Earl Folse arrived all the way from Raceland, LA, to make a few passes with a new combination in his Top Sportsman ’68 Camaro, but didn’t stick around for 4.30 eliminations.
Number-five qualifier Bobby Sowell, from Milton, FL, got away first with a huge .422 holeshot over Alabama’s Lester Pitts in the 4.70 final, then ran 4.75 at 138.65 mph for the win. Pitts, who was making his 4.70 debut after being an ORSCA 5.30 regular this year, explained the engine in his 1990 Corvette had been stumbling on the line all day and it finally caught up to him in the final round.
Ozark, AL’s Mark Johnson has been racing this ex-Bob Glidden Thunderbird since 2002 when he completed a 20-year career with the National Guard. Johnson, who qualified second, but lasted only until round two of 4.70 action, said he had a Mustang already in the works, but wanted to start racing right away so he had a friend start looking for a race-ready car a few months before he left the military. He recalled telling the friend, “I don’t want no Thunderbird unless Bob Glidden himself sat in the seat; so I had to take this or eat my words, I guess.”
After qualifying fifth, Neil Messick drove his 605 BBC-powered ’37 Chevy pick-up all the way to the Furlow Trucking 5.30 class win. Robbie Robert took a big .096 advantage off the start in the final round, but broke out at 5.19/136.03 while Messick cruised through in 5.46 seconds at 121.98 mph to take the trophy home to Prattville, AL.