Screamin’ Eagle/Vance & Hines rider Andrew Hines opened the first round of the NHRA Full Throttle Countdown to the Championship playoffs by dominating qualifying, setting a new Pro Stock Motorcycle national elapsed time (E.T.) record, and advancing to the final round of eliminations at the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals presented by Lucas Oil at O’Reilly Raceway Park. Hines’ chance to sweep the event ended in the finals, when he lost to Suzuki rider LE Tonglet.
Hines and the Screamin’ Eagle Harley-Davidson V-Rod paced the field through all five rounds of qualifying for the U.S. Nationals, and set a new Pro Stock Motorcycle E.T. national record with a pass at 6.815 seconds in Saturday’s first session. That broke the record of 6.847 seconds set by Karen Stoffer in March at Gainesville, Fla. Hines later set a new track speed record for the class at 196.76 mph. By dominating qualifying, Hines earned 15 bonus points plus 20 bonus points for setting the new E.T. record.
With the bonus points and a run to the final round of eliminations, and the earlier exit of his closest rivals in the standings, Hines leaves this weekend with an 88 point lead in the Countdown.
“To come in here leading by 30 and leave leading by 88 is a pretty good weekend,” said Hines. “It’s been more than a year since the Screamin’ Eagle team held the national E.T. record, and that’s something we are proud to get back. I’ve got a good, consistent V-Rod to ride for the rest of the Countdown.”
Hines opened the elimination rounds on Monday with a win over Kendall Suzuki rider Wes Wells, who fouled at the start. Hines beat Lincoln Tech Suzuki rider Steve Johnson in round two, and got a win over Suzuki Extended Protection rider Jim Underdahl in round three as Underdahl’s bike broke during the run.
After one of six rounds in the NHRA Full Throttle Countdown, Hines leads the Pro Stock Motorcycle class in with 2243 points. Tonglet jumps from seventh place to second with 2155 points.