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Peter Biondo doubles up at Loose Rocker ’ s American Doorslammer Nationals By Van Abernethy
Veteran drag racer and event promoter Peter Biondo lived up to his nickname “ Terminator ” as the New York resident traveled to North Carolina in November , where he was the picture of consistency at Loose Rocker ’ s 11th annual Summit American Doorslammer Nationals presented by McCarty Auto Parts . The event was held at GA- LOT Motorsports Park in Benson , North Carolina , and boasted payouts of $ 20K on Saturday and Sunday , of which Biondo won both . Despite an unfavorable forecast – which forced a cancellation of Friday ’ s Abruzzi Transmission & Converters warmup race – the event still attracted 350 entries each day for the remainder of the weekend . Even Saturday ’ s eliminator fell victim to yet another shower with 32 cars remaining , so the conclusion of day one was finished up early Sunday morning .
In the semis of the Saturday race , Biondo got past Jon Corbin on a double breakout eliminator . This set the stage for a showdown between Biondo ’ s 1969 Firebird and the 1967 Camaro of Steve Dunn . The victory was decided at the very start , with Dunn going red by . 003 to Biondo ’ s . 011 , resulting in the instant win for Biondo .
After a period was put on Saturday ’ s extension , it was time to go right into Sunday ’ s ATI Performance Products 20-grander . After marching through a quarterfinal matchup with Will Holloman , Biondo then faced Trevor Jenkins in
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the semis . Biondo was . 009 off the line and took six thou at the finish line to get around Jenkins , who was . 013 off the line and three above his dial-in at the eighth-mile mark .
With Biondo just one more win light away from collecting his second $ 20,000 check in one day , he met a very game Blane Parrish , driving his Ford Mustang . The race began with identical . 014 reaction times , as it was now up to both drivers to successfully navigate the finish line . The scoreboards told the story , as Parrish dipped two thou below his dial-in ( 6.258 on a 6.26 dial ) to Biondo ’ s 5.804 on a dial of 5.80 . It was an epic
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weekend for Biondo , collecting a ton of cash and hoisting a pair of Loose Rocker Eagle trophies .
After a rainout in Darlington , Loose Rocker closed out its season with a stop at Jacksonville , North Carolina ’ s Coastal Plains Dragway , which ironically is where Loose Rocker got its start 13 years ago , but hasn ’ t returned in several years , save the 2022 season finale .
Looking ahead , the 14th annual St . Patrick ’ s Classic presented by Walton Trailer Sales is slated for March 17-19 at GALOT Motorsports Park . The event will feature eliminators in Top and Footbrake . DI
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PHOTOGRAPHS BY MICHAEL BEARD AND CHIP BRALLEY |