Drag Illustrated Issue 160, September 2020 | Page 82

DRAG ILLUSTRATED ROUNDTABLE

USTIN ELKES HAD SPENT 15 years in Pro Stock , which accounted for thousands upon thousands of runs . He had enjoyed plenty of success at a tuner , but it was all he knew , and by 2010 he wanted to become a more versatile tuner . ¶ Enter Pro Mod and working with Al-Anabi Racing . Soon , Elkes was well-versed in , well , just about everything from a tuning standpoint . ¶ “ Pro Mod piqued my interest . The characteristics are same as Pro Stock , you just have to respect the power ,” Elkes says . “ I worked with Frank [ Manzo ] on blower cars for a while , I got to work on nitrous cars , turbo cars and now ProCharger . To me , I want to work on them all . I think it makes me a better all-around tuner . Each of them have their own characteristics and there ’ s a lot to learn about tuning other combinations .” ¶ Becoming a versatile tuner is no easy task . Just finding success with one power adder , or one class can be difficult enough , let alone multiple power adders , several different classes and a number of different series . ¶ NHRA Pro Mod now allows four power adders ,
while doorslammer classes like Top Sportsman and Pro Stock are incredibly competitive . Throw in a variety of tire sizes for radial cars and track prep – or lack thereof on the No Prep scene – and the possibilities are almost endless .
But being able to successfully tune cars on a number of fronts is a distinct talent . It takes an open mind , a thirst for knowledge , unimaginable work ethic and enough creativity to think outside the box without taking too big of a risk .
Drag IllustrateD talked to four premier tuners – Elkes , Brandon Stroud , Stevie “ Fast ” Jackson and Rickie Jones – who each have piled together an impressive resume tuning cars around a variety of power adders and classes . They each talked about why being versatile is important , the work that goes into it and how they keep motivated when it comes to innovation .
Elkes owns Modern Racing and has managed to tune just about everything when it comes to Pro Mod and Top Sportsman . He also continues to work in Pro Stock as well .
Brandon Stroud is a standout tuner with Proline Racing , which had been synonymous with turbochargers . But they ’ ve moved into the Pro- Charger world , with Stroud tuning John Camp and Jason Harris in PDRA Pro Boost . He ’ s also working on a roots-blown car with Steve Petty .
Stevie “ Fast ” Jackson is a world-champion driver across multiple classes , so it only makes sense he would do the same as a tuner . His expertise knows no bounds , and he ’ s successfully tuned nitrous and blown cars across Pro Mod , drag radial and other classes .
Rickie Jones is currently crew chief for Jeg
AFTER A LENGTHY CAREER IN PRO STOCK , JUSTIN ELKES HAS BECOME ADEPT AT TUNING JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING .

JUSTIN ELKES

PHOTO : RICK BELDEN
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