Drags bring thrill of racing to Dallesport

Keever drove the Rage Graphix & Design/Keever’s Transmission sponsored 1967 Chevrolet Camaro to victory in the Super Pro class (under eight seconds). Keever, 19, won three ET bracket elimination round races on the one-eighth mile straightaway to advance to the finals. She crossed the finish line at 98 miles per hour, while posting an elapsed time (ET) of 6.9 seconds, in the Camaro, which has a 427 cubic-inch V-8 engine with 700 horsepower. Prineville’s John Smith was runner up in his 1971 Chevy Nova.

“It feels pretty good to win, and it was just awesome, because I’ve never won a race like this before,” said Keever, a 2017 Dufur High graduate who helped lead the Rangers to back-to-back OSAA Class 1A football state championships (2015, ‘16). “To come out here and jump in my dad’s (Randy Keever) car was exciting and then winning first place was even more exciting. The main thing is you come here to have fun and even though everyone is very competitive, you have to remember that it’s just for fun. It’s a fun, local event that brings out a big crowd, and I’m just happy that I was able to win.”

Keever’s sister Janelle also competed in the race, and she drove a nearly identical-looking 1967 Camaro, which has a 355 cubic-inch V-8 motor with 500 horsepower. Janelle, 24, lost in the first round of the Pro-class bracket eliminations. Janelle had a breakout penalty since she clocked an ET of less than eight seconds and went faster than she was allowed in her class, which is eight seconds or higher.

“It’s definitely very special, and it was awesome to win,” said Bailey Keever. “I had lots of help and I couldn’t do it without my dad. There was lots of preparation time before the race when we had to get both of our cars ready and check everything out to make sure the cars are OK.”

Coe, of Lyle, drove his 2008 Subaru WRX to victory in the Pro class. He won four elimination round events to reach the finals. Coe won a very close race over runner-up Ken Hudson of Mosier, who drove his 1957 Chevy. Coe hit 84 miles per hour for an ET of 8.05 seconds, while Hudson clocked in at 8.15 seconds. Coe, who had entered the race for just his second time, also competes in drag races every Friday at Portland International Raceway.

“It feels good to win, and last year I didn’t do very well, so this year it’s been a lot more fun,” said Coe, 22, a 2014 Lyle High School graduate. “I had an awesome day; it was lots of fun, and I love racing my car. I like the Dallesport Drags because it’s a big family affair. When I go to other tracks, I don’t see everyone I know there like I do here. It’s a hometown event; everyone is here, and that makes me feel pretty good. It was a super close race with Ken, who is really a great guy, and I enjoyed talking to him after the race. He was pushing me all the way to the end and I came close to a breakout. You don’t want to do that, because if you do, then you lose.”

Hudson, 73, has entered the drags every year except for the 2003 debut event and is the oldest driver in the race. Hudson enjoyed one of his best days at the track while driving his Chevy, which has a 427 cubic-inch V-8 engine with 475 horsepower.

“Getting second was really nice, so it was a good day, and I had lots of fun,” said Hudson, who won the Pro class trophy in 2011. “At least I didn’t go out in the first round, which is something that has happened to me before at this event. We had some good races today, and there were some cars that I’ve never seen here before, so that was good. A friend of mine, Jim Warren from North Plains, came to watch and, I haven’t seen him in about five years, so it was good to see him.”

Hudson and many other local drivers also compete often at Madras Dragstrip. Hudson took third place in the Sportsman Division race there Aug. 11, enjoying a very successful weekend of racing with a second and a third place. Hudson is ranked in the top-10 of the Napa High Desert Auto Supply Racing Series point standings.

Other local drivers who will likely compete in Madras Sept. 15-16 include Mike Brace, Rick Manzella, Chuck Ziegler, Bailey Keever, Lee Hazel, Shannon Tatom and her father Russ Brown. Tatom is ranked second in the Sportsman Division standings at Madras, just behind leader Ken Green of Happy Valley.

Ziegler, The Dalles, competed in the Sportsman class with his 1984 Dodge Hurst Oldsmobile, and he reached Sunday’s four-car semifinal round before he lost in an elimination race. Manzella, of Lyle, drove his 1986 Ford Mustang in the Sportsman class and lost in a first round elimination race to Ty Tibbets of The Dalles, who drove his 2009 Dodge Challenger.

“Ty’s car was a little faster than mine,” said Manzella, who drove a Mustang. “It’s my wife’s car, but we pulled it out of the barn and brought it down here to race, and I had lots of fun.”

Manzella’s wife Sissy has also competed in the Dallesport Drags odriving the Mustang.

Tibbets and his son Tim both competed in the race. Ty, 49, lost in the second round of eliminations. Tim, 20, drove a 1972 Chevy Luv pickup in the Pro class and lost in the first round. Tim Tibbets had a breakout when he timed in at 7.79 seconds, which was less than the time allowed in his class of eight seconds or higher. Ty Tibbets has competed in the race all 13 years, and, he won the Modified class trophy in 2006 in the Luv pickup.

If there was a Rookie-of-the-Year trophy, then Lyle’s Chris Fritz would’ve definitely earned that award. Fritz, who was competing in his first ever drag race, drove his 1971 Dodge Challenger to victory in the Sportsman class. Fritz won three elimination round events to reach the finals, and then he won that race to earn the first place trophy.

“It was amazing,” said Fritz. “I got some help from some of the veteran drivers, and they gave me some tips on how to play the game of bracket racing. It was a really close race in the finals, and I almost had a breakout. My time was 10.01 seconds. If I would’ve went less than 10 seconds, then I would’ve had the breakout, so I eased off the accelerator a little bit at the end of the race.”

Hahn, of The Dalles, drove his 2015 Challenger to victory in the Modified class. He won in the finals over Dustin Carter of Prineville, who drove a 1978 Chevy Malibu. Hahn, 46, has competed in the Dallesport Drags all 13 years.

During a halftime break of the races, Hollywood stuntman James August Smith from Appleton, Wash., displayed his driving skill. Smith drove his 2002 Ford Crown Victoria on the two right side wheels along the entire length of the track, then turned round and drove it back to the starting line. Smith, 45, has appeared in many movies including Transformers and Fast And Furious Eight, and he’s performed at the Dallesport Drags almost every year.

Another stuntman, Sean Hadley of Vancouver, performed daredevil tricks on his motorcycle in what was truly an amazing and crowd pleasing performance.

A total of 63 racers (including motorcyclist’s) participated in the event, which was organized by Tim and Robin Urness of Dallesport.

“We had great group of drivers and sometimes things happen in the pit area with issues such as who gets to drive, who doesn’t get to drive and which lane they’re in, but these guys are all good competitors who enjoy drag racing,” said Tim Urness. “Sometimes they look for somebody to make a decision for them. I prefer to tell them that they should get together and make decisions among themselves. All of them embraced that philosophy of taking care of their issues and making sure that everything is done fair, and they all supported each other very well. The track condition was great, and it was probably the best we’ve ever had with everyone getting good traction at the starting line.

“To see James Smith, the motorcycle stunt rider, and the drag races, was really the best deal in town. It’s a free event, because the $10 fee is just for parking, and it’s also a fundraising event for the local Boy Scouts.”

Professional motorsports announcer Geoff Moore, The Dalles, volunteered his skills at the event as did Chuck Covert, Eric Urness, Gigi Urness, Don Law and Mike and Lisa Erland, among others. An estimated 1,200 people attended the race, which was about half of the attendance of the 2017 event.