Winding Down on Day Four at the AMSOIL Engine Masters Challenge at UNOH

Kaase's 409 cu. in. Modular Monster

The last of the Big Guns are getting ready to run as we near the end of another dramatic AMSOIL Engine Masters Challenge. In less than two hours we’ll know who the six finalists will be, and at tonight’s Builder’s Banquet they’ll find out in what order they’ll be going on Friday.

The biggest change this year has to do with how the dynos are scored. According to Ed Zinke, publisher of Engine Masters magazine, “When they pull a dyno run they don’t have to tell us in advance whether it’s going to be a test or a qualifying pull. They have their entire time frame to pick the score that they want. So some can come and shoot for a couple of quick pulls and make some changes or others are making changes along the way.” As a result many of the teams are making more pulls. Once the meter is running, they have 27 minutes to make as many adjustments as they choose. Why 27 minutes? “Kind of an arbitrary number,” Zinke explained. “That’s really what it came down to. Honestly, it was my son’s hockey and football number.”

Bret Bowers: Always lookin' good.

Judson Nagel and Judson Massingill have yet to run, but at this point John Milhovetz has held the lead since racking up a boatload of points in his mid-day run Tuesday. On his heels is John Lohone and his team Also B.E.S. Lohone, who has been building engines since he was 12 or 13 said earlier today, called the AMSOIL Engine Masters Challenge a highlight of his career "because this is a test of people building engines. We’re just testing engines. We’re not testing drivers, we’re not testing chassis set ups or track conditions, it’s engines and that’s my passion."

At this point the engines in quarantine belong to Accufa
b, Kaase, B.E.S., Also B.E.S., Almost Kaase and Greg Brown Race Engines. Bradley Built and the School of Automotive Machinists are getting set up in Dyno Cells 1 and 2.

Hold on to your hats.

Racing Engine Design team in the control center.

A view from inside the dyno cell just before the action begins.

Wesley Roberson pointing out how the score can be improved.