|
Los Angeles, CA. - I attended
traditional non-wing sprint car racing--USAC/CRA style--October 22
at Perris Auto Speedway. Track staff had the half-mile clay track in
excellent shape for an impressive field of 51 sprint cars on a cool,
62-degree evening. The 3rd annual Legends of Ascot reunion-luncheon
took place in a tent at the PAS site earlier in the day, so many old
timers attended the race.
Out-of-staters included former CRA drivers Hal
Minyard (IN), Carl Adams (N.C) and former car owner Bill Hicks (OH).
Retired drivers Parnelli Jones, Ron Rea, Danny McKnight, current
USAC Western V-P Tommy Hunt were there. Ex-CRA officials Dick
Hindman and Bob Schoeman (the honorary starter in his familiar black
and white checkered jacket) were present, as were promoter J. C.
Agajanian, Jr and author Harold Osmer. WCPT 2004-05 truck champion
Chris Johnson, 22, attended to watch his friend Josh Wise race in
the No. 7 Priestley sprint car. They raced each other in quarter
midgets at Pomona in their youth.
A large crowd (about 80% of grandstand capacity)
witnessed some outstanding, close racing as teams prepared for the
10th annual Budweiser Oval Nationals from Thursday, Nov. 3 through
Saturday, Nov. 5. This event already has 75 entries (as of Oct. 26)
and all cars will race each night. The event carries a large sprint
car purse ($30,000 to win Saturday's A main). It also offers USAC
National and Regional USAC/CRA points so drivers from the Midwest
will drive their usual rides. Six USAC National and eight USAC/CRA
race dates remain after October 22. Both series have close, still to
be determined driver championship contests.
A 16-car "C" main started 14-cars and
transferred the first four finishers to the back of the four,
nine-car, 10-lap heat races. Heat winners started second, eighth,
sixth and first. Then WRA vintage (all without cages) sprint cars,
midgets and roadsters took to the track for a six-lap "demo
race". These owners/drivers showed current fans how their
modern sprint cars evolved. Drivers included 84-year old Walt James,
who drove the No. 55s sprinter after his own CAE-built car broke a
magneto during practice. The other No. 55 A. J. Watson sprint car
had a 255 Offy for power and "won" the demo race by a
wheel over the No. 102 bucket roadster. A 20-car, 12-lap
"B" main advanced the first six
finishers to a 30-lap "A" main. Seventh finisher Rickie
Gaunt used a provisional berth and started the "A" 23rd.
The four abreast parade laps by the entire
"A" main field never fail to excite fans. First-time
spectators next to me said they loved PAS racing action and will
return. With many fans saying they are bored by long NASCAR races on
cookie-cutter mile and a half tracks, TV is missing out on
presenting solid racing with non-wing sprint cars on dirt tracks.
Too bad ESPN Thunder telecasts are no longer on air. Chaos broke out
as the 23-car field powered out of turn four to take the first lap
green flag. Reportedly, front row cars of R. J. Johnson, 18, and
Charles Davis, Jr touched and nine cars behind them in rows two
through ten collided. Cars stopped high, low and mid-track. Some
cars
received up to $3,000 in estimated damage. The red light lasted 26
minutes for clean-up work and removal of damaged cars.
Remarkably, 20 cars were able to restart. Some
teams replaced front axles, rear ends, radius rods, torsion arms or
drag links and one driver was replaced by a title-contender. Kevin
Urton relinquished his unscathed No. 51 to point leader Damion
Gardner, whose red No. 50 car climbed up and over Rip Williams,
black No. 3in mid-track without flipping. It looked like a Sherman
tank going over debris. A "broken differential" according
to pit announcer Chris Holt caused Gardner to pit his No. 50 after
pushing off for the restart. He called in his buddy Urton and
restarted in Urton's new John Boy chassis, in which Gardner sat very
low. Gardner used the steering wheel from his No. 50 ride to
facilitate the transition in different rides.
The "A" main had 14 cars finish all 30
laps. Rip Williams (11th place) slowed on lap 28 with a broken
throttle linkage and was lapped on lap 30, finishing 16th. Seth
Wilson's tenth place No. 17 stopped on the final lap next to the
turn two outer wall after his LF drag link broke and left him unable
to steer. He did not pass the checkered flag and was down one lap,
in 15th position officially, with two lapped cars scored behind him.
Feature winner Josh Ford, 22, qualified third
fastest, won the trophy dash from the outside front row in his No.
73. "I'm using my paved track engine from back east," he
revealed. Ford started seventh in the original "A" main
lineup and fifth on the complete restart. He became the third race
leader and led the final 13 laps after his lap 18 cross-over pass in
turn four of Johnson, the lap 10-17 leader. Davis led the first nine
laps. Ford opened a straight-away lead by lap 26 when Davey Pombo's
stalled car caused a caution flag. Ford opened a 40-yard victory
margin during the final four laps over runner-up Tony Jones. It was
the first USAC main event victory of Ford's career. He was
co-rookie of the USAC National Sprint Series in 2004. His
determination and the
experience he gained on USAC's National Sprint circuit last year
showed Saturday as it did during the 2004 PAS Oval Nationals when he
finished second to Cory Kruseman in the "A" main. When
interviewed on the podium, Ford said his first USAC feature victory
"was a long-time coming. I really wanted this one. I was either
going to win it or wad up this car."
The four USAC/CRA point leaders-Gardner,
Williams, Kruseman and Mike Kirby-all experienced problems during
the feature, so the championship chase is intact for the Oval
Nationals and the Western World Classic at Manzanita Speedway in
Phoenix Nov. 10-12. Flips during October 22 races were executed by
Dan Hillberg (H-2), Josh Williams ("B" main) and Rodney
Argo (L 8 of "A" main). Danny Sheridan started 22nd in the
original lineup and eighth on the restart. He finished fourth.
Second finisher Jones was 16th on the initial grid and fourth on the
restart, which aided him immensely to a podium finish.
Impressive drivers all night for me were winner
Ford, Seth Wilson and rookie Ryan Devitt, who qualified 24th fastest
of the 48 drivers with times. He finished third in his heat race to
transfer directly to the feature, where he placed 11th according to
USAC scoring. I scored the finish behind tenth place Jerry Coons, Jr
as Jason York (No. 25N) 11th, Gardner (No. 51) 12th, Alan Ballard
(No. 97) 13th and Devitt (No. 35R) 14th. Maybe someone jumped a
green flag. They crossed the finish line at 10:37 p.m after an
entertaining night of traditional non-wing sprint car RACING.
|
