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LAPS WITH NORM BOGAN #21 (9/06/03) by Norm Bogan |
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The car counts are falling off at SCRA events recently with Southern California’s economic downtrend attacking them personally. The long season beginning back in February has depleted the resources of a number of teams and as commerce continues to stagnate, there is a shortage of racing funds. Sponsorship for the teams has also dwindled, due to limited resources. Teams that built up their spares stock in the last off season have now cleaned out their closets and the racks in the haulers are now bare as the spares have been used up and the funds are not there to replenish. Working class folks, whose businesses or jobs have suffered during the current downturn in the economy, operate many SCRA teams. Loss of employment or a reduction in income has put a strain on the racers for the past 1 to 1 1/2 years, and racers who operate their own businesses have also suffered from the downturn in the economy. In 2001 and early 2002, a regular show at Perris would see about fifty cars in the pits, but since that time, the number has continued to dwindle as more and more of the teams are tapped out in their racing budgets. Escalating costs and reduced incomes for businessmen/racers has made it difficult to continue funding a team on a regular basis. This year’s NWWC tour to the Midwest saw a fewer number of travelers, since many could not justify the expenses of making the trip and for those that did go, they have about played out their budgets for the year. For a number of teams the war chest is now empty and when an engine fails or a crash takes out a chassis, that team is often down for a while before rejoining the action. An interesting phenomenon is occurring this year. The defending champion, Richard Griffin is still the point leader, but is not dominating the “Winner’s Circle”. 26 year veteran racer, Rip Williams, who seemed to struggle early in the season, appears to have hit his stride lately and is becoming a strong challenger as we go into the latter part of the season, especially those long distance events, a Williams forte. Damion Gardner, who was quite dominant early in the year in his new ride, is the leading feature winner with seven victories. Gardner has cooled off a bit, although he is still in the chase. Troy Rutherford parlayed an early season win into the point lead, then lost it to Griffin, but has maintained the second place standing throughout the season, with consistency, but has not been able to grab the brass ring. Mike Spencer, a smooth racer, in lesser equipment than the big guys, has run consistently all year. Steve Ostling fell behind a couple of positions, since his team was unable to make the NWWC Tour. Looking for a strong end of season run, they suffered an engine failure and will miss a few shows. Charles Davis Jr. returned to the SCRA action recently after spending much of the year running close to home with the ASCA. With third and fourth place finishes in his last two outings, Davis hopes to close out the year on a high note. Cory Kruseman returns occasionally as his schedule allows and scored two victories in the past three races. A couple of the younger racers are starting to make an impression. Josh Wise scored a SCRA feature victory this year, plus won both nights of the 360 Nationals at Perris and most impressively, captured the Belleville Midget Nationals. Josh Ford is the leading Rookie of SCRA operating in the family car, maintained by the Harlan Willis/Mike Nigh team. Several other rookies have also been impressive at times this season, such as Alan Ballard, Seth Wilson and late-comer, Greg Bragg. With just thirty SCRA sprinters in the pits on Saturday, it was a lean field. Richard Griffin set quick time, the only car in the sixteen seconds bracket. Charles Davis grabbed second quick as the last car out. Heat race winners were Kruseman, Ford, Gaunt and Williams. Damion Gardner grabbed the Dash victory and Jordan Hermansader looked strong once again capturing the Semi. The Main Event was a donnybrook among the first three cars of Cory Kruseman, Rip Williams and Damion Gardner. With a number of slide jobs and position exchanges, it was an exciting event to witness. Following the top three to the checkered were Charles Davis Jr., Rickie Gaunt, Mike Spencer and Josh Wise. Perris Auto Speedway announced that the three-day Oval Nationals would be rescheduled to November 13, 14 & 15, to avoid conflict with a USAC National event at Pontiac, Michigan and an All-Star event of four different NASCAR classes at Irwindale. Now, the Oval Nationals will be free of conflict and allow racers and fans from around the country an opportunity to attend the three-day event at the PAS. |
