Enders-Stevens in at No. 16 after crazy day for Keith Haney Racing

ROCKINGHAM, N.C. (Sept. 7) - Keith Haney Racing experienced the gamut of emotions during qualifying for ADRL's Dragstock X on Saturday at Rockingham Dragway.

For starters, team owner Keith Haney failed to qualify for the race in his RacingJunk.com/Lucas Oil Camaro, but Haney then watched as his other car, the RacingJunk.com/Lucas Oil Camaro driven by Erica Enders-Stevens, bumped its way into the top 16 in the final qualifying session.

Enders-Stevens' spot wasn't secure, though, and she was knocked out of the field soon after her run. However, Tim Savell, one of the two drivers who moved her out of the top 16, crashed in his Q3 pass. Savell will be unable to make the call for Sunday's eliminations, putting Enders-Stevens in the field at No. 16.

"I was excited that we could get the car from point A to point B," Enders-Stevens said of her Q3 pass, which was 4.071 seconds at 187.08 mph. "So far that's my quickest run in the car: 187 mph is pretty dang good in an eighth of a mile. I'm really excited for the team."

But then her heart sank when two cars went quicker and then sunk even more when Savell hit the wall after his pass.

"All the excitement went out the window when Tim crashed because we wanted to make sure he was all right," Enders-Stevens said. "Being a new driver in Pro Mod, that's not exactly something I like to see: a veteran crashing. It goes to show what a challenge these cars are to handle.

"But at the end of the day, we're all safe and we get to race on Sunday. That's what's important for our team."

Haney, unfortunately, was unable to get his Camaro down the track in Saturday's three qualifying sessions, as he was struck by different issues in each run,

"It was a tough day for both of us but it was probably tougher for me," said Haney, who failed to qualify for the first time this season. "The first one we shook, and the second one we blew the tires off. We had a mistake by the driver, but we blew the tires right off the hit, so it wouldn't have mattered if I had been dead on my game. Then the last pass we had a team malfunction, and I sounded like a popcorn machine going down the racetrack because I didn't have enough nitrous."

After Haney disappointingly crawled out of his car, he watched for Enders-Stevens' run, which was a solid pass.

"I'm jumping up and down and Rickie Smith goes, 'What are you doing?' " Haney said. "I said, 'She went down the racetrack.' I saw the chutes come out and said, 'Oh, yeah! I don't know what she ran but yeah!'

"I'm jumping up and down, don't know what the heck to do. I'm ticked off because I'm not in, but I'm happier than hell and hoping she's in."

Enders-Stevens, too, was happy with the run but hopes to improve on Sunday against No. 1 qualifier Chris Rini, whose best lap was 3.876 seconds at 190.59 mph.

"We got back to our baseline with this car," Enders-Stevens said. "Hopefully we'll be able to tune from there for tomorrow. There's no reason why we can't run better. That Q3 run felt really soft. They can definitely hop it up a little bit and hopefully tomorrow is a good day. We have to face the No. 1 qualifier, but I've seen stranger things happen on Sunday. We'll go in with a positive outlook and see what we can do."
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Keith Haney Racing, Enders-Stevens ready to rock at ADRL Dragstock X

ROCKINGHAM, N.C. (Sept. 5) - A recent test session has Keith Haney and Erica Enders-Stevens pumped about ADRL Dragstock X this weekend at Rockingham Dragway.

Haney and Enders-Stevens tested Keith Haney Racing's Chevrolet Camaro at Osage Casino Tulsa Raceway Park last week, with Enders-Stevens testing two days in the black Racing Junk/Lucas Oil Camaro and Haney one in the Lucas Oil Chevy.

Keith Haney and Erica Enders-Stevens will team to race at Dragstock X

"After adjusting chassis and making corrections on a lot of the nitrous setup, we finally did really well," Haney said. "We found a couple of issues that we had in the black car. We believe we've fixed the issues from Memphis (Tenn.), so we obviously found a lot of things in the test that will allow us to do real well at The Rock."

Haney said wiring issues with Enders-Stevens' car were causing some problems, but once those were discovered crew chief Brandon Pesz of Lethal Acceleration was able to put in a solid tune-up.

"I'm feeling a lot more comfortable in the car," Enders-Stevens said. "We're getting closer with the setup. It's always a challenge with a new driver and having to move weight around to get the car optimized for the best performance, but the test session definitely helped.

"Having Racing Junk on the car is pretty cool, too. I know how hard it is to get sponsorship these days, so for them to come on board is a feather in Keith's cap. We're excited to run well for them this weekend."

Enders-Stevens made her first appearance in a nitrous race car in Memphis last month, though she lost in the first round. Expectations are higher this time around.

"I'm excited," Enders-Stevens said. "I wasn't nervous the first run of the test session. I feel a lot better in the car, and I've gotten acquainted with the car. As a driver that is always helpful when it comes time to go racing."

Enders-Stevens certainly knows Rockingham Dragway, as she has tested there for years while racing in NHRA Pro Stock.

"That is our home test track for Pro Stock," said Enders-Stevens, a five-time winner in the ultra-competitive NHRA class. "I've been testing there for the last 10 years, at least a few times a year. I'm very familiar with the track and the personnel. It was one of ADRL's biggest events in the past, so I'm looking forward to a packed house this weekend."

Enders-Stevens' appearances in ADRL has drawn plenty of attention for the league, Keith Haney Racing, and its sponsors: Lucas Oil, Pro Torque, Racing Junk, Five Star Bodies, Monroe Guest Motorsports, Regional Hyundai, Suburban Chevrolet, Classic Chevrolet, Miami Chevrolet Buick GMC, Nissan of Muskogee, and Tulsa Raceway Park.

Haney also sends a special thank-you to Kenny Nowling and the ADRL for the support he and the league have given Haney and Enders-Stevens.

"She's a lot more confident," Haney said of Enders-Stevens. "We were real happy with the whole test session. We had Brandon Pesz from Lethal Acceleration just concentrating on her and I and it went real well. We're real excited about it.

"We're going in with a chance to win. That's what matters."

Haney and Enders-Stevens will test on Friday in Rockingham, with three rounds of qualifying on Saturday and eliminations on Sunday.

   Erica Enders-Stevens will drive the Racing Junk/Lucas Oil Camaro at Dragstock X.

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