, Calif., 5.82, 232.91
2. Mark Hentges, Federal Way, Wash. 5.93, 240.51
3. Bobby Taylor, Laguna Hills, Calif., 5.95, 229.88
4. Pete Kaiser, Pleasant Hill, Calif., 6.85, 138.61
5. Dale Carlson, Olympia, Wash., 16.43, 42.63
6. Melanie Troxel, Englewood, Colo., 20.91, 30.08

FEDERAL-MOGUL FUNNY CAR
1. Pete Swayne, Orange, Calif., ‘97 Firebird, 5.91, 239.68
2. Dan McGlone, Gladstone, Ore., ‘98 Mustang, 6.01, 236.96
3. John Hyland, Springfield, Ore., ‘98 Mustang, 6.05, 232.25
4. Randy Parker, Salem, Ore., ‘97 Firebird, 6.14, 230.41
5. Mitch Myers, Hermiston, Ore., ‘97 Cutlass, 6.46, 222.77
6. Clint Thompson, Klamath Falls, Ore., ‘97 Camaro, 6.90, 209.10
7. Larry Miner, Woodbridge, Calif., ‘97 Avenger, 6.90, 116.06
8. Steve Gasparrelli, West Covina, Calif., ‘97 Avenger, 7.01, 202.88

COMPETITION
1. Randy Jones, Dana Point, Calif., D/A ‘97 Firebird, 7.99, 169.55 (-0.54)
2. Jim Warter, Fox Island, Wash., B/SM ‘92 Camaro, 8.84, 154.93 (-0.53)
3. Mike Robinson, Salinas, Calif., B/ED dragster, 7.22, 181.45 (-0.43)
4. Jim Kennedy, San Jose, Calif., F/A ‘97 Firebird, 8.73, 154.24 (-0.41)
5. Dean Lindvig, Talent, Ore., E/A ‘90 Cutlass, 8.48, 159.46 (-0.37)
6. Scott Lemon, Payette, Idaho, A/EA ‘23-T Ford, 7.66, 171.65 (-0.36)
7. Ron Schuster, Salem, Ore., C/D dragster, 7.39, 163.48 (-0.31)
8. Mike Pessemier, Graham, Wash., B/D dragster, 8.03, 183.18 (-0.27)

SUPER STOCK
1. Tony DeFrank, Tarzana, Calif., GT/GA ‘98 Grand Am, 10.20 (-0.99)
2. Jimmy DeFrank, Tarzana, Calif., GT/HA ‘89 Camaro, 10.40 (-0.94)
3. Terry Sherrill, Klamath Falls, Ore., SS/AM ‘57 Corvette, 8.67 (-0.87)
4. Jeff Lane, North Bend, Wash., SS/CM ‘98 Grand Am, 9.07 (-0.82)
5. Frank Grossi, Upland, Calif., GT/CA ‘96 Oldsmobile, 9.88 (-0.81)
6. Bill Blakeney, Bell, Calif., SS/HA ‘68 Camaro, 10.09 (-0.80)
7. Harry Holton, Modesto, Calif., SS/BA ‘65 Belvedere, 9.42 (-0.78)
8. Tony Hewes, Reno, Nev., SS/HA ‘70 Mustang, 10.12 (-0.77)

STOCK
1. Brian Cour, Gresham, Ore., E/SA ‘67 Camaro, 11.06 seconds (-0.93)
2. Kris Johnson, Eatonville, Wash., L/SA ‘78 Delta, 12.07 (-0.92)
3. Don Little, Westley, Calif., A/SA ‘70 Plymouth, 10.38 (-0.91)
4. Ron Durham, Cameron Park, Calif., B/SA ‘71 Chevelle, 10.63 (-0.91)
5. Cal Method, Kennewick, Wash., F/SA ‘69 Camaro, 11.24 seconds (-0.90)
6. Bill Bushmaker, Auburn, Wash., I/SA ‘76 Plymouth, 11.70 (-0.89)
7. Bill Kost, Renton, Wash., M/SA ‘77 Cutlass, 12.27 (-0.87)
8. Steve Hanby, Salem, Ore., M/SA ‘85 Camaro, 12.29 (-0.85)

Saturday Qualifying Final:

CARLSON, AUSTIN QUICKEST OF QUICK AT WOODBURN

   WOODBURN DRAGSTRIP, Woodburn, Ore. -- Dale Carlson and
Pat Austin are the final qualifying leaders at the Les Schwab
Tire Centers/Dairy Farmers of Oregon/KPTV 12 drag racing
event at Woodburn Dragstrip, the fifth of six events in the
NHRA Northwest Federal-Mogul Drag Racing Series.

   Carlson, of  Olympia, Wash., leads the Federal-Mogul
Dragster field with a 5.72-second run at 232.91 mph.

   Said Carlson of his pole-setting run, “The track isn’t
quite as good as we hoped it would be.  There’s plenty of
bite there, but I had thought we may run quicker.”

   Driving the Mike Johnson Racing Giant Bicycles dragster,
Carlson and the team experimented with a fuel-systems
change between Friday’s and Saturday’s qualifying attempts.

   “A couple of months ago we were chasing a fuel-systems
problem,” explained Carlson.  “The engine was going lean
at a particular point on the track and we kept searching
for a solution, but couldn’t find one.  In the end we
simply gave the engine more fuel where it needed it and
it seems to have cured it.  Now, we’re not hurting any
parts and the car is consistent.”

   Austin’s Pro Max Performance ‘98 Pontiac Firebird was
the class of the Federal-Mogul Funny Car field, resetting
the Woodburn Dragstrip track record at 5.73 seconds.
Austin’s uncle, Bucky, the defending event champion,
previously held the record at 5.76 seconds.  In a major
upset, Bucky Austin failed to qualify for Sunday’s
eliminations, unable to get his race car downtrack on
three separate qualifying attempts.

   Final eliminations began at 8:00 a.m. Sunday, with
quarterfinals in Federal-Mogul Dragster and Federal-Mogul
Funny Cars scheduled to begin at 12 noon.

   WOODBURN, Ore. -- Final qualifying results Saturday
from Woodburn Dragstrip, the fifth of six events in the
1998 NHRA Federal-Mogul Drag Racing Series, listing
driver, hometown, state, vehicle, elapsed time in seconds,
and speed in miles per hour.

FEDERAL-MOGUL DRAGSTER
1. Dale Carlson, Olympia, Wash., 5.72, 239.80
2. Melanie Troxel, Englewood, Colo., 5.73, 249.16
3. John Shoemaker, Sacramento, Calif., 5.76, 238.09
4. Bobby Taylor, Laguna Hills, Calif., 5.78, 242.45
5. Pete Kaiser, Pleasant Hill, Calif., 5.82, 236.84
6. Mark Hentges, Federal Way, Wash. 5.93, 240.51

FEDERAL-MOGUL FUNNY CAR
1. Pat Austin, Tacoma, Wash., ‘98 Firebird, 5.73, 246.23
2. John Hyland, Springfield, Ore., ‘98 Mustang, 5.83, 240.44
3. Pete Swayne, Orange, Calif., ‘97 Firebird, 5.90, 242.45
4. Steve Gasparrelli, West Covina, Calif., ‘97 Avenger, 5.95, 235.60
5. Larry Miner, Woodbridge, Calif., ‘97 Avenger, 5.98, 198.45
6. Dan McGlone, Gladstone, Ore., ‘98 Mustang, 6.01, 236.96
7. Randy Parker, Salem, Ore., ‘97 Firebird, 6.02, 231.48
8. Russ Parker, Salem, Ore., ‘96 Cutlass, 6.06, 220.96

COMPETITION
1. Randy Jones, Dana Point, Calif., D/A ‘97 Firebird, 7.99, (-0.54)
2. Jim Warter, Fox Island, Wash., B/SM ‘92 Camaro, 8.84, (-0.53)
3. Jim Kennedy, San Jose, Calif., F/A ‘97 Firebird, 8.65, (-0.48)
4. Doug Lambeck, Northridge, Calif., C/SM ‘90 Camaro, 9.17 (-0.45)
5. Mike Robinson, Salinas, Calif., B/ED dragster, 7.22, (-0.43)
6. Ron Schuster, Salem, Ore., C/D dragster, 7.27, (-0.43)
7. Rick Houser, Pasadena, Calif., C/SR ‘34 Chevrolet, 8.98 (-0.42)
8. Rob Robinson, Portland, Ore., C/EA ‘96 Cutlass, 8.46 (0.40)

SUPER STOCK
1. Tony DeFrank, Tarzana, Calif., GT/GA ‘98 Grand Am, 10.18 (-1.01)
2. Jimmy DeFrank, Tarzana, Calif., GT/HA ‘89 Camaro, 10.36 (-0.98)
3. Terry Sherrill, Klamath Falls, Ore., SS/AM ‘57 Corvette, 8.64 (-0.90)
4. Jeff Lane, North Bend, Wash., SS/CM ‘98 Grand Am, 9.02 (-0.87)
5. Frank Grossi, Upland, Calif., GT/CA ‘96 Oldsmobile, 9.82 (-0.87)
6. Bill Blakeney, Bell, Calif., SS/HA ‘68 Camaro, 10.04 (-0.86)
7. Rick Pike, Langley, B.C., SS/NA ‘56 Chevrolet, 11.59 (-0.85)
8. Tony Hewes, Reno, Nev., SS/HA ‘70 Mustang, 10.07 (-0.82)

STOCK
1. Joe Sorenson, Tigard, Ore., K/SA ‘86 Camaro, 11.89 (-1.05)
2. Brian Cour, Gresham, Ore., E/SA ‘67 Camaro, 11.00 (-1.00)
3. Bill Bushmaker, Auburn, Wash., I/SA ‘76 Plymouth, 11.61 (-0.99)
4. Shawn Towner, Lynwood, Wash., K/SA ‘85 Camaro, 11.97 (-0.99)
5. Ron Durham, Cameron Park, Calif., B/SA ‘71 Chevelle, 10.58 (-0.96)
6. Steve Hanby, Salem, Ore., M/SA ‘85 Camaro, 12.19 (-0.95)
7. Bill Kost, Renton, Wash., M/SA ‘77 Cutlass, 12.19 (-0.95)
8. Darin Grossi, Soulsbyville, Calif., B/SA ‘71 Chrysler, 10.59 (-0.95)

AUSTIN WINS LATEST, TROXEL WINS FIRST
   WOODBURN DRAGSTRIP, Woodburn, Ore. -- Pat Austin of Tacoma,
Wash., and Melanie Troxel of Englewood, Colo., were the big
winners at the Les Schwab Tire Centers/Dairy Farmers of Oregon/
KPTV 12 drag racing event at Woodburn Dragstrip, the fifth of
six events in the NHRA Northwest Federal-Mogul Drag Racing
Series.

   Austin, a multi-time event winner in the Federal-Mogul
Funny Car category, won his first race in more than a year
with the final-round defeat of Salem, Ore.’s Randy Parker.
The race, however, almost didn’t go as planned for Austin.

   As the Pro/Max Performance team started the engine in
their ‘98 Pontiac Firebird entry, a cylinder refused to fire,
causing team members to rush around the car.

   “It’s about time we had some luck,” said Austin, who
earlier in the day had lowered the track record to 5.71
seconds.  “The moment we started the car I knew there was a
problem [with the engine].  It cleared itself out but that
was a real close race against Randy.  I wasn’t sure I was
going to catch him.”

   Another side-by-side duel came in the final of Federal-Mogul
Dragster as Troxel won the first major event of her career,
defeating Olympia, Wash.’s Dale Carlson in a 5.67-seconds to
5.68 seconds heat.

   “This is the greatest day of my career,” gushed Troxel,
driver of Jerry Darien’s and Ken Meadow’s In-N-Out Burger
dragster.  “I’ve never won a race before, and to do so in such
a close race ...  This really is something special.”

   Throughout the event Troxel and Carlson had traded low
elapsed time of the event, first with Troxel running a 5.73-
second run in qualifying, only to watch as Carlson improved to
a 5.72-second pass.  Carlson improved upon that mark in the
second round of eliminations with a 5.68, only to watch Troxel
claim the event victory with an even quicker 5.67-second lap.

   “I obviously didn’t want to lose,” sighed Carlson, “but that
was a great drag race.”

WOODBURN RESULTS
DIVISION 6 INSTANT STATS
Woodburn Dragstrip, Woodburn, Ore.

Federal-Mogul Dragster
   W: Melanie Troxel, Englewood, Colo., 5.67, 248.96
   R/U: Dale Carlson, Olympia, Wash., 5.68, 242.98

Federal-Mogul Funny Car
   W: Pat Austin, Tacoma, Wash., ‘98 Firebird, 5.87, 243.83
   R/U: Randy Parker, Salem, Ore., 5.92, 234.86

Competition
   W: Scott Lemon, Payette, Idaho, A/EA ‘23-T Ford, 7.69, 169.87
   R/U: Rick Houser, Pasadena, Calif., C/SR ‘34 Chevrolet, 9.12, 138.07

Super Stock
   W: Jeff Lane, North Bend, Wash., SS/CM ‘98 Grand Am, 9.11, 149.62
   R/U: Mark Faul, Spanaway, Wash., SS/MA ‘66 El Camino, 11.74, 112.34

Stock
   W: Bill Heard Jr., Vancouver, Wash., E/SA ‘96 Pontiac, 11.36, 110.81
   R/U: Chuck Norton, Covina, Calif., F/SA ‘68 Camaro, 11.59, 113.47

Super Comp
   W: Jefferey Yoder, Gresham, Ore., dragster, 8.89, 151.08
   R/U: Luke Shumard, Santa Clarita, Calif., dragster, 8.89, 150.35 (broke out)

Super Gas
   W: Larry Merritt, Sandy, Ore., ‘75 Chevrolet, 9.91, 128.93
   R/U: Steve Williams, Loma Linda, Calif., ‘62 Chevrolet, 9.93, 147.90

Super Street
   W: Tom Williams, Yakima, Wash., ‘70 Nova, 10.88, 122.36
   R/U: Chad Barclay, Kelowna, B.C., ‘57 Chevrolet, 10.84, 139.38 (break out)

   WOODBURN DRAGSTRIP, Woodburn, Ore. -- A large crowd and more
than 400 race teams filled the Woodburn Dragstrip to capacity.
Owned and operated by Jim and Jay Livingston (father and son),
the track has the look and feel of a national event without the
‘pro’ category vehicles.  The event boasted sponsorship from
three entities: Les Schwab Tire Centers, the Dairy Farmers of
Oregon, and KPTV Channel 12 Portland.

   One of drag racing’s dominant teams, the GT Bicycles Federal-
Mogul Dragster team of owner Gary Turner and driver Bobby Taylor,
are calling it quits.  Taylor, the 1996 World Champion and runner-
up in 1997, revealed that the Woodburn event may possibly be the
team’s last.

   “The fun element of the sport has gone,” said a disappointed
Taylor, who lost in the first round when the car began to spin
the tires.  “Not just for us, but for a lot of teams.  A couple
of years ago, whenever there was some downtime, we’d get together
and play football and just hang out together.  But something has
changed; everyone is so intense, so wound up.”

   Turner, who hadn’t missed a race in years, wasn’t at the
Woodburn race, and Taylor admitted he isn’t sure what the
remainder of the year holds for him.

   “The plan is to sell the car and all the equipment,” said
Taylor.  “We may go to Sonoma [for the Autolite Nationals] but
after that we have no plans whatsoever.”

   Although Turner’s car may be parked before the end of the
month, that hasn’t stopped the team experimenting and trying
new ideas.  At Woodburn the GT Bicycles car was sporting a
huge injector scoop, first seen at the Federal-Mogul series
event in Seattle in June.  The scoop stands high above the
screw-type supercharger with the air-inlet as far forward
as NHRA rules allow.  Driver Taylor designed the scoop after
seeing a similar unit on Shawn Bowen’s Federal-Mogul Dragster,
and crew chief Sam Shockley built the item.

   “At the beginning of the season we tried the new [screw-
type] Whipple supercharger, with the angled injector scoop, but
we were hurting the motor on very run,” explained Taylor. “The
blower was making so much low-end power that the car was
shaking the tires on every run.”

   The GT team reverted to using the 1997-model Whipple
supercharger and, when combined with the team’s new injector
scoop, makes six-to-seven pounds more boost pressure than the
1998 supercharger.

   Pete Who?  That was the question running through the
Woodburn Federal-Mogul Funny Car pits after Pete Swayne put
his ‘97 Pontiac Firebird entry on the provisional pole position
during Friday’s qualifying with a 5.91-second run, a full tenth-
of-a-second quicker than second-placed Dan McGlone.  Swayne,
of Orange, Calif., purchased Randy Goodwin’s car at the
beginning of the season and retained Goodwin and his crew to
help tune the car.  After a difficult learning period -- it
took Swayne most of 1997 to earn his Funny Car license -- the
team really hit its stride through the Summer, running
consistent 5.90s at most tracks.

   “Our goal at the beginning of 1998 was for me to get more
seat time in the car and, if we’re lucky, to simply qualify at
a couple of races,” said Swayne.  

   Swayne did more than that.  He reached the semifinals at
Woodburn and despite running a career-best 5.87-second lap, lost
to eventual runner-up Randy Parker.

   The Super Stock Pontiac Grand Am team of Jerry Hancock and
Jeff Lane will announce an associate sponsorship at the Seattle
International Raceway national event early-August with
Metropolitan Steak House, one of the Top 10 steak houses in the
United States.  The North Bend, Wash., team celebrated early by
winning the Super Stock final round at Woodburn.  On the winning
run Lane pulled the car’s parachute, something not normally seen
in the class.

   “I promised my kids when we built this car that when I won a
final round I’d pull the ‘chutes,” said Lane.  “I couldn’t do it
in any other round because I don’t know how to re-pack it!”

   Receiving the Wittnauer Watches Every Second Counts awards
at Woodburn Dragstrip were John Shoemaker (Federal-Mogul
Dragster), Jim Warter (Comp), Steve Polack (Super Stock) Don
Little (Stock), Tory Lea (Super Comp), Mike Henderson (Super Gas),
Jason Heard (Super Street), and J. Glen Miller (Motorcycle).  The
watches, valued at more than $200 apiece, are presented to the half-
way point leaders in the respective categories in each of NHRA’s
seven geographic divisions.  Missing from Woodburn was Federal-Mogul 
Funny Car point leader Roger Bateman, whom was unable to attend the
event because of business commitments.

   Stock racer Don Little probably traveled further than any other
driver in the NHRA Northwest division to claim the Wittnauer
Watches Every Second Counts award.  That’s because Little lives
in Westley, a small town near Modesto, Calif., in the heart of
NHRA’s Pacific division.  So why the commute?

   “I’d always wanted to run the tracks in the Northwest
division,” explained Little.  “After winning the Chief Auto
Parts Winternationals at the beginning of the year I had a
little bit of money to do it, so I decided that this would be
the year,”

   Little has attended every event in the Northwest division,
including two races that are held in British Columbia, Canada,
winning one, at Nl’Akapxm Eagle Motorplex in Ashcroft --
commuting back to Central California after each race.

   “It’s been a great deal of fun,” added Little.  “Everyone
at the track -- from the operators to the officials -- are
happy to see you.  They welcome you when you pull into the
track and, when you’re leaving, they stop by and ask if
you’re coming back for the next race.”

   Even though Little is leading the NHRA Northwest division
points and likely will contend for the season championship,
he likely will not defend the title in 1999 should he win it.

   “I’m thinking of running the North Central division next
year,” Little laughed.  “Although that may be a stretch.”

   At the Woodburn Federal-Mogul series event one year ago
Shawn Towner was guzzling Pepto Bismol between runs to calm
her nerves.  One year later the Stock eliminator rookie is an
established racer in the Northwest drag wars, and the Pepto
is a thing of the past.

   “I was so nervous,” said Towner, an analyst for a Seattle-
based commercial bank.  “I’d never driven anything down any
track before in my life.”

   Driving a K/SA ‘85 Camaro, Towner qualified on the pole
at the Federal-Mogul series race at Mission Raceway Park in
Vancouver, British Columbia, in May, and at Woodburn remained
in the Top 10 throughout time trials, eventually placing
fourth in the 39-car field.