I'm so excited to announce that I'm 1 of 25 finalists in the Search for a Champion contest!  This means we are still eligible for the $50k grand prize sponsorship and we are already guarenteed a $1k sponsorship.  It has been such a great year already and we can't wait to see what else is in store for the team.  

We need your help by getting public votes again.  The finalist voting will be Feb 23 - Mar 23.  You can vote ONCE PER DAY.  Spread the word.

Link - http://sfac.championautoparts.com/entry/955/

Thank you for your support!

Hi!

I have been working really hard with my cousin over the past month to create my entry for the Search for a Champion.  It would really mean a lot to the Anderson Family Dragster team to be a part of Team Champion.  Please help by voting for my entry.  The voting period is January 5 - February 2.  People can vote once per day.   Please vote every day if you can and share with as many people as possible it would really help push the team forward to win this sponsorship.

http://sfac.championautoparts.com/entry/955/

Thank you!

Marina

I am excited about the progress we have seen over this past year. There have been bumps in the road and many lessons learned for the whole team. I have always been honest about how tough this journey is. It's fun and difficult all at the same time. I like to say if it were easy everyone would do it. Trust me, growing up around drag racing it always seemed like a dream that would never happen to me. You can make it happen though and no matter how long it takes we will keep working at it.

Looking back on the 2016 season I am thankful for so many things including the races I got to attend even though I wasn't racing my car. Every race I go to I learn even more just by being around A/Fuel cars, especially on the starting line. It has helped me become more aware of every part of my car. I am thankful that Dave and my dad both allow and expect me to be more than a driver. In the beginning of the year we learned the hard way to pay attention to what the data is telling you. This may seem like a no brainer but when you first look at a data logger as robust as racepak it can be overwhelming. We became best friends with our racepak after it saved us every penny we paid for it this year. From rubber in fuel lines to a dead battery we had anything you can think of go wrong our first couple times out this year. Being a low budget team I would much rather go home with everything in one piece than have the experience of blowing everything up at this point. I know people say it will happen with nitro racing and trust me we are always acquiring spares. Every time we run the car we learn even more through the data and now we are just learning what the car wants to be able to go fast. I am not officially licensed yet but we are so close that I can feel it around the corner.

The last test session we had for the year was at US 131 in Martin, MI in October. Not many tracks stay open through October in the Midwest. I am so glad we decided to take the 4 hour trip to Martin because they provided a safe track and treated us really well. We went out there and ran two test passes to about 1/8th mile both in the 7s. These were our two best passes yet, so we are seeing progress. I was planning on staying on the throttle longer for the second pass but the car slowed down and I could tell. This also was the first time I would say I actually had to drive the car. It was pushed around the lane a little but I was able to keep it straight. I was disappointed there wasn't a 6 or a 5 on my time slip but I know that the car is showing signs of getting there. I hope we will get to go back to Martin...maybe even for an ADRL race

I'm so appreciative of the people that work on the car. There are so many people who are a part of the Competition Fabrications family that have helped us get to this point. I definitely couldn't be living this dream without the time and dedication that both my dad and Dave both put into the car. We have a list of things to do over the winter and we are working on getting back out on the track so I can license ASAP.

Marina

Wow! I can't believe it's almost June and Memorial Day weekend is around the corner.  This year has seriously been flying by already.  I think it's safe to say that I am beyond addicted to this sport and so thankful for the many friends I have made.  After winding down from the holidays I enjoyed my annual trip to Detroit, Michigan where we go to the Autorama car show in February.  Some friends of my dad's brought a car this year and we had a good time.  I couldn't handle the winter months in Chicago without any racing for months so I made plans to go to Gainesville, Florida for the Gatornationals to help my friend Megan Meyer in her national event debut.  It was so much fun, I worked on the bottom end for the weekend.  We went rounds (she lost on a holeshot in the finals) and I learned a ton from both Megan and her dad.  Such a great experience to be there with them and I am grateful I was able to.  I even made a few more friends that weekend and let me tell you I was so sore from Megan's Sunday morning workout.

After Gainesville I wanted it even more.  I just love this sport and I knew I needed to get ready to race in my car.  We finished up a few more things that it needed to be NHRA legal like carbon fiber brakes and additional weight.  Every weekend from the time tracks opened I was checking the weather and track schedules at literally every track within about 6 hours driving distance.  I still am on this schedule honestly.  We need to both test the racecar because it's brand new and I need to complete two full passes and one half pass to upgrade my current super comp license to TAD.  The first experience at the track was in April, we found a major problem when we started the car up, rubber in the fuel lines.  Thankfully we didn't make any passes with it like that or it would have cost us big time.  With a new car and a crew that is all new to this class we are learning so much.  That time we learned that the data will tell you everything you just have to listen.

The month of May was not easy.  Between rain every other weekend and the loss of my grandfather we only made it to the track one weekend.  He was always very supportive of my dream and I'm glad I got to share it with him when he came out to see the build at Comp Fab I could see it in his eyes that he was proud and the people I had never met before knew my story through him.  The test night in May was another great learning experience for the whole team.  I am so thankful to be out there doing what I love and taking steps toward making my dream come true.  We knew it would not happen over night but it is so worth all the work we put in.  I can't thank the people that help me enough.

I am looking forward to being on Teresa's Radio Show on May 31st at about 4pm Central

Besides that we were trying to test at the Joliet regional race but I still don't know if we will be ready.  If we aren't we hope to go to Villa Park Summerfest (local car show in my hometown) on June 17th then we will continue to test and finish my license.  Who knows you could see us in Columbus or Earlville for those regional events!

I'll be staying busy learning even more in the alcohol pits at some national events too!... Look out for Megan she's doing some awesome things!

<3 Marina

Every year we attend the PRI show in Indianapolis.  It's always a great time to catch up with people in racing.  I have even met a few people who I now call good friends in previous years.  This year is extra special to us because we are displaying our car in the lobby of the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown.  It's right across the street from the convention center.  We hope to see you all there.  I plan on being in the lobby by the car 8-9am and 1-2pm on both Friday and Saturday.

http://topalcoholnews.blogspot.com/2015/12/marina-anderson-to-display-nhra-afuel.html

http://carchix.com/wp/marina-anderson-family-a-fuel-dragster-on-display-at-pri/

http://insidetopalcohol.com/threads/marina-anderson-to-display-nhra-a-fd-at-indy-marriott-downtown.55655/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDSanYSa368

Please click the link to see the Anderson Family Dragster's first time on the track!  It was a really exciting day to get to see the car on the track and for me to get to drive it.  I feel so lucky to have all the people around me help over the past five years to get us here.  It was really a surreal day.  I can't wait to go even further and faster the next time at the track.

Thanks for your support!

Marina

Hello Everyone!

Thanks for continuing to share what I am trying to achieve with following my dreams.  Our followers on social media continue to grow.  We are excited with the arrival of spring to continue to make progress.  The racecar is on its way to the shop for custom wheelie bars.  Thanks to Aurora Bearing and Lane Automotive parts I will be able to stay safely on the ground in the dragster.  We have tested for spark and have bought fuel.  We are ready to start up when the car gets back and I could not be more excited!  The first of many moments we have been waiting for.  After that we plan on testing and upgrading my license.  We are going to take it slow and make sure we follow the right steps so please continue to spread the word about us.  We can't wait to be out there racing!  Thank you everyone for your continued support.  I couldn't have made it this far without all of you, my friends and family, and my sponsors Competition Fabrications, Zrodz and Customs, and Midnight Moon Alpaca Ranch.

 Marina

Hello,

Now that you are all full from Thanksgiving and super bored that it's the off season it's time to get stuffed with Christmas cookies.  We went to PRI last week and learned a lot.  My dad and I walked around meeting many new friends.  Feel free to send me an email to say hello any time.  I know a few people have and it always makes me feel good to know people are interested in our progress.  We are always looking for more marketing partners which I am going to work on all winter along with building the wheelie bar and starting up the racecar for the first time.  Every day we take steps toward the dream.  Sometimes they are long strides and other times it's baby steps.  Either way all this hard work will pay off in the end.  

I hope everyone has safe travels and good times in this holiday season.

<3 Marina