Don Bender

"You have to put the car back to the way you had it before the Denver race," Miller Lite crew chief Don Bender said.
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I am excited about our race car because Donnie (Bender) and Todd (Smith) are really starting to gel, making us a better team."

Don Bender - Snake Racing interview
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DON BENDER 2006 NHRA Q&A

VISTA, Calif. (Feb. 20, 2006) - Hey you out there.You want to tune a Top Fuel dragster?Well, clean up your resume because anything is possible.In the case of Miller Lite dragster crew chief Don Bender, handing out resumes at the track is how he got his crack at working on an NHRA race crew.
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In this Q&A, Bender, 45, talks about LaHaie, his veteran driver, what it will take to compete for the championship in 2006, and his first month as crew chief.
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BENDER: I responded to an ad that I saw in National DRAGSTER.
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BENDER: In 1993.I was working for Kalitta Motorsports in 1992.
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BENDER: I speak to him three of four times a week.I try not to bug him too much.I spoke with him twice during the weekend of the Winternationals.

Q: What's the most important thing he taught you about tuning a Top Fuel dragster?

BENDER: To make sure that you go down the track, don't beat yourself, and to look at the parts.
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BENDER: It's good.He's my first driver as a crew chief and I feel like we have a really good relationship.I like the input that he gives when he hops out of the car on the other end.He'll say I felt this, and that's why I like to ride to the top end after he makes a run.He gives good input.
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BENDER: Dick had been talking about retirement to me for a couple years.
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BENDER: Yeah, it did.
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BENDER: We need to be consistent and not too scared to make the changes we need to make.If it goes out and smokes the tires like it did in the first round at Pomona (Calif.), we need to come back and make the call to make it go down the track, but don't get too conservative like we did in the second round against (Doug) Herbert.

Q: How important was it to have most of the Miller Lite pit crew return for the 2006 season?

BENDER: It was very important.
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BENDER: Many of the crew guys are in different positions on the car, so they have to learn their job and handle that and they've done a great job of that so far.
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BENDER: We talk.
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BENDER: No. It's essential to go down the track and test as much as you can and get the data you need.I've been involved in a two-car team and what they bring to the table is more data.So, if you test enough and keep thinking ahead, I think you can do just fine with one car.

Q: Will you test every chance you can?

BENDER: Yes, I would test almost every other day if I could, but I don't think that I could have a crew that way.But, yes, we'll test more than in the past.

Q: You spent three weekends testing the car and just completed your first race as a crew chief.How have things gone so far?

BENDER: The first month went pretty well.

"I'm expecting (crew chief) Don Bender is going to prepare the car similar to our 4.52 pass to start the day.
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Dixon's current tuner, Don Bender, was there the entire time, working closely with LaHaie.
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This weekend Dixon and Bender will attempt to defend that 2000 race win.The NHRA is returning to Richmond for the first time since that season.The Torco Racing Fuels NHRA Nationals kicks off Friday with two qualifying sessions.
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The 1995 NHRA Rookie of the Year then used a tune-up from crew chiefs Don Bender and Todd Smith to blister the ORP quarter mile in 4.492 seconds at 328.38 mph to card the second quickest run of the weekend.
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"We had a fuel system malfunction and the motor dropped a cylinder and the car slowed down," crew chief Don Bender said.
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Dixon used a tune-up from Bender to blast the Miller Lite/Lucas Oil car to a performance of 4.575 at 323.66 to position his rail in the No. 5 qualifying position on Saturday's first run.
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"The chassis was a big deal," Bender added."The old chassis was going away.
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"The car is running good," Bender added.
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"Once we came out and ran that 4.60, we tried to run better," Bender said.
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Entering the final qualifying session in the No. 8 qualifying position, Dixon used a tune-up from first-year tuner Don Bender to claim the No. 2 qualifying spot with a 4.544 second, 327.03 mph pass.
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"Donnie (Bender) made some adjustments and the car responded the way he wanted it to.
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"Donnie (Bender) set the car up just like the first qualifying run on Friday and it ran like it," Dixon said.
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DON BENDER 2006 NHRA Q&A

VISTA, Calif. (Feb. 20, 2006) - Hey you out there.You want to tune a Top Fuel dragster?Well, clean up your resume because anything is possible.In the case of Miller Lite dragster crew chief Don Bender, handing out resumes at the track is how he got his crack at working on an NHRA race crew.
...
In this Q&A, Bender, 45, talks about LaHai! e, his veteran driver, what it will take to compete for the championship in 2006, and his first month as crew chief.

Q: How did you get your start in drag racing?

BENDER: I responded to an ad that I saw in National DRAGSTER.
...
BENDER: In 1993.I was working for Kalitta Motorsports in 1992.
...
BENDER: I speak to him three of four times a week.I try not to bug him too much.I spoke with him twice during the weekend of the Winternationals.

Q: What's the most important thing he taught you about tuning a Top Fuel dragster?

BENDER: To make sure that you go down the track, don't beat yourself, and to look at the parts.
...
BENDER: It's good.He's my first driver as a crew chief and I feel like we have a really good relationship.I like the input that he gives when he hops out of the car on the other end.He'll say I felt this, and that's why I like to ride to the top end after he makes a run.He gives good input.
...
BENDER: Dick had been talking about retirement to me for a couple years.
...
BENDER: Yeah, it did.
...
BENDER: We need to be consistent and not too scared to make the changes we need to make.
...
BENDER: It was very important.
...
BENDER: Many of the crew guys are in different positions on the car, so they have to learn their job and handle that and they've done a great job of that so far.
...
BENDER: We talk.
...
BENDER: No. It's essential to go down the track and test as much as you can and get the data you need.
...
BENDER: Yes, I would test almost every other day if I could, but I don't think that I could have a crew that way.But, yes, we'll test more than in the past.

Q: You spent three weekends testing the car and just completed your first race as a crew chief.How have things gone so far?

BENDER: The first month went pretty well.
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"I think Donnie (Bender), being a new crew chief, has learned some things to do and not to do.We hope to improve upon what we did at Pomona (Calif.) two weeks ago."

The 38-time NHRA winner entered the 2006 NHRA campaign with a revitalized demeanor as first-year crew chief Don Bender is now calling the turning shots on Dixon's 330-mph Miller Lite dragster.
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Bender played a key role in Dixon earning consecutive NHRA championships in 2002-03, along with watching Top Fuel racing's winningest active driver race to three victories and a second place finish in drag racing's elite division last year.