Got some results from Orland, so I thought I'd put a little story together. No results from the Wingless Spec Sprints. There have been some cases when a division or two competed at the track, but results weren't posted. Not sure if that was the case here or not. As always, statistics here are unofficial.
Racing resumed at Orland Speedway on the one-fifth mile clay oval Saturday night. When the checkers fell on the Main Events, it was Rich Hood (Hobby Stocks), Tyler Pebley (Mini Trucks) and "Wild" Bill Nobel (Mini Stocks) collecting the victories.
The Hobby Stocks ran two heat races with the top two in each earning Trophy Dash starts. Hood grabbed the win in his heat in front of Earl Adams. The other heat went to the #7t car (still no name on this driver) ahead of Brian Compton. Compton scored another Trophy Dash victory. Come Main Event time, it was Hood out front and bringing it home to victory. Adams matched his season best effort with a second place finish in front of season opener winner and four time point runner up Steve Martin. The #7t car and Compton rounded out the top five in front of two more unidentified drivers, the #10x car and the #19 car.
There were ten Mini Trucks in action with the first heat race win going to Keith Ross in front of Richard Gale. Pebley started his night off right with a heat win in front of an unidentified driver in the #22 truck. Gale won the Trophy Dash. Pebley started the season off with back to back feature wins, and this was his night to shine as he won another Main Event. A top five point runner in trucks at Orland in 2006, Dan Webster brought it home second with Gale wrapping up a solid night in third. The #22 truck was fourth, followed by Ross Vige, Zack Webster, Keith Ross, Leroy Beck and an unidentified driver in the #21 truck. A feature winner in June, Jim Davis scratched after his heat race.
In Mini Stock competition, "Wild" Bill Nobel got behind the wheel of the #86 car and enjoyed a perfect night in winning the heat race, Trophy Dash and Main Event. Eric Hammond was second in the heat race before turning over the driving duties to Joe Kneip for the Main Event. Don Runkle took the wheel of the #23 car of Olin Crain and finished second in the Main Event ahead of Preston Irvin and Kneip.
Racing resumes at Orland Speedway next Saturday night with Hobby Stocks, Mini Trucks, Mini Stocks, 4 Cylinder Modifieds and Wingless Spec Sprints scheduled to appear.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Damitz, McCown Collect Antioch Speedway Victories
A wild and exciting night at the races produced plenty of action and a few surprises Saturday night. Coming from the back of the pack, ageless veteran Larry Damitz scored his second Super Stock feature win of the season. In a crowd pleasing Hobby Stock race, Wes Bentley led 19 laps in search of his first win, only to be beat back to the line by Dan McCown, who collected his first win of the season. Dan Gonderman grabbed his first win of the year in a crash shortened and brutal Dirt Modified feature. Watsonville visitor Robert Mesloh impressed with his Dwarf Car feature win, and point leader Travis Dutra won another Mini Truck Main Event. Making his first appearance since a brutal crash left him hospitalized lasy year, Roy Fisher was back in his Wingless Spec Sprint for some hot laps.
The Super Stocks ran two heat races, and Larry Damitz won the first heat with Mitch Machado and Michael Newman not far behind him. Mike Gustafson added another preliminary victory to his win totals with his heat race victory ahead of Fred Ryland.
Lloyd Cline and Jon Haney brought to Super Stock feature to the green flag with Machado and Damitz sharing the fourth row. Haney charged into the lead with Eric Berendsen riding the outside line into second. Ryland used a high pass in Turn 1 of the fourth lap to take third from Cline. On lap six, Ryland beat Berendsen back to the line to take over second on the inside groove. Michael Newman and Damitz both passed Cline on the outside on lap nine to grab fourth and fifth. Damitz made an inside pass on lap 11 to take fourth from Newman and crossed the line in a dead heat with Berendsen for third. When Damitz pushed high with Berendsen on the outside in Turn 2 on lap 12, Newman raced by both for third. Meanwhile, Haney and Ryland had a good lead over the rest of the pack. Gustafson stalled in Turn 4 for a lap 12 caution flag to bunch the field. Ryland made a pit stop during the caution period, and Haney chose the outside for the restart. As Haney continued to lead, Damitz got underneath Newman in Turn 2 with Machado running on the outside. There was contact as Machado moved into second and Damitz held onto third. Newman pitted with a flat tire. The lead trio ran in close formation, and an inside move on the front stretch of the 16th lap put Machado into the lead. You could throw a blanket over the lead three cars as they entered Turn 3 of the 17th lap. Damitz got a good run on the inside and passed both cars for the lead by the time they exited Turn 4. Machado got a flat tire in Turn 4 and would retire. Damitz would bring it home to a hard fought victory. Haney settled for second with Cline a season best third. Lori Brown took a checkered flag in fourth ahead of Berendsen, Ryland and Gustafson.
The eight Hobby Stocks ran one heat race with the win going to Melissa Hansen ahead of Dan McCown and Jack Jonker. Joe Cancilla and Wes Bentley brought the field down for the green flag in the feature as Hansen started back in eighth. Bentley led Cancilla and McCown on the opening lap. Going down the back stretch, contact between Jack Jonker and McCown sent McCown spinning for a caution flag. Bentley chose the inside on the restart and continued to lead Cancilla and previous feature winner Chris Sorensen. Hansen gained third on the back stretch of the third lap. Coming to the line to complete the third lap, David Smith and Pat Gooding tangled, ending the race for Smith. Bentley stayed with the inside for the restart and continued to lead Cancilla and Hansen. McCown moved past Hansen and made a back stretch pass on Cancilla for second on lap seven. McCown was working the inside in an attempt to pass Bentley, but he got out of shape in Turn 2 of the ninth lap, allowing Cancilla to race by on the outside for second. Hansen made an outside move a lap later to take third from McCown. Racing to the line to complete lap 12, Cancilla popped a right front tire after contact with Bentley as Hansen and McCown were now second and third. Working the inside, Hansen actually beat Bentley back to the line to lead lap 13, but Bentley regained the position by the time they exited Turn 4 a lap later. McCown was giving Bentley all the pressure he could handle with McCown and Sorensen running close behind in a four car race up front. Hansen had a flat right rear tire as they entered Turn 1 for the final lap. Bentley got out of shape exiting Turn 2, allowing McCown to move underneath for a side by side battle for the lead down the back stretch. This battle went to the checkered flag as McCown took the checkered flag a few inches ahead of Bentley. Jonker made a nice last lap charge to finish third ahead of Sorensen and Hansen.
There were 17 Dirt Modifieds in action, and they ran three heat races to set the grid for their Main Event. Bobby Motts Jr. and Dan Gonderman engaged in an exciting side by side battle for the first heat race win with Motts coming out ahead. Troy Foulger wouldn't let two caution flags keep him from cruising to a win in the second heat in front of Jeff Thomas. Andy Angelo out dueled Mike Salazar to capture the third heat race win. The top two in each heat also got to run a Trophy Dash with Salazar scoring a popular victory ahead of Thomas.
Motts and Foulger brought the feature to the green flag with Foulger setting the early pace. Motts settled into second ahead of Angelo, and a lap 2 caution flag flew for a spin in Turn 3. Foulger chose the outside and continued to lead Motts on the restart as Thomas raced into third. Thomas hit a rut in Turn 1 on lap three with the left side of his car getting a little air. He fell back a few positions as Angelo regained third. A spin on the back stretch caused a four car pileup for a lap four caution flag. Foulger led another lap before Sean O'Gara stalled in Turn 4 for another caution flag. Mike Salazar grabbed third on the restart, nearly spun on the back stretch and continued on in third as Foulger continued to lead Motts. An Angelo spin in Turn 4 brought out a lap seven caution flag. Foulger led Motts on the restart as Kenny Neu rode the outside groove into third. Working lap nine, Neu suffered a mechanical problem in Turn 1 and went to the high side. Salazar spun in front of the pack exiting Turn 2 and another caution flag flew. With the high side to his liking on the restart, Foulger continued to set the pace ahead of Motts as Aaron Crowell took third from Gonderman. A Turn 2 spin brought out a lap ten caution flag. Surprisingly, track officials continued to run double file restarts at this point, and Motts surprised by charging into Turn 1 with the lead on the inside. An inside move on the back stretch of the 12th lap regained Foulger the lead as Crowell ran a close third. Working lap 15, Nick DeCarlo made an inside move on Crowell, there was contact, Crowell brushed the back wall and spun sideways in front of the pack. Fortunately, there was no contact, and the yellow flag flew. DeCarlo was disqualified for what track officials deemed rough driving. On yet another double file restart, Foulger continued to lead Motts. Motts got a run on the inside down the back stretch, but there was contact, putting Foulger into the wall. Motts then slammed the back wall and got into the air, but the worst was yet to come. Joe Carr and Sean Wilson had nowhere to go and crashed in with Carr rolling violently down the back stretch for a red flag. Running third at the time, Gonderman made it through the carnage and would win the shortened race ahead of Terry DeCarlo, Norm Boeck, Todd Hermosillo and Salazar.
There were 13 Dwarf Cars in action, and they ran two heat races. Incoming point leader Nick Squatritto fell out of the first heat, and Jerry Doty picked up some points with his victory as Tom Brown charged to a second place finish. Taking the lead when Tony Carmignani fell off the pace and retired, Ricardo Rivera won the second head ahead of Watsonville competitor Robert Mesloh.
In the Dwarf Car feature, Squatrito's night went from bad to worse when he tangled with Chuck Golden in Turn 2 to cause a restart and end his night. Dan Liston led Duane Jordan back to the line to lead the opening lap as Mesloh settled into third. Jordan raced back into the lead on the back stretch. Jordan spun from the lead in Turn 2 to bring out a lap two caution flag. Liston picked the inside on the restart, only to watch Mesloh race past him on the outside exiting Turn 2. Rivera ran right behind Liston in third. Coming out of Turn 2 working the fourth lap, Liston got sideways in front of Rivera and they crashed for a caution flag. Both restarted in the rear. Mesloh chose the inside for the restart and led Clayton Dortzbach, Doty and Charlie Correia. A low move in Turn 4 of the fifth lap gained Rivera fifth from Mike Corsaro, and an inside pass in Turn 1 of the sixth lap put Doty into second. Rivera stuck it up on the high side in Turn 4 and took fourth from Correia on lap seven. An outside back stretch pass on lap eight gained Rivera third from Dortzbach. Liston spun in Turn 2 for a lap 12 caution flag. As Mesloh led the single file restart, Correia got a good run in Turn 4 and charged all the way into second. A low move in Turn 2 of the 14th lap regained Doty second. Rivera tried to make an inside pass on the back stretch, but contact saw him back off and regroup in fourth. Moments later, Rivera made the pass on Correia on the outside on the front stretch. Mesloh cruised to an impressive victory leaving the battle for second. Rivera moved along side Doty on the back stretch of the final lap, but Doty fought him off in Turns 3 and 4 to hold on for second. Rivera settled for third ahead of Dortzbach, Corsaro and Duane Jordan.
A short field of Mini Trucks ran one heat race. Dean Cline led two laps before falling out with mechanical woes as Travis Dutra won ahead of Ray Bunn. Cline scratched from the feature, but Greg Williams joined the action to keep it at five trucks. Dutra and Bunn brought the field to the green flag with Dutra charging into the lead. On lap five, Bunn attempted an inside pass in Turn 4 but got out of shape, allowing Dutra to pull ahead by a few truck lengths. Wagner ran closely behind Bunn for several laps. On lap 12, Bunn pushed high exiting Turn 2, allowing Wagner to race by for second. There was no stopping Dutra as he cruised to victory ahead of Wagner, Bunn and Ron Mayberry.
Next Saturday, the Golden State Challenge Series Sprint Cars make their final Antioch appearance of the season in a show that will also include the track's Dwarf Car division.
The Super Stocks ran two heat races, and Larry Damitz won the first heat with Mitch Machado and Michael Newman not far behind him. Mike Gustafson added another preliminary victory to his win totals with his heat race victory ahead of Fred Ryland.
Lloyd Cline and Jon Haney brought to Super Stock feature to the green flag with Machado and Damitz sharing the fourth row. Haney charged into the lead with Eric Berendsen riding the outside line into second. Ryland used a high pass in Turn 1 of the fourth lap to take third from Cline. On lap six, Ryland beat Berendsen back to the line to take over second on the inside groove. Michael Newman and Damitz both passed Cline on the outside on lap nine to grab fourth and fifth. Damitz made an inside pass on lap 11 to take fourth from Newman and crossed the line in a dead heat with Berendsen for third. When Damitz pushed high with Berendsen on the outside in Turn 2 on lap 12, Newman raced by both for third. Meanwhile, Haney and Ryland had a good lead over the rest of the pack. Gustafson stalled in Turn 4 for a lap 12 caution flag to bunch the field. Ryland made a pit stop during the caution period, and Haney chose the outside for the restart. As Haney continued to lead, Damitz got underneath Newman in Turn 2 with Machado running on the outside. There was contact as Machado moved into second and Damitz held onto third. Newman pitted with a flat tire. The lead trio ran in close formation, and an inside move on the front stretch of the 16th lap put Machado into the lead. You could throw a blanket over the lead three cars as they entered Turn 3 of the 17th lap. Damitz got a good run on the inside and passed both cars for the lead by the time they exited Turn 4. Machado got a flat tire in Turn 4 and would retire. Damitz would bring it home to a hard fought victory. Haney settled for second with Cline a season best third. Lori Brown took a checkered flag in fourth ahead of Berendsen, Ryland and Gustafson.
The eight Hobby Stocks ran one heat race with the win going to Melissa Hansen ahead of Dan McCown and Jack Jonker. Joe Cancilla and Wes Bentley brought the field down for the green flag in the feature as Hansen started back in eighth. Bentley led Cancilla and McCown on the opening lap. Going down the back stretch, contact between Jack Jonker and McCown sent McCown spinning for a caution flag. Bentley chose the inside on the restart and continued to lead Cancilla and previous feature winner Chris Sorensen. Hansen gained third on the back stretch of the third lap. Coming to the line to complete the third lap, David Smith and Pat Gooding tangled, ending the race for Smith. Bentley stayed with the inside for the restart and continued to lead Cancilla and Hansen. McCown moved past Hansen and made a back stretch pass on Cancilla for second on lap seven. McCown was working the inside in an attempt to pass Bentley, but he got out of shape in Turn 2 of the ninth lap, allowing Cancilla to race by on the outside for second. Hansen made an outside move a lap later to take third from McCown. Racing to the line to complete lap 12, Cancilla popped a right front tire after contact with Bentley as Hansen and McCown were now second and third. Working the inside, Hansen actually beat Bentley back to the line to lead lap 13, but Bentley regained the position by the time they exited Turn 4 a lap later. McCown was giving Bentley all the pressure he could handle with McCown and Sorensen running close behind in a four car race up front. Hansen had a flat right rear tire as they entered Turn 1 for the final lap. Bentley got out of shape exiting Turn 2, allowing McCown to move underneath for a side by side battle for the lead down the back stretch. This battle went to the checkered flag as McCown took the checkered flag a few inches ahead of Bentley. Jonker made a nice last lap charge to finish third ahead of Sorensen and Hansen.
There were 17 Dirt Modifieds in action, and they ran three heat races to set the grid for their Main Event. Bobby Motts Jr. and Dan Gonderman engaged in an exciting side by side battle for the first heat race win with Motts coming out ahead. Troy Foulger wouldn't let two caution flags keep him from cruising to a win in the second heat in front of Jeff Thomas. Andy Angelo out dueled Mike Salazar to capture the third heat race win. The top two in each heat also got to run a Trophy Dash with Salazar scoring a popular victory ahead of Thomas.
Motts and Foulger brought the feature to the green flag with Foulger setting the early pace. Motts settled into second ahead of Angelo, and a lap 2 caution flag flew for a spin in Turn 3. Foulger chose the outside and continued to lead Motts on the restart as Thomas raced into third. Thomas hit a rut in Turn 1 on lap three with the left side of his car getting a little air. He fell back a few positions as Angelo regained third. A spin on the back stretch caused a four car pileup for a lap four caution flag. Foulger led another lap before Sean O'Gara stalled in Turn 4 for another caution flag. Mike Salazar grabbed third on the restart, nearly spun on the back stretch and continued on in third as Foulger continued to lead Motts. An Angelo spin in Turn 4 brought out a lap seven caution flag. Foulger led Motts on the restart as Kenny Neu rode the outside groove into third. Working lap nine, Neu suffered a mechanical problem in Turn 1 and went to the high side. Salazar spun in front of the pack exiting Turn 2 and another caution flag flew. With the high side to his liking on the restart, Foulger continued to set the pace ahead of Motts as Aaron Crowell took third from Gonderman. A Turn 2 spin brought out a lap ten caution flag. Surprisingly, track officials continued to run double file restarts at this point, and Motts surprised by charging into Turn 1 with the lead on the inside. An inside move on the back stretch of the 12th lap regained Foulger the lead as Crowell ran a close third. Working lap 15, Nick DeCarlo made an inside move on Crowell, there was contact, Crowell brushed the back wall and spun sideways in front of the pack. Fortunately, there was no contact, and the yellow flag flew. DeCarlo was disqualified for what track officials deemed rough driving. On yet another double file restart, Foulger continued to lead Motts. Motts got a run on the inside down the back stretch, but there was contact, putting Foulger into the wall. Motts then slammed the back wall and got into the air, but the worst was yet to come. Joe Carr and Sean Wilson had nowhere to go and crashed in with Carr rolling violently down the back stretch for a red flag. Running third at the time, Gonderman made it through the carnage and would win the shortened race ahead of Terry DeCarlo, Norm Boeck, Todd Hermosillo and Salazar.
There were 13 Dwarf Cars in action, and they ran two heat races. Incoming point leader Nick Squatritto fell out of the first heat, and Jerry Doty picked up some points with his victory as Tom Brown charged to a second place finish. Taking the lead when Tony Carmignani fell off the pace and retired, Ricardo Rivera won the second head ahead of Watsonville competitor Robert Mesloh.
In the Dwarf Car feature, Squatrito's night went from bad to worse when he tangled with Chuck Golden in Turn 2 to cause a restart and end his night. Dan Liston led Duane Jordan back to the line to lead the opening lap as Mesloh settled into third. Jordan raced back into the lead on the back stretch. Jordan spun from the lead in Turn 2 to bring out a lap two caution flag. Liston picked the inside on the restart, only to watch Mesloh race past him on the outside exiting Turn 2. Rivera ran right behind Liston in third. Coming out of Turn 2 working the fourth lap, Liston got sideways in front of Rivera and they crashed for a caution flag. Both restarted in the rear. Mesloh chose the inside for the restart and led Clayton Dortzbach, Doty and Charlie Correia. A low move in Turn 4 of the fifth lap gained Rivera fifth from Mike Corsaro, and an inside pass in Turn 1 of the sixth lap put Doty into second. Rivera stuck it up on the high side in Turn 4 and took fourth from Correia on lap seven. An outside back stretch pass on lap eight gained Rivera third from Dortzbach. Liston spun in Turn 2 for a lap 12 caution flag. As Mesloh led the single file restart, Correia got a good run in Turn 4 and charged all the way into second. A low move in Turn 2 of the 14th lap regained Doty second. Rivera tried to make an inside pass on the back stretch, but contact saw him back off and regroup in fourth. Moments later, Rivera made the pass on Correia on the outside on the front stretch. Mesloh cruised to an impressive victory leaving the battle for second. Rivera moved along side Doty on the back stretch of the final lap, but Doty fought him off in Turns 3 and 4 to hold on for second. Rivera settled for third ahead of Dortzbach, Corsaro and Duane Jordan.
A short field of Mini Trucks ran one heat race. Dean Cline led two laps before falling out with mechanical woes as Travis Dutra won ahead of Ray Bunn. Cline scratched from the feature, but Greg Williams joined the action to keep it at five trucks. Dutra and Bunn brought the field to the green flag with Dutra charging into the lead. On lap five, Bunn attempted an inside pass in Turn 4 but got out of shape, allowing Dutra to pull ahead by a few truck lengths. Wagner ran closely behind Bunn for several laps. On lap 12, Bunn pushed high exiting Turn 2, allowing Wagner to race by for second. There was no stopping Dutra as he cruised to victory ahead of Wagner, Bunn and Ron Mayberry.
Next Saturday, the Golden State Challenge Series Sprint Cars make their final Antioch appearance of the season in a show that will also include the track's Dwarf Car division.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Antioch Speedway Back in Action Saturday Night
John Soares Jr. is a busy man these days. Think what you want about him, and I know people will, but he is all in when it comes to racing. As he contemplates what to do with Racing Wheels Magazine and prepares to open the gates July 18th at Merced Speedway, he continues to guide the good ship Antioch Speedway, now in his 13th season at the helm. Consider this. The only person to promote the track longer that John now is the man who opened it to weekly racing in 1961, his father John Soares Sr.
On Saturday, a five division program is set to run. It was originally to be a seven division show, but something very interesting happened along the way. John has been trying to establish his own 360 Sprint Car program with a limited schedule, but in the interest of working with other tracks, he removed both the 360 Sprints and Wingless Spec Sprints from this date.
Now, I'm not trying to read too much into this, but the closest track to Antioch, Petaluma Speedway, has both divisions scheduled for Saturday. John's brother Jim Soares promotes that track. Perhaps this is a sign that the Soares brothers are working together? I, for one, hope so. If they do work together more in the future on letting each track have access to more cars during the season, the real winner will be the racers and the fans, and that, in turn, is a positive for BOTH tracks. Just a thought.
Anyway, it is a five division show, and I'm setting the over/under number at 62. I probably should aim a little higher. I believe the Dirt Modifieds will be crashing down the gates to get in. The Dwarf Cars should also be big, but every time I expect that car count to be big, it falls short. So, 62 is where I'm putting it, but I expect it will be higher.
On the card for this one are, Dirt Modifieds (20), Super Stocks (10), Hobby Stocks (12), Dwarf Cars (12) and Mini Trucks (8).
Young Nick DeCarlo is a champion running various classes on the smaller tracks of Vallejo, Dixon and Stockton. Over the past couple of years, "Quick Nick" has made his presence known at Antioch, and he was second in points last season. That is the highest ranking of any of his family at the track, and he is sitting in second once again. Earlier this year, he finally grabbed his first UMP Dirt Modified feature win, and at the recent race at the track, he got into a Hardtop and beat his father Terry DeCarlo for a feature win. Both had to have ear to ear smiles as they ran side by side for several laps.
Nick might be leading the points, but for one problem. Troy Foulger has made his presence known at the track with several impressive drives to net him a six point advantage. Despite Foulger having more feature wins, it remains this close due to DeCarlo's consistency. Consistency will be the key as the division begins it's stretch run to the final checkered flag of 2010. There are seven races left, and every one of them will count. Foulger seems like he may be the driver to beat, but it doesn't matter what was done before this point. It matters what happens next.
To that end, Jeff Thomas sits within shouting distance, 30 points out of the lead. Jeff has yet to win this year, but his ability to grab top five finishes has him in contention. Can he take it up a notch and grab that first win? Only one driver has more that one feature win in the first six point races, and that is Foulger with three. DeCarlo, Joe Carr and two time champion Kenny Neu each have one. The duo ranked fourth and fifth in points, Norman Boeck and past Street Stock champion Bobby Mots Jr., are two others looking fir that with. Both have top five feature finishes this year.
Mitch Machado is the man after eight Super Stock races. Half of the feature wins belong to him, as well as a 30 point lead over Larry Damitz. As car count has increased over the last three races, so has Machado's point lead. However, the competition is getting tougher, and it was Mike Gustafson, a three time champion at the track, winning the most recent feature. The other wins belong to Damitz (one) and Rookie Of The Year hopeful Fred Ryland (two). Ryland only trails Damitz by ten points for second, 40 points out of the lead.
But, the interesting thing now is that the competition is getting tougher. Two time Street Stock champion Michael Newman and one time Street Stock champ Todd Gomez have made their season debuts in the last two races, as has another past Limited Late Model champion, Lori Brown. After scoring a few top three feature finishes in a row in Mini Trucks this season, Jon Haney finally brought out his Super Stock. As car count grows, the competition gets tougher, and Machado will have a harder time getting wins. Knowing the competitor that he is, he wouldn't have it any other way.
While Eric Berendsen sits comfortably in fourth at the moment, a battle is brewing for fifth. Currently, Natalie Perry leads Lloyd Cline by six points. Cline was a top five driver in the class last season. While these two maybe haven't been the fastest in the field, their support of the division has been very important while car count was down to six.
Before we get into the championship battle, which is closer than it looked last time, let's look at some racers further in the pack in the Hobby Stock division. You need ALL of the drivers to make a show in any division, and the support of racers like Wes Bentley, Pat Gooding, Randy Metzler and David Smith has made a difference. Bentley, who is a heat race winner this year, finished sixth in the most recent race and is ninth in the standings coming into this race. Gooding's top ten finish in the latest race moved him into tenth in the standings. A rookie this year, Smith has struggled a bit in 12th in the standings, but the more lap time he gets, the more he will be somebody to keep an eye on. Metzler hasn't made all of the races, but he's run strong in the last two events.
Meanwhile, the teamwork of two time winner Melissa Hansen, who I believe is slated to drive this week, and one time winner and rookie Brad Myers, has the #33 car leading two time winner Chris Sorensen by 22 points in the championship battle. Sorensen has been running strong lately, and he should not be counted out as the battle hits the stretch run. Other winners in the first seven races are Eric Schantin and Jack Jonker. Jonker's Team #99 teammate Jim Freethy actually crossed the line first the night Schantin got the win, but was disqualified in post race tech. This has left the Team #99 car a bit behind the leaders in the standings, but they have just moved into the fifth position following Freethy's third place finish in the most recent race.
A past Pure Stock champion, the steady Dan McCown is 27 points out of second in the third spot after a slow start. Had he just been able to start the season opener, Dan would likely be second. He is coming off of back to back top three finishes in search of his first win of the season. Meanwhile, Mike Rydman is still fourth in the standings, and drivers like him, Joe Cancilla and Paul DeLucca are others to keep an eye on in the quest for victory this week.
John Meyers calls him Superman, and with five Dwarf Car championships in the past six seasons and over 40 feature wins, who can argue against that? Nick Squatritto has been fast and consistent this season after eight races and leads Jerry Doty by 36 points with Rivera just two points behind him despite missing a race. Rivera has four of the eight wins so far, while Squatritto has two wins of his own. Doty and Josh Hiatt each have a win as well. Rivera has been fast, but even when he wins, Squatritto has been up near the front to keep the point damage to a minimum. The question is, when both are running strong, can Nick get a win and add some points to his lead?
Doty has been struggling lately, and he's in need of a good finish as well. The bright side is even if he loses second to Rivera, there's a good 60 points separating him from Clayton Dortzbach. It was two races ago when Dortzbach had a season best third place finish, showing he may be capable of picking up a win before season's end. A third place finish is also a season best finish for Mike Corsaro, who is 26 points behind Dortzbach in fifth. Just eight points out of fifth is the pink #12 of Dan Liston. Veteran open wheel racers Charlie Correia is seventh in points and has finished as high as second this season. He is a feature winner in the past and should not be counted out.
A changing of the guard is taking place in the competitive Mini Truck class. Tom Brown, a two time winner this year, parked his #99x truck to debut a Dwarf Car (with a second place finish). Gene Haney has a win in his championship truck this year, but he's looking to sell it to focus on his Dirt Modified. Truck count has dipped below ten in recent races, but we know there are at least a dozen more trucks out there. And the fact is, Travis Dutra needs the competition. With two wins in six races, Dutra leads Ray Bunn by 42 points. Bunn is still searching for that first win this year, but he came close to getting it last time out with a second.
With one win this year, Dan Wagner is 18 points behind Bunn, and this duo, along with Dutra, have been three of the fastest so far this year. Veterans Dean Cline and Pete Paulson, both top ten ranked this season, are feature winners in this division in the past. Both appear to still be dialing things in, but at any time, it could be their night. The racing in the Mini Trucks continues to be close this season, and that isn't likely to change this week. It could be anybody's night to grab the Main Event glory, even somebody like fifth ranked Jerry Carpanello or top eight point competitors Ron Mayberry or Greg Williams.
On Saturday, a five division program is set to run. It was originally to be a seven division show, but something very interesting happened along the way. John has been trying to establish his own 360 Sprint Car program with a limited schedule, but in the interest of working with other tracks, he removed both the 360 Sprints and Wingless Spec Sprints from this date.
Now, I'm not trying to read too much into this, but the closest track to Antioch, Petaluma Speedway, has both divisions scheduled for Saturday. John's brother Jim Soares promotes that track. Perhaps this is a sign that the Soares brothers are working together? I, for one, hope so. If they do work together more in the future on letting each track have access to more cars during the season, the real winner will be the racers and the fans, and that, in turn, is a positive for BOTH tracks. Just a thought.
Anyway, it is a five division show, and I'm setting the over/under number at 62. I probably should aim a little higher. I believe the Dirt Modifieds will be crashing down the gates to get in. The Dwarf Cars should also be big, but every time I expect that car count to be big, it falls short. So, 62 is where I'm putting it, but I expect it will be higher.
On the card for this one are, Dirt Modifieds (20), Super Stocks (10), Hobby Stocks (12), Dwarf Cars (12) and Mini Trucks (8).
Is DeCarlo Ready For A Championship On A Bigger Stage?
Young Nick DeCarlo is a champion running various classes on the smaller tracks of Vallejo, Dixon and Stockton. Over the past couple of years, "Quick Nick" has made his presence known at Antioch, and he was second in points last season. That is the highest ranking of any of his family at the track, and he is sitting in second once again. Earlier this year, he finally grabbed his first UMP Dirt Modified feature win, and at the recent race at the track, he got into a Hardtop and beat his father Terry DeCarlo for a feature win. Both had to have ear to ear smiles as they ran side by side for several laps.
Nick might be leading the points, but for one problem. Troy Foulger has made his presence known at the track with several impressive drives to net him a six point advantage. Despite Foulger having more feature wins, it remains this close due to DeCarlo's consistency. Consistency will be the key as the division begins it's stretch run to the final checkered flag of 2010. There are seven races left, and every one of them will count. Foulger seems like he may be the driver to beat, but it doesn't matter what was done before this point. It matters what happens next.
To that end, Jeff Thomas sits within shouting distance, 30 points out of the lead. Jeff has yet to win this year, but his ability to grab top five finishes has him in contention. Can he take it up a notch and grab that first win? Only one driver has more that one feature win in the first six point races, and that is Foulger with three. DeCarlo, Joe Carr and two time champion Kenny Neu each have one. The duo ranked fourth and fifth in points, Norman Boeck and past Street Stock champion Bobby Mots Jr., are two others looking fir that with. Both have top five feature finishes this year.
More Cars=More Competition In Super Stocks
Mitch Machado is the man after eight Super Stock races. Half of the feature wins belong to him, as well as a 30 point lead over Larry Damitz. As car count has increased over the last three races, so has Machado's point lead. However, the competition is getting tougher, and it was Mike Gustafson, a three time champion at the track, winning the most recent feature. The other wins belong to Damitz (one) and Rookie Of The Year hopeful Fred Ryland (two). Ryland only trails Damitz by ten points for second, 40 points out of the lead.
But, the interesting thing now is that the competition is getting tougher. Two time Street Stock champion Michael Newman and one time Street Stock champ Todd Gomez have made their season debuts in the last two races, as has another past Limited Late Model champion, Lori Brown. After scoring a few top three feature finishes in a row in Mini Trucks this season, Jon Haney finally brought out his Super Stock. As car count grows, the competition gets tougher, and Machado will have a harder time getting wins. Knowing the competitor that he is, he wouldn't have it any other way.
While Eric Berendsen sits comfortably in fourth at the moment, a battle is brewing for fifth. Currently, Natalie Perry leads Lloyd Cline by six points. Cline was a top five driver in the class last season. While these two maybe haven't been the fastest in the field, their support of the division has been very important while car count was down to six.
Also In The Field In The Hobby Stock Division
Before we get into the championship battle, which is closer than it looked last time, let's look at some racers further in the pack in the Hobby Stock division. You need ALL of the drivers to make a show in any division, and the support of racers like Wes Bentley, Pat Gooding, Randy Metzler and David Smith has made a difference. Bentley, who is a heat race winner this year, finished sixth in the most recent race and is ninth in the standings coming into this race. Gooding's top ten finish in the latest race moved him into tenth in the standings. A rookie this year, Smith has struggled a bit in 12th in the standings, but the more lap time he gets, the more he will be somebody to keep an eye on. Metzler hasn't made all of the races, but he's run strong in the last two events.
Meanwhile, the teamwork of two time winner Melissa Hansen, who I believe is slated to drive this week, and one time winner and rookie Brad Myers, has the #33 car leading two time winner Chris Sorensen by 22 points in the championship battle. Sorensen has been running strong lately, and he should not be counted out as the battle hits the stretch run. Other winners in the first seven races are Eric Schantin and Jack Jonker. Jonker's Team #99 teammate Jim Freethy actually crossed the line first the night Schantin got the win, but was disqualified in post race tech. This has left the Team #99 car a bit behind the leaders in the standings, but they have just moved into the fifth position following Freethy's third place finish in the most recent race.
A past Pure Stock champion, the steady Dan McCown is 27 points out of second in the third spot after a slow start. Had he just been able to start the season opener, Dan would likely be second. He is coming off of back to back top three finishes in search of his first win of the season. Meanwhile, Mike Rydman is still fourth in the standings, and drivers like him, Joe Cancilla and Paul DeLucca are others to keep an eye on in the quest for victory this week.
Watch Out Nick, Here Comes Superman
John Meyers calls him Superman, and with five Dwarf Car championships in the past six seasons and over 40 feature wins, who can argue against that? Nick Squatritto has been fast and consistent this season after eight races and leads Jerry Doty by 36 points with Rivera just two points behind him despite missing a race. Rivera has four of the eight wins so far, while Squatritto has two wins of his own. Doty and Josh Hiatt each have a win as well. Rivera has been fast, but even when he wins, Squatritto has been up near the front to keep the point damage to a minimum. The question is, when both are running strong, can Nick get a win and add some points to his lead?
Doty has been struggling lately, and he's in need of a good finish as well. The bright side is even if he loses second to Rivera, there's a good 60 points separating him from Clayton Dortzbach. It was two races ago when Dortzbach had a season best third place finish, showing he may be capable of picking up a win before season's end. A third place finish is also a season best finish for Mike Corsaro, who is 26 points behind Dortzbach in fifth. Just eight points out of fifth is the pink #12 of Dan Liston. Veteran open wheel racers Charlie Correia is seventh in points and has finished as high as second this season. He is a feature winner in the past and should not be counted out.
Calling All Trucks, Get On Out There And Race
A changing of the guard is taking place in the competitive Mini Truck class. Tom Brown, a two time winner this year, parked his #99x truck to debut a Dwarf Car (with a second place finish). Gene Haney has a win in his championship truck this year, but he's looking to sell it to focus on his Dirt Modified. Truck count has dipped below ten in recent races, but we know there are at least a dozen more trucks out there. And the fact is, Travis Dutra needs the competition. With two wins in six races, Dutra leads Ray Bunn by 42 points. Bunn is still searching for that first win this year, but he came close to getting it last time out with a second.
With one win this year, Dan Wagner is 18 points behind Bunn, and this duo, along with Dutra, have been three of the fastest so far this year. Veterans Dean Cline and Pete Paulson, both top ten ranked this season, are feature winners in this division in the past. Both appear to still be dialing things in, but at any time, it could be their night. The racing in the Mini Trucks continues to be close this season, and that isn't likely to change this week. It could be anybody's night to grab the Main Event glory, even somebody like fifth ranked Jerry Carpanello or top eight point competitors Ron Mayberry or Greg Williams.
Random Thoughts
I'm reaching into the grab bag for a few things this week, and we're going to look at a little Ocean Speedway stuff, a few Chowchilla Speedway thoughts and the Merced Speedway buzz.
BCRA has been around for decades, going back to the 1940's. To me, they are the standard bearer in Northern California for Midgets. Back in the day, before my time, they were the standard bearer for the Hardtops in Northern California as well.
I posted a little while back about Rick Young working on things with the ASCS Midgets and trying to work with BCRA. There is an ASCS link on the BCRA web page, but last I looked, it went nowhere. Anyway...
Chico Silver Dollar Speedway has booked the ASCS Midgets several times this year, and last week saw them field eight cars on the dirt, a season high. It's gone from four to six and now eight cars. This is significant enough in my mind opinion, that it needs a mention here. Interestingly enough, BCRA matched that total of eight cars at Shasta Saturday night.
I'm not going to pick a side here. I do like tradition and respect BCRA and it's history. However, any fool can see that Midget racing needs a boost here in Northern California. USAC can't draw the numbers and BCRA has seen better days. So, why not try something different? BCRA should make it's prime focus Midgets at this point anyway, in my opinion. Get that car count back into the 20's, where it belongs.
So, anyway, Rick Young has gotten on the ground floor of this ASCS effort in California. This is the same guy I wrote about in an old post who raced with the CMA and in his brief time there helped open the door for that group and eventually the NCMA to get into Sacramento Raceway. I never figured him as somebody who could start something that could breathe new life into Midget racing, and yet the ASCS could play a part in making things better.
If Midget racing could field 20 or more cars on the dirt on a regular basis, I have a feeling more doors could open for them. Well, double digits could happen for the ASCS effort in California before it even has it's tenth race, which is a good start.
Chico has been the home base for them this year with five races so far. I think one race may have been rained out. Dillon Silverman won the first two with three different winners following. Britton Bock and Travis Haugh came next, but with a season high eight cars in action last week, Rick Young claimed the victory. I'm sure Rick was happy to get that win, but I bet he was even happier that eight cars competed.
Now, I know it's a little early to get all excited about things, but I think there is something to be said for ASCS Midgets running a home track and not too many dates, building this thing up. July 23rd and August 20th remain on the schedule at Chico. September 8th, which kicks off Gold Cup Weekend at Chico, features the BCRA, along with Wingless Spec Sprints (top 30 or 35 who started at least half of the races from the Hunt Series eligible) and 360 Sprints (top 35 from Civil Wars Series eligible) are also on the card that night.
It will be interesting to watch this ASCA Midget effort and see how it develops, but it really can't help but be a positive for Midget racing in Northern California. If it helps grow the car count, it's a good thing.
From the Bakerfield area, there is rumor that the Okie Bowl Hardtops may have a date or two scheduled before the season is up. All I can say is they should. For crying out loud, the name is "Okie Bowl", which is a tribute to Bakersfield Speedway. Plus, they have the cars. Get on it Bakerfielfd Speedway. You book everything else. You'll get at least 12 cars if you book these guys.
Meanwhile, the Nor Cal Vintage Hardtops stopped off at Stockton 99 Speedway last Friday night with a half dozen cars. My guess is this is becoming Conrad Cavallero's favorite track. Conrad charged to a fast time of 16.383 on the quarter-mile paved oval, beating the 16.503 of Jack Low. After letting Nick DeCarlo drive his car to heat and feature wins at Antioch last time out, George Connor got back behind the wheel of the #70 car and won his heat ahead of Cavallero. Low won the dash over Cavallero, and it looks like Connor had a mechanical problem sideline him after this race. The feature continued the Cavallero-Low battle from last time at Stockton with Conrad holding off Jack for the victory. Former Merced Sportsman and Cal Mod champion Mike Friesen was third ahead of Charles Mart and Kendra McKee.
The Nor Cal Vintage Hardtops will be in Lakeport on July 17th, Ukiah July 24th and then back on the dirt of Antioch on August 7th for their third and final appearance there.
I generally don't do a much writing about Ocean Speedway, not because there's nothing to talk about, but because I think they have some of the best publicity people in the area. Tony Karis has done an outstanding job. Ocean Speedway may have the best winged 360 Sprint Car division in the state and possibly the best Dwarf Car division as well. Look at the numbers and judge for yourself. Drivers have to earn their feature starts in those classes or else they run the B Main. I love full fields. Remember those?
The IMCA Modifieds are putting up good cars counts (25 last week), and the Four Bangers and Hobby Stocks are doing okay. Wingless Spec Sprint car count is up this year. The Ocean Late Models need a better car count, but nine or ten show up most weeks. There's enough going on in the state to suggest this class is worth fighting for, and I suspect they will continue to do so at Ocean Speedway.
You have to give John Prentice credit for the way he's run things this year, and the fact that he has put people in place to get the job done the right way. All I've been hearing is how good the racing has been and the job Tom Sagmiller has done in preparing a good track to race on. All divisions have been very competitive and most of the point battles will likely go down to the wire.
As for big races, Ocean Speedway has a few coming up.
The Mike Cecil Memorial race for IMCA Modifieds will have a bigger purse for the 50 lap race on July 23rd.
The 50th running of the Johnny Key Classic will be held for the Taca Bravo Sprint Cars on August 28th.
I've even heard that the Ocean Late Models will have a $1,000 to win race on September 3rd. I had a crazy thought that they could add another 15-20 laps to this one and make it the Tim Williamson Classic. That was a Late Model race for many years, and it's a shame there is no Williamson Classic this year. There's been one for 30 years, and it has been THE prestige race for the drivers at Watsonville.
At any rate, Ocean Speedway in Watsonville is still a great place to check out a race on a Friday night.
Wednesday nights on KNRY 1240 AM from 7-9 PM, Tony Karis hosts the Motor Sports Show, covering racing at Ocean Speedway, the auto industry and racing in general. Tony had winners from last week at Ocean Speedway on the show. Ocean Late Model winner Phil Priddy was in studio with him. American Stock winner Billy Nelson, Bay Area Dwarf Car winner Ryan Diatte and Wingless Spec Sprint winner Carter Train all called in, and the discussions were all interesting.
Jim Pettit II called in as well. He enjoyed his third IMCA Modified feature win Friday night and recently took the point lead in the SRL Southwest Tour with a victory. Pettit is already a two time Southwest Tour champion, and as always, was a good interview. He hasn't been traveling all that much with the Modified, but he does enjoy racing at Watsonville whenever possible.
However, Pettit did make it to Chowchilla for the Lunker Daddy Tri Holiday Series race at Chowchilla on Sunday. He has won there in the past and generally has favorable comments for the track. The Sunday afternoon race was a bit of a challenge with the dry and dusty conditions on the track. Jim said after he found himself in the back of the pack, he opted to take his car off the track. According to Jim, this was the first time since he started racing in 1981 that he took a car off the track that didn't have anything wrong with it.
He added that he felt that nothing good could come from him staying out there and noted that one of his crew members was taking time off during the week for family and he didn't want to add more work for the car. Lest anybody thinks he was bashing the track or management, Jim went on to praise Kenny Shepherd as somebody who has been around the sport for years and has worked hard to keep things going in Chowchilla. Jim added that afternoon races on the dirt in The Valley are hard to do because of all the heat that creates the dry conditions.
Pettit has a busy schedule racing both his IMCA Modified and his Southwest Tour Late Model through October this year. Wherever he goes, he's sure to be a force on the track.
It's been a mixed bag for Chowchilla Speedway in 2010, but the one thing you can say is that the show continues to go on as scheduled. This weekend the track will run winged 360 Sprint Cars as well as traditional non winged 360 Sprint Cars. Though full results aren't out there as this is being written, reports indicate the Tri Holiday Series race had a car count in the 20's for the Dirt Modifieds, which meant a B Main was needed.
Alex Stanford has been discussed in such forums at Late Model Racer as being one of the best Dirt Modified racers in the state. After holding off Ryan Porter and Mitch Enos Sunday for the $1,000 victory, it's hard to argue against that. Alex seems to be picking up right where his father, "The Flying Cowboy" Jack Stanford, left off. He is already a champion like his father, and he could wind up winning another Chowchilla championship by season's end.
A Chowchilla championship seems a certainty for Street Stock driver Mike Shepherd. The track's defending champion leads the track point race, but he was gunning for an $800 paycheck on Sunday. He seemed to be on his way before lapped traffic appeared in the line he was running late in the race. This enabled Chris Smith to make the pass and collect the win. Smith was coming off of a second to Tim Randolph a night earlier in Bakersfield. Shepherd settled for second with local lead foot Chuck Crews enjoying one of his better finishes with a solid third place effort.
Pats on the back go out to Marshall Weaver (Hobby Stocks), Ryan Diatte (Dwarf Cars) and Fred Ryland (Four Bangers) on their victories. I'd love to tell you about the winner of the Wingless Spec Sprint feature, but no results were up on them and I doubt there were many (if any) cars. I've gotten word of driver's complaints about entry fees there and some problems with officials centering around tech at the first Tri Holiday race in May. Coupling that with the caveat that there must be 15 cars to get the advertised $1,000 to win (Not something done with any other classes on the card), and I knew this would probably happen.
To the Spec Sprint drivers in the area down there, I can only say when Merced opens and runs this division (as they are scheduled to do three times), support the cause and you will likely get more dates there in the future. Vote with your car, and promoters will listen.
Concerns have been voiced over scoring at Chowchilla and drivers losing a lap when they spin in Turn 4 for a yellow flag. Apparently, the leader can lap them. I've heard it called a "NASCAR" scoring thing, but I don't recall that being the case in any NASCAR race where yellows don't count. Spin and bring out a yellow, and you don't lose a lap provided you take the green on a restart. Join that restart late and don't take a green, and you may lose a lap then. That's the way I was taught to score. As far as why things are this way at Chowchilla, maybe the transponders have something to do with it? I don't know.
Now, I know tracks are all over these transponders, and it's just something that is happening. Car counts being what they are, I think it's pretty stupid to ad the additional cost to a driver's already suffering budget. If a scorekeeper can't handle a ten car field, get a new score keeper. It's not that hard. Just my opinion, but I understand it's just a sign of the times. The hold out tracks will end up going with transponders eventually.
But, having said that, let me add something. A selling point for the transponder idea is that results are posted that night in many cases on MyLaps. Chowchilla's results are another thing. Kenny runs Madera, and those results do get posted, so I'm a little confused why this is taking so long. I would hope this gets resolved, and I'm betting it will be eventually. After all, the drivers are paying for it.
It's ironic in a way. Ten years ago, Merced Speedway was cruising along, and people wondered if the new kid on the block, Chowchilla Speedway, could make it. Now, the roles are reversed in a way . Merced Speedway looked doomed after the previous management closed shop at the end of the 2009 season. Making it worse, at least two potential promoters backed out for various reasons.
Enter John Soares Jr. and Oval Motorsports. John had a plan for this track all along, and it's starting to take shape. He has good people working with him, which includes Tom Sagmiller in whatever capacity that is. John decided to rebuild the quarter-mile clay oval with new banking in the turns. It will be a new track come July 18th, when the gates open once again, and that's a good thing. It's symbolic in a way.
People wanted change. They asked for it, and now they have it. It's a fresh new start. New management and a new racing surface. People haven't raced on the quarter-mile at Merced since the early 1990's, but it was a pretty racy track back in the day. They came from all over to make a name for themselves.
Now, racers will have a chance to make new memories and add to the history of a track that goes back to 1950. The buzz has been building up, and it will be interesting to see who brings cars when the Dirt Modifieds, Street Stocks, Hobby Stocks, Four Bangers, Valley Sportsman and Mini Trucks come out on Sunday afternoon. I'm hoping to see some names we haven't seen for a year or so. I'm hoping people get on board with it and go racing.
Merced Speedway has a second chance. The track has a chance to come back stronger than it's been in a while, but it's up to the racers now. Without them, it won't happen. I have a good feeling about things, but I guess we'll see when the time comes. Hopefully, a few champions from recent years past will be out there making it happen once again. I know it's a risk trying to put it all back together in this economy, but I'm happy that John & Donna Soares have stepped up to give it a go.
Trying To Rebuild The Midget Racing Scene In Nor Cal
BCRA has been around for decades, going back to the 1940's. To me, they are the standard bearer in Northern California for Midgets. Back in the day, before my time, they were the standard bearer for the Hardtops in Northern California as well.
I posted a little while back about Rick Young working on things with the ASCS Midgets and trying to work with BCRA. There is an ASCS link on the BCRA web page, but last I looked, it went nowhere. Anyway...
Chico Silver Dollar Speedway has booked the ASCS Midgets several times this year, and last week saw them field eight cars on the dirt, a season high. It's gone from four to six and now eight cars. This is significant enough in my mind opinion, that it needs a mention here. Interestingly enough, BCRA matched that total of eight cars at Shasta Saturday night.
I'm not going to pick a side here. I do like tradition and respect BCRA and it's history. However, any fool can see that Midget racing needs a boost here in Northern California. USAC can't draw the numbers and BCRA has seen better days. So, why not try something different? BCRA should make it's prime focus Midgets at this point anyway, in my opinion. Get that car count back into the 20's, where it belongs.
So, anyway, Rick Young has gotten on the ground floor of this ASCS effort in California. This is the same guy I wrote about in an old post who raced with the CMA and in his brief time there helped open the door for that group and eventually the NCMA to get into Sacramento Raceway. I never figured him as somebody who could start something that could breathe new life into Midget racing, and yet the ASCS could play a part in making things better.
If Midget racing could field 20 or more cars on the dirt on a regular basis, I have a feeling more doors could open for them. Well, double digits could happen for the ASCS effort in California before it even has it's tenth race, which is a good start.
Chico has been the home base for them this year with five races so far. I think one race may have been rained out. Dillon Silverman won the first two with three different winners following. Britton Bock and Travis Haugh came next, but with a season high eight cars in action last week, Rick Young claimed the victory. I'm sure Rick was happy to get that win, but I bet he was even happier that eight cars competed.
Now, I know it's a little early to get all excited about things, but I think there is something to be said for ASCS Midgets running a home track and not too many dates, building this thing up. July 23rd and August 20th remain on the schedule at Chico. September 8th, which kicks off Gold Cup Weekend at Chico, features the BCRA, along with Wingless Spec Sprints (top 30 or 35 who started at least half of the races from the Hunt Series eligible) and 360 Sprints (top 35 from Civil Wars Series eligible) are also on the card that night.
It will be interesting to watch this ASCA Midget effort and see how it develops, but it really can't help but be a positive for Midget racing in Northern California. If it helps grow the car count, it's a good thing.
Speaking Of Hardtops
From the Bakerfield area, there is rumor that the Okie Bowl Hardtops may have a date or two scheduled before the season is up. All I can say is they should. For crying out loud, the name is "Okie Bowl", which is a tribute to Bakersfield Speedway. Plus, they have the cars. Get on it Bakerfielfd Speedway. You book everything else. You'll get at least 12 cars if you book these guys.
Meanwhile, the Nor Cal Vintage Hardtops stopped off at Stockton 99 Speedway last Friday night with a half dozen cars. My guess is this is becoming Conrad Cavallero's favorite track. Conrad charged to a fast time of 16.383 on the quarter-mile paved oval, beating the 16.503 of Jack Low. After letting Nick DeCarlo drive his car to heat and feature wins at Antioch last time out, George Connor got back behind the wheel of the #70 car and won his heat ahead of Cavallero. Low won the dash over Cavallero, and it looks like Connor had a mechanical problem sideline him after this race. The feature continued the Cavallero-Low battle from last time at Stockton with Conrad holding off Jack for the victory. Former Merced Sportsman and Cal Mod champion Mike Friesen was third ahead of Charles Mart and Kendra McKee.
The Nor Cal Vintage Hardtops will be in Lakeport on July 17th, Ukiah July 24th and then back on the dirt of Antioch on August 7th for their third and final appearance there.
Big Races At Ocean Speedway
I generally don't do a much writing about Ocean Speedway, not because there's nothing to talk about, but because I think they have some of the best publicity people in the area. Tony Karis has done an outstanding job. Ocean Speedway may have the best winged 360 Sprint Car division in the state and possibly the best Dwarf Car division as well. Look at the numbers and judge for yourself. Drivers have to earn their feature starts in those classes or else they run the B Main. I love full fields. Remember those?
The IMCA Modifieds are putting up good cars counts (25 last week), and the Four Bangers and Hobby Stocks are doing okay. Wingless Spec Sprint car count is up this year. The Ocean Late Models need a better car count, but nine or ten show up most weeks. There's enough going on in the state to suggest this class is worth fighting for, and I suspect they will continue to do so at Ocean Speedway.
You have to give John Prentice credit for the way he's run things this year, and the fact that he has put people in place to get the job done the right way. All I've been hearing is how good the racing has been and the job Tom Sagmiller has done in preparing a good track to race on. All divisions have been very competitive and most of the point battles will likely go down to the wire.
As for big races, Ocean Speedway has a few coming up.
The Mike Cecil Memorial race for IMCA Modifieds will have a bigger purse for the 50 lap race on July 23rd.
The 50th running of the Johnny Key Classic will be held for the Taca Bravo Sprint Cars on August 28th.
I've even heard that the Ocean Late Models will have a $1,000 to win race on September 3rd. I had a crazy thought that they could add another 15-20 laps to this one and make it the Tim Williamson Classic. That was a Late Model race for many years, and it's a shame there is no Williamson Classic this year. There's been one for 30 years, and it has been THE prestige race for the drivers at Watsonville.
At any rate, Ocean Speedway in Watsonville is still a great place to check out a race on a Friday night.
Jim Pettit II Appears On Motor Sports Show With Tony Karis
Wednesday nights on KNRY 1240 AM from 7-9 PM, Tony Karis hosts the Motor Sports Show, covering racing at Ocean Speedway, the auto industry and racing in general. Tony had winners from last week at Ocean Speedway on the show. Ocean Late Model winner Phil Priddy was in studio with him. American Stock winner Billy Nelson, Bay Area Dwarf Car winner Ryan Diatte and Wingless Spec Sprint winner Carter Train all called in, and the discussions were all interesting.
Jim Pettit II called in as well. He enjoyed his third IMCA Modified feature win Friday night and recently took the point lead in the SRL Southwest Tour with a victory. Pettit is already a two time Southwest Tour champion, and as always, was a good interview. He hasn't been traveling all that much with the Modified, but he does enjoy racing at Watsonville whenever possible.
However, Pettit did make it to Chowchilla for the Lunker Daddy Tri Holiday Series race at Chowchilla on Sunday. He has won there in the past and generally has favorable comments for the track. The Sunday afternoon race was a bit of a challenge with the dry and dusty conditions on the track. Jim said after he found himself in the back of the pack, he opted to take his car off the track. According to Jim, this was the first time since he started racing in 1981 that he took a car off the track that didn't have anything wrong with it.
He added that he felt that nothing good could come from him staying out there and noted that one of his crew members was taking time off during the week for family and he didn't want to add more work for the car. Lest anybody thinks he was bashing the track or management, Jim went on to praise Kenny Shepherd as somebody who has been around the sport for years and has worked hard to keep things going in Chowchilla. Jim added that afternoon races on the dirt in The Valley are hard to do because of all the heat that creates the dry conditions.
Pettit has a busy schedule racing both his IMCA Modified and his Southwest Tour Late Model through October this year. Wherever he goes, he's sure to be a force on the track.
Chowchilla Speedway Taking The Heat In July
It's been a mixed bag for Chowchilla Speedway in 2010, but the one thing you can say is that the show continues to go on as scheduled. This weekend the track will run winged 360 Sprint Cars as well as traditional non winged 360 Sprint Cars. Though full results aren't out there as this is being written, reports indicate the Tri Holiday Series race had a car count in the 20's for the Dirt Modifieds, which meant a B Main was needed.
Alex Stanford has been discussed in such forums at Late Model Racer as being one of the best Dirt Modified racers in the state. After holding off Ryan Porter and Mitch Enos Sunday for the $1,000 victory, it's hard to argue against that. Alex seems to be picking up right where his father, "The Flying Cowboy" Jack Stanford, left off. He is already a champion like his father, and he could wind up winning another Chowchilla championship by season's end.
A Chowchilla championship seems a certainty for Street Stock driver Mike Shepherd. The track's defending champion leads the track point race, but he was gunning for an $800 paycheck on Sunday. He seemed to be on his way before lapped traffic appeared in the line he was running late in the race. This enabled Chris Smith to make the pass and collect the win. Smith was coming off of a second to Tim Randolph a night earlier in Bakersfield. Shepherd settled for second with local lead foot Chuck Crews enjoying one of his better finishes with a solid third place effort.
Pats on the back go out to Marshall Weaver (Hobby Stocks), Ryan Diatte (Dwarf Cars) and Fred Ryland (Four Bangers) on their victories. I'd love to tell you about the winner of the Wingless Spec Sprint feature, but no results were up on them and I doubt there were many (if any) cars. I've gotten word of driver's complaints about entry fees there and some problems with officials centering around tech at the first Tri Holiday race in May. Coupling that with the caveat that there must be 15 cars to get the advertised $1,000 to win (Not something done with any other classes on the card), and I knew this would probably happen.
To the Spec Sprint drivers in the area down there, I can only say when Merced opens and runs this division (as they are scheduled to do three times), support the cause and you will likely get more dates there in the future. Vote with your car, and promoters will listen.
Concerns have been voiced over scoring at Chowchilla and drivers losing a lap when they spin in Turn 4 for a yellow flag. Apparently, the leader can lap them. I've heard it called a "NASCAR" scoring thing, but I don't recall that being the case in any NASCAR race where yellows don't count. Spin and bring out a yellow, and you don't lose a lap provided you take the green on a restart. Join that restart late and don't take a green, and you may lose a lap then. That's the way I was taught to score. As far as why things are this way at Chowchilla, maybe the transponders have something to do with it? I don't know.
Now, I know tracks are all over these transponders, and it's just something that is happening. Car counts being what they are, I think it's pretty stupid to ad the additional cost to a driver's already suffering budget. If a scorekeeper can't handle a ten car field, get a new score keeper. It's not that hard. Just my opinion, but I understand it's just a sign of the times. The hold out tracks will end up going with transponders eventually.
But, having said that, let me add something. A selling point for the transponder idea is that results are posted that night in many cases on MyLaps. Chowchilla's results are another thing. Kenny runs Madera, and those results do get posted, so I'm a little confused why this is taking so long. I would hope this gets resolved, and I'm betting it will be eventually. After all, the drivers are paying for it.
Merced Speedway Starting Over Again
It's ironic in a way. Ten years ago, Merced Speedway was cruising along, and people wondered if the new kid on the block, Chowchilla Speedway, could make it. Now, the roles are reversed in a way . Merced Speedway looked doomed after the previous management closed shop at the end of the 2009 season. Making it worse, at least two potential promoters backed out for various reasons.
Enter John Soares Jr. and Oval Motorsports. John had a plan for this track all along, and it's starting to take shape. He has good people working with him, which includes Tom Sagmiller in whatever capacity that is. John decided to rebuild the quarter-mile clay oval with new banking in the turns. It will be a new track come July 18th, when the gates open once again, and that's a good thing. It's symbolic in a way.
People wanted change. They asked for it, and now they have it. It's a fresh new start. New management and a new racing surface. People haven't raced on the quarter-mile at Merced since the early 1990's, but it was a pretty racy track back in the day. They came from all over to make a name for themselves.
Now, racers will have a chance to make new memories and add to the history of a track that goes back to 1950. The buzz has been building up, and it will be interesting to see who brings cars when the Dirt Modifieds, Street Stocks, Hobby Stocks, Four Bangers, Valley Sportsman and Mini Trucks come out on Sunday afternoon. I'm hoping to see some names we haven't seen for a year or so. I'm hoping people get on board with it and go racing.
Merced Speedway has a second chance. The track has a chance to come back stronger than it's been in a while, but it's up to the racers now. Without them, it won't happen. I have a good feeling about things, but I guess we'll see when the time comes. Hopefully, a few champions from recent years past will be out there making it happen once again. I know it's a risk trying to put it all back together in this economy, but I'm happy that John & Donna Soares have stepped up to give it a go.
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Two California Dirt Tracks Preparing For July Openers
That's right, I said TWO TRACKS.
Raul Rodriguez (Jr. I think) posted on the Late Model Racer forums about Merced Speedway. Work is in progress getting the track into shape for the July 18th season opener. Raul also posted some pictures of the work in progress.
The track will be going back to the quarter-mile oval.
Actually, I've just been wanting to take a break for a few days, but some information has popped up about Merced, another new dirt track in California and some Orland stuff, so here I am again.
The Late Model racer thread is a good place to hear the latest at the moment, and Mark Odgers posted another picture of the progress. I love seeing the excitement building up for the return of this track. Looks like John Soares Jr. and Tom Sagmiller were both on the scene and answering questions.
I will say that it sounds like this place will be racier than ever from what I've been hearing. People have commented on John having big plans for this track, and I have no doubt about it. Getting the regular scene back in action is first priority, and it sounds like John will be doing things to entice the racers to come back. No membership fees for 2010 is what I have read on the above thread.
People are looking and racers are wanting to race. I know there has been anger in the past, but it is a new era for the track now. John has a chance to score big with Merced's racers and fans. I don't think he will fail with this. I expect big things in the future. Dare I say it, Merced Speedway will have a big Late Model event in the future and a big Sprint Car event as well, and the racers will come. There is already a big Dirt Modified show planned for August.
This is the racer's chance to get on board again and help make this track bigger than it's been in years. It can happen if the racers support it, and it can happen if the man in charge works with the racers. I anticipate that will be the case, and I'm excited for the future of Merced Speedway. A real effort is being made here. I'm not gonna get too long winded here. I have some Merced posts planned for the future anyway.
But, it doesn't stop here...
Hayfork Speedway begins to take shape
The Late Model racer thread is a good place to hear the latest at the moment, and Mark Odgers posted another picture of the progress. I love seeing the excitement building up for the return of this track. Looks like John Soares Jr. and Tom Sagmiller were both on the scene and answering questions.
I will say that it sounds like this place will be racier than ever from what I've been hearing. People have commented on John having big plans for this track, and I have no doubt about it. Getting the regular scene back in action is first priority, and it sounds like John will be doing things to entice the racers to come back. No membership fees for 2010 is what I have read on the above thread.
People are looking and racers are wanting to race. I know there has been anger in the past, but it is a new era for the track now. John has a chance to score big with Merced's racers and fans. I don't think he will fail with this. I expect big things in the future. Dare I say it, Merced Speedway will have a big Late Model event in the future and a big Sprint Car event as well, and the racers will come. There is already a big Dirt Modified show planned for August.
This is the racer's chance to get on board again and help make this track bigger than it's been in years. It can happen if the racers support it, and it can happen if the man in charge works with the racers. I anticipate that will be the case, and I'm excited for the future of Merced Speedway. A real effort is being made here. I'm not gonna get too long winded here. I have some Merced posts planned for the future anyway.
But, it doesn't stop here...
A New Track In Hayfork California
Up in Northern California, a little southwest of Yreka, at the Trinity County Fairgrounds in Hayfork, California, there is a race track being built. It's called Hayfork Speedway, and the plan is for a playday on July 11th and the opener on July 25th. They list the track size as some place between a quarter-mile and three eighths.
I haven't found much on the history of this track, but from the look of the photos, there was a one mile track, possibly a horse racing track at one time. They also have grandstands.
Hayfork Speedway has a board of directors, and the goal of this track is affordable and fun racing. Mini Stocks and Hobby Stocks are among the divisions planned for the track. The track isn't located all that far from Shasta Speedway, where some of the divisions they plan to run are among the divisions raced.
I'm not sure how things will go here, but I certainly wish them well. In this day and age, to see a new dirt track open is a good thing. Anybody looking to help support the cause can go to the Hayfork Speedway website and find out how they can help.
I haven't found much on the history of this track, but from the look of the photos, there was a one mile track, possibly a horse racing track at one time. They also have grandstands.
Hayfork Speedway has a board of directors, and the goal of this track is affordable and fun racing. Mini Stocks and Hobby Stocks are among the divisions planned for the track. The track isn't located all that far from Shasta Speedway, where some of the divisions they plan to run are among the divisions raced.
I'm not sure how things will go here, but I certainly wish them well. In this day and age, to see a new dirt track open is a good thing. Anybody looking to help support the cause can go to the Hayfork Speedway website and find out how they can help.
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