Industry hackers are tuning up their swings for the annual SEMA Charity Golf Tournament, to be held Friday, July 25 at the Strawberry Farms Golf Course, Irvine, California. Part of the fundraising activities held in conjunction with the 2008 SEMA Installation Banquet & Gala Fundraiser, the charity golf tournament directly benefits SEMA’s two chosen charities, Child Help and Victory Junction Gang Camp.

SEMA council members are among those refining their game to challenge for the Council Cup Perpetual Trophy, a friendly competition among councils to prove who has the better hackers.

A special "Council Package" price of $2,000 (a $300 discount) is available for Council Cup competitors. The package includes four rounds of golf at the tournament and dinner for four at the Annual Gala Banquet and Charity Auction, to be held that evening at the Irvine Hyatt Hotel. At least one active Council member must participate in the golf tournament foursome to be eligible for this special pricing offer.

Any foursome consisting of two or more active council members will automatically be entered in the Council Cup Challenge representing their council (be sure to indicate on your registration form which Council you are representing). The package includes four rounds of golf at the tournament and dinner for four at the Annual Inaugural Banquet and Charity Auction, to be held that evening at the Irvine Hyatt Hotel.

To register for the golf tournament, click here for the registration form.

For more information on the banquet and activities, click here.

Donations for the Gala Fundraiser Silent Auction are streaming in and thus far include tickets to next season's Shootout Under the Lights at Daytona International Speedway, a private tour of the Smith Collection at the Museum of American Speed, and a chance to ride, expenses paid, on the Kyle Petty "Ride Across America" charity motorcycle ride.

If you would like to donate to this special event, please click here.

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Participate in SEMA's May 1st webinar to learn the key ingredients your website needs to generate traffic online. Participants will learn the basics of structuring a website to achieve high search rankings and allow prospects to easily find it.

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Attention manufacturers: SEMA set up a Measuring Session with Saturn for the automaker's 2008 Astra. SEMA Measuring Sessions provide members private access to new-vehicle releases. Through the sessions, manufacturers can attain first-hand measurements, take photos and interact with vehicle designers and OEM staff. For more information, contact Bill Wolf at billw@sema.org or visit www.sema.org/oem.  

SEMA-supported legislation to exempt street rods from the state’s regular safety inspections was approved by the Delaware State Legislature. Under an agreement reached with state regulators, the registration and titling process will be changed administratively to allow street rods to be assigned a registration and titling designation bearing the same model year that the body of the vehicle resembles. The bill next moves to the governor for his signature and enactment into law. 

For details, contact Steve McDonald at stevem@sema.org.

SEMA again helped defeat Maryland legislation requiring the development of a statewide program to mandate that replacement tires for passenger cars meet fuel efficiency standards. The replacement tire efficiency program was anti-consumer, anti-small business, and would have required a substantial appropriation. This year’s version of the bill also included a credit against the excise tax for specified fuel-efficient vehicles. 

Most importantly, a replacement tire efficiency program was included in federal energy legislation signed into law last year. As proposed, the Maryland program could have created conflict with the Federal program. The federal program includes a SEMA-drafted exemption for limited production tires (15,000 or less annually) and other specialized tires. 

For details, contact Steve McDonald at stevem@sema.org.

BREAKTHROUGH: “Finally,” said IndyCar Series driver Danica Patrick after earning her first IndyCar victory in the Indy Japan 300 at the Twin Ring Motegi. Patrick became the first female driver to win in the series. Meanwhile, it was a big weekend for lady racers, as Simona De Silvestro won the Atlantic Championship round at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach and Jamie Little topped the Toyota Pro/Celebrity race.

AN APPEAL?: Don Schumacher Racing plans to appeal the $100,000 fine handed it by NHRA for having unapproved nitromethane in its pit area.

BIG MONEY: Late-model driver Steve Francis banked $50,000 for winning the Colossal 100 at The Dirt Track @ Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

RIDE TIME: Simon Pagenaud will join with team owner Gil de Ferran in the American Le Mans Series.

TESTERS: The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams will test at Lowe’s Motor Speedway May 5–6 in preparation for the May 17 Sprint All-Star Race and the May 25 Coca-Cola 600.

IN LIMBO: Former Champ Car World Series title winner Paul Tracy admits after competing in the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach that his future in racing is in doubt. In a contract dispute with team-owner Gerry Forsythe, who is not moving his team to the IndyCar Series, Tracy is without a ride as the month of May approaches. Tracy said he realizes sponsorship money and available rides are difficult to find.

POWER RANKINGS: Billy Moyer remained at the top of the National Speed Sport News Power Rankings and earned his 10th dirt-late-model victory of the season April 15 at Lernerville Speedway in Pennsylvania. However, NASCAR driver Kyle Busch is closing fast. The National Speed Sport News Power Rankings are published weekly in the 74-year-old motorsports publication.

SUBSCRIBE: National Speed Sport News has been published weekly since 1934. To subscribe to National Speed Sport News, click on the following link for a special industry rate: www.nationalspeedsportnews.com/subscribe.html?pid=NQ%2BVfhkepT4%3D.

NEWS NUGGETS

DOWN  SOUTH—POWERade SERIES RETURNS TO ATLANTA FOR SIXTH  EVENT: Heading from the high desert of Las Vegas to the humid southland of Georgia, the NHRA POWERade Series travels cross-country for this weekend’s Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce. It was one year ago that the winners from Las Vegas—Brandon Bernstein (Top Fuel), Robert Hight  (Funny Car), and Greg Anderson (Pro Stock)—pulled off an amazing  feat by repeating their winning runs in Atlanta.
    Karen Stoffer also had a repeat of her own, picking up her second win of the 2007 season at that event in Pro Stock Motorcycle. SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals winners Cory McClenathan, Tim Wilkerson and Jason Line hope the formula for a repeat is the same this year as they too look to make it two wins in a row.
    Atlanta is also the spot where Funny Car legend John Force will compete in his 500th career race, becoming only the second driver to do so (Warren Johnson raced in 528). If Force leaves Atlanta with the Wally, he will also become the first driver to reach the 1,000-round win mark, needing only four more round wins entering the event to reach the achievement.

“GRUMPY” TO BE INDUCTED IN 2008 INTERNATIONAL MOTORSPORTS HALL OF FAME: Following in the footsteps of such drivers as Warren Johnson and John Force, former Pro Stock driver and 13-time event winner Bill “Grumpy”  Jenkins will be inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame at Talladega Superspeedway, April 24. Joining Jenkins in the Class of 2008 inductees is NHRA pioneer Art Afrons, Robert “Red”  Byron, Everett “Cotton” Owens, Frank Kurtis and Ralph Seagraves.
    “I have been quite honored by the whole thing,” said Jenkins. “I knew there had been some media effort afoot to get me inducted, and I know that’s where the push comes from to get the various set of people inducted into that system, so I wasn’t totally surprised.”

NHRA  DRIVERS FINISH IN TOP 10 AT PRO/CELEB RACE: Two-time and defending NHRA POWERade Series Funny Car world champion Tony Pedregon showed his street course racing skills with a fifth-place finish in the Pro/Celebrity race at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, April 19. NHRA drivers Whit Bazemore and Marty Nothstein also finished the event in the top 10, turning in a sixth and eighth-place finish, respectively. ESPN announcer Jamie Little won the event, which pitted celebrities against auto racers in a 10-lap race. SPEED Channel will provide coverage of the event, with airtimes scheduled for May 3 (3 p.m.), May 4 (11:30 p.m.), May 9 (11 p.m.), and May 25 (7:30 p.m.). 

IN  THE NEWS

A LIFE 330 MPH IN THE MAKING: In his column this week, AP writer Jim Litke discusses the life and turmoil the past 12 months have brought Funny Car driver John Force, ranging from his horrific crash in Dallas and the loss of Eric Medlen, to daughter Ashley becoming the first female ever to lead the points in Funny Car. Take a look at Litke’s article here.

COMING  ATTRACTIONS

SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT NHRA SOUTHERN NATIONALS, ATLANTA DRAGWAY, APRIL 24-27: The NHRA POWERade series heads back down south, as drivers in four categories will compete at the sixth event of the season. Defending event winners include Brandon Bernstein (Top Fuel), Robert Hight  (Funny Car), Greg Anderson (Pro Stock), and Karen Stoffer (Pro Stock Motorcycle).

O’REILLY NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS, GATEWAY INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY, MAY  2-4: Traveling back to Madison, Ill., just outside of St. Louis in view of the archway, drivers from the NHRA POWERade Series will look to gain some advantage in the Countdown to the Championship just before the start of the summer months. Defending event champions include Melanie Troxel (Top Fuel), Ron Capps (Funny Car), Dave Connolly (Pro Stock), and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle).

O’REILLY NHRA THUNDER VALLEY NATIONALS, BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY, MAY 16-18: The NHRA POWERade Series heads back to the Thunder Valley of Bristol, Tenn., for the eighth running of the event. Defending event winners  include Brandon Bernstein (Top Fuel), John Force (Funny Car), and Jeg Coughlin (Pro Stock).

HE  SAID, SHE SAID

FIRST MEN’S FITNESS, NEXT (HOPEFULLY) NATIONAL DRAGSTER: With the Funny Car points lead heading into Atlanta and a feature in Men’s Fitness magazine, you’d think that Ashley Force has everything she’d want. But there seems to be only one publication Force is looking to make. “I am really aiming for getting the National DRAGSTER cover, which means I got my first win," said Force. “That would be the best way to kick off all these media things.”

INSIDE  THE NUMBERS

8: The most wins at Atlanta Dragway, set by late Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Dave Schultz, which also stands as the most wins by a Pro Stock Motorcycle competitor at any track.

DID  YOU KNOW?

…that NHRA drivers Melanie Troxel, Frank Hawley, Gary Scelzi, Jack Beckman and Matt Smith will be part of a special fundraising event for the Dream House for Medically Fragile Children in Braselton, Georgia? The charity helps provide medically-fragile children and their families with an easy transition from hospitals and institutions to homes.