Marstons Mills, MA -April 9, 2014-Jay Blake’s Permatex/Follow A Dream got right back into the 5.50s at the Eastern Regional opener at Virginia Motorsports Park in Richmond, Va., but again went out early. Driver Todd Veney ran a 5.56, better than the team ran two years ago to win the race and just five-hundredths of a second off the track record, but surprisingly it qualified him just fifth in the program.
First-round opponent Dan Pomponio, who qualified fourth with an identical 5.56, shook the tires and backpedaled to just a 6.18, well off the pace both drivers set in qualifying, but Veney went up in smoke right off the line and lost with a shutoff 7.37. “That’s the first time we’ve ever made a bad run with this new car,” he said. “We barely hopped it up at all after qualifying, where the car ran fine in both sessions – 5.62 and 5.56 – but I guess it was a little too much.”
Up next is the 4-Wide Nationals at zMax Dragway in Charlotte, where two years ago the team made its two quickest runs ever, 5.52 and 5.53. “It’s still a new car, and we’re learning something every time it goes down the track,” Blake said. “A couple early losses don’t change anything. The car is running great, and we’re all excited about a great year.”