Screamin’ Eagle/Vance & Hines rider Eddie Krawiec advanced to the semi-final round of NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle eliminations at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals at Bandimere Speedway. For the second straight event, Krawiec also rode his Harley-Davidson V-Rod motorcycle to the number one spot in qualifying rounds. Screamin’ Eagle/Vance & Hines rider Andrew Hines qualified fourth and lost in the second round at Bandimere. However, he retains his lead in the NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle season points race..

Krawiec made a 7.328-second pass at 181.74 mph in the third round of qualifying on Saturday morning to take the top spot at the high-altitude track, where the Vance & Hines team, which until recently was based in Colorado, has enjoyed much success.

“We were one-two right off the trailer on Friday, and had a great set-up all weekend,” said Krawiec. “Our crew chief, Matt Hines, has won here in the past and so has Andrew, so we can really bank on that experience when we come to Bandimere.”

On Sunday, Krawiec coasted through the first two rounds as his opponents, Ryan Schnitz and Karen Stoffer, started early and were out on red lights. In the semi-finals, Krawiec lined up against the Snap-On Tools Suzuki of Steve Johnson, but never left the starting line.

“Right after I staged, the throttle cable failed and the bike just settled into an idle,” said Krawiec, who went out in the third round for the second event in a row. “That’s really disappointing because we had a great bike and I felt comfortable and was making consistent starts. I’ve got qualifying figured out. Now I’ve got to get past the semi-final round.”

Hines also advanced through the first round when David Hope drew a red light, but then lost to Johnson’s 7.390 pass despite putting down a solid 7.423-second run and an outstanding 0.008 reaction time. Johnson lost to NitroFish Wear Buell rider Matt Smith in the final round.

“I cut a really good light and made a clean pass, so it’s hard to get too upset about losing that round,” said Hines. “I felt confident I’d be facing Eddie in the semi-final round, but Johnson just had a little more power. I’ll take the points lead to Sonoma, where we’ve run really well in the past.”

After eight rounds in the 2008 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series, Hines has 668 points and continues to lead the Pro Stock Motorcycle class. Smith moves into second place with 630 points, followed by Chip Ellis with 569, Chris Rivas at 512, and Krawiec with 481 points. NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycles will race next July 25-27 at the Fram/Autolite NHRA Nationals at Infineon Raceway, Sonoma, Calif.

Used with permission from H-D®.