Going to Charlotte 3/2010

We have the car loaded in the trailer and we will be in Charlotte in 2 weeks. It has been a while since my last post, but we have been busy running the business. Anyone that is going, be sure to stop by and say hello. Want your name on the car, give me buzz. always looking for extra money to put into this deal, Andy. Email outlaw280@aol.com

well, some bad news came our way. We will not be in charlotte. Seems the older version of wheel hubs and studs are no longer legal to run with NHRA, which is whats on our car. We are going to get the new updates done, but just not enough time and more than that, the money to do the update this quick. We are shooting to be in Atlanta may 14-16 so stay tuned...

Next Race- Charlotte N.C. Sept 18-20 2009

Hello everyone, thanks for keeping up with our team. We will be heading to charlotte sept. 18-20 for the upcoming NHRA event. We are looking for sponsorship. Hey, if you know an individual or a company that would like to have their name a Nitro Funny Car in front of thousands of people and possibly ESPN2, have them get in touch with me. I know this year has been tough in the business world, but we all still need to advertise to keep our name out in the public! Very reasonable rates, small decals to large, we can help you get your name out there! If you come to the event, stop by our pit and say hi. Andy
864 845 6079
www.andykelleyracing.com

New Season New car

Well, its been a while since my last post. Let me bring you up to speed. Over the winter, we had Horton Race cars/Hartman Machine Works build us a brand new Funnycar chassis. The craftmanship J.Ed and Richard done is second to none. Attention to detail is unbelievable. The Dodge Stratus body is all white. Never had a white car before, but I like it. We had no test time with the new car and we did not even start the car until last weekend at the Southern Nationals in GA. I left work early wed. to get there and finish some last minute details. The car passed tech with flying colors and we were ready to go. We actually finished the total car friday around 11:00 am to make a run. We had planned on running the car 3-400 foot on the first pass to make sure everything was in working order. The crew triple checked every nut, bolt and fitting on the car, and we were feeling good. We had our team meeting and afterward, Me, daddy, and Richard talked about the first run. It was left up to me as to how far to take the run. We pulled the car to the scales to check weight right before the run, set the steering and pulled it to the staging lanes. I was the first Funnycar to run. They started the car, lowered the body and even though I have not drove in 6 months (Rockingham Oct. 08'), It came back very fast. First off, the dodge body is 100% different than the Camaro body we ran last year. This thing feels like something from outer space. The tin work and firewall inside the car is awesome. J.ed made me a new "dog house"(covers supercharger that lays on top on dash), so the visibility was good. I pulled through the water box and hit the throttle. Man, It felt SO GOOD!! Backed up, the crew lifted the body to perform their tasks and lowered the body. I put the fresh air valve on which supplys air to my helmet. I put my visor down and its time to go. My dad is at the beam of the starting line and he motions me forward. When it's ok to pull on forward, he gives me the thumbs up signal and I pull into the beam. The top light comes on. It's go time. Take a deep breath, pull the fuel lever to full "on", take my foot off the clutch pedal and roll into the second beam. I look for the yellow flash of the bulb and BAM! I hit the the throttle and run 4.40 at 279.mph! on the very first run of a brand new car. NHRA is not running the 1/4 mile this year, they only run 1,000 ft. We had a great weekend even though we did not qualify. We only the missed the bump time by 2 tenths of a second. We learned a great deal about the downforce of the new car, we will make the necessary changes before the next race in Bristol, TN may 15-17 and see what happens. Thanks to Serenity Limosuine in Atlanta Ga., General Machine of Anderson, Holbrook Performance parts, Hedman Hedders, Duncan's Transport, JRD Grading, R&R Construction, Karolina Coaches, Victory-1, Horton race cars, Hartman Machine, Ross Pistons, Darton sleeves, Vickery's speed shop, ISP, Ringers Gloves, Impact!, Discount trailer sales, my family, crew and friends for your support. We are still looking for sponsors, so if you know someone wanting to advertise, send them my way. We are looking for anything small to large. Until next time, Andy My new website is www.andykelleyracing.com

new spy photo pics

some shots of my new hot rod being built by J.ED Horton and Richard Hartman. Can't wait til it's ready. Were still looking for sponsorship, but what paint scheme do you think would be cool. let me know your thoughts

Happy New Year Everyone

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and New Year. The Kelley family had a great time! The new car is looking awesome, Richard and J.ED are doing a great job. Hopefully it will be back at Kelley Motorsports in a few weeks. And then all the work begins. The race we won in N.H. will be on today at 6:00 pm on speed TV. Until next time, Andy

Getting ready for 09'

Well, there is no such thing as off time for a race team. We have been busy getting ready for 09'. I hope to have some big things happen for us next year. It is not looking good for the Nitro FC class in IHRA next year. SO, we're building a brand new NHRA spec. chassis and we're going to run some NHRA events. We'd run them all if the $$$ comes through. We took delivery of a Dodge Stratus body, and it's just bad!! I will post some pics later. The chassis is being built right here in the upstate by J.Ed Horton and Richard Hartman at Horton race cars/ Hartman Machine in Belton SC. As always, we're still looking for sponsorship at any level, so pass the word along. It will be interesting!

News channel 4 on at 6 and 11:00

Tune in tonight at 6 and 11 on News 4. They came down and did an interview with me and the Funnycar. Thanks to Jason and Donovan with Cubicle Connections for setting it up. Thanks to Jackson and Hunter for the footage. Let's keep the ball rolling! Andy

# 2 in the IHRA Points

Well, the IHRA season is over. We finished #2 in the points chase and couldn't be happier. We were not able to attend the race in edmonton canada, and well, if we did we would've finished #1, but that's hind sight. We had a career best year. Here is a run down. I ran my first 4 second run, qualified #1, was last man standing several times, ran top MPH of the whole event in grand bend Canada, went to 3 straight final rounds and WON twice! To top it off, we finished #2 in the points behind my friend Terry Haddock. Let me tell you about rockingham. We entered the race tied for 3rd place with Paul Lee. Paul is one of the best out there. Rain cancelled the first qual. run so we were down to 2 runs on Sat. It was very cold, had great air, but the track temp was a little cool. Most of the cars shook the tires or smoked them and we were one of them. I had to pedal the car and it ran 5.84 @ 291. mph. We were qual. #5 after the first session. Going into the last session, Terry and I were last on the qual. run order because we were the fastest in our respected lanes in the first session. It seemed like each car that ran in front of me was bumping me down the list and low and behold I was not qualified for the 8 car field when it was my turn to run. I was very nervous, the track had cooled down a ton, and the pressure was on. Richard and Dad told me to be on my toes and be ready for anything. The car left very hard and the dreaded tire shake caught me. My foot slapped the throttle before my brain told it to. We ran a 5.15 and were last man standing, meaning we won the 5 bonus points for being the fastest winning car in qual. We ending up qual. #4. Fate was in out hands. We ended up running paul lee in the first round and who ever won would at least finish 3rd. Well, we won! I knew we had 3rd sewn up and now looking for 2nd. Matt Hagan had a great year. He has won 3 times and has had a very fast car. Fate was dealt once again between Matt and Terry. 1st and 2nd in the points chase. Terry won the round and the championship. Matt made a good effort, but the engine let go and his car put oil on the track which resulted in a points deduction. We were getting ready to race the semi's and Mike Perry came over and told me about the points matt lost which moved me to 2nd in the points. We made enough clean runs that I could have oiled the track twice and we still would not have been penalized. So the points was set. Terry First, I was 2nd, Matt 3rd, Paul 4th and Steve 5th. What a weekend. Now the word is IHRA may not have Nitro F/C's next year. IHRA has been bought out by Feld Entertainment. I guess something bad has left IHRA in financial trouble and they don't have funding for one of it's most popular classes. Please, email anyone at Feld Entertainment and let them know how much you love Nitro F/C's and we need a place to race next year. See you all soon, Andy

Saturday Night Fever

Oh yea, that's what I have. The Outlaw is back! Saturday night, Sept.20, I will be match racing Bobby Lagana Jr. at Carolina Dragway in Jackson SC. Known as the "House Of Hook". Maybe they will have a national event there next year! Bobby drives one of the baddest Top Fuel Dragsters on the IHRA circuit and he is one very talented driver. It will be nothing but fun. No points, no qualifying, no BS, just $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ on the line! I hope you can come out and cheer us on. Last year we had a great time. Carolina Dragway is a very nice and hard hooking track. We will be "experimenting" with some new ideas for the last National event in rockingham. You can go to their website www.carolinadragway.com and get more information. Check out www.ihra.com They have an article on me on the homepage. Andy

Thanks to the Anderson Independant

I wanted to thank the Anderson Independant for the coverage they have given our team in the local paper. Were going to make a Drag Racing fan out of Scott Adamson if its the last thing we do! Thanks to all the calls and emails from everyone. We are definatly on a roll.

I keep saying it's just unbelievable, but actually it's not. We have been racing a long time. We have worked our tails off to be in this position. I have the best crew members on earth, and they all pour their hearts into it. They perform the same, race after race, have the car assembled right, and the numbers show it. Richard Hartman is making all the right calls and I am getting the car to the finish line.

There is nothing more gratifing than our recent results. I cant wait to go to Rockingham. If you have the chance, you must come to the last race. The points battle will go down to the wire.

Right now were hot on the line trying to secure sponsorship to make a full run for the 09' IHRA Funny Car Championship. I know we can win it, we just need some financial help. If you know ANYONE wanting to great exposure to hundreds of thousands of American Consumers, foward my number or email.

Dad and I went to Victory-1 on Thursday afternoon for the open house. Let me tell you, that is one nice facility. I know why they make the best Titanium valve on the market. They had bbq, low country boil, chicken and all the fixings. Lots of people and eating going on. On a side note, at this weekend's inaugural NHRA event in Charlotte, Don and Jay are helping Bob Gilbertson, and Ray Murphy is helping Matt Hagan. Good luck to both teams.

We will be racing Sept. 20 at Carolina Dragway. Its a Sat. night match race against a Top fuel dragster driven by Bobby Lagana jr. Be sure to come out and watch.

Andy

Piedmont’s Andy Kelley Takes Home IHRA North American Nationals Nitro Funny Car Championship

Epping, NH – September 7, 2008 –Piedmont’s Andy Kelley won his second IHRA National Event Championship of the season at the historic New England Dragway in Epping, NH, defeating current IHRA Nitro Funny Car points leader Terry Haddock in the Finals. His current hot streak has included a championship at the Northern Nationals, a runner-up finish at the Sooner Nationals, and now, a second event championship at the North American Nationals. A winner in eight of his last nine rounds of competition, this run of success has left the diesel truck mechanic from the Upstate humbled.

“Earlier this year I knew we were getting better, and had a shot at winning an event.” Said Andy. “But to come out the past three races, go to three straight Finals and win two Championships has really exceeded our expectations. Richard Hartman has done a great job tuning the car for consistency, and that’s why we’re winning races. In the past we’ve been maybe a little quicker here or there, but didn’t have the consistency. Now Richard has us making strong runs, and getting down the track cleanly lap after lap.”

Kelley entered the event in fifth place in the IHRA Nitro Funny Car points chase, but after knocking off the number two qualifier Cory Lee in round one, Kelley upset the events number one qualifier, Virginia’s Matt Hagan, in round two with a 5.10 second run at 300.66 mph. In the Finals, Kelley faced off against the current IHRA Nitro Funny Car points leader, Washington State’s Terry Haddock, and when Haddock smoked his tires, Kelley cruised to the win, and moved up to third place in the national points standings.

Now tied with Paul Lee for third place, and only two points behind Matt Hagan for second, Kelley can’t wait for the IHRA season finale at the legendary Rockingham Dragway on October 17-19.

“After a slow start, this is turning into a dream season,” said Kelley. “We have a chance, if we can qualify strong in Rockingham and go rounds, to finish the season in second place. We’d love to have a lot of local support at the World Finals, and would encourage our local fans and friends to drive up and see us at The Rock. It’s a great facility, and one of the few places fans can sit almost right up on the track.”

Kelley Motorsports is based in Piedmont, SC, and campaigns a Nitro Funny Car in the ten-event IHRA Knoll-Gas Nitro Jam series. Kelley currently sits in third place in the IHRA national points standings with one race left in the season. To follow Andy’s progress, check out his blog at http://andykelleyracing.blogspot.com.

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North American Nationals CHAMPION!!

Woo Hooo!! Just got done beating Terry Haddock in the Finals for our second event win of the year. We went 5.16 in the Finals but Terry smoked the tires so it wasn't close. In round one we beat Cory Lee, when I went 5.15 and he smoked the tires. In round two I beat Matt Hagan 5.10/300 to his 5.20.

I am on cloud nine. This is three Finals in a row, our second event win, and I've won 8 of my last 9 rounds. This is truly a dream come true. More details later, and make sure you all make plans to come see us in Rockingham on October 17-19. We are now tied for 3rd in points with Paul Lee, according to IHRA, and to finish in third would be great.

2 back to back finals- what a dream

If ever I needed a win, it was in Martin, MI. We had talked about skipping tulsa and epping if we had not faired well in Martin. And the rest is history ( as they would say). We won our first ever Nitro Funnycar National event!!!!!!! Made a little money, spent more than we made and moved on to Tulsa OK. We went to the final round there last year, only to be caught by the clutch gremlin. Not this year! Richard Hartman had our car on string. He is an amazing tuner and what he can do with no budget (ours) is just unreal. We have won 5 out of the last 6 rounds of competition. I am more than ever determined to secure some form of financial backing for next year and really be aggressive toward an IHRA championship. We still have a mathematical chance of winning the championship this year, and trust me, were going for broke, but it is a very long shot to say the least. I want to take this time to thank Dusty and his son Brent for their help all weekend. I have to thank each member of our crew for their dedicated support. Butch, who has been with me through all the tough times. He is a very dedicated person, and puts in a lot hours at the shop and the track. He takes care of the truck, trailer and car when its not in my sight. Thanks Butch. Ray, Jay, Don, Neal, Paul, Josh and Bob. These great people volunteer their time to pursue a dream as well. I can"t thank them enough for their great work and dedication. If you think it's easy, well, its not. Just to give you an overview- Me , Dad, Jill, ray, don, neal, jay and bob pile into the motorhome usually around 6:00 on thursday afternoon. We drive non stop to wherever were racing at. We arrive friday morning, unload the luggage, unload the van and get straight to work. We are constantly making the car better and safer. After qualifing friday night, we service the car and get in bed usually around 1-2 am. Wake up sat. morning around 7 am, start working on the car and parts. After the last qual. session sat. night and the car is serviced, its again, 1,2 or 3 in the morning.(depends on how the runs were) Sunday, wake up at 7 am again, and get the car ready for race day. Except for the last 2 races, which ever round we lost in, we'd service the car and load it in the trailer. We all then get back in the motorhome to make the trip back home non-stop to make the monday morning work day. Butch would stay and finish loading everything and then get the transporter back safely to S.C. But it's what we live for. I want to thank the wives of my crew for letting their husbands go with me. I want to thank the support of my wife Bron, kids Anna Drew and Heath. Thanks to my brother Neal for letting me and dad go racing while he runs the business. I wish he could go with us. Jill, for just everything you do. From planning our trip, to the food, all the decals, cooking, making sure the Nitro is right, making sure daddy is right!, just everything, thanks. All my sponsors who have helped me. Donnie and Barbara Holbrook. Holbrook Performance Parts..... If you want to race and dont have a car, just give them a call, need on bolt or a complete engine, give them a call or check them out online- www.Holbrookperformance.com Mike at General Machine of Anderson for all your manual and cnc machining. and thanks for letting Neal and Don off work to go with us. Victory1 precision racing valves. Conrad and Derek has been a huge help with our valve train success this year. Ross racing pistons, Darton Sleeves, Amalie oil, ARC, Crane cams, clevite, Vickery Speed shop, Impact! safety, R3, RH2, JRD hauling and grading, Silt Fence, R & R Construction, Danny and Lanita Driggers, Hartman Machine Works, Horton race cars, Nitro Drivelines(Moore), Williams oil pans, and everyone else who has contributed in some way. It takes so much to have a competitive race car, I just wanted to thank everyone for all you do. Now lets go to Epping and win that race!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

Sooner Nationals Finals

5:16 p.m. Weather conditions: air temperature 88 degrees, relative humidity 52 percent, barometer 29.27 inches, adjusted altitude 3,504 feet, track temperature 128 degrees.

(W) Matt Hagan (Shelor.com '05 Monte Carlo) 0.141 5.113 301.81
(L) Andy Kelley (Holbrook Perf. Parts '02 Camar 0.133 5.194 285.83

During their brief Nitro Funny Car careers, Kelley and Hagan have each won once against the other and this is the first time they have faced each other in a final round. Hagan trailed Terry Haddock by 81 points, just one point ahead of Kelley, when he staged the car.

Good race, Hagan leading all the way, with Kelley close until half track. Matt Hagan's incremental margins: 60ft(0.007), 330 ft(0.012), 660ft(0.012), 1,000ft(0.039). MOV: 0.0732 seconds (approximately 31 feet).

2nd Round Win. Back to the Finals!

2:56 p.m. Weather conditions: air temperature 87 degrees, relative humidity 59 percent, barometer 29.32 inches, adjusted altitude 3,538 feet, track temperature 125 degrees.

(W) Andy Kelley (Holbrook Perf. Parts '02 Camar 0.092 5.222 293.03
(L) Todd Simpson (Modular Systems '02 Camaro) 0.104 5.860 184.67

Something went POP in Simpson's car just before half track and Kelley sailed right into the final round where he will give up lane choice to Matt Hagan.

First Round Win in Tulsa

1:04 p.m. Weather conditions: air temperature 84 degrees, relative humidity 70 percent, barometer 29.38 inches, adjusted altitude 3,283 feet, track temperature 121 degrees.

(W) Andy Kelley (Holbrook Perf. Parts '02 Camar 0.163 5.107 300.60
(L) John Lawson (TORCO '08 Impala) 0.207 5.162 291.45

The car Lawson is driving this weekend is the car Dale Creasy Jr. was driving in Edmonton when he was injured - with a new driveline tunnel to protect against that type of accident.

Both drivers were late, both made their best run of the weekend, and Kelley lit the win light by more than a car length.

Final Qualifying Order - Tulsa

We finished in the fourth position and race John Lawson at Noon tommorrow (Sunday). check www.ihra.com for the results.

1 Matt Hagan, Christiansburg VA, '05 Monte Carlo 4.994 306.26
2 Terry Haddock, Woodville WA, '05 Stratus 5.098 283.73
3 Paul Lee, Wynnewood PA, '02 Camaro 5.120 292.77
4 Andy Kelley, Piedmont SC, '02 Camaro 5.124 298.93
5 Steven Macklyn, Layton UT, '05 Monte Carlo 5.143 283.91
6 Todd Simpson, Ponder TX, '02 Camaro 5.248 275.06
7 Jeff Diehl, Salinas CA, '05 Monte Carlo 5.362 226.01
8 John Lawson, Joliet IL, '08 Impala 5.384 231.99

Sat afternoon solid run

We decided to run on Saturday afternoon even though we had a good pass last night. The track temp and air temp this afternoon are going to be similar to what we'll see tommorrow during eliminations so we needed the data.

The track temp was over 120 and the air temp was 83, so we knew traction was going to be tough. We backed off a little and made the best Nitro Funny Car pass of the session with a 5.183 at 295.08. Still #3 on the ladder.

We'll go get ready for tonite and may really crank it up. Check the blog later for an update or go to www.ihra.com.

Good Run Fri Night - #3

Here's how we stand after Friday nights qualifying session in Tulsa

1. Matt Hagan Shelor.com '05 Monte Carlo 5.086 298.60
2. Terry Haddock Race Girl '05 Stratus 5.098 283.73
3. Andy Kelley Holbrook Perf. Parts '02 Camar 5.124 298.93
4. Jeff Diehl NitroAGoGo.com '05 Monte Carlo 5.362 226.01
5. Justin Schriefer Ruane Construction '02 Camaro 5.509 213.00
6. John Lawson TORCO '08 Impala 5.705 205.60
7. Todd Simpson Modular Systems '02 Camaro 5.871 177.21
8. Paul Lee Merchants Tire & Auto '02 Cama 6.622 132.95
--------- Not Qualified ---------
9. Steven Macklyn hazmatstore.net '05 Monte Carl 6.685 172.45
10. Dan Sosenka Mr. Magoo '97 Avenger 6.819 156.44
11. Randy Bykowsky Hi-Velocity Systems '05 Monte 9.191 90.91