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Austin “Coil” Lambright to make Top Fuel debut at Thunder Valley as “Student Driver”

June 15, 2011 By Jim

BRISTOL, Tenn. – Austin “Coil” Lambright will make his Top Fuel debut this weekend during the Ford NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals. Lambright, Terry McMillen’s 24-year-old car-chief, earned his license earlier this season at Charlotte. He’ll race the second entry for Terry McMillen’s Hoosier Thunder Motorsports team.
McMillen is excited about fielding a second car at the famed Bristol Dragway. “I can’t think of a better place to showcase our second car than at Bristol,” McMillen said. “It’ll be great for Amalie Oil, UNOH and Austin.”

Along with flying the same sponsorship banners for his team, Lambright will also carry a “Student Driver” decal across the back wing of the 8,000 horsepower ride. “It’s a way for us to poke a little fun at him and at the same time pay tribute to the UNOH High Performance Motorsports program,” McMillen explained.

Lambright was born to be a drag racer. He was named after the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame member Austin Coil, who was an accomplished driver and the legendary tuner for John Force Racing. Lambright earned the nickname “Coil” from his teammates who noted his dedication to the sport. Lambright also counted Pat Austin as one of his favorite drivers growing up.

“My mom took me to the racetrack when I was six months old,” Lambright told CompetitionPlus.com earlier this year. “I lived at the racetrack from then on. My dad raced. I just worked my way up, started racing when I was 10 years old.” Lambright worked his way through the NHRA classes, competing in Jr. Dragsters, Super Gas, Super Comp, Alcohol Funny Car and now Top Fuel.

“I remember racing at Thunder Valley during the Junior Nationals years ago,” Lambright recalled.  “It’s a cool place. Racing through that valley between the mountains gives these cars a special sound.”

“I’m anxious for Friday to get here,” Lambright said. “I’m ready, the car is ready, it’s time to race.”

While Lambright is prepared to begin his Top Fuel career, he knows the weekend will be busier than normal as he pulls double duty as car-chief on McMillen’s ride and driver of the second Amalie Oil/UNOH Top Fuel Dragster.

When asked about his expectations for the weekend, Lambright showed maturity beyond his 24-year-old stature. “I’ve got to keep up with my duties on Terry’s car,” Lambright explained. “When I’m driving I just want to be a consistent driver and keep it in the groove. Our first goal is to get the car qualified. On Sunday we just want to have our car prepared well, I want to cut a good light and make a nice mid-nineties A to B run.”

Winning his first round in his first outing wouldn’t be a bad thing either.

ESPN2 and ESPN2HD will televise two hours of qualifying highlights at 7 p.m. (ET) on Saturday, June 18. ESPN2 and ESPN2HD will televise two hours and 30 minutes of eliminations coverage beginning at 4:30 p.m. (ET) on Sunday, June 19.

Filed Under: Crew, News & Blog, Pre Race Reports, Race Reports

Lil’ InstiGator Claims Awards

March 3, 2010 By Jim

Spencer-awards.JPG

Spencer Lacy, the youngest member of Hoosier Thunder Motorsports, attended his awards banquet for IHRA Dragway 42 on February 13, 2010.

Spencer received his 2009 Track Champion Award for Jr. Super Stock Class, he finished just 50 points in front of the second place finisher.

In his speech he thanked Terry and Rhonda McMillen, and all of Hoosier Thunder’s Crew as well as Amalie Oil for allowing him to campaign the Lil’ Instigator Jr Dragster and for letting him be part of an amazing race team.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Crew, Spencer Lacy

Richard Hartman Named Tuner for 2010 Amalie Oil Top Fuel Team

December 18, 2009 By Jim

hartman.jpgELKHART, Ind. – In an announcement today, Terry McMillen, team owner and driver of the Amalie Oil InstiGator Top Fuel dragster, named Richard Hartman crew chief for the team’s 2010 NHRA Full Throttle campaign. Hartman joins McMillen after leading Bruce Litton as crew chief or co-crew chief to 14 IHRA victories, including Litton’s 2007 IHRA Championship.

“We’re excited about having Richard on our team,” McMillen said. “He’s proven himself to be a consistent tuner over the years. Drag racing is all about consistency and getting a car from point A to point B. I’m confident he’ll give us the best opportunity to make an impact early in our quest to make the Countdown.”

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Crew

New driver takes the wheel of InstiGator Funny Car at IHRA Northern Nationals

July 28, 2009 By Jim

coil-osceola.jpg

ELKHART, Ind. — Austin “Coil” Lambright will make his second start this weekend behind the wheel of the Hoosier Thunder Motorsports Alcohol Funny Car know as the Amalie Oil InstiGator. It will be Lambright’s first professional appearance at a national event. The IHRA Northern Nationals begin this weekend at the U.S. 131 Motorsports Park in Martin Michigan.

“Austin has worked extremely hard to earn this opportunity,” team owner Terry McMillen said from his Indiana race shop. “He came up through the junior ranks and was very competitive at the sportsman level. He’s been with our team for three years now, I’m excited to see how he does.”

Lambright will pull double duty this weekend. He’ll drive the team Funny Car and continue his duties on McMillen’s Amalie Oil / Wolverine Boots and Apparel Top Fuel Dragster. While Lambright is just 22-years-old, he already has 12 years of drag racing experience. “I’m really thankful for Rhonda and Terry McMillen’s support,” Lambright said. “This is a great opportunity and I want to make the most of it.” Woodland Park has been a proud sponsor of Lambright’s racing career and will continue with him at this weekend’s national event.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Crew

Lil Gator still strong at mid-season

July 28, 2009 By Jim

bristol09031.jpgHoosier Thunder Motorsports’ youngest teammate Spencer Lacy is still strong as mid season comes to a close. Spencer races out of Summit Motorsports Park and Dragway 42.

Recently Spencer and his family made the trip to Bristol Tennessee for the National Hot Rod Association Junior Drag Racing League Eastern Conference Finals at Bristol Dragway. His team finished fifth out of 25 teams.

Spencer took home “COOLEST CAR AWARD” of the 650 entries for Best Appearing and Engineered and All around Appearance of racing gear and crew.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Crew

Rhonda McMillen recognized for outstanding customer service

April 29, 2008 By Jim

RhondaCSAward1.jpgWe knew she was good at what she does and other people recognize it also.
Rhonda, co-owner of Hoosier Thunder Motorsports, was recently presented with a plaque for Best Customer Service for her service at IHRA national events in the credential trailer.
Rhonda told IHRA.com, “This was really exciting! I was quite surprised and pleased by this award. It’s not always an easy task [getting credentials for race teams]! It’s all good, though, and I really appreciate being recognized for my work.”
You can read about Rhonda and other outstanding IHRA support staff by reading “IHRA Honors Team Members with IHRA Employee Awards“.
Congratulations and thanks go to Rhonda and all the recognized staff members. We couldn’t race without you.

Filed Under: Crew

Crew Members New Workout

January 20, 2007 By Jim

OK, so race season is closer than anyone can imagine. And the Hoosier Thunder racing team is implemented a new workout regimen to make sure everyone is in drag racing shape. Pumping iron and hitting the treadmill are always a good way to get in shape. Here’s some video of the team in action and getting into tip top condition.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Crew Tagged With: terry mcmillen hoosier thunder motorsports crew workout

Princess Rhonda Gives Terry The Finger

December 10, 2006 By Jim

princess-rhonda.jpg Here’s Rhonda (a.k.a. “Princess”… a.k.a. “team backer-upper”) giving Terry the necessary hand signals to back him up into the groove of his burnout path.
There are plenty more hand signs to choose from in this process, but this is the one that Rhonda uses most often.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Crew Tagged With: princess rhonda giving terry the finger race car driver alcohol funny car burnout path picture photos drag racing track burnouts

“TV Dad” Goes Deer Hunting

December 6, 2006 By Jim

It’s off season and the holidays are near. Drag racing keeps everyone on the team pretty busy year round. So, imagine how surprised everyone was when we found out that “TV Dad” had done a little… shall we say… unconventional deer hunting.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Crew Tagged With: dale heflick tv dad hoosier thunder motorsports hunting trip

Year In Review Video

January 19, 2006 By Jim

Here’s what you’ve been waiting for. Sit down, grab a cup of your favorite beverage and for the next 7 minutes enjoy the Hoosier Thunder Motorsports highlight video. You’ll get a sneak peek at the new logo and hints of action for the 2006 race season.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Crew Tagged With: year in review hoosier thunder motorsports video terry mcmillen

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