Archives January 2011- Welcome to Norcal Circle Track!

September 2011 Archives

9-26-11 360's Eye October 8 Visit to Tulare Thunderbowl; Bernal Takes Hanford 30-Lapper
Source Dick jordan
Tulare Thunderbowl

Richard VanderWeerd remains atop the 2011 USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car standings after finishing fourth in last Saturday night’s race at Hanford, Calif. He’s 55 points ahead of Ryan Bernal, winner of last Saturday’s race. The two will continue their battle for the championship October 8 when the series returns to the Tulare (Calif.) Thunderbowl Raceway with 74 points up for grabs.

Bernal, of Hollister, Calif., won Saturday night’s race at Giant Chevrolet Kings Speedway, leading the final 27 laps after passing Marty Hawkins on lap four. Dennis Howell came home second ahead of Peter Murphy, series point leader VanderWeerd and Wes Gutierrez.

The Hanford win was the fourth in the last six series features for Bernal as he continues to narrow VanderWeerd’s point lead.

USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS

1-Richard VanderWeerd-810; 2-Ryan Bernal-755; 3-Wes Gutierrez-701; 4-Jace VanderWeerd-662; 5-Dennis Howell-623; 6-Danny Faria Jr.-600; 7-Greg Alexander-538; 8-Justyne Hamblin-515; 9-T.J. Smith-502; 10-Bud Kaeding-439.

10-2-11 October 1 Ventura Raceway Report
Source Cliff Morgan
Ventura Raceway

Brent Camarillo made it win number one in his VRA Sprint Car career Saturday night winning the 30 lap VRA 360 Sprint Car Main Event. He took the lead on lap 9 from Jace Vanderweerd and led the rest of the way to take the win. The popular win was a special night for his family, brother Brian, dad Bill and the fans in attendance. Brent has scored many top five finishes but the first win had eluded him until
Saturday night. Following Brent across the line were Jace Vanderweerd, Brian Camarillo, Markus Niemela and Richard Vanderweerd. A smaller than normal field of 15 cars caused only 2 heat races to be run with wins going to Tom Hendricks in the Extreme Muffler heat one and Greg Taylor in the Joie of seating heat two. Greg Taylor continues to lead in the season point race. After 19 races he holds a 610 point lead over Brian Camarillo who moved into second place after Steve Conrad had a nasty flip in heat one that necessitated a trip to the hospital for a check up ending his night.

Twelve Senior Sprints were on hand Saturday night with two heat races held. Wins went to Clif Warren in the Spin Tech Muffler heat one and Victor Davis in the Maxwell Industries heat two. Their 20 lap main event that went green-white-checker one week ago was another story Saturday night. Incidents before a complete lap was completed took out four of the starters including point leader Rob Kershaw. The 20 lap feature win went to Richard McCormick who has won two of the last three events. Following him across the line were Warren,Ed Schwarz, Bruce Douglass and Chris Meredith. Point leader Rob Kershaw finished 10th and now holds a 155 point lead over Cliff Warren after 10 races.

VRA Dwarf Cars races in two classes on Saturday. In Pros, the feature win went to Lars Wolfe over Randy Gordon, Mike Lewis Devlin Autrey and Curt Cook. They ran two heats with wins going to Johnathon Henry in heat one and Mike Lewis in heat two. Ray Estrada continues to lead in Pro points by 90 points over Mike Lewis after 12 events. In Senior Dwarf competition, Mike Neal took the win over Keith Vondersaar,Bill VanPraag, Bobby Lague and George Sack Jr. They ran two heat races with the wins going to Mike Neal and Keith Vondersaar. After 10 races held so far in the 2011 season, George Calvo leads Mike Neal by 105 points.

VRA Mod Lites ran one heat race with the win going to Kevin Alverson. In this race, Chris Kornder had the dubious honor of being the first to roll a mod lite at Ventura as he rolled over in turn four doing substantial damage to his number 5. He was able to get it repaired and was able to start the feature. In the feature the win went to Alverson over Michael Sweeney Jr., Dave Dotson, debuting his new number 11 and Chris Kordner.

A non-point VRA Go Kart race was held with 9 karts in attendance. The heat race win went to Kevin Manning and the 20 lap feature win went to Cody Nigh over Kenny Byers Jr, Justin Raper, Ashley Hazleton and Johnny Conley.

The final groups racing on Saturday were our kids classes. in Mini Dwarf Pistons it was Garrett Egan scoring the heat race win and then J D Brown tok his firth win in a row in the feature. In Mini Dwarf Superchargers the main event win went to Destyn Garcia. In Junior Midget action, the heat race win went Brennan Rogers. Oliver Blades then took the 15 lap main event over Devin McCree,Rogers, Miles Hedrick and Mike Long. Point leader Devin McCree continues to lead the points by 20 over Brennan Rogers after 9 events.

Ventura Raceway resumes racing Saturday October 15, after a week off on October 8, with a full program of racing featuring VRA Sprints, Senior Sprints, Dwarf Cars, Mod Lites, California Lightning Sprints and our Kids classes

9-29-11 Austin Reed Gears Up To Race In USLCI Legend Car National Event
Source David Reed
USLCI Legend Car nationals

A senior and honor role student at Frontier High School, in Bakersfield, California, Austin Reed was introduced to racing whgile watching his father at an early age, and has pursued the sport as a driver.
An honor student and senior at Frontier High School, in Bakersfield, California, Austin Reed grew up watching his father race, and in turn acquired a passion for the sport at an early age. In fact, the young driver has been racing in the Legend Car class for the past three years. When asked his thoughts on competing in the Legend Tour, Reed said, "The thing that I enjoy most about the SRL Legends Tour is the ability to travel from track to track, gaining the experience."

Seventeen-year-old, Austin Reed, recently qualified to race in the USLCI Legend Car National event to be held in Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Although the 17-year-old driver has only three years of experience under his belt, he has definitely already begun to make a showing. In fact, during a recent race at the Orange Show Speedway, at San Bernardino, California, Reed finished fifth overall, and earned a win in the Semi-Pro division event, landing a guaranteed starting spot in the USLCI Legend Car National event, to be held at the Bullring at Las Vegas Motor Speedway during the later part of October.

When asked his thoughts on the fifth place finish, the driver said, "I was happy, and disappointed at the same time. We ran the race and had a decent finish, although I know I could have finished better if I hadn't been held up earlier in the race." Reed then continued, "To win the Semi-pro division was good to know, because it gave us the National qualifier win that can be a great help later in the season."

Referring to his National qualifier victory Reed said, "The competition was very stiff! The track record was beaten earlier that day in qualifying. I think the key to winning that race was being patiently aggressive. Going into the race, I felt pretty confident that we could win our division. We had been running fast all day in practice and I was hoping to do it during the race."

Austin Reed (in the middle of the pack) recently managed to remain in control and finish the race when his car came within inches of rolling onto its side.

When asked in what lap he took the lead, Austin Reed answered, "I try not to focus on lap count, and who else I'm racing when I'm running the race, but more on focusing on my line and what I need to do to run as fast as possible. After I passed the other Semi-Pro to take the lead, I wasn't really challenged, but I tried to just continue moving forward."

As he prepares for the USLCI Legend Car National event, Austin Reed will obviously focus on what he thinks might be the determining factors that will lead to a victory. "I think the key to success at the Nationals race is going to endurance and survival," shared Reed. "It's going to be a very long and difficult race to win." When asked if he would be happy with anything other than a victory at Las Vegas, he continued, "I really think that a top five would be a victory to me, but a win is always best."

The young driver is aware that his previous and future success also depends a great deal on his team as well. "My team is everything I have accomplished, and I can't thank them enough for what they do for me," he explained.

Referring to the importance of proper maintenance of his race car, Reed continued, "I use K&N products on everything I can, whether it's my race car, or personal car. I've been using their products for almost three years now. I use their air filters and oil filters on everything I drive. I think K&N has the best products on the market, and some of the best customer services. I definitely credit part of my success to K&N. Without the help and support they have given me, it would make it much more difficult to accomplish what I have."

In closing, Austin Reed said, "I would just like to thank all of my sponsors and fans for all of their support they have given me throughout my racing career, and especially my dad!"

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

9-29-11 Fourth Annual Branco Memorial Set to Pay $2121 to Win
Source Steven Blakesley
Ocean Speedway

The fourth annual “Walt Branco Memorial” for Wingless Sprint Cars on Friday October 7 will pay $2121 to win with generous purse enhancements courtesy of Ocean Sprints car owner Joe Vonschriltz. The race will honor the late and famed car owner Walt Branco and will be one of the highest paying spec sprint races in Northern California.

In his memory the Branco will pay out bonuses to the top-six finishers in addition to the regular purse at Ocean Speedway. Bonuses of $1521, $821, $621, $421, $221, and $121 have been posted. The leader on lap six of the feature will also receive a $121 bonus.

“The wing drivers have the Johnny Key race so we decided to have a big race for the spec sprint drivers,” Vonschriltz said.

A big fan of drag racing, Walt was first introduced to sprint cars by co-worker C.J. Stubbles in the early 90’s. Walt worked as a crew member on Stubbles’ car for a few years learning the ins-and-outs of sprint car racing.

Walt became a car owner in the early 90’s and over a dozen year period he won main events with Ricky Williams, Chuck Gurney, Jr., and Randy Hannagan piloting his cars. He also took on ownership of a spec sprint with Doug Brewer winning several main events a year despite schedules of six to ten races a season.

Walt was also an important part of the development of Fremont’s Shane Golobic, who drives for Vonschriltz in the Ocean Sprints and Civil War. The last race that Branco attended was April 12, 2008 when Golobic won the Golden State Challenge main event at Ocean Speedway.

A heart condition forced Branco to the hospital just a week later before he passed away in July of 2008.

“Walt loved every aspect of sprint car racing,” Vonschriltz said, “from figuring out what equipment to buy, assembling the car, hanging out at the track before and after the races, and most of all watching his 6x sprint car on the track.”

Previous winners of the Branco include Ryan Bernal in 2008 and 2010, and Devon Ostheimer in 2009. Although all three Brancos have gone to local Ocean Speedway talents, a large contingent of regional spec sprint racers are expected to compete for the $2121 to win prize in 2011.

Friday October 7 will be a special night not only with the Branco on tap but the penultimate race for the Ocean Sprints presented by Taco Bravo. The excellent night of open wheel racing will also include Micro 600s and American Stocks rounding out the program.

Adult tickets are just $17 with seniors 65+ $15 and kids ages 6-12 are $12. The family pass for two adults and two children is value priced at just $50. Qualifying will get underway at 6 p.m. with fan gates opening at 4:30 p.m.

For more information on the Ocean Sprint Cars presented by Taco Bravo log onto http://www.oceansprints.com and for more on the Ocean Speedway visit http://www.oceanspeedway.com

9-28-11 Greg Taylor Leads Ventura Sprint Car Showdown
Source Lance Jennings
Ventura Raceway

The cars and stars of the VRA Sprint Car Series will return to action this Saturday night, October 1st, at Jim Naylor's Ventura Raceway. The action packed program will also feature the Senior Sprint Cars, Dwarf Cars, Mod Lites, Mod Lite Juniors, Go Karts, Junior Midgets, and Mini Dwarfs. The Pit Gate will open at noon, Front Gates will open at 3:00pm with Racing at "The Best Little Dirt Track In America" to begin at 5:30pm.

With four races to go in the chase for the championship, Ventura's Greg Taylor has a stout 550 point lead over the competition. Last Saturday night, the pilot of the #7 Clark Engineering Construction / Westco International Consulting Inc. entry won his ninth heat race of the year and placed ninth in the feature. To date, the former track champion has four feature wins, two hard charger awards, and fourteen top-10 finishes on the year. Taylor will have his sights set on another main event win as he gets closer to another crown.

Steve Conrad of Quartz Hill has climbed to second in the championship points. At the last event, the driver of the #56 Roy Miller Freightlines / SC Grafix special was third in his heat race and scored thirteenth in the feature. In 2011, the veteran driver has two feature wins, one heat race victory, three hard charger awards, and thirteen top-10 finishes. Conrad will be looking to rebound with a strong performance and a Ventura main event victory.

Currently sitting third in the point chase is Camarillo's Brian Camarillo. Last Saturday night, the pilot of the #81 Christian Stover Foundation / Steve Watt Enterprises car won his eighth heat race and second main event of the season. The hard charging driver also has one semi-main win and ten top-10 finishes to his credit. Camarillo will be looking for another feature triumph at Ventura Raceway.

Josh Ford of Camarillo is fourth in the point standings. The driver of the #73 King Racing Products / A&A Precision Machine entry did not compete in last Saturday's show, but is tied for the series lead with fourteen top-10 finishes. The former USAC National Sprint Car Rookie of the Year has four heat race victories, one hard charger award, and thirty-five main event laps led on the year. The veteran driver is a threat to win on any given night.

Camarillo's Brent Camarillo is fifth in the standings. On September 24th, the pilot of the #51 Agromin Soil / Waste Management car was sixth in his heat race and sixth in the 30-lap feature. To date, Brent has four heat race victories, one semi-main win, one Hard Charger Award, and eight top-10 finishes on the season. Camarillo will have his sights set on his first victory of the year on Saturday.

Among the other top contenders expected to be in action are Moorpark's Kyle Smith, Santa Barbara's Markus Niemela, Jimmy Crawford of Newbury Park, Oak Park's Dakota and Cody Kershaw, Ventura's Cory Kruseman, Norwalk's Brandon Thomson, Ojai's Troy Rutherford, and many more.

Ventura Raceway is located on the Ventura County Fairgrounds at 10 West Harbor Blvd. in Ventura, California. Adult tickets are $14, Senior, Military, and Student tickets (ID Required) are $11, while Children’s tickets (12 and under) are FREE. For more event information, please visit www.venturaraceway.com or call (805) 985-5433.

To catch all of the action of the VRA Sprint Car Series and Ventura Raceway, Mike Truex's Loudpedal Productions has DVD videos available for purchase. For more information, call (805) 407-7229 or visit www.loudpedalvideo.com. In addition, Ventura Raceway offers a live feed of every event at www.venturaraceway.com/live.html. The live feed is scheduled to begin at 5:00pm PST.

9-28-11 King of the West 410 Sprint Car Series giveaway car coming together for banquet
Source Gary Thomas
King of The West

One of most lucrative prizes drivers have been chasing this season with the Golden State King of the West Sprint Car Series has been the opportunity to win a complete sprint car, which will be given away at the championship awards banquet.

To be eligible for the sprint car giveaway, drivers/teams must have not missed more than two races and at this point there are currently 15 drivers in the running for the huge prize at the banquet. The awards banquet will be held towards the end of January and when adding up cash and contingencies we currently have over $300,000 that will be handed out.

With that said, the King of the West team picked up a new 87/40 Maxim raised rail Chassis with body work, floor pan, dash and motor plate last week courtesy of Kaeding Performance located in Campbell, California.

“We can’t thank Kaeding Performance enough for donating a Maxim Chassis kit for the giveaway car,” said KWS Operations Manager George Hague. “We appreciate Brent’s guidance and the support he’s given us through contingencies and the giveaway car this season. We’re looking forward to announcing others that are supporting the giveaway car as well so stay tuned.”

The Kaeding family has had a long and successful history in both racing and business in California and over the years they combined the two into a successful racing business. The property where the business is located has been in the family since the early 1940’s.

The family is represented by three generations of champions including Howard, Brent, Tim and Bud. Kaeding Performance relies on this racing experience to offer their customers the latest in sprint car technology, set-up advice and confidence in the parts they sell.

Their staff has many years of racing experience as well so feel free to rely on them for any and all of your racing needs.

To learn more about Kaeding Performance visit http://www.kaedings.com/index.php

The Golden State King of the West 410 Sprint Car Series will conclude its season on October 15 at the Giant Chevrolet Kings Speedway in Hanford, California, with the running of the annual Cotton Classic. Last season Elk Grove’s Kyle Larson claimed the Cotton Classic after an epic battle with Tim Kaeding and Jonathan Allard.

T. Kaeding goes into the night on October 15 with a large advantage in the standings, as he looks to wrap up the first California 410 Sprint Car title for car owners Dennis & Teresa Roth. “TK” has won six main events this season and has been a model of consistency, having finished among the top-five in all but one event. The race to watch though will be the fight for fifth, in which Jason Statler, Willie Croft & Andy Gregg are all separated by just 10-markers.

Be sure to “like” Golden State King of the West Series on Facebook and follow us on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/kws410s

Also check out our official website at http://www.kwssprints.com

9-27-11 Brian Camarillo Wins Wild Ventura Feature
Source Lance Jennings
Ventura Raceway

Last Saturday night, Brian Camarillo led the final twenty laps to score his second victory of the season with the VRA Sprint Car Series. Taking the lead from Markus Niemela on lap eleven, Camarillo fought off Niemela's counter moves to retain the lead. From there, Brian steadily inched away from the field to claim the wild main event at Jim Naylor's Ventura Raceway.

At the start of the 30-lap main event, pole sitter Cody Kershaw got the jump on fellow front row starter Guy Woodward. Taking the early lead, Kershaw had his sights on his first victory of the 2011 campaign. Third starting Brian Camarillo quickly took second from Woodward, as point leader Greg Taylor and Markus Niemela looked to advance by passing Woodward and pressuring Camarillo for second.

After a yellow flag bunched the field, Kershaw looked to shake free from the field as Taylor executed a two car "slide job" pass for the lead in turn four. With Taylor now out front, Camarillo countered with his own slider for the lead. Taylor motored past Camarillo to keep the top spot, but now had to deal with Niemela. Markus was able to take command from Greg on the seventh circuit and Camarillo took second.

Niemela looked strong, but a determined Camarillo was on the hunt. The lead duo began to wage their own personal war for the lead by trading "slide jobs" throughout the speedway. Camarillo eventually won the exchange and looked to distance himself from the field. A battle royal began to take shape behind the leaders as "slide job" passes were being thrown wholesale for position.

The battle for second tightened up as Taylor and Brent Camarillo soon caught Niemela. Racing in tight quarters, a late race bobble by Markus resulted in a Taylor flip and collected Brent. Niemela was able to restart at the rear of the field and the other cars were out of contention. Brian Camarillo led the remaining laps to take the victory, followed by Cody Kershaw, Kyle Smith, a rebounding Markus Niemela, and Dakota Kershaw. After the race, a happy Brian Camarillo remarked, "It was pretty wild out there tonight. Thankfully we got out in front and it wasn't too bad from there."

Driving Steve Watt's #81 Christian Stover Foundation / Steve Watt Enterprises machine, Camarillo's Brian Camarillo not only won the 30-lap main event, but also the program's first heat race. Climbing to third in the championship points, Camarillo has eight heat race victories, one semi-main win, and ten top-10 finishes on the season.

Oak Park's Cody Kershaw led the first four laps of the main event before fading back in the field. The pilot of the #27 Interprise Capitol / Roll Control entry battled back to claim the runner-up finish at the checkered flags. After claiming second in his heat race, Kershaw now sits fifteenth in the point chase with one heat race victory and five top-10 finishes to his credit.

Kyle Smith of Moorpark had one of his best career nights with a third place run after eighth. Driving the #55S Agromin Soil / Waste Management special, Smith place fourth in his heat race. Now sixth in the hunt for the championship, Smith has one hard charger award and four top-10 finishes in 2011.

Santa Barbara's Markus Niemela rebounded after a late race tangle to salvage a fourth place finish. Piloting Steve Watt's #69 Surfnsprint.com / Steve Watt Enterprises car, Niemela was fourth in his heat race and led four laps before falling to Camarillo. Currently ninth in points, Markus has two heat race victories, one hard charger award, and nine top-10 finishes on the season.
Dakota Kershaw of Oak Park earned the night's "Hard Charger / Best Passing Job" honors with a fifth place run after starting thirteenth. Driving the #28 Interprise Capitol / Roll Control entry, Kershaw placed seventh in his heat race and is now eleventh in the standings. Dakota has three heat race victories and seven top-10 finishes in the 2011 campaign.

Ventura's Greg Taylor was back at the helm of his #7 Clark Engineering Construction / Westco International Consulting Inc. machine and won the night's second heat race. Looking for his third win in a row, Taylor briefly held the lead in the main event. Still running towards the front, the point leader was caught in a late race tangle and flipped his machine. Scoring a ninth place finish on the night, Greg holds a 550 point lead over Steve Conrad heading into this Saturday's show at Ventura Raceway. To date, Taylor has four feature wins, nine heat race victories, two hard charger awards, and fourteen top-10 finishes on the year.

Ventura Raceway scheduled seven other companion classes on the night. Bruce Douglass won a nonstop feature with the Senior Sprint Cars and Devlin Autry won in the Pro Dwarf Car division. Bill Van Pragg scored the Senior Dwarf Car triumph and Jack Parker returned to victory circle with the IMCA Modifieds. J.D. Brown won in the Mini Dwarf Piston class and Nick Velasquez claimed the Mini Dwarf Supercharger main event. Brennan Rogers won the fifteen lap Junior Midget feature.

To catch all of the action of the VRA Sprint Car Series and Ventura Raceway, Mike Truex's Loudpedal Productions has DVD videos available for purchase. For more information, call (805) 407-7229 or visit www.loudpedalvideo.com. In addition, Ventura Raceway offers a live feed of every event at www.venturaraceway.com/live.html. The live feed will begin at 5:00pm PST.

This Saturday night, October 1st, Ventura Raceway will host the VRA Sprint Cars, Senior Sprint Cars, Dwarf Cars, Mod Lites, Mod Lite Juniors, Go Karts, Junior Midgets, and Mini Dwarfs. For more event information, please visit www.venturaraceway.com or call (805) 985-5433.

9-26-11 Nic Faas Wins "Glenn howard Memorial' at Perris
Source Lance Jennings
Amsoil USAC/CRA

It was a near perfect night for Nic Faas of Huntington Beach last Saturday at Don Kazarian's Perris Auto Speedway. Starting eighth in the 30-lap feature and taking the lead from Greg Bragg on lap eight, Faas led the rest of the way to claim the 4th Annual Glenn Howard Memorial. The triumph marked the second career Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series victory for the young driver and his first of the 2011 campaign. Following Nic across the finish line were Matt Mitchell, Austin Williams, "Showtime" Danny Sheridan, and Bragg.

Piloting Mark Alexander's #4 Scott Sales Company / VP Racing Fuels Spike, Nic Faas set the standard in Sander Engineering Time Trials over the thirty-two car field. The 2008 Rookie of the Year was fourth in a special 3-lap trophy dash and while charging to victory in the Extreme Mufflers / Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror Heat Race #1, observers clocked lap times near the track record. Faas also earned the night's Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award and is currently third in championship standings, thirty-nine points behind leader Mike Spencer. To date, Nic has three Fast Time Awards, six heat race victories, twelve top-10 finishes, and two Hard Charger Awards on the season.

Yorba Linda's Matt Mitchell raced to the runner-up finish after starting ninth in the Howard Memorial. Driving the J.W. Mitchell Motorsports' #37 Mancha Realtors / Sierra Springs Maxim, Mitchell was ninth quick in time trials and second to Faas in his heat race. The former USAC Western Midget Series Rookie of the Year is second in the standings, thirty points behind Spencer until the series returns to Perris for the Southern California Fair on October 8th. In 2011, Mitchell leads USAC/CRA with thirteen top-10 finishes and has two feature wins, six heat race victories, and one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award.

Austin Williams of Yorba Linda recorded his ninth top-10 finish of the year with a third place run. Piloting Jack Jory's #2 John Jory Corporation / AMA Plastics Viper, Williams qualified fifth quick on the night and was fourth in his heat race. The 2009 Rookie of the Year is fourth in the point chase and has one feature win, two heat race victories, one Competition Suspension Inc. Semi-Main win, and one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award in 2011.

"Showtime" Danny Sheridan of Santa Maria charged to fourth in the Howard Memorial after starting tenth. Driving the Kittle Motorsports' #18 Pace Lighting / PIPE Sherman, the former Wagsdash Champion qualified tenth quick and won the Saldana Racing Products / Circle Track Performance Heat Race #2. "Showtime" is seventh in the championship points with two heat race victories, one Competition Suspension Inc. Semi-Main win, and seven top-10 finishes on the season.

Visalia's Greg Bragg led the first seven laps before fading to fifth in the 30-lap feature. Piloting Tom and Laurie Sertich's #92 Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror / Pacific Business Machine Buckley, Bragg was eighth fast on the night and scored third in his heat race. The former California Lightning Sprint Champion is fifth in the standings with three heat race victories, two Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Awards, and ten top-10 finishes on the year.

Ronnie Gardner of Norco won the special four-car, 3-lap Howard Memorial Trophy Dash. Driving the family owned #93 Jamison Engineering / DWT Wheels Sled, Gardner qualified fourth fast on the night and claimed second in his heat race. Scoring seventh in the feature, Ronnie is eighth in points with two Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, one heat race victory, and six top-10 finishes in 2011.

Yorba Linda's "Cadillac" Cody Williams raced to victory in the DJ Safety Heat Race #3. Piloting the Jack Jory's #44 John Jory Corporation / AMA Plastics Viper, Williams qualified eleventh and scored tenth in the main event. "Cadillac" is sixth in the point chase with four heat race victories, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, and seven top-10 finishes on the season.

Josh Ford of Camarillo made his first appearance of the year at Perris and won the Electro Tech Powder Coating / Rod End Supply Heat Race #4. Driving the family owned #72 Berry Pack / A&A Precision Machine Ellis, Ford was twelfth fast in time trials and scored twenty-second in the main event.

Lomita's Verne Sweeney made his first start in several seasons and won the night's 12-lap Competition Suspension Inc. Semi-Main event. Piloting the #98 Wesco Tube & Exhaust DRC, Sweeney was fourteenth quick on the night, fifth in his heat race, and claimed fifteenth in the Glenn Howard Memorial. Also earning transfer spots to the feature were Bobby Bender, Kenny Perkins, Brandon Thomson, David Bezio, and Jay Waugh.

The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series would like to thank Hoosier Tire, Circle Track Performance, Competition Suspension Inc., DJ Safety, Donovan Engineering, Electro Tech Powder Coating, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror, Keizer Wheels, Rod End Supply, Saldana Racing Products, Sander Engineering, and So-Cal Performance for their support. For more information, visit www.usacracing.com/cra or follow the series on facebook.

The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series will be back in action on Saturday, October 8th, for the Southern California Fair Race at Perris Auto Speedway. Located on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds, more event information can be found at www.perrisautospeedway.com or calling (951) 940-0134.

To catch all of the action of the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series at Perris Auto Speedway, Jeff Kristensen's Raceway Video has DVD videos available for purchase. For more information, call (818) 618-9764 or visit www.racewayvideo.com. In addition, Perris Auto Speedway offers a live pay per view feed of every event at www.pasvideo.com. The live feed is scheduled to begin at 6:00pm PST.

9-26-11 USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series
Source Lance Jennings
USAC 360s

Hollister's Ryan Bernal continued his winning ways last Saturday night by scoring the 30-lap feature at Hanford's Giant Chevrolet Kings Speedway. The victory marked his fourth triumph with the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series and closed the gap to fifty-five points behind leader Richard VanderWeerd.

Starting on the pole position of the main event, Bernal took the lead from Marty Hawkins on lap four and fought off numerous challenges from sixth starting Dennis Howell. As Hawkins faded back in the field, Richard VanderWeerd grabbed third and looked to catch the leaders. The battle for fourth became an absolute war between "Hollywood" Danny Faria Jr. and Peter Murphy. The veteran drivers repeatedly traded positions back and fourth throughout the Hanford clay oval.

Several yellow flags halted the action and Bernal executed great restarts to shake free from Howell. Lapped traffic would become a factor, but the leaders were able to slice their way through. The Faria-Murphy war continued to rage and the racing surface still had some bite through the final laps. The top groove running Faria bicycled his mount, resulting in the loss of several spots. Murphy continued his advance and slid past VanderWeerd for third. At the checkered flags, Bernal took the win followed by Howell, Murphy, VanderWeerd, and Wes Gutierrez.

Piloting Danny Olmstead's #11D S&S Automotive / Dorso's Automotive Maxim, Ryan Bernal tied Bud Kaeding with his series leading fourth main event victory. After equipment failures cancelled time trials, the former Wingless Spec Sprint Champion won the night's Extreme Muffler's Heat Race #1. Currently second in the standings, Bernal still has a mathematical chance to win the title at Tulare on October 8th. To date, Ryan has one Sander Engineering Fast Time Award, three heat race victories, eleven top-10 finishes, and leads the series with 143 feature laps led.

Dennis Howell of Rancho Palos Verdes drove the family owned #62 San Pedro Auto Body / Howell-Meyer Racing Maxim to the runner-up finish. The USAC Western Midget Series graduate claimed second in his heat race and now sits fifth in the point standings. In the 2011 campaign, Dennis has one Sander Engineering Fast Time Award, three heat race victories, eleven top-10 finishes, and two Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Awards.

Clovis' Peter Murphy debuted his #21 Pro Signs / Dalton's Landscaping Maxim and took third in the main event. The career leader in West Coast 360 Sprint Car feature wins claimed second in his heat race and currently sits fifteenth in the points. Peter has one feature win on the year along with six top-10 finishes and one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award.

Point leader Richard VanderWeerd of Visalia scored fourth in the 30-lap feature. Driving the family owned #10 VanderWeerd Construction / Battery Worx Maxim, Richard was second to Bernal in his heat race. With fifty-five points separating the two heading into the October 8th point finale at Tulare, the title is still up for grabs. To date, VanderWeerd leads the series with thirteen top-10 finishes and has one feature win, three Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, three heat race victories, and one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award.

San Martin's Wes Gutierrez raced to fifth in the main event after starting ninth. Piloting the WG Motorsports' #007 ButlerBuilt / Competition Suspension Inc. DRC, Gutierrez scored third in his heat race and is now third in the championship points. The hard charger continues to lead the series with five heat race victories and has one feature win and eleven top-10 finishes to his credit.

Making his first career start with the USAC West Coast 360s, Lemoore's Kyle Evans earned the night's Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award. Starting nineteenth in the main event, the driver of the #51 Stoney's Sand & Gravel / Duinkerken Farms Maxim stayed out of trouble and scored twelfth in the 30-lap feature. Earlier in the program, Evans finished sixth in his heat race.

Marty Hawkins made the long tow from Santa Rosa and won the Saldana Racing Products / Keizer Wheels Heat Race #2. Piloting the #3M Blakeley Landscaping / The Toiyabe Group Schnee, Hawkins led the first three laps before suffering a flat right rear tire. After repairs were made, Marty flipped the "Calistoga Special," resulting in a fifteenth place finish. Now seventeenth in points, Hawkins has three heat race victories and three top-10 finishes in 2011.

"Hollywood" Danny Faria Jr. of Tipton claimed victory in the DJ Safety Heat Race #3. Driving Junior Bowman's #2 Buster & Ziggy Enterprise / Kaeding Performance Bullet, Faria scored seventh in the main event after a long battle with Peter Murphy. Danny is sixth in points with one feature win, two Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, four heat race victories, and seven top-10 finishes on the season.

The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series would like to thank Southwest Contractors, Hoosier Tire, Amsoil, BR Motorsports, ButlerBuilt, Competition Suspension Inc., Cory Kruseman's Sprint Car & Midget Driving School, Crow Enterprizes, DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Hinchman-Indy Racing Uniforms, Integra Shocks, Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Port City Racing, Rod End Supply, Saferacer.com, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.

The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series will be back in action on Saturday, October 8th, for the final point race of the year at Steve Faria's Groppetti Automotive Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway. Located at the Tulare County Fairgrounds at the corner of Bardsley and K Streets, more event information can be found at www.tularethunderbowl.com or calling (559) 688-0909.

For more information on the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series, please visit westcoastsprintcars.com, usacracing.com, racesantamariaspeedway.com, or follow the series on facebook.

9-26-11 CRA Returns to The PAS October 8, FAAS Grabs Perris' "Glenn Howard Memorial"
Source Dick jordan
Amsoil USAC/CRA

Only 39 points separate the top-three drivers in the latest AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint Car standings as they prepare for an October 8 appearance at the Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway. A total of 74 points are available at that event.

Nic Faas of Huntington Beach, Calif. won Saturday night’s 30-lap AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint race at Perris, leading the final 23 laps of the “Glenn Howard Memorial” after passing Greg Bragg for the lead on lap eight. Matt Mitchell finished second ahead of Austin Williams, Danny Sheridan and Bragg. Series point leader Mike Spencer was sixth. Faas also posted the fastest qualifying time.

Spencer continues to pursue a record fourth consecutive title, while Mitchell holds down the runner-up spot, 30 behind, and Faas is third in the points, 39 in arrears.

AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS

1-Mike Spencer-867; 2-Matt Mitchell-837; 3-Nic Faas-828; 4-Austin Williams-631; 5-Greg Bragg-562; 6-Cody Williams-504; 7-Danny Sheridan-471; 8-Ronnie Gardner-422; 9-David Cardey-421; 10-Rip Williams-409.

9-24-11 September 24th Ventura Raceway Report
Source Cliff Morgan
Ventura Raceway

Brian Camarillo got back into victory lane Saturday night winning the 20 lap VRA 360 Sprint Car Main Event. He took the lead on lap 11 and led the rest of the way to take the win. The race had four leaders in the 30 laps. Cody Kershaw led lap 1-4, Greg Taylor led lap5-6, Markus Niemela led lap 7-10 before Camarillo took the lead for good on lap 11. A smaller than normal field of 14 cars caused only 2 heat races to be run with wins going to Brian Camarillo in the Extreme Muffler heat one and Greg Taylor in the Joie of seating heat two. Greg Taylor continues to lead in the season point race. After 18 races he holds a 550 point lead over Steve Conrad.

Fourteen Senior Sprints were on hand Saturday night with two heat races held. Wins went to Clif Warren in the Spin Tech Muffler heat one and Victor Davis in the Maxwell Industries heat two. Their 20 lap main event went green-white-checker with Bruce Douglass taking the win. He passed early race leader Jeff Culver on lap 7 and went on to take the win. Point leader Rob Kershaw finished 7th and now holds a 230 point lead over Douglass and Cliff Warren who are tied for second place in points after 9 races.

VRA Dwarf Cars races in two classes on Saturday. In Pros, the feature win went to Devlin Autry over Chris Wakim, chuck Lippert, Mike Lewis and Lars Wolfe. They ran two heats with wins going to Autry in heat one and Ray Estrada in heat two. Ray Estrada continues to lead in Pro points by 125 points over Mike Lewis after 11 events. In Senior Dwarf competition, Bill VanPraag took the win over point leader George Calvo, Mike Neal, Rick Lapka and Mitch Hedrick. they ran one heat race with the win going to Mike Neal. After nine races held so far in the 201 seaosn, George Calvo leads Mike Neal by 210 points.

The IMCA Modifieds completed their 2011 season Saturday night with nine cars in attendance. Rob Green took the heat race win. In their 20 lap feature past champion Jack Parker took the win over 2011 series champion Aaron Rodarte, Brad Prows, Austin Rodarte and Tom Topping. The 2011 season saw 15 races run and at the conclusion Saturday, Aaron Rodarte held off Brad Prows to take his first IMCA Track Championship by 13 points. Aaron Rodarte, Brad Prows, Austin Rodarte, Jack Parker and Rob Green made up the top five this season in the final point standings.

The final groups racing on Saturday were our kids classes. in Mini Dwarf Pistons it was J D Brown scoring the heat race win and then took another feature win. In Mini Dwarf Superchargers the main event win went to Nick Velasquez. Destyn Garcia took their heat race win. In Junior Midget action, heat race wins went to Miles Hedrick and Brennan Rogers. Rogers then came back to win the 15 lap main event over Oliver Blased, Miles Hedrick, Chase Lippert and Mike Long. Point leader Devin McCree finished 7th but continues to lead the points by 10 over Brennan Rogers after 8 events.

Ventura Raceway resumes racing Saturday October 1 with a full program of racing featuring VRA Sprints, Senior Sprints, Dwarf Cars, Mod Lites, Kids classes and an added non-point go kart race.

9-24-11 Golobic Tops Ocean Sprints Vs Civil War in Friday Night Thriller
Source Steven Blakesley
Ocean SPeedway

Fremont’s Shane Golobic out-dueled “Cowboy” Craig Smith of San Martin to win a hard fought Ocean Sprints vs. Civil War feature on Friday night at Ocean Speedway. The victory is Golobic’s second of the year at Ocean to go along with a win in May.

30 cars lined the pits for action on the Santa Cruz Fairgrounds quarter-mile with the race marking the penultimate round for the California Sprint Car Civil War and the third to last race for the Ocean Sprints presented by Taco Bravo.

Greg DeCaires, winner of the Pacific Sprint Cup during the Gold Cup, led the 22 car starting field to green. Golobic, from fourth, jumped up to second early on and challenged DeCaires for the lead.

Golobic took over the top spot on lap four with Smith following him through for second on lap five. A red flag came out on that lap when Corralitos’ Jerry Bonnema had a minor tip-over in turn three.

Smith and Golobic engaged in a back-and-forth battle for the lead with Smith taking it on lap 10 to the approval of the crowd. The next caution of the race flew on lap 11 when Justin Sanders of Prunedale stalled in turn one.

On the restart, Rico Abreu and Civil War points leader Andy Forsberg battled hard for fifth. Abreu continued his charge from tenth on the grid to pass Forsberg when the caution came out again on lap 16 for Sanders spinning out in turn three.

Sanders’ night was done, and the restart saw Tim Kaeding, who started 11th, move past both Forsberg and Abreu into the top-five.

The yellow flag came out again on lap 17 for Nick Ringo, Jr. spinning in turn one setting up an electric final 13 laps that brought the fans to their feet. DeCaires fell out of the top-five on the restart due to a damaged front wing which set the stage for the finish.

Golobic and Smith traded blows for the next 10 laps, while points leader Ronnie Day had a thrilling three-wide race with Abreu and Kaeding for third.

Golobic finally wrestled away the lead from Smith on lap 27, with Smith defending Day for second to the finish. Kaeding narrowly edged out Abreu for fourth at the line.

Kyle Hirst, DeCaires, Forsberg, Jeremy Burt, and Alissa Geving rounded out the top-ten. Hirst made up small ground on Forsberg in the Civil War championship with the title to be decided Saturday night at Placerville Speedway.

On the Ocean Sprints side, Day pulled away from Tommy Tarlton in the standings after Tarlton flipped in the semi to miss the feature. Day now leads Tarlton by 32 with just two races left to go in the series.

Heat race wins went to Burt, Koen Shaw, Geving, and Jason Statler. Day used his teammate Jeremy Chisum’s car to get the Ray Scheidt’s Electric fast-time award with an 11.500 second lap around the speedway. The DDNi Hard Charger was Kaeding.

The Ocean Sprints presented by Taco Bravo will go dark next Friday night but return for two consecutive races to wrap up the season on October 7 and October 14.

For more information on the Ocean Sprint Cars presented by Taco Bravo log onto http://www.oceansprints.com and for more on the Ocean Speedway visit http://www.oceanspeedway.com

9-20-11 Star Racing to Award $268,000 in Sponsorships to Young Drivers in Shoot-Out
Source RSWC PR
RSWC Driver Shoot-Out

Star Racing Supply, a top race parts retailer based in California, announces a powerful sponsorship program for young race drivers. The sponsorship program offers up to 18 young drivers from $6,000 to $18,000 each in sponsorship for the 2012 racing season.

In alliance with the nationally recognized talent search conducted by Ron Sutton's Winner's Circle, 40 talented young drivers from across the United States and Canada will be selected to participate in “The Shoot-Out“ … an annual, extensive, three day driver try out event, in three types of USAC and NASCAR race cars.

The Shoot-Out is focused on finding top talented, young drivers to be developed towards Professional Stock Car careers with RSWC. Selected drivers joining the RSWC development program will be groomed, coached, trained and raced in USAC and NASCAR oval track series.

“This $268,000 in driver development racing sponsorships is just the next step in goals achieved for Star Racing Supply,” stated Susan Kinnicutt, Marketing Manager. “As a sister company to Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle, Star Racing Supply was started to serve racers and give back to the sport by helping young, upcoming, talented drivers. Now that we have achieved solid growth over the past few years, we’re in a financial position to give back.”

Ron Sutton's Winner's Circle is known in racing circles as the largest, and most comprehensive, Driver Career Development Program focused on oval track racing. RSWC has coordinated a Talent Combine in North Carolina with four top RSWC drivers testing with Cup Teams, an individual RSWC driver testing and signing with an official Cup Development Team in ARCA and guided a female RSWC driver successfully into the fully funded NASCAR Drive for Diversity program and now into NASCAR’s K&N Pro Series.

Ron Sutton said, “The economy is tough, but Star Racing has done well regardless, so these sponsorships are another way to help young drivers. We’re looking for talented young drivers and committed families, regardless of their budget. If the driver has the talent, and the family is committed, we have the people and tools to develop them, the teams to win races and the marketing expertise to help them raise the rest of the sponsorship.”

RSWC has developed many young racers to successfully make the transition from youth racing series to winning races in NASCAR Oval Track series, including Jessica Brunelli, Beau DeBard, Bobby Grewohl, Joey Licata, Jace Meier, Benny Moon, Nik Romano, Bobby Runyan, Porter Smith and more.

The program consists of 12 veteran driver coaches, 26 classroom training topics, 30 On-Track-Training programs, well known trainers and six racing organizations fielding 30 race teams, all dedicated to develop talented drivers to professional Stock Car racing. The teams are a balance of Open Wheel, Stock Car and Road Racing to develop highly versatile and accomplished winning drivers.

Families of young, winning drivers, ages 11 to 20, are encouraged to get detailed information from the web-site and submit their resume before the October 15th, 2011 deadline. The web-site is www.Winners-Circle-Racing.com

9-22-11 4th Annual Glenn Howard Memorial At Perris Saturday
Source Lance Jennings
Amsoil USAC/CRA

The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series will return to action this Saturday, September 24th, at Don Kazarian's Perris Auto Speedway for the 4th Annual "Glenn Howard Memorial." Joining the showcase will be the CDCRA Dwarf Cars and WRA Vintage Cars. The spectator gates will open at 5:00pm, with racing set begin at "America's Premier Dirt Track" at 7:00pm.

The special event honors Glenn Howard, considered by many in the industry as a "racer's racer." Throughout his involvement in racing, Glenn was a crew member, driver, car owner, official, and business man. His So-Cal Performance is recognized as a major parts supplier to racers across the globe. In 1993, Howard became the first president of the Sprint Car Racing Association (SCRA) and helped to build the foundation of the nationally respected club.

Since Glenn's passing in September 2007, his son Steve has continued to operate So-Cal Performance. A former racer himself, Steve is a major part in organizing the "Glenn Howard Memorial Race" that honors his father and the annual "Louie Vermeil Classic" at Calistoga Speedway. This year, Steve has raised an additional $14,000 in extra contingencies and prize money that will be awarded at Saturday's show. As a special treat, popular racer and 5-time SCRA Sprint Car Champion "The Gasman" Richard Griffin will serve as Grand Marshal. The future National Sprint Car Hall of Fame driver will meet with fans and sign autographs.

"The Cowboy" Tony Jones won the inaugural Glenn Howard Memorial in 2008 behind the wheel of Mark Alexander's silver #4 entry. The following year, USAC National driver Bryan Clauson claimed victory in Corey Tucker's #39 sprinter. In 2010, "The Kruser" Cory Kruseman added the Howard Memorial to his resume at the helm of his #21K machine. This Saturday, a talented roster of drivers will be on hand and each racer will be looking to add their name to the winner's list of this prestigious event.

Heading into the Howard Memorial, Temecula's Mike Spencer holds a thirty-seven point advantage over the competition. Piloting Ron Chaffin's famed #50 Madera Produce / Grubstake Mini Storage Maxim, the 3-time defending champion placed fifth at Chico on September 8th. This season, Spencer leads the series with six feature wins, four Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, six heat race victories, and 121 feature laps led. In addition, he has one Competition Suspension Inc. Semi-Main win and eleven top-10 finishes to his credit. Mike will have his sights set on the Howard Memorial victory as he closes in on another USAC/CRA crown.

Climbing to second in the point chase is Matt Mitchell of Yorba Linda. Driving the J.W. Mitchell Motorsports' #37 Mancha Realtors / Sierra Springs Maxim, the former USAC Western Midget Series Rookie of the Year scored third on September 8th. Mitchell leads the series with twelve top-10 finishes and is tied with Spencer with six heat race victories. In addition, Matt has two feature wins, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, and forty-nine main event laps led on the year. Recently, Mitchell has had a string of strong performances and would like to add the Howard Memorial to his win list.

Huntington Beach's Nic Faas is third in the hunt for the championship. Now fifty-six points behind Spencer, the pilot of Mark Alexander's #4 Scott Sales Company / VP Racing Fuels Spike claimed seventh at Chico. The former USAC Western Midget Series Champion has two Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, five heat race victories, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, and eleven top-10 finishes on the year. Faas will be looking his first main event win of the year at the Howard Memorial.

Austin Williams of Yorba Linda sits fourth in the standings. Driving Jack Jory's #2 John Jory Corporation / AMA Plastics Viper, the 2009 Rookie of the Year scored twentieth on September 8th after a flip ended his night. To date, Williams has one feature win, two heat race victories, one Competition Suspension Inc. Semi-Main win, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, eight top-10 finishes, and thirty feature laps led on the season. This Saturday, the son of Hall of Fame driver Rip Williams will have his eyes set on the Howard Memorial victory.

Visalia's Greg Bragg is fifth in the championship points. Piloting Tom and Laurie Sertich's #92 Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror / Pacific Business Machine Buckley, Bragg placed twenty-first at Chico after an early flip. In 2011, the 3-Time California Lightning Sprint Champion has three heat race victories, two Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Awards, nine top-10 finishes, and seven main event laps led. Greg and the Moose Racing Team would like to claim the Howard Memorial victory on Saturday.

Campbell's Bud Kaeding, Ventura's Cory Kruseman, Robert Ballou of Rocklin, and Elk Grove's Kyle Larson have also scored feature wins in 2011. Kaeding won the Hanford shootout on May 7th, while Kruseman won the Watsonville show on June 16th and the following night at Santa Maria. Ballou won the first night of the "Louie Vermeil Classic" at Calistoga and Larson won the "Tiner Family Classic" at Chico. Perris Auto Speedway will also the So-Cal Fair Race on October 8th and the 3-day Budweiser Oval Nationals starting on November 3rd.

Among the other top contenders expected to be in action are Yorba Linda's Cody and "The Ripper" Rip Williams, "Showtime" Danny Sheridan of Santa Maria, Riverside's "Dynamite" David Cardey, Norco's Ronnie Gardner, "Super" Rickie Gaunt of Torrance, and many more.

Local 360 iron-block powered Sprint Cars are welcome to race with USAC/CRA. The 360s can run their local approved tires (all four corners must be Hoosier), but must meet series tech standards and race track muffler rules. The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series does not have an entry fee or charge for transponders, but drivers must have one-way radios. In addition, the series is offering a bonus to the highest finishing 360 team. To be eligible for the $200 cash award from USAC and 20 gallons of methanol from So-Cal Performance, the owner or driver must have a current USAC membership.

Perris Auto Speedway is located on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds at 18700 Lake Perris Drive in Perris, California. Adult tickets are $20, Senior tickets are $15, and $5 for Active Military and Children. Advance tickets are on sale and can be purchased online at www.perrisautospeedway.com. For more event information, please visit the track's website or call (951) 940-0134.

To catch all of the action of the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series at Perris Auto Speedway, Jeff Kristensen's Raceway Video has DVD videos available for purchase. For more information, call (818) 618-9764 or visit www.racewayvideo.com. In addition, Perris Auto Speedway offers a live pay per view feed of every event at www.pasvideo.com. The live feed is scheduled to begin at 6:00pm PST.

The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series would like to thank Hoosier Tire, Circle Track Performance, Competition Suspension Inc., DJ Safety, Donovan Engineering, Electro Tech Powder Coating, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror, Keizer Wheels, Rod End Supply, Saldana Racing Products, Sander Engineering, and So-Cal Performance for their support. For more information, visit usacracing.com/cra or follow the series on facebook.

9-22-11 19th Annual Fall Nationals Will Be Dedicated to The Memory of Mike Avilla
Source Troy Hennig
Silver Dollar Speedway

It is with great honor that I have the privilege to inform the racing community that the 19th Annual Fall Nationals in Chico will be dedicated to the memory of our friend Mike “Carwash” Avilla. Carwash was an avid supporter of sprint car racing, an ambassador for our racetrack and I know he enjoyed his many trips to Chico over the years. In fact, it was with great pleasure that I was able to sit down and spend some time with him at this years Gold Cup. The news of his passing this morning touched on a wide range of emotions for his family and friends. At first we felt sadness, but then for me, I had comfort in knowing we were friends and how much he loved his sprint car family.

To honor this great man, Silver Dollar Speedway promoter Dennis Gage has issued that the Fall Nationals will be dedicated to the memory of Mike “Carwash” Avilla. We are going to reserve some seating in the turn four bleachers for his family and friends to sit in for both nights. The turn four bleachers was the common destination for Mike and many of his fellow HoservilleCA friends at Silver Dollar Speedway. With help of his original HoservilleCA friends we are going to have a Mike Avilla Saturday night V.I.P list.

Drivers Evan Suggs and Jonathan Allard have both expressed interest in doing a Memorial Lap on Saturday. Time permitting; we are also going to do a missing man formation before the Saturday night sprint car finale. Gary Thomas will assist in helping write some fond thoughts and memories of Carwash to express over the P.A. system that weekend. Randy Frank and Thomas are putting together a sticker in honor of Avilla that many of the racers will have on the side of their race cars.
Mike was heavily involved with the Dave Bradway Jr. King of the West event at Silver Dollar Speedway. Carwash was one of the main forces in organizing and helping keep the heat race winner’s prize packages the same over the years. For the 2012 edition of the Dave Bradway Jr. we have already had talks with the King of the West staff about putting Mike’s name on the trophies and adding his name to the A Main event list of lap sponsors.

The following is copied from Gary Thomas, KWS Director of Communications, to give the fans more insight about Carwash: Avilla was a lifelong sprint car fan and in recent months had been in need of a lung transplant, after effects from chemotherapy from an earlier bout with cancer that had caused his lungs to deteriorate.

There arguably wasn’t a bigger and more positive supporter of sprint car racing in the Golden State than “Carwash,” who was one of the main members of the fan group “Hoserville” and recently won the Jason Meyers “biggest fan” contest. He ironically had a tattoo of Meyers’ car, as well as one of Jonathan Allard’s No. 0 on his leg.

Avilla had his favorites on the track, but one time said, “If you ever do a memorial lap for me, please say that all drivers were my favorite and don’t single any one out.”

Those were very true words for a person that supported any and all drivers, no matter if they were a regular main event winner, or a driver that struggled to get out of the b-main. Avilla was also a major supporter of the Dave Bradway Jr.

The following was a post Avilla had made on the Northern California Message Board following the recent Gold Cup Race of Champions in Chico:

“Since some of my friends are not on Facebook and still check the message boards, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who helped make Gold Cup possible for me this year. I won't mention names, you know who you are. There's no way I could have done it on my own. The help and support I get at the race track means more than you will ever know. For those not on FB, I spent a couple of extra days in Chico courtesy of a 911 call that had me delivered to Enloe Medical Center. I'm home now, seeing my doc tomorrow. Hoping this episode might speed things up for me getting to USC and on the transplant list. I hate to say it, but this was probably my last race for a while. Even with help, it's just getting to be too tough. To the friends I only see at the track, I look forward to seeing you next season. To those I didn't get around to seeing at Gold Cup, I'm sorry I missed you. Thanks again everyone, CarWash Mike.”

9-22-11 Stockton 99 Speedway Report
Source David Holman
Stockton 99 Speedway

Live the Madness Night Brought Forth the Cream of the Crop in Each Division: Mike Graham/Super Stocks, Jeremy Tucker/Bombers, Jeff Belletto/WLM, Wes Miller/GAM and Joseph Reichmuth/B-4’s
On Saturday, September 17th, the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series returned to Live The Madness, sponsored by 51 FIFTY Energy Drink. It was also the Whelen All-American Series Final Points Race. On the Docket for the Event were the Western Late Models in 150-Laps of racing pleasure. Also, the Super Stocks, Grand American Modifieds, Bombers and the Basically-4-Cylinders were in the lineup and all Divisions were ready to put on a fabulous show to ring out the year. Of course, the nearly 1500 fans in the stands on hand to witness Championship Night were left standing in awe of the fabulous warfare that had unfolded before their collective eyes. And, in appreciation of that very fact, most lingered until the conclusion of post-race interviews. Congratulations to All Our Champions for the 2011 Racing Season.
The Basically-4-Cylinders got the evening rolling as they usually do. French Camp’s Mark Jacke (747), after being the bridesmaid on several occasions this year, finally made it all the way to the alter to claim Victory for himself, the first of his career. Also, earlier in the day, Jacke simply shattered the old Track Record of 17.98 set by Rodney Lopez in 2009, when he circled the tricky quarter-mile in an unbelievably blistering time of 17.187.
As the Racing Gods would have it, this one started straight up off qualifying, which put Mark Jacke (747) on pole and third generation driver from Manteca, Firecracker Matt Anderson (5), high and tight to the right as they came around to greet the green. Jacke grabbed the holeshot going off into turn one with Anderson falling in line behind the #747. Unfortunately for Anderson, or anyone else, for that matter, on this night, Jacke would not only break his streak of second place finishes, he would do it as Commander and Chief as he began to chew and swallow large hunks of the asphalt real estate out where only the elite few get to enjoy the pristine beauty of vista point, and he left absolutely nothing on the slick racing surface, but the distant fight over that second place territory as he took it to the house for the positively dominating Victory, his first-ever at the Speedway. Of course, that second place territory was occupied by Firecracker Anderson, who, after casting a distant shadowing of Jacke’s every move, finally realized that on this night, second was not so bad, after all. Dave Kong (9) of Jamaica, after some devastating luck the last two times out, finally had a great finish that would stick as he drove it onto the podium in third. 2011 B-4 Champion from Manteca, Joseph Reichmuth (6), brought her home in what would be his worst finish of the year in fourth. Another driver from Manteca, Nic Rogers (51), rounded out the top five. Congratulations to Joseph Reichmuth for an absolutely brilliant year in winning the Championship with a record of:

EVENTS MAIN W TOP 5 TOP 10 DASH W HEAT W F TIME
11 10 11 11 4 6 5
Of course, this doesn’t include the last two events, which will not change the outcome.
In the Bomber Division, 2011 Division Champion and Stockton’s own Jeremy Tucker (351), dazzled the crowd and bewildered his competitors by showing why he is the Champ this year with some astonishing driving skills as he completed his Dream Season with a fantastic win, his sixth in 2011.
Heir to Stockton’s Tucker Clan throne, David Tucker (350) and second generation driver from Ceres, sixteen year old Tyler Guzman (93X), were strapped in tight to the front row and paced the field around to catch sight of that all-important green flag breaking the silence of the near-autumn afternoon. And, sure enough, with the long right one to the floor, D. Tucker had the heavier foot and beat the pack down into turn one to grab the early lead, which he cautiously garnered until lap 4, when, by no coincidence, he would surrender that precious real estate he held so dear to 2011 Bomber Champ and distant relative, Jeremy Tucker (351), who had just made a tremendous move between one and two to happily wrestle the lead away. Once out front, and despite having to live through the torture of five caution periods and a red, one which included losing the lead to D. Tucker for three laps (12-14), J. Tucker proved why he would take home the Crown in 2011 by dodging assailants and shrapnel and putting on a clinic in how to control a loose race car as he took it to the checkers for his sixth win of the year in marvelous fashion. After a two-year hiatus from racing, Stockton’s Dave Ball (300), starting mid-pack in the eighteen-car field, cautiously worked his way through the field with a patience he didn’t even know he possessed, and drove it onto the podium in an amazing second place run. Bobby Simpson (094), also of Stockton, in an excitement-filled race of his own, finished on a positive note in third. Yet another Stockton driver, Dennis Byers (969), in a rare appearance this year, and after winning last time out, put together another nice run in fourth with Darin Alder, in his #360 hotrod, filling in the number five slot quite nicely. Congratulations to Jeremy Tucker for bringing home the gold this year with a record of:
EVENTS MAIN W TOP 5 TOP 10 DASH W HEAT W F TIME
12 6 12 12 3 6 2
In the Grand American Modified Division, 2011 Division Champion, Wes Miller (57) of Turlock, proved, once again, why he is considered one of the best when he won his Heat Race to clinch the Title, then went out and won the Main, his fifth of the year.
As luck and circumstances usually have their way, Nick Lyons (43A) of Lincoln nabbed the pole position and would be pitted against 2011 Champ Wes Miller (57) to get this fast-paced race underway. With the green flag smiling down on the field, Miller grabbed a gear coming off turn four and simply beat the #43A off into turn one for the early lead. Once out in the clean air, Miller, as he so often does, began to step away in not-so-large increments, but step away he did, until lap 13 when no less than three vehicles made contact coming off turn four and came spinning down the frontstretch, coming to rest just beneath the flagstand, which caught the immediate attention of the flagman, who promptly sent the yellow flying high and hard. On the restart, Miller resumed where he had left off, however, this time when he stepped away, the increments came in much larger bites as he savored the taste of a glorious Season, and, without further adieu, he took it the rest of the way to that fabulous land that sits just the other side of the finish line where he would bask in the riches of Victory and the Well Seasoned Crown. The win would be Miller’s fifth this year. Lyons, enjoying a wonderful Season of his own, finished off the year with a second place run, and a second place in the Points. Rick Andersen (11A) of Citrus Heights wrapped up his year with a solid run on the podium in third. Oakdale’s Ryan Stepps (98), after a pretty decent Season of his own, brought her home in fourth, while Rio Linda’s Don Lehman (83) rounded out the top five. Congratulations to Wes Miller and the entire #57 crew for an outstanding 2011 Season with a record of:
EVENTS MAIN W TOP 5 TOP 10 DASH W HEAT W F TIME
8 5 8 8 5 3 3
In the Premier Division Super Stocks, Stockton’s own Rompin Rich Harper (5) stunned the field and the crowd by showing the entire racing community what he is truly made of when, after an up and down Season where the Racing God of Misfortune came down to take a bite out of that beautiful #5 car on more than one occasion, Harper, on this night, would positively take it to the house in grand fashion, going wire to wire.
Finally, someone above smiled down on Rich Harper (5) with an eight invert, which landed him at P1 to get this one up to speed with the likes of West Modesto’s Garland Tyler (73) already nipping at Harper’s right side numbers as the green flag wrinkled wildly in the night sky. And so it went, Harper got more foot to the gas and drove off deep into turn one coming out on the other side with the lead. Once out front, and despite two early cautions, Harper, to all intents and purposes, was completely untouchable as he devoured the racing surface lap by lap until lap 13, when someone, (no one stepped forward to take credit), got into the back of Stockton’s Ben Lewis II (22), which sent him spinning high between turns three and four, and much to the shock of visualizing a great year going up in smoke, Points Leader Mike Graham (93) of Hughson, hit Lewis head on, which popped the right front on the #93 and sent him straight to the pits under caution. On the ensuing restart, Harper kicked it up a notch, not that he needed to, and vaulted back out front where he had been all night with the same results: large gulps of asphalt disappearing and giving his nearest pursuers nothing left to race for but that far away second spot as Harper took it all the way through and blew down the doors at the finishline to capture his first win of the Season, going stripe to stripe for the refreshing lion’s share of the spoils. Lodi’s Robert Daniel (17), after enduring some wild racing going on around him, brought her home with a beautiful second place run. Tyler, after starting up front and trying to unseed Graham for the Division Title, fell off, if only slightly, to finish on the podium with a strong third place effort. Atwater’s Jason Aguirre (45), a contender every time he hits the racing surface, finished her up in fourth with the second generation youngster from Lodi, Robbie Knittel (03), after a horrific crash last week, putting it all behind him to finish fifth. Points Leader Mike Graham, by virtue of his sixth place finish, locked up the 2011 Division Championship. And so we say Congratulations to Mike Graham for winning the Super Stock Title in what was the closest points battle of the year. Graham finished with a record of:
EVENTS MAIN W TOP 5 TOP 10 DASH W HEAT W F TIME
19 4 13 19 1 1 2
Live the Madness 51/50 150 Western Late Model feature went a little sideways, but in the end, Tracy’s second generation young driver, Justin Philpott (05), would be left standing on the top tier of the podium in winning number two on the Season.
This one got underway with Manteca’s Jacob Gomes (55X) and Seaside’s Dave Byrd (78) side by side up front and ready to get this one up to speed. With the green flag breaking through the rather cool night breeze, Gomes got to the gas three-sixteenths of an inch quicker than did Byrd as he dove down into turn one with the early lead. And over the next twenty laps, it was a battle for the ages (pun intended) with the top two nose to tail, side by side, gnawing and chewing and spitting all over that much-coveted real estate that takes up P1, until finally, on lap 16, Byrd, with the largest bag of tricks on the West Coast, just so happened to pull out the right one as he got beneath Gomes and jetted out to that immortal ground that these asphalt warriors battle over each week. And over the next several circuits, despite being plagued by a couple cautions, the top two grappled over that top spot until lap 27 when Byrd took it away from the youngster for the final time, just before Gomes began to fade. Byrd would relish that rarified air out front, again having to endure several cautions, until lap 75 when Roseville’s Eric Schmidt (05X), after starting mid-pack on the grid, decided it was his time to shine. And so he did, over the next sixty-one laps his smooth style shone bright in the night lights, but not without the constant gnawing and nibbling at his back bumper by the #78, whom, at that time, was playing the part of the obligatory thorn as Byrd relentlessly poked at the spoiler of Schmidt until a caution halted the great action on lap 134. On the resulting restart, Byrd worked his way around the outside of Schmidt and just nipped him at the line for the posted lead. But, unfortunately for both drivers, going off into turn one on lap 138, Justin Philpott (05) made slight contact, which pushed both Byrd and Schmidt up the track in an effort to collect their respective hotrods, while at the same time, Philpott dove low beneath both cars and came out of turn two with the lead. From that point forward, Philpott took full advantage of his new-found inheritance and took it all the way through to the checkered flag for his second win on the year. Byrd made a great save on the earlier mishap, and although he got close enough to challenge Philpott only once, he just never recovered completely, but still managed a second place finish. 2011 WLM Track Champion, Jeff Belletto (12X) of Modesto, after starting deep on the grid, ran a very intelligent race in finishing on the podium in third. Of course, by taking the green on this night, Belletto clinched the Title at the onset. San Ramon’s Tim Spurgeon (86), in an extremely rare appearance at the Speedway this Season, came home in a very respectable fourth, while up and coming second generation driver from Stockton, Colby Potts (12), ran a very fine race of his own in finishing fifth. Congratulations to 2011 WLM Champion Jeff Belletto and the entire 12x team for a magnificent year at Stockton 99 Speedway. Belletto finished up with a record of:
EVENTS MAIN W TOP 5 TOP 10 DASH W HEAT W F TIME
17 8 16 17 2 7
The New Stockton 99 Speedway is located at 4105 N. Wilson Way, ¼-mile west of Highway 99. For more information on tickets and times, please contact the Speedway Office at (209)466-9999 or visit their Website at www.stockton99.com.
The New Stockton 99 Speedway is sponsored by Jackson Rancheria Casino Hotel, California Welding Supply, Budweiser, Alamo Alarm and Stockton Hampton Inn and Suites and Lodi Holiday Express.

9-22-11 Top Rookie Cote Finishes Second in 2011 NASCAR Modified Championship
Source RSWC PR
All American Speedway

20 year-old Steve Cote used a third place finish in Saturday night’s NASCAR Modified finale at All American Speedway to cement his second place finish in the series championship for 2011. The Montreal driver took the Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle #4 Allstar Performance Modified to second in the standings and beat out teammate Bobby Runyan, Jr. for highest rookie in the division.

Cote came to Ron Sutton’s Winner’s circle last fall through the Shoot-Out on the strength of the 2010 NASCAR Quebec Provisional championship in sportsman late model stock cars. The young talented driver leaned on his two years of stock car experience to adapt quickly to the open-wheel cars by finishing second in just his third NASCAR Modified feature.

As RSWC continued to dial in the newly designed RaceCar Factory chassis, Cote’s results also improved. In his sixth start, on July 9, Cote picked up his first NASCAR Modified victory. Cote won the following week as well, making it two in a row, before scoring his third win on August 6.

Cote then ripped off back-to-back pole winning times in qualifying during August and wrapped up the season with a string of 15 consecutive races in the top-seven, with an average finish of fourth throughout the stretch run.

When it was all said and done, Cote finished 67 points behind veteran Dan Jinkerson in the standings but he also finished the year 77 points ahead of the third place car in the standings.

Saturday night’s races saw Cote start fifth in the main event and run as high as second on lap 12, before falling back into third on lap 16. Cote ran the final 24 laps of the race in third ahead of the points leader to the finish.

“Steve did an outstanding job leading our RSWC Modified team in 2011,” Driver Coach Ron Sutton said. “Racing in a new country with a new team and a new chassis, yet winning three races, shows that Steve is ready for the next level!”

Cote’s 2012 plans are to be announced at a later date but the driver has demonstrated abilities to compete at the next rung on the motorsports ladder. More information will be released via www.stevecoteracing.com when available

Steve Cote Racing and Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle thanks partners: Allstar Performance, K&N Filters, Scribner Plastics, Sunoco Race Fuels and Star Racing Supply.

For more information on Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle, log on to www.winners-circle-racing.com

9-22-11 Ocean Sprints Face Off With Civil War Sprints Again This Friday
Source Steven Blakesley
Ocean Speedway

The Ocean Sprints presented by Taco Bravo will square off with the California Sprint Car Civil War on Friday night with the Civil War Series championship up for grabs over the weekend. Salinas’ Ronnie Day won the 51st Johnny Key Classic on August 27 to take over the Ocean Sprints points lead while Auburn’s Andy Forsberg leads the Civil War.

Friday’s event will mark the third to last event for the Ocean Sprints while the Civil War will be competing in their championship weekend with Ocean Speedway on Friday and Saturday’s “Tribute to Al Hinds” to cap their season.

Not only did Day win the $5,000 Johnny Key Classic he also benefited from misfortune of his championship rival Tommy Tarlton who was gathered up in a crash before coming back to finish tenth. Day’s win made him the fourth driver to have repeat victories in 2011 joining Tarlton, Bud Kaeding, and Tim Kaeding.

Day leads Tarlton by seven points with St. Helena rookie Rico Abreu 45 points back in third after finishing eighth in the Key. Prunedale young gun Justin Sanders perhaps gained the most ground in the championship after the Key as his second place effort closed him to within five points of Abreu.

Tommy Laliberte rounds out the top-five in the Ocean Sprints standings while Shane Golobic, Kurt Nelson, Craig Smith, Ryan Rusconi, and Jerry Bonema round out the top-ten in the standings.

On the Civil War side of things, Forsberg leads Loomis’ Kyle Hirst by 22 points and Visalia’s Steven Tiner by 26 points in a very close points battle. Oroville’s Sean Becker and Penngrove’s Alissa Geving are still mathematically in the championship hunt going into Friday but will need a lot of things to go their way to still be eligible going into Saturday’s finale in Placerville.

Forsberg on paper has dominated the Civil War with five wins in 2011 but he is winless in heat races while Hirst has four heat race wins and Tiner has five.

Geving was the highest finishing Civil War driver when the series came together on July 8 when she finished fifth, while Forsberg was a distant 12th at the finish.

A field of more than 30 cars is expected to be on hand for this special co-sanctioned race, with Friday’s show also including Wingless Sprints and Ocean Modifieds. Adult tickets are just $17 with seniors 65+ $15 and kids ages 6-12 are $12. The family pass for two adults and two children is value priced at just $50. Qualifying will get underway at 6 p.m. with fan gates opening at 4:30 p.m.

For more information on the Ocean Sprint Cars presented by Taco Bravo log onto http://www.oceansprints.com and for more on the Ocean Speedway visit http://www.oceanspeedway.com

9-22-11 Runyan Ends NASCAR Rookie Season Fourth in Championship
Source RSWC PR
All American Speedway

Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle standout Bobby Runyan, Jr., 18, finished sixth in Saturday night’s feature for the NASCAR Modifieds at All American Speedway allowing him to finish fourth in the standings as the second highest rookie driver behind RSWC teammate Steve Cote.

A multi-time USAC Ford Focus Midget series winner in 2010 and SCCA Formula Ford champion in 2009, Runyan drove the #21 K&N Filters Modified to several strong finishes in 2011. The rookie was able to put together a great rookie season with one main event , two trophy dash and several heat race wins. But it was his consistency over the summer that allowed him to work his way up to up fourth in the standings.

Runyan and Cote both were involved in the development of the newly designed RaceCar Factory Modified chassis while also trying to adapt to the open-wheel NASCAR Modified car. Runyan scored his first NASCAR top-ten on July 2nd before clicking off an impressive six straight top-five finishes.

Runyan’s top-five bonanza in July saw him win his first feature on July 30 during a blockbuster night of racing with 26 NASCAR Modifieds in the pits. Runyan picked up his second best finish of the season on September 10 when he came home third.

In 17 starts Runyan accumulated 12 top-ten finishes and took fourth in the points by nine points in a competitive battle between the fourth through sixth place cars all season.

On Saturday night, Runyan qualified second quick missing the pole by just .001 seconds. Starting sixth in the 40 lap main event, Runyan worked his way up to third but was ultimately forced to settle for a sixth place finish after a wild restart. The finish proved enough for Bobby to wrap up fourth in the championship standings however.

“Bobby had a great rookie season in the Modifieds,” Driver Coach Ron Sutton said. “Winning a race in this division against the veteran drivers like Winters, Philpot, Jinkerson, Lindgren, and more is a huge accomplishment!”

The 2012 season plans for Bobby Runyan, Jr. are to be determined with more details to be announced at www.bobbyrunyan.com

Bobby Runyan, Jr. and Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle thank partners: K&N Filters, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, Raging Bull Motorsports, Brown’s Shop Support, Scribner Plastics, Allstar Performance, Sunoco Race Fuels and Star Racing Supply.

For more information on Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle, log on to www.winners-circle-racing.com

9-22-11 Sprint Cars Headline Action At Ventura Raceway
Source Lance Jennings
Ventura Raceway

This Saturday night, September 24th, two divisions of Sprint Cars will take to Jim Naylor's Ventura Raceway in an action packed showcase. The famed 1/5-mile clay oval will also feature IMCA Modifieds, VRA Dwarf Cars, Junior Midgets, and Mini Dwarfs. The Pit Gate will open at noon, Front Gates will open at 3:00pm with Racing at "The Best Little Dirt Track In America" to begin at 5:30pm.

For the second week in a row, Ventura's Greg Taylor claimed victory in Tommy Horne's potent #13 sprinter. Now with a 505 point advantage, Taylor has four feature wins, eight heat race victories, two hard charger awards, thirteen top-10 finishes, and 109 feature laps led. The former track champion will have his sights set on another victory as he marches to another title.

Josh Ford of Camarillo is second in the championship points. The pilot of the #73 King Racing Products / A&A Precision Machine car did not compete in last Saturday's show but still leads the series with fourteen top-10 finishes. The former USAC National Sprint Car Rookie of the Year has four heat race victories, one hard charger award, and led thirty-five main event laps. The veteran driver is a threat to win on any given night.

Quartz Hill's Steve Conrad is third in the point standings. Piloting the #56 Roy Miller Freightlines / SC Grafix special, Conrad was fourteenth in last Saturday's action. The USAC TQ Midget graduate has two feature wins, one heat race victory, three hard charger awards, thirteen top-10 finishes, and forty-eight feature laps led on the season. Steve will be looking to rebound with a main event win on Saturday.

Driving the #22 Agromin Soil / Waste Management entry, Camarillo's Brian Camarillo is fourth in the championship points. Last Saturday night, Camarillo claimed eleventh in the 30-lap main event. The June 18th winner has seven heat race victories, one semi-main win, nine top-10 finishes, and thirty feature laps led to his credit. Brian will have his sights set on the main event win at Ventura Raceway.

Camarillo's Brent Camarillo sits fifth in the hunt for the championship. Piloting the #51 Agromin Soil / Waste Management car, Camarillo was second in last Saturday's feature after leading the first nine laps. To date, Brent has four heat race victories, one semi-main win, one Hard Charger Award, seven top-10 finishes, and twenty-six feature laps led in 2011. Camarillo will be looking for his first victory of the year on Saturday.

Among the other top contenders expected to be in action are Ojai's Derek Buckley, Don Gansen of Rialto, Santa Barbara's Markus Niemela, Jimmy Crawford of Newbury Park, Ventura's Cory Kruseman, Norwalk's Brandon Thomson, Ojai's Troy Rutherford, and many more.

Ventura Raceway is located on the Ventura County Fairgrounds at 10 West Harbor Blvd. in Ventura, California. Adult tickets are $14, Senior, Military, and Student tickets (ID Required) are $11, while Children’s tickets (12 and under) are FREE. For more event information, please visit www.venturaraceway.com or call (805) 985-5433.

To catch all of the action of the VRA Sprint Car Series and Ventura Raceway, Mike Truex's Loudpedal Productions has DVD videos available for purchase. For more information, call (805) 407-7229 or visit www.loudpedalvideo.com. In addition, Ventura Raceway offers a live feed of every event at www.venturaraceway.com/live.html. The live feed is scheduled to begin at 5:00pm PST.

9-22-11 Hutchison Finishes Second in Season Finale at Roseville
Source Dylan Hutchison Racing PR
All American Speedway

16 year-old NASCAR Whelen All-American Series rookie Dylan Hutchison finished off his top rookie season with a second place finish in the championship finale on Saturday night at All American Speedway. The second place effort put Hutchison fourth in the final track points standings.

Hutchison drove his #88 Chevrolet to fifth in qualifying with a 13.98 second lap, which gave him a third starting position for the 50 lap feature event.

It didn’t take the former WSRA Baby Grand champion long to move forward as he took over second on lap three and battled with Travis Milburn for the lead. On lap eight he took over the top spot.

Hutchison led throughout a caution free event working his way through lapped traffic before being challenged by track champion Matt Scott. Hutchison defended Scott for several laps before finally loosing the lead on lap 46.

Coming home second gave Hutchison his tenth top-five finish of the year and allowed him to pass Chris Scribner for fourth in the standings. Hutchison was the leading rookie in the points and has all but locked up the Rookie of the Year award.

Hutchison will take a few weeks off before returning to action on October 7-8 for the Fall Classic at Stockton 99 Speedway, then he will compete in the Late Model race on October 14 at All American Speedway that is a prelude for the NASCAR K&N Pro Series, West.

His season will wrap up with a return to TOYOTA Speedway at Irwindale on November 26 for the California Classic. 2012 plans are being formulated now and potential sponsors can contact Dylan Hutchison Racing for information.

Race fans can learn more about Dylan Hutchison Racing at www.dylanhutchison.com or by visiting the team on Facebook at keywords “Dylan Hutchison Racing”.

Dylan Hutchison Racing thanks sponsors: Johnnie Walker Performance Center, Karp Capital Management, Rex Hutchison Racing Engines, All Valley Tow & Transport, GM Construction & Developers, Allen’s Cabinet & Fixtures, PJ’s Auto Body, Done by Don, JW Sweet Rides, Metal Jeans, Amsoil, Aero Wheels, Eibach Springs, and Race Media Group.

9-20-11 Vanderweerd-Bernal Point Battle Continues Saturday at Hanford
Source Lance Jennings
USAC West Coast 360

This Saturday night, September 24th, the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series will compete at Scott Woodhouse's Giant Chevrolet Kings Speedway. Also featured on the action packed showcase will be the IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Stock Cars, and Mini Stocks. The Pit Gates will open at 1:00pm, Spectator Gates at 5:00pm, Time Trials at 6:00pm, with Racing scheduled for 6:30pm.

With two point races remaining on the schedule, Visalia's Richard VanderWeerd holds a sixty-five point lead heading into Saturday's event. Driving the family owned #10 VanderWeerd Construction / Battery Worx Maxim, Richard scored fourth at Santa Maria's Bud Stanfield Memorial. In 2011, VanderWeerd leads the series with three Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards and twelve top-10 finishes. In addition, the young driver has one feature win, three heat race victories, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, and seventeen main event laps led on the year. Richard is closing in on the series championship and will be looking for the feature win.

Ryan Bernal of Hollister is second in the championship points. Piloting Danny Olmstead's #11D S&S Automotive / Dorso's Automotive Maxim, Bernal was tenth last Saturday at Santa Maria. The former Wingless Spec Sprint Champion leads the series with 116 feature laps led and has three feature wins to his credit. In addition, Ryan has one Sander Engineering Fast Time Award, two heat race victories, and ten top-10 finishes on the season. Bernal will have his sights set on another Hanford triumph and gaining valuable points on VanderWeerd.

Visalia's Jace VanderWeerd is tied for third in the point standings. Driving the family owned #88 VanderWeerd Construction / Battery Worx Maxim, Jace claimed seventh at the Stanfield Memorial. Last year's USAC/CRA Rookie of the Year has one feature win, one Sander Engineering Fast Time Award, one heat race victory, eleven top-10 finishes, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, and fourteen main event laps led to his credit. VanderWeerd will be looking for Saturday's 30-lap feature victory at Hanford.

Wes Gutierrez of San Martin is tied for third in the point chase. Piloting the WG Motorsports' #007 ButlerBuilt / Competition Suspension Inc. DRC, Gutierrez led twelve laps at Santa Maria before finishing third. Wes won Hanford's Jim Turner Memorial on September 10th and would like to add another feature to his resume. To date, Gutierrez leads the series with five heat race victories and has ten top-10 finishes with forty-two feature laps led on the season.

Rancho Palos Verdes' Dennis Howell has climbed to fifth in the point standings. Driving the family owned #62 San Pedro Auto Body / Howell-Meyer Racing Maxim, Dennis was sixth at the Bud Stanfield Memorial. The USAC Western Midget Series graduate has one Sander Engineering Fast Time Award, three heat race victories, two Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Awards, and ten top-10 finishes on the year. This Saturday, Howell be looking for his first main event win of the year.

Among the other top contenders expected to be in action are "Hollywood" Danny Faria Jr. of Tipton, Gardena's Greg Alexander, Hanford's Justyne Hamblin, T.J. Smith of Fresno, and Kerman's Davey Pombo. In addition, Hanford's Jonathan Logan, Ricky Kirkbride of Bakersfield, and more should be on hand to battle for the victory.

Giant Chevrolet Kings Speedway is located on the Kings County Fairgrounds at 801 S. 10th Avenue in Hanford, California. Reserved Grandstand tickets are $12 with discounts available for Seniors (55+), Military (with I.D.), and Children 7-12. Kids 6 and under are FREE at all events. Advance tickets are on sale now and camping is available on the fairgrounds. For more event information, visit giantchevroletspeedway.com or call (559) 584-RACE (7223).

The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series would like to thank Southwest Contractors, Hoosier Tire, Amsoil, BR Motorsports, ButlerBuilt, Competition Suspension Inc., Cory Kruseman's Sprint Car & Midget Driving School, Crow Enterprizes, DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Hinchman-Indy Racing Uniforms, Integra Shocks, Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Port City Racing, Rod End Supply, Saferacer.com, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.

For more information on the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series, visit www.westcoastsprintcars.com, www.usacracing.com, www.racesantamariaspeedway.com, or follow the series on facebook.

9-20-11 Scott Wins Second late Model Title, Moves to NASCAR West Series
Source Steven Blakesley
All American Speedway

On Saturday night, 19 year-old Matt Scott won his sixth Late Model main event of 2011 at All American Speedway to take the NASCAR Late Model championship. With the championship, Matt Scott Racing will now move into the NASCAR K&N Pro Series, West beginning at All American Speedway on Saturday October 15.

“The level of competition is a lot higher in the West so I’m really just looking for a good top-five finish or top-ten finish to get my feet wet,” Scott said.

The 2011 NASCAR Late Model championship is the second straight for the 19-time main event winner.

Scott not only won the race on Saturday but he also took quick time in time trials with a 13.80 second lap around the one-third mile asphalt oval. An invert of seven placed Scott seventh on the grid for the 50 lap main event with Scott jumping up to third by lap 12.

After taking second from NASCAR West regular Travis Milburn, Scott began to reel in rookie Dylan Hutchison for the lead. On lap 44, Scott moved past Hutchison to drive to a comfortable victory before a large crowd of supporters on championship night.

“I was biding my time to get through pack so I’d have a car left for the leaders,” Scott said. “I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to reel in Hutchison because he was so far ahead so it was nice to get the win!”

Scott finished within the top-four in all 14 races for the NASCAR Late Models this year at All American Speedway and starting his NASCAR K&N Pro Series, West career at the speedway should give him a good opportunity for success.

“It would mean a lot to win the race as I’ve watched the series race at Roseville over the years and with it being our home track,” Scott said. “There’s definitely a bunch of nerves going into it as I want to do well.”

Matt Scott Racing took delivery of a NASCAR K&N Pro Series, West car last week and will carry co-primary sponsorship from Kamps Propane and RPM NorCal in its debut on October 15. Additional sponsorships are needed to fill out the car for October 15 and for the 2012 season where Matt Scott Racing intends to run the entire season.

“This is a good chance to partner up with a corporate sponsor or maybe even an up-and-comer who would like to grow with us as we go up the NASCAR ladder,” Scott said.

Race fans can help support Matt Scott Racing by making a $5 donation towards tickets for the October 14 Late Model race at All American Speedway. The $5 donation can be made at www.mattscottracing.com Matt Scott is also in contention for the national Most Popular Driver poll on Speed51.com where fans can vote once daily.

Potential sponsors are urged to contact Steven Blakesley at steven@norcalmedia.com or (916) 509-7049 for details on sponsoring Matt Scott Racing.

Matt Scott Racing’s 2011 NASCAR Late Model championship was made possible by BJB Enterprises, Inc., RPM NorCal, Karp Capital, Kamps Propane, Jimboy’s Tacos, CatchYourEye.com, Halm Metal Fab, Pardee Lake Recreation, DoubleTree Hotel Monrovia, Hobbs Construction, T.A.S. Construction, Sumseeds, Red Corral Auto, and Blakesley Sports Media. Matt Scott would like to thank his crew, sponsors, and fans for their support this season.

9-20-11 Sprint Car Racing Loses huge Contributor With Passing of "Carwash" Mike Avilla
Source Gary Thomas
Golden State King of The West

The sport of sprint car racing lost one of its biggest friends and supporters on Monday night with the passing of San Jose resident Mike Avilla, most commonly known as “Carwash Mike.”

Avilla was a lifelong sprint car fan and in recent months had been in need of a lung transplant, after effects from chemo therapy from an earlier bout with cancer had caused his lungs to deteriorate.

There arguably wasn’t a bigger and more positive supporter of sprint car racing in the Golden State than “Carwash,” who was one of the main members of the fan group “Hoserville” and recently won the Jason Meyers “biggest fan” contest. He ironically had a tattoo of Meyers’ car, as well as one of Jonathan Allard’s No. 0 on his leg.

Avilla had his favorites on the track, but one time said, “If you ever do a memorial lap for me, please say that all drivers were my favorite and don’t single any one out.”

Those were very true words for a person that supported any and all drivers, no matter if they were a regular main event winner, or a driver that struggled to get out of the b-main. Avilla was also a major supporter of the Dave Bradway Jr.

The following was a post Avilla had made on the Northern California Message Board following the recent Gold Cup Race of Champions in Chico:

“Since some of my friends are not on Facebook and still check the message boards, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who helped make Gold Cup possible for me this year. I won't mention names, you know who you are. There's no way I could have done it on my own. The help and support I get at the race track means more than you will ever know. For those not on FB, I spent a couple of extra days in Chico courtesy of a 911 call that had me delivered to Enloe Medical Center. I'm home now, seeing my doc tomorrow. Hoping this episode might speed things up for me getting to USC and on the transplant list. I hate to say it, but this was probably my last race for a while. Even with help, it's just getting to be too tough. To the friends I only see at the track, I look forward to seeing you next season. To those I didn't get around to seeing at Gold Cup, I'm sorry I missed you. Thanks again everyone, CarWash Mike.”

Golden State King of the West Sprint Car Series Operations Manager George Hague said, “This is a huge loss for our sport out here and Mike will be dearly missed by all that got to know him. He was an amazing contributor to sprint car racing and even made it out to the races when his health wasn’t the best.”

KWS Director of Communications Gary Thomas shared the same sentiment. “Carwash Mike was one of my best friends throughout the years and I can’t believe he’s gone. I always enjoyed hanging with Mike at the races and we had a ton of fun times that I’ll never forget. The races won’t be the same without him.”

Those that knew “Carwash Mike” know if his fondness for Jagermeister liqueur, so Mike….this Jager Bomb’s for you! You’ll be missed buddy.

Services are pending and for more info contact the KWS office at (707) 374-2222.

9-20-11 Danny Sheridan Wins 26th Annual Bud Stanfield Memorial
Source Lance Jennings
USAC West Coas 360s

Last Saturday night, Santa Maria's "Showtime" Danny Sheridan claimed the $2000-to-win Bud Stanfield Memorial in front of his hometown fans. Starting seventh in the action packed feature, Sheridan used a bold outside move on lap twenty-seven to take the lead from Bud Kaeding. From there, the former track champion led the rest of the way to score his first win of the year and third overall with the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series.

Hanford's Justyne Hamblin shared the front row with Bud Kaeding in the 30-lap feature. At the drop of starter Tom Peterson's green flag, it was a drag race for the lead and Hamblin seized the opportunity. Looking for her first victory of the season, the 2009 champion was flying around the 1/3-mile clay oval and reached lapped traffic on lap five. Two laps later, Justyne had a straightaway lead on the competition and continued to slice through slower cars. Unfortunately, a close call with traffic on lap eleven resulted in a Hamblin spin and the first yellow flag of the main event.

Wes Gutierrez, who won the previous week at Hanford, inherited the lead followed by Kaeding, Danny Sheridan, and point leader Richard VanderWeerd. Once action resumed, another yellow flag was soon displayed over the speedway for a tangle involving Brody Roa, Austin Liggett, and Hamblin. Liggett's car left on the hook and the second stop for Hamblin ended her night. Roa was able to restart and finished fourteenth.

Gutierrez was able to hold Kaeding back until a red flag on lap eighteen. Campbell's Nico Russo had a hard flip in his machine and the young driver was attended to by safety and medical crews. As this writing goes to press, Russo has a reported concussion.

After the extended red flag, Gutierrez held command but Kaeding continued to apply heavy pressure. Bud's persistence paid off and he took the lead from Wes on lap twenty-four. Sheridan quickly charged into second and two laps later, a yellow flag bunched the field. Kaeding was after his fifth victory of the season, but "Showtime" had other plans. Seeing an opportunity, Sheridan shot to the outside groove and grabbed the lead. Bud tried to battle back, but it was Danny's night as he won his second career Stanfield Memorial. Kaeding finished second, followed by Gutierrez, VanderWeerd, and Greg Alexander.

Driving the Kittle Motorsports' #18K Pace Lightning / PIPE Sherman, Danny Sheridan became the eighth different winner in thirteen events. The USAC/CRA standout qualified second fast on the night and scored second in his heat race. In limited starts with the USAC West Coast 360s, Sheridan is fifteenth in the point chase, with two heat race victories, four top-10 finishes, and two Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Awards.

Campbell's Bud Kaeding had to settle for second at the Bud Stanfield Memorial. Piloting Junior Bowman's #29 Buster and Ziggy Enterprises / Kaeding Performance Maxim, Kaeding was eighth quick in time trials and third in his heat race. The multi-time USAC Silver Crown Champion is tenth in the standings and leads the series with four main event wins. In addition, Bud has one Sander Engineering Fast Time Award, two heat race victories, and six top-10 finishes on the year.

Wes Gutierrez of San Martin looked strong in the feature and led twelve laps before falling to Kaeding. The driver of the WG Motorsports' #007 ButlerBuilt / Competition Suspension Inc. DRC claimed third in the Stanfield Memorial and is now tied for third in the points with Jace VanderWeerd. The hard charger qualified sixth fast on the night and took third in his heat race. Leading the series with five heat race victories, Gutierrez also has one feature win and ten top-10 finishes to his credit.

Point leader Richard VanderWeerd of Visalia had another solid night with a fourth place run at Santa Maria. Piloting the family owned #10 VanderWeerd Construction / Battery Worx Maxim, Richard was fifth fast on the night and fourth in his heat race. Currently holding a sixty-five point lead heading into Hanford, VanderWeerd also leads the series with twelve top-10 finishes. In addition, Richard has one feature win, three Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, three heat race victories, and one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award.

Gardena's Greg Alexander finished fifth in the 30-lap feature. Driving Chuck Tyler's #72 Barnes Systems / Amsoil Maxim, Alexander was seventh quick in time trials and scored fourth in his heat race. Now seventh in the point chase, Greg has one Sander Engineering Fast Time Award, two heat race victories, and eight top-10 finishes on the season.

Jace VanderWeerd of Visalia earned his first Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award with a seventh place run after starting fourteenth. Piloting the family owned #88 VanderWeerd Construction / Battery Worx Maxim, Jace qualified fourteenth and scored fourth in his heat race. Tied for third in the points with Wes Gutierrez, VanderWeerd has one feature win, one Sander Engineering Fast Time Award, one heat race victory, and eleven top-10 finishes in 2011.

Hollister's Ryan Bernal earned his first Sander Engineering Fast Time Award behind the wheel of Danny Olmstead's #11D S&S Automotive / Dorso's Automotive Maxim. The former Wingless Spec Sprint Champion claimed third in his heat race and finished tenth in the Stanfield Memorial. Currently second in the championship points, Bernal leads the series with 116 feature laps led. In addition, Ryan has three feature wins, two heat race victories, and ten top-10 finishes on the year.

Justyne Hamblin raced to victory in the Extreme Mufflers Heat Race #1. Piloting the JH Motorsports' #8 Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino / Dias Law Firm Speed Tech, Justyne was ninth fast in time trials and led the first eleven laps of the feature. Scoring twentieth at Santa Maria, the former series champion is eighth in the points with three heat race victories, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, and seven top-10 finishes on the season.

Austin Liggett of Tracy won his first heat race of the year by taking the Saldana Racing Products / Keizer Wheels sponsored event. Driving the family owned #83 Excel Environmental Services / Home Connections Inc. Maxim, Liggett qualified eighteenth and scored twenty-first in the feature. Tied for twenty-ninth in the point chase, Austin has one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award on his resume.

Ramona's Bobby Bender took Bill Jones' #16 Santa Maria Masonry / Artistic Impressions Stinger to the DJ Safety Heat Race #3 victory. The California Lightning Sprint graduate was nineteenth fast on the night and finished thirteenth in the 30-lap feature. In limited starts, Bender is currently thirty-first in the point standings.

In his first start of the year, Derek Buckley of Ojai won the Competition Suspension Inc. / Rod End Supply Heat Race #4. Driving Melinda Buckley's #76 Fatheadz Eyewear / Competition Suspension Inc. Ellis, Derek was twelfth quick in time trials and scored ninth in the main event. The VRA standout is now forty-first in USAC West Coast 360 points.

Another Ventura standout making their first start of the season was Camarillo's Josh Ford. Piloting Keith Ford's #73 King Racing Products / A&A Precision Machine Spike, Josh won the 10-lap Keizer Wheels Semi-Main event. Qualifying fourth in time trials and scoring fifth in his heat race, Ford took eighth in the Stanfield Memorial. The former USAC National Sprint Car Rookie of the Year is now fortieth in the point standings.

The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series would like to thank Cyndi Jewett and family for their support of the Bud Stanfield Memorial. Their sponsorship of the event honored John Jewett's memory and is greatly appreciated by the competitors. Next season, the Santa Maria facility plans to host the John Jewett Memorial Race and it will be one of the most anticipated dates on the schedule.

In addition, the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series thanks Southwest Contractors, Hoosier Tire, Amsoil, BR Motorsports, ButlerBuilt, Competition Suspension Inc., Cory Kruseman's Sprint Car & Midget Driving School, Crow Enterprizes, DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Hinchman-Indy Racing Uniforms, Integra Shocks, Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Port City Racing, Rod End Supply, Saferacer.com, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.

The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series will return to action this Saturday, September 24th, at Scott Woodhouse's Giant Chevrolet Speedway in Hanford. Located on the Kings County Fairgrounds at 801 S. 10th Avenue, more event information can be found at www.giantchevroletspeedway.com or calling (559) 584-RACE (7223).

For more information on the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series, please visit westcoastsprintcars.com, usacracing.com, racesantamariaspeedway.com, or follow the series on facebook.

9-20-11 Right Place at The Right Time For Walmer To Win Madera
Source RSWC PR
USAC Ford Focus

16 year-old Keegan Walmer won his third USAC Ford Focus main event of the season, and his first since May, after snaking through a last-lap crash to win the feature at Madera Speedway. The victory moves his Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle team closer to 500 victories as an organization.

Walmer is a member of the Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle career development program which trains and prepares drivers for a career in motorsports. The third year member of the program won seven times in 2010 with USAC and has competed in both USAC Ford Focus and NASCAR Modified races in 2011.

Walmer missed much of practice on Saturday afternoon with mechanical problems. But Walmer rebounded to qualify sixth. Teammate Paul Graham led the RSWC entourage with a second place qualifying run. Fellow RSWC teammate Jessica Clark won the eight lap heat race before things got going with the 25 lap feature.

Madera Speedway is a historic one-third mile asphalt oval, with a lot of surface character, that challenged the drivers with loose conditions. Walmer led the first five laps before slipping back to third place. Walmer ran a smart race as he tried to keep pace with the leaders while also defending third from Graham.

Coming to the white flag the race changed hands as the top-two cars tangled into turn one. Walmer narrowly missed the incident and led Graham back to the finish line with Clark rounding out the RSWC 1-2-3.

Despite not having the best car on the night Walmer proved the notion “to finish first you must first finish” rings true.

“Keegan did a great job handling the adversity of the weekend to pick up the win,” Driver Coach Ron Sutton said. “This win puts him in a great spot to win the NorCal championship!”

With the victory, Walmer leads the USAC Ford Focus NorCal points by a 16 point margin with just a handful of races left to go. The series continues this Saturday night at All American Speedway during the All American Vintage Classic.

Keegan Walmer Racing and Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle thank partners: K&N Filters, Reser’s Fine Foods, Stoney Inn, Robinson Construction, K&K Motorsports, Scribner Plastics, Allstar Performance, Sunoco Race Fuels and Star Racing Supply.

Keegan Walmer Racing can be found at www.keeganwalmer.com

For more information on Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle, log on to www.winners-circle-racing.com

9-19-11 Second NASCAR Modified Win For Thompson at Roseville
Source Steven Blakesley
All American Speedway

18 year-old Cody Thompson capped his impressive NASCAR Modified rookie season at All American Speedway by winning his second feature of the year on Saturday night.

The Fremont, California driver took his #68 Southern Rock-sponsored Modified to quick time in qualifying as well for the second consecutive race event. Thompson took the quick time by just .001 seconds with a time of 14.214 seconds.

After nearly winning both features last week, Thompson was looking for redemption in the final points race of the season. A seven car inversion placed Thompson seventh on the grid for the 40 lap feature. Thompson took his time navigating the field early on and he restarted fifth after a red flag on lap 10 for a multi-car crash.

But on the restart, Thompson began a quick charge that saw him move all the way up to second by lap 15. It only took Thompson a few laps to chase down the leader and on lap 24 Thompson broke through to take the lead of the race. The event stayed caution-free to the end with Thompson pulling away to a 1.6 second lead ahead of the field at the finish.

The win gives Thompson nine top-fives and 11 top-tens in 16 starts during the 2011 season. Despite missing three races due to mechanical problems, Cody Thompson Racing finished the All American Speedway season fifth in the overall standings.

In the second half of the season, Thompson put together four runner-up finishes and two wins in eight races.

Cody Thompson will continue his season with a few non-points races including a special event on October 14 at All American Speedway the night before the NASCAR K&N Pro Series, West race. Thompson will look to make a big impression with a large crowd of fans expected.

Cody Thompson Racing thanks sponsors Southern Rock Granite & Marble, RPM NorCal Racing, San Jose Custom Cabnetry, Weisner & Cerato Machine Shop, Josh Bews Fabrication, Blakesley Sports Media, Top One Designs, and MTFX Graphics.

Race fans can learn more about Cody Thompson Racing at www.codythompsonracing.com by visiting the team on Facebook at keywords “Cody Thompson Racing”.

9-19-11 West Coast 360 Sprints Return to Hanford Saturday; Sheridan Takes Santa Maria's Bud Stanfield Memorial
Source Dick Jordan
USAC West Coast 360

Giant Chevrolet Kings Speedway in Hanford, Calif. hosts the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint cars again Saturday and series point leader Richard VanderWeerd is OK with that, having posted a victory, two thirds and a fourth in the four races held at the 3/8-mile dirt oval this season.

VanderWeerd, of Visalia, Calif., has a comfortable 65-point lead over Ryan Bernal in the standings, but Bernal has a pair of second-places at Hanford this season himself.

Other drivers who bear watching Saturday include third-ranking Wes Gutierrez, who has a victory and a fourth at Kings this year, fourth ranking Jace VanderWeerd, whose four Hanford starts have all resulted in “top-10s,” and Danny Faria Jr., who has a win and two thirds.

AMSOIL USAC/CRA regular Danny Sheridan of Santa Maria, Calif. won Saturday night’s “Bud Stanfield Memorial” at his home track – Santa Maria (Calif.) Speedway. He passed Bud Kaeding on the 27th lap and led the final four laps to beat Kaeding, Gutierrez, Richard VanderWeerd and Greg Alexander. Sheridan piloted the Kittle Motorsports Pace Lighting/K & N Filters Sherman/Auto Pro to the win. Justyne Hamblin led the first 11 laps and Wes Gutierrez led the next 12 before Kaeding took over for three.

USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS

1-Richard VanderWeerd-752; 2-Ryan Bernal-687; 3-Wes Gutierrez-647; 4-Jace VanderWeerd-647; 5-Dennis Howell-559; 6-Danny Faria Jr.-550; 7-Greg Alexander-514; 8-Justyne Hamblin-495; 9-T.J. Smith-461; 10-Bud Kaeding-439.

9-19-11 "Glenn Howard Memorial" Saturday at The PAS; Pierovich Wins Madera's Harvest Classic
Source Dick Jordan
Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprints

Mike Spencer of Temecula, Calif. puts his AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint Car title defense on the line Saturday at Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway in the 2011 “Glenn Howard Memorial.”

Spencer, trying to claim a record fourth consecutive title, has a 37-point lead over Matt Mitchell and is only 56 ahead of Nic Faas entering Saturday’s event, which offer 74 total points.

Spencer has 17 career USAC wins at the half-mile dirt oval, including four of this year’s six outings. Mitchell, ironically, has won the other two this season. In five starts at The Pas, Faas has two seconds, a third, fourth and a fifth.

Scott Pierovich of Alamo, Calif. passed Geoff Ensign on lap six and went on to lead the remaining 45 laps to win Saturday night’s “Harvest Classic” USAC Western/Western Classic Sprint race at Madera (Calif.) Speedway. Audra Sasselli was second ahead of Tony Hunt, Ensign and Chad Nichols. Hunt emerged with a five-point lead over Sasselli in the AMSOIL Western Sprint points, but trails Ensign by nine points in the Western Classic standings. Pierovich was also the fastest qualifier.

The 2011 USAC Western Classic” Sprint Series concludes November 24 at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale, Calif.

AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS

1-Mike Spencer-810; 2-Matt Mitchell-773; 3-Nic Faas-754; 4-Austin Williams-570; 5-Greg Bragg-508; 6-Cody Williams-463; 7-Danny Sheridan-412; 8-Rip Williams-387; 9-David Cardey-380; 10-Ronnie Gardner-370.

USAC AMSOIL WESTERN SPRINT CAR SERIES POINT STANDINGS

1-Tony Hunt-585; 2-Audra Sasselli-580; 3-Cody Gerhardt-549; 4-Tim Skoglund-548; 5-Luis Ramos III-468; 6-Scott Pierovich-388; 7-Geoff Ensign-311; 8-Johnny Geisler-271; 9-Tim Barber-258; 10-Shaunna Hogg-228.

USAC WESTERN CLASSIC SPRINT CAR SERIES POINT STANDINGS

1-Geoff Ensign-806; 2-Tony Hunt-797; 3-Scott Pierovich-700; 4-Shauna Hogg-579; 5-Tim Barber-566; 6-Jerry Kobza-211.

9-18-11 Pierovich Shakes Off Back Luck To Win Madera Harvest Classic
Source Steven Blakesley
USAC Western Classic

Alamo’s Scott Pierovich continued his resurgence in the USAC Western Classic Racing Series by winning Saturday night’s “Harvest Classic” at Madera Speedway. The win marks redemption for Pierovich after mechanical failures forced him out of the April “Gerhardt Classic” at Madera while running second.

Pierovich was an early favorite for the championship this season before bad luck took its toll. Saturday’s win is Pierovich’s second on the season to go along with the May 14 “Burton Classic” at All American Speedway.

“We’re too far out of the points so we’re really just racing for wins,” Pierovich said. “I owe this all to Ken Pierson who pays the bills and does the setups on the car.”

Pierovich opened up the night by taking quick time with a 13.640 second lap around the one-third mile asphalt oval in the Ken Pierson #14 mount. Points leader Geoff Ensign of Sebastopol qualified fifth while second in points Tony Hunt took the Mike Phulps #56 to second.

Heat races were split by Ensign and Hunt. The 50 lap feature started 12 cars with Finkenbinder Motorsports teammates Tim Barber and Ensign on the front row.

Ensign led from outside pole while Pierovich, from sixth, drove to second by lap four. Pierovich began to put the pressure on Ensign and took over the top spot on lap six.

Jockeying throughout the field ensued as Audra Sasselli and Hunt went side-by-side for fourth behind Barber. Sasselli swept past Hunt and then Barber on lap 11 to take over third. Hunt won a nice duel with Barber on lap 14 to take fourth.

Ensign, Sasselli, and Hunt raced hard for the second position while 17 year-old Cody Gerhardt of Fresno passed San Carlos’ Chad Nichols for fifth on lap 20.

The first caution came out on lap 22 for Barber coming to a stop on the front stretch with heavy smoke. He was done for the night.

Sasselli got past Ensign in a thrilling move on the inside in turn one for the restart and one lap later the yellow lights were on again as Gordon Rodgers spun backwards down the front stretch.

On the restart, Sasselli tried to chase down Pierovich for the lead while Ensign and Hunt raced side-by-side for third. Hunt took over the spot on lap 24.

The final half of the race saw the order stay unchanged except for Gerhardt briefly battling back-and-forth with Nichols. Pierovich went on to win the “Harvest Classic” by one second over Sasselli, Hunt, Ensign, and Gerhardt.

Kaeding Performance awards worth $50 went to Nichols and Sasselli. In the USAC Western Classic Racing Series standings, Hunt cut Ensign’s lead down to nine points while Hunt’s lead over Sasselli in the USAC Western Sprint Car Series is just five markers. The series moves on to Shasta Raceway Park for the “Jimmy Sills Classic” on Saturday night October 8.

More information on the USAC Western Classic Racing Series is available on Facebook at keywords “USAC Western Classic Racing Series”. The United States Auto Club is online at www.usacracing.com

9-9-11 Kyle Larson Wins Wild "Tiner Family Classic" at Chico
Source Lance Jennings
Tiner Family Classic

Elk Grove’s Kyle Larson held off a hard charging “Wild Child” Jac Haudenschild to score the curfew shortened “Tiner Family Classic” at Chico’s Silver Dollar Speedway. Starting fourteenth and taking the lead from Kyle Hirst on lap 21, Larson scored a popular victory in the Thursday night portion of the Gold Cup Race of Champions.

Driving the #99 BK Racing owned Stadelhofer Construction / Kaeding Performance Maxim, Kyle Larson had passed nine cars in only five laps on the main event. As pole sitter Shane Golobic, Matt Mitchell and “The Human Highlight Reel” Geoff Ensign had a furious battle for the top spot, a war was raging behind them. The next four spots featured their own private battle between Haudenschild, Hirst, USAC/CRA point leader Mike Spencer, and a fast closing Larson. In the next few laps, Larson had continued his march forward and eventually slipped past Hirst for the top spot.

As several yellow flags slowed the action throughout the event, only one red flag was displayed. During the closing laps, a dual flip after Greg Bragg and Austin Williams tangled temporarily halted the feature. While their machines were done for the night, both drivers walked away uninjured. With time constraints fast approaching, officials made one last effort to complete the show. As the curfew past, the race would continue on, but by lap twenty-eight, Western Racing Classic standout Scott Pierovich had spun and the race was called. Larson was declared the winner, followed by Haudenschild, Mitchell, Hirst, and Spencer.

Having recently scored wins in USAC Silver Crown and the USAC National Sprint Car action, Kyle Larson won his first career feature with the Amsoil USAC/CRA and Western Classic Racing Series. Last year’s Golden State Challenge King of California also earned the Keizer Wheels Hard Charger / Best Passing Job Honors on the night. Earlier in the program, the young driver qualified nineteenth quick in time trials and also won the DJ Safety Hat Race #3.

World of Outlaw star Jac Haudenschild of Wooster, Ohio claimed second in Paul Silva’s #57 Silva Motorsports ART special. The veteran driver was closing in on Larson, but has to settle for the runner-up spot on this night. Earlier on the night, the “Wild Child” set a new track record in Sander Engineering Time Trials over the forty-nine car field and was also victorious in the Extreme Mufflers / Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror Heat Race #1.

Yorba Linda’s Matt Mitchell took third in the J.W. Mitchell Motorsports' #37 Mancha Realtors / Sierra Springs Maxim. Qualifying second in time trials, the former USAC Western Midget Series Rookie of the Year also took second in his heat race to Mike Spencer. Mitchell briefly led the feature from his seventh starting position and is now second in the hunt for the championship.

Kyle Hirst of Rio Linda made a rare non-wing start and made the most of the opportunity. Piloting Steve Smith’s #14S AA Johnson & Son Concrete / ART Enterprises entry, Hirst was third quick on the night and finished second to Kyle Larson in his heat race. Starting sixth in the feature, Kyle made his way to the front, until Larson took control on lap twenty-one.

Temecula’s Mike Spencer continued his march to another title with a fifth place finish. Driving Ron Chaffin’s #50 Madera Produce / Grubstake Mini Storage Maxim, Spencer was tenth fast on the night and won the Saldana Racing Products / Circle Track Performance Heat Race #2. Heading into Perris’ Glenn Howard Memorial on September 24th, Mike holds a thirty-seven point lead over the competition.
Richard Brace Jr. of Auburn won the Electro Tech Powder Coating / Rod End Supply Heat Race #4. Piloting Jeff Adel’s 360 powered #21J Alcal Arcade / River City Benefits DRC, Brace qualified twenty-fourth quick in time trials and finished eleventh in the “Tiner Family Classic.”

With a season high forty-nine cars in the pit area, it was necessary to run a Last Chance Qualifying Race, sponsored by Keizer Wheels. Veteran racer Billy Wallace of Grass Valley took Mark Moore’s 360 powered #1 Van Dyke Motorsports Jon Boy to victory and earn a transfer to the first heat race. Also continuing on the program were Sacramento’s Herman Klein, Orland’s Taylor Simas, and Kody Smith of Biggs.

A shortened Competition Suspension Incorporated Semi-Main went to Cody Myers of Brown’s Valley. The veteran Wingless Spec Sprint driver took Clayton Snow’s #7 Brown’s Valley Trucking and Repair Eagle to the nine lap win ahead of Huntington Beach’s Nic Faas, Marty Hawkins of Santa Rosa, Yorba Linda’s Cody Williams, Tom Baker of Carmichael, and Taylor Simas.

The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series would like to thank Hoosier Tire, Circle Track Performance, Competition Suspension Inc., DJ Safety, Donovan Engineering, Electro Tech Powder Coating, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror, Keizer Wheels, Rod End Supply, Saldana Racing Products, Sander Engineering, and So-Cal Performance for their support. For more information, visit www.usacracing.com/cra or follow the series on facebook.

The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series will next compete at Perris Auto Speedway’s Glenn Howard Memorial on September 24th. Located on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds, more event information can be found at www.perrisautospeedway.com or calling (951) 940-0134.
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AMSOIL USAC/CRA/WESTERN CLASSIC SPRINT CAR SERIES RACE RESULTS:
September 8, 2011 – Chico, California – Silver Dollar Speedway – “Tiner Family Classic”

9-17-11 Ventura Raceway Report
Source Cliff Morgan
Ventura Raceway

Greg Taylor made it two in a row Saturday night in a shootout with Brent Camarillo in the 30 lap VRA Sprint Car main event. Taylor and Camarillo battled lap after lap with Camarillo nipping at the tail tank of Taylor after Taylor got by him on lap10. Taylor's win keeps him 205 points ahead of an absent Josh ford and 220 points ahead of Steve Conrad after 17 races in the 2011 season. Following Taylor and Camarillo across the line were Dakota Kershaw, Kyle Smith and Tom Hendrick. A smaller than usual car count caused three heats to be run with wins going to Dakota Kershaw, Brent Camarillo and Greg Taylor. No semi main was run Saturday night.

In VRA/USAC Midget competition, the third Battle at the Beach race went to Johnathon Henry over a field of 18 top midget drivers. He passed early race leader Markus Niemela on lap 10 and led the rest of the way to take the $2,000 winners purse. The race had one red flag incident when Robby Josett, Cory Kruseman, Brian Camarillo and Jimmy Voitel got together at the start finish line and blocked the track. Following Henry and Niemela across the line were Brent Camarillo, Josh Lakatos and David Prickett. Henry's win puts him with past Battle winners Cory Kruseman and Josh Lakatos in the running to be crowned King of the Beach at the final race on November 19. Heat race wins Saturday went to Brent Camarillo, Robby Josett and Kyle Smith.

IMCA racing saw a first time winner take the 20 lap feature. Rob Green took the win over a field of ten modifieds. Green led all 20 laps of the feature to take the win over Steve Bulpitt, Jack Parker, Brad Prows and Austin Rodarte. Point leader Aaron Rodarte finished 10 and takes a 12 point lead into the IMCA season finale next week over challenger Brad Prows. There were two heat races run with wins going to Tom Topping and visiting Hanford diver Eric Hamilton.

In USAC/VRA Ford Focus competition, the regular Ford focus 20 lap main event went to Andrew Mulhearn over Wally Pankratz, Tyler Dolacki, Casey Martinez and Nick Carlson. Their heat race winners were Wally Pankratz and Casey Martinez. In Junior Ford Focus racing the five car 15 lap main event went to Cole Custer followed by Katlyn Leer, Parker Colson, Austin Blair and Christine Breckenridge. Their heat race was won by Parker Colston.

VRA Go Karts were the final class running Saturday night. Their 20 lap main event went to George Ito followed by Johnny Conely, David Pankratz, Ken Ito and Cody Nigh. Their heat race wins went to Ashley Hazleton and Justin Raper.

Ventura Raceway returns to action next Saturday night September 24, with a full program featuring VRA Sprint Cars, Senior Sprint Cars IMCA Modifieds, VRA Dwarf Cars and our kid's classes.

9-15-11 Championship Fight Moves to Madera Speedway For Saturday's Harvest
Source Steven Blakesley
USAC Western Classic

Sebastopol’s Geoff Ensign leads the USAC Western Classic Racing Series back to the pavement as the traditional sprint cars will hit the one-third mile Madera Speedway for Saturday night’s “Harvest Classic”. Ensign, recently crowned as dirt champion, leads 2010 USAC Western Sprint Car Series champion Tony Hunt by 15 points with the final three races to be held on pavement.

Ensign took over the points lead through a busy stretch of the season that saw the teams race at TOYOTA Speedway on August 27, Calistoga Speedway on September 3 and 4, and Silver Dollar Speedway on September 8. Ensign led all USAC Western Classic cars at Calistoga with finishes of seventh and fifth to pass Hunt in the standings, then extended his lead by finishing one spot better than Hunt at Silver Dollar against a 49 car turnout.

Hunt is chasing Ensign while also trying to defend the USAC Western Sprint Car Series points lead over Audra Sasselli and Tim Skoglund. Hunt, in the Mike Phulps’ #56 Metal Works Beast, leads Sasselli by just six points and Skoglund by 17. Both Madera events have been won by Hunt this season with Hunt winning a back-and-forth battle with Scott Pierovich for the “Gerhardt Classic” in April before dominating the “Al Pombo Classic” in June.

Sasselli, Skgolund, and fourth place in USAC Western Sprint Car Series points Cody Gerhardt all call the Fresno area home making the Madera event take on extra importance for local pride.

Although Ensign leads the points he is still looking for his first USAC pavement victory. His Ted Finkenbinder Motorsports teammate Tim Barber is also winless this year.

Pierovich is more than 100 points behind Hunt and Ensign in the USAC Western Classic Racing Series points but passed Fair Oaks’ Shauna Hogg for third after strong showings in the recent three race dirt swing. The Alamo, CA driver has one win this season at Roseville on May 14.

Other drivers expected to compete on Saturday night include USAC & BCRA Midget regular Chad Nichols of San Carlos in the #50 Metal Works car along with Winton’s Gordon Rodgers and Marvin Mitchell.

A busy night of open-wheel horsepower is on tap for Madera Speedway with promoter Kenny Shepherd pulling out all the stops for the “Harvest Classic”. Super Modifieds, BCRA Midgets, NCMA Sprints, USAC Ford Focus Midgets, and tractor pulls are all on the card.

Pit gates open at 12:30pm, grandstands open at 3:30pm with main events starting at 6pm. Adult tickets are $25, youth 6-12 are $17, and kids five and under are free. Family packs are $70 for two adults and two youth. Check out www.racemadera.com for more information.
More information on the USAC Western Classic Racing Series is available on Facebook at keywords “USAC Western Classic Racing Series”. The United States Auto Club is online at www.usacracing.com

9-14-11 Taylor-Ford Point Battle Continues at Ventura Saturday
Source Lance Jennings
Ventura Raceway

This Saturday night, September 17th, Jim Naylor's Ventura Raceway will host another action packed card. The race could play a fey role in the VRA Sprint Car championship as point leader and last week's winner Greg Taylor holds 245 point advantage over Josh Ford. With six races remaining on the schedule and over 240 points available on race day, the battle for the title is far from over.

Joining Saturday's showcase will be the VRA Midgets, Ford Focus Midgets, Junior Focus Midgets, IMCA Modifieds, and VRA Go Karts. The Pit Gate will open at noon, Front Gates will open at 3:00pm with Racing at "The Best Little Dirt Track In America" to begin at 5:30pm.

Piloting Tommy Horne's potent #13 sprinter, Ventura's Greg Taylor started twelfth and passed Josh Ford on the last lap to claim his third main event of the year. The 2007 Champion and current point leader has seven heat race victories, two hard charger awards, twelve top-10 finishes, and leads the series with eighty-eight feature laps led. This Saturday night, Taylor will be looking for another victory as he continues to inch closer to another title.

Josh Ford of Camarillo led twenty-nine laps of last Saturday's main event before settling into second. Driving the #73 King Racing Products / A&A Precision Machining entry, Ford has yet to score a feature win, but has been very consistent by leading the series with fourteen top-10 finishes. Currently second in the hunt for the championship, the former USAC National Sprint Car Rookie of the Year has four heat race victories, one hard charger award, and led thirty-five main event laps. Josh will have his sights set on Saturday's 30-lap feature win and gaining valuable points on Taylor.

Quartz Hill's Steve Conrad is third in the point standings. Piloting the #56 Roy Miller Freightlines / SC Grafix special, the former USAC TQ Midget graduate was third in last week's feature after starting fifth. Conrad has two main event wins in 2011, along with one heat race victory, three hard charger awards, thirteen top-10 finishes, and forty-eight feature laps led. Steve could play a spoiler in the point chase by adding another main event win to his resume.

Driving the #22 Agromin Soil / Waste Management entry, Camarillo's Brian Camarillo is fourth in the point chase. Last Saturday night, Camarillo scored seventeenth after a crash ended his night. To date, the veteran driver has one feature win, seven heat race victories, one semi-main win, nine top-10 finishes, and thirty feature laps led to his credit. Brian will be looking to rebound and surprise the field with a main event victory.

Camarillo's Brent Camarillo has climbed to fifth in the championship points. Piloting the #51 Agromin Soil / Waste Management car, Brent was seventh in last Saturday's feature. In 2011, the young driver has three heat race victories, one semi-main win, one hard charger award, six top-10 finishes, and seventeen feature laps led. Camarillo will be in the mix for the feature win on Saturday.

Among the other top contenders expected to be in action are Ojai's Derek Buckley, Don Gansen of Rialto, Santa Barbara's Markus Niemela, Jimmy Crawford of Newbury Park, Ventura's Cory Kruseman, Norwalk's Brandon Thomson, Ojai's Troy Rutherford, and many more.

Ventura Raceway is located on the Ventura County Fairgrounds at 10 West Harbor Blvd. in Ventura, California. Adult tickets are $14, Senior, Military, and Student tickets (ID Required) are $11, while Children’s tickets (12 and under) are FREE. For more event information, please visit www.venturaraceway.com or call (805) 985-5433.

To catch all of the action of the VRA Sprint Car Series and Ventura Raceway, Mike Truex's Loudpedal Productions has DVD videos available for purchase. For more information, call (805) 407-7229 or visit www.loudpedalvideo.com. In addition, Ventura Raceway offers a live feed of every event at www.venturaraceway.com/live.html. The live feed is scheduled to begin at 5:00pm PST.

9-13-11 Greg Taylor Charges to Last Lap Ventura Win
Source Lance Jennings
Ventura Raceway

There is an old saying that goes "it is not over until it is over." That was certainly the case last Saturday night at Jim Naylor's Ventura Raceway. After taking the white flag, point leader Greg Taylor of Ventura took the lead from Camarillo's Josh Ford in turn two to claim his third feature victory of the season. Ford, who led twenty-nine laps, took second with Steve Conrad, Dakota Kershaw, and Jimmy Crawford rounding out the top five drivers.

Officially leading one lap and starting from the twelfth starting spot, Greg Taylor currently holds a stout 245 point lead heading into next Saturday's action. Piloting Tommy Horne's potent #13 sprinter, the 2007 Champion claimed fourth in his heat race and had to start deep in the field. Steadily working his way to the front, Taylor was not to be denied on his night and has seven heat race victories, two hard charger awards, and thirteen top-10 finishes to his credit.

With his second place run in the #73 King Racing Products / A&A Precision Machining car, Josh Ford raced to his series leading fourteenth top-10 finish of the season. Last season's All Coast 360 Challenge Champion was third in his heat race and is second in the chase for the championship. To date, Ford also has four heat race victories and one hard charger award on the season.

Quartz Hill's Steve Conrad had another solid performance with a third place finish behind the wheel of the #56 Roy Miller Freight Lines / SC Grafix special. The former USAC TQ Midget graduate was second in his heat race to Brent Camarillo and currently sits third in the point standings. In the 2011 campaign, Conrad has two feature wins, one heat race victory, three hard charger awards, and thirteen top-10 finishes.

Dakota Kershaw of Oak Park returned to action and scored a fourth place finish in the #28 Interprize Capitol / Roll Control entry after starting sixth. The young driver claimed the night's third heat race and is now thirteenth in the point chase. In limited action, Kershaw has two heat race victories and five top-10 finishes on the year.

Newbury Park's Jimmy "Neutron" Crawford took fifth at the checkered flags after starting ninth in the 30-lap feature. Piloting the #17 Twister X special, the 2002 Champion was third in his heat race and is currently tied for eighth in the standings with Markus Niemela. To date, Crawford has two heat race victories, nine top-10 finishes, and with fourteen feature laps led on the season.

Young Austin DeBlauw of Ventura earned his second Hard Charger / Best Passing Job honors with a sixth place run after starting eighteenth. Driving the #65 DeBlauw Racing entry, Austin was sixth in his heat race and currently sits twelfth in the point chase. This year, DeBlauw has four top-10 finishes and is gaining valuable racing experience.

Another driver returning to action is Markus Niemela of Santa Barbara. Piloting Steve Watt's #69 surfnsprint.com machine, Niemela won the night's first heat race and was eighth in the feature. Tied for eighth in the points with Jimmy Crawford, Niemela has two heat race victories, one hard charger award, and eight top-10 finishes to his credit.

Camarillo's Brent Camarillo won the night's second heat race behind the wheel of the #51 Agromin Soil / Waste Management entry. Camarillo went on to score seventh in the main event and currently sits fifth in the standings. This season, Brent has three heat race victories, one semi-main win, one hard charger award, and six top-10 finishes.

Ventura Raceway scheduled eight other companion classes on the night. Richard McCormick won the Senior Sprint Car feature that honored driver John Jewett, who passed away last month. Rich Lapka raced to the Senior Dwarf Car victory, while point leader Ray Estrada won in the VRA Pro Dwarf Car division. Trevor Fitzgibbon scored another Sport Compact main event, as Mike Neal claimed victory in the Mod Lite class. In Junior Midgets, Brennan Rogers was victorious while J.D. Brown took the Piston Mini Dwarf main event. Nick Velasquez scored the Supercharger Mini Dwarf feature win.

To catch all of the action of the VRA Sprint Car Series and Ventura Raceway, Mike Truex's Loudpedal Productions has DVD videos available for purchase. For more information, call (805) 407-7229 or visit www.loudpedalvideo.com. In addition, Ventura Raceway offers a live feed of every event at www.venturaraceway.com/live.html. The live feed will begin at 5:00pm PST.

This Saturday night, September 17th, Ventura Raceway will host the VRA Sprint Cars, VRA Midgets, Ford Focus Midgets, Junior Focus Midgets, IMCA Modifieds, and VRA Go Karts. For more event information, please visit www.venturaraceway.com or call (805) 985-5433.

9-13-11 All American Speedway Champions to be Crowned This Saturday, September 17th
Source RMG Race Media Group
All American Speedway

This Saturday, September 17^th marks the 2011 NASCAR Whelen All American Series Championship finale at All American Speedway. The Speedway will be presenting NASCAR Late Models 100, Modifieds 40, Street Stocks and Bombers 35 laps. Featuring of the night will be the band Ron Pestana and the Pit Crew playing live in the grandstands adding an extra entertainment to the racing excitement. With Saturday expecting fall like temperature in the mid 80’s, the points chase will come down to the wire with this last race as championship drivers will be collecting their championship titles.

In the Street Stock division, Mickey Owens continues to hold the points lead over the field with a 28 point advantage over second place Richard Poppert Jr. Sitting quietly in third is Byron Gonzales with just 57 points from second. Dave Silva sits fourth as Mel Wilson barely holds onto fifth. With the last race approaching for the division, and if Mickey Owens continues to provide his consistent solid results, he will run with the 2011 championship.

The Late Models took a break the previous weekend and will be returning this Saturday for their last race. At the last race Matt Scott locked in the 2011 championship and will be running this weekend to further his points lead over Jason Romero in second. Romero sits just 42 points from Scott which cannot be made up in just one race left. Juan Pitta sits third with both Chris Scribner fourth and Rookie Dylan Hutchison fifth knocking on Pitta’s door. As the division winds down to the finale, the third spot is still up for grabs.

The unstoppable Dan Jinkerson has had a good run for points this year and clinched the championship title at the last race. Canadian driver Steve Cote sits in second however Jason Bamberg in third is chasing Cote down with just 33 points from second. Rookie Bobby Runyan is the new holder of fourth as Andy Field missed the twin 50s sending Andy to fifth.

Eight time Bomber feature winner, Chris Paulson locked in his 2011 championship after the wild night on August 6^th when two drivers in second and third in points were placed on probation, losing all competition points leading up to the event. This allowed Richard Perez to step into the second position however Joe Rhodes, in third, is only eight points from second. Eric Bocksberger fourth is also in the mix for second. Even though the championship is already crowned all the action is happening in second to fourth.

Pit Gates and Registration opens at noon with practice starting at 2 pm. The Grandstands open at 4pm with qualifying set for 4pm and green flag racing at 6pm. Ticket prices for the evening will be as follows:

Adults (16-59) $13
Seniors (60+), Juniors (6-15) $7
Kids 6 & Under FREE
Family Pass (2 Adults, 3 Jrs) $35
More information about All American Speedway can be found at www.AllAmericanSpeedway.com. The Placer County Fairgrounds administration office is open for advance ticket sales Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm at 800 All America City Blvd. Roseville, CA. 95678, or contact the office at (916) 786-2025.
Championship Points Race No. 18 has been cancelled and reserved for USAC Night.

2011 Championship Points
Bombers
1. Chris Paulson 366, 2. Richard Perez 200, 3. Joe Rhodes 192, 4. Eric Bocksberger 185, 5. Cody Rickard 155, 6. Dana Kelly 114, 7. Kenny Beaumont 106, 8. Denise Lambert 82, 9. David Thompson 70, 10. Wayne Hickok 68

Modifieds
1. Dan Jinkerson 446, 2. Steve Cote 337, 3. Jason Bamberg 304, 4. Bobby Runyan 273, 5. Andy Field 262, 6. Scott Winters 259, 7. Nick Lyons 253, 8. Cody Thompson 249, 9. Chase Grigsby 136, 10. Rick Anable 130

Street Stocks
1. Mickey Owens 421, 2. Richard Poppert Jr 393, 3. Byron Gonzales 336, 4. Dave Silva 304, 5. Mel Wilson 236, 6. Spencer Emerson 224, 7. Kevin Owens 214, 8. Dale Didoha 134, 9. Lonnie Leonard 128, 10. Eric Martinez 124

Late Models
1. Matt Scott 275, 2. Jason Romero 233, 3. Juan Pitta 196, 4. Chris Scribner 185, 5. Dylan Hutchison 184, 6. Ron Chunn 104, 7. Stanislav Osterlund 94, 8. Gary Glen 90, 9. Jamie Krizysik 88, 10. Brian Keck 78

9-13-11 $2000 to Win "Bud Stanfield Memorial" This Saturday at Santa Maria
Source Lance Jennings
Santa Maria Speedway

This Saturday night, September 17th, the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series will return to Chris Kearns' Santa Maria Speedway for the 26th Annual Bud Stanfield Memorial. The special event will feature a purse of $2000-to-win, $1000-for-2nd, $800-for-3rd, and $250-to-start the 30-lap feature. Joining the action packed card will be the MMI Hobby Stocks, Toste Construction Mini-Stocks, and the popular NMRA TQ Midgets. The Front Gates will open at 4:00pm, Time Trials will start at 5:00pm, with Racing at "The West Coast's Best Short Track" to begin at 6:00pm.

Thanks to the support from Cyndi Jewett and family, the 2011 "Bud Stanfield Memorial" carries the special purse and will also honor longtime competitor John Jewett. John, a veteran of the Bandit, Santa Maria, Ventura, and SCRA Sprint Car wars, scored his only feature win at the Santa Maria facility. The popular driver passed way last month and will be missed by the racing community.

To date, seven different drivers have scored feature wins in twelve events during the 2011 campaign. Bud Kaeding leads all drivers with four triumphs, followed by Ryan Bernal with three victories. "Hollywood" Danny Faria Jr., Wes Gutierrez, Peter Murphy, Jace VanderWeerd, and Richard VanderWeerd have one main event win as the season is winding down.

Piloting the family owned #10 VanderWeerd Construction / Battery Worx Maxim, Richard VanderWeerd of Visalia holds a fifty-two point advantage over the competition. Scoring a third place finish at last Saturday's Jim Turner Memorial at Hanford, VanderWeerd also has one feature win, three Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, three heat race victories, eleven top-10 finishes, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, and seventeen main event laps led on the year. With three point races remaining on the schedule, Richard will be looking for the Stanfield Memorial victory

Driving Danny Olmstead's #11D S&S Automotive / Dorso's Automotive Maxim, Hollister's Ryan Bernal is second in the point standings. Last Saturday night, Bernal claimed second in the Turner Memorial and has three feature wins, two heat race victories, nine top-10 finishes, and leads the series with 116 feature laps led. The former Wingless Spec Sprint Champion will have his sights set on another Santa Maria victory and gaining valuable points on VanderWeerd.

Visalia's Jace VanderWeerd is third in the battle for the championship. Piloting the family owned #88 VanderWeerd Construction / Battery Worx Maxim, Richard's twin brother was sixth at Hanford. To date, last year's USAC/CRA Rookie of the Year has one feature win, one Sander Engineering Fast Time Award, one heat race victory, ten top-10 finishes, and fourteen main event laps led to his credit. VanderWeerd still has a shot at the title with the Stanfield Memorial victory.

Climbing to fourth in the point standings is Wes Gutierrez of San Martin. Driving the WG Motorsports #007 ButlerBuilt / Competition Suspension Inc. DRC, Gutierrez led all thirty laps to win Hanford's Jim Turner Memorial. The hard charger leads the series with five heat race victories and also has nine top-10 finishes on the season. Wes will be looking to add Santa Maria's Stanfield Memorial to his resume and the $2,000 payday.

"Hollywood" Danny Faria Jr. of Tipton is fifth in the point chase. Piloting Junior Bowman's #2 Buster & Ziggy Enterprises / Kaeding Performance Bullet, Faria scored eighteenth at Hanford after a violent flip ended his night. The veteran driver has one feature win, two Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, three heat race victories, six top-10 finishes, and thirty-two laps on the year. "Hollywood" will be looking to rebound with the $2,000 Santa Maria victory.

Among the other top contenders expected to be in action are Dennis Howell of Rancho Palos Verdes, Hanford's Justyne Hamblin, Greg Alexander of Gardena, Fresno's T.J. Smith, and Bakersfield's Rusty Carlile. In addition, Hanford's Jonathan Logan, Ricky Kirkbride of Bakersfield, Santa Maria's Danny Sheridan, and Bud Kaeding of Campbell should be on hand to battle for the victory.

Santa Maria Speedway is located 1/4-mile north of the 101/166 interchange at 1900 Hutton Road in Nipomo, California. Adult tickets are $16, Senior, Military, and Student tickets (13-17) are $14, Kids tickets (6-12) are $6, and Children’s tickets (5 and under) are FREE. For more event information, visit the track’s website at www.racesantamariaspeedway.com or call (805) 922-2232.

The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series would like to thank Southwest Contractors, Hoosier Tire, Amsoil, BR Motorsports, ButlerBuilt, Competition Suspension Inc., Cory Kruseman's Sprint Car & Midget Driving School, Crow Enterprizes, DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Hinchman-Indy Racing Uniforms, Integra Shocks, Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Port City Racing, Rod End Supply, Saferacer.com, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.

For more information on the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series, visit www.westcoastsprintcars.com, www.usacracing.com, www.racesantamariaspeedway.com, or follow the series on facebook.

9-13-11 City of Tracy Night/9-11 Memorial Put Some Points Battles to Rest While Others Heated Up
Source David Holman
Stockton 99 Speedway

On Saturday, September 10th, the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series returned to action on City of Tracy Night, Brought to you by Victory Motorcycles, Plus 9-11 Memorial. On the Race Card for the Event were the Super Stocks in Twin 40's, Bombers, Basically-4-Cylinders, Mini Cups, and NCMA Sprint Cars. Beneath the flag of remembrance for September 11, 2001, and all that is implied by that date in our history, the 800 fans in the stands paid homage to all affected on that infamous day. Upon conclusion of the ceremonies, the Toughest Test in the West erupted into a magnificent show of appreciation, while the racing surface took on a look of its own, which evolved into some astonishing battles of high-octane power and resolve.

The Mini Cups put on their final Points Race of the year. Lodi’s twelve year-old driver, Jackson Ezell (15), would win the race, his second of the Season, but Scotts Valley’s Bryce Napier would take home the 2011 Crown by a tiny two points over Ezell.

As luck would have it, the Points Battle in this Division would pit Bryce Napier (03) and Jackson Ezell (15) up front and ready to put this one in the books. Coming off turn four to the green, Napier got to the gas a quarter-inch sooner than Ezell and beat him down into turn one. However, coming back around to lap 2, Ezell returned the favor that had been bestowed upon him a lap earlier and took the lead between turns one and two, which is a great feat in itself. The two battled ferociously over that top property for the next nine laps with the #15 car owning it and the #03 car wanting to evict him and claim it for his own. Unfortunately, on lap 11, the two made contact going into one, which sent both cars off on a tangent and brought with them the first yellow of the night. On the restart, the #22 of Hunter Franklin jumped out to enjoy the lead over the next four circuits, but on lap 15, Ezell wrestled it away and Franklin had no choice but to submit to the pure power of Ezell. Once out in the fresh air, Ezell would take it to the checkers for the extremely close Victory, his second this year. Franklin would have to hold off a strong charge by Napier, which he did very convincingly, as he drove it onto the podium in a very strong second. Napier, of course, would have to settle for third, but most assuredly, it was a happy third, because it brought him the lion’s share of this Season’s spoils in winning the 2011 Championship. Congratulations to Bryce Napier for an incredible year.

Well, another crazy week for the Basically-4-Cylinder Division. Manteca’s Dave Kong (9) owned this race from the outset all the way through to the checkers. Unfortunately, during post-race tech, it was discovered the #9 was wearing illegal tires and was disqualified, handing the race win over to the Points Leader from Manteca, Joseph Reichmuth (6), his tenth of the year.

Dave Kong landed on pole to get this one up to speed with third generation female driver from Ceres, Samantha Williams (4), already nibbling chips of paint off the right side door on the #9. With the green flag showing its wrinkled face, Kong got the great jump and beat the field off into turn one. Once he secured P1, which was instantaneous, Kong not only began to chew away at the asphalt, he began to devour it in huge chunks as he raced off to another hemisphere all the way to the checkers to claim his supposed first-ever win by nearly a half-lap over his nearest competitor. And that nearest competitor came in the form of none other than Points Leader Joseph Reichmuth, who had diligently worked his way through traffic, but simply ran out of time to do anything with Kong in this caution-free event. Firecracker Matt Anderson (5) of Manteca, after suffering severe damage a week earlier, came back strong as he drove her onto the podium in third. Charles Kundert, Jr. (7) of Stockton finished his night in fourth, while Stockton’s own Kelle Bobbitt (16), Mr. Consistency, rounded out the top five. At the race’s conclusion, Kong was determined to be wearing illegal tires and was promptly set down, handing the win over to Reichmuth, his tenth on the year. And, by virtue of his win, Reichmuth need only show up next race to clinch the 2011 Championship. That is, of course, if the car-count remains as predicted through Season averages.

The Street Stock’s Twin #1 race was a remarkable one, to say the least. Rocklin’s Josh Whitfield (00) brought a rocket ship to the track and piloted it to the house, wire to wire, for his first-ever win at Stockton.

The lineup was set off qualifying, which set Josh Whitfield (00) at pole and 2010 WLM Champ “The Iceman” Chad Holman (75) of Manteca alongside for the ride. And what a ride it was as the green flag broke through the late summer breeze, Whitfield got the holeshot going down into turn one and took full advantage of the situation, despite suffering through five restarts in the first seven laps due to yellows from early-race jitters? Finally, on the lap 7 single-file restart, the jitters were gone as well as a few race cars and this one got up to speed with Whitfield not only resuming, but presuming that position out front in the rarified air where he filled his lungs with the freshness of it all as he took it to the house for his flag to flag, very impressive, first win ever at the Speedway. The real battle in this one was waged over that not-so-precious territory just behind the leader between Holman and the young driver from Lodi, Matt Wendt (1). Holman had it, Wendt wanted it. And, during the final thirty-three laps, Wendt nibbled and chewed at the rear bumper of the #75 by pulling out of his bag all the tricks he has accumulated in his young career, but the wily veteran Holman had a few tricks of his own stored up in his right foot and crossed beneath the checkers, Wendt still attached, to finish on the podium in second. Of course, Wendt, still picking pieces of bumper and spoiler from his teeth, finished a very close and impressive run in third. Stockton’s Ben Lewis II (22), making a rare appearance this year, brought her home in a very solid fourth, while 2009 Champ from Lodi, Jeff Ahl (31), in an even rarer appearance, brought back some good memories in finishing fifth. Points Leader Mike Graham (93) of Hughson, after an earlier altercation, managed to come home with a seventh place finish.

Points Leader Jeremy Tucker (351) of Stockton put forth his best foot in the Bomber Division. And, in doing so, he put on a Spectacular show for the fans as he worked his way from the back to the win, his fifth of the Season.

David Tucker (350), heir-apparent to the Stockton Tucker Clan, nabbed the pole with the heiress to another famous or infamous Stockton racing family, Kasi Lewis (028), near and dear to the right side numbers of Tucker to get this one underway. Tucker got the great forward bite coming off four to greet the green and beat the pack down into turn one for the lead. Once out front, Tucker appeared extremely comfortable with the view out the windshield, so he decided to keep it that way over the next twenty-one laps, going mostly unchallenged. However, on lap 22, after working his way cleanly through the field from P12 on the starting grid, and by picking his opponents off one by one, Points Leader Jeremy Tucker (351), bounced by the elder Tucker, including some contact, for the lead, where he would bask in the fresh air and spotlight for the remainder of the race as he stepped away from the field in major increments all the way through to the stripe to pick up the victory in an astounding and extremely loud message. The win would be Tucker’s fifth on the year and would build his Points Lead to insurmountable status, bringing the Big Trophy to the Tucker mantelpiece for the 2011 Season. Tyler Guzman (93X) of Ceres, also starting deep on the grid, ran another fabulous race of his own in finishing second. D. Tucker, after leading most of the race, fell back to finish on the podium in third. Stockton’s Bobby Simpson, Jr. (816), always in the middle of the excitement, came home fourth with the #003 of Rick Roberts, from a land time forgot, rounding out the top five.

In the NCMA Sprints, Napa’s Gentleman Driver David Goodwill (3G) capped off another great night of racing in this Division by taking it to the field from shotgun all the way through the pack to Victory.

Sacramento’s David Dias (24) and Patterson’s Thomas Amador (7) shared front row honors to get this one rolling. With the green flag wiggling high above the hot asphalt surface, Dias got the great jump at the line and shot out to the early lead only to be slowed on lap 4 when T. Amador and Concord’s Burt Silverling (77) made contact between one and two with both cars coming to rest high in two and bringing with them the one and only caution of the race. On the lap 4 restart, Dias re-deposited himself in the luxury suite out front, but not without some heavy knocking at the back door by now second place runner, David Goodwill (3G), who had worked his way in an instant’s width to that position from the rear of the pack. And much to Dias’ dismay, on lap 6, Goodwill made an unbelievable move through turns three and four by implementing an absolutely brilliant crossover on Dias and nudging him out of the way just beneath the flagstand to take up residence on that pristine property out front in the clean night air. Once there, Goodwill, as he often does, began to ingest the asphalt at breakneck speed until there was nothing left to absorb but the checkered flag, and that he did, over a half-lap ahead of his nearest competitor to extend his Points Lead in this Touring Series with two races left on their schedule. Ripon’s Denny Burrell (88), starting next to Goodwill on the grid, worked his way cautiously through the field to finish a distant second. Justin Kawahata (15), a young up-and-coming star from Clovis, drove a fine race of his own onto the podium in third. Modesto’s Ed Amador (76), with his usual consistency, brought his hotrod home in fourth, while Dias, falling off the pace a bit, still managed a fifth place run.
In Twin #2 of the Super Stocks, roles were reversed and so was the outcome with Atwater’s Jason Aguirre (45), starting on pole due to the invert, picking up his third win of the year in convincing fashion.

Jason Aguirre (45) and Lodi’s Jeff Ahl (31) inherited row number one due to the five invert off Twin #1. Pacing the field off turn four to the green, Aguirre had the heavier foot and drove off into turn one with the lead where he would almost enjoy his fifteen minutes over the next twenty-six laps, except for the constant gnawing at his back bumper by the young driver from Lodi, Matt Wendt (1), until lap 26 when winner of the first race, Josh Whitfield (00), and Manteca’s Chad Holman (75), made contact going down into turn one, which sent Holman spinning on his wayward way and which eventually sent Whitfield to the tail-end of the longest line to join his partner in crime for his part in the first caution period of the race. On the ensuing restart, Aguirre stepped out front once again only to be slowed two laps later on lap 28 when Whitfield had a right front go down up in turn four, which also collected a couple other cars up on the spoiler of the #00, and which also brought with it a complimentary yellow. On the resulting restart, Aguirre barely got his feet wet out front when the third and final caution hit the night sky on lap 29 due to Wendt losing a transmission down the backstretch, and which of course, ended the great run he was having on this night. And so it went, on the final restart on lap 29, Aguirre, who had refused to relent throughout all the attrition, kept his head square and took it to the checkers for the wire to wire win, number three on the year. Points Leader Mike Graham (93) of Hughson, did his own ducking and dodging to make it up to finish at P2 and extend his Points Lead, not exponentially, but by a few. Stockton’s Rich Harper (22), in a borrowed car after his car was destroyed in Race #1, showed what he was made of by driving it onto the podium in third. Ahl, after starting up front, slipped back slightly, but still managed his second top five of the night in finishing fourth, while Holman, after the earlier skirmish with the #00, rebounded to finish fifth. Although Graham is the Points Leader, he will have to show up and race next week due to the slight edge of fourteen points he holds over his pursuers.

Next Saturday, September 17th, the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series returns to Live The Madness, sponsored by 51 FIFTY Energy Drink. It will also be the Whelen All-American Series Final Points Race. On the Docket for the Event will be the Western Late Models in 150-Laps of racing pleasure. Also, the Super Stocks, Grand American Modifieds, Bombers and the Basically-4-Cylinders.

The New Stockton 99 Speedway is located at 4105 N. Wilson Way, ¼-mile west of Highway 99. For more information on tickets and times, please contact the Speedway Office at (209)466-9999 or visit their Website at www.stockton99.com.

The New Stockton 99 Speedway is sponsored by Jackson Rancheria Casino Hotel, California Welding Supply, Budweiser, Alamo Alarm and Stockton Hampton Inn and Suites and Lodi Holiday Express.

9-13-11 back to Back Trophy Dash Wins For McCord in NASCAR Modifieds
Source RSWC PR
All American Speedway

Billings, MT teenager Mindy McCord continued his strong late season push in the NASCAR Modifieds at All American Speedway, picking up her second consecutive trophy dash win on the one-third mile oval outside Sacramento, CA.

McCord is a member of the Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle program which fields multiple cars in the division although McCord drives a #26 Modified prepared by local team Nascimento Motorsports.

McCord and her father make a 20 hour trip to Roseville each week to compete in the 500 horsepower Modifieds. On Saturday night, McCord qualified fourth quick at 14.272 seconds. She missed the pole by just .066 seconds out of the 16 car field on hand.

The fourth place qualifying effort put McCord on the pole for the four car, four lap trophy dash. The former USAC Ford Focus Midget driver led all four laps to a comfortable win in the race.

After greeting the fans and doing an interview on the front stretch, McCord put her game face on for a pair of 40 lap main events. McCord took the lead of the main event on lap five and led through lap 11. But while under caution, McCord had to head to the pits with mechanical problems which ultimately forced her to finish outside the top-ten.

RSWC teammate Bobby Runyan, Jr. drove the #21 K&N sponsored car to a hard earned third place finish to lead the team in the first main event while Montreal’s Steve Cote finished sixth.

The starting line-up for the second race was based on the first event’s finish, which meant McCord would have to do her bidding from the rear of the field. McCord successfully drove through the field for a solid eighth place finish while Cote led RSWC with a fifth place effort.

The final 2011 points race for the NASCAR Modifieds at All American Speedway will be held this Saturday night. McCord hasn’t run the entire points season, but her RSWC teammates Cote and Runyan find themselves in second and fourth place in the championship series at All American Speedway.

“It’s only a matter of time before Mindy puts together a 40 lap victory,” Driver Coach Ron Sutton said. “She looked poised to win the first race of the night except for some bad luck!”

Mindy McCord Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle thanks partners: QMParts.com, Interstate Performance Exhaust, Car Factory, Nascimento Motorsports, K&N Filters, Scribner Plastics, Allstar Performance, Sunoco Race Fuels and Star Racing Supply. For more information on Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle, log on to www.winners-circle-racing.com

Mindy McCord is online at www.mindymccord.com

9-12-11 All American Speedway Honors 9/11 Anniversary; Eric Bocksberger and Nick Lyons Grab First Victories
Source RMG Race Media Group
All American Speedway

All American Speedway honored the 10^th anniversary of the tragic attacks on the Twin Towers and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. To honor the victims and the heroes of Nine-Eleven the track presented free general admission to first responders and put on display a portion of a twin tower I-beam, fire trucks and ladder trucks remembering 9/11. The fans of All American Speedway were in awe when a young seven-year-old girl sang the National Anthem perfectly along with the 9/11 display.

The NASCAR All American Whelen Championship series contested its 16^th points race featuring the NASCAR Modifieds twin 50’s, Street Stocks and Bombers 35 laps and joining the series was the USAC Ford Focus Midgets and the USAC Young Guns. A few drivers competed in multiple divisions throughout the night. Keegan Walmer drove in the Modified, Ford Focus and young guns divisions, and Erick Ray contested the Modified, Bomber and Street Stock divisions.

First up on the agenda was the Bomber division fielding 11 cars and No. 04 Dana Kelly posted fastest lap around the speedway with a fast time of 15.899 seconds grabbing her first ever fastest qualifier. Followed by No. 3 Chris Paulson, No. 50 Richard Perez, No. 23 Eric Bocksberger and No. 63 Joe Rhodes the fast five. Chris Paulson grabbed the heat race win and Eric Bocksberger took home the trophy dash victory. In the main event, an invert of four was spun setting Eric Bocksberger on pole. Bocksberger took the early lead and pulled away from the field. On lap four, No. 89 Walter Silva spun on the back stretch creating lots of smoke and continues on racing as no yellow was thrown. On lap six, No. 12 Denise Lambert spun on the front straight away causing a yellow flag. On the restart, the top four drivers Bocksberger, No. 50 Richard Perez, Paulson and Kelly pulled away from the field racing side by side putting on a drag race for positions. Side by side racing continued through lap 17 when Paulson almost lost control of the car to loop it in turn two but throttled down and saved it. On lap 19, No. 17 Raymond Stafford and Walter Silva both spun on the front stretch causing a yellow. On the restart, the top four drivers continued to drive two by two as Bocksberger and Perez continued to trade off the lead. On lap 32, Richard Perez got sideways in turn four collecting Dana Kelly causing both drivers to lose grounds. Eric Bocksberger led the remaining few laps to collect his first 2011 All American Speedway Bomber victory. Chris Paulson second, No. 22 Keith Hopkinson third, Joe Rhodes fourth and Denise Lambert fifth.

Newcomers join the Modified twin 50’s for the night with Stockton’s Jarred Beddow driving the No. 55 machine, Bomber driver Erick Ray driving the No. 1 modified, No. 07 Justin Wolff to grab seat time and Keegan Walmer performing several racing duties as well. No.68 Cody Thompson put’s his modified machine on top of the charts in qualifying positing a fast lap of 14.206 seconds. Followed by No. 43 Nick Lyons, No. 5 Jason Bamberg, No. 26 Mindy McCord and No. 45 Rich Lindgren the fast five. No heat races were schedule for the Modified division as they will be contesting twin 50’s. The division jumped right into the trophy dash with Mindy McCord collecting her second consecutive trophy dash victory. In the first twin 50’s main event, No. 26 Mindy McCord led the field to the green flag and Jason Bamberg took the early lead over McCord. The top eight cars all stacked up with the leader battling for positions. On lap five, McCord took over the top spot over Bamberg. On lap 11, No. 05 Chase Grigsby dove deep in turn four on No. 45 Rich Lindgren sent Grigsby spinning bringing out the yellow. Tough break for the leader Mindy McCord, McCord pulled into the pits under the yellow handing the lead to No. 29 Dan Jinkerson. On lap 13, Nick Lyons took the lead from point’s leader Jinkerson. Jinkerson got loose in turn one and lost positions falling back to fifth. On lap 23, Cody Thompson made the pass for the lead and completed the pass. Thompson and Lyons battle for the top spot and on lap 26 Lyons regained the lead. On lap 34, Keegan Walmer and Chase Grigsby battled for the seventh position and got collected sending Grigsby to a scary head on wreck in turn three. AAS track officials quickly cleaned up the track and remove the carnage to get racing rolling again. Lyons and Thompson led the restart and raced side by side to the finish line with Nick Lyons collecting his first 2011 Modified victory. Followed by Cody Thompson, Bobby Runyan, Dan Jinkerson and No. 55 Jarred Beddow the final five.

In the second twin 50 main event, with an invert of five, put Jarred Beddow on pole to lead the 15 car field to the green. Beddow and Jinkerson side by side drag racing for position as the two swapped lead positions. On lap five, Jinkerson clears Beddow for good after the two made contact. On lap seven, Bobby Runyan and Nick Lyons made contact sending Lyons to the infield stalled which brought out the yellow. Under caution, Runyan exited the track for a flat tire. After the restart, Jinkerson runs with the lead as the rest of the field battled for position. From second to fifth Beddow, Thompson, Lindgren and Bamberg all trading rubber and bumping each other brought excitement to the fans. On lap 22, Rich Lindgren and Jarred Beddow got tangled in turn two sending Lindgren spinning causing a yellow. On the restart, Beddow challenges Jinkerson by making a pass on the inside however Jinkerson’s car is was well tuned for the outside line. On the white flag lap, Cody Thompson caught up to Jinkerson to pass in turn one to complete the pass for the lead until Jarred Beddow made contact with Thompson sending Thompson spinning. Dan Jinkerson took the victory with Jarred Beddow second, Jason Bamberg third, Rich Lindgren fourth and Steve Cote the final five.

Next up was the Street Stock division fielding 14 cars and No. 08 Mickey Owens topped off qualifying with a fast time of 14.996 seconds. Followed by No. 23 Richard Poppert Jr., No. 98 Byron Gonzales, No. 2 Mel Wilson and No. 86 Dave Silva the fast five. Mickey Owens took home the first heat race win and Richard Poppert Jr. grabbed the second heat race victory. No. 52 Matt Camp collected the trophy dash victory. An invert of three was spun setting Byron Gonzales to set the pace for the green flag. Richard Poppert Jr. took the early lead as Mickey Owens tried to pass Gonzales for second. On lap seven, Matt Camp brushed against the back stretch wall ending his night with heavy damage to the side of his car. On the restart, Poppert and Owens battled for the top spot racing side by side and Owens took the lead on lap eight. Owens brought on a huge gap between him and Poppert as Gonzales battled for third with Dave Silva. Owens brought home another victory adding it to his 2011 victory collection. Richard Poppert Jr. second, Byron Gonzales third, Dave Silva fourth and Joe Dahl fifth.

The Ford Focus Midgets brought eight cars to the speedway to battle for dual 40 main events. Australian resident Brodie Kostecki topped off qualifying with a fast time of 13.604 seconds followed by No. 31 Garrett Peterson, No. 3 Keegan Walmer, No. 8 James Eden and No. 44 Jessica Clark the fast five. The division contested an eight lap heat race and Kostecki took home the heat race victory. No trophy dash was scheduled and the division jumped right into the first main event with Keegan Walmer in charge of setting the pace for the green flag. Keegan Walmer took the early lead and walked away from field to hold off the charging kangaroo Kostecki. On lap 34, Sheldon Didinger spun which brought out the yellow flag. On the restart, Walmer lost the lead to Kostecki with six laps remaining. Brodie Kostecki took the first victory with a .592 second lead. Keegan Walmer second, Garrett Peterson third, James Eden fourth and Tanner Long fifth. A full invert set for the final 40 lap Ford Focus main event putting Jessica Clark on pole. Sheldon Didinger grabbed the early lead as Clark got hung on the outside. On lap 12, James Eden made the pass on Didinger for the lead and closed the door on Didinger. Clean racing for the Ford Focus drivers and the unstoppable Australian Brodie Kostecki flew by Eden for the lead on lap 35. Kostecki took home the Ford Focus victory with a 1.297 second lead. Followed by Garrett Peterson, Keegan Walmer, Tanner Long and James Eden the final five.

In the Junior Focus Midget division the racing kangaroo No. 40 Brodie Kostecki swept qualifying with a fast time of 13.970 seconds with No. 3 Keegan Walmer second, No. 11 Trevor Hunt third, No. 8 James Eden fourth and No. 42 Sheldon Didinger fifth. In the five lap trophy dash all five drivers contested for a trophy and Kostecki took home the win. In the Main event, Trevor Hunt led the field to the green flag and took the early lead. On lap three, Keegan Walmer grabbed the lead with the racing Kangaroo Brodie Kostecki charging hard. On lap 8 Kostecki took the lead and planned on performing a clean sweep for the night at All American Speedway. On lap 18, Sheldon Didinger spun in turn one brought the yellow flag. On the restart, unstoppable Kostecki took the lead and never looked back collecting the victory in the Jr Focus Midgets division as well as making a clean sweep in the USAC show. Followed by Trevor Hunt, James Eden, Keegan Walmer and Sheldon Didinger the top five.

Weekly NASCAR Championship Points Race No. 17 will return to All American Speedway this Saturday, September 17th featuring the finale of NASCAR Late Models 100, Modifieds 40, Street Stocks and Bombers 35. More information about All American Speedway, as well as driver interviews, can be found at www.AllAmericanSpeedway.com. The Placer County Fairgrounds administration office is open for advance ticket sales Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm at 800 All America City Blvd. Roseville, CA. 95678, or contact the office at (916) 786-2025.
*Championship Points race No. 18 on October, 1^st has been cancelled due to reservation of USAC night.
*October 14^th will be a NON-points race for the Bill McAnally Late Models and Modifieds race.

9-12-11 Wes Gutierrez Wins Hanford's Jim Turner Memorial
Source Lance Jennings
USAC 360s

Last Saturday night, San Martin's Wes Gutierrez led all thirty laps to score his first USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series feature win of the season. With the "Jim Turner Memorial" victory at Scott Woodhouse's Giant Chevrolet Kings Speedway, Gutierrez became the seventh different driver in twelve events to claim victory during the 2011 campaign.

Piloting the WG Motorsports #007 ButlerBuilt / Competition Suspension Inc. DRC, Wes Gutierrez started the Hanford feature from the pole position. It was not an easy win for the hard charger as he had to fight off numerous challenges from Ryan Bernal. Bernal, who had won the three previous main events, actually took the lead from Gutierrez on several occasions. Each time, Wes countered with determined drive and retook the top spot to officially lead every circuit. The pair sliced and battled their way through slower traffic and in the end, Wes Gutierrez won the "Jim Turner Memorial" followed by Ryan Bernal, point leader Richard VanderWeerd, Greg Alexander, and "Showtime" Danny Sheridan.

The "Jim Turner Memorial" marks the second career USAC West Coast 360 feature triumph for Wes Gutierrez. The young driver was fourth quick in time trials and won his series leading fifth heat race by taking the Extreme Mufflers sponsored event. Climbing to fourth in the chase for the championship, Gutierrez has nine top-10 finishes to his credit as the series heads to Santa Maria this Saturday.

With his runner-up finish, Hollister's Ryan Bernal saw his win streak end at three main events, tying a club record. Driving Danny Olmstead's #11D S&S Automotive / Dorso's Automotive Maxim, Bernal fought hard with Gutierrez, racing side by side for many laps. It was not to be for the former Wingless Spec Sprint Champion as he is in a tight battle for the championship. Earlier in the program, Ryan was third fast on the night and finished third in his heat race. Currently second in the points, Bernal has two heat race victories, nine top-10 finishes, and leads the series with 116 feature laps led.

Point leader Richard VanderWeerd of Visalia came home third in the Jim Turner Memorial. Piloting the family owned #10 VanderWeerd Construction / Battery Worx Maxim, Richard was close behind the leaders and had a solid performance as the season winds down. Leading the competition by fifty-two points, VanderWeerd has one feature win, three Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, three heat race victories, eleven top-10 finishes, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, and seventeen main event laps led.

Gardena's Greg Alexander claimed fourth at the checkered flags. Driving Chuck Tyler's #72 Barnes Systems / Amsoil Maxim, Alexander earned his first Sander Engineering Fast Time Award of the year and was fourth in his heat race. Sitting eighth in the point chase, Greg has two heat race victories, seven top-10 finishes, and six feature laps led to his credit.

"Showtime" Danny Sheridan of Santa Maria earned his second Keizer Wheels Hard Charger / Best Passing Job honors with a fifth place run after starting tenth. Piloting Warren Dorathy's #21 Pace Lighting / PIPE KPC, Sheridan qualified thirteenth and took second in his heat race to Wes Gutierrez. In limited action, "Showtime" is eighteenth in the points with two heat race victories, three top-10 finishes, and eight feature laps led on the season.

Hanford's Justyne Hamblin drove the JH Motorsports' #8 Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino / Dias Law Firm Speed Tech to victory in the Saldana Racing Products / Keizer Wheels Heat Race #2. The 2009 series champion was fourteenth quick on the night and claimed tenth at the checkered flags. Currently seventh in the standings, Hamblin has two heat race victories, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, and seven top-10 finishes on the year.

Dennis Howell of Rancho Palos Verdes raced the family owned #62 San Pedro Auto Body / Howell-Meyer Racing Maxim to the DJ Safety Heat Race #3 win. The USAC Western Midget Series graduate qualified twelfth fast in the night and was seventh in the main event. Currently sixth in the point standings, Howell has three heat race victories, two Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Awards, and nine top-10 finishes in 2011.

The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series would like to thank Southwest Contractors, Hoosier Tire, Amsoil, BR Motorsports, ButlerBuilt, Competition Suspension Inc., Cory Kruseman's Sprint Car & Midget Driving School, Crow Enterprizes, DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Hinchman-Indy Racing Uniforms, Integra Shocks, Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Port City Racing, Rod End Supply, Saferacer.com, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.

The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series will return to action this Saturday, September 17th, at Chris Kearns' Santa Maria Speedway. Located 1/4-mile north of the 101/166 interchange at 1900 Hutton Road in Nipomo, California, more event information can be found at www.racesantamariaspeedway.com or call (805) 922-2232.

For more information on the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series, please visit westcoastsprintcars.com, usacracing.com, racesantamariaspeedway.com, or follow the series on facebook.

9-12-11 September 10th Ventura Raceway Report
Source Cliff Morgan
Ventura Raceway

VRA Sprint Car point leader Greg Taylor made a strong move in turn two on the last lap of the 30 lap feature to get by Josh Ford who had led the first 29 laps of Saturday's Sprint Car event. Taylor's 4th win of the season gives him a 245 point lead over Ford in the season point race. The race saw hard fought battles throughout the field of competitors. One red flag event marred the running when Brian Camarillo and Kyle Smith flipped in turn three. Smith went to the hospital for a check up. Following Taylor and Ford across the finish line were Steve Conrad, Dakota Kershaw and Jimmy Crawford. Heat race wins on Saturday went to Markus Niemela, Brent Camarillo and Dakota Kershaw.

VRA Senior Sprints were in competition going for a special added purse donated by Cyndi Jewett in memory of her husband and former IMCA/VRA Sprint and Senior Sprint driver Jim Jewett who passed away in August. Her kind donation allowed the Seniors to race for a $1000 first place and $130 to start purse. With the bigger purse in their eyes the race was a fast and furious one that saw Bruce Douglass led lap 1-12 only to be passed by Richard McCormick on lap 13. McCormick then led the rest of the laps to take his first win of 2011. Douglass followed him across the line with series point leader Rob Kershaw in third, Victor Davis in fourth and Russell DeBlauw in fifth. Two heat races were run with wins going to Victor Davis and Clif Warren.

VRA Dwarf Cars were back in action Saturday. In Senior competition, Rick Lapka continued his winning ways with a strong win over point leader George Calvo, Mike Neal, Keith Vondersaar and Mitch Hedrick.
The one Senior Heat race win went to George Sack. In Pro competition, season point leader Ray Estrada took another win over Devlin Autrey, Mike Lewis, Kevin Calvo and Russell Blades. Two heats were run with wins going to Angel Figueroa and Ray Estrada.

VRA Sport Compacts were back in action for the first time since the FAIR race. Once again Trevor Fitzgibbon put his number 28 Pinto out front and took another win. Following him were Jess Carluccci, Ryan Changus, Brad Long and Michaela Stanton. Their heat race win went to Brad Long.

A small field of three Mod Lites raced with the heat race and main event going to Mike Neal over Mike Sweeney Jr. and Chris Kordner.

The final classes racing on Saturday were our kids classes. In Junior Midgets Brennan Rogers took another win over point leader Devin McCree, Miles Hedrick, Tommy Velasquez and Kayle Brazel. Heat race wins went to Velasquez and Rogers. In Pistons J D Brown took another win over Zack Chavez, Blake Hendricks, Trevor Hansen and Garrett Egan. In Superchargers, Nick Velasquez took wins in the heat and main event over Destyn Garcia.

Racing resumes next Saturday night with a full program featuring VRA Sprints, VRA Midgets, Ford Focus Midgets Junior Ford Focus Midgets, IMCA Modifieds and VRA Go Karts.

9-12-11 26th "Bud Stanfield Memorial" at Santa Maria Saturday 1st 360 Win For Gutierrez at Hanford
source Dick Jordan
USAC West Coast 360s

Richard VanderWeerd will try to hold on to his USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car point lead this Saturday when the series returns to Santa Maria (Calif.) Speedway for the 26th Annual “Bud Stanfield Memorial.”
VanderWeerd sits 52 points ahead of Ryan Bernal in the latest standings after finishing third in last Saturday night’s “Jim Turner Memorial” at Giant Chevrolet Kings Speedway in Hanford, Calif. Bernal finished second at Hanford.
Wes Gutierrez of San Martin, Calif. led wire-to-wire to win Saturday night’s Hanford feature. Trailing him, Bernal and VanderWeerd were fast qualifier Greg Alexander and Danny Sheridan. Gutierrez piloted the WM Motorsports/Competition Suspension DRC/Borello.
So far this year, Santa Maria has hosted three West Coast 360 races. Bernal has won the last two, while Jace VanderWeerd, third in the new series standings, won the other. Although Richard VanderWeerd’s best finish at Santa Maria this year has been a third, he has been the fastest qualifier there twice.

USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS
1-Richard VanderWeerd-694; 2-Ryan Bernal-642; 3-Jace VanderWeerd-600; 4-Wes Gutierrez-586; 5-Danny Faria Jr.-550; 6-Dennis Howell-511; 7-Justyne Hamblin-474; 8-Greg Alexander-461; 9-T.J. Smith-437; 10-Rusty Carlile-395.

9-9-11 New USAC West Coast 360 Tire Rule in Effect For 2012
Source Lance Jennings
USAC West Coast

USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series Promoter Chris Kearns has announced that the group will have a new tire rule for the 2012 campaign. With Hoosier Tire discontinuing the RC3, a suitable replacement was needed that would also encourage more crossover drivers and teams between the various organizations that compete in California.

Since it’s founding in 2009, the USAC West Coast 360s have utilized the Hoosier RC3 right rear tire. Before that, the RC3 had been used for many years by various sanctioning bodies throughout the southwestern United States. As this writing goes to press, the RC3 is only used by the Central California based group. This fact prompted officials at Hoosier Tire to discontinue the line and Kearns had to search for an alternative.

Next season, the series will change to the Hoosier Medium 105 x 16 x 15 right rear tires. The Hoosier Medium is used by all of the ASCS winged Sprint Car groups and the ASCS Canyon non-winged region of Arizona. As before, the VRA tire used by the Ventura Racing Association will remain legal with the USAC West Coast 360 Sprints.

Currently, there are several key races left in the hunt for the championship. Visalia’s Richard VanderWeerd currently holds a fifty-three point advantage over Ryan Bernal of Hollister. Bernal is the hottest driver on the circuit and has won the last three main events. Richard’s twin brother Jace is third in the point standings and has a shot at the title. “Hollywood” Danny Faria Jr. of Tipton and San Martin’s Wes Gutierrez round out the top five in points. This Saturday night, the USAC West Coast 360s have unfinished business at Hanford’s “Jim Turner Memorial.”

The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series would like to thank Southwest Contractors, Hoosier Tire, Amsoil, BR Motorsports, ButlerBuilt, Competition Suspension Inc., Cory Kruseman's Sprint Car & Midget Driving School, Crow Enterprizes, DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Hinchman-Indy Racing Uniforms, Integra Shocks, Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Port City Racing, Rod End Supply, Saferacer.com, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.

For more information on the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series, visit www.westcoastsprintcars.com, www.usacracing.com, www.racesantamariaspeedway.com, or follow the series on facebook.

9-9-11 Extra Money Up For Grabs at Santa Maria's Stanfield Memorial
Source Lance Jennings
USAC West Coast 360s

When the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series return to Santa Maria Speedway on Saturday, September 17th, there will be extra prize money up for grabs. Series and Track Promoter Chris Kearns has announced that this year’s “Bud Stanfield Memorial” will feature a purse of $2000-to-win, $1000-for-2nd, $800-for-3rd, and $250-to-start the main event.

The 2011 “Bud Stanfield Memorial” is sponsored by the family of John Jewett. Jewett, a veteran of the Bandit, Santa Maria, Ventura, and SCRA Sprint Car wars, scored his only feature win at the Santa Maria facility. The popular driver passed way last month and will be missed by the racing community.

The September 17th event at Santa Maria will also showcase the MMI Hobby Stocks, Toste Construction Mini-Stocks, and the popular NMRA TQ Midgets. The Front Gates will open at 4:00pm, Time Trials will start at 5:00pm, with Racing at "The West Coast's Best Short Track" to begin at 6:00pm.

The Santa Maria race will play a key role in the hunt for the championship. Visalia’s Richard VanderWeerd currently holds a fifty-three point advantage over Ryan Bernal of Hollister. Bernal is the hottest driver on the circuit and has won the last three main events. Richard’s twin brother Jace is third in the point standings and has a shot at the title. “Hollywood” Danny Faria Jr. of Tipton and San Martin’s Wes Gutierrez round out the top five in points. Before the Santa Maria race, the USAC West Coast 360s have unfinished business at Hanford’s “Jim Turner Memorial” this Saturday night.

The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series would like to thank Southwest Contractors, Hoosier Tire, Amsoil, BR Motorsports, ButlerBuilt, Competition Suspension Inc., Cory Kruseman's Sprint Car & Midget Driving School, Crow Enterprizes, DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Hinchman-Indy Racing Uniforms, Integra Shocks, Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Port City Racing, Rod End Supply, Saferacer.com, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.

For more information on the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series, visit www.westcoastsprintcars.com, www.usacracing.com, www.racesantamariaspeedway.com, or follow the series on facebook.

9-9-11 Larson Charges to Tiner Family Classic Win During Gold Cup
Source Steven Blakesley
USAC Migets

2010 King of California and 2011 USAC Midget standout Kyle Larson of Elk Grove, CA charged from 14th win the “Tiner Family Classic” during the Gold Cup Race of Champions at Silver Dollar Speedway on Thursday night. The inaugural running of USAC during the Gold Cup attracted 50 Sprint Cars and 24 Midgets before a strong crowd in Chico.

The night of action paid Sprint Car points for both the USAC/CRA and Western Classic Racing Series honoring the rich racing tradition of the Tiner family.

Fremont’s Shane Golobic led the 24 car field to green while Sebastopol’s Geoff Ensign leapt forward to challenge him quickly. Ensign bounced into Chico’s Jason York for second in a hard impact but both cars were able to continue.

On a lap four restart Golobic really felt the pressure from Ensign with Ensign taking over the point on lap eight in his Ted Finkenbinder #3F.

The USAC Western Classic Racing Series points leader led through lap 10 when the caution came out again. On the single-file restart, Yorba Linda’s Matt Mitchell sliced to the inside to take the lead away. One lap later Ensign threw away the lead as he jumped the turn four cushion and had to be towed off the track.

Ensign’s crew feverishly worked on the car while the race restarted. The fans were brought to their feet in a wild three-wide battle down the backstretch between Mitchell, Larson, and Loomis’ Kyle Hirst. Hirst nearly came off the track down the backstretch but the caution came out for a stalled car in turn two.

That caution allowed Ensign time to rejoin the field still on the lead lap and on the restart Hirst swept past Mitchell to take over the lead. While “The Wild Child” Jac Haudenschild worked the cushion into the top-five, Larson moved into second and the Kyle & Kyle show ensued up front.

Hirst and Larson, Outlaw Kart graduates, put on one of the best races for the lead that many observers have seen all season, with Larson finally taking over the lead in lapped traffic on lap 21.

Yellow flags flew on lap 23 as Austin Williams and Browns Valley’s Cody Myers crashed out of top-ten runs. Larson had a fine restart but the red flag came out on lap 25 when Williams and Gregg Bragg tumbled upside down in turn four.

Larson had a brilliant restart to rocket away to the victory while Haudenschild moved to second at the line. Mitchell, Hirst, and USAC/CRA points leader Mike Spencer rounded out the top-five. Ensign came back to 13th ahead of rival Tony Hunt to enhance his USAC Western Classic points lead. Ensign also emerged from Chico as the USAC Western Classic dirt champion on the strength of two runner-up finishes and a win in the eight race season.

Grass Valley’s Billy Wallace won the qualifying race with heat races going to Haudenschild, Spencer, Larson, and Richard Brace, Jr. Myers won the semi. Haudenschild took quick time in the Paul Silva #57 at 13.60 seconds.

In USAC/BCRA Western Midgets, it was Fresno’s David Prickett that led all 25 laps to grab the victory and make up some ground on USAC points leader Cory Kruseman. Kruseman came home second in a close finish with Golobic, Matt Streeter of Galt, and Oklahoma’s Michelle Decker. No qualifications were held with heats going to Cody Swanson, Jake Swanson, and Shannon McQueen.

The USAC Western Classic Racing Series will continue on Saturday September 17 on pavement at the Madera Speedway with the final three races of the season to be contested on asphalt.

More information on the USAC Western Classic Racing Series is available on Facebook at keywords “USAC Western Classic Racing Series”. The United States Auto Club is online at www.usacracing.com

The USAC Western Classic Racing Series is brought to you by: Amsoil, Hoosier Tires West, and Kaeding Performance.

AMSOIL USAC/CRA/WESTERN CLASSIC SPRINT CAR SERIES RACE RESULTS: September 8, 2011 – Chico, California – Silver Dollar Speedway – “Tiner Family Classic”

9-7-11 Gold Cup Tiner Classic Up Next For USAC Sprints And Midgets
Source Steven Blakesley
USAC Sprints

The USAC/CRA and Western Classic Sprint Cars along with the USAC Western Midgets will continue their busy week by making USAC’s debut in the prestigious Gold Cup Race of Champions at Silver Dollar Speedway on Thursday night.

Thursday’s activities at the quarter-mile dirt oval in Chico, CA will be the “Tiner Family Classic” honoring the rich racing history of the Tiner family. Sunday’s $5,000 Louie Vermeil Classic winner Mike Spencer leads the USAC/CRA into Chico while USAC rookie Geoff Ensign took over the lead in the Western Classic series with a fourth place finish on Sunday at Calistoga.

“We’re excited to go to Chico on Thursday,” Spencer said. “I’ve never even been there so I’m kinda looking forward to that. I know it’s a short track and I think I’ve seen a video of it.”

While many in the USAC/CRA will be making their first starts at Chico, the USAC Western Classic Racing Series has raced there twice in 2011. Plainfield, IN’s Bill Rose won the “John Padjen Classic” during the Mini Gold Cup in March while August’s “Wayne Sue Classic” went to Kingsburg’s Kody Swanson. Rose is expected to compete on Thursday.

Joining Spencer from the USAC/CRA will be championship contenders Matt Mitchell and Nic Faas along with Rip, Cody, and Austin Williams also expected. The lure of USAC racing during the Gold Cup has attracted a few national caliber talents with 2010 King of California Kyle Larson returning to California.

Larson will be joined by the “Wild Child” Jac Haudenschild of Wooster, OH aboard Paul Silva’s potent #57 Rockstar / Makita mount. Steven Tiner will shed the wing to try to win his namesake’s race along with 2011 Placerville Speedway champion Andy Forsberg and Fremont’s Shane Golobic also taking the wings off.

Chico regulars Jason York and Roseville’s Colby Copeland raced with the series at Calistoga and are expected again on Thursday. A host of other competitors from the California Sprint Car Civil War were at least considering competing in the race pending their performances in Wednesday night’s show.

The USAC Western Classic Racing Series will be well represented with Ensign, Tony Hunt, Shauna Hogg, and Scott Pierovich. Gary Paulson will climb aboard fifth place Tim Barber’s car on Thursday night due to a scheduling conflict. Dirt regulars in the Western Classic series include Tim Sherman, Jr., Marty Hawkins, Todd Miller, Jr., Jerry Cisco, and Mark Beck.

On the USAC Western Midget side of things, the points battle at the top has cooled off with Ventura’s Cory Kruseman now leading by 40 points over Stockton’s Johnathon Henry who won Sunday’s feature at Calistoga. Fresno’s David Prickett fell to third in the standings after failing to finish Sunday’s race. The BCRA Midgets will co-sanction the activities with Nick Foster, Jr. of San Jose leading the points.

A car count of nearly 60 combined entries between the Midgets and the Sprints is expected in Thursday’s show and reserved tickets are selling fast. Race fans can find out more ticket information at www.silverdollarspeedway.

Pit gates will open at 2 p.m. on Thursday afternoon with grandstands at 5 p.m. and racing to start by 7.

More information on the USAC Western Classic Racing Series is available on Facebook at keywords “USAC Western Classic Racing Series”. The United States Auto Club is online at www.usacracing.com

The USAC Western Classic Racing Series is brought to you by: Amsoil, Hoosier Tires West, and Kaeding Performance.

8-6-11 Cody Thompson captures First Modified Victory at All American Speedway
Source RMG Race Media Group
All American Speedway

The roar of race cars turning laps around the speedway, the smell of race fuel, and wedding bells brought fans to All American Speedway for the 15th NASCAR championship points race. The championship divisions contested their 15th race of the season and with just two races left, some 2011 Championships on the line. The race day presented the NASCAR Late Models 50, Modifieds 40, Street Stocks and Bombers 35 as well as the highlight of the night was a wedding put on in the infield. The unification of Eddie Simmons and Renee Fleenor had fans cheering them on. A memorial lap was performed for a fellow racer’s brother passing. Long time AAS racer Gary Glenn’s Brother Joseph passed away on August 24th. With all of the many years of the Glenn family participating at AAS, the Speedway put on a memorial lap in remembrance of Joe Glenn. Many cars from all divisions made a few laps on the track in support of the Glenn family.

First up on the agenda was the Street Stock division fielding an impressive 19 cars and No. 23 Richard Poppert Jr. topped off qualifying with a fast time of 15.241 seconds. Along with No.98 Byron Gonzales, No. 08 Mickey Owens, No. 16 Scott Woessner and No. 52 Matt Camp the fast five. Mickey Owens grabbed the first heat race win and No. 86 Dave Silva took home the win for the second heat race. The top four drivers Mickey Owens, Dave Silva, No. 79 Eric Martinez and No. 2 Mel Wilson made it to the four lap trophy dash and Mel Wilson took home his first trophy dash victory. In the 35 lap main event, an invert of seven was spun putting the No. 86 machine Dave Silva on pole to lead the stacked field to the green flag. On lap three, Matt Camp and No. 25 Dave Sciarroni collided on the front stretch collecting No. 22 Mark Blanton. Blanton received the most damage and had to enter the pits to flatten out his buckled hood and fix the bent front bumper preventing it from rubbing the right front tire. Late Model crew members helped Blanton bend back the front bumper and sent Blanton on his way just in time for the restart. Dave Silva continued to power away on the restart and extending his lead. By lap nine, Richard Poppert Jr. and Mickey Owens had finally passed for the second spot racing side by side for five laps while running down the leader. As Dave Silva approached lap traffic Poppert and Owens began to close in. On lap 19, Richard Poppert Jr. made the pass for the lead as the two raced side by side. The two drivers remained side by side until coming up on a lap car. The two would sandwich the lap car making the pass three wide with Mickey Owens quietly following them. On lap 25, Mickey Owens took the lead for good and never looked back. Mickey Owens captured his eighth victory this season followed by Dave Silva, Richard Poppert Jr., Byron Gonzales and Matt Camp the final five. The street stock division has two races left for the championship and if Mickey Owens continues with strong finishes he will be crowned 2011 All American Speedway Champion.

Second up was the Modified division fielding 12 cars and first time top qualifier No. 8 Andy Field posted fastest lap around the speedway with a time of 14.541 seconds just keeping No. 4 Steve Cote in second by .003 seconds. Making the return to the speedway was No. 7 Joey Licata in third, No. 26 Mindy McCord fourth and points leader No. 29 Dan Jinkerson fifth. No heat races were set for the Modified division as they jumped right into the trophy dash. The top four qualifiers all made it the trophy dash and Mindy McCord came home with her first ever trophy dash victory. The seven car invert put No. 68 Cody Thompson on pole to set the pace for the green flag. Thompson got a good run on the start to take the early lead and had already opened it up to five car lengths by lap two. On lap two, drivers went three wide and Joey Licata hit the wall breaking a spindle and ending his night. No.4 Steve Cote was also involved in the group as Steve was pushed down to the bottom of the track and lost positions. On the restart, Cody Thompson continued to power away on the starts to open up his lead. On lap three, No. 50 Michael Roman and No. 98 Keegan Walmer traded rubber resulting in Walmer spinning. On lap six, No. 5 Jason Bamberg made a bump and run on No. 05 Chase Grigsby in turn two but Grigsby kept his machine rolling. By lap eight, Cody Thompson had now extended his lead to six car lengths from the field and continued to power away. On lap ten, the top five cars all spread out and the battle was for sixth with four cars in the mix Jason Bamberg, Bobby Runyan, Steve Cote and Keegan Walmer. The rest of the race went smooth and the Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle veteran Cody Thompson had extended his lead to 15 car lengths to finish line with a 2.097 second lead capturing his first ever career Modified victory. Followed by Dan Jinkerson, Jason Bamberg, Mindy McCord and Andy Field the top five. With one race and twin 50’s left for the 2011 championship, the championship is on the line with Dan Jinkerson and Steve Cote down to the wire.

Up next was the NASCAR Late Model division and No. 05 Eric Schmidt putting his machine on top of the charts in qualifying with a fast time of 13.953 seconds followed by No. 8 Jason Romero, No. 88 Dylan Hutchison, No.4 Glen Cook and No. 5 Chris Scribner the fast five. The top four qualifiers made it to the trophy dash and Jason Romero captured the dash victory. The seven car invert put No. 11 Juan Pitta on pole to lead the field to the green flag. On the first lap in turn one, Eric Schmidt made a three wide pass on Dylan Hutchison and Glen Cook. On lap five, aggressive Schmidt delivered Chris Scribner a bump and run in turn four. Dylan Hutchison dove low into turn three locking his brakes to make a solid pass on Juan Pitta on lap three. On lap 19, Schmidt and Romero had caught up with Matt Scott to start putting the pressure on the leader. On lap 31, Eric Schmidt tried to make a bump and run on Scott in turn two but couldn’t complete the pass. On lap 35, Eric Schmidt got loose allowing Romero to finally make the pass. On lap 40, Romero eager for the championship drove in deep into turn one passing Scott but got high in turn two sending him in the marbles getting Romero extremely loose and hitting the back stretch wall ending his night with his first DNF for the year. On lap 47, Juan Pitta gave Chris Scribner the bump and run in turn two. On lap 48, Pitta collided with Scribner in turn one sending Pitta spinning. Matt Scott walked to his fifth victory of the season followed by Eric Schmidt, Dylan Hutchison, Chris Scribner and Glen Cook the final five. With the win Matt Scott finalized the 2011 All American Speedway Championship making it his second consecutive championship.

Last up for the race day was the Bomber division fielding 12 cars and No. 24 Cody Rickard set a fast time of 16.168 seconds. Followed by No.3 Chris Paulson, No. 77 Erick Ray, No. 50 Richard Perez and No. 23 Eric Bocksberger the fast five. Erick Ray took home the first heat race win and Richard Perez grabbing the second heat race win. Four drivers competed in the trophy dash and Richard Perez took home the dash win. With the seven car invert, Eric Bocksberger started on pole. Bocksberger took the early lead until lap three Erick Ray put his machine out front. On lap 23, smoking Cody Rickard spilled oil on the track from the front stretch to turn one to the off ramp ending his night with a DNF. All American Speedway Officials quickly cleaned up the track and got racing underway. On lap 26, No. 63 Joe Rhodes made a complete stop on the front straightaway causing a red flag. After the restart Erick Ray continued to lead the way to his fourth victory this season. Followed by Richard Perez, Chris Paulson, Eric Bocksberger and Dana Kelly the final five. Three races to go Chris Paulson clinched the 2011 All American Speedway Championship making it his second consecutive championship.

Weekly NASCAR Championship Points Race No. 16 will return to All American Speedway this Saturday, September 10th featuring NASCAR Modifieds Twin 50’s, Street Stocks and Bombers 35 also joining in on the championship series will be USAC Young Guns and Ford Focus Midgets. More information about All American Speedway, as well as driver interviews, can be found at www.AllAmericanSpeedway.com. The Placer County Fairgrounds administration office is open for advance ticket sales Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm at 800 All America City Blvd. Roseville, CA. 95678, or contact the office at (916) 786-2025. Championship Points race No. 18 on October, 1st has been cancelled due to reservation of Open Wheel night.

9-6-11 Hawaiian Shirt Night Brought Controversy and Great Racing to the Forefront
Source David Holman
Stockton 99 Speedway

On Saturday, September 3rd, Chase Chevrolet Presented Hawaiian Shirt Night. On the agenda for this Event were the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Western Late Models in Twin 50’s, Grand American Modifieds, Super Stocks, Basically-4-Cylinders and the Legends of the Pacific. It’s already September and that can only mean the Season is winding down to crown the Champions in each Division. On this night the racing was more intense than it’s been all year, and rightly so for what’s at stake. And on a balmy summer evening in Stockton, CA, the 1500 fans in the stands were the happy recipients of some of the best racing this Season.

In the Basically-4 Cylinders, it was definitely an E-Ticket ride from start to finish, but especially the finish: a wicked one. But alas, when the dust settled and the smoke cleared, Manteca’s Joseph Reichmuth (6) would be declared the winner for the ninth time this year.

This one got up to speed with third generation driver Firecracker Matt Anderson (5) of Manteca on pole and fourth generation female driver from Ceres, Samantha Williams (4), scratching at his right side door panel coming off turn four to the green with Anderson getting the great launch and beating the field down into turn one. Once out front, Anderson would shine in the spotlight, mostly unchallenged, over the next nineteen laps. But, unfortunately for the young driver from Manteca, on lap 20, he encountered lapped traffic down the frontstretch, resulting in contact between Anderson and another young driver from Modesto, Cecily Saunders (91), which brought with it the first caution of the race and which would prove to be Anderson’s undoing a few laps later. On the ensuing restart, Manteca’s Dave Kong (9) jetted out to the lead in an impressive manner where he looked to be in control of the outcome until a late yellow hit the night sky on lap 27 when Williams spun low between turns one and two while the #16 of Rodney Lopez washed up the track in the same area. On the restart, Kong assumed his former role at P1, but this time around he had much company that came in the form of Reichmuth and French Camp’s Mark Jacke (747). And so it was, coming off the last turn, three wide, Reichmuth was turned just before the finishline, which enabled Kong to capture the apparent victory. However, upon further review, it was determined by track officials that Kong turned Reichmuth in an effort to improve his position and was relegated to the last car on the lead lap, which handed the win over to Reichmuth, his ninth of the year. Jacke was in the mix all night long and it paid off with a second place run. Manteca’s Nick Rogers (51) ran a strong race of his own and drove her onto the podium in third. Charles Kundert Jr. (7) from parts unknown brought her home in fourth, while Williams, after her earlier mishap, rebounded to a beautiful fifth place finish.

The Legends of the Pacific would produce a first time winner who came in the form of thirteen year old driving sensation from Napa, James Bickford (25B). Not only did the young driver win his first race, he did it quite convincingly.

Jessica Walker (21) of San Ramon inherited the pole with Doug Braddock Jr. (91) of Napa flanking her to the right. With the green flag flicking against the summer sky, Walker grabbed a huge hunk of forward bite exiting turn four and lunged into the lead going off into turn one. With the breathable air caressing the attitude of her hotrod, Walker took full control of that special plot of land out front where she would be unsurpassed by the fleet, despite the constant nagging at her back bumper by Bickford, until lap 21, when the #25B decided it was time to bite and claw at the #21 in an overwhelming fashion, and Walker had no choice but to count her losses and relent to the severe pressure that was being applied to the whole of her car. Once out front, it was obvious the best car was going to win on this night as Bickford took it the rest of the way to the checkers and the winner’s share of the spoils from a battle well-fought. Of course, Walker, who is undeniably one of the up-and-comers in this Series, had to settle for a very secure second. Tony Mangini (7) of Benicia, after setting fast time earlier in the day, backed it up by driving onto the podium in third. Brisbane’s Luis Tyrell (74M) was steady all the way through this thirty-five lap feature and wrapped up his race with a fourth place run, while Cody Berger (63) of Tracy rounded out the top five.

In the Western Late Model Twin #1, 2009 WLM Champ and third generation driver from Tracy, Justin Philpott (05) was the class of the field on this night. However, due to complications during post-race tech, Points Leader and second generation driver from Modesto, Jeff Belletto (12X) inherited the Victory.
This one started straight-up off qualifying and so it went: Trevor Schlundt (28) of Clovis had fast time which landed him at P1 with Justin Philpott (05) of Tracy strapped in tight, high and to the right. While the green flag was displayed in all its glory, the sixteen-car field went flying off into turn one and out the other side with no clear-cut advantage to anyone until coming out of turn four to the stripe to complete lap 1, they were three-wide up front and Philpott took full advantage of the outside line to the lead. However, the race was slowed almost immediately when, on lap 4, second generation driver from Stockton, Colby Potts (12), spun between turns one and two, collecting two cars on the way and bringing with him the first yellow of the night. On the lap 4 restart, Philpott once again took up residence on that much-coveted real estate out front where he would feel the blast of fresh air on his grill all the way through to the checkers for the extremely powerful win, what was thought to be his second on the year. Points Leader Jeff Belletto (12X) put forth his best foot only to come up short by one in finishing second. Schlundt slid back, if only slightly, to finish in a strong third, and with the misfortune he has suffered this year, he had to be abundantly happy with the podium finish. Seaside’s Top Twenty-Five All-Time Dave Byrd (78), in his usual consistent manner, brought her home in fourth while Sammy Solari (3X), from parts unbeknownst to rational man, after waging a mighty war over that number five spot with 2006 WLM Champ from Manteca, Guy Guibor (61), had a very solid run to round out the top five. Unfortunately for Philpott, a protest was filed at the end of the night, which he promptly refused, giving track officials no option but to disqualify the #05, moving the entire field up a notch and handing the win to Belletto, his seventh of the Season.

2009 Modified Champ, Scott Winters (24) of Tracy, made a rare appearance at Stockton this year and simply took it to the house for his first win of the Season in the Grand American Modified Division.
As luck or perhaps talent would have it, Winters started at pole with Nick Lyons (11X) of Lincoln alongside and ready to anticipate the drop of the green to get this one underway. Once the green was in the air, Winters got to the gas and inch and a half quicker than did Lyons, which vaulted the #24 into the immediate lead. However, on lap 6, the race was slowed for the first time when no less than three cars tangled between turns one and two and the first yellow followed close behind. On the restart, Winters got another great jump and continued on his course at the head of the pack until lap 11, when Don Lehman (83) of Rio Linda came spinning down the frontstretch, which caught the instant attention of the flagman who then sent the second yellow flying. On the lap 11 restart, Winters once again took the reins where he would reign over the field on this night by taking it to the house, flag to flag. Of course, Winters did not go without a challenge as Points Leader Wes Miller (57) of Turlock shadowed his every move, taking little bites out of the spoiler of the #24 from time to time, but in the end, Miller just could not get the good run to make the pass for the lead and would have to settle for second. Lyons ran his usual steady race, which put him on the podium in third. Rick Andersen (11A) of Citrus Heights, another weekly contender, brought her home in fourth with Andy Vanderveer (49) of Santa Rosa filling the top five.

In the Super Stocks, it was another one of those no-brainers with Oakdale’s Sammy Solari (79) starting on point and finishing with his second win of the year.

Solari grabbed the pole after a wicked invert while Stockton’s Joe Allen (17), in a borrowed car, was already nibbling at the right side numbers on the #79 with the green waving wildly in the warm summer breeze. Solari jumped out quick only to be slowed by two consecutive cautions early on with Allen taking the lead between the yellow flags. However, on lap 4, young up-and-coming star and second generation driver from Lodi, Robbie Knittel (03), did the seemingly impossible by getting around both leaders as they battled for position and took off on a path of his own, but of course, with Solari in tow. Much to Knittel’s chagrin, on lap 17, the red flag reared its ugly face when Josh Whitfield (00), from somewhere on the planet, went up in smoke and laid down a fresh, not-so-new coat of oil around the entire racing surface. After the lengthy red, the race went back to full speed on the lap 17 restart with Solari shoving that heavy right foot of his to the floor and beyond as he jumped out to reclaim that much sought-after piece of asphalt directly in front of the field where he would take it the distance to the checkers for his second win on the year. Knittel, without a shadow of doubt, did not go gentle into that good night as he nibbled and chewed at the back bumper of the #79 over the last dozen circuits, but to no avail, Knittel would have to settle on what may or may not have been a disappointing finish in second. Allen, after a couple years hiatus from racing, came back in grand form, in a borrowed car no-less, to finish on the podium in a fantastic third. 2010 WLM Champ Chad Holman (75) of Manteca, after starting deep on the grid, and after dodging several bullets, managed a fourth place run, while Stockton’s own Rich Harper (5), after setting fast time in qualifying, and also starting mid-pack, kept his string of consistent finishes in tact by bringing home another top five.

The Western Late Model Twin #2 was not unlike the first in many respects, especially the eventual outcome with Justin Philpott winning out on the track, but losing in the pits and handing the win over to Jeff Belletto.

With a six invert off Twin #1, 2006 WLM Champ Guy Guibor (61) of Manteca inherited the pole, while Escalon’s Sammy Solari (3X) did much the same with P2. With the green flag flying high above the racing surface, and the field rolling out of turn four, Solari beat the pack down into turn one and grabbed the holeshot only to be slowed the next time around when Riverbank’s Adam Coonfield (81) and Ione’s Frank Farran (30) made contact coming down the frontstretch, which brought the first yellow along for the ride. On the lap 2 restart, this time it would be Guibor putting his mark on that sacred territory out front. Unfortunately, on lap 9, that bright mark would come tumbling down when Brandon Trevethan (4) of Galt, returning after a tremendous crash earlier in the year sidelined him, went spinning low between turns three and four and there was that yellow flag, once again, doing what it does best. On the ensuing restart, it was Solari’s turn again as he bolted out to the lead where he appeared strong over the next several laps until lap 18, when disaster struck Coonfield’s car coming low off four and burst into flames. Coonfield exited the car rather quickly and was checked at the Infield Care Center and released. Of course, his car did not bode so well. On the resulting restart, Philpott, after working his way up from P6 on the starting grid, decided it was time to put his piece out front, and despite swapping the lead a couple times with Solari, on lap 27, Philpott took control for the final time and began to step away from the field in large increments until there was absolutely nothing left to race for but that spot behind the distant leader as the #05 crossed beneath the checkers to seemingly double-up on this night. Points Leader Jeff Belletto (12X), in typical fashion, worked his way masterfully into second, but never challenged Philpott. Solari, doing double-duty on the night and driving in three races, finished a great night on the podium in third. Seaside’s Dave Byrd, always a picture of consistency, and one who always gets the most out of his car, finished fourth for the second time in the Event. Guy Guibor (61) of Manteca, his smoothness always a pleasure to watch, rounded out the top five. And, of course, due to the post-race protest, Philpott was disqualified from the evening’s Event for non-compliance, which handed the win over to Belletto, his eighth on the year.

Next Saturday, September 10th, the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series returns to action on City of Tracy Night, Brought to you by Victory Motorcycles - 9-11 Memorial.

On the Race Card for the Event will be the Super Stocks in Twin 40's, Bombers, Basically-4-Cylinders, Mini Cups, Baby Grands and NCMA Sprint Cars. Also, General Admission will be $10 for 11 and older, and, of course, 10 and under is always Free!
The New Stockton 99 Speedway is located at 4105 N. Wilson Way, ¼-mile west of Highway 99. For more information on tickets and times, please contact the Speedway Office at (209)466-9999 or visit their Website at www.stockton99.com.
The New Stockton 99 Speedway is sponsored by Jackson Rancheria Casino Hotel, California Welding Supply, Budweiser, Alamo Alarm and Stockton Hampton Inn and Suites and Lodi Holiday Express.

9-6-11 McCord Gets NASCAR Modified Trophy Dash Win at All American Speedway
Source RSWC PR
All American Speedway

Making the most of her 2000 mile roundtrip to Roseville, CA’s All American Speedway each weekend, Billings, MT’s Mindy McCord led a fleet of Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle drivers to win the NASCAR Modified trophy dash on Saturday night.

McCord was one of five Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle drivers in action during the Labor Day weekend Modified activities on the one-third mile asphalt oval. McCord drives a family-owned, Nascimento Motorsports-prepared #26 Modified in the division.

The evening opened up with qualifying with championship contender Steve Cote leading the RSWC charge with a second place lap at 14.544 ahead of teammate Joey Licata and McCord.

Cote, of Montreal, Licata, and McCord all qualified for the trophy dash on the strength of their qualifying runs. The four-lap dash was inverted placing McCord on pole alongside Licata.

McCord, a former USAC Ford Focus racer, and ARCA standout Licata put on an entertaining race for the lead. The back-and-forth battle saw Licata surge forward on the outside out of turn two but McCord continued to pull away through turns three and four.

Licata stayed on the outside all four laps making one final bid on the white flag lap, but McCord was too strong as she picked up her first career NASCAR trophy dash with a photo finish.

McCord showed off her talents in the 35 lap feature after starting fourth. McCord slipped back to sixth in the early laps but won a nice battle for the fourth position on lap seven.

McCord held onto fourth the rest of the way to lead the Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle drivers in the field. The talented young driver has qualified in the top-six on six occasions this year but Saturday’s fourth place marks her best result in a season full of bad luck.

“This was Mindy’s best performance of 2011 in many different ways,” Driver Coach Ron Sutton said. “It was great to see her get that trophy dash win but also see her turn the corner in getting her first top-five in the main event. She is inching closer to her first feature win!”

Mindy McCord Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle thanks partners: QMParts.com, Interstate Performance Exhaust, Car Factory, Nascimento Motorsports, K&N Filters, Scribner Plastics, Allstar Performance, Sunoco Race Fuels and Star Racing Supply. For more information on Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle, log on to www.winners-circle-racing.com

Mindy McCord is online at www.mindymccord.com

9-6-11 Thompson Wins First Career NASCAR Modified Feature
Source Steven Blakesley
All American Speedway

NASCAR Modified rookie Cody Thompson, 18, won the biggest race of his career when capturing his first career Modified win on Saturday night at All American Speedway outside Sacramento. The three-time USAC Ford Focus Midget winner finally broke through after three runner-up efforts in the last four features.

Thompson, an Eagle Scout, drives his family-owned #68 Southern Rock-sponsored entry in the NASCAR-sanctioned Modified divison on the one-third mile asphalt oval at the Placer County Fairgrounds. The win is a culmination of a season-long effort to get to the front in a field full of veteran drivers.

“Our crew chief (Cody’s dad) made all the right calls and the car was great,” Thompson said. “After two consecutive second place finishes it was time for a win!’

In an ultra-competitive qualifying session, Thompson qualified seventh quick with a 14.594 second lap around the speedway. His lap was just .053 seconds off of fast-time yet still only seventh. The qualifying effort turned out for the best as a seven car invert was pulled placing Thompson on pole for the 35 lap main event.

Thompson led the field to green from the pole position and points leader Dan Jinkerson jumped up into second place immediately. A caution on lap two saw Jinkerson go outside Thompson for the lead, but Thompson was able to defend the position.

Thompson began to pull away to nearly a straightaway advantage before lapped traffic became a factor on lap 24. Although he was in the midst of traffic, Thompson was able to pull even further ahead of Jinkerson.

Racing with veteran poise, Thompson lapped up to ninth place before the checkered flag. The win gives Thompson his fourth top-two in the last five races. Despite missing a race due to engine problems earlier in August, Thompson still finds himself seventh in the track standings. Thompson has not finished out of the top-ten since July 2nd and has an average finish of third in that timespan.

Thompson will look to continue his streak of three straight top-two finishes this weekend as a pair of 50 lap main events will be run. A large turnout of cars is expected to race in the event.

Cody Thompson Racing thanks sponsors Southern Rock Granite & Marble, RPM NorCal Racing, San Jose Custom Cabnetry, Weisner & Cerato Machine Shop, Josh Bews Fabrication, Blakesley Sports Media, Top One Designs, and MTFX Graphics.

Race fans can learn more about Cody Thompson Racing at www.codythompsonracing.com by visiting the team on Facebook at keywords “Cody Thompson Racing”.

9-6-11 Ventura Sprint Car Battle Continues This Saturday
Source Lance Jennings
Ventura Racing

The Ventura Racing Association’s 360 Sprint Car Series will be back in action this Saturday, September 10th at Jim Naylor’s Ventura Raceway. In addition, the Senior Sprints, Dwarf Cars, Mod Lites, Mod Lite Juniors, Sport Compacts, Junior Midgets, and Mini Dwarfs will share the spotlight. The Pit Gates will open at noon, Front Gates open at 3:00pm with Racing at "The Best Little Dirt Track In America" to begin at 5:30pm.

Heading into Saturday’s event, fifteen races have been contested with eight different drivers scoring feature wins. Troy Rutherford leads all drivers on the circuit with six triumphs as Steve Conrad and Greg Taylor have two wins apiece. Brian Camarillo, Don Gansen, Cory Kruseman, Matt Mitchell, and Brody Roa have also claimed victory.

Ventura’s Greg Taylor leads the point chase with a 230 point advantage over the competition. Driving the #7 Clark Engineering Construction / Westco International Consulting Inc. special, Taylor had a tough night on August 27th, scoring a twentieth place finish. To date, the 2007 Champion has seven heat race victories, two hard charger awards, and eleven top-10 finishes on the year. Look for Taylor to rebound on Saturday as he continues his championship run.

Camarillo's Josh Ford is second in the championship standings. On August 27th, the pilot of the #73 King Racing Products / A&A Precision Machining entry came home fifth at the checkered flags. The former USAC National Sprint Car Rookie of the Year has four heat race victories, one hard charger award, and thirteen top-10 finishes on the season. Ford will have his sights set on his first main event victory of the year on Saturday.

Steve Conrad of Quartz Hill sits third in the point chase. Driving the #56 Roy Miller Freightlines / SC Grafix machine, Conrad was sixth in the August 27th “Vendor’s Cup.” The former USAC TQ Midget graduate has one heat race victory, three hard charger awards, and twelve top-10 finishes to his credit. Conrad will be looking to add another feature win to his resume on Saturday.

Camarillo’s Brian Camarillo is fourth in the point standings. Piloting the #22 Agromin Soil / Waste Management special, Brian took forth in the August 27th feature. In 2011, the young driver has seven heat race victories, one semi-main win, and nine top-10 finishes on the year. Camarillo will have his eyes set on the Saturday win at Ventura Raceway.

Don Gansen of Rialto is fifth in the championship points. At the “Vendor’s Cup,” driver of the #7G Gansen Motorsports Sprinter had problems and did not start the main event. To date, the California Lightning Sprint graduate has two heat race victories, one hard charger award, and nine top-10 finishes on the season. Gansen will look to rebound with a Ventura feature win on Saturday.

Among the other top contenders expected to be in action are Camarillo’s Brent Camarillo, Ojai's Derek Buckley, Ventura’s Cory Kruseman, Jimmy Crawford of Newbury Park, Ojai's Troy Rutherford, Brandon Thomson of Norwalk, Santa Clarita's Guy Woodward, and many more.

Ventura Raceway is located on the Ventura County Fairgrounds at 10 West Harbor Blvd. in Ventura, California. Adult tickets are $14, Senior, Military, and Student tickets (ID Required) are $11, while Children’s tickets (12 and under) are FREE. For more event information, please visit www.venturaraceway.com or call (805) 985-5433.

To catch all of the action of the VRA Sprint Car Series and Ventura Raceway, Mike Truex's Loudpedal Productions has DVD videos available for purchase. For more information, call (805) 407-7229 or visit www.loudpedalvideo.com. In addition, Ventura Raceway offers a live feed of every event at www.venturaraceway.com/live.html. The live feed is scheduled to begin at 5:00pm PST.

9-6-11 Hanford's Jim Turner Memorial On Tap For USAC West Coast 360w
Source Lance Jennings
USAC West Coast 360s

This Saturday night, September 10th, the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series will return to Scott Woodhouse’s Giant Chevrolet Kings Speedway. The “Jim Turner Memorial” at the Hanford facility will also showcase the winged ASCS Southern California Sprints, Budweiser Hobby Stocks, and Mini Stocks. The Pit Gates will open at 1:00pm, Spectator Gates at 5:00pm, Time Trials at 6:00pm, with Racing scheduled for 6:30pm.

Heading into the “Jim Turner Memorial,” eleven races have been completed on the schedule with six different drivers claiming victory. USAC Silver Crown Champion Bud Kaeding leads all drivers with four main event wins. Ryan Bernal has claimed the last three features as he looks to make history at Hanford. Danny Faria Jr., Peter Murphy, Jace VanderWeerd, and Richard VanderWeerd have also claimed victory.

Visalia’s Richard VanderWeerd continues to lead the way with a fifty-three point advantage over the competition. Piloting the family owned #10 VanderWeerd Construction / Battery Worx Maxim, Richard was fifth at Santa Maria on August 27th. To date, VanderWeerd three Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, three heat race victories, and leads the series with ten top-10 finishes. The battle for the championship is heating up and Richard will be looking for the Turner Memorial victory.

The hottest driver on the USAC West Coast 360 circuit is Ryan Bernal of Hollister. Driving the #11D S&S Automotive / Dorso's Automotive Maxim, Bernal tied T.J. Smith’s record of three straight wins on August 27th. To date, the former Wingless Spec Sprint Champion has two heat race victories, eight top-10 finishes, and leads the series with 116 feature laps led. The young driver will be one of the favorites on Saturday.

Sitting third in the point standings is Jace VanderWeerd of Visalia. Piloting the family owned #88 VanderWeerd Construction / Battery Worx Maxim, Jace scored eleventh at Santa Maria on August 27th. Last year’s USAC/CRA Rookie of the Year has one Sander Engineering Fast Time Award, one heat race victory, and nine top-10 finishes on the season. A Turner Memorial victory will put VanderWeerd back in the championship hunt.

"Hollywood" Danny Faria Jr. of Tipton is fourth in the championship points. Driving Junior Bowman's #2 Buster & Ziggy Enterprises / Kaeding Performance Bullet, Faria was second to Bernal at Santa Maria. The veteran driver has two Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, three heat race victories, and six top-10 finishes on the year. This Saturday, “Hollywood” will be looking to add the Turner Memorial to his resume.

"Wide Open" Wes Gutierrez of San Martin is currently fifth in the point chase. Piloting the WG Motorsports' #007 ButlerBuilt / Competition Suspension Inc. DRC, Gutierrez finished ninth after starting fifteenth on August 27th. The hard charging driver leads the series with four heat race victories and has eight top-10 finishes to his credit. Wes will have his sights set on Hanford’s 30-lap main event win.

Among the other top contenders expected to be in action are Dennis Howell of Rancho Palos Verdes, Hanford’s Justyne Hamblin, T.J. Smith of Fresno, Gardena's Greg Alexander, and Bakersfield's Rusty Carlile. In addition, Hanford's Jonathan Logan, Ricky Kirkbride of Bakersfield, and Santa Maria's Danny Sheridan should be on hand to battle for the victory.

Giant Chevrolet Kings Speedway is located on the Kings County Fairgrounds at 801 S. 10th Avenue in Hanford, California. Reserved Grandstand tickets are $12 and advance tickets are on sale now, with camping available on the fairgrounds. Admission is FREE for active military members and more event information can be found at giantchevroletspeedway.com or calling (559) 584-RACE (7223).

The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series would like to thank Southwest Contractors, Hoosier Tire, Amsoil, BR Motorsports, ButlerBuilt, Competition Suspension Inc., Cory Kruseman's Sprint Car & Midget Driving School, Crow Enterprizes, DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Hinchman-Indy Racing Uniforms, Integra Shocks, Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Port City Racing, Rod End Supply, Saferacer.com, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.

For more information on the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series, visit www.westcoastsprintcars.com, www.usacracing.com, www.racesantamariaspeedway.com, or follow the series on facebook.

9-6-11 USAC/CRA Heads to Chico For Thursday Night "Gold Cup"
Source Lance Jennings
USACCRA Sprints

On Thursday night, September 8th, the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series will make their first appearance at Chico’s Silver Dollar Speedway. The special event during the famed “Gold Cup Race of Champions” is a co-sanctioned race with the USAC Western Classic Racing Series and will also feature the USAC Western and BCRA Midget Series. The spectator gates will open at 5:00pm, time trials at 6:30pm, with racing at the "Thursday Night Thunder" to begin at 7:00pm.

Heading into the Chico event, thirteen races have been completed on the schedule with six different drivers claiming victory. Fresh off Sunday’s Louie Vermeil Classic victory at Calistoga, Mike Spencer leads the series with six triumphs. Matt Mitchell and “The Kruser” Cory Kruseman have two feature wins, with Bud Kaeding, Austin Williams, and Robert Ballou scoring one main event victory.

Temecula's Mike Spencer continues his march to a fourth straight title in Ron Chaffin's #50 Madera Produce / Grubstake Mini Storage Maxim. At Calistoga’s Louie Vermeil Classic, Spencer claimed fourth on Saturday and won Sunday’s 30-lap feature. As this writing goes to press, Mike holds a forty-six point lead over the competition and has four Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, five heat race victories, one Competition Suspension Inc. Semi-Main win, and ten top-10 finishes on the season. Look for the Bruce Bromme Jr. wrenched machine to be running up front at Chico.

Running second in the point standings is Nic Faas of Huntington Beach. Piloting Mark Alexander's #4 Scott Sales Company / VP Racing Fuels Spike, Faas scored sixth on Saturday and followed that with a third in the Louie Vermeil finale. The 2008 Rookie of the Year has two Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, five heat race victories, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Awards, and ten top-10 finishes on the season. Nic will have his sights set on his first victory of the year at the Gold Cup Race of Champions.

Sitting third in the point chase is Yorba Linda's Matt Mitchell. Driving the J.W. Mitchell Motorsports' #37 Mancha Realtors / Sierra Springs Maxim, the former USAC Western Midget Series Rookie of the Year is one point behind Faas and forty-seven behind Spencer. Matt was third in last Saturday’s show and finished second to Spencer on Sunday. To date, Mitchell leads the series with six heat race victories and eleven top-10 finishes during the 2011 campaign. In addition, he has one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award and will have his sights set on the Thursday night victory.

Austin Williams of Yorba Linda is fourth in the point standings. Driving Jack Jory's #2 John Jory Corporation / AMA Plastics Viper, Williams was fourteenth in the Calistoga opener and scored nineteenth after a hard crash in the finale. The 2009 Rookie of the Year has two heat race victories, one Competition Suspension Inc. Semi-Main win, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, and eight top-10 finishes on the year. The son of Hall of Fame driver Rip Williams will be looking to add a Silver Dollar Speedway victory to his resume.

Visalia’s Greg Bragg is fifth in the championship points. Piloting Tom and Laurie Sertich's #92 Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror / Pacific Business Machine Buckley, Bragg was tenth in the Calistoga opener and eighth in the Sunday finale. The 3-Time California Lightning Sprint Champion has three heat race victories, two Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Awards, and nine top-10 finishes on the season. The Moose Racing Team will be in the hunt for a feature win at Chico.

Among the other top contenders expected to be in action are Yorba Linda's Cody and "The Ripper" Rip Williams, “The Demon” Damion Gardner, and many more. The USAC Western Racing Classic Series is led by Sebastopol’s Geoff Ensign, followed by Lincoln's Tony Hunt, Shauna Hogg, of Fair Oaks, Alamo’s Scott Pierovich, and San Francisco's Tim Barber.

Local 360 iron-block powered Sprint Cars are welcome to race with USAC/CRA. The 360s can run their local approved tires (all four corners must be Hoosier), but must meet series tech standards and race track muffler rules. The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series does not have an entry fee or charge for transponders, but drivers must have one-way radios. In addition, the series is offering a bonus to the highest finishing 360 team. To be eligible for the $200 cash award from USAC and 20 gallons of methanol from So-Cal Performance, the owner or driver must have a current USAC membership.

Silver Dollar Speedway is located on the Silver Dollar Fairgrounds in Chico, California. Advance tickets are on sale with 4-day and single day tickets available for the Gold Cup Race of Champions. For more information, please www.silverdollarspeedway.com or call (530) 350-7275. Chico has a strict muffler rule and recommends competitors to run the FlowMaster Suitcase, Spintech Suitcase, or 180 degree mufflers.

The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series would like to thank Hoosier Tire, Circle Track Performance, Competition Suspension Inc., DJ Safety, Donovan Engineering, Electro Tech Powder Coating, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror, Keizer Wheels, Rod End Supply, Saldana Racing Products, Sander Engineering, and So-Cal Performance for their support. For more information, visit usacracing.com/cra or follow the series on facebook.

NEW AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR POINTS:
1-Mike Spencer-754; 2-Nic Faas-708; 3-Matt Mitchell-707; 4-Austin Williams-551; 5-Greg Bragg-451; 6-Cody Williams-441; 7-Danny Sheridan-412; 8-Rip Williams-387; 9-David Cardey-380; 10-Ronnie Gardner-370.

NEW USAC WESTERN CLASSIC SPRINT CAR POINTS:
1-Geoff Ensign-675; 2-Tony Hunt-665; 3-Shauna Hogg-579; 4-Scott Pierovich-576; 5-Tim Barber-524; 6-Audra Sasselli-314; 7-Tim Sherman- Jr.297; 8-Jerry Kobza-286; 9-Cody Gerhardt-281; 10-Tim Skoglund-263.

9-5-11 Mike Spencer Wins 4th Annual Louie Vermeil Classic
Source Lance Jennings
Amsoil USAC/CRA

Temecula’s Mike Spencer extended his point lead with the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series by winning the finale of the Louie Vermeil Classic at Calistoga Speedway. After tire problems claimed race leader Robert Ballou on lap twenty-three, the 3-time series champion led the rest of the way to earn the $5000 victory. Matt Mitchell, Nic Faas, Ryan Bernal, and Geoff Ensign rounded out the top five drivers.

Piloting Ron Chaffin’s #50 Madera Produce / Grubstake Mini Storage Maxim, Mike Spencer quickly worked his way forward from the sixth starting spot. After a few laps, the newly crowned Calistoga Speedway Champion had taken third and began to chase down Matt Mitchell. Robert Ballou, the early race leader, set a torrid pace in Keith Ford’s #72 Berry Pack / A&A Precision Machining Ellis as he looked for his second straight USAC/CRA and Western Classic victory.

Early problems had sidelined “Showtime” Danny Sheridan and a flip ended “The Demon” Damion Gardner’s hope of another Vermeil Classic win. While battling for fourth, contact between Nic Faas and Austin Williams resulted in another red flag, this time for Williams as his car flipped and sustained heavy damage. Both Gardner and Williams walked away uninjured from their incidents.

As the race continued on, tire wear would become a concern for the racers. Andy Forsberg, who was running fifth, came to a stop on lap twenty-three with a flat right rear tire. As the famed “Workin’ Woody” pit vehicle attended to Forsberg, race leader Ballou’s right rear tire was losing air pressure. With the yellow flag displayed over the speedway, Robert exited the track and repairs could not be made in time.

Spencer had inherited the lead, with Mitchell, Faas, Ensign, Colby Copeland, and Greg Bragg close behind. As racing resumed, Mike had an excellent restart and looked to put some distance between himself and the field. Faas pressured Mitchell for second and a hard charging Ryan Bernal made his way to seventh after restarting at the back. At the checkered flags, Spencer was not to be denied on this night as he scored his sixth feature victory of the season.

With his second Louie Vermeil Classic victory, Mike Spencer currently holds a forty-six point lead as the series heads to Chico’s Silver Dollar Speedway on Thursday. Earlier in the program, the 3-time defending champion was third quick in time trials and finished second in his heat race. To date, the driver of the Bruce Bromme Jr. wrenched machine has four Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, five heat race victories, one Competition Suspension Inc. Semi-Main win, and ten top-10 finishes. Spencer will be looking for the Chico victory as he continues his march to another championship.

Matt Mitchell of Yorba Linda took second in the finale of the Louie Vermeil Classic. Driving the J.W. Mitchell Motorsports' #37 Mancha Realtors / Sierra Springs Maxim, the former USAC Western Midget Series Rookie of the Year qualified sixth and raced to his series leading sixth heat race victory in the DJ Safety sponsored event. Sitting third in the point chase, Mitchell has two feature wins, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, and eleven top-10 finishes on the year. Matt will be one of the favorites to watch at Silver Dollar Speedway.

Huntington Beach’s Nic Faas drove Mark Alexander’s #4 Scott Sales Company / VP Racing Fuels Spike to third in the 30-lap feature. The 2008 Rookie of the Year was fourth quick on the night and won the Extreme Mufflers / Huntington Beach Glass and Mirror Heat Race #1. Currently second in the standings, Faas has two Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, five heat race victories, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Awards, and ten top-10 finishes on the season. Nic will have his sights set on his first victory of the year at the Gold Cup Race of Champions.

Ryan Bernal of Hollister had his best career finish with USAC/CRA by taking fourth after restarting at the back. The crew of the USAC West Coast 360 standout had repaired a broken tie rod, but reported late after the red flag for Austin Williams. Piloting Danny Olmstead’s #11D S&S Automotive / Moeller Bros. Maxim, Bernal was second quick on the night and claimed second in his heat race. The former Wingless Spec Sprint Champion has one Competition Suspension Inc. Semi-Main win and two top-10 finishes on the year. As the writing goes to press, young driver has school obligations and will miss the Thursday night show at Chico.

Sebastopol’s Geoff Ensign earned the night’s Keizer Wheels Hard Charger / “Best Passing Job” honors with a fifth place run after starting fourteenth. Driving Ted Finkenbinder’s #3F Western X-Ray / Sponsor Needed Eagle, “The Human Highlight Reel” was fourteenth quick and fourth in his heat race. The Western Classic point leader has three top-10 finishes with USAC/CRA and will compete in Thursday’s Gold Cup Race of Champions.

For the second straight night, “The Demon” Damion Gardner of Concord set the standard in Sander Engineering Time Trials over the twenty-four cars in attendance. Piloting the DG Racing #71 Pace Lighting Eagle, the 2005 USAC/CRA Champion was second in his heat race and twentieth in the main event after an early flip. To date, “The Demon” has three top-10 performances and twenty-three feature laps led to his credit.

Yorba Linda’s Austin Williams claimed victory in the Saldana Racing Products / Circle Track Performance Heat Race #2. The pilot of the Jack Jory owned #2 John Jory Corporation / AMA Plastics Viper, qualified eleventh and scored nineteenth in the feature after a flip ended his night. The 2009 Rookie of the Year is fourth in the point standings with one feature win, two heat race victories, one Competition Suspension Inc., Semi-Main win, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, and eight top-10 finishes in 2011.

The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series would like to thank Hoosier Tire, Circle Track Performance, Competition Suspension Inc., DJ Safety, Donovan Engineering, Electro Tech Powder Coating, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror, Keizer Wheels, Rod End Supply, Saldana Racing Products, Sander Engineering, and So-Cal Performance for their support. For more information, visit www.usacracing.com/cra or follow the series on facebook.

The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series will make their first appearance at Chico's Silver Dollar Speedway on Thursday, September 8th, during the famed Gold Cup Race of Champions. Located at the Silver Dollar Fairgrounds, more event information can be found at www.silverdollarspeedway.com or calling (530) 891-6535.

9-5-11 360 Sprint back to Kings This Saturday
Source Dick Jordan
USAC West Coast 360s

USAC’s West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series resumes action Saturday night at Giant Chevrolet Kings Speedway in Hanford, Calif. and the VanderWeerd brothers of Visalia, Calif. will try to continue their quest for a 1-2 series point finish.

Richard VanderWeerd continues to lead the standings by 53 points over runner-up Ryan Bernal, but Jace VanderWeerd is only 26 points behind Bernal in third.

Richard’s five podium finishes this year include a Hanford victory, while Jace’s top Hanford finishes are a pair of fifths. Jace won at Santa Maria Speedway earlier in the year. Bernal is on a two-race series winning streak and his four runner-up finishes so far this year include one at Hanford.

A total of 74 points are available in Saturday’s “Jim Turner Memorial.”

USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS

1-Richard VanderWeerd-628; 2-Ryan Bernal-575; 3-Jace VanderWeerd-549; 4-Danny Faria Jr.-525; 5-Wes Gutierrez-515; 6-Dennis Howell-461; 7-Justyne Hamblin-433; 8-T.J. Smith-424; 9-Greg Alexander-399; 10-Rusty Carlile-395.

9-5-11 8th "Gold Cup" Thursday At Silver Dollar Speedway; Spencer Ballou Brag "Vermeil Classic" Wins at Calistoga
Source Lance Jennings
Amsoil USAC/CRA

The AMSOIL USAC/CRA and USAC Western Classic Sprint Cars combine again this Thursday night for the 58th Annual Gold Cup “Race of Champions” program at Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, Calif.

Mike Spencer leads the USAC/CRA standings after winning Sunday night’s race at Calistoga, Calif. and Geoff Ensign is the new Western Classic Sprint point leader after his performances in last weekend’s races at Calistoga.

Spencer, of Temecula, Calif., continued his pursuit of a fourth straight AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint car title Sunday night, winning the 30-lap “Louie Vermeil Classic” feature at Calistoga Speedway. Spencer grabbed the lead on lap 24 when Robert Ballou, Saturday night’s winner, suffered a flat tire. Spencer led the final seven laps to beat Matt Mitchell, Nic Faas, Ryan Bernal and Geoff Ensign. Ensign’s finish enabled him to pass Western Classic Sprint point leader Tony Hunt in the standings.

Ballou, of Rocklin, Calif., passed Danny Sheridan on lap 16 and led the final 15 laps to win Saturday night’s 30-lap “Louie Vermeil Classic” AMSOIL USAC/CRA/Western Classic Sprint race at Calistoga. Ballou and his John Ford entry were followed at the checkered flag by Sheridan, who led the first 15 laps, Mitchell, Spencer and fast qualifier Damion Gardner.

USAC’s two Sprint races at Chico this season have been won by Bill Rose and Kody Swanson. The USAC Mopar Western Midgets are also part of Thursday’s Chico events.

AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS

1-Mike Spencer-754; 2-Nic Faas-708; 3-Matt Mitchell-707; 4-Austin Williams-551; 5-Greg Bragg-451; 6-Cody Williams-441; 7-Danny Sheridan-412; 8-Rip Williams-387; 9-David Cardey-380; 10-Ronnie Gardner-370.

USAC WESTERN CLASSIC SPRINT CAR SERIES POINT STANDINGS

1-Geoff Ensign-675; 2-Tony Hunt-665; 3-Shauna Hogg-579; 4-Scott Pierovich-576; 5-Tim Barber-524; 6-Audra Sasselli-314; 7-Tim Sherman-297; 8-Jerry Kobza-286; 9-Cody Gerhardt-281; 10-Tim Skoglund-263.

9-5-11 Spencer Survives Tire Woes to Win Sunday Louie Vermeil Classic
Source Steven Blakesley
Calistoga Speedway

Temecula’s Mike Spencer won the $5,000 to win “Louie Vermeil Classic” at Calistoga Speedway on Sunday night, inheriting the lead when Saturday winner Robert Ballou was forced to the pits with a flat tire. Spencer’s win allowed him to extend his points lead in the USAC/CRA Sprint Cars, while in the co-sanction USAC Western Classic Racing Series, Sebastopol rookie Geoff Ensign finished fifth to take that series’ lead.

“Definitely this is the biggest win of the year,” Spencer said. “I always look forward to coming to Calistoga. It’s such a great event...it just makes it special. We were fortunate to come out on top.”

Ballou took the lead from outside pole at the start ahead of Austin Williams. Incoming USAC Western Classic points leader Tony Hunt was unable to start the race with engine problems on the Mike Phulps #56 Metal Works car, giving Ensign an opportunity to take over the points lead.

Problems for Santa Maria’s Danny Sheridan ended his night prematurely on lap one when he stalled in turn four. He was unable to continue in the Kittle Motorsports #18. On the restart Hollister rookie Ryan Bernal challenged Nic Faas for sixth.

The first red flag of the night flew on lap four when Concord’s Damion Gardner got upside down in turn one and briefly rode the wall. Gardner was uninjured but his night in the #71 Pace Lighting entry was over.

When racing resumed, Bernal faced a heavy challenge from newly crowned 2011 Placerville Speedway champion Andy Forsberg for sixth, loosing the position to the veteran.

The second red flag of the night saw Faas and Williams collide into turn three after a long battle for fourth, with Williams slamming the wall and turning over. Williams sprinted on foot over to Faas’s machine under the red flag to confront him within the cockpit before officials wrestled him away from Faas.

Under the prolonged open red flag, Bernal’s team fixed a broken tie rod while Saturday’s Midget winner Scott Pierovich made repairs to damage on the rear of his Ken Pierson #14 car. Bernal was unable to complete the repairs in time for push-off and had to restart at the back of the field.

The battling between the USAC Western Classic cars heated up on the restart as Pierovich passed Fair Oaks’ Shauna Hogg and went after Tim Barber and Marty Hawkins. After a torrid battle Pierovich finally moved past Hawkins on lap 20.

A potential top-five run for Forsberg in a 360 cubic inch powered car was thwarted on lap 23 when he stalled in turn two with a flat right rear. Under the caution period it was noted by several observers that the right rear on leader Ballou was also going down.

Ballou was ordered to take the #72 car to the pits and racing resumed with Spencer now assuming the lead. Spencer had no problem pulling away from Matt Mitchell and Faas who he had battled with heavily in Saturday’s feature.

With an eye on tire wear and on brake issues, Spencer was able to drive to a comfortable victory with Mitchell and Faas the top-three. Bernal made an amazing charge to drive back to fourth while Ensign was fifth.

“I was playing it conservative through about lap 20 just trying not to use my stuff up but stay with them,” Spencer said. “I thought I abused my brakes last night and had a soft pedal through the race so I didn’t want that to happen.”

Sunday’s heat races went to Faas, Williams, and Mitchell while it was Gardner with quick-time at 20.551. Hawkins was ninth quick as fastest USAC Western Classic entry.

Spencer will lead Faas by 46 points while Ensign leads Hunt by 10 points going into Thursday night’s USAC/CRA and USAC Western Classic Racing Series co-sanction of the “Tiner Family Classic” during the Gold Cup Race of Champions at Silver Dollar Speedway.

In USAC Western Midget action Stockton’s Johnathon Henry picked up his second big win in a month as he added the “Louie Vermeil Classic” to his credentials along with August’s win at “Wayne Sue Classic” in Chico. Henry took the lead from Redding’s Alex Shutte to take the #88 Graunstadt entry to a $3,000 win. Schutte won the two-day combined Arata Memorial championship for $1,000.

More information on the USAC Western Classic Racing Series is available on Facebook at keywords “USAC Western Classic Racing Series”. The United States Auto Club is online at www.usacracing.com

9-4-11 Ballou Claims Saturday Night Louie Vermeil Classic in a Thriller
Source Steve Blakesley
Louie Vermil Classic

The Madman Robert Ballou finally picked up a Calistoga Speedway win as he snared a thrilling Saturday night portion of the “Louie Vermeil Classic” for USAC/CRA and Western Classic Sprint Cars on the historic half-mile. Ballou led the final 15 laps for the $3,000 victory.

“We’ve only been here in a winged car maybe two or three times, and last year for Ted Finkenbinder,” Ballou said. “Fought it all night and it was a little evil to drive but I was good on the bottom where nobody else was. Luck was on our side tonight.”

Danny Sheridan of Santa Maria led from outside pole ahead of Ballou in the early laps, while the USAC Western Classic drivers Scott Pierovich and Sebastopol’s Geoff Ensign battled for their respective lead for points in eighth.

Ensign began to charge forward in his WCRS legal car with an intake restrictor, passing Roseville teen Colby Copeland on lap five. Nic Faas and Matt Mitchell had a back-and-forth battle for fifth before Mitchell finally took the spot on lap seven.

Lapped traffic was in the mix early by lap eight in the caution free affair for the 22 car starting grid. Ballou jumped underneath Sheridan off of turn two on lap 15 to seize the lead in the thick of the traffic.

USAC/CRA points leader Mike Spencer closed down on the top two and a thrilling duel ensured. Spencer and Sheridan went three-wide splitting lapped cars to the near sellout crowd’s approval. Spencer wrestled his way to second while Ballou built up a small lead.

Spencer eventually faded being passed by not only Sheridan but a very hard-charging Mitchell who reeled in the top-three. Mitchell perhaps had the fastest car on the track in the closing stages.

Ensign engaged in a nice battle with Hollister rookie sensation Ryan Bernal to take the seventh position as highest USAC WCRS car in the field.

Ballou nursed brake issues throughout the race but drove cleanly to defend from a few challenges from Sheridan to take the victory. Sheridan came home second, Mitchell third, with Spencer and Damion Gardner rounding out the top-five. Faas was sixth ahead of Ensign, Bernal, Copeland, and Greg Bragg.

Heat race wins went to Ballou, Spencer, and Bragg while Bernal won the semi. Gardner timed in on top with a 20.011 second lap ahead of the 25 car field on hand.

USAC WCRS points leader Tony Hunt had a pushrod come loose in hot laps that prevented him from qualifying but he recovered to finish 16th in the feature. The finish was good enough for fourth among WCRS cars but his lead over Ensign in the standings fell to just 18 points going into Sunday’s $5,000 to win feature.

Scott Pierovich finished second among WCRS entries with an 11th place effort in his 360 powered entry for Ken Pierson and Dave Vertullo. Pierovich won the $2,000 to win USAC Western Midgets feature leading all 25 laps in his family-owned #35 car.

Fan gates will swing open at 4 p.m. tonight for the conclusion of the 2011 Louie Vermeil Classic with racing at 7 p.m.

More information on the USAC Western Classic Racing Series is available on Facebook at keywords “USAC Western Classic Racing Series”. The United States Auto Club is online at www.usacracing.com