On the second leg of our "Triple 3" tour, Bob took top honors in the Sand Hills Mile Shoot-Out in Nebraska last weekend. He drove the West Coast Viper prepared 97 GTS to a 191.4 MPH top speed and won the event. The Viper contingent was again out-numbered by a plethora of Corvettes and other makes as participants from 23 different States converged on Callaway/Arnold, NE for the 4th Annual Sand Hills Open Road Race.
While the car was down slightly on power from last year, John Horton and crew managed to squeeze out just enough to win the event. Bob, drove the first pass at 188 MPH and was in second behind John Schmidt of Lincoln, NE who had just run 190.4 MPH in his late model Corvette. Schmidt later bettered that speed with a final run of 190.9 MPH which prompted Team Viper to make a critical move. Pressed for time, the team decided to forego the second pass and make sure the nitrous pressure was high enough for the final run. John Horton also decided that being a passenger in the car might inhibit Bob's chances for a win. Consequently, with 200 lbs of passenger ballast removed from the car and some fresh nitrous bottles, Bob lined up the Viper for the final run of the day. The Corvette guys were going crazy as their hero (John Schmidt) looked to be in a strong position to win. However, Bob tore through the gears and again destroyed the Corvette hopes for a "King of the Hill" trophy. The announcer declared "191.4 MPH and the Viper is again King of the Hill".
