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Our Most Recent Show
Golobic Gets It Done At Ocean Speedway,
Pettit, Velasquez, Harris, Gullo Other Winners
Watsonville,
CA...April 23...Shane Golobic won the 30 lap Taco Bravo Sprint Car Main
Event Friday night at Ocean Speedway. He took the lead early on and
turned in a rather dominant performance in getting his first win at the
track this season. Golobic is a two-time Watsonville champion, and his
win came aboard the Matt Wood owned Elk Grove Ford/NOS Energy Drink
Sprinter
The night looked like it might belong
to point leader Justin Sanders, who has been rather dominant this
season. Sanders chased Keith Day Jr across the finish line to finish
second in the six lap Trophy Dash. That put him on the outside front
row. Day surprised him by charging into the lead at the start.
Unfortunately, Sanders saw his race come to an end on a Lap 2 yellow
flag that also ended the race for Adam Kaeding and Kurt Nelson. On the
restart, Golobic took the lead from Keith Day Jr as reigning champion
Mitchell Faccinto settled into third ahead of Ryan Bernal. Bernal
slipped past Faccinto for third on Lap 6. By the 10th lap, Golobic had
built up a good lead over Keith Day Jr. Corey Day settled into fourth on
Lap 19. Corey Day took third from Bernal on the 22nd lap. Golobic held a
straightaway lead when the final yellow flag of the race waved on Lap
27. As Golobic motored ahead on the restart, Corey Day began to
challenge Keith Day Jr for second, making the pass on Lap 28. However,
nobody was stopping Golobic as he went on to score the impressive
victory ahead of Corey Day, Keith Day Jr, Bernal, Dominic Scelzi, Colby
Copeland, Faccinto, Bud Kaeding, JJ Ringo and Tucker Worth.
There
were 32 Taco Bravo Sprint Cars, and Golobic ripped around the Tom
Sagmiller prepared quarter-mile clay oval with a lap of 11.248 to set
the quick time. Sanders was second quick at 11.319, beating the 11.383
of Corey Day. The four eight lap heat races would transfer the Top 4
directly into the Main Event. Wins went to Joey Ancona, Keith Day Jr,
Bernal and Becker. Corey Day ended up in the 12 lap B Main, but he used
his pole position start to lead every lap in victory. Nick Ringo took
second from Adam Kaeding on the fifth lap and finished there, followed
by Jake Andreotti, Nelson and Adam Kaeding.
Jim
Pettit II won the 25 lap IMCA Modified Main Event. This was the second
win at Watsonville this season for Pettit, who is the current State
point leader. Matthew Hagio started on the outside front row and raced
into the early lead over JC Elrod and Carl Berendsen II. The yellow flag
waved after two laps. Elrod took the lead from Hagio on the restart.
Pettit was running fourth at that point, but he made a big move around
both Hagio and Berendsen to grab second on the fourth lap as reigning
champion Cody Burke followed him into third. Pettit stalked Elrod until
making what proved to be his winning pass on Lap 6. Elrod was being
hounded by both Burke and Robert Marsh, and Marsh led Burke past him for
second and third on Lap 7. As Pettit had a decent lead, Marsh and Cody
Burke were battling for second when the yellow flag waved on Lap 10.
Pettit continued to lead on the restart as Cody Burke and Berendsen
settled into second and third. Austin Burke motored around Berendsen for
third on Lap 12, and the final yellow flag waved on Lap 18. Pettit
continued to lead on the restart. Though Cody Burke kept it close,
Pettit would prevail at the checkered flag. Austin Burke settled for
third, followed by Robert Marsh. Unfortunately, Marsh was disqualified,
moving Berendsen into fourth, followed by Elrod, Kyle Bryan, Raymond
Keldsen Jr, Gary Marsh and Hagio. Hagio and Pettit won their respective
eight lap heat races.
Tommy Velasquez III won
the rapidly run 20 lap South Bay Dwarf Car Main Event. Velasquez
finished second to Shawn Jones last week and proceeded to win the Main
Event at Santa Maria Raceway a night later. Velasquez bolted into the
lead at the start ahead of reigning champion Mark Biscardi and reigning
Antioch champion Travis Day. Velasquez rapidly pulled away from Biscardi
and held a straightaway advantage by the eighth lap as Gene "Punky"
Pires took third from Day. The only yellow flag of the race on Lap 14
erased a near straightaway advantage for Velasquez over Biscardi.
Undaunted, Velasquez proceeded to pull away on the next restart as Pires
took second from Biscardi. It was an exciting three-car battle for
second, and Biscardi led Day past Pires on Lap 19. However, Velasquez
held a straightaway advantage over Biscardi at the checkered flag. Day
finished third, followed by Trafton Chandler, Dan Zuger, Eric Weisler,
Pires, Justin Bingman, Barry Waddell and Eddy Claessen. Biscardi and
Velasquez won the eight lap heat races.
Quinton
Harris won the 20 lap Hobby Stock Main Event. This was his first win in
the class. Long time Watsonville racer Tony Oliveira moved his Ford
into the lead at the start ahead of Wally Kennedy and reigning champion
Joe Gallaher. The yellow flag waved on Lap 3, and Oliveira continued to
lead Kennedy and Jerry Skelton on the restart. The final yellow flag
slowed the pace on Lap 5. While Oliveira continued to lead on the
restart, Harris and Scott Freeman bumped Skelton out of the Top 3.
Harris began pressuring Oliveira for the lead and put the moves on him
on the 10th lap to take over. Skelton took third from Freeman on Lap 11.
On Lap 16, Skelton took second from Oliveira. However, Harris had a
decent lead and brought it home to the satisfying win, followed by
Skelton, Olivera, Adriane Frost, Joe Gallaher, Brady Muller, Kennedy,
Freeman, Bobby Gallaher and Terry Campion. The eight lap heat race wins
went to Skelton and Campion.
Tony Gullo won his
second 15 lap Four Banger Main Event. Looking for his second win,
Richard Mitchell set the early pace ahead of Kate Beardsley and Gullo.
Gullo and Beardsley were having a good battle with Gullo gaining second
on the sixth lap. A lap later, Gullo found his opening and took the lead
from Mitchell. Gullo led the rest of the way to win as Mitchell settled
for second ahead of Kate Beardsley, Nicole Beardsley, Bill Beardsley
and Travis Van Gilder. Gullo also won the six lap heat race.
Racing
continues next Friday night with the Taco Bravo Sprint Cars back in
action along with the Hobby Stocks, Four Bangers and Police N Pursuit
cars. For further information, go to www.racepmg.com.
Robinson Scores Sprint Car Victory At Cottage Grove Speedway
Cottage
Grove, Oregon....April 23...Jodie Robinson won the 30 lap Winged 360
Sprint Car Main Event Friday night at Cottage Grove Speedway. This was
the opening night of the Spring Fling and only the second career win for
Robinson aboard the Morrison Concrete/Roseville Precision Inc sponsored
Sprinter. Two years ago, her first win came in a stellar field of
competitors in a Sprint Car Challenge Tour race at Merced Speedway.
Robinson
started in the second row of the feature as Garen Linder and Jake
Wheeler settled into first and second. Robinson was running third and
took second from Wheeler on the seventh lap. A lap later, she slipped
past Linder to take the lead. A yellow flag waved on the 13th lap for
Shane Forte. On the restart, Linder regained the lead from Robinson as
Holmes was running in third. The race remained close at the front of the
pack, and the tenacious Robinson finally moved back around Linder to
take the lead for good on the 25th lap. Robinson went on to victory with
Linder not too far behind in second. Holmes was a solid third, followed
by Tyler Driever, reigning champion Tyler Thompson, Kyle Alberding,
Vern Scevers, Matt Hein, Forte and Jared Hood.
The
Friday night show drew an impressive 19 car field, and Driever toured
the quarter-mile clay oval with the fast time of 10.612, beating the
10.719 of Wheeler. They ran three eight lap heat races with Robinson,
Forte and Hein winning those races. Linder won the five lap Trophy Dash.
Bricen
James won the 25 lap IMCA Modified Main Event. James is the 2019 IMCA
Western Regional champion, and he started in the fourth row. Polesitter
Paul Rea led two laps before Jeffrey Hudson grabbed the lead. Previous
winter Matthew Drager settled into second on the fourth lap ahead of
Colin Winebarger. However, James moved into third on the eighth lap and
took second from Drager a lap later. Winebarger moved into third and
briefly grabbed second from James on the 12th lap. James reclaimed
second on Lap 15 and set his sights on Hudson. On Lap 17, James moved by
Hudson for the lead, and Hudson brought out a Lap 19 yellow flag. James
led the restart ahead of Winebarger and 13th starter Curtis Towns.
James went on to win ahead of Winebarger, Towns, Drager, Eston Whistler,
Jake Mayden, Aaron Sheelar, Steven Sturdevant, Hudson and Chance Hyser.
22
IMCA Modified drivers came to compete on Friday night. James Welshonse
was the quickest qualifier at 15.279, beating the 15.400 of Rea. The
eight lap heat race wins went to Drager, Whistler and James. Drager won
the four lap Trophy Dash.
Donald Schott won the
20 lap Street Stock Main Event. Anthony Prather had the pole and set
the early pace ahead of PJ Humphrey and Daniel Ray. Schott started in
the third row and took third from Ray on Lap 4. On the seventh lap,
Schott slipped past Humphrey for second. Prather saw his run in front
thwarted as he brought out a yellow flag on Lap 11. Schott assumed the
lead at that point ahead of point leader Graig Osborne. Schott would
pull away to a comfortable margin of victory by the time the checkered
flag flew. Osborne settled for second, followed by Brody Humphrey, Mike
Swaim, PJ Humphrey, Prather, Robert Hughes, Taunton Swaim and Ray. Eric
Freeman was a Main Event scratch. Ray was the quickest of 10 qualifiers
at 17.620, beating the 18.215 of Osborne. Schott and Mike Swaim won the
eight lap heat races, and Taunton Swaim won the four lap Trophy Dash.
Saturday's
race for the Winged 360 Sprint Cars, IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport
Modifieds and IMCA Sport Compacts has be called due to rain.. For
further information on the happenings at the track, go to www.cottagegrovespeedway.com or check the track's Facebook page.
Outlaw Pro Stock Association Returns For 10th Season
Klamath
Falls, Oregon...In the Southern Oregon and Northern California area,
Outlaw Pro Stock racing has been a staple class. You can trace its
origins in the Medford area to the Sportsman division that branched off
from the Street Stocks at Medford Speedway, and the Pro Stocks were an
integral part of the rosters offered when Southern Oregon Speedway
opened in 1996. In fact, it wasn't uncommon to see them deliver fields
of 30 or more cars and have the best supported division of the night
back in those days.
Siskiyou Golden Speedway
was able to feature the class through the years as well. When the
Medford track closed, several of the Sportsman racers ended up in Yreka
supporting what was a really healthy division at the time. In the early
2000s, a group of Pro Stock racers, led by the Flowers family, were
ardent supporters of Worden Speedway. The track is actually not far from
where current Outlaw Pro Stock President Scott Flowers lives, but it's
been dormant for over 15 years now.
As happens
with divisions of all kinds, they see a decline in numbers over time.
Race tracks sometimes make tough decisions to drop certain classes from
their lineup. This is what occurred in 2012 when Southern Oregon
Speedway management at the time decided that they would go ahead and
drop the Pro Stocks as they added the IMCA Sport Modifieds. This caused a
fracture in the lineup as a few of the drivers went ahead and joined
the new Sport Modified class. That left the rest of the Medford and
Klamath Falls racers fighting to keep Pro Stock racing alive.
At
the time, two of the important figures in Medford fighting for the
cause were former President Arlen Heath and Maurie Skaggs. The
association running Siskiyou Golden Speedway at the time offered the Pro
Stocks a lifeline by booking them for several races, and the Outlaw Pro
Stock Association was officially born that year. Though the door wasn't
open for them to go back as a group to the Medford track in 2012,
drivers did support a race or two. By remaining united, the Outlaw Pro
Stock Association eventually did get included on the 2013 schedule at
Southern Oregon Speedway and have had at least some dates there every
year since.
By sticking to their guns and
keeping the rules sensible and affordable, a remarkable thing happened
with the association. By 2015, they offered some of the strongest car
counts at the Medford track as the numbers even went into the 20s. The
division in decline just a few years earlier was now growing and in
demand. The fact is, fendered Stock Car racing such as the Pro Stocks
offer has always produced some exciting racing, and people want to see
it.
The champion honor roll for the group is a
who's who of some of the best drivers you'll find in the area. Ken
Irving is a long time supporter of Pro Stock racing and won the 2012 and
2014 titles. Dave Everson could be very difficult to beat at Medford
and has since moved on to Super Late Models. However, he won the 2013
championship before moving on. In 2015, a rising young star named
Jeffrey Hudson, son of long time Pro Stock supporter Jeff Hudson, became
the youngest champion in the group's history at 15 years old. Hudson is
currently competing for the IMCA Modified championship in Cottage Grove
and was a Southern Oregon Speedway Sprint Car Rookie of the Year before
that.
Another long time supporter of Pro Stock
racing, Steve Borror, decided to run for points in 2016 and proved
rather dominant in claiming the honors that year. Speaking of dominant,
Dr Scott Lenz decided to throw his hat in the ring in 2017. A past
champion at Southern Oregon Speedway who started his career at the old
Medford track, Lenz was also difficult to beat en route to championship
seasons in 2017 and 2018. He might have won it again in 2019, but the
steady Scott Flowers finally broke through to win a championship. He
repeated that accomplishment last year, while also being crowned Yreka
track champion for the second-straight year.
Flowers
and his family have been about as big of supporters as you'll find for
racing. They have multiple cars and have in years past supported Street
Stock/Enduro racing as well. Though the competitive fire burns and
winning is the goal, Scott is happy to enjoy a good night at the track.
In 2019, he finally notched his first career win. In general, you'll
find him finishing in the Top 5 unless mechanical issues sideline him.
He won a race last season, but it wasn't as easy to win. In fact, the
competition level was so high that they produced seven different winners
in the eight races held in Yreka.
Despite it
being a pandemic year and tracks struggling to get open, there were only
less than 10 cars once in the eight Yreka races, and that was a
nine-car field. They were otherwise always in double digits with a high
of 14 cars, while also delivering a field of over 20 competitors in
head-to-head competition with the NASCAR Sportsman Late Models in Coos
Bay on one occasion. This all added up to some of the best racing on the
program on any night the Outlaw Pro Stocks were part of the deal.
In
the end, Scott Flowers won the championship by 42 points. Flowers only
missed the Top 5 in one of the eight races held, and his finishes
included four seconds in addition to the win. With that kind of
consistency, it's difficult to beat him for the championship. Matt
Harlow gave it a good run in second, and it was somewhat of a milestone
year for him as well. Harlow recorded his first ever win with the group
and was in the championship hunt all the way to the end. His win came at
the season opener. Colby Hammond nearly get the win that night before
settling for a career best second.
A look at
the list of winners finds that rookie Darek Alford drove the former
Scott Lenz car to his first win as well. Johnny Cobb, who has been
competing with the group since it started, got his first win, and Jeff
Haudenshild recorded only his second triumph with the group. From Chico
Silver Dollar Speedway, two-time track champion Phil Marino was also a
winner. The Tri State Pro Stock Challenge Series joined the Outlaws at
the Coos Bay event and one of their regulars, Jesse Gonzalez, got that
win. Scott Flowers and Johnny Cobb finished third and fourth that night,
respectively.
As usual, Scott's son James
Flowers did well in points, but it was a difficult season for him with
mechanical issues taking him out of the action at times. His season best
third place finish helped him in finishing third, one point ahead of
Hammond and two points in front of Cobb. Alford ended up topping the
rookie board and finishing three points out of fifth in the end.
Haudenshild, Denny Burtenhouse Jr, Scott Bennett and Steve Borror
rounded out the Top 10. Borror didn't run for points, but he bears
distinction as the only driver with two feature wins. He won the final
two events of the season in Yreka.
The fact is,
just about anybody in this group can win on any given night. Rick
Lukins came the closest to winning without taking the checkered flag in
first. Like Hammond, he had a season best second place finish. Hammond
had one second place finish as well as one third with the group. Scott
Bennett didn't race every week, but he managed to grab one third place
finish as did Ken LaPlant. All of these hard chargers will be out to get
into the winner's circle when the season begins.
The
Outlaw Pro Stock Association doesn't have the schedule on their website
yet, and this may be due to the fact that they are negotiating for
dates in Medford as that track has finally released a schedule. Pro
Stocks appear on the schedule several times there, but the association
will likely select some races as they've already booked several races in
Yreka and don't like to run two weeks in a row when it can be avoided.
It's very possible that the Rocky Nash Memorial Tri State Pro Stock race
in Medford on August 14th and the R Charles Snyder Salute on September
4th will be included. They have been supporting the Roger Haudenshild
Tribute race in Medford, but the June 12th date doesn't include them. As
has happened in the past, the Haudenshild family may designate another
date to honor Roger with Pro Stock racing, though that hasn't been
announced.
They return to Coos Bay Speedway in
another head-to-head battle with the NASCAR Sportsman Late Models on
July 24th. Otherwise, they will kick things off in Yreka on May 1st, and
the Yreka schedule also includes May 15th, Memorial Day, May 29th and
30th, June 19th, July 10th, August 28th, September 11th and September
25th. The Memorial Day weekend event will be a Tri State Pro Stock
Challenge race, but the association has indicated they will throw full
support behind this race. It is anticipated that the field will grow
well into the 20s for the doubleheader weekend.
There's
been a bit of a resurgence in Pro Stock racing, and one thing that
shouldn't be lost in the discussion is the importance the Outlaw Pro
Stock Association has played in this resurgence. If those drivers back
in 2012 had given up on the cause, the effort would have gone away
completely. Some of the other things happening now probably wouldn't
have. The association remains budget minded in their rules, and they
have a good group of drivers from the Klamath Falls, Medford and Yreka
areas giving them good support. May 1st will see them kick things off at
Yreka. You can find more information by going to the Outlaw Pro Stock
Association Facebook page.
2021 Schedule
May 1 Yreka
May 15 Yreka
May 29-30 Billy Geyer Yreka
June 19 Yreka
July 10 Yreka
July 24 Coos Bay
August 14 Medford
August 28 Yreka
September 4 Medford
September 11 Yreka
September 25 Yreka
Schedule subject to updates
May 1 Yreka
May 15 Yreka
May 29-30 Billy Geyer Yreka
June 19 Yreka
July 10 Yreka
July 24 Coos Bay
August 14 Medford
August 28 Yreka
September 4 Medford
September 11 Yreka
September 25 Yreka
Schedule subject to updates
2020 SEASON POINTS STANDINGS
1st: Scott Flowers 552
2nd: Matt Harlow 510
3rd: James Flowers 476
4th: Colby Hammond 475
5th: Johnny Cobb 474
6th: Derek Alford 471
7th: Jeff Haudenshield 367
8th: Denny Burtenhouse 300
9th: Scott Bennett 268
10th: Steve Borror 245
11th: Ricky Lukins 223
12th: Arlen Garrison 169
13th: Ginny Flowers 161
14th: Pablo Duran 146
Outlaw Pro Stock Champions
2012 Ken Irving
2013 Dave Everson
2014 Ken Irving
2015 Jeffrey Hudson
2016 Steve Borror
2017 Scott Lenz
2018 Scott Lenz
2019 Scott Flowers
2020 Scott Flowers
2012 Ken Irving
2013 Dave Everson
2014 Ken Irving
2015 Jeffrey Hudson
2016 Steve Borror
2017 Scott Lenz
2018 Scott Lenz
2019 Scott Flowers
2020 Scott Flowers
Is Another Stock Car Division In The Future
At Southern Oregon Speedway?
Medford,
Oregon...We like to engage in speculation from time to time.
Oftentimes, we can read the trends happening in the sport, see something
coming and are able to predict it. In this case, there is a trend
happening in the sport, but the main goal at Southern Oregon Speedway
right now is to just get the gates open. With Southern Oregon
Motorsports and Travis Hoppes promoting this deal, they are currently
making big improvements to the facility.
When
it comes to scheduling in 2021, they had to look around at everybody
else's schedules. They tried not to book on top of anything big, and
that left them just making the best of things. One thing Hoppes did do
was include every division that was a part of the program in 2019 on
this year's schedule. This also included the Pro Stock division, which
has only had one championship season at the track since the division was
dropped from the regular rotation prior to the 2012 season.
It's
known that there are anywhere from a dozen to 15 Pro Stocks in the
area, though who will actually bring their cars to the track is
anybody's guess. This was attempted in 2017 to lackluster support, but
things may be different now. The Pro Stocks are having a bit of a
resurgence, and management felt the time was right to reinstate this
division and apparently will have another go at keeping championship
points. It's not really a bad thing to give these guys an opportunity.
You only truly fail by not trying.
The Pro
Stocks were a staple class at the Medford track when it opened in 1996.
In fact, they frequently delivered the biggest car counts back in those
days. When Promoter John Skinner opened the gates, he picked the IMCA
Modifieds, Pro Stocks and a new Mini Stock class to build the program
around. They added Sprint Cars and other things to the mix, but they
were in a very good position. They were frequently attracting over 100
cars in the pits with the combined divisions. It was the land of milk
and honey at the time.
At the old Medford
Raceway, they had Stock Cars and Street Stocks, but an offshoot of the
Street Stock division was the Sportsman class. These three divisions
continued until the track closed in 1989. The Street Stocks were
somewhat brushed aside or forced to compete with the Sportsman division
as many drivers were forced to go to Yreka to get their racing fix.
Therefore, when Skinner opened the gates in 1996 at Southern Oregon
Speedway, Street Stocks were not included. He didn't think they were
needed, and he wasn't necessarily wrong in that assessment.
Despite
the fact that many tracks on the West Coast in 1996 still had a
thriving Street Stock division, the drivers with Street Stocks who were
determined to race in Medford could upgrade a little bit and compete
with the Pro Stock class. Contrary to rumor, the track didn't have an
official Street Stock division as such, but those drivers were welcome.
In fact, there was some discussion around 1999 of creating a Street
Stock division so that those drivers could be competitive in their own
class. The idea was eventually abandoned.
Again,
when you get the kind of numbers they had at the time, nobody's
necessarily complaining. However, you know how the old saying goes. What
goes up, must come down. The numbers at the track began to decline
after a stellar 10-year run. By the time 2010 came around, management
was open to different ideas. This included taking a hard look at the
Street Stock class. By that point, Cottage Grove, Willamette, Sunset and
Coos Bay had Street Stocks, and these cars didn't evolve much from what
they were in the 1990s, contrary to the direction the division took in
California. What they call Hobby Stocks is closer to what Oregon calls
Street Stocks.
It first materialized as a
Enduro class in 2010. These were cars that were pretty much Street
Stocks, and the division got a little bit more structure in 2011. For
four years, they kept points in Medford, and this is the division that
launched the racing careers of Duane Orsburn, Jorddon Braaten and Miles
Deubert. In fact, these three drivers won the championships with Orsburn
doing it twice. Another notable driver to get his start in this class
was Garrett Dees, who now competes with the Late Models.
The
numbers started to peak in 2012, and they were able to get it up to
double digit car counts. Unfortunately, management couldn't resist
tinkering with the rules. Drivers had what they had, and some of the
drivers just walked away at that point. By 2014, when Deubert won the
title, the division was a shadow of its former self. Though the cars
were still in the area, management gave up on the effort prior to the
2015 season. At the time, John Skinner was just trying to complete his
20 year run in the hopes that he could get reimbursed some of his
investment in building the place as per the initial contract. He was
about to get an unpleasant surprise, but that's another story.
The
Street Stocks did make a return in a bigger way after that. Two big
Iron Giant Street Stock Series races were booked, and one of them had
over 20 cars. Fans got a taste of the excitement that these fendered
Stock Cars can offer. Management was keen on booking two Street Stock
races in 2020. They had one scheduled, but the pandemic saw to it that
the gates never opened at Southern Oregon Speedway. By 2015, the Street
Stock division at Yreka also faded away. At various times, management
talked about doing something again, but nothing ever came to fruition.
Fast
forward to 2021. Street Stocks are still delivering strong numbers at
Cottage Grove and maintaining their presence at Coos Bay. They have been
renamed American Classics at Sunset Speedway and will continue to be
there along with Willamette Speedway. There are people in Medford who
have voiced an interest in this class. Recently, Ryan Nelson talked
about having a car. The Nelson family supports Mini Stocks, Hornets and
Sport Modifieds, but they like the idea of having a Street Stock
division as a step between Sport Modifieds and Mini Stocks.
Two
California Street Stock drivers, Jesse Skidmore and Shannon Collins,
both have moved up to Oregon in the last few years. Collins still
competes in the class they call Hobby Stocks in California. Skidmore
ended up getting a Sport Modified. In both cases, the drivers voiced an
interest in supporting something in Medford if it were added. Right now,
all that's going on is the occasional conversation with the racers, and
the track is doing what they have to do with the classes that have
already been established. However, there is that nagging question.
Could
a Street Stock division be added to the Southern Oregon Speedway lineup
in the future? Pro Stocks have been reinstated, and the track will be
looking to see how those numbers evolve. They have a pretty big lineup
of divisions and have released the intended payouts, but there's
something to consider. This is a new management, and we've just been
through the pandemic that shut everything down. We still don't know what
the numbers are going to be in all of these classes. Things can change
in the next few years, and the door may be open for Street Stock racing.
Even
some of the Mini Stock competitors, such as two-time Medford and
two-time Yreka champion David Steele, have expressed an interest in
running a Street Stock, but nothing suitable has been created. Many of
the drivers who have competed in the Mini Stocks don't necessarily like
the move up to the IMCA Sport Modifieds, and that makes a Street Stock
division attractive. Recently, Yreka management has put out feelers
again, but this may be a case of following the leader. Yreka would be
more apt to make such a move if Medford made it first.
Some
people might say that the Street Stock division's time has passed, but
they would also advocate for a fendered Stock Car division. While the
Street Stocks have a good presence in Oregon, the IMCA Stock Car
division has emerged on the West Coast. Willamette and Sunset Speedways
will offer the division this year, and Sunset has gone as far as to book
a 100 lap race on July 4th that will pay $5,000 to win. The division is
also growing in California as Hanford and Bakersfield have been joined
by Antioch and Merced this year. Things are happening.
One
of the attractive things about the IMCA Stock Cars is the very
sanctioning body they bring. You'll find that many Oregon racers are
more apt to support racing if there is a sanctioning behind it, at least
when it comes to Modifieds and Sport Modifieds. It seems inevitable
that Willamette and Sunset will be joined by Cottage Grove in IMCA Stock
Car racing within the next few years, and that could lead to Southern
Oregon Speedway doing it. It could very well be that the IMCA Stock Cars
will eventually find a home at Southern Oregon Speedway after
management assesses how things go in the next couple of years.
It's
about offering variety to the fans. The desire in Medford is to keep
the IMCA Modifieds and IMCA Sport Modifieds going strong, because
Modified racing has been a staple class since the gates opened there.
However, fendered Stock Car racing has been there right alongside the
Modifieds, and they also have a fan base. The addition of the Pro Stocks
for so many races this year shows that management knows that fans are
interested, but the Stock Car discussion will also continue as Street
Stock and IMCA Stock Car advocates make their voices heard. It will be
interesting to see where this leads in the future.
Ocean Speedway Unofficial Race Results April 23
Ocean Sprints presented by Taco Bravo
A Main
Shane Golobic
Corey Day
Keith Day Jr
Ryan Bernal
Dominic Scelzi
Colby Copeland
Mitchell Faccint
Bud Kaeding
J.J. Ringo
Tucker Worth
Joey Ancona
Jake Andreotti
Nick Ringo
Koen Shaw
Grant Champlin
Sean Becker
John Clark
Jeremy Chisum
Bret Barney
Justin Sanders
Adam Kaeding
Kurt Nelson
B Main
Corey Day
Nick Ringo
Jake Andreotti
Kurt Nelson
Adam Kaeding
John Clark
Mark Chaves Jr
Ashlyn Rodriguez
Bryce Eames
Kyle Offill
Justin Henry
Jacob Pachec
Jason Chisum
Josh Chisum
Kyler Shaw
IMCA Modifieds
Jim Pettit II
Cody Burke
Austin Burke
Carl Berendsen II
JC Elrod
Kyle Bryan
Raymond Keldsen Jr
Gary Mars
Matthew Hagio
Robert Marsh DQ
Hobby Stocks
Quintin Harris
Jerry Skelton
Tony Oliveira
Adriane Frost
Joe Gallaher
Brady Muller
Wally Kennedy
Scott Freeman
Bobby Gallahe
Terry Campion
Rob Gallaher DNS
Four Bangers
Tony Gullo
Richard Mitchell
Kate Beardsley
Nicole Beardsley
Bill Beardsley
Travis VanGilder
South Bay Dwarf Cars
Tommy Velasquez III
Mark Biscardi
Travis Day
Trafton Chandler
Dan Zuger
Eric Weisler
Punky Pires
Justin Bingman
Barry Waddell
Eddy Claessen
Kieran Costas
Mike Aceves
Keith Costas
Cottage Grove Speedway Race Results April 23
Spring Fling Night #1
360 Winged Sprint Car
Jodie Robinson
Garen Linder
Tanner Holmes
Tyler Driever
Tyler Thompson
Kyle Alberding
Vern Scevers
Matt Hein
Shane Forte
Jared Hood
Brody Sim
Pat Desbiens
Donny Waddell
Justin Lemon
Brian Boswell
Jake Wheeler
Kyle Adams
IMCA Modifieds
Bricen James
Collen Winebarger
Curtis Towns
Matthew Drager
Eston Whisler
Jake Mayden
Aaron Sheelar
Steven Sturdevant
Jeffrey Hudson
Chance Hyser
Mark Gaylord
Todd Shandy
James Welshone
Paul Rea
Jesse Williamson
Doug Davenport
Jeremy DeGroot
Dustin Asher
Mark Carrell
9:31.383
Paul Culp
Jeremy Shank
Street Stocks
Don Schott
Graig Osborne
Brody Humphrey
Mike Swaim
PJ Humphrey
Anthony Prather
Robert Hughes
Tautom Swaim
Daniel Ray
Deming Speedway Unofficial
Northwest Focus Midgets
Nick Evans
Jake Munn
Shane Smith
Levi Harless
Brian Holmkvist
Jesse Munn
Chris Foster
Kyle Hanson
Jamee Gardner
Jake Austin
1200 Mini Sprints
Derek Holmwood
Clennon Holloway
Tyson Lemley
Brock Lemley
Dakota Drake
Alex Lewis
Jared Gundersen
Terry Lewis
Steven Hendrickson
Haylee Bloodgood
Tanner Schoonover
Josh Monroe
600 Micros
Tyler McLeod
Ryley Mayer
Tanner Holm
Levi Kuntz
Colin Mackey
Dylan Resch
Rachel Westmoreland
Dakota Drake
Blaine Granberg
Tristin Thomas
Macie Logsdon
Tyler Conley
Xan Miller
Jeff Woolsey
Parker Hadlock
Jeremy Holz
Haley Constance
Jesse Schlotfeldt
600 Restricted
Destry Miller
Levi Hillier
Corbin Ramsey
Levi Kuntz
Peyton Drake
Carson Guffie
Keira Zylstra
Rylee Kentch
Mallory Fisher
Ethan Lashley
Karma Fagerlie
Diane Knutzen
Fairah Lee
Grace Matier
Axel Oudman
Orn Biggs
Dale Orcutt
Jr Sprints
Avery Askvig
Clayton Jalakas
Brooklyn Constance
Colton Knapp
Dustin Ramsey
McKenna Morgan
Sawyer Baxter
Ryan Bright
Jayce Medcalf
Ocean Sprints presented by Taco Bravo
A Main
Shane Golobic
Corey Day
Keith Day Jr
Ryan Bernal
Dominic Scelzi
Colby Copeland
Mitchell Faccint
Bud Kaeding
J.J. Ringo
Tucker Worth
Joey Ancona
Jake Andreotti
Nick Ringo
Koen Shaw
Grant Champlin
Sean Becker
John Clark
Jeremy Chisum
Bret Barney
Justin Sanders
Adam Kaeding
Kurt Nelson
B Main
Corey Day
Nick Ringo
Jake Andreotti
Kurt Nelson
Adam Kaeding
John Clark
Mark Chaves Jr
Ashlyn Rodriguez
Bryce Eames
Kyle Offill
Justin Henry
Jacob Pachec
Jason Chisum
Josh Chisum
Kyler Shaw
IMCA Modifieds
Jim Pettit II
Cody Burke
Austin Burke
Carl Berendsen II
JC Elrod
Kyle Bryan
Raymond Keldsen Jr
Gary Mars
Matthew Hagio
Robert Marsh DQ
Hobby Stocks
Quintin Harris
Jerry Skelton
Tony Oliveira
Adriane Frost
Joe Gallaher
Brady Muller
Wally Kennedy
Scott Freeman
Bobby Gallahe
Terry Campion
Rob Gallaher DNS
Four Bangers
Tony Gullo
Richard Mitchell
Kate Beardsley
Nicole Beardsley
Bill Beardsley
Travis VanGilder
South Bay Dwarf Cars
Tommy Velasquez III
Mark Biscardi
Travis Day
Trafton Chandler
Dan Zuger
Eric Weisler
Punky Pires
Justin Bingman
Barry Waddell
Eddy Claessen
Kieran Costas
Mike Aceves
Keith Costas
Cottage Grove Speedway Race Results April 23
Spring Fling Night #1
360 Winged Sprint Car
Jodie Robinson
Garen Linder
Tanner Holmes
Tyler Driever
Tyler Thompson
Kyle Alberding
Vern Scevers
Matt Hein
Shane Forte
Jared Hood
Brody Sim
Pat Desbiens
Donny Waddell
Justin Lemon
Brian Boswell
Jake Wheeler
Kyle Adams
IMCA Modifieds
Bricen James
Collen Winebarger
Curtis Towns
Matthew Drager
Eston Whisler
Jake Mayden
Aaron Sheelar
Steven Sturdevant
Jeffrey Hudson
Chance Hyser
Mark Gaylord
Todd Shandy
James Welshone
Paul Rea
Jesse Williamson
Doug Davenport
Jeremy DeGroot
Dustin Asher
Mark Carrell
9:31.383
Paul Culp
Jeremy Shank
Street Stocks
Don Schott
Graig Osborne
Brody Humphrey
Mike Swaim
PJ Humphrey
Anthony Prather
Robert Hughes
Tautom Swaim
Daniel Ray
Deming Speedway Unofficial
Northwest Focus Midgets
Nick Evans
Jake Munn
Shane Smith
Levi Harless
Brian Holmkvist
Jesse Munn
Chris Foster
Kyle Hanson
Jamee Gardner
Jake Austin
1200 Mini Sprints
Derek Holmwood
Clennon Holloway
Tyson Lemley
Brock Lemley
Dakota Drake
Alex Lewis
Jared Gundersen
Terry Lewis
Steven Hendrickson
Haylee Bloodgood
Tanner Schoonover
Josh Monroe
600 Micros
Tyler McLeod
Ryley Mayer
Tanner Holm
Levi Kuntz
Colin Mackey
Dylan Resch
Rachel Westmoreland
Dakota Drake
Blaine Granberg
Tristin Thomas
Macie Logsdon
Tyler Conley
Xan Miller
Jeff Woolsey
Parker Hadlock
Jeremy Holz
Haley Constance
Jesse Schlotfeldt
600 Restricted
Destry Miller
Levi Hillier
Corbin Ramsey
Levi Kuntz
Peyton Drake
Carson Guffie
Keira Zylstra
Rylee Kentch
Mallory Fisher
Ethan Lashley
Karma Fagerlie
Diane Knutzen
Fairah Lee
Grace Matier
Axel Oudman
Orn Biggs
Dale Orcutt
Jr Sprints
Avery Askvig
Clayton Jalakas
Brooklyn Constance
Colton Knapp
Dustin Ramsey
McKenna Morgan
Sawyer Baxter
Ryan Bright
Jayce Medcalf
The Editor's Viewpoint
I
am sitting here on a Thursday night debating whether or not to go ahead
and
put together a Saturday morning post. There's not too much to
cover from Friday that I'd put in the post. At the moment, I don't
even have a special article. I took on a bit too much this past week in
what we did for the media effort, and I'm really thinking about
that. I need to dial it back a little bit. It's kind of the "effort
versus reward" debate, and I know where that leads. I end up frustrated.
I don't want to disappoint myself.
I didn't
really feel particularly stressed this past week, but I got sidetracked
on Wednesday. That threw me behind schedule with the latest post, and I
didn't want to delay that post another day. This left me rushing to get
it together. I was starting to get tired, and it didn't help my audio
show that night. I thought I came off a bit cranky. I could have done
better. In fact, I got up on Thursday morning and decided to rerecord
that show. I was much happier with that, but I think I can do better
with the shows as I've been doing them. This isn't just about being too
cranky. I'm thinking about how to proceed with that.
Part
of the thing was I don't think I was focused enough. My shows are an
opportunity for me to put my observations out there, good or bad. I try
to offer my thoughts on ways to make things better if I am critical, but
I felt like I came off too critical. This is particularly true with the
tracks in Yreka and Medford. Where Medford is considered, I think I
want to sit back and watch how things proceed. They have a plan, and I'm
not privy to the whole thing. Therefore, watching it develop would be
wise.
The problem with Medford is I'm too close
to the situation. For the last 5 years of my life, this track has been
front and center. I'm not happy with the way last year went. I've always
had my own thoughts on how things should go there, but those were never
my decisions. There were times I could impact the decisions with my
suggestions, but more often than not, I didn't have a choice. It was up
to me to make whatever the decision was work. That's why I was brought
up here, to help the cause.
The thing about it
is, there was more work to be done. I felt good about where we were
going, but I've known for a while that our time was short. It's a
helpless feeling knowing that you're involved in an effort where there is
no long range goal. It's year to year, and the 10 year plan you thought
you were signing on to doesn't exist. You know it can end soon. I'm
not being negative when I say that, because I understand why it was that
way. I will probably offer several different observations whenever I
get the book together, so I'm not hashing it out here.
I'm
not looking to be involved on an official level at that track. I came
up here at the request of Mike McCann, and I feel good about the things I
did to help. There are regrets, sure, but I do know that I've done my
best. With Mike walking away, I knew my time was done there. It still
hurts a little bit, but I will get over it eventually. I don't want my
negative feelings to come out too much. If I'm going to say things, I
want to be fair.
There were people expressing
negative opinions toward
us, but I haven't heard any of that from any source down there lately.
I'm happy to report that fact, so I really want to just observe and see
how it goes. I wish them luck, even though there's a competitive part of
me that doesn't want to be shown up. Ultimately, I think we all want
success for the place.
I will say that I
haven't given Travis Happes enough credit. This guy actually signed on
for what will be thousands of dollars of sponsorship for the California
IMCA Speedweek Series. He was all in this year, and this was before he knew
what was going on in Medford and what role he would play. Though I know
there are other people putting money into this, Travis is making
investments too. You don't do things like that from a negative point of
view. You're jumping in to try to make a difference, and I respect that.
We might have a few differences in philosophy, but the ultimate goal is
success for racing.
My grumpiness about Yreka
centers around the fact that while there might be some updates being
made to the facility, the racing program itself needs work. They need
more cars in their regular efforts, and I feel like nothing is being
done to that end. Without that happening, you're in danger of things
completely collapsing, and I do know that Promoter Kevin Barba is aware
of this fact. Let's just say that his return for a fourth season isn't
guaranteed. I'm not saying he doesn't want to come back or isn't coming
back, just that it isn't guaranteed. What happens this year will go a
long way towards determining that. I want the track to be successful.
Since Kevin is at the helm of that track, I want him to be successful.
I
know people who think Yreka is a lost cause, but I don't believe that
to be the case. I've seen some things first hand to know the good that
can come out of that track. It's been a few years, but they've had a
really nice program in the past. I think things can be better at the
track. When I say that, I don't say it with some pie in the sky belief
of something that isn't really there. It can get better with a plan and
proper implementation. It will take hard work and just showing the
racing community and the fans that you have a plan. Within a few years,
the numbers can go up noticeably. Even some tracks that seem to not have
much or live in the shadows of more successful tracks have potential if
things are done right. I support the effort to keep any race track
going, and I don't want to just be seen as being negative.
As
I was looking around social media on Thursday, I noticed the NCRA
making a post about leaving Lakeport. I get the sadness of being an
organization that has been responsible for running that track for many
years. I know that there's no love lost between them and new Promoter
David Furia. When David was managing things for the track a few years
ago, he was doing so for the NCRA. Things went bad, and I'm not privy to any
of that. I know David, and I know him to be a good man. What I don't
like is what's being implied by the old guard. I know they're bitter
about leaving, but now's the time to get over yourselves and focus on
the positivity.
Lakeport Speedway isn't
closing. They have a race on Saturday that features all of the
divisions that ran there before. The schedule that's been put out isn't
much different than the schedule they've been using in recent years.
They don't run a big schedule, but there's not a race date problem. Some
of the people involved with.NCRA are in a position to block certain
things that could help Lakeport and Ukiah, and I don't
call that something being done for the good of racing. It frankly
bothers me, and I expect better out of certain people within the group
that I have held in high regard through the years
It's
tough to be positive when you are on your way out and you had no
control in that. If you feel you had more to give, it can make you
bitter. What I'd like the old guard to do is wish the new guard luck for
the good of the sport. Find out if there is anything they can do to
help, which I'm sure there is. Be a part of the solution, not the
problem. If you are unable to do that and you feel like there's more you
can offer the sport, go find another location and build a race track.
The NCRA has done that through the years, but it's certainly more of a
challenge to do in 2021. Let's all be hopeful that Lakeport Speedway is
successful, because success isn't a guarantee. The other option is a
closed race track.
I don't want to get into
naming the person or the track they represented, but I was contacted on
Wednesday. They wanted information on a certain division, and I had a
little info for them. I also became curious. That led to me giving
myself a refresher course on the division and then hunting down a set of
rules. That wasn't easy to do, because the division has been gone long
enough that the rules aren't out there. I'm happy to say I did find the
rules, but my little quest left me behind on the blog post. I don't know
what's going on with the track in question or this division, so I don't
want to comment too much yet.
Marysville
Raceway had a Mini Stock division at one time. In the 1990s, the
division was doing pretty well. You could say it was thriving, and some
of those racers even supported the Sacramento Raceway oval when they
were doing the Friday night program. Sometime along the way, people
started getting more exotic with their race cars. It wasn't merely a
stock Mini Stock class. It became more like a Super 4 division. I've
learned since coming up to Medford that Super 4 means different things
to different people. The Super 4 class I'm thinking of is like the one
at Porterville that's more of a souped up Mini Stock versus the basic
Mini Stock.
The problem is your car count goes
away quickly, and only the diehards are there. A division that has the
expectation of being entry level and having double-digit car counts
suddenly has six or eight cars. I'm not saying those cars aren't neat,
but there wasn't enough of them. First, Silver Dollar Speedway dropped
the class. A year later, Marysville got rid of them. The shame of it is
Marysville probably could have used a good Mini Stock class, but it went
away because of what it became. I am surprised they haven't gone back
to the drawing board with more of a Four Banger approach like
Watsonville uses. Others call them Hornets or IMCA Sport Compacts.
Silver
Dollar Speedway has been an interesting thing to watch, and I get why
people think the track might be dying. It isn't, but I get why people
think that. You don't have to go back too many years to when they had a
respectable Wingless Spec Sprint class and also had IMCA Modifieds. I
don't think the IMCA Modified class was dead, but it did get
discontinued. The Limited Late Models didn't have enough numbers to
justify their existence, so they got dropped. We've already discussed
the Mini Stocks, but the Spec Sprint division got bludgeoned to death by
an object. We'll call that object Crate Sprints. We're still waiting on
the Crate Sprint division to become what it was envisioned to be.
Both
Silver Dollar Speedway and Marysville Raceway rely heavily on Sprint Cars.
Silver Dollar Speedway has always had that aspect to its program. You go
back far enough, and you'll notice Marysville was a Stock Car track.
Sprint Cars didn't become a regular part of the deal until Mike McCann
had his brief run as promoter there. Mike was right in what he saw
there, because there's always been a decent base of drivers willing to
support Sprint Cars in Marysville over the past 30 years. The problem is
it's hard not to book them at Marysville and still have a show you feel
the fans want to see. I think it can be done, but it's hard.
Where
the Crate Sprint division comes in is if they had a few more cars, you
could book them on nights you gave the Winged 360s a break. I could see
Marysville giving the 360 Sprint class nights off, especially on nights
when they aren't in a good position to attract a strong car count due to
what else is happening with the class in Northern California. If the
Crate Sprint division could consistently give you car counts of a dozen
or more every week, you could easily have them running on nights when
you gave the Winged 360 Sprints a break, and it would actually be a good
thing. I don't think the Crate Sprints look particularly great when
they're running on the same night the Winged 360 Sprints are running,
but that's my opinion. The hope is that the numbers are going to
continue to grow this year as we've seen some of the best support for
them since they were started.
What do you do
when you're a promoter and you know you need more than you're offering
your fans, but you know you don't have it? I was announcing at
Chowchilla Speedway for a few races in 2015. John Soares promoted the
track, and it's interesting that it started out with a big race in
January that year. However, the numbers didn't sustain. John ended up
modifying his schedule during the year to the minimum he committed to with the Fair Board. I
went into that situation much more optimistic and maybe not fully aware
of what was really going on. I think things could have worked better,
but I also realize that John didn't particularly want to run that race
track. It was more a case of him feeling like he had to in order to
protect his Merced Speedway investment.
Merced
Speedway promoters have always had a little bit of disdain towards
Chowchilla Speedway. I know Chuck Griffin didn't like the fact that it
existed. I know Ed Parker was a bit grumpy when I came out in support of
Chowchilla, and Doug Lockwood was as well. I get why that is. If you're
running Merced Speedway, you don't see Chowchilla as an ally. You see
it as a place that can pull your drivers right out of your field. If you
happen to do something that makes people unhappy, it becomes the
option. It's not as if it didn't have some good racing or reasons people
would want to go there as it was, but it also was an option if you
didn't like Merced Speedway.
In any case, I
remember leaving Chowchilla Speedway for the final time in 2015. I was
going to announce in November that year, but we got a rain out. I hated
that, because I was ready to go down there one more time, despite the
fact that my personal life had been turned upside down. I had other
things in need of being dealt with, but had the November date happened,
it's possible that my life would have gone in a different direction. At
least ways, I will always wonder about that. No, I didn't think John was
coming back in 2016. He was done, but he would have honored that date.
We
ran the race in October, and the numbers weren't great. There were 10
or a dozen hobby stocks, six mini stocks and four Dwarf Cars. I was
sitting off in the side bleachers with Mike Lebo that
day. I was supposed to announce. That was the agreement, and I even came
down to the track with John and Jim Robbins. Wade happened to invite
himself that day, and I didn't want to have to fight him over the
microphone. I didn't feel like going through all of that, and John
honored the agreement he made with me regardless. I always liked the
trips I made to Chowchilla and Merced with him. Good conversations and
good times.
John knew that the base crowd at
Chowchilla Speedway was about 100 or 150 people. It's not like you can't
get more fans. I've witnessed that happen there. There are people in
Chowchilla who will support the track and others who will come from out
of town. You have to work at it, and admittedly it had been a struggle
keeping that track going after Chuck Griffin ousted Tom Sagmiller. Tom
had his struggles, but his game plan overall was effective. That's
another subject. I don't want to go too long here.
In
any case, John said this was what would work at Chowchilla. You don't
go much bigger than Hobby Stocks, unless maybe some IMCA Sport Modified
races. The Sprint Car stuff and the IMCA Modified stuff requires a
bigger purse, and at that point there was a struggle to get people in
the grandstands. If you're going to work at it, you go with your smaller
purse divisions, such as Sport Modifieds, Hobby Stocks, Mini Stocks and
even Dwarf Cars. We knew John wasn't coming back, but he said if he was
going to, that's what he'd run. Or, he might add a thing known as E
Modifieds or Economy Modifieds.
It's easy for
me to see why Joe Diaz Jr didn't succeed at Chowchilla. We used to look at
Joe and think he might have the answer, and this was due to the fact
that he had built the Chowchilla Barnburner indoor kart and motorcycle
program through the years. It was the only game in town. I'm not saying
Joe didn't work at it. He had a good idea, and he and his family
certainly worked hard. What I am saying is, where else are you going to
race in December and January down in the valley? Running that program
versus running the oval track are two different things.
When
I knew my friend Ken Bonnema was looking to move back from Indiana to
California, I found out all too late that he was going to Chowchilla. He
meant to be a positive factor in what Joe was doing. He'd run errands
and do things like that, and he also took a stab at announcing. He
wasn't bad at it either. What I didn't understand until after Ken
committed was Joe planned on running just about every week. There was
simply no way that track could sustain the kind of program Joe was
pushing for, and the sad fact is there was potential for success there.
There
were people behind that program who had the money to support it. When
you've got money to support what you're doing, you can either just throw
the money at it without a real plan, or you can make a plan so that
there is a return on investment. What happened was Joe got it in his
head that he could run Stock Car programs on one week and Sprint Car
programs on the other. Here is part of the deal. Even though Chowchilla
had success with open wheel racing, it wasn't what the place was known
for. You had to be strategic in how you booked it, or you weren't going to
get support. With Modifieds as part of the stock car program, it was
set up for failure at the start. It's about what you can truly afford
to pay on the purse.
Chowchilla still had the
same problem. You're trying to get fans to come out and watch on a
Sunday afternoon. You don't have a big base of fans, so you're going to
struggle out of the gate. Secondly, you're running a program every week.
It didn't take a rocket scientist to realize that they were probably
going to fail at this. Being the supporter of the sport that I am and
just somebody who liked Chowchilla Speedway, I tried to do what I could
from afar, but the place was doomed. This time, it never came back. They
ended up bulldozing the track. I'm not saying racing couldn't come back
there again, but it would be a tall order.
What
I have suggested when the fairgrounds opens again is taking a page out
of the Alameda Fair playbook. Set up your arena for a Destruction Derby,
but book some good old fashioned Four Banger Figure 8 racing too. Maybe
even do a little Four Banger oval like they do in Salinas. Do that
during the Fair and maybe one other time as a way to get motorsports
back. I think some sort of unique program like that, which didn't have a
high purse demand, could work, but that's the subject for another time.
I could get a bit wordy when it comes to Arena Racing.
A
question I want to get into here is what would you add for a new
division at a track looking for something extra. Tracks that are in need
of something to add to the rotation don't always come up with the big
plan. Sometimes you add something that's unique and probably isn't going
to grow much. The Jefferson State Jalopies in Yreka come to mind. It's
an interesting concept. The cars are different, but I don't think it's
ever going to develop a huge field. There is a division in Nevada called
Coupes. They take their idea from Hardtops. Neat looking cars. I think
there's potential to grow a little bit, but I don't know that it will
ever become huge. I could segue into Hardtops very easily here, but I am
talking about new divisions.
The die hard racing
person that I am would love to see a Late Model tour revival. I love the
cars, and I think something could be developed between Oregon and
California over time. The bigger problem is the time needed to promote
something like this. You're going to have to work to build the car
count. Any series director will be on the phone all week dealing with
concerns from racers and discussing things with the track promoters. The
purse demands would be on the level of NARC/King of the West, and that
isn't cheap. You're probably going to have to bring a big sponsor into
it, and that will be more time on the phone and meeting people in
person.
The easiest answer is adding a Hornet
division. The cars are cheap, and you don't have a big purse demand. You
could go with something of a Pure Stock, but cars have changed so much
in the last 20 years, what do you base it on? A lot of the stuff we're
doing now comes down to fabricated chassis.
What are the two most available chassis out there? Modifieds and Sprint Cars.
Obviously, there's room for tracks to play around with Wingless Spec
Sprints if promoters wanted to. That division is far from dead. It's
just that promoters don't seem to want to do anything for the most part.
The purses are still reasonable, and it's been proven over and over
again that drivers will support it.
I'm a
little bit nauseated to bring this up, but the Modified solution is
there. You see, there were people looking at the fact that the IMCA
Modifieds were gradually pricing themselves out of reach for some
racers. It's interesting that this division was sold to us years ago as
an economic solution for the budget-minded racer. As is often the case,
racers pushed for more and more. They couldn't do it with the motors due
to the claim rule, but the chassis and the parts got more exotic. IMCA
didn't use that magic word enough. You know the word, don't you? No.
That's not to say the IMCA Modifieds were dead, because they weren't and
they aren't, but people were pushing for recycling the chassis.
This
led to IMCA Sport Modifieds. We were sold on these cars being older
chassis, and some are. I was away from the sport for a few years as this
thing took off. I recall watching a broadcast from Bakersfield
Speedway, and very quickly I learned that some of those Sport Modifieds
were not old cars. The rules are different, and you can't do everything
on a Sport Modified that you can on a Modified, but people were already using
newer chassis. This is why you get people pushing for more for the IMCA
Sport Modifieds when it comes to headline status and purse money.
They've got more of an investment in these cars than was probably meant
to be. It is what it is, and the division is supported pretty well.
You've
already got thriving IMCA Modified and IMCA Sport Modified divisions, so I feel
dirty suggesting Economy Modifieds as an alternative. I want something
different. I just get tired of looking at Modifieds after a while and
want something cool like I remember from back in the day. Whether it was
the Sportsman or Super Modified divisions from back then or even
Stock Cars in the 1980s, you got variety. Cars looked different and had
personality. After a while, these Modifieds just look the same. I'm not
saying the racing is bad, just that I want to see something different. I
think this is why the IMCA Stock Car division will take hold on the
West Coast rapidly.
I bet if you looked around,
you'd see quite a few old Modified chassis sitting out there. The
owners know they aren't going to come back to the IMCA Modifieds and
kick ass with them. Heck, a lot of these owners have probably just
stepped away from the sport and really aren't planning on coming back at all.
People might even look at these old chassis and think they don't have
much of a chance in the Sport Modifieds. I think you can get some of
these older cars to be competitive there, but you also need to know what
you're doing.
The reality is you do have older
Modified chassis out there, and the first thing one would do in
establishing the new class would be to set a date. How new can a chassis
be. You're basically looking at chassis rules from back 15 years or so. I
know there are people that would say, but my chassis is such and such,
as they argue for inclusion in this class. Yeah, and you can go run the
Sport Modifieds. Economy Modified would mean more economic. It would
mean entry level Modified. They do these cars at different tracks across
the country. Don't talk to me about $500 to win here or big purses,
because that's not what these cars are.
You're
almost looking at a Modified division that some people will start in
right out of the box. Or, they might go from a Four Banger into an
Economy Modified. You might even be doing an engine claim rule. Yeah, I
know people hate that idea, but you also don't want somebody spending
thousands of dollars and out motoring people. You're not looking for
somebody to put together a car with all of the exotic parts. You're
talking basic, entry level Modified racing. You're looking at how to
get older chassis out on the track that haven't been seen for a few
years. You're looking at a division that can deliver you a car count.
There's
a reason tracks are doing this class, because there's an abundance of
old chassis out there. The reason Wingless Spec Sprints took off was
because there was an abundance of old Sprint Car chassis. You weren't
going to win a 410 Sprint Car race with that old chassis, and the same
could probably have been said for the 360 Sprints. However, you could be
competitive in Spec Sprints, and it gave the old chassis new life. You
can look at the success the Spec Sprint division had back in the first
decade of the 2000s, and the point has been proven.
Modifieds
have been around long enough that I know that success is possible for
Economy Modifieds as well. I really don't doubt that somebody on the
West Coast will start the class. It's inevitable. I don't know who and I
don't know where. I don't know that anybody's talking about it, but at a
point somebody's going to think they can make something happen and get
more cars. At the end of the day, promoters need more cars in the pits
and to give the fans more of a reason to come watch. Fans want to see
cars. This may actually be a division that could grow quickly if done
right, but you can't lose sight of the fact that this is the Economy
Modifieds class. It's entry level and it's meant to be that. If you want
more, move up.
At the end of the day, I'm not
enamored with this idea. We'd still be looking at another Modified
class, and I shudder to think about that. What I am proposing could
lead to tracks that have Modifieds, Sport Modifieds and Economy
Modifieds. Yikes. On the other hand, you're going to get more cars. When
I'm talking about looking to start other divisions, that's something
they could look at. Maybe that's something Yreka could look at.
Actually, I know Kevin Barba has a 4 cylinder Modified background, so I
am a little surprised he hasn't taken a shot at doing something with
that.
It's interesting that after I wrote
this column I brainstormed ideas for something to write. I'm still
wanting to put together a post for the newly renamed Jefferson State
Racing News blog. I ended up doing a season preview/review article for
the Outlaw Pro Stocks of Southern Oregon and then a speculative piece on
another stock car class that could find its way eventually on the
roster at Southern Oregon Speedway. I was thinking those two articles
would make it onto the new blog, but I decided to share them here first.
I guess that justifies this morning's post.
Tom
Sagmiller was strutting just a little bit at Ocean Speedway after the
track he prepared for the drivers last night. The racing was good, and
the night went by rather quickly. They continue to get a strong car
count in the Taco Bravo Sprint Cars. In this case, they had 32 of them
and they were clearly the show for the night. However, IMCA Modifieds,
Hobby Stocks and Dwarf Cars provided double digits, but the Mini Stocks
struggled with six cars.
I admit I've been a
little bit worried about the car count in the Hobby Stocks and whether
it can hold up with all the racing they have been doing, but the Mini
Stocks are hurting even more. Watsonville finds themselves in a
difficult position next weekend. John Prentice was not invited to the
IMCA California Speedweek this year, but he nonetheless has given both
of his IMCA Modified classes the week off. I think he could easily have
gotten 10 cars in the Sport Modifieds regardless of Speedweek, but he's
being nice. This means the Mini Stocks and Hobby Stocks get to run again
next week, along with the Police N Pursuit cars and Sprint Cars. We'll
see how that one goes.
After the pandemic
season kept the Winged 360 Sprint Cars from being on the schedule at
Cottage Grove Speedway last year, they were able to host them on Friday
night. With 19 cars, I'd have to believe like Heather Boyce was feeling
pretty good. The division has struggled at times, but that was a solid
turnout and a very entertaining race. With 22 IMCA Modifieds and 10
Street Stocks, it was a nice little Friday night program. This was
supposed to be the first night of the Spring Fling event, but as I write
this, Saturday's show is a rain out. Unfortunately, not much racing
will be happening tonight in the Pacific Northwest due to the rain.
I
talk about the good and the bad we are dealing with as we try to break
through to the other side of this pandemic garbage that has seen so many
restrictions put in place. Unfortunately, the Oregon governor is going
to milk this for as much as she can, and Cottage Grove felt the effect
on Friday as Lane County was put back into the Orange Tier at 15% fan
capacity. Heather could have easily canceled because of the weather and
saved herself the budget the Winged 360 Sprint Cars required on Friday,
but she went ahead and took care of her racers.
I
know she and other promoters in Oregon have to be nervous as the
governor has indicated that restrictions could get even worse in three
weeks depending on what the numbers say. All I can say is get out and
enjoy yourself while you can, because I have a bad feeling it's only a
matter of time before they ramp all of this stuff up again. At some
point, the people are going to have to speak up, if they want to move
beyond this. I'll leave it at that.
At this point, it's time to wrap it up and get this post done. That's all for now. Until next time...
