Camaro is king at Palmer raceway

PALMER — Mother’s Day came with beautiful weather for drag racing at Alaska Raceway Park.

Karl Solberg of Anchorage was the winner of the day, turning in a best reaction time of 0.0542 and elapsed time of 11.6556 at 111.92 mph with his 1973 Chevy Camaro 350 after four rounds of racing.

Solberg races in the Super ET class and once raced at International Hot Rod Association Division 6 finals in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. After a few summers on hiatus — during which time he ran Alaska Raceway Park’s Green Light Grill snack bar — he returned to racing.

Solberg is sponsored by Renewable Energy Systems, Polar Wire Products, Arctic Home Living, Alaska Safety, and the Green Light Grill.

Runner-up David Hubbard of Homer also raced his 4.6-liter, 600-horsepower, 2008 Shelby Mustang through four rounds in the annual Hunison Memorial Race this weekend, with a best mph in the final round of 117.29. Hubbard’s reaction time at the start was 0.0760 seconds, and his elapsed time down the quarter-mile track was 11.8893. The time won him the silver cup trophy, given in honor of former champions Bill and Jay Hunison.

Hubbard raced at Alaska Raceway Park in the 1980s, and was a crew chief for the Tok Bandit (driven by Steve Bell) and the Adrenaline Factory (driven by Brian Kincaid).

Hubbard is sponsored by his Nikiski employer, Ocean Marine Services, Inc. and Bill Greenstreet of In Demand Marine and Outboard Services, Homer.

Hubbard’s shift work with Ocean Marine allows him to attend half of the summer’s races. This year marks his third season racing his Shelby Mustang in the Super ET class, including for International Hot Rod Association points.

Dave Hubbard and his brother, Phil Hubbard of Wasilla, are members of Hubbard Family Racing. Phil drives a Camaro in the Mod ET class.

The Hubbard brothers’ parents, who live in Palmer, join them for family time at the racetrack.

For more information, visit akracewaypark.com.