On Sunday May 30th it was time for the second round of the 1999 JDRA National Championship, Drag Wars 2.

As usual, Gunter Automotive took part, this time with our largest contingent ever. A total of six cars represented Gunter Automotive directly, with two new invited drivers. Daniel Yap was there with his Subaru WRX on a direct invitation from Stephen, and John Ralston was on hand to handle his Mazda 323 GT-R as only he can.

The other representatives were Nicholas Hawthorne with his Honda Integra, Raymond Webb driving his "family car" Toyota GT4, Norris Crooks jr with his Honda Integra TypeR and John Fransis, also with a Honda Integra.

The mood in the Gunter Automotive pit area was a relaxed one, with quiet expectation. Ian Webb and Stephen had wanted to carry the Mazda to Vernamfield for a while, but other events and the cars' big accident last year prevented it from happening. This race meet was the culmination of hours of hard work, and everyone in the race team wanted to see what the car would do.

Qualifying got off to a late start, but once it did everything ran smoothly. Daniel Yap qualified his Subaru WRX STi at 13.5 seconds, surprising himself in the process. Bearing in mind that the car is completely stock, it was an excellent time. Nicholas Hawthorne qualified comfortably in ET Sportsman 1, as did Norris Crooks. John Francis qualified at a slow (to him) 15.7 and wondered if something was wrong with his car. Stephen told him to try again, and he came back smiling with a quicker timeslip. Raymond Webb ran his fastest time ever in the Celica ST205, a 14.1. Then it was time for John Ralston in the Mazda. John did an excellent job, especially considering it was his first time using a Christmas Tree and qualified at 12.2 seconds, thrilling the crowd at hand by using all 6 gears in the 1/4 mile.

So, with evryone comfortably qualified in their respective classes, it was time to prepare for the races. Nitrous bottles were checked, systems were purged, and everyone was ready.

In the end, the results speak for themselves.
First in ET Pro 1: John Ralston
First in ET Sportsman 1: Nicholas Hawthorne
Second in ET Pro 2: Daniel Yap
Second in ET Sportsman 1: Raymond Webb

To top it all off, Gunter Automotive had three qualifiers in the street car Quick 8; John Ralston, Daniel Yap and Raymond Webb. Raymond and Daniel were both eliminated in their first races, but John kept going to the line, facing car after car, until the final, which saw him up against a very fast Nissan Pulsar. With the crowd cheering him on, the result was a win for John, with a new Quick 8 record of 11.9 seconds as a bonus.

In all, a very successful day at Vernamfield for Gunter Automotive Racing.

Press reports soon. Watch this space.