Madison: Ryan Schnitz Saturday summary

Schnitz Makes the Cut at Gateway

Ryan Schnitz was relieved to have simply made the Pro Stock Motorcycle field at the O'Reilly NHRA Midwest Nationals at Gateway International Raceway near St. Louis. Schnitz and the Trim-Tex/Muzzy's team made marginal gains with each pass and spent both days perched precariously on the bump spot. Ryan, who won two races ago in Chicago, actually had to bump his way back into the field on his final pass.

"We got bumped out by the first couple of pairs that went down the track, so we're happy just to be in," said Ryan. "We do wish that we could have improved more and gone deeper in the field." As it is, Schnitz will face number 1 qualifier Tom Bradford in round 1 of eliminations some .126 down on ET.

"The track was about the same as yesterday, but the tire seems to be good, at least for the first 60 feet. We seem to struggle between the 60 and the 330, and our backhalf numbers aren't what they should be. So we're having an issue, either a horsepower issue or a fueling issue. We're pulling apart our 'Joey' motor to determine whether we're gonna run it or put 'Milton' back in."

-sr