Sampey is currently qualified for the Countdown, but Brown (Pro Stock Motorcycles) is 22 points out of the coveted eighth spot in the standings.

Sampey and Brown have but four races left to claim a spot in the title chase.

The Countdown to the Championship begins at the 18th race of the season -- the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals over Labor Day weekend in Indianapolis. The Mopar Mile-High Nationals outside of Denver is the first of three straight races that make up the NHRA's annual "Western Swing." After Denver, the tour moves to Seattle and Sonoma, Calif. on successive weekends.

Following a semifinal round appearance in Norwalk, Ohio two weeks ago, Sampey resides in second-place behind leader Matt Smith. "Like Tony and his team, we want to keep improving as the cut off approaches (at Reading, Pa. the end of August)," offered the three-time world champion. "The real goal is to be running our best when the whole thing begins."

Of immediate importance, Sampey would like to grab a win this Sunday at Bandimere Speedway, a place where she started her professional career in 1996.

"It's hard to believe that I've been at this for over 10 years," she said. "It seems like yesterday that I was making my first lap out there."

Like Schumacher, Brown was a first round loser in his last race - at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park in Norwalk. It dropped the New Jersey native to 10th-place in the standings.

"We're all staying positive despite the struggles of late," he said. "We're just a little over a round of racing out of eighth-place, which is really not much of a deficit. As long you get in the Countdown, you give yourself a chance to win the championship. I

can tell you that I want in the show in the worst way." Brown battled with eventual world champion, Andrew Hines, into the last race of 2006 before having to settle for second.

"I want to have the opportunity to battle it out again this year and, hopefully, go one step further."

The Screamin' Eagle/Vance & Hines Motorsports Harley-Davidson V-Rod rider has been in three consecutive NHRA POWERade Pro Stock Motorcycle finals – winning two of them.

The 24-year-old three-time defending NHRA champion was in 13th place after a first round loss at the season opener in Gainesville , Fla. , in March. Six events later, he's vaulted into third place and back into championship contention going into the 28th annual Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals at Bandimere Speedway in Denver , July 13-15.

And he's already won at his former home track – a mental edge the Trinidad High School graduate has never had before. Hines beat Matt Guidera in the final of last year's event at Denver and now that monkey is off his back too.

So with a win from Denver on his resume and a winning streak to his name going into the event, Hines can relax and simply enjoy competing at the track he grew up on.

"The team did amazing things to tune the V-Rod to the win in extreme heat last year," Hines said. "It was worth all the work. When Matt (Hines, brother and crew chief) won at Denver for the first time in 1996 I remembered how great that feeling was. It was even better last year because he helped me by tuning the bike to the win. I had been waiting to win that race for a long time."

Hines is coming off his 10th career win, logged last weekend at the NHRA event in Norwalk , Ohio . It was his 18th career final round. Of his 20 career No. 1 qualifiers, Hines has earned two of them at Bandimere Speedway (2004-'05).

Hines is quick to give the team even more credit for the turnaround that has been made this season. He never expected to have to climb out of 13th place to compete for what could be a NHRA category record fourth consecutive championship.

"We struggled with a few things at the start of the season but the entire team has been determined to get everything figured out," Hines said. "We did a lot of testing and that really made a difference. The testing is what got us into three final rounds so far. The Screamin' Eagle V-Rod has been a lot of fun to ride lately and I think it's just going to get better throughout the rest of the season."

Unlike Hines, Krawiec doesn't have a lot of experience at the high-altitude track in Denver . The former AMA Prostar racer will be making his debut at the track and couldn't be happier about racing in the unknown.

"This entire year is new to me but Denver could be the most unique situation for me because I've never been to a high-altitude track," the New Jersey resident said. "I think when you race in that air, the rider has to do his job better than ever. Every little thing makes a big difference when the air takes away some of the motorcycle's performance.

"I think Denver can be the site of the standout race I've been looking for and I'm pretty excited about getting there. The team has worked so hard at making my transition smooth and I think it's all starting to come together."

Krawiec has one semifinal finish and is currently in 12th place of the Pro Stock Motorcycle standings.

"I think we’re moving full steam ahead," Krawiec said. "I think I got a lot of self-confidence back in Norwalk and I think that is the most important component as the season progresses.

"I'm dealing with new things that are being thrown at me just one at a time. I'm just preparing for everything and trying to learn everyday. Denver should be a great experience."

Hines always looks forward to going back to the track where he started his racing career.

"Bandimere is where I learned how to race," Hines said. "It's my true home track and it's always exciting going back there and seeing old friends and family who still live in the area. I was just there a few weeks ago for a wedding and now I get to go back to race.

"We were based in Trinidad for so long so we have a great baseline for what works well at that track. Having that information to start with always gives the team a little confidence boost going into the event. These Screamin' Eagle V-Rods were originally built in Trinidad and they respond well to the altitude."

“The new NHRA points system has already turned out to be pretty darn exciting,” Johnson said as he made his team’s final preparations for the Mopar Mile-High Nationals this coming weekend in Morrison, Colorado, just outside Denver. “If we’re not among the top eight points earners after the Toyo Tires Nationals in Pennsylvania in mid-August, we’re not going to be eligible for the title.

“Right now being Number 8 is just as important as being Number 1,” he said, “and while we’re in the top 8 right now, we need to solidify our position so that we can really go after the big prize – the POWERade championship.

“The way the new program works is that after the field has been cut down to the top 8 riders just prior to the U.S. Nationals over Labor Day weekend, there’ll be another cut-down to the top 4 after three more races for Pro Stock Motorcycle. Believe me, everyone’s feeling the pressure, ‘cause everyone’s got the same goal right now: Make it into the top 8 in the points.”

Johnson’s crew chief, Mark Peiser, has been successful in the rarified air of the Mile-High Nationals before, and knows what it’s going to take to get Johnson’s Snap-on Tools Suzuki into the winner’s circle for the first time in 2007. “We’ve already installed differenyt transmission ratio pistons for Denver,” he said, “but that’s not the only changes we’ve made to our Suzuki. I could outline those changes, but then Steve would kill me!

“Seriously, we’ve given this coming weekend’s race a lot of thought, and I’m confident the changes we’ve made will result in our being very competitive against the rest of the field.

“The real problem with racing at Bandimere Speedway is that the Harleys and Buels are running 160 cubic inch engines and the Suzuki’s are limited to 101ci. At sea level there’s parity between the two combinations, but at 5,800 feet those V-Twin guys kill us with their bigger engines.

“You’ve also got to balance the changes you make to the motorcycle. Go too far and it’s going to be gasping for air and not making enough power. Don’t go far enough with your changes and the motorcycle just won’t go down the track quick enough to make the field.”

Johnson, who is featured in Bandimere Speedway’s latest track newspaper in a major personality profile story, is looking forward to racing in Denver. “There are four or five races that everyone wants to win. Races like the Gatornationals and the U.S. Nationals are really important, but when it comes to the points they’re no more important than the Mile-High Nationals. What I like about this race is the challenge. You’ve got to make major changes to your combination, so this race is just as much about the decisions the crew chief makes as it is about what the rider does.

“The bottom line is that everyone has to pull together to win, and I think our team is doing that. We may not have the quickest motorcycle this coming weekend, but as long as we don’t shoot ourselves in the foot we’ve got a team that’s capable of winning. I think we’re more than up to the challenge of the high altitude of the Mile-High Nationals.”