Others Wish They Were Over the Hill

The rain finally stopped and qualifying started Friday for the 39th annual AutoZone Winternationals at Pomona Raceway.

That was good news for all the drivers, who were eager to race after sitting around Thursday while rain washed out the first day of qualifying for the opening event of the National Hot Rod Assn.’s drag-racing season, but especially for Eddie Hill and Del Worsham.

Hill, at 62 the oldest competitor in the nitro classes, is the No. 1 qualifier in top fuel after a run in 4.35 seconds, a track record and the fourth-quickest quarter-mile in NHRA history.

“What a way to start off the season,” said an elated Hill, a bearded, white-haired veteran from Wichita Falls, Texas, who started racing 50 years ago, survived a spectacular blow-over at Pomona 10 years ago and in 1993, at 57, became the oldest top-fuel champion in NHRA history.

Hill, who won this event in 1995, seemed surprised by his run, which was one of the last of the day and drew a roar from a crowd that stuck around until long after dark to watch the rain-delayed qualifying session.

“To be honest with you, it was so smooth and so easy--the car didn’t make any sudden moves--that it didn’t even feel that quick,” Hill said. “It was so smooth that it didn’t feel as good as the numbers showed. . . .

“It makes me feel 59 again, a lap like that.”

Worsham, a 28-year-old former rookie of the year from Costa Mesa, drove his Pontiac Firebird down the 1,320-foot strip in a career-best 4.968 seconds to qualify No. 1 in funny cars, even though eight-time Winston series champion John Force set an event record with a speed of 313.73 mph.

“I’m so thrilled I can barely talk,” said Worsham, who hadn’t qualified No. 1 since his rookie season of 1991. “Based on last year, if we qualified in the first session, we had pretty good days on Sunday.”

Force’s elapsed time of 5.016 seconds left him third, behind Ron Capps, going into today’s final two rounds of qualifying.

In pro stock, defending Winston series champion Warren Johnson of Sugar Hill, Ga., qualified No. 1, setting event records with an elapsed time of 6.926 seconds, breaking by .001 of second the mark he set two years ago, and speed of 200.20 mph in a Pontiac Firebird.

The speed record topped the mark of 199.79 mph that had been set only minutes earlier by Johnson’s son, Kurt, in a Chevrolet Camaro.

Qualifying in the pro classes continues today at 11:30 a.m.