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Traditional Sprint Car FanSite |
See You At The Races!!! |
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ROUND
ONE OF THE BANDIT/VRA GRAND SLAM SERIES
by Norm Bogan |
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The long awaited shootout of California non-winged 360 sprinters finally came to pass. This alliance has implemented a couple of subtle rules changes, allowing all competitors to race on a level playing field. A series of races have been scheduled at different speedways to test the skills of racers on various length racing surfaces, some unfamiliar to a number of drivers, who normally compete at only one or two ovals. Through the cooperative efforts of the
sanctioning bodies and promoters, a formula was worked out requiring
each racecar to be equipped with a Hoosier RC3 right rear tire and
the legal Ventura muffler, which meets the most stringent noise
regulations. On Saturday, thirty-three cars arrived at Kings
Speedway to test out this new format.
A first for many was the qualifying process.
Chris D’Arcy (Bandit) set quick time of 16.137 on the
well-groomed 3/8-mile oval. Two
strong performers were eliminated before qualifying due to engine
problems. Chad
Boespflug (Bandit) lost an engine in hot laps and Greg Taylor (VRA)
had an engine expire during qualifying.
Blake Miller (VRA), Peter Murphy (Bandit), Steve Conrad (VRA)
and Bobby Elliott (Bandit) each collected heat race victories.
Dennis Rodriguez (VRA) picked up the Semi feature over Chris
D’Arcy, with the top six “B” Main finishers joining the top
four cars from each heat race to set the field at twenty-two cars
for 30 laps. The preliminary races exhibited close racing
and a few incidents, but it appeared as if this format was pretty
even for all participants. There
were a few unknowns, such as the VRA racers using the softer tire
and Bandit teams employing the more restrictive VRA muffler appeared
to be more apprehension, than a problem. Darren Simas (Bandit) started on the pole
alongside Clark Templeman III (VRA).
Simas assumed the early lead with Kevin Kierce (VRA)
following on the bottom. Several
drivers attacked the front-runners, including Chris Wakim (VRA),
Peter Murphy and Greg Porte (Bandit).
Murphy threaded the needle between leaders to take the point
and moved to comfortable lead, with Templeman, Porte, Kierce and
Miller, all in the mix. Blake
and Kevin battled for a number of laps running the bottom, which
appeared greasy. Kierce
eventually got a grip on the low groove and motored forward,
advancing to second. A
yellow flag bunched up the field and depleted Murphy’s substantial
lead. On the restart,
Kierce got the drive on the bottom and passed the flying Aussie.
Templeman maintained his third place, although nearly
launching as a yellow came out and he jumped over Murphy’s left
rear, but both cars survived the altercation and remained at the
front. With a couple of laps remaining, Kierce was
able to get a good bite down low and hold off Murphy who was
charging around the top trying to carry momentum to the checkers.
Kierce was victorious, with Murphy a close second and
Templeman in third with Greg Porte finishing fourth.
In the field of twelve cars that took the checkered flag,
seven were VRA regulars and five represented the Bandit contingent.
It appeared that the rules did what they had intended.
The grid for the “A” Main was evenly split between the
two clubs and the race finishes reflected that also.
Bobby Elliott put on an outstanding performance in the
feature starting at the rear of the field and methodically moving
forward until he was running sixth.
Bobby’s night ended, when he was collected in turn one and
unable to restart. Next week these same racers will move to Santa Maria Speedway in another attempt to gain superiority over their rival club. Later in the month, Bakersfield Speedway will be the host and then the two-day finale at Ventura Raceway. It was a pleasure to see these groups of competitors show up and race against cars from other areas. It is encouraging to see cooperation between sanctioning bodies, which could lead to big purse and large car count events in the fall months. The fans certainly got their money’s worth at this program, as the racing teams worked hard to stage competitive cars, providing very exciting, close racing. |
