Crower Cup #3

There was only one more race left in the Crower Cup series before a champion and a Wally winner was crowned. And that race was Saturday, August 8th at Barona 1/8th Mile Dragstrip. It was a warm, California afternoon and evening as the racers made their way down the track, going for glory and greenbacks, with one driving bringing home a coveted Wally and the Crower Cup championship.

First, though, was the Gamber bracket, with both Noel Cuevos and Gordon Grimes racing for the cash prize. Noel's 71 Camaro was a bit slower than Gordon's dragster, so he'd get a bit of a headstart. And Noel was looking to win, to get that perfect launch off the line. But, that's always a risk, and this time, it did not work out well for him. Launching 1 thousandth of a second early, Nick fouled out, giving Gordon the Gambler win and Gambler victory.

In the AFX bracket, Jerry Keller's 63 Dodge was up against Bob Munoa's 62 Dodge. It was a heads up race, both cars having 7.00 dials. Jerry got off the line quicker with a 0.134 reaction time, compared to Bob's .190 R/T. Bob made up ground on the track, but not enough to make up for those 6 hundredths of a second, as Bob's 7.043 did not make up enough ground off of Jerry's 7.081's E/T, giving Jerry the ATX win.

And all that leaves is the grand Crower Cup finale, with one last race to decide positions. Finalists Joe Bernier and Todd Ferguson were both out of the running for the overall championship, but Joe could get up to third in the points with a win. Todd would get off the line faster, with a .033 dial, but Joe was chasing him down, catching up and pushing Todd forwards, until both drivers broke out, going faster then their dial. But, Joe's 5.496 on a 5.50 dial was only 4 thousandths of a second underneath his dial, while Todd's 6.340 on a 6.35 was a full hundredth, and that'd be the difference, giving Joe the Crower Cup win.

​Joe Bernier (Far) against Todd Ferguson (Near) in the Crower Cup final.


And with that win, Joe rose up to tie for third place in the Crower Cup series with John Hildebrand. Runner up would be George Chatterton the Third, and the Crower Cup series champ, and winner of a coveted Wally, was Daniel Munoz and his 71 Vega.

​Daniel Munoz and his 71 Vega, posing after winning the Crower Cup 2017 Championship


Congratulations to Joe, Daniel, and all our other winners! Hope to see you all in two weeks, as on the 19th and 20th, the next generation hits the track, as the last two Jr. Dragster events hit the track, and we get to crown some Jr. Champions! See you there!