POMONA, Calif. -- Terry McMillen pulled off an upset victory in the first round of the 51st Annual NHRA Winternationals when he defeated defending NHRA World Champion Larry Dixon. The win put McMillen's Amalie Oil/UNOH Top Fuel team in 9th place after the first of 22 NHRA Full Throttle events.
"This is just an awesome day, because you have the toughest of the toughest teams out here," McMillen told CompetitonPlus.com. "I don't know how many times this guy has won the championship, but he's an awesome driver with an awesome team. It was our day. He left a little ahead of me, but I never really saw him until he pulled up a little ahead of me."
"Our car is really fast early. I know he (Dixon) left on me a little bit but we we're right there with him, then he started to fade. I was pretty excited until our car torched the head and shut off. I was just glad we beat him to the stripe."
TOPEKA, Kan. -- It took nine tries, but Terry McMillen, driver of the Amalie Oil Top Fuel team, got his first round win of the 2010 NHRA Full Throttle season. McMillen defeated Steve Torrence in the opening round of the O'Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals at Heartland Park Topeka. The win gets the proverbial monkey off of his team's back and gives the Elkhart, Ind. based team momentum going into the heart of the summer racing season.
"I knew we had something to work with after Saturday night qualifying," McMillen said. "When we ran the fifth best elapsed time of Q4 I knew Richard [Hartman - Crew Chief] had a good tune-up for our car."
The Amalie Oil dragster was only one of two teams able to win from the bottom half of the ladder and the right lane. McMillen posted a 3.917 e.t. at 307.86mph to Torrence's 3.994 e.t. at 303.50mph.
MADISON, Ill. - Terry McMillen drove his Amalie Oil Top Fuel Dragster to another career best qualifying effort at the AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals this past weekend at Gateway International Raceway. While McMIllen's seventh best qualifying position would be a new career best for the Elkhart, Ind. resident, it would not be enough to propel him to his first round win of the 2010 season. Veteran Pat Dakin would provide McMillen his sixth consecutive loss.
"I hope that's the last chapter in our book on how to lose races in the first round," a frustrated crew chief Richard Hartman said.
BAYTOWN, Texas -- Terry McMillen piloted his Amalie Oil Top Fuel dragster to his most consistent outing of the 2010 Full Throttle Drag Racing season. Unfortunately it wouldn't be enough for the Elkhart, Ind. based team to earn its first round win.
"My guys did such a great job this weekend," McMillen said of his team. "The Amalie dragster was running like a bracket car all weekend. Losing first round this weekend hurt more than most." A broken blower snout would cause the car to lose a cylinder early in the run, eventually pushing the head gasket.
CONCORD, N.C. -- Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil Top Fuel team headed into the NHRA 4 Wide Nationals full of hope and optimism on the heels of a career best performance just two weeks earlier at the Gator Nationals in Gainesville. While zMax Dragway provided his first round win last season, this trip to Charlotte wouldn't be as kind.
"I was excited about four wide racing before I got here," McMillen explained. "I just struggled all weekend trying to get comfortable staging the car. I just never felt comfortable in my own car." For the first time in McMillen's racing career he was timed out at the tree for not staging the car quickly enough, losing his third qualifying attempt. He also had uncharacteristic slow reaction times.
While a few teams adjusted well to the new conditions, most struggled along with McMillen to find the right staging procedures. Red light starts, timed out attempts and smoking tires seemed more than normal.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - For the third time in as many races Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil Top Fuel Dragster faced the event winner or runner-up in the first round of competition. McMillen would lower his career best elapsed time to 3.865 seconds in a losing effort to Tony Schumacher's 3.818 seconds at 320.81 mph. Schumacher would go on to win the event and reset the national speed record for 1000ft racing in Top Fuel.
"We struggled in qualifying," McMillen said. "But, when it counted Richard [Hartman] and my guys came up with an aggressive tune up that kept everyone honest. We're continually improving. Now we just have to have a better qualifying effort earlier so we have some better race day data to work from."
POMONA, Calif. - If the Chinese Proverb that says 'A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step' is correct, then Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil Top Fuel dragster took two giant steps forward at the 50th running of the NHRA Winternationals this weekend.
"We didn't get a chance to test over the winter," McMillen explained. "So, just getting our car in the show was a big first step." McMillen qualified his ride in the 13th spot, keeping his perfect qualifying record as team owner/driver intact.
EDMONTON, Alberta - The River Cree Resort and Casino IHRA Rocky Mountain Nationals provided several bright spots for Terry McMillen, driver of the Amalie Oil / Wolverine Boots and Apparel Top Fuel Dragster, including the top spot in qualifying and a semi-final finish.
McMillen captured the top spot in qualifying during the rain shortened second session. McMillen's 4.834 second pass provided plenty of excitement and fireworks for the Canadian fans in attendance. The aggressive tune-up the team chose for the run would push the head gasket and torch the engine block and head, providing the Canadians with an American style nitro 4th of July fireworks show.
"We wanted to put up a big number for Jet Label and Northern Provincial Pipelines", McMillen said. "Darrell and Rob from Jet Label and Dwight from Northern Provincial give us so much support here in Alberta we wanted to do well for them."
While McMillen's number one qualifying effort won't go down in the record books, the incremental numbers would prove to be a stronger performance than recorded.
"We dropped a hole early in that run and then pushed out the head gasket around the 660 foot mark," McMillen explained. "We thought if we could run on seven cylinders and run the last 300 feet with one of the head gaskets out, we would have something to work with in the last session."
In preparation of the final qualifying run, the Indiana based Hoosier Thunder team put in a new motor during a brief rain storm. With a cooler track and temperature, McMillen's team tuned-up the Nitro "InstiGator" for another run. "We just couldn't figure out how much horsepower that track wanted," McMillen said about his final attempt. The 4.834 second elapsed time from earlier in the day would be enough to hold off Bruce Litton's 4.848 second pass.
McMillen inches closer to first round win at Englishtown
Elkhart, Ind. - If close counted for anything in drag racing, Terry McMillen would have already won his first round in NHRA competition. While McMillen plays a high speed version of Horseshoes and Hand Grenades, the element of surprise may no longer be a secret weapon for the Amalie Oil / Wolverine Boots and Apparel Top Fuel Dragster.
McMillen captured the 11th spot in the rain shortened qualifying session at the United Association NHRA SuperNationals in Englishtown this past weekend. He would face rookie of the year candidate, Shawn Langdon, in round one of eliminations.
McMillen's starting line advantage (0.029) would help him to lead much of the race, but Langdon would take the win in one of the closest battles of the weekend.
ELKHART, Ind. - Hindsight is always 20-20 and "Monday morning quarterbacks" always have the winning combination. Drag racing, like other competitive ventures, lends itself to second guessing and doubt. Terry McMillen, team owner and driver of the Amalie Oil / Wolverine Boots and Apparel Top Fuel Dragster, was beginning to form a few doubts of his own when he entered the IHRA Amalie Oil Texas Nationals recently.
In his second season as Top Fuel team owner, he had hoped to improve on his five final round appearances and two wins from the previous year. While team stats proved that he was no further behind last season's pace, it just didn't feel right to McMillen. Seventh in points after two IHRA events is not what he had envisioned.
"We spent a lot of sleepless nights," he confessed. "I guess we just expected more from ourselves early in the season." Trying to convince McMillen that his performance over the past three seasons was more than respectable wasn't welcomed. Fact is, McMillen's Top Fuel career has seen the final round in 8 of 24 IHRA races for a 33% average.
ATLANTA - Terry McMillen fought off a stomach virus most of the weekend during the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway. McMillen was able to put his Amalie Oil / Wolverine Boots and Apparel Top Fuel Dragster into the 13th spot, but not without a lot of effort.
"I don't think it's suppose to be this hard," McMillen said. "We certainly did it the hard way."
Shortly after arriving in Atlanta, McMillen experienced either a stomach virus or food poisoning that kept him under the weather for most of the weekend. Saturday brought more bad news for McMillen's team. Crew Chief Doug Kuch learned that his father passed away suddenly. "We were all sad to hear about the Kuch family loss," McMillen said. "Our prayers were with Doug and his family. Doug decided to finish the race with us and then head home for his family."
BATON ROUGE, La. - The Amalie Oil / Wolverine Top Fuel Dragster's day ended early at the Inaugural IHRA Mardi Gras Nationals. McMillen started hazing the tires as Bobby Lagana, Jr. drove around for the win. Lagana would go on to lose to Bruce
Litton in the finals.
"It didn't turn out like we planned," McMillen said after the race. "It wasn't from lack of effort. Just about everything on this car is new and we've still got a couple of issues to work on."
The weekend started off promising as McMillen drove his dragster on two consistent qualifying runs on Friday night (4.89 @ 301mph) and Saturday afternoon (4.86 @ 305mph) kept the team qualified in the top half of the field at #4.
"The fans were great," McMillen said. "They packed the place and hung around all day asking questions and cheering us on. Plus the track put on a big Crawfish Boil and my guys appreciated that a lot."
Hoosier Thunder Motorsports partners with high-quality and high-performance companies like: Amalie Oil, Jet Label & Tape, Auto Meter, Mahle Clevite, Perfect Circle, Flatout Gaskets, Impact Racing, NGK Spark Plugs, MSD, Permatex, ieGraphics, Holbrook Performance Parts, Global Power Systems, Paradise RV & Coach, Ringers Gloves and Wolverine Boots.
By Jim - Posted on March 8, 2009 7:38 PM|Permalink
|
EPPING, NH -- Terry McMillen and Paul Noakes posted another banner weekend for Hoosier Thunder Motorsports and their sponsors at the Amalie Oil North American Nationals. The team efforts brings the season total to 10 final round appearances and three wins with one race remaining.
McMillen took the new look Amalie Oil Top Fuel Dragster to its fifth final of the year, solidifying his third position in the championship point standings and keeping hope alive for a second place finish. He trails defending champion Bruce Litton by 66 points and leads Mike Strasburg by 58 points. If McMillen can maintain third it will better his fifth place standing from his rookie Top Fuel season of 2007.
"That was an awesome weekend for Amalie," McMillen said after defeating Jones and Litton enroute to a final round appearance against first time winner Tim Boychuk. "That's four finals in a row for us. I can't say enough about my crew and Doug Kuch. What a turn around this team has done. I only wish we had a few more races to put some heat on Bruce and Spencer."
MARTIN, Mich. - For the fourth time in a row Paul Noakes put the Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car in the final round. This time at the U.S. 131 Motorsports Park during the Northern Nationals. The team fell short of gaining its second win of the season when Noakes uncharacteristically lit the red bulb with an early start.
While four runner-up finishes in seven tries would mark a spectacular season for most, crew chief Les Mellows was a little disappointed. "We haven't taken advantage of our opportunities," he said shortly after the race. "It will take a catastrophic failure of Laurie's team to not win the championship, which isn't likely to happen, they've been that strong."
Noakes was facing Cannister for the third time this season and the second time in the final round. "We made a decision to tighten the air gap," Mellows said. "It was the wrong thing to do to a guy that was 'in a zone'. We have the best driver out there and as a team we want him to compete on the starting line every time he stages. If we have prepared the car properly we will win!"
MARTIN, Mich. -- For the second time in a row and for the third time this season, Terry McMillen has made it to the final round of an IHRA Nitro Jam national event. The U.S. 131 Motorsports Park marked the third time this season McMillen raced points leader Spencer Massey for the win. Massey holds a 2-1 advantage over McMillen.
"Seems like Spencer and I like racing each other in the finals," McMillen said. "We both want a good side-by-side final. We couldn't make it happen last Sunday, but I'd love to meet him again in the final to see if we can even the score."
The weekend started strong for the Amalie Oil team when McMillen raced to the "Last Man Standing" award on Friday night, earning an additional 5 points and the provisional #1 qualifying position. The 4.659 elapsed time at 316.01 m.p.h was McMillen's low e.t. of the season.
McMillen resets track speed record en route to win
GRAND BEND, Ont. - Terry McMillen, Hoosier Thunder Motorsports team owner and driver of the Amalie Oil Top Fuel Dragster, couldn't have imagined the outcome of the Mopar Canadian Nationals in his wildest dreams. The Elkhart, Indiana based team to both McMillen's Top Fuel Dragster and the Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car driven by Paul Noakes, raced their way to the winner's circle this past weekend.
"When we started this two-car team I hoped that we could do something like this," McMillen said. "But I know how hard it is to win one of these things, much less how difficult it would be to get two pro cars to win on the same Sunday. These two teams worked their butts off this weekend to make this dream come true. We're still pretty ecstatic about the whole thing."
McMillen qualified his dragster in the second position and then reset Clay Millican’s 2-year-old track speed record in his first elimination round. The 322.42 MPH pass was also a career best. The 4.665 elapsed time was just 0.019 seconds from resetting the track elapsed time record.
GRAND BEND, Ont. - For the third race in a row, Paul Noakes found himself in the final round of an IHRA national event. This time the Mopar Canadian Nationals provided a different outcome as the Les Mellows tuned Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny car prevailed, giving Hoosier Thunder Motorsports its first Funny Car victory ever.
"I can't tell you how proud I am of these guys," Terry McMillen, team owner said. "Paul and Les are the best in the business and they proved it again this weekend."
Of the last 18 races that a Paul Noakes driven / Les Mellows tuned car has been entered, 11 have resulted in a final round appearance, five of those with wins, including the successful defense of the Mopar Canadian nationals.
Noakes and Mellows made the transition to McMillen's Amalie Oil InstiGator at the beginning of the season with the goal of competing for a championship. "It took a little longer to get the car suited to Paul than we all had hoped for," Mellows explained. "But now that he is becoming more comfortable with it we can begin to enjoy the results."
MECHANICSVILLE, Md. - The Hoosier Thunder Motorsports team car driven by Paul Noakes and tuned by Les Mellows raced the Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car to a final round appearance before falling to points leader Laurie Cannister. The effort put the team back into the championship hunt and after four of ten events they sit in the fourth position, just a few rounds from the number two spot.
"It was a great weekend for the car and for this team," Noakes said after the event. "We're one step closer to having the perfect car. I couldn't be happier."
MECHANICSVILLE, Md. - Terry McMillen headed into the President's Cup Nationals looking for improvement for his Amalie Oil Top Fuel Dragster. While he found a marked improvement in his team's performance, it wasn't enough to advance them past the first round of eliminations.
The John "Bodie" Smith tuned dragster set the low elapsed time of eliminations (4.858 seconds) but McMillen couldn't overcome Mike Strasburg's 0.013 reaction time.
"John gave me a great car to work with on a hot track. I think we had the set up to win some rounds," team owner and driver Terry McMillen said. "Bottom line - I've got to do a better job on the tree. People talk about having a reaction time like that with a fuel car and how unlikely that is, but Mike did it and I didn't and that's what drag racing is all about."
MILAN, Mich.- After a catastrophic engine failure in Rockingham knocked the Hoosier Thunder team from contention, the Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car driven by Paul Noakes and tuned by Les Mellows, looked for big improvements at the Motor City Nationals. They didn't have to wait long.
The team rolled the Dodge Avenger off of the transporter and immediately captured Friday night's Last Man Standing Award and an additional five points with a 5.791 et at 244.03 mph performance. It was a career best performance for the car.
Saturday's qualifying attempts would prove that the InstiGator's performance wasn't a fluke. Noakes would outrun Dale Brand during the afternoon session by posting a career best 5.754 et at 245.36 mph, remaining in the top spot after two sessions. Noakes would once again put his ride into the seventies during Saturday night's session, only to be outdone by Brand's run into the sixties.
The only spoiler for the weekend was a first round -.002 red light against Rob Atchison.
MILAN, Mich. - Terry McMillen took his Amalie Oil Top Fuel Dragster to the Motor City Nationals with high expectations. After three qualifying attempts the team found itself on the outside of the top eight and parked for Sunday eliminations.
"It's just one of those things," McMillen said after the race. "We are very disappointed because up until Milan this car has been very consistent. We just couldn't find the right set up for the track. Heck, I don't think we could have found the track if we fell onto it."
"We've just got one of those gremlins that hasn't shown itself yet. I've got the best crew in the business, so I know we'll get it figured out before the next race."
ATLANTA - Terry McMillen made his first career NHRA start at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals in Atlanta this weekend. It was McMillen's first attempt as a driver / owner and second attempt overall.
McMillen took his Torco powered, Amalie Oil Top Fuel team through the paces and posted a 4.74 elapsed time at 315 MPH to secure the 15th position for Sunday's race which paired McMillen against Rod Fuller in the rain delayed first round.
When racing resumed McMillen took the tree first, staged and attempted to take an advantage of Fuller when the light turned green. Unfortunately for McMillen his attempt for an NHRA round win ended early when he left the starting line 0.043 seconds early.
ELKHART, Ind. -- The Hoosier Thunder Motorsports, Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car team left Rockingham collectively scratching their heads. The team clawed its way into the fourth position after the second event of the Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series despite failing to make the call for Sunday eliminations.
"It's going to be a tough season in Alcohol Funny Car," team owner Terry McMillen said. "If these first two events are any indication - everyone should be prepared for a heavy weight battle."
The team experienced a catastrophic engine failure that left them unable to make repairs at the track. "Blocks are hard to come by right now," McMillen added. "We did everything we could to buy one from anyone that would listen, but no one really had anything that they were willing to part with."
While the weekend ended rough, the early reports looked good for the InstiGator team. Ontario based driver Paul Noakes was optimistic at first. "It started out just the way we wanted it to go," Noakes said. "We made some big strides and it looked like the performance had picked up."
ROCKINGHAM, N.C. - When Terry McMillen began loading the Amalie Oil Top Fuel Dragster into the team transporter after Sunday's first round loss, he wasn't as disappointed as one would expect.
"We're always here to win," McMillen said. "We just put our tenth run on this car and we had a couple of passes in the .60's, so I'm actually pretty excited about how well our team is performing and how quickly John [crew-chief John Smith] is getting a handle on this car."
McMillen's 4.678 elapsed time at 313.37 MPH was only good enough for the fifth spot after qualifying ended. "It's never been easy qualifying," McMillen said. "Especially now with more and more quality teams being added to the mix. It's tough enough facing guys like Bruce Litton and Bobby Lagana. Now we have to be conscience of guys like Palmer, Strasburg, Jones and that new kid 'what's his name'," McMillen joked. "Spencer [Massey] is making the most out of that new license of his, notching two wins in two tries. It's a dog fight early here in Top Fuel and I expect it will be that way all season long."
SAN ANTONIO, Texas (April 10, 2008) - The Amalie Oil Top Fuel Dragster, powered by Torco Race Fuels and driven by Terry McMillen, made its Nitro Jam debut during the season opening event hosted at the San Antonio Raceway. The newly assembled team, led by crew chef John Smith, made the most of their opportunities, finishing the event with a final round appearance. A broken throttle cable would end McMillen's hopes of capturing his third career Iron Man.
"We can't be disappointed," McMillen said after the race. "I would have loved to been in the winners circle at an Amalie race to collect a trophy, but this was a great weekend for our team. We had basically a brand new car and a brand new crew. These guys worked hard and did a great job to get us to the final round."
While John Smith was disappointed with the finish, he felt the weekend was a success. He spoke with CompetitionPlus.com shortly after the race. “That was really the first mistake [throttle cable] that we made all weekend so we put a good effort up for Terry, Amalie Oil and NAPA Auto Parts,†Smith added. "Terry has worked really hard to put the deal together. We made it to the final round so it was a pretty good weekend all in all. We’ve got a good baseline. All the guys were working well together and little things like this will happen. You win as a team and you lose as a team so that's what it's about."
ELKHART, Ind. - Terry McMillen pulled double duty during the 2007 Knoll-Gas Motorsports Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series driving both the Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car and the Evan Knoll backed Torco Nitro Top Fuel Dragster owned by Doug Foley and Tim Lewis.
McMillen's double effort marks the first time in IHRA professional drag racing history that someone was competed in two classes and finsihed in the top 10 of the points standings. McMillen finished Top Fuel in 5th and Alcohol Funny Car 6th in points. McMillen's teams saw improvement all season long with constant progress being made with the Funny Car and two event wins in Top Fuel (Edmonton and Toronto).
"It was an exciting year," McMillen said. "We learned a lot of things that will help us be even more competitive in the 2008 season. I think you're going to see a lot of exciting things coming out of the Hoosier Thunder Motorsports camp. The new season starts today. We'll have a lot of exciting announcements in the next few months that set the tone for our team in '08."
RICHMOND, Va. - Terry McMillen, driver of the Foley & Lewis, Torco Nitro Top Fuel Dragster narrowly missed making the field at the 2nd annual Torco Race Fuels NHRA Nationals. After the final qualifying session, McMillen was disappointed but optimistic about his team.
"We learned a lot this weekend," McMillen said as they loaded the dragster into the transporter. "We know that we're close to running the number we need to make the show anywhere we go."
McMillen entered Saturday's qualifying rounds in the 10th provisional position, knowing that he'd have to step up performance to make the field. Saturday's first pass put McMillen next to defending NHRA World Champion Tony Schumacher. McMillen would run side by side with Schumacher falling slightly off pace at the top end of the track as the car pitched the blower belt.
BUDDS CREEK, Md. - Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny car, powered by Torco Race Fuels qualified for one of the toughest Alcohol Funny Car fields in recent IHRA history. Sixteen cars would attempt to qualify for the eight positions available for eliminations, McMillen would capture the seventh in a field that saw track records reset often.
"It truly was some of the most grueling qualifying I've been a part of in some time," McMillen explained. "Making the field at the Torco Race Fuels President's Cup Nationals was an accomplishment all by itself."
"We've seen a lot of improvement with our set up these past few races," McMillen continued. "With the schedule the way it is down the stretch here it's tough to find time to go testing. We need to find some time to go testing for a day so we can sneak up just a little more on this tune up."
CAYUGA, Ont. - Terry McMillen, driver of the Foley & Lewis, Torco Nitro Top Fuel dragster doubled his career win total with his second win this season. McMillen also scored his first Last Man Standing award when he captured low E.T. and the number one provisional qualifying position on Friday night. McMillen would end qualifying in the fourth position.
"That Toronto Ironman is going to look pretty nice next to the Edmonton Ironman," McMillen commented as he drove back to his race shop in Elkhart, Indiana. "We had a good car all through qualifying," he added. "We needed a couple of lucky breaks to get to the finals, but when the chips where on the line my guys came through in a big way."
MARTIN, Mich. - Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car leave the Knoll-Gas Motorsports Park in Martin, Michigan this morning with a semi-final appearance to show for their efforts at the Torco Race Fuels Northern Nationals. McMillen plans on carrying the momentum into the Amalie Oil North American Nationals at this weekends event in Epping, New Hampshire.
"There's nothing like racing at Martin for us," McMillen said after the action packed weekend. "It's our home track. There are so many family and friends that make it to this race. I'm glad we were able to make go some rounds for everyone. Plus, being Torco's premier race with Evan Knoll racing his car and all the excitement that brings, we were happy to be a part of that big weekend."
GRAND BEND, Ont. - When the MOPAR Canadian Nationals were complete, Terry McMillen and the Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car had fought back into the top five of the Knoll Gas Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series. The Torco powered alcohol flopper made its best lap of the year but fell to event winner Paul Noakes.
"My crew has been working so hard," McMillen said. "We've done more testing this year than we have in a long time. It's starting to pay off, we're just not seeing all of the end results of the hard work. The motor is really happy and we're starting to lean on it a little now. We just couldn't get all of the adjustments that we needed going from Edmonton's 4,500 foot adjusted elevation to Grand Bend's 1,500 feet."
While McMillen and crew were disappointed in the end result from Grand Bend, they know that the changes to their set up will produce the speed needed to compete. "This car is ready to run some big numbers now," said Co-Crew Chief Andy McMillen. "We haven't even started to lean on it yet. We'll smarten it up a little more going into Martin."
EDMONTON, Alberta - He's pulling double duty this season, racing in both his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car and the Foley/Lewis backed Torco Nitro Top Fuel Dragster. In just his fifth Top Fuel event, Terry McMillen, an IHRA fan favorite, drove through a tough field including teammate and number one qualifier Doug Foley to earn his first Iron Man.
"It was just an unbelievable feeling to win," McMillen told drag racing website CompetitionPlus.com. "I've always said Edmonton is one of my favorite tracks. To come out here and win it is an awesome deal. Perseverance by the Torco team was a major factor today. We went out there and got it done. I just can't say enough about my team, Evan Knoll (mentor/sponsor), Tim Lewis, and Doug Foley (team co-owners)."
TULSA, Okla. - Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny car powered by Torco Race Fuels fought through rain delays and adversity to put the Hoosier Thunder Motorsports team back into the top 10.
"It's been tough," McMillen explained. "But we've made a lot of positive steps to get this car back into contention. After destroying and engine and blower in Rockingham the team spent the time off for the rain delay rebuilding engines and testing.
"We've learned a lot over the past few weeks," said McMillen. "We've got a brand new PSI Supercharger mounted on our new Hemi. It's just a matter of sneaking up on our tune-up now."
SAN ANTONIO, TX - When Terry McMillen earned his Top Fuel license in October of 2005 behind the wheel of Evan Knoll's dragster, he had no idea where the road would lead. Shortly after McMillen earned his license he was diagnosed with a serious and rare fungal eye infection (Fusarium Keratitis) as a result of using Bausch & Lomb's ReNu with Moisture Loc product. The injury required McMillen to undergo corneal replacement and lens surgery. "For my safety and the safety of drivers around me, I had to sit out the 2006 season regarding Top Fuel racing," said McMillen. "It wasn't until recently that my doctor cleared me to race Top Fuel, with the provision that he checks my eye after each race. We have postponed future surgeries at this time."
Fast forward to San Antonio 2007. McMillen will pilot the Top Fuel Dragster for the Foley and Lewis team and carry the colors of Torco Nitro in an effort to earn a championship. "I'm very excited about a chance to race with the high-quality team that Doug [Foley] and Tim [Lewis] have put together," said a grateful McMillen. "Doug and I have been closely working together on the Accelerator product line, it only made sense that we team up to race also."
SAN ANTONIO, TX - Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car, powered by Torco Race Fuels, showed up earlier for his partners race and the season opening Knoll-Gas Nitro Jam Drag Racing series event.
"This is always one of my most favorite races of the year," McMillen said. The Hoosier Thunder Motorsports team headed into the San Antonio area a week earlier to make appearances at area NAPA stores. "We gave our InstiGator car a total makeover, from inside out, so we wanted to get there early and show it off a little. Everyone seemed to love the new look."
Terry McMillen, driver of the Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car, powered by Torco Racing Fuels, finished the 2006 IHRA Drag Racing season with his sixth consecutive top 10 finish. While many teams strive towards a top 10 finish, McMillen is dissatisfied as he continues to chase a championship.
When the Torco Race Fuels President's Cup Nationals rolled into Maryland, Terry McMillen had an idea that it would be a tough race. McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car, powered by Torco Race Fuels fought a tough field at Maryland International Raceway. The Hoosier Thunder Motorsports team would be bumped from the field after the final qualifying round, just 0.030 seconds from a chance to compete in eliminations.
If the heart of Rock and Roll is in Cleveland, then the heartbeat will be just a few miles west in Norwalk at the Skull Shine World Nationals contested at Norwalk Raceway Park. After a runner-up finish in Martin just two weeks ago, Terry McMillen, driver of the Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car feels like he has his finger on the pulse.
Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car, powered by Torco Race Fuels, made their first final round appearance of the 2006 eMax Drag Racing series. While the final round showdown with Tom Carter didn't result in a win for McMillen's camp, it did tighten the race for the Alcohol Funny Car Championship. With less than 150 points separating the top four cars, McMillen thinks its anyone's championship to win.
It was a roller coaster ride for Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car powered by Torco Race Fuels. In back to back national events, McMillen and his team once again made a strong qualifying effort holding the number two provisional position for most of the weekend and having low ET for round two. McMillen would complete qualifying in the number four position. The strong effort would once again pair McMillen with current points leader and 5-time World Champion, Mark Thomas.
Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car, powered by Knoll Gas - TORCO Race Fuels, found a combination for success at Castrol Raceway in Edmonton. The 4th Annual CARS RV & Marine & Motorsports Rocky Mountain Nationals presented by Knoll Gas - Torco Race Fuels proved that the beginning of summer may mark a turn in the teams 2006 outlook.
The harder you work, the luckier you get. So, goes the familiar saying that aligns a little bit of luck with a lot of hard work. After a disappointing DNQ in Rockingham, Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car, powered by TORCO Race Fuels found a little luck during round one of qualifying in Grand Bend. The InstiGator broke a fuel line at the top end of the track, slowing McMillen to what would become the sixth qualifying spot in a rain shortened qualifying session. The car appeared to be on its best pass of the young eMax Drag Racing Series season.
Martin, Mich. - In what began as a rescheduled event for inclement weather, the Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car powered by TORCO Racing Fuels, stormed back at the US 131 Motorsports Park's, National City Thunder Nationals to make a final round appearance. Terry McMillen, pilot of the Amalie sponsored hotrod found plenty to smile about after the event.
Rockingham, N.C. - It what must seem like a continuing and repeating nightmare for Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator team, the Rockingham Dragway proved to be the villain once again as the team failed to make the field in the rain shortened qualify session.
San Antonio, Tex - Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car, powered by TORCO Racing Fuels, leave the season opening, eMax Drag Racing Series event with a semi-final appearance and a spot among the top 3 in the point standings. The Elkhart, Indiana driver eliminated Terry Munroe before falling to Mark Thomas. Thomas went on to win the event.
Rockingham, NC - Terry McMillen and his Hoosier Thunder Motorsports team end the 2005 season at Rockingham Dragway with high expectations and hopes. "Unless you win the championship, you always think that the season could have been better," said McMillen. "The same is true for us. But, I don't think I've ever ended a season this excited about our future."
McMillen pulled double duty during the weekend, piloting both the Amalie Oil InstiGator, powered by TORCO Racing Fuels and the newly unveiled Lukoil Top Fuel Dragster.
Eighteen Funny Cars made the trip to fight for one of the eight spots available. The team made 3 valiant attempts to qualify the car starting on a cool and brisk Friday night in the sand hills of eastern North Carolina. The weather proved to be more trick than treat, although the round ended with McMillen in the #7 position. Temperatures were again expected to be below normal for Saturday's qualifying and the IHRA responded positively by moving up each round 2 hours in the schedule. The InstiGator made a hard charge in the afternoon attempt, but a blown fuel line near the top end slowed the car to a respectable 5.892 ET, but in the #9 position, just .001 seconds from the field.
Due to the adjusted cold weather schedule, the Saturday turn around between qualifying attempts sent the Hoosier Thunder team into the pits thrashing. "When the fuel line broke, it leaned out the motor and left us with some damage that would require both heads to be serviced," explained Tad "TV" Heflick, co-crew chief. The team was able to get the car back for the evening session, but McMillen wasn't able to improve his position. "I hate ending a season like this," added Brent "Skinny" Lidgard, co-crew chief. "The car is better and we're better than that."
The Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car finished the season 6th in points with 2 final, 2 semi and 3 quarter final round appearances. McMillen also set new personal best ET (5.825) and MPH (241.97) during the 2005 campaign.
Rob Atchison (2003-2005 World Champion) won 9 out of 12 events in dominating fashion, facing McMillen 6 times during the season. Atchison was only stopped 3 times from winning an event - twice at the hands of the InstiGator. "Rob and his team deserve a lot of credit," said McMillen. "They've been the team to beat for 3 years running." Jokingly McMillen added, "Heck, we're responsible for 66% of his loses - I suppose he'll be gunning for us next season!"
The Amalie Oil InstiGator was supported this season by its partners: Amalie Oil, eRaceFuels, Flatout Gaskets, NGK Spark Plugs, MSD, Performance Graphics, Powershield Coatings, Crane Cams, LGI Digital and Eastern Race Fuels. McMillen will be changing rides next season but the InstiGator will live on. "At this point, I've talked to everyone of our partners and they are excited about moving forward with the InstiGator Funny Car," said McMillen. "It's a very recognizable car." A driver search has already begun and an announcement is expected sometime early this winter.
In Top Fuel action, the much anticipated driving debut of McMillen brought many to the starting line to see how the "Gator" could swim in the nitormethane pool of dragsters. With Mark Oswald consulting and under the watchful eye of Evan Knoll, the Lukoil sponsored machine made a nice 1st pass at 5.332ET / 206.20MPH after shutting down at the 1000ft mark. "We were mixing up a few cylinders on the top end - and I didn't want to tear anything up on the first hit, so I just clicked it off," explained McMillen. He was qualified 6th after the first round.
In what will surely be the first of many personal best for McMillen's top fuel career, his Saturday pass helped him to join the 300MPH club with a rousing 4.774ET at 311.05MPH. The pass helped keep him in the fast field, on the bump spot, with room for improvement. "We knew after that pass we had a pretty good car," explained McMillen. "The blower belt was shredding and we lost a couple of cylinders on the top end - we knew there was at least another tenth in that car."
The final round of qualifying had McMillen paired with Bobby Lagana Jr. for a shot to improve his position in what would become the fastest top fuel field in IHRA history. McMillen left first and pulled away, enjoying a .006 lead to Lagana, before he lost the blower belt and burst panel. Based on Lagana's incremental times- the Lukoil dragster was on a .60's pass. "We were 259MPH at the eighth," said McMillen. "I think one of the crew guys dropped a few XLR8 Chews in the tank - we were certainly on a very good pass. While I was disappointed to miss this field with all of the sponsors that we had here, it was pretty exciting to see what our future looks like - and it's fast!"
McMillen is planning a short winter with lots of testing and announcements. The team expects to announce the addition of a crew chief, the location of their new race shop, testing and racing schedules during the next several weeks.
By Jim - Posted on November 1, 2005 7:05 PM|Permalink
|
Elkhart, IN - In the wild, an alligator has few predators. The ferocious reptile rules the swamp without fear. Man is probably the natural enemy of the alligator.
The Amalie Oil InstiGator, powered by TORCO Racing Fuels, experienced a natural predator at the 14th Annual TORCO Racing Fuels President's Cup Nationals in the form of a "gremlin" living in the clutch of the InstiGator Funny Car. "We've changed every part on this car that could be changed," explained McMillen. "For nearly 7 races now we've scratched our head and wondered why our incremental times up until about half track were as good or better than most. Yet, our ET and MPH just wasn't there at the top end. Well, we found the culprit in the clutch system. If there's any team out there that thought we were going to just go through the motions in Rockingham, they better think again. We're going to be there to be a spoiler for someone!"
The InstiGator team has spent the past 2 months tuning and retuning every aspect of the motor. Brent "Skinny" Lidgard, Co-Crew Chief added, "This car will run. Now that we've found the problem in the clutch I wouldn't be surprised at all to see Terry set new personal best ET and MPH at Rockingham."
Tad "TV" Heflick, Co-Crew Chief was also optimistic. "There's been a lot of frustration on this team, we stayed focused and worked through this adversity. Our goal is to get Terry an Iron Man before this season is over. Now that everything about the car is right - we'll do it."
The Elkhart, IN based team failed to qualify for the Maryland event that saw 19 cars fight it out for the 8 available spots. "While we certainly were disappointed," explained Jim "Ogre" Walczak, Marketing Director, "we weren't without consolation. "Skinny" provided some of us with chocolate. I certainly hope the IHRA reconsiders the 8 car field for Funny Car. Terry has done a lot of work talking to youth about drag racing. The more teams that we can include in the field the better opportunity for younger teams to get experience."
The entire InstiGator team would like to thank the best partners in drag racing: Amalie Oil, eRaceFuels, Flatout Gaskets, NGK Spark Plugs, MSD, Performance Graphics, Powershield Coatings and Crane Cams.
The Amalie Oil InstiGator will head into Rockingham, NC for the IHRA World Finals October 7-9.
By Jim - Posted on September 27, 2005 6:35 PM|Permalink
|
Epping, NH - The 10th Annual Amalie Oil North American Nationals lived up to the title sponsors company slogan. The event was "Better Than It Has To Be" resetting world records in each of the professional drag racing categories.
Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car, powered by TORCO Racing Fuels, would not be out done, setting new personal best ET (5.825) and MPH (241.97) during the qualifying session. McMillen qualified the InstiGator #5 in the fastest Funny Car field in IHRA history. "This was tough weekend for the guy that has to rewrite the record books," explained McMillen. "But, it was a great weekend for Amalie, their distributors and friends."
McMillen continued his starting line dominance in eliminations with a 0.028 reaction time to nail 2 time IHRA Champion Rob Atchison to the tree, taking the round win and advancing to the semi-finals for a show down with Jim Sickles.
McMillen took a 0.033 starting line advantage in his race with Sickles (0.012 VS 0.045), but it wouldn't be enough to upset the Caledonia, NY native who would go on to win the event in a showdown with 5 time IHRA Champion Mark Thomas. "Congratulations to Jim (Sickles) and his team," said McMillen. "They threw 5.70s on that track and reset the mile per hour record book every time they rolled up to the tree. It was their weekend."
While McMillen and his InstiGator team fell short of their goal to bring home the Iron Man for Amalie, the team leaves New England optimistic. "We're excited about the improvement we saw for our team," said Brent "Skinny" Lidgard, co-crew chief. Co-crew chief, Tad "TV" Heflick agreed, "With a new personal best under our belt, we've got something to work with for the next couple of races."
"I've got the best sponsors and crew in the business," said McMillen. "These guys worked together to fight through our summer slump. We couldn't have done it without dedicated sponsors like Amalie Oil, TORCO RaceFuels, Flatout Gaskets, NGK Spark Plugs, MSD, Performance Graphics, Powershield Coatings and Crane Cams."
McMillen also spent the week meeting Amalie Oil distributors and signing autographs at area retail outlets. Andrew Bornstein, Amalie Motor Oil Business Development Manager, added, "This is our 10th season of involvement with this race. It gets better every year."
SPEED TV added an in-car camera to the InstiGator during the final round of qualifying and for the elimination rounds. "I had a chance to get a 'sneak peak' at the footage," said McMillen. "Anyone that wants to see what a Funny Car driver has to do to get down a drag strip should tune in! SPEED does a great job of getting fans into the race so they can get an idea of what it's like." The original broadcast for the event is scheduled for Saturday, 12/31/2005 at 5PM ET.
If it "ROCKS BOSTON" it must be Lyndon Byers (LB). LB, former Boston Bruin standout, and the WAAF 107.3 crew spent Saturday "Partying In The Pits" with the InstiGator team. The Boston radio station broadcasted live from the pits, interviewed McMillen and hosted a cookout for lucky listeners from their week long promotion.
Not to be out done, Greg and The Morning Buzz (100.3 WHEB) continued their banter with McMillen Saturday atop the timing tower. McMillen appeared in studio with show on Friday and followed up with Saturday's live broadcast that featured one cast member (Laura) attempting a live interview while sitting in the car during a warm up. "We always have a lot of fun with these guys," added McMillen.
The next stop for McMillen and the InstiGator team is the 14th Annual, TORCO Race Fuels President's Cup Nationals, September 23-25, 2005 in Budds Creek, MD, just outside of Baltimore.
By Jim - Posted on September 13, 2005 3:01 PM|Permalink
|
Norwalk, OH - The Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car, powered by TORCO Racing Fuels, sees improvement at the 24th Annual Skull Gear World Nationals but falls short of desired goal. "Every time we pack up for a race, we expect to win it," said McMillen.
Eighteen Funny Cars showed up at the famed Norwalk Raceway Park to qualify for one of the eight available spots. While racing for eliminations on Sunday, the competitors reset the #5 IHRA Quickest Fields in Funny Car record with a 5.957 second field, leaving McMillen and his InstiGator just .005 short. "No doubt, we're disappointed," said McMillen. "There hasn't been much rest for this team," explained Tad "TV" Heflick, Co-Crew Chief, "and we won't rest until the Amalie Oil InstiGator is back in the finals." Co-Crew Chief, Brent "Skinny" Lidgard added, "This car has run in the '.80s and it will run in the '.80s again."
The team enjoyed an eventful week, participating in the "Thunder in the Streets" event. McMillen also spent time Thursday on Cleveland's popular WMMS and WXTM radio stations before heading to Toledo for an in-studio TV interview during the evening news. "Thursday was a great," said McMillen. "It's a fun way to promote the race and Amalie Oil, eRaceFuels, Flatout Gaskets, NGK Spark Plugs, MSD, Performance Graphics, Powershield Coatings and Crane Cams."
The next stop on the Hooters IHRA Drag Racing Schedule is the 10th Annual Amalie Oil North American Nationals brought to you by Auto Value Stores. The event takes place September 9-11 at the New England Dragway in Epping NH.
By Jim - Posted on August 30, 2005 2:45 PM|Permalink
|
Cayuga, ONT - The 4th Annual AC Delco Canadian Nationals produced the fastest field of Funny Cars (5.930) in IHRA history, surpassing the previous record of 5.938 set during the 2003 World Finals in Rockingham. Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator, powered by TORCO Racing Fuels, fought among the 16 teams for a spot in the 8 car field, coming up just 0.018 seconds short.
"We're struggling right now," explained McMillen. "For the past three races our summer set-up has been off. We've been working hard, but we've got some more work to do. We'll be testing more this week."
The InstiGator team made an encouraging pass during Friday's qualifying attempt. "Our first hit on Friday had us very optimistic," Terry added. "We were back to our early season horsepower performance, we just couldn't get it to stick to the track."
As the Hooters IHRA Drag Racing series completes the first half of the season, the InstiGator team has had phenomenal performances this year providing two final round, two semi-final and one quarter-final appearance. "We're still very hungry. There are a lot of rounds left to be run before this season is over," said McMillen. "We can't thank our partners enough. Without companies like Amalie Oil, TORCO race Fuels, Flatout Gaskets, NGK Spark Plugs, MSD, Performance Graphics, Powershield Coatings and Crane Cams none of this would be possible."
The InstiGator team had an opportunity to appear on Hamilton's popular morning show CH Morning Live, Thursday before the race. "I knew that show was popular," commented Terry. "It was great to have all of the fans tell us that they liked our segment on the show." Terry was also featured when Mike Perry of IHRA.com covered the pre-race event.
The next stop on the Hooters IHRA is the 24th Annual TORCO Racing Fuels Northern Nationals contested August 12-13 at the US 131 Motorsports Park in Martin, Michigan. McMillen commented, "This is our home track and one of our partners premier events. We'll be ready."
By Jim - Posted on August 1, 2005 11:23 AM|Permalink
|
Milan, MI - Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil sponsored Funny Car, powered by eRaceFuels made a quarter-final appearance in the 3rd Annual Dukes of Hazzard Motor City Nationals. With summer's unpredictable weather, the Hoosier Thunder Motorsports team fought hard to find the right combination to get the Hemi powered entry quickly down the Motor City quarter mile.
Crew-chiefs were challenged to find a set up that would work with Mother Natures moods. Quick moving patches of clouds and rain would be followed by periods of hot sun and high humidity. "My crew did a great job," commented McMillen. "Our times were consistent all weekend long. We just couldn't find that tenth of a second we needed."
McMillen piloted the InstiGator to the number eight qualifying position on his best run of the weekend (5.983 ET) which saw the car slow through the traps after losing the blower belt with a top speed of 218.94 MPH. "We looked at our incremental times after that pass," explained co-crew chief Brent "Skinny" Lidgard. "That would have been a pass in the .80's."
The end of qualifying set up the showdown between McMillen and London Ontario's two-time IHRA Funny Car Champion and current points leader, Rob Atchison. McMillen continued his season long dominance of the tree with a reaction time of 0.046 against Atchison's 0.090. McMillen's hole shot wouldn't be enough to overcome Atchison's machine. Atchison would go on to claim the title for the Motor City Nationals.
Co-crew chief Tad "TV" Heflick reflected after the match with Atchison, "We torched a head and banged the #2 cylinder pretty hard, but we were toe-to-toe with Rob through the 1/8 mile." The Hoosier Thunder team will be testing this Saturday in Martin, MI at the US 131 Motorsports Park Bar's Leaks Funny Car Nationals. "Not only is this a great event," commented McMillen, "it's a great opportunity for us to dial in our summer tune-up before the eRaceFuels Northern Nationals here at US 131 Motorsports Park."
McMillen would like to thank the partners of the Hoosier Thunder Motorsports, InstiGator team which include Amalie Oil, eRaceFuels, Flatout Gaskets, NGK Spark Plugs, MSD, Performance Graphics, Powershield Coatings and Crane Cams.
The seventh stop on the Hooters IHRA Drag Racing series is the 4th Annual ACDelco Canadian Nationals, contested at the Toronto Motorsports Park in Cayuga, Ontario July 29-31.
By Jim - Posted on July 19, 2005 10:41 AM|Permalink
|
Grand Bend, ONT- As summer sets in and the weather heats up, so does the race for points towards the 2005 IHRA Funny Car Championship. The 6th Annual Mopar Canadian Nationals proved to be as hot as the summer for the Amalie Oil InstiGator, powered by TORCO Racing Fuels.
Although Grand Bend Canada usually enjoys temperatures in the mid to low 70s, during the race teams were challenged to work with temperatures nearing 100 degrees and with a corrected altitude exceeding 4000 feet.
Terry Mc Millen, pilot of the 1999 Dodge Avenger, narrowed the points margin by defeating the defending world champion, Rob Atchison in the first round. Mc Millen's semi-final appearance, coupled with a Mark Thomas first round loss to Jim Sickles tightens up the points race for the top four drivers leaving Mc Millen, Thomas, Sickles and Atchison within roughly 2 elimination rounds of each other. "This is one of the closest points races I can remember after 4 events", Mc Millen recalled. "With less than 50 points between us, you can bank on the IHRA funny car class being a battle to the end."
During elimination rounds the InstiGator car was equipped with a SPEED TV "in-car camera" to catch all of the action. The show featuring Mc Millen and his InstiGator will air on August 13th and again on August 15th at 4PM and 5PM respectively.
"Anytime that we get an opportunity to do these types of special projects - we jump at the chance," explained Mc Millen. "The fans love seeing what goes on inside the Amalie Oil InstiGator during the race. Of course our sponsors love the attention it brings to the team. We've got the best partners in the business. When you talk about quality, everyone thinks of Amalie Oil, TORCO Racing Fuels, Flatout Gaskets, NGK Spark Plugs, MSD, Performance Graphics, Powershield Coatings and Crane Cams.
The next race in the IHRA Hooters Drag Racing series is the 3rd Annual Western RV Nationals presented by TORCO Racing Fuels. Mc Millen had an outstanding race at the 2004 event, finishing in the runner up position with a final round appearance. "We have always run well in Edmonton! We hope to continue that string," exclaimed Mc Millen. "Track owners, Rob and Kim Reeves have spent many hours re-doing the track surface and facilities. We would like nothing more than to put the Amalie Oil InstiGator powered be TORCO race fuels in the winners circle. Evan Knoll President of Torco is keeping the hair clippers by his side." When Terry wins, Knoll is providing a free hair cut, which is part of a year long standing bet.
Western RV will join the InstiGator marketing team in Edmonton again this year. "Western RV is the title sponsor for the Rocky Mountain Nationals, we're proud to be associated with them," stated InstiGator Marketing Director Jim Walczak. "Not only is Western RV Canada's largest RV Dealer, they're also number 1 in fun and they enjoy providing a way for families to make memories." Mc Millen added, "We worked with Craig Amstead last year and we both enjoyed tremendous success. We have the time of our lives when we're in Edmonton with the Western RV family."
The 3rd Annual Western RV Rocky Mountain Nationals will be contested June 24-26 at Budweiser Motorsports Park in Edmonton, Alberta Canada.
Richmond, VA - Terry McMillen and the Amalie Oil InstiGator, powered by TORCO Racing Fuels, growled back into the IHRA Funny Car points race at the Virginia Motorsports Park. The event marked the second time in three races that the team has made a final round appearance. The InstiGator team leaves Virginia third place in IHRA points.
"It was a great week for our team," exclaimed an excited McMillen. "Anytime that you get a chance to go rounds, it's a good thing. It's good for us, it's great for our sponsors." The week leading into the 5th Annual AC Delco Nationals kept the team very busy. An appearance at West Mifflin, PA’s Clara Barton Elementary School began the week as McMillen was the featured speaker at the school’s anti-drug assembly.
McMillen also completed a television spot for Hotrodnewz TV that will air later in June on Fox Sports Net.
The Amalie Oil InistiGator Funny Car, powered by TORCO Racing Fuels was honored to appear on a poster inserted into a special edition of Saturday's Richmond Times-Dispatch. The Times-Dispatch also included coverage of the InstiGator on Sunday's front page (The paper has a Sunday circulation of more than 225,000). "We've got some of the best partners in the racing industry. Our job is to bring exposure to all of our quality partners, including Amalie Oil, TORCO Racing Fuels, Flatout Gaskets, NGK Spark Plugs, MSD, Performance Graphics, Powershield Coatings and Crane Cams," said McMillen.
The Gator Growls
The race started Friday afternoon as team InstiGator made it's first qualifying attempt. "We set the car up little soft for the first pass," explained Co-Crew Chief Brent "Skinny" Lidgard. Our goal was to get a down the track with a good ET and not hurt the car." The InstiGator posted a 6.163 ET which would qualified the team in the 9th position, but not good enough to make the new eight car field.
The second qualifying attempt provided a brief bit of excitement, but ultimately proved uneventful. After the car launched, a quick release mechanism malfunctioned, allowing the steering wheel to remain in McMillen's hands, unattached to the car. "Needless to say that will get your attention," stated a surprised McMillen. "It's never happened to me before, but other drivers shared their experiences with me. I'm just thankful that we were able to keep the car off of the wall and out of the other lane."
The Amalie Oil InstiGator would have a final attempt Saturday morning to make the event where 19 other Funny Car teams would fight for one of the eight available spots.
"The gloves were off," stated Co-Crew Chief Tad "TV" Heflick. "We had one chance left and we weren't going home early!" The final qualifying attempt paired McMillen against two-time Funny Car Champion Rob Atchison. McMillen took a hole shot and turned on the win light, placing the Amalie Oil InstiGator team solidly in the field in the second position with a 5.864 ET at 240.21 MPH. "While it wasn't an elimination round, it felt good to get a win light against Atchison and more importantly to get a number 2 qualifying spot," said McMillen. "My crew chief's, Skinny and TV Tad, haven't had a day off in a while. Our whole team including Rhonda, Carrie "CareBear", TV Dad, Charlie, Jim and Zak did a great job. Our team is coming together and our team work is getting better. We know hard work pays off."
McMillen eliminated 5-time World Champion Mark Thomas and Jim Sickles to make it to the final round for a rematch of the Amalie Oil Texas Nationals finals against 2-time World Champion Rob Atchison. McMillen registered phenomenal reaction times all through eliminations (.023, .019, .037), but even a hole shot against Rob Atchison could not change the final outcome. "We're still chasing that elusive Iron Man. If we keep putting ourselves in the path of opportunity like this, we'll get our Iron Man. Right now we're concentrating on consistency and working towards the championship," said McMillen. "We're in a good spot, it's only getting better from here."
By Jim - Posted on May 30, 2005 9:53 AM|Permalink
|
San Antonio, TX - Terry Mc Millen and the Amalie Oil InstiGator proved that you only get one chance to make a good first impression. Powered by Torco Race Fuels, the team raced to a final round appearance against two time IHRA Funny Car Champion Rob Atchison and was awarded "Best Appearing Pro Crew" by the IHRA during the Amalie Oil Texas Nationals. The team leaves San Antonio just 7 points out of first place.
Mc Millen began his season opening quest for his first Iron Man from the #4 qualifying position with a 5.944 ET at 235.93 MPH performance. "That was good enough to get us in the show, but we knew we had to get better to continue," stated Mc Millen. Mc Millen put out the call to his Co-Crew Chiefs Brent "Skinny" Lidgard and Tad "TV" Heflick to tune the machine for eliminations. With the help of crewmembers Dale "TV Dad" Heflick and Jim Walczak the team prepared the car for a first round appearance against the #5 qualifier Terry Munroe.
ELKHART, Ind. - Hindsight is always 20-20 and "Monday morning quarterbacks" always have the winning combination. Drag racing, like other competitive ventures, lends itself to second guessing and doubt. Terry McMillen, team owner and driver of the Amalie Oil / Wolverine Boots and Apparel Top Fuel Dragster, was beginning to form a few doubts of his own when he entered the IHRA Amalie Oil Texas Nationals recently.
CAYUGA, Ont. - Terry McMillen, driver of the Foley & Lewis, Torco Nitro Top Fuel dragster doubled his career win total with his second win this season. McMillen also scored his first Last Man Standing award when he captured low E.T. and the number one provisional qualifying position on Friday night. McMillen would end qualifying in the fourth position.
MARTIN, Mich. - Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car leave the Knoll-Gas Motorsports Park in Martin, Michigan this morning with a semi-final appearance to show for their efforts at the Torco Race Fuels Northern Nationals. McMillen plans on carrying the momentum into the Amalie Oil North American Nationals at this weekends event in Epping, New Hampshire.
GRAND BEND, Ont. - When the MOPAR Canadian Nationals were complete, Terry McMillen and the Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car had fought back into the top five of the Knoll Gas Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series. The Torco powered alcohol flopper made its best lap of the year but fell to event winner Paul Noakes.
EDMONTON, Alberta - He's pulling double duty this season, racing in both his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car and the Foley/Lewis backed Torco Nitro Top Fuel Dragster. In just his fifth Top Fuel event, Terry McMillen, an IHRA fan favorite, drove through a tough field including teammate and number one qualifier Doug Foley to earn his first Iron Man.
TULSA, Okla. - Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny car powered by Torco Race Fuels fought through rain delays and adversity to put the Hoosier Thunder Motorsports team back into the top 10.
SAN ANTONIO, TX - When Terry McMillen earned his Top Fuel license in October of 2005 behind the wheel of Evan Knoll's dragster, he had no idea where the road would lead. Shortly after McMillen earned his license he was diagnosed with a serious and rare fungal eye infection (Fusarium Keratitis) as a result of using Bausch & Lomb's ReNu with Moisture Loc product. The injury required McMillen to undergo corneal replacement and lens surgery. "For my safety and the safety of drivers around me, I had to sit out the 2006 season regarding Top Fuel racing," said McMillen. "It wasn't until recently that my doctor cleared me to race Top Fuel, with the provision that he checks my eye after each race. We have postponed future surgeries at this time."
SAN ANTONIO, TX - Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car, powered by Torco Race Fuels, showed up earlier for his partners race and the season opening Knoll-Gas Nitro Jam Drag Racing series event.
Martin, Mich. - In what began as a rescheduled event for inclement weather, the Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car powered by TORCO Racing Fuels, stormed back at the US 131 Motorsports Park's, National City Thunder Nationals to make a final round appearance. Terry McMillen, pilot of the Amalie sponsored hotrod found plenty to smile about after the event.
San Antonio, Tex - Terry McMillen and his Amalie Oil InstiGator Funny Car, powered by TORCO Racing Fuels, leave the season opening, eMax Drag Racing Series event with a semi-final appearance and a spot among the top 3 in the point standings. The Elkhart, Indiana driver eliminated Terry Munroe before falling to Mark Thomas. Thomas went on to win the event.
Eighteen Funny Cars made the trip to fight for one of the eight spots available. The team made 3 valiant attempts to qualify the car starting on a cool and brisk Friday night in the sand hills of eastern North Carolina. The weather proved to be more trick than treat, although the round ended with McMillen in the #7 position. Temperatures were again expected to be below normal for Saturday's qualifying and the IHRA responded positively by moving up each round 2 hours in the schedule. The InstiGator made a hard charge in the afternoon attempt, but a blown fuel line near the top end slowed the car to a respectable 5.892 ET, but in the #9 position, just .001 seconds from the field.
In Top Fuel action, the much anticipated driving debut of McMillen brought many to the starting line to see how the "Gator" could swim in the nitormethane pool of dragsters. With Mark Oswald consulting and under the watchful eye of Evan Knoll, the Lukoil sponsored machine made a nice 1st pass at 5.332ET / 206.20MPH after shutting down at the 1000ft mark. "We were mixing up a few cylinders on the top end - and I didn't want to tear anything up on the first hit, so I just clicked it off," explained McMillen. He was qualified 6th after the first round.
our head and wondered why our incremental times up until about half track were as good or better than most. Yet, our ET and MPH just wasn't there at the top end. Well, we found the culprit in the clutch system. If there's any team out there that thought we were going to just go through the motions in Rockingham, they better think again. We're going to be there to be a spoiler for someone!"
Epping, NH - The 10th Annual Amalie Oil North American Nationals lived up to the title sponsors company slogan. The event was "Better Than It Has To Be" resetting world records in each of the professional drag racing categories.
win and advancing to the semi-finals for a show down with Jim Sickles.
If it "ROCKS BOSTON" it must be Lyndon Byers (LB). LB, former Boston Bruin standout, and the WAAF 107.3 crew spent Saturday "Partying In The Pits" with the InstiGator team. The Boston radio station broadcasted live from the pits, interviewed McMillen and hosted a cookout for lucky listeners from their week long promotion.
McMillen Saturday atop the timing tower. McMillen appeared in studio with show on Friday and followed up with Saturday's live broadcast that featured one cast member (Laura) attempting a live interview while sitting in the car during a warm up. "We always have a lot of fun with these guys," added McMillen.
Eighteen Funny Cars showed up at the famed Norwalk Raceway Park to qualify for one of the eight available spots. While racing for eliminations on Sunday, the competitors reset the #5 IHRA Quickest Fields in Funny Car record with a 5.957 second field, leaving McMillen and his InstiGator just .005 short. "No doubt, we're disappointed," said McMillen. "There hasn't been much rest for this team," explained Tad "TV" Heflick, Co-Crew Chief, "and we won't rest until the Amalie Oil InstiGator is back in the finals." Co-Crew Chief, Brent "Skinny" Lidgard added, "This car has run in the '.80s and it will run in the '.80s again."
teams for a spot in the 8 car field, coming up just 0.018 seconds short.
The InstiGator team had an opportunity to appear on Hamilton's popular morning show CH Morning Live, Thursday before the race. "I knew that show was popular," commented Terry. "It was great to have all of the fans tell us that they liked our segment on the show." Terry was also featured when Mike Perry of 
Crew-chiefs were challenged to find a set up that would work with Mother Natures moods. Quick moving patches of clouds and rain would be followed by periods of hot sun and high humidity. "My crew did a great job," commented McMillen. "Our times were consistent all weekend long. We just couldn't find that tenth of a second we needed."
Grand Bend, ONT- As summer sets in and the weather heats up, so does the race for points towards the 2005 IHRA Funny Car Championship. The 6th Annual Mopar Canadian Nationals proved to be as hot as the summer for the Amalie Oil InstiGator, powered by TORCO Racing Fuels.
Richmond, VA - Terry McMillen and the Amalie Oil InstiGator, powered by TORCO Racing Fuels, growled back into the IHRA Funny Car points race at the Virginia Motorsports Park. The event marked the second time in three races that the team has made a final round appearance. The InstiGator team leaves Virginia third place in IHRA points.
"Needless to say that will get your attention," stated a surprised McMillen. "It's never happened to me before, but other drivers shared their experiences with me. I'm just thankful that we were able to keep the car off of the wall and out of the other lane."
San Antonio, TX - Terry Mc Millen and the Amalie Oil InstiGator proved that you only get one chance to make a good first impression. Powered by Torco Race Fuels, the team raced to a final round appearance against two time IHRA Funny Car Champion Rob Atchison and was awarded "Best Appearing Pro Crew" by the IHRA during the Amalie Oil Texas Nationals. The team leaves San Antonio just 7 points out of first place.
