November 3, 2004
Las Vegas, NV - Screamin� Eagle/Vance & Hines drag racing team rider GT Tonglet rode his Screamin� Eagle V-Rod to the semi-final round of eliminations at the 4th Annual AC Delco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. His teammate, Andrew Hines, led all qualifiers for the event, but missed a chance to clinch the Pro Stock Bike season points title when his engine faltered in the first round of eliminations. However, Hines still retains a 117-point lead over Antron Brown heading into the final NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series event of the season, Nov. 11-14 in Pomona, Calif.
For the seventh time this season, Hines topped all other qualifiers in the NHRA Pro Stock Bike field. His run of 7.130 seconds at 185.10 mph also set a new Pro Stock Bike ET record for the track. Tonglet qualified fourth with a run of 7.185 seconds at 190.59 mph, a new track-record top speed for the class.
In the first round of eliminations on Sunday, Tonglet (7.266/177.67) defeated Karen Stoffer (7.290/178.99). Hines (8.052/128.18) was leading Mike Berry (7.414/177.60) when his engine let go mid-run.
�We came here ready to wrap up the championship, but it just didn�t work out. We�ll be ready to get the job done at Pomona,� said Hines.
In round two, Tonglet (7.253/177.16) beat Matt Smith (7.275/181.76) and for the seventh consecutive NHRA event, a Screamin� Eagle rider was in the semi-final round. Tonglet then lined up with Angelle Savoie, but her 7.241/178.71 run beat Tonglet�s 7.442/177.39 pass.
In the final, Chip Ellis (7.191/179.92) used his V-Twin Buell to defeat Savoie�s Suzuki (7.255/177.49) and take his first NHRA Pro Stock Bike win in just his third start.
US Army rider Antron Brown, who started the Las Vegas event in second place, 131 points behind Hines, advanced to the second round before losing to Ellis, and gained 14 points on Hines. Savoie, also with the US Army team, started the weekend 176 points behind Hines and gained 55 points on the Screamin� Eagle rider.
Heading into the final event, Hines has 1,152 points, Brown is 117 points back in second with 1,035 points, and Savoie is 121 points behind Hines in third position with 1,031 points. With a potential 138 points available at Pomona, both Brown and Savoie still have a mathematical shot at the title.
�The team did well this weekend. Andrew was the top qualifier with a track record ET, and GT set the track record top speed and made the semi-final round,� said Harley-Davidson Racing Manager Anne Paluso. �We�re really looking forward to Pomona and the championship finale.�
