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Cordova: Vipers ready to take a bite out of the competition

PADUCAH, Ky. (June 11, 2001) - When the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) rolls into Cordova Dragway Park this Thursday for the beginning of the 22nd Annual Amalie Motor Oil Summer Nationals, fans of the drag racing series will be treated to ...

PADUCAH, Ky. (June 11, 2001) - When the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) rolls into Cordova Dragway Park this Thursday for the beginning of the 22nd Annual Amalie Motor Oil Summer Nationals, fans of the drag racing series will be treated to the venomous Vipers of Billy Harper and Dennis Radford. The Pro Modified entries of Harper and Radford are unique not only because they are the first two Viper bodies in dragster competition, but also because of the unique paint schemes on each of the machines.

Billy Harper, president of the multi-million-dollar national construction firm, Harper Industries, has sat out the first few months of dragster competition to focus on his business. With his well-oiled construction firm operating at peak capacity, Harper will turn his attention to wiping out the competition at the Summer Nationals.

Harper has already made a statement in the 2001 dragster season when the team traveled to Gateway International Raceway in Madison, Ill. to test their entry and see what it could do against the competition. The team made several successful short passes before declaring the test session successful and heading back to Paducah, Ky.

Competing with Billy Harper in the Pro Mod division will be business entrepreneur, Dennis Radford. Radford purchased his Pro Modified dragster from Billy Harper Motorsports, and recently had the chance to shake down his new machine, nicknamed the "Poison Viper". In his newly purchased dragster, Radford captured his first Pro Mod victory when he competed at the 25th Annual Fox Hunt competition held in Boise, Idaho. Radford dominated the event, making six essentially perfect runs, including the final, and coveted win.

The Vipers look to be the cars to beat in the highly competitive Pro Mod division. Despite their lack of 2001 IHRA circuit competition, Bubba Kolb, general manager of Billy Harper Motorsports feels both teams have a shot at victory. "We are well prepared to make a run for the victory at Cordova," stated Kolb. "I don't think that we will be at a disadvantage even though we haven't competed yet in the 2001 IHRA season. Both the Vipers are great machines with great teams to back them up."

"I am excited to get back racing," stated an enthusiastic Billy Harper. "I enjoy work, but racing is my passion. Hopefully, we will be able to turn some heads in Cordova."

Be sure to check out the deadly Vipers as they take on the International Hot Rod Association competition in the Pro Mod division this weekend, with competition beginning on Thursday, June 14.

-Viper-

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