FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Manzo and Booz enjoy the holiday with wins at Lebanon Valley

WEST LEBANON, N.Y.-The third event of the 2000 Northeast Division Federal-Mogul Drag Racing Series took place at Lebanon Valley Dragway in West Lebanon, N.Y. which is approximately 10 miles from the New York/Massachusetts state line.

Both drivers and spectators alike welcome the hot weather as a nice change of pace from past experiences. For the first time since 1993 rain did not threaten racing activities at Lebanon Valley Dragway.

"It makes it fun to race when you know that bad weather does not come into play," said Rochester, N.Y., native Dan Fletcher. "Usually, when you know that there is a chance of rain, it changes your mind-set and you are not as enthusiastic to want to run that day."

After regaining the top qualifying position from Bob Newberry of Schenectady, N.Y., last year's defending National Federal-Mogul Funny Car Champion Frank Manzo of Morganville, N.J., narrowly beat his rival in the finals. Manzo had a .456 reaction time compared to Newberry's .457 enabling Manzo to win his third consecutive divisional race with a run of 5.869 seconds and a speed of 247.57 mph.

Jeannie Booz of Blooming Glen, Pa., won her first Divisional race of 2000. Booz, after two consecutive second place finishes, dominated the field with a pass of 5.779 seconds at 245.85 mph becoming the first repeat winner at Lebanon Valley Dragway. The number four qualifier took out the number two qualifier, Mike Gunderson, of Middleburg, Fla., who had a run of 9.569 seconds and a speed of 63.94 mph.

"I do not know what it is," said Booz. "I just feel real comfortable at this track, we just tried to be consistent." "We tried to hit a 5.60, we fell short a little, but I am very happy for the win." "It is nice to finally get the monkey off our backs," said an exuberant Booz.

In other action, sharing the $2500 Winston Top Qualifier money were Arthur Gallant, Federal-Mogul Dragster; Frank Manzo, Federal-Mogul Funny Car; Frank Aragona Jr., Competition; John Armstrong, Super Stock; and Cecil Frazier, Stock. The Best Appearing Car Award went to Acton, Mass.; resident Raymond Sawyer while David Barton of Wernersville, Pa, landed the Best Engineered Car Award. Finally, Paul Gill's Federal-Mogul Funny Car team won the Best Appearing Crew Award.

The following are the final results from the NHRA Federal-Mogul Drag Racing Series event at Lebanon Valley Dragway:

FEDERAL-MOGUL DRAGSTER
Round 1
8) Ken Winward, Wilmington, Del., 5.818 e.t., 229.24 mph def. 1) Arthur
Gallant, BoxBoro, Mass., 18.402 e.t., 47.54 mph
4) Jeannie Booz, Blooming Glen, Pa., 5.712, 248.02  def 5) Cliff Bozelli,
Absecon, N.Y., Did not run
2) Mike Gunderson, Middleburg, Fla., 5.518, 228.38  def 7) Mike Kosky,
Cuddy, Pa., 9.810, 82.70  
3) Rich McPhillips, Phoenixville, Pa., 5.689, 238.55  def 6) Doug Foley,
Wappinger Falls, N.Y., 5.807, 246.57  

Semifinals  
Booz, 5.680 e.t., 249.58 mph def. Winward, 5.788 e.t., 237.71 mph
Gunderson, 5.573 e.t., 227.88 mph def. McPhillips, 9.751 e.t., 81.05 mph

Final Round
Booz, 5.779 e.t., 245.85 mph def Gunderson, 9.569 e.t., 63.94 mph


FEDERAL-MOGUL FUNNY CAR
Round 1
1) Frank Manzo, Morganville, N.J., 5.834 e.t., 248.02 mph def. 8) Craig
English, Mount Holly, N.J., 10.338 e.t., 75.13 mph
6) Jeff McCulloch, Oshawa, Ont., Can., 6.264, 201.27 def 3) Paul Gill,
Brockton, Mass., 6.413, 247.52
5) Paul Athey, Norwich, Conn., 6.086, 228.65 def. 4) Eric Laurie,
Terryville, Conn., 6.121, 239.02
2) Bob Newberry, Schenectady, N.Y., 5.83, 248.48 def. 7) Ed Fisher,
Milford, Conn., 6.06, 236.22

Semifinals
Manzo, 5.829 e.t., 247.07 mph def. Athey, 6.184 e.t., 219.76 mph
Newberry, 8.905 e.t., 99.91 def. McCulloch, Did not run

Final Round
Manzo, 5.869 e.t., 245.85 mph def. Newberry, 5.995 e.t., 242.36 mph 

COMP ELIMINATOR
Aragona, 8.498 e.t., 154.76 mph, def. Stratton, 8.226 e.t., 161.40

SUPER STOCK
Storey, 9.895 e.t., 135.81 mph def. Biondo, 11.115 e.t., 121.75 mph

STOCK ELIMINATOR
Kinash, 12.634 e.t., 105.36 mph def. Pappas, 12.129 e.t., 102.20 mph

SUPER COMP
Szilagyi, 8.919 e.t., 162.80 mph def. Roberts, 8.866 e.t., 148.58 mph

SUPER GAS
Bowers, 9.908 e.t., 153.77 mph def. Drummond, 9.903 e.t., 147.83 mph

SUPER STREET
Giuliano, 10.913 e.t., 131.09 mph def. Van Gorder, 10.906 e.t., 122.72 mph

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Manzo and Gallant provide fireworks at Lebanon Valley

WEST LEBANON, N.Y.-The second day of qualifying at Lebanon Valley Dragway continued under ideal weather conditions. The number one qualifier in the Federal-Mogul Dragster division was Arthur Gallant of Boxboro, Mass. Meanwhile, Federal-Mogul Funny Car pilot Frank Manzo of Morganville, N.J., showed why he is the defending national champion, regaining the top spot with a track-record run of 5.69 seconds at 252.71 mph.

In Competition Eliminator, Frank Aragona Jr. of Franklin Square, N.Y., remained the No. 1 qualifier with Friday's run of 8.44 seconds. Second place went to Dave Northrop of Perkasie, Pa., with a time of 8.398 seconds.

In Super Stock, John Armstrong of Kingston, Nova Scotia, Can., overtook the top spot from Dennis Steward with a 9.141 second run against a 10.20 index. Steward, from Dover, Pa., remained in the second position .007 seconds behind the pole sitter.

Canton, Mass., resident Cecil Frazier leapfrogged the field to capture the top qualifying spot in the Stock Eliminator category. Frazier drove his '91 Camaro to the No. 1 qualifying position with a run of 12.388 seconds on a 13.45 index.

Gates open at 8:00 a.m. and eliminations start at 10:00 a.m. Eliminations for Federal-Mogul Dragster and Federal-Mogul Funny Car will begin at noon. The following are Saturday's qualifying results from the NHRA Federal-Mogul Drag Racing Series event at Lebanon Valley Dragway:

FEDERAL-MOGUL DRAGSTER
1. Arthur Gallant, Boxboro, Mass., 5.507 e.t., 253.52 mph 
2. Michael Gunderson, Middleburg, Fla., 5.801 e.t., 236.88 mph 
3. Rich McPhillips, Phoenixville, Pa., 5.610 e.t., 245.00 mph
4. Jeanie Booz, Blooming Glen, Pa., 5.734 e.t., 249.39 mph
5. Cliff Bozelli, Absecon, N.Y., 5.737 e.t., 246.48 mph
6. Doug Foley, Wappinger Falls, N.Y., 5.754 e.t., 243.63 mph
7. Mike Kosky, Cuddy, Pa., 5.756 e.t., 246.08 mph 
8. Ken Winward, Wilmington, Del., 5.825 e.t., 228.73 mph

Did not qualify
9. Bruce Horner, Bergenfield, N.J., 5.859 e.t., 236.51 mph
10. David DeAngelis, Middleset, N.J., 5.912 e.t., 230.69 mph
11. Steven Cantrell, Wilmington, Del., 5.979 e.t., 226.54 mph
12. Michael Bartone, Great River, N.Y., 6.132 e.t., 229.43 mph 
13. Jeff Veale, Stone Creek, Ont., 6.222 e.t., 208.01 mph
14. Karen Benkovich, Fanwood, N.J., 6.241 e.t., 227.11 mph
15. Fred Ahrberg, Bergenfield, N.J., 6.286 e.t., 176.65 mph
16. John Headley, Newportville, Pa., 6.531 e.t., 198.29 mph

FEDERAL-MOGUL FUNNY CAR
1. Frank Manzo, Morganville, N.J., '00 Avenger, 5.69 e.t., 252.71 mph 
2. Bob Newberry, Schenectady, N.Y., 5.791, '00 Avenger 248.43 
3. Paul Gill, Brockton, Mass., '96 Avenger, 6.009, 244.47
4. Eric Lourie, Terryville, Conn., '99 Camaro 6.046, 241.50 
5. Paul Athey, Norwich, Conn., '00 Corvette,6.155, 228.42
6. Jeff McCulluoch, Oshawa, Ont., Can., '98 Camaro, 6.157, 228.04
7. Ed Fisher, Milford, Conn., '97 Firebird, 6.205, 232.23
8. Craig English, Mount Holly, N.J., '93 Firebird, 6.345, 230.02

Did not qualify 
9. John Fiorini, Dalton, Mass., '93 Saab, 6.570, 213.87 
10. Rich Fenwick, Northfield, Conn., '97 Achieva, 6.799, 159.97

COMP ELIMINATOR
1. Frank Aragona Jr., Franklin Square, N.Y., '98 Dragster, G/ED, 8.447 seconds, -0.663 (under index)
2. Dave Northrup, Perkasie, Pa., '96 Cutlass, H/A, 8.398, -0.592
3. Jeff Taylor, Lumberton, N.C., '00 Camaro, D/A, 8.032, -0.588
4. Allyn Armstrong, Kingston, N.S., Can., '72 Opel, K/A, 9.288, -0.542
5. Greg Kozera, Monroe, Conn., '98 Spitzer, D/ED, 7.593, -0.537
6. Don Stratton, Beloit, Ohio, '37 Roadster, B/SR, 8.231, -0.509
7. Tom Ekroth, Mahwah, N.J., '95 Trans Am, C/A, 7.712, -0.508
8. David Fiore, Altoona, Pa., '97 Precision, D/ED, 7.624, -0.506
9. Chip Banney, Staten Island, N.Y., '91 Camaro, 9.389, -0.461
10. Richard Schonberger, Philadelphia, Pa., '90 Firebird, 9.405, -0.445

SUPER STOCK
1. John Armstrong, Kingston NS, Can., '69 Camaro, SS/BA, 9.141 seconds, -1.059 (under index)
2. Dennis Steward, Dover, Pa., '91 Daytona, GT/EA, 9.898, -1.052 
3. Jim Boudreau, Tewksbury, Mass., '92 Camaro, GT/AA, 9.409, -0.991
4. Arnie Martel, Tewksbury, Mass., '98 Achieva, SS/BM, 8.741, -0.959
5. Robert Humphrys, Elbridge, N.Y., '84 Firebird, SS/KA, 10.624, -0.926
6. David Barton, Wernersville, Pa., '65 Belvedere, SS/AA, 9.083, -0.917
7. Bob Hammel, West Babylon, N.Y., '88 Thunderbird, 10.184, -0.916
8. George Vignogna, North Salem, N.Y., '97 Sebring, SS/AS, 8.998, -0.902
9. David Thomas, West Chester, Pa., '69 Corvette, SS/CA, 9.465, -0.885
10. Don MacCallum, Vankleek, Ont., Can., '68 Barracuda, 9.130, -0.870

STOCK ELIMINATOR
1. Cecil Frazier, Canton, Mass., '91 Camaro, O/SA, 12.388 seconds, -1.062 (under index)
2. Jim Reid, Hanson, Mass., '85 Camaro, K/SA, 11.890, -1.060
3. Ray Valpreda, Lawrenceville, N.J., '98 Dakota, ET/SA, 12.552, -0.998
4. John Shaul, Fultonham, N.Y., '64 Fury, A/SA, 10.321, -0.979
5. Dean Cook, West Warwick, R.I., '72 Mustang, F/S, 11.135, -0.965
6. Bob Horgan, Tyngsborough, Mass., '85 Camaro, I/SA, 11.644, -0.956    
7. Bruce Noland, Leesburg, Va., '72 Camaro, J/SA, 11.800, -0.950
8. Marty Benard, Brewerton, N.Y., '66 Caprice, Q/S, 13.007, -0.943
9. Jim Penta, Pawtucket, R.I., '98 Firebird, D/S, 10.861, -0.939
10. Bob Kemp, Carmel, N.Y., '72 Mustang, F/S, 12.10, -0.934

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Newberry and McPhillips light it up at Lebanon
WEST LEBANON, N.Y.-The NHRA Federal-Mogul Drag Racing Series made its third stop of the year today and was greeted by beautiful weather at the Lebanon Valley Dragway. More than 400 racecars from eight racing categories made the trip to West Lebanon to take a run at the quarter mile track and the $153,000 in prize money up for grabs this holiday weekend.

Rich McPhillips of Phoenixville, Pa., took the top qualifying position and remained the one to beat in the Federal-Mogul Dragster division with a run of 5.610 seconds. In the Funny Car field, Bob Newberry of Schenectady, N.Y out-dueled Morganville, N.J., resident Frank Manzo to capture the pole with a new track record of 5.79 seconds.

In Competition Eliminator, Frank Aragona Jr. of Franklin Square, N.Y., took the No. 1 qualifying position with a run of 8.44 seconds, leaving the rest of the field to fight for the remaining positions.

In Super Stock, Dennis Steward of Dover, Pa., drove his '91 Daytona to the No. 1 qualifying position narrowly beating out John Armstrong of Kingston, Nova Scotia, Can.

Ray Valpreda of Lawrenceville, N.J., took the top qualifying spot from the other 88 competitors in Stock Eliminator on Friday. Valpreda drove his '98 Dakota to the No. 1 qualifying position with a run of 12.566 seconds on a 13.55 index.

Qualifying and time trials will continue Saturday at Lebanon Valley Dragway at 9:00 a.m. Gates open at 8:00 a.m. Federal-Mogul Dragster and Funny Car will have qualifying sessions at 1:00 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. The following are Friday's qualifying results from the NHRA Federal-Mogul Drag Racing Series event at Lebanon Valley Dragway:

FEDERAL-MOGUL DRAGSTER
1. Rich Phillips, Phoenixville, Pa., 5.610 e.t., 235.06 mph
2. Jeanie Booz, Blooming Glen, Pa., 5.734 e.t., 247.29 mph
3. Doug Foley, Wappinger Falls, N.Y., 5.754 e.t., 243.63 mph
4. Michael Gunderson, Middleburg, Fla., 5.801 e.t., 236.88
5. Ken Winward, Wilmington, Del., 5.825 e.t., 202.88
6. Bruce Horner, Bergenfield, N.J., 5.859 e.t., 231.04
7. David DeAngelis, Middleset, N.J., 5.940 e.t., 226.73 mph
8. Steven Cantrell, Wilmington, Del., 5.979 e.t., 207.75 mph
Did not qualify
9. Jeff Veale, Stone Creek, Ont., 6.222 e.t., 208.01 mph 
10. Michael Bartone, Great River, N.Y., 6.283 e.t., 202.03 mph
11. Fred Ahrberg, Bergenfield, N.J., 6.286 e.t., 176.65 mph
12. John Headley, Newportville, Pa., 6.980 e.t., 143.44 mph
13. Mike Kosky, Cuddy, Pa., 10.088 e.t., 72.65 mph


FEDERAL-MOGUL FUNNY CAR
1. Bob Newberry, Schenectady, N.Y., 5.791 e.t., 248.43 mph
2. Frank Manzo, Morganville, N.J., 5.805 e.t., 250.92 mph
3. Eric Lourie, Terryville, Conn., 6.046 e.t., 241.50 mph
4. Paul Athey, Norwich, Conn., 6.239 e.t., 225.71 mph
5. John Fiorini, Dalton, Ma., 6.570 e.t., 213.87 mph
6. Paul Gill, Brockton, Ma., 13.790 e.t., 49.75 mph
        

COMP ELIMINATOR
1. Frank Aragona Jr., Franklin Square, N.Y., '98 Dragster, G/ED, 8.44 seconds, -0.663 (under index)
2. Dave Northrup, Perkasie, Pa., '96 Cutlass, H/A, 8.399, -0.591
3. Jeff Taylor, Lumberton, N.C., '00 Camaro, D/A, 8.032, -0.588
4. Allyn Armstrong, Kingston, N.S., Can., '72 Opel, K/A, 9.291, -0.539
5. Don Stratton, Beloit, Ohio, '37 Roadster, B/SR, 8.231, -0.509
6. David Fiore, Altoona, Pa., '97 Precision, D/ED, 7.624, -0.506
7. Greg Kozera, Monroe, Conn., '98 Spitzer, D/ED, 7.627, -0.503
8. Chip Banney, Staten Island, N.Y., '91 Camaro, 9.389, -0.461
9. Don Eckel, Piscataway, N.J., '99 Dragster, C/D, 7.235, -0.435
10. Richard Schonberger, Philadelphia, Pa., '90 Firebird, 9.422, -0.428


SUPER STOCK
1. Dennis Steward, Dover, Pa., '91 Daytona, GT/EA, 9.914 seconds, -1.036 (under index)
2. John Armstrong, Kingston NS, Can., '69 Camaro, SS/BA, 9.191, -1.009
3. Jim Boudreau, Tewksbury, Ma., '92 Camaro, GT/AA, 9.456, -0.944
4. Arnie Martel, Tewksbury, Ma., '98 Achieva, SS/BM, 8.790, -0.910
5. George Vignogna, North Salem, N.Y., '97 Sebring, SS/AS, 9.003, -0.897
6. Don MacCallum, Vankleek Hill Ont., Can., '68 Barracuda, SS/AA, 9.130, -0.870
7. Peter Biondo, Clarksburg, N.J., '99 Firebird, GT/FA, 10.243, -0.857
8. Joseph Mendillo, Hamden, Conn., '90 Camaro, GT/F, 10.049, -0.851
9. Bob Hammel, West Babylon, N.Y., '88 Thunderbird, GT/FA, 10.269, -0.831
10. Robert Herman, Brewster, N.Y., '86 Camaro, GT/CA, 9.906, -0.794  

STOCK ELIMINATOR
1. Ray Valpreda, Lawrenceville, N.J., '98 Dakota, ET/SA, 12.566 seconds, -0.984 (under index)
2. Cecil Frazier, Canton, Ma., '91 Camaro, O/SA, 12.484, -0.966
3. Jim Penta, Pawtucket, R.I., '98 Firebird, D/S, 10.865, -0.935
4. Bob Kemp, Carmel, N.Y., '72 Mustang, F/S, 12.10, -0.934
5. John Shaul, Fultonham, N.Y., '64 Fury, A/SA, 10.371, -0.929
6. Bruce Noland, Leesburg, Va., '72 Camaro, J/SA, 11.822, -0.928
7. Dean Cook, West Warwick, R.I., '72 Mustang, F/S, 11.173, 0.927
8. Richard Todd, Cobleskill, N.Y., '67 Fairlane, A/SA, 10.400, -0.900
9. Francois Periard, Vaudreuil, P.Q., Can., '68 Roadrunner, B/SA, 10.661, -0.889
10. Fred Thibeault, Annapolis, N.S., Can., '69 Camaro, B/SA, 10.663, -0.887