7th Annual Battle at the Beach - Race 3 of 5

June 29th, 2024

7th Annual Battle at the Beach

The California Independent Funny Car Association (CIFCA) made the haul Samoa Dragstrip for the 7th annual Battle at the Beach presented by Eureka Chrysler, Dodge, Ram & Jeep. 8 CIFCA funny cars were able to make the trip to race number 3 of their 5-race series presented by Good Vibrations Motorsports.

There were two qualifying passes before the top four ran off in a sportsman style ladder. Chris Bates, driving Ken & Denise Wynn’s Bad Intentions Mustang ii, took home the System One Number qualifier with a 7.53 on the 7.50 index. They were also awarded the Control Cables Longest tow award for making the haul from San Diego, CA to Eureka, CA!  Jesse Guiterrez, in the seat of Ryan Smith’s Plastic Thunder, took the number two spot with a 7.567. James & Jim Maher rounded out the top four with a 7.572 and 7.589 respectively. Rick Alvarado just missed the four-car field with a 7.646. Tony Trimp was just a tad too quick, running a 7.497 which put him 6th. Mike Troxel also ran under the index, and Shaun Bryan rounded out the 8 funny cars. Rick Alvarado claimed the Mike’s Transmission Burnout Contest!

Qualifying Order 1) Chris Bates 7.536 - 177.44 Mph

2) Jesse Gutierrez 7.567 - 163.71 Mph 3) James Maher 7.572 - 177.77 Mph

4) Jim Maher 7.589 - 169.75 Mph

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5) Rick Alvarado 7.646 - 171.32 Mph

6) Tony Trimp 7.703* / 7.497 - 173.88 Mph

7) Mike Troxel 7.756* - 7.444 - 175.25 Mph

8) Shaun Bryan 7.980 - 168.85 Mph

The semi-finals kicked off with James Maher, in the Junior Vibes 84’ Tempo against Chris Bates, in the Mustang II. It was a close race; Maher was .046 on the tree to Bates .075. At the finish line Maher got there first by a mere .018 of a second and took the win light, clocking a 7.525 to Bates 7.514. James .071 overall package took home the CP Carillo best package award. On the flip side of things Jesse Guiterrez brought his A-game against Jim Maher. Guiterrez was off the line first with a very impressive .006 reaction time which won the Enderle quick reaction time award. Maher was right behind him with .030 light and at the finish line it was Maher who turned on the win light with a 7.562 as Guiterrez broke out with a 7.466.

The final round matchup between father and son was for the CIFCA points lead. Jim was off the line first with an .083 to James’ .131 and James drove around Jim by half track. However, James clicked it off early and Jim took the stripe at the finish line by .019 of a second! Jim’s 7.617 at 181.15 mph beat a James’ 7.588 165.20 mph.

Thanks to the track crew at Samoa Dragstrip for doing an excellent job on the racing surface and keeping things moving very smoothly. A huge thank you to Vinny at Eureka Chrysler Dodge Ram & Jeep for supporting this annual event we couldn’t do it without them. Thank you to all our CIFCA sponsors and we will see you at our next race Sept 12-13 at Medford Dragstrip.