Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
Champion Driver Bransyn Kiefer Of Kimball A Rising Star
Bransyn Kiefer of Kimball loves drag racing – and he's good at it. He's a champion. Above, he holds one of his trophies.
Bransyn Kiefer sounds like a mathematical genius as he rattles off a multitude of numbers.
The language he speaks is times, motor temperatures, head temperatures, reaction times, miles per hour, tire pressure, dial board and it is all done in 1/8 of a mile. And of course, as a 13 year-old, his favorite thing in drag racing is "burnouts."
Even though the burnouts are fun they do have a purpose, to get the temperature of the motor to the correct degrees and to get everything off the tires before he heads down the track.
At the end of June at Banidmere Speedway in Denver, Bransyn won the Division Five Western Conference Championship for 13-14 year olds. Bransyn is the son of Wade and Brooke Kiefer of Kimball.
In winning the championship he won the Wally Parker trophy, commonly referred to as a "Wally." Bransyn now has three "Wallys" but the others are just from local tracks, this win at Bandimere guarantees him a spot at the awards banquet in Kansas City where he will receive another "Wally" and a gold card. With the gold card, Bransyn will have free admission to all division five tracks and race for free.
Wally Parker founded the National Hot Rod Association in 1951. The NHRA provides the governance over drag racing.
Now an eighth-grader at Kimball Jr/Sr High, Bransyn began drag racing at age 7, where the top speed is 40 mph for that age division. At age 13, Bransyn's speedway speed is 74 mph.
Completing and winning eight rounds with more than 60 entries, consistency is the rule. Drag racing is more of a strategy than a race against another car and driver. According to Bransyn's dad, Wade, "You're racing yourself. You're racing the clock."
Bransyn explained his feeling and thoughts as he cruises down the speedway, "I'm not excited, I'm just calm and then when I cross the line and look up, cause there is a big board, and it will tell you if you won, when I see the board, then I get excited."
Bransyn is sponsored by Curley's Machine Works, 3 Shoe Custom Harvesting and Panhandle Auto Group.
Bransyn will continue to race throughout the season in the hopes of winning more trophies.