Line Focused on Achieving Long-Awaited Topeka Victory
 
Mooresville, N.C., May 15, 2013 – Summit Racing driver Jason Line is pleased with the progress that the dedicated KB Racing team has shown in the last few events in NHRA’s 2013 Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. Steady forward momentum resulted in a Houston win for the second-generation drag racer in the shiny blue Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro and a positive showing for both Line and teammate Greg Anderson at the rain-delayed event in Atlanta just last weekend, where they were in the top three in qualifying and put forth some of the quickest runs on raceday.
 
But now, Line is very focused on checking off what has become a fairly high-priority task on his to-do list by earning the trophy at a racetrack where he has yet to see the inside of the winner’s circle as a Pro Stock competitor. Heartland Park Topeka is one of just six facilities – including New England Dragway, a new addition to the tour this year – where the two-time series champion has yet to score a victory as a pro.
 
“Still, I’ve always enjoyed going to Topeka,” said Line, who experienced success as a sportsman racer at Heartland Park and won a division-level event there before graduating to the professional ranks. “I raced my Stocker at the first event held there, so I have some pretty good memories to draw on when we roll through the gates. Last year the KB Racing team did pretty well there, and hopefully we’ll be able to do even better with our Summit Racing Camaros.”
 
Last season, Line clocked a remarkable 6.566 in the first round of eliminations on raceday in Topeka to claim low e.t. of the meet and reset the Heartland Park Topeka track record. Line was extremely fast in each round on Sunday, and the only person who could stop him turned out to be his Summit Racing teammate Greg Anderson, who got the nod in their semifinals meeting and was runner-up at the event.
 
This year, particularly in light of their recent upswing, Line is optimistic that Team Summit will have a chance to again ruffle feathers in Kansas.
 
“The whole team has been working really hard both at the KB Racing shop, in testing, and at each race we go to,” said Line, currently No. 5 in the Mello Yello Series standings. “We should be competitive when we get to Topeka, and we may not be as fast as we were last year, but we will be able to make a decent showing. You always hope that one of these years you’ll manage to win this thing – my teammate has won it four times, so I know it’s possible – and maybe this will be my year to do it.”
 
This year has so far been a challenge for all of the NHRA teams as they’ve battled gruesome weather, shortened qualifying sessions, and many delays. The unforgiving conditions have kept teams on the road without much of a break, and with less than a week between last weekend’s delayed completion of the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals in Atlanta and the upcoming event in Topeka, teams are stretched to their limits.
 
“It’s both good and bad,” said Line. “We miss having the time at the shop to work on things, because that time is definitely valuable, but the way things have worked out certainly allows you to get into a groove, so to speak. Hopefully, that will work to our advantage because my expectations are to win this race. No question about it. These Summit Racing Chevy Camaros are capable of winning, and that is always the expectation.”

Line Just Misses At Summit Racing Southern Nationals
 
Atlanta, Ga., May 11, 2013 – Summit Racing Pro Stock driver Jason Line was fired up at his sponsor’s event at Atlanta Dragway, the 33rd annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals, and came into raceday as the No. 7 qualifier with something to prove. Although he was stopped short of achieving his goal, Line is grateful for a weekend that although delayed, proved productive.

Rain delayed the initial start to the event by an entire week, and Line and his team took careful advantage of the days between the eventual completion of the race. They returned home to Mooresville, N.C., and to the KB Racing shop and set back to work in search of more power and a better presentation than they’ve had so far this season. Line qualified in Atlanta with a 6.609 at 209.69 and a scored a first-round meeting with young Vincent Nobile. Last season, when Line was the No. 1 qualifier here at the Summit Racing Southern Nationals, he defeated Nobile in the second round on the way to the final.

With the realization that he was coming up against a routinely efficient starting-line manipulator, Line had his ducks in a row and left the starting line cleanly with a notable .019-second reaction. As predicted, Nobile was quick at the hit and launched with a .013. First to the finish, however, was Line driving the blue Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro. His 6.615 at 209.62 mph was second-quickest of all the Pro Stockers in the first round, and his opponent ran into trouble as he got out of the groove and had to give up the run.

In the second round, Line was again prepared for the challenge and clocked a very decent .025-second light to Jeg Coughlin’s .013. Line’s powerful Team Summit Chevy Camaro was second quickest of the round once more and quicker to the finish line stripe than his opponent, 6.619 to 6.624, but he forfeited the win by a mere .007-second.

“I’d take that light nine out of 10 times,” said Line. “If I could have a light like that every time I went to the starting line, I’d be in pretty good shape. But today, it wasn’t good enough. I wanted to be better than that, but you can’t beat yourself up over it. You just have to focus on being better the next time.”

Despite the early exit, Line moved up to the No. 5 position in the Mello Yello Series Pro Stock standings. He found the back-to-back journey to Atlanta to be a moderate success that will bode well for the future of the Summit Racing team.

“All in all, it was a good weekend,” said Line. “We definitely showed progress with both cars in the Summit Racing camp, and to be honest, I’m most excited about the fact that Greg has not really had a good car for quite some time. I feel like he had the best car he had all year this weekend, and we came up a little bit short, but it wasn’t terrible and it’s nothing to hang our heads over.

“We lost a good, close race, and sometimes that’s just the way it goes. But we’ll go back to work and try hard to find even more performance with our Summit Racing Camaros. We’re definitely heading in the right direction. This is a great team, and we all have the same goal: everyone on the Summit Racing team wants to be better than everybody else out here. We don’t strive for mediocrity; we have a good group of motivated guys who are all striving for perfection. It isn’t always easy, but that’s a really cool thing to be part of.”

Anderson Forward Focused Following Summit Racing Southern Nationals
 
Atlanta, Ga., May 11, 2013 – Summit Racing Pro Stock driver Greg Anderson wasn’t a winner in the traditional sense at Atlanta Dragway’s 33rd annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals, but the four-time NHRA champion leaves the event with uplifted spirits and a renewed enthusiasm about the stature of his program.

Anderson made certain gains in Atlanta en route to the semifinals at his sponsor’s title event. The race was delayed by one week due to persistent, wet and stormy weather that plagued the race on the originally scheduled weekend, and the postponement allowed the Summit Racing team to venture home to North Carolina and set right to work in the Mooresville, N.C.-based KB Racing shop.

“We used those days to go and work on our racecars, and I definitely think that made us a little bit better,” said Anderson. “The good news after this weekend is that I think we’ll be better from here on out. We definitely used those days to our advantage, and we certainly made progress so that we all feel a whole lot better about our Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaros. We didn’t win the race, but I really felt like we had a legitimate chance to win. We ran well, and we didn’t have to count on crazy strokes of luck. That’s a good feeling, and we feel like everything is moving in the right direction.

“We also made a personnel change this weekend and added Tim Freeman to the roster. He’s a hardcore, old-school racer who we’ve observed out here for many years, and he brings a lot of experience to the table. No matter how good you’ve been, sometimes you get a little stale, a little stagnant, and you need a new perspective. This is a new chapter for us, and we’re going forward with a new attitude. So far, the results look good.”

Anderson, the No. 4 qualifier, made his best start since the Phoenix event at the beginning of the season and knocked out Chris McGaha in the opening act with a 6.623 at 209.33 mph. In the second round, the Anderson dug deep and launched off the starting line with a well-calculated .018-second reaction time against notoriously quick leaver Greg Stanfield, who was .026 at the hit and was on the losing end of the battle as Anderson went 6.630 in his Summit Racing Camaro to better a 6.677.

For the third time this season, Anderson scored a ticket to the semifinals, and this time he came up against No. 1 qualifier Mike Edwards. A respectable .036 paired with a strong 6.609 at 209.82 mph was just .009-second short of the win light – Edwards advanced with a 6.607, 209.65.

“Summit Racing Equipment is on the billboard here, and it’s very important for us to do well at our sponsor’s race,” said Anderson, now 8th in the Mello Yello Series Pro Stock standings. “It’s certainly not okay to fail anywhere, but there is some extra pressure at a Summit race because you don’t want to fail in front of them; you want to make them proud. But it ups the ante for us, and we all seem to perform a little better under the gun. I think I could have won this race, but Edwards just did a little better job than me today and we didn’t get to go to the final.

“The Summit Racing team is not leaving Atlanta satisfied, but we feel a whole lot better about our program. This is an exciting time for us, and we’ll use the next few days before Topeka to make our program better yet. We’ll roll into Heartland Park next week with a positive feeling that we can contend for the race wins. We’re seeing the light at the end of the tunnel now, and we’re very happy about that.”

Line Sees Progress within Team, Ready to Race at Summit Racing Southern Nationals
 

Atlanta, Ga., May 10, 2013 – Summit Racing Pro Stock driver Jason Line and Team Summit were certainly disappointed that qualifying for the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals was relegated to just two qualifying sessions and delayed by a week due to rainy, stormy weather on the originally scheduled weekend, but the postponement did nothing to faze their forward-progress, and they carefully utilized the two available qualifying passes to prepare for a strong run for the trophy on raceday at Atlanta Dragway.

Line launched into qualifying with a 6.628, 209.23 mph blast in the first session that had him paused briefly in the No. 8 spot, and he followed up with an improved 6.609 at 209.69 to earn a start from the top half of the field as the No. 7 qualifier.

The most satisfying outcome of the first full day of the abbreviated event is the fact that Line is once again situated on the opposite side of the ladder from Summit Racing teammate Greg Anderson, setting up the possibility for a third consecutive all-Summit Racing final in Atlanta. Anderson qualified fourth.

“That’s what you hope for when you come to your sponsor’s race,” said Line. “You just hope that you can get everything lined up to where both cars are on the opposite sides of the ladder and you’ll have the chance to face each other in the final. You’d like to think that you can make it happen, but you never know – you could qualify really well and end up on the same side. It worked out for us today, and that gives us a shot at repeating what we’ve done here before. That’s all you can ask for is a chance.”

On raceday, Line will square off in the first round with young gun Vincent Nobile. Last season, when Line was the No. 1 qualifier here at the Summit Racing Southern Nationals, he defeated Nobile in the second round on the way to the final.

“Vincent is a good competitor, he’s a good driver, and you have to do your job against him. I’ll be going up there intending to do my best in my Summit Racing Camaro,” said Line. “We were relatively happy with qualifying – we came here knowing we only had two qualifying runs, and a lot of things can happen when you’re in those circumstances. You have to get down the racetrack so you can at least give yourself a chance to race. We haven’t been spectacular yet, but it all lined up pretty well, and we definitely feel like we have something that we can build upon.

“Hopefully, tomorrow we can tune the cars up a little bit and get them going faster, and you never know, it will take a little more good fortune, but two cars are going to the final round tomorrow. We’d sure like them to be the Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaros.”
 

Anderson Pleased with Raceday Ladder at Summit Racing Southern Nationals
 
Atlanta, Ga., May 10, 2013 – When qualifying was abbreviated to two rounds instead of the usual four for the bulk of the Pro Stock field due to persistent rain showers at Atlanta Dragway, Summit Racing Equipment Pro Stock drivers Greg Anderson and Jason Line had no trouble sticking to the intended plan. For the third consecutive season, Anderson and Line qualified on opposite sides of the ladder, setting the stage for a third straight all-Summit Racing final at their sponsor’s title event, the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals.

Nasty weather plagued the originally scheduled running of the event and delayed completion by one week, and on Friday, Team Summit arrived rejuvenated and ready to roll. In the first of two allotted qualifying sessions, Anderson reeled off a quick 6.616 at 208.91 mph that was fifth quickest, and the four-time Atlanta victor improved to a swift 6.600, 209.79 mph in the closing qualifier for a start from the No. 4 position. Anderson also gained a valuable qualifying bonus point as the third-quickest car of the session.

“We have more than a few reasons to smile today,” said Anderson, the defending event champion who will square off with relative Pro Stock newcomer Chris McGaha in round one on Saturday. “It was very important to us to be on opposite sides of the ladder here because this is a Summit Racing race, and we’ve had some great, great all-Summit Racing final rounds here. It’s the best you could possibly hope for to accomplish in front of your sponsor, so that is what we want. It’s very hard to do, and it really comes down to the luck of the draw – and we had a little luck.

“We made two decent runs with our racecars, and the cars so far are very smooth and very happy. We’ve got a great chance of going rounds and hopefully, for both of us, finding our way to the final round. We’re feeling a whole lot better, and we’re not over-confident, but we’ve got more confidence than we’ve probably had all year. We’ll go into tomorrow and see if we can create that dream final – Jason and I racing for the Summit Racing trophy. The table is set, now it’s up to us to see what we can do.

“We also made a personnel change this weekend and added Tim Freeman to the roster,” continued Anderson. “We’ve observed him for many, many years out here, and he has a lot of experience. We just felt that we need a little bit of a different counterpoint on how we race; maybe it’s time for a set of eyes from the outside world to take a look at what we’re doing. Sometimes when you look from the inside, you don’t see the forest through the trees, so we’re hoping that Tim can help us with that. He’s very positive, and he’s a hardcore, old school racer, and he’s a welcome addition. This should be fun. We’re looking forward to the challenge, and so is he.”

Anderson Looks to Continue Success in Atlanta
 
Mooresville, N.C., May 1, 2013 – Many drivers in NHRA’s Mello Yello Drag Racing Series have a preferred racetrack, a place where they just seem to understand the conditions a little bit better than the competition. For Summit Racing Pro Stock driver Greg Anderson, that racetrack is Atlanta Dragway, and when the series returns this weekend for the 33rd annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals, Anderson plans to be in top form as he defends the title he earned there in 2012 at one of his sponsor’s title races.
 
“There is no question about it, you do have confidence coming to a racetrack where you’ve had so much success before,” said Anderson. “Confidence is a big part of any sport, and a very big part of drag racing. This Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro team has been fortunate to have that at several different tracks, but personally, I’ve had a lot of experience at Atlanta Dragway. It was a hometrack for me for a long time, and I’d like to think that the experience I gained during that time has helped KB Racing through the years.”
 
In the youth of Anderson’s career – a career that has included 74 national event wins and four world championship titles – the Minnesota native was based in the Atlanta area as he studied under legendary Pro Stock driver Warren Johnson. Anderson was a crew member and crew chief for Johnson for 12 years before setting down the path of becoming one of the most notable Pro Stock racers in the history of the category.

Anderson’s success in Atlanta began in 2001, when he recorded the first low-qualifier award of his career there en route to the final round. The Mooresville, N.C.-based driver has earned a start from the No. 1 position on six occasions at Atlanta Dragway and has four wins in eight final rounds. For the last two seasons, Anderson has squared off in the final round with Summit Racing teammate Jason Line, who won the event in 2011 but was on the other side of the coin last year. Anderson also scored over Line in the Atlanta final in 2005.
 
“This is certainly a favorite race for Team Summit,” said Anderson. “When Summit Racing’s name is on the billboard, there is a little bit of extra pressure and even more incentive to excel, and we like it when there is more on the line; we seem to be able to give a little bit extra and get the job done. We’ve put both Summit Racing cars in the final for two years in a row so we’d like to do that again – this is a big event for Team Summit. Atlanta can be hot and humid or cool and damp, but we’ve been able to succeed in both, and we have a lot of raceday data to go on, so there is a comfort level there. This is definitely a race that we look forward to every year, and this year is no exception.”
 

Line Aiming for Second Win of Season in Atlanta
 
Mooresville, N.C., May 1, 2013 – Summit Racing Pro Stock Driver Jason Line scored his first victory of 2013 in NHRA’s Mello Yello Drag Racing Series last weekend in Houston, and the Mooresville, N.C.-based competitor plans to continue the momentum as the tour heads to Atlanta Dragway for the 33rd annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals. For Line and the Summit Racing team, the timing of the once-yearly stop in the Peach State is perfect as it has historically been one of their most favorable facilities.
 
In addition to Team Summit’s achievements at the venerable facility, they also show up each year with a sense of pride to represent long-time sponsor Summit Racing Equipment. This year, Line will arrive with his Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro still hot from winning in Houston last week. It was the first victory of the season for the now 30-time Pro Stock winner, and he is eager to slide back in the driver’s seat in the hunt for more hardware.
 
“It felt good to get the first win of the year last week for the Summit Racing team, and our guys have been working hard in the KB Racing shop these past couple of days between races,” said Line. “We are continually making progress, and this weekend it would be great to get to celebrate another win – this time with all of the people from Summit Racing joining us in the winner’s circle. They’re so good to us, and the best way to thank them is by doing well at their race.
 
“Historically, KB Racing has done pretty well at the beginning and the end of the season, but this year surprised us because we started off a little slow. But I do feel good about where we are right now. We’ve figured out a few things, particularly on Greg’s Summit Racing Chevy Camaro, that had us a little perplexed before. I’m looking forward to getting to Atlanta and seeing what we can do.”
 
Between Line and his Summit Racing teammate Greg Anderson, they have five wins in Atlanta and three times at this race they have accomplished an important mission, particularly as it is their title-sponsor’s event, by setting the stage for an all-Summit Racing final round. Anderson won their first toe-to-to match in 2005, Line scored in 2011, and just last season Anderson got the better of his favorite final round opponent to take home the trophy.
 
The Team Summit cars have consistently shown that there is more to their collective Atlanta accomplishments than luck – Anderson currently holds the track record for e.t. (6.557) and has six times been the No. 1 qualifier, while Line returns this year with a low qualifier award earned last season fresh on his mind.
 
“I’m not sure what it is, exactly, about Atlanta Dragway, but we do well there, and I like it,” said Line. “It’s pretty cool to get to go there after last weekend and have a chance of winning two in a row. You can go from champ to chump real quick out here, but until that first round of qualifying this weekend, I’m the last guy to win one of these things. Time will tell if we’re in a position to do it again, but I’m optimistic that the Summit Racing team will be prepared for whatever comes our way.”

Line and Anderson Ready for Raceday after Qualifying Wash-Out
 
Event:  26th annual O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA SpringNationals
Location: Royal Purple Raceway, Houston, Texas
Day/Date: Saturday, April 27, 2013
 
Qualifying for the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA SpringNationals at Royal Purple Raceway in Houston was a rain-plagued affair that was halted early and set the fields with two full sessions completed and a partial third session run before the storms settled in to halt the action.
 
Summit Racing Pro Stock driver Greg Anderson was the lone car out of the KB Racing stable to journey down the quarter-mile on the second day of the event; teammate Jason Line was among the four cars turned away when the weather put a damper on the day.
 
Both of the Summit Racing Camaros enjoyed a good start to the weekend, each making a clean and smooth pair of passes on Friday, and Team Summit entered day two of the event with the confidence that they had something to build on before final eliminations on Sunday.
 
Mother Nature had something to say about it, however. Anderson clocked a 6.609 at 211.46 mph in the third session but Line was turned away empty-handed with no runs recorded on Saturday. Anderson’s best time of 6.579 was good for the No. 6 position, and Line’s 6.572, 212.03 equated to a start from the No. 4 spot.
 
“We needed those runs to prepare for Sunday, It hurt us to lose them, but there were four other cars that didn’t get to make a run today. We’re not alone; it is what it is, and now we’ll make the best of it,” said Line, who will square off with Matt Hartford in the first round of eliminations. Anderson will take on Vincent Nobile in the opening act, and the Summit Racing drivers are on the opposite side of the eliminations ladder.
 
“We’ve certainly identified some of the things that have been an issue lately, and we’re getting closer to solving them,” Line continued. “We just need more runs. This is a big science project, and unfortunately, some of it is trial and error. We’re going to keep swinging at it, and tomorrow will be a great opportunity for us to continue making improvements and get our Summit Racing Camaros going rounds.”
 

Anderson in the Top Half and Improving at Royal Purple Raceway
 
Event:  26th annual O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA SpringNationals
Location: Royal Purple Raceway, Houston, Texas
Day/Date: Friday, April 26, 2013
 
Summit Racing Pro Stock driver Greg Anderson made two respectable runs on the first day of qualifying at the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA SpringNationals at Royal Purple Raceway in Houston to situate himself in the top half of the field and lay down a firm foundation to build upon.
 
In the first session, Anderson claimed a coveted bonus point with a third-quickest 6.594 at 211.13 mph. In the later evening session, the KB Racing driver wheeled the silver Summit Racing Chevy Camaro to a 6.579 at 211.16 mph that would garner the provisional No. 6 position heading into day two of the event.
 
His quickest run was several positions further down in the qualifying order than Anderson would typically prefer, but his 6.579 was just a hundredth off of the No. 1 spot as the entire field worked to find the right combination for the warm, thick air.
 
“This is the first time that we’ve run in the heat and humidity all season,” said Anderson. “There has been really, really good air and it’s been dry where we’ve been so far with low vapor pressure and low humidity. This was the first real dose of humidity, and today was decent for us. Everyone in the class was real bunched together, and nobody is really stepping apart from the field like we’ve seen the last few races. Seems like the heat and humidity has been a bit of an equalizer.
 
“We all have some learning to do, and we have to tune on our engines a little bit to make them run better in these conditions. But we have two decent runs down the racetrack without any major problems, and we have something to tune on. We got better on the second run from the first, so we just need to continue in that direction. We’ll tune on the Summit Racing Chevy Camaro and see if we can make her run better tomorrow. The two runs we made today – both with my car and with my teammate Jason Line’s Summit Racing Camaro – they weren’t that far off. We have something to work with.”

Line Pleased by Solid First Day in Houston 
 
Event:  26th annual O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA SpringNationals
Location: Royal Purple Raceway, Houston, Texas
Day/Date: Friday, April 26, 2013
 
The first day of qualifying at the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA SpringNationals presented by Super Start Batteries concluded with Summit Racing Pro Stock driver Jason Line positioned in the No. 4 spot after a pair of solid passes down the quarter-mile racetrack at Royal Purple Raceway near Houston.

In the first session, Line clocked a 6.599 to take over the No. 5 position in the line-up. His speed of 211.79 mph was the fastest of the factory hot rods in the opening act. The second session saw an improved 6.572, 212.03 mph, and the driver of the blue Summit Racing Chevy Camaro bumped up a spot to fourth.
 
For Line, the two smooth runs, both free from tire shake, were an encouraging improvement over recent performances that have hindered the experienced team.
 
“We’re making baby steps, but we made it down two in a row and that’s good,” said Line. “We have something to work with for tomorrow. Making it down the racetrack hasn’t been something we’ve done very well so far this year, but we’re taking a little bit of a different approach this weekend. We’ll see how that works out for us.
 
“There is definitely room for improvement, but we want to approach this in a way so that we have a good racecar on Sunday, so we’ll try to creep up on it and not go over the edge. This is a good starting point for the Summit Team.”

 
Mooresville, N.C., April 24, 2013 – Summit Racing Pro Stock driver Greg Anderson paid his dues as a crew member and crew chief before graduating to the role of driver and earning four series championships, and he learned early in his career that success in the incredibly competitive category requires more than skilled driving. An exceptional team is critical to rising to the top in a class where every ten-thousandth of a second counts. This weekend, at the O’Reilly Auto Part NHRA Spring Nationals at Royal Purple Raceway near Houston, Anderson will be calling on a total team effort to summon success for the KB Racing group.
 
“What we’ve been able to achieve has been way beyond our wildest dreams,” said Anderson. “We didn’t set out thinking that we could dominate in this class for a number of years, and we exceeded our expectations. But when you get to that point and begin to go in the other direction and experience misfortune and what we perceive as failure, you take it really hard. You fall off of that mountain, and you take it hard.
 
“I told everyone when we were experiencing that high that it was the lows that would really distinguish the character of this KB Racing team, how we would be able to recover from adversity. Well, we did it – we recovered from a group of tough years and came back to win the championship in 2010 and 2011. That’s what a team does. If you can keep your head up and have faith in each other, you can dig out of that hole and find success again. We have to stay together, work together, win as a team, and lose as a team.”
 
Anderson made his first final round of the season last weekend at his home racetrack in Charlotte after starting a respectable 5th in the line-up. For the driver who has qualified on the pole 75 times in his career and participated in 112 national event final rounds, top-half qualifying isn’t enough, and the fact that it took four races to get to a final just doesn’t sit well. Anderson and his dedicated crew expect more – particularly on raceday.
 
“It comes down to adapting to racetrack conditions on Sunday,” said Anderson. “We had a pretty good test session after Charlotte, and we definitely gained some ground on what we think went wrong on Sunday last week. For us, it’s going to be a matter of avoiding mistakes like we made that day and managing the round-to-round changes with the racetrack that we haven’t been able to keep up with. It’s difficult to create those changes when you test, so it’s a work in progress, but we definitely have a lot of thoughts on combatting the problem. We don’t want to get over-anxious and say it’s fixed, but we will say that this Summit Racing team plans to do a better job in Houston.”
 
It is certainly no secret that the Summit Racing group has accomplished much in their history of racing together under team owner Ken Black, and the team has watched their combined total of Pro Stock victories rise to a remarkable 103. Anderson’s record in Houston includes two wins – one in 2004, when he was also the No. 1 qualifier – and then again in 2008, when he bested KB Racing teammate Jason Line in the final.
 
“You know, I look forward to this weekend in Houston. We have often had great atmospheric conditions there, and our Summit Racing cars have run fast at that racetrack,” said Anderson of the sea-level altitude facility that is particularly complementing to the naturally aspirated factory hot rods. “And the fans there are just wonderful – there always seems to be a good turnout in Houston, and they love Pro Stock. Their enthusiasm is contagious, and I’d like to think that if all of those things come together and we make the right decision on Sunday, we’ll get one of these Summit Racing Camaros to the winner’s circle.”
 

Line Recalls First Final Round in Return to Houston
 
Mooresville, N.C., April 24, 2013 – A return to Houston for the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Spring Nationals at Royal Purple Raceway this weekend should be just what Summit Racing Pro Stock driver Jason Line needs to kick his Mello Yello Drag Racing season into high gear. Now six races into the 24 race journey towards the championship trophy, Line has yet to advance to the final round for a chance at winning, but the Houston facility is special in that it holds a little magic that Line has nowhere else on the tour.
 
“Houston is where I went to my first final round,” said Line, now a 29-time Pro Stock victor and two-time series champion. “I remember it clearly, because up to that point in time I had been struggling, to say the least. It was the first time I’d ever actually felt comfortable, and probably the first good light I ever cut in a Pro Stock car. It was also the first time I’d ever raced Greg.”
 
Line had never raced his Summit Racing teammate Greg Anderson during eliminations prior to the final round in Houston in 2004, the Minnesota-bred driver’s first full season as a Pro Stock racer after a successful career in NHRA’s premier sportsman series, where he won a Lucas Oil Series championship in the Stock Eliminator category. Line edged his familiar opponent by a thousandth of a second at the start but the car quickly pointed left and Line had to lift. Anderson won the round, but the pair would meet again five more times that year, and in Chicago – just two races later – Line beat Anderson to score the first Pro Stock victory of his career.
 
“That was a good year,” recalled Line. “I was just happy to get there and then do a halfway decent job in the final. I don’t really think about it much because we’ve been back there so many times since then, but it really is a good memory. Even back then, I felt like this team was going to be together for a long time. We’ve had a lot of success since that day [100 wins for KB Racing, 21 all-Summit Racing final rounds, six shared championships]. We haven’t quite been performing up to our own standards lately, but we’re working hard to turn that around.
 
“Growing up in Minnesota, we used to come down to Houston with the Stockers in the winter time – the racetrack is a neat place, and we thought it was fun to get out of the snow. Hopefully this weekend we’ll get back to having fun with our Summit Racing Camaros.”

Anderson Sees Third Consecutive Four-Wide Final
 
CONCORD, N.C., April 21, 2013 – Summit Racing Pro Stock driver Greg Anderson came very close to scoring a third-consecutive trophy at the popular Dollar General NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway near Charlotte, the fifth race of the 2013 Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. It was also the first final of the season for four-time Pro Stock series champion Anderson, the No. 5 qualifier.
 
Qualifying for this season’s event was abbreviated to just two full sessions for the pros due to a near-total washout on Friday, with more rain and tornadoes in the forecast. On Saturday, however, the skies were clear and the air was cool. The Pro Stock cars came alive in the excellent conditions, and Anderson put a quick 6.508 at 213.67 mph on the scoreboard to top the charts in speed and earn another start from the top half of the field.
 
Similar conditions on raceday encouraged the Summit Racing team, and Anderson did his job in the opening act with an efficient .022 reaction time that preceded a 6.514 at 212.53 mph that was good for a pass to round two. The veteran driver took it up a notch at the starting line with a stellar .011-second reaction but then nearly immediately fell into tire shake. Luck was on the four-time world champion’s side, however, as two of the four opponents red-lighted and he was able to advance to the final round alongside Mike Edwards. Joining them in the final set of the day were drivers Erica Enders-Stevens and Shane Gray.
 
Anderson’s march towards the winner’s circle came to a jolting halt when he again experienced ferocious tire shake on the tricky racing surface, and Edwards moved ahead to take the win.
 
“It wasn’t a terrible day, but we certainly wanted more,” said Anderson. “To come here as the defending event champion, to have won here before and to know what that feels like, well you just want it again. That didn’t happen today. We had some luck – and we needed it – but we didn’t get the job done. There is good to come from that, though: every race we are becoming more and more determined to turn this thing around and get our Summit Racing Camaros winning races again.”
 
“Team Summit has a lot of experience at this racetrack, we’ve tested many times here, and that came into play during qualifying. But the truth of the matter is that qualifying is only one piece of the puzzle. You have to have the whole package – testing, qualifying well, and then turning on win lights on raceday. It was great to make it to the final round here, but I’m looking forward to taking it one step further and getting the win. Houston will be the first chance to do that, and I plan to take full advantage of the opportunity.”
 

Anderson Fast in Qualifying in Preparation for 4-Wide Eliminations
 
CONCORD, N.C., April 20, 2013 – Heavy rain canceled the first day of qualifying before it ever really began, and Pro Stock pilot Greg Anderson only had two opportunities at the Dollar General NHRA Four-Wide Nationals to prove his worth before eliminations, but the seasoned driver seized the moment and raced to exceptional speeds to lock himself into the top half of the field in his Summit Racing Chevy Camaro.
 
After the first day of qualifying was washed away, Anderson and the Summit Racing crew arrived at the racetrack on Saturday rested and ready to tackle whatever zMAX Dragway had to offer, and the thought of only two qualifying sessions did not weigh heavily on their collective spirit.
 
“It would have been a different situation if we hadn’t tested here last week, but we felt like we had a very solid package for this racetrack, so we weren’t all that nervous,” said Anderson, a three-time winner at zMAX. “We should be able to rip right down this racetrack and qualify well.”
 
Anderson clicked off a 6.517 at 213.20 mph in the first session and returned to lay down an improved 6.508 at an awesome 213.67 mph for top speed honors. The Mooresville, N.C.-based driver qualified in the No. 5 position.
 
“We’re certainly solidly in the pack, but we believe our Summit Racing Camaros should be at the top, and that’s not where we are today so we’re a little disappointed,” said Anderson, whose KB Racing teammate Jason Line qualified in the No. 7 spot. “We have a lot of runs at this racetrack and we typically have a pretty good handle on our racecars here, so we hope that tomorrow we are able to show our potential a little better and come out on top on raceday.”
 
In the unique four-wide, three-round format, Anderson will compete against three other drivers in the eliminations opener. The quickest two to the finish line will advance to the semifinals. Anderson’s first-round opponents are Allen Johnson, Kurt Johnson, and Larry Morgan.
 
“On raceday, you better get it right, or you’re going home early,” said Anderson. “And we don’t intend to go home early tomorrow. We plan to wake up sharp, make good decisions, and have a chance to win. The table is set just fine, Jason and I are on opposite sides of the ladder, and there are four very equal brackets. We’ve got as good of a chance as anybody to win, we just have to do our jobs. If anybody can do it, this Summit Racing team can.”

Line Starting from the Top Half at zMAX Dragway
 
Mooresville, N.C., April 20, 2013 – Qualifying for the Dollar General NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway is complete, and Summit Racing driver Jason Line is sitting comfortably in the top half of the field following two respectable runs in his Summit Racing Chevy Camaro. Although typically allowed four sessions to determine a combination specific to each individual racetrack and the air conditions, the first day of the event was plagued by rain and was nearly a washout. Only 10 Pro Stock cars were able to make a run on Friday before the rain set in, and Line, unfortunately, was not amongst them.
 
Although relegated to just two qualifying sessions, the Mooresville, N.C.-based driver entered the second day of the event with confidence in his cars and the Summit Racing team.
 
“We didn’t come into today thinking it was going to be a stressful situation,” said Line. “We just knew we had to get down the racetrack, and our track record here with the Summit Racing cars is pretty good. In the end, we didn’t qualify as well as we had hoped, but the silver lining is that my teammate, Greg Anderson, and I are on opposite sides of the ladder.”
 
Line’s best time of the two sessions was a 6.516 at a fierce 213.54 mph, which was traded for a start from the No. 7 position. Line has qualified in the top half of the field for every race over the course of the past two seasons aside from the Lucas Oil Nationals in Brainerd last year, when he was 9th.
 
At zMAX Dragway on raceday, Line and Anderson, the No. 5 qualifier, can each advance from the first round of eliminations if they are one of the two quickest cars in their respective quads. The second round of the Four-Wide Nationals is counted as the semifinals, and again, each Team Summit driver only needs to be in the quickest two of the four cars in their match to advance to the final.
 
“The weather for tomorrow should be right about the same as it was today, so we have some good data to fall back on,” said Line, who will square off with Jeg Coughlin Jr., Lewis Worden, and Rodger Brogdon in the first round. “It would sure be great to get one of our Summit Racing Camaros to the winner’s circle in front of all of our friends and family. We’ve had a good group out here supporting us this weekend, all of the guys from the KB Racing shop and their families, and of course our team owners Ken and Judy Black. Tomorrow could – and should – be a really great day for Team Summit.”
 

First day of 4-Wide Qualifying a Washout
 
CONCORD, N.C. (April 19, 2013) – The first day of qualifying at the Dollar General NHRA Four-Wide Nationals came to a soggy halt when persistent rain and wind converged upon zMAX Dragway. Only three quartets of Pro Stock cars were able to make it down the racetrack before the weather forced a delay in the action. Neither of the Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaros, driven respectively by Greg Anderson and Jason Line, were able to make a pass. Qualifying will continue with two sessions on Saturday, one at 12:15 pm. and the final session at 2:30 p.m., before the fields are set for final eliminations at noon on Sunday.

Anderson Seeking Third Consecutive Four-Wide Title
 
Mooresville, N.C., April 16, 2013 – Summit Racing driver Greg Anderson honestly isn’t sure why he has had such success when faced with the unique challenge of the Dollar General NHRA Four-Wide Nationals fueled by Full Throttle, but the four-time NHRA Pro Stock world champion has established himself as a clear favorite for the once-yearly event. For the past two seasons, Anderson has embraced the four-wide format and come out on top. Now, the Mooresville, N.C.-based driver is geared up to protect his position as the winningest driver in the brief yet lively history of the prestigious zMAX Dragway.
 
“Racing four-wide is very, very difficult for a driver, so I’m about as puzzled as anyone out there as to how I’ve won the last two,” said Anderson, who kicked off his successful run at zMAX by winning the standard, two-lane fall event in 2010. “It’s about the toughest challenge we face the whole year. There are just so many ways for a driver to look like a complete rookie out there, with so much to think about behind the wheel. Usually, when things go your best, you go up there and don’t think about anything – you just do your job. But you can’t be on auto-pilot at this event; you have to train your mind for it.”
 
Anderson isn’t altogether perplexed regarding the accomplishments of Summit Racing at the facility known as the “Bellagio of Drag Strips,” and he admits that there is something in the team’s setup that is particularly fond of the racetrack. In addition to Anderson’s success, his KB Racing teammate Jason Line has one victory there (last fall) and has been a regular No. 1 qualifier. Line also currently holds the track record at zMAX for e.t. (6.493) and speed (213.91).
 
“It’s our home track, so we have spent a lot of hours testing at zMAX,” said Anderson. “All of those trips down the racetrack here definitely play into our success, but there is something else about it that we just can’t quite explain. We’re just in our comfort zone here.
 
“We consider this racetrack to be the best on the tour, and we’re lucky to call it home. We love being able to test there and race there, and when the Mello Yello Series comes to town, we love being able to bring out all of our crew members who usually stay back at the shop and work their fingers to the bone while we’re off chasing the countryside. It’s a neat deal that they get to come out and see what their hard work is getting us, and they can lend a hand, an opinion, and moral support. Our families will all be there, and it just makes for a great weekend.”
 
Anderson will arrive at zMAX in somewhat unfamiliar territory as he is in pursuit of his first win of the season. The unusually slow start for the 74-time national event winner has only stoked the fires of determination for the Summit Racing crew, and they have been diligently preparing for the imminent return to the winner’s circle.
 
“We tested hard before this race,” said Anderson. “I really and truly believe that we’re turning a corner with these Summit Racing Camaros. We should be able to run fast this weekend, and that should carry through to the upcoming races as well. Deep down, this team has a good, confident feeling, and we’re going to make the most out of this weekend.”
 

Line Scored Last Fall at zMAX, Now Wants 4-Wide Win
 
Mooresville, N.C., April 16, 2013 – Summit Racing driver Jason Line finally earned a zMAX Dragway victory at the race held at the prestigious Concord, N.C., facility last fall, and when NHRA’s Mello Yello Drag Racing Series returns this weekend for the first of two annual stops there, the two-time Pro Stock world champion will be reaching towards a new goal: winning the fourth annual Dollar General NHRA Four-Wide Nationals for the first time.
 
“It’s a great facility, so winning at zMAX means a lot to any driver,” said Line, whose home base is nearby in Mooresville, N.C. “I finally accomplished that last year at the fall race, but just like every other driver out there, I’d like to have a four-wide win on my resume. My Summit Racing teammate Greg Anderson has a couple, and I’d like this one. You know, I haven’t really used up any of my racing luck in awhile, so I sure wouldn’t mind using some of it this weekend.”
 
The KB Racing duo has been exceptionally successful in their own backyard, with victories earned for Summit Racing in four of the last six events contested at zMAX; Anderson won the fall event in 2010 and scored victories at the spring race in 2011 and 2012, and Line finally scored his first win at the racetrack coined the “Bellagio of Dragstrips” during the last leg of the Countdown to the Championship in 2012.
 
The once-yearly four-wide format provides a unique challenge for drivers in every professional category, with cars staging side-by-side-by-side-by-side in preparation for a thunderous, simultaneous launch towards the finish line. The unconventional – yet thrilling – format requires a level of concentration well beyond what is typically required of a driver, thus setting the stage for an even more gratifying win.
 
“Four-wide racing is something that the fans really seem to like,” said Line, the runner-up at the inaugural Four-Wide Nationals. “For a driver, it’s a pretty big challenge, but the basic concept is the same: you still have to get the car down the racetrack as fast as you can, and looking back, I’ve been very fast there. We’ve been testing and working hard trying to improve our program lately, and hopefully, Team Summit will be fast there again this weekend.”
 
Line, who secured his position as possessor of the track record for both e.t. (6.493) and speed (213.91 mph) at the four-wide race last spring, has been the No. 1 qualifier at zMAX four times in the past six events, including at each of the most recent two four-wide races.
 
“You won’t win many races if you depend on luck alone,” said Line. “But if we’re as fast as we know we can be and have a little bit of luck, too, then this team will have one of these Summit Racing Camaros in the winner’s circle.”
 

Anderson Intends to Make the Most of Meeting with Familiar Foe in Vegas
 
Event:  14th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals
Location: The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas, Nev.
Day/Date: Saturday, April 6, 2013
 
Qualifying for the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway has concluded, and with a best time of 6.697-seconds at 207.27 mph, Summit Racing Pro Stock driver Greg Anderson finds himself scheduled for a first-round meeting with a very familiar opponent, No. 8 qualifier and teammate Jason Line.
 
Saturday’s qualifying sessions doubled in anticipation as they also marked the first two rounds of the K&N Horsepower Challenge, a special bonus race for the top seven Pro Stock drivers plus one driver voted in as fan-favorite. Anderson and Line were each out of the gate ahead of their respective opponents to pocket hole shot wins in the first round and went on to fall just one round shy of an all-Summit Racing final.
 
The KB Racing drivers will battle for the first-round win light on Sunday for only the third time in a decade. Although the plan was most certainly to square off with their Summit Racing Camaros in the final round at their sponsor’s title event rather than the opening stanza, Anderson and Line are preparing to utilize the less than desirable circumstances to set one of their cars on the fast track to the winner’s circle.
 
“We have to make the most of the situation. We know that one of us will advance to the second round, and it really doesn’t matter which one of our Summit Racing Camaros it is, so long as we have something that can win,” said Anderson, who landed ninth in the line-up. “We have to take first-round as a test session for both cars, and we’ll be trying to learn something that will give the Summit Racing team a chance to win the following round and then hopefully keep right on going.”
 
As always, KB Racing had great plans for the first part of the weekend – the tireless group had hoped to shine on their way to raceday. The pair of drivers who share six Pro Stock world championships between them have long been accustomed to starting closer to the top of the heap on Sunday, and settling for anything less than the No. 1 and No. 2 qualifying positions is a tough pill to swallow. Qualifying on the same side of the ladder is nothing short of a heartbreaker, particularly when they fully intend to make their sponsor and team owner Ken Black proud.
 
“The good news is that this has been a real eye-opener, and we know that the way we have been trying to race is just not going to work anymore,” said Anderson. “It’s time to lay down a new foundation. It’s going to be difficult to really change all the wheels on the train by tomorrow, but we’ll certainly be making a lot of changes overnight. This is the start of a different thought process, and I have to say that we’re optimistic about the future for this Summit Racing team. Tomorrow is a new, hopefully brighter, day.”