July 27 2010
View from the Cockpit
by
JR Williams
Carson City Nevada
Contributor to OWR3
Before we get into this weekends events at Rocky Mountain Raceway (RMR) in Salt Lake City, we should look to the Midwest and the happenings at ORP on Thursday night. NASCAR drivers Ryan Newman and Jason Lefler went back to their roots and competed in the USAC double-header Midget and Silver Crown events.
The National Midget event saw Daniel Bedford turn quick time in one of Marc DeBeaumont's well set-up midgets. Friend Marc put my first Focus midget together back in 2003 and was always the guy I turned to for parts and advice over the years until he moved his operation "Back East" to Indiana. He's still one of the best pavement set-up guys in the business as the results of those driving his cars show..
Second quick time went to Brad Sweet, followed by Jerry Coons, Jr., Jason Lefler in another DMS car, then Levi Roberts and Kody Swanson who was in a Wilke-Pak machine.
The 30-lap main event went to friend Kody Swanson who took the lead at the start and held it for all 30 laps, making the Wilke Racing Team the all-time USAC victory leader with 134 wins, breaking the tie between Wilke Racing and Steve Lewis. Kody now joins a distinguished list of drivers who have won for the Wilke Racing Team, including Rodger Ward, Kevin Olson, Rich Vogler, Don Branson, A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, Jeff Gordon and many more.
The Silver Crown division saw Brad Sweet time fastest, followed by Ryan Newman, Tracy Hines, Kody Swanson, and A.J. Fike. Tracy Hines took the win of the 100-lap feature. He was trailed by Levi Jones, Jacob Wilson, Brad Sweet and Bobby Santos III. Ryan Newman led the first lap, Sweet moved to the front for three more until passed by Kody who held on through lap 24 when Sweet took over again for ten laps when Bobby East moved to the front until lap 64 when Tracy moved to the front not to be headed.
Back here on the "Left Coast", young Dillon Silverman delivered two more spectacular performances in his Eco-Tech Chevy, winning the dirt show at Chico, ahead of a Gearte Chevy and two Esslingers on Friday night. He then converted his combo car for pavement and ran with the BCRA at Lakeport Speedway where he finished a solid 4th. As I've said before, not only is this "box" engine delivering some spectacular performances, but young Dillon bears to be watched and possibly picked up by an owner who wants a winning driver.
As mentioned last week, the Western Focus Midgets and Sprint Cars filled two of the bills at RMR this past Saturday, and the fans got their money's worth of excitement.
Tony Hunt was on top of the speed charts during the practice sessions, but Ryan Burdett, Jimmy Wysong and Jimmy Waters were all faster in Qualifications. Tony Hunt was fourth and Luis Ramos III was fifth, all within .232 seconds.
Ramos won the first heat ahead of Burdett and Waters, and Hunt won heat two ahead of Eric Barlow and Tim Skoglund.
In the 40-lap main event, young Ramos took the lead at the start, followed by Tim Skoglund who was running the fast line. Ramos built up his lead as Tony tried unsuccessfully to get around Tim. Eventually the computer in the "crate" Chevy engine in Tony's car put the engine in a "protect yourself" mode due to dirty air causing overheating and Tony had to retire.
In the meanwhile, there was quite a battle further back as past champions Jimmy Wysong and Jimmy Waters battled it out for position until Waters moved ahead. In the meanwhile, Ryan Burdett battled successfully both against Tim and then Ramos, trying both the inside and then outside lines against both of them until he finally moved into the lead on lap 35 and went on for the win ahead of Jimmy Waters who also got by Ramos.
The finish was Burdett, Waters, Ramos, Kipp Posey and Scott Pierovich.
That leaves Tony Hunt still in the points lead for the USAC Western Sprint Car series leading into this coming show at Madera, but he's only 45 points ahead of Ramos. Both of them are over 100 points ahead of JoJo Helberg and Scott Pierovich who are tied for third with 281 points each.
Now, let me digress. With a big weekend on hand, both the USAC Western Sprint Cars and the USAC Western Focus Midgets on hand, we only had 16 Focus Midgets and 17 Sprint Cars show up. Why the low car counts? The answer is quite simple --- the economy stupid. It hit me like a ton of bricks this weekend while on the road. Yeah, I've noticed the empty businesses in my home town and throughout my travels, and they made me feel that the economy wasn't all that good, but the spokespeople on the cable news networks and in Washington, D.C. keep trying to put a bright light on it, but the highway this weekend proved to me that they're wrong.
"What do you mean?" you may be asking.
Well, even as late as four weeks ago I was passed by hundreds of tractor trailers while traveling on I-80. Now, I-80 is one of the main East/West interstate highways, and it terminates in San Francisco, so most of the traffic to Northern California travels on it. I am passed continuously because I drive at 60-65 mph to save fuel, while the speed limit is 75. The distance from Reno to Salt Lake City is 550 miles so I am used to seeing many trucks in both directions. Up until four weeks ago when I last went to RMR, fully 80% of the rigs that passed me had signs on the rear doors looking for drivers. They were looking for team drivers, owner/operators, company drivers, and even trainees. This week the truck traffic was down by fully 10%, AND I ONLY SAW FOUR DRIVERS WANTED SIGNS all weekend. FOUR.
What that means is this. Almost every product in the country spends at least some of its life in or on a big rig. I have always felt that the economists sitting in their ivory towers with all of their theories, would be a lot better off if they got off their duffs and spent some time driving down the interstates.
It's quite simple. When people are buying products, or manufacturers are producing products, they have to be replaced. They're replaced by delivering them on big rigs travelling down the interstates. When people stop buying, shelves in stores are no longer empty. That means there's no need to manufacture products to fill the shelves as they're no longer emptying. That means there's no need to ship products on the highways.
So much for the "Williams' economic theory" - now back to the Focus program at RMR.
My regular readers may remember that I had some severe handling problems recently, and no one seemed to be able to help me with them. By the end of last weekend, I had come to the conclusion that I either had some bad shocks, or the hit I took at Stockton last year had cracked the frame somewhere and that it had finally come apart and I couldn't see it. I took my gas shocks to Jerry Crowell last Monday to have them checked out, and replaced them with my hydraulic shocks.
The first practice session proved that my problem was solved and that the frame was all right. That made me feel a lot better. Still and all, I couldn't get my times to improve. Worst of all, whenever I start on the pole I'm used to holding the lead at least until turn one, that's because the pole sitter is the only one who knows when he's going to hit the pedal for the start. This week, however, I was really disappointed as everyone pulled me coming off turn four and I was almost last entering turn one in my heat. My slow times during the rest of the races are my own fault, but not the starts. Now I have to find out what caused that.
It was a hot day at Salt Lake City, with the temperature in the mid to high 90's, and enough humidity to give us a density altitude of 7500 feet. By mid-afternoon I was ready to take a nap in spite of my Cool Vest.
Once again Chuck Groat set fast time, although the track was about a quarter second slow during our qualifying session. Bobby Runyan was second fast, followed by Cody Gerhardt and Bob Brewer.
Lady Luck frowned on Brewer once again, though, as the engine was running poorly after his qualifying run and it turned out to be a broken barrel valve shaft - something that no one had ever heard of happening before. Anyway, that put the "Tin Man" out of competition for the evening.
Once again we ended up starting the main event with the setting sun right on the horizon and in our eyes coming through turn four. This time I believe it added to a few incidents, one of which could have been really bad.
It took about three starts before we got the first lap in. One of the restarts was due to a brand new car being christened when the driver tried to pass Conner Kassik on the front stretch. There was only enough room for a half a car between Conner and the wall, and the other driver, trying to win the 30-lap feature on the first lap tried to get through, riding up over Conner's wheel and almost flipping. It put both cars out for the rest of the night. From behind it and watching it happen I would say that it was a stupid move, but giving him the benefit of the doubt, he may have been blinded by the setting sun. Once again, a track operator that won't move his precious schedule around enough to keep the sun out of the driver's eyes.
Photographer friend Galen Kurth e-mailed me a few weeks ago reminding me that the PROMOTERS at the Bellville Nationals restrict running into the setting sun. Wish more tracks would do the same.
In any case, by the time the track was cleared, the sun had set and the rest of the race moved along pretty well.
Groat had won the first heat and Kassik had won the second.
Bobby Runyan took the lead at the start and held it through lap three until he was passed by Cody Gerhardt. Bobby passed Cody again on the sixth circuit and held it through lap 17, when once again the mechanical genie unzipped his pants and urinated on the pillar of science, putting Bobby out with another strange mishap. I was lapped around lap 15 or so while Bobby still had the lead, and I was expecting a gaggle of front runners to go by, but it was only Bobby. He must have had a full straight-away lead, then the engine quit. Our fuel pumps are driven by the power-steering pump. The fuel pumps are held in place by an aluminum clamp "and Bobby's clamp broke" again, something I have never heard of happening. After Bobby broke, Chuck took the lead and the win, followed by Cody Gerhardt, Ron Duncombe, and Gregg Fuette who took fourth with his combo car and Ron didn't get by Gregg until the last lap. New father Austin Luttmer rounded out the top five.
Once again my good friends in Salt Lake City made me feel like part of the family. Gregg called me earlier in the week informing me that rather than going out to dinner on Friday night, we would have a Bar-B-Que at his house. He called me again on Thursday to tell me that we would be going out instead, only to change his mind again on Friday after I was on the road. When I got to the hotel and checked in, he came by to pick both Mike McCluney and I up to take us to his house. We had a great time with Mike, myself, Austin and Lindy Luttmer and their 3 1/2 week old baby Ayrton John, Verlyn Gibson, his lady friend Michelle and her daughter Ashley, Brewer, Gregg and his lady friend Robin. I'm attaching a photo of Lindy and baby Ayrton who will end up being a third generation driver Austin has informed me that he's already shopping for a go-kart or quarter midget.
photo by JR
Lndy and Arton John Luttmer
As long as Brewer was there, Mike and I enlisted him to drive us back to the hotel, saving Gregg from having to go out again.
On the way to Salt Lake City, I finally bit the bullet and decided to buy a new driver's suit. I called Nancy Hinchman (as Hinchman has made all of my uniforms since my first one in about 1962). As usual, she had all of my measurements from my last order and promised to get started on it. Friend Charlie Patterson has offered to sponsor me through his nexgenmotorsports.com, so that will help with the expense. Thanks a lot Charlie. Your help is really appreciated.
As you all know, Charlie has been a good friend of mine for years and has helped move a number of drivers into the NASCAR ranks. Take a look at his website to learn more about Charlie and his programs.
Well, that's it for this week. We're off next weekend, so that will give the old man time to try to find out what has slowed our acceleration off the line.
Wish me luck and remember that e-mails can still reach me at: jrw-jnw@sbcglobal.net.
July 26 2010
Art Pollard Memorial- features won by the oldest and youngest drivers.
by
Kevin Triplett
Live Oak Ca.
Contributer to OWR3
Saturday July 24, 2010 dawned hot and cloudless at the Douglas County Speedway for the 2010 edition of the Art Pollard Memorial Race. The Speedway located on the grounds of the Douglas County Fairground measures .375 in length, and the asphalt corners have a slight progressive banking. The grandstand was mostly full by feature time, after the sun had gone down and the temperature dropped into the 80’s. The crowd was entertained by a strong field of 15 winged pavement sprinters. The rules of the sanctioning body, NSRA, (Northwest Sprintcar Racing Association), require all the cars have maximum engine size of 360 cubic inches and weigh no less than 1625 pounds including the driver and their safety equipment. The results are spectacular; these upright pavement cars run very close, with less than 1.5 seconds between the quickest and slowest qualifiers at Roseburg. Three NSRA former champions were entered; two-time and defending champion Matt Hein, 2007 champion Andy Alberding, and five-time champion Rick Brown.
The main sprint car program was supported by the West Coast Vintage Racers organization, which turned out a diverse field of equipment, with midgets, sprint cars, track roadsters, and even an offset supermodified.
86-year old “Methanol Mel” Anthony, whose driving belies his age, dominated the vintage midget program
Mel, the oldest driver competing, swept the program, winning the dash, his heat race and the feature, his third of the season.
The vintage sprint car program was likewise swept by 67-year old Frankie Volz
in his beautiful “Backwoods Racing” caged sprint car.
Seventeen year-old female driver Sierra Jackson, The youngest driver in competition,
She, did not set fast time, but she did win her heat race, in her family-owned black #25 sprint car. Sierra came into the night trailing points leader Matt Hein by 5 points. She did not gain points with the heat race win, as Hein also won his heat race. Sierra Jackson started in the second row of the feature; at the drop of the green, outside front row starter Vern Scever’s neon orange #15R car took off as if he was shot out of a cannon, building a lead of 30 car lengths over second. Meanwhile Jackson had settled into third, hounding pole sitter Todd Coleman until lap 14, when she managed to slip by into second and set sail for the leader. By lap 21, Sierra Jackson’s #25 car had closed to within 5 car lengths of leader Scever, and passing him for the lead on lap 25, and she was never challenged for the remaining 15 laps of the feature. Her main competitor in points, Matt Hein, who had started deep in the field, finished third. It looks to this observer as though the NSRA points championship is going to be a tough battle in 2010.
July 25 2010
Open Wheel Racing At Illiana in Schererville, Indiana Wednesday 7-14-10
by photos by
RacerRich GaryGasper
Indiana Indiana
Contributer to OWR3 Photo Contributer to OWR3
We enjoyed another great night of midget racing last night at Illiana. What made the night even better was getting to watch a new class of cars that I’ve never seen before. Sharing some time with some old friends and making some new ones always highlights my night.
Putting some words together with some great pictures by Mr. Gary Gasper is also a special ending to a good night of racing. Gary started my night by introducing me to Rhonda who is the Operations Manager for Illiana. Being given the opportunity to witness and write up these stories at Illiana for a number of years now, there has been one major thing missing and last night the missing part came together when Gary and Rhonda introduced me to Mike Mikuly, owner of Illiana, for the first time. Always thanking Mike and his staff in the write ups was good but it was especially great to thank him in person last night.
Don Kenyon is now the sole promoter of a group of racers that are flying high under the United States Speed Assn. banner. The group includes Kenyon Cars, also well represented by his legendary brother Mel, USSA Midgets and Thunder Roadsters. Don leases the track and gives the racers a place to showcase their talents. Before coming to Illiana they have put on shows at Plymouth, Anderson, Mount Lawn Speedways in Indiana as well as Grundy County Speedway in Morris, Illinois. DK Promotions can be contacted at Kenyon@Indy.Net or by phone at 765-482-4273 for more information.
While I’ve enjoyed midget racing since 1961, it is still a very pleasurable time to continue enjoying them every chance I get these days. Taking nothing away from their racing, I must admit that seeing the Thunder Roadsters was a special event for me. I’ve heard many veteran race fans, me included, saying it would be great to see the old Roadsters return to popularity. Don and his group are trying to make this happen.
These Roadsters look much like to old Indy Roadsters from the 50’s and early 60’s. They are equipped with 1250 cc Yamaha water cooled engines and they have self starters like the Kenyon Cars have. They run the same Hoosier tire in all four positions. A brand new car can be bought for around $16-17,000 and there are some used ones available today for between $8-10,000.
Al Renner 14 and Aaron Holden 91 Thunder down the backstretch during the feature
Emily Patton
James Edsall III takes the Checkers in the Thunder roadster feature
Thunder Roadster Feature winner James Edsall III
As for their racing last night it was fast and competitive. James Edsall, lll from Fishers, Indiana had the competitors covered. He set fast time in qualifying with a fast lap of 22.406 on the half mile oval and then took half of the 10 lap heat race to take command for the win. In the feature he lined up in the 8th spot and on lap four of the 30 lapper he took the lead and eventually won the race. This did not happen easily as Al Renner applied pressure throughout the last half of the race and not too far behind them were Chris Weddle, Tony Holden and Darrell Brown racing hard and completing the top five finishers. Talking to Tony during the night, he told that his son Aaron drives the #91 in this series as well as driving a Legend Car in the Indianapolis area. These guys reside in Greenfield, Indiana. While Don was in hopes of having about 16 cars at Illiana there were 10 that ventured the long trip north.
The Kenyon Cars started the night with their 6 car heat race. Eleven year old Justin Peck went to the lead from his 4th starting position and held off a hard charging James Edsall, lll who was doing double duty in the two classes. Halen Shafer, Nick Hamilton, Isaac Chapple and Max McGhee rounded out the finishing order. For their 30 lap feature on the ¼ mile track, Halen Shafer took control and the lead around the half way point and stretched out to a convincing win. The battle for 2nd was won narrowly by young Mr. Peck over James Edsall, lll and rounding out the top five were Max McGhee and Isaac Chapple.
Kenyon midget feature winner Halen Shafer takes the checkers
During the USSA Midget qualifying, Mario Marietta set fast time with a lap of 19.065 around the ½ mile track. Mario would keep his hot shoe on by winning the first heat over Ali Jackson, who comes to the series from Ireland and Brad Greenup. The 2nd heat saw Kyle Hamilton take his #33 mount to the lead from his 4th starting position and won the ten lap race over Nick Wagner and Mike Wallace.
coming to the Green at the start of the midget feature
Kyle Hamilton (33) battles Mike Wallace (10)
14 year old Taylor Ferns finished 2nd in the midget feature
Taylor Ferns 55 gets inside of Mike Wallace 10
USSA Midget feature winner Mario Marrietta
These two heat winners would put on a terrific show in their 30 lap feature. While they were making their way to the front, Jim Anderson and Nick Wagner were in a heated battle for the lead. Mario made his move to the point on lap eight and Kyle moved to the 2nd spot on the next lap. Mario had opened a good lead but Kyle started cutting into that lead and he got a break when Greenup spun coming out of four with eleven laps to go. With the nose to tail restart it was a battle royal for the remainder of the race. Mario kept the lead but coming out of four going for the checkered flag, trying a pass on the inside, Kyle spun and Mario charged to the finish line for a super win. Taylor Ferns finished 2nd just ahead of Ali Jackson, Brad Greenup who fought back for a fine 4th place finish and Jim Anderson rounding out the top five.
After stopping for his victory picture at the finish line, Mario walked back to his good friend Kyle, who was parked on the track just out of turn four, they met and gave each other a big hug. What a show of sportsmanship! These two young drivers put on a show for the fans and the fans were all standing and applauding in appreciation for the deluxe race they had just witnessed.
There were periods of time where it looked like the weatherman was going to take control but every race was run and the last lap was completed just before 10:30. Hoping to catch up with James Edsall, who had given me a lot of information about the Roadsters earlier in the evening, wasn’t to happen. He had packed up and left, giving me the thought that probably he had to work today. These races happening on a Wednesday night and a long trip home makes for a short night for him. Getting in a word with Kyle, he told me “I gave it everything I had” and no one could deny that thought. When I asked Taylor how long she had been driving race cars she told me eight years. I believe I heard she is only 14 years old now!
Getting to watch a few of the races with Rhonda who was sitting with a friend I met a few years ago, I learned that Dave Alger is Rhonda’s dad. As usual, Stan Kalwasinski was around for some chats. He spent his night in the infield taking pictures with Gary.
During the whole night, Mel and Don were gracious with their time answering questions and giving information about their USSA adventures and plans. Having met these legends in my first year of midget racing experiences, it’s still great to see them in good health and still enjoying the sport that we as fans still love.
In print, I will say again, thanks to Mike and his staff for allowing us the pleasure to be in attendance for another great night of open wheel racing at Illiana.
July 23 2010
Perez Succumbs to Injuries
SEATTLE, Wash. (July 21, 2010) – Tyson Perez succumbed to injuries sustained Sunday evening in a shop accident in Washington state. Perez passed away at 9:28 a.m. P.D.T., on Tuesday, July 21, in a Seattle hospital.
Perez, hailing from Australia, and Forney, Tex., Sprint Car driver Travis Rilat both suffered severe burns on Sunday night. Rilat remains in stable condition at a Seattle hospital.
July 20 2010
View from the Cockpit
by
JR Williams
Carson City Nevada
Contributor to OWR3
Although the car count was low in all divisions, it was really great to have four USAC divisions running together at the Stockton99 Speedway this past Saturday. The old man got to visit with a number of friends I hadn't seen in some time, so in spite of my car problem it made it a worthwhile weekend. I did miss seeing Audra Sasselli, but talked to her on the phone today and learned that she was taking a leave of absence from the sprint cars.
The track doesn't open until noon, and I guess I could save a few bucks and get up in the middle of the night and drive over the mountain, but then I'd fall asleep at the wheel trying to drive home after the races, so I've found it works out best to drive over on Friday afternoon, enjoy a nice meal and a good night's sleep and get to the track rested. Especially in the heat of summer. I'll never forget an old HAM radio friend (now a silent key) who lived in Stockton. Whenever he'd come up on the net and someone would ask him how the weather was, Matt would always reply, "Thirty degrees above unbearable," and Saturday was no exception. I pointed my heat gun at the grass outside the trailer and it registered 136. I didn't want to make myself feel hotter by pointing it at the pavement.
Midway through the week I had a phone call from the editor, asking for directions to my shop. He stopped by and we had an interesting chat for a few hours and he was planning on going to Stockton on Saturday --- and he did --- but I was unable to show off for him.
Heading through Jackson, CA., I came upon Jerry and Vivian Crowell and followed them the rest of the way to the motel where we were all staying, so we had a nice dinner and breakfast together. Besides being such good friends, it was really nice to have someone to share the meals with.
I ended up being pitted between some real heavyweights of the sport, with the Ron Sutton hauler and crew on one side, and Tony Hunt and his crew on the other. Tony was one of three drivers who were doing double-duty Saturday, Tony in the midget and sprint divisions, Tim Skoglund in the Focus midget series and a sprint car, and Scott Pierovich also in the midget and sprint shows.
Unlike LVMS, the promoters at Stockton99 go out of their way to be helpful to the competitors. When we first signed in, the had the schedule set up so that the Focus midgets followed the Young Guns, then came the midgets, and then the sprint cars. Someone apparently spoke with the promoters and the lineups were changed to put the Focus midgets between the midgets and the sprint cars all day, thereby giving everyone time to change cars when necessary. So, whoever straightened that all out, allow me to say thank you.
In spite of low numbers, the sprint cars put on a good show. Tony Hunt turned fast time, with Luis Ramos III in second, and Tim Skoglund third quick.
I got to talk to friend Joe Helberg briefly, but was too busy to ever run into JoJo who drove the Finkenbinder sprinter. I'm not sure, but I think that the Helberg car is either in the Midwest, or on its way back.
Skoglund won the first heat and JoJo won the second as well as the dash.
The old man was able to watch the sprint car main event that was a good race. Scott Pierovich took the lead at the green and held it for the first 14 circuits until he was overtaken by Tony Hunt who went on for the win. Scott finished second, followed by Tim Skoglund who drove to a strong third place. Luis Ramos III finished fourth, followed by JoJo.
The win stretched Tony Hunt's points lead to 73. Luis Ramos III is now second in points with JoJo in third, Shauna Hogg in fourth and Scott Pierovich in fifth.
In the midget division, Scott Pierovich set quick time, just edging out points leader Alex Shutte.
Nick Chivello won the first heat and the dash and finished second in the main, while Chad Nichols took both the second heat and the main event.
Jake Swanson brought his Honda-powered combo car out for what I think was his first pavement show of the season and seemed to be enjoying himself.
I couldn't get over how tall Robby Josett has grown. I hadn't seen him for a few years since we ran Focus midgets at Ventura together.
The top three in the midget points chase are staging quite a battle with Schutte just three points ahead of Kruseman, who in turn is just 14 points ahead of Josett.
Four Young Gun drivers were on hand Saturday, and as they are all old enough, they can run the restricted engines in the Young Gun races, then remove the restrictors and run in the full Focus race, giving them a lot of very valuable seat time. All four of the drivers are part of Ron Sutton's Winners Circle program where they get even more valuable training in learning how to work and communicate with professional pit personnel which is a great experience that will help them as they move up the ladder.
Cody Thompson won the heat and the feature, while Brandon White won the dash. Keegan Walmer finished second in the main, followed by Courtney Atkinson and Brandon White.
Garrett Peterson turned fast time in the Focus division, followed by Cody Gerhardt and Cody Thompson, all within .045 seconds.
Garrett won the first heat ahead of Bobby Runyan, Keegan Walmer led Tim Skoglund across the line in the second heat, Cody Thompson won the dash, and Cody Gerhardt took home the honors in the main event. Congratulations to young Cody who ended up having an exciting race from what I learned later.
Gerhardt took the win ahead of Cody Thompson. Tim Skoglund was third, followed by Keegan Walmer and Garrett Peterson.
The excitement came when Gerhardt and Peterson got together in the third turn with Garrett ending up on his head on the fence. They managed to get the car right-side up, and as it didn't appear to have any severe damage, Garrett restarted in the rear and moved up far enough to finish fifth.
As for the old man, things didn't go all that well. The car felt good enough in the first practice session, and I put a new right rear tire on to scuff it in during the second practice session. Unfortunately, the squirrely problem I had at Salt Lake City a few weeks back returned. To refresh your memories, when I would hit the throttle, the car wanted to turn to the wall, and when I came off the throttle it wanted to turn into the infield. The later wasn't all that much of a problem, but the turn to the wall got my attention.
Back in the pits I had a lot of help from everyone. Randy Chastain looked the car over, all of Tony Hunt's crew was there, as was Jerry Crowell ---- and we couldn't find anything wrong. I ran the qualifying laps, but slowed by almost a second and decided to change the right rear spacers a little. I started in the back of the main, and even under the light throttle pressure during the yellow flag pace laps the car was all over the track, so I took the green flag and pulled off. All I can think of is that I have one or more bad shocks, so I took them off today and ran them to Crowell's shop in Fallon, NV where, hopefully, we'll find that that is the problem. In the meanwhile I put my old hydraulic shocks on for this coming weekend in Salt Lake City.
After pulling out of the track Saturday night, I stopped at a nearby restaurant for something to eat before heading over the mountain, and I was joined by friends Lance and Scott Pierovich. We had an interesting conversation. It's always great to be around them, and, of course, I'll forever be in Lance's debt, tracing back a few years ago when we were at Madera in 116-degrees of heat and he suggested that I spend some time in his air-conditioned hauler. I know that if it weren't for that I would have just packed up and gone home.
Once again the deer whistles on the front bumper of the tow truck seem to be working well, as the only two deer that I saw in the Sierra's were both heading off the road and I arrived unscathed at 3:00 A.M.
Friend Charlie Patterson called in the afternoon, and among other things, he told me that young Andrew Mulhearn is planning on heading to the mid-west where Charlie is hoping to get him a Focus ride at the Speedrome which will be a great experience. Good luck Andrew. It's a fun track.
That's about it for this week. Next weekend will see us at Rocky Mountain Raceway in Salt Lake City where we're looking forward to a good car count as some of the California people will be joining us.
Notes from Stockton 99 Speedway
by
Kevin Triplett
Live Oak Ca.
Contributer to OWR3
This writer attended the USAC program Saturday July 17, 2010 with OpenWheelRacers3.com Editor Dennis ‘aXe’ Sylvia; a recap of the races can be found elsewhere on this site. In the style of Chris Economaki, here are the contents of this writer’s notebook:
car counts on the West Coast pavement races are way down this season. The Ford Focus field was the largest, featuring eleven cars, five of which were from the Ron Sutton “Winners Circle” program, and the 2 cars from the Western Speed Speed Racing Stable.
The Twin Focus cars Western Speed Racing. All photos b y Kevin Triplett
Garret Peterson was the fastest qualifier in his family-owned #31 Sacramento Theatrical Lighting Special. Cody Gerhardt won the feature after executing a daring pass of Peterson in turn three; Peterson attempted the same move a lap later, made contact with Gerhardt and ended up on his roll cage. Fellow OPWR columnist JR Williams suffered handling problems, and dropped out early in the event.
The midget feature started seven cars, the result of Dan Gundo and Cory Kruseman suffering terminal engine problems during the preliminaries. This feature was a follow-the leader affair, with the leader being Chad Nichols for all 30 laps. The only excitement was the mid-race contest between Alex Schutte and Robbie Josett.
Can a crate sprint car engine save West Coast pavement sprint car racing? Of the 10 sprint cars on the grounds, two of the cars featured a Chevrolet crate engine package, which produces 650 HP at a cost of $15,000.
Gary Kobza debuted one in his beautifully painted Hornet chassis
At its second race, and suffered the expected new-car problems, suffering problems with the Mass Air Sensor in hot laps, which distracted the crew from sorting out and learning how to make the car handle the tricky high-banked Stockton oval. Kobza has stepped up to USAC competition after several seasons of NCMA carbureted sprint car racing. Gary’s car, which makes extensive use of gold leaf, was painted by a local hot rod shop with no previous experience in painting race cars; the results are stunning.
The other Chevy crate engine at Stockton was in Tony Hunt’s car
Tony is in second year with the engine, which has picked up about 30 HP over last season. There can be no question that crate engine is capable; Tony Hunt set fast time in qualifying, posting a lap of 12.6 seconds, the second quickest lap in track history. Old-timers recalled that the great Johnny Brazil set the all-time track record of 11.9 in 1957, driving a super modified. In the feature, Tony Hunt started sixth with the invert, quickly moved his way to the front, and finished the 40-lap feature without being seriously challenged.
Lady racer Shauna Hogg was back in action after her crash in the last USAC race at All-American Speedway,
The only lady driver in action in the sprints, as Audra Sasselli’s car did not show. Shauna was fresh back from a visit to Indiana Sprint Week, and she raved about the great racing she saw in Indiana. When pressed, Shauna named Bloomington as her favorite of the tracks she visited, although she thought that Gas City was a racy place as well. Like many racers, Shauna wishes she could go back to Indiana to race for a few years. In the feature, Shauna started on the pole position, but her car seemed to have troubles in the center of corner, so she fell back to fifth place despite battling hard.
In closing, although the car count and the crowd attendance could have been better, the USAC Western Staters put on good show. Next weekend, this writer heads north to Roseburg, Oregon for the Art Pollard Memorial Race.
Rilat and Crew Member Suffer Severe Burns; Wayne Johnson Recovering from Elma Injuries
TULSA, Okla. (July 19, 2010) – Just as positive reports were spreading of successful surgery for Wayne Johnson following a wild ride in Lucas Oil ASCS National action at Grays Harbor Raceway in Elma, WA, on Saturday night, word broke on Sunday evening of a fellow past ASCS National champion and one of his crew members involved in a serious shop accident on Sunday night in Washington.
Travis Rilat, the 2003 ASCS National champion hailing from Forney, TX, and Australian crew member Tyson Perez both suffered severe burns when a methanol barrel exploded on Sunday evening. Rilat and Perez were transported to a Seattle hospital, where they remain in critical condition.
Early indications are that both Rilat and Perez will remain in the Harborview burn unit for at least two to three months.
Tom Lorenz of Smiley’s Racing Products has established a fund for Rilat and Perez. Contributions to the Travis Rilat/Tyson Perez fund may be made by calling the First State Bank in Mesquite, TX, at 972-285-6311.
Less than 24 hours earlier, 2000 ASCS National champion Wayne Johnson was transported to the same Harborview Hospital in Seattle after suffering severe leg injuries in a lap two “A” Main crash at Grays Harbor Raceway’s Fourth Annual Fred Brownfield Memorial.
Johnson, a native of Oklahoma City, OK, currently residing in Knoxville, IA, underwent what was deemed a successful surgery early Sunday and will undergo a second surgery later in the week to finalize cleanup of the wounds. A full recovery is expected for Johnson.
CLAUSON ATOP USAC’S NATIONAL DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS
Bryan Clauson of Noblesville, Ind. is the mid-season leader for the 2010 USAC
National Drivers Championship, worth a $40,000 bonus at season’s end. Clauson is
21 points ahead of Levi Jones and 38 ahead of Jerry Coons Jr. following the
recent Indiana Sprint Week events.
Drivers earn National Drivers Championship points in each USAC National event
in which they compete. The top-25 scores count toward the championship, with a
maximum of 49 points available at each event (49 for a victory, including a
five-point bonus). Points decrease by two per position behind the winner (i.e.
42 for second, 40 for third, etc.), with a minimum of two for last place.
The National Drivers Champion will be awarded with a year-end payout of $40,000
for the first place alone. A large fund has been established for the top 10
finishing competitors of the National Driving Championship. The total point fund
for the three National series combined is being increased by 35% in 2010, with
the increase benefitting both car owners and drivers with USAC’s 50/50 points
fund structure.
“It’s obviously really cool to be at the head of the class in something new,”
Bryan admits. “This is a big deal with, all the money USAC has posted for this
championship. I know I have three seasoned veterans breathing down my neck and
it will be hard to hold them off, but I finished last year with a strong finish
and hope to be able to do that again. The biggest thing is winning races. The
bonus for wins is huge and that’s my focus, to win as many races as I can. That
should be enough to hold off the challengers. I had a pretty good Indiana Midget
Week and a pretty good Indiana Sprint Week and that helped. I’m looking forward
to this week, with Terre Haute and ORP both places I’ve done well but I think
the driver with the most wins in the second half of the season will probably end
up with the National Drivers Championship. I hope that’s me!”
Clauson, who has 15 podium finishes this year (top-three), has averaged more
than 40 points in his best 25 scores. He has six feature victories, four seconds
and five thirds combined in the Silver Crown, AMSOIL National Sprint Car and
Mopar National Midget Series.
Jones, of Olney, Ill., has a dozen podium finishes, including seven victories,
three seconds and a pair of thirds. Coons, of Tucson, Ariz., has also been on
the podium a dozen times, with two wins, five seconds and five thirds.
Clauson, Coons and Tracy Hines are the only three drivers who currently rank in
the top-10 in all three National series standings. Hines is 62 behind Clauson,
fourth in the National Drivers Championship.
“The new National Drivers Championship has been established to bring fan focus
to our top drivers and allow for expanded marketing efforts,” stated Kevin
Miller, CEO of USAC Racing. “During 2009, we ran a parallel points structure
which proved to have a close top 10 race and dramatic finish for the season.
This now allows a competitor with just a dirt sprint car or midget, or one with
a pavement concentration, to compete for a USAC Championship.”
USAC Championships have a storied past and are recognized among the sports most
iconic thresholds. Past USAC National Champions include Mario Andretti, A.J.
Foyt, Al and Bobby Unser, Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon and Kasey Kahne.
July 15 2010
Formula One's history in U.S. plagued with problems
By John Maher Austin Tx's AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
The last time a Formula One race was held in Texas, Keke Rosberg got the win, but Nigel Mansell provided the defining moment.
When Mansell's Lotus-Renault ran out of gas at the 1984 Dallas Grand Prix, he hopped out of his car and tried to push it across the finish line. In the 100-degree heat, he quickly passed out, bonking his head on the right front tire as he slumped to the pavement at Fair Park.
Over the years, F1 racing hasn't fared much better in the U.S. than Mansell did in Dallas. Usually because of financial problems, F1 has fizzled out at a number of stops, none of which turned out to be permanent.
That could be a cautionary tale for Austin, which in 2012 is scheduled to host the first U.S. Grand Prix since 2007, when Indianapolis staged its last F1 race.
"I think we've been in the wrong places, to be honest with you," F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone said in a telephone interview with the American-Statesman. "We've been looking for a good home for quite some time \u2026 (but) in other cities and countries, we don't have the problems we seem to have when we do things in America."
Still, F1's cachet and its affluent, international and large fan base make it a tempting prize for promoters and cities.
"They're truly remarkable," said Long Beach, Calif., businessman Chris Pook, who organized F1 races in several U.S. cities. "The mayor in Long Beach used to say it was like hosting a Super Bowl every year."
Early years of F1
The world's first F1 race was held May 13, 1950, at Silverstone, a circuit about 70 miles north of London that will host the British Grand Prix this weekend. That first year, seven Grand Prix races counted toward the world championship. All were in Europe except the Indianapolis 500.
Even though Indy featured different drivers and different cars, it stayed on the F1 circuit until Watkins Glen, N .Y., staged the U.S. Grand Prix in 1961 after that event had first sputtered at Sebring, Fla., in 1959 and then Riverside, Calif., in 1960. In 1976, a second F1 race, the U.S. Grand Prix West, debuted in Long Beach, a down-at-the-heels industrial port city that was looking to change its image.
"No one knew where Long Beach was, just that it was south of Los Angeles," said Pook. "In the 1960s, and 1970s the downtown was in decline. ... They had bought the Queen Mary (in 1967) as a panacea for the rebirth, but that didn't work."
Pook, a travel agent at the time, pushed for an F1 race through city streets, a la Monaco, as a way to revitalize the downtown. Pook said some of the biggest skeptics were European F1 teams and officials, who didn't think U.S. fans would attend a street race. Despite opposition from environmentalists concerned about crowds and noise, the race went on, and Pook claims it was a success for the city.
"It jump-started the redevelopment. A Hyatt was built in the center of the circuit. The decayed buildings on the waterfront went away," Pook said. Yet the race was not without problems.
"The cost was high in terms of building the circuit," Pook said. "You've got to create (the equivalent of) an entire stadium on a temporary basis with all the creature comforts people expect."
Pook said the budget for staging the annual race, not including the purse, was $8 million. Although the weekend event drew large crowds, approaching 90,000 on race day, that didn't assure financial success.
"You've got to sell tickets in the $300-$400 range to succeed. We were making $100,000 a year. If we had a bad weekend, we could have gone under," Pook said.
Unlike the various U.S. cities that have held street races — as well as Indianapolis, which adapted an existing facility — Austin's Grand Prix would feature a stadium built specifically for the races.
The last F1 Grand Prix in Long Beach was in 1983. Beginning in 1984, Long Beach switched to a Championship Auto Racing Teams, or Champ Car, event, and it now has an IndyCar race that can attract 200,000 fans over a weekend.
As for storied Watkins Glen, the last F1 race there was in 1980. By that time, the Glen no longer matched the F1 profile. It couldn't pay the purse for F1 teams or afford to make needed improvements for safety for the powerful cars.
"It's a beautiful rural circuit, but tickets were $45 and $50. People were camping out, not staying in hotels," Pook said. "Meanwhile, the whole sport was elevating. Everything was getting more expensive."
That didn't discourage other cities from being lured by the glitz of Formula One. In 1981 and '82, Caesars Palace in Las Vegas staged an F1 race in its parking lot. The concept was to lure high rollers from all over the world to the race — and the casino. When the plan for the parking lot circuit was unveiled, Motoring News called it the "Mickeyist Mouse Ever."
Pook said, however, that circuit design was not the problem.
"Caesars didn't reach out," Pook said. "There was not a relationship with the other casinos. It's really, really important that everyone is behind a race."
Detroit also got into the F1 business in 1981. Detroit Renaissance, a nonprofit organization of area business leaders, was looking for ways to revitalize the downtown area, much the way Long Beach had done. A race was held on the streets of Detroit through 1988, but plans to move it to nearby Belle Isle fell through, and Detroit replaced F1 with a CART race.
Marred by mishaps
In 1984, another new city joined the F1 circuit — Dallas.
Buddy Boren was a former drag racer who produced a documentary on that sport, "Wheels of Fire," that remains a cult classic. Boren recalled: "We finished the film and I was editing, and I started thinking about what my next project would be. I thought it would be interesting to do a film about Formula One racing."
Boren went to Long Beach and said: "I remember rolling down the window and hearing the cars; I'd never seen a race like that before. To see them doing that on a street just took my breath away."
Boren decided to bring one of those races to Dallas. He found a pair of partners, Don Walker and Larry Waldrop.
"We had three guys together who had never put on a (Formula One) race before. That was dangerous," Boren said.
Boren said it cost about $6 million to hold the street race, including $2 million for the purse and $1 million to construct the track. He said they held down expenses by using existing roads and buildings in and around Fair Park. An old horse arena, for instance, served as a paddock for race cars.
Boren said he and his partners eventually split over whether to continue to use Pook. He and Pook left the group months before the Grand Prix race, which, for many of the wrong reasons, remains part of F1 lore.
The weather was unseasonably hot, even for July 8 in Dallas. It was 100 degrees in the shade and hotter on the pavement, which crumbled from the heat and the weight of the much heavier Can-Am cars that had raced the circuit the previous day. Road crews had made hasty repairs all night long.
Despite protests by some drivers that the circuit was unsafe, the F1 race began only a few minutes late, with "Dallas" TV star Larry Hagman waving the green flag. Only eight of the 25 cars didn't spin out, crash or break down, with Mansell taking sixth out of the eight finishers.
Hot weather was again an issue when Phoenix replaced Detroit on the F1 calendar in June 1989. An estimated 30,000 fans attended that race, but moving it earlier on the F1 schedule didn't help. The March 1991 race attracted fewer than 20,000 fans. It was the last F1 race for Phoenix and the last for the U.S. until Indianapolis in 2000.
To meet F1's high standards, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway spent about $75 million building the 2.6-mile road course, which incorporated part of the famous oval, and upgrading facilities. Interest was initially strong, with crowds approaching 200,000.
But it waned. The kiss of death came in 2005 when, because of tire problems, only six of 20 teams ran more than a parade lap.
Indianapolis Motor Speedway spokesman Fred Nation said, "At the end of the day, we could not make a business deal that made sense to us."
Indy's last F1 race was in 2007.
Ecclestone called Austin "a nice town."
July 13 2010
View from the Cockpit
by
JR Williams
Carson City Nevada
Contributor to OWR3
First of all, I have to apologize for spelling Bobby Runyan's last name with an "O" instead of an "A" last week. I don't know how it happened, and got it corrected as soon as I could, but still can't figure it out. After all, I had his "hero" card sitting right in front of my face on my work station. Still and all ---. I think it may have to do with some of the changes my browser has incorporated over the past few weeks --- I can't keep up with them all.
For example. As I write my articles, I keep saving them as a draft every few minutes so I don't hit the wrong key and delete all of my work. In the past, when I would finish my last draft, I would spell check it before addressing it and sending it out. Then, I would always have a draft copy in my files that I could correct the next day when I would read it while wide awake. For some reason, now when I send out the draft it disappears from my draft files. Don't know why, but it does.
I think that last week when I finished my piece, my spell check didn't like the way I spelled Runyan and suggested a change which I accepted. Then, the next day, when I tried to correct it, all I had was my sent copy and I seem to be unable to correct that. Thanks to my esteemed editor we were able to get the changes corrected before too long. We also cut out the last half of the article until that was corrected, so for all of my readers who checked the column first thing Tuesday morning, please go down through the archives and get the updated version.
The old man didn't have any races this past weekend. That was a good thing as we had a houseful of company all week. My wife's brother and one of his daughter's came out from Vermont for a visit, so the racing widow decided to hold her annual 4th of July party on the 10th. That worked out great for the old man as I didn't have to miss any races and had a great, but tiring weekend. I'll be taking the last of them to the airport about an hour after I finish this. Then we'll get back to normal.
The cars are both ready to go and we'll be running at Stockton 99 Speedway this Saturday. It's going to be a full USAC show there, with the Focus Midgets, the Young Guns, the full USAC midgets and the USAC sprint cars. Great, I'll get to see a lot of my good friends who I haven't seen enough of this season.
Some of these will be in the sprint car show and include such notables as Tony Hunt, Audra Sasselli, the Swanson brothers, JoJo Helberg, Scott Pierovich and others. Speaking of Tony Hunt, he's leading in the points right now and is looking for his sixth championship. Only five drivers have more than six USAC championships. They are: A.J. Foyt with 13, Rich Vogler and Sleepy Tripp with 9 each, Mel Kenyon with 8, and Michael Lang with 7, so Tony's in some really fast company.
Following Tony in the points chase is young Luis Ramos III who is doing a great job this season. Luis is 45 points ahead of Audra Sasselli, and then things really tighten up. Audra is third in points, just three points ahead of Shauna Hogg, who leads JoJo by one point. So, anything can happen this Saturday night.
While our Western Focus midgets took a holiday this past weekend, the sprint cars were running at RMR in Salt Lake City, and Jimmy Waters won the first heat and the main event. Second in the main was Jimmy Wysong, followed by Luis Ramos III. Waters took the lead from early leader Paul Marconi on the tenth lap and led the rest of the way. Waters is now 11 points behind Wysong in the points standings, with Luis Ramos III in third place.
The Salt Lake City Focus Series will be running at RMR two weeks from now on the 24th, along with the sprint cars.
As usual, e-mail can reach me at: jrw-jnw@sbcglobal.net. Wish me luck this coming Saturday at Stockton.
July 8 2010
NEW TERRE HAUTE ACTION TRACK ORGANIZERS IN PLACE
The “Sumar Classic” is scheduled July 21 at the Terre Haute Action Track and the
“J.D. Byrider 100” is slated July 22 at O’Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis.
The former has been finalized as a result of a change of race organizers at the
storied half-mile dirt oval.
Action Promotions, LLC has announced that the remaining events on the 2010
Action Track schedule will be promoted by the O'Connor Family, race organizers
at Kokomo (Ind.) Speedway and Track Enterprises (race organizers at the storied
Indiana and Illinois fairgrounds mile dirt ovals).. This move became necessary
following the resignation of Chris Novotney from Action Promotions following the
May 27th First Financial Tony Hulman Classic.
"I appreciate the willingness of Bob Sargent and the O'Connor Family to
literally come to the rescue and save these events," said Mike King of Action
Promotions, LLC. "Our entire group of sponsors will remain in place and season
passes will be honored for the July 14 and September 11 events as well."
"After accepting the decision by Mr. Novotney to step down as a member of
Action Promotions and his position as director of track preparation, Brian
(Dorsett), Davey (Hamilton) and I began talks with USAC to find the right
partners to properly present these final events on the 2010 schedule," said
King. "Reece O'Conner and Bob Sargent both have great reputations and the
knowledge that it takes to present these events and many more. We are putting
the track in great hands and look forward to assisting them in any way
necessary."
July 6 2010
View from the Cockpit
JR Williams
Carson City Nevada
Contributor to OWR3
I saw the most exciting race that I can remember down at the Bull Ring at Las Vegas Motor Speedway last Thursday, 1 July.
A lot of people have been telling me about the shows that the Junior Focus drivers put on. OK, I know, the series is now called the Young Guns, but when friend Kieth Iaia first got the idea for it, it was called the Junior Focus.
Although I have met many of the drivers, and have watched them move up into the Full Focus Series and beyond, I have never been able to witness one of the their races, as I am usually strapped into my car in staging while they are on the track, but thanks to the screwed up schedule at LVMS ---- again ---- there was plenty of time between their main event and ours, so I walked up to the turn two fence with Randy Chastain to watch the action.
Let me tell you, what these young people lack in car count, they more than make up in action, and no matter what the fans had to pay for a ticket that night, they got their money's worth out of that one race --- at least in this driver's never to be humble opinion.
Six cars lined up for the start, five of them coming from the Sutton stable, and one driven by one of Wally Pankratz's students (Jared Blondel). Because of the screwed up schedule that we already mentioned, only two of the six cars were able to qualify as the Young Guns qualifying was scheduled just before the Full Focus qualifying, not leaving enough time to change the cars over, and four of them were running in both series.
Young Keegan Walmer took the lead at the start, and held it through the first five laps when he entered turn one a little low, opening the door for his teammate Cody Thompson to get by. You could cover the first three cars with a blanket for the entire 20 laps of the race. Keegan dropped to third, and on lap 17, Austin Farley took the lead through lap 19. Keegan made a banzai move entering turn three on the next to last lap, but couldn't keep his momentum up. He tried the same thing on the white flag lap, going low into three and exiting turn four in the middle of three cars that crossed the line in a photo finish that was only decided by the transponders on the car. Keegan pulled off the win by .0011. I think I wrote the zeros in there correctly. He won by 11/thousands of a second. Man, you don't get much closer than that. What a great race. You should have been there.
That's about all that was good down there. I know that I was upset about the last time we were there when we ended up with only one practice session. This time it was almost as bad. They had ten classes of cars on hand. Can you believe that? Ten classes. Making money off the back gate is one thing, but this is getting ridiculous. They certainly went out of their way to make the USAC owners/drivers feel unwanted. At least that's the way I felt. Why do I say that? Well, the only classes that get any sort of break on the $45.00 pit pass fee is NASCAR. Then, they opened the gates as 10:00 which was two hours earlier than usual. Then, they only gave the Focus people two practice sessions. Two practice sessions for the Juniors, and two sessions for the Full Focus. BUT --- there was no time to change the Junior car to a regular car as the Junior Focus practice was at noon, followed immediately by the Regular Focus at 12:10, followed at 12:20 by the Junior Focus
again and at 12:30 by the Regular Focus. The drivers who were running in both series had to make a decision which series that they wanted to practice in, and if you had a short handed crew there would be no time to make any changes to your car with only 20 minutes to go out on the track, practice, come back in and then get to staging before going out again. The next time we would take to the track would be qualifying at 3:20, and then it was the Juniors followed by the Regulars, and both sessions were group sessions with only three laps.
All of the other classes had an hour and ten minutes between their two practice sessions, giving them time for a few changes or maintenance. Sort of makes you feel that you're not wanted doesn't it?
Congratulations to Bobby Runyon who won the Main Event. He was followed by two other Sutton drivers' Austin Farley and Eli Schrock. Cody Gerhardt crossed the line in fourth place, ahead of his teammate, the venerable Wally Pankratz.
The old man lost most of his brakes early on, and used up what was left trying to miss a melee when Connor Kassik lost an oil line going into turn four that brought out a short red flag.
The day and night took a lot out of all of us with the midday temperature being around 107 and the track temperature at 140. Oddly enough, the humidity was only 4%, the lowest I can ever remember.
On the way down to Las Vegas on Wednesday, I spoke with Austin Luttmer from Salt Lake City who informed me that he and Lindy's baby boy Ayrton John Luttmer was born by "C" section that morning and that both baby and mom were doing well. Congratulations to the happy family.
While I'm on the subject of Las Vegas, we had enough time between events on Thursday for Bobby Runyan, Jr. to come to my trailer for an interview. Hey girls, this 17-year old race driver is one good-looking dude, but before you get too excited, just remember that in his life, racing comes first, so be prepared.
photo by JR Williams
Bobby Runyan Jr
Bobby was born in Turlock, CA., but when he was six-years old his family bought 20 acres of land in Denair where they moved to start an almond farm. He enjoys working on the farm almost as much as he enjoys his racing --- but not quite.
Bobby is a senior in Hughson High School where his favorite subjects are math and science, and although he isn't sure what he'll do with the rest of his life, it's pretty obvious that this personable young man is bound and determined to make a career in the cockpit of a race car -- any race car as long as it's fast, although he thinks he's probably going to go into engineering when he graduates.
The racing season takes all of the time that other young men spend in high school sports, although he does enjoy long distance running and tried his hand at pole vaulting.
He has three siblings ranging in age from 10 to 15.
From the Focus series, he's looking to move up to the Sutton Modified cars probably next season.
His racing career didn't begin until he was 13 when he got into Karts and ran them from Utah to Florida. He says he didn't have many wins, but did win two championships and set 3 fast times in National Competition.
The 2009 season saw Bobby in the Neil Porter Formula Ford Series where he ran 15 races and won ten of them. When I spoke to him, he had one Focus main event to his credit, but added another one to that on the 1st. He told me that he has quite an in-car video from the Orange Show a few weeks back when another car got upside down and the flagman was late throwing the yellow flag and Bobby went over it. I haven't had time to look it up yet, but it must be exciting.
That this young man is really driven to succeed, just look at some of his accomplishments. In just four years of racing, he was the 2009 SCCA San Francisco Region Formula Ford Champion as well as the Rookie Of The Year. He was also the pole sitter at the 40th Anniversary Formula Ford Festival at Road America out of 115 drivers.
In 2007, he was a 2-time IKF Grand National Champion and a 3-time IKF Grand National Pole Sitter.
Keep your eyes on this young man, with any luck he'll be running the IRL or NASCAR before long.
Although I slept in on Friday, I got back to my shop and changed the cars in my trailer in time to get home for dinner and a decent night's sleep in my own bed.
I took a leisurely drive down to Chico on Saturday, once again enjoying the beauty of the Feather River Canyon out of Quincy, CA.
Rick Young brought me an exchange ECU for the Eco-Tech engine, and that, plus leaning out the pressure relief valve another 1/2-turn seemed to have worked pretty well, as I came off the track with an engine temperature of 200-degrees and a second-place finish.
Rick Young and his wife gave birth to a baby girl, Sharon, a few weeks back, and in honor of her, Rick painted his car pink. He Christened the new paint job with a well-deserved win on Saturday night.
Ryan Shupe finished third, trailed by Lonnie Alton and Dan Jones who (at 50-years of age) was running his first race ever.
I got to spend a few minutes with friend Ryan Kaplan during the driver's meeting. He was running his 410, and although I didn't get a chance to see the race, he managed a second-place finish ahead of Bud Kaeding in a 21-car field.
I got a call from friend Gregg Fuette who managed to get his car working a lot better, and finished fourth in a non-points race at Salt Lake City. He had to use some "really wild" tire pressures to get the car to handle well, but it worked out fine for him. Good going my friend.
While Gregg and the RMR gang were dicing on the big paved track, and I was playing in the sand box at Silver Dollar Speedway, the Western Focus Series was racing at the Orange Show in San Bernardino.
In the Young Gun race, Brandon White drove his Sutton car to the win, leading all 20 laps. Austin Farley was second, Keegan Walmer was third, followed by Cody Thompson and Jarid Blondel.
The Regular Focus Series had a nice turnout of 16 cars on hand.
Fast time went to Tim Skoglund in his Western Speed car, while second quick went to Tim's teammate Cody Gerhardt. The top ten cars were all within a quarter second of fast time. Pretty fast company.
The 35-lap feature event was won by Cody Gerhardt who took the point from early leader Cody Thompson on the 20th circuit. Garrett Peterson finished second, while Tim Skoglund, Cody Thompson and Bobby Runyan rounded out the top five.
Conner Kassik can't seem to buy a break this year. He was running in ninth, when he got spun in turn three, the ensuing entanglement broke the bleeder valve on his left front wheel and he was out of brakes --- and breaks. His dad, Dan, tells me that he may get a ride in a full midget in a BCRA race at Lakeport, CA later this month.
Speaking of phone calls, I spoke with Sean Bowman on my way home from Chico and he tells me that they're thrashing hard, trying to get Alex's new chassis together in time for the ORP "Speedfest" on the 22nd.
I see where past Focus driver Nic Faas got a well-deserved 2nd in last week's USAC/CRA main event in Perris. Good on Nic.
There's a lot of stuff still sitting here on the desk, but it's 1:00 A.M. now and there's a lot of work to do in the morning. Until next time you can contact me at: jrw-jnw@sbcglobal.net
July 1 2010
RACING SCENE Column – 2010 INDIANAPOLIS 500
BY
Tim Kennedy
Los Angeles Ca.
Contributor OWR3
Los Angeles, CA. - The dust has settled on the 94th-running of “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” and I checked some facts. I'll recap the latest Indy 500 and abbreviated two weeks at Indy from various angles. The Indy 500 race broadcast on radio was non-existent this year in Southern California. No local stations carried the IMS Network 500 coverage. So CA radio personality Lee “Hacksaw” Hamilton (1090 AM in San Diego) deserves praise for his annual pre-Indy 500 news-maker telephone calls. His 3 to 7 pm sports talk show welcomes auto racing calls from listeners all year. This year from Monday, May 24 through Friday, May 28 he had nine on-air conversations of seven to ten minutes each about the Indy 500 with the following persons--(including my grade for the caliber of each 500 interviewee): active drivers - Paul Tracy (A+), Alex Tagliani (B+), Ryan Hunter-Reay (A+) and Graham Rahal (A+); retired drivers/TV analysts Scott Goodyear (A+), Sam Posey (C-) and Derek Daly (A+); motor-sports writers Indianapolis Star motor-sports writer Curt Cavin (A+) and retired AP auto racing editor now RacinToday.com motor-sports writer Mike Harris (A+).
The 2010 Indy 500 ran under a blue sky on a hot 88-degree day and attracted about 250,000 spectators according to racing experts. The ABC telecast overnight rating was down a bit at 3.68 from the 3.96 last year despite many interesting story-lines. More than four million households watched the race this year according to a published report. Winner Dario Franchitti dominated the race, leading 155 of the 200 laps. However, he had to conserve fuel during closing laps and slowed from 224+ mph laps to 206. As second place Dan Wheldon closed in with ample fuel to race at full speed, the winner was in doubt. Then the horrific Mike Conway crash occurred as Dario started his final lap. Conway tried to pass Hunter-Reay on the inside, just as H-R's car abruptly ran out of fuel. Conway's No. 24 launched over the 37 car tires into the third turn catch fence and caused the yellow flag. It would've been interesting to see who the winner would've been had the final lap been green all the way to the checkered flag. Both Dario and Dan were trying to win their second Indy 500. Dario did it with a reported 1.6 gallons of fuel left, but he didn't know he had that much. Under caution he was able to slow significantly and save fuel from turn one to the finish line. All cars still on the track were able to cut through the pit lane from the third turn to the front straight as track emergency crews were on the track in turn three at Conway's crash site. That saved more fuel. Dan finished right at the back of Dario's car in the finish line photo. We'll never know who the winner would've been if Conway's crash had not happened. It was Dan's second consecutive runner-up finish in the 500 and the third in a row second place at Indy for John Barnes' Panther Racing No. 4 (Vitor Meira drove it in 2008).
The 2002 Indy 500 two car crash in the second turn just as P. Tracy was passing Helio Castroneves at turn three is a similar last lap crash that determined the 500 winner and resulted in controversy. Conway's launch into the fence reminded me of the 1996 Indy 500 (first under IRL sanction) last lap crash at turn four by cars battling for fourth place. Roberto Guerrero (# 21) spun from the inside up into the outer wall, hitting Alessando Zampedri (# 8) which climbed the wall and got airborne as Conway's car did this year. Eliseo Salazar (# 5) passed under the airborne # 8 and ducked as Hunter-Reay had to do in this year. The upright # 8 and # 5 slid to a stop on the front straight inner wall. Zampedri lost part of a foot. The #21 spun into the inner wall just before the pit entrance. This accident is on You Tube currently. Injuries: Conway received a left ankle injury and a compression fracture in his back that required a brace for up to three months. Hunter-Reay had surgery a day after the race and a doctor installed a carbon fiber splint on his left thumb. It was injured earlier in the race when his car and another tangled leaving the pits.
The 500 this year was more interesting to watch because there were more green flag pit stops than last year when full field pits stops under numerous cautions were the norm. Biggest surprise this year was the mistake-prone three-car Penske Racing team. Castroneves and Will Power each had pit miscues that dropped them deep in the field. Ryan Briscoe hit the wall leaving turn four and stopped with major damage near the starters' stand. It was a very un-Penske-like day for the entire team that is the most successful in Indy history. ... On the flip side, low budget team owner Dale Coyne enjoyed his best 500 result (P. 4 with Alex Lloyd driving). ... Blocking penalty calls: This year officials warned drivers not to block and backed it up when they issued black flag penalties to Graham Rahal and John Andretti. ... This year, for the first time, each driver had 15 push-to-pass 10-horsepower boosts for the Honda V8. Activated by pushing a button on the steering wheel, each boost lasted 18 seconds. There was a 10-second recovery period between button applications. The HP button took away drivers complaints that it was too difficult to pass another car of similar speed and contributed to more passes during the 2010 race. Drivers strategy on how many pushes to save for the closing laps was interesting. Remaining pushes to pass became an informative streaming line at the top of the ABC-TV screen as the race progressed.
Winner Franchitti received $2,752,055 from the $13,592,815 total purse awarded at the Monday night awards ceremony. His actress/wife Ashley Judd received more airtime on ABC as she rushed to victory lane. His car number (10) became at first-time IMS winning car number at the 500. Dario now has two Indy triumphs and he has received the checkered flag both times under the caution flag (rain in 2007 and the last lap crash in 2010). Runner-up Wheldon received $1,007,305 in the Panther Racing No. 4 National Guard car. It would've been fitting for the National Guard-sponsored car to win the 500 on Memorial Day, one of America's two most patriotic days each year. ... Simona de Silvestro was one of a record four females in the 500 (Danica Patrica, Sarah Fisher and rookie Ana Beatriz were the others). Simona (No. 78 HVM Team Stargate) received the rookie of the year trophy and $25,000 bonus after starting 22nd and finishing 14th on the lead lap in her Dallara/Honda/Firestone. Rookie Mario Romancini, an Indy Lights grad, finished 13th with 200 laps and qualified slightly faster than Simona (224.641 to 224.228 mph). However, he ran behind Simona most of the race and highest finishing position is not the only determining factor used in selecting Indy's RotY honoree. SPEED TV's Robin Miller, in his post-500 recap Sunday, said Simona deserved the RotY award.
The 2010 Indy 500 had four past winners (Helio, Dario, Dan W, and Scott Dixon) and six rookies. The 224.974 mph starting field average was the fifth fastest in Indy history. The 33 cars qualifying speeds ranged from 227.970 to 223.634 mph. The spread from fastest to slowest qualifier was only 4.336 mph. The oldest driver (Davey Hamilton) was 47 and the youngest (Sebastian Saavedra) was 19. The 3 hour 5 minute race averaged only 161.623 mph. The race had nine caution flags totaling 44 laps. There were 13 lead changes among eight drivers, including first-time Indy 55 leaders Conway (15 laps) and Justin Wilson (11 laps). Wilson became the 200th different driver to lead a lap in 94 Indy 500 races. Power ran the fastest lap of the race at 225.090 on lap 15. The race had 19 cars RAF (running at finish) and 14 finished all 200 laps. It would have been 22 cars RAF, as in recent years, if the last lap crash had not occurred. That last lap incident also caused Ana Beatriz to spin into the infield wall to avoid Conway's flipping car.
CRASHERS/WALL-CONTACT: Good guy Hamilton crashed on L 1 in turn 2 and blamed Tomas Scheckter, calling him “an idiot”. Bruno Junqueira was next on L 8, Mario Moraes (L 18), John Andretti (L 63), Raphael Matos (L 73) also got up close & personal with the IMS wall. Other “contact” retirees were Vitor Meira, Sarah Fisher, who pitted, E. J. Viso, Briscoe, Saavedra and Beatriz. Of course Conway and Hunter-Reay contacted the T.3 wall spectacularly. That is 13 of the 33 car field (39%) eliminated by contact.
Once again this year, the Honda “spec” engine performed flawlessly with no engine failures for the fifth consecutive year. Some persons criticize the lack of engine diversity in current Indy cars. However, Honda's lack of engine competition enables the firm to concentrate on engine reliability and that's a good thing. Blown engines oil the track and take out other cars.
ABC TELECAST: ABC was on air Sunday, May 30 from 9:00 am to 1:45 pm (PT) including pre- and post-race coverage. It went 45-minutes overtime because of so many cautions. On-air talent included returnees host Brent Musberger, announcer Marty Reid, analysts Scott Goodyear and 1998 Indy winner Eddie Cheever, pit reporters Vince Welch, Jamie Little, Dr. Jerry Punch and Rick DeBruhl. ABC had taped features on Danica, Helio, the three four-time 500 winners, A. J. Foyt, A. Unser & Rick Mears, Andretti teammates Tony K and Marco A, the Rahals--Graham and Bobby, the 1960 Jim Rathmann-Rodger Ward P. 1 duel, and the IRL two seater ride for Michael Andretti and actor Mark Wahlberg. What ABC cameras missed was early leader changes on L 1 (Dario passing Helio) and Power passing Dario. It did not show the two-seater trailing the 33-car field and pulling into the pits at the initial green flag. ... Celebrities: ABC anchor Robin Roberts drove the Indy 500 Corvette pace car and credited her instructor, three-time 500 winner Johnny Rutherford, for being “a great instructor and getting me up to 130 mph”. Actor Jack Nicholson (courtesy of IZOD) waved the green flag from the starters' stand to start the race. He enjoyed it so much he did not leave for some time. He waved the green flag to restart racing on lap 5 and lap 12 following wreck-caused cautions. ABC placed on-board cameras on seven cars. From front to back rows cameras were aboard numbers 3, 10, 30, 9, 26, 4, 43, 7 and 11. All gave us great shots. ABC brought us the 11 rows of three driver introductions by track announcer Dave Calabro. Crowd cheers were loudest for Sarah F, Danica P, Marco A, Davey H, Helio and Tony K. Singer Jewel sang the National Anthem well at 9:56 PT and even switched microphones while singing without missing a beat. The 10:02 Memorial Day 21-gun salute and taps were appropriate. At 10:05 (12:05 CT) inimitable actor Jim Nabors, 80, again sang “Back Home Again in Indiana” (true racers favorite song) with feeling for the song and Hoosier state. Retired track announcer Tom Carnegie at 10:06 introduced Mari Hulman George and she gave the “LadieS and gentlemen start your engines” command. Deposed Tony George was not shown this year. The sense of anticipation and danger at the Indianapolis 500 is unique; no other race can match the buzz. Traditions and track history of almost a century, and racing stars waiting to emerge make this race special. It's the race I would watch if I could only see one race a year. The IZOD TV commercial featuring the two-seater Indy Car driven by Mario Andretti with a passenger made its debut. The car is shown at speed on an oval speedway. The commercial was taped in a one-day shoot this year during April at the half-mile Toyota Speedway at Irwindale, near Los Angeles.
The race between crashes was interesting to watch “comers and goers”. Most sensational was 33rd starter Kanaan passing eight cars on the first lap before the yellow light flashed for Hamilton's crash. “I had a bet with my crew that I would pass 12 cars in the first lap,” Kanaan said on SPEED's “Wind Tunnel” program. He probably would have won that $100 bet if the entire lap had remained green. Kanaan was in P. 16 on L 15 after only seven all-green laps. He was 13th at L 44, 12th L 60, 5th from L 72-100, and 2nd from L 114-143. He was in P. 6 on L 170, and P. 2 from L 192-195 when he had to pit for fuel and dropped to 11th in the final order. On L 130 the first five positions were occupied by four different teams—Ganassi, Andretti, Dreyer-Reinbold, Andretti and Penske. ABC cameras caught the frightening Conway crash from several angles and re-showed the sequence. Track doctor Michael Olinger, MD gave a timely update on Conway's injuries and non-emergency transport copter ride (to avoid traffic congestion) to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis. Pit reporter and fellow physician Dr. Punch questioned his fellow doctor and friend for ABC. Post-race interviews included drivers finishing in P. 1-2-3-4-5-6-9-11. Well done.
VERSUS NETWORK: Versus had a one-hour post-500 live show. Outstanding on-air broadcasters Bob Jenkins, analysts Robbie Buhl and Jon Beekhuis, plus pit reporters Jack Arute, Robbie Floyd and Lindy Thackston gave us many more live updates and interviews to 2:52 (PT). Versus and its on-air crew deserve praise for their outstanding IMS work during May. They brought us Sat. May 22 and Sun. May 23 500 time trials all day live and without interruption except for commercials. The 500 qualifying order draw took place Fri. May 21 at 6:00 pm CT. and 72 numbers were pulled for primary and backup, or T cars. Qualifying commenced Saturday and 29 cars actually qualified before the drawn order list of 72 was completed in two hours and 25 minutes. Then qualifying continued as cars came to the line in any order whenever teams desired to qualify.
NEW QUALIFYING PROCEDURE: The new IMS qualification procedure made opening day qualifiers work harder and placed them at risk more than in prior years. It met with success. Pole Day fan attendance was much more than in recent years as fans anticipated more action and drama. The 24 fastest qualifiers made the field and bumping took place in segment one to settle the 24 quickest qualifiers. Segment two featured the nine fastest qualifiers and they had to re-qualify to set their final 500 starting positions in the first three rows. On TV the nine drivers picked the order they would re-qualify. A better way to do that final pole run segment and build suspense would be to have the nine drivers re-qualify from the segment one slowest driver to the fastest. The final nine 500 positions (25-33) and bumping Sunday proved dramatic as well. The Paul Tracy No. 15 run at 5:51 CT and Jay Howard No. 66 run at 5:58 CT came after their teams withdrew qualification speeds that would have made the 33 car starting field. They believed their earlier speed would be bumped, so they withdrew their posted speeds and re-qualified to go faster. They both failed to do so and missed the race. Talk about drama, the 500 has never had two teams do that on “Bubble Day”. In another bit of irony, rookie Saavedra, the 33rd FQ at the time, went out to practice for a re-qualifying run because he knew his bubble speed was vulnerable. He spun into the wall and badly damaged his only No. 29. He was taken to Methodist Hospital to check his sore back. He thought his 500 debut would have to wait a year. His team called him at the hospital after the 6:00 CT gun ended time trials and told him he was back in the field because two teams had withdrawn their faster times. That was another first for the 500. ... The “white knuckles” drama of Kanaan crashing twice and then re-qualifying Sunday at 5:26 CT in his still balky, rebuilt No. 11 was intense. It shows why he receives the big bucks. As qualifying ended, six of seven rookies made the 500 as did four of five female drivers ((Milka Duno did not). Four drivers missed the race—Tracy, Howard, slowest driver Duno, and Jacques Lazier, who came out of the stands Sunday to replace A. J. Foyt IV, whose Saturday qualifying speed in the Foyt No,. 41 was bumped.
VERSUS also covered the annual 500 Festival Parade on Saturday, May 29 in downtown Indianapolis from 2:00-3:30 pm PT. Versatile Bob Jenkins and local Diana Willis were in the TV booth atop the grandstand. They interviewed Helio C-N. The parade had floats, huge helium balloon characters, high school and Purdue University bands, equestrian units, celebrities, and Shiners mini-Indy cars. An annual parade highlight is having all 33 Indy 500 drivers ride atop the back seat of convertibles. The 11 rows of three drivers progress from row 11 up to row one. During the parade an on-street reporter interviews some of the 500 drivers in their slowly moving cars. Versus also showed an interesting half-hour “500 Preview Show” following the parade. Versus Friday, May 28 TV fare from 8:00 am-1:00 pm PT covered the “Carb Day” one-hour final 500 practice session. All 33 cars were on track. Unlike recent years, when drivers did leak checks and ran few laps at speed on their race engines, this year most drivers ran many laps at speed thanks to the reliable Honda engine. Rookies de Silvestro and Bertrand Baguette tied for most laps run at 60 laps. Franchitti at 225.5 and Dixon at 225.1 were the only drivers with laps above 224 mph. Rahal at 219 was 33rd (slowest). Versus then brought us live coverage of the 16-car, 40-lap Indy Lights “Freedom 100” on the IMS 2.5-mile track. Pippa Mann had pole position as FQ but she got crashed while in P. 5 on L 3. The P. 4 driver tried for P. 3 and spun up the track, collecting Pippa and the first turn wall. She hopes to be an Indy 500 rookie in 2011 or 2012. Wade Cunningham, 25, from New Zealand, won again for paraplegic Sam Schmidt. He traded the lead within the final seven laps with diabetic Charlie Kimball. Saavedra raced in the Indy Lights and two days later the Indy 500. One gets the impression that some of these Indy Lights drivers are Indy Car 500 material if they can find sponsorship. Next Versus telecast live the $100,000 “IZOD Pit Stop Contest” on pit lane from 10:30 am-1:00 pm PT. Helio & his Penske crew set a time of 9.001 seconds to beat Hideki Mutoh's 9.547 seconds time in side-by-side competition to win the $50,000 first place award that goes to the crew. Mutoh received $15,000 as runner-up for his Newman-Haas crew. Versus then ran a one-hour “Danica's Decade” taped program from 1-2 pm PT. The Versus Network commitment to the Indianapolis 500 rates an A+ in concept and delivery. Camera-work was outstanding. Committed, enthusiastic on-air broadcasters deserve praise. Well done Versus. Signing off Sunday afternoon, Bob Jenkins said,“The Indy 500 is over for this year. I can hardly wait for the next one.” Amen.
June 29 2010
View from the Cockpit
JR Williams
Carson City Nevada
Contributor to OWR3
REMOVE BEFORE FLYING FLAG AWARDED TO GREGG FUETTE
About a month ago, good friend and race driver Gregg Fuette put on quite an aerial exhibition at Rocky Mountain Raceway as we reported in this column. We never reported that Gregg (nicknamed Flipper a few years ago) had his nickname embroidered upside down on the back of his uniform.
JR Williams photos
This past Saturday, Gregg and his co-owner were finally able to bring the rebuilt midget out to the track, and during the driver's meeting, USAC Track Steward Thurman Tilly gave an award to Gregg --- a "Remove Before Flight" flag that is commonly seen on commercial and military aircraft.
Speaking of RMR midget drivers. A few weeks back we highlighted Terra Brower and I mentioned that she was getting faster each time out. Well, this week she broke the 16 second barrier and turned some 15.7 laps. This young lady is a real crowd pleaser in the pits as everyone admires her drive and her pleasant personality. Good going Terra, keep up the good work.
There are a few more clean-up items that I'd like to mention before getting into this week's action.
While back east in Indiana, I learned that three of the Midget Hall of Fame nominees this year are: Bob Harkey, Tommy Hunt and Dick Jordan. Three more deserving individuals would be hard to find - in my never to be humble opinion, and I hope they all get inducted.
Last week I mentioned Andrew Mulhearn and mentioned that I had never met him. Well, I was wrong. I met him on two occasions, so I certainly apologize to Andrew. I hate to admit it, but while at the tracks about the only time I get to meet young drivers long enough to remember them (other than competing week after week) is when we both get time enough so that I can get their photo and write up a blurb on them - other than that, I have a difficult time with my ancient memory, especially when I'm in the pits trying to either get ready for a race or loading up after wards.
I received a phone call today from Andrew, to thank me for mentioning him last week. That was very nice of him to take the time out of his busy day to call the Old Man, and I certainly appreciate it. I mentioned that he is also a friend of Charlie Patterson, who if I have my facts straight, he met last year when he was back east receiving his 2009 USAC Dirt National Championship. He is now in college taking general courses, with an eye toward getting into something like sports management and perhaps becoming a driver's agent. With his dirt track results, he may end up representing himself. He mentioned a recent race where he and Wally Pankratz kept changing position, and when you can get by Wally you have to be a pretty tough driver. I'm sure we'll be talking about Andrew more in the future.
I did a piece on young Dillon Silverman a few years back, and have been mentioning his strong performance this year in BCRA competition where he has been spotting his competition about 100 horsepower or more, and is third in points. Well, I received an e-mail from Keith Iaia that young Dillon is fifth in points for the "National Midget Rookie of the Year". You can find more information about that at www.nmdoty.com.
Going along on the same vein, Dillon ran in a BCRA event at Chowchilla last Saturday. He won his heat and got to draw the pill for the invert. Unfortunately for Dillon, he drew a complete invert, but not to be shaken, he started 14th and finished 2nd --- behind none other that Jimmy "Buckwheat" Sills. How about that, with only 240 horsepower. That sure goes to prove the potential of the Eco-Tech engine, especially in the capable hands of someone like Dillon Silverman.
Both the USAC Western Midgets and the USAC California Dirt Focus midgets ran at Bakersfield, CA, last Saturday. Former Focus Champion Josh Lakatos who now calls Portland, OR his home, made the trip south to lead the final four laps of the midget feature to take the win ahead of points leader Cory Kruseman, Kody Swanson and Shannon McQueen. Shannon set the fast time.
Nick Carlson won the main event in the Focus division. Following Carlson across the line were Andrew Murray, Wally Pankratz, Andrew Mulhearn and Kyle Edwards.
The dirt Focus points are pretty tight in California with Carlson holding a 44-point lead over Mulhearn, who is six points ahead of Jet Davison, who in turn is five points ahead of Kyle Edwards.
Up until this season, our Focus races had a lot of dual and triple USAC open-wheel shows, but this year we've been mostly by ourselves, so it was quite a treat for us to join forces with the USAC Utah Sprint Car series. The sprint cars put on a great show at RMR, and this past Saturday was no different. There were only two California drivers on hand, Tony Hunt and Luis Ramos III, to do battle with the Utah champions Jimmy Wysong, Jimmy Waters, and Ryan Burdett. Fast time went to Jimmy Wysong who was trailed closely by Tony Hunt and Jimmy Waters who were all running within .01 seconds of each other. Tony Hunt won the first heat, while Jimmy Waters won the second. Ray Bergener led the first two laps of the main event. Paul Marconi took over the lead on lap three and held it for two circuits until he was overtaken by Mel Andrus. In the meanwhile, Tony Hunt was running his usual smooth, patient race, taking over one spot after another, until he took the lead on lap 27 and never looked back for the next 13 times around the fast oval. Following Tony past the twin checkers was Ryan Burdett who ran a great race. Third spot went to Jimmy Waters, fourth to Jimmy Wysong, and fifth to young Luis Ramos III who has been having a great year in the Kaplan/Gennuso sprinter.
The old man had a busy week and a half lined up. We would be driving 550 miles to Salt Lake City on Friday, race there Saturday, drive home Sunday, work on the cars Monday and Tuesday, drive 450 miles to Las Vegas on Wednesday, race at the Bull Ring on Thursday, drive home Friday, change cars around in the trailer on Saturday, then drive 250 miles to Chico on Sunday to race there and come home on Monday.
Then I had a brainstorm. The BCRA was going to run on pavement at Shasta on Saturday night. Now, the only car I could run on pavement would be the Sutton car which we consider a "tweener", in between a combo and pavement car. I knew that BCRA could use the car count and if they would let me run the Sutton car with them I'd go up there on Saturday, as it's only 30 miles north of Chico. I knew they'd all eat me up on pavement. I usually keep ahead of three or four cars on dirt, but dirt is a great equalizer, and their additional 280 horsepower would tear me up on pavement. Still and all it sounded like quite an adventure. I called David Prickett on the way to Salt Lake City on Friday and put the proposition to him and he agreed that I could run with them. That would mean that I would have to load both cars in the trailer tomorrow, because I didn't want to waste an hour of valuable sleep time on Friday night after driving all the way home from Vegas. Then I'd drive to Anderson, CA on Saturday, run there with the BCRA, spend the night and have all day Sunday to drive the 30 miles to Chico. What a deal. Well, this evening that was put to rest when I received a call from Rick Young, informing me that Chico never moved their date from the 3rd to the 4th, so I'll be running at Chico on Saturday night instead of Sunday. I'll still have to load both cars tomorrow as I still want that extra hour's sleep Friday night.
When I got to the hotel Friday night, Brewer picked me up and we met a bunch of friends at Ruby River in downtown Salt Lake City. The gang included Austin and Lindy Luttmer. I mentioned before that Lindy is about to give birth. The big day is supposed to be the 2nd, but she's ready to go at a moments notice. She's one brave lady as she also went to the races Saturday night.
On Saturday I had a good first practice session (for me at least) turning laps a quarter-second faster than I usually run my first practice. My second practice was better, breaking 16 seconds. Then a really weird thing happened. I decided to try a different line during the third practice and half-way through turn four the car seemed to snap to the left and wanted to turn itself over. Once I got it back pointed straight, and hit the throttle, it wanted to snap to the right toward the wall. From then on, every time I hit the throttle, the car wanted to head to the wall --- not a push mind you --- it almost felt as though the rear axle were broken and the car was driving off the left rear wheel, so I pulled into the pits and looked it over. I found that the right rear wheel nut was about 1/2 turn loose, but that wouldn't have caused my problem. I looked at everything trying to see something broken. Nothing. I twisted ever radius rod, tie rod and drag link checking for binding Heim joints. Nothing. I spoke to everyone in the pits I could and described my problem and no-one had heard of anything like it. I went out in qualifying --- same thing, so I pulled off the track.
One of the USAC officials came by and moved the right front wheel and declared that he thought the wheel bearings might have been loose. So, with Verlyn Gibson's help, we pulled the hub. The bearings were loose, but not worn, so we repacked them. At the same time I saw something like oil on top of the right front shock, so I thought that maybe the shock had lost it's rebound and was transferring too much weight to the left rear. I took the shock off and brought a spare out of the trailer. They both felt the same both on compression and rebound. So, we put the hub back on, replaced the caliper and decided to run a lap or two of the main for some points and if the problem were corrected I'd stay out.
About then, Mike Phulps (Tony Hunt's car owner came by) - "here's your problem, J.R.", he said as he pulled the drag link up and down exposing loose bolts holding the steering arm to the hub. Now, that was sure enough to make a bunch of us feel really stupid, as Verlyn and I had been all over that area of the car repacking the bearings, and I had even twisted the drag link checking the Heim joints. All I can do is hang my head in shame and thank Mike for taking the time to look over my problem and find it.
Still and all, something good usually always comes along with something bad, and in this case we found some loose front wheel bearings that could have caused a bad accident if they hadn't been repacked. I usually use a heavy duty lubricant in my bearings as I don't have time to repack them every week. The last people who repacked them were in the habit of repacking bearings on a weekly basis, and they used a really thin lubricant. Not really a good excuse, but that's what happened.
Michael Daniels had a clean sweep Saturday night, taking fast time, winning his heat and the main event, taking the lead from Kipp Posey on the 22nd lap and holding it until the 25-lap conclusion. Kipp Posey was second, Chuck Groat was third and Austin Luttmer finished fifth.
Now, as you all know, this season the setting sun has really been bad on my old eyes. This week I thought I would overcome it by using duct tape to tape off the upper and lower part of my visor, leaving only a one-inch gap to see through ---- back to the drawing boards. I started last and going down the main straightaway I was so blinded that I couldn't see the cars in front of me, or the guard rail, so, discretion being the better part of valor, I just pulled to the right and let everyone lap me half a dozen times or so.
I don't know what I'm going to do about it. I did order some smoke tear-offs and we'll find out Thursday night if they'll help any. They other good thing is that the sun hit the summer solstice last week so now it sets a few minutes earlier and a few degrees more to the south each day, so before long I won't have the problem. Still and all, wouldn't it be nice if the track operators would care more about safety than adhering to their printed schedule. Why can't they just move the intermission around enough to make it come the last 20 minutes before the sun sets? They're going to have the intermission anyway, so it won't cost them any time. Then again, why don't the sanctioning bodies demand such a thing? Hell, they make us spend big bucks for Hans devices, up-to-date helmets, new belts every other year, fire resistant clothing and all, why not push for some "sun-downer time?"
As I've said before, I've always purchased the latest safety gear that's come along. Back in the old days I lost enough good friends and have others crippled before the safety stuff came along, and for ten years or more I was the safety committee chairman at Hawaiian Airlines. Then again, maybe I'm just being paranoid.
Until next week you can still contact me at jrw-jnw@sbcglobal.net.
Neil Petock Enjoying His Time as Both Owner and Driver
By Dino Oberto … “Keeping Track”
With over 20 sprint car feature wins and a track title in the past five seasons at Clinton County Raceway, Beaver Valley’s Neil Petock has customarily been among the top point racers at the 1/3-mile Mackeyville dirt oval. That includes four straight seasons of no lower than third.
2010, however, has been somewhat of a hard luck year thus far for the talented 32-year old. His best finish to date has been a pair of fourths and he sits uncharacteristically ninth in the standings heading into the next race on July 4.
“Nothing has gone right. The first two weeks we got upside down. That second week we pretty much destroyed the car. From there on we put a new car together and some other mechanical things went wrong but we are starting to get a lot better,” said Petock.
“It was just frustrating in the beginning of the season because I know we have better equipment and we are a lot better team than where we’re at right now. Hopefully we got things turning around and got the car figured out and we can continue going ahead instead of backwards. We feel we have everything straightened out.”
Although Petock’s name is not near the front of the point rankings, he still has a stake in this year’s title hunt.
At the start of the season he called upon the services of veteran sprint car ace Alan Cole of Bloomsburg to drive a second team car. Cole is a past track champion at Clinton County and Selinsgrove and has countless wins throughout the region. He is unquestionably one of the most respected names amongst Pennsylvania’s sprint car fraternity.
“He lost his ride and my big track car was just sitting here and we weren’t running it. I told him if he wants to go racing that he could come work on the car and do what needs to be done and basically that’s what he did,” said Petock.
When Petock started in sprints it was with a car that Cole had previously been running. In his first season, 2005, he credited the veteran for much of the advice and help he got.
“He always scratched my back so there was no reason why I couldn’t help him out. I would not put any other driver in any of my cars,” said Petock.
“He’s having fun. There’s no pressure and he’s been enjoying the racing. As far as me as the owner it’s been great. It was a good year for him to start running with us too because I’m having a terrible year and as of right now there’s no way I can even finish in the top three (points) so in a way its worked out rather well in that regard.”
Cole has been having a super season notching three wins and placing no lower than third. As of the midway point he holds a commanding lead of close to 300 over Scott Lutz.
“It’s awesome having Alan (Cole) with us. He’s a very smart guy when it comes to sprint cars. He’s been right there with us through the slump we had with pointers here and there and things like how to drive the race track different. He has so much experience and knowledge,” said Petock.
“He does what he wants to do and it doesn’t matter to me. He owned his own cars for years so he knows what it takes to maintain and keep the expense down on the car. He never wrecks, he’s never hard on equipment and he’s always going forward.”
This year marks Petock’s sixth season of racing sprint cars. He had formerly been a dominating micro sprint driver at Greenwood Valley Action Track in Millville.
“It’s a lot of fun. If I would have known how much fun it was before I started running sprint cars I would have began it even sooner. The way we race, yes it’s expensive, but it’s not tremendous like some of the guys you see racing out in Central Pennsylvania. They spend top dollar,” explained Petock.
“For us we have lots of fun and it’s competitive with the equipment we run and we know we can be competitive at Clinton County.”
While Petock and Cole compete Friday nights, he does get back to his roots every Saturday with his seven year old son Michael who is in his first full season of racing go-karts at Greenwood Valley.
And he’s doing very well too winning five features to date in the rookie purple caged class and sits a solid second in points behind Sarah Koch
“My son and Alan are actually competing for the most wins amongst our team so they are always joking with one another over that. It’s an in-house completion between them,” said Petcock.
With Petock’s luck sure to change and given the experience of both these drivers, watch for them to become a very powerful force over the second half of the season at Clinton County.
June 22 2010
View from the Cockpit
JR Williams
Carson City Nevada
Contributor to OWR3
I usually call my friends Charlie Patterson and Bob Harkey on Sunday afternoons, but this past Sunday was sort of different as I didn't get home from Stockton until the middle of the night and then had to get up for brunch with the racing widow, our daughter and the grand kids. Then I had to drop the trailer off at the shop as I needed the tow truck to run to Reno today. Consequently I never did call Harkey (who will turn 80 on Wednesday). While at the shop I got a call from Charlie:
"Guess what, Andrew Mulhearn called me at 2:00 this morning."
Now, Charlie has been telling me about his young friend Andrew Mulhearn, but I have never met him as he is only running the Western USAC Focus dirt series, and I only run the pavement series since putting the Eco-Tech in my dirt car.
"Yeah," Charlie went on, "I told him that if he won a main event he should call me whatever time it was, but if he didn't win he should call me the next day --- and he won the feature at Watsonville on Friday night."
Good for young Andrew, and I'm looking forward to meeting him some day as Charlie speaks so highly of him.
Looking over the Watsonville results, I see that there were eight cars on hand. Connor Kassik led the first lap of the 20 lap main until Andrew passed him for the lead and held it until the end of the race.
Andrew Murray came in second, followed by Jet Davison, Randi Pankratz, Kyle Edwards, Elliott Lampkin, Connor Kassik and Nick Carlson.
I found out at Stockton on Saturday that Connor had a drive line problem and that he and Dan (his dad) were at Dave Lewis' shop trying to get it all back together again, but they didn't make it in time for the Stockton show.
It was a beautiful day at Stockton, with temperatures during the daytime in the mid 70's. Once the sun dropped it really cooled off, and by the time I started over the Sierras to home it was down to 59-degrees.
Five Young Gun cars and drivers were on hand --- all were Sutton's drivers. Cody Thompson won the heat race, but from then on it was all Keegan Walmer who went on to win the dash and the 25-lap main event.
In the main, Brandon White took the lead at the start and held it for 20 laps until he was overtaken by Keegan who went on for the win. The rest of the main event finish showed Cody Thompson in third, followed by Shon Gooden and Courtney Atkinson.
The old man struggled with the setup all day, and although I was never able to break 14 seconds and get down into the 13s like the other eight cars, I did manage to run the best time's I've ever run there, so I guess I should be satisfied. Once again I have to thank Ron Sutton, Randy Chastain and all the rest of the Sutton crew personnel for all of the help they gave me.
Fast time went to Cody Gerhardt with a 13.673, followed by Tim Skoglund in the second Western Speed car who turned a 13.745 and Garrett Peterson with a 13.776.
Cody won the first heat, followed by Garrett, while Tim took the second heat with Cody Thompson following him across the line.
Once again the setting sun destroyed the old man in the main event. This time I was blinded about mid turn three through mid turn four. After a few laps I couldn't even see the guard rails. I don't remember my early years, but I'm sure I would not have had the sun affect me this badly, so I'm definitely going to have to find some solution to my problem, or retire, and I don't want to do that.
As it was, I was doing well through turns one and two, but then had to really slow in three and four. Coming out of four I would glance over to the back stretch to see how far behind me the leaders were. On one lap, when I finally saw the outside fence, I was pretty wide and cranked the wheel over, feeling the car roll onto the right rear. By then I realized that I was a hazard both to myself and to the other drivers, so discretion being the better part of valor I decided to just pull off as I wasn't going to move forward.
As it turned out, the race was a tight one up front, with Cody Gerhardt pulling off the win, followed by Garrett Peterson and past Focus champion Tim Skoglund who is keeping his hand in driving for Western Speed again. Keegan Walmer finished fourth, trailed by Cody Thompson, Bobby Runyan and Courtney Atkinson.
I was surprised driving over the mountain that I didn't spot any wildlife. On one of my trips over, my buddy and I spotted 29 deer. It's always exciting driving up over the winding mountain road waiting for a deer to pop out of the forest and it helps to keep you awake on the long trip.
I see by the USAC Focus results that friend Joe Liguori is the point leader in all three categories in the Midwest; Focus points, dirt Focus division and pavement Focus division. I hope he keeps it up. It was a pleasure to get to see him this year out there as he's a real gentleman like his grandfather "Ralphie the Racer" who I missed seeing on this past trip.
I think I'll call it a night right now, as I'm a little tired and tomorrow will be a long day --- as will the next week and a half. The schedule now looks like this: leave for Salt Lake City on Friday, race Saturday, drive home Sunday, work on the car Monday and Tuesday, drive to Las Vegas Wednesday, race on Thursday, drive home Friday, change cars around on Saturday so I can take the dirt car to Chico on Sunday and race that night, returning home on Monday. Whew. I'll be glad when it's over. Can't believe that we used to run four to six times a week in the past. Don't know how we did it. Wish me well.
E-mails can still reach me at: jrwo-jnw@sbcglobal.net.
LATEST USAC News and Race Reports Round up below
FOR JUNE 22 2010
by DICK JORDAN
USAC AMSOIL NATIONAL SPRINT SERIES POINT STANDINGS
1-Damion Gardner-948, 2-Levi Jones-936, 3-Bryan Clauson-897, 4-Jerry Coons Jr.-841, 5-Chris Windom-826, 6-Tracy Hines-823, 7-Henry Clarke-736, 8-Dave Darland-559, 9-Shane Hmiel-513, 10-Ricky Williams-493.
MIDGETS RETURN TO BURLINGTON AFTER 37 YEAR HIATUS!
HINES, KUHN SHARE “INDIANA MIDGET WEEK” TITLE;
ALL 5 INDIANA MIDGET WEEK RACES PRODUCE DIFFERENT WINNERS!
It’s been 37 years, but the USAC Mopar National Midget Series returns to 34 Raceway in Burlington, Iowa this Saturday for a “doubleheader” racing program also featuring the USAC AMSOIL National Sprint cars.
Tommy Astone won the last USAC Midget race at Burlington in 1973. Bryan Clauson of Noblesville, Ind. will lead this year’s contingent into Burlington with a 62-point lead over Tracy Hines in the latest series points.
Hines, of New Castle, Ind., and Brad Kuhn of Avon, Ind. are the 2010 co-champions of USAC’s Indiana Midget Week. Kuhn won Sunday night’s 30-lap race at the Kokomo Speedway and tied Hines with 284 points to share the championship. Kuhn led all 30 laps in his Rotondo Weirich/Champion Brands Beast/Fontana to beat Brad Sweet, Bryan Clauson, Darren Hagen and Hines to the checkered flag.
Hines led all but the first two laps of Saturday night’s 30-lapper at the Lawrenceburg Speedway in his Parker Machinery/Turbines, Inc. Spike/Toyota. Clauson finished second ahead of Jerry Coons Jr., Brad Loyet and Dave Darland. Sweet flipped on lap two of the feature but was uninjured. Brent Beauchamp flipped during qualifying and was taken to a local hospital for examination.
Shane Cottle of Kokomo, Ind. won Friday night's 30-lap USAC Mopar National Midget race at the Bloomington Speedway. His piloted the Lucas Oil Products/John Stewart Motorsports Beast/Chevy. Hines led the first four laps and finished second. Clauson finished third ahead of Sweet and Steve Buckwalter. Six drivers flipped during the feature but there were no driver injuries.
Sweet, of Grass Valley, Calif., led the last 12 laps to win Thursday night’s 30-lap Indiana Midget Week feature at Lincoln Park Speedway in his Kasey Kahne Racing/Mike Curb Ollie’s Bargain Outlet/Auto Value Spike/Speedway Mopar. Sweet trailed Hagen for 18 laps, then took over and beat Shane Cottle to the checkered flag. Hagen finished third, followed by Kuhn and Buckwalter.
Buckwalter, of Royersford, Pa., the current ARDC Midget Series point leader, won Wednesday night’s 2010 “Indiana Midget Week” opener at Gas City I-69 Speedway, officially leading all 30 laps in his Buckwalter’s Roofing/VRP Shocks Elite/Chevy. Sweet finished second ahead of Kuhn, Bobby East and fast qualifier Clauson. Thomas Meseraull had originally led laps 1-4 and finished second but his car failed to pass post-race technical inspection and was disqualified.
The Indiana Midget Week races were “special events” on the 2010 USAC/SMRS Great Plains Midget calendar. The USAC/SMRS series resumes August 1 at Osborn, Neb.
USAC MOPAR NATIONAL MIDGET SERIES POINT STANDINGS
1-Bryan Clauson-677, 2-Tracy Hines-615, 3-Brad Sweet-595, 4-Brad Kuhn-582, 5-Bobby East-579, 6-Dave Darland-546, 7-Darren Hagen-542, 8-Jerry Coons Jr.-541, 9-Zach Daum-395, 10-Henry Clarke-386.
FINAL USAC “INDIANA MIDGET WEEK” POINT STANDINGS
1-Tracy Hines & Brad Kuhn-284 each; 3-Brad Sweet-282, 4-Bryan Clauson-271, 5-Steve Buckwalter-246, 6-Jerry Coons Jr.-216, 7-Darren Hagen-205, 8-Dave Darland-183, 9-Bobby East-178, 10-Brad Loyet-177.
WESTERN MIDGETS RETURN TO BAKERSFIELD SATURDAY
Cory Kruseman of Ventura, Calif. is the current leader in the 2010 USAC Western Midget Series standings as the series heads for the Bakersfield Speedway for this Saturday night’s races.
Kruseman, USAC’s 2006 CRA Sprint Car titlist, has an 11-point lead over Alex Schutte, who was third in the 2009 series standings. Kruseman won the April race at Bakersfield, while Schutte was 11th.
Robby Josett of Agua Dulce, Calif. is currently third in the standings entering Saturday’s Bakersfield race. Josett has finished the last five Western Midget races in the “top-five,” including a victory in the most recent race at Ventura, Calif.
USAC MOPAR WESTERN MIDGET SERIES POINT STANDINGS
1-Cory Kruseman-349, 2-Alex Schutte-338, 3-Robby Josett-334, 4-Brad Sweet-207, 5-Kody Swanson-202, 6-Cody Swanson-171, 7-Bobby East-169, 8-Randi Pankratz-162, 9-Brad Loyet-155, 10-Darren Hagen-155.
“FIRECRACKER 30” AT PERRIS NEXT FOR CRA JULY 3
KRUSEMAN, SPENCER WIN AT WATSONVILLE, PETALUMA
Mike Spencer of Temecula, Calif. continues to lead the 2010 AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint Car series standings after a victory and a second in last weekend’s events. The series resumes July 30 with the “Firecracker 30” at Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway.
Spencer wrist-wrestled his way past Cory Kruseman for the lead on lap four and led the rest of the way to take Saturday night’s 30-lap feature at the Petaluma (Calif.) Speedway in his Madera Produce/Grubstake Mini Storage Maxim/Shaver. The win extended his point lead over Danny Sheridan to 40 points. Cody Williams took second ahead of Blake Miller, Sheridan and Ryan Bernal. Spencer was also the fastest qualifier.
Kruseman, of Ventura, Calif., led the final 24 laps of Friday night’s feature at Ocean Speedway in Watsonville, Calif. for his first victory of the 2010 campaign. Driving the Lucas Oil/Agromin Viper/Mopar, Kruseman passed Nic Faas on lap seven and led the rest of the way to beat Spencer, fast qualifier Sheridan, Eric Rossi and Faas to the checkered flag.
AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT SERIES POINT STANDINGS
1-Mike Spencer-543, 2-Danny Sheridan-503, 3-Cory Kruseman-399, 4-Blake Miller-392, 5-Matt Mitchell-368, 6-Greg Bragg-321, 7-Jimmy Crawford-291, 8-Tony Jones-264, 9-Cody Williams-253, 10-David Cardey-240.
STIDHAM TAKES 63-POINT LEAD TO SANTA MARIA
KIRKBRIDE RECORDS WIN #1 AT BAKERSFIELD
Craig Stidham of Fresno, Calif. will take a 63-point lead in the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series into this Saturday night’s races at Santa Maria (Calif.) Speedway. Davey Pombo is currently second in the 2010 standings.
One of Stidham’s four victories so far this year came at Santa Maria in May, while Danny Sheridan won at Santa Maria in April. Pombo won earlier this year at Bakersfield.
Ricky Kirkbride of Bakersfield, Calif. led wire-to-wire to win Saturday night’s 30-lap West Coast 360 Sprint race at the Bakersfield Speedway. The win was Kirkbride’s first under USAC sanction and he was followed at the checkered flag by Stidham, Justyne Hamblin, T.J. Smith and Adam Frith-Smith. Pombo was the night’s fastest qualifier.
USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT SERIES POINT STANDINGS
1-Craig Stidham-650, 2-Davey Pombo-587, 3-T.J. Smith-534, 4-Justyne Hamblin-527, 5-Peter Murphy-503, 6-Rusty Carlile-473, 7-Danny Faria Jr.-440, 8-Chris Ennis-387, 9-Jace VanderWeerd-382, 10-Richard VanderWeerd-329.
REGIONALS AT SPEEDROME, BERLIN THIS WEEK
WEDNESDAY NIGHT IS “MICHAEL LANG NIGHT” AT THE SPEEDROME
Dalton Armstrong of New Castle, Ind. and Daniel Bedford of Brentwood, Calif. are the respective USAC Regional Midget point leaders entering this week’s action. Armstrong leads the Regional Midgets into Wednesday night’s “Michael Lang Night” tripleheader at the Indianapolis (Ind.) Speedrome, while Bedford is atop the USAC/WOMS Midget standings going into Saturday night’s regional race at Berlin Raceway in Marne, Mich.
Armstrong has a 22-point lead over Dillon Welch in the Regional points and Bedford’s point lead over Armstrong in the USAC/WOMS standings is five points.
Armstrong has scored victories at Columbus, Ohio and the Speedrome in 2010 and Bedford was the winner when the Regional/WOMS Midgets visited Berlin Raceway June 12.
Wednesday’s Speedrome events salute the seven-time USAC champion Michael Lang, whose 53 career wins are the most by any driver in history at the track which has hosted more USAC races than any other in America.
USAC REGIONAL MIDGET SERIES POINT STANDINGS
1-Dalton Armstrong-320, 2-Dillon Welch-298, 3-Chris Phillips-250, 4-Buddy Lowther-218, 5-Daniel Bedford-217, 6-Dave Fuhrman-197, 7-Levi Roberts-139, 8-Kyle Hamilton-131, 9-Cale Conley-111, 10-Ali Jackson-108.
USAC/WOMS MIDGET SERIES POINT STANDINGS
1-Daniel Bedford-132, 2-Dalton Armstrong-127, 3-Dillon Welch-113, 4-Chris Phillips-88, 5-Buddy Lowther-78, 6-Dakoda Armstrong-65, 7-Adam Kramer-59, 8-Dave Fuhrman-56, 9-Cale Conley-53, 10-David Byrne-49.
SPRINTS RETURN TO RMR SATURDAY NIGHT
Rocky Mountain Raceways in Salt Lake City, Utah comes alive again Saturday night, hosting the USAC Young Automotive Rocky Mountain Sprint cars and Western Ford Focuses.
Only 15 points separate Sprint car point leaders Jimmy Wysong and Jim Waters in their quest for repeat series championships. Wysong won the title in 2005 and 2006, while Waters was the inaugural champion in 2003 and repeated in 2004.
Wysong is the only 2010 winner so far as rain has forced cancellation of the last two scheduled races in the Utah capital. Wysong’s 17 career wins top the all-time USAC feature winner list in the state of Utah.
USAC YOUNG AUTOMOTIVE ROCKY MOUNTAIN SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS
1-Jimmy Wysong-153, 2-Jim Waters-138, 3-Luis Ramos III-115, 4-Mel Andrus-106, 5-Eric Barlow-97, 6-Paul Marconi-84, 7-Ray Bergener-80, 8-Chancey Filler-72, 9-Tony Hunt-68, 10-Mike Murgoitio-65.
INDIANAPOLIS SPEEDROME, BAKERSFIELD, SLC HOST FOCUS EVENTS USAC Ford Focus activity will occur this week in Indiana, California and Utah. The Indianapolis Speedrome’s “Michael Lang Night” Wednesday includes Midwest Ford Focus and Young Guns races in addition to the Regional and Mopar .25 Midgets. Saturday, the Western/Utah Focuses race at Rocky Mountain Raceways in Salt Lake City and the Western Ford Focuses and Young Guns are in action at Bakersfield (Calif.) Speedway. Cody Gerhardt of Madera, Calif. and Keegan Walmer of Portland, Ore. shared the victory podium in Saturday night’s USAC Ford Focus “doubleheader” at the Stockton (Calif.) 99 Speedway. Gerhardt led all 30 laps to win the Western Ford Focus race, while Walmer passed Brandon White on lap 21 and led the last five laps to win the 25-lap Young Guns feature. Fast qualifier Gerhardt was trailed by Garrett Peterson, Tim Skoglund, Walmer and Cody Thompson. In the Young Guns race Walmer was followed to the stripe by White, Thompson, Shon Gooden and Courtney Atkinson. Andrew Mulhearn of Whittier, Calif. and Alex Jacobsen of San Jose, Calif. scored USAC feature victories at Ocean Speedway in Watsonville, Calif. Friday night. Mulhearn won the Western Ford Focus race, leading all but the first lap after passing Connor Kassik on lap two. Andrew Murray, Jet Davison, Randi Pankratz and Kyle Edwards completed the “top-five” at the finish of the 20-lapper. In the accompanying 20-lap Young Guns contest, Jacobsen passed Jarid Blondel on lap 13 and led the rest of the way to win over Blondel, Casey Martinez, Logan Williams and Collin Henry. USAC MIDWEST FORD FOCUS POINT STANDINGS 1-Joe Liguori-395, 2-Jake Blackhurst-391, 3-Tyler Cottongim-295, 4-Kyle O’Gara-226; 5-Toby Alfrey-213, 6-John Heydenreich-206, 7-Tate Martz-187, 8-Jessica Bean-155, 9-Andy Nock-144; 10-Scott Hunter-136. USAC MIDWEST FORD FOCUS DIRT POINT STANDINGS 1-Joe Ligori-136, 2-Jake Blackhurst-120, 3-Toby Alfrey-119, 4-John Heydenreich-111, 5-Eric Rankine-111, 6-Tyler Cottongim-103, 7-Josh Staten-89, 8-Ronnie Wuerdeman-88, 9-Jessica Bean-80, 10-Bill Kriegbaum-75. USAC MIDWEST FORD FOCUS PAVEMENT POINT STANDINGS 1-Joe Liguori-200, 2-Tate Martz-187, 3-Jake Blackhurst-163, 4-Tyler Cottongim-153, 5-Kyle O’Gara-149, 6-Geoff Gerline-123, 7-John Heydenreich-95, 8-Toby Alfrey-94, 9-Michael May-93, 10-Andy Nock-86. USAC UTAH FORD FOCUS POINT STANDINGS 1-Michael Daniels-338, 2-Connor Kassik-274, 3-J.R. Williams-237, 4-Kipp Posey-194, 5-Bobby Runyan-188, 6-Eli Schrock-187, 7-Terra Brower-183, 8-Chuck Groat-183, 9-Jeff Kelley-179, 10-Cody Gerhardt-165. USAC EASTERN FORD FOCUS POINT STANDINGS 1-Scott Hunter-388, 2-Nick Drake-333, 3-Justin Hommel-290, 4-Bradley Riethmeyer-257, 5-Cody Acton-231, 6-Steven Intravaia-230, 7-Tyler Corriher-208, 8-Chris Lamb-182, 9-Jeremy Frankoski-157, 10-Jake Blackhurst-108. USAC CAROLINA FORD FOCUS POINT STANDINGS 1-Scott Hunter-320, 2-Nick Drake-267, 3-Justin Hommel-248, 4-Bradley Riethmeyer-184, 5-Cody Acton-183, 6-Steven Intravaia-172, 7-Tyler Corriher-168, 8-Jeremy Frankoski-157, 9-Chris Lamb-132, 10-Brad Noffsinger-97. USAC WESTERN FORD FOCUS POINT STANDINGS 1-Kyle Edwards-620, 2-Connor Kassik-523, 3-Cody Gerhardt-483, 4-Bobby Runyan-454, 5-Nick Carlson-376, 6-Andrew Mulhearn-344, 7-Jet Davison-343, 8-Michael Daniels-338, 9-J.R. Williams-315, 10-Garrett Peterson-279. USAC WESTERN FORD FOCUS PAVEMENT POINT STANDINGS 1-Cody Gerhardt-483, 2-Bobby Runyan-454, 3-Connor Kassik-284, 4-Kyle Edwards-280, 5-Garrett Peterson-279, 6-Eli Schrock-248, 7-Keegan Walmer-234, 8-Cody Thompson-232, 9-Jessica Clark-209, 10-Shawn Buckley-190. USAC WESTERN FORD FOCUS DIRT POINT STANDINGS 1-Nick Carlson-376, 2-Andrew Mulhearn-344, 3-Jet Davison-343, 4-Kyle Edwards-340, 5-Andrew Murray-219, 6-Zach Stout-172, 7-Jake Blackhurst-151, 8-Wally Pankratz-150, 9-Kalvin Douglas-125, 10-Connor Kassik-125. USAC NORTHERN CALIFORNIA FORD FOCUS POINT STANDINGS 1-Garrett Peterson-279, 2-Cody Gerhardt-257, 3-Keegan Walmer-234, 4-Cody Thompson-232, 5-Bobby Runyan-227, 6-Courtney Atkinson-180, 7-Dennis Simunovich-141, 8-Tim Skoglund-123, 9-Connor Kassik-118, 10-Greg Paul-89. USAC SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA FORD FOCUS POINT STANDINGS 1-Eli Schrock-248, 2-Bobby Runyan-227, 3-Cody Gerhardt-226, 4-Kyle Edwards-201, 5-Shawn Buckley-190, 6-Austin Farley-182, 7-Jessica Clark-166, 8-Connor Kassik-166, 9-Michael Daniels-133, 10-J.R. Williams-99. USAC WESTERN YOUNG GUNS POINT STANDINGS 1-Jarid Blondel-530, 2-Brandon White-382, 3-Alex Jacobsen-379, 4-Casey Martinez-365, 5-Winn Frazin-249, 6-Courtney Atkinson-247, 7-Collin Henry-240, 8-Logan Williams-235, 9-Daniel Williams-227, 10-Keegan Walmer-213. USAC WESTERN YOUNG GUNS DIRT POINT STANDINGS 1-Alex Jacobsen-379, 2-Casey Martinez-365, 3-Jarid Blondel-360, 4-Collin Henry-290, 5-Logan Williams-235, 6-Daniel Williams-227, 7-Bradley Morris-205, 8-Tanner Kershaw-156, 9-Winn Frazin-141, 10-Al Simpson-87. USAC WESTERN YOUNG GUNS PAVEMENT POINT STANDINGS 1-Brandon White-382, 2-Keegan Walmer-213, 3-Austin Farley-194, 4-Cody Thompson-193, 5-Courtney Atkinson-183, 6-Jarid Blondel-170, 7-Jessica Clark-116, 8-Winn Frazin-108, 9-Tanner Long-68, 10-Shon Gooden-50. USAC NORTHERN CALIFORNIA YOUNG GUNS POINT STANDINGS 1-Brandon White-249, 2-Keegan Walmer-213, 3-Cody Thompson-193, 4-Courtney Atkinson-183, 5-Austin Farley-64, 6-Jessica Clark-60, 7-Tanner Long-59, 8-Jarid Blondel-53, 9-Shon Gooden-50, 10-Winn Frazin-46. USAC SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA YOUNG GUNS POINT STANDINGS 1-Austin Farley-194, 2-Brandon White-187, 3-Jarid Blondel-170, 4-Jessica Clark-116, 5-Winn Frazin-108, 6-Tanner Long-68. USAC MIDWEST YOUNG GUNS POINT STANDINGS 1-Cooper Clouse-195, 2-Ross Rankine-190, 3-Gage Walker-178, 4-Stevie Kuhn-172, 5-Jarett Andretti-52, 6-Derrick Morris-51. ASCS Midwest at I-90 Speedway on Friday ASCS Canyon Region is Back at USA on Saturday Night! USAC REGIONAL/WOMS MIDGETS AT BERLIN RACEWAY SATURDAY This Wednesday night’s USAC Regional competition at the Indianapolis Speedrome salutes 1993 USAC Speedrome and 7-time USAC National Midget Champion Mel Kenyon, whose 111 victories are the most in USAC National Midget racing history. Kenyon ranks third all-time at the Speedrome in terms of USAC wins with 21. The Regional Midget Series, currently led by Dalton Armstrong of New Castle, Ind., also travels to Berlin Raceway in Marne, Mich. for Saturday night’s USAC racing program which also features the USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Cars. Armstrong is also atop the early standings in the USAC/WOMS Midget Series, which also awards points at Berlin. Kyle Hamilton of Danville, Ind. wheeled his Curtis Motor Sales/General Piping Beast/Ford to victory in Wednesday night’s 50-lap “Tom Bigelow Night” USAC Regional Midget feature at the Speedrome. Hamilton passed Levi Roberts on lap 33 and led to the checkered flag to beat Dillon Welch, Armstrong, Roberts and Chris Phillips. The USAC Midwest Ford Focus, Midwest Young Guns and Mopar .25 Midgets also share Wednesday night’s racing program at the 1/5-mile Indianapolis oval. USAC REGIONAL MIDGET SERIES POINT STANDINGS 1-Dalton Armstrong-129, 2-Dillon Welch-124, 3-Cale Conley-111, 4-Chris Phillips-101, 5-Buddy Lowther-92, 6-Dave Fuhrman-83, 7-Daniel Bedford-62, 8-Nick Wagner-48, 9-Ali Jackson-47, 10-Travis Young-45. USAC/WOMS MIDGET SERIES POINT STANDINGS 1-Dalton Armstrong-64, 2-Daniel Bedford-62, 3-Dillon Welch-57, 4-Cale Conley-53, 5-Nick Wagner-48, 6-Travis Young-45, 7-Buddy Lowther-42, 8-Chris Phillips-39, 9-Shane Hmiel-39, 10-Grant Galloway-37. THURSDAY NIGHT THUNDER AT ORP; BERLIN SPRINTS SATURDAY The first of two scheduled “Thursday Night Thunder” USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car Series events at O’Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis, Ind. kicks off a busy week for USAC participants. The series returns to ORP July 1. Thursday’s race will be the first for the USAC Sprint Cars at ORP since Bobby Santos III’s victory in 2007. Saturday night, the series makes its first Michigan appearance in 10 years when it returns to Berlin Raceway in Marne, Mich. It will be the first USAC Sprint race at Berlin since Page Jones’ victory in 1994. The USAC Regional and USAC/WOMS Midgets share the billing Saturday at Berlin. Levi Jones of Olney, Ill. is the new series point leader after his “near-sweep” in last week’s four “Eastern Storm” events in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Jones won races at Bechtelsville and New Oxford, Pa. and New Egypt, N.J., then finished second to Chris Windom by inches in the finale at Minersville, Pa. Windom, of Canton, Ill. finally found the winners circle Friday night at Big Diamond Raceway as he beat Jones to the checkered flag by .028 seconds to win the final race in the 2010 USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car “Eastern Storm” series. Windom passed Jones on lap 38 and led the final three laps in his Jeff Walker Racing Hoosier Tire/Jam-It-In Storage Maxim/Claxton. Jones had passed Ricky Williams on Lap 36 after Williams had led the first 35 laps. Tracy Hines ended up third, ahead of Williams and fast qualifier Bryan Clauson. Windom’s victory was his first in 68 career series starts after six runner-up finishes! Jones wound up as the champion of the "Racer's Challenge" presented by RW and our Partners as the top point scorer in the four Eastern Storm events. Jones won Thursday night’s 40-lap feature at New Egypt Speedway, the first USAC Sprint race in the Garden State in 32 years! Jones trailed Chase Stockon for the first 22 laps, then put his Tony Stewart Racing Bass Pro Shops/Armor All Maxim/Kistler Chevy into the lead on lap 23 and never looked back. He led the final 18 laps to beat Windom, Clauson, Dave Darland and Stockon. Jones was the fastest qualifier for the third straight night! At Lincoln Speedway in New Oxford, Pa. Wednesday, Jones passed Clauson on lap 31 and led the final 10 laps for the win. Windom took second ahead of Clauson, Johnny Mackison and Brian Montieth. Clauson led the first three laps, Damion Gardner led for eight and Clauson went back to the front for another 19 laps before Jones made the winning move. Jones’ victory in Tuesday night’s 40-lap race at Grandview Speedway in Bechtelsville, Pa. came in the inaugural “Jesse Hockett Classic,” honoring the memory of the late driver who won last year’s Grandview feature and recently succumbed to injuries suffered in a shop accident. Jones trailed Windom for the first 28 laps, then traded the lead back and forth with Windom on laps 29, 30 and 31 before leading the final 10 laps. Clauson finished second ahead of Gardner, Windom and Darland. Drivers Caleb Armstrong, Jerry Coons Jr. and Shane Hmiel all flipped during the program and Armstrong was taken to a local hospital in Allentown for treatment of a mild concussion and bruised lungs. USAC AMSOIL NATIONAL SPRINT SERIES POINT STANDINGS 1-Levi Jones-872, 2-Damion Gardner-830, 3-Bryan Clauson-797, 4-Tracy Hines-742, 5-Jerry Coons Jr.-742, 6-Chris Windom-729, 7-Henry Clarke-627, 8-Dave Darland-559, 9-Robert Ballou-470, 10-Ricky Williams-443. RACER’S CHALLENGE (Presented by RW & Our Partners) SPRINT POINTS 1-Levi Jones-286, 2-Chris Windom-260, 3-Bryan Clauson-255, 4-Damion Gardner-217, 5-Tracy Hines-201, 6-Dave Darland-195, 7-Henry Clarke-193, 8-Ricky Williams-192, 9-Mark Bitner-155, 10-Chase Stockon-154. The inaugural “Kevin Doty Classic” unfolds Friday at Tri-City Speedway in Pontoon Beach, Ill. and the event will feature the best of the USAC Mopar National, USAC/SMRS Graet Plains and POWRi Midget Series. The 2010 USAC/SMRS series continues Saturday at 24 Raceway in Moberly, Mo. Brad Kuhn of Avon, Ind. and Brad Loyet of Sunset Hills, Mo. are the defending series champions entering this week’s races. Loyet is currently atop the USAC/SMRS and POWRi standings, while Bryan Clauson is the current leader in the USAC Mopar National Midget points. Friday’s race salutes the memory of the late Milan, Ill. driver (Doty) who won 1984 and 1985 MARA and Skoal Dash championships, the 1994 BMARA title, 47 BMARA victories, five Pepsi Midget Nationals, the 1994 Hut Hundred and Belleville Midget Nationals, and seven USAC Sprint races. Doty met an untimely death in August of 2005. Clauson holds a 21-point lead over Sweet in the latest Mopar National standings, while Loyet’s USAC/SMRS lead over Matt Sherrell stands at 94 points. Jerry Coons Jr., seventh in the 2010 USAC Mopar National points, could be among favorites at Pontoon Beach. He won the 2008 DuPont Gold Crown Midget Nationals there and a victory Friday would put his team, Wilke-Pak Racers of Milwaukee, Wisc., on top of the all-time USAC National feature victory list with 134 total wins. USAC MOPAR NATIONAL MIDGET SERIES POINT STANDINGS 1-Bryan Clauson-399, 2-Brad Sweet-378, 3-Darren Hagen-369, 4-Bobby East-368, 5-Tracy Hines-367, 6-Dave Darland-342, 7-Jerry Coons Jr.-307, 8-Brad Kuhn-295, 9-Henry Clarke-248, 10-Zach Daum-232. USAC/SMRS GREAT PLAINS MIDGET SERIES POINT STANDINGS 1-Brad Loyet-554, 2-Matt Sherrell-460, 3-Chet Gehrke-450, 4-Rusty Dukes-408, 5-Matt Johnson-376, 6-Ryan Cole-350, 7-Will Pierce-294, 8-Cody Brewer-256, 9-Don Droud Jr.-252, 10-Zach Daum-242 SPENCER TRIES TO REPEAT AT THE PAS SATURDAY Nobody has been able to repeat as an AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint feature winner this year at the Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway but that could change this Saturday night when the series returns to its home track. Series point leader Mike Spencer of Temecula, Calif. is among those who could score the repeat win. Spencer won in March, while Damion Gardner won the National/CRA race in February, Greg Bragg won in April and David Cardey was the winner last month. Bragg and Cardey rank ninth and 10th respectively in the new series standings, while Spencer enjoys a 14-point lead over Danny Sheridan, whose best Perris finish this season came in April, a second. He also has a pair of thirds at the half-mile dirt oval where he owns five career USAC wins. Saturday’s racing program includes the California Lightning Sprints and WRA Vintage racers. AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT SERIES POINT STANDINGS 1-Mike Spencer-329, 2-Danny Sheridan-315, 3-Matt Mitchell-251, 4-Jimmy Crawford-251, 5-Cory Kruseman-239, 6-Blake Miller-232; 7-Tony Jones-213; 8-Damion Gardner-187, 9-Bragg-178; 10-David Cardey-173. 360s “OFF” THIS WEEK, RETURN JUNE 19 at BAKERSFIELD The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car series takes a week off while preparing for a June 19 appearance at Bakersfield (Calif.) Speedway. Craig Stidham continues to lead the standings, 46 points ahead of Davey Pombo after Pombo finished second and Stidham sixth in last Saturday night’s 30-lapper at Giant Speedway in Hanford, Calif. Justyne Hamblin of Hanford became the first USAC female feature winner since last August with her 30-lap USAC West Coast 360 Sprint win Saturday night at Giant Speedway in her hometown. Justyne led the first three laps but yielded the top spot to Peter Murphy on lap four. On lap 25 she regained it in her JH Motorsports/Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino/Speedtech Chassis Chevy and she led the final six laps to beat Murphy, T.J. Smith, Danny Faria Jr. and Davey Pombo. Hamblin is only the second female to win a USAC Sprint race on a dirt track. Kaylene Verville was the first when she won a New Mexico/Arizona Sprint race at Thunder Raceway in Show Low, Ariz. in May of 2002. Hamblin’s victory solidified her fifth-place ranking in the current series points. The only other females to win USAC Sprint races were Shauna Hogg and Destiney Hays who posted USAC Western Sprint wins on pavement tracks at Madera, Calif. in 2003 (Hogg) and Las Vegas, Nev. In 2004 (Hays). USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT SERIES POINT STANDINGS 1-Craig Stidham-582, 2-Davey Pombo-536, 3-Peter Murphy-503, 4-T.J. Smith-474, 5-Justyne Hamblin-463, 6-Rusty Carlile-433, 7-Danny Faria Jr.-401, 8-Jace VanderWeerd-382, 9-Chris Ennis-338, 10-Richard VanderWeerd-329. Jimmy Wysong of Salt Lake City, Utah hopes to add to his all-time leading total of 17 USAC wins in the Beehive State when the USAC Young Automotive Rocky Mountain Sprint Car Series resumes at Rocky Mountain Raceways in the Utah capital this Saturday. Wysong’s nearest pursuer in the all-time list is former series titlist Jim Waters, who has 12. Waters, ranks third behind the retired Dave Fitzgerald, who has 13 career USAC wins in Utah, but Waters is second in the 2010 series standings and is also a strong threat for victory Saturday. Wysong won the series opener and came right back with a second-place finish behind Tony Hunt in race two. Waters has a second and a third in this year’s two races. Waters and Wysong have been the fastest qualifiers so far this year, Waters taking top honors at the opener and Wysong the best at race two. Wysong’s point lead over Waters entering Saturday’s race is 15 points. USAC YOUNG AUTOMOTIVE ROCKY MOUNTAIN SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS 1-Jimmy Wysong-153, 2-Jim Waters-138, 3-Luis Ramos III-115, 4-Mel Andrus-106, 5-Eric Barlow-97, 6-Paul Marconi-84, 7-Ray Bergener-80, 8-Chancey Filler-72, 9-Tony Hunt-68, 10-Mike Murgoitio-65. JULY 24 USAC “DOUBLEHEADER” AT LINCOLN PARK The USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Cars and Midwest Ford Focuses are headed for Lincoln Park Speedway July 24 for a unique “doubleheader” on the 5/16-mile dirt track. “ThenightbeforetheBrickyard.com” racing program marks only the third time the National Sprint Cars and Ford Focuses have shared an event but will not be the first time either has competed on the Lincoln Park oval. A total of 20 Sprint races have been held there and a pair of Ford Focus races have been contested there. Dave Darland won the last USAC Sprint race there in 2005 and Josh Lakatos was the winner the last time the Ford Focuses were there, in 2003. USAC Triple Crown Champion Jerry Coons Jr. also won a Ford Focus feature at Putnamville in 2003. The Sprint race will be a 40-lapper, while the Ford Focuses will compete in a 20-lapper. Race organizer Joe Spiker is excited about the return of USAC to the track which has hosted 38 previous USAC events, beginning with Johnny Parsons’ Midget win in 1979. “This is the beginning of what we hope to be a renewed commitment between Lincoln Park and USAC,” says Spiker, owner of Spiker Promotions. “We look forward to an expansion of our USAC activities as we move into the future.” The “Billy Marvel Classic” Sprint race rained out at Lincoln Park on May 1 has been rescheduled for September 10. SPEEDROME, ORANGE SHOW HOST FOCUS RACES The 2010 USAC Midwest and Western Ford Focus and Young Guns Series continue this week with races at the Indianapolis (Ind.) Speedrome and Orange Show Speedway in San Bernardino, Calif. respectively. Wednesday night’ “Mel Kenyon Night” at the Speedrome also includes the Regional Midgets and Mopar .25 Midgets, celebrating the career of the 1993 Speedrome Midget and 7-time USAC National Midget Champion. Tate Martz of Rushville, Ind. and Cooper Clouse of Ohio City, Ohio earned USAC Ford Focus feature wins at the Indianapolis Speedrome last Wednesday night on “Tom Bigelow Night.” Martz led all 40 laps to beat Joe Liguori, Tyler Cottongim, Andy Nock and Kyle O’Gara. In the accompanying 25-lap Young Guns Ford Focus race, Clouse led all 25 laps to beat Ross Rankine, Stevie Kuhn, Gage Walker and Jarett Andretti. Defending two-time USAC Utah Ford Focus Champion Kipp Posey of Lehi, Utah won Saturday night’s 25-lap USAC Western/Utah Ford Focus feature at Rocky Mountain Raceways in Salt Lake City, Utah. He passed Utah point leader Michael Daniels on lap 15 and led the last 11 laps to beat Daniels, Ron Duncombe, Jeremy McKenna and Connor Kassik. Chuck Groat was the fastest qualifier. The Utah series resumes June 26 at RMR. Nick Carlson of Norwalk, Calif. and Alex Jacobsen of San Jose, Calif. scored feature victories in USAC Western Ford Focus and Young Guns racing respectively Saturday night at Santa Maria (Calif.) Speedway. Carlson led all 20 laps to win the Ford Focus race over Jet Davison, Randi Pankratz, Kyle Edwards and Zach Stout. Carlson was also the fastest qualifier. Jacobsen also led all 20 laps of the Young Guns feature to beat Jarid Blondel, Casey Martinez, Bradley Morris and Collin Henry. Daniel Williams posted the fastest qualifying time. USAC MIDWEST FORD FOCUS POINT STANDINGS 1-Jake Blackhurst-329, 2-Joe Liguori-328, 3-Tyler Cottongim-232, 4-Toby Alfrey-213, 5-Kyle O’Gara-175, 6-John Heydenreich-159, 7-Andy Nock-144, 8-Scott Hunter-136, 9-Adam Wilsdon-135, 10-Chris Lamb-131. USAC MIDWEST FORD FOCUS DIRT POINT STANDINGS 1-Joe Ligori-136, 2-Jake Blackhurst-120, 3-Toby Alfrey-119, 4-John Heydenreich-111, 5-Eric Rankine-111, 6-Tyler Cottongim-103, 7-Josh Staten-89, 8-Ronnie Wuerdeman-88, 9-Jessica Bean-80, 10-Bill Kriegbaum-75. USAC MIDWEST FORD FOCUS PAVEMENT POINT STANDINGS 1-Joe Liguori-133, 2-Tate Martz-129, 3-Jake Blackhurst-101, 4-Kyle O’Gara-98, 5-Toby Alfrey-94, 6-Tyler Cottongim-90, 7-Andy Nock-86, 8-Geoff Gerline-83, 9-Adam Wilsdon-64, 10-Michael May-52. USAC UTAH FORD FOCUS POINT STANDINGS 1-Michael Daniels-338, 2-Connor Kassik-274, 3-J.R. Williams-237, 4-Kipp Posey-194, 5-Bobby Runyan-188, 6-Eli Schrock-187, 7-Terra Brower-183, 8-Chuck Groat-183, 9-Jeff Kelley-179, 10-Cody Gerhardt-165. USAC EASTERN FORD FOCUS POINT STANDINGS 1-Scott Hunter-388, 2-Nick Drake-333, 3-Justin Hommel-290, 4-Bradley Riethmeyer-257, 5-Cody Acton-231, 6-Steven Intravaia-230, 7-Tyler Corriher-208, 8-Chris Lamb-182, 9-Jeremy Frankoski-157, 10-Jake Blackhurst-108. USAC CAROLINA FORD FOCUS POINT STANDINGS 1-Scott Hunter-320, 2-Nick Drake-267, 3-Justin Hommel-248, 4-Bradley Riethmeyer-184, 5-Cody Acton-183, 6-Steven Intravaia-172, 7-Tyler Corriher-168, 8-Jeremy Frankoski-157, 9-Chris Lamb-132, 10-Brad Noffsinger-97. USAC WESTERN FORD FOCUS POINT STANDINGS 1-Kyle Edwards-520, 2-Connor Kassik-471, 3-Bobby Runyan-363, 4-Cody Gerhardt-348, 5-Michael Daniels-338, 6-Nick Carlson-337, 7-Jet Davison-284, 8-Andrew Mulhearn-278, 9-J.R. Williams-271, 10-Garrett Peterson-211. USAC WESTERN FORD FOCUS PAVEMENT POINT STANDINGS 1-Bobby Runyan-363, 2-Cody Gerhardt-348, 3-Connor Kassik-245, 4-Kyle Edwards-235, 5-Garrett Peterson-211, 6-Eli Schrock-187, 7-Keegan Walmer-175, 8-Cody Thompson-174, 9-Jessica Clark-155, 10-Austin Farley-144. USAC WESTERN FORD FOCUS DIRT POINT STANDINGS 1-Nick Carlson-264, 2-Andrew Mulhearn-227, 3-Kyle Edwards-226, 4-Jet Davison-219, 5-Jake Blackhurst-151, 6-Wally Pankratz-150, 7-Kalvin Douglas-125, 8-Zach Stout-117, 9-Andrew Murray-100, 10-Connor Kassik-79. USAC NORTHERN CALIFORNIA FORD FOCUS POINT STANDINGS 1-Garrett Peterson-211, 2-Cody Gerhardt-183, 3-Keegan Walmer-175, 4-Bobby Runyan-175, 5-Cody Thompson-174, 6-Dennis Simunovich-141, 7-Courtney Atkinson-133, 8-Connor Kassik-118, 9-Greg Paul-89, 10-Kyle Edwards-79. USAC SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA FORD FOCUS POINT STANDINGS 1-Eli Schrock-121, 2-Bobby Runyan-119, 3-Cody Gerhardt-115, 4-Kyle Edwards-114, 5-Shawn Buckley-102, 6-Connor Kassik-94, 7-A.J. Ault-91, 8-Michael Daniels-85, 9-Austin Farley-77, 10-J.R. Williams-74. USAC WESTERN YOUNG GUNS POINT STANDINGS 1-Jarid Blondel-414, 2-Alex Jacobsen-312, 3-Casey Martinez-307, 4-Brandon White-266, 5-Daniel Williams-227, 6-Bradley Morris-205, 7-Winn Frazin-203, 8-Courtney Atkinson-199, 9-Collin Henry-184, 10-Logan Williams-179. USAC WESTERN YOUNG GUNS DIRT POINT STANDINGS 1-Alex Jacobsen-312, 2-Casey Martinez-307, 3-Jarid Blondel-297, 4-Collin Henry-234, 5-Daniel Williams-227, 6-Bradley Morris-205, 7-Logan Williams-179, 8-Tanner Kershaw-156, 9-Winn Frazin-141, 10-Al Simpson-87. USAC WESTERN YOUNG GUNS PAVEMENT POINT STANDINGS 1-Brandon White-266, 2-Keegan Walmer-149, 3-Courtney Atkinson-135, 4-Cody Thompson-133, 5-Austin Farley-130, 6-Jarid Blondel-117, 7-Winn Frazin-62, 8-Jessica Clark-56, 9-Tanner Long-9. USAC NORTHERN CALIFORNIA YOUNG GUNS POINT STANDINGS 1-Keegan Walmer-149, 2-Courtney Atkinson-135, 3-Cody Thompson-133; 4-Brandon White-133. USAC SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA YOUNG GUNS POINT STANDINGS 1-Brandon White-133, 2-Austin Farley-130, 3-Jarid Blondel-117, 4-Winn Frazin-62, 5-Jessica Clark-56, 6-Tanner Long-9. USAC MIDWEST YOUNG GUNS POINT STANDINGS 1-Cooper Clouse-134, 2-Ross Rankine-125, 3-Gage Walker-115, 4-Stevie Kuhn-113, 5-Jarett Andretti-52, 6-Derrick Morris-51. And the money, to be deposited in the state's Major Event Trust Fund, would pay the sanctioning fee London-based Formula One Group charges for the privilege of hosting the first of 10 annual F1 races planned for Austin beginning in 2012. Austin resident Tavo Hellmund would organize and promote the races. Last week, state officials said money from the fund would not go to the promoter but to local governments to reimburse them for costs incurred in hosting such large sporting events. Previously, the fund, which has been used to cover costs associated with hosting the Super Bowl and baseball and basketball all-star games, has been generated from sales taxes and other tax receipts in host communities that are attributable to spending at the event. But the Texas Legislature's authorization to use general revenue funds for F1 can be found on page 933 of the 988-page budget that legislators approved a year ago — though mention of a car race is nowhere to be found. "The amount of $25,000,000 is appropriated from General Revenue for the biennium beginning September 1, 2009 to the Fiscal Programs-Comptroller of Public Accounts for deposit into the Major Events Trust Fund for the purpose of attracting and securing eligible events," the rider reads. It says the money is tied to the passage of the bill that added Formula One racing to sporting events eligible for the trust fund. Robert Wood, director of local government assistance and economic development for the state comptroller's office, said the trust fund had not been used in this way before and that officials are still figuring out the details. Last week, Bernie Ecclestone, president and CEO of Formula One Group, announced that Austin would host F1 races from 2012 through 2021. Typically, local organizers must come up with a sanctioning fee, said to be between $25 million and $50 million each year, to pay Formula One. Starting in the second year of the contract, proceeds from extra tax revenue attributable to the previous year's event would cover the fee. In theory, in the final year of the 10-year contract with Formula One, the state would be repaid the initial $25 million seed money. State officials stressed that the money is an investment that will be more than returned to taxpayers in the millions of dollars that would flow back to Texas when several hundred thousand race fans flock to Austin for three days to watch the event. "I'm just thrilled that (Hellmund) is trying to do this," Texas Comptroller Susan Combs said Tuesday. "It's going to be wonderful for the state. If folks in Malaysia and Turkey start thinking about Texas in ways not previously thought and want to invest here and come here because of this, that's a wonderful development." Depending on how much extra tax money is collected, the state could end up paying more than $25 million, too. According to rough estimates made by the comptroller's office, a Formula One race in Austin would generate between $25 million and $30 million in local and state tax revenue above what is normally collected. Local governments can apply to be reimbursed for their costs associated with hosting the event if the extra tax revenue exceeds $25 million. Wood said reimbursement could cover a wide range of race-related expenses, from improving roads to paying for security. Combs stressed, however, that no money would be used to pay for construction of the track, which has been estimated at $250 million. "I can not see any circumstance in which (the Major Events Trust Fund money) would be used to build a facility here," she said. "The state is not building the facility. (Hellmund) either gets it done or doesn't; the proof is in the pudding." Hellmund has said he already has secured a site for a new racetrack, most likely east of Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, but he has declined to reveal the precise location. Planners for the City of Austin, as well as Travis and Bastrop counties, said they have yet to receive any filings related to a racetrack. edexheimer@statesman.com Bud Kaeding continues to lead the 2010 USAC Silver Crown Championship standings as he seeks a record fourth series title. He finished second to Shane Hmiel in Friday night’s 58th Hoosier Hundred at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis and has an 18-poiint lead over Jerry Coons Jr. going into a July 8 race at Illiana Motor Speedway in Schererville, Ind. Coons was third in Friday’s race. Shane Hmiel of Pleasant Garden, N.C. won Friday night’s 100-miler on the one-mile Indianapolis dirt oval. The win in the Rotondo Weirich/Champion Brands Beast/Toyota was Shane’s first ever on dirt! He was leading when the race was stopped by a competition red flag after lap 51 but was among the first eight leaders who all changed right rear tires and had to restart back in the field. He actually ended up 12th in the re-alignment but ran down leader Russ Gamester on lap 77 and held on the rest of the way for the victory. Kody Swanson took fourth and Dave Darland was fifth. Levi Jones started on the pole and eventually finished 11th. On the lap 52 restart Shane Hollingsworth ended up as the leader but three laps later Gamester went to the front on another restart and he led until Hmiel took over. Gamester eventually retired from competition on lap 95. Bobby East escaped injury in a flip on lap 10. CRA SPRINTS RESUME JUNE 12 AT THE PAS; Mike Spencer of Temecula, Calif. will take a 14-point lead over Danny Sheridan into the June 12 AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint race at Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway. Spencer scored a second and a sixth in Saturday and Sunday night race, while Sheridan was third and fifth in the most recent races. David Cardey of Riverside, Calif. took advantage of a late-race restart to win Saturday night’s 30-lap “Salute to Indy” Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint race at Perris Auto Speedway. Cardey was the last of four race leaders and led the final three laps in his Circle Track Performance Viper/Picks to beat fast qualifier Spencer, Sheridan, Cory Kruseman and Jimmy Crawford. Greg Bragg, Crawford and Spencer led the early laps. Blake Miller of Yorba Linda, Calif. led all 30 laps to win Sunday night’s “Salute to Indy” AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint race at the Gropetti Automotive Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway in his Roy Miller Freight Lines/Sander Engineering Bullet/Chevy. USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Series point leader Craig Stidham took second ahead of Matt Mitchell, Rickie Gaunt and Sheridan. AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT SERIES POINT STANDINGS 1-Mike Spencer-329, 2-Danny Sheridan-315, 3-Matt Mitchell-251, 4-Jimmy Crawford-251, 5-Cory Kruseman-239, 6-Blake Miller-232; 7-Tony Jones-213; 8-Damion Gardner-187, 9-Bragg-178; 10-David Cardey-173. HANFORD NEXT FOR STIDHAM & 360s Giant Speedway in Hanford, Calif. hosts the next event for the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint cars and point leader Craig Stidham will aim for his fifth victory of the season when the series takes to the 3/8-mile dirt oval. The Hanford track is the only one of the four comprising this year’s 360 schedule which has eluded Stidham’s victory lane presence. Craig has won at Tulare, Santa Maria and Bakersfield but Danny Faria Jr. was the winner at Hanford in March, a race in which Stidham finished sixth. Stidham, of Fresno, Calif., scored his fourth victory of the 2010 season Saturday night, wheeling his Brad Johnson Trucking/KRC Safety Maxim/Downing to a 30-lap triumph at Bakersfield (Calif.) Speedway. Ricky Kirkbride led the first 14 laps before yielding to Stidham and eventually finished second. Justyne Hamblin, Albert Pombo and Davey Pombo rounded out the “top-five.” USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT SERIES POINT STANDINGS 1-Craig Stidham-527, 2-Davey Pombo-476, 3-Peter Murphy-439, 4-T.J. Smith-412, 5-Justyne Hamblin-398, 6-Rusty Carlile-389, 7-Danny Faria Jr.-342, 8-Jace VanderWeerd-331, 9-Chris Ennis-313, 10-Andy Ferris-297. “TOM BIGELOW NIGHT” WEDNESDAY AT THE SPEEDROME Tom Bigelow of Winchester, Ind. will serve as the honorary grand marshal Wednesday night when the USAC Regional Midgets, Midwest Ford Focuses, Midwest Young Guns and Mopar .25 Midgets return to the 1/5-mile paved Indianapolis Speedrome. Bigelow, who won the 1978 USAC National Sprint and 1984 USAC National Midget championships, was the 1982 Indianapolis Speedrome Midget titlist and is the all-time leading USAC Sprint race winner with 52 career victories. Bigelow’s resume includes 10 wins at the Speedrome. Biigelow is one of a select few who are members of both the National Sprint Car and National Midget Halls of Fame and he started nine consecutive Indianapolis 500s between 1974 and 1982. Dalton Armstrong of New Castle, Ind. has a five-point leader over Dillon Welch in the 2010 USAC Regional Midget standings going into Wednesday night’s Indianapolis events. He finished second to Dillon Welch in last Wednesday night’s Speedrome opener. Welch, of Carmel, Ind., led all but the first five laps of last Wednesday night’s “John Andretti Night” feature at the Speedrome. Welch passed Jerry Nuckles on lap six and led the rest of the way in his Club Sport/VCS Beast/Esslinger Ford. Armstrong was second ahead of Chris Phillips, Cale Conley and Dave Fuhrman. USAC REGIONAL MIDGET SERIES POINT STANDINGS 1-Dalton Armstrong-129, 2-Dillon Welch-124, 3-Cale Conley-111, 4-Chris Phillips-101, 5-Buddy Lowther-92, 6-Dave Fuhrman-83, 7-Daniel Bedford-62, 8-Nick Wagner-48, 9-Ali Jackson-47, 10-Travis Young-45. “KEVIN DOTY CLASSIC” JUNE 11 AT TRI-CITY SPEEDWAY; Bryan Clauson is the new point leader in the 2010 USAC Mopar National Midget Series standings after his second-place finish in last Saturday night’s 65th NOS Energy Drink “Night Before the 500” at O’Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis, Ind. Clauson holds a 21-point lead over Brad Sweet entering the June 11 “Kevin Doty Classic” co-sanctioned by POWRi at Tri-City Speedway in Pontoon Beach, Ill. Tanner Swanson of Kingsburg, Calif. caught Clauson on the 32nd lap of Saturday night’s 50-lapper in Indianapolis and led the rest of the race in his F & F Mechanical Beast/Esslinger Ford. The victory ended Clauson’s bid for an unprecedented back-to-back-to-back-to-back sweep of the four major USAC Midget races with histories dating to pre-1980. Ironically, Tanner spun in turn two after taking the checkered flag! Clauson, who had won the 2009 Belleville Midget Nationals, 2009 Turkey Night Grand Prix and 2010 Hut Hundred, finished second after leading 30 laps. Kody Swanson, Brad Kuhn and Sweet rounded out the "top-five" at the checkered flag. Daniel Bedford escaped injury when his car vaulted over the backstretch wall on the third lap of the race. USAC MOPAR NATIONAL MIDGET SERIES POINT STANDINGS 1-Bryan Clauson-399, 2-Brad Sweet-378, 3-Darren Hagen-369, 4-Bobby East-368, 5-Tracy Hines-367, 6-Dave Darland-342, 7-Jerry Coons Jr.-307, 8-Brad Kuhn-295, 9-Henry Clarke-248, 10-Zach Daum-232. Damion Gardner of Concord, N.C. finished fourth in last Thursday’s 40th First Financial Bank “Tony Hulman Classic” presented by Budweiser and 500 Express at the Terre Haute (Ind.) Action Track and has a 24-point series lead over Jerry Coons Jr. in the AMSOIL USAC National Sprint points going into this week’s four “Eastern Storm” races in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The series visits Grandview Speedway in Bechtelsville, Pa. Tuesday, Lincoln Speedway in New Oxford, Pa. Wednesday, New Egypt (N.J.) Speedway Thursday and Big Diamond Raceway in Minersville, Pa. Friday. Coons, of Tucson, Ariz., scored a sensational victory in the “Tony Hulman Classic”. The victory came in a race which featured one of the most spectacular lead duels in USAC Sprint Car history and gave car owner Dynamics, Inc. of Milford, Ohio its record 76th victory. It also ended an epic battle between Coons and three-time race winner Levi Jones. Jones, hoping to score a record fourth win in the race and third win in a row, led three different times for six laps but Coons made a daring pass for the lead on lap 28 which eventually sealed the victory in his Hoffman Auto Racing F5/Gaerte. Jones finished second ahead of Dave Darland, who came from 19th starting position in the expanded 26-car field. Gardner and Tracy Hines, who also figured in the lead battle at times, took fourth and fifth respectively. Coons ended up leading 24 of the 30 laps for the win. Jon Stanbrough, Henry Clarke and Justin Grant all escaped injury in feature event flips. Grant’s car cleared the wall in turn one on lap nine. USAC AMSOIL NATIONAL SPRINT SERIES POINT STANDINGS 1-Damion Gardner-613, 2-Jerry Coons Jr.-589, 3-Levi Jones-586, 4-Bryan Clauson-542, 5-Tracy Hines-541, 6-Robert Ballou-470, 7-Chris Windom-469, 8-Henry Clarke-434, 9-Dave Darland-364, 10-Jon Stanbrough-304. “The drivers should never be put in this situation,” said Levi Jones. The decision was made to have the drivers circle the track in their cars for 50 laps to “wheel pack”. Robert Ballou had tested out the track earlier, and was asked if it was worse than before. “I don’t. know,” he replied. “I’ve been eating corn dogs.” This would be a night of soggy corn dogs, and a soggy track, which had been overwatered earlier in the evening. This prompted the promoter to apologize profusely over the track PA system earlier in the evening for the track preparation blunder. it was evident that there would not be enough time for qualifying, so the heat races would be used to determine the starting positions in the final, and there would be no semi-final race. By 8:30 PM, the drivers still circled the track, and the middle and upper grooves looked race ready. Only the bottom part of the track still looked like a mud bog. As the track prep continued, I spoke to Shane Cottle, who admitted that, at first, he felt the event should have been cancelled. “We are going too fast here to be on a crappy track,” he said. But, he admitted that it could turn around and be a great track by the end of the night. He had known Jesse Hockett personally and considered him a friend for the past 6 years. Like the other drivers, he still felt a sense of disbelief over his sudden death. “It’s tough,” he said, when describing his own feelings. Like the other drivers, he carried a sticker of Jesse on his car, as they had been passed out to all the drivers earlier in the evening. For Bryan Clauson, he knew that the race at Terre Haute was not going to be his best chance for a win in the long weekend of racing in Central Indiana. He considered the Night Before The 500 event at O’Reilly Raceway Park to be his best chance for a win, on Saturday evening. He was also looking forward to his first ever race on a mile dirt track, in the Hoosier Hundred Silver Crown race on Friday at the Indiana State Fairgrounds. He stated that he was intending to learn from his teammate in Silver Crown competition, fellow Tony Stewart Racing driver Levi Jones (Clauson would struggle in the Hoosier Hundred event, and finish well down in the field, admitting that he was having the same handling problems during the evening as Jones). After the conclusion of the heat races at Terre Haute, Levi Jones would start from the front row, and was later involved in a back and forth battle with Jerry Coons Jr. for the front. It seemed that with the numerous flips and yellow flags, including a red flag after one car flipped completely out of the track and slammed a passenger car parked outside the first turn, that the race could bump against the midnight curfew for the second time in May. But at the conclusion, before midnight, Coons would be victorious, denying Levi Jones another win in the annual Tony Hulman Classic. Updated: 11:17 p.m. Friday, May 28, 2010 Published: 10:42 p.m. Friday, May 28, 2010 Hellmund also said Friday that the facility could be built for $250 million or less and could be used for concerts, festivals and auto testing. In a 90-minute interview in his attorney's office, Hellmund told reporters that his investor group is in place — though he declined to give any names or specific figures — and predicted the F1 event, slated to run through at least 2021, would annually draw 300,000 fans for the race weekend. Still unknown three days after Formula One Group CEO Bernie Ecclestone broke the news of F1 racing in Austin: the exact location of the proposed racetrack. Hellmund's attorney, Richard Suttle Jr., has said only that it is a "safe assumption" that the land, in excess of 500 acres, lies along the Texas 130 corridor. Hellmund, managing partner of Austin-based Full Throttle Productions, also revealed how he managed to keep the project one of the best-kept secrets in Austin and the motorsport world. Although Hellmund took German engineers to business lunches at public places such as Kreuz Market in Lockhart and the Salt Lick, the engineers and almost everyone else he worked with signed nondisclosure agreements. "There isn't a person that wasn't either Bernie or Formula One management or the few officials here in Texas that didn't sign an NDA ," Hellmund said. The former race car driver has been in something of a scramble mode since Ecclestone announced the Austin Grand Prix on Tuesday, perhaps two weeks before Hellmund and his group were ready to release details. There has been skepticism from some experts in the motorsport industry about whether it's possible to get this country's only Grand Prix race up and running by 2012. Hellmund maintained that he's three years further along in the process than most people realize. He said he's had the land secured for "a good while" and that 90 percent of the planning is done. Hellmund said Ecclestone, the most powerful figure in the worldwide sport of F1 racing, is a family friend he has known since he was 2 or 3 years old. As a teenager, Hellmund worked for Ecclestone's racing team, doing the menial and dirty jobs no one else wanted to do, but getting to travel around Europe as part of the bargain. Later, the two stayed in touch, having dinner about once a year, Hellmund said. At one such get-together, he asked Ecclestone if he would consider coming back to Texas. Dallas had a problem-plagued Grand Prix in 1984. Hellmund said, yes, that Texas was a big state with a strong economy. However, Ecclestone picked Indianapolis to host the U.S. event beginning in 2000. When Indianapolis and Ecclestone parted ways in 2007, Hellmund flew to Belgium to catch Ecclestone at a Grand Prix race. He pitched Austin as a venue, stressing its proximity to Dallas, Houston and San Antonio, a population triangle with close to 20 million people. Ecclestone told Hellmund that he needed to get some government officials on board. Hellmund said he made an appointment with state Comptroller Susan Combs and later gave her a packet on F1 racing. He said Combs told him she liked the idea and asked what the state could do. "Will you build a facility?" Hellmund said. That wasn't in the cards. Then Combs mentioned the state's Major Event Trust Fund, designed to help cities attract events. "I didn't know jack about what she was talking about," Hellmund said, but he started researching it. The state has since pledged $25 million a year from the fund, which reimburses local governments for the costs they bear in hosting such events. Hellmund also continued to work on Ecclestone, who was considering about half a dozen bids from various cities, including New York, Las Vegas, Palm Springs and Miami. "I knew I had an inside track with Bernie so I probably made seven or eight, nine trips" to Europe in 2008 or 2009, Hellmund said. "I had to do a heck of a sales job." Hellmund also went to Germany to talk with Tilke GmbH , the engineering firm that designs most modern F1 tracks. "They're the only ones who can do a facility of this magnitude," Hellmund said. Initially, Hellmund had considered seven potential sites for the track, but by the time Tilke began sending engineers to the Austin area, two years ago, Hellmund had narrowed his search to three plots. He had also lined up his investors, he said. "We're done," Hellmund said. "You're worried about investors? There isn't anybody in the world who's got stricter requirements than the Formula One commercial rights holder, and if he (Ecclestone) is satisfied, than everyone should be." A key piece of the puzzle fell in place, he said, when Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin, authored a bill last year that allows the Major Event Trust Fund to be used for a Grand Prix race. Of the Austin track, Hellmund said, "It will be the most modern, user-friendly motor sports facility in the United States, something that we can all be proud of and that can be used for other things." After closing the deal with Ecclestone in London, Hellmund said Ecclestone told him, "'You did this the right way.' I said, by keeping my mouth shut? He said, 'It's going to pay huge dividends.'" jmaher@statesman.com; 445-3956 snovak@statesman.com; 445-3856 INDIANAPOLIS (Thursday, May 27, 2010) - Pippa Mann became the first female pole winner in the 101-year-old history of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, earning the top starting spot for the Firestone Freedom 100. Mann, driving the No. 11 Sam Schmidt Motorsports car, is the second female pole sitter in Firestone Indy Lights history, joining Sarah McCune in 2005 at Chicagoland Speedway. She recorded a two-lap average speed of 187.989 mph (1 minute, 35.7505 seconds) on the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the 40-lap race on May 28. Wade Cunningham, seeking to win the Firestone Freedom 100 for a third time, will start on the front row after posting an average speed of 187.742 mph in the No. 77 Lucas Oil/BSS/Sam Schmidt Motorsports car. Charlie Kimball in the No. 26 Levemir FlexPen entry for AFS Racing Andretti Autosport (187.375) and teammate Martin Plowman (187.209) will share Row 2. starting position, car number in parentheses, driver, time and speed in parentheses: 2. (77) Wade Cunningham, 01:35.8761 (187.742) 3. (26) Charlie Kimball, 01:36.0642 (187.375) 4. (27) Martin Plowman, 01:36.1494 (187.209) 5. (17) Jeff Simmons, 01:36.1702 (187.168) 6. (7) J.K. Vernay, 01:36.5378 (186.455) 7. (49) Philip Major, 01:36.7925 (185.965) 8. (2) James Hinchcliffe, 01:36.9012 (185.756) 9. (10) Gustavo Yacaman, 01:36.9350 (185.691) 10. (40) Dan Clarke, 01:36.9704 (185.624) 11. (22) Adrian Campos Jr., 01:37.0710 (185.431) 12. (29) Sebastian Saavedra, 01:37.1481 (185.284) 13. (28) Stefan Wilson, 01:37.7807 (184.085) 14. (18) Rodrigo Barbosa, 01:38.0589 (183.563) 15. (4) Arie Luyendyk Jr., 01:38.1038 (183.479) 16. (32) Brandon Wagner, No time (No Speed) 1. Indy Racing League Q & A - Helio Castroneves and Rick Mears 2. Vote to name Oval, Road Championship Trophy 3. Franchitti launches own TW Steel timepiece 1. Indy Racing League Q & A - Helio Castroneves and Rick Mears: IZOD IndyCar Series driver Helio Castroneves and four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Rick Mears participated in a Q&A session. Below are select quotes from the interview. The complete transcript and audio MP3 file are posted at www.indycar.com/media. Helio Castroneves · 35-year-old native of Sao Paulo, Brazil competing in his ninth full season in the IZOD IndyCar Series in 2010. · Drives No. 3 Team Penske car for Team Penske. · Currently third in IZOD IndyCar Series point standings. · A three-time winner of the Indianapolis 500 with victories in 2001, 2002 and 2009. · Won his fourth Indianapolis 500 pole position - his second-consecutive - on May 22. Rick Mears · Four-time Indianapolis 500 winner with victories in 1979, 1984, 1988 and 1991. · Serves as consultant and spotter for No. 3 Team Penske car of Helio Castroneves. Q. What makes turn one at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway so difficult and so unique in the sport? HELIO CASTRONEVES: I tell you what, I'm going to let Rick answer that because he never told me, so today he might come with an answer. I'll let him answer that. RICK MEARS: I've never told him because I don't know (laughter). No, you know, all four corners basically geometrically are supposedly the same. When you lay the surface down, they always have their own little characteristics. I think over the years it's either turn one or turn three, those are the two at the end of the straightaways where you approach at the highest speed, so they are going to be the most difficult. I think a lot of the times the prevailing wind here is at your back coming down the front straightaway which carries you into turn one faster and tends to blow the car off on the exit. That's one of the things that makes one a little more difficult. To me, there always seems to be a little bit of a transition or elevation change about two-thirds of the way around the corner coming out of the exit of one that would tend to hook the car a little bit. If I was loose, that's where I would get loose first. It's almost like you couldn't feel it, but it would upset the balance of the car a little bit. But historically I think a lot of it's due to wind direction and the speeds that you approach that corner. Q. Helio, you have Rick as your spotter. He's a four-time winner. How assuring is this going to be for you in the race? HELIO CASTRONEVES: Well, every time I have Rick, especially in the 500, maybe that's the secret, you know. He certainly knows a lot in this place. Basically he's there to make sure that I don't have any issues, stay out of trouble, especially when somebody comes from behind, taking chances, unnecessary chances. In fact, he saved me quite a lot many, many times over here that I could end up not in a good situation. Sometimes I do ask him, Hey, Rick, what do I do? I don't know what to do anymore. The car is tough. Obviously I'm sure I'm going to do the same thing this weekend. So I'm glad to have Rick on my side being my spotter. Always when you have someone with such an incredible experience, obviously he's the one to have the secret here, but I'm always listen, I'm always up for innovation or up for learning because this place is all about that. It's all about taking every lap by lap and learning every time. Q. Helio, talk about if you do win, joining the company of people like A.J. and Rick and Unser, also to be the first non-American-born driver to do this. Can you talk about your thoughts on that. Then, Rick, if you can kind of compare yourself and Unser and A.J. and Helio, different styles, different eras, nutshell on what makes the four-time winners. HELIO CASTRONEVES: Certainly Team Penske and I, we're going to do our best to see if we can accomplish that goal. I have to say, you guys basically comparing, talking about it. I'm trying to focus on the race, go out there and win the race. Yes, Indianapolis is the most important one. Again, if it's not that this time, there going to be a next race. My mindset is what can I do to accomplish my goal to finish first and beat everybody. Now, when you guys talk about it, for me, Rick, A.J., they're the gods of racing, the legends. I'm so honored to have this opportunity that I'm facing right now. Not taking anything for granted. As I said, I'm still a lot, lot to learn. Even to be compared with those guys, if I'll be able to accomplish what I want, it will be a dream come true. So I'm just honored to be in this position right now. RICK MEARS: Pretty much the same with me as Helio. When I won the fourth one, to be anywhere near compared to A.J. and Al, two of my heroes, was just a great honor. I think over the years as far as comparing all of us, I think desire, the love of what we do, sitting in that racecar, competing, the competition, I think that love of what we do creates the desire, and the desire creates the results. Obviously, one of the most important thing is all of us being fortunate enough to have the right equipment, the right people behind us supporting us to give us the tools to be able to accomplish those things. And then the final thing I think is having a lot of thing is having a lot of lady luck on your side and the car fall in your direction. HELIO CASTRONEVES: You're right on that one (laughter). *** Q. Rick, I know winning the Indianapolis 500 is not an easy task. You did it four times from 1979 through 1991. If Helio wins on Sunday, he will accomplish it in a faster period of time. How difficult a task is it to win the fourth Indy 500? RICK MEARS: They're all difficult. It doesn't matter whether it's the first, second, third or fourth, they're all difficult. One thing, myself and Helio, too, we've always approached this race as a new day, a new race, almost the first time. You don't really think about which one it is. We're here to try to win the race. In this business, it's about being flexible. You have to be ready for change at all times. Every day is a new day. You don't know who is going to be strong, who your competition is, what the track conditions are going to be like. You got to be open and ready to change, do what's necessary to get yourself in a position. The guys, the team all make the right calls, the right decisions in the pits, all falls your way to put yourself in position to win it in the end. 2. Vote to name Oval, Road Championship Trophy: The IZOD IndyCar Series has released the nine legends of the sport that fans can choose to honor by naming the trophies given to the oval and road champions after a legend of the sport. Media selected the top-five nominees from each discipline and through June 3, IZOD IndyCar Series fans can vote for the legend they prefer to honor on www.indycar.com. The league will work with the legends to secure the rights to names for the trophies. The oval trophy honoree will be announced during the IZOD IndyCar Series event weekend at Texas Motor Speedway while the road trophy honoree will be revealed at Watkins Glen International. The oval nominees: Mario Andretti, A.J. Foyt Jr., Ted Horn, Rick Mears and Bill Vukovich. The road nominees: Mario Andretti, Mark Donohue, Dan Gurney, Al Unser Jr., and Alex Zanardi. To vote visit: http://www.indycar.com/news/show/55-izod-indycar-series/37641/ 3. Franchitti launches own TW Steel timepiece: TW Steel, the Dutch watchmaker specializing in oversized watches, has unveiled the timepiece inspired by brand ambassador Dario Franchitti in the form of the 'TW Steel Dario Franchitti'- set to retail in early July. Franchitti, two-time IZOD IndyCar Series champion and the 2007 Indianapolis 500 winner, took a personal role in the design and development of the TW607 (45mm) and TW608 (48mm) editions that bare his name and reflect his passion for watches. "It was an absolute pleasure to work with Dario on the design of this execution," reflected TW Steel's Chief Design Officer, Ton Cobelens. "There is always a challenge in producing a 'signature' edition as you have to carefully blend personal taste with commercial appeal. As a connoisseur of timepieces though, Dario knew the direction he wanted to go in and we worked very well together. Ultimately I think we have created an extremely appealing watch, both for Dario's fans and the consumer at large, which proudly represents TW Steel and Dario Franchitti." Based on TW Steel's existing TECH style, the 'Dario Franchitti' edition is made of high-grade 316L steel featuring black PVD-coated screws on the bezel. The pillars that connect the bezel and the case-back are similarly adorned with black PVD. Franchitti's famous helmet colours of blue, green and red - based on the Scottish and Italian flags to reflect his heritage, also feature boldly on the watch along with his leading race car numbers. On the striking black dial the number 10, Dario's current race car number with Target Chip Ganassi Racing and the one he carried to his 2009 IndyCar Series title success, is highlighted in red, while the numbers 2 and 7 are equally stunning in green - in recognition of the number '27' he carried on his race car on the way to his first IndyCar Series title and his 'Indy 500' victory in 2007. "This was a project I took extremely seriously but simply had a lot of fun doing," Franchitti stated. "I think the end result is amazing and perfectly reflects in its design elements the key associations in my career. The colors and numbers highlighted are easily identifiable to my fans but equally I just think it's a great looking watch. It was a privilege to work with Ton (Cobelens) and TW Steel as it was fascinating to be involved in the design process - not least for an ardent watch lover like myself. I'm really looking forward to people's reaction while proudly wearing my own edition." *** The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues May 30 with the 2010 Indianapolis 500 Mile Race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at noon (ET) by ABC. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Firestone Freedom 100 on May 28 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway The race will air live on VERSUS By JIM VERTUNO The Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas — Formula One racing is coming back to the United States in 2012 with a long-term deal to race in Austin on a track built specifically for the event. Formula One, city and Texas state officials announced the agreement Tuesday, saying Austin would host the U.S. Grand Prix until 2021. The race was dropped after an eight-year run at Indianapolis Motor Speedway from 2000-07 with mixed results. The most notable blemish occurred in 2005 when 14 of 20 drivers pulled off the track just before the race started as a protest over concerns about tire safety. Formula One president Bernie Ecclestone said the race in the Texas capital would mark the first time a course would be built specifically for an F1 race in the United States. Before its run in Indianapolis, Formula One had been hosted by Long Beach, Las Vegas, Detroit, Dallas and Phoenix on city street circuits. The race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway was run on a road course built inside the oval track. Tavo Hellmund, managing partner of race promoter Full Throttle Productions, said the Austin track and grandstand would be built "within 10 miles" of the Austin airport. Hellmund said the track will be at least 3 miles long. He declined to release further details, including the size of the grandstand and total cost. Austin city officials and Texas Comptroller Susan Combs helped promoters pitch the location. Hellmund said the facility would be privately financed and will not use public money. "The visibility and prestige of this event will spotlight our state on an international stage," Combs said in a statement. Austin, with a metro area population of about 1.7 million, is a three-hour drive or less from Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. Hellmund said Austin had to compete with interest for the race "from New York to Miami." "The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is proud of having been host to the United States Grand Prix from 2000 to 2007, and we were pleased to have some of the largest Formula One crowds in the world," speedway vice president for communications Fred Nation said in a statement. "Since 2007, we have been asked many times about having Formula One return, and our answer has been the same each time: If the business deal is right, they are welcome back. If such a deal is in place in Austin, we wish both the city and Formula One success for a race in the United States." Formula One has been hot and cold on the desire to even hold a race in the United States. In 2007, Ecclestone made fans angry when he said Formula One didn't need an American race, even though the U.S. Grand Prix consistently drew one of the biggest crowds on the circuit, attracting about 125,000 fans each year. In March, Ecclestone told Italian media he wanted a race in New York City. Formula One officials who visited Austin were impressed with the city and the plan to build a Grand Prix-specific course, Hellmund said. "You don't put Austin in same sentence as Monaco or Singapore, but everyone was blown away," Hellmund said. "Austin has grown up ... I think they fell in love with the city. It isn't a one-trick pony where we're going to set up a street course." Formula One officials have not yet set a date for the 2012 race. Newton, Iowa……. MOPAR USAC NATIONAL MIDGET RACE RESULTS: May 22, 2010 – Newton, Iowa – Iowa Speedway – Casey’s General Stores USAC Triple Crown “Pride of Iowa” QUALIFICATIONS: 1. Bobby Santos III, 98, Santos-22.997; 2. Darren Hagen, 3, RFMS-23.094; 3. Caleb Armstrong, 7A, C & A-23,405; 4. Brad Sweet, 49, Kahne/Curb-23.441; 5. Chuck Gurney Jr., 41, DMS-23.466; 6. Henry Clarke, 67, Kunz-23.520; 7. David Byrne, 20D, Byrne-23.534; 8. Brad Kuhn, 17B, RW-23.538; 9. Bryan Clauson, 39, Tucker/Kunz/BCI-23.632; 10. Daniel Bedford, 11D, DMS-23.634; 11. Alex Bowman, 55, Cline-23.707; 12. Jerry Coons Jr., 11, Wilke-Pak-23.712; 13. Zach Daum, 5, Daum-23.817; 14. Tracy Hines, 24, Parker-23.836; 15. Levi Roberts, 2D, Roberts-23.837; 16. Mario Clouser, 06, Clouser-23.895; 17. Shane Hmiel, 56, 56 Inc.-23.923; 18. Adam Kramer, 2, Kramer-23.926; 19. Dave Darland, 71, Kunz-23.933; 20. Bobby East, 4, Klatt-24.110; 21. Cale Conley, 3c, Conley-24.141; 22. Chase Scott, 14, Real Race Cars-NT. AMSOIL USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR RACE RESULTS: May 22, 2010 – Newton, Iowa – Iowa Speedway – Casey’s General Stores USAC Triple Crown “Pride of Iowa” QUALIFICATIONS: 1. Shane Hmiel, 17s, RWB-21.510; 2. Henry Clarke, 67, Kunz-21.537; 3. Bryan Clauson, 2B, RWB-21.642; 4. Levi Jones, 20, Stewart-21.857; 5. Bobby Santos III, 98, Santos-21.871; 6. Tracy Hines, 2v, Vance-21.921; 7. Chris Windom, 11, Walker-21.988; 8. Jerry Coons Jr., 69, Dynamics-22.031; 9. Jacob Wilson, 07, WBR/Team 6R-22.051; 10. Tanner Swanson, 17, TK-22.069; 11. Kody Swanson, 75, TK-22.082; 12. A.J. Fike, 3, RFMS-22.107; 13. Damion Gardner, 71, DG-22.200; 14. Bobby East, 5, Klatt-22.531; 15. JoJo Helberg, 7, Helberg-22.918; 16. Ricky Williams, 11w, Williams-23.112; 17. Scott Pierovich, 14x, Pierson-23.116; 18. Coleman Gulick, 14, Gulick-NT. USAC SILVER CROWN CHAMPIONSHIP RACE RESULTS: May 22, 2010 – Newton, Iowa – Iowa Speedway – Casey’s General Stores USAC Triple Crown “Pride of Iowa” QUALIFICATIONS: 1. Bobby East, 6, Klatt-22.028; 2. Brad Sweet, 67, Zarounian-22.228; 3. Shane Hmiel, 17, RW-22.240; 4. A.J. Fike, 3, RFMS-22.406; 5. Russ Gamester, 51, Gamester-22.472; 6. Zach Daum, 50, Daum-22.508; 7. Brian Tyler, 21, Team 6R-22.573; 8. Levi Jones, 10, Stewart/Curb Agajanian-22.627; 9. Jacob Wilson, 07, WBR/Team 6R-22.661; 10. Bud Kaeding, 29, BK-22.663; 11. Shane Hollingsworth, 20, Nolen-22.770; 12. Jerry Coons Jr., 27, RW-22.780; 13. Kody Swanson, 19, Team 6R-22.814; 14. Tracy Hines, 25, Vance-22.822; 15. Bobby Santos III, 199, Edwards/RE-22.886; 16. Scott Pierovich, 28, Pierson-22.911; 17. Bryan Clauson, 22, Stewart/Curb Agajanian-23.037; 18. Jeff Mitrisin, 46, Mitrisin-23.562; 19. Justin Carver, 991, Edwards/RE-23.635; 20. Derek Hagar, 91, Edwards/RE-23.670; 21. Coleman 1. Firestone Indy Lights drivers go to class before Open Test 2. Schmidt participates in hot air balloon race 3. Hang with Marco Andretti and Al Unser Jr. "It's huge," said the rookie driver from France, who leads the Firestone Indy Lights point standings. "It's very impressive. I've never seen speedway with such long straights. I'm sure it will look much different in my race car." Vernay - along with rookies Dan Clarke, Adrian Campos Jr., Stefan Wilson and Philip Major and veteran James Hinchcliffe, Brandon Wagner and Pippa Mann spent the afternoon of May 13 learning the intricacies of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway from Indianapolis 500 winners Johnny Rutherford and Al Unser Jr., and Indianapolis 500 veterans Davey Hamilton and Vitor Meira. While the mode of transportation - a pair of Chevrolet Impalas - doesn't necessarily compare to the single-seat Firestone Indy Lights car, the information gained from the recon laps applies. "The car was not fast enough to get the true feeling of Turn 1," Vernay said. "But I really have to give thanks to Vitor Meira and Al Unser for giving us all of this advice." The group -- along with other drivers who will compete in the Firestone Freedom 100 on May 28 - will get to apply that advice on May 14 when they take to the track for a one-day Open Test on the Speedway in preparations the biggest race on the Firestone Indy Lights calendar. "It's a very important test day for me because I haven't had the opportunity to test on an oval this year with Team Moore Racing," said James Hinchcliffe, who won the last Firestone Indy Lights race at Long Beach. "I'm anxious to get on a oval and also start preparations for our biggest race. Hopefully we can a lot of laps in." 2. Schmidt participates in hot air balloon race: Sam Schmidt has flown in a stunt plane, manned an adaptive sailboat, scuba dived and, of course, has competed in IZOD IndyCar Series races. On May 9, he glided across Central Indiana in a hot air balloon. The Sam Schmidt Paralysis Foundation, founded by Indianapolis 500 veteran and Firestone Indy Lights/Indianapolis 500 team owner Schmidt, sponsored a balloon piloted by Al Hansen in the Centennial Era Balloon Festival presented by AT&T. Hansen, of Winamac, Ind., has a wheelchair-accessible balloon in which he gives rides throughout the year to guests with disabilities. The race, rescheduled from May 8 because of high winds, used the "hare and hound" format in which competitors followed the lead AT&T balloon (the hare), with the balloonist who tossed a beanbag closest to the hare's landing zone winning. Michigan balloonist David Jacques won with a distance of 2 feet, 4 inches. Sam Schmidt Motorsports will have four cars entered in the Firestone Freedom 100 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on May 28, and has entered the Indianapolis 500 with driver Townsend Bell in an association with Chip Ganassi Racing. 3. Hang with Marco Andretti and Al Unser Jr.: Andretti Autosport driver Marco Andretti will greet fans May 18 at the Meijer at 10841 Rockville Road in Avon, Ind., from 7:30-8:30 p.m. (ET). Two-time Indianapolis 500 champion Al Unser Jr. will sign autographs from 10-11:30 a.m. May 15 at the AutoZone (3710 N. Moller Road in Indianapolis). Fans also are invited to an IZOD IndyCar Series driver autograph session starting at 6 p.m. May 14 at the Macy's in Castleton Square Mall in Indianapolis. 4. Patrick among most marketable: Andertti Autosport's Danica Patrick is among the top 30 most marketable athletes in the world (one of 17 Americans), according to the SportsPro trade publication. Lebron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers is ranked first. … Dad's Root Beer, with headquarters in Jasper, Ind., will be the primary sponsor on the No. 24 Dreyer & Reinbold Racing car driven by Mike Conway in the Indianapolis 500 Longtime Oswego supermodified fan Mancel Davis passes away Cornelius, N.C. – When Oswego Speedway swings its gates open for the Burritt Motors / Syracuse Post-Standard 60th season opener this Saturday, it will be without a devoted supermodified fan from Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. Longtime Oswego fan Mancel Davis (1933-2010) passed away on Sunday, May 2, not long after he and his wife, Betty, traveled to Oswego to purchase their 2010 season tickets. Shortly after purchasing the tickets, while still in the states, Davis became ill and was flown home to Ontario before passing away. Former Oswego track manager Dick O’Brien says Davis saw every International Classic from 1960 to 2009 and that Mancel and his wife rarely missed a weekly Oswego race. The couple also spent their honeymoon at the lakeside oval some years back. Davis’s obituary read that “he enjoyed traveling to Oswego, New York, and many other places to watch car racing.” Mancel’s many friends who sat around him near Oswego’s start/finish line will surely miss their fellow supermodified devotee when the new season kicks off this Saturday. Press written by Keith Shampine. Contact Keith at 315-657-2207 or e-mail theracerwriter@gmail.com May 11 2010 THE TIN MAN WINS A SQUEAKER AT ROCKY MOUNTAIN SPEEDWAY Congratulations to Bob Brewer for a well-deserved win at Rocky Mountain Speedway on Saturday night. If my facts are right, he is the oldest driver to win a USAC Focus Main Event, and he pulled it off coming off turn four in the second (and last) green/white/checker event of the night. As the registration time of 11:30 approached, many of us standing in line wouldn't have given a plug nickel that the race would be able to run as it was overcast with a cold win blowing, but by the time we unloaded in the pits, the sun began peeking through and it warmed up nicely until the sun set. Unfortunately, the evening was a crash-fest as far as the Focus program was concerned, beginning in the second heat, when Austin Luttmer spun coming out of turn two, directly in front of Gregg Fuette, who, according to eye witnesses, put on one of the best aerial aerobatic shows they had seen in a long while. It was scary for all of us as we waited for a long while for the EMTs to open the ambulance doors, and then it was decided to put him onto a back board and transfer him to a local hospital for observations and x-rays. Fortunately all of our prayers were answered and nothing was broken and "Flipper" (the name he has embroidered upside down on the back of his uniform) walked back into the pits before the night was over. As I was pulling out of the pits, he came over with his usual message, "I'll call you tomorrow to make sure you're all right." He always calls the old man a few times a day when I'm on the road, only this time it was me worrying about him. As it was, he was in a world of hurt, but cut back half-way on his pain pills and made it to work today. He's a lot tougher than the old man is. Wendy Luttmer, Austin's seven-month pregnant wife) took off her pretty maternity blouse and replaced it with a "T" shirt to get her hands dirty helping replace the front bumper and other bent and broken pieces to help Austin get back out for the main event where he finished in fourth place. Only eleven cars were able to take the green flag for the main event which saw enough carnage itself. Chuck Groat led the first lap. He was overtaken on lap two by Ron Duncombe who passed the baton to Kipp Posey for one lap before moving back into the lead for the next two circuits until Kipp got past him again and held the lead through lap 19. Unfortunately, Kipp and Chuck Groat got together and Kipp ended up in the turn two wall. On the restart, Jeff Kelley and Ron Duncombe got together at the flag stand. As the black cars were bouncing off the wall, I turned left and took a swath of grass out of the infield, hoping that Chuck wasn't trying to get by me on the inside at the same time. The red flag came out as Ron got upside down. I spoke to him after wards and he told me that it seemed to take forever as he slid down the track. "I knew the wall was there somewhere, but I thought I'd never stop sliding. Then, BOOM, I found it." I spoke to him on the phone today and he told me that he feels like he was run over by one of the monster trucks that he races --- but--- like Gregg, except for the pain he's all right. "This will be a green/white/checkered finish," the USAC official told us over the radio. As we were going into turn one I saw Connor Kassik spinning in front of me as one of his rear wheels came off, bringing out the yellow flag again, and the admonition from the officials that they would try for a green/white/checker one more time. This time it worked, and Mike Daniels took the lead for lap 20 with Brewer breathing down his exhaust stacks. Mike took the inside line coming through turns three and four and Brewer, not to be a bridesmaid again, made a banzai pass to the outside, taking the win by .051 seconds, and you can't get much closer than that. While we're on the subject of the Salt Lake City USAC Focus Series, I want to mention a new driver to the series this year. Over the past six years that I've been writing this column, I've enjoyed writing about many young drivers, and for the most part the story line fits a profile something like: How old are you? Sixteen (or something like that) When I was five (or six, or seven) In other words, half their lives. When asked if they've ever won any races, the answer is also usually the same with "some" or "a few" or "quite a few" etc. Now don't get me wrong. I really enjoy meeting these young people, getting to know them, competing against them and watching them as they progress up the ladder to their goal --- the brass ring. The last question I ask of them is usually, "what do you want to be when you grow up?", and the answer is invariably, "A race driver," and in my heart of hearts I wish they could all attain their goals. I have met and reported on some of the older drivers, those who know that they're too old to move up the ladder, but most of them have also driven other types of race cars at one time or other. jr So, it was quite refreshing to meet Terra Brower, a 20-year old who attends a local community college with dreams of eventually making her career in education. Terra is a real delight around the pit area, as she really loves racing. I first saw her at Havasu 95 Speedway a month or so ago and she impressed me then. Not that she was fast, as it was her first time in any sort of race car, but that she was steady, held her line, and never drove over her head. Her next time in the car was at the Bull Ring at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where once again she was able to hold her line, but she had picked the pace up quite a bit, and there was no question in anyone's mind that before long she will be a driver to be reckoned with. This past Saturday at Rocky Mountain Raceway she picked it up another notch --- and still ran a good line and kept her nose out of trouble. I'm not the only one who she has impressed. Everyone I have spoken to, drivers, owners, pit crew members and officials, have all been impressed by her. Her excitement at driving a race car is contagious and after the races on Saturday night she was on cloud nine after finishing sixth. She again impressed us all as she congratulated Brewer on his win, and then sought out the drivers who had been involved in accidents to check on how they were feeling. I wish we had more drivers of her character and enthusiasm, people who are racing for the shear thrill of driving fast. In other racing action over the weekend, in spite of inclement weather across a lot of the country, USAC did manage to get the Hut Hundred midget show in, and it was won by friend Bryan Clauson who has had a phenomenal past twelve months. He won the Belleville Nationals last year, followed by a win on Turkey Night. He followed those wins with a great run at the Hut Hundred where he set a new track record in qualifying and then swapped the lead in the hundred lapper with Brad Kuhn before crossing the finish line first. As this is being written, Bryan is now tied for second place with Tracy Hines in the National Midget standings, just 22 points behind Bobby East and nine points ahead of Dave Darland in a hotly contested series. Thirty five midgets were on hand, including friends Alex Bowman who qualified 28th, Tommy Meseraull who timed in eighth quick, Daniel Adler who timed 23rd, and Travis Berryhill who crossed the timing light in 32nd spot. Now, when you figure that 28 cars were within a second of Bryan Clauson who set a new track record, you just know that the competition was pretty fierce. It was nice to see that young Alex Bowman won his first National Midget event - the first heat. He started in 10th spot and went on for the win after trading slide jobs with Brad Loyet for much of the race. I also learned that Alex was up as high as fifth in the main event until a muffler came apart, puncturing his left rear tire and he lost two laps getting a new tire put on. This weekend will be a busy one for the old man, as we'll be running the Chevy at Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, CA. on Friday night, and then the Focus at All American Raceway in Roseville on Saturday. That is if the snow stops and I can get both of the cars finished and into the trailer --- and if the passes over the Sierras open up so we can drive over them. Until next week you can e-mail me at: jrw-jnw@sbcglobal.net. Should I have said Cools down? Bloomington, IN……..Rain halted Friday night’s “Larry Rice Classic” USAC AMSOIL National Sprint car race at the Bloomington Speedway after qualification and the first heat had been completed. Danny Holtsclaw posted the fastest qualifying time at 11.213 seconds and won the only completed heat race. The second heat race participants were on the track when the rains came. The USAC AMSOIL National Sprint cars now prepare for next Wednesday night’s “Coca-Cola Spring Classic” at the Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio AMSOIL USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR SERIES RACE RESULTS: May 7, 2010 – Bloomington, Indiana – Bloomington Speedway – “Larry Rice Classic” QUALIFICATIONS: 1. Danny Holtsclaw, 3, Holtsclaw-11.213; 2. Jon Stanbrough, 53, Fox-11.230; 3. Bryan Clauson, 2B, RWB-11.354; 4. Jonathan Hendrick, 68, Hendrick-11.432; 5. Chris Windom, 11, Walker-11.433; 6. Eric Smith, 14, Smith-11.527; 7. Kurt Gross, 1x, Gross-11.554; 8. Hunter Schuerenberg, 2, Epperson-11.570; 9. Blake Fitzpatrick, 10F, Fitzpatrick-11.572; 10. Ty Deckard, 48, Deckard-11.572; 11. Levi Jones, 20, Stewart-11.583; 12. Jerry Coons Jr., 69, Dynamics-11.598; 13. Dave Darland, 67k, Kunz-11.613; 14. Chris Babcock, 35, Babcock-11.680; 15. Brady Short, 36, Short-11.697; 16. Jesse Cramer, 12T, Cramer-11.700; 17. Tracy Hines, 4, Hines-11.715; 18. Dickie Gaines, 21x, Roberts/Tate-11.751; 19. Kent Christian, 1c, Christian-11.755; 20. Jeff Bland Jr., 38s, Bland-11.756; 21. Bobby East, 5, Klatt-11.769; 22. Shane Hmiel, 17s, 56 Inc.-11.773; 23. Jeff Wimmenauer, 15J, Wimmenauer-11.802; 24. Jared Harris, 81H, Harris-11.817; 25. Damion Gardner, 71, DG-11.896; 26. Henry Clarke, 67, FIRST HEAT: (10 laps - no points) 1. Holtsclaw, 2. East, 3. Windom, 4. Gardner, 5. Hines, 6. Darland, 7. Riggs, 8. Fitzpatrick, 9. Cummins. BALANCE OF PROGRAM RAINED OUT IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines: 1. Future IZOD IndyCar Series stars get ready for Night Before 500 2. Plowman races on foot before racing car at Indy 3. Will No. 4 be lucky for Wheldon? 1. Future IZOD IndyCar Series stars get ready for Night Before 500: Young drivers who hope to race in the Indianapolis 500 in the near future got their first taste of driving on an oval track not far from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Drivers from Cooper Tires Presents the US F2000 National Championship Powered by Mazda and the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear tested May 5-6 at O'Reilly Raceway Park in Clermont, Ind. Conor Daly, son of six-time Indianapolis 500 starter Derek Daly, led the two days of testing for Star Mazda with a lap at 20.1 seconds, unofficially faster than the existing track record, for NASCAR or USAC events. Cape Motorsports rookie Patrick McKenna and Andretti Autosport driver Sage Karam led much of the testing sessions for the USF2000 cars. "It's been a really good two days test session," said Star Mazda president Gary Rodrigues. "We can't wait to come back here at the end of the month and put on a great show for the fans here in Indianapolis." 2. Plowman races on foot before racing car at Indy: Firestone Indy Lights driver Martin Plowman will run a lap around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway before he has a chance to drive his race car around the 2.5-mile oval. The AFS Racing Andretti Autosport driver, along with IZOD IndyCar Series drivers Vitor Meira and Mike Conway, is expected to be among of the 35,000 runners competing in the 34th OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini Marathon on May 8. The 13.1-mile course includes a lap around the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway. "I've run a mini-marathon before, but I won't be competing in this race to go for my personal best time," Plowman said. "I'm running this with (girlfriend and current Miss Indiana) Nicole (Pollard) and will be helping her get to the finish line in her first Mini Marathon." 3. Will No. 4 be lucky for Wheldon?: Dan Wheldon may be the beneficiary of Super Saver's win in the 136th Kentucky Derby. Super Saver carried No. 4 when he won the May 1 horse race, the same number as Wheldon's National Guard Panther Racing Honda-powered Dallara will carry at the end of the month in the Indianapolis 500. Wheldon, who is one of the most superstitious drivers in the IZOD IndyCar Series, doesn't see that as a karmic sign, but since 1911 the Derby and Indianapolis 500 winners have shared the same number eight times: Year Derby winner Indianapolis 500 winner Number 1915 Regret Ralph De Palma 2 1940 Gallahadion Wilbur Shaw 1 1970 Dust Commander Al Unser 2 1976 Bold Forbes Johnny Rutherford 2 1978 Affirmed Al Unser 2 1997 Silver Charm Arie Luyendyk 5 2003 Funny Cide Gil de Ferran 6 2004 Smarty Jones Buddy Rice 15 The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues May 30 with the 2010 Indianapolis 500 Mile Race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at noon (ET) by ABC. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Firestone Freedom 100 on May 28 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway The race will air live on VERSUS ROSSBURG, OH – Eldora Speedway’s rescheduled Coca Cola Spring Classic event for USAC (United States Auto Club) Sprint Cars continues to gain in momentum. Set for Wednesday, May 12, track owner and two-time NASCAR Cup champion, Tony Stewart previously announced a lowering of the general admission to $10 and that he will participate in a rare pre-race autograph session. Since that announcement, Stewart, one of a handful drivers who has won championships in each of USAC’s premier divisions, has welcomed two additionIZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines: 1. IZOD IndyCar Series Q &A - Paul Tracy, Barry Green, Jimmy Vasser 2. Meira jumps from race car to triathlon 3. Franchitti Joins Forces With VisitScotland To Launch Personalized Driving Itineraries For Scotland Tourism: 1. IZOD IndyCar Series Q &A - Paul Tracy, Barry Green, Jimmy Vasser: IZOD IndyCar Series driver Paul Tracy, KV Racing Technology co-owner Jimmy Vasser and GEICO-KV Racing race strategis Barry Green participated in a Q&A session. Below are select quotes from the interview. The complete transcript and audio MP3 file are posted at www.indycar.com/media. Paul Tracy · 41-year-old native of Scarborough, Ontario competing in his fourth season in the IZOD IndyCar Series in 2010. · Will drive the No. 15 GEICO-KV Racing Technology car for KV Racing Technology at the Indianapolis 500. · Has two top-five finishes and five top-10 finishes in eight IZOD IndyCar Series starts. Q. First for Paul, talk about yesterday's announcement that you would be working with Barry Green in the 2010 Indy 500. Was it as simple as making a call and saying, "Let's get this band back together?" PAUL TRACY: Well, it really kind of was. Obviously, Jimmy and I have been discussing what our plans have been, are going to be, since the last 500 last year. Obviously, Jimmy and I talk daily, multiple times a day, living in the same town (Las Vegas). Jimmy's concerns coming into this year's race with three young drivers is that he wanted to keep a more watchful eye on those three guys and felt that if there was anybody out there that could help us with our program, that we should explore that. Obviously, I reached out to Barry and proposed that question to him. At first I think he was caught a bit off guard. I think he may have been laying out on his boat suntanning. I think I caught him off guard. He called me back the next day and said, "I'm in, so let's go." Q. Paul, how difficult is it for you to not race this year to get in a car and drive it and be ready to go? PAUL TRACY: Well, I feel this year I'm more prepared than I was last year. Obviously, you know, last year the deal to run Indy kind of happened kind of last minute, about a month before. At this point right now versus where I was last year, I'm about 35 pounds lighter than I was last year. I've been training. I've had this whole winter to get ready for it. Really that's all I can do other than driving the car. I feel I'm ready to go. Obviously I'll have to use my experience and knowledge of being in the car, being on the tracks to my advantage. That's all I can really do. Q. What are you doing training-wise? 35 pounds is a noticeable difference. What have you been doing in the off season? PAUL TRACY: Well, I really started, to be honest, about eight weeks ago. I've been pretty busy in the off-season. I've been filming a TV show for SPEED Channel. It's a car driving show, a high-end kind of super car show. That's kind of been keeping me busy. They had sent me some raw footage to watch from one of the first episodes we filmed. I saw myself on TV and I said, 'I got to lose some weight.' You know, I just started riding my bike, going to the gym. I hooked up with the trainer that I had in 2003 when I won the championship. Really just been putting in about two, two and a half hours on the bike in the morning, training with a trainer in the afternoon for an hour and a half. Really just watching what I eat. Q. That's 35 pounds in eight weeks or is that from last season? PAUL TRACY: Eight weeks. Q. Barry, you do have quite a successful résumé at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the 1995 win with Jacques Villeneuve. Came back in 2002 with Paul and Team Green. Then in 2006 you came back with Michael Andretti and nearly won the race. What is it about Indy that keeps bringing you back? BARRY GREEN: It's just the Indy 500. It's such a challenge, such a great challenge. To be honest, I missed IndyCar racing dearly. I'm not very involved at the moment. Paul called me. When we first chatted about it, I first had a bit of a conflict. But once Paul laid out what Jimmy had lined up team-wise, I really thought these guys are really serious, and it would be a great opportunity for me to come back and hopefully enjoy myself and work for Paul again. I've never worked with Jimmy Vasser himself. I've raced against him on many occasions. We've been great friends. But if you look at the team he's put together, the engineering staff, his team manager, these guys are very, very serious. I think if you look back at last year's 500, they had a really good run. Paul might have finished even further up towards the front last year had he not had a bit of an incident with the car. You know, everything seemed to line up. It sounded exciting. So I'm in. Q. Barry, I know in the last couple years you came back and did one-offs when it was still AGR. The car has been the same since '03 with the exception of a few little tweaks here and there. How much has that helped you get your own thought process back up to speed in calling race strategy at the speedway? BARRY GREEN: No big difference helps a little bit. But I'm just sort of the team leader in the group, you know. It's the engineers that have to keep up with all that. I certainly don't get involved in the nuts and bolts. I listen to everything being discussed between the engineers. I'm in every meeting between the engineers and Paul and the team meetings. I might pick up on something that might help, a suggestion one way or the other. But the engineers are the guys that make the decisions, put the tweaks on, figure out how they can make him more comfortable. I think probably more importantly is Paul, Paul and Barry Green's relationship. We've had some great times together, great laughs. We've been through some tough times together which made us better friends and stronger friends. To me that's the easy part. I think that would be difficult going back and jumping in with a driver that I did not know. I know John Dick very well. He worked for me. Terrific guy. Terrific friend. Jimmy, I've raced against. I think my comfort is with the people and I feel very comfortable about that. Q. I know the first time you came back there after '02 you said there's times people have a tendency to put too much emphasis on it. You'd like to remember '95 when you helped Jacques Villeneuve come back and win the race. BARRY GREEN: That was a great race, a great one to remember for me. I have to go back to that was a team effort. The amount of talk that went amongst the group in the pits to come up with a plan and to keep Jacques focused. That's my specialty, are the people. I think the engineering side we'll leave up to the engineers, and Paul and I will try to mold together and work with the group and see what we can come up with. Q And, Jimmy, you went from one to three cars for the start of the 2010 season. Does adding that fourth car put any strain on the KV Racing Technology? JIMMY VASSER: We ran three cars at Indianapolis last year. Things went pretty smoothly. I have all the confidence in the world of Mark Johnson and Dave Brzozowski over there. They tell me what's possible and what's not. They said, "Hey, we can do this, we can do it well." Especially with it being P.T., he brings a wealth of experience to the table. We have some young guys, a rookie. Mario (Moraes) did a fantastic job last year. I think with EJ (Viso), everybody working together, the group of engineers that we have, I think it only strengthens our possibility to have one of those cars win the race. 2. Meira jumps from race car to triathlon: Twelve hours after scoring a 10th-place finish in the Road Runner Turbo Indy 300 at Kansas Speedway, IZOD IndyCar Series driver Vitor Meira made his way to the staging area of the Mack Cycle Tri-Miami Olympic Triathlon in Key Biscayne, Fla. The A.J. Foyt Racing driver decided to compete in a triathlon consisting of a 1.5-kilometer swim, 40-kilometer bike ride and 10-kilometer run the morning after putting in 200 physically demanding laps against 26 competitors on a high-banked 1.5-mile oval. "I knew this triathlon was going to happen and it could be a possibility," said Meira, who competed in a triathlon earlier this year in Chile. "But my priorities are very clear. Racing is first above all, always. So I didn't really think about it much. Since I left the car physically good, I thought to myself, 'Why not do it?' They were still accepting entrants until Saturday at midnight so I enrolled myself (online). "When the alarm clock went off (at 4:30 a.m.), I thought, 'This is not a good idea.' But I had it set in my mind that I was going to do it and that was the end of it." Meira finished 33rd overall and fourth in his age division (30-33) after completing the 1.5-kilometer swim in 28 minutes, 12 seconds; the 40k bike in 1 hour, 5 minutes, 44 seconds; and the 10k run in 47 minutes, 50 seconds. "Where it really it hit me was on the last 5k of my run, and by then I was really tired, and thought to myself, 'What the hell am I doing here?' '' he said. "When I got back home, I was wasted for the rest of the weekend. I didn't do anything, just watched TV on the couch. "I placed really good in my category though so it was fun." 3. Franchitti Joins Forces With VisitScotland To Launch Personalized Driving Itineraries For Scotland Tourism: Two-time IZOD IndyCar Series champion Dario Franchitti has teamed up with Scotland's national tourism organization VisitScotland to launch "Dario Franchitti's Great Drives" three car-touring itineraries highlighting routes from Edinburgh to Inverness, the West Coast and Far North and the South of Scotland. Written by Franchitti, the driving itineraries will target visitors from the U.S. and Canada interested in traveling in the tire tracks of the 2007 Indianapolis 500 winner. "Scotland is my home and these are some of the roads I grew up on, so it's an honor for me to share the breathtaking views, the off-the-beaten-path sites and some of the rich tradition of our great country," Franchitti said. "I'm very excited to share these scenic drives with visitors looking to tour Scotland by car. The moment I have a break in my IndyCar racing schedule, I fly back to Scotland and quite often jump in my car and drive around the country on the same roads and routes that VisitScotland and I have showcased in these itineraries." The car-touring itineraries are being promoted on the VisitScotland home pages at www.cometoscotland.com and www.cometoscotland.ca. They will also appear in several American and Canadian travel e-newsletters.. Baltes, the founder and builder of Eldora Speedway, needs no introduction. Recognized as the P.T. Barnum of auto racing, Baltes’ firm hand guided Eldora into prominence and first introduced USAC to the western side of Ohio back in 1962. That started a storied trend that found many Indy 500 bound drivers competing on Eldora’s famed high banks. One of those drivers that completely reshaped the Eldora history books was Jack Hewitt from nearby Troy, Ohio. Quickly earning the moniker as ‘Eldora’s favorite son’, Hewitt sits comfortably on top of the all-time USAC win list at Eldora with 13 wins. The closest active driver to that total is Tracy Hines with 7 wins to his credit. Hewitt, who many times bounced off the Eldora walls en route to victory, is best remembered for his stellar 1998 performance that found him winning all four legs of the annual Four Crown Nationals. Celebrated writer Dave Argabright, who has had the privilege of putting together intriguing books about the careers of Baltes and Hewitt, will be on hand as well, with copies of the books for the fans to purchase and have autographed. Stewart will begin his autograph session at 3:15, to allow time to prep for another busy night of racing at Eldora. Since assuming ownership of the facility from Baltes in 2005, the popular Indiana native has participated in Sprint and Late Model racing at Eldora, and has picked up wins in each, but on May 12 he will turn another page with a run with the UMP (United Midwestern Promoters) Modifieds. Baltes and Hewitt will welcome race fans from 5:00 until 6:30, at which time the action will turn to the race track for hot laps and time trials. The first green flag of racing action is set to fall at 7:30 PM INDIANAPOLIS, Wednesday, May 5, 2010 – Talented young star Graham Rahal will team up with his father, 1986 Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Rahal, for the first time in an IZOD IndyCar Series car in the 2010 edition of “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.” Graham Rahal, from New Albany, Ohio, will drive the No. 30 Rahal Letterman Racing entry. The younger Rahal, 21, will attempt to make his third career Indianapolis 500 start on Sunday, May 30 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. “I am extremely excited to be racing with my father and with this team,” Graham Rahal said. “I have known a lot of the guys on this team since I was very young, and to go after the dream of winning Indianapolis with them means a lot to me and my family. I know we can put together a quality effort, and we expect to be competitive.” Graham Rahal drove for Newman/Haas Racing in 2008 and 2009 at Indy, with a best start of fourth last year. He is the youngest driver to win an IZOD IndyCar Series race, triumphing at age 19 in 2008 at St. Petersburg, Fla. Rahal’s father finished in the top 10 seven times in 13 career starts at Indy from 1982-95, including his emotional 1986 victory. Bobby Rahal also is a three-time national champion. “I am thrilled that Graham is joining us for the Indianapolis 500,” Bobby Rahal said. “To have watched his career grow from the first day in karts and now to be there side-by-side with him as he tries to win Indy for himself and for our team is a dream come true for me.” While this is Graham Rahal’s first IZOD IndyCar Series start with his father’s team, he has raced for RLR in its sports car program. RLR, which is co-owned by television icon David Letterman, has enjoyed recent success at Indianapolis. Buddy Rice won the race from the pole in 2004, and Danica Patrick and Ryan Hunter-Reay earned Chase Rookie of the Year honors in RLR machines in 2005 and 2008, respectively. 2010 Indy 500 tickets: Tickets for the 2010 Indianapolis 500, scheduled for Sunday, May 30, are on sale now. Race Day ticket prices start at just $20. Fans can order tickets online at www.imstix.com, call the IMS ticket office at (317) 492-6700, or (800) 822-INDY outside the Indianapolis area or visit the ticket office at the IMS Administration Building at the corner of Georgetown Road and 16th Street. Online orders can be made at any time. Hours for phone orders and the ticket office are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET) Monday-Friday. Tickets for groups of 20 or more also are on sale. Contact the IMS Group Sales Department at (866) 221-8775 for more information. “LARRY RICE CLASSIC” FRIDAY AT BLOOMINGTON The USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Cars head for Bloomington (Ind.) Speedway Friday night for the “Larry Rice Classic” following Saturday night’s rainout at Lincoln Park Speedway in Putnamville, Ind. The past seven USAC Sprint races at Bloomington have yielded seven different winners, five of whom are expected to be in Friday’s field. Included are 2009 winner Bryan Clauson, 2008 winner Jerry Coons Jr., 2007 winner Dave Darland, 2006 winner Brady Short and 2005 winner Tracy Hines. Drivers will be aiming at J.J. Yeley’s 1-lap USAC Sprint track qualifying record at the quarter-mile dirt Bloomington oval, which he set in 2002 at 11.068 seconds. AMSOIL series point leader Damion Gardner of Concord, Calif. hopes to better last year’s Bloomington finish of 12th in order to retain his lead, which stands at 12 points over Coons heading into Friday’s race. The “Larry Rice Classic,” presented by Indiana Stoneworks, honors the late USAC Silver Crown and Midget Champion who was also the 1979 Indianapolis 500 co-Rookie of the Year. Rice passed away last year following a bout with cancer. USAC/WOMS SERIES DEBUTS MAY 15 AT COLUMBUS, OHIO The 2010 USAC/WOMS Midget Racing Series debuts May 15 with the running of the “Alex Pruett Memorial” race at the Columbus (Ohio) Motor Speedway. The race will offer points toward both the USAC Regional and USAC/WOMS Midget championships. A total of six events plus additional dates currently in the negotiation stage will comprise the 2010 calendar, five of which also afford USAC Regional Midget points. The Wolverine Outlaw Midget Series (WOMS) debuted in 2003 and for three years operated as a “winged” Midget organization. As a cost-cutting measure the wings were removed after the 2005 season. WOMS driving champions have included Gary Harrell (2003), Ike Beasley (2004), Nick Mitchell (2005 and 2006), Chris Hettinger (2007) and Doug Dietsch (2008 and 2009). Dietsch won last year’s title by a single point over Jim Anderson. The same Hoosier DX Regional tire will be utilized by both the USAC Regional and USAC/WOMS Series. These tires can be purchased at East Enterprises at 1187 E. Northfield Drive (Unit D) in Brownsburg, Ind. The phone number at East Enterrpises is 317-852-4411. The 2010 USAC/WOMS Midget schedule is as follows: 1. Kentucky Open Test washed out by weepers 2. Inside the numbers: Kansas 3. Dixon closes in on another record 1. Kentucky Open Test washed out by weepers: Competition is so close in the IZOD IndyCar Series through five races - five drivers representing four teams separated by 38 points in the top five of the standings -- that 14 drivers assembled at Kentucky Speedway May 4 to get a jump on the five remaining 1.5-mile ovals on the schedule (including Kentucky on Sept. 4) even though the next race on the 2010 schedule is the Indianapolis 500 at the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway "Most importantly for all of us it's track time," said Scott Dixon, who extended his IZOD IndyCar Series record to 22 victories May 1 in the Road Runner Turbo Indy 300 at the 1.5-mile Kansas Speedway. "We get so little of it so any time you get a free session on a track that is very useful." Persistent weepers, however, at Kentucky Speedway, caused in part by more than 6 inches of rain over the weekend and overnight May 4, forced cancellation of the IZOD IndyCar Series test the 1.5-mile oval. "It's a difficult decision to cancel the test," Indy Racing League president of competition and racing operations Brian Barnhart said. "You have a beautiful day and it's a shame we can't be on track. It's not worth the risk right now. There's no upside to it at all. The (track) conditions aren't what they need to be to go out and run the race cars and learn what the teams here need to learn." Seven Firestone Indy Lights rookies were on the track May 3 for an oval orientation/test, but that session was delayed more than five hours because of track conditions. "It's disappointing to not be able to drive the Verizon Team Penske car, but if you can't run safely it's not worth running," IZOD IndyCar Series points leader Will Power said. "I don't think the running we would have done here would have translated to Indy, but it would have been more experience for me and it would have been good to get some oval testing in." Added Target Chip Ganassi Racing's Dario Franchitti, the reigning IZOD IndyCar Series champion: "It is disappointing, but you have to think safety first. The track is wet in a lot of places and you can't run the normal line, so you're not going to learn much. Hopefully (the IRL) will give us an alternative, either some tires to get private testing some place or another chance to come back here before the race." The Indianapolis Motor Speedway opens May 15 for practice, with the run for the PEAK Performance Pole Award and the first 24 starting positions in the Indianapolis 500 on May 22. 2. Inside the numbers: Kansas: Numbers to note following the Road Runner Turbo Indy 300, the fifth of 17 races in the 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season. 1 - Driver - Helio Castroneves - to finish in the top-10 in every race this season. 4 - Consecutive wins by Target Chip Ganassi Racing at Kansas Speedway (Dan Wheldon 2007-08, Scott Dixon (2009-2010). 6 - Different teams represented in the top 10 at Kansas Speedway. 9 - Different teams represented in the top-15 in IZOD IndyCar Series point standings. 9 - Drivers representing five different teams that have finished on the podium in the first five races this season. 12 -Drivers from seven different teams have recorded at least one top-five finish 17 - Positions improved by fifth-place finisher Ryan Hunter-Reay, the highest number of positions gained by any driver. 18 - Drivers from 10 different teams have recorded at least one top-10 finish. 21 - Consecutive races that Danica Patrick has without a DNF. The IZOD IndyCar Series record is 28 by Scott Dixon. 22 - IZOD IndyCar Series wins by Scott Dixon - extending his series record. 37 - Consecutive top-10 starts for Scott Dixon - extending his IZOD IndyCar Series record. 38 - Points separating the top five in the IZOD IndyCar Series point standings. Will Power is the overall championship points leader and road championship leader. Scott Dixon leads the oval championship. 48 - Total positions gained by the five Andretti Autosport drivers in the race, including Hunter-Reay's 17, Marco Andretti's 13 positions gained and Tony Kanaan's 12 positions gained. 740 - Laps led by Target Chip Ganassi Racing in the last five races at Kansas (74 percent of the 1,000 laps). 3. Dixon closes in on another record:Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti combined to lead more laps (169) in the Road Runner Turbo Indy 300 than they had in the first four races (Dixon 23 and Franchitti 32). Dixon, who led a field-high 167 laps, is 223 laps behind Sam Hornish Jr. (3,428) to become the series' all-time lap leader. "Having a 'perfect car' doesn't happen too often, and it's a great feeling," Dixon said. "For 150 laps or so I was just waiting for something to go wrong with the car. I had to hand it to my crew they made the right calls all day and the pit stops were impeccable. All I can hope is that we keep this momentum rolling through the month of May. I can't wait for the 500." The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues May 30 with the 2010 Indianapolis 500 Mile Race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at noon (ET) by ABC. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Firestone Freedom 100 on May 28 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway The race will air live on VERSUS
WESTERN VICTORIES TO GERHARDT, MULHEARN, WALMER AND JACOBSEN
LATEST ASCS News and Race Reports Round up below
McMillin / Hockett Memorial at the Lake on Saturday for Lucas Oil ASCS!
Lonnie Wheatley, TULSA, Okla. (June 21, 2010) – Jason Johnson has enjoyed his fair share of success, if not more, in the initial three editions of the Daniel McMillin Memorial.
This time he rides a wave of Lucas Oil ASCS presented by K&N Filters momentum into Saturday night’s Daniel McMillin / Jesse Hockett Memorial event atop the semi-banked, 1/3-mile Lake Ozark Speedway dirt oval near Eldon, MO.
Prior to the June 11-12 Lucas Oil ASCS event at Eagle Raceway’s Eagle Nationals in Nebraska, “The Ragin’ Cajun” was 63 points behind Broken Arrow, Oklahoma’s Brady Bacon in the series $60,000 championship points chase.
But, with the 20-year-old Bacon unable to extend his win streak to four or more with Nebraska finishes of ninth and eleventh coupled with Johnson’s runs of fourth and first, Bacon’s advantage in the title chase dwindled to a mere four points over Johnson.
Fresh off his first Lucas Oil ASCS National win of 2010 in the Eagle Nationals finale and another pair of ASCS Regional wins this past weekend, Johnson is three-for-three in previous editions of the Daniel McMillin Memorial, an event that honors McMillin’s cousin, Jesse Hockett, this year as well.
Johnson won the inaugural McMillin Memorial at Double X Raceway in 2007, before capturing the top spot on “The Wrench” podium each of the past two years at Lake Ozark Speedway.
While Johnson and Bacon, the only driver to capture more than one Lucas Oil ASCS National feature win thus far in 2010, are positioned to battle it out for the top spot in points, a number of other drivers will try to gain some ground before the series moves on north to South Dakota and then Northwest to Washington and Oregon in July.
Reigning series champion Shane Stewart of Bixby, OK, enters the weekend third in points, 75 markers off Bacon’s lead pace and just one point ahead of fourth-ranked Tony Bruce, Jr., of Liberal, KS, with Eagle Nationals preliminary winner Danny Wood of Norman, OK, rounding out the current top five.
Arkansas ace Tim Crawley is currently sixth after a pair of Eagle flips, with 20-year-old Nebraska shoe Jack Dover, 2001 ASCS National champ Zach Chappell, California’s Kyle Hirst and 20-year-old Okie Matt Covington rounding out the current top ten in points.
Past series champ Travis Rilat of Forney, TX, and four-time ASCS National champ Gary Wright of Hooks, TX, are just outside the top ten in points, with other Lucas Oil National contenders trying to crack the top ten including Arkansas’ Ricky Logan, Ohio’s Darren Long, Oklahoma’s Dustin Morgan, Washington’s Austen Wheatley, California’s Justyn Cox, Texas’ Channin Tankersley and Oklahoma’s Andrew Marshala.
Hirst, the 22-year-old out of Loomis, CA, holds the early edge in the Brodix Rookie of the Year chase with a 34-point edge over Covington. Others among the stout rookie crop include Morgan, Wheatley, Cox, Tankersley and Marshala.
Saturday’s Daniel McMillin / Jesse Hockett Memorial racing action at Lake Ozark Speedway gets under way at 7:00 p.m.
The Series:
Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters
When & Where:
Saturday night, June 26 at 7:00 p.m. – Lake Ozark Speedway
Track Information:
Lake Ozark Speedway (Eldon, MO) – 1/3-mile semi-banked dirt oval located south of Eldon on US 54 to SR 52, then 0.1 miles east on SR 52, then 0.5 miles north on Twiggy Lane (frontage road). For more information, contact the track at 573-392-9977 or check www.lakeozarkspeedway.com.
Lucas Oil ASCS Lake Ozark Speedway History:
After Shane Stewart and Jesse Hockett swept early editions of the Lake Ozark Speedway Nationals in 2004 and 2005, the Lucas Oil Sprint Cars returned in 2008 with Aaron Berryhill making a last-lap pass of Jason Johnson to win the May event. Johnson got some Lake Ozark redemption in July with a win in the Second Annual McMillin, then outlasted upstart Tommy Bryant to win the Third McMillin last year.
Lake Ozark Speedway ASCS National winners include: Jesse Hockett 2, Jason Johnson 2, Shane Stewart 2, Aaron Berryhill 1.
Lake Ozark Speedway Lucas Oil ASCS Race-by-Race Winners: Shane Stewart (9/4/04), Shane Stewart (9/5/04), Jesse Hockett (9/3/05), Jesse Hockett (9/4/05), Aaron Berryhill (5/3/08), Jason Johnson (7/5/08), Jason Johnson (6/27/09).
Current Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters Points:
Top Twenty: 1. Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, OK) 1,013, 2. Jason Johnson (Eunice, LA) 1,009, 3. Shane Stewart (Bixby, OK) 938, 4. Tony Bruce, Jr. (Liberal, KS) 937, 5. Danny Wood (Norman, OK) 914, 6. Tim Crawley (Benton, AR) 906, 7. Jack Dover (Springfield, NE), 900, 8. Zach Chappell (Talala, OK) 886, 9. Kyle Hirst (Loomis, CA) 860, 10. Matt Covington (Glenpool, OK) 826, 11. Travis Rilat (Forney, TX) 814, 12. Gary Wright (Hooks, TX) 789, 13. Ricky Logan (Little Rock, AR) 764, 14. Darren Long (Elida, OH) 708, 15. Dustin Morgan (Tulsa, OK) 687, 16. Austen Wheatley (Lake Stevens, WA) 681, 17. Justyn Cox (Clarksburg, CA) 667, 18. Channin Tankersley (Highlands, TX) 654, 19. Andrew Marshala (Shawnee, OK) 563, 20. Johnny Herrera (Albuquerque, NM) 501.
Brodix Rookie of the Year Points: 1. Kyle Hirst (Loomis, CA) 860, 2. Matt Covington (Glenpool, OK) 826, 3. Dustin Morgan (Tulsa, OK) 687, 4. Austen Wheatley (Lake Stevens, WA) 681, 5. Justyn Cox (Clarksburg, CA) 667, 6. Channin Tankersley (Highlands, TX) 654, 7. Andrew Marshala (Shawnee, OK) 563.
2010 Lucas Oil Sprint Car Feature Winners:
Brady Bacon 3, Zach Chappell 1, Matt Covington 1, Jason Johnson 1, Sammy Swindell 1, Danny Wood 1.
Lucas Oil Sprint Cars presented by K&N Filters – A Look Ahead:
July 10 – I-90 Speedway (Hartford, SD)
July 16/17 – Grays Harbor Raceway (Elma, WA)
July 23/24 – Cottage Grove Speedway (Cottage Grove, OR)
July 30 – LA Raceway (La Monte, MO)
Those unable to catch all the action in person can listen to every Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters live at www.racinboys.com.
Also, the Lucas Oil ASCS Show airs on www.racinboys.com each Tuesday night at 8:00 p.m. ET, recapping the previous week's events while also previewing upcoming action.
Official results, championship point updates, photos and race notes will be available at www.ascsracing.com.
Lucas Oil Sprint Cars on TV:
The Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters will be featured in ten one-hour shows broadcast on a tape-delayed basis on the VERSUS Network and MavTV.
Events to be aired on VERSUS and MavTV include the following:
Event Date – Track (Location) – VERSUS Air Date & Time (All Times Eastern & Subject to Change):
March 19 – Devil's Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX) – 6/6/10 @ 6:00 p.m.
March 20 – Devil's Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX) – Rained Out
June 11 – Eagle Raceway (Eagle, NE) – 11/21/10 @ 4:00 p.m.
June 12 – Eagle Raceway (Eagle, NE) – 11/21/10 @ 5:00 p.m.
September 25 – Lucas Oil Speedway (Wheatland, MO) – 11/28/10 @ 6:00 p.m.
October 1 – Riverside Speedway (W. Memphis, AR) – TBD
October 2 – Riverside Speedway (W. Memphis, AR) – TBD
October 28 - I-30 Speedway (Little Rock, AR) – 12/5/10 @ 5:00 p.m.
October 29 – I-30 Speedway (Little Rock, AR) – 12/5/10 @ 6:00 p.m.
October 30 – I-30 Speedway (Little Rock, AR) – 12/19/10 @ 4:00 p.m.
The Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters is currently slated for 36 nights of racing action at 18 different tracks throughout the nation, with the country's top Sprint Car drivers set to battle it out for their share of the $250,000 points fund.
In its 19th year of sanctioning Sprint Car racing, the American Sprint Car Series brings the best of Sprint Car racing to approximately 100 different tracks throughout 30 states and Canada. Anchored by the Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters, ASCS also consists of ten different Regions throughout the nation.
Additional information regarding the American Sprint Car Series is available at www.ascsracing.com.
Lonnie Wheatley, TULSA, Okla. (June 21, 2010) – The Lucas Oil ASCS National Series presented by K&N Filters annual stop at Hartford, South Dakota’s I-90 Speedway is just around the corner.
The ASCS Midwest forces will get a sneak peak at the high-banked, 3/8-mile clay oval event prior to the July 10 National card with this Friday night’s event at I-90 Speedway.
Friday’s card at I-90 Speedway marks the first of three ASCS Midwest events atop the Hartford, SD, clay, including the July 10 event with the National contenders.
Currently ranked seventh in Lucas Oil ASCS National points, 20-year-old Jack Dover of Springfield, NE, has been able to take in all the ASCS Midwest slate as well and currently holds a 176-point advantage over Lutz in the Midwest title chase.
Dover, who scored an ASCS Regional win at I-90 Speedway in August of 2008, became the ASCS Midwest’s first repeat winner of 2010 this past weekend by racing to victory lane at Missouri’s U.S. 36 Raceway for his second series triumph of the year.
Lutz, a three-time ASCS Northern Plains points runner-up and fifth in last year’s Midwest points, topped the most recent ASCS event at I-90 Speedway with his third career ASCS Regional victory last July.
Hot laps are set for 7:15 p.m. on Friday.
I-90 Speedway is located three miles west of Hartford, SD, on SR 38. For more information, contact the track at 605-528-6380.
The ASCS Midwest Region is slated for 24 nights of competition in 2010 at eleven different tracks throughout Nebraska and the surrounding areas of Missouri, South Dakota and Iowa.
In its 19th year of sanctioning Sprint Car racing, the American Sprint Car Series brings the best of Sprint Car racing to approximately 100 different tracks throughout 30 states and Canada. Anchored by the Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters, ASCS also consists of ten different Regions throughout the nation.
Past ASCS Regional Winners at I-90 Speedway:
7/24/09 – Eric Lutz
* 7/11/09 – Gary Wright
6/26/09 – Chad Humston
8/13/08 – Jack Dover
7/25/08 – Jake Peters
* 6/24/08 – Tony Bruce, Jr.
8/15/07 – Shane Stewart
7/27/07 – Chuck Swenson
* 6/19/07 – Jason Johnson
8/15/06 – Bryan Dobesh
7/18/06 – Chuck Swenson
6/13/06 – Jason Johnson
8/25/05 – Dusty Zomer
* - Denotes events held in conjunction with Lucas Oil ASCS National series.
Additional information regarding the American Sprint Car Series is available at www.ascsracing.com.
Lonnie Wheatley, TULSA, Okla. (June 21, 2010) – The wingless wonders of the American Sprint Car Series Canyon Region return to Tucson for the first time in over a month with Saturday night’s card atop the 3/8-mile USA Raceway.
And, after watching Mike Martin and R.J. Johnson capture checkered flags in recent events in Perris, CA, and Peoria, AZ, a return to Tucson could be just what the doctor ordered for current ASCS Canyon Region points leader Charles Davis, Jr.
The reigning series champion, Davis, Jr., had carried a three-race winning streak, including two at Tucson’s USA Raceway into the Perris card. But, after a fourth-place Perris showing and then a seventh-place Peoria run, Davis’ seemingly healthy points lead now appears to be much more anemic.
A 62-point advantage for “Chargin’ Charles” has been trimmed down to just 27 markers over the past two events by Peoria’s Josh Pelkey, who has added another pair of runner-up finishes to run his total of top-fives to five in six starts thus far in 2010.
Yuma’s Mike Martin is just another 20 points back in third, with Phoenix contender R.J. Johnson and two-time series champion Jeremy Sherman of Surprise, AZ, rounding out the current top five in points.
The balance of the current top ten in ASCS Canyon Region points includes Andrew Reinbold (Gilbert), Stevie Sussex (Laveen), Ronnie Clark (Tucson), 17-year-old Dalten Gabbard (Peoria) and Seainn Hendricsen (Scottsdale).
Just outside the top ten and looking in are the likes of Thomas Ogle, Justin Quinn, Brian Hosford and Jeff Slinkard among others.
Saturday's ASCS Canyon Region action at USA Raceway is slated to go green at 6:45 p.m.
The 3/8-mile USA Raceway clay oval is located east of Tucson off I-10 Exit 268, then 1.6 mile south on Craycroft Road, which turns into Los Reales. For more information, contact the track at 520-574-8515.
The ASCS Canyon Region is currently slated for 17 overall nights of competition in 2010, including 13 nights in Arizona, a two-night Fourth of July weekend in New Mexico and pair of trips to California’s Perris Auto Speedway.
In its 19th year of sanctioning Sprint Car racing, the American Sprint Car Series brings the best of Sprint Car racing to approximately 100 different tracks throughout 30 states and Canada. Anchored by the Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters, ASCS also consists of ten different Regions throughout the nation.
Additional information regarding the American Sprint Car Series is available at www.ascsracing.com.
June 15 2010
View from the Cockpit
JR Williams
Carson City Nevada
Contributor to OWR3
It's been a busy week, a busy weekend, and it will stay pretty busy until after the 4th of July.
So, to catch up with the Old Man. When I sent my last piece in last Monday morning, I was on my way to have lunch with Brewer and Richard (Stretch's Auto and Diesel Repair) had guaranteed me that he would have my tow truck back on the road by 4:00 Mountain Time, and true to his word it was finished and ready to go on time. The workmanship was excellent and by 5:00 MT I was back at the hotel, hooked up to the trailer, and pulling out for the 550 mile tow home. As my readers know, I will complain about what I think is going wrong, but I will also give credit where it is due, and if anyone has any car or truck problems in the Salt Lake City area, remember to call Stretch. That should be easy enough to remember.
In any case, I was home by 2:00 A.M. Tuesday morning and off to Chico on Friday morning to run there Friday night.
Now, before we get too much further along, it looks as though Shannon McQueen has recovered fully from what could have been a fatal eye injury and that marriage is really treating her well, as she has just had back to back wins on the dirt in the BCRA series over the past few weeks, with the first win coming at Marysville, and the second at Placerville. Congratulations to a really hard charging lady who really deserves those trophies. Following Shannon past the checkered flags at Placerville were Shane Gololic, Gregg Bragg, Matt Streeter and Dave Prickett.
Earlier in the week the National Midgets were running at Tri-City Speedway in Pontoon Beach, IL. Brian Clauson (the current point leader) took the win in the 40-lap feature, taking the lead on the 17th lap from Brad Kuhn, and held it to the finish with Brad finishing second, followed by Jerry Coons, Jr., Bobby East, and Davey Ray.
The National Sprint Cars ran the night before at ORP where Shane Hmiel took the win over Jerry Coons, Jr., Henry Clarke, Damion Gardner and Chris Windom. Friend JoJo Helberg finished sixth.
The National Sprint Car point standings now shows Levy Jones in the lead, Gardner in second, followed by Coons, and Windom.
I mentioned in an earlier article that I had a few shots taken at the entrance to turn one at the Indiana Fairgrounds. For those who have never seen the expanse of a one-mile dirt track, Here are three photos.
Photos by JR Williams
The length of the front stretch taken from the inside of turn one.
The wide, sweeping entrance into turn one
Two vintage cars on the front stretch to give you an idea of just how wide this track is.
If you've never seen a one-mile dirt track, and if you're going to be going to the 500 next year, plan on spending Friday night at the Indiana Fairground where I know you'll really thrill at the sights and sounds of the Hoosier Hundred. I can't wait.
While the Old Man was playing in the dirt over the weekend, the California Focus midgets were running at the Orange Show in Southern California.
Bobby Runyan turned fast time, Cody Gerhardt won the dash, and Eli Schrock won the main event, holding the lead for all 30 laps. Eli was followed by Cody Gerhardt, Jessica Clark, Shawn Buckley and Wally Pankratz.
I spoke with Alex Bowman's father Sean yesterday, and he was busy putting their car together for the five-race "Indiana Midget Week" that will begin Wednesday night at Gas City I-69 Speedway where Bryan Clauson will be defending his championship of last season. It will be the start of a very busy five consecutive nights of racing with Lincoln Park running on Thursday, Bloomington Speedway on Friday, Lawrenceburg Speedway Saturday and concluding at Kokomo Speedway on Sunday. And I think I'm tired. Whew.
The Western Midgets will be running Saturday night at the fast 1/3rd-mile facility at Santa Maria. Cory Kruseman is expected to be there to defend his eight-point lead over Alex Schutte. Former Focus star Robby Josett is holding down third place in that series just nine points behind Schutte.
Meanwhile, the Focus midgets will be competing Friday night on the dirt at Ocean Speedway in Watsonville, CA. Saturday night will see the pavement series continue at the Stockton 99 Speedway.
As mentioned, the Old Man took the dirt car to the Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, CA. It was quite a night, which saw the first race of a ten-race series for the 410-winged sprint cars, so there were only two classes of cars on hand, the 410s, and the midgets.
The drive from Carson City to Chico is only about 200 miles, but it is one of the prettiest drives of the season, especially the 50 mile run down the Feather River Canyon from Quincy, CA. The wild flowers were blooming all the way along the ride and if you ever have a chance to drive it, take your time, pull off from time to time and really enjoy it. There isn't enough room between the canyon sides for the road and the railroad tracks, and from time to time, I imagine designed to give the railroad an easier grade, the railroad tracks will go from one side of the river to the other, while the highway either crosses over or under the railroad bridges.
I was still tired when I checked into the motel and really wanted to just take a nap, but I was afraid I wouldn't get up in time so went to the track. I was pleasantly surprised when young Cody Spencer decided that there were enough crewmen on Rick Young's car, so he spend the night helping me out. Although only 15-years of age, he already has one midget win under his belt (at Petaluma in 2009) and is just waiting for an engine to get going again.
He was a big help, not only in changing tires and that, but we were able to bounce set-up ideas off each other and that give and take had us in pretty good shape by the main event where we finished fourth. That sounds really great, as the cars in front of me were Britton Bock in his Esslinger, Dillon Silverman who is extremely fast in his Eco-Tech, and Travis Haugh driving a Gearte Ford. The bad news was that there were only six cars on hand, and Lonnie Alton had an engine that was going away on him.
It looks as though I'm getting closer and closer to fine-tuning the engine. I made a slight change to the fuel pressure regulator prior to the heat race, and came in with an engine temperature of 170-175-degrees. I hear that the optimum is 200 to 210. I made another slight change prior to the main and came in at 180 to 185-degrees, so we're getting there. While washing the car down today, I found that the clevis pin had broken in the Jacobs Ladder. I don't know when that happened, but I would suppose it was near the end of the race or I probably couldn't have finished.
An old Dwarf Car friend, Al Ghiorso, was there working on Travis's car and it was great getting to visit with him again. The racing widow and I enjoyed attending Al's marriage to Kelly some years ago on the front stretch at Perris Speedway.
The schedule is going to be pretty hectic between now and the 4th of July. I'll keep you informed as time goes on. In the meanwhile you can still e-mail me at:
jrw-jnw@sbcglobal.net
June 9 2010
“The Rockett”
Jesse, you left us so suddenly in late May,
None of us were expecting the news we received that day.
You were born; Jesse Lester Hockett,
But to many you were known simply as the “Rockett”.
Son, Brother, Husband, Cousin, Friend, you fit them all,
The Good Lord sent you a message and you took the call.
As a Racer, you could wheel them all; wing, non-wing,
Dirt, pavement, 360, 410, silver crown, midget, anything.
You were a “racer’s Racer”; never ever afraid,
The last true “Outlaw” and the best in the trade.
Fearless, aggressive, crazy and happy, those are just a few,
Of the words that would describe the “Rockett” we all knew.
Loved, respected and admired by many near and far,
Because of the great person you are.
You leave us now, all with very heavy hearts,
But we all know you and Daniel are no longer apart.
Rockett, you are in our hearts and minds and you will leave us never,
For Jesse, we will love and miss you for ever and ever.
By: Lori Dover
June 8 2010
View from the Cockpit
JR Williams
Carson City Nevada
Contributor to OWR3
As I begin writing this week's column, I'm sitting in a hotel room in Salt Lake City, although I should be home in Carson City, NV., 550 miles to the west, but more on that later.
We arrived in Salt Lake City late Thursday afternoon, dropped off Austin Luttmer's midget and checked in to the hotel. The next day was spent going over my car getting it ready for RMR Saturday night.
I was slow Saturday, and for some reason couldn't get myself or the car going. I was at least a quarter second off my pace from a few weeks ago, and thought perhaps the track had slowed, but when Chuck Groat began running within .02 seconds of the record he set a few weeks back, it was obvious that the problem was either me or the car. I think a lot of it was me --- I was pretty worn out by then, but that should be no excuse.
Kipp Posey is back in his winning form, winning the main event handily. Meanwhile, Chuck Groat --- although exceptionally fast while he was running --- kept running into drive line problems. He and his crew, including Sprint Car champ Jimmy Waters, performed almost impossible feats of getting the engine moved forward, "U" joint changed, bearings changed, and getting the car ready just in time for his heat race. The repairs didn't solve the problem however, and Chuck had to be pushed off the track before the first lap had been completed. Back to the drawing board and the procedure was repeated and once again he was ready, this time well before the main event. He ran a few laps to check the car out and was in the lineup for the main. Unfortunately, once we got running the drive line gremlin reappeared and it began binding up enough to cause him to spin three times ending up bringing out the black flagged. When he was running, he was running very fast, and on two restarts he passed me like a freight train passing a bum.
One of the highlights of Saturday night was Ron Duncombe, the Monster Truck Star, who first climbed into a midget a year ago. Ron has been going faster and faster each week, and had his best finish of his career so far, coming in a strong third, just ahead of Jeremy McKenna who is also quite fast this year. Connor Kassick of Lake Havasu finished fourth in his combo car.
Kudos to the young lady Terra Brower who we highlighted a few weeks back. The old man was in the eighth spot with about three laps to go, when entering turn one, Terra passed me cleanly on the inside, her rookie flag flying behind her --- and the old man just couldn't regain the position. Everyone in the pits was very happy for her and proud of her, and as I mentioned when I spoke of her earlier, she is coming on strong, getting faster each week. It's about time the rookie flag comes off that car.
We had a new car in the pits, as Guy Sainsbury brought Tim Savage's old car back out, and although he has a lot of experience in hobby stocks, the midget has a lot more power than he was used to. He lost an oil cooler in the main event, but by the time it let go he was moving quickly up the learning curve and was turning some very respectable times.
I know that as I grow older certain things bother me more and more, but one of the worst problems I have is the effects of being blinded by the setting sun, and that was certainly true on Saturday night. I guess it doesn't bother the younger people so much as they were as fast as ever, but it sure got to me. From the time I was exiting turn four, until actually turning in on turn one, I was blinded. Completely. It was downright dangerous. On yellow flag laps following a spin out caution flag, I couldn't even line up behind Jeff Kelley's black car as I couldn't see it, and had to run down on the inside white line to be sure that I was clear. Once the green flag fell, I had to shield my eyes from the sun with one hand and steer with the other. I was really thankful for the red flag that fell after Guy's car lost the oil cooler and oiled down the track. I felt sorry for Guy, but during the time it took to put oil dry on the track and then for us to run a few laps to blow the oil dry off, the sun had dropped below the track's horizon and we could all see again. We all ended up with oil on our tires, and the track was like a skating rink for about four or five laps, but then everyone --- except the old man --- was going fast again.
I learned later that the track stops running for half an hour each day, in order to give the workers a lunch break. During that time, all of the necessary special announcements are made to give the fans something to do. So, my question is, as long is the track is going to be inactive for half an hour, why can't that be a flexible time that would begin half an hour before the sun sets. That would be a no cost item to the track, it wouldn't affect the ending time of the night's program, but it would go a long way in the safety department. I guess I could address that same thought to all of the race tracks in the country.
In more Western Focus action, seven cars showed up over on the left coast in Santa Maria where Nick Carlson won the main event. Jet Davison came in second and Randi Pankratz was third, followed by Kyle Edwards and Zach Stout who is back in the frey.
The top three in the Western Focus points at this time are Kyle Edwards, trailed by Connor Kassik and Bobby Runyan.
The Western Focus Dirt Series has Nick Carlson in the lead, but the next three spots are quite close. Kyle Edwards is currently holding down second with 285 points, just one point ahead of Jet Davison, who is only six points ahead of Andrew Mulhearn.
I don't know who won the "Little 500" a week ago out in Anderson, but if my facts are correct, Tony Hunt finished fourth, and Ryan Burdett from Salt Lake City, who started 31st in his first trip out there and his first foray onto a hight-banked track, finished 13th and was awarded the "Rookie of the Day Award." Good for Ryan and his crew.
Tony headed back West following the race Saturday night. I don't know if he flew out or rode back with his crew, but the crew made it to RMR in plenty of time for the Memorial Day race last Monday night. On the other hand, Ryan and his crew decided to stay over for the 500 with the thoughts that they probably wouldn't be able to get of the Speedway and back to Anderson in time turn in their rental car, jump into the hauler, and make it back to RMR in time.
However, with the excellent crowd control at the Speedway and surrounding communities, they got back to Anderson much sooner than they thought they would and got on the road. With enough people to shift off the driving chores, they made the trip in 25 hours and pulled into the pits during the National Anthem. With a super-human effort, they managed to unload the car, change the gear and do the other set-up work that was required in time to make the show and finish fourth. Too bad there's not a crew and driver of the week award --- they would certainly win it.
Jimmy Wysong turned quick time followed by Kody Swanson who also made the trip back from the Speedway after finishing fourth the "Night Before Indy" at ORP. Third quick was Jimmy Waters. Tony Hunt timed fifth, and Audra Sasselli ended up sixth quick.
The first heat was won by Luis Ramos III who was trailed by Jimmy Wysong. Heat two saw Mel Andrus bring home the bacon followed by Kody Swanson.
As mentioned earlier, Tony Hunt won the main ahead of Jimmy Wysong, Jimmy Waters, Ryan Burdett, Kody Swanson and Audra Sasselli. All in all it sounds like it was a great night.
So, as I end this column here in Salt Lake City, it looks as though I'll be back on the road and out of here by about four or five this afternoon which should see me get home before dawn tomorrow in time to vote.
At 185,000 miles give or take a few, it was time to replace my OEM clutch. Based on some website suggestions, I decided to go to a heavy-duty, after-market unit. From the time it was installed, it had a chatter when starting up from a stop sign or stop light, with or without the trailer. The dealer told me that there wasn't anything wrong with it so I continued to drive it. I remember an old friend of mine who drove 18-wheelers telling me that some of their clutches had the same problem, so except for the chatter I put it out of my mind.
Well, I got on the road a half-hour early Sunday and got about 120 miles down the road when I stopped in a rest stop, about 10 miles from the Nevada border town of Wendover. Pulling out of the rest stop I was up to third gear when the engine speed increased, but the truck began slowing down. I pulled off the road and did a quick evaluation and came to the conclusion that my super-duper heavy-duty clutch had expired, with only 35,000 miles on it.
Not knowing what else to do, with the temperature along the salt flats easing into the 80's, heavy truck traffic whizzing past at 75 or more, and being 435 miles from home, I called AAA. The nice lady in Arizona somewhere hooked me up with a towing service in Wendover and after ascertaining that under my coverage they would tow my tow truck up to 100 miles, but I'd have to pay to move the trailer. I gave him a call.
Q. - Is there any Dodge dealer in Wendover?
A. - No.
Q. - Is there any mechanic there who could work on my truck?
A. - Yes, probably.
Q. - Would you trust him to work on your truck?
A. - Umm.
Q. - Are there any parts stores like NAPA over there>
A. - No, you'd have to get parts from either Salt Lake City or Elko, Nevada. (both of which are about 120 miles away).
Okay - hold on a few minutes and I'll call you back.
I called friend Bob Brewer who suggested that I call good friend Gregg (flipper) Fuette. Gregg said he'd get right back to me and in a few minutes he informed me that they, Gregg and Brian Strickland, would come to get me. They both work for a towing service, had the day off, and got permission from their boss to use his pick-up that had a goose-neck to tow the trailer, and a flat bed to pick up the tow truck. So, I called the Wendover guy back and told him to cancel the request for service.
Two hours later Gregg and Brian (BS to his friends) showed up and within minutes the tow truck was on the flat bed, the trailer was hooked up to Mike's pick-up and we were on our way back to SLC.
In the meanwhile I had called the Hampton Inn on Redwood in Salt Lake City where I usually stay while there, and Debbie assured me that my room would be ready.
So, with me riding in the pick-up with Brian, we made it back to the hotel parking lot by about 6:30 where we dropped off the trailer and I checked int the hotel.
A few minutes later we had dropped Mike's pick-up back at his house and were at Brian's where I was treated to a cookout and Gregg had me back to the hotel before 11:00.
During the wait at Bonneville, I spoke with their friend, Richard, who informed me that he would start on the tow truck first thing in the morning and if it were only the clutch he thought he'd have me on the road by this afternoon.
On our first call this morning he had already taken all of the cover plates off the transmission and couldn't see any internal damage there. An hour or so later he called back and confirmed that he had the tranny out and that the clutch had definitely self-destructed, that he had located a new one and was on his way to pick it up, and he was pretty certain that he would have me out of here before the afternoon ended.
So, here I am in the hotel lobby. When I finish sending this to Ye Olde Editor, Brewer is coming by to pick me up for lunch, then he'll take me to his house where I'll spend the rest of the time in air-conditioned comfort until the truck is finished and I'll be back on the road.
I don't know what I've ever done in my life to deserve so many good friends, but I'm so thankful to My Lord that He has blessed me with friends like these who will rescue an old man stranded on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere, and then feed him and have their friend get right on the problem to get him on the road again. I truly am blessed. I can't thank them enough
Until next week you can reach me at: jrw-jnw@sbcglobal.net
“MEL KENYON NIGHT” WEDNESDAY AT THE SPEEDOME
HAMILTON WINS “TOM BIGELOW NIGHT” MIDGET 50-LAPPER
WINDOM HALTS JONES’ EASTERN STORM “SWEEP”
“KEVIN DOTY CLASSIC” TRIES AGAIN FRIDAY AT TRI-CITY
SMRS MIDGETS VISIT 24 RACEWAY SATURDAY
HAMBLIN 2ND LADY TO WIN A USAC DIRT SPRINT FEATURE
WYSONG TRIES TO ADD TO UTAH VICTORY TOTAL SATURDAY AT RMR
MARTZ, POSEY, CARLSON, CLOUSE & JACOBSEN GRAB TROPHIES
June 2 2010
View from the Cockpit
JR Williams
Carson City Nevada
Contributor to OWR3
I meant to write it last night in Council Bluffs, Iowa, but I was so tired from the past week that I woke up at 1:30 A.M., sitting in bed with the laptop looking at me with a blank screen and decided that sleep was a lot more important.
As usual, the week in Indy was a whirlwind of activity with very little time to rest, and added a 600-mile tow to that yesterday I guess my old body just decided to take a night off.
I got to Charlie's shop last Tuesday about 5:30, about half an hour late as I had to stop at a rest stop to tie the cars down again after the highway bounced them off the blocks. Once the trailer was unhooked I headed to Harkey's where Cheryl had prepared a great rib dinner for us.
Bob asked if I'd mind accompanying Cheryl to the Speedway the next day to Marie Hulman's luncheon as he had to leave for Terre Haute where there was an event for a lot of the old timers that he had to attend. We discussed it and decided that the best way to handle everything and still get to the Speedrome in time to get the cars prepared was for me to go back to Charlie's shop and hook up the trailer. That way Cheryl could take me right there from the Speedway and as long as I got on the road by 1:00 P.M. everything would work out OK.
At the luncheon I had the honor of seeing both Sam Hanks and Johnny Boyd's widows, as well as being able to say hello to Jim McElreath and his wife.
True to her word, Cheryl got me back to the truck on time and I pulled into the parking lot at the Speedrome about 10 minutes before Austin Luttmer showed up with Verlyn Gibson and Kerry Posey in tow. We weren't able to get into the pits early, so we unloaded the cars and worked on them in the parking lot.
Once inside the pits it was like old home week. Bradley and "Little Al" Galedrige were there, as was Marc DeBeaumont, Kody Swanson and some of their crews. Joe Ligouri was there (in fact he went on to win the main event).
The Speedrome proved to be a lot of fun. My first practice session was slow - not the slowest, but close to it. I improved by a quarter of a second the second time out and started 4th in my heat and finished fourth, relegating me to the 14Th starting spot out of 18. Austin did much better and ended up starting and finishing sixth if my memory serves me right. Sean and Alex Bowman showed up and gave me some help.
During the main I moved up into the top ten, but then it felt as though the car were rolling over on the right rear which began slowing me in the corners. Then, as I was trying to lap a slower car for the fourth time, I couldn't get on the throttle soon enough to get past him for about three laps which slowed me enough that I began getting lapped. Then, heading down the front stretch I ended up running backwards in the infield when one of the kids (according to Sean who watched it) drove right through me. That spin out cost me enough spots that I ended up finishing 12th, but at least I had fun and managed to roll the car on the trailer with no damage. By the time I dropped the trailer at Charlie's, got a burger for dinner and took a shower at Harkey's is was past 2:00 A.M.
On Thursday I drove up to Mel and Don Kenyon's shop to pick up some dirt tires and visit with Don - Mel was at Anderson - and then went to Charlie's where I changed the gears back to what I would need at RMR this coming Saturday and then went with Charlie and some of his friends to Frank and Mary's Cat Fish House in Pittsboro where Jeff Gordon used to hang out when he lived there.
Friday morning saw Harkey and I heading out to the Speedway where we ended up where the vintage cars were parked behind the museum. I helped Mel get into his uniform and then went to one of the knolls inside turn two to watch them run. What a disappointment. Not the vintage cars, but the way the Speedway treated them. Yeah, they had a nice covered area to show off their cars, then they put them in staging where they had to wait in the hot sun for half an hour or more. and when they finally got out on the track they were only given about three laps to show off their exquisite cars. The pace car never even picked them up to lead them around in an orderly fashion. What a slap in the face. Whoever organized that fiasco should be demoted to street sweeper status.
Once out of the Speedway we got over to the Fairgrounds fairly quickly. As I walked across the track to the pit area, I stopped long enough to take two photos - one of the long front stretch from the entry to turn one, and the other of the driver's view entering the long, sweeping turns. The one thing I always wanted to do ---- but never had the opportunity --- was to be able to hot lap a Champ car on a mile dirt track. It would be the thrill of my life I'm sure.
In the pits I had a few words with Brad Kuhn, Kody and Tanner Swanson, and A.J. Fike. By then I got a call from Harkey, who was with friends down on the inside of turn three. One of the gentlemen he was with was Tom Ophof, who runs GodSpeed metal fabricating. So, if you see me wearing that "T" shirt, you'll know where I got it. Among other things I learned about this fine young man was that his father was 57 years old when Tom was born, and one of the reasons for that was that his dad was a POW during WWII and spend two years in the prison camp that became the movie, "The Bridge on the River Kwai," talk about getting goose-bumps.
While walking around the vast infield before the race began, I ran into Chase Barber and his dad who had moved to the speedway area a few years back.
As I mentioned last week, there's fairly little that will get your blood stirring more than watching the Champ cars (now Silver Crown cars) running on a one-mile oval and standing on the inside of one of the turns really brings it home. For a while, sitting on the tailgate of a pickup, part of the thrill was feeling the vibrations of the cars as they caused the tailgate to vibrate.
I was talking to someone else and not watching the track when I heard a noise and looked in time to see Bobby East complete some serious flips. It turned out that as he entered turn three, something in his drive line broke and apparently severed a brake line and he became an uncontrolled missile with no brakes to slow it down, and no throttle to power it through. He wasn't injured and ran a midget at ORP on Saturday night although he didn't make the transfer and went home early.
I only saw one of the Toyota-powered machines that the Swanson brothers were driving during the main event and thought the one I saw was Tanner's. It turned out to be Kody who ended up finishing fourth. I talked to Tanner on Saturday night, and he told me that his engine had expired after qualifying so they decided to pull him out of the seat and let Kody run it. "That's seniority for you," I told him.
By the time we got home from the Fairgrounds and filled Bob's car up with some gasoline, it was late again.
Saturday morning Harkey had to go over to the Speedway early, and as I waited for him to get home so I could help him with his new computer, I feel asleep sitting up in his couch. I guess I was sort of tired. In any case, I finally got over to ORP about 3:00 where I ran into still more friends and got to see some really great racing. Unfortunately, Alex Bowman was unable to shake the monkey off his back. He qualified 13th, which gave him a third place starting position in the first heat. As they took the green flag, his Esslinger engine sputtered a bit and most of the field passed him. He got back on the throttle, but it was a little too late and as he struggled to pass enough cars to make the transfer, he ended up spinning with just two laps to go. One the restart he spun again going into turn three and backed it into the wall at high speed, destroying the car and re injuring his left shoulder.
The main event was a real thriller. Tanner Swanson started on the pole, with Brian Clauson on the outside. Brad Kuhn and Kody Swanson started behind them. As the cars entered turn three on about the third lap, it appeared as though Chuck Gurney, Jr. (who won the event last year) squeezed Daniel Bedford into the wall. Daniel went over the wall, between the billboards and into a few parked cars. He was uninjured.
After the restart, Tanner began chasing down Brian Clauson. The chase went on lap after lap for 32 circuits before Tanner prevailed and went on for the win by almost a full straightaway. He was followed across the line by Bryan Clauson, his older brother Kody, and Brad Kuhn.
"How about that kid Swanson, huh?" Kody said in his interview after the race, showing his pride in his younger brother's accomplishment. Those of us on the West Coast are well aware of it, watching the two of them finish one-two time after time, and usually ending up lapping most of the rest of the field while doing it.
,
Six A.M. Sunday morning came early and we were on our way out to the Speedway by about eight. Harkey had received an invitation from his old friend John Smith to watch the race from John's suite on the outside of turn two, and John was kind enough to allow me to come along, so after a coffee and donut at the Old Timer's Club, John picked us up in his golf cart and ran us over to the suite where we enjoyed the race.
I won't go into any of the race itself, as you've all seen it on TV, but I think they should go over their rules making it a disqualification for anyone to run out of fuel at those speeds. With the extensive telemetry and computer inputs on those cars, the engineers know to a teaspoon how much fuel is remaining. The accident that happened on the last lap was completely uncalled for. Conway is very fortunate to have come out of that unnecessary crash with just a broken leg --- it could have been a lot worse, and just because someone in the Andretti camp, "thought they could make it." That's not good enough - not in these days. To break something on the last lap is one thing, but to run out of fuel is inexcusable.
Saturday will see us running at RMR again. Until then, you can contact me at:
jrw-jnw@sbcglobal.ne
First Blip on the Radar for the new Austin F1 track shows up
Contrary to earlier assertions, Texas taxpayers are putting up the first $25 million in a deal aimed at luring Formula One racing to Austin.
June 1 2010
KAEDING STILL ATOP POINTS SEEKING 4TH TITLE;
HMIEL’S 1ST DIRT VICTORY COMES IN HOOSIER HUNDRED
USAC SILVER CROWN CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES POINT STANDINGS
1-Bud Kaeding-171, 2-Jerry Coons Jr.-153, 3-A.J. Fike-150, 4-Kody Swanson-133, 5-Shane Hmiel-131, 6-Levi Jones-122, 7-Brian Tyler-111, 8-Tracy Hines-102, 9-Derek Hagar-91, 10-Bryan Clauson-87.
CARDEY, MILLER TAKE INDY “SALUTES”
POINT LEADER WINS AT BAKERSFIELD
WELCH TAKES 50-LAP SPEEDROME REGIONAL OPENER
SWANSON ENDS CLAUSON’S “GRAND SLAM” BID IN “NIGHT BEFORE 500”
GARDNER LEADS SPRINTS TO 4 EASTERN RACES;
COONS WINS SPECTACULAR 40TH “TONY HULMAN CLASSIC”
May 30 2010
A TOUGH NIGHT AT TERRE HAUTE FOR USAC SPRINT DRIVERS
Richard Golardi
Florida
Contributor to OWR3
For the first USAC Sprint Car series race of the year at the Terre Haute Action Track, the track problems only compounded the sense of frustration felt by the drivers in the national sprint car series. With the death of driver Jesse Hockett one day earlier in a freak accident, the mess on the track only made a bad situation worse. The sense of sadness and frustration was evident in the pre-race driver’s meeting, when USAC officials announced that it was time to make a decision about the evening. The decision that must be made was to either tough it out, and brave the muddy track, or cancel the racing for the evening and go home. The question was posed to the drivers, and they were asked, “what do you want to do?”
There has been worse days with mud before there.
But it seems they dont have anough equipmant to work it in?
As the cars headed out to begin packing down the mud on the track at 8 PM
Robert Ballou. Who had designed a sticker earlier in the day to remember his friend
The cars carried stickers with the likeness of Jesse Hockett, reading “In Loving Memory of Jesses Hockett”,
Thanks in part to Robert Ballou. He had designed this sticker earlier in the day to remember his friend, who had just died the prior day. Ballou’s crew remembered Hockett as a fellow competitor who always lended them a hand with help and advice. Ballou remembered Hockett as a competitor and an equal on the track. In fact, the two drivers had shared epic battles in previous sprint car races at Terre Haute.
Bryan Clauson
Finished 3rd Dave Darland, 1st Jerry Coons & 2nd Jr Levi Jones
May 29 2010
A very well kept secret, now coming out, F1 will be in Austin Tx in 2012.
This interview with Tavo Helmund the leader of this movement explains where it is at in its development stages.
aXe
http://www.statesman.com/video/tavo-hellmund-of-full-throttle-productions-715680.html
More from the American Statesman below.
Formula One promoter promises Austin track will be ready for 2012 Grand Prix
Tavo Hellmund says secrecy agreements were required.
Is Formula One coming to Austin?
Formula One headed for Austin
Facts about Formula One
What is Formula One?
Former race car driver says he's 3 years along in planning $250 million facility that could be used for other events.
By John Maher and Shonda Novak
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Tavo Hellmund, the promoter planning to bring Formula One racing to Austin, said Friday that he's certain his track and grandstand can be completed in time for a 2012 Grand Prix race.
May 28 2010
MANN MAKES HISTORY BY WINNING FIRESTONE FREEDOM 100 POLE
1. (11) Pippa Mann, 01:35.7505 (187.989)
May 27 2010
IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines
May 26 2010
From the ASCS series
Jesse Hockett (1983-2010) - R.I.P.
TULSA, Okla. (May 26, 2010) – The nation lost one of its most daring Sprint Car drivers on Wednesday afternoon, as Jesse Hockett lost his life in an accident in his Warsaw, MO, shop.
The 26-year-old was electrocuted while prepping his trailer for a four-day Memorial Day weekend of racing that was to include Thursday’s USAC event at Terre Haute, weekly action near home at Sedalia on Friday and then the Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Series Steve King Memorial at the Jetmore Motorplex on Saturday and Sunday.
The entire staff and families of the American Sprint Car Series along with the entire racing community extend deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Jesse Hockett at this time.
Details regarding services will be announced as they become available.
Sadly I was just informed by someone Jesse has lost his life in a freak accident while loading his car into the hauler. I don't know all the details. I simply ask that we all keep the Hockett family in our thoughts and prayers. More on this as We get it.
aXe
F1 revives US Grand Prix in 2012 in Austin, Texas
May 25 2010
View from the Cockpit
JR Williams
Carson City Nevada
Contributor to OWR3
I'm starting this column in my hotel room in Salt Lake City and will finish it a few days from now somewhere around Coralville, Iowa as I make my way to the mecca of speed, INDIANAPOLIS. Although I will get to the Speedway a few times while I am there, and I will attend the 500, I haven't had all that much interest in the race itself for many years now. What really attracts me to the area are two races that I can't wait to attend.
I'm an old, dyed in the wool, open-cockpit guy who feels that wings are for airplanes. I grew up in the days of the Championship Trail that was made up of about 10 races, one of which was the 500, and the others were run on big, one-mile dirt ovals scattered across the country. These included Syracuse, Langhorne, Trenton, Sacramento, the Indiana Fairgrounds and a few others. The National Driving Championship was earned on these venues, and the cars that ran them were the Champ Cars (or the Indy Cars to some people). These cars, the old dinosaurs, and later the roadsters ran both at Indy and on the big miles. These were in the days when the drivers were all American who had come up from the local midget and sprint car bull rings around the country. The days where the engines were still in the front (where they belong) and the races were on ovals - where they are supposed to be.
Then they stuck the engines on the wrong ends of the cars and began racing on road courses with foreign drivers who most people had never heard of, and the great, roaring Champ Cars ending up changing their names to the Silver Crown cars, and many of the big, mile dirt ovals dropped out of existence ---- but the Indiana Fairgrounds is still there, and they still run the Hoosier Hundred (this year will be the 58th) on the Friday night before the 500, and that is one of the two venues that I am on my way to Indy to attend.
Perhaps I should interject here that I am one of the extremely lucky people who has not only been able to live the dreams of my life once --- but also twice.
After I saw my first midget race while in Junior High, and became hooked on racing and knew then and there that someday I would end up in a midget cockpit, I began devouring every racing publication I could get my hands on, including SPEED SPORT and ILLUSTRATED SPEEDWAY NEWS. I read everything I could find about my heroes of the time, such drivers as Don Branson, Jim Bryant, Tony Bettenhausen, and so many more.
These were the bravest of the brave, who you either watched on a weekly basis at your home track, or who you got to know when they came through your area on a travelling circuit.
Once I got into the sport as a driver, I was blessed with being able to meet and compete against many of those old heroes of mine who were still around, as well as up and coming new comers, such as Ernie McCoy, Bobby Marshman, Eddie Sachs and many more. What a thrill it was to see one of the guys you idolized move up from the midgets or the sprint cars (big cars) to the CHAMP CARS. WOW. I remember meeting my hero as a fan. or shaking his hand, or getting his autograph, or as I got older may have even raced against him.
After I left my earlier racing career at the end of the 1963 season, I kept up with what was happening in the sport through various publications, and communications with some of the drivers who had become close friends, such as Ernie McCoy, Johnny Coy, Crocky Wright, Dick Miller, and my best friend for 50 years now, Bob Harkey.
During those years I spent in Hawaii, I followed the careers of such drivers as Ron Shuman, Rich Vogler, Larry Rice, friend Mel Kenyon, and many others of those years.
Now that I'm back in the sport, I find myself watching the "older" drivers like Dave Darland, J.J. Yeley, Ron Shuman, as well as the younger drivers like A.J. Fike, Brad Kuhn, Jerry Coons, JR., as well as the up and coming drivers like Scott Pierovich, Billy Wease, Bryan Clausen, and the really young guns who are on their way up like Brad Sweet and Alex Bowman. It is quite obvious that as one eases into retirement, five other come up to take their place ---- and I love to see it.
If you have never seen a Champ (Silver Crown) car throwing a rooster tail high in the air as it broadslides through the seemingly endless wide, flat turns on a one-mile dirt track, you don't know what you're missing. To hear the big engines accelerate out of the corners, down the long straights, then shutting off at the flagstand to set up for another full-throttle broadslide --- surrounded by a number of other cars --- is a visual and aural treat that you will never forget --- and I can't wait for Friday night at the Indiana Fairgrounds.
I sort of feel sorry for the younger race fans of today. As a youngster, I was able to get to Trenton and Langhorne to get my Champ Car thrills, but, although there may be some others remaining, the last of the big, one-mile dirt ovals that I can think of is at the Indiana Fairgrounds, and now, on the Friday night before the 500, you can still thrill to the sounds and visual treats that I grew up with, only the names have changed, and you can still follow them up from their earlier careers on bull rings in Pennsylvania and California to the BIG CHAMP (Silver Crown) Cars. Come out Friday night to watch the older guys like Levi Jones and Tracy Hines battle it out with new comers like Kody Swanson, his brother Tanner, Scott Pierovich, and maybe by next year my young friend Alex Bowman.
Last year, past USAC Western States Sprint Car Champ Kody Swanson had a bit of bad luck at the Hoosier Hundred as he got into a slower moving dark colored car entering turn one and turned turtle. This past weekend he ended up finishing 2nd in the Silver Crown race at Iowa Speedway, where A.J. Fike ended up winning his first Silver Crown race.
Then, on Saturday night I'll get to go to the midget show at ORP. I remember watching them on TV when I was still in Hawaii (and the track was still called IRP), and couldn't wait until the time I could attend that race in person.
It's a great midget track, wide and racy with enough of a bank to keep the momentum up. The best of the best have raced there, and continue to do so.
I'll never forget two years ago, when Kody Swanson had a tire going down and had it changed. He went back out in last place, but charged his way up to the front, finishing second or third if my memory serves me right. But, besides his fantastic charge from the rear, I remember walking down to track side with Harkey. We stood just outside the Starter's Stand and both of us marveled at the precision of the drivers, and the absolute speed they were able to pick up with they're 350+ horsepower engines. Even Harkey, with his number of Indy 500 starts, came away very impressed. ORP is one of the venues where you can really see the up and coming new drivers as they graduate into the larger engines and bigger, faster tracks/
In short, this will be a jam-packed week coming up, and as I finish this column in my motel room in Coralville, Iowa, I'm only about 400 miles from the action.
Before I close for this week, though, we have to take a look back over last weekend.
At RMR at Salt Lake City, Jimmy Wysong came out of retirement to win the sprint car race in overwhelming fashion, lapping all but the first three or four cars. I didn't see it as I was busy loading two cars in my trailer and wanted to get a decent night's sleep.
Chuck Grout not only cleaned house in the Focus division, but he also set a new Focus midget track record.
While I'm running around the Speedway area for the next few days, e-mails can still reach me at: jrw-jnw@sbcglobal.net.
May 23 2010
HMIEL SETS WORLD RECORD TO LEAD IOWA QUALIFIERS!
Shane Hmiel of Pleasant Garden, Iowa is now the fastest Sprint car driver in the world! Hmiel qualified his Rotondo Weirich/Benic Enterprises Maxim/Gaerte Chevy Saturday at 146.444 mph, breaking the previous record of 146.145 set four years ago by Darren Hagen. Hmiel will start on the pole for this evening’s 50-lap USAC AMSOIL National Sprint race at the 7/8-mile paved oval.
Bobby East also set a new Iowa Speedway USAC Silver Crown track record of 143.000 mph in his Ford Racing/Club Sport Beast/Ford to win the pole for the 100-lap Silver crown feature. His speed eclipsed Hmiel’s record of 142.560 mph set in 2008.
Bobby Santos III of Franklin, Mass. won the pole for the 30-lap USAC Mopar National Midget race at a speed of 136.974 mph in his Santos Motor Sports/K & N Air Filters Beast/Esslinger Ford. Darren Hagen shares the front row with Santos in the Midget race.
while Henry Clarke sits aside Hmiel in the Sprint feature and Brad Sweet is on the front row with East in the Silver Crown 100-lapper. Clarke’s speed in the Sprint car qualifying also eclipsed Hagen’s previous world mark.
May 18 2010
JR Williams View from the Cockpit
JR Williams
Carson City Nevada
Contributor to OWR3
It was a long, hard weekend for the old man --- but more on that later. In some respects it was a great weekend as I got to see and speak with a lot of old friends, some of whom I haven't seen in a year or more.
We ran the Eco-tech on dirt at Chico on Friday night, and the Focus on pavement at Roseville on Saturday.
During those two days I managed to have some time with Ryan Kaplan who was running a 410-winged sprint car at Chico, as well as Robby and Moe Whitchurch. I haven't seen Robby and Moe for at least four years when Robby was driving a Focus. Now he's also in a 410-winged sprint car.
Moe invited me to have breakfast with him on Saturday morning, but that didn't work out. Perhaps next time I'm up that way.
On Saturday, we ran at Roseville, along with the USAC sprint cars and I got to see the Sasselli family (Myrel and Donna) as well as Audra and Chris Thornburg. Haven't seen them in about a year a guess, so it was sort of like old home week. Also spent a few minutes with Tony Hunt and JoJo Helberg as well as Scott Pierovich and Tanner Swanson. I saw Tim Skoglund at the driver's meeting, but didn't get a chance to say hello, and I was pitted next to Marvin Mitchell. All in all it was great to get to see so many old friends again.
Tony Hunt set fast time at Roseville, with a 12.544 lap, but Audra was really breathing down his neck with a 12.568. Tanner Swanson turned third quick with a 12.702 lap, followed by Scott Pierovich who turned a 12.838. Main event winner Luis Ramos III timed fifth quick at 12.873.
Tanner won the dash, ahead of Audra, Tony and Scott.
Tim Skoglund won the 1st heat, leading JoJo and Tanner past the checkers, while the top three in the second heat were Shauna Hogg, Audra and Scott.
As mentioned, Luis won the main with Tony in second and Audra in third. Shauna led the first 31 laps before Tanner took the lead. He seemed quite comfortable in front, until the loss of the left rear wheel in turn one on lap 48 opened the door for Luis to take the lead and win his first USAC main event. Tony crossed the line in second, ahead of Audra and Tim.
The point standings are relatively close, with Tony in first place with 268 markers, but behind him it gets really close with Shauna in second, one point ahead of JoJo, who is one point ahead of Luis.
While Tanner was running on the pavement at Roseville, older brother Kody was running one of the McQueen midgets on the very fast Santa Maria dirt oval over on the coast where he set fast time ahead of Cory Kruseman and Johnathon Henry. Shannon McQueen was back in action with her car, even though she didn't think she'd run again until after her wedding which I believe is next week.
A number of other old friends were in competition at Santa Maria, including cousins Cody and Jake Swanson, Randi Pankratz, and Robby Josett.
Robby won the first heat, while Shannon won the second. Cory Kruseman led the first eleven laps of the main event until being passed by Henry who went on for the win. Kody Swanson was second, trailed by Alex Schutte and Robby Josett.
Roseville had 14 Focus midgets on hand, including Tim Skoglund who did double-duty, driving both the sprint and Focus races.
Garrett Peterson, who is on a real roll this season, cleaned house, setting fast time, and then going on to win his heat, the dash and the main event.
Cody Gerhardt turned second fast time and followed that up by taking fourth in the dash, winning his heat and finishing fourth in the main.
Tim Skoglund timed third quick and finished second in his heat, second in the dash, and sixth in the main.
Young Keegan Walmer timed fifth quick, and then finished third in his heat and second in the main. He led the first five laps of the main until being passed by Garrett who was never headed.
It was a long and frustrating weekend for the old man. It actually started on Thursday when I thought I'd stop at Lowes to get a 4x4 and have them cut it to make blocks so I could block both cars for the up coming weekend. I carried the 4x4 to the back of their lumber department where they informed me that their saw could only cut 2x4s. So, I decided to go to plan B and make some struts for at least the front of the cars. When I got to the shop I could only find three pairs of heim joints to make the struts, but decided that I could use an old bent shock for the other one.
Then I found part of an old 4x4 laying alongside the shop and decided to cut that to make a few blocks. Unfortunately, the only saw I had was a chop saw and I made 1 1/2 cuts before burning the motor out on that.
By the time I got both cars in the trailer it was 6:30 and I never did get the trailer or the tow truck washed.
The next morning I went from my office to the garage to put my shoes on, then up to the corner to put my bag and jacket in the tow truck. I stopped a mile from there for a coffee and got on the road. Half a mile further on I decided to charge my cell phone --- but couldn't find it. The last I knew I had it was in my office. I retraced my steps and even used the house phone to call the cell phone, but couldn't find it.
I found a Radio Shack store up in Quincy and bought a new cell phone, but I lost tons of phone numbers that were on my ancient one.
That put me late enough that I really couldn't enjoy the scenery driving down the Thunder River Canyon which is one of my favorite roads. In any case I got to the track at Chico as they were opening the gate and got unloaded and ready to race. Friend Bob Brewer was there to crew for me as the car he was going to drive hadn't been completed in time.
The sun was setting in turn three during hot laps, so I couldn't get a good read on the track, although I had a slight push entering turn one that I could kick the car through.
We took a half turn of cross weight out of the rear for the heat to loosen the car a little, and did all right in the heat. Then we misread the track and guessed wrong for the main event. We ended up with the car so loose that during the pace lap, going through turn three I kicked the throttle and the car wanted to swap ends. "This is going to be a long, hard main event," I thought to myself. Still and all it was fun as my throttle was working better than it had been in the past.
I finally got to sleep about 3:00 in the morning, so I missed breakfast with Moe. I'll make it next time.
I got to Roseville at 1:00, but had so much work to do that I missed the first practice session. The second session was scheduled for 3:40, but at 3:20 they were calling us out to staging, so I hustled and got everything done by my fuel check. As it was I was low and the engine missed badly coming off the corners. So, my practice session ended up behind my two laps of qualifying. Thanks to Randy Chastain who gave me some insight on what line to run. I qualified near the back, but still turned a faster time than I ever turned there before, and that with old tires on all four corners.
I was just being lapped in the main event near the end of the race, and was coming through turn four as the checker was waving when the engine quit. I managed to coast across the line and got pushed to my pit area. My first thought was that a battery cable had come off. I turned on the switch and the red. low oil pressure light came on --- so much for that. I took the hood off and Dan Kassik said, "I found your problem," as he pointed to the broken power-steering pump belt that was laying on the belly pan. The fuel pump is driven off the power steering pump, and these engines don't run very well without methanol going through them. Randy gave me a new belt that I put on today and the engine runs fine. So, our trip to Indiana is still on.
That was not the end of the old man's problems though. As I was going past Sacramento, I heard a sound like someone throwing a rock against the trailer. Nothing seemed remiss, however, so I continued on another 40 miles to Placerville where I pulled into a shopping center at a Denny's restaurant where I was going to get dinner. It was midnight. When I got out of the tow truck I discovered that the left front trailer tire was shredded. I guess what I thought was a rock hitting the trailer was really the tire blowing out. I didn't really feel like changing a tire at midnight, but I did -- I ended up arriving home at 4:00 A.M. ending a really long, frustrating weekend.
This coming Saturday will find us in Salt Lake City again, so wish me well and e-mail me at: jrw-jnw@sbcglobal.net.
May 14 2010
Today's IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines:
4. Patrick among most marketable
1. Firestone Indy Lights drivers go to class before Open Test: J.K. Vernay had a typical reaction to seeing the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the first time.
May 12 2010
First in Line for the 500 !
The time is drawing close. IT IS ALMOST TIME FOR, "THE SPEEDWAY TO OPEN".
Better late then never?
LOOKING BACK AT DICK RALSTINS SITE I FOUND THIS ARTICLE ON,
"The First guy in line" to get in, He was the First in line there for years.
https://home.comcast.net/~webspinner/dralstin/pictures/TimeToOpen.htm
Incase You dont know who Dick was You can get into His site through this address.
http://www.dickralstin.com/
aXe
View From the Cockpit
JR Williams
Nevada
Contributor to OWR3
When did you first start racing?
JR Williams photo
Terra Brower
She is a West Valley, Utah resident who graduated from Kearns High School in 2008 where she was on both the drill and dance teams. Terra has an older sister and a younger brother and had a cousin who raced late models which gave her an interest into driving race cars. Still and all, the first race car she ever drove was a Focus midget, thanks to Guy Remick (the car owner) and his daughter Christina who is one of Terra's best friends.
May 9 2010
Greatest Spectacle in Racing Warms up or?
The Hot Air Balloon Glow scheduled for Saturday evening was Grounded by cold 52 degrees and at times strong winds. The ATT Balloon was the only one to get Heat in it and that was a major undertaking. As it rose up into the sky it had several men holding ropes to keep it from getting away.
As the wind blew it around some of those guys went for some very fast slides as they couldn’t hold it in place . The wind was the first winner this year as the rest of the Balloon launch was canceled due to those strong and intermittent winds.
The evening wasn’t a complete loss as the fans heard a group playing in the pagoda area. The cold and winds kept the crowd down and I think it was about half the size as last years?
The Balloon crews did get a chance to show off their balloons burners as the fied them up before the HUGE Fireworks display went skyward. They turned the burners off and on for about a half hr. Lighting up the fading sunlight and also providing some warmth for the fans who kept pretty close to all that heat. The flames were spectacular to say the least as they were all it seemed dialed into different amounts of gas being let out some shot flames up skyward over 30 ft, others about half that, some let out bursts that made the flames leave contact with the burners as they rose even higher. The colors were from very light blues to very very dark oranges. With over 15 Burners lighting up the sky. It lit the whole area up and provided that heat for the fans. As the temperature stayed right a round 50 degrees the whole time We were out there with a wind chill it had to be around 30 degrees?
Then as the dark started to settle we were treated to a spectacular fire works show to end the evening. it seemed to Me it was a much larger show than last years? The fans as usual ohhhd and ahhhd with its explosions some of which echoing off the front stretch Grandstands backs sounded like they would blow them up?
As the fans left laughing and talking about the fireworks they enjoyed the most that evening the event closed to another FREE event for them. Brought to them By the makers of the Greatest Spectacle in Racing, The Indianapolis speedway.
aXe
May 8 2010
RAIN HALTS BLOOMINGTON’S “LARRY RICE CLASSIC”
Kunz-11.946; 27. Jon Sciscoe, 7s, Sciscoe-11.992; 28. Ricky Williams, 11w, Williams-12.011; 29. Kyle Cummins, 4u, Wild Ride-12.068; 30. Ethan Barrow, 15, Barrow-12.071; 31. Bobby Stines, 88, Stines-12.145; 32. Tyler Waltz, 18w, Waltz-12.186; 33. Casey Riggs, 37, Indiana Underground-12.235; 34. Daron Clayton, 92, Clayton-15.365.
NEW AMSOIL NATIONAL SPRINT POINTS: 1-Gardner-459; 2-Coons-447; 3-Jones-404; 4-Clauson-391; 5-Hines-380; 6-Robert Ballou-376; 7-Windom-361; 8-Clarke-359; 9-Darland-266; 10-Stanbrough-246.
NEXT AMSOIL NATIONAL SPRINT CAR RACE: May 12 – Rossburg, OH – Eldora Speedway – “Coca-Cola Spring Classic – “Don Branson-Jud Larson Classic”
May 7 2010
IZOD INDYCAR SERIES NEWS AND NOTES -
May 6 2010
ELDORA MAY 12 AUTOGRAPH SESSION & USAC THEME EXPANDED UPON
IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines:
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues May 30 with the 2010 Indianapolis 500 Mile Race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at noon (ET) by ABC. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Firestone Freedom 100 on May 28 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway The race will air live on VERSUSal figures that have predominantly shaped USAC’s history at the legendary one-half mile clay oval. Immediately following Stewart’s autograph session (limited to 500 armbands), Earl Baltes and Jack Hewitt will welcome the fans in yet another autograph session.
GRAHAM RAHAL JOINING LEGENDARY FATHER’S TEAM FOR INDY 500
25th Annual Chili Bowl Ticket Renewal Deadline Approaches
Lonnie Wheatley, TULSA, Okla – You don’t want to be left out of the biggest racing event of the current millennium. That’s why it’s imperative that you renew your tickets for the 25th Anniversary of the Chili Bowl Nationals as soon as possible.
With the celebration of a quarter of a century of unforgettable Midget racing action at Tulsa’s QuikTrip Center set for next January, ticket orders are already being placed for the prestigious event at a record pace.
Ticket holders from the 2010 rendition of the event have the inside track though, provided they renew their ticket orders prior to the June 10, 2010, deadline.
Any tickets not renewed by the June 10 deadline will be filled by new orders on a first-come, first-served basis, with new ticket requests accepted at any time. New orders will be filled based upon availability, increasing the impetus upon placing new orders as early as possible.
The 25th Anniversary of the Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals atop the QuikTrip Center’s ¼-mile Tulsa Expo Raceway clay oval is set for January 11-15, 2011. Tickets for four nights (Wednesday through Saturday) are just $185 apiece, with tickets for all five nights of action available for $228. A $1 per ticket handling charge is applied if paying by credit card.
Tickets are available by calling the Chili Bowl ticket office at 918-838-3777 or online at www.chilibowl.com.
This January, Kevin Swindell became the youngest winner in Chili Bowl history by capturing the coveted Golden Driller trophy at just 20 years of age, adding to the family collection that already included the four Golden Drillers won at the Chili Bowl by his father, Sammy Swindell.
Sammy Swindell, who finished third behind his son and Cole Whitt, is one of just four drivers to earn multiple Chili Bowl triumphs, with Tony Stewart, Cory Kruseman and Don Boorse each posting two event wins. Another 13 drivers have claimed one Chili Bowl triumph including Kevin Swindell, Damion Gardner, Tim McCreadie, Tracy Hines, Jay Drake, Billy Boat, Donnie Beechler, Andy Hillenburg, Dave Blaney, Lealand McSpadden, Jon Heydenreich, Scott Hatton and Rich Vogler.
Additional information regarding the Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Midget Nationals is available at http://www.chilibowl.com/.
May 5 2010
May 15 – Columbus, OH – Columbus Motor Speedway
June 12 – Marne, MI –Berlin Raceway
June 26 - Marne, MI –Berlin Raceway
August 7 – Springport, MI – Springport Motor Speedway
August 12 - Marne, MI –Berlin Raceway
September 25 - Marne, MI –Berlin Raceway
Today's IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines:
May 4 2010
Jimmy Wysong-153, 2-Jim Waters-138, 3-Luis Ramos III-115, 4-Mel Andrus-106, 5-Eric Barlow-97, 6-Paul Marconi-84, 7-Ray Bergener-80, 8-Chancey Filler-72, 9-Tony Hunt-68, 10-Mike Murgoitio-65.
Jimmy Wysong-153, 2-Jim Waters-138, 3-Luis Ramos III-115, 4-Mel Andrus-106, 5-Eric Barlow-97, 6-Paul Marconi-84, 7-Ray Bergener-80, 8-Chancey Filler-72, 9-Tony Hunt-68, 10-Mike Murgoitio-65.
IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines:
1. IZOD IndyCar Series drivers test at Kentucky Speedway on May 4
2. Unser gives rookies high overall marks on first oval
3. John Andretti posts best IZOD IndyCar Series finish
4. Four teams represented in top five of standings
5. Vote for Tire-ific Move of the Race:
1. IZOD IndyCar Series drivers test at Kentucky Speedway on May 4: For the past three years, Davey Hamilton's routine in May has been to practice, qualify and race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. This year, he'll get some preliminary seat time.
Hamilton will join Luczo Dragon Racing/de Ferran Motorsports' regular driver Raphael Matos and other IZOD IndyCar Series drivers for a May 4 afternoon test session at Kentucky Speedway. Fans are invited to watch free of charge from a designated area outside the Turn 3 Fan Center located off of I-71 Exit 57 and Ky. Hwy. 35 North.
"I've been out of the car since Indy last year and haven't had a lot of laps in the last three years so this test will be important for me as we get prepared for Indy," said Hamilton, who has recorded plenty of laps as driver of the Indy Racing Experience two-seater. "It's also the first time working with the team and I'm looking forward to that. I may have experience, but Rafa has been in five races already and has knowledge of how the cars have been reacting this season so his input will be invaluable to me.
"The nice thing with a two-car team is that we can go out on two completely different setups and learn twice as much during the same session."
The hours on the 1.5-mile Kentucky Speedway oval also will help the teams prepare the high banks of Texas Motor Speedway, where both Hamilton and Matos will compete on June 5, and six other oval races.
"I do believe that we will benefit from having two drivers and two sets of engineers exchanging information," team president Gil de Ferran said. "Obviously, internally we will have to make a few adjustments as we have not run two cars before, but I am confident that overall the addition of one car will be a plus."
Kentucky Speedway will play host to IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights on Sept. 4.
2. Unser gives rookies high overall marks on first oval: Four drivers competed in their first IZOD IndyCar Series oval race -- the Road Runner Turbo Indy 300 at Kansas Speedway -- on May 1. Three were running at the finish, while the fourth - KV Racing Technology's Takuma Sato - was challenging for a top-10 finish until being involved in a two-car crash on Lap 186 of 200.
Conquest Racing's Bertrand Baguette finished 20th, De Silvestro of Team Stargate Worlds/HVM Racing was 21st and Conquest Racing's Mario Romancini was 22nd.
Overall, IZOD IndyCar Series driver coach Al Unser Jr. said, the first-year drivers acquitted themselves against the competition and without much preparation time. They received five hours of track time April 28 to digest information and assimilate the nuances of the 1.52-mile racetrack plus one 105-minute practice session (reduced from two sessions because of rain) on April 30.
"I think they did exceptionally well," said Unser, a two-time Indianapolis 500 champion. "They'll learn the next step at Indy. Indy is completely different than the high banks of the mile-and-a-half ovals. It's an oval that is more road course style. Rick Mears, Johnny Rutherford, me and everybody will be there to help out."
3. John Andretti posts best IZOD IndyCar Series finish:As tune-ups go, John Andretti is good for another 500 miles.
Andretti, competing in the Road Runner Turbo Indy 300 at Kansas Speedway as a prelude to the Indianapolis 500 on May 30, finished ninth in the No. 43 Window World entry for Richard Petty/Andretti Autosport -- his highest IZOD IndyCar Series oval finish.
"I can't be disappointed with this," said Andretti, who has competed on the 1.5-mile oval in four different racing series. "I felt if we finished in the top 10 that would be better than I could expect and we finished ninth. We ran up there, we ran good and we ran good on the long runs.
"Like everybody, I think we wish (Scott) Dixon hadn't caught it quite so good because then we could have finished a little better, but I'm pleased. We weren't perfect, but it was good for me. I had a good time."
4. Four teams represented in top five of standings: Will Power's 42-point lead after four road/street course events has dwindled to 26 after the first oval race of the season.
A victory in the Road Runner Turbo Indy 300 vaulted Scott Dixon to second in the championship standings - and first in the oval title chase. Helio Castroneves is 28 points back and Ryan Hunter-Reay is 31 points behind Power, who finished 12th at Kansas Speedway.
Dario Franchitti, the reigning IZOD IndyCar Series champion, is fifth (minus 38) in the championship. Four teams are represented in the standings heading into Indianapolis 500 qualifications.
5. Vote for Tire-ific Move of the Race: Fans select the Firestone Tire-ific Move of the Race winner by voting on indycar.com after every race. This $10,000 prize is awarded to the driver best utilizing his or her Firestone tires to make a bold, dramatic move during the event. Nominees for the Road Runner Turbo Indy 300 are Scott Dixon for leading the final 150 laps for a dominant victory, Tony Kanaan for setting the fastest lap on Lap 198 to pass Helio Castroneves for third place and Ryan Hunter-Reay for advancing from 22nd to finish fifth.
***
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues May 30 with the 2010 Indianapolis 500 Mile Race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at noon (ET) by ABC. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Firestone Freedom 100 on May 28 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway The race will air live on VERSUS.
JR Williams
Carson city Nevada
Contributor to OWR3
Shannon McQueen and her dad Dewayne were wandering the pits at Chowchilla on Saturday night. Why do I mention this? Well, it was only a few weeks ago when both Shannon and Garrett Hanson were injured badly at Perris. Garrett broke his back in three places, but is now well enough to pit for other competitors, and Shannon damn near died from an eye injury. I had no idea that the injury she had could have been fatal, but found out from her on Saturday night. In any case, she is chomping at the bit to get back in the cockpit, but it looks as though she'll wait until after her wedding which is coming up in a week and a half. Her maid of honor will be her best friend Michell Decker who is a very fast midget driver in her own right. It was great to be able to visit with Shannon and her dad. More on Chowchilla later.
The Midwest had its share of rain last week, which caused the postponement of Tri-City's "Kevin Doty Classic" in the midget division, as well as the "Billy Marvel Classic" sprint car race.
Ford Focus graduate Henry Clarke is doing quite well so far this season, holding down eighth place in the National Sprint Car Series points and tenth place in the National Midget Series. I never had the opportunity to meet Henry, but I remember seeing his name when he was running in Ventura, and I may have been there once or twice while he was running, but never got to meet him.
The rain also screwed up the opening sprint car show at Rocky Mountain Raceway on Saturday night, but they were able to get the qualifications in. Jimmy Wysong turned quick time, followed by Ryan Burdett. The next race for the sprints at RMR will be on the 22nd, while our Utah Focus Series opener at RMR will be this coming Saturday.
While the Midwest was suffering through their bad weather, the West Coast was enjoying brilliant sunshine and delightful weather.
USAC took over the Stockton, Ca., 99 speedway, with sprints, midgets, Focus midgets and the Young Gun Focus cars all running.
While the old man would have liked to have run there with the Focus cars, he also wanted to run the Chevy Eco-tech again, and went down to Chowchilla to run with the BCRA on the 1/3rd-mile dirt. More on that later.
Ten Focus midgets showed up in Stockton, with Garrett Peterson making a clean sweep of the night, taking fast time, winning the first heat, then going on by winning the dash, and finishing the night by winning the main event, although he had to work at the main event win as Cody Gerhardt led for the first seven laps before Garrett took over the lead and held it until the checkered flag on lap 30.
Young Keegan Walmer turned second quick time, driving a Sutton car. He finished second in the second heat behind Greg Paul. Keegan finished sixth in the main.
Third, fourth and fifth quick were all Sutton's drivers, with Bobby Runyan in third, Cody Thompson in fourth, and Courtney Atkinson in fifth.
Cody Gerhardt qualified sixth quick.
As mentioned, Garrett Peterson won the main, followed by Cody Gerhardt, Cody Thompson and Bobby Runyan.
There were also ten midgets running at Stockton 99, with Kody Swanson taking fast time. Alex Shutte was just .011 seconds back in second and Kody's brother Tanner was third quick.
Tanner won the first heat ahead of Robby Josett and Chad Nichols won the second heat in front of Alex Shutte.
Scott Pierovich won the dash, ahead of Tanner and then Kody Swanson, followed by Alex.
Chad Nichols won the 30-lap main event, Dan Chivello was second, followed by Scott, Alex, Robby, Kody, and then Cody Swanson (no relation if you remember) Tanner Swanson, Dan Gundo and Cory Kruseman.
The Western Midgets will be seeing action in two weeks at Santa Maria.
Scott Pierovich and Kody Swanson both did double-duty Saturday night, running both midgets and sprint cars.
Scott turned fast time in the sprint division trailed across the timing light by JoJo Helberg, just .081 seconds back. Kody timed third quick, while always fast runner Tony Hunt crossed the lights in fourth spot followed by Audra Sasselli who got her car back together after crashing so hard at Shasta just the week before.
Audra won the first heat ahead of Scott, Tony won the second heat ahead of Shauna Hogg, and Tony won the dash in front of JoJo.
There were only two leaders in the 40-lap main event, with Shauna Hogg leading the first twelve laps before being overtaken by Kody Swanson who went on for the win, followed by Tony Hunt, Shauna, Scott, and JoJo.
Tony Hunt now leads the points, just 16 points ahead of JoJo.
In a way, I'm sorry I wasn't there to see all of the friends I've made out here, but I also have a lot of friends that were running in Chowchilla, and I couldn't be at two places at one time.
For those who don't know the California area, Chowchilla is in the Central Valley, just south of Modesto and Merced, and north of Madera and Fresno. When I run down that way, I like to go down the afternoon before and stay in Merced, as it is close to all of the areas I've mentioned, plus the Super-8 motel there has ample parking for trailers and is just off the freeway.
Because the pits weren't going to open at Chowchilla until 3:00 P.M., I decided to leave early Saturday morning and drive down, then spend the night in Merced before coming home. In a away I'm glad I did, as our 16-month old granddaughter ended up in the hospital in Reno after she had a seizure following a fever. I was at the shop shortly after noon on Friday when our daughter called and said that she was taking the baby back home, and would we like to meet them for a late lunch at a local restaurant. So - it worked out great for us as we got to visit with the family.
I even ended up with a pit crew on Saturday night. Old friend Jon Santibanes, who I break bread with many times when I'm down that way, offered to come over to the track to help. It was Jon's father, Jerry, who took the head shot of me that graces the head of this column. Jon drove Focus midgets for a few years, and I wouldn't be surprised to see him back in a car again soon, as he will be entering the California Maritime Academy up in Vallejo, CA. this fall and there are a number of spec. 360 sprint car tracks around that area.
Anyway, I got on the road at 7:30 and stopped in Lockerford to have breakfast with some old racing friends. By then I really needed a few shots of coffee, as route 88 has gone from bad to terrible up over Kit Carson pass, and with the State of California near bankrupt, it will probably be a cold day in hell before they ever patch the pot holes up there. In fact, I hit a pot hole starting up over the pass that really woke me up, and 100 feet further up the road there was a sign that said, "rough road ahead." Thanks California.
Anyway, from Lockerford on down I ran mostly on route 99 which is almost as bad as 88, only it's a longer ride.
I hadn't been to Chowchilla in about eight years. The last time I was there was during a dwarf car national race and I really like the track. It is a 1/3rd-mile dirt, wide, with a nice bank and a relatively smooth surface.
I got to the track about 2:15 and visited with Jake Swanson and his dad and then the Prickett family and crew for a while before the gates opened. I asked Tom Prickett if I could pit next to them, not that I wanted any of the fine food he usually prepares. but as I would be able to use some help loading the car after the races.
Tom's son David, was the 2009 BCRA champion, and a more deserving one couldn't be found as he's a real gentleman as well as a fierce competitor.
Keith Iaia and his son Curtis showed up as I was starting the engine in the trailer. He had his computer with him and hooked it up to the data wires of my ECU and seemed pleased with what he saw.
After mud-packing I told Jon that the track was starting to dry out and that although I would run a 6 1/2 inch stagger for the heat race, I'd cut it down to about 4 1/2 inches for the main event. I didn't have to think about changing my mind, as another car made contact with me during the heat and as the car was unmanageable, I pulled out, only to discover that my left rear was flat and that the outer wheel half was ready for the scrap heap.
We used a pill draw for line-ups, and I ended up on the outside of the front row for the heat race. I thought I was going to go fairly well, following our three-lap, hot-lap session, but the sun was setting as we were going through turn three and on the first start I was blinded and dropped back. Fortunately for me, someone spun and there was a complete restart. By then the sun had dropped and I had a fairly good start. I was running a high groove in turns one and two and coming out of turn two another car came into my left rear. I knew there was a little damage, but didn't know what, and tried to continue on, but after a lap realized it was time to pull off. Fortunately there was no suspension or chassis damage.
Greg Bragg almost cleaned house, winning his second BCRA main event in a row. He won the dash and took the main event lead from Nick Foster, Jr., on the eleventh circuit and held it to the end. David Prickett won the first heat, and Sean Dodenhoff won the second, preventing Greg from making it a clean sweep.
I would be starting 14 out of 16 in the main event --- unfortunately, I completely missed the set-up, and it was all my fault.
Jon made a few suggestions, that I didn't comply with. I should have, as he was correct as I found out the next morning. Then Keith made a suggestion that I also disregarded, and his would have helped as well.
I got pushed off for the main and during the first pace lap, the engine began running very rough. I didn't know what was happening, but it was coughing and spitting and finally quite completely coming out of turn four. I looked down and had oil pressure and the fuel switch was turned on. As I slowed, I popped it out of gear, and as soon as the rear wheels quit turning the engine over, the red (low oil pressure) light came on, which assured me that the ignition was still in the ON position. Hey, I knew that anyway, as my ignition switch is like a light switch in your house - up is on.
Anyway, as I was waiting for a push truck, I cycled the ignition a few times, and each time I turned it on, the red light came on, so I knew that I had power to the light anyway.
A push truck bumped me and started pushing, and I was waving madly trying to get him to back off, as I was still out of gear and needed to be rocked a little to get it back in gear. Finally, the driver realized that I wanted him to back off, and he did. When I stopped, I dropped it into gear and he started pushing again, and the next thing I knew I was almost into the infield going into turn one and a huge bumper was right alongside my right shoulder. What a screw-up. I don't know what kind of a truck it was, nor how low the bumper was, but it was certainly so high that it's a good thing I had a Butler seat or it would have been into my shoulder.
JR photos
Nor do I know how long it took to get us disconnected. I know they tried with two different wreckers to get the truck off me. When they finally got me free, the BCRA official told me that the car looked OK to run and I got another push off. It took until half way down the backstretch for it to start, but it finally got going and I had no more trouble the rest of the night.
We had a red flag about half-way through the main event, and a lap or so after that a new Eco-tech driver got around me, and I couldn't catch him. I had seen him in the pits and although he looked familiar, I didn't recognize the nice, blue and white uniform, or the name Ricky Wright, Jr. that was sewn on it. Still and all, he got by me and I followed him for a few laps before he passed the next car up. I was going to try to get by it as well, but by then I was being lapped and I didn't want to change my line. As it was, I finished 10th --- and if I had listened to Jon and Keith I probably would have been eighth, but that's what it is when you're old and stubborn.
The next morning, while eating breakfast, instead of reading a racing magazine I leafed through Wally Pankratz's midget set-up bible and realized two things; both Keith and Jon were right, and I thought back a few years when Jerry Crowell told me that when the track really went dry, you couldn't tighten the car up fast enough.
Anyway, as I was climbing out of the car, Jon told me that the rear nerf bar had been bent over and the right sail and arm guard had been damaged. I didn't realize until I was washing the car today that the Butler seat had stopped the push truck bumper from getting into my shoulder and that the right rear radius rod had been bent.
I have to admit that I was a little disappointed when no one from the track thought enough to stop by to see what damage had been done and to at least say they were sorry.
As we were doing the post race maintenance, Tom Prickett came over and handed me a bowl of delicious hot (in two ways) chili so I wouldn't have to feel guilty begging for some. Thanks. It was great.
Our next race will be this coming Saturday at Rocky Mountain Raceway.
Until next Monday you can reach me at: jrw-jnw@sbcglobal.net.
More on Stockton
Kevin Triplett
Live Oak California
Contributor to OWR3
The USAC show Saturday night at Stockton 99's banked 1/4 asphalt track was fairly well attended, despite the low car count; maybe 1 000 people in the stands. There were five classes run: Junior Midget, Focus Midget, Midget, NCMA carbureted sprint cars, the USAC sprint cars. The junior midgets appear to be some limited version of Focus Midget, as some of the
same cars ran in both classes. The Junior field featured four cars, the Focus field 8 cars, the midget field 10 cars, 6 NCMA cars, and 11 USAC sprint cars (1 NCMA car did double duty). The midget show was dominated by Garrett Peterson, who won his heat, the trophy dash, and the feature, in the family owned Sacramento Theatrical Lighting sponsored car. The Junior midget feature, trophy dash and feature had the same four cars, so those youngsters got in lots of laps; the feature was a race long battle between 14 year old Keegan Walmer and 17 year old Courtney Atkinson, these two traded the lead virtually every lap at each end of the speedway before Walmer pulled away with 3 laps to go. The NCMA feature started with bang, with Jimmy Riddell riding over Thomas Lieby's left rear at the drop of the green, and both cars went into the first turn wall, with Riddell being eliminated. On the restart, Ray Hammond jumped into the lead and was never headed. The midget show featured the Swanson brothers, Kody in the #4 Mr. Espresso midget, and Tanner in the #10 Rescino owned entry. The surprise was the appearance of "the Kruzer," Cory Kruseman, in his midget, but the car was unable to fire for the feature. The feature was lead flag to flag by #17 Chad Nichols, who runs pavement only.
The sprint heats were great for fans of female racers; as Shaun
Impact and SFI have agreed to a settlement in the case brought up by SFI.
Click here to read all about the settlement.
Den
Jan 27 2010
NEWS FROM MOTORSPORTS 2010 PRESENTED BY STREETBLAZE 100 RACE CAR & TRADE SHOW
"THE MID-WINTER MOTORSPORTS EXTRAVAGANZA"
AND THE GAMBLERS CLASSIC INDOOR AUTO RACING EVENTS
OAKS, PA January 25, 2010 . . . Success!!!
The return of the Motorsports 2010 Presented by StreetBlaze 100 Race Car and Trade Show to the Philadelphia area was a huge success.
Fans loved the new location (with loads of free parking and a chance to ride on a school bus) and vendors were ecstatic about the increased sales that they enjoyed during the three day show that filled more than 225,000 square feet of the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, PA.
“This is the start of what we believe is going to be a long history of great shows, one right after another, here in Oaks. It was a great 25th anniversary celebration,” said show promoter Len Sammons. “Thought not everything ran smoothly it was a fantastic three days. We are already working on correcting those things that did not run smoothly and seeing what else we can do to make the next show even better.”
NASCAR Sprint Cup stars Kasey Kahne and Marcos Ambrose along with NASCAR legend Bobby Allison, drag racing star Morgan Lucas, SPEED TV broadcast personalities Hermie Sadler and Jeff Hammond, open cockpit legend Ralph Liguori, NASCAR Sprint Cup crew chief Frankie Kerr along with a variety of local and regional stars attracted long lines of fans seeking autographs and the opportunity to meet their auto racing heroes.
The new Ms. Motorsports is lovely Danielle Wilson of Stephens City, Virginia. She is currently a student at Lord Fairfax College in Middletown, VA. Ms. Wilson, 20 years old, represented the Steel Block Bandits organization which sanctions late model racing events in the Mid-Atlantic States.
Ms. Wilson, a green eyed beauty, received $1,500 from BPG Racing, the sponsor of Ms. Motorsport, a beautiful watch from Golden Pleasure Jewelers in Bordentown, NJ, a custom made jacket from Design 500 and a poster deal from Area Auto Racing News. She will represent the Motorsports 2011 at a number of races and special events throughout 2010.
The first runner-up was Kelsey Johnson, an 18-year-old student from Elmer, NJ who loves racing here micro-sprint. She received $500 and a watch from Golden Pleasure Jewelers.
Second runner-up was Raven Reed of Grafton, Ohio. The 18-year-old student received $250 from BPG Racing and a watch.
The fans, a huge turnout, voted Melissa Hassall as the best in the bathing suit category. The judges gave Danielle Wilson the top vote in the swimwear category.
Lauren Culbertson earned the top honors in the photo category. Loralyn Brinster was tops in interviews. Raven Reed won in sportswear while the honors in the congeniality category went to Mindy English.
BPG Racing’s Chad Sinon was very excited about the great interest in the pageant and the wonderful support given the event by the young ladies that participated. He has agreed to sponsor the pageant in 2011.
Exhibitors did an outstanding job of having their displays in excellent condition and made it touch for judges to pick the “best of show” award winners but the winners were:
Drag Car - Reidnauer Racing
Stock Car - NASCAR (H&H Racing No. 98H)
Vintage Stock Car - Moe Pagani’s Budd Olsen No. 0
Quarter Midget/Kart - Doylestown Quarter Midget Club
Open Cockpit - ARDC with Gary Becker’s No. 20 midget
Vintage Car Club - the new Flemington Speedway Historic Society
Race Car Display - Kevin Hirthler’s Four Star Racing
Commercial Booth Display - Jamerson Motorsports with Dangerous Red Wines
Speedway or Club Display - Maple Grove Raceway
Vintage Open Cockpit - Harry Hespell No. 5 midget
The prestigious Joe Pratt Award of Excellence was presented to Program Dynamics president Steve Barrick. They have been responsible for producing the show program book for all 25 years that the show has been in operation.
Ernie Saxton, who has been involved with the promotion of the show for all 25 years and recently announced his retirement as president of the Eastern Motorsport Press Association after more than 40 years, accepted an award from EMPA Vice President Len Sammons for him and his wife Marilyn. They award was a plaque that made them both lifetime members of the organization.
Winners of the Dangerous Red Wine model search presented by Jamerson Motorsports and sponsored by Valenzano Winery were Tiffany Skias of West Reading, Pa.; Chelsea Miller of Geneva, N.Y.; Karin Heisey of Mechanicsburg, Pa; and Raven Reed of Grafton, Ohio.
Each winner received $500 and were company representatives for the remainder of the show.
Sunday’s Metal Fab Family Day proved to be a huge success with a large number of children coming out to participate in the Big Wheel competition, see the track mascots and enjoy the magician. This was a special promotion that offered free admission for children and $10 tickets for adults. It was a great way to introduce the sport to young people.
In the Big Wheel competition the 3-4 year old division was won by Bryce Smith followed by Amanda Zvorsky and Mitchell Carp. The 5-6 year old division had Cody West winning with Rylan Heckman finishing second and Owen Koch in third. The 7-8 year old competition had Jacob Mueller winning with Madison Boyd and Nathan Griffith finishing second and third. Many of the current day racers competing at area speedways were competitors in the Big Wheel races in the past.
More than 80 youngsters saw competition.
The 2011 edition of the Motorsports show will return to Oaks, PA January 21-23, 2011. Several 2010 show exhibitors have already put on hold on booth space for next year and a number of them have asked about expanding their display area. Plans for the 2011 show will be announced in the near future.
As it gets closer to May My thoughts are already turning to the Indianapolis speedway and
THE 500
Our first Indy 500 Trip
He was one helluva Midget driver and did quite well in the Champ dirt cars also. But to many injuries from Racing and Rodeoing slowed him down early on in his life. Any way he had a flight out of Dallas to the 500 every year. It is a day trip, Up there at six AM and back in Dallas by eight PM same day.
When we moved to Texas that's one of the first things I spotted in the Austin newspaper. He still had seats left on his flight that year, So Lee (My son) and I signed up to see our first INDY 500 together. This was in 1992.
I can still vividly remember walking in the gate on sixteenth street for the very first time, It still sends chills down my back thinking about it!
My son since moving from California had took up wearing shorts all the time, I told him about the weather forecast, He pooh pooed it and said he was going in his shorts! I said "better take some pants along just in case", But what do parents know right? So off we go Lee in his shorts (without any extra clothes!) and me warmly dressed, I thought!
Well in case you didn't know, it was one of the coldest races ever if not the coldest! I had to end up giving my jacket to the kid to wrap his legs so he didn't suffer hypothermia! Yes, it was dam cold for us from Out West who see snow about once every ten or twenty years were we lived!
Now that was the year of "the cold tires meet the first turn wall." We sat right in the middle of that short chute (between 1 & 2) and most of the carnage ended up right in front of us, At one time I counted Seven cars parked off the track in front of us due to some one hitting the wall,
I was amazed at the wrecks, Especially the noise, It did not sound like the normal crash to me, You know the kind with the screeching tires and the shredding of metal to metal. It reminded me more of like a Bomb going off!
These wrecks were caused by not waiting for the tires to warm up before blasting into the first turn after a yellow flag.
I picked up on that quick, I had the VHS camera pointed at the first turn on every Green after a Yellow. I got some good footage that way.
After the race we went into the garages and also walked down the front straight.
We went into the garages of the car driven by Stan Fox ( Hemelgarn /Byrd Racing team) and were welcomed warmly buy the crew, Great bunch of guys on that team. They even let me charge my VHS camera there. They showed Lee everything about the garage.
This year Stan had crashed (not the year he got hurt bad) and the wrecked car was there for us to get a close up and personal look. Stan T-Boned Philippe Gache right in front of us. If I remember right he was shielded out from seeing Gache stopped in the short chute by AJ, When AJ turned at the last minute to avoid Gache it was to late for Stan and he T-Boned Gache, The crash broke Gaches tub right in the middle, Gache sustained a broken leg and pelvis. Now that crash was what a real explosion sounded like!
It was nothing to be taken out of this race by a wreck, no less than 13 cars were taken out by accidents. Guerro who was on the POLE! lost it on one of the parade laps just to our right as he disappeared down the back stretch and hit the inside wall even before the green flag dropped!
We saw some of the "best drivers" crash into the first turn wall, There was Mears, Brayton, Fittipaldi, Gache. Crawford, J. Andretti, and Fox amongst the ones who made it no further than the inside of the short chute wrecked!
The Best part of the whole race was when Big Al was closing in on Little Al, Big Al with the Menard V6 looked as though their game plan was coming into play just like they wanted! But it came up short and Little Al won. It was great for about fifteen or twenty laps as Big Al kept gaining on his Son, Now of course my son was pulling for Little Al and I was pulling for big Al. The suspense was electrifying! Would he catch his Son? Then if he did would he pass him! Guess we will never find out now.
The ghosts were in action after that race what with all the electricity churned up by the cars in the race. As I walked down the front stretch of the track I almost could hear them Drivers talking and the sounds of the Cars going by at top speed! Erie to say the least but there are real ghosts there, lots of them.
Looking down that front stretch towards the fourth corner it seemed to me that it was way to narrow to race cars on at over two hundred miles an hour.
Not sure why it took me so long to get there?
Oh yea finances, When you are from the West coast as a kid growing up with hardly more than enough to eat, INDY seemed like it took place on the moon!
This was one of the very best Memories of My life and I am just glad I got to share it with My Son.
Can't wait to again hear the command,
Gentlemen Start Your Engines!
aXe
Jan 26 2010
That will include performances in Silver Crown, Sprint and Midget car competitions, USAC President and CEO Kevin Miller told Examiner.com on Friday. The competition will pay the top ten drivers, with the national Driver of the Year earning a $40,000 year-end bonus.
I saw this last friday on that news web site, I waited to se if it was confirmed by USAC. Nothing showed up on their site, So I put in a call there and was told it was gonna happen but it wasnt finalized as of today. I was told it should be all finished by this friday? A formal announcment should be released after that.
aXe
View from the Cockpit
By JR Williams
Nevada
OWR3 Contributor
It's difficult to believe that our 2010 racing season is just around the corner --- while I'm looking out the window at the snow falling, the temperature hovering just around freezing, and the peaks of the Sierra's shrouded in snow. Still and all, our opener is not far away.
In fact, the last schedule I got, our California Focus pavement division will open in just two months at Havasu 95 Speedway down in Lake Havasu, Arizona. The pavement car is just about ready to go. All I have to do to it tomorrow is polish the body panels and put them on, polish the wheels and put them on, and except for weighing the car and setting the air pressures in the shocks and the tires, it's ready to roll on the trailer. Can't wait. The week after that we'll be down in Blythe, and the week after that, the racing widow and I will be taking a two-day tactical shotgun course down at Front Sight near Pahrump, Nevada. Whew, the next weekend we'll be seeing action at the Bullring at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. That will be four hauls down US-95 here in Nevada. Two long ones of around 400 miles, and two that will be 200 miles further. As far as the last schedule I saw showed, both the Havasu 95 and LVMS shows will be California Pavement and Utah Pavement combined shows.
Charlie and Vicky Patterson
at Frank and Mary's Restaurant
Charlie has been in racing for over 50 years. He's been an owner, driver, mechanic, and driver's agent. He wrenched at the Speedway for years, owned the last Silver Crown dirt car that Emmett Hahn ever drove, built most or all of NASCAR's drive shafts for a number of years, and started a toastmaster club for young drivers in Indianapolis years ago. He has also been very helpful to a number of young, up-coming drivers, including; Tony Stewart, Ryan Newman, Jeff Gordon, and newer hot shoes like Bryan Clauson and Billy Wease. I'm very happy and proud to be able to count Charlie as one of my friends.
e-mails will still get to me at: jrw-jnw@sbcglobal.net
Jan 24 2010
Walnut Creek, CA
OWR3 Contributor
We’ve all done it- driven down a narrow two-lane country road past a home with a large shop building behind it and wondered “what is in that shop?” Last week, prior to the 2010 Chili Bowl, this writer took a turn down a driveway off a narrow two-lane country road near Talala, Oklahoma and visited the,
David "Chappell" Shops.
Exterior of Chappell’s shop, with the team’s hauler David Chappell’s trophy room
parked outside in the bitter Oklahoma winter
For those of you who are not familiar with the name, David is the owner and chief mechanic of one of the top independent teams in the American Sprint Car Series (ASCS) National Tour with the 50Z sprint car driven by his son, Zach Chappell. David started out years ago as a teenage rodeo champion, before becoming interested in sprint car racing on the way to becoming a many-time Sprint car champion at Tulsa Speedway.
Historic photo of David Chappell’s ground breaking V6 sprint car at Tulsa Speedway
David started Zach in a 360 ASCS sprint car in 1999, and Zach captured the ASCS National championship in 2001. Since that time, Zach has tried his hand at the World of Outlaws and ARCA stock car, while continuing to run his father’s sprint car in selected events. Racing runs in the Chappell family’s blood, as Zach’s sister, Stephanie, raced the ASCS series for several years, but is presently managing the family’s restaurant, Legends BBQ and Steak Joint, in Owasso, Oklahoma.
2006 Maxim non-winged car under going conversion 2006 Maxim winged sprint car ready for testing
to a winged configuration as a back up car
Computer and printer for in-house production of race car graphics
Four freshly rebuilt race engines ready for 2010 action
Shock dynometer for testing Chappell Racing’s collection of 170 shock absorbers.
David also owns a unique proprietary torsion bar tester, which he asked not be photographed
I was fortunate enough to be invited to David Chappell’s shop to document their preparations for the 2010 season. The team currently plans to run for the ASCS Sooner Region championship, and selected ASCS National events. The writer thanks David Chappell for his time and hospitality.
During the weekend before the Chili Bowl, I paid a visit to,
Mike and Judy Stewart’s Car and Fleet Parts in Tulsa Oklahoma.
Mike and Judy are the proud parents of 2009 ASCS National Champion Shane Stewart, and his younger brother Darren Stewart, 2003 ASCS Rookie of the Year. If you’re ever in the area of 4141 S 68th East Avenue in Tulsa, stop in and pay Mike and Judy a visit.
The name of the shop is a bit deceptive, as this shop is a stocking distributor of parts for mini sprints and sprint cars.
“On a side street of the industrial area of Tulsa, you'll find Car and Fleet Parts.”
“The lobby features historic photos of Mike, Shane, and Darren’s racing cars
and a wall of autographs from famous visitors.”
“The order desk is where you’ll find all the information you’ll ever need-
provided you can get Mike Stewart to stop working.”
“The Stewarts showroom contains enough parts to make any racer’s mouth water.”
Pictures and article by Kevin Triplett
Jan 19 2010
This story first appeared on http://www.hotrodhotline.com
aXe
Ed Iskenderian Gardena, Calif May 25, 2006
Story by Richard Parks
Photos by Roger Rohrdanz
Author Richard Parks with Ed Iskenderian
Ed Iskenderian, the famous ‘Camfather’ to generations of hot rodders and racers, is known affectionately as just Isky to his friends. Ed is a charming and friendly man who inquisitiveness is well known. From the day he ground his first cam to the present day, Isky has never lost that desire to learn more and to do more. He was born on July 10, 1921, in Cutler, Tulare County, California, to Dick and Armine Iskenderian. His parents were born in Turkey, but left before the Armenian population was rounded up by the Turks and exterminated. After World War I, the defeated Turks retreated in a xenophobic rage and the scapegoats that they blamed were their own Armenian Turkish people. The Armenian Turkish people were forced from their homes, shot at, bayoneted and sent on a forced march that ended in the Syrian desert where over a million and a half innocent people were systematically murdered. Ed’s mother survived when her family sent her to a German Christian convent to protect her from the Turks. His father was a blacksmith in Turkey, but after he immigrated to America, Dick Iskenderian started a grape farm in California’s wide San Joaquin Valley. In 1922 the family moved to Los Angeles, California, near Western and Exposition Avenues.
Ed in what use to be his office before his “treasures” took it over.
Ed grew up in a rapidly growing area of Southern California, known for the emergence of the hot rodding culture in the United States. He went to Mount Vernon Junior High School, then graduated up to Los Angeles Polytechnic High School, before transferring to Dorsey High School to complete his education. The SCTA (Southern California Timing Association) was just getting started around that time, and those that had a hot (fast) car, would join and race at the dry lakes, preferably Muroc. Dry lake racing had begun in the 1920’s, developing an organization and standardization with the influence of George Wight and George Riley in the 1930’s. In 1937, Wight and Riley decided to stop promoting the speed trials and the car clubs got together and formed the SCTA to continue racing at Muroc, now known as Edwards Air Force Base near Mojave, California. Ed hung out with the Bungholers car club. In the club were Bud Hines, Bob ‘Baldy’ Baldwin, Eugene Van Arx, Ike Williams, Si Perkins, Stringfield and Leaman. Each neighborhood had their own club, strictly male and typically devoted to the car culture. Usually the leader was the one whose father had a garage they could work in. Girls weren’t allowed to join in this inner sanctum of the male car culture during the height of the Great Depression.
Their hangout was Hugo’s Hot Dog Stand on Pico Boulevard. It was their world, removed from the horrors of an oncoming war, and the desperation of a world faced with a vicious depression. Ed was only 14 when he first went to Muroc to see his first race. He went to the dry lakes from 1935 until war broke out in 1941, and the dry lakes land speed racing was to have a lasting impact on the man who helped to make cam grinding an exact science. He took every shop course he could and did very well in the auto and electric shop courses. So well did he master what he was taught, that he was allowed to work on the wiring for the school buses. Ed graduated in 1940 and apprenticed at a tool and die shop for 50 cents an hour, a huge sum of money in those days. One hours pay at that rate could buy nearly 4 gallons of gasoline, or a meal of a hamburger, fries and malt for two people, back in the days when a hamburger was huge and a malt the size of a quart. Ed was learning how to be an electric welder in a shipyard on the day that the Japanese attack force struck Pearl Harbor, on December 7, 1941. That day changed his life as it changed the entire country. No longer isolated from the world’s problems and wars, America was now at the forefront of World War II and the fight against the Great Depression. He remembers how our soldiers lined up the Japanese Americans, before sending them to camps to wait out the war, on the suspicion that American citizens of Japanese ancestry might be spies for the Imperial Japanese Army.
Isky was incensed at the sneak attack, and like millions of Americans, men and women, he tried to enlist in the Navy Air Corp, but they turned down his request to be a flyer. Ed joined the Army Air Corp and was assigned to Ground School, at the old Santa Ana Air Base. He was an air cadet at last, but the military reassigned him to be a flight traffic clerk on air transports in and out of the theatres of war. He flew 5 trips between San Francisco and Australia in a B-24 Liberator. Then he was stationed in Australia for runs up to New Guinea and the Philippines. After VJ day, he was reassigned to Japan with flights to Manila. He saw US prisoners of war as they were released from Japanese labor camps, emaciated, in pain, starved and beaten by their captors, and a marked difference from how we treated those enemy combatants that we captured. With the war ending, men were being discharged from the military in vast numbers as fast as the government could send them home. Ed returned to California with a desire to return to dry lakes racing and the car culture that he loved. With a military discharge severance payment of $20 a month for 52 months, Ed decided to go racing. He tried to buy a cam from Clay Smith, who had learned the craft of cam grinding from Pierre Bertrand. Clay was well known for his cams, but so great was the demand from all the returning servicemen for parts for their hot rods, that the best Clay could do was to tell him to wait a month. Ed thought to himself, “I could do this myself,” and turned to another cam grinding genius, Ed Winfield, for advice and help. Winfield was a success at whatever he put his mind to, whether it was oval track racing in the 1920’s, his famous carburetor, or his equally famous cams.
Isky is successful because he has that type of inquisitive mind that is forever learning, growing and adapting. He is a man hungry for knowledge.
Ed absorbed all he could from Winfield, then bought an old cylindrical grinder at an auction. Machine shops all over the country were closing down after the war as government contracts came to an end. Machines were plentiful, and Ed devised an attachment of his own design to alter the configurations of the grinder to accommodate what he wanted to achieve in grinding cams. As Isky and his son Richard explain it, early cam grinding was more art than science. A steady hand and a good eye were important, but the great cam grinders, like Winfield could visualize the problem and solve it in their minds. One could always copy a cam but custom grinding a cam to a specific engine was an art.
Over time specific designs and engineering formulas would solve many of these problems and throughout the 1950’s there would be great advances in scientifically creating the programs that brought cam grinding to an exactness. Ed states that his first cams were noisy, but they were popular and the kids heard about him and bought his cams. He also sold to speed shops, notably Karl Orr, a legendary racer and a true curmudgeon. Karl’s wife, Veda, was equally his match at land speed racing, but she was famous for sending a newsletter to the hot rod soldiers in the war, keeping them updated on the car scene back home. Isky was there at the 1st Hot Rod Show at the National Armory, in Exposition Park. Bob Barsky had brought Pete Petersen and Bob Lindsay together to publicize the event, with the SCTA providing the cars and manpower. Petersen and Lindsay would form a team and create Hot Rod Magazine, and the young Ed would take advantage of the hurricane of interest in this magazine with his innovative ads for his cams
Ed fell in love and married Alice Garbooshian on May 17, 1947. Ronald Iskenderian was born a year later, in the great Baby Boom following World War II. Richard was born in 1951, followed by Timothy and Amy. Ed had witnessed the Great Depression, World War II, the beginning of the Atomic Era, and the start of a cam grinding business that would grow ever more successful. The family was living on West Adams Avenue, in Los Angeles, and Ed was producing cams out of his garage for a living. His business was beginning to grow larger than the garage could handle and he took out a lease on a shop on Culver, behind Mercury Tool and Die, owned by his good friend and high school buddy, John Athan. Ed and Athan are inseparable friends. Athan is an innovator, inventor and master craftsman, who is often called upon to solve mechanical problems.
John Athan, Ed’s inseparable friend, built the “Isky” roadster that is on display at the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum, which the actor, Elvis Presley used in his movie ‘Loving Me.’
Ed’s business was booming now as his quality cams and his natural PR and advertising genius was creating a huge demand. He moved to a larger site on Western and Pico Avenues, in Los Angeles, but that was only temporary as the orders began to grow larger and larger. He moved to Jefferson and Harcourt Avenue, in Los Angeles, across from Vic Edelbrock’s shop. The orders grew and the need for even more space forced him to move to a bigger shop on West Slauson in Culver City, then to a building in Inglewood. Finally he spotted a building on Alondra and Broadway in Gardena that covered half a city block and would give him the space to expand as he needed, and Isky Racing Cams found a permanent home there in 1966.
Today Isky Racing Cams is in the top 3 among American Cam manufacturers, with a reputation for quality and performance. Part of the success that Ed had was due to the quality of the finished products; cams, valve lifters and valve springs. But Isky is successful because he has that type of inquisitive mind that is forever learning, growing and adapting. He is a man hungry for knowledge. He never stops in a quest to find markets, products and better ways to produce those goods and services. Finally, he has a charisma, charm and character that attracts attention and a following. His first ad in Hot Rod Magazine was in the second issue. He realized that this magazine would be a huge success with the hot rodders after the war ended. In the late 1940’s, Ed was one of the first to understand the power of marketing, and few did it better. He was selling cams to the racers now, as well as the kids on the street, and to a fledgling racecar circuit called NASCAR, where the big Hudson dominated the stock car circuit. He said he was ashamed at how noisy those early cams of his were, but they had a stronger mid-range power curve that the kids loved. His sales stagnated at the lakes but took off in stock car racing, which opened doors in other areas for him. “Flathead engines were simple in those days,” he said. The early 1950’s saw the rise of a new sport called drag racing and he sold a lot of cams. It was also the heyday of oval track racing and the demand for his products kept him too busy to go dry lakes racing.
“I got real boisterous with those ads,” he would say. Parts makers and specialty equipment makers would battle each other in ads in racing and car magazines, trumpeting their successes and the inability of their competitors to keep pace. Pete Millar, the drag and hot rod cartoonist, drew a cigar chomping Isky, and named him the ‘Camfather,’ portraying Ed as the leader in his field. Exaggeration and hyperbole reached crazy limits. The government, with truth in advertising, would probably not allow it today. But it was Grand Theatre for car buffs back then to see the ads, which were far more entertaining than the articles in the magazines and newspapers. Isky’s skill at ad and marketing drove his business to the top and the racers and car fans loved this genial man and his products. Those were the days when magazines were first starting to tap into the car market, and competition exploded from that first Hot Rod Magazine to dozens more, and ad rates were negotiable. “I got great deals,” said Ed, “and I exploited them to the fullest.” Ed also made cams for the boat racers, sponsoring Ed Olson in the Cream Puff. Olson was a baker, and named the boat after his specialty, but the Cream Puff was no easy boat to beat. With Isky Cams and backing, the Cream Puff was one of the fastest in marine dragboat racing. At that time Ed’s biggest competitor in cams was Harman and Collins, and the fight was fierce.
The 1950’s may have been all expansion and fun, but the 1960’s saw the continued dominance of car racing, especially dragracing and oval track racing. His new competition was with Herbert Cams, which devised the new roller cams. When it became apparent that the new cams would be successful, Iskenderian Racing Cams came out with its own roller cams. Ed has 5 patents for his special hardening of the lobes in his roller cams. Devising, innovating and inventing better cams has kept Isky at the forefront of the cam grinding business. “All the cam grinding companies buy the cam core from a cam core making company. That’s not unusual, but it is the skill of the grinding that determines the end quality of the product,” he said. Some of the cam manufacturers have the cam core makers do the grinding and produce cams in mass produced quantities. The cam core makers then put on the name of the company they are producing the cams for, thus the cam grinding companies never actually have any control over the finished product. If the work is done in India or China, as many cheaper cams are, then the quality suffers and the buyer has little recourse. Isky cams are all done in-house, with American cores, and every step of the process is overseen by men who have been in the business nearly as long as Ed has.
Isky may not have started the Contingency Racing programs, but he was an early adherent and user of the system. The Contingency Racing programs in motorsports racing is where a manufacturer offers a prize, product, or cash payment for any racer using their product while winning the race. The racer has to display the decal of the product he is using so that fans and fellow racers can see what products the winning racer has in his car or boat. Ed used this program to its fullest, sponsoring a wide range of racers, leagues and products. The result was to spur a growth in sales that pushed him past his competitors. His battle with Crane in the 1950’s and ‘60’s was legendary in the battle of the Contingency Wars. In 1949, at the first Bonneville Nationals Salt Flats Time Trials, Doug Harrison and Norm Lean asked Isky for sponsorship money to make the trip from Southern California, to compete. With part of the money that they received from Isky, Harrison and Lean created a design on their T-shirts extolling the car, the team and Iskenderian Racing Cams. There is no one better at seeing a great idea and borrowing it for his own use that Ed. He began making up Isky T-shirts to sell or give away, and business stayed strong all year.
There is another facet of Ed Iskenderian that probably goes back to his days struggling with the Great Depression, or to the fact that so many of his family were brutally murdered and robbed by the Turks in the 1920’s. Ed is fascinated by bargains, whether it is machinery, appliances or some bizarre type of mechanical equipment or part. It doesn’t matter what it is, if it’s a deal he will buy it and bring it home. In the storage area behind the 50,000 square foot (more than an acre) manufacturing plant is another acre of stored treasures. He owns another 5-acre lot with additional things he has bought and saved. Ed is a recycler and conservationist. He doesn’t waste anything and constantly looks for ways to use ideas and objects that he collects. But he is also a very generous man, with his time and with his money. He sponsors many racers and race teams, and gives generously. He is quick to spot the up-and-coming racedriver, and understands that it benefits both the racing community and his company to spend generously. Stories abound about his habit of acquiring and saving things that many of us would just casually toss away. Isky doesn’t toss anything away, especially his friends.
It doesn’t matter what it is, if it’s a deal he will buy it and bring it home.
In the storage area behind the manufacturing plant is another acre or more of stored treasures.
Ed Iskenderian, a special man that doesn’t toss anything away, especially his friends.
Ed Iskenderian (r) and long time friend Nick Arias see each other almost every day.
Richard Iskenderian is the son of the founder and current General Manager and President of the company
TONY GEORGE RESIGNS BOARD MEMBERSHIPS
View from the Cockpit
By JR Williams
Nevada
Contributor to OWR3
IN MEMORIUM
On Turkey Night of 2008, I mentioned to Bob that I heard that Eddie Sachs had once driven for him. He replied that although he always wanted to have Eddie in the seat, the circumstances never permitted. Whenever the seat was empty, Eddie had another ride, and when Eddie was without a ride, Bob's seat was already spoken for. A few weeks after that conversation, an envelope arrived from Bob. Inside was a letter and a list of all of the drivers who had driven for him --- over 120 -- that included just about a real who's who of midget drivers, including such great names as Mel Kenyon, A J Foyt, Rich Volgler, Wally Pankratz. Bob Harkey, Len Sutton, Bill Homier, Mario Andretti, and the list goes on and on.
Floyd Alvis photo by Galen Kurth
Jan 17 2010
FRESNO California "Western Speed and Fuel" announces
A celebration of new ownership
"In celebration of its recent ownership change we will be having a blow-out open house event" states Kevin Gerhardt the new owner of the 15-year plus motor sports supply company. "We plan on continuing the great service and supply of specialty related items geared towards the professional and weekend racer". "We also cater to the street rod builders market, marine industry as well as your average car guy looking to spruce up his / her vehicle". The company is going into its 15th year in business and was acquired by Kevin Gerhardt in November of 2009. The new owner has vast experience in the motor sports industry having been involved in racing his whole life as well as owning / fielding many open wheel USAC cars such as Midgets, Sprint cars and Silver Crown Cars. Kevin' grandfather, Fred Gerhardt, built and fielded many USAC cars from the 1930's to the mid 80"s with such drivers as Vukovich, Kenyon, Snider to name a few. At one time 3/4 of the cars entered in the Indianapolis 500 were based from a Gerhardt built Chassis.
The open house which will be held on Saturday January 23rd between 10am-3pm will feature TWO gigantic Snap On Tools display rigs with factory support dealer vehicles. Also on display will be race boats, Rock Crawlers, Street Rods and professional show cars as well as USAC open wheel race cars. Food service will be available. Also on display will be the new and improved professional race shock rebuilding business "Western Speed Suspensions". This program encompasses years of shock building experience with our modern shock dyno and computer programs for dirt and asphalt racing. The shock technician will be on hand performing demonstrations on AFCO shocks in our modern facility that features the latest tooling for the service of all shocks. Some of the shocks we service are JRI, Penske, Carrera and ARS.
The entire public is welcome to this event and the spacious store will be open with additional product display and specialty parts sales. Johnny Frias, our in store manager, will be on hand to answer specific questions and help customers with their specialty items needs.
Western Speed and Fuel
2202 S. Van Ness
Fresno CA. 93721
www.westernpseedandfuel.com
Jfrias@westernspeedandfuel.com
559-485-7442
559-264-2314
Indianapolis 500 Veteran Set For Gambler’s Classic Debut
ATLANTIC CITY, NJ – January 17, 2009 . . . Davey Hamilton’s journey this season will take him to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
“At least I am racing and that’s what matters,” Hamilton said. “I really love racing, and it doesn’t matter what it is. Indoor racing a short-track racing mixes you among the fans. I really enjoy being with the race fans.”
The high-powered, TQ-Midget cars will headline the two-day card. Some 100 drivers are expected to contend for the Gambler's Classic title.
The Slingshot and Champ Kart race cars, which provide just as much entertainment as the TQ Midgets, will be on the card each night as well.
Defending champions are Paul Lotier Jr. of Lebanon, Pa. (Slingshots) and Ryan Kendall of East Greenbush, N.Y. (Champ Karts).
Fans can purchase tickets by calling Ticketmaster at (800)-736-1420 or online at www.ticketmaster.com.
Tickets will also be on sale at this weekend’s Motorsports 2010.
Information on the event is available at aarn.com or by calling (609)-888-3618.
Fans can also purchase tickets at the Boardwalk Hall Ticket Office. Tickets will be $2 more at the door on the day of the r
Jan 14 2010
“Lasoski released from Chili Bowl Ride”
Tulsa, Okla., Jan. 14---Joe Loyet of Loyet Motorsports has released Danny Lasoski from his driving duties at the 2010 Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Midget Nationals, effective Thursday morning.
This decision comes as a response to the financial situation stemming from the Bull Ring Midget Nationals at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo. Lasoski and Scott Pennington were co-promoters of the December 18-19 event. Competitors have yet to receive the purse payout for Saturday Night’s events.
“Loyet Motorsports feels they have an obligation to show support to the other owners and drivers who participated in that event.
Lasoski competed in Tuesday night’s event for the team. There will be no replacement driver for the event.
Jan12 2010
INDIANAPOLIS, Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2010 – If the old saying “To the victor go the spoils” is true, then Helio Castroneves was spoiled rotten for his victory in the 2009 Indianapolis 500.
Castroneves received the spoils of his third “500” victory – the Herff Jones Champion of Champions Ring and the unveiling of his likeness on the famed Borg-Warner Trophy – in a ceremony Tuesday, Jan. 12 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of fame Museum.
“Where is it?” Castroneves said as he tried to locate his newest likeness on the trophy. “Ohh, here we go. Wow! We can see that the years are passing by. My hair is kind of going backward. I can see that. Isn’t that amazing? Oh my goodness! This is just incredible.”
Surrounded by the cars that A.J. Foyt, Wilbur Shaw and Johnny Rutherford drove to their third “500” victories, IMS Corporation President and Chief Executive Officer Jeff Belskus presented Castroneves with his winner’s ring. Event host Bob Jenkins and a crowd of fans counted down the time until Castroneves removed the covering from the trophy to see his face sculpted in sterling silver.
Belskus also surprised Castroneves by giving him a basket of baby clothes as a congratulatory gift on the recent birth of his first child, daughter Mikaella.
In addition to the champion’s ring and likeness on the Borg-Warner Trophy, Castroneves and Team Penske owner Roger Penske will receive scaled-down replicas of the Borg-Warner Trophy in a ceremony Wednesday night. The “Baby Borg” is traditionally presented by BorgWarner to the winning driver and car owner in Detroit during the North American International Auto Show. Castroneves’ likeness also will be featured on the event ticket for the 2010 “500.”
“I have to work four times harder now,” Castroneves said of his drive for a record-tying fourth “500” win May 30. “I have the right team. I have great people surrounding me. I guess I know what I need to do. Certainly, it will be tough. It will be difficult, but I have no doubt in my mind that everything is possible, so I’m going to go for it.”
2010 Indy 500 tickets: Tickets for the 2010 Indianapolis 500, scheduled for Sunday, May 30 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, are on sale now. Race Day ticket prices start at just $20.
Fans can order tickets online at www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com, call the IMS ticket office at (317) 492-6700, or (800)822-INY outside the Indianapolis area or visit the ticket office at the IMS Administration Building at the corner of Georgetown Road and 16th Street. Online orders can be made at any time. Hours for phone orders and the ticket office are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. /9et) Monday-Friday.
Tickets for groups of 20 or more also are on sale. Contact the IMS Group Sales Department at (866) 221-8775 for more information.
View from the Cockpit
By JR Williams
Nevada
Contributor to OWR3
Congratulations to Rick and Meg Young who added an addition to their family. Sophia Rae Young has joined her older sister Alexa in the Young family. Now, for those of you who are new to this column, or who are not aware of the name Rick Young,
Rick is the founder of Capital City Midgets, an organization that is working very hard to develop a reasonably priced midget forum for Northern California. Rick has been working tirelessly on this program over the past few years, and this year he has made a major breakthrough by tying in both with Keith Iaia who has been developing the Chevy EcoTech racing engine program, and Emmitt Hahn and his ASCS program. This year it looks as though it is all coming together and Rick has a great program of racing set up for Northern California for the 2010 season.
I mentioned a few weeks ago that the racing widow and I had dinner with Keith, Rick and some other racing people at the annual promoter's workshop in Reno. At that time, Rick was awaiting the arrival of Sophia Rae and I believe he mentioned at that time that Bryan Clauson would be driving his car at the shootout in Tulsa last week. Whether he mentioned it or not is not the point, if he did, the old man forgot, and last week I mentioned that I didn't know what type of engine powered Bryan's car to third place at the shootout. Now I know, it was Rick Young's EcoTech.
Speaking of Tulsa, by the time this column sees print, the Chili Bowl should be well on its way, as the first night of racing will being tomorrow (Tuesday - 01/12/10). Once again, over 270 cars will be on hand, and the old man will be missing it. I really wish I could have been there, but with the economy the way it is, I can either be at the Chili Bowl, or make more races during my 2010 summer season, and I'd rather make the races myself.
Still and all, I'll miss seeing a lot of friends and acquaintances there, as the Chili Bowl is much more than a series of races, it is a variable mixing pot of all racing people; owners, drivers and crew.
I always enjoyed wandering through the pit areas, seeing old acquaintances and friends, and making new ones. Then again, who can not go there and not enjoy the fantastic racing that goes on from Tuesday through Saturday?
Looking through the competitors who will be on hand each night, I recognize many of the names, but only know a few of them. Each night, though, will see a number of high-quality competitors on hand to vie for the "golden driller".
Tomorrow night, Tuesday, will see Greg Bragg back on hand. I haven't seen Gregg in a few years, as our racing paths haven't crossed. The same is true of Bobby East who I last ran into at ORP the Night Before Indy. I did get time to say hello to Dave Darland at Turkey Night however.
Two of my favorite lady drivers will be on hand Tuesday night; Shannon McQueen and Randi Pankratz, both of whom are hard chargers and great competitors.
I don't remember when I last saw friend Billy Wease, but I know it was since I last saw him at the Chili Bowl a few years ago, but I know that I haven't seen Brady Bacon since then.
Wednesday night will see Davey Ray on hand. I'll miss talking to Davey who is a great competitor. He'll be competing with friends Scott Pierovich, Rick Hendrix, Dave Prickett, Brad Kuhn, and the really old man Floyd Alvis. I'll miss Floyd's margaritas this year. Also on hand Wednesday night will be friends Bryan Clauson, A.J. Fike, and Daniel Adler.
Thursday night will see action involving more of my friends. Dennis Rodriguez will be on hand again for his third year. I haven't had the privilege of hanging out with Dennis this past year as he drives his 360 sprint car with the VRA group down in Southern California, but I'll never forget his first midget ride that occurred at the Chili Bowl two years ago when he made it up to the "C" Main on Saturday night. What a drive. I wish him well this year.
Also on hand Thursday night will be friends Thomas Meseraull and Nic Faas. Two really hot shoes also from Southern California. Friend Michelle Decker will be competing Thursday night as well, driving the other Shannon McQueen car.
Three other California friends will be in competition on Thursday night; Tanner Swanson, Johnny Rodriguez and Garrett Hansen. Garrett will be driving one of the Bondio cars which will be a real thrill for this hard-charging competitor.
It looks as though the rumors are true, Tony Stewart has dropped out of the midget competition, as his name isn't listed, nor are his cars, and Tracy Hines and Levi Jones are driving for other owners.
It looks like Jerry Coons, Jr. will be back from "down under" to run on Friday night. He will be competing against a bunch of fast, California drivers including Justin Grant, Josh Wise, Kody Swanson and Cory Kruseman. Other California friends who will be on hand are: Travis Berryhill, Matt Mitchell, Bobby Michnowicz and Brian Camarillo.
All of the fore mentioned drivers have competed at the Chili Bowl in years past, but th