Damian Cownden and the DCR Top Fuel team arrived at Castrol Raceway in Edmonton, Alberta on September 10th with hopes of securing a second consecutive Drag Specialties/Parts Canada CMDRA Screamin' Eagle Top Fuel Championship. The team rolled their Nitro Harley-Davidson out of the hauler with a slim point lead over season long arch rival Nate Gagnon on the Big Kids Racing Nitro Harley.
After breaking the input shaft in the transmission during the first round of qualifying, the team replace the part in time to make one qualifying pass, and they made it a good one as Cownden qualified on the pole with a 6.54-second run at 217 mph. Nate Gagnon was just a tick behind at 6.58 but with a booming 224 mph speed.
Sunday morning the DCR team once again had issues this one traced to the electrical system. The crew was once again able to make repairs and get Damian to the starting line for the first round of eliminations against Jeff Knowles. Damian took the win and moved on to the semi-finals with a low 7-second run at 204mph over Knowles.
The team continued to battle electrical issues but were able to get past Kevin Boyer to earn a berth in the final round.
The final round could not have been scripted better. Cownden had a 25-point lead over Gagnon going into the final round, and a round win is worth 20 points. However if Gagnon could win and back up his 224mph run for a new record, he could take the championship from Cownden's hands. This left the entire Damian Cownden Racing team on edge; after all, they were still uncertain as to what the issue with their bike was. When the lights came down, Nate Gagnon took the lead and was ahead until the 1000-foot mark when his rear tire began to spin and he slowed enough to allow Cownden to slip by for the win.
“This was a difficult season," confessed Cownden after the race. "It didn’t start like we wanted, but we caught some breaks and were able to turn our season around. I have to give Nate Gagnon and his team credit - they brought out a brand new bike and were able to bring home the win in the first two events of the season, which is virtually unheard of. From then on they have been a contender for the win at every event.”
Cownden went on to discuss the importance of winning his second Top Fuel championship. "When I first started drag racing I never thought I would be racing in the Top Fuel class, let alone be fortunate enough to win two championships," he said. "I never could have done it without my dedicated team and sponsors. Having such a strong competitor like Nate only pushes us all to bring 110% to every event.”
Along with his second consecutive championship and three event wins in 2011, Damian Cownden was also awarded the CMDRA's coveted and humbling Rick Davie Memorial Award for Sportsmanship. The team now has three weeks to prepare for the final event of the AHDRA series in Rockingham North Carolina on October 8th and 9th.
Photo by Laura Millsip
