Anyway, here's the story from the web page. I'm not planning on doing this all the time, but figured I'd do it this once.
This weekend brought out some names from days of old; near and recent. Most notably was the return of Todd Tadiello making his return after what I am told was almost a decade of absense. Russ Seiber jumped back into the Dwarf Car and Chris Sorenson graced us with an appearance in a Hobby Stock. These three along with many other competitors picked a great weekend to come to the Antioch Speedway. The racing was thrilling and with limited yellows coming out, gave us some awesome non-stop action to witness. The competition was fierce as always.
Feature division and most entertaining for the night was the Dirt Modifieds. Nick DeCarlo jumped off to a quick start and set the pace for those behind him. He challenged the three behind him to get creative in their line selection. He definitely made Joe Carr and Scott Busby work for their positions. Once the two veterans got passed DeCarlo they managed to inch away from him and we were witness to glory in driving. It was intense to watch when Kenny Neu and Troy Foulger got into the mix of the top 5. There was a collective feeling of awe once the dust settled and Joe Carr was again in the winner's circle. Scott Busby, the winningest modified driver in California, gave him a good battle but settled for a stellar 2nd place finish. DeCarlo wound up in third, holding off the hard-charging and current points leader Neu.
Every week the Hobby Stocks come in and make the statement that they are a division not to be overlooked. As the season progresses, the racing action is becoming more and more notable. This past weekend was no exception and could arguably contend for the best race of the night against the monster machines of the dirt modifieds. Coming off the recent win, Jack Jonker led the pack. Nipping at his heals and waiting for any mistake to capitalize upon were current points leader Fred Ryland and prior winners Nick DeLuca and Erik Schantin. These four have stepped up their game and were put to the test as the lappers came into the picture. DeLuca was able to get past Jonker for a moment before being passed by Schantin. As they navigated around the 3/8 mile dirt oval it came down to who would be the most consistent. The track held up and has been coming in better and better as the year goes by. The hobbies took advantage of all the room and made many 3 wide passing turns. With a slight bobble from Nick DeLuca, Erik Schantin was the first to cross the checkers to the delight of the roaring crowd gaining his third win of the season. Amazingly Schantin won the race without tearoffs. It turned out in turn one of the starting lap, he went to pull a single tearoff and the whole thing came off leaving him without any for the entire A main event. Typically racers have to overcome mechanical and other obstacles but sight is normally not one of them. It makes the win even more thrilling when you find out about the battle inside the drivers seat.
Coming off a recent injury, we were unsure of the status of Daniel Mendes. The current Super Stock points leader underwent some intense medical tests and took some well received precautions prior to jumping back into the black #3. He brought his clearance and for those who were questioning; you were left without any doubts. He is here and he's not going anywhere. Bring it on you, can hear him say when you look at the drive in his eyes. Mendes started in 8th and made a quick charge to the front. Once he got past Larry Damitz and Michael Newman, it was over. He never waivered and was never challenged for the lead. Mitch Machado made a valiant effort following Mendes' move thru the pack but couldn't match the power he had and scored a second place finish. It is no surprise that Larry Damitz finished in the top three. He is as I call him, always Mr. Consistent.
Ricardo Rivera raced in the Dwarf Cars. He won, enough said. Tony Carmignani is staying within striking distance by maintaining his second place finishes. He pulled up on Rivera late in the race but the laps weren't there to make a definite challenge. Worthy of noting, is the improvement of Jerry Doty. He has been watching and learning from the top guys. It shows in his finishes from the past few months. Doty has nearly always finished in the top 5, this past weekend he gained a third place win. He is one to watch in the next year. It is not uncommon for a dwarf car driver to "move-up" to a dirt modified, but it is hardly ever seen in the reverse. This weekend we had last years dirt modified champion, Rob Norris, jump into a dwarf car. It was a nice change of pace for the modified driver. Unfortunately in every division mechanical woes will happen. Norris pulled off early in the main event, returning as it finished. Hopefully the car problems can get dialed in and we can see some more championship racing in the dwarf car division.
The Freedom Series was moved to Chowchilla for the last installment but that didn't affect our local boys. A big congratulations to Kenny Neu for taking the modified purse and Gene Haney for garnering the Hobby Stock win. The soon-to-be retired Haney was back in the familiar seat of his mini truck this weekend. He pulled out a solid third place finish and stayed in the points lead for this division. The Trophy Dash winner Tommy Brown came in second behind Mini Trux winner Mike Harman Sr. It was the first win for both men.
Prior to the Trophy Dash, we observed a moment of silence for those lost in the tragedies of years ago. It shall remain a reminder of loss and the unity of the nation. Let's all take this time to shake the hand of your neighbor, love yourself and your family. We hope that you come to the races with that same sentiment. This is a dying breed and we encourage you to cheer loudly for that which you love.
A reminder of the changes; the 2009 banquet has been cancelled. The Wingless Sprints have a $1500 to win show added to the Western All Stars Late Model event on October 3rd. Antioch Speedway management has added 2 additional dates of racing, the 17th and 24th of October. Divisions to be announced at a later date. As always, the opinion/statements made are not necessarily that of the speedway management.
Antioch Speedway Results
September 12, 2009
Dirt Modifieds
1. 12 Joe Carr
2. 73 Scott Busby
3. 17 Nick DeCarlo
4. 99 Kenny Neu
5. 49 Troy Foulger
6. 28 Chester Kniss
7. 68 Norman Beck
8. 16 Michael Paul
9. 00 Todd Tadiello
10. 44 Jon Haney
11. 61 Jeff Bettencourt
12. 2a Andy Angelo
13. 2 Mike Learn
14. 6 Dan Gonderman
Super Stocks
1. 3 Danny Mendes
2. 22 Mitch Machado
3. 15 Larry Damitz
4. 83 Michael Newman
5. 2 Mike Gustafson
6. 90 Jeremy Petrell
7. 65 Lori Brown
8. 11 Lloyd Cline
9. 8 Alan Beasy
10. 40 Steve Perry
11. 10x Eric Van Hooser
Hobby Stocks
1. 45 Erik Schantin
2. 99 Jack Jonker
3. 24 Nick DeLuca
4. 7 Fred Ryland
5. 03 Philip Gibber
6. 00 Chris Sorenson
7. 87 Wes Bentley
8. 98 Joe Cancilla
9. 56 Chuck Templeton
10. 11 Joanna Kujala
11. 57 Craig Ebert
12. 28 Anthony Roeder
13. 300 Jake Neu
Dwarf Cars
1. 45 Ricardo Rivera
2. 11 Tony Carmignani
3. 55 Jerry Doty
4. 3 Duane Jordan
5. 30 Joel Osias
6. 12 Butch Liston
7. 3s Chuck Golden
8. 1 Russ Seiber
9. 3n Clayton Dortbach
10. 41 Rob Norris
Mini Trux
1. 51 Mike Harman Sr
2. 99x Tommy Brown
3. 45 Gene Haney
4. 4 Ray Bunn
5. 99 Travis Dutra
6. 73 Ron Mayberry
7. 21 Frank Rosa
8. 37 Garrett Mayberry
9. 66x Joe Cambra
10. 11d Danny Wagner
Trophy Dash - Mini Trux
1. 99x Tommy Brown
2. 99 Travis Dutra
3. 21 Frank Rosa
4. 21d Danny Wagner
