This year's competition was the closest and most exciting race in its five-year existence. The Autoshop team did their runs early in the contest and set the standard for what power was needed to qualify for the finals. Their score of 1285.33 points held up as the #1 score until two-time champion John Kaase, who also uses coated components from Calico Coatings, was about to run. When Kaase was done with his pulls, the crowd went wild as Kaase had beaten Autoshop's points with a total of 1286.0 points.

But in the finals, Autoshop was able to improve their score to a 1288 points average beating out Kaase to be named the winner of the 2005 JEG Engine Masters Challenge. "We want to thank Calico for supplying the high quality bearings and friction coatings for this buildup," said Lennart Bergqvist, owner of Autoshop Racing Engines. "We feel that Calico's products gave us an edge over the competition helped us achieve this prestigious win."

"Quality is something we take pride in at Calico," says Tracy Trotter, President of Calico Coatings. "We are constantly improving our coatings to provide a performance advantage for our customers. All of us at Calico are very proud of Autoshop Racing Engines' win this year."

The Engine Masters Challenge is a premier engine builder competition that attracts the best engine builders in the industry. To win, 40 finalists are challenged to build a 509 cubic-inch big-block and race it on a certified DTS dyno. This eliminates performance variables that come into play on race day such as chassis setup and driver ability.

Calico's coatings are known within the industry to provide extreme performance protection under extreme race conditions. Their coatings are also known to make engine parts perform longer and to improve an engine's horsepower. Calico Coatings is the industry-leader in performance coatings. Their CT-1 coated bearings are proven to dramatically reduce catastrophic engine failures. Calico offers several types of coatings including dry-film, ceramic and non-wetting coatings.

Calico Coatings, 6400 Denver Industrial Park Road, Denver, North Carolina 28037, Tech Line: 704-483-2202, www.CalicoCoatings.com.