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K&N's Jenna Jefferies and Defending Champion Shelby Reid Win M.O.R.E Off-Road Race for the Cure

26 Oct 2011

Reid and Jefferies discussed competing in The Race for the Cure at the beginning of the year, and once they landed some sponsors they made it official.

Women drivers and team owner's wives and daughters, female industry leaders and celebrities - all came together for the 6th Annual Powder Puff Off-Road Race for the Cure. The female-only event was presented by Mohave Off-Road Racing Enthusiast (M.O.R.E.), in Barstow, California, in a show of support for a great cause; Breast Cancer Research.

Jenna Jefferies said that once her and Shelby Reid landed their first jump, and saw they were in clean air, the nerves were all gone.

2010 overall champion, Shelby Reid teamed up with K&N's, Jenna Jefferies, and successfully defend her Unlimited Class 1 victory. Reid is a highly skilled and experienced driver, competing on a regular basis in the M.O.R.E. Series, as well as in BITD (Best in the Desert Racing Association). "I was really excited to ride with her," said Jefferies, "but I do have to say I was also a little nervous."

Jefferies has been around off-road racing most of her life. "I have done this race twice before with my sister-in-law, but those are the only races I have been in," adds Jefferies. Although she's been on some fast runs with her brothers in the past, this was her first ride as co-pilot, responsible for navigating the race, and she proved to be on top of her game.

Reid and Jefferies got off the line in their unlimited heat at noon, and it was a clearly an adrenaline-check start. Instead stomping the gas-peddle and charging, they first had to cruise at 35mph through the mandated speed zone. Then at mile-one the race was on.

Shelby Reid made it back-to-back wins at this year's 6th Annual Powder Puff Off-Road Race for the Cure.

"We passed the first car within the next mile, and then another," said Jefferies. "We finally passed the fourth car by race mile five and then it was just us and clean air. That was an awesome feeling. We hit our first jump and as we landed I just smiled, from then on my nerves were gone. At the same time, I realized that Shelby is quite the driver!"

The team of Reid and Jefferies definitely plan on coming back in 2012 to defend their title.

As they started their second lap Reid and Jefferies were informed that the second place car was about a minute behind them, and they were closing. "Shelby and I decided that we didn't need to worry about the cars behind us; we needed to focus on ourselves, and what was ahead of us. About a quarter through the third lap we were informed that the second place car had rolled (everyone was okay), and the next car was about nine minutes back. Shelby kept driving her pace and I made sure we stayed on course, the car temperatures stayed where they needed and that she obeyed the speed limits."

Reid and Jefferies decided to team-up for this event after attending races together over the past year or so. Reid and Damen shared driving duties last year and Casey preps her car for each race and helps out in the pits. "We talked about running it together at the beginning of the year, and were able to get some sponsors to help support us, so we signed up," explains Jefferies. "And we definitely plan on doing it again next year."

Jefferies has been working for K&N for over 12 years, and for the past six years she has been the National Accounts Manager. "It is a great job. I get the opportunity to help grow sales, as well as get our products into some of our top accounts stores and warehouses. I also get the opportunity to travel quite a bit and attend several shows/events. It has allowed me to really get to know the industry and realize what a great industry this is."

"It was definitely exciting winning the event, but it gives you chills when you see all of the people out there supporting breast cancer, and you hear the stories of the lives that were lost to this awful disease," continues Jefferies. "It is a great feeling to be part of this event and to raise money that goes towards better research, which helps to save somebody's life in the future."

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

K&N's Mike Edwards Claims Fourth NHRA Pro Stock Pole of 2011 in the Arizona Heat

26 Oct 2011

Mike Edwards at the 27th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals

In a class where minute thousandths of a second can mean all the difference in the world, K&N's Mike Edwards has been knocking at the door of his next number one Pro Stock qualifier for the last handful of races. He and his Penhall/K&N Pontiac GXP made it stick during the most recent event in Chandler, Arizona for the 27th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals.

Mike Edwards and his Penhall/K&N Pontiac GXP

Edwards had been a provisional pole sitter during the last several races, only to be knocked back at the last moment by current 2012 K&N Horsepower Challenge leader, Jason Line. His luck changed during the Arizona Nationals, but it wasn't from the first hit.

During Friday's first session, it was Warren, Ohio's Ron Krisher who stunned the field when his 6.658 in the nearly four thousand feet of air [adjusted altitude] put him at the top of the heap, but Edwards would have something to say about that later in the day for session number two.

While the air temperature rose slightly between session one and two, the track had been allowed to cool from nearly one-hundred thirty degrees to under one-twenty. NHRA Pro Stock teams not only tune their engines for the conditions at hand, but lots of attention is paid to the car's suspension components and setup, as well. With cars hanging on the edge of every ounce of power they can safely put to the ground, even slight changes in the conditions can make a world of difference.

During session number two, Edwards was able to fully take advantage of what he learned in his first pass and the lower track temps to bump the number one spot to a 6.642. Line tied the E.T. during the very next pair, but once again Edwards would grab the top spot with his faster 209.10 mile-per-hour.

"It was real toasty," said Edwards of the air temperature, shortly following Friday's second session. "I guess the one thing about it, is at least it's dry. Back at home [Oklahoma] when it is 100 degrees it is really humid. This was a good first day, a good start. The track came around pretty good there in the night run. Tomorrow will be a different day, but hey we made two good runs, so hat's off to my guys and we'll see what tomorrow holds. We like these conditions. It seems like we run better when it is hot and I do not know why, I can't explain that. For some reason it seems like we run a little bit better in the heat."

"We made a good run, but I think we can run better," Edwards continued following Friday's passes. "Conditions should be better tomorrow and I look for some times to improve definitely."

Teams did the best they could to fully capitalize on what they knew would be the best conditions they would have available during qualifying sessions. In the second to last pair, Jason Line, who also currently leads the NHRA Pro Stock Championship points, streaked down the quarter-mile passing Edwards when he posted a 6.620. But Edwards would save the best for the final pair and in the same lane Line just took away his number one, he snatched it back by being three thousandths of a second quicker to the stripe with a 6.617.

In the fourth and final Pro Stock qualifying session for the 27th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals, Edwards was lucky to hold on to his number one spot, as teams were unable to surpass his number, most not able to even duplicate numbers from the previous session. During the final pair of Pro Stock to go down the track, Edwards knew his chances were good of going into Sunday on the pole and went for what seemed to be a little testing. Unfortunately, he experienced extremely violent tire shake at the hit and had to push in the clutch and abort the run.

"We ran good this morning but struggled getting off of the starting line," Edwards admitted after Saturday's passes. "We just haven't gotten it figured out and we are a little concerned about that. We didn't get down tonight, so we are definitely scratching our heads."

"We've run good at times," Edwards said. "When the temperature gets warmer, we just seem to run better. The engine runs better for whatever reason. We have been off, hit-or-miss on the West Coast. We have been trying stuff on the car and we feel it has been better at times and sometimes it bites us like tonight. We have got to get back to the drawing board for sure."

All-in-all, Mike Edwards' 6.617 held and for the effort he gained the highest amount of qualifying points for the 2012 K&N Horsepower Challenge along with the $3,000 Low Qualifier Bonus Check from K&N Engineering. The feat helped him maintain his third place spot, sixty-five points behind Greg Anderson at number two and one-hundred twenty-five back from current leader, Jason Line.

With just two remaining events on the 2011 schedule, the teams will enjoy one weekend off before heading to their next to the last event in Las Vegas and the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals.

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

K&N's Steve Williams Battles His Way to NHRA Super Comp Victory During Arizona Nationals

25 Oct 2011

NHRA Super Comp National Event Victory for Steve Williams

Vice President of Research and Development at K&N Engineering, Steve Williams maintains an extremely busy schedule, one that does not always afford him the amount of time he would like to spend chasing championships on the NHRA trail. That may be favorable to his fellow competitors, because once Williams does have a chance to compete, he's quite a force to be reckoned with as he proved once again during his latest outing for the 27th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals. Williams took the Super Comp title and narrowly missed adding an appearance in the Super Gas final to his outstanding weekend.

Steve Williams at the 27th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals

Williams, of Beaumont, California, points out that it's been a different kind of season for him. "Normally I would race sixteen or seventeen events and this year it's only going to be ten or eleven," he said. "But it's been good."

The weather for the entire event was rather warm, exceeding the ninety degree mark. "I will say this, the track was awesome," he noted of Firebird Int'l Raceway. "They have resurfaced it down there and it was really smooth for us sportsman guys and they did a great job keeping it the way it needed to be."

Competing in his usual Super Comp and Super Gas, Williams was pleased with his two hot rod's right off the bat. "Both the Corvette and the Dragster were real close," he said of the time run E.T.'s. "Had a couple of decent time runs, even though it was really hot. We were supposed to get three [runs], but we only got two. I always like it when you get less time runs. Anytime you get three or four, it always makes it [eliminations] tougher."

Williams slashed his way through the rounds in both Super Comp and Super Gas and admits that the first three rounds in both were some tough ones to get by, including a memorable second round in his TNT Dragster in the 8.90 category. "I had a killer race with a guy named Matthew Harvil who was just two thousandths away from a perfect run," he pointed out of his competitor's 8.899 and .001 light. "I mean I could have been out in Super Comp in second round. The same goes for second round in Super Gas. I was â€˜trip-zip' on the tree [.000] and just managed to breakout a few thou less than they did."

Behind the wheel of his K&N '63 Corvette Roadster loaded up with a 565 Chevy, Williams sent Las Vegas native Roger Kato packing after dialing his car much closer to the number and easily taking the stripe with a safe 9.935 on the 9.90 index. In Super Comp, Williams used his full one hundredth of a second starting line advantage to put space between he and Chuck Babcock all while posting a dead-on 8.902 and taking just what he needed at the stripe.

"We went into the fourth round in both Super Gas and Super Comp having a shot at a bye into the final," he said. "So I can get into the final in both categories if I win fourth round. I do look ahead at the ladder and I fully expected to be in the final in both cars." "I ran Super Gas first against [Steve] Casner who ended up winning," he reflected. "I broke out by a couple of thou and missed the tree a little bit. It didn't feel like it, but that's what the time slip said. So in Super Comp, I came around [to the staging lanes] and strangely enough, I had no idea what happened, but the guy I was paired with was a no show."

Nick Saetes was to be Williams fourth round competitor and as Williams points out, was pitted only a few trailers away. "We had lost in Gas and I get in my dragster and head to the lanes," he continued. "The other two pairs are already loaded up with their helmets on and he's not there. I thought he was probably behind me. They were running the rest of the Super Stockers and the guy at the lanes was calling [Saetes] number and he was nowhere around. So I ended up making a single. We get back to the trailer and he walks over and told me that they were standing at the fence watching and the next thing they knew, they see Super Comp cars go down the track and they had just flat missed the call."

"I really felt bad," he admitted. "My goal is to win every round, but I wanna race people. At the same time, I've had some pretty rough luck this year and you just have to do your job and move on."

Williams made his scheduled bye in the semi-final and put a nice package together, making a strong statement of his intentions to take it all in the final, after a .001 and 8.909.

Donny Toia would line up against Williams and it would prove to be a great final round. "We left the line and I knew I hit it [good light] and he hit it," he explained. "I knew what his sixty [foot] was and where he was supposed to be. We leave the line and I'm like OK, we're both on. I knew it was going to come down to the stripe and I basically had the car hard-dialed. I wasn't trying to carry any extra and I honestly thought I might get there by a few thousandths. As we get to the stripe, I'm watching the noses and I can tell he's a little but in front of me."

"As soon as I looked up, I saw my win light come on and I knew we both broke out," he added.

Williams 8.898 to Toia's 8.893 gave him the NHRA Super Comp National Event Victory, making it his fourth National win in five final round appearances.

In addition to all the K&N products that Williams uses, develops and tests on the two cars he not only races, but wins with, he carefully notes some of the other items on his Super Comp dragster that he feels were important contributors to his most recent win. "We had made a couple of adjustments to the car and one of them was the new Edelbrock manifold and it's absolutely awesome," he said. "It's a second design Edelbrock that sits on top of the 622 Brodix that I have been running for years. We have also been working with A1 Converters and they have come up with just a great, really consistent converter along with our Hughes Transmission."

"It would have been awesome to be in the finals in both cars," he confessed. "I'm not saying that if I would have got past Casner in Gas that I would have beat Jimmy Lewis, but the Corvette was awesome and I was driving great. I've got close before, a final and a semi-final. It's one of those things that very few people have doubled up. Especially in Super Gas and Super Comp on the national level, I know it's happened, but not very often."

Williams will return to the track in the coming weeks for his two final 2011 scheduled events, starting with the NHRA division race in Las Vegas before wrapping up the season during the NHRA World Finals in Pomona, California.

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

Tyler Hughes Wins Old Dominion Speedway Legends Points Championship

25 Oct 2011

Fifteen-year-old Tyler Hughes recently began the final race of the season with a 20 point lead and in turn earned the Legend points championship at the Old Dominion Speedway.

At five years of age, Tyler Hughes experienced his first taste of racing, running Quarter Midgets on dirt tracks in Maryland and Delaware. Two years later, Hughes tried his hand at racing on asphalt, an endeavor that throughout the next three years, would take the young driver and his family to venues from "New York to Florida, to Indiana". While still driving Quarter Midgets, Tyler then began racing a dirt 600cc Modified-Lite in Delaware, earning seven wins and the track points championship at the season's end. Seven years into his young career, Tyler and his team changed the engine size to 1,000 cc's, and his success continued.

Tyler Hughes recently finished earned a point championship during his second season racing in the INEX Legends Car Division

In 2010 Hughes embarked upon racing an INEX Legend car at the Old Dominion Speedway in Manassas, Virginia. During his first season, Hughes managed to earn one win, thirteen top five, and sixteen top ten finishes. His impressive record earned him the title of "Rookie of the Year".

Going into the 2011 season, Fifteen-year-old, Tyler Hughes had no intentions of letting up. In turn, while competing in thirteen races, he earned seven poles, seven wins, finished in the top five eleven times and experienced twelve top ten finishes. Hughes' greatest accomplishment during the 2011 season was earning the Legends Points Championship.

Racing in the INEX Legends Car division, Tyler Hughes and his team recently rolled into the Old Dominion Speedway, at Manassas, Virginia to compete in the final race of the season with a twenty point lead over the second placed driver.

After winning the Old Dominion Speedway Legends Points Championship, Tyler Hughes is already looking forward to the 2012 season.

Qualifying with the second fastest time, Hughes started fourth due to the invert. Although his car was fast, with a substantial lead, Tyler opted to play it safe and avoid taking any chances. While running third, Tyler was approached by, and elected to let the number three car driven by, Ryan Polenz, overtake him. In turn, Tyler finished in the fourth position with an eighteen point lead, and was deemed the 2011 Old Dominion Speedway Legends Points Champion.

Referring to playing it safe throughout the race, Hughes said, "It was difficult, because every driver just wants to win every race they can. I just had to focus on the big picture, which was the championship. I knew it would be a bigger victory, if I just stayed out of trouble and made sure I won the championship."

"It felt good to win with that much of a point lead, because it shows the success we had throughout the season," Hughes continued. "It gives me a bit of confidence if I go to a different track. As a champion, I want to show people that I drive like a champion, and I never give up, like I showed all season long."

Referring to the upcoming 2012 season, the driver said. "Next year I will share a Late Model with my car owner. When I'm not running the Late Model, I will be running the legend. Now that I have a Late Model, I will carry this confidence with me, knowing I'll have to do just as well as I did in Legends. Hopefully, the championship on my resume will help me with more corporate sponsors like K&N.

Referring to K&N products, Tyler Hughes said, "We never really started using K&N products until about the middle of last year, when we kept having trouble with another brand of oil filters. Presently we do use K&N air and oil filters on all of our racecars. I think they're the best product out there right now! I suggest K&N oil and air filters to everyone I can!"

Along with K&N products, Tyler Hughes was quick to credit his team for playing an important role in his success. "They played a very important role," explained Hughes. "My dad does a heck of a job setting up my cars. They always make sure everything is right. If I had a (mechanical) problem, they got me back out (on the track) so I could work myself back up to the front to try and salvage a good points night.

I'd like to thank Frank Duncan, Mike Weddell, my parents, Tony Aguilar, and anyone else who volunteered to help out. Of course, I would also like to thank my good sponsors who have helped me out this season."

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

JB Strassweg Discovers K&N Heavy Duty Air Filter Benefits with a Little Help from Don Gatlin

24 Oct 2011

Strassweg uses his American Eagle motorhome to tow Don Gatlin's dragster when he's racing the Midwest big-dollar races.

It's a bit tough to pin down exactly what all JB Strassweg does, he wears a lot of hats and they all appear to suit him well. The Evansville, Indiana resident is a partner at JBM Race Cars, LLC; he's Managing Member at Four S Properties and he's been the President at Basden RV Center for the past 20 years. In his spare time he races Super Pro and Top Dragster, sometimes driving K&N sponsored Don Gatlin's car.

By replacing the paper air filter on his RV with a K&N Heavy Duty Air Filter Strassweg says he not only saves a good deal of money, heâ€™s also found the added benefit of increased performance.

"Don and I have known each other via the DragRaceResults website forums, and he bought a car from me about a year ago with the intent to keep it in the Midwest (Don's current Undercover Dragster). We maintain his (Mullis) car in our shop, keep it in top running shape and load it into our stacker trailer whenever he has the time to race with us," Strassweg explained.

Gatlin, as we established before, has two dragsters, the Undercover Dragster that he keeps on the West Coast and the Mullis in Indiana for races in the Midwest. Typically Gatlin attends the high-dollar races in the Midwest, The Tenn Tuck Series in Bowling Green, The Million Dollar Race, The Spring Fling in Bristol, the beginning of the winter series at SGMP in Adel, and the Jeg's US Open. "Don's gracious enough to let me drive every now and again when he's not here," says Strassweg, "and I try to pad his winnings as best I can."

It was sometime during one of Gatlin's visits with Strassweg that the mention of K&N's Heavy Duty air filter came up. Gatlin installed them on his West Coast vehicles and has experienced plenty of performance perks. Taking Gatlin's advice Strassweg installed one on his American Eagle, after which he claimed it was one of the best things he'd ever done for his coach.

"Some of the tracks we race at are very, very dusty, and the design of my coach is such that the exhaust stirs up the dust and it gets sucked right into the filter intake. I was having to clean and replace the paper air cleaner in my coach twice a year. And they cost a lot more than one K&N filter. The added benefit I didn't expect was the increased performance. My coach actually responds when I push the accelerator pedal down! In addition, the filter minder on my RV hasn't so much as moved since I put the (K&N) filter in. That's very uncommon, as the paper elements I would run would move the filter minder shortly after installation."

"Don was just in Bowling Green at the Tenn Tuck event last week," continues Strassweg. "Our schedules have taken us in different directions this month, so I'll miss him at the Million Dollar Race, but I expect we'll race again at South Georgia Motorsports Park for the Winter Series kick off race in a couple weeks."

Strassweg now uses a K&N air filter and oil filter on his Onan diesel generator as well. "We also run your oil filters on all of our race cars and our customer's cars," he adds. "And everyone loves your products!"

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

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