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Date of birth: August 7, 1970
Height/weight: 5-foot-1, 105 pounds
Hometown: New Orleans
Hobbies: Brazilian JiuJitsu, Muay Thai Kick Boxing, watersports, working out, and hunting
- In 2001 Angelle became the winningest female in NHRA history passing Shirley Muldowney's record of 18 wins and continues to dominate with 41 career victories.
- Angelle is the fourth rider in history to win multiple pro stock motorcycle championships.
- Angelle's former job before pro stock motorcycle was as an intensive care nurse.
- Angelle holds the active record of 169 consecutive races without a Did Not Qualify
Career Wins: 41
Career Final Rounds: 66
Career Best E.T.: 6.871
Career Best Speed: 194.21
Crew Chief: George Bryce
Body Style: 2004 XB9R Buell
Series: NHRA POWERade Drag Racing
Division: Pro Stock Motorcycle
Minimum Weight: 625 pounds (with rider)
Body Material: Carbon Fiber
Wheelbase: 70 inches
Overall Length: 12 feet
Overall Width: 24 inches
Gas Capacity: 1 Qt. VP C25
Brakes: Dual Front, Single Rear Disc
Tire/Size: Front: Mickey Thompson 2x18, Rear: Mickey Thompson 27x10x16
Engine: 60° S&S V-Twin
Displacement: 160 cubic inches
Horsepower: 340+ @ 8600 rpm
Torque: 200 ft lbs. plus
Transmission: 6 speed S&S
CLICK BELOW
- RESULTS - Mac Tools US Nationals August 27th-September1st, 2008
- RESULTS - Toyo Tires NHRA Nationals August 14th-17th, 2008
- RESULTS - Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals August 7th-10th, 2008
- RESULTS - Fram Autolite NHRA Nationals July 25th-27th, 2008
- RESULTS - Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals July 11th-13th, 2008
- RESULTS - Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals June 26th-29th, 2008
- RESULTS - Lucas Oil NHRA SuperNationals Nationals June 20th-22nd, 2008
- RESULTS - Torco Race Fuels NHRA Route 66 Nationals June 5th-8th, 2008
- RESULTS - O' Reilly NHRA Midwest Nationals May 2nd-4th, 2008
- RESULTS - Summit Racing NHRA Southern Nationals April 24th-27th, 2008
- RESULTS - O'Reilly Spring Nationals March 28th-30th, 2008
- RESULTS - ACDelco NHRA Gatornationals - March 13th - 16th, 2008
- Doc's Harley-Davidson Rides with Sampey
September 2, 2008
for immediate release
Angelle Sampey/Rush Racing
NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle team report
Event: Mac Tools U.S. Nationals
Dates: August 27 to September 1, 2008
Location: O’Reilly Raceway Park near Indianapolis, Indiana
Roller Coaster Weekend for Sampey
Three time NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle champion Angelle Sampey was feeling overwhelmed before a wheel even turned at the 54th running of the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals at O’Reilly Raceway Park near Indianapolis, Indiana. When not preparing to make a pass on her Rush Racing S&S powered V-Twin, Sampey was on the phone with friends, family and neighbors of her Houma, Louisiana home. When qualifying first started on Friday, Hurricane Gustav was still a long way off but projected to strike the Louisiana coast. That projection was dead-on. Gustav and the U.S. Nationals marched relentless on through Labor Day Monday.
“Indy is always the most stressful race of the year,” said Angelle. “It’s such a big race and so long, and two races in one weekend with the Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle. On top of that, I came here knowing I was going to be dealing with a major hurricane crossing right over my house and family.”
The weather for Friday’s 5:00pm qualifying session in Indy was certainly no hurricane. The air temperature was 86 degrees, relative humidity was 56 percent, barometer at 28.99 inches, the adjusted altitude at 3,756 feet, and track temperature was 114 degrees. But the overriding weather condition of the moment was a warm, stiff headwind. No hurricane, but enough to be the dominant feature of the round. That wind is reflected in Angelle’s slow 181 mph trap speed, and the slow MPH of the whole class. Still, it was the team’s best opening round qualifying result. Angelle ranked third despite losing vacuum when some oil pan screws backed out, and having to really ride the bike, leaning hard to the left to maintain the groove.
qualifying round 1
3rd Angelle Sampey left lane 7.141 at 181.81 mph
So going into Saturday’s Ringer’s Gloves Battle, the Rush team was feeling great. The Ringer’s Gloves Battle Pro Bike Battle is a race-within-a-race, based on qualifying points and running concurrently with Saturday’s qualifying sessions. Angelle was ranked fifth in Ringer’s points and scheduled to run Eddie Krawiec in round 1. A tough draw, because Krawiec sat atop Friday’s qualifying order with a 7.10 and ran a 7.0 in the special Friday evening Pro Bike Battle test shot. George Bryce, the six-time national champion tuner and crew chief on Sampey’s S&S powered V-Twin, always elects to sit his bike out of the Friday night pass. The team knew they had the tune-up and knew that the Q1 pass would have been quicker without the vacuum leak. Confidence settled over the Rush Racing pit like a warm blanket on a crisp, fall evening.
But oh, how cruel the cold light of day can be! When Angelle staged the bike for round 1 of the $25,000 Battle, the throw-out bearing failed and the clutch pulled her bike through the beams. The disconsolate Sampey got off the bike, walked to the wall, took off her helmet and gloves, and was immediately surrounded by the ESPN cameras and microphones. Despite 11 starts in this all-star race, a Ringers Gloves win remains a feather outside of Angelle’s cap. Krawiec went on to win the Battle in his very first year.
Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle round 1
(W) Eddie Krawiec .119 6.998 at 188.89 mph
Angelle Sampey broke
With bikes all around jumping into the 6s, Angelle improved in the afternoon round of qualifying, but with a 7.01 it was not where she or the team wanted to be. “That was our first chance to tune the bike,” reasoned team owner Karl Klement, who was upset about the lost opportunity in the Glove Battle but refused to place blame. And despite their problems, the team was still qualified in the top half of the field.
qualifying round 3
7th Angelle Sampey left lane 7.010 at 187.55 mph
The pendulum swung back the other way for Angelle and the team on Sunday, with the Rush Racing Buell making a nice 6 second pass on yet another bight and cloudless summer morning.
Needless to say, the atmosphere at the Rush racing trailer was much better than Saturday. Angelle, though, was still distracted by the drama surrounding Gustav and her Louisiana home. When not signing autographs, she was glued to her iphone.
qualifying round 4
6th Angelle Sampey right lane 6.987 at 188.65 mph
The final qualifying session was another snakebit round for Angelle and the team. A crank sensor failed midway through the pass, shutting down the S&S V-Twin.
qualifying round 5
6th Angelle Sampey left lane 12.893 at 61.16 mph
Sunday evening’s Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle banquet was a chance for Angelle and the Rush team to unwind, a rare break at the track from the pressure of competition and, for Angelle, a break from the worry about Gustav. She sat between fellow Louisiana natives Michael Phillips and Kurt Matte, who was flanked by G2 chief mechanic Ken “Big” Johnson. Needless to say, this group earned the moniker “Hoodlum Table” from Angelle when she addressed the banquet.
The roller coaster hit rock bottom for Angelle in round 1 on Sunday. Literally at the same moment that Gustav was coming ashore just south of Houma, Angelle’s Buell suffered another mechanical failure, shutting the motor down and knocking about 15 mph off the top end.
eliminations round 1
(W) Angie McBride .020 7.078 at 186.18 mph
Angelle Sampey .103 7.081 at 173.58 mph
“It went bang on the 4-5 shift and went bang-bang-bang on the 5-6, then shut off in sixth,” said Bryce. “The crank sensor could have been the reason, but it could have been knocked out by the crankshaft itself..”
“Once again we had a lot of bad luck,” said Angelle. “It’s getting really frustrating with all the mechanical problems. It would be really easy for my team to lose faith and get discouraged, but they aren’t. We did not do what we wanted to for our sponsors, especially all the people from Rush racing that were here. Any time, but especially when they’re here, you want to perform perfectly. We also had new sponsor XXX Race Fuels here, and I’m really disappointed for them. We wanted to help put them on the map at the U.S. Nationals.
“The hurricane was a huge distraction worrying, but I would have to say in a good way. I had something keeping my mind off the racing so I wasn’t so stressed out about the race itself.”
“No matter what happens today, we go into the next race at Charlotte with 50 points separating us from first place,” noted Bryce. “That’s only two and a half rounds in five races, or twenty rounds of racing.”
“This race really doesn’t count in points, because the Countdown starts at the next race,” said Angelle. “If we’re gonna have horrible luck, it’s better that it happens this weekend.”
“All the trouble is behind us now,” finished Bryce. “We win three rounds more than Andrew Hines, Matt Smith, and Chip Ellis and we’re the champs.”
Angelle and the Rush Racing team race next September 11-14 at the NHRA Carolinas Nationals at zMax Dragway @ Concord in Concord, North Carolina.
NHRA POWERade season point standings
4th Angelle Sampey 702
Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle point standings
6th Angelle Sampey 135
Full Throttle Pit Crew Championship point standings
5th Angelle Sampey/George Bryce 319
This team report was prepared by Tim Hailey, http://www.eatmyink.com
August 18, 2008
for immediate release
Angelle Sampey/Rush Racing
NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle team report
Event: Toyo Tires NHRA Nationals
Dates: August 14-17, 2008
Location: Maple Grove Raceway in Mohnton, Pennsylvania
Finals Again for Sampey
For the second straight race, three time NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle champ Angelle Sampey rode her Rush Racing S&S powered V-Twin all the way to the final round. She also jumped all the way to fourth in the POWERade standings and moved up one notch on the Full Throttle Pit Crew Championship ladder as well. With one race to go before the Countdown to the Championship, Sampey and her team have hit their stride and are peaking at precisely the right time. “The team did fantastic,” said Angelle. “Everybody worked together so well, everybody did their jobs, everything just worked. I really think that us learning each other and me learning the bike and what it takes to be a championship contending team has come together for us.”
Using one motor for the weekend and concentrating on a raceday set-up, Sampey qualified solidly in the middle of the front half of the Reading field.
qualifying round 1
7th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.019 at 189.47 mph
1.082 60 foot time
qualifying round 2
4th Angelle Sampey left lane 6.964 at 190.40 mph
1.105 60 foot time
qualifying round 3
5th Angelle Sampey right lane 6.977 at 190.16 mph
qualifying round 4
6th Angelle Sampey left lane 6.971 at 190.65 mph
“We qualified pretty well,” continued Angelle. “Like everybody, we wish we’d qualified higher, but it actually worked out in our favor where we qualified. We had a good side of the ladder, with some of the really tough competitors going out early. Not that anybody’s not a tough competitor anymore, because every single person in the other lane feels like a final round these days. But there were bikes that were faster than some of the ones I had to race and they went out early. So that was a little bit less stressful.”
“We had a plan on Sunday to win as many rounds as we could and keep our nose to the grindstone,” said George Bryce, the six time national champion tuner on Sampey's Buell.
And the grindstone is where the team spent a good deal of time on raceday. “We kept having things go wrong, but we kept fighting and fighting and kept going rounds,” said team owner Karl Klement. “Everybody did a great job.”
Indeed. Sampey and the team maintained their poise and consistency early in the day when redlights plagued the class. “There were a lot of redlights today,” said Bryce. “Every time I turned around, Angelle was looking down and not watching. I’m proud of her for that. She made everybody nervous all day when they raced her.”
eliminations round 1
(W) Angelle Sampey .057 6.955 at 189.55 mph
Wes Wells -.022 (R) 7.152 at 186.12 mph
eliminations round 2
(W) Angelle Sampey .040 7.013 at 189.04 mph
Chris Rivas -.031 (R) 7.042 at 185.51 mph
eliminations round 3
(W) Angelle Sampey .107 7.024 at 187.21 mph
Karen Stoffer .069 7.093 at 186.15 mph
Sampey’s semifinal win over Karen Stoffer set up a repeat final round of last week’s race in Brainerd between Angelle and defending national champion Matt Smith, both on S&S powered V-Twins. In Brainerd, though, an inexpensive electrical part failed on Sampey’s Buell and she didn’t get a chance to strut her stuff. “We rolled up to the starting line against Matt for the déjà vu final,” said Bryce. “And I said real loud so everybody could hear me ‘If it starts up we’ll be better than last week.’ It fired and everybody smiled.” For a while, anyway, but the smiles of the team in the black and lime Rush Racing shirts would have been bigger had the similarly colored Buell taken the stripe.
eliminations final round
(W) Matt Smith .045 6.957 at 188.81 mph
Angelle Sampey .036 7.061 at 186.28 mph
“If it hadn’t started, I believe Lou and Jeremy Pringle and Terry Daniels of Rush Racing would have called me into their office first thing Monday morning!” said Klement.
Though happy the bike ran, Bryce wasn’t sure why it wasn’t up to snuff to take out Smith. “We went 6.95 first round, then we tuned and it slowed down,” said George. “We said ‘OK that didn’t work,’ and went back the other way and it slowed down again. Usually when you go back to where you were it picks back up. So there might be something wrong with that motor. We’re gonna take it all apart and make sure it’s ready for Indy. We’re gonna run two engines there instead of one like we did at Brainerd and Reading. Ken Johnson is taking the bike and engines back to the shop. We’re gonna work on them and come out as best we can for the U.S. Nationals.”
“I think the engine was hurt, maybe the crankshaft,” said Angelle. “We were losing power every round. And Matt Smith is just one heck of a competitor. It’s gonna take a lot to take him down, but I do believe we have it.”
“Angelle did a great job,” boasted Bryce. “She left on Matt, rode straight and shifted on time, which is all we can ask. I’m very proud to be able to go to two finals in a row. Going to these finals is right what we were trying to do. I’d like to win every race, but peaking when it counts is a good thing. It’s typical of our race team to peak towards the end of the year.”
“I wasn’t disappointed in any way,” said Angelle. “I think everybody gave their all and there wasn’t anything else we could have done, it’s just the way the cards fell. I’m very proud of my guys.
“And I want to say a big ‘Thank you’ to our sponsors and family at Rush Racing. Thy have been very supportive and very patient with us. I hope they can see we’re turning things around. And all the other people who support us, like Doc’s Harley-Davidson, Tucker Rocky, Royal Purple and everybody. We have great people behind us, and that’s what it takes.
“And Karl and Kim Klement have been fantastic. Karl tells me ‘Good job’ after every run. He did a great thing for me in Brainerd when he said ‘No matter what happens in the final, Angelle, you did a great job this weekend.’ That takes all the pressure off, and I know that he felt the same way here in Reading. When you go into the final, you want to win more than anything, but you know that you’ve done a good job. George reminded me that this was my tenth final round at Reading out of twelve times racing here, so I have to say that it’s my all time favorite place to race because we are so successful here.
“We’re fourth in the world in points and I think we can move into third after Indy,” said Klement. “And if we keep going the way we’re going, I think we’ll be there. The team’s starting to really come together. I want to qualify number one at Indy, win the Ringer’s Gloves Battle and win the U.S. Nationals.” And nothing else would be acceptable for this team with high hopes.
“I really thought we were gonna get our first win of the year, but we didn’t, and I am totally motivated and so ready to go to Indy because I think our team is on a roll and it’s all gonna fall into place just at the right time,” finished Sampey. “We made a huge move up to fourth in points and things are falling right where we want them to fall when the Countdown starts, and we are gonna be contenders. I’m excited about it. Matt Smith is not gonna be the only thorn in everybody’s side!”
Angelle and the Rush Racing team race next August 27 to September 1 at the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals at O’Reilly Raceway Park near Indianapolis, Indiana.
NHRA POWERade season point standings
4th Angelle Sampey 668
Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle point standings
5th Angelle Sampey 2,105
Full Throttle Pit Crew Championship point standings
6th Angelle Sampey/George Bryce 281
This team report was prepared by Tim Hailey, http://www.eatmyink.com
August 11, 2008
for immediate release
Angelle Sampey/Rush Racing
NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle team report
Event: Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals
Dates: August 7-10, 2008
Location: Brainerd International Raceway in Brainerd, Minnesota
Sampey to the Finals at Brainerd
For the first time in 2008, three time NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle champ Angelle Sampey and her Rush Racing S&S powered V-Twin went all the way to the final round. Sampey parlayed her third place qualifying effort into a near win at Brainerd International Raceway in Brainerd, Minnesota, but a faulty cam sensor let her and the team down as the bike failed to start for the final round. “We were all heart broken that we didn’t get a chance to run, but we feel like it’s really turned around and we had a chance to win,” said Angelle.
After a botched round 1 qualifying attempt, Sampey and the Rush Racing team started a relentless march through the field. “I just totally missed the shifter button in the first round of qualifying,” reported Angelle. “The bike took off to the left, which it’s never done. Usually I’m prepared for the bike to go right. I was just holding on, and you can’t hold on and shift the motorcycle. You have to go with the motorcycle and really ride the thing.”
qualifying round 1
16th Angelle Sampey right lane 8.500 at 111.00 mph
“After that, I was just determined to ride that motorcycle like I knew I could, and we went better and better.”
qualifying round 2
6th Angelle Sampey left lane 7.040 at 187.29 mph
1.090 60 foot time
qualifying round 3
6th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.034 at 185.10 mph
1.073 60 foot time
qualifying round 4
3rd Angelle Sampey left lane 6.984 at 189.42 mph
1.076 60 foot time
True enough. Sampey’s times improved every round, as did the 60 foot times that have proven elusive for her and the bike so far this year. “We did really well,” said George Bryce, the six time national champion tuner on Sampey's Buell. “We had the best qualifying position we’ve had this year. We went really fast and improved every round. Then we improved again first round on Sunday and went a 6.95, set the track record and got low ET of the meet.”
eliminations round 1
(W) Angelle Sampey .081 6.951 at 188.81 mph
Junior Pippin .109 7.102 at 185.05 mph
Sampey's Rush Racing Buell leapt to a 1.064 60 foot time on the pass. “That was a beautiful pass and the bike went really straight,” said Angelle.
“Then we had to run the Harley and Andrew Hines in the second round,” said Bryce. “He redlighted and Angelle had a good light, an .04. She got excited when she saw his redlight, looked over and took a peek, missed a shift and hit the rev limiter and slowed us down to a 7.05. But it would’ve gone a 6.90something again.”
eliminations round 2
(W) Angelle Sampey .042 7.058 at 185.28 mph
Andrew Hines -.010 (R) 7.040 at 186.46 mph
“In the next round, Chip Ellis redlighted and Angelle was able to go a 7 flat,” continued Bryce.
eliminations round 3
(W) Angelle Sampey -.006 7.005 at 186.82 mph
Chip Ellis -.046 (R) 6.993 at 189.68 mph
So the table was set for Sampey’s first final on the Rush Racing rocket. But in a cruel twist of fate, an inexpensive electronic part failed in the water box and the bike refused to start.
eliminations final round
(W) Matt Smith .057 6.973 at 188.60 mph
Angelle Sampey broke
“It was a lowly cam sensor,” groaned Bryce. “All it does is tell the ECU (Engine Control Unit) that the engine’s turning over. It costs $31.”
“It cost us the race!” said team owner Karl Klement. “We came back to the trailer and changed it and it started right up.”
“Fired up and sounded perfect,” agreed Bryce.
“I was upset, but it was really a nice weekend,” said Angelle. “The weather was beautiful, we had fun, and the crew guys Michael and Curtis did great.”
“Everybody worked together real well,” agreed Klement. “We had a great weekend and we finally found the tune-up in the bike.”
“Thanks to Karl and Kim Klement and the Rush Racing Products folks for giving us a chance to do this,” said Bryce. “And I want to give Angelle a pat on the back for her driving this weekend, and my boys did everything right. The motorcycle was great. The boys back at Star Racing and G2 did a good job putting the motors together.”
“But there’s still more in it,” said Angelle. “I can hold first gear longer than I have been, but I’ve hit the rev limiter a few times and I’m scared of that. I can’t be scared of it.”
“Angelle was coiled and cocked and ready to rock and we didn’t get a chance to show off what we could do in the finals,” said Bryce. “But we picked up 60 points on the guys who went out first round, like Eddie Krawiec, Chris Rivas, and a couple of other guys we closed the gap on. It was a good move for us. The bike was fast and we’re ready for the next race at Reading.”
“We had some really good runs all weekend, but I still haven’t won Brainerd yet,” said Angelle. “It’s the only track I haven’t won on yet. But Reading is a great track for me. I think there have been only two or three times I’ve raced at Reading that I haven’t been in the final round. So since we did this well at Brainerd, I feel I have a mental advantage going to Reading. That is my race!”
Angelle and the Rush Racing team race next August 14-17 at the Toyo Tires NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway in Mohnton, Pennsylvania.
NHRA POWERade season point standings
7th Angelle Sampey 574
Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle point standings
5th Angelle Sampey 1,970
Full Throttle Pit Crew Championship point standings
7th Angelle Sampey/George Bryce 258
This team report was prepared by Tim Hailey, http://www.eatmyink.com
July 30, 2008
for immediate release
Angelle Sampey/Rush Racing
NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle team report
Event: Fram Autolite NHRA Nationals
Dates: July 25-27, 2008
Location: Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California
Rush Racing Wins Full Throttle Award
Three time NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle champ Angelle Sampey and her Rush Racing team put on a sterling qualifying performance at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California. Sampey's Rush Racing S&S powered V-Twin started the weekend off quick and stayed remarkably consistent. “The team did a great job in qualifying,” said Angelle. “The bike was very fast and it was very consistent. I did my part in qualifying and the guys did their part and it was all good. We won the Full Throttle award and we were all really excited about that. It was so cool for Curtis Jackson and Michael Ray to be able to come up on stage and be presented with the award. I was real proud of them. I think we showed that the Rush Racing team has what it takes to get the job done.”
“Michael and Curtis did a fantastic job getting us ready and fast,” agreed George Bryce, the six time national champion tuner on Sampey's bike. The Full Throttle award recognizes the team that is able put together the best four lap average through the race weekend’s changing conditions.
qualifying round 1
2nd Angelle Sampey right lane 7.006 at 188.44 mph
qualifying round 2
4th Angelle Sampey left lane 7.034 at 183.15 mph
qualifying round 3
5th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.000 at 188.15 mph
qualifying round 4
5th Angelle Sampey left lane 7.048 at 185.13 mph
“We ran very well,” continued Bryce. “Our best all year. We were second after the first run with a 7.00, then we were a little early with the 2 to 3 shift and ran a 7.03. We changed engines and ran 7.000—the first run with the new engine. Then it got hot and the wind turned around to an 18 mile per hour headwind and we ran 7.04—the quickest of the final round by a lot.”
Low 7.0 consistency was out the window in a good way in Sunday’s first round of eliminations. Angelle’s 6.90 was, at the time, low ET of the meet, a new track record, and the team’s best ET ever.
eliminations round 1
(W) Angelle Sampey .136 6.900 at 191.57 mph
Steve Johnson -.036 (R) 6.970 at 192.25 mph
“But then I had a glitch in the second round with a redlight,” said Angelle. “I’m not sure what happened and I have no excuse for it. I just turned the throttle and went almost before the tree even came on. It’s very unusual for me to do something like that, but I did it and I don’t have any excuse. I wasn’t excited, I wasn’t nervous. I felt very confident and really thought we were gonna win the race.”
eliminations round 2
(W) Chip Ellis .002 6.922 at 193.07 mph
Angelle Sampey -.075 (R) 7.008 at 189.55 mph
“We got back to the trailer and looked at the computer,” continued Angelle. “The run looked good as far as my driving, with the shifting and everything. The ET wasn’t as great as we expected, so maybe there was something hurt in the engine. I’m not real sure. So we wouldn’t have won if my light had been green, but it doesn’t matter. You’ve gotta have a green light to win, so I threw it away before we even had a chance to win it.”
“We have the Rush Racing V-Twin going fast and straight now,” said Bryce. “We will run fast from now on and it is time to win rounds. We stayed seventh in points with two more races to go before the Countdown to the Championship starts. Thank you Karl and Kim Klement and Rush Racing for giving us the chance to pull this off.”
“The weekend went really well, the bike was real fast, the team won the Full Throttle award, Mike and Curtis accepted the award, we were marching through the field, and then we redlit and it was over,” summarized bike owner Karl Klement, who celebrated his birthday in Sonoma. “The whole team wants to win so bad and they are capable of doing it. They are just now coming together and great things are fixing to happen.”
It can’t happen soon enough for Sampey, who was beating herself up pretty good late Monday night after a long day of traveling back to Louisiana. “It was pretty disappointing,” said Angelle. “I’m very upset and frustrated with myself. I’m gonna go home and get my head straight and work on my reaction times again. I think I’ve been doing a really good job with them all year long up until this weekend. I don’t know what went wrong, but I’m gonna figure it out and I’m gonna fix it because my team and team owners and sponsors and all the people that support us have given me everything I need. There’s no excuse for me not to give them everything it takes to win a race. So I’m gonna work hard and I’m gonna fix it.”
Angelle and the Rush Racing team race next August 7-10 at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway in Brainerd, Minnesota.
NHRA POWERade season point standings
7th Angelle Sampey 478
Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle point standings
5th Angelle Sampey 1,815
Full Throttle Pit Crew Championship point standings
7th Angelle Sampey/George Bryce 214
This team report was prepared by Tim Hailey, http://www.eatmyink.com
July 15, 2008
for immediate release
Angelle Sampey/Rush Racing
NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle team report
Event: Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals
Dates: July 11-13, 2008
Location: Bandimere Speedway in Morrison, Colorado
Sampey Exits Early in Denver
Bandimere Speedway holds a lot of memories for three time NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle champ Angelle Sampey, and that made her early exit in eliminations there this weekend all the more painful. "The Mile High Nationals is a very special race for me," said Angelle. "It's where I started my career in the NHRA, so this weekend started my twelfth year of professional racing.
"Racing on The Mountain is always tough. It's just so different than any other race we go to. Because of the weather conditions and altitude, everything changes. From how you tune the bike to how you drive it, it's all different."
After a slow 1.152 60 foot time, Sampey's Rush Racing S&S powered Buell stood up on the wheelie bar to post a decent lap in the first round of qualifying.
qualifying round 1
7th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.569 at 175.59 mph
"We ran good in Q1, but the air/fuel ratio was too rich," said George Bryce, the six time national champion tuner on Sampey's bike. "So we knew we would run better in Q2. Well, I aimed Angelle too far to the right and the bike went straight to the centerline and we did not run any better.." The 60 foot time, however, bettered to a 1.113.
qualifying round 2
13th Angelle Sampey left lane 7.577 at 173.54 mph
Angelle's 60 foot time improved further still to 1.105 in round 3. "Conditions were the best in round 3," reported Bryce. "Angelle went straight but went too far in first gear and hit the rev limiter hard. Then her hand came off the handle bar. By the time she got back to the button, the bike was HARD on the limiter again—over 10,000 RPM for tenths. Well, that run was going to be so fast we went 7.41 for tenth spot."
qualifying round 3
10th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.418 at 180.12 mph
"I missed the shifts in first and second gear," said Angelle. "I over-revved first a little which caused me to hit the rev limiter. When that happens it feels like hitting the brakes. Your body gets thrown forward and then backwards when you shift to the next gear. When I did this while shifting into second, my hand moved to the outside of the handle bars which caused me to miss the shifter button completely while trying to shift to third."
"Angelle was devastated," said Bryce. "She knew that was our shot to really show what we could do. She missed about a tenth and we were only .009 behind low qualifier."
"I was so upset because I knew that it was going to be a really fast run if I hadn't made that mistake," said Angelle. "I was anxious to redeem myself for the fourth round of qualifying. But the fuel line came loose and the bike stalled on the line."
qualifying round 4
10th Angelle Sampey left lane no pass
"We left a high pressure fuel line loose in the pits and it sprayed out all over the bike in the burnout," said Bryce. "Angelle had to shut it down and we were done."
"Fuel was gushing everywhere," said Angelle. "And as I started to feel as if I just can't catch a break, I realized how much worse it could have been. If that bike would've caught on fire, the bike and I would have been burned really badly."
"We were tenth, which meant that we had to run Chris Rivas on the Drag Specialties/S&S powered entry first round," said Bryce. Riding the G2 Motorsports flagship bike, Rivas is a quasi teammate to Sampey.
"I really felt optimistic on Sunday as I lined up against Chris," said Angelle. "I gave it my all and cut a .012 light, went really straight and shifted on time. The run felt like a great one, but I knew something was wrong because Chris got out on me and I just couldn't catch him."
eliminations round 1
(W) Chris Rivas .017 7.335 at 180.60 mph
Angelle Sampey .012 7.424 at 176.49 mph
"Angelle had all great lights all weekend again," said Bryce. "She had a .012 first round on raceday and drove very well, went straight and shifted on time, but got beat by Rivas, who had low ET of the round. We could have hurt the engine over revving on Saturday, because we lost 4 MPH from our Q3 run! So we are shipping the engine back to G2 to get it checked out and ready for the Sonoma race."
"It gets tougher and tougher each race to stay motivated, but I do believe that my team and I are doing just that," said Angelle. "My Rush Racing Products V-Twin is fast. I know it and my team knows it, but we just haven't had all the pieces of the puzzle fall into place yet so that everyone else will know it.
"Although this season hasn't gone as we've planned yet, I do have to say that I am proud to still be in the sport and am still having fun after eleven years now. I want to thank everyone that supports my team in anyway, especially Rush Racing Products, CycleSpot.com, Doc's Harley-Davidson, Royal Purple, Bates Leathers, and all of our sponsors that give us the opportunity to have the greatest job in the world. Thank you for all you do and especially for believing in us. We will get to the winners circle soon!"
"Thank you Karl and Kim Klement for a great time," Bryce said about the owners of his and Angelle's team. "Sorry we didn't run as well as we thought we would, but stay tuned. We are just about to run very, very well."
Angelle and the Rush Racing team race next July 25-27 at the Fram Autolite NHRA Nationals at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California.
This team report was prepared by Tim Hailey, http://www.eatmyink.com
June 30, 2008
for immediate release
Angelle Sampey/Rush Racing
NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle team report
Event: Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals
Dates: June 26-29, 2008
Location: Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio.
Sampey Misses Tree by .002
After Angelle Sampey's Norwalk weekend ended too early, the team looked deep inside themselves and vowed to produce the results that her fans and marketing partners expect. The Rush Racing S&S powered Buell stayed middle of the pack throughout the shortened qualifying session before an oh-so-close -.002 redlight had the team packing up after round one.
qualifying round 1
8th Angelle Sampey left lane 7.138 at 186.61 mph
qualifying round 2
8th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.115 at 183.77 mph
qualifying round 3
11th Angelle Sampey left lane 7.103 at 184.12 mph
eliminations round 1
(W) Chip Ellis .012 6.997 at 190.27 mph
Angelle Sampey -.002 (R) 7.086 at 183.89 mph
"I had a couple little glitches here and there in qualifying, but in my run against Chip Ellis in eliminations, I believe I did the absolute best job I could," said Angelle. "I pushed the tree a little bit trying to get a good light, but definitely not trying to get a redlight. Nobody tries to do that.
"There may have been a slightly different rollout at Norwalk. On average, my lights have been between .020s and .040s. That's where I like 'em, but the slowest light I had this weekend was an .020. So I was a little quicker on the tree this weekend than I have been. I like to be quick, but of course not that quick."
"But it didn't matter. If I'd have cut a perfect .000 light I still would have gotten beat, because Chip's motorcycle was really going fast and I did the best job I could have done goin' down the track and we came up a little short again. So we're just going to have to pull our team together and really grind it down."
"Angelle was just doing what she had to do, pushing the tree a little bit," said team owner Karl Klement. "I think the team did the best we could do with the equipment we had. We weren't the fastest qualifier, and the weather changed so much it was hard to keep up with it."
"I think we all really need to focus on what we can do to improve," said Angelle. "If my team members can see anything I can do to improve as a rider, I want them to tell me. I do believe we're all working extremely hard, but what we're doing hasn't been working so far. We have great team owners with Karl and Kim Klement. They've given us or will give us everything we need to win."
"We'll have some new stuff by Denver," said Klement. "We've got all the tools we need, we just haven't put it all together yet for a win. But we will, and we need to do it soon. The spotlight's turned on and we've got to perform."
"Rush racing is depending on us to do a good job to represent them, and I don't think we've done the job we need to do for them," continued Angelle. "I really want to show them, as well as the racing community, what this team is capable of. I know that we haven't shown that yet. I think before Denver we'll all pull together and see what we can come up with to really make it happen. We will dig down and find what it takes as a team for everybody to be proud of us."
Angelle and the Rush Racing team race next July 11-13 at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals at Bandimere Speedway in Morrison, Colorado
NHRA POWERade season point standings
7th Angelle Sampey 392
Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle point standings
5th Angelle Sampey 1,560
Full Throttle Pit Crew Championship point standings
7th Angelle Sampey/George Bryce 175
This team report was prepared by Tim Hailey, http://www.eatmyink.com
June 26, 2008
for immediate release
Angelle Sampey/Rush Racing
NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle team report
Past event: Lucas Oil NHRA SuperNationals
Dates: June 20-22, 2008
Location: Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown, New Jersey
Next event: Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals
Dates: June 26-29, 2008
Location: Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio.
Sampey Looks Toward Brighter Norwalk
At a race marked by tragedy, Angelle Sampey had her best qualifying outing of the year and maintained her NHRA POWERade points position on the Rush Racing S&S powered Buell. But everyone's thoughts at the Lucas Oil SuperNationals were on Scott Kalitta and his family. The Funny Car driver and former Top Fuel champion was killed in a dramatic qualifying crash on Saturday at historic Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown, New Jersey. "The only thing I really have on my mind is all my thoughts and prayers are going to the Kalitta family," Angelle said immediately following the race. "It was a horrible weekend. Everybody was very somber and sad. There was no excitement, only grief. Even the winners, I think, couldn't fully enjoy or celebrate their wins. It was just a hard weekend to really wanna be out there racing. On behalf of my whole team, we are very saddened by what happened with Scott."
"That was an unbelievable tragedy," agreed George Bryce, the six-time POWERade champion tuner/crew chief on Sampey's bike. "It just shocked everybody, of course. Our feelings, hopes and prayers go to the entire Kalitta family and organization."
By the time of Kalitta's accident, Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying was complete and Sampey sat fourth.
qualifying round 1
9th Angelle Sampey left lane 7.030 at 188.04 mph
qualifying round 2
10th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.082 at 183.92 mph
qualifying round 3
3rd Angelle Sampey left lane 6.956 at 190.83 mph
qualifying round 4
4th Angelle Sampey right lane 6.977 at 189.82 mph
"We actually qualified our best this year and went within .033 of low ET," said Bryce. "When we went into Saturday, we put all our efforts into making perfect runs. Angelle hit all her shift points, made good laps and went 6.95 and 6.97"
"We had some really good runs in qualifying," agreed Angelle, who won Englishtown three years in a row in '98, '99 and 2000. "I think our team did a pretty good job again. I don't think we held back by any means, and we were still moving forward very well. My lights in qualifying were all good except for one. In eliminations, I couldn't have asked for anything better (at the tree), so I think my focus on that is right where I want it."
eliminations round 1
(W) Angelle Sampey .043 7.070 at 187.18 mph
Shawn Gann .044 7.101 at 187.83 mph
eliminations round 2
(W) Andrew Hines .000 7.047 at 188.62 mph
Angelle Sampey .026 7.178 at 182.65 mph
"We have room to improve and are on the right track of doing that," Bryce said after the second round loss to former champ Andrew Hines. "We're gonna go to Norwalk and keep improving."
"This is only our second year racing at Norwalk, so this is a very new track to us," said Angelle. "Anytime we go to a new track it takes some getting used to. I'm still not really familiar with the surface of the track or how we need to run there. Especially being with a new team, we're gonna have to figure that out together. We're gonna have to figure out what it takes to get the bike as straight as possible down the lanes. From what I remember it's a very good track, both lanes, so I don't think we'll have any issues.
"We do have the race back to back with last weekend at Englishtown, which is very tough. Physically and mentally, you just get exhausted. I flew home for one day and got my bills paid, unpacked and washed my clothes, put 'em back in my suitcase, and got right back on the road again. But the good thing is that you do kinda stay in a race frame of mind, so going from one race to the next is actually better. You don't lose your momentum."
The bike went straight from New Jersey to Ohio, and the team has been hard at work in the Norwalk pits. "We've been doing maintenance and putting our stuff together," said Bryce. "We're gonna try to go some rounds and move up another spot in the points."
"It's getting pretty frustrating that we haven't won anything yet," finished Angelle. "We all want to win very bad. I think our performance is showing that we can win, we just have to have everything going right. Good luck, good teamwork, good tuning, good driving, and all at the same time. We just haven't had everything all at the same time yet. But we'll get it together. I'm feeling pretty confident about this weekend."
NHRA POWERade season point standings
6th Angelle Sampey 360
Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle point standings
4th Angelle Sampey 1,450
Full Throttle Pit Crew Championship point standings
7th Angelle Sampey/George Bryce 141
This team report was prepared by Tim Hailey, http://www.eatmyink.com
June 9, 2008
for immediate release
Angelle Sampey/Rush Racing
NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle team report
Event: Torco Race Fuels NHRA Route 66 Nationals
Dates: June 5-8, 2008
Location: Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, Illinois
Sampey Advances to Semis in Chicago
The windy city lived up to its name this past weekend at the NHRA Route 66 Nationals, and few were more susceptible to the conditions than Angelle Sampey and her Rush Racing S&S powered Buell. "We have the lightest driver and the heaviest bike," said George Bryce, the six-time POWERade champion tuner/crew chief on Sampey's Pro Stock Motorcycle. "The wind got us and we never made a good run."
Still, the Rush Racing team made it to the semifinals on a trying weekend weather-wise. "It was treacherous," said team owner Karl Klement. "It rained every day, and Saturday night there was a tornado that came all the way around the track."
Better around than through, most would agree, though the crosswinds at Route 66 Raceway had a profound effect on the bikes. "Craig hit the wall twice," Bryce said about the diminutive Craig Treble who, despite his brushes with the concrete, went on to runner-up to Sampey's G2 Motorsports teammate Chris Rivas.
It was clearly Rivas's weekend, as the first time winner also qualified number one. Sampey ended up fifth in the qualifying order, a spot that seemed to please Bryce. "That tied the best we've qualified this year," said George, noticing that the team seemed to qualify well at the home race of their marketing partners. Chicago is the home race of Merrillville, Indiana based Rush Racing. The other number five spot was nailed at the home track for associate sponsor Doc's Harley-Davidson near St. Louis.
qualifying round 1
10th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.277 at 177.04 mph
No doubt influenced by the strong crosswind, Angelle drifted to the right and very close to the wall on her Q1 pass. "The weather was definitely an issue," said Angelle. "I had to battle a 22 mph crosswind on all four runs in qualifying."
qualifying round 2
5th Angelle Sampey left lane 7.093 at 183.29 mph
qualifying round 3
5th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.088 at 183.00 mph
qualifying round 4
5th Angelle Sampey left lane 7.122 at 182.26 mph
"On Sunday's eliminations, the wind died down some but was still a factor," said Angelle. "We did the best we could to compensate for it with the set up of my Rush Racing V-Twin, but I was still having to fight the motorcycle most of the way down the track. It can get pretty exciting to hang off of that monster while doing 180+ miles per hour!"
eliminations round 1
(W) Angelle Sampey .048 7.140 at 183.62 mph
Joe DeSantis .053 23.334 no speed
eliminations round 2
(W) Angelle Sampey .000 7.168 at 181.42 mph
Shawn Gann no-show
Shawn Gann drove into the sand trap in round one and didn't get the bike repaired in time to race Angelle in round two. Her bye run left her paired with Rivas for the semis. "We had good co-opitition with the G2 team on how to run good until we had to run each other," Bryce said, borrowing a word from former NASCAR Cup champ and current Fox TV commentator Darrell Waltrip. "Chris was pretty flawless all weekend, and we're pretty proud of that." That flawlessness carried Rivas past Sampey and on to the win against Treble.
eliminations round 3
(W) Chris Rivas .047 7.054 at 186.74 mph
Angelle Sampey .034 7.290 at 185.05 mph
"I had a pretty good reaction time and I left on him, but shook the tire pretty hard in first gear and Chris drove away from me," said Angelle, who's 60 foot time fell off accordingly on the pass. "Our incremental times showed that we had the best back half of the weekend on the run, so that is proof that we have the power that we need to win."
"The bike never went straight and it wasn't particularly drivable for the conditions," added Bryce.
"It was great having my sponsors from Rush Racing Products with us," said Sampey. "They are such an easy going and fun group of people, and I was really hoping to get a win for them this weekend."
"It was fun hanging with the Rush Racing group and getting to know more of those guys," agreed Bryce.
"Lou and Jeremy Pringle and Terry, Janet and Adam Daniel from Rush Racing set up hospitality at the race and all their employees were there," added Klement. "It was great seeing them and I'm glad they were all able to come out to their home race."
Angelle dropped slightly to sixth in points, while ironically moving closer to some of her rivals. "All in all it was a good weekend," said Bryce. "It doesn't seem like we dropped back since the points have tightened up."
"Everybody a great job this weekend," agreed Klement. "The bike was running good, we just didn't win."
"The team did great again and we continued to get along perfectly," finished Angelle. "I can't stress enough how important that is to being successful. I am so blessed with the greatest team owners in Karl and Kim Klement, and the greatest group of guys working on my bike, along with one of my closest and best friends as my crew chief. Winning is the only thing we're missing and I know that it's only a matter of time for that to happen."
Angelle and the Rush Racing team race next June 20-22 at the Lucas Oil NHRA SuperNationals at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown, New Jersey
This team report was prepared by Tim Hailey, http://www.eatmyink.com
May 5, 2008
for immediate release
Angelle Sampey/Rush Racing
NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle team report
Event: O'Reilly NHRA Midwest Nationals_presented by Castrol
Dates: May 2-4, 2008
Location: Gateway International Raceway in Madison, Illinois.
Vacuum Leak Ends Great Weekend for Sampey
Angelle Sampey and her Rush Racing Pro Stock Motorcycle team have dealt with a host of performance robbing issues with her S&S powered Buell through the first three races on the NHRA POWERade season. But this past weekend at Gateway International Raceway near St. Louis, they finally had a platform to tune with. The winningest woman in professional motorsports started the weekend in the top half of the field, jumped to fourth in the second qualifying round, and started eliminations with the second quickest ET of the round.
qualifying round 1
8th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.050 at 185.21 mph
qualifying round 2
4th Angelle Sampey left lane 6.982 at 187.86 mph
qualifying round 3
6th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.054 at 181.86 mph
Sampey was out of the groove and close to the centerline on her Q3 pass, but this time it wasn't the will of the bike that drove her there. "On Friday and Saturday I had to work to get motorcycle to go straight because of the crosswind, but that was mother nature," said Angelle. "On Sunday the wind was gone and the bike went perfectly straight. It's much more fun to ride when you don't have to work it so much."
qualifying round 4
5th Angelle Sampey left lane 6.961 at 187.86 mph
eliminations round 1
(W) Angelle Sampey .014 6.917 at 191.51 mph
Hector Arana .013 7.086 at 182.82 mph
"We ran fast first round, a 6.91," said six-time champion tuner George Bryce. "Chip (Ellis) ran a 6.93, Matt (Smith) went 6.88, Drew (Andrew Hines) went 6.87. We went 160 mph in the eighth, Matt went 159, and Drew went 159. So we had it going."
Next up for Sampey was Hines's teammate Eddie Krawiec, who lost to Angelle on a holeshot the previous week in Atlanta. This time Eddie was ready, and another small but identifiable problem robbed Angelle's Buell of the power she needed to drive around him.
eliminations round 2
(W) Eddie Krawiec .025 6.944 at 188.52 mph
Angelle Sampey .030 6.961 at 188.99 mph
"We were going to go fast, but we had a vacuum leak," reported Bryce. "A hose vibrated loose. We had twenty inches of vacuum in the first round, then the leak brought us down to twelve inches. That's worth about four to eight horsepower loss, or three or four hundredths of a second. Everyone slowed down second round but we slowed more, and we lost by six feet.
"But Angelle did great today. Three times she had a great .01 light. I was happy with how we ran, and I feel like we have improved our performance a bunch in two weeks. The first round, we ran the same back half as Chip and Matt. What Matthew had going was the front half, and Chip's Suzuki's front half program is doing great. We're all doing much better and we've stepped up to be competitive."
"We had six great passes," agreed Angelle. "The bike went straight, we had something to tune on, and I worked real hard on my reaction times. George and the crew work so hard on the bike, and I really feel like I have to hold up my end on the track."
Off the track, it was a big weekend for hospitality in the Rush Racing pits. Marketing partner Doc's Harley-Davidson is located in nearby Kirkwood, Missouri. "The chandelier was up this weekend!" said team owner Karl Klement. "Patty Bush was here with all her employees from Doc's and brought a lot of her customers and special guests. Lou and Jeremy Pringle from Rush Racing were there and Steve Johnson from Tucker Rocky. It was great1"
"When you have people in the pits who cheer for you like that, it's like having family there," agreed Angelle. "Jim Davis from CycleSpot was there, and he's really become a friend. He's been helping me with my website. Also, Magneti-Marelli expert Steve Nichols was there. Steve's a cool guy and I love having him around."
"Everybody was working good together, Angelle's getting used to the bike, and George is getting a handle on the tune-up," said Klement. "Everything was good. I couldn't ask for anything any better anywhere, we just got beat."
"It's all been a lesson for us," reasoned Angelle. "I think we're being built up to enjoy the win when we get it. We're not struggling, but the little things that have happened to us have made us appreciate how hard it is. I went here thinking we were gonna win or something was gonna happen, and something good did happen. We ran really well, we had so much fun, and we had a great weekend."
Angelle and the Rush Racing team race next June 5-8 at the Torco Race Fuels NHRA Route 66 Nationals at Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, Illinois.
This team report was prepared by Tim Hailey, http://www.eatmyink.com
April 28, 2008
for immediate release
Angelle Sampey/Rush Racing
NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle team report
Event: Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals
Dates: April 24-27, 2008
Location: Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Georgia
Sensor Lets Sampey Down in the Semis
On a week bracketed by Danica Patrick's first IndyCar win in Japan and Ashley Force's first Funny Car win in Atlanta, Angelle Sampey—the winningest woman in professional motorsports—was on her game and on a winning horse. But an up and down weekend for Angelle and the Rush Racing team ended when a $10 part failed on the S&S powered Buell in the Atlanta Dragway water box.
Simply making the field seemed like a difficult task, though, in qualifying. The Buell hit the rev limiter twice in the first session as Sampey struggled to keep the bike going straight. "I didn't get it in second or third gear," reported Angelle. "I hung off the bike really hard, and we figured I was pushing the shifter button from the side rather than dead-on."
qualifying round 1
18th Angelle Sampey left lane 7.434 at 183.74 mph
After a good first half, an unusual clutch problem took about 20 mph off the Buell's back half in round 2. "The clutch came apart," said Angelle. "When I pulled in the clutch there was nothing there, it had already engaged itself."
qualifying round 2
15th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.165 at 165.78 mph
So for the first time, Angelle went into Saturday's qualifying on the wrong side of the NHRA's new 12-spot qualifying rule. But the bike was back. "The bike was running good in qualifying," said Angelle. "The power was there, we just needed to get the bike down the track straight." A continuing problem, even as her ETs dropped and put her safely, if not spectacularly, in the field.
qualifying round 3
11th Angelle Sampey left lane 7.080 at 183.94 mph
qualifying round 4
11th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.068 at 185.87 mph
Angelle was leaning hard to the left in the final session, leaning the bike on the left edge of the rear tire as it pulled relentlessly to the wall in the right lane. "There was a crown in the right lane, and if you got on the wrong side of that it really pulled you," said Angelle. "That would have been an outstanding run if it had been a straight pass."
The team also decided to change the rear tire. "We kept making the motorcycle faster and faster every run, but we were having trouble making the bike go straight," said six-time champion tuner George Bryce. "It could have been the tire, but we usually don't have trouble with those. But we put one on with five runs on it Sunday morning and away she went."
eliminations round 1
(W) Angelle Sampey .015 6.992 at 189.87 mph
Eddie Krawiec .033 6.989 at 189.04 mph
Indeed. A huge jump in performance from the bike, and Angelle doing her job at the line, resulted in a .015 of a second (about 4 feet) holeshot win over Eddie Krawiec in round 1 of eliminations. "That was a great run," said Angelle.
Next up was class champion Matt Smith, who had put Sampey out of the first two races of the year. Matt got out of the groove and Angelle finally got past him for a round win. "We didn't do as good of a run second round," said Angelle. "I made some mistakes and the tuning was a little off, but we won."
eliminations round 2
(W) Angelle Sampey .082 7.026 at 187.70 mph
Matt Smith .081 7.052 at 185.31 mph
Then came Chip Ellis in the semis. Angelle was paired up with Chip at the season finale in Pomona last year when her bike broke and couldn't make the run. What were the chances of a déjà vu experience? Apparently pretty good. "The bike was idling perfectly, but when she went to open the throttle up for her burnout, nothing happened," said Bryce. "She did it again and nothing. She motioned for me to come back and I grabbed the throttle and twisted it and nothing."
"You gotta be kidding me?" said Angelle. "I thought by this time we'd gotten all the bugs out."
"The throttle position sensor failed," said Bryce. "It's a $10 commercially available part at your local NAPA store. It tells the fuel injection when to open the throttle."
eliminations round 3
(W) Chip Ellis .107 6.943 at 192.60 mph
Angelle Sampey broke
"You never know what would have happened if we'd gotten the bike staged," said Sampey. "Chip ran a really good lap, but it's different when somebody's in the other lane. We had the tune-up in it, I was driving it straight, and I'm confident we'd have run really well."
"It looked like a comedy of errors or a series of unfortunate events, but it's been a chain of little things, nothing really expensive," said Bryce, who tested the bike twice between Houston and Atlanta. Admittedly, the first races of the season didn't match expectations for the team. "We found several things in the oil supply and fuel system, a lot of little things that just kept hiding from us. But we're bound to be at or near the end, because we've already been through everything."
"I know people are wondering 'What the heck's going on?'" said Angelle. "But it's not an issue of 'We don't know what we're doing.' You've just got to laugh it off and know it's gonna turn around. I believe in karma bigtime and I know it's gonna turn around for us. We're being good sports and it's gonna turn around. That's what we deserve. It's just been crazy bad luck. My experience has shown that over the course of the year, your luck comes and goes. My hope is that we've gotten all the bad luck out of the way early in the year. I know what George and I are capable of and I know we're really gonna be formidable the rest of the year."
"We finally showed some glitter of the bling," said Bryce. "But regardless of whether we've done well on the track, Angelle and I have totally enjoyed working together again. We had no idea we'd have this much fun, and I'd like to thank Karl and Kim Klement and the Rush guys for giving us this chance. We can see we've turned the corner and are looking forward to St. Louis."
"We really are having a good time," agreed Angelle. "It's really amazing. If we're having this much fun only going one or two rounds, I can just imagine how much fun it's gonna be winning races. I'm very proud of my team. We're winning together and losing together. The first round I won on a holeshot and the second round I won because I had the bike. We're getting better and that's a good thing. Every run this weekend we did better and better."
"Everybody did a great job this weekend," said team owner Karl Klement, who announced the hiring of new crew member Michael Ray. "We're getting the bugs worked out of this thing. If it hadn't broke, I believe we would have won this race."
"This team has so much potential," finished Angelle, who looked ahead to next week's race in St. Louis. "That's the home of our sponsor Doc's Harley-Davidson, and a win there would be awesome!"
Angelle and the Rush Racing team race next at the O'Reilly NHRA Midwest Nationals_presented by Castrol, May 2-4 at Gateway International Raceway in Madison, Illinois.
This team report was prepared by Tim Hailey, http://www.eatmyink.com
March 31, 2008
for immediate release
Angelle Sampey/Rush Racing
NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle team report
Event: O'Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals
Dates: March 28-30, 2008
Location: Houston Raceway Park in Baytown, Texas
Sampey Salvages 6th in Points
The first two races on the reunion tour of three-time NHRA POWERade champion Pro Stock Motorcycle driver Angelle Sampey and six-time champion tuner George Bryce have not gone as well as the team had hoped. But they feel pretty lucky that, despite lackluster performance, they have a strong position in the point standings. From there they can solve their mechanical issues and move forward to meet the high expectations surrounding them.
The first pass of the weekend proved to be the high water mark for the Rush Racing S&S powered Buell, as Sampey ran within .001 of her opening round pass at the Gators. And just like in Gainesville, the bike posted another slow 1.12 60 foot time.
qualifying round 1
4th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.042 at 189.92 mph
That was the number that Sampey would qualify on, as the Buell's performance progressively softened through the weekend. "We did have a hurt engine on Friday's qualifying runs," reported Angelle. "Hurting engines is throwing us for a loop for what's really going on, 'cause there's definitely something that's holding us back." At the end of the day, the 7.04 was stout enough to place her safely with the NHRA's new 12-spot qualifying rule.
qualifying round 2
9th Angelle Sampey left lane 7.085 at 186.18 mph
qualifying round 3
9th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.160 at 181.74 mph
qualifying round 4
9th Angelle Sampey left lane 7.182 at 183.52 mph
The minimum weight for S&S powered Buells was increased by 5 pounds before the Houston event, yet it was the Buell of champion Matt Smith at the top of the charts as the qualifying session ended.
As Sampey's first round of qualifying echoed the Gators, so it was in the first round of eliminations. Her first round opponent again posted a scant redlight to save the Rush team from a first round defeat. This time, though, it was the bike that let Angelle down and not the other way around.
eliminations round 1
(W) Angelle Sampey .021 7.282 at 178.73 mph
Shawn Gann -.006(R) 7.196 at 182.92 mph
The G2 Motorsports flagship Buell driven by Chris Rivas was suffering through a weekend very similar to Sampey's, but the redlight went the other direction for Rivas, and the G2 team then focused their efforts on Sampey. "Ken Johnson and Derrell Mullis came over and helped our crew guys Larry Cook and Curtis Jackson," said Angelle. "All four of them, along with George, were working on my motorcycle, checking everything, changing things and doing everything they could. So it was good to see my teammate Chris Rivas's G2 team working on my motorcycle. It shows that these two teams all work together and we're willing to help each other out as best we can."
Despite the best efforts of the combined crew, the Gainesville déjà vu continued in round 2, where Sampey's Buell again got outran by eventual race winner Smith.
eliminations round 2
(W) Matt Smith .039 7.055 at 189.66 mph
Angelle Sampey .031 7.286 at 180.79 mph
"We were able to win first round again and maintain sixth position in the points," said Bryce. "But I know that's trying to make egg salad out of bad eggs. We ran really bad this weekend, never made a good run, and never figured out what was wrong. Same with the G2 team, so we're glad that we got out of there relatively unscathed. But the G2 customers really did well with the S&S packages, getting first and second. We had seven out of sixteen qualifiers, and that was really neat."
"It was really cool having the G2 team help us out after the first round of eliminations today," said Angelle. "But unfortunately, we still didn't figure out what's wrong. There's definitely a problem that they're gonna have to figure out back at the shop."
"The Rush Racing team worked really hard, and Angelle drove really well," added Bryce. "It was a neat effort that we all put forth. We worked hard enough to go really fast, to go as slow as we did."
"I did a much better job of driving this weekend, and I was on my game with my reaction times and shiftpoints," agreed Sampey. "I had a few glitches here and there but really did a better job. I was more focused and did some practicing back at home between Gainesville and here. I was determined to do a better job and feel like I did.
"But I'm very disappointed for my sponsors and all of our guys from Rush Racing, CycleSpot.com, Doc's Harley-Davidson, and everyone who supports us. I'm pretty disappointed we weren't able to put on a better show for them. It's pretty frustrating. I know George is very frustrated, but we are gonna work it out. Our team owners Karl and Kim Klement are being very good sports. They continue to give me a pat on the back and tell me I'm doing a great job, and that's very important. The mental game of drag racing can be just as devastating as the actual performance, if you let yourself get down. And I don't think the team is doing that. I think we're all high spirited and we're working really hard and we're gonna figure it out. Everybody seems to be real motivated no matter how bad things seem to be going for us so far. So when it comes around, it's gonna be our turn and we're gonna look forward to being a thorn in everybody's side as soon as possible."
"We're gonna go back to the home base and really dig into the machines and the engines and figure out exactly what we made a mistake on and fix it," finished Bryce. "Then we're gonna go test, go fast, and be prepared for the Atlanta race.
Angelle and the Rush Racing team race next at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals, April 24-27 at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Georgia.
This team report was prepared by Tim Hailey, http://www.eatmyink.com
March 17, 2008
for immediate release
Angelle Sampey/Rush Racing
NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle team report
Event: ACDelco NHRA Gatornationals
Dates: March 13-16, 2008
Location: Gainesville Raceway, Gainesville, FL
Sampey Exits Gators in Round 2
The reunion tour of three-time NHRA POWERade champion Pro Stock Motorcycle driver Angelle Sampey and six-time champion tuner George Bryce got its start this past weekend at the Gatornationals in Gainesville, Florida. And while things could have gone better for the Rush Racing team, their results at the Gators have often been worse. "The reunion tour had an auspicious start," agreed Bryce. "But we won a round and we're in the top eight. Last year, and the year before that and the year before and the year before, we left the Gators not even in the top ten. So I think we're on a really good start."
And the top eight is where the Rush Racing Buell settled in from the very beginning of the weekend, which got off to a late start after rain washed out Friday qualifying. That compressed the program and made Saturday's two rounds crucial.
qualifying round 1
8th Angelle Sampey left lane 7.041 at 186.82 mph
qualifying round 2
7th Angelle Sampey right lane 7.030 at 186.67 mph
"I was late on my light in the first round, but that was intentional," said Sampey. "The second round was better, but the bike pulled to the right." Indeed, the 1.099 60 foot time on the pass was high for Sampey and the S&S powered Buell. A lot was left on the table that pass, and still remained there after round 1 of eliminations even though the team put in the S&S V-Twin motor that tested so well a couple of weeks before in Valdosta.
eliminations round 1
(W) Angelle Sampey .099 7.152 at 185.84 mph
Paul Gast -.008(R) 7.137 at 184.55 mph
"I was very upset after the first round," said the famously passionate Sampey. "If Paul hadn't redlit, I would have lost first round. The bike was there. It would have been a much better run, but I definitely screwed up. I was late on the light and missed first gear. That round was a gift, and I had to get really mad at myself. I went out second round and I was gonna do better."
eliminations round 2
(W) Matt Smith .029 6.963 at 189.23 mph
Angelle Sampey .006 7.054 at 186.36 mph
Sampey and the Buell did indeed do much better in the second round, but it wasn't good enough to take out POWERade champion Matt Smith. Angelle nailed Smith at the tree but came up about 19 feet short at the finishline. "We had some mechanical issue with the motorcycle," said Bryce. "We don't know exactly what it is, but we will find out by Houston."
"We put in a different engine, and it was still the same," said Sampey. "The second round I did a much better job. My shifts were just a tiny bit off, so there's something wrong. We'll know in the next couple of days."
"The weekend went real well," said team owner Karl Klement. "We didn't qualify as high as we'd like to have. But for the first time out for Angelle on a Buell, she did a great job. We made it to the second round and just got beat."
"I was very happy with the weekend," said Sampey. "It was our first race as a team and we had a blast. They gave a lot of coverage to the motorcycles and they gave a lot of it to our motorcycle. We didn't perform like we wanted to power-wise, but we performed so well together as a team. I'm very optimistic about the year. And it was great to have all our sponsors here, including Jim Davis from CycleSpot.com."
"Everybody from Rush Racing was here for our first Gatornationals with Angelle, and everything was just fine," added Klement.
"Angelle drove well and the team was awesome, and we're gonna do better at the next race," vowed Bryce. "It's like Angelle said—there's lots of races left and one race doesn't make a season."
And that next race comes up very soon at Houston. "I can't wait to get there," said Sampey, who lives nearby in Louisiana. "I won there last year. It was a crazy weekend like this weekend. I call it my home race, and I'll have a lot of friends and family there. We learned a lot this weekend and got that first initial hit. Now we can go kick some butt!"
Angelle and the Rush Racing team race next at the O'Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals, March 28-30, 2008 at Houston Raceway Park in Baytown, Texas.
This team report was prepared by Tim Hailey, http://www.eatmyink.com
February 15, 2008
for immediate release
Angelle Sampey/Rush Racing
NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle team report
Doc's Harley-Davidson Rides with Sampey
Doc's Harley-Davidson, Missouri's oldest exclusive Harley-Davidson dealership, is partnering with three-time POWERade champ Angelle Sampey (pronounced "On-jell Sam-Pay") and Karl Klement Racing for the 2008 NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle tour. "I'm very excited to represent a dealership," said Sampey, a motorcycle dealer herself. "My dad's been riding Harley-Davidsons all my life, so I'm really excited about it."
Based just outside of St. Louis in Kirkwood, Doc's is the number 1 (out of 682) Harley-Davidson dealer in the country for the new purchase experience over a rolling 12 month average. Interestingly, Doc's is also owned by a woman—Pat Bush. "Pat rides, used to drag race, and loves Pro Stock Motorcycle racing," said Doc's marketing director Rich Blosser. "She's attracted to the idea of Angelle as a woman rider. She'd heard from George Bryce (the six-time champion tuner of Sampey's Rush Racing Buell) that Angelle had the best natural talent he'd ever seen."
"When Karl brought Angelle on board, it was the biggest story in racing and we wanted to be a part of it," said Jim Wagner of Doc's. Wagner is a part of Doc's sales team now, but in the past he led Doc's racing assault on the flat tracks.
"My dad Ralph 'Doc' Schneidewind started the dealership in 1955 and supported flat track racing right from the get-go," said Pat Bush. "Jim Wagner joined our team and built the fastest 883 ever on the Springfield Mile. Our roots started with Terry Poobey and Scott Sherb, and they had sponsorship from KK Racing. At the time, I didn't realize KK Racing was Karl Klement. Then one day I realized he was the same KK Racing in Pro Stock Motorcycle! I said 'We have to do this!' We're really excited for it all to come together and be a part of Karl's team."
"I'm not sure who's more enthusiastic about racing, Karl or my boss Patty Bush," said Wagner. "Karl is a real racing guy. He doesn't do it for the money, he does it for the glory. He got together with Scott and Terry at Ross Downs in Texas and started touring the country and doing well. Karl went to Springfield four times and won four times. He gets the best, that's the kind of guy he is. We're tickled to be a part of his operation."
"We're so excited to have Doc's come on board," said Klement. "They've been in dirt tracking since 1955, and for them to be involved with us is a great marketing partnership. Having Angelle on a V-Twin this year is a huge marketing opportunity for Doc's, and they're excited to have Angelle show what she can do on an S&S V-Twin."
"I think it's pretty cool," said Sampey. "I haven't met Pat yet, but I'm very excited about meeting her. She works in a male dominated world and so do I. I'm really glad to have them on our team."
"Angelle is five Wally's away from being the all-time Pro Stock Motorcycle win leader," noted Blosser. "We're really excited by the opportunity to be with her at this time and we think she's really gonna fly."
The 2008 POWERade Pro Stock Motorcycle season resumes at the ACDelco NHRA Gatornationals, March 13-16, 2008 at Gainesville Raceway in Gainesville, Florida.
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March 13-16
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ACDelco NHRA Gatornationals
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Gainesville, FL
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March 28- 30
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O'Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals
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Houston, TX
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April 24-27
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Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals
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Atlanta, GA
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May 2-4
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O'Reilly NHRA Midwest Nationals
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Madison, Ill.
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June 5-8
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Torco Racing Fuels Route 66 NHRA Nationals
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Chicago, IL
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June 19-22
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