“Three years of hard work on the part of Bryon Hines and Vance & Hines Motorsports produced a historic championship last season,” said Paluso. “That perseverance will continue in 2005, but we expect there will be strong competition again this season.”

Screamin’ Eagle/Vance & Hines rider Andrew Hines, the son of Byron Hines, clinched the 2004 championship by qualifying his Screamin’ Eagle Harley-Davidson V-Rod for the elimination rounds at the 40th Annual Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals on November 13 at Pomona Raceway, the final event on the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series schedule. It was the first title for the three-year-old Screamin’ Eagle/Vance & Hines team, the first by a Harley-Davidson factory-supported NHRA drag-racing effort and the first won by a V-Twin-powered motorcycle.

During the season, 21-year-old Andrew Hines won three Pro Stock Motorcycle events, set a new national Pro Stock Motorcycle ET record of 7.016 seconds, was the number-one qualifier seven times, and became the youngest professional champion in NHRA history. Hines and teammate GT Tonglet qualified for all 15 NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle events, combined to advance to the final round of eliminations five times during the season, set 13 new track ET or top-speed records, and faced each other in the final round of the K&N Filters Pro Bike Klash shoot-out event, which was won by Hines.

The team maintained its consistent performance after the NHRA raised the minimum weight for Pro Stock Motorcycle pushrod V-Twins from 575 pounds to 615 pounds just before the seventh event of the season. In the second half of the season, Andrew Hines advanced to the semi-final round of eliminations at six consecutive events.

“The team started strong right from Gainesville, but it was really its consistency that won the championship,” said Paluso.

Byron Hines expects the 2005 season to be another challenge for the Screamin’ Eagle team. “It won’t be easy to repeat as champions in Pro Stock Motorcycle,” said Hines. “In fact I think it could be one of the toughest seasons ever in that class as we face the usual contenders and some tough new teams who have been winners at other levels of motorcycle drag racing. I expect to see a new ET record break the six-second barrier. Whoever wins the title this season is going to have to earn it.”