In 1998, the most competitive heads-up PRA format had to be Super Street. There were always more cars in that class than any of the other Pro classes, and nearly every race saw a full field. During the season a tight points battle developed between Shawn Geers and Dave Perkins, but that wasn't the whole story. Angie Vanderhorst, for instance, powered her way into one of the top three qualifying positions in every race that was run.
When the circuit arrived in Las Vegas, the Super Street points title chase was far from over. Into the midst of this competitive furor Andy Costello cruised in for his first race of the year. It might have been hard to take him seriously, considering that his last race in 1997 ended in the horrible crash of the Performance Technology fastback. However, the two-time Super Street champ didn't let that get in his way.
In the Pro Stock class, Jack Sacchette had a large bullseye on his back because of his points title championship in 1997. Dominick Luppino hit that mark more than once. In the Pro Turbo class, Doug Harvey was up against it when Chris Bubetz came back from retirement for the final race of the season. In the Top Eliminator class, Scott Lauffer took both the e.t. and top speed records into the stratosphere. This is the most exciting area of import racing there is!
The shop profile is on Performance Technology, where Fred Simpson demonstrates the theory and operation of the flowbench. He then discusses the importance of head design and flow in a race engine. Part of the footage includes a detailed comparison between a stock and a hi-performance dual port head. You won't want to miss this tech session!
Be sure and check out the in-car footage with Shin Mukai and Doug Harvey!
