Ocean Speedway, Merced Speedway, Coos Bay Speedway, Deming Speedway, Orland Raceway, More

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Faccinto Wins NARC/KWS Race At Ocean Speedway, 

Pettit, Velasquez, Ragsdale Other Winners

Watsonville, CA...August 27...Mitchell Faccinto won the 30 lap NARC/King of the West Fujitsu Winged 410 Sprint Car Series Main Event Friday night at Ocean Speedway. This race was the second round of the Fastest Four Days In Motorsports series. Faccinto is the 2020 Watsonville Winged 360 Sprint Car champion. 

Faccinto set the stage for good things to come after winning the six lap Trophy Dash ahead of Tanner Carrick and Ryan Robinson. The race was restarted after Sean Watts stalled. Faccinto led Carrick and reigning series champion DJ Netto on the restart, but a yellow flag waved after two laps when Sean Becker stopped with wing damage. Faccinto led Carrick and Robinson on the restart. The battle got close between the lead trio, but a yellow flag waved on Lap 9 with Carrick and Robbie Price both out of the race. Faccinto led the restart with Robinson now second ahead of series point leader Dom Scelzi. This was a good green flag run with things heating up between the Top 3 competitors as they hit the Lap 20 mark. Contact with Landon Brooks saw Netto flipping into the fence for a Lap 24 red flag. Track officials repaired some front fence damage before the race was allowed to continue. Faccinto led Robinson and Scelzi on the restart, and that would be the way they would finish. New Watsonville champion Bud Kaeding ended up fourth, followed by Shane Golobic, Rico Abreu, Kurt Nelson, Colby Copeland, Tim Kaeding and Mitchel Moles.

24 Winged 410 Sprint Car competitors took their turns on the Tom Sagmiller prepared quarter-mile clay oval, and Robinson set a new track record at 10.734, beating the 10.744 of Netto and the 10.803 of Faccinto. The 10 lap heat race wins went to Carrick, Nelson and Tim Kaeding. The series runs 24 cars in their Main Events, so no B Main was run.

Jim Pettit II won the 20 lap IMCA Modified Main Event. This was the fourth win of the season for Pettit, who continues to lead the State championship and is battling for the track championship, where he trails Cody Burke by just five points.

Fred Lind took advantage of his front row start to lead early ahead of Raymond Keldsen Jr and Pettit. JC Elrod slipped past Pettit for third on the second lap, and both Elrod and Pettit got past Keldsen on Lap 7. Keldsen briefly took third from Pettit on Lap 8, only to surrender the position back to him a lap later. It was a close battle between Lind and Elrod for first as Cody Burke slipped past Pettit for third on Lap 16. The only yellow flag slowed the race on Lap 18, as Lind saw his run up front end prematurely. This set up an exciting finish with Elrod leading Pettit and Burke on the restart. On the final lap, Pettit slipped past Elrod to steal the victory. Cody Burke ended up third ahead of Lind, Steve Pemberton, Clay Daly and Keldsen. Lind won the eight lap heat race, and Austin Burke was eliminated prior to the Main Event in a heat race crash.

Richard Ragsdale won the 20 lap IMCA Sport Modified Main Event. Ragsdale motored into the lead at the start and Max Baggett and Mike Kofnovec Jr. Baggett was getting all kinds of pressure from Kofnovec with Justin McPherson closing in on the duo in the second place battle. McPherson took third from Kofnovec on Lap 9. Two laps later, Baggett put the moves on Ragsdale to get the lead before a yellow flag waved. On the restart, Ragsdale slipped by Baggett to regain the lead. Ragsdale would go on to lead the rest of the way for the satisfying win, followed by Baggett, Kofnovec Jr, Kelly Campanile, Markus Frazier, Justin McPherson, point leader Randy Miller, Adriane Frost, Willie Oathout and Nicholas Zapatero. There were 24 IMCA Sport Modifieds, and Campanile, Trevor Clymens and Kofnovec Jr were the eight lap heat race winners.

 

Tommy Velasquez III won the 20 lap South Bay Dwarf Car Main Event. This was his sixth win of the season as he wrapped up the championship. Velasquez started on the front row and bolted into the lead when the green flag waved, followed by past champion Terre Rothweiler and Brandon Wiley. The only yellow flag of the race flew on Lap 3 for Ryan Amlen. Velasquez continued to set the pace on the restart ahead of Rothweiler and Wiley. Past champion Gene "Punky" Pires settled into fourth as the lead trio battled closely. Rottweiler was giving Tommy Velasquez III all the pressure he could handle as the race headed down the stretch, and Nick Velasquez took fourth from Pires on Lap 15. Wiley closed in quickly on Rothweiler and passed him for second on Lap 19. However, Tommy Velasquez III got the win ahead of Wiley, Rothweiler, Nick Velasquez, Pires, Trent Morley, Eric Weisler, Joe Barket, Travis Day and Tom Morley. Rothweiler, Tommy Velasquez III and Tony Margot won the eight lap heat races.

Chad Ragsdale won the 20 lap Hobby Stock Main Event. He is the 10th different winner of this season in only his third visit. The race was run rapidly with no yellow flag interruptions, and Ragsdale led from the outset ahead of point leader Joe Gallaher and Norm Ayers. As Ragsdale began to pull away, Gallaher and Ayers had a close battle for second. Ragsdale continued to stretch his advantage until he won by just over half a lap ahead of Gallaher. Ayers was a close third, followed by Ryan Muller, Jerry Skelton, Tony Oliveira and Mitch Lettunich. Gallaher was the eight lap heat race winner.

Racing takes a break for a while before the 11th annual Pat and Jim Pettit Memorial Dirt Track Shootout closes the season on September 24th and 25th. The extra money affair will feature the IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds and Hobby Stocks. For further information, go to www.oceanspeedway.com.

Sanders Fast And Lucky At Merced Speedway 

Merced, CA...August 26...Justin Sanders won the 30 lap NARC/King of the West Fujitsu Winged 410 Sprint Car Main Event Thursday Night at Merced Speedway. This was the opening night of The Fastest Four Days In Motorsports Series, which boasts an $8,000 point fund. Sanders was fast, but it seemed like he caught breaks every time he was seriously challenged as a yellow flag would wave. The Ocean Speedway star was driving the Paul Silva owned Sprinter, and this was his second win with the group this year.

After Sanders won the six lap Trophy Dash ahead of Corey Day, he had the pole for the feature race. He motored into the lead at the start ahead of Day and point leader Dom Scelzi. A yellow flag waved for Mitchel Moles on the frontstretch on Lap 3, and Sanders continued to lead Day and Scelzi on the ensuing restart. Brian Boswell spun in Turn 4 for a Lap 6 yellow flag. Reigning series champion DJ Netto moved into third behind Sanders and Day on the restart, but Scelzi got past Netto on Lap 8 to reclaim third. Scelzi put the moves on Day for second on lap 12. Scelzi found an opening and slipped past Sanders for the lead as they worked what would have been Lap 14, but a tangle between the lapped car of Boswell, Tanner Carrick and Jesse Attard negated the pass as the yellow flag waved. Sanders led Scelzi and Day on the next restart. A yellow flag waved on Lap 18 when Mark Barroso spun and collected Netto. Sanders led Scelzi and Colby Copeland on the restart. Scelzi began to pressure Sanders and made what appeared to be a pass for the lead on Lap 24, but a red flag waved as Day flipped in Turn 1 to end his race. Sanders led Scelzi and Copeland on the next restart. Though the leaders ran closely, there was no change in the order from there as Sanders scored the win ahead of Scelzi, Copeland, Tim Kaeding, 16th starter Shane Golobic, Bud Kaeding, Robbie Price, Blake Carrick, Sean Becker and Netto.

23 NARC/KWS Sprint Car competitors made the trip. Rico Abreu set a new track record for fast time on the quarter-mile clay oval at 10.354, beating the 10.576 of Scelzi and the 10.605 of Copeland. Netto, Scelzi and Copeland won the eight lap heat races. The NARC/KWS tour starts 24 cars in the Main Event, so no B Main was run.

Jarrod Mounce won the 20 lap IMCA Sport Modified Main Event. Mounce is the 2019 Ocean Speedway Sport Modified champion. Monty Tomlinson jumped into the early lead ahead of Riley Jeppesen and Mounce, but a yellow flag waved a lap later. Mounce took the lead from Tomlinson on the restart as Jeppesen continued to run third, but Jason Bannister and point leader Tyler Bannister both got past Jeppesen on the third lap. A yellow flag waved on Lap 8. Mounce continued to lead the way over Jason Bannister and Tyler Bannister as championship contender Fred Ryland moved into fourth. Tyler Bannister took second from his father on Lap 14, and Ryland slipped past Jason Bannister for third a lap later. As Mounce brought it home to victory, Ryland made a last lap pass on Tyler Bannister to claim second. Jason Bannister settled for fourth, followed by Tomlinson, Chuck Weir, Richard Ragsdale, Jeppesen, Jason Pugh and Gavin Espino. Jeppesen and Tomlinson won the eight lap heat races.

Shawn DePriest won the 15 lap Mini Stock Main Event. This was the third win of the season for DePriest, who is a regular with the West Coast Sport Compact tour. Point leader Brian Post jumped into the lead at the start ahead of Leo Lotz and DePriest. DePriest slipped past Lotz for second on Lap 2 and made it a close battle with Post for the lead. On Lap 7, DePriest put the moves on Post to grab the lead. Lotz moved into second on Lap 12, but DePriest had more than a straightaway advantage by then. DePriest cruised to victory ahead of Lotz, Post, Shelby Neal, Russell Myers and Synthia Tremble. Post win the six lap heat race.

Carson Guthrie won the 15 lap California Sharp Mini Late Model Main Event. This was the second win of the season for Guthrie as he's in a close battle with Tyler Tucker for the championship. Guthrie moved into the lead at the start ahead of Mason Morton and Tucker. The race rant smoothly until Tucker brought out a Lap 13 yellow flag to end his race. Guthrie led Mason Morton and Brayden Morton on the restart, and they finished in that order with Ryder Jeppesen finishing fourth ahead of Tucker. Guthrie also won the six lap heat race.

Next on the schedule will be Championship Night on September 18th, featuring the IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds, Hobby Stocks, Mini Stocks and California Sharp Mini Late Models. For further information, go to www.mercedspeedway.net.

Whitney, Holmwood, Evans, Guffie, Jalakas 

Win At Deming Speedway

Everson, Washington...August 27...Jayden Whitney won the Speed Mart Super 600 Micro Sprint Main Event Friday night at Deming Speedway. Whitney started up front and set the pace when the green flag waved, followed by Jesse Schlotfeldt and Jared Peterson. A yellow flag waved on Lap 3, and Whitney continued to lead Schlotfeldt and Peterson on the restart. The battle got close between second and third, and a Lap 12 yellow flag bunched the field. Whitney continued to lead Schlotfeldt and Peterson on the restart, but Peterson slipped past Schlotfeldt for second on Lap 15. A yellow flag waved on Lap 18 with Tristin Thomas out of the race. Whitney resumed command over Peterson and Schlotfeldt, but a red flag waved on Lap 20 as Haley Constance flipped. Whitney led Peterson and Schlotfeldt on the restart. Peterson kept it close, but Whitney would prevail in the end as Schlotfeldt ended up third. Point leader Dylan Resch finished fourth, followed by Blaine Granberg, Kaitlyn Hammer, Colin Mackey, Spencer Constance, Parker Hadlock and Dakota Drake.

Hadlock set the fast time of 21 competitors on the 1/6 mile clay oval at 10.339, beating the 10.392 of Hammer and the 10.416 of Peterson. Eight lap heat race wins went to Spencer Constance, Drake and Granberg.

Point leader Derek Holmwood won the 25 lap Shots 2 Go Espresso 1200 Mini Sprint Main Event. Holmwood jumped into the lead at the start ahead of Dustin O'Brien and Dakota Drake. That was the order through a yellow flag on Lap 5. A lap 10 yellow flag saw the race end for Haylee Bloodgood. Holmwood led O'Brien and Drake on the restart. Holmwood set a good pace and pulled away a little bit on O'Brien, who ended up second, followed by Drake, Jared Gunderson, Alex Lewis, Brock Lemley, Seth Hespe, Dick Williams, California star Bobby Michnowicz and Frosty Metcalfe. Gunderson was the quickest of 15 qualifiers with a lap of 10.348, beating the 10.391 of Brock Lemley. Drake and Terry Lewis won the eight lap heat races.

Nick Evans clinched the Northwest Focus Midget championship with his 25 lap Main Event win. Jesse Munn jumped into the early lead ahead of Jake Munn and Shane Smith. Smith and Evans both got past Jake Munn on Lap 3 before a yellow flag waved. Jesse Munn continued to lead Smith and Evans on the restart, and another yellow flag waved a lap later. Jesse Munn led the restart as Evans slipped past Smith for second. The battle was close between the Top 3 competitors, and Evans finally made a move around Jesse Munn for the lead on Lap 11. Jared Peterson had found his way into fourth, and he made a move into third on Lap 18. As Peterson started challenging Jesse Munn for second, Evans pulled away by about a straightaway by the time the race ended. Jesse Munn held off Peterson for second with Smith fourth, followed by Levi Harless, Jake Munn, Chris Foster and Brian Holmkvist. Smith and Harless won the eight lap heat races.

Carson Guffie won the 20 lap mytrafficman.net Restricted 600 Micro Sprint Main Event. Guffie jumped into the lead at the start ahead of Rylee Kentch and Corbin Ramsey. A yellow flag waved on Lap 4 with Grace Matier out at that point. Guffie continued to lead Kentch and Ramsey on the restart. Guffie set a rapid pace and held a straightaway advantage over Kentch by the 10th lap. A red flag waved on Lap 22 when fourth place Zoey Tupper flipped. Guffie led the restart and pulled away to victory ahead of Kentch, Ramsey, Levi Kuntz, point leader Levi Hillier, Peyton Drake, Destry Miller, Mallory Fisher, Axel Oudman and Kane Van Sickle.

Hillier was the quickest of 19 qualifiers with a Lap of 11.074, beating the 11.209 of Kuntz and the 11.229 of Miller. The eight lap heat race wins went to Oudman, Tupper and Kentch. Grace Matier won the 10 lap B Main. Dale Orcutt led the early laps ahead of Matier and Diane Knutzen. Matier put the moves on Orcutt for the lead on Lap 4, and Cruz Kentch took third from Knutzen on Lap 6. Matier went on to win ahead of Orcutt, Kentch and final transfer Knutzen.

Clayton Jalakas won the 20 lap Clean Crawls Junior Sprint Main Event. Jalakas had led all the way until the last lap last week, but this time he led every lap in victory. Jalakas charged into lead when the green flag waved, followed by Oliver Kairis and Chase Whitney. The battle was close between the lead trio until Kairis encountered problems on Lap 14 with Whitney and Dustin Ramsey moving into second and third. McKenna Morgan settled into fourth and took third from Ramsey on Lap 17. Despite pressure from Whitney, Jalakas kept his cool and brought it home to a well-earned victory. Morgan ended up third, followed by point leader Brooklyn Constance, Ramsey, Jayce Medcalf, Avery Askvig, Karis and Sawyer Baxter. Whitney set the fast time of 13.210, beating the 13.255 of Constance. Medcalf and Constance were the eight lap heat race winners.

Racing takes a week off, but the Speed Mart Super 600 Micros, Shots 2 Go Espresso 1200 Mini Sprints, mytrafficman.net Restricted Micros and Clean Crawls Junior Sprints will all be in action on September 10th. For further information, go to www.demingspeedway.com.

Fugate, McIntyre, Beaudoin, Smith Win 

Final Wednesday Night Throwdown Races At Coos Bay

Coos Bay, Oregon...August 25...Braden Fugate won the 30 lap NASCAR America's Mattress Super Late Model Main Event Wednesday night at Coos Bay Speedway. This was his seventh win of the season as he keeps it very close behind Brody Montgomery in the championship battle. 

Fugate started on the pole and led from the outset. Only four drivers came to compete, and the race would have no yellow flags. Mike Taylor was second until being overtaken by Montgomery on the 16th lap. Fugate had built nearly a straightaway lead, and though Montgomery chipped away at it in the closing laps, Fugate still prevailed. Taylor settled for third ahead of Wayne Butler. Montgomery won the 10 lap heat race. 

Toby McIntyre won the 25 lap Street Stock Main Event. This was the third win of the season for the 2015 Late Model champion as he tuned up for the Battle At The Beach race the following Saturday. 

McIntyre started on the pole and jumped into the lead over Vince Christian and Loren McIntyre. Christian was subbing for his son Seth as the point leader was out of the state. Loren McIntyre took second from Christian on Lap 4, but he had problems on Lap 6 and faded to the back. Christian was second ahead of Steve Dubisar, but Dubisar moved into the position on Lap 10. Christian came roaring back on Lap 14, but Dubisar again regained the position on lap 17. A yellow flag slowed the action on Lap 19. The race was close at the front of the pack as Toby McIntyre led Dubisar and Christian on the restart. Dubisar was getting a good run on McIntyre in the closing laps, but he slipped up on the final lap as Christian got by. Toby McIntyre was the happy winner ahead of Christian, Dubisar, Ken Fox and Loren McIntyre. Toby McIntyre won the 10 lap heat race. Josh Bearden and Jesse McIntyre were both Main Event scratches.

Scott Beaudoin won the 25 lap Mini Outlaws Main Event. This was the seventh win of the season for Beaudoin as he holds a commanding lead in the championship battle. Despite this race being added during the week, they still managed to draw nine competitors for the show. Hornet star Kris Parker had the pole and led two laps before Beaudoin went motoring by. Tristen Davison took second from Parker on Lap 4. Unfortunately, Davison had mechanical issues on Lap 12, allowing Parker and Hannah Robison to move by for second and third in the non-stop event. On the 18th lap, Robison took second from Parker, and only the lead three competitors were on the lead lap at that point. Beaudoin held 2/3 of a lap advantage over Robison by the time the race ended with Parker third ahead of Jim Van Loon, Jamie Daniels, Steve Nichols, Michelle Cardwell, Davison and Stephanie Nix. Parker and Davison won the 10 lap heat races.

Griff Smith won the 20 lap Jr Stingers Main Event. This was the 15th win of the season for the point leader as the attempts to wrap up his fourth championship. Smith drew the pole position and motored ahead at the start of what was destined to be a non-stop race. Eli Luckman was an early second ahead of Cameron Metzgus. Second ranked Tallon Dubisar settled into fourth early on and took third from Metzgus on Lap 12. Dubisar overtook Luckman for second on Lap 15. However, Smith held a nearly half-lap lead over Tallon Dubisar by the time the race ended. Luckman settled for third ahead of Alex Butler, Metzgus, Max Haga, Tucker Dubisar, Tanner Dubisar and Payton Ashley. Smith and Tallon Dubisar picked up the eight lap heat race wins.

This was the final Wednesday Night Throwdown event, which was originally booked to showcase special Modified or Sport Modified races. However, due to IMCA not wanting to sanction Coos Bay there was limited support for either of those classes, and they were dropped with the Mini Outlaws added in their place for this final special race.

The August 28th event was to be another full slate of NASCAR racing action with an emphasis on the big Street Stock Battle At The Beach race. This will be followed by another round of NASCAR racing on September 4th, featuring the America's Mattress Super Late Models, Sportsman Late Models, Street Stocks, Mini Outlaws, Hornets, Juniors Stingers and OTRO Hardtops. For further information, go to www.coosbayspeedway.us.

Ross, Webster, Baker Win At Orland Raceway

Orland, CA...August 21...Keith Ross won the Pure Stock Main Event Saturday night at Orland Raceway. Ross has won the lions share of the races held on the 1/5 mile dirt oval this year, and that has him maintaining a 108 point lead over Scott Camper in the championship race. Full finishes were not made available at press time. Because of preliminary efforts, Maurice Merrill earned a total of 51 points for the night, while Ross had 50 points, past champion Paul Stephens had 48, Davis Etchieson had 47 and Mini Truck graduate Beau Miller was the fifth highest earner of the night with 45 tallies. There were 10 Pure Stocks for the show.

RJ Baker topped the field in the Wingless Spec Sprint class. Baker is a past runnerup in points, but he's been running with the Winged 360 Sprint Cars this year. He earned 55 points for the night, while point leader Denny McNary picked up 53 points, the Michelet Racing Team car earned 48 points in a tie with current point runnerup Nathan Johnson. Cassie Amore was the fifth highest earner for the night with 45 points as eight drivers competed. McNary leads Johnson 473-285 in the point battle. 

Dan Webster won the Mini Truck Main Event. Webster is well on his way to the championship with a 105 point advantage over Jason Libbee. Webster earned the most points for the night with 55, beating the 50 point total for Levi Tune, 49 points for Matt Kvalvik, 48 for Libbee and 46 for Zachary Baker as six drivers competed. 

Point leader Randy Hensley won the 250 Micro Sprint Main Event, meaning he's won six of the seven races held this year. Hensley had 55 points on the night as Ronnie Heyer had 52, Trason Taylor had 48 and Lester Elsey had 47. Hensley has a 49 point lead over Heyer in the point race.

Multi time champion Tom Davis won the Mini Stock Main Event. Davis has missed two races, effectively taking him out of the championship chase. He earned 55 points for the night, beating the 52 point total for Sean Perry and the 49 point effort of point leader Clayton Croman. Croman leads Perry by 42 points in the championship race.

To keep up to date with what's happening at the track, go to the Orland Raceway Facebook page.

 

 

Ocean Speedway Unofficial Race Results August 27
IMCA Modifieds
Jim Pettit II
JC Elrod
Cody Burke
Fred Lind
Steve Pemberton
Clay Daly
Raymond Keldsen Jr
Austin Burke DNS

IMCA Sport Modifieds
Richard Ragsdale
Max Baggett
Mike Kofnovec Jr
Kelly Campanile
Markus Frazier
Justin McPherson
Randy Miller
Adriane Frost
Willy Oathout
Nicolas Zapatero
Robert Miller
Jim DiGiovanni
Trevor Clymens
John Ferro
Tommy Clymens Jr
Scott Foster
Cody Bryan
Charlie Hunter
Codie Hample
Duane Bieser
Justin Parr
Ryan Foss
Jarrod Mounce
Mike Kofnovec Sr DNS

Hobby Stocks
Chad Ragsdale
Joe Gallaher
Norm Ayers
Ryan Muller
Jerry Skelton
Tony Oliveira
Mitch Lettunich

South Bay Dwarf Cars
Tommy Velasquez III
Brandon Wiley
Terre Rothweiler
Nick Velasquez
Punky Pires
Trent Morley
Eric Weisler
Joe Barket
Travis Day
Tom Morley
Tony Margott
Ryan Amlen
Eddy Claessen
Roberto Monroy
Barry Waddell
Keith Costas
Kieran Costas
Mack Aceves
Tommy Velasquez II

King of the West Sprints
Mitchell Faccinto
Ryan Robinson
Dominic Scelzi
Bud Kaeding
Shane Golobic
Rico Abreu
Kurt Nelson
Colby Copeland
Tim Kaeding
Mitchel Moles
Keith Day Jr
Justin Sanders
Billy Aton
Jessie Attard
Sean Becker
Brad Dillard
Brian Boswell
Richard Fajardo
Landon Brooks
D.J. Netto
Blake Carrick
Tanner Carrick
Robbie Price
Sean Watts


Merced Speedway Unofficial Race Results August 26
IMCA Sport Modifieds
Jarrod Mounce
Fred Ryland
Tyler Bannister
Jason Bannister
Monty Tomlinson
Chuck Weir
Richard Ragsdale
Riley Jeppesen
Jason Pugh
Gavin Espino
Tanner Thomas
Mark Squadrito
Jim DiGiovanni
Kodie Dean
Glen Cook
Jim Reed

Mini Stocks
Shawn DePriest
Leo Lotz
Brain Post
Shelby Neal
Russell Myers
Synthya Tremble

Mini Late Models
Carson Guthrie
Mason Morton
Brayden Morton
Ryder Jeppesen
Tyler Tucker

NARC/KWS Winged 410 Sprints
Justin Sanders
Dominic Scelzi
Colby Copeland
Tim Kaeding
Shane Golobic
Bud Kaeding
Robbie Price
Blake Carrick
Sean Becker
D.J. Netto
Mitchell Faccinto
Joel Myers Jr
Billy Aton
Landon Brooks
Sean Watts
Kurt Nelson
Corey Day
Mark Barroso
Jesse Attard
Rico Abreu
Tanner Carrick
Brian Boswell
Mitchel Moles


Coos Bay Speedway  Unofficial Race Results August 25
America's Mattress Super Late Models
Braden Fugate
Brody Montgomery
Mike Taylor
Wayne Butler

Street Stocks
Toby McIntyre
Vince Christian
Steve Dubisar
Ken Fox
Loren McIntyre
Josh Bearden DNS
Jesse McIntyre DNS

Mini Outlaws
Scott Beaudoin
Hannah Robison
Kris Parker
Jim Van Loon
Jamie Daniels
Steve Nichols
Michelle Cardwell
Tristen Davison
Stephanie Nix

Jr Stingers

Griff Smith
Tallon Dubisar
Eli Luckman
Alex Butler
Cameron Metzgus
Max Haga
Tucker dubisar
Tanner dubisar
Payton Ashley


Deming Speedway Unofficial Race Results August 27
Speed Mart Super 600s
1    #88w Jayden Whitney
2    #91 Jared Peterson
3    #22 Jesse Schlotfeldt
4    #23R Dylan Resch
5    #28B Blaine Granberg
6    #39K Kaitlyn Hammer
7    #11c Colin Mackey
8    #78P Spencer Constance
9    #11h Parker Hadlock
10    #22D Dakota Drake
11    #21 Jeremy Holz
12    #22R Ryley Mayer
13    #70 Macie Logsdon
14    #29 Levi Kuntz
15    #13c Tyler Conley
16    #54 Billy Coates
17    #23x Xan Miller
18    #11J Dylan Ault
19    #78 Haley Constance
20    #9t Tristin Thomas
21    #21Z Keira Zylstra

1200 Mini Sprints
A Main
Results are not official
1     #17 Derek Holmwood    
2     #71 Dustin O'Brien
3     #10D Dakota Drake
4     #6 Jared Gundersen
5     #5 Alex Lewis
6     #10L Brock Lemley
7     #92 Seth Hespe
8     #7 Dick Williams
9     #21k Bobby Michnowicz
10     #10S Frosty Metcalfe
11     #30 Terry Lewis
12     #10J Tyson Lemley
13     #89 Josh Monroe
14     #12 Tanner Schoonover
15     #76e Austin Edson
16     #6H Haylee Bloodgood    

mytrafficman.net Restricted 600s
A Main
Results are not official
1     #14c Carson Guffie
2     #40J Rylee Kentch
3     #21c Corbin Ramsey
4     #29 Levi Kuntz
5     #24L Levi Hillier
6     #22 Peyton Drake
7     #3D Destry Miller
8     #59M Mallory Fisher
9     #7o Axel Oudman
10     #71 Kane VanSickle
11     #54 Ryan Bright
12     #4D Diane Knutzen
13     #40 Cruz Kentch
14     #38B Dale Orcutt
15     #48z Zoey Tupper    
16     #91 Grace Matier

B Main
Results are not official
1     #91 Grace Matier
2     #38B Dale Orcutt
3     #40 Cruz Kentch
4     #4D Diane Knutzen
5     #52w Jeff Woolsey
6     #15H Hunter Cook
7     #12 Samantha Fraser

Northwest Focus Midgets
Results are not official
1     #24 Nick Evans
2     #95 Jesse Munn
3     #32 Jared Peterson
4     #7s Shane Smith
5     #09 Levi Harless
6     #32m Jake Munn
7     #5C Chris Foster
8     #90H Brian Holmkvist

Clean Crawls Jr Sprints
A Main
Results are not official
1     #21c Clayton Jalakas
2     #5W Chase Whitney
3     #68 McKenna Morgan
4     #78 Brooklyn Constance
5     #20d Dustin Ramsey
6     #23 Jayce Medcalf
7     #3 Avery Askvig
8     #67 Oliver Kairis
9     #88 Sawyer Baxter 

 

The Editor's Viewpoint 

Lately, I've gotten into the habit of doing Saturday afternoon posts covering Friday night racing. One of the reasons I've done this is because I'm focused enough to get all of the work done in a short amount of time and get it posted. Another reason for it is because the big posts I put out there during the week seem to be getting bigger and bigger. This is a way to make them smaller. Plus, it's another way to generate a few more views for the site.

It's kind of an interesting time for me as I'm coming up on some big decisions with some big announcements possibly forthcoming very soon. I've struggled mightily to maintain my blog just for the sake of putting articles out there. It's more about spreading the word than it is about generating anything my way, but I've struggled to keep a schedule. Needless to say, I was pleased when I was able to put up the Saturday night racing coverage post on Tuesday night. I haven't been that early with it in a long time, and most of the time I've been running late. I'll take that victory as I come close to wrapping up this phase of the media effort on the blog.

I wanted to talk about how lucky we are to have our race tracks open right now, and yet I want to catch myself. You see, I probably have an opinion on what we've been going through in the last year and a half that will annoy some people. It has found its way into this column in the past. I do wish people would think for themselves and not follow blindly. I wish people would go beyond watching one channel and just believing what they hear, but that's up to the individual. As I say on another show I do that isn't racing related, God give you a brain, use it. 

Businesses in general have been negatively affected by what we've been through. Some have closed down for good. It's been that bad. Others are struggling, because people don't want to go there. The fear is real, even if the narrative may not be so real. It is if you believe it is. Therefore, people are deciding how much they want to go out for entertainment purposes. People are debating whether they want to go out for dinner or just stay home. Do they want to go to a movie or just stay home. Racing is part of that. It's entertainment, and people are debating whether they want to go to the race track or not. 

I cautioned everybody last year about the effects we would feel from all of this. I wasn't going to do anything that I've done on this blog this year or last year. Last year it was my curiosity regarding how tracks could possibly open on any kind of a regular basis and not have fans in attendance. I think there was a major financial loss for several promoters. I think they kept the gates open to maintain some sort of continuity. At the end of the year, they couldn't have been happy with the bottom line, and many tracks were either paying a regular purse or offering more. Very few ran for 50% purse, as I think they probably should have in more instances.

People got comfortable with it. The racers still had the money to go racing. We weren't feeling the financial pinch yet, because the effects of shutting everything down wouldn't be fully felt until we were further down the road. Therefore, racers went racing. If their a home track was still not allowed to open, they were taking trips down the road. There were some shows with lots of cars in the pits because only some tracks could open. My warning back then was that when we could open the grandstands in the future, we were still not going to see what we had been seeing prior to 2020. The numbers were going to go down.

Sure, I knew there would be a pop once people were initially allowed back. You might see big crowds at first, but then people would debate whether they wanted to spend the money or not. Not only were the numbers in the stands going to go down at some places, the numbers in the pits were as well. Obviously, promoters are having a better year this year than they did last year. Some places couldn't open at all. The places that opened certainly weren't making that much money. You'd have to compare 2021 to 2019 when it comes to the business model, and I'm sure most honest promoters would tell you that they aren't making the money they did then. There may be a few bucking that trend, but that's not going to be the majority. 

I'm not going to get into the idea people have that there's a war against race tracks in California. I think there are other circumstances at work, although I'm not naive. I know there are people out there who want to see racing go away completely. That's not what's happening now. What I say to that idea before I move on is that you'll know when there's a coordinated attack against racing. You'll see several tracks in the crosshairs being attacked at the same time. Do I think that's going to happen? No. I guess you never know. These are interesting times we're living in.

Promoters believe they need to keep the continuity going. They need to keep the gates open and keep people used to coming. Even if your attendance is only 300 or 400 people who are just die hards or are connected with one of the race cars, you want to keep them engaged. You want to keep your local racers out there. If you've only got 30 or 40 drivers who you know will be there every time, you've got to give them a reason to be there. If you give fans or drivers a reason not to come out or just don't open for a while, they get out of the habit. Suddenly, you don't see them when you are open. Continuity is important.

This is where I will give the people down in Medford a pass when they were running around like Chicken Little talking about the sky falling after Mike McCann left. It was about the continuity. Mike looked around and didn't see any good financial reason to open the gates at all in 2020, and it didn't matter if people said he could do it without fans. They looked at the fact that the track was dormant for a year and figured if it happened again they'd be in deep trouble. The idea that nobody was going to open that place is still laughable to me. There was going to be a bidding process, and somebody was going to win. Some sort of season was going to happen this year, and it is happening.

The bottom line to keeping things going right now is you need to keep the continuity going. You need to do the best you can and at least attempt to generate revenue. If you don't feel you can do it, then you need to turn the keys of the gates over to somebody else willing to give it a try. You better hope there's somebody out there trying. That's why I think that people who consider themselves race fans who aren't happy with their home track are better served going somewhere else rather than attacking their home track. True, you can do it and hope something changes, but right now we have bigger issues to deal with.

Everything has opened up. There isn't a track out there on the West Coast that hasn't had a race this year. A couple of places have issues going on right now, but racing is happening. However, some things have started to emerge in recent weeks. We've been warned that there could be shutdowns around the corner in October, and I'm not ruling that out. It's not that I expect it to happen, but I'm not ruling it out. I don't know which way the wind is going to blow here. Some states are standing up against the ideas of shutdowns and other topics that I don't want to get into here. Others are embracing them. 

The caution light went off above my head a few weeks ago when it was announced in Eureka that they could only have 50% attendance in the grandstands due to higher cases. I knew that wouldn't put the track in danger, because they're not filling 50% of the grandstands these days. Very few tracks on the West Coast are, other than when they have special races. Tell them 50% is allowed, and it's still business as usual for most of them. However, that is a restriction. It might not be a restriction that hurts the track, but it is the first step towards something that could ultimately hurt them.

In Oregon, the governor is very conservative when it comes to all of this. She is looking at higher cases, and she has decided to put the mask mandate back into place. This takes effect as of Friday. I am one of those people who doesn't like to wear the muzzle on my face. However, a clever person who doesn't want to be tracked might take advantage of the situation. Wear a hoodie, sunglasses and a bandana around your face, and let's see how well you're identified at that point. I'm surprised this trend hasn't begun, but I bet it will if masks become the norm. It'll go hand in hand with the tracking they want to put on us. 

In saying that, I don't see it as a body autonomy issue. It's not really infringing upon me to put a mask on. I don't know if I want to hang around at any outdoor venue in the heat with a mask on my face, so I'd probably go against that and just stay home. I'm not going much of anywhere these days, so it's not an issue. I'm also not going to muzzle my face when I take walks by myself, although putting a mask on when I go into a store isn't that much of an inconvenience. It can be suffocating at times, but it's only for a short while. I'm not a person who likes large groups, so I don't worry about it.

That's just me, but it's going to be interesting to see how Oregonians react to this. It depends on what area you are from in the state. Race tracks will be required to make sure their patrons have masks on their faces now, and I'm curious how the people down in Medford and Coos Bay are going to be towards that. We saw the well documented case when it came to Drake Nelson at Coos Bay and what he felt about the mandates and everything else last year. He fought that with his middle fingers in the air all the way to the end. In any case, mask mandates are back as we end August. Is this a sign? 

Here's another good one. I haven't heard of any race track on the West Coast closing because of covid-19. Let me rephrase that. I know that tracks were closed because of the covid-19 situation last year, but a track closing because some of their staff members had tested positive is something different. Cottage Grove Speedway has canceled this weekend's races because some people tested positive. It was to be a two-day Wingless Sprint Car Series event, and now that's not happening. As they put people into quarantine for a couple of weeks, that might put the following week in jeopardy unless Heather has a plan to put people who haven't tested positive in charge that week.

That's the problem with me talking about these things on this site when I want to talk about racing. You can see a few of my feelings breaking through in my comments. What I will say is this is just a warning that we aren't completely through the other end of this thing yet. Could there be more shutdowns on the horizon? Could there be more restrictions put on tracks as far as how many people can be there? These are all very real possibilities. In the state of Oregon, almost all of the tracks will be done by the end of September, so it won't be as big a deal there. In California, you have tracks wanting to race all the way to the end of November.

A lot of people have speculated that California isn't being stricter right now because the governor is going through a recall effort. That election will take place in mid September, and then you might see things change. That will all depend on the outcome of the vote I suppose, but you can expect anything after that. Whatever you might feel about that, pro or con, auto racing still has to deal with it the same as any other business. We get our entertainment from this and it's a place to go on any given weekend. It's a source of revenue for the people who operate these racing facilities.

Promoters are navigating through this as best they can. I know last year I might have been inclined to reduce the purses, but I understand why most of the promoters didn't. I don't quite understand why tracks are raising the purse money as often as they are. At a time when money is tight, you don't want your track to be losing money. Even if you're not making a bunch of money promoting a race, breaking even ought to be the immediate goal. Therefore, you need to be looking more at your bottom line. That's the way I would look at it. You entice people to come out there in other ways that have more to do with treating your customers with respect. 

In any case, I just wanted to put my appreciation of the promoters on record here. They're not navigating through normal times right now. This is not the new normal and shouldn't be accepted as such in my opinion. However, these are the times we are living in, and you make the best of it. One of the reasons these tracks are open is because I think the people in charge of them want to give people some sense of normalcy. Being out at the track has a way of easing the stress levels of the people. For that night, they get away from the day-to-day stress they deal with during the week. It's so important to them.

Never take these race tracks for granted. Don't assume that they're going to be here forever. They depend on the business they get. Not everybody can afford to be there every week, but the true racing enthusiasts should be there when they can be. They should encourage others to be there when they can and do their part to support the business if they truly love it. 

You're not obligated to do so, just as promoters aren't obligated to keep the gates open. It's not an easy time for the racing promoters, but one thing really amazes me. There weren't too many of them who walked away from the sport during 2020 because of the shutdowns. Most of the ones who were running the tracks in 2019 are still fighting for them now.

When Placerville Speedway canceled the Wednesday show, The Fastest Five Days In Motorsports became the fastest four days for the NARC/King of the West Winged 410 Sprint Cars. Placerville later announced that Championship Night on Saturday was also canceled and announced who the champions are. Up next is the Placerville Posse race on Labor Day weekend, which features a big show for the Winged 360 Sprint Cars and the Hunt Wingless Sprint Series. It's interesting that this event was booked on top of the Louie Vermeil Memorial in Chico, but will it happen? I think there's a chance it gets canceled due to the fires as well.

Promoter Doug Lockwood is committed to not only having bigger races for his regular stock car classes. He also wants to give the fans a variety of different open wheel divisions to enjoy. When he had an opportunity to host the NARC/KWS Sprint Cars, he jumped at the chance. They kicked off the four race series on Thursday night at Merced Speedway, and there were 23 Winged 410 Sprint Cars on hand for the occasion. 16 IMCA Sport Modifieds showed up in support along with about a half-dozen Mini Late Models and Mini Stocks. Just enough to give the fans a good taste of racing and get the show done rapidly.

The track was in good shape, as illustrated by the 14.3 time turned in by Rico Abreu. That's a new track record for the group. I find it interesting that the series likes to run 24 cars in the Main Event. Merced is a quarter-mile oval and can be a little cramped out there. If there were a track where they could reduce the field a little bit, this would be it. Reducing it to 20 cars might help make the show go quicker and promote better racing at the front of the pack. It seemed there were yellow flags right when things were getting interesting, and they were usually caused by people who would have been in the B Main and probably wouldn't have made it into the show. 

This is an observation that I'm making, not an attack on the slower drivers. You need every driver in the field that you can get. I've seen some people say that such and such should be banned after what happened, and I disagree with that. The leaders know they're going to come up on slower cars and that it's part of the reality of the race. However, I do wonder if NARC should adjust their Main Event fields based on the tracks they are at. I think the show might have been just a little bit better had they started 20 cars instead of 23. Other than that, it was a good show and a nice way to kick off the series.

A night earlier, Coos Bay Speedway had the Wednesday Night Throwdown. To me, this is an exercise in futility by Promoter Drake Nelson. I believe he created this series as a way to try to get the Sport Modifieds and Modifieds to come to his track, but he was rejected by IMCA. He wanted the sanctioning and was told no. He attempted to make an appeal to the PSM to get them to support the first race for the Sport Modifieds earlier this year, but he was pretty much rejected. At that point, I think he should have taken the hint and stopped trying to cater to these guys. 

He was doing mid-week stuff a year ago during the pandemic. It was a different deal as Coos Bay was able to open more often than other Oregon tracks, and he was trying to take as much advantage of the situation as possible. My thought on IMCA sanctioning at this track is that the organization ought to make it happen, and it's pretty much a boneheaded move on their part not adding another option for drivers. I don't think Drake would want to do it with these classes on nights when other places are running them. We're talking different nights. If people can't make the trip to the coast to run for IMCA points, you're not likely to get them.

The other thing is it's just not a smart move running during the week. People have work to deal with, and it becomes a chore making a trip out to the coast. Tracks have been experimenting with Friday night races since all of the Oregon tracks usually run on Saturday nights. Cottage Grove started the trend with their Fast Fridays, and we've seen Willamette dabble with this. They're not doing it every week, and Drake could take note of that. If he really wanted a second night at the dirt track, all he'd need to do would be to pick four Friday nights during the year and give it a shot. He might get more visitors that way.

He made the commitment to run this Wednesday race, so he replaced the Modifieds with the Mini Outlaws, which had a combination of division regulars and Hornets. They matched the Junior Stingers with nine total cars, while the Street Stocks had seven in the America's Mattress Super Late Models had four. 

I don't think the Late Model drivers are crazy about going out there as much as they are, but they're pursuing that NASCAR money at the end of the season. They know they have to be there every time the track books a race. There might even be a race they'd like to go to out of town, but they can't go there when Coos Bay books a date. If there's a Wednesday date, they have to be there too. 

I think Nelson is damaging his Late Model effort by booking them the way he does. He needs to be aware that there are other places that run Late Models, and sometimes it's a big show. Some of his guys are going to go there, and he does lose cars on those occasions. Coos Bay is capable of delivering double-digit turnouts, but the schedule holds it back. I think that's unfortunate, but I don't know if Nelson is going to take notes and learn from the way this year has gone or not. In any case, the Wednesday show ran rapidly and was done before you knew it.

Drake is also fortunate to have Daren Ricks Campbell step up to the plate and help him promote the Street Stock Battle At The Beach for this Saturday night. Had it gone the way it was looking a few weeks ago, he might have had a dozen or 14 cars. What Campbell did was jump in and get a few thousand dollars worth of sponsorship and get the commitments of over 20 drivers to come to Coos Bay this Saturday night. 

This will be the biggest Street Stock race of the year in Oregon now that the Iron Giant race at Willamette Speedway is in the past. You'll have some of the best drivers from throughout Oregon participating in this show. Coos Bay Speedway has had some positives this year, and this is one of them. Nelson might want to note that he can emphasize other divisions on his roster and get big turnouts, allowing him to give some of his divisions a night off here or there. In this way, he could even work with other tracks and gain more that way as well.

It's Friday night and I'm composing a few final thoughts for this column. I actually have a few ideas on things I'd like to say, but not this week. Everything above this has already been gone over, so I'm not going to update what was written there. I'm going to point out that my speculation in regards to Placerville Speedway concerning Labor Day weekend was spot on. The Winged 360 Sprint Car and Hunt Wingless Sprint Series event has been canceled due to the fire crews still at the fairgrounds. The Hunt Series entertained going to Chico that weekend instead but decided against it.

One of the tracks I might be covering in this particular post would be Cottage Grove Speedway, which was to host races tonight and tomorrow for the Wingless Sprint Series along with the IMCA Modifieds and IMCA Sport Modifieds. Track management had to cancel this weekend due to the fact that some of the staff members had tested positive for covid-19. I know that Heather Boyce takes all of the procedures and regulations seriously when it comes to covid-19, so it doesn't surprise me that they have testing going on and would make this move if necessary.

Track announcer Ben Deatherage has given us an update on himself and his wife and their newborn baby. It sounds like he and his wife have tested positive, and she's struggling in the hospital as of the last report I got. Ben hasn't reported that he was showing any symptoms. In any case, any prayers and positive thoughts towards the Deatherage family and other staff members at Cottage Grove Speedway are appreciated. As I mentioned above, I don't know if they will be able to have next week's races as scheduled. At a time like this, there are more important things to worry about anyway.

I noticed that there were some Gunslinger Sprint Cars at Roseville practicing tonight and they will be running on Saturday along with the BCRA Vintage Midgets. They'll be doing qualifying to attempt to set a Gunslinger Sprint Car record, and then they will have a 15 lap exhibition. The Vintage Midgets will also be having an exhibition heat and Main. I understand they are doing this in part two test the sound issues and the viability of perhaps doing more Sprint Car stuff there in the future. These two divisions are joining the program the track would regularly book this Saturday. Having Promoter Bill MacAnally as an ally to try to help promote Sprint Car racing on the pavement in Northern California is a good thing. 

On the dirt you know that you have John Prentice as an ally to promote Sprint Car racing at Ocean Speedway. They had a really good night scheduled with five divisions of racing, headlined by the second round of the Fastest Four Days In Motorsports series for the NARC/King of the West Sprint Cars. There were 24 Winged 410 Sprint Cars for this race and the same amount of cars for the IMCA Sport Modifieds. They had about 20 South Bay Dwarf Cars, but neither the IMCA Modifieds nor the Hobby Stocks checked in with 10 cars. The IMCA Modifieds probably had the most exciting finish of the evening as State point leader Jim Pettit II stole the glory from JC Elrod on the last lap.

Long time Stock Car fans at Watsonville and Merced will know the name Ragsdale. Tim Ragsdale kicked a few butts through the years in Stock Cars and Street Stocks at both tracks and is a past Merced champion. These days, his sons Richard Ragsdale and Chad Ragsdale are both racing. It just so happens that both of them were down at Watsonville, and it turned out to be a good thing that they were. First, Richard Ragsdale won a good battle with Max Baggett to claim the IMCA Sport Modified Main Event. Then, Chad Ragsdale turned in a rather dominant performance in getting Hobby Stock win. It was the first career win for both drivers.

It looks like Tommy Velasquez III has wrapped up the South Bay Dwarf Car title after his sixth win. Tommy has been making the trip north from Camarillo to race at Watsonville along with several visits to Antioch. I believe his family is involved in trying to spark some new life in the southern end of California for the Dwarf Cars using Western States Dwarf Car rules. If I am hearing correctly, they are involved in the Dwarf Car show that is being put on at Kern Raceway on September 11th. That night will also feature bigger money races for both the Dirt Modifieds and the Sport Modifieds as it's a Motor City Throwdown race. Even bigger money will be on the line for both of those divisions in December as the track honors the memory of Jerm "The Worm" Smith. 

Tom Sagmiller had the track prepped well once again, and this led to a new Sprint Car track record in qualifying with a lap of 10.734. Usually when you see somebody win the Trophy Dash in the Sprint Cars, it bodes well for them doing the same in the Main Event. Mitchell Faccinto picked up the Dash win and turned around and led all the way to win the Main Event. It was actually a close race at the front of the pack, but it seemed like anytime something got really interesting there was a yellow or a red flag. This was similar to what happened at Merced the night before, but I don't think it was the back markers bringing up the issues this time.

Regardless, it was a good show to go out on. There won't be any racing at Watsonville for another month. They called this Championship Night, although I don't know if any championship other than that of the South Bay Dwarf Cars was decided. Do they end the Hobby Stock point race here, or does it end at the Pat and Jim Pettit Memorial Shootout at the end of September? Since that big event is IMCA sanctioned and it's within the IMCA point window, that's when the championships will be decided for the Sport Modifieds and Modifieds. Given the fact that there will be bigger car counts than normal, both division titles will definitely be up for grabs then in addition to the extra money. 

Deming Speedway had a nice five division lineup on the 1/6 mile clay oval. This time, the Super 600 Micro Sprint class was a bit rough and took a while to get done. It's interesting that they were struggling to get their race completed just as the NARC/KWS race was having similar issues at Watsonville. However, everything else seemed to go very smoothly. They had just over 70 total cars competing in the program, and the Restricted Sprints again needed a B Main. One of the things interesting to me was they only ran 16 cars in the Restricted feature, while they started 21 in the Super 600s. I'm not sure how that works, but that's the way they did it. 

Again, the kids of the Junior Sprints were the ones that caught my attention. Last week I was monitoring young Clayton Jalakas as he seemed to be headed for the victory, only to be passed by Brooklyn Constance on the last lap. Clayton led all the way this time, and nobody would make a late pass and steal anything from him. I can just imagine he had to be a happy young man this time. Deming Speedway has a reputation of being one of the best facilities on the West Coast for Micro Sprint and Mini Sprint racing, and it doesn't look like they disappointed this time either.

I'm slowing my mind down here as I wrap up this column. I'm half tempted to do a new audio show to accompany this post, but I don't think it's a wise decision on my part. I need to go over the remainder of this column and then do the Deming Speedway article. I'm earlier for the special Friday night racing recap post than I've been this year. I'm not sure why things are going as smoothly as they are lately, but maybe it has something to do with me being in a better mood at the moment. I guess I better finish editing and put this one out.

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