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LAPS WITH NORM BOGAN #8 (5/26/03) by Norm Bogan |
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The SCRA season is now well underway. After
nearly three months, it is evident that some things change and some remain the
same. How is that you ask, well there is a familiar name atop the
points list this year. Four-time
champion, Richard Griffin has parlayed consistency to assume the top spot once
again. Troy Rutherford, who held
the lead early has stayed near the top with only one finish out of the top five
all season. Damion Gardner is
setting third in points. While
experiencing a couple of DNFs, he has already accumulated five feature wins for
the year. Steve Ostling has yet to
grab the brass ring, but has scored several runners-up finishes to place strong
in the points chase. Rip Williams
has been up and down so far, while garnering a feature win, DNFs have cost him
points. Last year’s runner-up,
Tony Jones has had a terrible year, only finishing two features, with
altercations or mechanical problems taking him out of the mix on several
occasions.
One of the positives for SCRA this year is the Rookie Candidates. We have a number of challengers, ranging from last year’s VRA Champ, Jimmy Crawford to two sixteen year olds, Alan Ballard and Alex Pruett. Other surprises are youngster Trevor Brillman, who has looked very stable on the track and former VRA rookie, Josh Ford exhibiting the ability to move through the pack for respectable feature finishes. Former USAC Midget regular Bryan Stanfill has done a good job of qualifying and making the features. Former USAC TQ Champ and Midget campaigner, Josh Wise recently joined the fray, which was highlighted with a duel for the feature lead with the “Gasman”. Long time racer in the northern California winged cars and the USAC Western States Sprints, Kevin Urton acquired Damion Gardner’s racer from last year and shows the ability to run up front. While SCRA has gained some impressive newcomers, they have lost a couple of the veterans. Cory Kruseman and John Scott have both moved to the USAC National circuit. The field continues to gain strong performances each week from the likes of Mike English, Rickie Gaunt, Rodney Argo, Bryan and Steve Venard, last year’s rookie, Bobby Cody, part-timer, Levi Jones, the return of Mike Kirby, most improved driver, Adam Mitchell, Dan Hillberg, Verne Sweeney, Lance Gremett and others. It is my opinion that SCRA has the best quality drivers from top to bottom of any club in the country. Probably twelve to fifteen cars in each feature have a legitimate chance to capture victory. Last year’s most impressive driver was Damion Gardner, capturing four feature wins in his first year. This year he has settled into the former Cory Kruseman ride, while merging his team with that of Harlan Willis. Damion is a very dedicated racer, who travels each Friday from his northern California home to the Willis shops to prepare the car for the weekend action. Harlan and his long time Crew Chief Mike Nigh have instilled a little patience into Gardner; but you will still see the flashes of daring on occasion. Gardner is always in the top three or so in qualifying and has collected five feature wins this year. A number of teams are starting to prepare for the August NWWC tour. It will be an exciting cast coming from California, with a mix of young and old. They will be on a mission to prove that they are the best non-wing racers. Please note that currently running with the USAC National circuit are SCRA alumni, J.J. Yeley, Cory Kruseman, John Scott, Jay Drake and maybe half credit for Levi Jones. Former SCRA feature winner Billy Boat also represented us at Indy. |
