ReBlogged from Dragzine:
Words and photos by: Jason Reiss
As one of the frontrunners with the Vortech Xi supercharger in the X275 class, Andy Manson was hard at work all weekend long at the Cecil County Dragway trying to get his machine down the track. During qualifying, he put the quickest Xi hit known to man up on the board with an awesome 4.68 at 149.25 MPH, landing himself in the third qualified spot in a field full of some of the baddest X275 cars in the world.
In fact, he was outdone by only two people – the top qualifier, Rich Bruder, in his 400-cube turbocharged machine, who clicked off a 4.63, and “Leaf Spring King” Ron Rhodes, who turned in a 4.67 from his nitrous-powered, 23-degree headed small block.
Manson has been up and down over the last couple of years as he’s worked to get his program in order, but it now appears to be firing on all cylinders thanks to the tireless efforts of crew chief and chassis builder Chris Acors, along with the remote-tuning skills of Jason Lee of Part Time Performance and engine-building prowess of Anthony DiSomma of DiSomma Race Engines.
Andy’s incredible pass came thanks to a stunning 1.14 short time and 3.07 330-foot mark, which are on par with some of the quickest times ever run on the 275-wide tire.
Not only did Manson claim the quickest Vortech-powered machine on the property, he also took home a cool $100 from X275 founder John Sears for having the quickest blower car of the event.
Unfortunately, he went red in the second round of competition, but with numbers like these and a crew behind him that knows how to win, it’s only a matter of time before Manson is putting up even better numbers and landing in the winner’s circle at an X275 race this season.
Just an awesome effort in tough conditions on a hot racetrack, and a great way to wrap up the Labor Day weekend for the Virginia resident.
