Antioch Speedway, Silver Dollar Speedway, Siskiyou Golden Speedway, Coos Bay Speedway, Redwood Acres Raceway, More

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Kaeding, Gallaher Score Second Wins At Ocean Speedway

Watsonville, CA...April 30...Bud Kaeding won the 30 lap Taco Bravo Sprint Car Main Event Friday night at Ocean Speedway. This was the second win of the season for the third generation Sprint Car star, and it came aboard his father Brent's #69 Sprinter.

Kyler Shaw earned a pole position start with his six lap Trophy Dash win ahead of Kurt Nelson and JJ Ringo. Kaeding lined up on the second row outside as Shaw led early ahead of JJ Ringo and Kaeding. A yellow flag waved on the third lap, and Kaeding bolted into second behind Shaw on the restart. A lap later, Ringo surprised both of them by charging into the lead. Kaeding moved back into second on the seventh lap. The final yellow flag waved on the 14th lap. Kaeding grabbed the lead on the restart with Joey Ancona following him into second. JJ Ringo held third, but he surrendered the position to King of the West regular Sean Watts on Lap 18. Kaeding and Ancona ran closely at the front of the pack, but Watts slowly reeled them in. Kaeding repelled the efforts of Ancona for the victory, and Watts overtook Ancona for second on the final circuit. JJ Ringo finished fourth, followed by Nelson, Nick Ringo, Jerry Bonnema, Bryce Eames, Jason Chisum and Shaw.

With a bigger event happening elsewhere, there were 19 Taco Bravo Sprint Cars for this occasion. Kaeding came out 16th in qualifying and turned the Tom Sagmiller prepared quarter-mile clay oval with a fast lap of 11.478, beating the 11.542 of Nelson. The eight lap heat race wins went to Shaw, Watts and Bonnema.

Rob Gallaher won the 20 lap Hobby Stock Main Event. This was the second win of the season for the three-time champion. Rob Gallaher inherited the pole after Jerry Skelton scratched. He charged into the lead at the start ahead of Ryan Muller and defending campion Joe Gallaher. Joe Gallaher slipped past Muller for second on Lap 2. However, Rob Gallaher set a rapid pace. By the 10th lap, Rob Gallaher held a near straightaway advantage over Joe Gallaher. Muller had his hands full in a close battle with previous winner Quintin Harris. Rob Gallaher held a half-lap advantage over Joe Gallaher by the checkered flag. Ryan Muller held off Harris to finish third. Norm Ayers settled for fifth ahead of Brady Muller and Bobby Gallaher. Tony Oliveira joined Skelton as a Main Event scratch, and the eight lap heat race wins went to Rob Gallaher and Joe Gallaher.

Tony Gullo picked up his third Mini Stock Main Event win. This time, the win occurred after apparent winner Jeff Durant was disqualified. Durant, who is a regular with the West Coast Sport Compact Tour, set the early pace ahead of two-time champion Kate Beardsley and Gullo. By the fifth lap, Durant held a straightaway advantage, leaving heat winner Kate Beardsley and Gullo to battle for second. A low pass in Turn 2 on Lap 9 gained Gullo the second position, which proved to be his winning pass after the post race tech decision. Durant had taken the checkered flag a straightaway ahead of Gullo. Gullo ended up with the win ahead of Kate Beardsley, Nicole Beardsley, Travis Van Gilder and Bill Beardsley.

Nate Graham won the 15 lap Police N  Pursuit Main Event. Graham represents the Santa Cruz Police Department. He started on the pole and bolted into the lead immediately ahead of Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office representative AJ Waltrip and Jackie Yeung. Roy Iler passed Yeung for third on the sixth lap. Graham turned in a dominant performance in beating Waltrip by nearly half a lap. Iler settled for third, followed by Yeung, John Hohmann, Pat Sullivan, Tony Weir, Fernando Tellez and Ryan Luke. Graham also won the six lap heat race.

The Taco Bravo Sprint Cars return to action next Friday night along with the Hobby Stocks, Four Bangers and Police N Pursuit cars. Finally, the track will be allowed to sell tickets for spectators. For further information, go to www.racepmg.com.

Scelzi Wins Bill Brownell Memorial At Silver Dollar Speedway

Chico, CA...April 30...Dominic Scelzi won the 25 lap Winged 360 Sprint Car Main Event Friday night at Silver Dollar Speedway. The occasion was the annual Bill Brownell Memorial race, and Scelzi collected $3,000 for his winning effort ahead of a stellar group of racers.

Colby Copeland had the pole position for the race and led a lap before he flipped in Turn 2 for a red flag. Kaleb Montgomery led Blake Carrick and DJ Netto on the restart, but Joel Myers Jr spun in Turn 4 for a Lap 2 yellow flag. Montgomery continued to lead the restart as Netto took second from Blake Carrick. A Lap 7 yellow flag flew for DJ Freitas in Turn 4. Netto bolted past Montgomery for the lead on the restart with another yellow flag flying for Ben Worth in Turn 4 a lap later. Netto led Montgomery and Scelzi on the restart, and Scelzi slipped past Montgomery for second on the 10th lap. In the waning laps, the battle at the front got close, and Scelzi found his opening on the 23rd lap. At that point, Scelzi put the moves on Netto to take the lead that he would bring to the checkered flag. Netto settled for second, followed by Ryan Robinson, Justin Sanders, Justyn Cox, Montgomery, Andy Forsberg, Shane Golobic, Blake Carrick and Mitchell Faccinto.

A stellar field of 52 Sprint Car competitors came to town for the show. The drivers qualified in their various heat race groups, and Copeland toured the quarter-mile clay oval with a lap of 12.172 for the fast time from the sixth heat race group. Shane Golobic was second quick with 12.174 from the fourth heat race group. The eight lap heat race wins went to Montgomery, Scelzi, Ryan Robinson, John Michael Bunch, Keith Day Jr and Copeland.

Mitchell Faccinto won the 12 lap B Main. He started on the pole and led every lap in victory. Second changed hands a couple times during the first three laps before Sean Becker grabbed the spot ahead of Joel Myers Jr. Following a lap seven yellow flag for Steel Powell, Myers took the second spot from Becker on the restart and would take up pursuit of Faccinto. Faccinto prevailed in the end ahead of Myers, Becker, DJ Freitas and Brad Bumgarner. 

Powell won the first of two 12 lap C Mains. He led the first eight laps of the race with Chelsea Blevins an early second. Blevins surrendered second to RC Smith on the seventh lap, but she regained the position a lap later. Blevins briefly took the lead from Powell on the ninth lap, but Powell was back in front a lap later as he won ahead of Blevins, Caden Sarale, Smith and Isaiah Vasquez. Jared Hood won the second 12 lap C Main. Young Dylan Bloomfield led early ahead of Brett Barney, but Bloomfield's race ended for a Lap 6 yellow flag. Barney inherited the lead on the restart ahead of Brian McGahan, but Hood grabbed second on the eighth lap. Hood pressured Barney until making his winning pass on Lap 11. Barney settled for second ahead of McGahan, William Fielding and Greg DeCairies V. Vasquez won the eight lap D Main. Dawson Hammes led five laps before Vasquez made his winning move. Hammes settled for second ahead of Koa Crane.

Ryan Winter won the 20 lap NorCal Dwarf Car Main Event. Delta Dwarf Car star Sean Catucci led a lap before Brandon Shaw grabbed the lead. A Lap 2 yellow flag waved for Brian Quilty and Leonard Osorio in Turn 4. Shaw led the restart ahead of Shawn Jones and Winter, but Jones grabbed the lead on the fifth lap. A Lap 5 yellow flag waved for Catucci, Dennis Gilcrease and Dylan Shrum in Turn 2. At that point, B Main winner Tommy Velasquez III was in sixth, and he moved into third behind Jones and Winter on the restart. Jones saw his race come to an end due to mechanical issues on the ninth lap as Winter led Velasquez and Shaw. On lap 11, Velasquez put the moves on Winter to take the lead, and a yellow flag waved for Shawn Whitney in Turn 2 moments later. Winter went motoring past Velasquez for the lead on the restart with reigning champion Michael "Spanky" Grenert running in third. Despite a late yellow flag, Winter held off the furious challenges of Velasquez to prevail in the end. Grenert settled for third, followed by Shaw, Mike Reeder, Cory Eaton, Brian Quilty, Gilcrease, Ben Wiesz and Gage Meyers.

There were 29 Dwarf Cars in action, and the eight lap heat race wins went to Jones, Winter, Whitney and Catucci. Tommy Velasquez III won the 12 lap B Main. Reeder set the early pace ahead of Velasquez and Gage Meyers. A Lap 5 restart provided Velasquez his opportunity to motor past Reeder to grab the lead. Once in front, Velasquez pulled away to a straightaway advantage in the end. Reeder settled for second ahead of Meyers, and Jamison Sole. 

Reigning champion Matt Micheli won the 15 lap Super Stock Main Event. With a front row start, Jerry Bartlett raced into the early lead and Richard Vander Ploeg and Bill Hall III. A yellow flag waved on Lap 2 for Fritz Zanker. On the restart, Bartlett continued to lead Vander Ploeg as Micheli settled into third. Vander Ploeg took the lead from Bartlett on the fourth lap with Micheli settling into second a lap later. Hall brought out a Lap 5 yellow flag. Vander Ploeg led Micheli and Phil Marino on the restart. Micheli was pressuring Vander Ploeg hard for the lead, but Vander Ploeg's run up front ended as he brought out a Lap 9 yellow flag. Micheli led Marino and Bartlett on the restart, and they would finish in that order. Vander Ploeg settled for fourth ahead of Hall and Zanker. Micheli also won the eight lap heat race, and Gary Newman was a Main Event scratch.

For information on scheduling and other news, go to www.silverdollarspeedway.com.

 

Sanders, Hudson, Pope, Steele Get The Job Done 

At Siskiyou Golden Speedway

Yreka, CA...May 1...Matt Sanders scored the victory in the 25 lap IMCA Sport Modified Main Event Saturday night at Siskiyou Golden Speedway. Sanders becomes the third different winner in as many races, and his effort earned him a $500 payout. It was a special evening at the track as the top drivers from last season were honored in a special award ceremony in the pits prior to the races.

Sanders had a third row starting position in the 19 car field. Polesitter Nick Berryhill set the early pace with Sanders striking quickly to second ahead of Jace Wright. A yellow flag waved on Lap 2. On the restart, Sanders bolted into the lead ahead of seventh starter Jorddon Braaten. Braxton Possinger was riding along in third when the yellow flag waved on Lap 14. At that point, previous winner Ryan Peery had settled into fourth, and Sanders continued to lead Braaten and Possinger on the restart. Even a Lap 15 yellow flag wasn't going to stop Matt Sanders. He kept up the momentum on the next restart and held off the challenges of Braaten for the impressive victory. Peery was able to take the third position from Possinger on the final restart and would finish there. Possinger settled for fourth ahead of past Cottage Grove champion David Schmidt, Isaac Sanders, Wyatt Westfall, Steven Sanders, Ryder Boswell and Chance Gorden. Matt Sanders, Possinger and Chad Wormington won their respective eight lap heat races.

Jeffrey Hudson won the 30 lap Outlaw Pro Stock Main Event. Colby Hammond and Johnny Cobb shared the front row and brought the field to the green flag with Cobb the early leader. James Flowers moved very quickly into second ahead of Jeff Haudenshild, and a Lap 6 yellow flag would bunch the field. Cobb continued to lead James Flowers and Haudenshild on the restart, but Haudenshild and James Flowers managed to get around Cobb on Lap 9 before a yellow flag waved. Haudenshild continued to lead James Flowers and Cobb on the restart as fifth row starter Hudson had settled into fourth. Hudson moved by Cobb for third on Lap 14 and ended up in second with the departure of Flowers on Lap 20. Haudenshild immediately felt serious pressure from Hudson as Cobb ran third in another good battle with reigning champion Scott Flowers. On the 26th lap, Hudson put the moves on Haudenshild to grab the lead. Hudson went on to the satisfying win, followed by Haudenshild, Cobb, Scott Flowers, Dennis Burtenhouse Jr, Matt Harlow, Ginny Flowers, James Flowers, Darek Alford and Pablo Duran.

The Pro Stocks got an opportunity to qualify on the clock, and Hudson set the fast time of 15.674 among 13 competitors, barely beating the 15.770 of Richard Vander Ploeg. James Flowers was the only other driver in the 15 second bracket at 15.918. Hudson won the first eight lap heat race from the pole ahead of Haudenshild. Front row starter Scott Flowers won the other heat ahead of Vander Ploeg.

Anthony Pope won the 25 lap Southern Oregon Dwarf Car Main Event. Pope and fellow Roseburg, Oregon resident Chris Kress settled into first and second at the start. Shane Youngren moved past Fred Hay for third on Lap 4, only to surrender the position to previous winner Cody Peters two laps later. Josh King found himself in fourth when a Lap 7 yellow flag slowed the pace. Pope continued to lead Kress and Cody Peters on the restart. On a Lap 11 restart, King motored past Cody Peters for third, and a yellow flag flew moments later. Pope continued to lead Kress and King on the restart, and King put the moves on Kress for second on Lap 13. A yellow flag slowed the pace again on Lap 22. Pope led King and Kress on the ensuing restart, and they would finish in that order. Cody Peters settled for fourth, followed by Brock Peters, Josh Rodgers, Chad Cardoza, Trevor Davis, Steve Walker and Kaycee Sheeler.

There were 23 Southern Oregon Dwarf Cars for this show with the addition of some Northwest Dwarf Car visitors. Cardoza, Hay and Ryan Smith were the eight lap heat race winners. Cody Peters won the four lap B Dash ahead of Kress, and Cardoza outran Hay to win the A Dash.  St Helens, Oregon long tow Rodgers won the 12 Lap B Main from the pole, followed by Brock Peters, Davis and Jason Robustelli. This marked the first time in a few seasons that the Dwarf Cars had enough cars for a B Main in Yreka.

David Steele won the 15 lap Mini Stock Main Event. This was the second-straight win for the two-time reigning champion. Steele shared the front row with Ashtin Hedges, and the two drivers charged into the first and second positions early on. Steve Goetz ran third as the lead duo pulled away from him. Steele set a smooth and rapid pace, but young Hedges didn't fall too far behind him. Despite that, Hedges couldn't gather up the momentum to attempt a pass and settled for second. Goetz had a good battle going with Mike Whitaker, but the three-time champion would fall out of the race as Goetz finished third, by Michael Knuckles, three-time champion Marylin Yawnick, Connor Franklin and Whitaker. Steele won the eight lap heat race.

Racing returns on May 15th with the IMCA Sport Modifieds and Mini Stocks being joined on the card by the Outlaw Pro Stocks. For further information, go to www.siskiyougoldenspeedway.com.

Montgomery, Comer, Lehman Score Feature Wins 

At Coos Bay Speedway

Coos Bay, Oregon...May 1...Brody Montgomery won the 30 lap NASCAR America's Mattress Super Late Model Main Event Saturday night at Coos Bay Speedway. This was the second win of the season for Montgomery. Montgomery is the two-time reigning champion and is already off to a good start as the early point leader.

Willamette Speedway Super Late Model star BJ Donofrio had the pole next to Wayne Butler, and Donofrio bolted into the early lead over Butler and Bryan Norton. From his third row starting position, Montgomery moved into third on Lap 4 and grabbed second from Butler a lap later. As Montgomery took up pursuit of Donofrio, Butler surrendered the third position to Braden Fugate on Lap 7. The lead battle intensified in the later laps, and Montgomery put the moves on Donofrio to grab first on the 24th lap. Montgomery pulled away from there to a comfortable margin of victory. Donofrio settled for second ahead of Fugate, Norton, Butler, Richard Wallace, Mike Taylor, Hannah Robison and Joey Tanner. James Slover was a Main Event scratch. Tanner and Montgomery won the eight lap heat races.

Ray Comer won the 25 lap Sportsman Late Model Main Event. Chris Allmendinger had the pole and led a lap before Ray Comer took over. Reigning Cottage Grove IMCA Sport Modified champion Doug Coffman settled into the second on Lap 3, and Dustin Comer took third from Allmendinger on the fourth lap. As Ray Comer held a decent lead, the battle was for second. Dustin Comer took the position from Coffman on the 17th lap. However, Coffman stayed with him and made a pass on the final lap to reclaim the position. At the checkered flag, it was Ray Comer winning ahead of Doug Coffman, Dustin Comer, Ryan Emery, Allmendinger, Charles Carson, Tahlan Rogers, Josh Kraliceck and Mike Lavery. Dustin Hitner didn't start. Coffman and Rogers won the eight lap heat races.

Blake Lehman won the 30 lap Street Stock Main Event. Looking for his third-straight win, Seth Christian led the first four laps before his race ended with mechanical issues. Lehman was running in second and gained the lead with the departure of Christian as Cottage Grove point leader Graig Osborne settled into second. Two-time reigning champion Ken Fox was running third and took second from Osborne on the 11th lap. Lehman set a good pace, but Fox wasn't too far behind him when the checkered flag waved. Osborne was a solid third, followed by Wayne Clink, Leroy Rockwell, Dan Briesacher, Christian, Tim Jenner, Amanda Solum and Charlie Withers. The eight lap heat race wins went to Lehman and Christian.

Point leader Scott Beaudoin won his second 20 lap Mini Outlaw Main Event. Mike Beaudoin and Jeff Thurman shared the front row and battled early on before being overtaken by Scott Beaudoin. Jeff Thurman settled for second in his season debut, followed by Mike Beaudoin, Tristen Davidson, Seth Christian and Matthew Emry. Scott Beaudoin also won the eight lap heat race.

Reigning champion Isaac Stere won the 25 lap Hornets Main Event and snapped the two-race winning streak of point leader Seth Christian in the process. The drivers saved the best for last as Bid Van Loon, Christian and Stere swapped the lead multiple times in the final laps. In the end, however, Stere would prevail ahead of Bid Van Loon, Peyton Reigard, Christian, Austin Beaudoin, Taylor Harper, George Wheeler, Alyssa Johnson, Jim Van Loon and William Hitner. There were 18 drivers in action, and Christian, Bid Van loan and Hitner picked up the eight lap heat race wins.

Griff Smith won his third-straight Junior Stingers Main Event. Cameron Metzgus started on the pole and led a lap before Smith went motoring by. Heather Burton was an early third, but she surrendered the position to Alex Butler on the eighth lap. Smith set a rapid pace out front and took the checkered flag a straightaway ahead of Metzgus. Metzgus just managed to hold off Butler for the second spot as Burton, Tallon Dubisar, Madeline Hardy Ashley, DJ Nelson, Max Haga, Tanner Dubisar and Dylan Wheeler completed the Top 10.

There were 19 Junior Stingers for the occasion, and Metzgus, Burton and Smith picked up the heat race wins. The track elected to start just 12 drivers in the Main Event as some of the drivers are just getting started and learning to get up to speed. Hardy Ashley won the 10 lap B Main. Haga led Hardy Ashley for eight laps before she made her winning pass. Haga settled for second ahead of Riley Rockwell and Dylan Wheeler.

Racing resumes next Saturday night with the Interstate Sprint Car Series paying the speedway a visit along with the regular NASCAR racing action of America's Mattress Super Late Models, Sportsman Late Models, Street Stocks, Mini Outlaws and Hornets. For further information, go to www.coosbayspeedway.us.

Sanders Wins David Tarter Memorial At Silver Dollar Speedway

Chico, CA...May 1...Justin Sanders won the 35 lap Winged 360 Sprint Car Main Event Saturday night at Silver Dollar Speedway. The occasion was the annual David Tarter Memorial race, and it was also the inaugural appearance at the speedway for the Elk Grove Ford Sprint Car Challenge Tour, Presented by Abreu Vineyards. They produced a stellar field of 61 competitors for the night.

Sanders shared the front row with Justyn Cox, and Cox set the early pace. A yellow flag waved for Max Mittry in Turn 4 on Lap 4. Sanders bolted into the lead on the restart with Shane Golobic following him into second. Corey Day briefly grabbed third, but he surrendered the position to Cox on Lap 8. A yellow flag flew on Lap 11 for Isaiah Vasquez in Turn 2. Sanders continued to lead the restart with Corey Day taking second from Golobic. A yellow flag waved on Lap 13 for Kyle Offill in Turn 1. Corey Day briefly grabbed the lead from Sanders on the restart, but Mittry brought out his second yellow flag on Lap 16. Corey Day made a pit stop. 17th starter Dom Scelzi had worked his way to third at that point, and he bolted into the lead ahead of Sanders on the restart. Golobic was third on Lap 16, briefly lost the position to Blake Carrick a lap later but he regained third on Lap 17. Scelzi was doing a good job of leading the way when a Lap 31 yellow flag flew for Cox. There was one final slowdown on Lap 33 as Golobic saw his run in third come to an end in Turn 2. Sanders charged around Scelzi to take the lead on the restart and would hold him off for the victory. Kaleb Montgomery finished third, followed by the resurgent Corey Day, Chase Majdic, Blake Carrick, Robbie Price, Sean Becker, Ryan Robinson and Colton Heath.

Qualifying for the 61 competitors took place in their individual heat race groups. From the second group, Ryan Robinson turned the quarter-mile clay oval at 12.575 for the fast time. Golobic came out with the fourth group and had the second quickest lap at 12.586. The six 10 lap heat races transferred the Top 3 finishers. Mittry, Price, Sanders, Golobic, Tanner Carrick and Vasquez picked up the wins in those races. Sanders won the first of two six lap Trophy Dashes ahead of Golobic and Cory Day. Cox won the other Trophy Dash ahead of Keith Day Jr and Price.

Chase Majdic won the 15 lap B Main. Dustin Freitas had the pole and charged into the early lead ahead of Tristan Guardino and Majdic. Majdic moved into second on the second lap. On Lap 7, Majdic went motoring past Freitas to take the lead, and a yellow flag waved on Lap 11 for Drake Stanley. As Majdic continued to lead the restart, Guardino moved back into second ahead of Freitas. However, Freitas got dropped two positions by Andy Forsberg and Colton Heath on the final lap. Majdic picked up the win ahead of Guardino, Forsberg, Heath and Dustin Freitas.

Colby Copeland won the first 10 lap C Main in a flag to flag romp from the pole. Tyler Brown held second until being overtaken by Joel Myers Jr and Brett Barney on the final lap. In the second C Main, Shane Hopkins rode the pole position to a flag to flag victory ahead of Greg DeCairies V and Nick Larsen.

Shawn Jones won the 20 lap NorCal Dwarf Car Main Event. Jones started back in the 16th position and had the lead by the sixth lap. Ben Wiesz started on the pole and led early ahead of Tommy Velasquez III and reigning champion Michael "Spanky" Grenert. Grenert moved into second on the third lap. A Lap 3 yellow flag waved for Austin Quilty and Austin Struthers in Turn 3. Wiesz continued to lead Grenert on the restart. Ryan Winter moved into second on Lap 5 before a yellow flag waved for Bobby Johnson in Turn 1. At that point, Jones had worked his way into third, and he took the lead from Wiesz on the restart. Winter was still running in third until making a Lap 13 pass for second. Grenert briefly gained third from Wiesz on lap 14 before a yellow flag waved for Struthers in Turn 2. Jones continued to lead the restart with Winter in close pursuit as Wiesz regained third. Despite the pressure from Winter, Jones went on to score the impressive victory. Wiesz finished third, followed by Nick Velasquez, Grenert, Mike Reeder, Tommy Velasquez III, Shawn Whitney, Gage Meyers and Brandon Shaw.

The 24 competitors ran four eight lap heat races with the wins going to Nick Velasquez, Winter, Tommy Velasquez III and Grenert.

Racing resumes next this Friday night with the Winged 360 Sprint Cars back in action along with the Hobby Stocks and Street Stocks. A night later, the track hosts the final round of the California IMCA Speedweek Series with IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds and Crate Sprints in action. For further information, go to www.silverdollarspeedway.com.

Ensign, Coelho Win At Antioch Speedway

Antioch, CA...May 1...Geoff Ensign won the 30 lap Wingless Spec Sprint Main Event. This was his second win this year aboard the Ted Finkenbinder owned entry. Ensign started on the pole and jumped into the early lead ahead of Boy Moniz and Marcus Hardina. They ran that way through the first three laps before the second yellow flag waved. Ensign continued to lead the restart as Brent Steck moved around Hardina for second. Another yellow flag slowed the pace on Lap 6. Ensign led the restart with Hardina and Jacob Williams settling into second and third. They ran that way through two yellow flags. Ensign took the checkered flag by a straightaway ahead of Hardina. Unfortunately, Hardina was disqualified, moving Williams into a second place finish, followed by Jacob Tuttle, point leader Ryon Siverling, Boy Moniz, Heath Holdsclaw, James East, Sheldon Moniz, Kevin Box and Tony Bernard. 

There were 23 Spec Sprints in attendance, and Hardina turned the quarter-mile clay oval at 14.315 for the fast time. Boy Moniz was second quick at 14.326, beating the 14.343 of Ensign. Wins in the eight lap heat races went to Hardina, Williams, Ensign and Bob Davis. Turtle used a pole position start to win the 14 lap B Main ahead of Tony Bernard, Holdsclaw and Sheldon Moniz.

Brad Coelho won the 20 lap Hobby Stock Main Event. He has driven Street Stocks and IMCA Modifieds at the speedway in the past, but he was making his first Hobby Stock start. It was 35 years ago when Brad won his first Main Event in a Street Stock. Coelho started up front and wasted little time getting into the lead with DJ Keldsen and Ken Johns taking up pursuit. A Lap 16 yellow flag did nothing to stop Coelho. He resumed command on the restart and brought it home to the impressive win. Keldsen settled for second, followed by Johns, Jeff Bentancourt, Melissa Myers, point leader Larry McKinzie, Lori Brown, Jon Haney, Anthony Vigna and Jared Baugh. 

28 Hobby Stocks came to compete, and the four eight lap heat races transferred the Top 4 finishers into the feature race. Coelho, McKinzie, Jeff Bentancourt and Keldsen won those races. Kenneth Robles started on the pole and went on to win the 14 lap B Main ahead of Angela Brown, Grayson Baca, Vigna and James Graessle.

Jim Freethy won the 20 lap Super Stock Main Event. This was his third win of the season. Freethy started on the second row with previous feature winner Kimo Oreta after he won the eight lap heat race. The duo both made their way past the front row of Chad Hammer and Joey Ridgeway. Freethy held off Oreta for the win with Hammer settling for third ahead of Ridgeway and Jason Robles. Two-time champion Mike Gustafson made his season debut, but he ended up rolling in the heat race.

Jeff Durant became the latest different winner in the 15 lap Mini Stock Main Event. Durant was getting a tune-up before the upcoming visit of the West Coast Sport Compact Series, which he competes in regularly. Durant battled Petaluma champion Tom Brown to get the win as Dan Abitz and Dakota Keldsen completed the finishing order. Laina Bales and Watsonville point leader Tony Gullo were both Main Event scratches, and Durant also won the eight lap heat race.

Following this Wednesday's special California IMCA Speedweek race, which includes IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds and Hobby Stocks, this Saturday will feature the Delta Dwarf Cars, Wingless Spec Sprints, IMCA Stock Cars and a Mother's Day Mini Van race. For further information, go to www.antiochspeedway.com.

Hall, Krupa, White, O'Ferrall, Martin Open 

Redwood Acres Season With Wins

Eureka, CA...May 1...Luke Hall won the 50 lap Late Model Main Event Saturday night at Redwood Acres Raceway. The Late Models were part of a five division show that opened the 2021 season. 

Hall led early ahead of reigning champion Dustin Walters and David Miller. Dustin Walters made a low pass in Turn 3 on Lap 10 to take the lead from Hall as Miller ran closely in the three-car battle up front. By the halfway point, Dustin Walters and Hall pulled away just a little bit from Miller as Ryan Walters was running in fourth. The leaders caught slower traffic, and as Hall managed to get by Dustin Walters for the lead, Walters ended up making contact with the slower car and ended up spinning for a Lap 40 yellow flag. Hall let Ryan Walters and Miller on the restart. David Henderson moved in to battle with Miller for third, briefly taking the position on Lap 45. However, Miller made a low pass in Turn 4 on Lap 47 to reclaim third. Hall pulled away in the closing laps to win by a comfortable margin ahead of Ryan Walters. Miller settled for third ahead of Henderson, Dustin Walters, Scott Baker, Eugene Palmer and Kenny Demello. Hall was the quickest of eight drivers in qualifying with a lap of 16.320, beating the 16.558 of Henderson. The 10 lap heat race win went to Hall.

Brandon White won the 30 lap Legend Cars Main Event. Tyler Krupa raced into the early lead ahead of Brent Mack and Andrew Thornton. Following a yellow flag for Thornton and White in Turn 4 after one lap, Brett Murrell raced into the lead ahead of Krupa and Chris Lawrence on the restart. White settled into third on Lap 6, and Krupa made a Turn 2 pass on Murrell to regain the lead. Lawrence moved into third and claimed second on Lap 9 before a yellow flag waved. White took the lead on the restart with Lawrence second ahead of Murrell. White led through another yellow flag on Lap 24 and brought it home to victory ahead of Lawrence, Murrell, Krupa, Scott Taylor, Mack, Thornton and Austin Cook. White was the quickest of 10 qualifiers with a lap of 17.720, beating the 18.081 of Lawrence. White also won the 10 lap heat race.

Raquel Krupa won the 25 lap Bomber Main Event. She started up front and jumped into the early lead ahead of Raymond Taylor. The lead duo pulled away from the pack as Ed Rasmussen ran third, but a yellow flag bunched the pack on Lap 3. Raquel Krupa continued to lead Taylor and Rasmussen on the restart. Another yellow flag flew on Lap 5. Raquel Krupa led Rasmussen and Tyler Krupa on the restart, but Tyler Krupa took second from Rasmussen on Lap 8 with Jordan Krupa settling into third. A yellow flag waved on Lap 8. Raquel Krupa continued to lead Tyler Krupa on the restart. Raquel Krupa and Tyler Krupa pulled away from the pack in a close battle for the win. Despite the close pressure from Tyler Krupa, Raquel Krupa just managed to beat him to the line for the victory. Jordan Krupa settled for third ahead of Rasmussen, Bridget Steeves and Taylor. Raquel Krupa won the 10 lap heat race

Eric O'Ferrall won the 20 lap Mini Stock Main Event. Colton Kinsey raced into the early lead ahead of CJ Dalton and Sam Brown. Brown made a backstretch pass on Kinsey to grab the lead with O'Ferrall following into second. Brown and O'Ferrall pulled away from the pack in their lead battle. When Brown got out of shape exiting Turn 2 and was sideways down the back straightaway on lap 16, O'Ferrall seized the opportunity to race by for the lead. O'Ferrall pulled away and won by a comfortable margin with Brown settling for second ahead of Dalton, Kinsey and Shannon Palmer. Jared Mayo was the quickest of six qualifiers with a lap of 19.140, beating the 19.222 of O'Ferrall. O'Ferrall won the 10 lap heat race ahead of Mayo, but Mayo suffered mechanical issues and scratched for the night along with Lexi Coleman.

Jeremiah Martin won the 20 lap Roadrunner Main Event. Tim Ratzlaff jumped into the early lead ahead of Martin, but Martin made the move into the lead on the second lap. Reigning champion Bryan Brandt gained second on Lap 3 ahead of Joe Natale, and a Lap 4 yellow flag slowed the pace. Martin led Bryan Brandt and Natale on the restart, but Natale ended up second over Nick Ford on Lap 7 before a yellow flag waved. Martin led Natale and Bryan Brandt on this restart. Brandt gained second on Lap 17, but he had problems a lap later to end his race. At that point Natale was second ahead of Tim Ratzlaff. Martin held a commanding straightaway lead over Natale at the checkered flag. Tim Ratzlaff finished a solid third, followed by JR Brandt, Dylan Ford, Nick Ford, Bob Ratzlaff, Brian Hopkins, Ty Rose and Shawn Wildman. Natale set the fast time of 20.161, beating the 20.216 of JR Brandt. The two 10 lap heat race wins went to Natale and Bryan Brandt.

Racing Returns on May 15th with Legend Cars back in action along with the Bombers, Mini Stock and Roadrunners. For further information, go to www.racintheacres.com.

Thorn Collects Southwest Tour Win At Stockton, 

Doss Wins Pro Late Models

Stockton, CA...May 1...Derek Thorn won the 125 lap Southwest Tour Race Saturday night at Stockton 99 Speedway. This was the 100th career start for Thorn, who is a four-time champion with the series. 

Buddy Shepherd is a rookie with the tour this year but won the Nut Up Pro Late Model Series championship last year at Madera. He raced into the early lead ahead of Jacob Gomes, but Thorn moved into second on the fourth lap. Thorn pursued Shepherd until making the pass on the 15th lap. Shepherd held second until surrendering the position to Blaine Rocha on Lap 30. Shepherd was engaged in a back and forth battle for the next few laps with Jacob Gomes for third. However, Gomes nudged ahead and held the position throughout the first half of the race. Shepherd got around Gomes for third on the 80th lap and held the position for five laps before Gomes again moved by. The third place battle continued to be the one to watch as Thorn and led Rocha at the front of the pack. On the 105th lap, Shepherd again got around Gomes, but this time he made it stick. Thorn beat Rocha by about half a straightaway for his third win of the season. Shepherd brought it home third, followed by Gomes, Jeff Bischofberger, Zach Telford, Ross Strmiska, Dean Thompson, Cale Kanke and Kole Raz. Thorn was the quickest of 16 qualifiers at 13.075, beating the 13.245 of Rocha and the 13.266 of Shepherd.

Jeremy Doss won the 75 lap SRL Pro Late Model Main Event. This was the fourth win of the season for Doss, who currently leads the point standings. With a pole position start, Tanner Reif settled into the early lead ahead of local star Sam Solari and Cole Brown. Brown surrendered third to Doss on the third lap. On Lap 14, Doss moved past Solari for the second position. Solari surrendered third to Tyler Reif on Lap 16. Doss began pressuring Tanner Reif and made the move for first on Lap 28. Solari also got by for second, and Dylan Zampa motored into third on Lap 30. Tanner Reif mounted a comeback and took third from Zampa on Lap 40. On Lap 50, Tanner Reif regained second from Solari. Doss had a comfortable lead and took it to the checkered flag with Tanner Reif pulling away from Solari for a solid second place run. Solari settled for third, followed by Tyler Reif, Dylan Zampa, JoJo Stearns, Brown, Logan Zampa, Parker Malone and Corey Neveau. Tyler Reif was the quickest of 16 qualifiers with a Lap of 14.198, barely beating the 14.208 of Doss and the 14.233 of Solari.

The Southwest Tour Series and the SRL Pro Late Models will be at all American Speedway in Roseville on May 22nd. For further information, go to www.srlsouthwesttour.com. Joining them will be the third SRL sanctioned group, the Spears Modified Series. You can find more information on them at www.speersmodifiedseries.com.

 

 

Diamond Mountain Speedway Season 

Is Just Getting Revved Up 

Susanville, CA...Diamond Mountain Speedway has put four races into the books, and it has been very exciting so far. In his second season as promoter, long time racer Jeff Olschowka is still offering the fans a nice variety of divisions. The core four classes on the roster continue to be the IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds, Hobby Stocks and Mini Stocks. The track has also seen visits from the Battleborn Sprint Cars of Nevada and the Northern Nevada Dwarf Cars.

With a bit of increased prize money on the line for the IMCA Modifieds to kick things off on April 2nd and 3rd, the car count increased to 28 cars. This meant they would need a B Main on both nights. Shawn Natenstedt started on the front row for the opener and held off point leader Riley Simmons to get the victory. Past champion Chris Nieman, Mitch Murphy and Tyson Blood made up the balance of the Top 5 that night. Nevin Kennemore had to win the B Main ahead of reigning champion Ryan McDaniel and Albert Gill just to get into the show. It was Wade Kennemore, Natenstedt, Simmons and Gene Kay winning the heat races.

A night later, Simmons took it up a notch, but he had to work to earn the feature win. He started back in the seventh row and worked his way to the front of the pack before winning ahead of Gill, Chris Nieman, Blood and Jimmy Lipke. Nevin Kennemore again had to win the B Main to get into the show with Simmons and Wade Kennemore following in second and third. Jason Pestka, McDaniel, Gill and Kay were the heat race winners.

A dozen drivers turned out for the third event on April 10th, and McDaniel found the Winner's Circle ahead of Simmons, Chris Nieman, Nevin Kennemore and Wade Kennemore. Mark Skender and Matt Murphy got the heat race wins. The most recent race on April 17th found Simmons turning the tables on McDaniel and holding him off for the victory as Chris Nieman, Zach Fettinger and Nevin Kennemore rounded out the Top 5 in the 17 car field. Simmons, Scott Foreman and McDaniel were the heat race winners. After four races, Simmons leads Chris Nieman by six points, McDaniel by 13 and Nevin Kennemore by 22.

The IMCA Sport Modifieds continue to show progress with an increasing car count, and 19 drivers came to race at the April 2nd opener. Past Marysville champion Phillip Shelby started on the second row and held off Tyler Rodgers to get the win. Past champion Richard Longacre, Colton Chew and Jimmy Ray Huffmon rounded out the Top 5 that night. Longacre, Rodgers and past champion Jason Emmot picked up the heat race wins. A night later, Grass Valley visitor Andrew Peckham started on the front row and held off Longacre for the win. Chew, Shelby and Huffmon made up the balance of the Top 5. Shelby and Chew won the heat races.

They delivered a field of 14 cars for the April 10th race, and reigning champion Craig Nieman won from the pole. Huffmon came from the last row to finish second ahead of Emmot, Shayna Nieman and Joe Pearson. Craig Nieman and Longacre won the heat races. The most recent race saw 14 competitors once again. Chew came from the sixth row to score an impressive victory over polesitter Andy Welch. Marysville visitor Jimmy Ford, Longacre and Pearson rounded out the Top 5. Heat wins went to Dennis Crook, Welch and Emmot. After four races, Chew leads Longacre by five points, Shayna Nieman by 11 and Pearson by 12.

The track pays better than most when it comes to the Hobby Stock division and attracts a good field of racers. For the April 2nd opener, they had 18 cars. Oregon's Jeff Marson started on the front row and won that race with reigning champion Randy Boyd of Nevada coming from the sixth row to finish second ahead of fifth row starter Nick Boucher, Jesse Yankee and Aaron Flournoy. Flournoy, Marson and Boucher won their respective eight lap heat races. The next race saw Nevada racer Royce Goetz charging from the fourth row to take the lead from Randy Boyd and collect the $400 paycheck. Boyd settled for second ahead of Marson, Robert Warf and Yankee. Marson, Royce Goetz and Carl Barlow grabbed the heat race wins.

There were 13 competitors for the April 10th race, and Royce Goetz and Jacob Dias came from the third row for the 1-2 finish. Barlow, Dan Dieter and Douglas Weeks rounded out the Top 5. Flournoy and Rocky Goetz picked up the heat race wins. Management decided to offer $1,000 to the winner on April 17th and attracted a strong field of 18 competitors. Royce Goetz grabbed the big prize by battling front row starter Dias for the win. Rocky Goetz finished third ahead of Flournoy and Barlow. They ran two sets of eight lap heat races, and the wins went to Dieter, Royce Goetz, Dias and Boyd. Deiter and Dias won both of their heat races. Dias leads Dieter by three points in a close championship battle as Boyd is nine points back, and Flournoy is 12 points out of the lead in fourth.

The Mini Stocks produced a 10 car field for their April 2nd opener, and reigning champion Kate Robertson came from the last row to win ahead of Suzie Schmitt, Johnny Moya, Robert Feller and Andy Hast. Robertson and Tony Quinonez won the heat races. A night later, Robertson wrapped up the double win weekend by holding off fifth row starter and multi-time Orland champion Tom Davis for the win. Quinonez, Moya and Feller rounded out the Top 5. Davis and Anthony Esquaville won the heat races.

Robertson continued to roll on April 10th. She bested the 10 car field from her pole position start. Boucher came from the fifth road to finish second ahead of Davis, Feller and Bob Kelly. Robertson and Davis picked up the heat race wins. The most recent race on April 17th saw Schmitt snap the Robertson win streak. Quinonez finished second ahead of Matt Canada, Moya and Joe Marlow. Robertson and Davis picked up the eight lap heat races, but Davis was disqualified in the Main Event. Robertson leads the standings after four races by eight points ahead of Moya. Feller is nine points out of the lead in third and four ahead of Schmitt.

On the big opening weekend of April 2nd and 3rd, there were over 100 cars in the pits. This was assisted by an appearance of the Battleborn Sprint Cars and the Dwarf Cars. The Sprint Car race on the 2nd saw Orry Stevens come from the third row to win ahead of Bruce Ferrier, Nick Purdy, Josh Bolt and Larry Tachovsky. Ferrier and Stevens got the heat race wins.  They gained a car at 10 competitors a night later, and Ferrier started on the front row to claim the victory ahead of Grasen Tenora, Stevens, Purdy and Bolt. Purdy and Tenora picked up the heat race wins.

A half-dozen competitors showed up for the Dwarf Cars on the 2nd, and Joe Frock followed up the heat race win with a Main Event triumph. He started in the third row and won ahead of Chris Cristiano, Glenn Sciarani, Dillon Kintz and Justin Schilling. Frock picked up heat race and Main Event wins a night later. He again came from the third row to win the feature race ahead of Cristiano, Sciarani, Dillon Kintz and Nathan Howard.

Much like last season, the car count continues to be solid at the Susanville track. They return to action with another doubleheader weekend on May 7th and 8th that will feature the IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds, Hobby Stocks and Mini Stocks. For further information, go to www.dmspeedway.com or look for the Diamond Mountain Speedway Facebook page.

Watson, Cox, Kennerly, Smith Win Rumble On The River 

At Douglas County Speedway

Roseburg, Oregon...May 1...Kaleb Watson won the 50 lap PRA Sport Modified Main Event Saturday night at Douglas County Speedway. This was the Rumble on the River season opener for the track. John Harvey raced into the early lead ahead of C Puluer. Brad Watson and Kaleb Watson ran closely in third and fourth. On the sixth lap, Kaleb Watson made a big move around John Harvey and Puluer to grab the lead. Watson very quickly pulled away from the pack, leaving the battle for second. Tom Elam moved into third on Lap 12 and took up pursuit of Puluer. The race ran in rapid fashion, and Kaleb Watson won by a half-lap ahead of Puluer, Elam, Pete Tyree, John Harvey, B Harvey, Brad Watson, Tom Ford and Riley Watson. Puluer won the eight lap heat race ahead of Elam. Elam picked up the four lap Trophy Dash ahead of Brad Watson.

Past champion Harlan Cox won the 35 lap Hardtop Main Event. Cox ran third on the opening lap behind Chuck Jacobs and 2016 champion Greg Hickman. Cox moved into second a lap later and took the lead from Smith on the third lap. Donnie Fain was running third at that point, but he surrendered the position to reigning champion Kyran Greene on the sixth lap. A yellow flag waved moments later. Cox led Smith and Greene on the restart, but Greene gained second on Lap 12. Cox and Greene pulled away from the pack in their battle up front. Smith ran a solid race about a straightaway behind the lead duo in third. Cox managed to hold off the persistent Greene for the well-earned victory. Brian Smith settled for third, followed by Fain, Jacobs, Hickman, Steve Smith and Brian Linehan.  Greene won the 15 lap heat race in front of Fain, and Brian Smith outran Greene to win the four lap Trophy Dash.

Michael Kennerly won the 25 lap Hornets Main Event. The division produced the biggest car count with 22 competitors, and Bruce McMaster jumped into the early lead ahead of Brandon Belt. Ryan Dickenson led Kennerly past McMaster for the first two positions on the ninth lap. Zachary Asumendi settled into third on Lap 14 at the same time Kennerly was moving past Dickenson to take the lead. A Lap 15 yellow flag slowed the pace. Kennerly continued to lead the restart with Asumendi and Burnie Bryant settling into second and third. Kennerly drove a great race and scored the victory with Bryant settling for second, followed by Asumendi, Jack Vicari, Cooper, Thomas, A Lemon, Belt, Dylan Grichar and T Smith Jr. They ran three eight lap heat races with the wins going to McMaster, Dickenson and S Hickman. Ryan Dickenson won the four lap Trophy Dash.

Karl Smith won the 20 lap MIni Stock Main Event. Karl Smith settled into the lead on the third lap ahead of Chuck Jacobs and Kieri Smith. However, Dale Roth moved into third on Lap 4 and took up pursuit of Jacobs. On Lap 9, Roth slipped past Jacobs for second. However, Karl Smith had a huge lead at that point. Karl Smith cruised to victory ahead of Roth, Jay Forsman, Kieri Smith and Jacobs. Karl Smith won the eight lap heat race and completed the clean sweep with the four lap Trophy Dash win.

Racing continues on May 15th with another exciting Pacific Racing Association lineup of Sport Modifieds, Hornets, Mini Stocks and a Mini Figure 8. For further information, go to www.douglascountyspeedway.com.

 

Silver Dollar Speedway Unofficial Race Results April 30
Spring Nationals Bill Brownell Memorial
Winged 360 Sprints
A Main
Dominic Scelzi
D.J. Netto
Ryan Robinson
Justin Sanders
Justyn Cox
Kaleb Montgomery
Andy Forsberg
Shane Golobic
Blake Carrick
Mitchell Faccinto
Sean Becker
John Michael Bunch
Tanner Carrick
Keith Day Jr
D.J. Freitas
Colton Heath
Brad Bumgarner
Jodie Robinson
Max Mittry
Stephen Ingraham
Tyler Thompson
Ben Worth
Joel Myers Jr
Colby Copeland

B Main
Mitchell Faccinto
Joel Myers Jr
Sean Becker
D.J. Freitas
Brad Bumgarner
Ben Worth
Shane Hopkins
Kyle Offill
Dominic Gorden
Chelsea Blevins
Korey Lovell
Bret Barney
Steel Powell
Casey Schmitz
Chase Madjic
Jared Hood

C Main #1
Steel Powell
Chelsea Blevins
Caden Sarale
R.C. Smith
Isaiah Vasquez
Josh Wiesz
Tucker Lacaze
Ron Laplant
Chris Bullock
Kenny Wanderstadt
John Clark
Nick Larsen

C Main #2
Jared Hood
Bret Barney
Brian Mcgahan
William Fielding
Greg DeCaires V
R.J. Baker
Anissa Curtice
Koa Crane
Eddy Lewis
Ashlyn Rodriguez
Drake Standley
Brian Boswell
Dylan Bloomfield

D Main
Isaiah Vasquez
Dawson Hammes
Koa Crane
Jayce Steinberg
Travis Buckley

NorCal Dwarf Cars
A Main
Ryan Winter
Tommy Velasquez III
Mike Grenert
Brandon Shaw
Mike Reeder
Corey Eaton
Brian Quilty
Dennis Gilcrease
Ben Wiesz
Gage Meyers
Dan Geil
Jace Badeker
Nick Velasquez
Shawn Whitney
Kevin Bender
Tyler Quilty
Jamison Sole
Leonard Osorio
Bobby Johnson
Sean Catucci
Dylan Shrum
Shawn Jones
John Williams

B Main
Tommy Velasquez III
Mike Reeder
Gage Meyers
Jamison Sole
Tyler Quilty
Jace Badeker
Leonard Osorio
Tom Moss
Austin Quilty
Hailey Wiesz
Antonio Miramontez
Austin Struthers
Patrick Weger

Street Stocks
Matt Micheli
Phil Marino
Jerry Bartlett
Richard Vander Ploeg
Bill Hall
Fritz Zanker


Ocean Speedway Unofficial Race Results April 30
Ocean Sprints presented by Taco Bravo
Bud Kaeding
Sean Watts
Joey Ancona
J.J. Ringo
Kurt Nelson
Nick Ringo
Jerry Bonnema
Bryce Eames
Jason Chisum
Kyler Shaw
Mark Chaves Jr
Jeremy Chisum
Adam Kaeding
Josh Chisum
Jacob Pacheco
Richard Fajard
Art McCarthy Jr
Koen Shaw
Glenn Bryan DNS

Hobby Stocks
Rob Gallaher
Joe Gallaher
Ryan Muller
Quintin Harris
Norm Ayers
Brady Muller
Bobby Gallaher
Tony Oliveira DNS
Jerry Skelton DNS

Four Bangers
Tony Gullo
Kate Beardsley
Nicole Beardsley
Travis VanGilder
Bill Beardsley
Jeff Durant DQ

Police n Pursuit
Nate Graham     Santa Cruz
A.J. Waltrip     Santa Cruz County Sheriffs Office
Roy Iler     San Benito SO
Jackie Yeung     Capitola Police Department
John Hohmann     Scotts Valley Police Department
Pat Sullivan     Gilroy Police Department
Tony Weir     San Benito County SO
Fernando Tellez     Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office
Ryan Luke     Santa Cruz County


Silver Dollar Speedway Unofficial Race Results May 1
Spring Nationals David Tarter Memorial
SCCT Winged 360 Sprint Cars
A Main
Justin Sanders
Dominic Scelzi
Kaleb Montgomery
Corey Day
Chase Madjic
Blake Carrick
Robbie Price
Sean Becker
Ryan Robinson
Colton Heath
Andy Forsberg
Tanner Carrick
Shane Hopkins
Isaiah Vasquez
Tristan Guardino
Landon Brooks
Shane Golobic
Justyn Cox
Jodie Robinson
Kyle Offill
Tyler Thompson
Dustin Freitas
Max Mittry
Keith Day Jr

B Main
Chase Madjic
Tristan Guardino
Andy Forsberg
Colton Heath
Dustin Freitas
Shane Hopkins
Mitchell Faccinto
Colby Copeland
Michael Faccinto
Joel Myers Jr
Casey Schmitz
Brad Bumgarner
Greg DeCaires V
Justin Henry
Alec Justeson
Drake Standley

C Main #1
Colby Copeland
Joel Myers Jr
Bret Barney
Tyler Brown
Chelsea Blevins
Brian Boswell
Dominic Gorden
Stephen Ingraham
Travis Buckley
John Clark
Kenny Wanderstadt
Billy Wallace

C Main #2
Shane Hopkins
Greg DeCaires V
Nick Larsen
Ron Laplant
William Fielding
Koa Crane
John Michael Bunch
Jayce Steinberg
Josh Wiesz
Steel Powell
R.J. Baker
Dawson Hammes
R.C. Smith

NorCal Dwarf Cars
Shawn Jones
Ryan Winter
Ben Wiesz
Nick Velasquez
Mike Grenert
Mike Reeder
Tommy Velasquez I
Shawn Whitney
Gage Meyers
Brandon Shaw
Brian Quilty
Corey Eaton
Austin Struthers
Bobby Johnson
Jamison Sole
Austin Quilty
Tyler Quilty
Zachary Armstrong
Hailey Wiesz
Cody Shrum
Dennis Gilcrease
Patrick Weger
Sean Catucci DQ


Antioch Speedway Unofficial Race Results May 1
Hobby Stocks
A Main
Brad Coelho
DJ Keldsen
Ken Johns
Jeff Bentancourt
Melissa Myers
Larry McKinzie Jr
Lori Brown
Jon Haney
Vigna Anthony
Jared Baugh
Tom Leopold
Angela Brown
Grayson Baca
Gene Haney
Michaela Taylor
Kenneth Robles
Adam Kujala
James Thomson
George Silva
Phillip Oreta

B Main
Kenneth Robles
Angela Brown
Grayson Baca
Vigna Anthony
James Graessle
Misty Welborn
Jess Paladino
Emilie Bryant
Judy Arth
Erik Pitschner
Albert Ballinger
Jewell Crandall

Wingless Sprint
A Main
Geoff Ensign 
Jacob Williams
Jacob Tuttle
Ryon Siverling
Boy Moniz
Heath Holdsclaw
James East
Sheldon Moniz
Kevin Box
Tony Bernard
Cameron Martin
Bob Davis
Eathon Lanfri
Jeff Scotto
Trevor Schmid
Richard Panfili
Bob Newberry

Marcus Hardina DQ
Brent Steck DQ
Nathan Schank DQ

B Main
Jacob Tuttle
Tony Bernard
Heath Holdsclaw
Sheldon Moniz
Dylan Newberry
Steve Maionchi
Scott Chapeta

Super Stock
Jim Freethy
Kimo Oreta
Chad Hammer
Joey Ridgway
Jason Robles
Mike Gustafson DNS

Mini Stocks
Jeff Durant
Tom Brown
Don Abitz
Dakota Keldsen
Laina Bales DNS
Tony Gullo DNS

Siskiyou Golden Speedway Unofficial Race Results May 1

IMCA Sport Modifieds
Matt Sanders
Jorddon Braaten
Ryan Peery
Braxton Possinger
David Schmidt
Isaac Sanders
Wyatt Westfall
Steven Sanders
Ryder Boswell
Chance Gordan
Colt Boswell
Gary Foster
Jack Waldon III
Nick Berryhill
Chad Wormington
Mike Medel
Jace Wright
Travis Pruitt
Branden Wilson

SODCA Dwarf Cars
Anthony Pope
Josh King
Chris Kress
Cody Peters
Brock Peters
Josh Rodgers
Chad Cardoza
Trevor Davis
Steve Walker
Kaycee Sheeler
Shane Youngren
Gary Wegener
Jason Robustelli
Andrew Hall
Reggie Ayres
Dan Penland
Andy Quilco
Ryan Smith
Fred Hay
Erin Morgenstern

B Main
Josh Rodgers
Brock Peters
Trevor Davis
Jason Robustelli
Gary Wegener
Dan Penland
Andy Quilco
Greg Meilicke
Andrew Hall
Jim Ritchie
Paul Haselow

Mini Stocks
David Steele
Ashtin Hedges
Steve Goetz
Michael Knuckles
Marilyn Yawnick
Connor Franklin
Mike Whitaker

Outlaw Pro Stock
Jeffrey Hudson
Jeff Haudenshild
Johnny Cobb
Scott Flowers
Dennis Burtenhouse JR
Matt Harlow
Ginny Flowers
James Flowers
Darek Alford
Pablo Duran
Colby Hammond
Richard Vander Ploeg
Michael McLeod


Coos Bay Speedway Unofficial Race Results May 1
America's Mattress Super Late Models
Brody Montgomery
BJ Donofrio
Braden Fugate
Bryan Norton
Wayne Butler
Richard Wallace
Mike Taylor
Hannah Robinson
Joey Tanner
James Slover DNS

Sportsman Late Models
Ray Comer
Doug Coffman
Dustin Comer
Ryan Emry
Chris Allmendinger
Charles Carson
Tahlan Rogers
Josh Kralicek
Mike Lavery

Street Stocks
Blake Lehman
Ken Fox
Graig Osborne
Wayne Clink
Leroy Rockwell
Dan Briesacher
Seth Christian
Tim Jenner
AMANDA SOLUM
Charlie Withers DNS

Mini Outlaws
Scott Beaudoin
Jeff Thurman
mike beaudoin
Seth Christian DNS
Matthew Emry DNS

Hornets
Isaac Stere
Bid VanLoon
Payton Reigard
Seth Christian
Austin Beaudoin
Taylor Harper
George Wheeler
Alyssa Johnson
Jim Van Loon
William Hitner
Ben Bahadar

JR Stingers
A Main
Griff Smith
Cameron Metzgus
Alex Butler
Heather Burton
Tallon Dubisar
Madilynn Hardy-Ashley
DJ Nelson
Max Haga
Tanner dubisar
Dylan Wheeler
Tucker dubisar
Jordan Wheeler

B Main
Madilynn Hardy-Ashley
Max Haga
riley rockwell
Dylan Wheeler
Anthony Hoggatt
Hailee Tilton
Drake Vincent


Douglas County Speedway Unofficial Race Results May 1
SPORT MODIFIEDS
Results are not official
1     #29 K WATSON
2     #47 C PULUER
3     #8 T ELAM
4     #33 P TYREE
5     #17 J HARVEY
6     #66 B HARVEY
7     #1 B WATSON
8     #23 T FORD
9     #11 R WATSON
 

MINI STOCKS
Results are not official
1     #21 KARL SMITH 
2     #55 D ROTH
3     #04 J FORSMAN
4     #6 K SMITH
5     #12 C JACOBS

HARDTOPS
Results are not official
1     #55 H COX
2     #88 K GREENE
3     #32 B SMITH
4     #81 D FAIN
5     #07 C JACOBS
6     #58 G HICKMAN
7     #18 S SMITH
8     #22 B LENIHAN

HORNETS
Results are not official
1     #25 M KENNERLY
2     #37 B BRYANT
3     #44 ZACH A
4     #9V J VICARI
5     #18K K COOPER
6     #9 THOMAS
7     #67 A LEMON
8     #15 B BELT
9     #23 DYLAN G
10     #35JR T SMITH
11     #63 B PULSE
12     #52 J PYNCH
13     #17 S HICKMAN
14     #84 H SMITH
15     #69
16     #32 B MCMASTER
17     #21 J SIMMS
18     #45 R DICKENSON
19     #3 R JOHNSON
20     #28 V WEST
21     #22 GARLAND V
22     #12 E WILLIAM


Redwood Acres Raceway Unofficial Race Results May 1
Late Model
Results are not official
1     #36 Luke Hall
2     #12w Ryan Walters
3     #22m David Miller
4     #2 David Henderson
5     #10f Dustin Walters
6     #5 Scott Baker
7     #18 Eugene Palmer
8     #8 Kenny Demello    
Results are not official

Bomber
Results are not official
1     #24 Raquel Krupa
2     #44 Tyler Krupa
3     #00 Jordan Krupa
4     #50 Ed Rasmussen
5     #50r Bridget Steeves
6     #4 Raymond Taylor

Mini Stock
Results are not official
1     #16o Eric O'Ferrall
2     #11 Sam Brown
3     #85 CJ Dalton
4     #33 Colton Kinsey
5     #18 Shannon Palmer

Legends
Results are not official
1     #19 Brandon White
2     #49 Chris Lawrence
3     #11 Brett Murrell
4     #21 Tyler Krupa
5     #8 Scott Taylor
6     #22 Brent Mack
7     #3 Andrew Thronton
8     #14 Austin Cook
Results are not official

Road Runner
Results are not official
1     #29 Jeremiah Martin
2     #33 Joe Natale
3     #16 Tim Ratzlaff
4     #79 JR Brandt
5     #20 Dylan Ford
6     #31 Nick Ford
7     #61 Bob Ratzlaff
8     #3 Brian Hopkins
9     #55 Ty Rose
10     #17 Shawn Wildman
11     #81 Bryan Brandt
12     #7 Levi Cope
13     #2 Wayne Marsh
14     #48 Steve Kimberling


Stockton Speedway Unofficial Race Results May 1
SPEARS SRL Southwest Tour Series
Derek Thorn
Blaine Rocha
Buddy Shepherd
Jacob Gomes
Jeff Bischofberger
Zach Telford
Ross Strmiska
Dean Thompson
Cale Kanke
Kole Raz
Brandon Farrington
Tracy Bolin
Scott Sanchez
Tim Spurgeon
Carlos Vieira
Andy Allen

SRL SPEARS Pro Late Models
Jeremy Doss
Tanner Reif
Sammy Solari
Tyler Reif
Dylan Zampa
JoJo Stearns
Cole Brown
Logan Zampa
Parker Malone
Corey Neveau
Jake Bollman
Henk Gaalswky Jr
Mike Lovell
Dominic Lopez
Andy Allen
Mike Weimann


Santa Maria Raceway Unofficial Race Results May 1
Pro Stocks
1. Tim Randolph
2. Paul Miller
3. Frank Nyback
4. Rob Gilbertson
5. Dave King
6. Justin Crockett

Hobby Stocks
1. Johnny Wood
2. Kyle Wood
3. Eddie Williams
4. Aaron Bruce
5. Chad Weber
6. Joel Chavez
7. Jimmy Teixeira
8. Jose Chavez
9. Sean Martin, Sr.
10. Jimmy Satlawa
11. Pat Fausel

Dwarf Cars
1. Gage Cheek
2. Brandon Wiley
3. Tim Conley
4. Kobe Kerns
5. Joe Barket
6. Joey Bohart
7. Brian Barnhill
8. Jeff Brink
9. Brian Bond
10. Scotty Preast

Mini Stocks
1. Levi Burgett
2. Skyler Chavez
3. Ally Thornton
4. Megan Burgett
5. Bill Barnhill
6. Kris Gilbertson
7. Darren Lesssi
8. James Herrera
9. David Kavanagh
10. Elexa Herrera
11. Jarod Pack
12. Cassidy Hill
13. Clem Lessi
DQ - Bobby Meneley


All American Speedway Unofficial Race Results May 1
Berco Redwood Late Model
John Moore
Thomas Martin
Matthew Wendt
Michael Mitchell
Lance Halm
Aidan Daniels
Calvin Hegje
Kenna Mitchell
Rich Innis
JJ Ferguson
Cole Moore DQ

Jaws Gear & Axle Modified
Eric Price Jr
Jason Philpot
Tyler Mullican
Ralph Bailey
Luke Caper
Cody Bailey
Don Shalla
Jon Yourd
Timm Williams
Rick Andersen
Josh Blackwood

Riebes Auto Parts Super Stock
Main Event 1
Josh Whitfiled
Roy Smith
Phil Wilkins
Andrew Peeler
Tim Walters
Jeremy Fritts
Garry Eisenhour
Andrew Kemp
Brandon Diede
James Shelton
Blake Disomma
Larry Thornhill
Chris Paulson

Main Event 2
Josh Whitfiled
Andrew Peeler
Roy Smith
Phil Wilkins
Jeremy Fritts
Tim Walters
Blake Disomma
Chris Paulson
Brandon Diede
Garry Eisenhour
James Shelton
Larry Thornhill
Andrew Kemp

F4
Ray Molina
Dennis Crook
Matthew Cockrum
Nathan Cleaver
Brandon Frantz
Vic Theberge
Dan Cherry
Stephen Crook
Matthew Fuhs
Brian Spencer
Stephanie Ziebell
Billy Clark

Mini Cup/Bancolero
Colten Nelson
Anthony Bean
Bella Thomsen

Riebes Auto Parts Trailer Bash
Loren Chitwood
Alan Bridgeman
Scott Woessner
Chewy Campos
Richard Lavalle
Pete Telles


Hermiston Raceway Unofficial Race Results May 1
Speed Tour Modifieds
Wyatt King
Dylan Caldwell
Shelby Stroebel
Donovan Barr
Caitlin Kerbs
Colton Nelson
Andrew Richardson
Rosalee Weller
Bart Hector Jr
Dalton Cristiani
Bart Hector Sr

Tri State Hobby Stocks
Dillon Huffines
Frank Varner
Seth Frazier
BJ Tidrick
Jerry Miller
Brent Harris
Casey Cavander
Billy Scribner
Garrett Huffines
Brad Tidrick
Bobby Stewart Jr
JJ Moore
Randy Pugh
Jesse Vincent
Bryan Butterfield
Jacob Dudney
Travis McKinney
Garrett Williams
Mike Denton
Chris Marang
Joshua Henne
Chad Story
Jake Klingenberg
Andy Brown
John Samuels

NW Mini Stock Tour
Brad Rhodes
Scott Murphy
Travis Allen
Josh Johnston
Rick Ackerman
Fred Vigil
Justin Carson
KC Garber
Kedric Preston
Craig Pfander
Drew Crenshaw
Cameron Jeske
Issiah Gill
Kolby Brown
Travis Barnes
Ron Wilbur
Angel Oseguera

Street Stock
Brandon Little
Jeff Hector
Luke Klingenberg
Terry Lydell
Bill Rutherford
Jesse Salazar
Justin Gage
Dawson
Chuck McDonald

Tri State Legends
Brock Denney
Trace Thompson
Bill Kik
Dave Garber
Austin Snodgrass
Larry Badoux
Jayson Payne
Garrett Poynor
Donnie Gist
Randy Copeland
Blake Gettmann
Steve Berven
Joel SHRADER

Hornet
Craig Jenson
Thomas Stevens
Jessica Hoffman
Drew Decker
JUSTICE ZUMUDIO
Joe Dunn
Jerad Larson
Kamery Walton
Jeffrey Hollan
Sean Zieske
Alejandro Mendoza
TRISTIAN TRULIO


Barona Speedway Unofficial Race Results May 1
Wingless 360 Sprints
Trent Wyilliams
A.J. Bender
Eric Evans
Chris Tramel
Shane Sexton
Verne Sweeney
Tyler Hatzikian
Dan Taylor
Tony Everhart
Nick Dianio
Randy Nelson
Gaylin Gates

IMCA Modified
Keith Altig
Dustin Stanley
Andy Papp
Michael Thing
Steven Daffern
P.J. Dyke
Cole Dick
Joseph Altig
Rod Robison
Daniel Pannel
Tim LaBrake
Eric Evans
Karl Von Yokes
Kyle Morris

IMCA Sport Modifieds
Brian Brown
Ryan Amidon
Jeremey Willey
Greg Mann
Jake Triska
Steven Luecht
Bill Hackett
David Kilpela

Street Stocks
Chris Laff
Mike Pridgeon
Joey Teague
David Kilpela
Rick Eicksteadt
Jason Aldridge
Sunny Trent
Kyle Bethel
Nick Braddy
Dan Burakowski
Steve Porter
Paul Dyke
dale erwin
Scott Duffy
Denis Taylor
Tohmas Daffern

Lightning Sprints
David Bezio
Grant Sexton
Dalton Sexton
Parker Dumas
Jason Arnolde
Ryan Dumas
Jim Squire III
Brent Horn
Rudy Padilla
Wyatt Boczanowski
Braden Chiaramonte
Jon Squire
Matt Sotomayor
DJ Dumas
Peter Benker
Holden Heytritter

Dwarf Car
John Isabella
Robert Peters
Greg Goodwin
Mikey Hall
Damon Sheets
John Bridger
Mike Tobiason
pete Scully
Bryan Occoner
CJ Marin

Pure Stock
Chris Wilder
David Hunt
Chris Evans
Jason Aldridge
Jason Saunders
Tiffany Crow
Greg Perry
Jessica Schaffer
Rick Chavez
Rusty Staley
Rick Schnereger
Michael Rumbaugh
Tohmas Soper
Mike Wolfe
Dave Evangeloa
Nicole carleton
Mike Saunders
Tristan Peters

Pony Stock
Alan Milczewski
Lucas Vanderstaay
Daniel Rossi
wraymond Schott
Jlynne Gil
Devin Clerici
jayden medina
Robert Minnick
Denis Taylor

Where: Antioch Speedway www.antiochspeedway.com

When: Saturday, May 8th

Who: Wingless Spec Sprints, Delta Dwarf Cars, IMCA Stock Cars, Mother's Day Van Race

(Note that the California IMCA Speedweek is coming to Antioch on May 5th with IMCA Modifieds and IMCA Sport Modifieds, which is something we cover extensively in another post)

What: The wingless Spec Sprints delivered the goods last week with 23 competitors. Past Hunt Series champion Shawn Jones and past Petaluma and Watsonville Winged Sprint Car champion Geoff Ensign each have a pair of victories so far. The consistent Ryon Siverling is the only driver with four Top 5 finishes, while Boy Moniz has three of them. The Delta Dwarf Cars have been a part of five shows this year, and two-time champion Danny Wagner has a pair of victories. Jones, Tommy Velasquez III and Kevin Miraglio each have a win, and Miraglio has five Top 5 finishes. Wagner and Sean Catucci are the next drivers on that list with three Top 5s each. The IMCA Stock Cars have had three races, two for track points. Cody Johnson, Brock Hamilton and Garrett Corn are the winners.

Why: Promoter Chad Chadwick is trying a novelty show this weekend to go along with the racing action. There will be a Mother's Day van race. This race will be open to mothers who don't have any racing experience, and it hearkens back to the days of the old Powder Puff races that were an occasional part of the program every year from the 1960s through the 1980s. Past Petaluma champion Siverling leads the Spec Sprints by 36 points over Boy Moniz and 42 over the tied two-time champion Bob Newberry and Tony Bernard. 2016 Dwarf Car champion Kevin Miraglio holds a 26 point lead over Dennis Gilcrease in the Dwarf Cars with Sean Catucci 34 points back and four ahead of Devan Kammermann. Corn, Kellen Chadwick and Travis Dutra are tied atop the IMCA Stock Car point list, five ahead of two-time Spec Sprint champion Dan Gonderman and six over Austin Van Hoff.


Where: Ocean Speedway www.racepmg.com

When: Friday, May 7th

Who: Taco Bravo Sprint Cars, Hobby Stocks, Four Bangers, Police N Pursuit

What: The same four divisions that competed last Friday are back In action again this week, but there's exciting news to report. For the first time all season, the track is able to sell tickets for fan admission into the grandstands. The Sprint Cars have clearly been a highlight this year. With five races in the books, Justin Sanders has three wins and Bud Kaeding has claimed a pair of victories. Sanders tops the Top 5 list with four, while Kaeding, Tanner Carrick and Shane Golobic each have three. In Hobby Stock competition, the Gallaher family has staked their claim on the Winner's Circle with two wins each for three-time champion Rob Gallaher and two for his reigning champion father Joe Gallaher. Quentin Harris got his first win recently, and multi-time champion Terry Campion is also a winner this year. Tony Gullo is becoming a familiar face in the Winner's Circle in Four Bangers with three wins in five races. Two-time champion Kate Beardsley and Richard Mitchell each have a win. Travis Van Gilder and Nicole Beardsley both have four Top 5 finishes, which matches Kate Beardsley's totals and is one less than Gullo. Police N Pursuit wins have gone to Santa Cruz Police Officer Nate Graham and San Benito Sheriff's officer Roy Iler in the two races that have been held so far.

Why: The Sprint Car battle finds Sanders leading Kaeding by just 15 points. Tanner Carrick is 42 points back in third, 14 ahead of Golobic. After his win last week, Rob Gallaher took a three point lead over Joe Gallaher in the Hobby Stocks, while Jerry Skelton is 25 points out of the lead after having to scratch from last week's Main Event. Norm Ayers is just a point behind Skelton, while Harris is two points back. Gullo leads the Four Banger point race by 11 points over Mitchell and 12 over Kate Beardsley. Meanwhile, Iler leads the Police N Pursuit race by eight markers over Capitola Police Officer Jackie Yeung and 10 over Scotts Valley Police Officer John Hohmann.


Where: Ukiah Speedway www.lakeportspeedway.com  

When: Saturday, May 8th

Who: Limited Modifieds, Bombers, Jammers, Legend Cars, Pro 4 Modifieds.

What: The season is finally opening at Lakeport Speedway as they begin the new era of the Lakeport-Ukiah Challenge. A slight adjustment was made for this show, which was originally to feature the Open Modifieds. They elected to cancel that show due to the big show happening in Madera. However, The Limited Modifieds should provide plenty of excitement. The Bombers usually rival them in great racing action, and the Jammers put the Juniors against the Pros in the spirit of good competition. Add the 4 Cylinder Modifieds and Legend Cars and you have what should be an exciting show. The last time we saw the Legend Cars, it was October last year with a 12 car field being bested by Kevin Travels ahead of Scott Sabol and Dylan Washburn. The Pro 4  Modifieds delivered a half-dozen cars with Johnny Barker getting the win over Wade Eldredge.

Why: Last season, Ukiah had eight Limited Modified races, and Jason Philpot picked up six of those wins. Recent Lakeport winner Sierra Furia and Mike Lovell were the other winners. Philpott ended up winning the Ukiah championship by 132 points over Tyler Caturegli. Sammy Nuno was a solid third. Recent Lakeport winner Charley Tour had three wins last year. Brenton Smith picked up a pair of victories with Jeremy Doss, Charlie Collins and Loren Powers Jr each getting a win. Tour won the championship last year by 90 points over Powers with Brenton Smith finishing third. The track is trying to cultivate a Street Stock/B Bomber division, and Daniel Land won that championship last year. They run with the regular Bomber class unless they get enough cars. When it comes to the Jammers, the Juniors were winning as much as the Pros last year in the combined races, and Christian Sanchez was particularly very fast. However, TJ Sorrels won last year's Junior title by 23 points ahead of Sanchez as Hailey Glass was third. John Parker won the Pro class by a wide margin. The track is hoping to attract some Legend Cars this year, and the Pro 4 Modified touring group generally brings a half-dozen or so cars.


Where: Coos Bay Speedway www.coosbayspeedway.us

When: Saturday, May 8th

Who: NASCAR America's Mattress Super Late Models, Sportsman Late Models, Street Stocks, Mini Outlaws, Hornets, Interstate Sprint Cars

What: Coos Bay Speedway sort of ended an era when they dropped their regular Winged Sprint Car class. They will still host the Interstate Sprint Car Series three times this year. Saturday will be the first visit. They didn't officially have an Interstate Series championship last year due to the virus shutdown, but Coos Bay hosted them twice. The August race last year was won by Colby Thornhill ahead of Kinzer Cox and Shane Forte, while the late September visit went to Garen Linder ahead of RJ McGahuey and Austin Sause. Last week's NASCAR action produced a strong turnout of competitors, and it was Brody Montgomery holding off BJ Donofrio for another Super Late Model victory. A Cottage Grove Sport Modified invasion last week yielded a podium sweep for the visitors, led by Ray Comer. Seth Christian was evicted from the Winner's Circle in both the Street Stocks and Hornets by Blake Lehman and reigning champion Isaac Stere, respectively.

Why: The Super Late Model battle is being led by Montgomery ahead of his past Sportsman Lake Model rival Wayne Butler by just 10 points. Last year's top rookie, Braden Fugate, is only two points behind Butler. Ryan Emry is leading Tahlan Rogers by 16 points in the Sportsman Late Model race. Despite his bad luck last week, Christian leads the Street Stock battle by 28 points ahead of the steady Charlie Withers. Scott Beaudoin is 14 points ahead of Matthew Emry and 16 over Mike Beaudoin in the Mini Outlaws, and Stere moved into a two point lead over Christian in the Hornets with Bid Van Loon 20 points back.


Where: Placerville Speedway www.placervillespeedway.com

When: Saturday, May 8th

Who: Thompson's Auto Group Winged 360 Sprint Cars, Pure Stocks, Mini Trucks, BCRA Lightning Sprints

(Note that the California IMCA Speedweek is coming to Placerville on May 7th with IMCA Modifieds and IMCA Sport Modifieds, which is something we cover extensively in another post)

What: The Thompson's Auto Group Winged 360 Sprint Cars are bringing strong turnouts so far, but the results continue to be the same. Justin Sanders has won all three point events so far. In fact, Shane Golobic and Tanner Carrick are the only other drivers with two Top 5 finishes while Sanders has three. The Pure Stocks have been a wide open affair after four races. Reigning champion Nick Baldwin has picked up a pair of victories, but the Jinkerson family has been tough. Both Dan Jinkerson and Kevin Jinkerson have a win, and Kevin, along with Jason Palmer and Baldwin, are the only drivers with four Top 5 finishes. Everybody is gunning for Wyatt Lakin in the Mini Trucks. Wyatt has won all three races. With three Top 5 finishes each, Mike Miller and Thomas Jenson appear the most likely to evict Lakin from the Winner's Circle. James Turnbull won the Wayne Albright Memorial recently at Merced for the BCRA Lightning Sprints. The two Placerville wins so far have gone to Eric Greco Jr and Craig Holsted.

Why: Sanders is leading the Winged 360 Sprint Car points, which is no big surprise. Tanner Carrick is 19 points back, while Chase Majdic is 40 points out in third. Meanwhile, Baldwin has a seven point lead over Kevin Jinkerson in the Pure Stock race. Palmer is 23 points out in third. Lakin's lead over Mike Miller is 25 points in the Mini Trucks, while Jenson is 33 points back and two ahead of Howard Miller. The BCRA Lightning Sprint battle is being led the consistent Dakota Albright by 47 points ahead of Hunter Kinney. Great Dennett is just one point behind Kinney, while Terry Bergstrom trails Kinney by five markers.


Where: Silver Dollar Speedway www.silverdollarspeedway.com

When: Friday, May 7th

Who: Winged 360 Sprint Cars, Street Stocks, Pure Stocks

(Note that the California IMCA Speedweek is coming to Silver Dollar Speedway on May 8th with IMCA Modifieds and IMCA Sport Modifieds, which is something we cover extensively in another post)

What: In most cases, the divisions at the regular Silver Dollar Speedway shows will run at least five races, but we haven't heard whether or not the track will be crowning champions for this mini series. We do know that the IMCA Sport Modifieds will have a champion through the sanctioning body as long as they successfully have four races. Last weekend was a Sprint Car bonanza with 52 cars showing up for the Friday show and 61 competitors on hand for the Sprint Car Challenge Tour race, which was won by Justin Sanders ahead of Dominic Scelzi and Kaleb Montgomery. The Bill Brownell Memorial on Friday went to Scelzi ahead of DJ Netto and Ryan Robinson. The track had the annual Silver Cup race for the Sprint Cars back in March. Wins in that event went to Sanders on both nights.

Why: Sprint Car racing at Chico was doing pretty well before the pandemic shutdown. They were generally getting a car count in the 25 to 30 range, so it will be interesting to see what happens this Friday night. It should be a good show just for the Sprint Cars alone. The Street Stocks produced a half-dozen cars last weekend with reigning champion Matt Micheli getting the win over two-time champion Phil Marino and past Orland and Marysville champion Jerry Bartlett. The Hobby Stocks in recent seasons have been dominated by Kyle Allen. Allen won the 2019 championship by 39 points over James West and 50 over Shannon Collins. Allen had eight wins in the nine races with Marysville star Zach Lindgren getting the other victory. West and Collins had six Top 5 finishes that year. It will be interesting to see who shows up on Friday.


Where: Dixon Speedway www.dixsonspeedway.net

When: Saturday, May 8th

Who: Super 600s, Wingless 600s, Restricted 600s, Junior Sprints

What: The Wingless 600 Micros have been putting on nice show this year with fields usually in the 30s. Last time out, Dan Mognaga got the win ahead of Brandon Carey and Austin Torgerson. Cody Gray won the previous race over reigning champion Kelvin Lewis and Brandon Carey. It was Cameron Paul winning the non-point race back in March. In Super 600 action, Izaak Sharp got the win over reigning champion Brad Hannum and Ashton Torgerson last time out. The point opener went to Hannum ahead of Devon Courtnier and Lee Brewer. The non-point race in March was won by Sharp. The Restricted 600 class has seen an influx of Junior Sprint graduates. Last time out, it was Lucas Johnson getting the win ahead of Ryder Byrd and Jackson Kohler. Isabel Barnes won the point season opener ahead of Austin Wood and Teagan Moles. Jett Barnes won the non-point race in March. Hayden Stepps has been dominant in winning all three Junior Sprint races. He beat Vito Cancilla last time as Levi Osborne finished third. He beat Brody Rubio and Cancilla at the point opener.

Why: Hannum leads Sharp by 10 points in the early Super 600 point battle. Brett McCullough is 38 points out of the lead with Colby Greig two points behind him. Carey has a six point lead over Mognaga in the Wingless class. Lewis is 20 points out. The Restricted point battle is being led by Andrew Smith by 10 markers ahead of Kohler and 25 over Ryder Byrd. Hayden Stepps has a 14 point advantage over Cancilla in the Junior Sprint class with Rubio 26 points back.


Where: Madera Speedway www.racemadera.com

When: Saturday, May 8th

Who: North State Modified Series, Madera Late Models, Mini Super Toyotas, Hobby Stocks, Mini Stocks, Junior Late Model exhibition

What: The North State Modified Series is coming to Madera Speedway at a time when the track is trying to start its own 602 Crate Modified class. The track is offering incentives to drivers with the Crate 602 package as a way to get them to support this week's show. The North State Modified Series raced at Shasta a couple of weeks ago and brought a 19 car turnout to the race, won by Kyle Tellstrom ahead of Charlie Collins and Scott Winters. These drivers always put on a good show. Speaking of good shows, the Madera Late Model Club Races have been far from boring. Jason Aguirre has picked up a pair of wins and Matt Erickson has a win in what has been a pretty competitive field so far. Last time out, Haley Bugg got her first career Mini Super Toyota win. The other wins have gone to reigning champion Shaun Reynolds and Ryan Reynolds. In Hobby Stock action,  Lloyd Wren has picked up a pair of wins with Mike Nicks also getting a win.

Why: Kyle Keller has a pair of third place finishes to help give him a one point lead over Aguirre in the Madera Late Model point race. Mike Shapiro is 46 points out in third. Bugg leads the Super Toyota battle by two points over Tim Kammerer and 12 over Nick Thompson. The Hobby Stock listings haven't included April's race yet, and Nicks was leading reigning champion Manny Gonzales Jr by nine points after two races with Nick Rowe 11 points back in third. Likewise, the track hasn't factored in the most recent Mini Stock race, which was won by Johnny Williams. Williams held a 46 point lead over Dan Myrick after two races.  The NSMS point race has Tellstrom leading Collins by ten points and Winters by 21. Mission Foods is sponsoring the track's effort to get the 602 Crate Modified effort going. Nut Up Industries has provided sponsorship to make it possible for the track to offer the free streaming of the races on their YouTube page.

The Editor's Viewpoint

Since I've been feeling okay about doing what we've done with the media effort so far, I made the commitment to do a little bit more this week. However, our schedule is definitely going to be hectic as Speedweek just kicked off at Bakersfield Speedway on Friday night. Therefore, I'm actually writing this column on Thursday with a few leftover observations. Depending on how things go, we may add additional observations on non-speedweek-related news for the weekend. I definitely am trying to be brief.

Although the bad news/good news situation surrounding the pandemic isn't like it was last year, we still have to be ready for the bad news. The Oregon governor is definitely being a pain in the rear end and has put several counties into extreme risk. It just so happens that Lane County is one of those areas, and this effects Cottage Grove Speedway. Washington County and Jackson County are in extreme, which effect Sunset Speedway in Banks and Southern Oregon Speedway in Medford. Maybe those two tracks can escape the harsh restrictions by the time they open? Cottage Grove isn't so lucky.

When Heather Boyce opened the season a few weeks ago, she knew she was at Yellow Tier and 25% capacity. I guess it briefly went up to moderate or whatever Green Tier is. That's the highest level you get before this color coordinated crap is ended, and that's at 50%. It didn't last long. On Tuesday, we got word that Lane County was going back to extreme, and that pretty much meant no fans were allowed in attendance at Cottage Grove Speedway. Heather made the decision to go ahead and run with no fans, but I don't think that's a very good way forward. They say this will last no more than three weeks, but I can't help but be a little pessimistic. We'll see.

One of the extras we threw on the work pile this week was the creation of the Jefferson State Racing News blog. This will not be a site where we post every week. It will be for special stories only covering what would basically be racing in the proposed State of Jefferson. I had the blog, so I figured I'd rebrand it and put it back out there. I have a few story ideas, and since the plan isn't to post on this site every week, I hope to be able to put some of those ideas onto the blog. Also, we may add a Twitter site to it as well.

Jefferson Racing News still exists, but I may be rebranding it soon. I did Jefferson State because I didn't want to abandon the name if I change the other blog, but there's a chance that the first Jefferson News site will still remain as well. I'm just thinking on the fly and figuring it out as I go. I have an idea, but there's no major plan in motion. The main blog will remain The DCRR Racing News blog.

Recently, I had a day to go over some very interesting aerial photos. The site is Historical Aerials. For some reason, I couldn't remember the name, so my searches for archival satellite photos didn't yield the results I was looking for. I remember seeing this site just before I lost my home and ended up pretty much being forced to leave California. I thought Google Maps used to show timeline satellite photos at one time, but it's been a while. If memory serves, they even used to show archival newspaper clippings before newspapers.com became a thing. I used to have fun looking at archival racing stuff on that site.

Anyway, I picked up the book I have on race tracks that have existed through the years or continue to exist, and this was very educational. Some tracks I wasn't able to find either because I wasn't sure where the exact location was, or the site doesn't archive a certain time frame where I might have found that track. I think aerial photos is a really cool site. If they have a drawback it's that there are so many gaps in the history. There was a track not far from Placerville called Amador Speedway that I couldn't locate. I couldn't find Peach Bowl Speedway, the track they ran before Marysville Raceway became a thing.

In any case, I did find the track in Redding. There actually was a track there. I remember looking to see if there were any traces of its location a couple of years ago. I never would have found it, because houses have been built over what used to be the track. We're going way back into the 1950s and 1960s to find it. Truthfully, it seems like it was a track built in the middle of nowhere. I'm not even sure how people got there. I'm still trying to locate the track in Weed that they say existed. I haven't been able to find it yet.

There was a track at the Coos County Fairgrounds before Coos Bay Speedway became a thing. It's long since gone away. There are a few fairgrounds locations you can find in Oregon that hosted races back in the day. You can find proof of that through the ariel photos. It's interesting looking at the Elgin Rodeo Grounds. It once was a big race track, though I'm not sure if they ran cars or horses on it. It's definitely a horse location, but that little track that the Elgin Outlaws ran their Stock Cars on was evident. This wasn't even 20 years ago. They wanted them out so they could build something for the horses, but it doesn't look like they ever did. They just wanted them out.

That's the problem with the horse people. A lot of times, they don't want to coexist with the automobile enthusiasts. However, I remember a time when they did. Many of these county fairgrounds had rodeos at the race tracks. They would fix up the rodeo arena inside the track and do all that needed to happen, and they would do their thing. I was never really into it. When Antioch would have them, my dad and I would head for Petaluma Speedway to check out some really good racing. I know it was popular, and eventually Antioch built a rodeo arena for them. Sadly, they use it for paintball now, and I can think of another use with the idea I have in my mind. I'll keep that one to myself.

In Oregon, I didn't realize that the last Klamath Falls Speedway location actually had a second track. I believe it was a dirt track, and it's to the left of the pavement track on the satellite images. Get the coordinates from the current satellite photos, do a search at Historical Aerials and you'll see. To this day, nothing's been built over that location, but I'll get into my thoughts on that in a moment. There was a track in Eastern Oregon called Pilot Speedway. This town is out in the middle of nowhere, and they had a little pavement track. The track sat there for probably a decade or more after it closed, and you could still see it through the archival photos.

I was trying to find Live Oak Speedway in California. The only ran for a few years, but the satellite didn't cover the time. Same issue with the Vallejo Speedway track behind China Barn. Either that, or I wasn't finding the right spot. I was having a blast looking at locations, but the one in Pacheco really hit me. I've seen this before. Contra Costa Stadium existed for at least 15 years and was a hotbed of Midget and Hardtop racing. Then one day, it was gone. They wanted to build a freeway through it, and they did. The images are like a slap in the face.

The one thing I will say about that situation is at least they did something else with the property. It wasn't like the track just sat there for years after, teasing everybody. It frustrates me to see those locations they close down and do nothing with. I walked Vallejo Speedway in 1993, nearly 15 years after that track closed. Now, it has houses built over it. The day I walked that property, you could see there was still enough space for them to continue racing. What I'm saying is even if they wanted to build on that location eventually, the track could have continued operations for another decade. Of course, we know that the people in the trailer park were complaining about noise.

The old track in Roseburg, Oregon was one I couldn't find in the archives, but I didn't look hard enough. I walked it a couple of years ago and took pictures. They've since built a road over part of Turns 1 and 2, but that didn't happen until the last 20 years. The track sat dormant for a good two decades before they did anything with the property. 

They had a tragedy there where a car crashed through the fence and killed some spectators, but I don't believe that was the last race they had there either. There is a tragic story involving the owner and his son. Some have said the track was cursed. When I walked it with Mike, we talked about the idea that they could at the very least have a nice Micro Sprint track there, and this location hadn't hosted racing in 50 years by then. I will eventually do an article about this on the Jefferson State Racing News blog.

Another intriguing location is Sunny Valley, right next to Grants Pass, Oregon. They ran Motorcycles there. There was an MX Track and an Oval Track. This was back in the 1960s and 1970s. The furthest back the archives go is 1982 on this location. It's also my frustration with the Medford Area as I would like to do some track research there and can't with the limitations on years in the archives. In any case, I think the track was either closed or about to be closed at that time. There are so many trees around there now and the property still sits. Last I heard it was for sale, and I believe it's still zoned for motorsports. Maybe it sold? Talk about a track that would have good scenery. You could do Motorcycles, Micros, Dwarf Cars, Outlaw Karts and... Maybe certain bigger cars?

Back to Klamath Falls, we all know the story of the track closing because the earthquake rendered the grandstands unsafe. The state wanted to help pay to replace them, but the owner took that as the opportunity to walk away. It's been over 25 years since that happened. The property still sits there with clearly enough space. You're not going to do much with the pavement, but you could always rip that out and build a nice dirt track. The racing crowd that is still very active in the area would probably appreciate that, but I don't know if anybody has even considered if there is a way forward to make it happen.

I don't like seeing old race tracks just slowly eroding away as nature takes over. If you're tearing it down for progress, then show the progress and I can accept that. Not using that track while it is there is clearly a wasted opportunity. There are some glaring examples of that in California,  I-10 Speedway in Blythe, Rocky Hill Speedway in Porterville,. Pearsonville Speedway and Altamont Raceway in Tracy. We can add Eugene Speedway in Oregon as the track itself is still there. Of the five, you're probably more likely to see something happen at Rocky Hill. All had issues that closed them down, and yet they sit there being unused for racing.

I was going through the archival photos for Hills Ferry Raceway. I want to talk about that track and had something prepared for this week. I'm pulling it here at the last minute, but I will be using it soon. If you go back far enough, you'll find a Kart road course. That's how it started there before it became an oval track. 

It's an interesting location that brings up some thoughts worthy of consideration. Could you take that place beyond Outlaw Karts and Motorcycles? If so, what could you do and what type of program would it be suited for. I don't think it's suited for the big blowout races with bigger cars, but that doesn't mean they couldn't have shows for some of those divisions. I will talk about that soon.

Earlier this week, Antioch Speedway Hall of Fame Director Chris Briggs did a very brief video update. He mentioned there weren't too many nominations, and I'm disappointed in that. I put quite a bit of thought into my nominations and why I would nominate who I did when I sent him my email. Hopefully, that helped a little bit. What he said was he had the committee going over the nominations and could have announcements by Saturday.

I wasn't privy to who he put on the committee. I believe I conveyed my suggestions based on who I was thinking of putting on the committee that I was going to organize prior to the pandemic shutdown last year. However, Chris did a brief live Facebook update on Thursday night and revealed that the four members he put on the committee are Debbie Clymens, Jim Robbins, Ron Brown and Steve Perry. Most of these people were ones I was going to recruit, although I was disappointed a certain person wasn't included based on the extensive knowledge he brought to me when I was putting the first two Hall of Fame years together.

I wasn't necessarily delighted with the formula Chris put together, although I don't necessarily think it's bad. It's just different. Initially, the committee was going to come up with three inductees, but Chris's live update on Thursday revealed that it will be five now. There is still going to be a fan vote based on the list Chris provides. That will determine another person, and then the committee will come back and pick another. This means seven people will get inducted into the Hall of Fame this year. I will be curious to see who they come up with as I really have no influence on the decision making process.

I was thinking of a list of 10 for the third year before the pandemic hit. I didn't want to go overboard with 15 as I had in the second year. I am just thinking of a few more people from the 1960s and 1970s who should be in, and some of them are still alive. I like the idea of honoring people while they're still around to appreciate it. The one advantage Chris has in having a smaller list is being able to get the inductees or family members there for the October date. I think it will be better organized than ever, which is a plus.

When I started this deal, I admittedly had a hard time. I relied on people on Facebook contacting some of the inductees for me. It went okay the first year as only one representative wasn't there to get the award. The next year, I had to up the list to 15 people, and it was nearly impossible to get all of the inductee's or representatives to show up. The other challenge is I was doing it from Oregon and pretty much on my own. I feel like the way I did it wasn't perfect, but it got the ball rolling. Chris is in a better position because he has the community around him, and that's certainly going to help.

I feel like the Antioch Speedway Hall of Fame was kind of my baby, so it's bittersweet watching it happen and not even being a member of the board making the selections. I was asked to make nominations and have been asked to provide information, and I have willingly done so. Given the situation as it was last year when I made the decision to walk away, it seemed like the right choice to make. I have told Chris that if and when I'm able to move back to the Bay Area, which is my intention, I will help out as best I can. The important thing to me is that the Hall of Fame continues to grow and get better established, and Chris is doing a good job in that endeavor.

I've talked a little bit about the two Crate Sprint efforts that are trying to gather momentum in California and Nevada. I recently brought this up in the context of Siskiyou Golden Speedway. My thought process is that if Kevin Barba wants to try to run some more affordable Sprint Car races and the Medford crowd isn't going to support him, he should reach out to either group. The California group might be his best bet since they are based down in the Marysville area. Granted, that is a bit of a trip for them, but it might be possible for a visit or two, depending on what is an acceptable purse to the group.

The Silver Dollar Speedway Speedweek finale made an interesting choice in putting the Crate Sprints with the two Modified classes. This could be a showcase opportunity for the Crate Sprints, but will they get full support? With Flo Racing bringing in the coverage, a 10 or 12 car field would go over pretty well, in my opinion. My expectation is that they might get a half-dozen cars. I'm setting the bar low so as not to be too disappointed in the outcome. I don't claim to be a big fan of this class as it negatively impacted the Wingless Spec Sprint division that Chico and Marysville had. Basically, neither track has the class anymore.

Winged Limited Sprints can be good. During various times from the late '80s throughout the 1990s, the class at Merced Speedway brought double digits and gave the fans something cool to see. I mentioned recently that if the Crate Sprints could just get the car count into the teens, it would help make it easier on Marysville Raceway. 15 or 16 Crate Sprints gives them the opportunity to give the Winged 360 Sprint Cars a break. Throw the Hobby Stocks and IMCA Sport Modifieds into the mix and you still have a decent show. If you're only going to get six Crate Sprints, they aren't in a position to really step up to give the Winged 360 class a break.

I don't believe the Battleborn Sprints of Nevada and the Crate Sprints in California are exactly compatible. There doesn't seem to be much back and forth. The Battleborn group is under new management from the old Northern Nevada Sprint group of the previous few years. When they went to Susanville recently, they delivered 10 cars. I think they brought six cars on one rig, which made for a site to see. They were also at Rattlesnake Speedway last week, and this time they delivered 15 cars. Nevada doesn't have a lot when it comes to Sprint Car racing, so having 15 cars show up is actually pretty big.

Apparently, they ran a restricted class and an unrestricted class. I don't know what the rules are for either, but the unrestricted had a half-dozen cars. The 15 cars all ran the restricted class. I guess it gives the Battleborn group the appearance of putting on an even bigger show. They were in talks with Curt Nieman at Quincy to bring both groups for their first race there, although I'm not sure that will end up happening. Maybe focusing on the restricted class at first is the way to go. 

This is the problem people sometimes get into. You start working on one thing and get a little momentum going. You take your eye off the ball and try to do more when you should be focusing on what got you there. With a good car count, these guys can write their own ticket anywhere in Nevada or at those far Northern California tracks like Quincy and Susanville.

Because of scheduling conflicts, Madera Speedway elected not to run the Vukovich Classic open wheel show. That was probably for the best. Sadly, all of the open wheel classes at Madera have withered away to nothing. The Late Models are very much the strong suit of that track. I know Kenny Shepherd would like to change that, but he hasn't figured out the right formula to really establish a non Late Model class that has car count yet. The Vukovich will be combined with the Harvest Classic and the Kenny Takeuchi race on September 25th.

The one thing Shepherd is really working on is a Crate 602 Modified class, and they have a North State Modified Series race coming up on May 8th. Kenny put the word out regarding incentives he hopes will bring more cars. They're paying $1,000 to win, $700 for second and so on. It's a nice purse. To encourage the 602 Crate cars, the top finishing driver with that rules package gets $500, second gets $250 and third gets $200. There's other money involved as well. They've got Mission Foods on board as a sponsor of the track's new Modified effort, and Kenny is really committed to establishing something here.

It's an interesting thing with the pavement tracks. At one time, Modified racing at places like Madera, Stockton and Roseville was really thriving. It's whittled down to almost nothing at Stockton and Madera. Roseville can get anywhere from eight to a dozen cars, so they keep that going under the NASCAR banner. Otherwise, the SRL has added the Modifieds under their sanctioning banner along with the Southwest Tour and the new Pro Late Model class. I'm hoping Kenny has luck with this as well as the Mini Stock class he's trying to develop. 

As I said, you need more than just a thriving Late Model class. You need a well balanced program. Madera Speedway has so much going for it in terms of the way it's promoted and just the facility itself. You can't take it for granted that any track will be successful. Even though Kenny has had plenty of successes to crow about, he knows that he has to keep working on it. I continue to be blown away by the fact that he's offering these shows for free on the track's YouTube page. Obviously, you want everybody that can go to the track to be there, but he's onto something here with the broadcast. What makes it possible are sponsors like Nut Up Industries, Mission Foods and 51fifty Energy Drink.

We aren't doing a lot of pre-race hype on the blog. We've replaced that with our little "who, what, where, when, why" segment as it makes things easier. We are still trying to cover quite a few tracks, and Dixon Speedway is one of them. Micro Sprint racing is admittedly not something I've followed too closely, but Dixon got my curiosity a few years ago. I started noticing drivers in the Wingless Spec Sprints and Winged 360 Sprints who had Micro Sprint backgrounds. Plus, there are drivers getting into the Western Midget Racing group with this background as well. I like what they're doing at Dixon Speedway, and they've cultivated something really cool there.

Though they do a Wingless 600, Super 600, Restricted 600 and Junior Sprint show, the strength of the program is definitely the Wingless class. Because of that, they put a big race on the schedule for May 29th and 30th. They will be paying $5,000 to win from a very nice purse, and they're expecting 50 or more cars in the Wingless class. 

The occasion is also special. They have made this the Grandma Pam Memorial race. Grandma Pam was an important figure at that race track, not just because the people liked talking to her, but because she was instrumental in keeping the show going. I know Jeremy Prince wanted to do a race befitting of her memory, and he's accomplished that goal with what he has scheduled for Memorial Day weekend.

This is what I mean about something really special happening with Micro Sprint racing right now. With the tracks trying not to book over each other, there's potential to draw drivers from Stockton, Lemoore and Plaza Park, perhaps even from out of the state. You don't get a lot of $5,000 to win races for Micros, and that kind of money is too good to pass up. There might even be a few ringers coming in to try to take the money. I haven't heard if there will be a broadcast, but I think Fast Four Media are the ones who usually come in for these special Micro Sprint shows.

 

Sometimes you're better off taking a night off instead of trying to have a race. On Friday night, Ocean Speedway didn't have a very good night. It's bad enough that Promoter John Prentice still can't have fan attendance due to the county's stricter stance on covid-19. Making matters worse was the fact that they couldn't have IMCA Modifieds or IMCA Sport Modifieds because the California IMCA Speedweek was happening at Bakersfield Speedway. Actually, they could have booked one of those two classes, and it might have been a good move to book the IMCA Sport Modifieds. 

As I mentioned previously, I think John's decision not to book those two classes last week or next week was more a courtesy move than a move he was required to make. It stands to reason that he could have gotten 10 or 12 cars from the area to come compete as most of the locals aren't participating in Speedweek. John was being a nice guy, and this doesn't necessarily mean that Watsonville will be included in Speedweek next year. The scheduling challenge got more difficult when Chico opened its gates for the Bill Brownell Memorial. The big money drew 52 Sprint Cars, several of whom have competed at Watsonville this year.

I mentioned that Watsonville is already struggling to get double digits in Mini Stocks and Hobby Stocks, and neither division accomplished that goal on Friday. The 19 Sprint Cars were the show. One might have even thought about adding Dwarf Cars, but the South Bay group had already run back to back races. They won't be available this week as the South Bay Dwarf Car Association is required to steer clear of booking weekends against the West Coast Dwarf Car Nationals, and they have one such event in Quincy. 

I'm not sure how much thought Prentice put into last Friday and how low his car count could be when he scheduled it. Sometimes you don't know, but this one seemed pretty obvious. Because they have that throwaway rule in the Sprint Cars, the drivers who skipped out to go to Chico that would like to run for Watsonville points won't suffer. In fact, Bud Kaeding skipped a race earlier this year as a throwaway. He was there on Friday picking up his second win of the season. The absence of some of the top name talent gave others a chance to shine, and the show went on.

Not to be negative, but when I looked at some of the names who went to Chico as part of the 52 car field for the Bill Brownell Memorial Sprint Car race, I shook my head. I always pull for the underdog, but in shows like this, it might be wiser to go to the other race where you have a better chance to shine. In other words, a few of those drivers probably would have been better off in Watsonville. They weren't going to win. Chico lived up to its reputation as a top-notch Sprint Car track. They had a good battle all the way to the end with Dominic Scelzi picking up the $3,000 paycheck.

I don't want to get into results here when we do that elsewhere, but I do want to say that I like the traditional way of running a program. I like drivers having to run the alphabet. Since the rise of IMCA in California, we've seen things turn to multiple B Mains, rather than working the alphabet. Chico kind of did a mixture of that. They did have a D Main. Rather than multiple B Mains, they had multiple C Mains. I'm not sure how that works, but I do know the 52 competitors had plenty of opportunity to go racing and make the show.

The track made it known prior to the races that Tri State Pro Stock Challenge Series rules would be eligible to compete with the Super Stocks. It didn't look like they had any takers. Honestly, Dennis Gage should probably bite the bullet and talk with Roy Bain about doing something in the future. I'm sure they could figure out a way to make it work in 2022. Roy does seem to like doing those two-race weekends. Since Chico is a Friday night show, they could easily book a race there and have a Saturday race in Placerville next year. The car count wasn't great at seven cars, but they still put on a decent race. Unfortunately, Gary Newman was unable to make the call for the feature. It still makes me smile to see this guy behind the wheel of a race car after all these years.

I'm probably not doing myself any favors by expanding this with Saturday night racing thoughts. I'm covering Speedweek in its own post, and while that series is delivering the goods, Silver Dollar Speedway was the place to be for any Sprint Car fan. After Friday's successful Winged 360 Sprint Car show honoring Bill Brownell, the David Tarter Memorial was made the inaugural appearance for the Elk Grove Ford Sprint Car Challenge Tour, presented by Abreu Vineyards. As I said, the SCCT chipped away at the support the Civil War Series had until there weren't any tracks left beyond Watsonville. Chico and Marysville Promoter Dennis Gage held out as long as he could.

I have to believe Dennis was smiling when he looked at his pit area and saw 61 Sprint Cars for the first appearance from the group. There were also a couple dozen NorCal Dwarf Cars that added to the program, so Saturday was a winner in Chico. It also highlights what the SCCT is still capable of. Despite the fact that their numbers had dipped a little bit, these guys can still deliver a big turnout and offer good purse money, contingencies and point fund money as well. We'll cover the results elsewhere, but this was one heck of a show for Chico. They keep busy with a regular program this Friday and the finale for the California IMCA Speedweek Series on Saturday. So much for people who said the track was dead.

You can't blame a track for staying dark, rather than booking against the California IMCA Speedweek. Petaluma Speedway took that option, and Placerville probably stayed dark for the SCCT in Chico. Marysville did the same. Antioch Speedway is expected to book at least 30 races according to the deal Chad Chadwick has in place with the Fair Board. To me, it's ridiculous and makes it more of a challenge to be successful there, even when you're not dealing with any sort of county restrictions due to the pandemic fear that hasn't completely gone away yet.

Chadwick is definitely being a team player with Speedweek, so he had to run another weekend without the IMCA divisions. He gets rewarded with his Speedweek race on Wednesday. In the meantime, he gets to test the ability of the Hobby Stocks and Wingless Spec Sprints to deliver the goods. The Dwarf Cars got the night off while the fledgling Mini Stock and Super Stock divisions didn't get a lot of support. 

However, the Hobby Stocks delivered nearly 30 cars, and the Spec Sprints had a couple dozen. Both divisions needed B Mains, and it was really quite an entertaining night overall. I think this is about as much as Chadwick could have hoped for with the divisions he had, and it looks like they got about the usual crowd attendance they've been getting in recent years before last year's pandemic shutdown.

Yreka hit a home run, and I can't imagine Kevin Barba being too disappointed. On the heels of the night that had over 40 cars, Yreka had about 60 this time, which is something that doesn't happen very often. It was made possible because of the touring Southern Oregon Dwarf Cars and Outlaw Pro Stocks. The fact that Medford isn't open yet helped them get 19 IMCA Sport Modifieds, and it's hard for me to find a flaw with this race. Honestly, I'm happy to say that, because I really want to see Yreka build something up the way it used to be. I am pulling for Kevin to be the guy to do it.

Tracks and associations in some cases last year ran enough races to have championships, but they opted not to. I'm not going to name people and put them on the spot, but I think it was classy for any track to crown champions under those difficult circumstances. We already knew that IMCA was going to acknowledge anything that had at least four races, so Yreka had IMCA Modified and Sport Modified champions as it was. However, Yreka held a championship ceremony on Saturday to honor last year's stars. It was a potluck affair, and it seemed to go over very well. Nicely done Kevin.

We were monitoring the pavement shows at Roseburg in Eureka, and Eureka actually gave us a free look at the entire show on their YouTube page. I'll get into that a little bit later, but I thought they did well. Car count wasn't huge in any of the five divisions offered, but I will say that it was nice to see eight pavement Late Models show up. Late Models used to be huge at Eureka back in the day. Otherwise, the Roadrunners, which are basically Hornets, had the double digit count shaking things up.

Much like Roseburg, Eureka was a pleasant event that didn't have huge numbers. While Eureka ran a 50 lap Late Model race, Douglas County Speedway gave 50 laps to their Sport Modified class. I think they had around eight cars, much like the exciting PRA Hardtop class. The Mini Stocks actually brought enough cars to have a race, which was nice, but the Hornets are stealing the show with over 20 competitors. For racing fans in Roseburg, this was worth the watch. I must say I was happy to see that Daren Ricks Campbell was up there slinging the camera. He'd be an asset for any track that would bring him on full-time. I'd like to see that happen some place.

Coos Bay Speedway was delivering the NASCAR excitement. I must say it was pretty cool to see local Late Model star Brody Montgomery beating the Willamette ringers, BJ Donofrio and Joey Tanner. Brody has certainly come into his own in recent years as a top Coos Bay star. Because Cottage Grove canceled due to rain and the tracks further north weren't running, Coos Bay got a little bit of a boost in their Sportsman Late Model, Street Stock and Mini Outlaw classes, so there were probably around 70 or more cars. All in all, another solid effort for Coos Bay

Coos Bay will get a look at the Interstate Sprint Cars next Saturday along with all of their regular NASCAR sanctioned classes with the exception of the Junior Stingers. The Interstate Sprint Cars are in Cottage Grove as part of a four division lineup on Friday, and I know Heather Boyce isn't delighted about being put into Red Tier. She's unable to have fans for a two-race weekend, and that's got to hurt. People in Oregon are getting tired of this crap, and I'm right there with them. Sunset Speedway has already canceled a scheduled practice and I'm sure they're having nightmares about this garbage. They were unable to have any races at all last year.

That's what kind of confuses me a bit. Nobody is saying Sunset Speedway was abandoned because they didn't have any activity at the track last year. Nobody's saying the track is on death's door or any of that nonsense, but the hysterics happening in Medford was ridiculous. But, I want to skip that stuff, because the new promotional team there has been making lots of improvements. It looks like they are tackling the serious plumbing problem that has been a part of the track in recent years. It's one improvement after another for these guys, and they're set to go live on May 29th with IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds, Late Models and Hornets. They are in Red Tier as well, but hopefully that will let up by then. If not, I don't think these guys are going to cancel even if they can't have fans. They've already struck a deal with IMCA TV for pay-per-views.

Speaking of IMCA, management in Medford just let out a little secret that they are looking to put their Hornet division under IMCA Sport Compact rules. I don't know if the idea is to do that this year or next year, but they mentioned a one-year grace period on rules. IMCA does allow that as they bring in unsanctioned divisions under their set of rules, but either way it indicates that the track is looking to go with IMCA Sport Compact sanctioning. I can't say that I'm surprised since the promotional team is made up largely of IMCA Modified people, and the sanctioning body will have a high priority with them.

The thing you have to look at is there are now three other tracks in Oregon with IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds and IMCA Sport Compacts. They are Cottage Grove, Willamette and Sunset. Willamette and Sunset also have IMCA Stock Cars, and I won't be surprised if that sort of talk makes its way down to Medford in the near future. As I've been saying all along, IMCA is taking over the West Coast more and more every year, so seeing the Medford track trend in this direction isn't a surprise.

I have to wonder with Promoter Travis Hoppes putting money into the California IMCA Speedweek Series if the goal is to get a date in Medford in the future. It's disappointing to me that Jerry Schram hasn't invited these guys back into the IMCA Wild West Speedweek Series that will happen in August, and who knows if that will change in the future. The problem with doing a California Speedweek that starts or makes its way down to Bakersfield is that it might be a tall order getting drivers to go all the way to Medford, even if you were to throw Yreka in as another date. There just may not be enough room for Medford in the California IMCA Speedweek Series, but it wouldn't be surprising to me if conversations haven't at least been held.

Another direction to take would be to get with Jeff at Susanville, Curt at Quincy and Kevin at Yreka and put something together between those tracks. You could even include Coos Bay or Chico if you wanted a fifth track, and you could essentially do Modifieds and Sport Modifieds. The only problem with that idea is you saturate things to a point, and it becomes too much for the drivers to support. 

Another alternative could be to use the All Star Series approach that John Prentice used, where you pick certain weekends during the year as series races that help the tracks get bigger car counts. Or, you could have a Tri Track Series with one race each on any given weekend. This is all speculation, so who knows if anything will come of it.

Coos Bay Speedway has a Junior Stinger class, and it looks like they had about 19 cars on Saturday. Drake Nelson did something interesting where he only took the Top 12 drivers into the Main Event. Drivers made it out of their heat races or through the special B Main. I think one of the reasons Drake did that was because some of these drivers are very new at this and a bit slow. Having them get more comfortable and up to speed by having to run a B Main or two isn't necessarily a bad thing.

I've seen the occasional discussion of running smaller Main Event fields as a way to make the races go smoother with the faster drivers making the show. In the waning days of the NASCAR Late Model circuit in the early 1990s, Watsonville was doing something similar. 18 cars would rightly be considered a full Main Event, but in order to weed out a few of the slower cars, they only took a total of 14 cars into the Main Event. I understood why they did that, although I wasn't really fond of the idea. However, it can make your races faster and more exciting to watch.

Cottage Grove hasn't quite hit the numbers truly needed for a B Main in the IMCA Sport Modifieds. I think they've hovered at around 20 or 21 cars, and yet they've ended up running 14 car Main Events. I couldn't tell you why Heather has done that, but I can tell you that I had the occasional discussion with Mike when we were at Southern Oregon Speedway. He touted the merits of potentially doing 14 car Main Events to give the fans a little bit more of a show. I think it might have centered around the IMCA Sport Modifieds, who were admittedly having a rough time getting a Main Event going without a multitude of yellow flags.

We had a night in 2019 with the Outlaw Pro Stocks that I'm rather proud of. I was pushing for a night where the class got to headline as the higher tier classes got the night off, and the weekend of the Jackson County Fair was the perfect time. We even did a bike giveaway for the kids. The thinking was you don't come out too far ahead in opening your track against the County Fair, so give the lower tier divisions the chance to shine. It's also a slightly lower purse. We had a pretty decent fan attendance, all things considered. I think the Pro Stocks might have delivered 18 or 20 cars that night.

What's interesting is they decided to run a B Main to lower the starting field, and I want to say we had 16 cars start the Main. I'd have to check my records, but a few of the slower cars were weeded out of the field. It ended up being a very entertaining B Main with a side-by-side battle, and the feature race definitely lived up to its billing in giving the Pro Stocks the headline status that night. Maybe it does make sense to reduce your Main Event starting field under certain circumstances. My concern is discouraging drivers by not letting them start the Main Event when you don't have a field that would traditionally require a B Main. It's an interesting debate.

In closing, I have to say I'm a little bit concerned with the floracing.com broadcast. I like that other options are out there, including Speedsport TV, who seems to be partnering with groups like Low Budget TV and IMCA TV. Some of the tracks are truly doing something in house, such as Madera Speedway and Redwood Acres Raceway. Ukiah was cultivating something rather nice last year, but I don't know if they will be doing an internet broadcast when they open. What I like about using the YouTube option to stream your broadcast is it seems to go pretty well. I've liked the quality of the Madera broadcast so far, and Eureka seemed to look good to me.

Sometimes it seems a bit laggy over at Flo Racing, which is a bit annoying. It's also annoying that they continue to shove a ridiculous amount of commercials at the people who have already paid for subscriptions. Isn't that one of the reasons you do a pay-per-view, to avoid having to watch a bunch of commercials? The reason they do that is because they are making rather nice money through those commercials, but you're not going to see subscription rates reduce. If anything, they are going to go up. I compare this to a dealer on the streets. They gave people a nice and enticing subscription fee, get them hooked and then start jacking it up.

Because they had their pick of the litter, suddenly some of the tracks we were getting to see through Flo Racing were dropped. It wasn't because the tracks couldn't provide the broadcast, but Flo wanted to go in a different direction with bigger events. It's fair to do that. It is their platform. However, I am just a little bit less enamored with Flo Racing after the things I've seen in recent months. I'm not saying that they aren't good at what they do, and certainly you're going to have a challenge topping any broadcast they bring you that has Chet Christner announcing. However, for tracks looking to do pay-per-view, there are other options.

On that note, I will end this column. Until next time...