NHRA: Arana Not Quite Ready To Celebrate

NHRA

NHRA: Arana Not Quite Ready To Celebrate

It has been a dream season so far for Pro Stock Motorcycle points leader Hector Arana. But with two races remaining, he's not quite ready to relax.

Amanda Brahler | http://www.go2geiger.com | Posted October 28, 2009 Porter, TX

"People ask me, 'When are you going to retire?' Retire? I’m just getting started right now," said Arana. "I’m looking forward to more." (Go2Geiger.com)

It has been a dream season so far for Pro Stock Motorcycle points leader Hector Arana. But with two races remaining, Arana, who has five wins in 2009, says there’s still a long way to go before he’s able to truly appreciate his accomplishments.

"A lot of good things have been happening this year," Arana said. "But I don’t want to celebrate yet. I want to win the championship. I am close; but you cannot take it for granted until it is all over. I need to not think about my emotions and concentrate on what I need to do."

At 51, Arana is the feel-good story of the season. Last year, after nearly 20 years of trying, Arana broke through to his first career win in Norwalk, Ohio, aboard his Lucas Oil Buell. The sweet taste of success must have motivated him because he’s been the dominating factor this season.

Arana kicked off the season with a win in Gainesville, Fla., but then watched Screamin' Eagle Harley-Davidson V-Rod riders Eddie Krawiec and Andrew Hines put together an impressive run.

However, Arana wasn’t done and he kicked it into high gear at just the right time, claiming three straight wins in Indianapolis, Charlotte, and Dallas.

Though his three-race winning streak was stopped at Memphis, he set a new ET record. His successes catapulted him into the points lead over reigning bike champ Krawiec by 28 points entering the season's penultimate race in Las Vegas.

Asked what his growing stockpile of Wallys and current points position mean to him, the always-bubbly Arana replies, "It means I am just getting started.

"People ask me, 'When are you going to retire?' Retire? I’m just getting started right now. I’m looking forward to more."

Had you asked Arana the same question a year ago, he would have said the same thing. In fact, he often did. But posing the dreaded retirement question to him now seems silly since he is the closest competitor to possibly dethrone the championship-winning power team of Vance &Hines.

“I always knew we had the power," Arana said. "One of the biggest things we struggled with was at the starting line. I worked on that. The E.T. started coming down. I know I am screaming this motor. I am not leaving anything out there."

Arana’s power comes from Pro Stock driver Larry Morgan, his teammate under the Lucas Oil umbrella who teamed up with him three seasons ago.

"He bought a new engine about three years ago," Morgan said. "I came on with Lucas Oil, and Hector wasn't qualifying very well. He was qualifying 15th, 16th. He says, 'Come over and take a look at my stuff.' He asked if I could help him, and he had nice stuff. We looked and there were a few things wrong that we knew we could fix. And man he's been flying ever since.

"We're so happy for him. This guy has been racing forever, and I'm just elated for him. Forget what we do to help him. That guy has done such a great job. He doesn't get a lot of credit; they all want to give me credit. That's fine, my engine guys and I do help, and they deserve credit too. I get it all for some reason or another, I don't know why. But Hector's the real difference."

Though fans know that Arana is on the bike when it goes down the track, some aren’t aware that he’s also the owner and tuner on his Buell, making his efforts even sweeter.

"I come back, take it apart, evaluate all of the parts and replace what needs to be replaced so we can stay on top of this game so we can win this championship," Arana said. "It’s been a lot of work. To win these races has been so nice after all of that. To win Indy, it was great. It is the one we always talk about. What better way to win it at home, in front of my sponsor, and the fans?"

Arana’s sponsor, Lucas Oil, has stuck with him through the good, the bad, and the struggling.

"They are proud of me and behind me 100 percent," Arana said. "They’ve been behind me for a long time. I could not ask for more."

With lots of pride and the number is Wally trophies growing around Arana, the one thing left is the championship. He says however, that he has no new approach or strategized game plan entering the final two races.

"I’m just going to run my lane," he said. "That’s all I can do, is give it my best."

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Amanda Brahler

Go2Geiger.com

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