Jason Hurley Leads RMRW Day One at Kearney, As Racers Prepare for Denver
Rocky Mountain Race Week is underway out west, with 337 racers taking on a sweltering first day in Kearney, Nebraska as America’s second oldest drag-and-drive event got underway.
Temps reaching into the nineties made conditions tough early, but as the sun went down the racers found the groove.
Jason Hurley has been in mad-thrash mode this year to finish up the 555ci Dart Big M2 in his ‘Meltdown’ Firebird. That didn’t seem to end at the race track as he battled issues before recovering for a 7.302/191mph in the night, leading Overall and Unlimited. Don’t be surprised to see this car go much quicker at Bandimere Speedway.
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Hurley was the only driver into the sevens for the day, though Corey Thompson went close with an 8.089/178mph to lead Hot Rod. Fresh off his Super Street win at Sick Summer, Thompson took it conservatively but should be another driver into the sevens before the week is out.
Donavan Leeder is tied for third overall and leads Outlaw Street thanks to an 8.275 pass, joined by Ricky Daniels’ 8.275 in Ultimate Radial. Unfortunately for Leeder, he needed to pull the engine and replace it with a 5.3 out of Brady Davis’ trailer.
Competition is already looking tight in Limited Street, RMRW’s equivalent to the Street Race classes of Hot Rod Drag Week and Sick events. Trevor Branden’s GTR clocked an 8.527 to claim first day bragging rights from 8.50 pro Aaron Shaffer who went 8.532 in his Camaro.
The Stark family’s new Mustang delivered the goods in Stick Shift with a 9.378 for the early lead.
Matt Moore’s 5.133 in Rowdy Radial also deserves a mention, with the Mustang handing in what we believe is the second-quickest Rowdy Radial pass in RMRW history (second only to Andy Cook’s 5.130 at 2.0 in 2021).
With a 450 mile drive to get to Bandimere Speedway, some racers were on the road early while others chose to wait for the daylight hours. RMRW has specific drive days, meaning competitors didn’t have to rush and could instead take their time as they crossed the plains to reach the Rocky Mountains.
The second day of RMRW takes place today at Bandimere Speedway from 3pm. Make sure you don’t miss one of the last opportunities to see drag-and-drive at this iconic venue. Tickets are available at the gate.
Check out the full results here.
Catch up on the first day’s action below thanks to 1320 Video!
