A spectator for the Speedtech “Battle For The Belts” entering the weekend, Stan Allen’s outlook on racing got a whole lot better in 48 hours.Allen wasn’t in the top eight in Pro Nitrous entering the two-race weekend at Summit Motorsports Park and, to be frank, things didn’t look all that rosy for the longtime PN standout.But, after advancing to the finals of Simpson Dragstock VII and thus also qualifying third for the Summit Racing Equipment Ohio Drags IV, Allen suddenly found himself in the top-eight field.After a wild day in the class on that Saturday, Allen stayed there and suddenly was all smiles after an extremely productive weekend.In fact, Allen did everything he hoped for - minus one small detail.“Everything, except we didn’t win,” Allen said. “I’m stoked because in the middle of the season, we were so out of it, I couldn’t believe it. This is just great for us.”Allen’s weekend bumped him up to No. 7 in the points standings, meaning he will race No. 8 qualifier Steve Vick in the race-in round of the LenMar Motorsports ADRL World Finals VI, which takes place Oct. 22-23 at Texas Motorplex.Should Allen win there, he would race Jim Halsey in the first round, but, for a moment in Norwalk, Allen was simply reveling in how far he had come in a few short months.A confounding and frustrating start to the year left Allen several spots out of the top eight and in this loaded class, that’s never a recipe for year-end success and a possible world championship.But changes started to come at the Hardee’s Independence Drags IV in Topeka. Allen qualified in the No. 9 position (3.98) and even though rain postponed the event after the first round of eliminations, momentum was back on Allen’s side.“Since Topeka, we’ve really made some changes,” Allen said. “The car’s really come around.”Allen wouldn’t reveal all the changes he and his Bankston Boyz team have made, but suffice to say it has been significant.Most of them came in the back of the car and Allen has also been amazed with the help his team has gotten from others.“All of the Al-Anabi Racing guys have helped a lot and David Janes really helped us a lot with (our changes),” Allen said. “He’s been able to free up some time and help us and make the changes we’ve needed.“Our whole program has just been great.”The Bankston Boyz have been working tirelessly as well. The extra effort has included a multitude of test sessions, which has made a considerable difference over the last three months.Allen and his team started that process before the double-race weekend in Houston in late July and have continued it the rest of the year, despite busy work schedules for everyone on the team.“We’re testing before the race,” Allen said. “It gives a gameplan heading into a race, but we know we have to test now because everybody is doing it.”It’s also paid off. After Houston, Allen started his roll, going to the semifinals at the Hardee’s Gateway Drags in St. Louis.Things really took shape in Rockingham in early September. Allen was back to vintage form, qualifying sixth with a 3.89 in the massive 40-car Pro Nitrous field that was also the quickest in PN history.That played out to a finals berth two weeks later at Summit Motorsports Park, where Dragstock was completed. Allen went as fast as a 3.92, which also qualified him in third for the Ohio Drags. Now, Allen is excited to see where October takes him.“We are where we want to be right now,” Allen said.
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Allen Back on Track In Pro Nitrous
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