Pit Stops - Jefferson Edition
All of the preparation by the new crew of Promoter Mike McCann led to
opening day at Southern Oregon Speedway. There were a lot of questions
about what was going to happen. Who would be racing? How would the
attendance be? What about the new Pennzoil Winged Sprint Car class? On
Saturday night, those questions were answered. Overall, it was a good opening day with a good attendance.
There
was lots of talk about the Sprint Car division. Would the racers
support the new promoter? One prominent racer in the state was making
the rounds expressing how racers should not support the race track and
should go elsewhere. There were six Sprint Car racers willing to support the track for opening day.
This included the Wheeler Racing Team cars, driven by Vern and Jake, IMCA Modified racer Todd Whipple, two young up and coming drivers, Camden Robustelli and Jeffrey Hudson, and Sacramento area long tow Bill Hopper. Hopper's trip became a nightmare for him that saw him unable to even start the heat race. This occurred after a flat tire on the tow up caused him to be late. Another low buck local racer, Wayne Kniffen, was unable to make the opener due to low finances.
The show went on as scheduled, and despite the low Sprint Car turn out,
the fans stayed and watched every lap of that Main Event. Given his
experience, Vern Wheeler Jr. pretty much dominated the evening with a
heat race win and a Main Event victory. Wheeler, who has won Main Events
at the track in recent years, pocketed the $700 first prize and didn't
have a long trip home after the races.
There was a moment in which the second place competitors, Jake Wheeler
and Jeffrey Hudson, closed in on Vern for the lead. This had more to do
with the fact that Vern was being very cautious in lapping slower cars
than the fact that the second and third place cars were closing in on him
due to speed. Once Wheeler made his move, he was gone
This left the battle for second between Jake Wheeler and Jeffrey
Hudson. With the $500 runner up prize at stake, Hudson gave early
indication in the evening that he wanted that finish. The High School
freshman and 2015 Outlaw Pro Stock champion had managed to get the
second place finish in the heat race. Watching the way Hudson was
wheeling his L88 car made it pretty obvious that this kid was suited for
Sprint Car racing. He was very smooth in his first ever start in this
division.
However, as a past Coos Bay-Southern Oregon Speedway point runner up in
this division, Jake Wheeler had a little bit more experience and
managed to grab the second place finish. That made it a 1-2 finish for
the Wheeler Racing Team, giving Jake a nice $500 payday to boot. Hudson didn't do too badly at the pay window for his efforts, and the nice thing was nobody wrecked
their cars in the process.
While Jake and Jeffrey were battling for second all night, Robustelli
and Whipple were duking it out for fourth. Given the open nature
of the rules, the 360 Sprint Cars are able to compete with the Limited
Sprints. In the case of these two drivers, they lean towards the
limited side of the spectrum. However, Robustelli did manage to grab
himself a feature win last season, so people already know that this
young superstar is capable of doing good things.
Whipple has made the commitment to the full season, which will be
giving him more seat time as he generally has been running just a few
races each year in this car. He seemed like he might get the fourth
place feature finish, but Robustelli made the move around him to
claim that position. Again, making it better was the fact that nobody
tore their race cars up. For drivers in the Medford area, the Southern
Oregon Speedway Sprint Car effort does have some advantages.
This is sort of an establishing and learning year for track management
as they assess where to go with the Sprint Car division in the future.
The drivers haven't seen any kind of commitment to establishing the
track's own show since 2010, a year in which Chadd Noland won the
championship.
Noland, who is also a past champion on the Outlaw Kart Track (just like
Robustelli) has plans of supporting the show this year. Unfortunately,
the team suffered a set back as Noland's business burnt down during the
off season. We will probably see Noland at some point this year, though
the question might be when. Another driver we'll probably be seeing this
year is 2009 champion Charlie Thompson. Like a few others in the area,
Thompson's car is still being prepared.
Another driver who has been confirmed as being a driver to watch for
this year is 2015 Cottage Grove Speedway Extreme Sprint Car champion
Patrick Dills. Though Dills is still competing at Cottage Grove, the
team has confirmed that there are five races that they plan to support.
The first date on the list will be in June.
The Mini Stock division, meanwhile, has seen an infusion of new talent
this year with Hornet graduates Michael Johnson, Dylan Lausen and Devin
Weiser joining the roster. Lausen, the 2015 point runner up in the 250's
Outlaw Kart division, admitted that he's hoping to get into the Dwarf
Car division as soon as he's able to. He made good laps in the Main
Event in sixth, as did Weiser, who ended up eighth. 2015 Hornet runner
up Johnson wasn't as fortunate as he was unable to make the Main Event
start due to mechanical problems. His attempt to join the field after
the green flag was waived off.
The dominant trio of 2015 champion David Marble, Bob Burkett and 2014
champion Gary Anderson we're all accounted for on Saturday night. Marble
brought his IMCA Sport Modified to the track to make some practice laps
before this week's season opener. However, his two closest rivals are
back and going for it this year.
In a conversation prior to the event, Burkett revealed that he has
missed a race or two each year over the past two seasons. Hence, he has
four second place rankings but no championships to show despite being
perhaps the fastest driver in the field. However, Bob revealed that he
intends to make every race this year and make a run at the
championship. From the looks of things, he will be very difficult to
beat.
While Burkett
was cruising out front after winning his heat race, Anderson struggled
in his heat and ended up having to start at the back of the pack in the
Main Event. Not surprisingly, Burkett took control of the Main Event
from the green flag, but Anderson made a bee line towards the front of
the pack. Bob had to be just a bit surprised when Anderson drove by him
for the lead. However, Anderson made a mistake in traffic.
The Jim Rodgers prepared 3/10 mile clay oval was in good shape Saturday
night. With two good grooves to run, Anderson was making it work on the
outside in his #0 camouflage car. He drove around the outside of
Burkett, only to catch up to slower traffic a few laps later. His
decision not to move by those cars on the inside was his undoing as
Burkett got back around him underneath and went on to victory. Anderson
settled for second.
Two
other drivers making big statements were Andrew Hall and Marrissa
Henson. Hall, in his Mini Wagon, impressed with the heat race victory
and ran second early in the Main Event. He may have factored in the
battle for the lead if not for a spin in Turn 2. As it was, Hall still
earned a respectable fifth place finish. Henson, meanwhile, stayed right
behind Anderson as he moved in on Burkett and ended up finishing a
close third. When it's asked who will be able to beat Anderson and
Burkett for a feature win this year, Henson and Hall's names should appear
near the top of that list.
Teammates Mike Cloud and Eric Hansen came into the night with high
hopes. Like Marrissa Henson, Cloud did get a second place heat race
finish, but he had to settle for a seventh place finish in the Main
Event. That was still better than Hansen got. Hanson figured to have a strong night, but it ended after hot
laps. Not the way either one of them really wanted to start the season,
but there's always this week.
In the Valley Boys Auto Sales Outlaw Pro Stock ranks, Steve Borror put a
whooping on the rest of the field. This was a continuation of the B40's
dominant performance in the group's season opener in Yreka a few weeks
ago. It wasn't even close as Borror had more than a half a lap advantage
over everybody in the Main Event. Borror hasn't been running for points
in the past few years, but if he decides to do it this year, it won't
even be close at this rate. Not only is he fast, but he's got one of the
nicest looking race cars in the group.
Speaking of gorgeous race cars, there was the yellow #12 car of Rick
Lukens. Lukens had a difficult time mounting the nice yellow body on his
race car during the off season, but the results speak for themselves.
In his heat race, Lukens drove a nice race on the bottom and was rewarded
with a victory. He ended a good night by finishing seventh in the Main Event, one lap down to the flying Borror.
Borror actually had a bad heat race, forcing him to start near the back
of the pack in the Main Event. Two time division champion Ken
Irving started on the front row and set the early pace. Even at Irving's
fast pace, he still had to deal with Borror by lap five. Once Borror
got by, his car became a distant blur to Irving. Irving still grabbed
the second place finish ahead of James Flowers, who finished second at
Yreka and shouldn't be too far behind Borror in the standings.
Though Flowers was able to get the podium finish, Scott and Julia
Flowers weren't as fortunate. 2014-15 point runner up Scott Flowers
didn't finish the Main Event. Julia Flowers, who was making only her
second start in the division, ran a smooth race and ended up eighth.
Like many of the young competitors in the area, Julia got her start in the Outlaw Kart ranks. She's excited about getting to race with the Outlaw
Pro Stocks.
Another driver turning in a strong performance was the #19 car of Roy
Bain. Bain managed to grab a fourth place finish, and it was also a lead
lap finish as the flying Borrer didn't quite catch him. Fifth place
finisher and top five point runner from last season, Johnny Cobb, ended
up fifth. Cobb got lapped right at the end of the race.
Two drivers not as fortunate during the night were Tyler Lockwood and
Tom Hackworth. Hackworth, who brought two cars with the second one up
for sale, had mechanical issues in his heat race to end his night.
Lockwood, who comes up from the Mini Stock and Street Stock ranks at
Southern Oregon Speedway, had problems in hot laps to end his night even
earlier.
One driver who wanted to be there with Scott Bennett. Bennett just
missed the top five in the standings last year by 2 points in sixth, and
he is already off to a rough start this year after hitting the wall
in Yreka a few weeks ago. The damage was enough to keep his #15 car out
of the action for the week, but he was in the pits helping the Flowers
Racing Team. He is trying to get the car ready for the next race.
The Southern Oregon Dwarf Car Association was also on the card and had a
special race in mind for beloved fellow racer Fred Hay. Hay suffered a
broken neck in a hard flip at Chico Silver Dollar Speedway about a month
ago. The good news is that Fred was in the pits and talking with his
fellow competitors, but the bad news is he's probably out for the
season. He was in good spirits and joking around with his friends
Saturday night.
Hay's friends decided to do something special for him on Saturday
night. A $1,000 donation was given to have a special 15 lap race for
Fred. All drivers would pay $50 to enter with all of that money going to
help with Hay's medical costs. Former Dwarf Car competitor Fred O'Nan
put a couple of things up for auction and took all of that money and
donated it to Hay as well.
2014-15 champion Josh King has moved to California, but he made the
trip to Southern Oregon Speedway to support this event. Ryan Smith, Chad
Cardoza, Calvin Morton and Camden Robustelli were some of the stars
trying to make a run at the $1,000 prize. In the end, that win went to
Cardoza, who also won his heat race and the Trophy Dash.
King has been the dominant force in the Dwarf Car division over the
past two years, but his championships still haven't come easy. Last
season saw him win the title by just 21 points over Robustelli. His
margin of victory in 2014 was even less over Smith. Smith came in and
gave it a really good run in the Main Event, but the best he could hope
for was second as King held him off for the victory.
For the second straight race, veteran Brock Peters had a good car and
was running up front, only to have problems. He dropped out of the race
before the finish. Cody Peters wasn't even fortunate enough to be
there after his problems at Yreka kept him out of the action this week.
Cody, who had won the B Dash that night, was there helping his
teammates in the pits. It was teammate Kalvin Morton who had the best
showing for the team once again.
Coming off of his fourth place season last year, Morton has high hopes
of making a run for the championship this year. He's off to the kind of
start that would suggest that he can do it too. Morton followed up his
winning effort in Yreka with a solid third place finish on Saturday
night. With King, Hay and Robustelli not part of the regular field this
year, Morton would seem to be the next in line to get the championship.
If Kalvin is to accomplish that goal, he's still going to have to earn it.
After all of his preliminary success on Saturday night, Cardoza ended
the evening with a fourth place feature finish ahead of Mason Lewman.
The way Cardoza was running, you certainly can't count him out. It's a
little bit too early to say who's going to win the championship in the
Southern Oregon Dwarf Car Association as they definitely have some
quality racers amidst their ranks.
This week's show at Southern Oregon Speedway is slated to feature the
Mini Stocks and the Winged Sprint Cars once again, joined by the IMCA
Modifieds and IMCA Sport Modifieds. Jorddon Braaten and Mike Medal have
looked very strong in Sport Modified competition this year as they make a
run at the Oregon State championship. We're waiting to see who the
players will be in the Modified ranks.
Albert Gill is slated to return to see if he can make it three IMCA Modified championships in a row. Gill is one of the more dedicated
drivers in the field. Zach Fettinger, Jeremy Ohlde and Andy Freeman are
three drivers who have already said they are coming out to run this
year, and we anticipate that the Bailey boys, Tim and Jessie, will be
there as well. Though Mark Wauge has been a major factor in racing for
years, including a recent victory at Cottage Grove, we don't anticipate
the six time track champion will be trying for his seventh title at the
Speedway. We do think he might be there on opening day.
One driver slated to make a run for the championship this year is Duane
Osburn. Osburn just made the announcement that he intends to run every
race this year and go for the championship, coming off of his runner up
point effort in Yreka last season. As a two time Street Stock champion
at Southern Oregon Speedway, you shouldn't count Osburn out.
Meanwhile, Yreka officials may be scratching their heads and wondering where
the Modifieds are. The track had originally scheduled just a five races for this division, but they received driver requests to add
more dates. Three races into the 12 race schedule, the car counts have
been 5, 3 and 1. The common denominator in that car count is Duane
Osburn, who has already declared that he's going to be a regular at
Southern Oregon Speedway. While there may be questions at Southern
Oregon Speedway concerning this division, Yreka is on Red Alert.
With all the problems in the IMCA Modified division, the O'Reilly Auto Parts
IMCA Sport Modifieda and McDonald's Mini Stocks are doing their best to
take up the slack at Siskiyou Motor Speedway.
Perhaps the biggest story so far this year in Yreka is the strong start
that Marilyn Yawnick is enjoying in the Mini Stock ranks. Once again,
Marilyn drove her fast #11 Mini Stock to the front of the pack, and once
again she was trailed by 2015 champion David Steele. The heat race
winner earlier in the evening, Steele shadowed Yawnick down the stretch,
but he was unable to make his move for the win. It was another
milestone for Yawnick, who was enjoying her second straight Main Event
victory. Steele, meanwhile, settled for second.
While 2014 champion Mike Whitaker again struggled back in 7th, Terry
Kendrick again looked good in winning his heat race and then finishing a
solid third in the Main Event. Kendrick could turn out to be a factor
in this year's championship battle. Also looking good on the night was
Dennis Jorgensen, who won the Trophy Dash and finished fourth in the
Main Event ahead of Ethan Killingsworth.
It looks as if teammates Garrett Hamilton and 2015 SCMA Sport Modified
champion Doug Franklin will be at the top of the list in the IMCA Sport
Modified division this year. Franklin had a clean sweep in mind when he
won the heat race and then followed that up with a Trophy Dash victory.
However, the sweep was not to be.
Come Main Event time, it was Hamilton leading the way ahead of Doug
Henshaw. The duo crossed the finish line in order, but Henshaw would
lose his second place finish in post race tech. That bumped Franklin up
to a second place finish as Chad Warmington was happy to end up third.
Meanwhile, the other Jorgensen, Chris Jorgensen, got a fourth place
finish in the Sport Modified division to mimic what Dennis had done in
the Mini Stocks.
This will be a regrouping week for Siskiyou Motor Speedway as the track
will be dark until May 14th. The Outlaw Karts will run on their track
Saturday afternoon, followed by a McDonald's Mini Stock, O'Reilly Auto
Parts IMCA Sport Modified and IMCA Modified race on the big track.
We also know that another Jefferson area race track, American Valley
Speedway in Quincy, had their season opener last Saturday. What we don't
know is any results whatsoever as nothing has been reported. Douglas
County Speedway in Roseburg and Coos Bay Speedway both had play days
last week. Coos Bay will start their season this Saturday night with a
program consisting of Winged Sprint Cars, Late Model Sportsman, Street Stocks, Mini Outlaws and Hornets.
We can report down in the southern end of Jefferson that the Sport
Modified division continues to grow. In Placerville, the division got
its first race with Brian Cooper collecting the win in the 13 car field.
2015 Marysville champion Howard Law finished second ahead of Dave
Gibson and Alan Faruta.
Speaking of milestones, former Antioch Speedway competitor Dan Smith
picked up his first Pure Stock feature win at Placerville after earlier
winning his heat race ahead of team mate Nick Baldwin. In the Main
Event, Greg Rayl finish second ahead of Dave Silva and Travis Emery.
Ryan McDaniel won the Limited Late Model feature ahead of Mike Lightfoot
and Jay Norton. Willie McMillan was going for another win after
grabbing the heat victory, but he was out of the race early.
As usual, the Sprint Cars had a solid showing with 22 cars, and it was
Mason Moore collecting the victory ahead of Logan Seavy and Tyler
Seavy. Sprint Cars, Limited Late Models and Pure Stocks will all be in
action again this Saturday night at Placerville.
While Marysville was dark, Chico Silver Dollar Speedway was in the
midst of the annual Dave Bradway Memorial Race and Hall Of Fame night.
The Friday night portion of the weekend was a regular show for the
Silver Dollar Speedway divisions.
Because it was a big weekend, the local 410 Sprint Car contingent grew
to enough cars for a B Main Event. Willie Croft won the Main Event ahead
of Sean Becker in the Dan Menne car and Bud Kaeding. NASCAR Truck
competitor Rico Abreu ended up fourth. The local Wingless Spec Sprint
division's Main Event went to Terry Shank Jr. ahead of Jeremy Wilson and
past Orland competitor Don Emery. A good field of 17 Spec Sprints were
in action.
Likewise, the Street Stocks had 17 cars with Philip Shelby, a past
Marysville champion, winning the Main Event ahead of Chris Warner and
Ryan McDaniel. Two time Hobby Stock champion Brian Compton won that Main
Event ahead of Brad Ray and Shannon Collins, while Ryan McDaniel won
The Limited Late Model feature ahead of Ray Trimble and Danny Dozier
On Saturday night, California's premiere Winged 410 Sprint Car Series,
the King Of The West Series, got to run their 410 Sprint Cars. The Main
Event belonged to Kyle Hirst ahead of Sean Becker and Rico Abreu. Justin
Sanders and Willie Croft rounded out the top five in the 22 car
feature, while Justyn Cox won the B Main.
Meanwhile, the Wingless Spec Sprint car count dropped just slightly to
13 cars with past Orland Champion Tony Richards winning that race ahead
of Terry Shank Jr. and Barry Pries Jr. Angelique Bell got herself a
fourth place finish ahead Jeremy Wilson.
At press time, we still had no results from American Valley Speedway,
but we hope we will be able to get something there. Hayfork Speedway is
ready to open their season this Saturday night, and racing is also set to continue at Diamond Mountain Speedway in Susanville.
Siskiyou Motor Speedway won't be racing this week, but IMCA Modifieds,
IMCA Sport Modifieds and Mini Stocks will be there on May 14th with an
Outlaw Kart show happening before that event. You can find out all of
that information by going to the website at www.siskiyoumotorspeedway.com.
Why Wingless Spec Sprints May Be A Good Fit For
Southern Oregon Speedway
A Jefferson Racing News Editorial...
I speak from a bit of experience on this subject. You see, back in
August of 1998, my good friend Don O'Keefe Jr and I put together the
rules set for the Wingless Spec Sprint division in California. We did
this at the request of promoter John M. Soares at Antioch Speedway.
Through our efforts, the division debuted in 1999 with 12 cars and never
had less than 12 cars that season with a season high of 19 cars.
What followed in the years to come was several other race tracks
starting their own Spec Sprint classes, including Orland Speedway,
Petaluma Speedway, Chico Silver Dollar Speedway, Marysville Raceway,
Watsonville Speedway and Chowchilla Speedway.
Wingless Spec Sprints breathed new life into Sprint Car racing in
California, and Sprint Car purists were quick to denounce the class when
we first started it. Why was it so successful? Because we brought
Sprint Car racing to the working people. I witnessed very early on how a
race car driver who may never have been in the Sprint Car division to
begin with got to race them thanks to this division. One driver with no
racing experience at all won a heat race that first year.
The Wingless Spec Sprint division is an affordable gateway into Sprint Car racing. For the top Sprint Car teams, they generally go through a
new Sprint Car chassis every year. When you think about it, there are
several Sprint Car chassis just sitting there waiting to be used again.
It's sort of the same premise that has since been used by IMCA with the
Sport Modified class.
Wingless Spec Sprint racing is Sprint Car racing for the Stock Car
minded people. Why? For one thing, these cars are self starting. In the
event of a rollover or a red flag, the cars stop on the track. With
Wingless Spec Sprints, the cars can start again without the need for a
bunch of push trucks.
Another thing that makes this division a Sprint Car for the Stock Car
minded is that you can take your Street Stock, Modified or Pro Stock
motor and put it into your Wingless Spec Sprint Car. Suddenly, there
will be Stock Car drivers who thought about running Sprint Cars but
never thought they could afford it. Wingless Spec Sprints allow them
that opportunity. I have seen some drivers win Sprint Car championships
thanks to this class who probably wouldn't have run a Sprint Car to
begin with. Our very first champion at Antioch Speedway was new to
Sprint Car racing, but he had run Stock Cars for several years prior.
Because of the rules set, cast iron 360 cubic inch motor, 2 barrel
carburetor and a reasonable weight rule, the competition is pretty even in
the division. Yes, there are people that spend a lot of money on their
Sprint Cars. You will get that in any division. However, I've watched
drivers with a little bit of ingenuity compete with the drivers who had
the money.
Another thing that adds to the affordable aspect is that we eliminate the
need for wings. This is a wingless class. Wingless Sprint Car racing
simply separates the men from the boys. It's a better class of racing,
in my opinion, nothing against Winged Sprint Cars. However, the Wingless
Sprint Car challenges the race car driver in a way that the winged cars
can not.
The way I see it, the Wingless Spec Sprint division could be the answer
to Southern Oregon Speedway's effort to start a Sprint Car class.
Nobody in the state is doing this class, and if we are successful, as I
believe we would be, other tracks would follow suit. I also believe you
would start to see Stock Car minded people who never thought about
racing Sprint Cars finally jump into the class. Or, you would see
drivers who never thought they could afford Sprint Cars jumping in
because this division is more affordable than a full on Sprint Car.
I know the skepticism from the Sprint Car people. I encountered that
back in 1999. The term "bastard class" was thrown at this division is if
we were somehow lesser than. However, once the cars got on the track
and people saw them race, they had to admit that they were watching
Sprint Car racing. It was good Sprint Car racing too, and these cars
were not slugs.
The affordability of these Sprint Cars was borne out by the fact that
the first track to follow Antioch Speedway was Orland Speedway. When you
consider the Mini Stock and Hobby Stock background of that race track,
the fact that this division was added there was amazing. Within a couple
of years, they were getting a dozen to 16 cars per race.
Now, I'm not saying eliminate any kind of Sprint Car racing, but what I
am saying is that one way to really establish a Sprint Car division at
Southern Oregon Speedway is to put a class out there that has the
capability of building up a car count a little bit quicker.
Some of the advantages of starting with Spec Sprints at Southern Oregon Speedway, in my opinion, include:
A more affordable rules set. Drivers can afford to run one of these cars more easily than the 360 injected or 410 classes.
A self starting race car. Red flags happen in open wheel racing, but
with self starting cars, you don't have to spend a lot of time push
starting cars again.
Non wing racing. Eliminating the wing and eliminates some of the cost of
putting the race car together. Plus, it gives you a different, and in
some ways more exciting, style of Sprint Car racing.
A gateway to Sprint Car racing. With this division, Stock Car minded
people will look at it and get involved. Plus, you have to consider the
1/8 mile Outlaw Kart Track that we have next to us. Some of these
drivers aren't looking to jump into Mini Stocks from there, but they
can't afford to run the 360 Sprint Car class. This has been the case in
California. The younger drivers jump into Spec Sprints before going
someplace else.
A quicker path to a good car count for Sprint Car racing. I believe
that within a short period of time, we could have a dozen or more cars
out there on any given race night. This could bring some veteran drivers
back that you may not have expected, and also bring drivers new to the
class together in one class.
This is simply my opinion. From what I'm observing right now from the
Sprint Car crowd. Some of the people have lost sight of what the reason was
they started racing in the first place. People do have big investments in
their Sprint Cars, and it ends up being all about money to them.
People simply choose not to race if they're not seeing the kind of
purse that they want. Promoters can't necessarily afford to pay that
purse without the attendance in the stands. Racers promise a big car
count and that they'll bring the crowd, and yet that doesn't happen. You
sit there waiting for the car count to develop, and the fans get
impatient and stop coming when they don't see it.
I speak from experience. I was on the ground floor of the Wingless Spec
Sprint division starting in California, and I witnessed great things
happen. I put together the first big Spec Sprint show in California, at a
track that wasn't running the division regularly, and we still fielded 32 cars that weekend.
Wingless Spec Sprint racing works. It is still working at California.
Last weekend, there were over 40 cars racing at three different race
tracks. This can work if given a chance. The great thing about the
Wingless Spec Sprint division is that it can be all about racing, and
not about egos. Will it happen at Southern Oregon
Speedway? I don't know, but if I had my way, we'd get the ball rolling
on this now.
Note that this is just my opinion and mine alone as a writer and not a track official. Other people affiliated with the race track may see things differently. I only offer this up as a means to start dialogue about what could be done to help Sprint Car racing in Oregon. I see great potential here, but we need to stop talking about it and make things happen too.
Editor's Note: In no way am I advocating replacing full Sprint Cars with this class. I'm of the opinion that drivers will get experience in this class and move up. This has certainly been the case in California.
