Wednesday, July 29, 2009

CANIDAE Motosport.com Kawasaki Heads to the Pacific Northwest

By now, the motocross industry has become accustom to the abilities of the CANIDAE Motosport.com Kawasaki team at the Outdoor Nationals. At the beginning of the series, Tommy Hahn was a “surprise” but has consistently become a “contender” and most racers are beginning to expect him to run up front as they now have to plan their attack to include him. Kyle Cunningham has also been improving his results steadily as his health nears 100% and if Cunningham manages to get a good start, watch out! This week the series moved to the scenic Pacific Northwest at the ever-popular Washougal MX in Washington and the crowds came out to enjoy the great racing, perfect weather and improved track. Nobody went home disappointed.

First up was the 450’s featuring CANIDAE Motosport.com Kawasaki rider Tommy Hahn. Hahn again jumped out to a great start and would finish lap 1 in 3rd place. Just ahead of Hahn was the # 34 of Matt Goerke but only for a few corners as Hahn wasted little time getting around the #34 bike and setting his eyes on the race leader, Chad Reed. Reed tried as he might to get away early and gap the rest of the field but Hahn would have none of that, running most of the moto right on Reed’s rear fender. At one point Reed opened up a small 5-second lead while the two riders fought their way through lapped riders but Hahn would make a charge and close the gap to only 1.5 seconds at one point before running out of time at the end of Moto # 1. This is a huge accomplishment and just a glimpse of what this CANIDAE Motosport.com Kawasaki rider is capable of. If Hahn could have a solid second moto, he would secure a top 3 overall finish for the day or even a win.

Moto # 1 for the 250 riders was up next and CANIDAE Motosport.com Kawasaki riders Kyle Cunningham and PJ Larsen would get good starts as they charged into the first corner inside the top ten. Cunningham would finish lap 1 in 6th place and Larsen 8th. Kyle started the 2009 season injured and has been battling all series long to get healthy with results that reflect his improving health. Cunningham jumped and raced his way to the front following Dungy through the pack until the two were well out in front. Cunningham was almost able to take the lead, late in the moto as Dungy would falter but the gap was too great and when the checkered flags flew, Kyle would find himself on the podium in second place with his best finish of the year! Washougal was the first for Larsen since breaking his wrist at round 3 in Wortham, TX, it was obvious that he was not quite 100% as he struggled to keep the lead pack in sight and would finish in 15th place. Certainly not a bad return for the impressive rookie and a great start on the day for Team CANIDAE Motosport.com Kawasaki!

The excitement was obviously high in the CANIDAE Motosport.com Kawasaki pits was for the 2nd Motos. As the 450’s shot out of the gate, Hahn’s # 48 Kawasaki would once again head for the first turn towards the front of the pack. As the riders set up for the left hand turn, the orange #114 bike of Justin Brayton would come in way too hot and slam into the CANIDAE Motosport.com Kawasaki rider, sending him to the ground, ending his day and sending him to the Asterisk Medical Unit to be checked out for internal injuries as well as his back and leg. Such a disappointment for Hahn and the team, which had been making such great strides for that first win. Hahn will rebound and will be better than ever when the series returns in 3 weeks in NY.

Moto #2 for the 250 riders would get underway and Kyle was hungry to repeat his first moto result. As the racers rounded the first turn, both Cunningham and Larsen would be outside of the top 10 and have their work cut out to make it to the front. When the first lap ended, Cunningham would cross the line in 12th place and Larsen in 18th. Cunningham would charge hard until he was unfortunately involved in a huge crash that left the CANIDAE rider trapped under his bike for some time and the bike unrideable, ending his day. Larsen would move up as the moto continued as he fought for a hard-earned 14th spot, a gritty performance for this tough kid.

While the CANIDAE Motosport.com Kawasaki team had some bad luck in Washington, it was obvious to see that the team is a legitimate front-runner. Come out to the fabled Unadilla Valley Sports Center in Upstate NY on August 15th for the next exciting round of motocross action. Stop by and say “hi” to the CANIDAE Motosport.com Kawasaki team before they hit the track. See you there!

Jason Cobb

Monday, July 27, 2009

Toliver Loses First-Round Match-up with Neff at Sonoma

Final eliminations for the FRAM-Autolite NHRA Nationals at Infineon Raceway were completed today and CANIDAE Funny Car driver Jerry Toliver lost in a first-round match-up with Mike Neff. It was the third meeting this season between the two Funny Car combatants as Toliver defeated the Force Racing driver at Gainesville in March and Neff defeated Toliver last month at Englishtown.

Toliver qualified the CANIDAE/Lucas Oil Chevy 15th with an elapsed time of 4.312 seconds at 290.57 mph. In the first round Neff had a winning elapsed time of 4.127 seconds at 302.35 mph as Toliver lost traction before the 330-foot mark and slowed to a 7.945 e.t. at 78.66 mph.

"We're just really struggling with that first part of the track," Toliver said. "We can't seem to find any consistency with this CANIDAE car. We're making one or two decent qualifying passes, but then we shake the tires in the first 300 feet on the other runs. That makes it tough on Jim (team owner/crew chief Dunn) to tune the car for Sunday when we aren't making full pulls. We knew we had to step it up against Neff and the car just didn't like it."

Next stop on the 24-race NHRA Full Throttle Drag Series is race No. 16, the 28th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals at Brainerd Int'l. Raceway in Brainerd, Minn., from Aug. 13-16.

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Toliver will be Close to Home for FRAM-Autolite NHRA Nationals

Like a lot of his fellow NHRA drag racing peers, CANIDAE/Lucas Oil Funny Car driver Jerry Toliver was born and raised in Southern California. This weekend's 15th stop on the 24-race NHRA Full Throttle Series, the 22nd annual FRAM-Autolite NHRA Nationals at Infineon Raceway just north of San Francisco, is in state and will almost be a "home" game for him and his California based sponsor CANIDAE All Natural Pet Foods. Major associate sponsor WileyX is also based in California just outside of Oakland in Livermore.

"Historically, I haven't done that well at the Sonoma race," Toliver said. "In 2000 we suffered our only DNQ of the season there and it was just devastating. (John) Force passed me for the points lead that weekend and we never did recover and he went on to win the championship (Toliver finished a career-best 3rd in points). But I like Sonoma, it's beautiful up there and close to home, but on the track I've got some making up to do. Maybe I've got some equity built up in the luck bank and it will pay out this weekend.

"It's going to be hot which really puts us right there on par with the rest of the field. I think the hot tracks really favor us because of the difficulty getting down them. Jim (team owner/crew chief Dunn) seems to have a pretty good handle on that and seems to be able to go A to B, so I think we have as good a shot as anybody. One of our sponsors, WileyX, its headquarters are in Livermore which is fairly close to the track, so we'll have some of them out during the weekend, and the CANIDAE folks are coming up, too, so hopefully we can put on a good show for them."

Toliver lost a close first-round match-up with Bob Tasca last week at Seattle and is anxious to get back on the quarter-mile at Infineon Raceway. Both drivers saw the performance of their cars fall off, but Tasca had an elapsed time of 4.498 seconds at 246.80 mph to edge Toliver's 4.535 e.t. at 205.85 mph.

"I didn't see Tasca and I saw the finish line coming up and I thought, 'Okay, here we go, we got the win,' but then it let go," Toliver said. "I coasted and didn't see him and then right at the end he went by me. Oh well. I think it's good we're getting right back on the track without a layoff. I'm still wound up and want to get back out there and win some rounds. We were close last week, let's get back out there and let's do it again."

A two-hour telecast of qualifying coverage for the FRAM-Autolite NHRA Northwest Nationals can be seen on ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD on Saturday, July 25, beginning at 6:00 p.m. (ET). Coverage on ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD continues on Sunday, July 26, when NHRA Race Day kicks off eliminator coverage starting at 11:00 am (ET), and concludes with three hours of final-eliminations coverage beginning at 9:00 p.m. (ET).

Monday, July 20, 2009

Toliver Loses Rematch with Tasca at Seattle

Final eliminations for the NHRA Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways were completed today and Funny Car driver Jerry Toliver lost in a first-round rematch with Ford driver Bob Tasca. He lost a first-round match-up with Tasca earlier this season at Phoenix.

Toliver qualified the CANIDAE/Lucas Oil Chevy 13th for the second consecutive race with an elapsed time of 4.309 seconds at 276.80 mph. In the first round Toliver lost a tight race as both drivers saw the performance of their cars fall off. Tasca had an elapsed time of 4.498 seconds at 246.80 mph to edge Toliver's 4.535 e.t. at 205.85 mph.

"Man, I thought we might have stole one," Toliver said. "Neither one of us made a real good run and we had holes going out. We just couldn't hang on. I thought we might have something for them after our strong run on Saturday in qualifying, but it just wasn't meant to be. Now it's pack it up and finish off the Western Swing on a strong note at Sonoma."

Next stop on the 24-race NHRA Full Throttle Drag Series is the third and final leg of the three-race Western Swing, the 22nd annual FRAM Autolite NHRA Nationals at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., from July 24-26.

Kirk Weeks

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Toliver Faces Tasca in First Round at NHRA Northwest Nationals

For the second of three consecutive races on the NHRA Full Throttle Series' Western Swing Funny Car driver Jerry Toliver hopes 13 is a lucky number for him as he qualified the CANIDAE/Lucas Oil Chevy 13th on the Funny Car grid for tomorrow's eliminations at the 22nd annual NHRA Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways. Toliver matched his qualifying effort from last week at the Mile-High Nationals at Denver when he drove to a weekend-best elapsed time of 4.309 seconds at 276.80 mph in today's fourth and final qualifying session.

"Finally," Toliver said of his fourth qualifying pass. "We just haven't been able to make this CANIDAE car happy. We were obviously too aggressive yesterday but today Big Jim (team owner/crew chief) got a lot closer (with the tune-up). The tuning window on this car is so small, but we made a full pull on that last run so hopefully we can build off of that and carry it over to tomorrow."

The Jim Dunn Racing team is defending Funny Car champs at Pacific Raceways as Tony Bartone earned his first professional Funny Car victory last year when he drove the CANIDAE car past Ron Capps in the finals.

"Jim and the guys obviously have good thoughts of racing here on Sunday with last year's win so maybe we can take a little positive mojo from that into tomorrow."

In tomorrow's first round Toliver faces No. 4 qualifier Bob Tasca for the second time this season. He lost to Tasca earlier this year in the first round at Phoenix. Fellow Chevy driver Tony Pedregon qualified No. 1 with a 4.174 elapsed time at 294.43 mph.

Kirk Weeks

Friday, July 17, 2009

CANIDAE Funny Car Team is Lead Story at NHRA.com

With the NHRA Northwest Nationals taking place this weekend in Seattle, the National Hot Rod Association has devoted their lead story to the CANIDAE Jim Dunn Racing Funny Car Team. The editorial staff at NHRA.com recalls the CANIDAE Jim Dunn Team's victory last year at Pacific Raceways and asks whether they can hold onto their championship crown. Visit NHRA.com for complete coverage.

See you at the races!

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

CANIDAE, Jim Dunn Racing to Defend its Funny Car Crown at NHRA Northwest Nationals

A day after Major League Baseball's annual All-Star game, Jim Dunn, team owner and crew chief of the CANIDAE/Lucas Oil Funny Car, doesn't mind paying homage to one of the game's greats, Hall of Fame New York Yankees catcher Yogi Berra, when he says he hopes this weekend's NHRA Northwest Nationals is déjà vu all over again for his Jim Dunn Racing team. You see, last year at this race at Pacific Raceways Dunn tuned the CANIDAE car all the way to the winner's circle and presented driver Tony Bartone with his first Professional victory in the Funny Car class. This year Bartone returned to his racing roots in Alcohol Funny Car and Dunn has a different driver in Jerry Toliver, but the Hall of Fame owner/tuner obviously wouldn't mind adding a sixth career win to Toliver's Funny Car resume.

"Getting Tony's first win wasn't as good as me getting one," quipped Dunn. "No, that was cool to get Tony his first win; I was glad to get one for him. He had worked hard for it. If you're right, you're right, and on that day we were right."

Last year Bartone qualified the CANIDAE Chevy fifth with an elapsed time of 4.092 seconds at 303.37 mph and faced former Funny Car champ Gary Scelzi in the first round. Bartone made a solid 4.181-second run as Scelzi went up in smoke and then defeated Mike Neff in the second round to set up a semifinal match-up with 2007 Funny Car champ Tony Pedregon. In a good side-by-side contest Bartone ran Pedregon down with a 4.252-second elapsed time at 287.29 mph to Pedregon's 4.376 e.t. at 246.84 mph to advance to the money round against Ron Capps. In the final round the engine started going away on the CANIDAE car but Bartone held on to turn on the win light with a 4.454 e.t. at 238.17 mph to Capps' 4.708 at 227.46.

"The track was loose in the middle last year," Dunn said. "The only time we ran well was the Friday night session in qualifying. In the first round we de-tuned it and ran an '18' (4.18), and then a '25' in the semis. Everybody said we didn't run very well, and I just tell 'em we had lane choice in three of the four rounds so it was running better than the guy I was racing."

Dunn and Toliver are anxious to get back on the track and build on the momentum they were gaining before Denver.

"We've kind of lost our clutch combination, so we're going to try and set it up like we did last year and see what happens," Dunn said. "We're making power because we're running as fast as anybody from the half-mark to the finish line, but it just won't accelerate for the first 400 feet. We're usually about 16th (fastest) at the 60-foot mark, at 330-feet were about 14th, and then at the 660-foot mark we're about third, but at that point it's too late because you've already lost three-tenths of a second.

"We know we've got power because we ran 296 on Saturday at Denver, so now we've just got to figure it out. That's why racing's hard. We've got the power, now we just need to get the clutch setup, but we'll be alright."

A two-hour telecast of qualifying coverage for the 22nd annual NHRA Northwest Nationals can be seen on ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD on Saturday, July 18, beginning at 7:00 p.m. (ET). Coverage on ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD continues on Sunday, July 19, when NHRA Race Day kicks off eliminator coverage starting at 11:00 am (ET), and concludes with three hours of final-eliminations coverage beginning at 9:00 p.m. (ET).

Kirk Weeks

Monday, July 13, 2009

Toliver Loses First-Round Match-up with Beckman at Mile-High NHRA Nationals

Final eliminations for the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals at Bandimere Speedway were completed today and Funny Car driver Jerry Toliver lost in the first round to Schumacher Racing's Jack Beckman. Toliver qualified the CANIDAE/Lucas Oil Chevy 13th with an elapsed time of 4.269 seconds at 296.50 mph and was facing Beckman for the first time this season. In their first-round match-up Toliver launched the CANIDAE car first off the line but lost traction just short of the 330-foot mark and pedaled to an elapsed time of 5.143 seconds at 168.41 mph. Beckman had a solid pass of 4.267 seconds at 294.31 mph to turn on the win light.

"The car just went out there and shook," Toliver said. "Jim knew we had to speed it up a little bit going against Beckman and try and move a little quicker, but the car just didn't like it. All in all, we didn't hurt anything this weekend. We'll just come down off the mountain back to sea level and move on. I thought a hot, sunny day and hot track might even the playing field a little, but I don't think the today's cloud cover worked against us. We hopped it up quite a bit and the car just didn't like it."

Next stop on the 24-race NHRA Full Throttle Drag Series is the second leg of the three-race Western Swing, the 22nd annual NHRA Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways in Seattle from July 17-19. The Jim Dunn Racing team is the defending event champ in Funny Car at the NHRA Northwest Nationals where Tony Bartone drove the CANIDAE car to his first professional Top Fuel Funny Car victory there last year.

Kirk Weeks

Sunday, July 12, 2009

Toliver Hopes Denver Qualifying Position is a Lucky One

Funny Car driver Jerry Toliver hopes 13 is a lucky number for him as he qualified the CANIDAE/Lucas Oil Chevy 13th on the Funny Car grid for tomorrow's eliminations at the 30th annual Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals at Bandimere Speedway. Toliver drove his Jim Dunn Racing entry to an elapsed time of 4.269 seconds at 296.50 mph.

"The CANIDAE car is running good," Toliver said. "It's making some power and we're very pleased with it. I think after the first session today we had the second-fastest speed next to (No. 1 qualifier Ron) Capps, so that tells us this thing is making some power. My hat's off to Big Jim (team owner/crew chief Dunn). We'll put it back in the box tonight and go run this thing tomorrow.

"Bandimere is one of those tracks where anything can happen on race day," Toliver said. "The tune-up on the car doesn't repeat itself anywhere, we don't run a mile-high altitude but once a year, the air is thin, so nothing you do here applies to what you do at any other race track. With that being said, it's also a great facility and the fans just pour in here. God Bless 'em yesterday with threatening weather, and then the rain, but they stuck around. Now we want to put on a good show for them tomorrow. It's kind of anybody's game up here. If you've got a race car that can get down a hot track, it's going to be interesting. "

In tomorrow's first round Toliver faces No. 4 qualifier Jack Beckman for the first time this season. Beckman's teammate Ron Capps is qualified No. 1 with a 4.121 elapsed time at 297.22 mph.

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Toliver Expects Usual Challenges at Bandimere

When the NHRA Full Throttle Series makes its annual stop this weekend at Bandimere Speedway for the 30th annual Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals, race teams can toss their notes from other tracks right out the window because Bandimere presents its own set of challenges that can stack more than a mile high. Situated 5,860 feet above sea level on the outskirts of Denver in the western suburb of Morrison, the Bandimere facility is located more than two-and-a-half times higher in altitude than any other track on the NHRA circuit. The Strip at Las Vegas is the next highest at 2,100 feet above sea level.

"Oh man, Denver is a monster," said Jerry Toliver, driver of the CANIDAE/Lucas Oil Funny Car. "The high altitude just sucks the power from the motor and takes away a lot of the down force. It's a real challenge for the crew chiefs and can be a bear getting down the track. You can end up sliding all over the place. But that's what makes it fun, and what a beautiful facility right there in the mountains. It's definitely unique."

At Norwalk two weeks ago Toliver equaled his best qualifying effort of the season in the CANIDAE/Lucas Oil Chevy, and he likes where this Jim Dunn Racing team seems to be headed.

"We continue to make gains with this CANIDAE car, and we made great strides at our last race at Norwalk," Toliver said. "The car is leaving, it's reacting. Our speed at 280 mph was the second-best in qualifying last race. That tells you that we're getting there; just don't judge our progress by our Denver results. That place is such a crap shoot, and the tune-up we use we won't use anyplace else. Get back to me when we come down off the mountain and we'll see where we stand."

A two-hour telecast of qualifying coverage for the Mile-High NHRA Nationals can be seen on ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD on Saturday, July 11, beginning at 10:00 p.m. (ET). Coverage on ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD continues on Sunday, July 12, when NHRA Race Day kicks off eliminator coverage starting at 11:00 am (ET), and concludes with three hours of final-eliminations coverage beginning at 7:00 p.m. (ET).

Kirk Weeks

Monday, July 6, 2009

CANIDAE Motosport Kawasaki Celebrates the USA at Redbud in Buchanan!

As the rest of the country celebrated America's Independence, Team CANIDAE Motosport Kawasaki declared war on the rest of the field at the ever so popular, Redbud MX. Tommy Hahn had his hands full trying to repeat last week’s performance of 3rd overall at Thunder Valley. This would be especially tough for the up and coming rider as he arrived at the track sick and extremely weak. It would take everything he had to compete at his usual level. CANIDAE Motosport Kawasaki, 250 rider Kyle Cunningham was also ready to take on this famous race track and would like nothing more than to spend his birthday on Sunday by celebrating a win at Redbud. Kyle looked great in practice and was excited for the gate to fall.



First race up was the 450’s featuring CANIDAE Motosport Kawasaki rider Tommy Hahn. Hahn jumped out of the gate with a great start and the lead pack quickly separated itself from the rest of the field. Hahn would finish lap 1 in 5th place with factory riders surrounding him. It was an all out dogfight as Hahn battled back and forth, as he would swap positions repeatedly with the other riders. It was an epic battle as the crowd responded as only Redbud fans can do. By lap 13, Hahn was in sixth and had built a sizeable cushion between himself and the #539, factory Kawasaki of Ricky Dietrich. Hahn was closing on the riders in front of him when he went down extremely hard on the fast track and just like that, his day was done. Hahn would be taken to the local hospital to be checked out for a sprained neck and a concussion. You can be sure that Tommy will be back with a vengeance in 2 weeks in Millville.

Moto # 1 for the 250 riders was up next and CANIDAE Motosport Kawasaki rider Kyle Cunningham would charge into the first corner inside the top ten and with some quick, aggressive moves, he would jump up to the 4th spot as the riders soared off the ski jump. Cunningham would battle the best in the class lap after lap as he fought to keep his position as all eyes watched the heated fight. This war would not let up for the entire 30 minutes + 2 laps and Kyle would leave everything out on the track as he raced to 7th place finish. Kyle was pumped and quickly headed back to the pits to rest up and get ready for Moto 2.

As the clouds above darkened, Moto #2 for the 250 riders would get underway in dry conditions as the 40 riders blasted off the start line. Cunningham would not get the start he wanted but if you have followed this gutsy kid at all, you know he never gives up. At the end of lap 1, Kyle would be all the way back in 17th position and would dig deep to slice his way up through the field. Kyle would work his way up to 11th place before lapped riders and the now falling rain would hamper his progress through the field. Cunningham would end up in 7th place overall for the day with his 5th in Moto 1 and 11th place in Moto 2. It was a good day for Kyle and the team and a great way to celebrate his birthday on Sunday.

Come out to watch the CANIDAE Motosport Kawasaki team take on the Whoop Monster at Spring Creek MX Park in Millville, MN. It is a great track and the action should be intense. The team should get back their rookie sensation PJ Larsen at this event, which has been sidelined with a broke wrist. Stop by and say “hi” to the team when you are there. See you there!

Jason Cobb