The Modern Street Hemi Shootout has had a rough go of things this year, with their first event in Georgia being rained out while the second stop on the schedule was hampered by foolish west coast track rules. Fortunately, when the field of the quickest modern Hemi-powered machines in the world headed to The Rock earlier this month, they got their first chance to clash for points, plaques and bragging rights.
As has been the case more than once over the past few years, Chris Dufresne took home a class win along with the King of the Hill class win, but he isn’t tearing up the series in his supercharged Challenger, instead switching to a new Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk for the 2019 racing season.
The classes at the MSHS Rockingham Event included:
* Demon Performance Super Pro Class – Heads Up, Run 8s to Be Competitive
* ThiTek Pro Class – 9.50 index
* True Street Performance Modified Class – 10.50 index
* Legmaker Intakes Super Stock Class – 11.50 index
* Gearhead Fabrications Street Class – 12.50 index
* East Coast MoParts Pentastar Bracket Class – Bracket Dial-In
* High Horse Performance Hellcat Shootout – 10.00 index
* Carlisle Racing Demon – Heads Up
* Southern Hot Rod Rookie Class – Bracket Dial-In
* Z Automotive King of the Hill – Bracket Dial-In
Class-By-Class Rundown from The Rock
In the East Coast MoParts Pentastar Bracket Class, Chris Dufresne and his Trackhawk (above) went head-to-head with Ron Polidora in his Hellcat Challenger. Dufresne dialed a 10.55 to Polidora’s 9.99, but the race was all-but-over when the Jeep grabbed the big hole shot advantage, leaving with an 0.019 reaction time to 0.172 for the Challenger. On the big end, Dufresne ran a 10.62 on his 10.55 dial while Polidora ran a 10.045 on his 9.99 dial, giving the Trackhawk the big win.
Next up, we have the Gearhead Fabrications Street Class, which had Gary Sanders in his 2017 Challenger square off against Edward Peraza in his 2015 Challenger. Peraza had a slight lead on the tree (0.076 to 0.082, but Sanders ran a winning 12.700 on the 12.50 index while Peraza ran a 12.795.
The Legmaker Intakes Super Stock Class saw a couple of early LX machines battling, with Bill McFadden and his Dodge Magnum (above) taking on Guy Dalton in his Chrysler 300C in the 11.50 index class. This was another race won at the line, as McFadden pulled a 0.130 reaction time to Dalton’s 0.245, so even though Dalton ran a quicker 11.522, the stronger start allowed McFadden to win with a 11.601.
In the True Street Performance Modified Class saw Justin Skudder and his 2006 Dodge Charger (above) challenging Chris Dufresne for what could have been a third win on the day, but a red light for the Jeep put an end to that. Skudder pulled a 0.041 reaction time and ran a 10.521 on the 10.50 index while Dufresne redlit and ran a 10.547.
The ThiTek Pro Class saw what might have been the most unique final run, with Stephen Rimay’s Hemi-powered 1970 Plymouth Roadrunner taking on Brian Brunt’s supercharged 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Anyone who knows the series is familiar with these two, as Rimay’s Roadrunner is one of the few modern-powered classics in the series while Brunt’s Jeep is routinely one of the quickest. In this case, the two dueled in the 9.50 index class and when Rimay pulled a 0.048 reaction time and run a 9.514, he grabbed the win from Brunt, who had a 0.113 reaction time and ran a 9.626 on the big end.
The Demon Performance Super Pro Class as usually saw two of the quickest cars in the series going head-to-head, with Dan Plotkin’s 2007 Charger taking on the world’s quickest Hellcat-powered car from the Epling Garage, with Jason Epling handling the driving. Epling pulled a slightly better reaction time, but Plotkin was able to put together a clean run while Epling was not, allowing the Charger to take the class win with a 8.829 at 158.15 miles per hour.
The High Horse Performance Hellcat Shootout saw Ron Polidora battle Leanne Mayberry and while neither car was close to the 10.00 index time, Polidora’s reaction time advantage gave him the win, even though Mayberry got to the finish line a bit quicker. In the end, Polidora won with a 10.332 to a losing 10.296.
The Carlisle Racing Demon class final featured Catherine Kosiba and David Davies squaring off in a heads-up battle, but the race was over before it began when Davies redlit. This allow Kosiba to cruise to victory with a 9.887 while Davies ran a 9.969 on the redlight start.
The Southern Hot Rod Rookie Class Thomas Falk and his 2018 Dodge Challenger dialed a 9.55 against Rob Fox and his 2016 Challenger, which dialed 11.00. Falk pulled the better reaction time, but more importantly, he ran a 9.736 on his 9.55 dial while Fox broke out, running a 10.992 on the 11.00 dial.
Finally, the King of the Hill class pits all of the winners from the other classes in a head-to-head bracket battle and the finals ended up being a rematch of the bracket class finals. After working their way through the field of winners, Ron Polidora and his Hellcat Challenger lined up with Chris Dufresne and his Trackhawk. Mind you, Dufresne beat Polidora earlier in the day in a bracket race and this race went very much the same way. Polidora dialed up to a 10.05, having lost with a 10.04 on a 9.99 dial earlier in the day, while Dufresne stayed with the same 10.55 dial. As was the case in the bracket finals, Dufresne grabbed the starting line advantage and only had to look back to know when to let off, running a 10.591 on the 10.55 dial while Polidora ran a 10.09 on the 10.05 dial.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahyZuwb9_Ac
As always, there were some other awards intertwined into the normal course of racing, including the titles below:
Whipple Superchargers Best Reaction Time - John Roscoe – .028
Whipple Superchargers Best ET Award - Jason Epling – 8.15
Whipple Superchargers Best 60 Foot Award - Jason Epling – 1.25
Moe’s Performance RAM Best ET Award - Sean Powell – 11.08
Help the MSHS with a Click
The Modern Street Hemi Shootout is an incredible series whether you own a vehicle that can compete or if you are simply a hardcore modern Mopar fan. Whether you are a spectator or a racer, if there is an MSHS stop within driving distance of your area, make sure that you hit at least one event. I bet that once you have been to one, you will go to more of them. At the same time, series boss Dan VanHorn is working to make the series more accessible, even to those of who are thousands of miles away from the event. With the help from some of the volunteers who work to keep the series running smoother, the MSHS events are broadcast on Facebook Live and I have enjoyed watching events in the past. However, VanHorn wants to make watching from home even better by using YouTube live, but YouTube now requires channels to have a thousand subscribers to use the live feature. With that in mind, I ask all of our readers with a YouTube account to help out the series, click here to visit the series channel and subscribe to help bring more broadcast footage of the events.
Of course, the Modern Street Hemi Shootout would not be exist without the support of the sponsors, so on the behalf of the organizers, the racers and everyone else involved with the series, the following businesses deserve recognition for helping to grow and improve this series each year. If you have a modern Mopar machine and you are looking to upgrade your machine, consider these companies before randomly hunting around online. These are the companies within the Mopar community which are making a real difference in both offering the best products and in sponsoring the leading Mopar racing series today.
**2019 MSHS SPONSORS**
Series Title Sponsors - Driveshaft Shop & HemiTuner Performance
King of the Hill - Z Automotive Technologies
**MSHS Event Sponsors**
Legmaker Intakes, LLC
Z Automotive
Stanley's Performance
EastCoastMoparts
High Horse Performance, Inc.
Thitek
Demon Performance
Hemituner Performance
**Class Sponsors**
Super Pro Class - Demon Performance
Pro Class - ThiTek
Modified Class - True Street Performance / Jim
Super Stock Class - Legmaker Intakes
Street Class - Gearhead Fabrications
Bracket Class - East Coast MoParts
Hellcat Shootout - High Horse Performance
Demon Class - Carlyle Racing
Rookie Class - SOUTHERN HOTROD, LLC
**Elite Performance Prize Sponsors**
Reaction Time - Whipple Superchargers
Best ET - Whipple Superchargers
60 Foot Award - Whipple Superchargers
Hard Luck Award - Cabinet Factory of Delaware
Best ET HEMI RAM - Moe's Performance
Twin Win - Stell Sav
Party Sponsors - VanDrake Racing
Winners Circle - Demon116 Fuels
King of Kings - Barth Tuning
**Class Championship Sponsors**
American Racing Solutions
Mill Finish Industries
Captain Terror Racing/George Mueller
American Racing Headers
**Associate Sponsors**
Litens High Performance
Syked Ecu Tuning
AAD Performance
Hall | MileOne Autogroup
Orthopedic Spine Care of Long Island
Per4Mance Development
DTP Racing LLC
Jokerz performance
**Friends of the Series**
TeamTimeBomb
Hamburger's Superchargers, Inc.
Livernois Motorsports & Engineering
DemonTKM
Protected Second Custom Guns
Stage 6 Motorsports
Original Concept Design
Nitrous Outlet
Gen3 Performance Products
American Muscle Performance, LLC
Moparfan.com Fan Page
Double R Diesel Inc
AutoComplete NY
Hemifest
Prodigy Performance
HEMIsphere Magazine
Professional Auto Collision
As has been the case more than once over the past few years, Chris Dufresne took home a class win along with the King of the Hill class win, but he isn’t tearing up the series in his supercharged Challenger, instead switching to a new Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk for the 2019 racing season.
The classes at the MSHS Rockingham Event included:
* Demon Performance Super Pro Class – Heads Up, Run 8s to Be Competitive
* ThiTek Pro Class – 9.50 index
* True Street Performance Modified Class – 10.50 index
* Legmaker Intakes Super Stock Class – 11.50 index
* Gearhead Fabrications Street Class – 12.50 index
* East Coast MoParts Pentastar Bracket Class – Bracket Dial-In
* High Horse Performance Hellcat Shootout – 10.00 index
* Carlisle Racing Demon – Heads Up
* Southern Hot Rod Rookie Class – Bracket Dial-In
* Z Automotive King of the Hill – Bracket Dial-In
Class-By-Class Rundown from The Rock
In the East Coast MoParts Pentastar Bracket Class, Chris Dufresne and his Trackhawk (above) went head-to-head with Ron Polidora in his Hellcat Challenger. Dufresne dialed a 10.55 to Polidora’s 9.99, but the race was all-but-over when the Jeep grabbed the big hole shot advantage, leaving with an 0.019 reaction time to 0.172 for the Challenger. On the big end, Dufresne ran a 10.62 on his 10.55 dial while Polidora ran a 10.045 on his 9.99 dial, giving the Trackhawk the big win.
Next up, we have the Gearhead Fabrications Street Class, which had Gary Sanders in his 2017 Challenger square off against Edward Peraza in his 2015 Challenger. Peraza had a slight lead on the tree (0.076 to 0.082, but Sanders ran a winning 12.700 on the 12.50 index while Peraza ran a 12.795.
The Legmaker Intakes Super Stock Class saw a couple of early LX machines battling, with Bill McFadden and his Dodge Magnum (above) taking on Guy Dalton in his Chrysler 300C in the 11.50 index class. This was another race won at the line, as McFadden pulled a 0.130 reaction time to Dalton’s 0.245, so even though Dalton ran a quicker 11.522, the stronger start allowed McFadden to win with a 11.601.
In the True Street Performance Modified Class saw Justin Skudder and his 2006 Dodge Charger (above) challenging Chris Dufresne for what could have been a third win on the day, but a red light for the Jeep put an end to that. Skudder pulled a 0.041 reaction time and ran a 10.521 on the 10.50 index while Dufresne redlit and ran a 10.547.
The ThiTek Pro Class saw what might have been the most unique final run, with Stephen Rimay’s Hemi-powered 1970 Plymouth Roadrunner taking on Brian Brunt’s supercharged 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Anyone who knows the series is familiar with these two, as Rimay’s Roadrunner is one of the few modern-powered classics in the series while Brunt’s Jeep is routinely one of the quickest. In this case, the two dueled in the 9.50 index class and when Rimay pulled a 0.048 reaction time and run a 9.514, he grabbed the win from Brunt, who had a 0.113 reaction time and ran a 9.626 on the big end.
The Demon Performance Super Pro Class as usually saw two of the quickest cars in the series going head-to-head, with Dan Plotkin’s 2007 Charger taking on the world’s quickest Hellcat-powered car from the Epling Garage, with Jason Epling handling the driving. Epling pulled a slightly better reaction time, but Plotkin was able to put together a clean run while Epling was not, allowing the Charger to take the class win with a 8.829 at 158.15 miles per hour.
The High Horse Performance Hellcat Shootout saw Ron Polidora battle Leanne Mayberry and while neither car was close to the 10.00 index time, Polidora’s reaction time advantage gave him the win, even though Mayberry got to the finish line a bit quicker. In the end, Polidora won with a 10.332 to a losing 10.296.
The Carlisle Racing Demon class final featured Catherine Kosiba and David Davies squaring off in a heads-up battle, but the race was over before it began when Davies redlit. This allow Kosiba to cruise to victory with a 9.887 while Davies ran a 9.969 on the redlight start.
The Southern Hot Rod Rookie Class Thomas Falk and his 2018 Dodge Challenger dialed a 9.55 against Rob Fox and his 2016 Challenger, which dialed 11.00. Falk pulled the better reaction time, but more importantly, he ran a 9.736 on his 9.55 dial while Fox broke out, running a 10.992 on the 11.00 dial.
Finally, the King of the Hill class pits all of the winners from the other classes in a head-to-head bracket battle and the finals ended up being a rematch of the bracket class finals. After working their way through the field of winners, Ron Polidora and his Hellcat Challenger lined up with Chris Dufresne and his Trackhawk. Mind you, Dufresne beat Polidora earlier in the day in a bracket race and this race went very much the same way. Polidora dialed up to a 10.05, having lost with a 10.04 on a 9.99 dial earlier in the day, while Dufresne stayed with the same 10.55 dial. As was the case in the bracket finals, Dufresne grabbed the starting line advantage and only had to look back to know when to let off, running a 10.591 on the 10.55 dial while Polidora ran a 10.09 on the 10.05 dial.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahyZuwb9_Ac
As always, there were some other awards intertwined into the normal course of racing, including the titles below:
Whipple Superchargers Best Reaction Time - John Roscoe – .028
Whipple Superchargers Best ET Award - Jason Epling – 8.15
Whipple Superchargers Best 60 Foot Award - Jason Epling – 1.25
Moe’s Performance RAM Best ET Award - Sean Powell – 11.08
Help the MSHS with a Click
The Modern Street Hemi Shootout is an incredible series whether you own a vehicle that can compete or if you are simply a hardcore modern Mopar fan. Whether you are a spectator or a racer, if there is an MSHS stop within driving distance of your area, make sure that you hit at least one event. I bet that once you have been to one, you will go to more of them. At the same time, series boss Dan VanHorn is working to make the series more accessible, even to those of who are thousands of miles away from the event. With the help from some of the volunteers who work to keep the series running smoother, the MSHS events are broadcast on Facebook Live and I have enjoyed watching events in the past. However, VanHorn wants to make watching from home even better by using YouTube live, but YouTube now requires channels to have a thousand subscribers to use the live feature. With that in mind, I ask all of our readers with a YouTube account to help out the series, click here to visit the series channel and subscribe to help bring more broadcast footage of the events.
Of course, the Modern Street Hemi Shootout would not be exist without the support of the sponsors, so on the behalf of the organizers, the racers and everyone else involved with the series, the following businesses deserve recognition for helping to grow and improve this series each year. If you have a modern Mopar machine and you are looking to upgrade your machine, consider these companies before randomly hunting around online. These are the companies within the Mopar community which are making a real difference in both offering the best products and in sponsoring the leading Mopar racing series today.
**2019 MSHS SPONSORS**
Series Title Sponsors - Driveshaft Shop & HemiTuner Performance
King of the Hill - Z Automotive Technologies
**MSHS Event Sponsors**
Legmaker Intakes, LLC
Z Automotive
Stanley's Performance
EastCoastMoparts
High Horse Performance, Inc.
Thitek
Demon Performance
Hemituner Performance
**Class Sponsors**
Super Pro Class - Demon Performance
Pro Class - ThiTek
Modified Class - True Street Performance / Jim
Super Stock Class - Legmaker Intakes
Street Class - Gearhead Fabrications
Bracket Class - East Coast MoParts
Hellcat Shootout - High Horse Performance
Demon Class - Carlyle Racing
Rookie Class - SOUTHERN HOTROD, LLC
**Elite Performance Prize Sponsors**
Reaction Time - Whipple Superchargers
Best ET - Whipple Superchargers
60 Foot Award - Whipple Superchargers
Hard Luck Award - Cabinet Factory of Delaware
Best ET HEMI RAM - Moe's Performance
Twin Win - Stell Sav
Party Sponsors - VanDrake Racing
Winners Circle - Demon116 Fuels
King of Kings - Barth Tuning
**Class Championship Sponsors**
American Racing Solutions
Mill Finish Industries
Captain Terror Racing/George Mueller
American Racing Headers
**Associate Sponsors**
Litens High Performance
Syked Ecu Tuning
AAD Performance
Hall | MileOne Autogroup
Orthopedic Spine Care of Long Island
Per4Mance Development
DTP Racing LLC
Jokerz performance
**Friends of the Series**
TeamTimeBomb
Hamburger's Superchargers, Inc.
Livernois Motorsports & Engineering
DemonTKM
Protected Second Custom Guns
Stage 6 Motorsports
Original Concept Design
Nitrous Outlet
Gen3 Performance Products
American Muscle Performance, LLC
Moparfan.com Fan Page
Double R Diesel Inc
AutoComplete NY
Hemifest
Prodigy Performance
HEMIsphere Magazine
Professional Auto Collision