CLASS CEILING

Femme Fanatic Sports: A look at motor sports from a female perspective -- the NHRA

Seth Livingston
Tery Red  (Crew Chief for Rig Tech Motorsports )
Apr 18, 2018, 8:22 pm
Vegas debuted a four-lane track. NHRA.COM

Welcome to Femmefanaticsports, which covers the feminine perspective of Motorsports, etc.

What readers should know

Four lane race debuts at  Las Vegas Strip

When: April 6-8, 2018
Where: Las Vegas, Nevada.
What: The NHRA  Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Debuted it's  first event on a Four Wide Lane!

One of my favorite things of all time is being at the Houston Zoo at feeding time to hear the thunderous roar of the majestic lion as he awaits his breakfast. The power of the vibrations rising from the waves sent from the ground, rattling my bones, readjusting my footing, Inciting my heart  to throbbing!

The next best thing I find that really gets the adrenaline going is being in the stands  at a Motorsports Park. In Belle Rose, Louisiana there is No Problem Raceway,  then there is Texas Motorplex in Ennis and of course Royal Purple Raceway in Baytown, just to name a few.

These tracks are host  to some of the wildest rides in the 1/4 mile. You have the John Force Racing, Team which includes some of the fastest women on the track- Brittany Force with a 3.667 second- pass at 330.31 mph at Pomona Autoclub Raceway, the same track where now retired Alexis Dejoria was the first woman to break the 3 second Funny Car barrier. Wild, right?  When you consider that these ladies are contending with amazing male counterparts like John Force, Tony Schumacher  and Clay Millican, now that's very classy ladies, amazing feat indeed. The aforementioned are all traditional two-lane tracks.

So now to the point; each time the 11000 horsepower engines torpedoed off the starting  line, it was quadruple  the excitement.  This novelty track is the first of its kind on the West Coast.  

And the winner is: Steve Torrence took the win in Top Fuel in the four lane quad dual beating out  "The Sarge "(#1 Qualifier), 3× World Champion Antron Brown and Doug Kalitta. 

JR Todd took the win in Funny Car; Vincent  Nobile took the top in Pro Stock.

Houston's very own Erica Enders is a formidable contender as  2x  Pro Stock World Champion  in this circuit as well with Melling Performance as her Sponsor, as she has shown us before,  she is the one to watch.

Visiting a nearby track can be an  excellent time for family bonding. It makes for a thrilling field trip for the home school setting . It allows boys and girls to get a closer look at the mechanics of professional racing  teams and their garages on wheels.

All you gear heads can walk the pits to quench your quest for your inner machine head.  Don't forget earmuffs/plugs  for the little ones, seat cushions for the stands, sunscreen, sun visor/caps, comfortable walking shoes for your visit to the pits, And your need for speed!

Looking ahead

NHRA Mello Yellow Drag Racing Series Enthusiasts  can get a taste of this excitement in our own backyard:

What: NHRA Spring Nationals,  Houston,Tx
When: April 20-22
Where: Royal Purple Raceway 2525 FM 565 Baytown,Tx 77523

SportsMap featured contenders

Pro stock: Houstons' very own Erica Enders-Stephens.

Top Fuel dragster: Leah Pritchett (Don SchumacherRacing). 

Top Fuel Dragster: Brittany Force (John Force Racing).

Funny car: Courtney Force (John Force Racing )

 

 

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Houston has won seven straight

Astros get best of Keuchel to complete four-game sweep of White Sox

McCullers Jr. out-pitched friend and former teammate Dallas Keuchel on Father's Day. Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

With three impressive wins to start this series against the once AL-leading Chicago White Sox, Houston tried to extend their winning streak to seven games and finish a four-game sweep on Father's Day. Thanks to a big inning against former-Astro Dallas Keuchel, they would win to keep their hot streak going.

Final Score: Astros 8, White Sox 2

Astros' Record: 43-28, first in the AL West

Winning Pitcher: Lance McCullers Jr. (4-1)

Losing Pitcher: Dallas Keuchel (6-2)

Rough return to Houston for Keuchel

In his first game against his old squad, Dallas Keuchel would not have a memorable start on the mound for Chicago. Houston made him labor in the first inning, loading the bases though they only came away with one run on an RBI single by Abraham Toro, grabbing the early 1-0 lead. After going down 1-2-3 in the second, they got after Keuchel again in the third.

They ended up batting around against him that inning, including a two-RBI single by Yordan Alvarez, RBI double by Taylor Jones, and bases-loaded RBI-walk by Jose Altuve, which would end Keuchel's day very early and leave the bases juiced. Chicago's bullpen would walk another batter to give Keuchel another earned run, making it a 6-2 game, with all six going against the former Houston ace. Carlos Correa extended the lead to five runs in the next inning, hitting a leadoff solo home run to make it 7-2.

McCullers Jr. gives up two over six

That gave Lance McCullers Jr. a nice lead to work with, and he managed it well. He had one big mistake in the early goings of the game, giving up a one-out single in the second to set up a two-run home run, which at the time put Chicago in front 2-1 before Houston's offense came alive. He followed that up with four scoreless innings, erasing a walk in each with some tremendous defense behind him—his final line: 6.0 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 4 K, 1 HR, 94 P.

Astros complete the sweep to jump on top of the standings

Still a six-run game in the top of the seventh, Blake Taylor entered as the first reliever out of Houston's bullpen, tossing a 1-2-3 frame. He continued in the top of the eighth, getting two strikeouts in another scoreless inning. The 8-2 score would go final as Ralph Garza Jr. would enter as the third pitcher of the day to wrap things up with a scoreless top of the ninth to finish the four-game sweep. The win, their seventh straight, paired with an Oakland loss earlier in the afternoon, moves Houston into the top spot in the AL West based on winning percentage.

Up Next: This long stretch of consecutive games continues on Monday in Baltimore, as the Astros pick up a seven-game road trip starting with a three-game set against Baltimore getting underway at 6:05 PM Central. Jake Odorizzi (1-3, 5.68 ERA) will get the start for Houston, going opposite of Keegan Akin (0-2, 5.76 ERA) for the Orioles.

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