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Pit Stops - Jefferson Edition
Kudos go out to Mike Wheeler. The big 500 Open Out Kart race was his idea as a means to give his fellow racers a big race in which to compete, while at the same time paying tribute to his father, the late Vern Wheeler Sr. Though he's been gone a few years now, his memory lives on in his children and grand children. Mike's mother was there to drop a green flag on the big money race and award the big trophy to the winner. When it was all said and done, the winner was Mike.
Make no mistake, this wasn't about Mike getting a big win for himself. He happens to be one of the best 500 Open Kart racers in the Nation right now, and he's going to be a factor in any big race. However, he had to work hard to get this win and showed the personal wear and tear after winning the 50 lap marathon on the one-eighth mile clay oval. Jesse Calwell and then Jake Park provided the challenge with Park eventually finishing second ahead of Chase Hill. Park and teammate Tyler Seavey were in from California like a good portion of the drivers in the field.
Not surprisingly, young Tanner Holmes had another outstanding showing. Coming off of his big win in Montana a few weeks ago, he picked up a solid fifth placed finish in the 23 car 500 Open class. He was in the Top 5, pitted and drove back up to fifth. But the Holmes family was not content with this finish. Tanner won both of his heat races in the 250 Kart class, and the reigning champion held off previous winner Bodee Weiser and Maximus Mittry to win the Main Event. Weiser continues to lead the point race so far.
Not to let her big brother have all the fun, 2014 Box Stock champion Carley Holmes won a heat race and then proceeded to hold off point leader Trevor Grimes to win that division's Main Event. Grimes, who is the reigning champion, was riding a two race win streak, but he was no match for Carley. This talented young lady has moved into a 250 Kart class this season as well and is excited about making the move up. Grimes wasn't far behind her at the checkered flag as Brionna Fuller finished third.
Not to be forgotten in the group of some 55 Karts were the 12 Beginners Box Stocks. On this occasion, every one of these youngsters got behind the wheel and gave it a shot at least once. The two fastest Karts were those of Taylor Fuller and Daisy Gargurevich, and both won a pair of heat races. You can see where these two are nearing the point where they will be ready to move to the regular Box Stock class. Taylor lapped all by Gargurevich in victory. Point leader Kiley Grimes continues to improve with her third place finish while Malachi Johnson made his very first start with a fourth place finish.
Friday night highlighted the potential of this Kart track to have big races. The program is still a work in progress as the teams realize there is a commitment to make the track better and build on the program. There are many ideas for the future to build on. New divisions that may be considered in the future, and the the Vern Wheeler Sr. Memorial will be an annual event. For now, the next two events on the calendar are August 19th and 26th.
The Saturday night show had a few people concerned with the Pennzoil Winged Sprint Car class. What happened Saturday was the perfect storm for a bad night. Bill Hopper was waiting on motor parts, Wayne Kniffen was sick and had no doctor's clearance to race, Jeffrey Hudson was still making repairs from a Cottage Grove crash, Todd Whipple was a no show and Camden Robustelli was at Cottage Grove trying for two wins in a row. The track is also fighting the campaign launched against it at the start of the year to create a driver boycott. A few teams are refusing to race for lack of a purse that is not in the current budget to pay.
Two teams showed up on Saturday with point leader Jake Wheeler and Jeremy Lowe behind the wheel. Wheeler lobbied for the his division to be moved up to first on the grid, but management's stance was to pay the full purse and run them last as scheduled. In protest, Wheeler loaded up, ending what little program there would be for this division. The state of Sprint Car racing is still a bit of a mess, but there is a glimmer of hope in the Limited Sprint Car program being touted by David Hibbard. There is a test race scheduled for September 10th. The next scheduled show for the class is August 20th, and it remains to be seen who will be there for that.
Southern Oregon Speedway also has an Open Stock division, which is turning into a Late Model supported class. The Augustine Racing Team hadn't heard about this program until about a week before this race, and they were excited to come back and race. Nathan Augustine ran about a half dozen Mini Stock races at the track in 2010, but this was his first start at the track in a Late Model. Teammate Kristy Grout also came to help make it a better show.
The pay for the class is $500 to win, even when two cars showed up at the previous race, and Late Models, Street Stocks, Sportsmans, Super 4's and any fendered Stock Car is legal to run. Mike Linder and Bob Dees have made all of the races, and the Dees family is excited about the prospect of this class. In fact, John Dees brought a Late Model for his first start, while brother Garrett Dees is preparing his own car. Linder and the Dees family bring lots of enthusiasm into this program.
The Augustine team reports that they are working to get a couple more cars to the show on August 20th, and Steve Lemley's car is still being prepared. A busy work schedule has hampered his efforts, but he is hoping that August 20th will be his night to race. If things line up as hoped, there will be even more cars racing in that event. In the meantime, racing went on Saturday night.
Augustine gave an early indication that he was there to win as he won both the heat race and Trophy Dash in front of two time winner Linder. Nathan was just getting started as he drove a flawless race in winning the 20 lap Main Event by a straightaway. Linder had his hands full with B. Dees and last minute entry Jeffrey Hudson. Hudson took the wheel of the Rocky Nash Pro Stock. No sooner had Dees taken second from Linder than Hudson made his move. The 2015 Pro Stock champion Hudson passed Linder and then made a last lap pass on Dees for second.
The fans got treated to a nice little race with these Open Stock Cars and it showed the potential this new division really has to grow and become something at Southern Oregon Speedway. It appears as if Coos Bay point leader Augustine will be back to run for two in a row, and it will be interesting to see who also shows up.
The Hornet division was back in action with the same five competitors from the last race back to do battle again. These drivers raced hard for position and put on a good show. What we haven't heard is who is working on a car to bring out next and how close they are. There are known to be at least 12 Hornets in the area, but there have never been more than six cars to compete in the two and a half years of this class.
John Hoult was hoping to make a run at his first victory. With a pair of second place finishes, he is a threat, and he illustrated that point beautifully by holding off a last turn effort by Joby Shields to win the Trophy Dash. Two time winner Derrel Nelson Jr. won the heat race as he was hoping to take the point lead from Tim Hedges. Hoult smacked the wall in the Main Event and limped to a fourth place finish after that.
Hedges was after his first win, and the incoming point leader knew it was needed. He led ten laps before Shields came flying by to grab the lead and drove it to his second victory. Hedges was in for a battle with Nelson, and there was contact as times. Nelson grabbed the spot, and Hedges got into him in the second turn on the final lap. Hedges backed off at that point and settled for his fourth third place finish. It will be back to the drawing board for Hedges, who lost the point lead to Nelson.
The question is, who will be the next driver to bring a car to the track? The Hornets are the cheapest entry into racing on the big race track and they are racing for a small purse for the first time this season. Many of the cars known to be out there are owned by teams with other cars in other divisions. Hopefully, they can find racers to drive those cars or just get them to the track themselves to help this class grow. As these five drivers have illustrated, the racing is pretty close and competitive. It should also be pointed out that Heather Menzel was out there making laps last week once again and did a good job of getting her car to the checkered flag.
Heather's boyfriend, Devon Weiser, was back with his Mini Stock and finished second in his heat race. He was working on a Top 5 finish last week when steering issues sent him into a tractor tire. Of the rookies in the division, Devon seems to be the fastest. He does have a second Hornet car as he did make a couple starts in that division last year before moving up. Fellow rookies Dillen Lausen and Mikey Johnson both did a good job of getting their cars to the checkered flag once again last week in the Top 10 in the 16 car field.
Merissa Henson bounced from her DNF last time by battling Kris Mix for a fifth place finish. Her team reports that they now have their Limited Sprint Car and are hoping to have it ready for the September 10th race. The team is excited about Limited Sprint racing and feels that this division will gain traction at the speedway if given a chance. Merissa has been driving Karts for several years now and loves open wheel racing. Her Mini Stock is for sale, and it is a Top 5 ranked race car at the moment.
Closing in fast on the Top 5 in points is David Steele. The 2015 Yreka champion is not chasing points, but he is having fun just being able to race for wins. He sees himself having a bit of an advantage over point leader Bob Burkett, who may not take certain chances that could hurt his point effort. Like Bob, David raced for several seasons before finally making a bid for a championship, so he totally understands Burkett's desire to make that one championship run. For Steele, the pressure is off, and that makes him more of a threat to win.
Gary Anderson is left wondering what might have been if not for a hot lap crash a few races back that ended his night too early. He recently reclaimed second in the standings, and his heat and Trophy Dash wins last week helped his cause. However, with rival Bob Burkett winning a heat and running up front in the Main Event, Gary isn't gaining much in the battle. Burkett led five laps last week before Steele sped past him. Once Steele got the lead, he headed for his fourth victory in five starts. Counting his wins at Yreka, David has nine this year. Burkett settled for his fourth second place finish to go with three wins. He did what he needed to do to maintain his lead.
Anderson grabbed the final podium position for another solid night. Andrew Hall lost ground on him in the race for second, but it was still another good night for Hall in his fast Pinto Wagon. He finished fourth in the feature after a brief battle with Henson. There is still plenty of time for some positions to change in the standings, and Hall is also somebody to keep an eye on in the quest for a new feature winner. He is fast, and his time for victory could be coming soon.
For Garrett Fredrickson, it's all about seat time and getting better. The young up and comer has made a few starts in a Hornet over the past two seasons. His father Bob ran the Kart track for the past couple seasons and is always there to help out in any way he can. Garrett isn't worried about setting the speedway on fire. He knows he has a bit to learn out there, but he also understands that improvement comes from making laps and learning. He has one of the best looking cars in the field, and he will get better with more seat time.
Tony Bartell gave indication of his improvement in the IMCA Sport Modifieds last week when he held off a late surge by point leader Jorddon Braaten for his first heat race victory. Bratten is the measuring stick in this division. If you beat the current point ladder and two time champion, you are doing something. Braaten may not maintan his point lead. Don Braaten reported that Jorddon has made an agreement with reigning California IMCA Sport Modified champion Fred Ryland to bring his car back to Boone, lowa with Ryland for the Nationals on the weekend of September 10th.
Ordinarily, that wouldn't be an issue as you can only have non sanctioned, non point races on that weekend. The race at Southern Oregon Speedway that weekend will be for no points. However, there is the Lon Skinner Memorial race on September 3-4, and it is for points. Braaten's car may be leaving early, meaning that he would have to scramble for a ride to maintain his point lead if that's the case. We'll follow that story, but the opportunity to race the Boone Nationals is something everybody hopes to be able to do. This was something Braaten could not pass up.
If Braaten does skip the Skinner race, Mike Medel will likely be there to see about grabbing the biggest win of his career. Mike turned a terrible night last week into one of his best drives ever. Mechanical issues kept him out of both the Trophy Dash and his heat race, but he came from last to second in the Main Event. He had to come from the back twice after a tangle while running fifth. It was a brilliant drive by Medel, who maintained second in the standings with that finish.
David Marble certainly should not be counted out in the championship chase if Braaten opens that door. Marble is within striking distance of Medel. David won his first Trophy Dash as we still have no repeat winners in that race. After winning his heat race, he settled for fourth in the Main Event. The thing about Marble is he is constantly searching for ways to improve his car. The team is adjusting bars and making setup changes as needed before every race, and his time in the Main Event winner's circle is coming. As the 2015 Mini Stock champion, people know what Marble can do.
Doug Franklin led fellow Yreka racers Jesse Morton and Jimmy Lipke for the 3-6-8 finish. Franklin was the SCMA Association champion at his home track last year and remains in the title hunt this year. Morton is a name that has been a part of Yreka racing for the past several years. He ran Pro Stocks before moving up to Sport Mods. Surprisingly, he's not on the lengthy winner's list so far this year, but after his double podium weekend two weeks ago, it won't be a surprise to see him get a win.
The Valley Boys Auto Sales Outlaw Pro Stock division finds three members of the Flowers Family ranked Top 5 as father Scott is second, son James is fourth and daughter Julia is fifth. All three were racing on Saturday night, but James had to borrow his mother Ginny's ride in Arlen Garrison's #00 car as his motor still wasn't ready. He had fourth heading to the white flag, but his father made a last lap move to claim the spot and force him to settle for fifth. Julia made good laps and took another checkered flag in seventh.
Quietly, Matt Harlow has worked his way into third in the standings, but there was a question about how good he was. After last week, people know Matt is pretty good. He was shadowing Steve Borror's moves for about 15 laps of the Main Event before Borror pulled away just a bit. Matt had second until a last lap pass was made by Rocky Nash. Nash had earlier won the Trophy Dash. Nash has spent much of his racing career on the pavement and has had his share of success with NASCAR in the NASCAR West and Southwest Tour. He remains a front runner with the Pro Stocks.
Of course, at the head pf the pack is Steve "The Bullet" Borror in the #B40 car. Borror was a heat race winner, and he silenced the critics who said he wasn't as fast at Southern Oregon Speedway. While four of his wins have happened at Yreka this year, just one had happened at the Medford track before Saturday. At the moment, the championship seems to bed Borror's to win, but the season isn't over yet. Most of the races will take place at Southern Oregon Speedway from here on out, including the August 20th race.
Siskiyou Motor Speedway is dark until August 27th. We've sort of run out of time this week, but we hope to do a season recap article soon. What we can tell you is the IMCA Sport Modified division's roster has done a nice job of sharing the wins so far. Only Jorddon Braaten and young Colton Cheffey count themselves among the double winners so far. There is a long list of one time winners that includes reigning champion Colter Boswell, Kurt Lorenzini, Doug Franklin, Brian Cooper, Randy Wright, Mike Medel, Garrett Hamilton, Jimmy Lipke, Keith Foux, and Fred Ryland. As we've said before, you never know who will win on any given week. Lipke continues to lead the championship battle.
In the McDonald's Mini Stocks, Marilyn Yawnick and Terry Kendrick are locked on a close championship battle. Yawnick has three wins, while Kendrick has one. Reigning champion David Steele is a five time winner, while 2014 champion Mike Whitaker and Dennis Joregensen each have one win. Ethan Killingsworth has yet to win, but with two seconds, it seems only a matter of time before the talented teen drives his Mini Truck to victory.
The IMCA Modifieds have struggled to gain footing his year, and there were times when one or no cars has showed. Duane Orsburn is trying for a double championship season, and he leads the points in Yreka. Kellen Chadwick won the Wild West Speedweek race, while the John Arnberg Memorial win went to Ryan McDaniel. Other winners so far include, Chris Olexiewicz, two time Medford champion Albert Gill, reigning champion Nick Trenchard, Roger Lorenzini Jr. and Jeremy Ohlde. When the track returns to action on August 27th, the IMCA Modifieds will be a part of the show.
In Other Jefferson News - Top 5's From Elsewhere
Diamond Mountain Speedway Susanville - July 4th
IMCA Modified - Chris Olexiewicz, Bill Pearson, Mitch Murphy, Chris Neiman, Nevin Kennemore.
Mini Stock - Larry Whitebird, Tom Davis, Bob Feller, Kyle Belli, Joe Marlow.
Strickly Stock - Richard Longacre, Nathan Howard, Skeeter Bethel, Jim Erie, Mike Nichols.
Diamond Mountain Speedway Susanville - July 23rd
IMCA Modified - Chris Olexiewicz, Wade Kennemore, Larry McCracken, Bill Pearson, Chris Neiman.
Mini Stock - Tom Davis, Larry Whitebird, Wyatt Spalding, Joe Marlow, Billy Gibson.
Strictly Stock - Dan Dias, Chris Annas, James Huffmon, Jason Emmot, Shayna Robertson.
Ukiah Speedway - July 30
Bombers - RJ Randal, Snider, Bob Mook, Bradley Brackett, Roy Ingalls Jr.
Modified - Mike Collins, Wade Coleman, Darrin Knight, Clay Caturegli, Adrianna Strugnell.
Jammers - Brandi Robertson, Raymond Taylor Jr., Gene Odell Sr., Tiona Smith, Elizabeth Ingalls.
Jalopies - Johnny Small, Wayne Hunt, Dave Furia, Joe Small, Brandon Small.
Placerville Speedway - July 30
BCRA Midget Lites - Craig Dillard, Charlie Caraccilo, Scott Males, Kyle Offill, Doug Nunes.
King Of The West Sprint Car - Shane Golobic, Sean Becker, Jason Statler, Justyn Cox, Kyle Hirst.
Silver Dollar Speedway - July 29
NCDCA Dwarf Car - Matt Sargent, Danny Wagner, Kevin Bender, Jeff Fitch, Mike Reeder.
410 Sprint Car - Andy Forsberg, Bud Kaeding, Andy Gregg, Sean Becker, Seth Nunes.
Street Stock - Brent Lawrence, Shawn Smith, Phillip Shelby, Brent Hall, Phil Marino.
Wingless Spec Sprint - John Clark, Terry Schank Jr., Jeremy Wilson, Angelique Bell, Brett Youngman.
Marysville Raceway - July 30
360 Sprint Cars - Colby Wiesz, Mike Monahan, Jeremy Burt, Jeremy Hawes, Billy Wallace
Super Stocks - Phillip Shelby, Mike Walko, Steve Hammett, Orville Owens, James Castleberry
Wingless Sprints - Johnny Burns, Tim Sherman Jr., Josh Vieira, Peter Paulson, Nathan Johnson.
Dwarf Cars - Shawn Jones, Kevin Bender, Jeremy Blackshere, Scott Dahlgren, Danny Wagner.
