Racers giving accolades to ‘The Strip’

Monday, April 3, 2000 | 10:43 a.m.

Here is this week's schedule for the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals at Las Vegas Motor Speedway:

Thursday

7 a.m.: Pit and spectator gates open

8 a.m.-7 p.m.: Sportsman qualifying and time trials

Friday

7 a.m.: Pit and spectator gates open

8 a.m.-8:30 p.m.: Sportsman qualifying and eliminations

1:15 p.m.: Professional qualifying

5:15 p.m.: Professional qualifying

Saturday

7 a.m.: Pit and spectator gates open

8 a.m.-7:30 p.m.: Sportsman qualifying and eliminations

10:45 a.m.: Professional qualifying

2:45 p.m.: Professional qualifying

Sunday

7 a.m.: Pit and spectator gates open

10 a.m.: Pre-race ceremonies

11 a.m.: Final eliminations

Two-time Winston NHRA Pro Stock champion Jim Yates took one look at the new $10 million drag strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and conceded that his fellow competitors will have a huge adjustment to make at this weekend's SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals.

"The facility just knocks you out when you get here and it's hard to overcome that," Yates said. "When we got here, I just didn't expect this to be the way it is; it's beautiful, it's top of the line ... it's probably one of the nicest three or four tracks in the country and we haven't even had an event here yet."

That will change beginning Thursday, when the National Hot Rod Association pays its first visit to Nevada for a national event.

All the stars of the sport -- including nine-time Funny Car champion John Force, reigning Top Fuel champion Tony Schumacher and the legendary Kenny Bernstein -- will be at "The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway" this weekend for the four-day event, which is expected to attract a near-capacity crowd for Sunday's final eliminations.

Yates, who joined Las Vegas resident and fellow Pro Stock competitor George Marnell in making several passes down the new quarter mile at LVMS Friday afternoon, said that Las Vegas is ready for an NHRA national event.

"I've been racing a long time and this is one of the few tracks I've ever been to where everybody I meet tells me the same thing: 'We've been waiting for you guys for so long, we're so glad you're here,' " Yates said.

"It's neat to come into an area that's primed for the sport. A lot of tracks we go to it's like, 'Oh, you guys are here again.' Here, everybody from the safety guys to the guards at the guard shack, it's like they've been waiting for us, it's like we're Christmas or something, so it's exciting to be part of that, part of a new era."

Bernstein, the first driver to break the 300-mph barrier in 1992 in his Top Fuel dragster, agreed.

"We're pretty excited, to be honest," Bernstein said of racing in Las Vegas. "We go to a lot of places but Vegas is something special -- not only the fact that it's a new race track, but because of the city itself.

"The race has got a lot of interest and I think it's going to be great for the area there and I think the people are really going to enjoy it."

Marnell, a longtime Las Vegas resident who was the first NHRA driver to make a pass on "The Strip" Friday afternoon, said a national event in Las Vegas is long overdue.

"It's something that us local guys have been dreaming about for an awful long time, having a first-class race track in our own backyard," he said.

"To have the honor of being the first one down the race track, there's really no words for it. I'm real excited about it, I'm very excited about having this race here this weekend and we're hoping that we do really well for the hometown people."

While there had been some reports that the racing surface at "The Strip" might be too slick, Yates and Marnell dispelled those rumors following Friday's break-in session.

"The surface is green, but we can't get enough clutch in our car right now, so obviously they've done a great job," he said. "There is no problem there; the starting line is great and the surface definitely holds the car."

More than that, Marnell said, the strip is free of the bumps and dips that the racers encounter at other venues.

"It is absolutely flat," Marnell said. "I know that sounds a little odd, thinking that all drag strips are completely flat, but believe me, they're not. There are a lot of little dips and bumps in drag strips.

"This track is absolutely as flat a track as I've ever been on, which is saying a whole bunch. I guarantee you, it will be the finest race track in the country when we're all done."

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