For European drag racers, the first weekend of July is Nitro Nationals time. Alastaro Circuit hosts the second round of the FIA European Drag Racing Championship and, this year, the third round of the UEM Drag Bike Championship. For European teams Alastaro is always a special place. Accustomed to burning the midnight oil long after dark, teams think they have finished work early in the Alastaro daylight, only to find when they look at the clock that it’s long past bedtime.

Eurodragster is the source of direct information on site from the races. Round to round comments and timing results, completed with pit notes and photo galleries at the end of the day.

We called Tapio Välja of FHRA (Finnish Hot Rod Association), the organiser for the FIA/UEM Nitro Nationals at Alastaro. We wished to check on how the preparations for the race at Alastaro are proceeding and if they still are affected by the fact the FHRA office was destroyed in a fire the past winter. 

A highly interesting, often debated and controversial subject - the TV-production leaves nobody unmoved

With two bikes in the team and one rider Super Twin Bike Rider Jaska Salakari decided to ride both bikes himself! At Alastaro he doubles in Super Twin AND Top Fuel Bike...

Finnish rider Kai Selkämaa arrives at Alastaro as a points leader in the Top Fuel Bike category. After two events, with one win in Hungary and ending as runner-up at the Main event in the UK, and after setting a new personal best of 6.89 at Santa Pod, he is happy with the race season so far.

Finnish methanol funny car driver Jarmo "JAPA" Kuutniemi enters the FIA championship 2010 at Alastaro. He does it with a car that by the look is similar to the one he ran in 2009, but is in fact bought complete from the US for this season. 

I founded my company in 1984. Back then I started as a body repair and paint shop. In 1994 we saw the need for a powder coating company here in our area, so we bought our first oven and started this as a second division of the business. We now have two ovens, with complete production lines were we work mostly for the industrial market.

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Dissatisfaction with existing products on the market made Top Methanol Funny Car team owners Ulf and Jörgen Leanders take on a mission. The brothers had no idea where it would take them, but today Leanders Clutch have satisfied customers on three continents.

“There was an empty spot without drag racing and when I came back it felt like coming home”, says Anita Mäkelä about her comeback in the sport she loves so much. It feels even better during the first weekend of July because Anita can race in her home country with all her friends and relatives around.