2006 ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals

Schnitz Adjusting to New Ignition System

Ryan Schnitz, Rob Muzzy, and the Trim-Tex/Muzzy's Pro Stock Motorcycle team tested their Buell extensively between the last race at Maple Grove and this weekend's ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals. The bike is sporting a whole new fuel and ignition control system, the Magneti-Marelli unit that has been used so successfully by the G2 Motorsports team. "We tested at a small, tiny local track in Sunrise, Arizona," said Schnitz. "We've tested there in the past and it's a decent track. We got some good data because the weather is very similar there as it is here in Las Vegas."
 
That testing seemed put to good use in round 1 of qualifying, as Ryan posted the 6th fastest time, 3rd quickest of the Buells in the round.
 
qualifying round 1
6th     Ryan Schnitz     right lane     7.173 at 184.60 mph
 
But the bike had a problem in the second round that Ryan attributed to the sensors that feed the ignition system the information it needs. "We had a camshaft and crank sync error," said Schnitz. "As soon as it misfired I shut it off right away."
 
qualifying round 2
11th     Ryan Schnitz     right lane     9.955 at 84.49 mph
 
"The crank sensor was a little loose, and the cam sync sensor was a little off of where it should be. So we're hoping that the combination of those is what caused the problem. But everything's fine, it didn't hurt the motor at all. They have a recommended way of doing the cam sync sensor, and we had a different way of doing it that worked fine until that pass. We can change it tomorrow if we have to. But for now we'll head out of here and get a buffet at one of the casinos."
 
ESPN2 Schedule
Saturday, Oct. 28, 10:30pm-12:00am, Qualifying
Sunday, Oct. 29, 8:00pm-11:00pm, Eliminations
 
NHRA/POWERade Point Standings
7th     Ryan Schnitz     666
 
Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle
6th     Ryan Schnitz     260
 
Current Full Throttle NHRA Pit Crew Championship Point Standings
8th     Ryan Schnitz/Rob Muzzy     279
 
Schnitz thanked Trim-Tex Drywall Products, Muzzy's, Schnitz Racing, Bates Leathers and NGK.

Schnitz steady in 11th

Las Vegas, Saturday: "We had a pretty good pass this morning," said Ryan Schnitz, who remained in 11th spot on the Trim-Tex/Muzzy's Buell through each of the last three rounds of Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying for the ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals. "Everything looked good so we made a gearing and fuel curve change for the last round and it slowed up, just like a lot of the Buells and Suzukis did."

qualifying round 3
11th, 7.147 at 185.74 mph

qualifying round 4
11th, 7.218 at 183.62 mph

"We'll try and determine why we went slow and watch tomorrow and see how everybody else picks up after this final qualifying pass," continued Ryan. "We had none of the electrical gremlins at all that we had yesterday, so it seems we have that sorted out. Now it's just a tuning game.

"We have Craig Treble in the first round tomorrow. We've raced Craig in the first round twice this year and he's beaten us both times. We'll cut as good a light as we can and still stay green, tune the bike as good as we can for the track conditions, and hope for the best. As long as we cross the finishline first, I don't really care about anything else."

Schnitz wins 2 out of 3 

Las Vegas, Sunday: Ryan Schnitz carried his 11th qualifying position all the way to the Pro Stock Motorcycle semifinals at the ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals. "That was far better than the last couple of events," said Ryan. "I tried to save all my Las Vegas luck for the racetrack, and I think some of that came through."

eliminations round 1
(W) Ryan Schnitz .011 7.156 at 186.23 mph
Craig Treble -.004(r) 7.150 at 188.81 mph

eliminations round 2
(W) Ryan Schnitz .024 7.255 at 183.24 mph
Angelle Sampey -.031(r) 7.285 at 182.43 mph

eliminations round 3
(W) Andrew Hines .033 7.126 at 187.42 mph
Ryan Schnitz -.014(r) 7.195 at 185.10 mph

In a day full of redlights in the class, Schnitz was the beneficiary of two and the victim of one. "Today we had a couple of really good lights, and apparently I just hit the tree a little too hard in the semi," said Ryan. "But Andrew had a superior pass and a quicker ET.

"The first two rounds I didn't feel the lights were any faster than any other track. In the third round, I didn't think it would have been a -.014. I thought maybe I had a perfect light or was off by a thousandth. Maybe it was the sun, but it might have been the track. The track was really good. Even though the 60 foot times were not that great, we were having a hard time getting the tire to spin a little bit like we want it to.

"We didn't qualify as well as we liked, which would have shown us we were putting everything on the table and using everything we can. You always have more confidence when you qualify well, no matter what anybody says. We're still looking to make the bike quicker, whether that means more power or chassis tuning.

"The points race will be tight and hopefully we'll come away with a top 5 finish this year. Last year we won Pomona, and Joe (sponsor Trim-Tex owner Joe Koenig) is coming out there this year, so we really hope to win out there again for Joe, and to give us some momentum looking for associate sponsors in the off season."

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