Merced Speedway, Petaluma Speedway, Antioch Speedway, Bakersfield Speedway, More

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Forsberg Wins ASCS National Sprint Car Race 
At Petaluma Speedway 

Petaluma, CA...March 7...Andy Forsberg scored one of the biggest wins of his career in the 30 lap ASCS National Sprint Car Main Event Sunday night at Petaluma Speedway. Forsberg is a ten-time Civil War Sprint Car Series champion and won his second-straight title at Placerville Speedway last season.

Forsberg had a front row start next to four-time reigning series champion Sam Hafertepe Jr, but he fell back early as Hafertepe set the pace. Working the 16th lap, Forsberg took the lead. Everything seemed to be smooth sailing from there until Forsberg hit a rut and ended up falling back two positions on the 25th lap. Fortunately, a yellow flag waved at the same moment, restoring Forsberg into the lead. Forsberg went on to score the victory. Shane Golobic would finish second ahead of five-time reigning Chico champion Sean Becker. Hafertepe salvaged a fourth place finish, followed by Justyn Cox, Scott Bogucki, Carson Macedo, Blake Carrick, Tanner Carrick and Chase Johnson. 

There were 42 competitors on hand for the show. The eight lap heat race wins went to Jordan Mallett, Johnson, Chelsea Blevins, Willie Croft and Hafertepe. The eight lap qualifier races were won by Dylan Westbrook, Becker and Forsberg. The remaining positions for the Main Event were filled by the top finishers from the two 12 lap B Mains. Tony Gualda Jr won the first one ahead of Johnson and Mallett. Croft outran Harli White and Shane Hopkins to win the second B Main. 

Danny Wagner won the 20 lap General Hydroponics Redwood Dwarf Car Main Event. Wagner is a past NorCal and Antioch Speedway champion, and it was another NorCal champion, Ryan Winter, who set the pace early on. Wagner gained the lead on the eighth circuit, but it was still a nip-and-tuck battle between Wagner and Winter from there. However, Wagner would prevail at the checkered flag, followed by Winter, Michael "Spanky" Grenert, Mark Hanson and reigning champion Chad Matthias. Kevin Miraglio was docked two positions on a jump-start infraction, dropping him from fourth to sixth, followed by Joey Lingron, Darren Fridolfs, Carroll Mendenhall and Jack Haverty.

There were 42 Dwarf Cars in action with the eight lap heat race wins earned by Miraglio, Hanson, Grenert, Winter and Wagner. Haverty won the 12 lap B Main.

After back-to-back playdays, the season opens on March 28th with the Hunt Wingless Spec Sprint Series being joined by the Santa Rosa Auto Body 600 Micros and General Hydroponics Redwood Dwarf Cars. For further information, go to www.petaluma-speedway.com.

Sweet Claims The Glory At Merced Speedway

Merced, CA...March 6...Merced Speedway kicked off the 2020 season with a special Friday night race last week. This was the inaugural visit for the ASCS National Sprint Car Tour, and a large crowd witnessed 51 of the best Winged 360 Sprint Car competitors doing battle on the fast quarter-mile clay oval. When the checkered flag waved on the 30 lap feature race, it was 2019 World of Outlaws Sprint Car champion Brad Sweet grabbing the glory.

Sweet shared the front row with ten-time Civil War Sprint Car Series champion Andy Forsberg. However, Forsberg wasn't a match for Sweet as he fell back a few positions. Sweet managed to outrun Shane Golobic for the impressive win. 2019 ASCS championship runner-up Blake Hahn crossed the line third, followed by Carson Macedo, Forsberg, Ryan Bernal, Roger Crockett, Blake Carrick, Dom Scelzi and Alex Hill.

The festivities started with six eight lap heat races, and wins were collected by Michael Faccinto, Sweet, Justyn Cox, Tanner Carrick, Thomas Kennedy and Forsberg. Preliminary points were further calculated after four special qualifier races. These eight lap races were won by Hahn, Golobic, Justin Sanders and Dom Scelzi. The top point earners made it directly into the feature, while two 15 lap B Mains filled up the remainder of the 24 car finale. It was Chase Johnson winning the first B Main ahead of Tanner Carrick and Robby Price. Cox outran Mitchell Faccinto and Harli White to claim the second B Main.

In the IMCA Sport.Modified race, Speedway star Michael Johnson picked up the win in their 30 lap feature. Third row starter Johnson held off reigning champion and fourth-row starter Fred Ryland to get the win. 2019 Santa Maria champion Kevin Johnson ended up third, while 2018 title winner Jeremy Hoff charged from 13th to finish fourth. Rounding out the Top 10 finishers were Chris Falkenberg, Timothy Allerdings, Paul Espino, Tanner Thomas, Kaylin Lopez and Patti Ryland. Eight lap heat race wins went to Michael Johnson, Fred Ryland and Kevin Johnson.

The California Sharp Mini Late Models saw a division record nine drivers come to compete. This included a few new names from the Outlaw Kart ranks. After starting back in the last row, it was Garrett Corn picking up the win in their 20 lap race.  Kennzzie Brown had her best finish yet as she held off Riley Jeppesen to finish second. Fourth went to Brayden Morton ahead of Emali Van Hoff, Tyler Tucker and Jay Brooks. Mechanical issues sidelined Carson Guthrie and Kaylin Lopez prior to the Main Event. Corn and Brooks won their respective six lap heat races.

Racing returns this Saturday night with IMCA Modifieds in action along with the IMCA Sport Modifieds, Mini Stocks and South Bay Dwarf Cars. For further information, go to www.mercedspeedway.net.

IMCA Modifieds Back In Action 
At Merced Speedway Saturday Night

Merced, CA...The IMCA Modifieds kick off their 2020 season at Merced Speedway this Saturday night. The IMCA Sport Modifieds return after supporting last week's highly successful ASCS National Sprint Car event. Also in action will be the Mini Stocks and the South Bay Dwarf Cars. The winners of the two Modified classes and Mini Stocks will also be competing for increased winner's prize money.

Merced Speedway had one of the most exciting IMCA Modified programs in the state last season. It was Troy Foulger turning in a rather dominant performance by wheeling the Bowers Motorsports Modified to six wins in his 13 starts. He won the championship by a wide margin over the consistent Ryan Porter. Last season saw Porter shut out of the win column with seven Top 5 finishes, and the talented fourth-generation competitor will be out to change that this weekend. Some of the stars of the field include past champions Ramie Stone, Bob Williamson, Paul Stone and Randy Brown. Others anticipated include last season's top rookie Jesse Burks, DJ Shannon, Ricky Thatcher, Jeff Streeter and more.

There were 18 competitors for the IMCA Sport Modified event last week, and two-time Merced champion Fred Ryland was forced to settle for second behind Bakersfield star Michael Johnson. Though Ryland had a pair of wins last season, he led the division with eight Top 5 finishes in his 12 starts. If he's not winning, he's usually right up there among the leaders. Some of the drivers to watch for this week include 2018 champion Jeremy Hoff, Chris Falkenberg, Tanner Thomas, Paul Espino, Dwayne Short, Chuck Weir, Tony Peffer and division newcomers Kaylin Lopez and Richard Ragsdale.

The Mini Stock division serves as one of the gateways for new drivers into the wonderful world of racing at Merced Speedway. In 13 events last year, they had eight different winners, but it was the consistent Lee Ragsdale rebounding from losing a close championship in 2018 by holding off everybody for the glory last year. There will be some new drivers on the roster this season, and some of the veteran competitors to watch for include 2019 championship runner-up Lucy Falkenberg, Tyler Post, Shawn DePriest, Jerry Tubbs, Austin Sprague and three-time Merced champion Chris Corder.

The South Bay Dwarf Cars will round out an exciting program. This is an excellent tune-up for the group, which will host the 4th Annual Merced Speedway Western States Dwarf Car Nationals on April 3rd and 4th. Many of the South Bay Dwarf Car events happen at Ocean Speedway, and multi time winner Mark Biscardi managed to dethrone Gene "Punky" Pires to win the championship last season. These two stars of the group are anticipated on Saturday night along with such notables as Marty Weisler, Ryan Amlen, Jimmy Damron, Barry Waddell, Eddie Claesson and Trafton Chandler.

Saturday's lineup will offer plenty of speed and excitement for the fans to enjoy as the season is just getting started. For further information, go to www.mercedspeedway.net.

Antioch Speedway Opens Gates 
For First Of Three Scheduled Playdays

Antioch, CA...Since Chad Chadwick took over Antioch Speedway, much work has been done to improve the facility, and work is ongoing. On Saturday afternoon, the track was scheduled to open for its first of three playdays. Several drivers were even lined up at the gate when sprinkles turned into rain. Chadwick monitored the situation closely and decided that it was best to postpone the practice session. However, he quickly devised a new plan. 

The practice was postponed until Sunday afternoon, and over 30 drivers across various divisions still made it. The fact that Chadwick and his crew have worked long hours reshaping the racing surface and making changes that have been requested by the racers made this practice opportunity enticing. The speedway has been widened and as a result has gotten that much faster.

On Wednesday night, Chadwick opened the gates for an important test session among a few select racers. The idea was to see how drivers who have traveled to various venues in recent weeks liked the new configuration. These drivers, which included Nick DeCarlo, Troy Foulger, Bobby Hogge IV and Kellen Chadwick, approved. Hogge was turning laps in the low 15s. DeCarlo and Foulger enjoyed one particular practice session that evening where they were running side-by-side and making slide job passes in each of the turns. 

Everybody was chomping at the bit to get a look at this race track, and Sunday's practice was well received among the racers who attended. Again, there was plenty of side-by-side racing as drivers wanted to test the high side and the low side. It wasn't even a race day, but it was still an enjoyable sight. If this is any indication, the race track is going to be exceptional when the season opens on March 28th to a lineup of IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds, Hobby Stocks and Delta Dwarf Cars. There will still be playdays on March 14th and 21st.

With the word that Antioch Speedway is now an IMCA sanctioned race track, several drivers couldn't resist bringing their Modifieds and Sport Modifieds to make some practice laps and get a feel for the track. Past Chico and IMCA All Star Series champion Ryan McDaniel made the trip, and Kellen Chadwick was back as well. Reigning track champion Buddy Kniss and his father Chester Kniss were there among others. Last season's top rookie, Frank Furtado, managed to get the bugs worked out of his motor enough to make some laps.

The IMCA Sport Modified division figures to get much more competitive this season. Reigning IMCA State championship Guy Ahlwardt, who is from the area, announced his plans recently to return regularly to Antioch Speedway. Though Ahlwardt wasn't at practice, reigning track champion Tommy Fraser was there along with 2015 Antioch and State champion Fred Ryland and his wife Patti.  Last season's runner-up, Kevin Brown, Tommy Clymens Jr and several others were there putting their cars through their shakedown runs. 

As with the IMCA Modifieds and Sport Modifieds, the Hobby Stocks will be at the season opener. There were several drivers making valuable practice laps. Last season's championship runner-up Breanna Troen and her team finished their race car just in time to make laps. Troen is hoping to step up her game a little bit this year, but she knows there will be plenty of competition. After winning one of the late-season Main Events last year, past division championship runner-up Jason Robles was there along with Judy Allison-Arth, Anthony Silva, teen racer Jacob Mallet Jr and others. There's quite a bit of buzz in the Hobby Stock division as we prepare for the new season.

Open wheel competitors were well represented with Winged 360 Sprint Car, Wingless Spec Sprint and Dwarf Car drivers making laps. Notable among them was last season's Winged 360 Sprint Car champion Jacob Tuttle. Tuttle has enjoyed competing at Antioch Speedway for the past three seasons and is hoping that the division can maintain a presence here in the years ahead. Jeff Lee, a feature winner in this class in the past, put his Wingless Spec Sprint through its paces as well.

Work is ongoing at the speedway as Chad Chadwick and his crew have many things to complete before the March 28th opener. The competitors noticed the cleaner environment, and some of those people actually helped by participating in the multiple work parties the speedway had prior to this practice day. Work is ongoing on the pit bathrooms as they get a major overhaul. They should be ready for the season opener. There are lots of other surprises in store as speedway management assesses the situation and moves forward with a plan to improve all aspects of the facility and racing program itself.

This will be the 60th championship season for the speedway, which opened for weekly racing in 1961. Drivers hoping to make valuable practice laps before the season officially opens will take advantage of the March 14th and March 21st playdays. For further information on scheduling and other things, go to www.antiochspeedway.com.

Ocean Speedway 2020 Season Kicks Off Friday Night

Watsonville, CA...Once again, Promoter John Prentice has an exciting season planned for Ocean Speedway. The track will continue to feature some big Sprint Car and Modified shows throughout the season, which will conclude at the end of September. This Friday night gets things kicked into gear with the Taco Bravo Sprint Cars back in action along with the IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds, Hobby Stocks and Four Bangers. 

The Sprint Car division featured an exciting battle last season that went to the finale. Bud Kaeding had been impressive all season long, but a mishap on the final night led to the championship being won by the consistent James Ringo. 

The Taco Bravo Sprint Cars offer the fans some of the most exciting open wheel action they'll find anywhere in the state on any given Friday night. These are the fastest cars you'll see at Ocean Speedway, and a top-notch list of talented competitors includes such hard chargers as Justin Sanders, Koen Shaw, Jeremy Chisum, Jason Chisum, Jake Andreotti, Kurt Nelson, Jayson Bright and multi-time champion Brad Furr.

The Sprint Cars will have some big events during the season. This will include three visits from the NARC/King of the West Sprint Cars. They have the Pombo/Sargent Classic on June 12th, the 10th Annual Howard Kaeding Classic on July 18th and a final appearance on August 28th. The Sprint Car Challenge Tour makes an appearance on August 22nd as part of the 60th running of the Johnny Key Classic. There will be plenty of opportunity to check out some great Sprint Car racing all season long, including this Friday night.

Last season, the IMCA Modifieds had one of the closest championship battles at the track, won by Austin Burke, just ahead of brother Cody Burke and Jim Pettit II. All three of these drivers have won at least one championship in this class and had some classic battles at the front of the pack last season. After being inducted into the Antioch Speedway Hall of Fame last October, Jim Pettit II will be inducted into the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame this June in celebration of his impressive racing career on both pavement and dirt. Cody Burke had won the previous two championships, and these three drivers could be the ones to beat.

The only thing likely to prevent six-time champion Bobby Hogge IV from winning a seventh title is the fact that he'll probably run a limited schedule. As it was, he won five of the eight times he competed last year. Ocean Speedway has some very talented IMCA Modified competitors, including past champions Robert Marsh, Nick DeCarlo and Brian Cass as well as decorated Late Model champion Jeff Decker, Raymond Keldsen, Anthony Giuliani and more.

As with the Sprint Cars, the IMCA Modifieds will have some big events with the Sport Modifieds and Hobby Stocks also on the bill for those events. It will start with the Third Annual Bill Egleston Memorial race on May 17th. The 23rd Annual Mike Cecil Memorial race happens on August 1st and the 10th Annual Pat and Jim Pettit Memorial Dirt Track Shootout happens on September 25th and 26th. The Cecil race and the second night at the Pettit Shootout are both All Star IMCA Modified Series events as well.

Last season saw the IMCA Sport Modifieds have a very strong season as car count was up significantly. Atwater's Jarrod Mounce decided to compete at Watsonville all season long and won a good battle with Adriane Frost to claim the championship. State championship contenders Guy Ahlwardt and Kevin Johnson were both Top 5 ranked, and Ahlwardt ultimately won the State to championship. All four of those drivers won multiple Main Events, and drivers like Justin McPherson, Charlie Hunter, Kelly Campanile, Steven Allee, Max Baggett and Randy Miller are expected to be among those looking to make it into the winner's circle this season.

Rob Gallaher outdualed his father Joe Gallaher to lay claim to his third Hobby Stock championship last year. This team is impressive week in and week out. Rob led the division with seven feature triumphs last year with his dad winning twice. While these two drivers figure to be tough to beat, some impressive racers will be out to claim some of the glory for themselves. This will include past champion Wally Kennedy, Jerry Skelton, DJ Keldsen, Nick Triolo, Bobby Huckaby, Ryan Muller and ageless veteran Tony Oliveira.

The closest championship race at the speedway last season happened in the Four Bangers, and it was the consistent Kate Beardsley and Nicole Beardsley tied atop the point list when the season wrapped up. Both drivers had 11 Top 5 finishes, but they were not among the seven different drivers in the 13 events held to win a Main Event. These two along with past champion Bill Beardsley will be hoping to change that this year, but drivers like John Grill, Ryan McClelland, Dakota Keldsen, Tony Gullo Roly Iler and Ray Bunn will be out to get some of the glory this year.

The fans and racers have been waiting patiently for spring to arrive and racing season to get underway. This Friday night offers an exciting five-division lineup that is sure to leave you on the edge of your seat. This begins non-stop action all season long at the speedway. For further information, go to www.racepmg.com.

King Of The West Sprint Cars, 
CVMS Mini Stocks Head To Kern Raceway

Bakersfield, CA...This Saturday night, the NARC/King of the West Fujitsu Winged 410 Sprint Car Series kicks off a brand new season at the Kern Raceway Dirt Track. Joining them will be the House of JuJu Central Valley Mini Stock Series and the Kern County Hardtops.

The King of the West Sprint Car Series will be competing at 10 different venues this year in a season that will go all the way until November 7th. Last season saw a close championship battle decided by just 11 points among the Top 3 competitors. In the end, it was DJ Netto claiming the honors in the Netto Ag Motorsports entry by just eight points over Bud Kaeding. Kaeding was piloting the Williams Motorsports Sprinter, while Dom Scelzi was only 11 points out of the lead in the Roth Motorsports entry. It's interesting to note that Scelzi led the field with five feature victories, while Kaeding had two wins. Netto used consistency to claim the honors with a pair of seconds and three third place finishes among his best efforts. Netto also won the King of Thunder Sprint Car championship at Tulare and Hanford.

With the return and merger of the NARC brand with King of the West, the premier Winged 410 Sprint Car effort in California is now 60 years old. It remains the pinnacle of Winged Sprint Car racing in California and on the West Coast. Getting a win on this tour isn't so easy with the competition level being as tough as it is, but last year saw 10 drivers claim the honors in the 19 race season. It's also notable that Sean Watts scored a popular first career win and ended up eighth in the standings last season.

Watts is one of the other drivers anticipated this weekend along with such notables as Willie Croft, Geoff Ensign, Ryan Bernal, Nathan Rolfe, Kenny Allen and Chase Johnson. The King of the West Sprint Car Series usually checks in with a field of around 20 or so cars, and that should again be the case this Saturday night.

Once again this season, House of JuJu in Clovis and Morro Bay is sponsoring an impressive $5,000 championship point fund for the Central Valley Mini Stocks. This money will be distributed among the Top 10 point competitors in the 10 race series. Last season, it was Dan Myrick claiming the honors, and he's in the running once again this year. A few weeks ago in Hanford, Myrick found himself in a heated battle with reigning Kern Raceway champion Clinton Massey. Massey encountered a spun car in his path and crashed, ending his run. Myrick went on to pick up the win. 

2018 CVMS champion Greg Baronian managed to finish second in the Hanford race ahead of Jeff Durant, Scott Glenn and Jason Cook. There were 21 competitors for the season kickoff event. For the Kern Raceway show, a purse of $2,500 has been put up with $500 going to the winner. It's anticipated that this will draw another huge field of Mini Stock racers as this division doesn't usually get purses this big. Some of the stars to watch for include 2018 Kern and Hanford champion Andy Boydstun, Gene Glover, Stephen Cook, Paul Schwartzenberger, Steven Porter and Haily Marvin.

For over a decade, the Kern County Hardtops have been bringing their exciting brand of vintage racing to several venues on the southern side of California. Unlike some of the Hardtop groups, these drivers actually race, and sometimes it gets very exciting at the front of the pack. Drivers are excited to return to Kern Raceway once again, and front runners such as James Bradburn, Rich Souza, Kenny Mason, Brandon Stanphill and more are anticipated.

Saturday night should be an exciting program at Kern Raceway as there will be racing on both the pavement track and the dirt track that day. For further information, go to www.kernraceway.com.

Thornton, Jernagan And Johnson 
Open Bakersfield Speedway Season With Victories

Bakersfield, CA...March 7...Dylan Thornton opened the season with an impressive victory in the 30 lap IMCA Modified Main Event Saturday night at Bakersfield Speedway. Thornton drew the pole position for the race and proceeded to lead all 30 laps in victory. The battle was for second with front-row starter Steve Noland holding the position for eight laps. On the ninth lap, Alex Stanford and Brad Pounds charged into second and third. Pounds pressured Stanford until gaining the position on the 21st circuit. However, Pounds was no match for Thornton, who brought it home to the satisfying win. Cody Laney moved into third on the 25th lap and would finish there, followed by Stanford, Kollin Hibdon, Austin Kiefer, Kyle Heckman, Logan Drake, Rob Sanders and Noland. The 24 competitors were divided into four eight lap heat races with wins going to Thornton, Hibdon, Ryan Davies and Stanford.

Garrett Jernagan scored the win in the 25 lap IMCA Sport Modified feature race. Jernagan charged by 2018 State champion Austin Manzella on the second lap and proceeded to pull away to about a half straightaway victory from there. Manzella held second until Santa Maria champion Kevin Johnson motored by on the seventh lap. Past State champion Nick Spainhoward gained second briefly on the 10th lap before surrendering the position back to Johnson a lap later. It was a battle of the Johnson's on the 17th lap as Michael Johnson passed Kevin Johnson for second. However, Kevin Johnson came roaring back on the 20th lap. The battle was fierce in the waning laps with Michael Johnson passing Kevin Johnson on the final tour to claim second behind Jernagan. Jason Nation finished fourth, followed by Manzella, Spainhoward, Matt Mayo, Billy Simkins, Daniel West and Brock Crawford. The eight lap heat race wins went to David Pearson, Mayo, Manzella and Brylon Holder.

Chad Johnson won the 20 lap IMCA Stock Car Main Event. Jayden Schweitzer led the opening lap before past Hanford champion Loren DeArmond went charging by. DeArmond held the lead until problems on the eighth lap dropped him deep in the pack. At that point, Chad Johnson held the lead. Nicholas Johnson swept past Schweitzer for second on the 14th lap, but he wasn't quite able to make the move as Chad Johnson won ahead of Nicholas Johnson, past Hanford champion Troy Patee, DeArmond, Chris Broucaret Schweitzer, Tyler Johnson, Brock Hamilton, Cody Johnson and Ethan Dotson. The eight lap heat race wins went to Nicholas Johnson and Ethan Dotson.

Racing resumes next Saturday night with the Western Pro Stocks opening their season, joined by the Hobby Stocks, American Stocks and California Lightning Sprints. For further information, go to www.bakersfieldspeedway.com.


Bakersfield Speedway Unofficial Race Results March 7, 2020
IMCA Modifieds
Dylan Thorton
Brad Pounds
Cody Laney
Alex Stanford
Kollin Hibdo
Austin Kiefe
Kyle Heckman
Logan Drake
Rob Sande
Steve Nolan
Roger Holder
Gavyn Manning
Michael Scruggs
Darrell Hughes II
Jerry Flippo
Bryan Clar
Ryan Dave
Kolby Hann
Blake Thornell
Ethan Dotson
Randy Thornell
Robby Sawyer
Bobby Hogge IV

IMCA Sport Modifieds
Garrett Jernaga
Michael Johnson
Kevin Johnson
Jason Nation
Austin Manzella
Nick Spainhoward
Matt Mayo
Billy Simkin
Daniel West
Brock Crawfor
David Pearson
Justin Gonzalez
Markus Frazier
Brandon Jennings
robby claborn
Tyler Blankenship
Brian Baker
Brylon Holder
Mike Wells
Matthew Mayo

IMCA Stock Cars
Chad Johnson
Nicholas Johnson
Troy Patee
Loren DeArmond
Kris Broucaret
Jayden Schweitzer
Tyler Johnson
Brock Hamilton
Cody Johnson
Ethan Dotson
Wayne Dotson

American Stocks
Steve Johnson
Tyler Irwin
Steven Amick
Brian Childress
Josh Yadon
Miranda Scott
Nick Coffman
Clay Water
Daryl Mealer
Cobly War
Craig Houk
Mason Conwa
Andrew Johnston
Mark McCaslin


Unofficial Ventura Raceway Race Results March 7, 2020
VRA Sprint Cars
Rick Hendrix
Trent Williams
Brandon Wiley
Tyler Hatzikian
Will Perkins

VRA Pro Dwarf Cars
Jason Horton
Shane Linenburger
Kobe Kerns
Kevin Powell
Brian Powell
April Banuelos
Jeff Brink
Cameron Russell
Gage Cheek
Evan Jonker
Mike Keebler
Mike Long
Jack Chavez
Jeff Hinz
Tim Morse

VRA Senior Sprints
Chris Meredith
Nate Robinson
Will Perkins
Tom Stephens Sr
Danny Parrish
Wally Pankratz
Russell Martin
Rob Kershaw
Mike Coo

IMCA Modifieds
Trevor Fitzgibbon
Austin Grabowski
Danny Laue
Jack Parker
Andrew Greiman
Dennis Eckert
Dave Phipps
Bailey Jones
Tim Labrake
Sam Garvin
Terry Hershberger
Brandon Hoekstra
Donald Houghton
Todd Barnes

VRA Hobby Stocks
Joel Chavez
Ryan Changus
Jeff Houghton
Ken Redman
Dalton Houghton


Unofficial Merced Speedway Race Results March 6, 2020
ASCS National Sprint Cars
Main Event
Brad Sweet
Shane Golobic
Blake Hahn
Carson Macedo
Andy Forsberg
Ryan Bernal
Roger Crockett
Blake Carrick
Dominic Scelzi
Alex Hill
Dylan Westbrook
D.J. Netto
Jordon Mallett
Mitchell Faccinto
Justyn Cox
Thomas Kennedy
Robbie Price
Harli White
Grant Dunkerkin
Justin Sanders
Tanner Carrick
Chase Johnson
Matt Covington
Scott Bogucki

B Main 1
Chase Johnson
Tanner Carrick
Robbie Price
Matt Covington
John Carney II
Scott Bogucki
John Clark
Shane Hopkins
Billy Butler
Chase Randall
Chris Martin
Tony Gualda Jr
Stephen Ingraham
Chelsea Blevins
Jeremy McCun
Travis Reber
Kaleb Montgomery
Devon Borden

B Main 2
Justyn Cox
Mitchell Faccint
Harli White
Joey Ancona
Greg Hamilton
Danny Sams III
Colby Johnson
Sean Becker
Ryan Bickett
Mitchel Moles
Willie Croft
Garet Williamson
Mindy McCune
Bradley Terrel
Michael Faccinto
Sam Hafertepe Jr
J.J. Hickle

IMCA Sport Modifieds
Michael Johnson
Fred Ryland
Kevin Johnson
Jeremy Hoff
Chris Falkenberg
Timothy Allerdings
Paul Espino
Tanner Thomas
Kaylin Lopez
Patti Ryland
Richard Ragsdal
Jason Ferguson
Dwayne Shor
Tony Peffer
Chuck Weir
Sean Vega
Kodie Dean
Nick Tucker
Andrew Peckham

California Sharp Mini Late Models
Garrett Corn
Kennzzie Brown
Riley Jeppesen
Brayden Morton
Emali VanHoff
Tyler Tucker
Jay Brooks
Carson Guthrie
Kaylin Lopez


Unofficial Petaluma Speedway Race Results March 8, 2020
ASCS National Sprint Cars
Main Event
Andy Forsberg
Shane Golobic
Sean Becker
Sam Hafertepe Jr
Justyn Cox
Scott Bogucki
Carson Macedo
Blake Carrick
Tanner Carrick
Chase Johnson
Chris Martin
Tony Gualda Jr
Dylan Westbrook
Devon Borden
Robbie Price
Geoff Ensign
Blake Hahn
Harli White
Jordon Mallett
J.J. Hickle
Shane Hopkins
Alex Hill
Chelsea Blevin
Willie Croft
Roger Crockett

B Main 1
Tony Gualda Jr
Chase Johnson
Jordon Mallett
Chase Randal
Colby Johnson
Jake Haulot
Jesse Love
Garet Williamson
John Carney II
Ryan Bickett
Mindy McCune
Jeremy McCune
Blake Hahn

B Main 2
Willie Croft
Harli White
Shane Hopkin
J.J. Hickle
Bradley Terrell   
Roger Crockett
Danny Sams III
John Clark
Greg Hamilton
Matt Covington
Billy Butler
Travis Reber
Thomas Kennedy

General Hydroponics Redwood Dwarf Cars
Main Event
Danny Wagner
Full results not posted, see article above for more information

The Editor's Viewpoint

I'm close to making an official announcement. This will happen by the end of the month. It's something that I've been thinking about and not necessarily wanting to address, but I feel the time may be right for me to make this move. It certainly has not been easy, but before I say anything, I want to make sure that I have all of the facts at my disposal. No, it's not an announcement that I'm going away or pulling this blog. I will be active this season. I just need to do what's right for me. I'll probably be the bad guy if I end up doing what it looks like I might have to do, but so be it. Being the doormat hasn't really worked for me either. 

It's kind of funny that we went through February with lots of sunny skies and dry weather. There were tracks even in Oregon that could have held practice sessions had work been done on the racing surface. Then, as we hit the first weekend of March, it decided to rain. This did away with the planned practice in Yreka and the big ASCS National Sprint Car race planned for Placerville. Antioch Speedway had a practice that they really tried to make happen that Saturday, but rain had other ideas.

The cool thing is that Promoter Chad Chadwick decided to think outside the box and make a snap decision. The moment he knew that practice wasn't going to happen on Saturday due to the wet weather, he decided to switch to a Sunday practice. Pretty much everybody who was going to be there on Saturday showed up on Sunday, and much was learned about the racing surface. Some of the top traveling teams had taken a sneak peek at the surface with a session of their own during the week, but this was an opportunity for everybody to make their first laps on the quarter-mile clay oval. 

Reshaping the track was high on the list of things that Chadwick wanted to do. Drivers have been voicing their desire to see the speedway widened out just a little bit more, and Chadwick wanted to make that happen at the West Coast Nationals last year. Now that he is the one at the helm of the speedway, he can put his own plans in motion. The biggest reason for the sneak practice during the week was to get the opinion of some racers who have been traveling a lot in recent years and know a thing or two about different racing surfaces. Once things looked good there, the weekend practice would provide an opportunity for everybody to make a run.

It was interesting watching the Wednesday practice video footage that was put out there for all to see. I enjoyed watching Nick DeCarlo and Troy Foulger slice and dice and do slide job passes in each turn. Antioch Speedway has had a nice outside groove for years. What we witnessed in this case was two good grooves. In fact, there was lots of side-by-side practicing on Sunday as well. If you didn't know any better, you might have thought they were holding a race. It seems to be a general consensus that the racers are pleased with the quarter-mile clay oval.

Obviously, the first temptation a new promoter will have when stepping into a racing facility for the first time is changing as much as they can. This holds true with successful programs being taken over by new promoters the same as those taking over programs that are in decline. You want to put your stamp on it. In Chadwick's case, I think you can understand that he looked at declining numbers in the pits and in the stands and figured that some big changes were needed to reverse that trend. I might wonder if certain things needed to happen or not, but some things certainly did need to happen. 

What you have to be worried about is that when numbers go down to a certain point and remain there, it becomes more challenging to reverse the trend. We are several years away from what I would describe as the "Glory Days" of racing, and it's just a different time. Therefore, if you let the low numbers be the norm, you're going to have more of a challenge trying to get those numbers back up. If you sit there and do nothing, what exactly is going to change for the better? So, I won't nitpick the decisions that have been made, because you have to allow the new promoter to put his vision out there and be given an opportunity to take hold.

We are watching promoters risk their money every week to keep the gates open. This is happening at a time when technology both in our own personal lives and within the automobile industry are presenting certain challenges. What new divisions can you try versus what older divisions can you hold onto? What divisions are working and what divisions can be salvaged by tweaking the rules just a little bit? There is much to work with at Antioch Speedway when it comes to the different divisions and the potential car count. Though I'm not going to tell you that suddenly there will be 100 cars in the pits every week, the car count average on any particular week should increase.

Everything seems to be working so far, but the big test happens when the grandstands open on race day. How many fans will be coming out to watch? The obvious goal that you have, especially considering this is a Bay Area track, is that you want 1,000 fans per week or more. The fans are there to be enticed, but I can assure you it's not a guarantee that you're going to hit those numbers consistently. This won't happen without proper marketing, proper presentation and giving people a reason to spend their hard-earned money coming through the gates. Tickets and food at the speedway aren't cheap, and if you're asking a fan to come out there four times a month, you're talking about a family spending a couple hundred dollars or more out of their budget every month to be there. The task you have is making them want to be there.

So far, so good. There's a lot of things that need to be done at that speedway, and a lot of work is being done. The pit area certainly needed to be cleaned with certain things being removed. This is happening. The pit bathrooms have been problematic for years, and they are being completely redone. It was either that or remove them entirely. I don't believe that the bathrooms in the pits have been maintained properly for the past several years, and quite honestly they were disgusting. You almost could have had porta potties out there and it would have been a step up from the actual bathrooms with running water. It isn't just the fact that the speedway hadn't been maintaining them properly, but some of the people using the facilities weren't properly respecting them either. Hopefully, when things are cleaned up, the people in the pits will keep in mind that the way they treat the facilities will have an impact on how clean or unclean they end up being. How would you treat your own bathroom at home?

One of the things that will help Chad out with his turnaround effort is the endorsement of some of the big-name drivers who aren't necessarily racing there every week. I've seen people getting on social media and talking about the new attitude at the speedway and why they will be supporting. They want other people to come out and support this thing as well, so seeing people like Guy Ahlwardt, Fred Ryland and Kellen Chadwick talking so positively about the track is certainly going to help. This is especially true for the grandstands where fans who want to see certain names out there on the track will be more likely to come watch when they know they are there.

I should also point out that I received confirmation that John Soares has indeed sold Oval Motorsports to Chad Chadwick. My sources have told me that the deal is completely finalized now and Soares is not officially affiliated with the speedway. This marks the second time he's run a racing program and ended up selling his operations to somebody else. The first time was when he saved Merced Speedway from the ash heap, did a major overhaul to the race track and righted the ship. In Antioch's case, John promoted this race track for 22 years. 

I think ultimately history will note that John did right by Antioch Speedway. Everything was by no means perfect and there were definitely some lows. There were highs as well. Anybody who was there during John's first three seasons knows some of the highs, there were big Modified $5,000 to win races through the years, big Late Model specials, big Sprint Car events, and oh yes, the first ever appearances by the World of Outlaw Sprint Cars. John did all of that. I think there is quite a bit to be proud of.

To me, it's the nuts and bolts of the thing. What you do week in and week out. It isn't the specials, it's the fact that he gave the regular locals a place to run. John added new divisions and gave the racers opportunities to try out things they may never have otherwise. To me, a major calling card for him is the fact that the races went on as scheduled for 22 years, unless it was weather or something Fairgrounds related that was beyond his control. He kept things going from the era of West Coast Speedways and has successfully made the handoff to Chad Chadwick.

There will be speculation about what John might be doing next. I've heard rumors. He has several different race cars at his disposal, so seeing him at Antioch Speedway or another venue is certainly a possibility. Could he aim even higher? Could John return to promote another race track or even help put a race track on the map that isn't currently active? I guess you never know. On the other hand, considering his body of work in promoting, racing, car building and all of that, his legacy is well secured. He's earned the right to walk off into the sunset. Like I said, I am proud to still call him my friend and will always be grateful for the opportunities he gave me way back when.

This weekend will see several other race tracks open, and I've been trying to get more in the mode of writing again. I did talk myself out of doing the extra media effort this past weekend. One of the race tracks I would have covered didn't give me all the information I needed, and I admit I decided that I wasn't going to stress out trying to find the information. After all, it's voluntary and I'm not getting paid to do what I do. I'm still unsure about how much of that I'm going to do beyond what I present on my blogs, but I do know there are several other tracks opening their gates this weekend, including Kern Raceway, Silver Dollar Speedway and Ocean Speedway.

Merced Speedway will run one of their regular programs, and I just learned that General Manager Doug Lockwood has increased the winner's prize in IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds and Mini Stocks. I think this is Doug's reminder in light of the highly successful ASCS National Sprint Car show they just had that the local divisions are very important. I like that Doug is a Sprint Car person who respects Stock Car racing and realizes that it's going to take all of that to keep this thing going. You'd be amazed at some of the race tracks that lose sight of that fact. 

The ASCS National Sprint Car show was to come through Merced, Placerville and Petaluma last weekend, but rain wiped out Placerville. Merced had a rather sizable fan attendance to witness 51 Sprint Cars competing among the other divisions that were on the card. Petaluma was an even split of 42 Sprint Cars and 42 Dwarf Cars and a packed house. I think it was a smart move for these promoters to go ahead and book this Sprint Car series, and what was learned was that you can have huge fields for these events, they don't cost as much as a World of Outlaw program and the fans will respond by buying tickets. Ultimately, this is what you're in the business for as a promoter.

I was hoping to get some details on the Orland Raceway practice. I know it happened and saw a few pictures, but that's about the extent of the information that I received. Not too far up north of Orland, the Siskiyou Golden Speedway practice did get rained out. In fact, the practice scheduled for this Saturday looked so gloomy that Kevin Barba made a snap decision on Wednesday morning to move the practice to Friday. There could be snow on Saturday, and this was the only way to have any opportunity to practice. 

This brings up the debate about a promoter putting himself at risk to be the hero versus making a move that may ultimately be better for business. We just witnessed Antioch Speedway making such a move, and it paid off. We're only talking about practice here, and it's not like a snap decision is being made to move a race. In Yreka's case, I don't think it's going to affect things too much. Drivers who were planning on being there on Saturday who live in Yreka will probably be there, but people traveling from too far of a distance out of town may have those plans altered due to work.

They're going to have the Sportsman Expo in Yreka this month. This is an opportunity for the racers in Yreka to put their cars on display and meet with some of the people at this event. Usually there's at least a few racers in the various classes who participate, and somebody ends up being awarded for the Best Appearing Car. We're coming up on the Pony Village Mall show in Coos Bay, which is when several racers from the speedway display their cars indoors. Again, when you can get this kind of exposure leading into a season, you jump at the chance.

Southern Oregon Speedway used to be represented prior to the season at a car show at the Rogue Valley Mall. By the time Mike McCann and I got here, that was ended, although the speedway is still represented at the Pear Blossom Parade in April. Tony Incerty of the safety crew of the speedway does an exemplary job of organizing things. For the Pony Village Mall show, once McCann had the door opened to make it happen on March 28th and 29th, he put speedway announcer Cory Penfold and Moxie Media on the task of signing and sealing the deal. This is going to be a great opportunity for exposure for Southern Oregon Speedway.

One of the areas that Cory and his crew excel at is this type of promotion. Prior to coming to Southern Oregon Speedway, Cory helped organize the mall show for Willamette Speedway. The cars will be displayed prominently indoors with the drivers meeting and greeting the people. Cory will also be going live with his radio show, West Coast Wide Open. If you don't follow Moxie Media And Promotions on Facebook, you should do so. This is the way to find out when they're going live and other news that Cory may break.

Oregon is slowly coming to life. The weather being what it is in the state, we get off to a later start than California. However, the weather has been so crazy that if track prep had been handled in February, they probably could have had practice up here as well. Cottage Grove Speedway did a clean up party last weekend and would hope to get a practice in this week. However, it looks like rain ahead, and I'm not holding out hope for the March 21st opener either. The weather teased  Oregonians. Everything looked nice in February, but we're reminded what state we live in with the rain that will probably go on and off through March and into April.

I'm entering my fifth season at Southern Oregon Speedway, and one of the strangest thoughts in my mind is that I've actually officially been a part of this staff longer than I have at any other race track. Technically, I was only an official member of the staff at Antioch Speedway for three seasons, and was retained as a writer in 2003. I was officially involved at Merced Speedway for three seasons, though two of those were only part time. I never would have figured that the race track I would be affiliated with officially for the longest period of time would be Southern Oregon Speedway. People will say, "but you were at Antioch for years," and that's true. However, I wasn't an official member of the staff most of the time. Though I did handle magazine publicity for the speedway, I was more or less there as a representative of DCRR Racing News. 

My heart has never really left Antioch when it comes to racing, and I don't think the time will ever come when I completely let go of that dream, even when I walk away from the sport. However, I feel like I have an emotional stake in Southern Oregon Speedway and its success. I set about a task to help make things better, and I've done everything I can think of to help Mike bring that into reality. The results are speaking for themselves, but I remain very nervous entering the fifth season. I'm always aware of the possibility that things can go terribly wrong or there won't be something that I can do to fix any problem that might come my way. 

I've made some good friends up here and been involved in some really special moments in the four years here so far. It became more of a concern in my mind last year, given some of the chaos behind the scenes, that we don't mess up and have something fall apart. My attitude is, "not on my watch." The ultimate goal is that when I walk away from this race track, I can hand off the duties that I handled to somebody knowing that it's better off than it was before I got here. I don't think there's much else that you can do but give it your best and hope it makes a difference.

Regardless, the speedway won't have any racing until the first weekend of May with a practice the weekend before if the weather allows. I don't think Jim will start taking a cut on the race track until the beginning of April. This has been tradition. I hear some people say we should get started earlier or this or that, but the season won't start any earlier than it's planned. The weather is still going to impact stuff, so what do you really get accomplished if you start cutting the race track two months earlier versus doing it a few weeks ahead of time? From my perspective, Jim Rodgers has had the track in good shape when the racing season has started for the past four seasons.

Where I can hear people's complaints and understand them well enough is when it comes to the pits. They get wet and there are times when we cancel our program with a track that could still be raced on. The pits get soft too easily, and you'll hear lots of solutions about how we can put some other sort of surface in the pits to prevent that or figure out a way to improve the drainage system. We're talking thousands of dollars of expenses to make this move, and sure you can make a racing program happen sometimes when it might otherwise be canceled. I certainly understand the racer's concern. If it's at all humanly possible to go racing, they want to do it.

What I've learned now that maybe I wasn't quite understanding when Brynda Bockover was trying to teach me that lesson at Antioch Speedway some 30 years ago is pretty simple. If you've got gloomy skies and it's raining in the area, it doesn't really matter if you could hold the race at the speedway. You're guaranteed to lose a good portion of your fans. If you have a low crowd for your show, it's almost certain that all the work you're putting in will lose money. Like it or not, a promoter might do this for the good racing, but it's still a business. It's not good business to lose money too often or you're not running the race track anymore.

Mike has a plan that he sticks to pretty rigidly. If the weather says the chances of raining are low enough, he's racing. It might have rained the day before and will rain tomorrow. If the grounds can hold the cars in the pits and the track is ready, he's rolling the dice. The problem is that if it's still gloomy skies, you suffer. This was what happened for the season-opener a few years ago when it was cloudy and gloomy and you could have almost counted the attendance in the stands by hand. You don't want to open your season with a low number, because you really shouldn't. You want to establish momentum immediately.

I always talk about some of the joys of a new season. You have new race cars, new bodies on those cars with nice looking wraps. You have lots of green in the area from the rains. It's definitely something that's pleasing to the eyes. In Oregon, we have a little bit of what I'd call rainy weather depression. It'll get you down how much it rains up here. So, the minute people can go outdoors again, they are ready. If going outdoors means they're facing cloudy, cold and potentially wet weather, even with the desire to get outdoors, they're going to stay home. What I'm saying is I do hope that there's sunny skies when the season opens at Southern Oregon Speedway in May. You always want to start out strong.

At the moment, there's not a lot on my mind that needs to be expressed in this column. I  am just trying to keep my mind focused for what I'm inclined to believe will be my final season being involved on a regular basis in the sport. Unless something I'm not seeing comes my way next year or this year for that matter, I feel like it might be time to pursue things differently. I'm not getting any younger, I'm not getting any happier and my outlook for the future isn't getting any brighter.

What has made things easier for me when it comes to motorsports is that I can get my mind engaged in what is happening in the sport. When I'm involved in racing at a specific venue, I believe I have proven through the years how much I can contribute to the overall positivity of the track. I'm also starting to realize that as I've entered my 50s, maybe it's time for me to get out of the way and let others have a crack at things. It's a new era with new ways to look at things, and though I can adapt and roll with some of it, maybe the era of the written word and somebody wanting to document things every week is passing by. It's all just bits on a computer now that sometimes gets deleted when the season's over to make room for the next season. Have I overstayed my welcome? 

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I'll continue to stand up and fight for what it is I believe in. I believe in everybody involved in the sport and those in the past who made it special. I believe in the history and I believe in honoring the legends, and even if no race tracks give a damn about any of that, as long as I draw breath, I will. Whether that matters to any particular race track, I'm beginning to have my doubts. I'm left to believe that for the most part, my services aren't needed or wanted by the powers-that-be. While I will never completely go away and will write things on this blog when I feel the need, I'm prepared to step back into the shadows. 

Before that happens, however, I have a season to cover. I'm looking to have fun and take it one week at a time. I value the friendships and some of the precious memories that have been made through the years. As I said, I do have an announcement forthcoming, but I'm going to wait until all the facts are presented and say something by the end of the month. Until then, I'm going to end this column for now...