October 30, 2007
for immediate release
Chip Ellis/DRAG Specialties/S&S Cycle
NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle team report
Past event: ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals
Dates: October 25-28, 2007
Location: The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas, Nevada
Next event: Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals
Dates: November 1-4, 2007
Location: The Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, Pomona, California.
Ellis #1 Again in Vegas
NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle championship contender Chip Ellis qualified number one for the fifth time in the last six races. Starting right off the trailer in round one, Ellis and his DRAG Specialties/S&S Cycle Buell set the pace for the ACDelco Las Vegas Nationals. Maintaining that level of performance through this weekend's finals in Pomona will be crucial to the team's championship hopes.
qualifying round 1
1st Chip Ellis right lane 7.104 at 185.56 mph
qualifying round 2
1st Chip Ellis left lane 7.045 at 188.96 mph
qualifying round 3
1st Chip Ellis left lane 7.023 at 189.60 mph
track ET record
qualifying round 4
1st Chip Ellis right lane 7.078 at 187.70 mph
When qualifying was finished, Ellis and the team had also captured their seventh Full Throttle NHRA Pit Crew Challenge award of 2007 and, unofficially at least, taken over the Full Throttle season points lead.
eliminations round 1
(W) Chip Ellis -.010 7.052 at 189.36 mph
Michael Phillips -.081(R) 7.217 at 185.36 mph
eliminations round 2
(W) Chip Ellis .028 7.086 at 187.34 mph
Angelle Sampey -.015(R) 7.140 at 186.00 mph
eliminations semifinal round
(W) Chip Ellis .031 7.056 at 188.28 mph
Geno Scali -.013(R) 7.158 at 187.39 mph
eliminations final round
(W) Andrew Hines .030 7.073 at 187.34 mph
Chip Ellis .033 7.144 at 185.41 mph
"The bike was running good, and I was happy with how consistent I was on the tree," Ellis said about his raceday. "But I just got a little anxious in the final and short shifted the 3-4 shift, and I think that cost us the final. Other than that, it was all good."
"I was real pleased with Chip's consistency on the lights in eliminations," agreed G2 co-owner George Bryce. "He made his first final in 21 races, but then pushed the button too many times instead of watching the shiftlight. We had it tuned up to run better than the 7.05 we ran in the semis, so that would have won the final."
"That's the most consistent Chip has ridden in quite some time, except of course the final," said G2 crew chief and co-owner George Smith. "It took us 21 races to get past the semis, but we finally did it. That's the good news. The bad news is we didn't execute very well in the final.
"But overall, the weekend in Las Vegas was a good one. DRAG Specialties VP of sales and marketing Greg Blackwell was there and attended the sponsorship meeting Saturday morning with Jackie Bryce (G2's vice president of operations). It was very informative and productive and we enjoyed having him cheering us on as well. He discovered some new ways they can benefit from their partnership in the NHRA.
"We really had a lot of visitors. European Pro Stock champ Tom Tinndahn, one of our customers, was there, and we sold and delivered a new bike to Redell Harris. My brother Ken and his wife Evelyn, part owners of S&S, were there. They're the unsung supporters of the G2 team."
Ellis spent Monday back out at The Strip, working on fellow Countdown contender Peggy Llewellyn's S&S powered Buell and watching Antron Brown make his first passes in a Top Fuel car. "He did great," Ellis said about Brown. "We put a bearing in Peggy's bike and welded the frame a little bit. Now we're fixing to head out to California this afternoon (Tuesday)."
And in California, Ellis and the DRAG Specialties/S&S Cycle/G2 team will face the final showdown for the 2007 championship. "We were positioned for a golden opportunity to go ahead of the competition in Vegas, and we didn't quite get it done," said Smith. "That makes Pomona real challenging. We've got a very fast motorcycle, but we're running out of opportunities. Pomona's our last shot and we're gonna give it our absolute best."
"If we can go fast enough at Pomona, like we did a couple of weeks ago down in Rockingham (6.879 at 193.07 mph), we can qualify number one with a record," reasoned George Bryce. "If we set the record, and we race Andrew Hines in the final and win, we could win the championship."
"Tony Schumacher did that last year and that would be a storybook finish," noted Ellis. "But I'm just gonna focus on riding the bike. That's what I did this last weekend. I didn't think about what round it was or who I was racing. I'm just gonna go out there and do my thing. My bike is plenty fast, and if we can get some good air and maybe a little bit of tailwind, I think we can set the record."
"All we need is 1000 feet of air, but I don't know if we're gonna get it with all the forest fires burning up the trees and oxygen there," finished Smith. But if any team is capable of burning up the Pomona track to deliver a championship winning performance, it's Chip Ellis and G2.
Chip Ellis and the DRAG Specialties/S&S Cycle team race next at the Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals, November 1-4_at The Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, Pomona, California.
G2 Motorsports Sponsors
Everyone at G2 thanks DRAG Specialties http://www.dragspecialties.com, S&S Cycle http://www.sscycle.com, Doc's Harley-Davidson of St. Louis http://www.docsharleydavidson.com, MAC Tools http://www.mactools.com, Gates Corporation http://www.gates.com, Itelligence, Inc. http://www.itelligencegroup.com, Mazak Corporation http://www.mazakusa.com, RK Racing Chain http://www.rkexcelamerica.com, SAP http://www.sap.com, Andrews Products http://www.andrewsproducts.com, Vanson Leathers http://www.vansonleathers.com, and Carley Foundry Aluminum Castings http://www.carleyfoundry.com.
G Squared Motorsports can be seen on the web at http://www.g2motorsports.net
NHRA Countdown to the Championship Point Standings
2nd Chip Ellis 3108
Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle
1st Chip Ellis 700
G2 Motorsports History
Named for the two George's, George Bryce & George Smith, G2 Motorsports was initially formed in 2003 as a collaborative effort between the pair to field an S&S Cycle powered V-Twin NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle. The company has since evolved into the development of late-model hot rod V-Twins for both the street and strip. G2 Motorsports also stocks a full line of S&S Cycle engines and support parts for drag racing enthusiasts, as well as for other motorcyclists, dealers and distributors. The G2 Motorsports web site (www.g2motorsports.net) is continually updated with the latest race press releases, photos, engines in stock and information on complete turnkey motorcycles.
Remaining 2007 POWERade Drag Racing Series Schedule
Nov. 1-4 Automobile Club of Southern California Finals, Pomona, CA
Contact
Jackie Bryce at G2 Motorsports (229) 924-0031
g2motorsports@bellsouth.net
this team report was prepared by Tim Hailey, http://www.eatmyink.com
photo by Matt Polito, http://www.dragbikephotos.com
