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San Felipe Pueblo, NM...August 6......Taking
the lead from Rickie Gaunt on lap 8, Mike Kirby wheeled the Dale Crossno car to
a win in the 20 lap feature Friday night as the SCRA unwinged sprint cars opened
their $44,000 Non Winged World Championship weekend at Hollywood Hills Speedway.
With great support from the New Mexico teams, 40 cars were on hand and dash
winner Steve Ostling wheeled the Harlan Willis car to second ahead of New
Mexico's Rick Ziehl and Gaunt. Those four drivers earned starting spots in the
rich 40 lap Saturday night feature. Strong support from Arizona allowed the dirt
late models to field 14 cars for the Friday night action and top ranked Arizona
racer Adam Crippen from Tucson wheeled his Rocket Chassis to a $450 feature win
ahead of fellow Arizona racers Mike Tahtinen from Casa Grande and Chris Cross
from Phoenix. The street stocks also had 14 cars including several IMCA Stock
Cars from Aztec Speedway. Jay Pape from Bosque Farms won both his heat and the
$425 feature with Santa Fe's Joe Smithberger second ahead of Ron Frazier Jr. The
hobby stocks appeared 24 cars strong and J Bonesteel from Rio Rancho was the
$350 winner ahead of Randy Carter and Randall Yates.
Getting just
a single lap at the end of time trials, New Mexico's Charlie Fegan paced the 40
unwinged sprint cars in time trials at 16.927. Fegan had broken his front end in
an encounter with the inside berm on his first lap, but was given a second lap
at the end of time trials. That easily outdid the 17.350 turned in by Ziehl.
Kirby ranked third at 17.496, Arizona youngster Justin Fisher posted a 17.509
and New Mexico's Robert Gomez a 17.598. Charles Davis Jr was sixth ahead of Mike
Spencer, Mark Nation and New Mexico's Tom Ball. The four heat races transferred
four cars each into the 20 lap preliminary night feature. Jesse Baker won heat 1
over Ball, JC Powell Jr and Fegan. Ronnie Clark won heat 2 over Davis, Ziehl and
10th quick Ostling.. California dwarf car graduate Seth Wilson was the heat 3
winner over Spencer, Kirby and Jody Williams. Robert Hall Jr from Show Low AZ
won heat 4 over Tim West, Gaunt in the Smiley team car to Davis and Jay Ervine.
The 8 fastest to advance through the heat action raced in the J E Pistons Dash.
Ostling earned the pole for the 20 lap feature by winning the dash ahead of
Gaunt, Kirby, Ziehl, Davis, Spencer, West and J Baker. The top 28 qualifiers had
moved into the heat action and everyone else raced in the 8 lap C Main with the
top four in that earning last starting in each heat. Albuquerque's Kelly Denison
won the C Main over Lubbock TX racer Gary Appel, Jared Scutt and Las Vegas NV
long tow Jay Ervine. Ervine then raced his way into the A Main by advancing to
4th in his heat race. Both David Hair from Indianapolis IND and winged star
Jason Martin from Liberal KS flipped in the C Main action. Six transfers came
from the B Main with Fisher taking a hard fought win over young New Mexico racer
Jon Taylor, the grandson of legendary Buddy Taylor. Nation ran third ahead of Bo
Baker, Bakersfield CA long tow Alan Ballard and Gomez. Just missing the transfer
were Mel Murphy, James High and Denison. The A Main got off to a rough start as
West got sideways and spun into the infield tires. Kirby came from third
starting to post the win over pole starter Ostling, fourth starting Ziehl and
outside front row starter Gaunt. Davis ran fifth ahead of Spencer, Fegan, Gomez,
Ball and Hall.
The dirt late models split their 14 cars into a pair of heat races and Cross had
his most impressive run of 2004 as he outdueled Crippen in heat 1 with New
Mexico star Butch Reid Sr in third. Reid Sr and Ralph Dutcher had traveled to
the Arizona show the previous week in Show Low and they recruited the Arizona
participation in this show. Curt Barnett from El Paso TX won heat 2 ahead of
Albuquerque racers Steve Conrad and Deral Meek. The feature got off to a rough
start as Eloy Romero got sideways just past the flagstand and several cars
tangled with Steve Suber rolling several times. He was unhurt, but his car
suffered severe damage. Only 7 of the 14 starters finished after the first lap
melee and Crippen gained the win ahead of Tahtinen, Cross, Dutcher, Reid Sr,
Barnett and Romero.
Pape and
Smithberger proved to be the class of the 14 car street stock turnout. Rick
Boelter had won heat 1 over Kenny Smith and Smithberger. Pape was chased to his
heat 2 win by Ron Frazier Jr and Shawn Dutcher. Pape got the feature win ahead
of Smithberger, Frazier Jr and five drivers from Aztec Speedway, Ted Boetler,
Jesse Baldwin, Rex Higgins, Allen Bradley and Frank Powell Jr. The 24 hobby
stocks were split into three heat races. Phil York beat Bob Hanna and Suzanne
Bonesteel in heat 1 with Randall Yates the winner of heat 2 over Randy Carter
and Donnie Goss. Shane Kapinski won heat 3 over Rick Boelter and J R Bonesteel.
The heat action was run without a single caution flag and J Bonesteel came from
16th starting to win the feature race. Young 14 year old Colt Treharn ran in the
top two for much of the race before an incident with Carter ended his race.
Carter finished second ahead of Yates, Boelter, Robert Kapinski, Mike Kapinski,
Thomas Hayes and Hanna.
Summary
Hobby Stocks
Heat 1-Phil York, Bob Hanna, Suzanne Bonesteel.
Heat 2-Randall Yates, Randy Carter, Donnie Goss.
Heat 3-Shane Kapinski, Rick Boelter, J R Bonesteel.
Main-J Bonesteel, Carter, Yates, Boelter, Robert Kapinski, Mike Kapinski, Thomas
Hayes, Hanna, Glenn Jaramillo, Tim Knight.
Street Stocks
Heat 1-Rick Boelter, Kenny Smith, Joe Smithberger.
Heat 2-Jay Pape, Ron Frazier Jr, Shawn Dutcher.
Main-Pape, Smithberger, Frazier, Ted Boelter, Jesse Baldwin, Rex Higgins, Allen
Bradley, Frank Powell Jr.
Dirt Late Models
Heat 1-Chris Cross, Adam Crippen, Butch Reid Sr.
Heat 2-Curt Barnett, Steve Conrad, Deral Meek.
Main-Crippen, Mike Tahtinen, Cross, Ralph Dutcher, Reid Sr, Barnett, Eloy
Romero.
Unwinged Sprint Cars
Fast Time-Charlie Fegan 16.927
Dash-Steve Ostling, Rickie Gaunt, Mike Kirby.
Heat 1-Jesse Baker, Tom Ball, J C Powell Jr, Fegan, Robert Gomez.
Heat 2-Ronnie Clark, Charles Davis Jr, Rick Ziehl, Ostling, Paul
Whitehead.
Heat 3-Seth Wilson, Mike Spencer, Mike Kirby, Jody Williams, Bo Baker.
Heat 4-Robert Hall Jr, Tim West, Gaunt, Jay Ervine, Justin Fisher.
C Main-Kelly Denison, Gary Appel, Jared Scutt, Ervine, Jimmy Crawford, Ted
McAdams, Jason Martin, Leighton Crouch, David Hair, Mike Martin.
B Main-Fisher, Jon Taylor, Mark Nation, B Baker, Alan Ballard, Gomez, Mel
Murphy, James High, Denison.
A Main-Kirby, Ostling, Ziehl, Gaunt, Davis, Spencer, Fegan, Gomez, Ball, Hall Jr,
B Baker, Ballard, Fisher, Clark, Nation, Ervine, Williams, Powell, Taylor, J
Baker, Wilson, West.
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