Wilkerson looks to the mountain to help his mission

BRISTOL, Prerace: Funny Car pro, Tim Wilkerson is a man on a mission and the O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway is the next step in his quest. . Wilkerson is pleased with the performance of his Levi, Ray & Shoup Chevrolet Impala SS. And he knows as long as his consistency continues his goal of winning rounds and being in the top eight in points by the U.S. Nationals will be reached. He has been making slow and steady progress the past few races, and he's planning to continue on his path to this accomplishment.

Bristol Dragway, nestled amongst the mountains is one of the premier facilities on the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing tour. Wilkerson usually has a handle on the Bristol quarter-mile. But things are different this year. First, the race is being held later in the year. It's usually held earlier during the beautiful springtime weather, but now it's almost the middle of July and it's going to be hot and humid. Two factors that affect both man and machine. The second thing is the Bristol Dragway track surface. There is a new 700-foot concrete launchpad. New racing surface can be great or it can be a problem. Everyone is hoping for great.

"I have no idea what to expect until we get there," said Wilkerson. "So the Friday night run is going to be critical, so we'll have to make sure our car is happy and ready for that night run. Then if we can get some good runs during the heat of the day, we should be in great shape for Sunday. And with a little luck we can have another good race day."