Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Keith Haney completes first Drag Radial 
race as fastest nitrous car in class history
 
CECIL, Ga. (Feb. 22) -- Despite a tough loss in the third round, Keith Haney and his Keith Haney Racing team had a remarkable run in their first Drag Radial race, last weekend's Lights Out 7 event at South Georgia Motorsports Park.
 
Haney had a new Lucas Oil/RacingJunk.com Chevrolet built in secret in the off-season; Larry Jeffers Race Cars built the chassis and Switzer Dynamics finished the car. With Brandon Pesz and Brandon Switzer tuning, Haney became the fastest nitrous Radial Vs. The World driver in history.
 
Haney was also a fan favorite at the event, helping bring new fans to his team and to the Drag Radial world.
 
"It was truly a storybook weekend," Haney said. "To do what we did and to accomplish what we accomplished and earn the respect of the other Radial Vs. The World racers, it just doesn't happen in this world."
 
Haney's new car was one of the fastest of the large field of cars, with a top qualifying pass of 3.894 seconds at 191.81 mph that opened plenty of eyes, but he went faster in eliminations, with a top speed of 192.20 mph.
 
"We are officially the world's fastest nitrous Drag Radial car," Haney said. "We are the fastest 60-foot, 330-foot e.t. car. I hold every incremental record in my very first outing."
 
That says a lot about his car and his team.
 
"The team that we assembled this weekend deserved to win and I let 'em down," Haney said. "Yet they were still on cloud nine even after the race. That's when you know you have a good team and have people who want to be a part of your program."
 
One of those people was crewmember Andrew Arnold, who fell off Haney's trailer while putting up an awning. Arnold suffered minor injuries, but he stayed to work with the team the entire weekend.
 
Arnold was joined by many others in Haney's pit, from driver Jim Laurita to Rod and Kevin Pickett to Chris Bell to Monroe Guest to Shayne Lawson. They were all there to support Haney.
 
"We had a legendary pit," Haney said. "And I got a text from Daniel Pharris saying, 'I always wanted to race against someone of your team's caliber, and I did it.' I admire that because I've been that way."
 
Haney lost in the third round when his .099-second reaction time wasn't enough to beat Pharris, who won on a holeshot after a .036 light.
 
"I've never lost on a holeshot in my life, and I've been racing a long time," Haney said. "Truly, I've never, ever been beaten on a holeshot. He's a good driver, and he did his job on the Tree. I didn't.
 
"But I had the car to beat this weekend. I truly feel that, and I think everybody saw that."
 
Fans also saw the friendly side of Haney, who spent a lot of time engaging with them at the racetrack and online through his Keith Haney Racing Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/Keith-Haney-Racing-187112541341450/). Haney brought 600 KHR T-shirts and sweatshirts to the event, and he sold them all.

"It is amazing how many fans we made this weekend," Haney said. "Our Facebook page added more than 4,000 people last week. We had more than 128,000 people engaged to our Facebook page, so our social media went through the roof.
 
"The fans at the track loved that I stood at the back of the trailer with no barricades and talked to every one of them."
 
Many fans also enjoyed the verbal sparring between Haney and Lights Out 7 promoter Donald Long. Haney got the last word.
 
"I'm the only person who ever shut Donald Long's mouth," Haney said. "Every fan came up and said, 'You're the only person who said they were going to do something, and Donald said they wouldn't. You proved him wrong.' "
 
Haney also appreciated the countless text messages, phone calls, e-mails, and online posts he received over the weekend.
 
"Thank you to all those people who messaged me," Haney said. "They are the people who matter most, and I appreciate every one of them."
 
Sponsors Lucas Oil, RacingJunk.com, Switzer Dynamics, Pesz Performance & Tuning, Reher-Morrison, M&M Transmission, and Menscer Motorsports Shocks made Haney's foray into the Drag Radial world possible, and he continues to appreciate the support of wife Dee and children Timber, Alex, Madison, and Logan.
 
The new car will stay in Haney's garage until the Radial Revenge Tour on April 1-2 at Osage Casino Tulsa Raceway Park. Haney hopes for an even better event at the track he co-owns with Todd Martin.
 
"What a great atmosphere, what a remarkable race they put on here," Haney said. "We can take some of the good and bad of the experience, tweak it, and make it 10 times better at Tulsa."

Despite a tough loss in the third round, Keith Haney and his team had a 
remarkable 
run in their first Drag Radial race, last weekend's Lights Out 7 event at 
South Georgia 
Motorsports Park.

Monday, February 22, 2016

With large crowd cheering, Keith Haney returns for Lights Out 7 qualifying
CECIL, Ga. (Feb. 19) -- Keith Haney keeps surprising the Drag Radial world. Earlier this week, he put down what was the quickest pass in Drag Radial history during qualifying for the Lights Out 7 race at South Georgia Motorsports Park.
 
Haney then rebounded from a crash on Thursday to make it for the fourth round of qualifying on Friday, much to the delight of the large crowd at SGMP.
 
"The car's got duct tape on it," Haney said of his Lucas Oil/RacingJunk.com Chevrolet. "But we made it to fourth round. Nobody could believe it. I've never seen 10,000 people on their feet when I pulled up. I was the last car to go down the racetrack, and every person was on their feet screaming for Keith Haney Racing. It was the craziest thing you've ever seen."
 
Haney remains in the No. 3 qualifying position, with one more round slated for Saturday. His pass of 3.894 seconds at 191.81 mph on Wednesday raised plenty of eyebrows, but he was off to an even better pass Thursday. After a .984-second 60-foot time, Haney got into trouble when he ran through some liquid on the track.
 
"We get in some oil at about 250 feet," Haney said. "I stayed on the gas a little longer than I probably should've, so I'll take part of the blame. It was exactly one second when the car started spinning the tire and then turned directly left. When it washed out, the car was totally sideways, heading into the wall. I yanked the wheel as hard as I could to keep it off the wall."
 
Haney's car slid sideways into the wall, damaging the driver's side bodywork and the headers on that side of the car.
 
"Nothing was hurt on the race car but the body," Haney said.
 
But the body and headers needed attention, and Haney had plenty of people jump in to help his Keith Haney Racing team of Brandon Pesz, Brandon Switzer, and Andrew Arnold. Drivers Monroe Guest and Shane Lawson chipped in, as did the Pickett brothers. Plus, Switzer Dynamics employees Dan Carver and Brian Sitton drove from PRO-FABrication in Concord, N.C., to work on new headers for Haney's Reher-Morrison Racing Engines powerplant.
 
"I asked (tuners) Brandon Switzer and Brandon Pesz at least three times apiece if everything was OK," Haney said. "They told me, 'Everything's good, Keith. Just do your job.' "
 
The work was done, but Haney ran into a last-minute issue before qualifying Friday.
 
"We start the car, put it in gear, and the converter is locked up," Haney said. "We've got 30 minutes to get to the lanes. We get the transmission out, put a new converter in it, and we make it up there. They duct-taped the door shut. When I got done with my pass, I got out on the passenger side."
 
Haney smoked the tires on that pass, but simply making it to the session and completing a run was important to him.
 
"I owe every single bit of it to my team," Haney said. 
 
After the final round of qualifying, eliminations begin Saturday night, with the race completed on Sunday. And Haney already is predicting an all-Oklahoma driver final.
 
"I already called it: Me and DeWayne (Mills) are going to meet in the final round," Haney said. "No. 2 and No. 3: Oklahoma to the front."
 
Lucas Oil, RacingJunk.com, Switzer Dynamics, Pesz Performance & Tuning, Reher-Morrison, and M&M Transmission are partnering with Haney this weekend.

Keith Haney rebounded from a crash on Thursday to make it for the fourth 
round of
 qualifying on Fridayat the Lights Out 7 race at South Georgia 
Motorsports Park.
Keith Haney had plenty of people jump in to help his team of Brandon Pesz, Brandon Switzer, and Andrew Arnold.

Thursday, February 18, 2016

Keith Haney speeds to provisional No. 1 with quickest pass in Drag Radial history
CECIL, Ga. (Feb. 17) -- Keith Haney didn't come into the Drag Radial world to
 play around; he came to win.
On Wednesday night, Haney showed just how serious he is by running what is 
considered to be the quickest elapsed time in Drag Radial history, 3.894 seconds 
at 191.81 mph, to claim the provisional No. 1 spot for the Lights Out 7 race at 
South Georgia Motorsports Park.
And for all the fun Haney has had in secretly building the Lucas Oil/RacingJunk.com 
Chevrolet and verbally jousting with his competitors, he was humbled by the 
accomplishment.
"If it wasn't for Brandon Switzer and Brandon Pesz, Andrew Arnold, Reher-Morrison, 
Martin Mickie, Lucas Oil, Racing Junk, Larry Jeffers, and all my guys at Keith 
Haney Racing, this wouldn't have happened," Haney said. "If it wasn't for my family,
 my wife, my kids, this wouldn't have happened. I've never been away from home for 
10 days, not one time, but they've let me.
"I could go home tomorrow and know that I accomplished what everybody 
said I couldn't do. But it wasn't me."
Haney said he simply lets "go of the button" on the starting line, while plenty of 
people have worked countless hours preparing his new car. It started with Larry Jeffers 
Race Cars building a state-of-the-art chassis, and then Switzer, Dan Carver, and 
Brian Sitton from Switzer Dynamics finished the car.
"Larry Jeffers built the chassis, and then it went to Brandon Switzer's," Haney said.
 "Brandon and his guys all worked very hard putting this car together. They had some 
late nights, sleepless nights, long hours. I created hell for these guys."
Haney also gives credit to Reher-Morrison Racing Engines for good horsepower, to 
Mark Mickie of M&M Transmissions for helping harness that power, and Menscer 
Motorsports for building a set of shocks this week.
And, of course, he thanks Switzer and Pesz for tuning the engine/chassis combination. 
The duo had never tuned a Drag Radial car until this week, when Haney tested the
 new car at Orlando Speed World before coming to SGMP.
"Guess what? They just know how to drag race," Haney said. "It doesn't matter if it's a 
big tire or a little tire. What matters is they put as much passion and hard work 
into as I do in driving."
During Haney's pass, he recorded the quickest 60-foot and 330-foot times in a 
Drag Radial car.
"I've got goose bumps," Haney said. "I don't know what to say. I guess it's just like 
Erica (Enders) winning for the first time; that's what I relate it to. They said she couldn't 
do it, they said I couldn't do it. She did it, I just did it.
"I had a premonition that something special was going to happen. I live life like that. 
Everything happens for a reason."
Haney was also thinking about his wife, Dee, and his kids, Timber, Alex, Madison, 
and Logan, as he was celebrating his quick run.
"My wife and my family letting me be gone this long, there's nothing better," Haney said. 
"Nothing better."

Keith Haney ran what is considered to be the quickest e.t. in Drag Radial history, 
a 3.894 at 191.81 mph, to claim the provisional No. 1 spot for the Lights Out 7 race 
at South Georgia Motorsports Par

Sunday, February 14, 2016

Keith Haney tests Pro Nitrous, 
Radial cars at Orlando Speed World

ORLANDO, Fla. (Feb. 13) -- Keith Haney and his Keith Haney Racing team kick off their 2016 season with a test this weekend at Orlando Speed World.


Keith Haney's new Drag Radial car was built by Larry Jeffers Race Cars and completed by Brandon Switzer and his Switzer Dynamics team.

Haney will drive both his Pro Nitrous car and his new Drag Radial car for two days in central Florida. The Professional Drag Racers Association season, during which Haney will drive his Lucas Oil/RacingJunk.com Camaro, begins in March at Osage Casino Tulsa Raceway Park.

But Haney is also entered in the Lights Out 7 Drag Radial race at South Georgia Motorsports Park next week, which will be the debut of his new Drag Radial Camaro.

"I've never driven a Drag Radial car, so am I nervous? Absolutely," Haney said. "Do I feel like it's going to be any different than what I've been doing? No."

Testing has gone "amazing" so far, according to Haney. He and his team began the trek to Florida on Friday, when he went to Innovative Safety Products in Concord, N.C., to have his seat installed in the Drag Radial car, and then to Florida to test. He started his first passes in the Drag Radial car on Saturday, learning the nuances of the car.

"When they shake, you better get out of it," Haney said. "The driving side of it is totally different. It's like a Pro Stocker: When it starts to shake, you're done, you lift. There's no driving through it. And if you try to drive through it, you're liable to end up on your lid or in the wall. A radial is totally different than a big tire."

The new car was built by Larry Jeffers Race Cars and completed by Brandon Switzer and his Switzer Dynamics team. It was completed in secret and announced only recently, turning the Drag Radial world on its ear.

This week, Haney debuted the new car to the public.

"The car is so cocky," Haney said. "I've got blowers, I've got turbos, I've got superchargers in the background on the car, and it's a nitrous car. On the back, it says, 'If you're looking at this, I'm on the cover of Drag Illustrated.' "

The car is matte black, with black and white decals from his many sponsors adorning it. Everything on the new car is the latest technology, and Haney credits Switzer for building an exceptional piece.

"I put something on Brandon Switzer and his shop that they weren't expecting," Haney said. "The chassis and the shell was built at Larry Jeffers' shop, and then it went to Brandon. He got it in December, and he just fired the car earlier this week. They had to do everything to this car.

"Everything we learned from my Pro Nitrous car went into the Drag Radial car. Every issue we ran into before has been fixed in this car. He threw the kitchen sink at this car, and his people have put in countless hours. This car is truly a state-of-the-art Drag Radial car."

Haney credits Lucas Oil, RacingJunk.com, Switzer Dynamics, Brandon Pesz and Pesz Performance & Tuning, Reher-Morrison, and M&M Transmission for helping with the 2016 season.


To see more photos of Haney's new Drag Radial car, click here.




Keith Haney and his Keith Haney Racing team kick off their 2016 season by testing both his Pro Nitrous car and his new Drag Radial car this weekend at Orlando Speed World.