David Kowalski is still in the process of getting the most out of his pro modified race car.
Having earned his pro mod license last fall, he's gradually increasing the power he gets out of his 2015 Corvette.
His latest progression on the ladder of speed was enough to cook the Rolling Mix Concrete Raceway pro mod track record. Kowalski, from Fort St. John, covered the quarter-mile in 6.76 seconds with a top speed of 200.5 miles per hour with his best pass of the day Saturday in the box class eliminations.
On Sunday he was back on the track and advanced to the second round before he was eliminated by Dave Preston and his 1970 Nova.
In that race, Preston had a dial-in time of 11.18 seconds, while Kowalski had a 6.87-second dial-in. That meant he had to engage his transmission brake for four-and-a-half seconds, waiting at the start line after Preston had left. It didn't take him long to make up most of that time, but Preston got to the line just ahead of him to win the race.
"Who says pro mods can't bracket race," quipped Kowalski, a 25-year veteran racer who had never been to the Prince George track before the weekend.
"It's the first time I've been here and I like it."
Until he bought his new car last September, the 44-year-old Kowalski raced a 1971 Nova, which got him down the track in nine or 10 seconds. His new ride is a significant upgrade. He earned his license last year in Mission, where he posted a best time of 6.64 seconds at 205 mph.
Kowalski has a busy race schedule ahead of him with IHRA events in Fort St. John and Edmonton but he hopes to return to NITRO Motorsports Park in August, and by then he should be ready to crank up his supercharged engine and be even faster.
"I've got 1,000 horsepower we're not (using) yet," he said.
In Sunday's finals, in the (electronic) box class, Wayne DeRose of Fort St. John and his 1968 Camaro exacted revenge on Brian Barby of Prince George, driving a rear-engine dragster. The two met in Saturday's final and Barby won it, but his .721-second reaction time doomed him to runner-up status on Sunday. DeRose clocked 8.79 seconds at 154.11 mph to cross the line well ahead of Barby, who posted a time of 8.24 with a top speed of 161.72 mph.
"I was asleep at the wheel," said Barby, who also serves as president of the Northern Interior Timed Racing Organization (NITRO).
In an all-pickup truck, no-box final Sunday, Forde Carrie of Terrace in a 1962 Chevy defeated Dallas Wiebe and his turbocharged 1993 Ford Ranger.
In sportsman, Kurt Vanderlans of Prince George, driving a 1991 Mustang, topped Stephen Closkey of Quesnel in his 1980 Datsun 280Z.
Ryan McCray of Prince George captured the junior dragster event Sunday.
Greg Dawson of Prince George won the bike/sled class Saturday and Sunday, while Kelsey Lefebvre of Quesnel won the teen challenge event both days.
On Saturday, Rocky Hoover of Prince George, back racing for the first time in three years, drove his 1973 Firebird to victory in the no-box final, edging Andy Closkey of Quesnel and his 1965 Chevelle, while Camaro driver Bill Bryce of Quesnel defeated Cal Barnes of Prince George to take home the sportsman title.
Racing returns to Rolling Mix Concrete Raceway on Friday with street legal racing from 6-9 p.m.
