MORRISON,Colo.– Top Alcohol Dragster beginner Greg Hunter’s rookie season in the ExactAir/Kenny Gilmour Motorsports car is going better than those of some of the seasoned veterans in the class. A first round win at his national event debut inLas Vegas, and now another at his second regional event. TheWyomingresident’s trip to Bandimere Speedway’s Thunder on the Mountain ended with a meeting with one of the top cars in the country. “It was awesome to win first round. I couldn’t hear him (opponent Dean Dubbin) at the finish line, so I knew I won and I was pumped,” said Hunter. Greg led the qualifying sheet after the first session on Friday, but slipped to fourth by the time qualifying was over on Saturday night. His first round match-up with Dubbin was decided at the starting line, with Hunter unleashing a .039 reaction time and crossing the finish line in 5.78 seconds at just under 250 mph. He met up with Jim Whiteley, one of the Top 5 drivers in the country, in round two. Greg pushed the Tree too hard and left early, giving the automatic win to Whiteley. “Going up against Jim Whiteley, I made a rookie mistake and red lit. When one of the quickest blown cars in the country is in the other lane, you have to push it. Then once I crossed the finish line, my ‘chutes got a little tangled and the car went into the sand trap. Fortunately it just got a little gravel in the car, no serious damage. The car is ready forChicago,” Greg said. The next race for Greg Hunter and the ExactAir Top Alcohol Dragster team is the O’Reilly Auto Parts Route 66 NHRA Nationals inJoliet,Illinois. The challenge of competing with over 25 of the nation’s top cars is one that Hunter says he’s ready for. “I’m really excited to go up against so many solid cars. Route 66 Raceway is a great track and the conditions should be good, so that just adds to the excitement. We’re starting to get our tune-up figured out. We’ll be bringing all we got to run with the best of the best.” From: Nate Van Wagnen
