Stratford, Ontario team switches from blown Top Dragster
to nitrous-powered Cobalt Top Sportsman entry
by Bruce Melenbacher
STRATFORD, ONTARIO (January 20, 2010) – Spencer Hyde will be not only be in a new car for the upcoming Quick 32 Sportsman Series, he will be in a new class of car. Hyde, former driver of the Hyde Racing Top Dragster, will be piloting a 2007 Cobalt in the Top Sportsman division of the Series.
“We decided we wanted to go into a nitrous program, and wanted to jump into a door car,” explained Hyde, who placed eighth in the NAPA Auto Parts Quick 32 Sportsman Series Championship Point Award Series in 2009 with the team’s supercharged dragster.The new Hyde car will be the ex-Carl Spiering Cobalt, a car built for and raced in the Series by Spiering. The Jerry Bickel Race Cars machine features a 737-cubic inch nitrous-fed engine built and tuned by ERD (Engine Research and Development) from the Spiering shops in Jordan Station, Ontario.
While Hyde mentioned he had some time behind the wheel of a fendered race car, his experience was with a 10-second door-car on the quarter-mile, while the Cobalt should be capable of sub-seven-second times. The majority of his racing has been with Junior Dragsters before stepping into the speedy Top Dragster in 2009.
Hyde mentioned that the success of the team’s dragster program was due to crew chiefs Jim McCann and Rich Ingram.
“We want to thank Jim and Rich for all their help and guidance with the blower car,” Hyde said. “We wouldn’t be where we are without them. We relied on them constantly, and you can expect to see Jim and Rich around the Hyde pits again this year.”
Campaigning a 1967 Ford Mustang, Pompilio has raced in the Outlaw 10.5 class with his immaculate silver Mustang, and for 2010, the team has decided to compete in the PMRA Pro Modified arena.
