MANA — Kerri Barros of the Garden Isle Racing Association said Hondas and Camaros filled the lanes of the Kauai Raceway Park during the finals of the most recent drag races that wrapped up Saturday night in Mana.
Racers and fans were treated to the traditional Westside weather of no rain, and filled the afternoon and evening with their fiery drive to the top.
Devin Almarza opened the afternoon series by taking the Junior Dragster class on a 7.96 Estimated Time, his dragster topping 81.95 miles per hour on a 7.94 dial in.
The trophy went to the Almarza camp after Kaleb Medeiros ran too fast and broke out, his vehicle running an 11.94 ET and reaching 52.41 mph on a 12.32 dial in. Third-place honors belonged to Ryant Sakamoto with Christopher Silva filling in fourth place of the class.
Zailea Lawrence-White only recently graduated from the Junior Dragster program and continued her winning ways, moving her ‘68 Camaro to the top of the Top Gun class with a strong 14.81 ET and reaching 81.95 mph on a 7.94 dial in.
Lawrence-White’s final run put Riley Takayama in the second-place slot after Takayama’s front engine dragster topped at a 7.46 ET, reaching 176.00 mph on a 9.42 dial in.
Gabby Saiki honored her father, the late Gary Saiki who served as a board member of the GIRA, by driving his Honda Civic to the top of the Pro ET class on an 11.30 ET, reaching 117.10 mph on an 11.25 dial in.
Runner up in the Pro ET belonged to John Nakashima, who drove his ‘14 Camaro to a 10.83 ET reaching 126.56 mph on a 10.52 dial in.
During the finals of the Muscle V8 class, two Camaros lined up for the last run — an ‘86 piloted by Kevin Wataya, and a ‘68 driven by Jason Barros.
Wataya’s “new school” ‘86 flew past Barros on an 11.81 ET to reach 103.14 mph on an 11.65 dial in to claim the top prize over Barros whose ‘68 “old school” went down the strip on a 12.35 ET, reaching 100.86 mph on an 11.95 dial in.
“Honda enthusiasts Robby Silva Jr. and Travis Freitas now claim bragging rights after winning in the Sport Compact and Street classes, respectively,” Barros said.
Silva’s ‘91 Honda CRX was pitted against Bryson Fontanilla’s ‘89 Nissan 240 SX in the finals of the Sport Compact, Silva taking the lead on a 12.29 ET to reach 109.27 mph, breaking out on a 12.30 dial in.
His lead was preserved when Fontanilla also broke out on a 12.06 ET run, reaching 111.19 mph on a 12.16 dial in.
Freitas claimed the Street class in his ‘04 Honda Civic, piloting the quarter mile on a 14.53 ET to reach 84.77 mph on a 14.00 dial in over the efforts of Keanu Dotario, whose ‘99 Honda Civic coupe ran the quarter mile in 14.75 ET to reach 92.80 mph on a 14.60 dial in.
Robin Correa tuned his ‘68 Datsun pick up to take the Super Pro class, the pickup running a 12.01 ET to reach 107.65 mph on an 11.35 dial in. His opponent, Daniel Perreira, drove his ‘88 Camaro on an 11.37 dial in.
Gabe Millare ruled the Bike class aboard his ‘16 Honda motorcycle that clocked in at 10.94 ET, reaching 134.86 mph on a 10.90 dial in. Reserve honors went to challenger Wilmark Geronimo, whose ‘04 Yamaha bike hit the quarter mile on an 11.43 ET to reach 121.91 mph on an 11.40 dial in.
The Garden Isle Racing Association and the Kauai Junior Dragsters host the next drag race on June 1 at the Kauai Raceway Park in Mana.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
