WHERE: O’Reilly RacewayPark at Indianapolis, Clermont, Ind. From I-465, exit Crawfordsville Road (Hwy. 136). Head west for
four miles through the town of Clermont. The facility’s main entrance is on the left, one-half mile past Raceway Road.
COURSE: Championship dragstrip; Track elevation is 700 feet above sea level; Track direction is south to north.
WHEN: Wednesday, Sept. 1 through Monday, Sept. 6.
PURSE: Cash and contingency awards of more than $2 million.
SCHEDULE:
WEDNESDAY, Sept. 1 – LUCAS OIL SERIES qualifying, 8:30 a.m.
THURSDAY, Sept. 2 – LUCAS OIL SERIES qualifying and eliminations, 8 a.m.
FRIDAY, Sept. 3 -LUCAS OIL SERIES eliminations, 7:30 a.m.
GET SCREENED AMERICA PRO MOD SERIES qualifying at 4:30 p.m.
FULL THROTTLE SERIES qualifying at 5:30 p.m.
SATURDAY, Sept. 4 – LUCAS OIL SERIES qualifying and eliminations, 7:30 a.m.
GET SCREENED AMERICA PRO MOD SERIES qualifying at 2:30 p.m. and 5:15 p.m.
FULL THROTTLE SERIES qualifying at 3and 6 p.m.
SUNDAY, Sept. 5 – LUCAS OIL SERIES eliminations, 7:30 a.m.
GET SCREENED AMERICA PRO MOD SERIES qualifying at 2 p.m.; first round of eliminations at 5 p.m.
FULL THROTTLE SERIES qualifying at 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.
MONDAY, Sept. 6 – Pre-race ceremonies, 9:30 a.m.
FULL THROTTLE SERIES eliminations begin at 11 a.m.
TELEVISION:
Sunday, Sept. 5, ESPN2 HD will televise one hour of qualifying coverage at 10 a.m. (ET).
Sunday, Sept. 5, ESPN2 HD will televise NHRA Race Day, a 30-minute magazine show at 11 a.m. (ET).
Sunday, Sept. 5, ESPN2 HD will televise two hours and 30 minutes of qualifying coverage at 11:30 a.m. (ET).
Sunday, Sept. 5, ESPN2 HD will televise two hours of qualifying coverage at 5 p.m. (ET).
Monday, Sept. 6, ESPN2 HD will televise five hours of eliminations coverage at 1 p.m. (ET).
SATELLITE (Digital SD feed):
Friday, Sept. 3, 9:30 – 10 p.m. (ET) – AMC 3/ Transponder 21K
Saturday, Sept. 4, 9:30 – 10 p.m. (ET) – AMC 3 / Transponder 21K
Sunday, Sept. 5, 8- 8:30 p.m. (ET) – AMC 3 / Transponder 21K
Monday, Sept. 6, 6:30 – 7 p.m. (ET) – AMC 3 / Transponder 21K
(12120 MHz, horizontal; Data Rate: 18.295441161 Mbp; Symbol Rate: 13.235 Ms; FEC: ¾; Bandwidth: 18 Mhz)
2009 EVENT WINNERS: Tony Schumacher, Top Fuel; Ashley Force Hood, Funny Car; Jeg Coughlin, Pro Stock; Hector Arana, Pro Stock Motorcycle;
EVENT HISTORY: The most historic and prestigious event in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series, the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals presented by Lucas Oil has been contested annually since 1955. Originally known as “The Nationals” and first held at an abandoned airstrip in Great Bend, Kan., the event made stops at Kansas City, Mo., Oklahoma City and Detroit before eventually moving to O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis in 1961. Past winners include “Big Daddy” Don Garlits, an eight-time winner in Top Fuel; Shirley Muldowney, 1982 Top Fuel winner; Don “The Snake” Prudhomme, a seven-time winner and one of a handful of drivers to win the event in both Top Fuel and Funny Car; and Bob Glidden, the legendary Pro Stock driver who dominated the race by advancing to the final round in 13 consecutive seasons from 1977-’89. The Indiana native won the event a record nine times. It is the only major motorsports event to be contested on Labor Day. In 2004 the event celebrated its 50th anniversary in memorable fashion with spectacular racing witnessed by one of the biggest crowds in NHRA history. Once again this year there promises to be major drama at the event as it will be the kick-off for the Countdown to 1, NHRA’s six-race championship playoffs in the Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship.
TRACK HISTORY: In 1958, led by Tom Binford, Frank Dickie, Rodger Ward and Howard Fieber, 15 Indianapolis-area businessmen and racing professionals invested $5,000 each to fund the development of what would become O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis. The group purchased a 267-acre farm about seven miles from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and developed a multipurpose auto racing facility. The original intention in creating O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis was to design a 15-turn, 2.5-mile road course. Nearly as an afterthought, and as an insurance measure against economic problems, the investment group decided to incorporate a quarter-mile drag strip into the long straightaway of the 2.5-mile road course design. Constructed with assistance from the NHRA, the drag strip was the first of the three courses to be completed, with the facility’s first event held on the strip in the fall of 1960.During the 1960 U.S. Nationals in Detroit, a handshake agreement between Binford and NHRA founder Wally Parks promised that the event would move to O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis in 1961. The historic three-year pact was signed and sealed under a tree in Detroit Dragway’s pits, and O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis eventually became the home of NHRA’s biggest annual event.The NHRA purchased the entire facility in 1979. The first major improvement came in 1983 with the construction and dedication of ParksTower, the four-story drag strip tower. In 1998, new grandstands, suites and a tower complex on the front straightaway were completed at the oval track at a cost of nearly $2.5 million, which included the repaving of the entire oval surface as part of a three-phase facility improvement project. In 2001, NHRA and O’Reilly Raceway Park constructed a new drag strip racing surface, replacing the strip with a 660-foot concrete pad and laying new asphalt on the remainder of the track and shutdown area. Prior to the 2003 Mac Tools U.S. Nationals, eight new luxury suites were added along the top of the west-side grandstands of the drag strip, giving fans a unique perspective of the action on the famed quarter-mile track. In 2006, new soft barrier walls were added to the oval. In 2007, the track announced its first track entitlement with O’Reilly Auto Parts. The track – formerly known as Indianapolis Raceway Park – is now known as O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis. During the winter of 2008, a new main track office building was constructed near the track entrance.
TICKETS: For tickets call (800) 884-NHRA (6472). Tickets also are available online at www.NHRATIX.com.
GENERAL ADMISSION (includes pit pass) – Wednesday: Adult, $10, Junior (6-12 years), free; Thursday: Adult, $25, Junior (6-12 years), free; Friday: Adult, $35; Junior (6-12 years), $10; Saturday: Adult, $46; Junior (6-12 years), $10. Sunday: Adult, $49; Junior (6-12 years), $10. Monday: Adult, $49; Junior (6-12 years), $10; Child (5 years and under), free in general admission and pit areas each day.
RESERVED (includes pit pass) – Friday: Adult, $45; Junior (6-12 years), $20; Child (5 years and under), $10. Saturday: Adult, $58; Junior (6-12 years), $22; Child (5 years and under), $12. Sunday: Adult, $61; Junior (6-12 years), $24; Child (5 years and under), $14. Monday: Adult, $61; Junior (6-12 years), $24; Child (5 years and under), $14.