The 2022 Summit SuperSeries World Finals are going down this week in Mississippi, and the Central Plains region will be represented well.

MacGregor's own Mike Hawco has made the trip to take part in the worldwide drag racing event in the box division. Hawco outlines how he qualified for this prestigious race.

"We race all year for points at the Interlake Dragway, our home track. You compete against many other people, and every weekend you win or get a round, you get points toward the year-end final," Hawco explains. "Some of us compete in the Summit SuperSeries, which qualifies us to go onto the World Finals in Mississippi. This year I was lucky enough to muster up enough points to be able to be first place. A good friend of mine, Wes Griffiths, was able to earn enough points to go to the Summit SuperSeries as well in his class."

Hawco says only the top racer in each category from their track had the opportunity to join the race pool. He notes there's a box class, which is what he competes in, and that allows the racers to have an electronic device in their vehicle that assists the driver with braking and shift timing, among other things.

The MacGregor native adds Griffiths took the top spot in the no-box class, which has drivers do everything with their own timing, and he notes there is also a junior dragster class.

"We race a bracket race. You put a number on your windshield, you dial-in, and that's what you have to be the closest to. If you dial a 795 for the quarter mile, you have to be at that or a little bit above that. If you go under that, it's called a breakout, and you basically lost it for yourself if you go too fast. So, you have to stay within your dial."

Racers submit their dial number ahead of the race, which is the time they believe they will be able to hit, or get closest to, without going over. So, rather than racing against one another, in a bracket race, the drivers are racing against their predicted time.

Hawco says a lot goes into predicting your dial-in, with things like weather conditions and temperature playing a major role. He adds you can change your dial-in before every race if you wanted to. 

He notes this will be his first time competing at an event of this calibre.

"It was (last) Sunday that we finally qualified, and all the numbers were crunched. It was around 4:30 they came to us and said, 'You guys qualified for Mississippi. Are you going to attend?' Myself and Wes Griffiths put our heads together and said, 'Let's do this.' It could be a once in a lifetime thing," Hawco continues. "My whole family is coming. We packed up the RV and the trailer to head out for the 23-hour drive to Mississippi."

Hawco says it's an honour to be able to represent the Interlake Dragway and Manitoba as a whole. The Summit SuperSeries World Finals kicks off tomorrow, with the three-day event wrapping up on Saturday.

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