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Angelle Sampey has wandered the desert of a winless streak since 2007, wondering if she would ever get a drink of victory again.
Sunday in Englishtown, at the conclusion of the NHRA Summernationals Pro Stock Motorcycle final, the three-time series champion found the oasis she's sought for what seemed like an eternity by beating Jerry Savoie for her much-needed victory, with a 6.87 to 6.92.
Joining Sampey for a bit of refreshment were Steve Torrence (Top Fuel), Ron Capps (Funny Car) and Greg Anderson (Pro Stock).
Sampey's fellow NHRA winners have all experienced a dry spell before in their storied careers, but not like the three-time series champion.
Sampey had the bike to beat earlier in the year as she rode her George Bryce-tuned bike to the No. 1 qualifier at the NHRA Southern Nationals, but the potential ride to the winner's circle proved to be a mirage.
“I’ve been under the weather all day, and didn’t know if I could do this physically,” Sampey said. “I looked like a mental patient when I won, at the finish line. I told my crew chief to check everything on the bike because I was jumping all around and punching it. I had to calm myself down just to get my helmet off.
“I know this is 42 wins, but my God it feels like my first.”
Top Fuel winner Torrence understands a thing or two about frustration but, on Sunday, all was well with his CAPCO dragster. For the second time this season, Torrence won from the pole position breaking a two-race final round losing streak by beating Tony Schumacher.
Torrence won the traction-plagued final round with only a 4.037 elapsed time at 281.71 mph.
"This is huge for my team and me," said Torrence. "This was a tough race with smoking tires and pedalfests. My car shut off short of the finish line, the engine had cylinders out, and the supercharger belt came off. I was trying to Flinstone it to the finish line. Somehow we squeaked ahead of Schumacher."
Capps continued his firm grip on the Funny Car division by beating teammate Jack Beckman in an all-Don Schumacher Racing final. Both had identical .063 reaction times, but Beckman smoked the tires at the hit of the throttle, enabling Capps to score a 3.954, 316.90 win.
The victory marked his second from the No. 1 position in a row, and third of the season.
"This win is something you hope will happen at the end of the day, but with the competition we have out here, you never figure it will go as planned," said Capps. "Rahn Tobler has given me such a fun car to race. We had some big match ups today."
For the fifth time this season, Anderson emerged victorious in the Pro Stock division and did so by beating Jason Line. The victory marked win No. 83 in his career and ensured the three-car KB Racing team total dominance in the class since NHRA required teams to convert to an electronic fuel injection combination.
"This has been an unreal dream season," said Anderson. "I keep wanting to pinch myself to see if this is really happening. I always pick up the paper the next day, and it really did happen. We've had a really good run."
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Bobby Bennett is the Publisher/Editor of CompetitionPlus.com, a leading independent online drag racing magazine, since 1999. For the latest in dragster news worldwide, visit www.competitionplus.com or follow on Twitter @competitionplus
