Track News

Norm Bogan

NOVEMBER 2009 RACING ODYSSEYBack in the seventies, when the USAC schedule had been completed in the Midwest, those who were in the points battle would come west for three or four, end of the year events, usually split between Ascot Park in southern California and San Jose Speedway in the Bay area, culminating on Thanksgiving for the Turkey Night midget show.  Normally, there would only be a few racers actually traveling west with their racecars, since many still commuted with open trailers and couldn’t bring spare cars or both a sprint and a midget.  Some of the drivers would fly out west and obtain a seat in a West Coast car for the western swing.Over the past few years, as the eighteen wheel haulers became prevalent and extra events had been added, more of the Midwest teams made the trek to the Coast.  2009 became a year that made it worthwhile for these teams to come out early and stay later.  While the three-day Oval Nationals at Perris Auto Speedway launched the West Coast parade, the event that normally followed, the Western World had changed its format.  First off, the long time venue of Manzanita Speedway was shuddered early in the year and the Western World was relocated to USA Raceway in Tucson.  With a lot of backroom maneuvering, a new event was created at the Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway featuring the USAC National series with a two night show the weekend following the Oval Nationals at Perris.  After this announcement, USA Raceway shifted their sanction to ASCS and featured both Winged and Non-Winged 360 cubic inch sprinters, which run at the Speedway on a regular basis.On the Thursday following Tulare, some of the touring USAC National Drivers stopped by Phoenix International Raceway for the annual USAC Silver Crown and Midgets portions of the Copper World Classic, running in conjunction with the fall NASCAR event at the one-mile paved tri-oval.Another welcome event was added this year at Ventura Raceway, where notoriety was gained back in the early nineties with the televised “Thursday Night Thunder” series of Midget racing.  The week following Tulare, Ventura posted a $5000 to win USAC Midget event.  This offered another payday for teams that had come west for the 69^th running of the annual “Turkey Night Grand Prix” at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale. In addition to the 98-lap Turkey Night Midget Headliner were also two 40-lap features for the USAC Western States Pavement Sprinters and also the USAC Ford Focus-California Pavement series.  The Midgets and Sprints performed on the multi-banked half-mile macadam, while the Focus cars starred on the third-mile infield asphalt. Completing the USAC/CRA season was the 2^nd Annual Glenn Howard Classic at Perris with a number of incentives to aid the teams over the off season.  Several of the Midwest racers stayed on for one more race before returning to the heartland for winter.Also on tap for Thanksgiving Weekend was the Annual Turkey Classic at Victorville Auto Raceway.  This event allowed most of the classes that run on a regular basis to vie for season ending bragging rights.  For the past couple of years The Classic was an opportunity for Dirt Late Models and Dirt Modifieds to test the mettle of competitors from the West Coast.  With the addition of a regular Sprint Car program this past season, a 360 Sprint feature was scheduled for Saturday Night and a 410/360 Sprint show was set for Sunday.  The 410 sprinters were not scheduled on Saturday as a courtesy to Perris for their Glenn Howard Classic. November racing kicked off at Perris on Thursday evening, November 5th with fifty-two cars running against the clock and Jon Stanbrough aboard the #37 Indiana Underground machine claiming the fast time at 16.364.  Heat race victors were all West Coast performers banking on more familiarity with the facility.  Mike Spencer, Cody Williams, Danny Sheridan, Austin Williams and David Cardey captured the five heats.  Levi Jones led Henry Clarke, Nic Faas, Ronnie Gardner and Matt Mitchell in the “B” Main.  Bryan Clauson claimed the opening night spoils, leading all 25 laps, followed by Stanbrough, Levi Jones, Damian Gardner and Hall of Famer, Rip Williams.  Friday’s program saw Stanbrough prove that last night wasn’t a fluke, as he once again claimed fast time at 16.303.  Ludwig Solberg IV cashed in the “C” Main victory for a second night in a row.  Heats were won by Rip Williams, Kevin Swindell, David Cardey, Tony Jones and Matt Mitchell.  Stanbrough took the spoils in the “B” Main followed by Faas, Clauson, Crawford and Whitt in the top five.  The racing in the “A” was much more competitive with five lead changes in the first fourteen laps.  Watching the action from atop the turn four grandstand, the view appeared as syncopated ballet with cars shifting low and high, overtaking and falling back, probably one of the most hotly contested races I have witnessed this year.  At the checkers, Levi Jones had bested the field, followed by Stanbrough, Spencer, Damian Gardner and Darren Hagen.

Saturday night loomed as a battle-royale for the 14^th running of the Budweiser Oval Nationals.  A stellar field assembled after two preliminary slugfests.  Beginning with the 20 lap “C” Main, Austin Williams led the way over Keith Bloom Jr., Chad Boat, Dave Darland and Richard VanderWeerd.

Next up was the 20 lap “B” Main consisting of many of the nation’s finest sprint car pilots.  Cole Whitt prevailed over Tracy Hines, Tony Jones, Darren Hagen and Kevin Swindell.Now, the culmination of three days of intense competition began to unfold into the 14^th Annual Oval Nationals.  At the start, veteran Rip Williams took advantage of his pole starting position and held off the challenges from the youngsters, most of which were not even born, when Ripper was the 1978 Co-Rookie of the Year.  Rip led the first 21 laps, deflecting attacks from high and low, before Mike Spencer slipped by to grab the next fifteen circuits and finally Damian Gardner, no stranger to Victory Circle at Perris Auto Speedway, closed out the final laps, collecting the big prize.A week later and two hundred miles to the north in the fertile San Joaquin Valley metropolis of Tulare, many of the same cast were on hand for the Pacific Coast Nationals, a two-day USAC National & USAC /CRA Sprint car program that found its roots in the long running Pacific Coast Open at Ascot Park.  With most racing organizations on winter hiatus, a number of competitors from throughout the state and across the country focused their attention on Tulare in the center of the dairy and beef producing area of California.Fifty-four cars queued up to qualify on Saturday with Bryan Clauson setting the standard at 14.646, eclipsing the previous track record of Blake Miller at 15.013.  In fact, the top six qualifiers ran below the old record, with the top five breaking into the 14 second plateau on this well prepared third-mile oval.  Tonight’s format was two 8-lap “C” Mains for those outside the thirty-two car package for the four 10-lap heat races.  The top four in each heat would advance directly to the “A” Main, while the others would vie in the 12-lap Semi for the final ten entries.  Darren Hagen and Casey Riggs were victorious in the two Consi races.  Heat race winners were Cole Whitt, Matt Mitchell, Kyle Larson and Cole Carter.  Nic Faas and Bryan Clauson dueled from the front row of the Semi to finish 1-2.Now, the stage was set for the 30-lap “A” Main.  Garrett Hansen and Cory Kruseman led the 27 car field to the start until Hansen took advantage of the fast, but narrow racing surface to lead all thirty laps.  At times, Kruseman, Hines, Spencer, L. Jones and Clauson made runs at the point, but were unable to overtake Garrett.  At the checkers, it was Hansen, Kruseman, Spencer, Jones and Clauson.A quick overnight respite and it was back to the wars on Sunday for a forty lap feature.  The track appeared to be slightly slower, but wider for tonight’s competition.  Cole Whitt clocked in at 14.874 to gain quick time honors in a 51 car field.   An uncharacteristic 34^th in qualifying by David Cardey bumped him out heats, but he was able to overcome his poor time and claim the 10-lap “C” Main, then come from the back of the first heat to gain a 4^th place, transferring to the “A” Main.  Heat winners were Whitt, Swindell, Pombo and Mitchell.  Chad Boat has been really struggling for the past two weekends after an impressive season in both USAC National Midgets and Sprints, but finally broke out of his slump by claiming the “B” Main.  Dave Darland, an icon in USAC racing, winning championships in the Midgets, Sprints and Silver Crown divisions has journeyed west on numerous occasions and driven one of the local cars and made a good showing.  As one of the classiest people, spending a number of years on the National tours, Dave ascended the ladder to the top, but still honored his roots, often returning to Kokomo Speedway on a Sunday evening to drive his Dad’s (Bob Darland) #36 sprinter.  Darland had a miserable trip west this year, but still remains a cordial ambassador to the sport.Jon Stanbrough is another journeyman racer, who struggled for years running his own racecar at the local Indiana tracks, before acquiring rides that put him in victory circle.  He is quiet, intense, analyzing in his approach to racing and he is not afraid to stomp the loud pedal.  Over the past few years, Jon has enjoyed success with some better funded teams.  As a late replacement for Josh Wise in the Indiana Underground sprinter, he was able to display his talents.  Setting fast time at both qualifying nights of the Oval Nationals and scoring each night in the runner-position of the feature and finishing eighth in last night’s feature, Jon would start on the outside pole for the $12,500 to win Pacific Coast National finale.

Twenty-eight racers staged for the 40-lap feature.  Nic Faas, Jesse Hockett, Blake Miller and Greg Bragg were added to the starting twenty-four as provisional starters.  Another occurrence was the thirty-one year veteran, Rip Williams giving up his seat in feature to his son, Austin, who is vying for the Rookie of the Year honors in USAC/CRA.  Stanbrough assumed the lead as the green flag unfurled and stayed up front to see the checkers presented.  Jon’s recipe was to make his car as fast as possible and very wide to prevent one of his pursuers from sneaking around into the lead.  Chad Boat became the second across the finish line, finally experiencing some success after a dismal performance for most of these two weekends. 

Bud Kaeding continues to impress with his mature approach to racing.  Coming from a family of “stand on the gassers”, you can see where his experience as a three time Silver Crown Champion has taught him patience and conservation.  After an early challenge at the lead, Bud settled back to near mid pack and kept in contact with the leaders.  With his tires running cool and plenty of fuel on board, Bud moved with only a few laps left and advanced to third.  Damian Gardner and Bryan Clauson completed the top five.  David Cardey managed a nine place finish after starting in the position 22. Many of the racers found this racy venue to be more treacherous than expected.  Over the two nights of this program, sixteen flips were recorded, more than once for a few drivers.  The racers seemed to like the venue and indicated an interest in making this event an annual occurrence.A few of the racers made the trip to Phoenix International Raceway on Thursday to race both Silver Crown and Midgets in the Copper Classic as part of Fall NASCAR extravaganza.  Cole Whitt scored his second Silver Crown victory of the year.Two days later, forty-five USAC Midgets were on hand at Ventura Raceway for a $5000 to win J.W. Mitchell Classic.  This was a USAC Western States event with the USAC Ford Focus and Junior Focus classes joining in.  Most of the racers present have raced on this tiny fifth-mile bullring, but a few were seeing the track for the first time.  This racing surface is different from what you saw on TV back in the early nineties on ESPN.  The corners are banked more and sweep right out to the wall.  You can carry a lot more speed into the corners than in the TV days.The format was a little different than the usual USAC schedule.  First off, there was no qualifying.  Everyone drew a pill which established the lineups for the five heats.  Points would be allotted for finish positions and also for number of cars passed.  The total points would be used to set up the five qualifying races.  The top three finishers of each qualifying race would fill the first fifteen slots in the feature, with all others going to one of the two Semi-Mains.  This is similar to the method used by ASCS for their TNT Topless Sprint Tour.  The racers like it because they get to race for their position and are not at the mercy of bad track conditions or their pill pick.Heat race winners were Brad Loyet, Cory Kruseman, Bobby East, Tracy Hines and Bryan Clauson.  Joey Fabozzi, Brad Kuhn, Chad Boat, Justin Grant and Blake Miller were victorious in the Qualifying races.  Semi #1 was claimed by Matt Streeter and Semi #2 went to Kody Swanson. With 24 cars poised for the battle, front row starter, Cory Kruseman jumped into the lead for the first ten laps, before Matt Streeter assumed the point for three laps, then Bryan Clauson took up the gauntlet for nine laps, when Brad Kuhn found an opportunity and led to the checkers.  Trailing Kuhn to the flag were Chad Boat, Ryan Kaplan, Cory Kruseman and Brad Loyet.Turkey night brings out the tradition of watching many of the best midgets in the country vie for the vaunted “Aggie Trophy”.  It’s like the Indy 500 for Midgets.  There is a lot of history and tradition behind this event that began in 1934 at the famed Gilmore Stadium in Hollywood.  The race distance was altered from 100 to 98 laps a couple of years back in honor of J.C. Agajanian, who was famous for his Stetson hat and the car number 98.This evening’s program at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale consisted of qualifying the twenty-five USAC Ford Focus Pavement Midgets and they would all be entries in the first round of features, a 40-lap event on the third-mile inside track.  The second feature would be for the twenty-eight entries of the USAC Western States Sprint Series, running a forty lap event on the half mile oval. Fast time for the California Pavement Ford Focus cars was posted by Keegan Walmer of Portland, OR at 14.524.  Garrett Peterson from West Sacramento pocketed the 40 lap feature, while Taylor Ferns from Shelby Township, MI advanced for the last several laps to score second.The USAC Western States Sprint Series fast time was posted by Kody Swanson at 16-487 and the forty lap feature was captured by Cole Whitt with Kody Swanson securing the runner-up spot.For the premier division tonight, forty-one cars qualified and the fastest fourteen parked in the first seven rows of the 98 lapper.  The balance of cars would compete in two twelve-lap qualifying races, with the top nine cars from each race filling in at the rear of the 32 car field.Josh Wise established the pole position with a quick time of 16.705.  Kody Swanson and Chad Boat posted the wins in the two qualifying races.  The 98 lap feature ran almost without incident.  On the first lap, Jason Leffler and Darren Hagen tangled on the first lap and both cars retired.  On lap 11, Brad Kuhn and Scott Pierovich collided in turn 2 and both cars were out of the show.  Otherwise, some mechanical problems took out a few cars, but the battle up front was fierce.  Josh ‘Wise led the first 41 laps, before Bryan Clauson got around him and held the point to the checkers, collecting his first Turkey Night Trophy.   Saturday Night, it was back to Perris Auto Raceway for the finale of the USAC/CRA Sprint series and a special tribute race to Glenn Howard, longtime racer, car owner, official, SCRA President and parts supplier to nearly all southern California racing teams.  With an elevated purse, some of the national teams held on for one last payday.  Although, a points champion was named earlier with Mike Spencer earning his second in a row, the top five were pretty tight and a good or bad night could shuffle the standings. Thirty three cars qualified for the Howard Classic with Damion Gardner setting the standard at 16.848. The Dash was won by Nic Faas, followed by Matt Mitchell, Mike Spencer and Damion Gardner.  Heat race winners were Brian Camarillo, Ludwig Solberg, Rip Williams and Brent Camarillo.  Greg Bragg claimed the “B” Main over Cory Kruseman and Austin Williams,When they lined up the feature, they offered pole sitter, Tony Jones the chance to pocket $30,000, if he would relinquish the pole and start shotgun on the field.  Coming from the back to win would afford him an outstanding pay day, but there were about twenty three others in the field, who would deter his flight to the front.  Tony looked at the lap money available and decided that he would take his chances from the pole.  Jones second place finish was rewarded with $3700 in lap monies alone.  Outside pole starter, Bryan Clauson agreed with Jones decision and his green to checker drive rewarded him with $8400.  Not a bad way to end the season!  Following Bryan and Tony to the stripe were Damion Gardner, Garrett Hansen and Mike Spencer.On November 28 & 29, Victorville Auto Raceway held their annual Turkey Classic, which included nearly every class that competes there during the year.  Late Models, Modifieds, Dwarf  Cars, Super Streets, American Stocks to name a few and each night, Sprint Cars were the featured class.  On Saturday, it was 360 cars as many of the usual 410s were competing at Perris.  On Sunday, it was a 410/360 combined show.  Saturday’s feature was captured by Greg Taylor, followed by John Aden, Chris Ennis, Justin Kierce and Clark Templeman.  The Sunday feature was claimed by Cody Williams, his first sprint car feature victory, followed by his brother, Austin, Kenny Perkins, Heidi Tressler, Billy Felts and Ronnie Gardner.Since Victorville runs about every two or three weeks and normally combines the 360 and 410 cars, with rules mostly dealing with safety, it has been a haven for young drivers to gain valuable laps.  Drivers like the Williams brothers, Ronnie Gardner, Ludwig Solberg IV, Heidi Tressler and Kenny Perkins have all made rapid advancement and it shows when they now compete on the USAC schedule.  At this point in their careers, it is not about the money, but gaining valuable experience.  All of them have credited Victorville with their improved driving skills.     As much of the country is suffering from cold temperatures and some blizzard conditions, we in California are still attending weekly racing events, although we do now wear warmer clothes.  November has been a fun month as we got to see so many heroes from the heartland.  They are indeed quality drivers, able to compete about three nights a week, while we in California are pretty much locked into Saturday nights, due to heavy traffic constraints on weekdays.

This year, we saw a few old friends return to the fold after NASCAR teams cut most of the developmental drivers pirated from open wheel racing over the past several years.  It was good for us to see these racers return to their roots and we have enjoyed having them back.  Just think Bobby East, Jason Leffler, Brad Sweet, Kevin Swindell, Brady Bacon, J.J. Yeley, Josh Wise and especially Bryan Clauson have come back and refired our enthusiasm.  Clauson appeared to be on the fast track and had enjoyed limited success in the stock cars.  Returning to USAC in the early part of the year has found him tallying 19 victories during the season, some very prestigious events like the Belleville Nationals, The Night before the Brickyard, first night of the Oval Nationals, Turkey Night and the Glenn Howard Classic.  As the economy recovers, some of these drivers may again go south, but it was sure fun to see them exhibit their talents before the Saturday Night race fans.          

 

FANS DISCOVER BARGAIN AT VICTORVILLE              Norm Bogan  Having attended races at Victorville Auto Raceway over the last few years, I noted a facility that has some real potential for the future.Arriving at the front gate, you’ll find adequate parking on a paved lot at no charge.  Venturing through the entrance, you are greeted with a grassy park like expanse with a number of shade trees to shield you from the summer heart.  After purchasing your adult admission for ten dollars, you proceed into the spacious grandstands accommodating several thousand fans.  Food and beverages are available at locations behind the grandstands and clean restrooms are accessible from each end of the grandstands. Settle in with your hot dog, a drink and some popcorn to enjoy the bill of fare for the evening.  You will find a number of your neighbors participating in the evening’s events, as many of the competitors are from the greater Victor Valley community.The program will vary from week to week as they feature different classes of competition.  Check the schedule at the website, www.vville-auto-raceway.com and choose the shows that tickle your fancy.  There is a good variety from the youngsters in their Mini-Dwarfs racecars to the 4-Banger stocks and the crowd favorite, Dwarf Cars.  Check out the All-American stocks, which resemble your steed in the parking lot.  Don’t miss the exciting Sport-Modifieds, Late Model Stocks and fire-breathing open wheel Sprint Cars.Quite likely you may select several different favorites among family members.  On the track you will often find Dad entered in one class, while son or daughter may be competing against him or in one of the other classes.  Mom sometimes joins the fray also.Saturday evening, September 26^th was a pleasant change from the scorching triple digit temperatures of the past couple of weeks.  Daytime temps in the nineties cooled down to the balmy eighties for the evening’s competition.On the schedule were 360/410 Wingless Sprints, Sport Modifieds and the All-American Stocks.  As the racers entered the track for wheel packing and hot laps, the tally was twenty-two sprinters, sixteen Sport Modifieds and ten All-American stocks.    Sprint feature results found Blake Miller scoring his fifth in a row victory, while being chased to the checkers by John Aden, Ronnie Gardner, Bob Ream Jr., Cody Williams, Austin Williams, Tom Stansberry, Cal Smith, Seth Wilson and Heidi Tresler.The Sports-Modified “A” Main went to Jesse Gordon followed by Butch Wood, Johnny Lathrop, Mike Sayle, Vince Porter, Amanda Fritsch, Jim Snow, Keith Prischmann, Don Roland and Tim Branson.The All-American feature was claimed by Robert Gamble over Chris Stauffacher, Wayne Childress, Ben Bacher, Bryan Bacher, Dan McGuirre, Craig Woldt, Joey St. Louis, Jeremy Mosley and Devin Laporte.Victorville is definitely an “Oasis in the Desert”, although you will not find any camels tied up to a palm tree.  

Race Results for 7/25/09

Mike and Dena Gibson's Victorville Auto Raceway hosted one of the "hottest" shows in town on Saturday as the heat blasted the drivers, crews, cars and spectators.  In a broiling night of action, the Sprint Cars, Sport Modifieds and All Americans entertained the crowd with some exciting racing.  Blake Miller lead the Sprint cars in one of the best Sprint car events held at the track.  With no yellows, the cars ran wide open looking for every ounce of moisture in the clay surface.  Austin and Cody Williams, with local favorite Seth Wilson and Ludvig Solberg kept the fans on the edge of their seats with their side by side, full out, race to the checkers. 

Below is the article that I will be posting tomorrow morning on onedirt.

You are welcome to use this whole or in part on your site.

I will send you the link when the article is posted live on the site.

6 Points races decided at Raceway
Wilson, Lopez and Wenzel take titles
By J.J. Calvacca
Special to www.victorville-auto-raceway.com

VICTORVILLE - Although Victorville Auto Raceway's annual awards banquet won't be held until mid-winter, six drivers drove out of the Fairgrounds on Saturday night comfortable in the knowledge that they had clinched the points titles in their respective divisions. For most of them, their next challenge will come in late November at the annual Turkey Classic.
And for one driver, CDCRA Dwarf Victorville Pro Champion Eric Lopez, there's one more goal left in his already successful season. If all goes well, Lopez could also be looking at a National championship to go along with his achievement here this season in Victorville.
As fans that follow the Dwarfs around their circuit know, the CDCRA is part of a larger group known as the Western States Dwarf Car Association. The WSDCA also crowns a National champion each year, and Lopez is currently just four points away from the lead in that all-important points race. The Dwarfs will compete twice more in Regional events this season, next weekend in Watsonville and at Ventura in November.
"I've got a lot of work ahead of me yet. Both of these tracks are tough and we've never raced at Watsonville, so that will be a new experience for a lot of us, including me," Lopez said in a post-race interview following his sweep in Victorville this past Saturday.
Even though there are those two races left on the CDCRA schedule, Monrovia's Gary Ebeling has already locked up a National title in the Senior division. He's far enough ahead that he has the title mathematically locked up.
In Saturday's racing, Lopez was once again impressive as he won both his earlier heat race and led almost pole-to-pole in the night's feature. The Dwarfs fielded the largest number of cars on this night, mostly due to the fact that other are tracks were open and racing on the same night.
Riverside's Walter Boyd finished second overall to Lopez and Ebeling had a third-place finish overall and finished second to Boyd in the Seniors division breakout.
Acton's Mike Van Acker, despite his fifth-place finis among the Seniors, had gathered up enough points to edge out Ebeling as the Victorville Seniors points champion.
Also finishing their season on Saturday night were the 360/410 cu.in. Non-Winged Sprints, and it was a light field of cars that took to the track, due in part to the fact that some of the other tracks that the Sprints regularly race at were open and racing.
Of those in attendance it was mainly the drivers who were in contention for the local points title. San Clemente's Seth Wilson, who had been impressive all season long, staked his claim to the 2008 Victorville season crown with a stunning victory over Tulare's Aaron Altaffer and Phelan's Kenny Perkins.
After the first of many cautions, this one caused by Apple Valley's young Johnny McCall's multiple attempts to climb the wall in Turn 1 (he was unhurt in the incident), it was Lake Forest's Matt Shedarowich who appeared to have the race all but sewn up, with only Perkins and San Clemente's Tom Grunkemeyer posing anything like a challenge.
Meanwhile, Wilson had found a comfortable place on the bottom of the racetrack and was methodically picking off drivers on his way to challenging the leaders.
By the time he caught and passed Shedarowich, Wilson felt that there was something not quite right with his racecar and it was only after taking the checkered flag and stopping for the trophy presentation that he discovered that he had been driving the last laps of the race with a broken radius rod.
"Even though I knew that there was something wrong with the car, I was still able to control it due to the stagger of the tires and that kept me in the race," Wilson said after the race. He then went on to give his thanks to his sponsors and especially to his fans. Wilson, like so many others who race here, is the owner/driver of his car.
In the final Sport Compact feature of the 2008 season, Victorville's Charlie Wenzel continued his winning ways as he took the checkered flag for sweep and the overall win, and clinched the season's points title in the Seniors division. Wenzel was chased for most of the race by Tehachapi's Scott "Scooter" Black, who at times was drawing a bead on Wenzel and waiting for an opportunity to pass the leader. Unfortunately for Black, that chance just never happened.
The race was its usual uneventful self, with a minimal amount (if any) of yellow flags, with the exception, perhaps, of the late charge by Hesperia's Jared Stauffacher. It was an impressive try but all for naught as the youngster faded back into the pack soon after.
Wenzel had been in a fight for the points lead with Hesperia's Jessica Sooter, but Sooter's fifth-place finish, coupled with a mid-pack finish in her earlier heat race, effectively ended her hopes of a championship.
Of interest as well is the friendly competition between the Timmerman women in the Sport Compacts. Daughter Teresa has been around a while and recently mother Anita has been joined on the track in her own racecar. On this night neither figured in the final results, but they, along with IMCA Modified drivers Tim (the dad) and Tim II (the son), make up one of the nicest "family affairs" racing here locally.
The men will be on the track in two weeks when the Modifieds complete their 2008 season as part of the finale program.
The night's activities wouldn't be complete without mentioning the last running of the Mini Dwarfs for the season. It was San Diego's Nathan DeRagon coming under the checkered flag with the win in the feature, followed by the 2008 Mini Dwarf champion, Arcadia's James "LJ" Billings. Another recent addition to the Mini Dwarfs, Audie Andrade, who hails from Orange, captured the third-place honors.  The top five rounded out with Hesperia's Shayna Galloway and Aaron "Bubba" McLaughlin in fourth and fifth, respectively.
Saturday marked the last time that Galloway would race in a Mini Dwarf, as she will be joining Apple Valley's Hannah Blalock as the both move next door to the
Wheel-2-Wheel race track and be climbing into Mini Sprints. Blalock is scheduled to race in the November 8th meet at that track.
As previously mentioned, the 2008 regular season will end in just two weeks on
November 1st with the final appearances of the Modifieds (non-IMCA), Street and Mini Stocks and the All Americans. As a special treat for the fans there will also be an appearance by those fast Late Models, and if you've never seen these things on the dirt you are definitely in for a treat.
Plans are also being finalized for this season's edition of the Turkey Classic, the Raceway's annual three-day even, held over Thanksgiving weekend. Fans will see lots of cars that they're not used to seeing during the regular racing season and lots of thrills are in store for all.

-30-

John

A chill was in the air, but not on the race track
Morris, Fabbri and Blalock score sweeps
By J.J. Calvacca

VICTORVILLE - What a difference a week made. Last weekend at Victorville Auto Raceway the attire of the fans in the stands was your typical High Desert summer wear - shorts, tank tops and the like.
It was a completely different scene, and a completely different season Saturday night, more like sweatshirts and blankets, as the fans piled in to the grandstand to enjoy another night of hard charging racing action in the waning 2008 racing season at the Fairgrounds facility.
Five divisions came to race and, although there was a definite autumn feeling in the air, these drivers definitely poured on the heat as the points chases in these divisions wound up even tighter.
First out on the clay were the Modifieds, and since the IMCA season had ended a couple weeks ago with Bakersfield's Troy Morris, Jr. capturing the track IMCA points title, the Victorville Auto Raceway Modified track championship is still up in the air.
There are at least three drivers who theoretically have a shot at the track title, but on Saturday night Morris tightened his grip on that trophy with a sweep, winning both his the feature as well as his earlier heat race.
Johnson Valley's Mark Nustad jumped out to the early lead in the feature, but before the first lap was completed, starter Bob Rideout had the yellow flag flying as Las Vegan Roland Kent found himself getting a bit too friendly with the wall on the back straight.
This caused a complete restart that saw Morris getting by Nustad, with Daggett's Wayne Francis a close third.
The night wasn't too kind to Victorville's Andy Moreton, whose car kept losing body parts as the race progressed, eventually forcing officials to send him off the track. The same luck followed popular Apple Valley driver Mike "Woody" Sabers as he found himself pushed against the back wall and out of the race for the night.
Eventually Francis faded, leaving Morris, Nustad and Apple Valley's Randy Thornell in the top three positions, and after a green-white-checker restart that was the final result.
It should also be mentioned that Amanda Fritsch, who hasn't been seen on the track in recent weeks, caught a ride in a Brad Bennett-owned vehicle and acquitted herself quite well, making it through the "B" Main and into the feature, where she definitely held her own, bringing a smile to the face of her dad, track announcer Jeff Fritsch.
The Street Stocks were out next, and for the second week in a row, Norco's Chris Tooley figured in the final outcome. Last week, with the win clearly in sight, Tooley's Camaro suffered a broken camshaft and limped across the finish line behind winner Keith Prischman and second place finisher JR Steele.
Saturday night, after a third-place finish in his earlier heat contest, Tooley, who started the race about in the middle of the pack, showed great patience as he methodically picked his way through the field to challenge the leaders.
Apple Valley's Kevin Andrews had the lead early in the race, but it was once again Prischman, along with Hesperia's Ruben Malaguarnero and Bakersfield's Ralph Cooke, who were between Tooley and the checkered flag.
Prischman also faded, along with Cooke, and Hesperia's Bryce Foster would be the last car that Tooley would have to conquer for the win. It ended with Tooley getting by and cruising to a solid win, followed by Foster and Malaguarnero. Also figuring in the final five were Torrance's Danny Queener and Johnson Valley's Mark Nustad.
Only three cars answered the call in the All American division and the results in the feature were identical to those in the earlier heat race. It was a sweep for Apple Valley's Jefro Blalock, as he bested Victorville's Dan McGuire and Hesperia's Bev Stauffacher in both the heat and the feature.
As luck would have it, though, Blalock's wife, Christy, who is always in the stands cheering him on, was off with the children visiting relatives and not there to witness "Lightnin' McQueen" accomplish the sweep.
In Mini Stock, it was also a sweep for Apple Valley's Brian Fabbri, a feat he has accomplished more than once this season. The action got off to a wild start when Scott Oppermann got spun, the broad sided by La Verne's Jim Englert in Turn 4 on the first lap. The complete restart saw Pomona's Gary Marshall. Jr. in the lead. Hesperia's Robert Gleason and Apple Valley's Jason Cline were close behind in hot pursuit.
While Fabbri was left looking for an opening, Marshall was slowly increasing his lead
and Apple Valley's Chris Peterson was now in the mix as well. By this time the leaders were beginning to lap slower traffic.
When Marshall was forced to leave the race with engine trouble, Gleason took the lead, with Fabbri up on the wheel and chasing him down. While Peterson was fading, Fabbri eventually was able to get by Gleason and drove on to take the win. Gleason placed second and Apple Valley's Jason Cline took the third spot. Victorville's Jim Bard finished in fourth place and La Verne's Jim Englert rounded out the top five positions.
The night's racing action concluded with the 8-cylinder Figure 8's. Earlier in the evening Hesperia's Jeff Singer, no stranger to the Figure 8's here, was musing as to whether he should even enter the race. "My car isn't really set up for this kind of racing," Singer was heard to mention in the stands. "There isn't a really big field set up for the race," he added.
His eventual decision to enter proved to be the right call, as Singer outlasted the remainder of the field to grab the win. As Figure 8's go, it was a race that saw more close calls than have been witnessed all season. Although there were no crashes, cars were missing each other by mere inches as they crossed over during the race.
San Bernardino's Brett Mulford came across the line in second place, while Apple Valley's Jefro Blalock did double duty with his "Lightnin' McQueen" car finishing in third place. Only four cars were there at the finish and it was Hesperia's Tom Blanck rounding out the field at the end.
The Raceway will be dark this coming Saturday and racing will resume for the next-to-last night of the regular season on Saturday, October 18th. That night will mark the final appearance this season of the 360/410 Non-Winged Sprints, the CDCRA Dwarfs and the Sport Compacts. The youngsters in their Mini Dwarfs will also be aboard for their last contest of the 2008 season.

-30-

J.J.

BOOKENDS   Norm Bogan

Memorial Day weekend is big in auto racing with traditional events like the Indy 500 and the World 600 NASCAR show.  Since gasoline prices broke through the $4 dollar barrier in the past week or so, my plan was to confine my racing activities within California.  Friday, I would journey to Victorville for the Dwarf Car Nationals and Modified show.  Saturday the agenda listed Perris Auto Speedway as the venue of choice for USAC/CRA Sprint Cars and then a several hours trek up to the San Joaquin Valley community of Tulare to complete the USAC/CRA weekend double-header.

Well, Friday worked out as planned and my arrival at the San Bernardino County Fairgrounds, found a field of 71 Dwarf Cars from throughout California, Oregon, Nevada and Arizona.  Thirty Modifieds joined the action to provide some great racing on a well-prepared racetrack.   Ryan Contrell was a dominant victor in the Modified feature and appeared to be on a repeat mission in the Dwarf Car Main, until questionable contact with another car as he advanced to the point, put him back to the rear after a spin.  Adrenalin bursts brought him back to finish in the top ten.  The fans braved temperatures in the forties with a steady breeze to bring the chill factor to quite frosty.  Surrounding mountains looked more like the Swiss Alps than a protective ring around this high desert venue.

After a valiant effort to get the Perris facility prepared to accept the many race team haulers, the infield was still a quagmire with standing water and management was obliged to cancel the Saturday night show.  Now the scramble for alternate destinations came into play and after consulting with one of my traveling buddies, the choice was to head west to the show at Ventura Raceway for VRA Sprints and other classes.

Arriving at Ventura, there was no outward appearance of any rainfall, although the skies changed from gray with ominous black clouds to blue skies with puffy white clouds several times.  The program went off without a hitch for weather related problems.

Steve Conrad captured the Pro Sprint Victory with an impressive run by Brandon Thomson, skirting the wall lap after lap as he charged from the rear of the field to finish second.  Bruce Douglass took the spoils from the other old guys, while Austin Rodarte scored the Modified victory.

Well, Sunday morning saw communication between many southern California racing teams and spies in Tulare before starting the jaunt over the Tehachapi Mountains. Soon word sifted down from the central state that overnight thunderstorms had left the track preparation team at the Thunderbowl without adequate time to resurrect the racing surface and so the USAC/CRA double-header was totally washed out.

Luckily, there was another alternative at Victorville, where they ran a combined 410/360 Sprint Car show with several support classes.  Twenty-three cars were on hand and entertained the crowd with dicey heats, a strong semi and an outstanding feature as the top five cars ran through traffic like a runaway train.  Even one of the lappers commented after the race that he had the best seat in the house as this juggernaut proceeded by around the top.  Seth Wilson has enjoyed much better luck since he scrapped his olive drab paint job for basic black.  He led many laps, before Blake Miller was able to snooker him in behind a lapped car and grab the lead. 

Much of the race, John Aden was in the mix, until his temperature gauge indicated that he should pull in and save his engine.  Tyler Brown and Alan Ballard completed the top four.  About mid way in the feature, Bill Badger tagged the wall coming off turn four and it locked up his rear end, leaving him dead in the water right near the flag stand in the middle of the track.  Kris Stauffacher came off the corner with nowhere to go and nailed Badger’s car on the right rear tire.  Both cars suffered serious damage, but both drivers were okay, although they may be walking a little gingerly the day after. 

So sometimes, the best laid plans go awry and this weekend I used Victorville to bookend a Saturday night show at Ventura.  Two shows I had planned to follow this weekend both succumbed to Mother Nature.  My alternative choices turned out to be brilliant substitutes.

Next week, May 31^st will find several local venues dark, while Victorville will be running another Open Comp Sprint Car show, with a new twist added.  Shades of the “Front Row Challenge”!  The Faas/Gardner promotion has added $20,000 for a racer scheduled to start on the pole and opt to go to the last row.  If that competitor is able to navigate his way from the rear to claim the victory, his payday will increase five-fold.  Look for a stellar field of cars to be on hand, all expecting to run the table and collect the bonus prize.