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Monster Trucks Invade Southern Oregon Speedway
Saturday Night
White City, Oregon...It's been a while since people have been able to enjoy a good Monster Truck Show in an outdoor environment in the Medford area. On Saturday night, Southern Oregon Speedway will be delivering the goods when the Malicious Monster Truck Insanity Tour comes to town. It will be a night of car crunching, adrenaline pumping excitement when the the Monster Trucks pull onto the speedway to entertain the crowd. Joining them in support will be the Southern Oregon Dwarf Cars.
Monster Truck shows have entertained fans for many years. The only thing keeping the Medford area fans from seeing a truly entertaining show has been the proper outdoor venue. Southern Oregon Speedway will offer these gargantuan vehicles plenty of room to do their thing.
Five of these beasts will be on hand as they compete in various competitions, including the jaw-dropping Best Trick competition, Full Throttle Racing and the No Rules Freestyle Throwdown.
Trucks that are scheduled to appear include Rockstar, Beast Mode California Kid, Identity Theft and Pound Hound. In addition to the five competitive vehicles, the Deogee and Skeletor trucks will be on hand to offer rides for the fans. It promises to be an enjoyable evening from start to finish.
As if the Monster Truck show wasn't enough, the Southern Oregon Dwarf Cars will be on hand as the support class. The record shows that in five events, there have been four different Main Event winners in the series. Reigning champion Brock Peters won impressively last week, joining Guy Tow, two time champion Josh King and two time winner Camden Robustelli on the list of drivers who have recorded a victory so far this season. A good field of cars is anticipated for the Dwarf Car portion of the program, including Chad Cardoza, Ryan Smith, Fred Hay, Randy Slater and Cody Peters.
For the fans looking for a little bit more racing action, the little Southern Oregon Speedway track will have a full Outlaw Kart program on Friday night, including the 500 Open, 250, Box Stock, Beginners Box Stock and UAS Speedway Kart classes. Admission is $10 for that show.
The gates for the Monster Truck show on Saturday night open at 5 p.m., and the pit party starts at 5:30 p.m. Show time is 7 p.m. VIP Adult tickets are $30. Adult tickets are $20, Senior tickets are $18, Juniors 7 to 11 are $8 and children 6 and under are $5. For further information, go to www.southernoregonspeedway.com.
Exciting Things Happening At Siskiyou Speedway
Yreka, CA...Siskiyou Motor Speedway has another exciting program on tap for Saturday night. In addition to the IMCA Sport Modifieds, the always exciting Mini Stocks and the newly-formed Jefferson State Jalopy Association, the track will have a special Outlaw Kart demo and kids Power Wheel races.
The IMCA Sport Modified division has been very unpredictable this season. In five races, there have been five different winners. Last week, it was Trevor Tiffee adding his name to the Winner's List after a good battle with championship rival Ryder Boswell. Boswell, who is a past Top 3 driver in Mini Stocks and a feature winner there, is on a quest to get his first win in this division. Tiffee had a clean sweep performance, which put him into the lead in the point standings.
While DJ Bottoms has quite a bit of ground to make up, he is a feature winner and a definite threat to win on any given weekend. Randy Wright and Gary Foster were both welcome sights in the pits last weekend. Wright, who finished third in the standings last season, would take a checkered flag in third in last Saturday's Main Event. Will there be a repeat winner this week or another new winner?
Looking over at the Mini Stock division, David Steele won for the fourth time last week. Steele should be at or near the top of the point listings when they are released. The only other driver to grab a Main Event victory so far this year is two-time reigning champion Marilyn Yawnick, but Yawnick settled for fourth last week after winning her heat race earlier in the evening.
Meanwhile, it was 2014 champion Mike Whitaker leading the pursuit of the flying Steele with a second place finish last week. It was his best finish of the season as he also has two thirds. Interesting enough, there have been five different second place finishers in five races, and Terry Kendrick is one of them. Kendrick finished third in the most recent race. It is likely that all four of these drivers are running rather closely at the top of the standings.
One driver serving notice to the competition that he is intent on being a contender for feature victories is rookie Darek Alford. Alford picked up his first ever heat race victory last week. Could a feature win be in the cards for him this week?
With Medford not running either of these classes on Saturday night, both divisions could see some visitation. Other locals to watch for in Mini Stock competition includes Dennis Jorgensen, Jason Frost, Mike Frost and Heather Ryan.
The Jefferson State Jalopies ran their first exhibition race last weekend with the recently completed #4 Jalopy getting the win. The team has four cars, but the driver scheduled to compete in the #1 car canceled at the last minute. JJ Smith and Karl Bernstein are the founders of this division and have built the first four cars. They'll take their second turn at the speedway on Saturday night.
Saturday night promises to be a fun night for the family. It will only get better at Siskiyou Speedway with the Calculated Comfort Outlaw Pro Stocks coming to town on June 16th, followed by the inaugural race of this year's Wild West IMCA Modified Speedweek Tour on Friday, June 22nd. For further information, go to www.siskiyoumotorspeedway.com.
Pit Stops
The Roger Haudenshild Tribute race has become one of the big marquee events of Southern Oregon Speedway. It has turned into one of those kitchen sink type of events. Everything is thrown in there but the kitchen sink. Thanks to the Haudenshild family and Dusty's Transmission, the IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds and Calculated Comfort Outlaw Pro Stocks got to race for a little bit of extra money.
With $1,600 on the line for the winner of the IMCA Sport Modified class, 23 competitors checked in through the gates. There were even a few surprises. The money brought 2015 California IMCA State champion Fred Ryland and 2016 California State champion Brian Cooper to the show. Fred was there along with his wife Patti Ryland, and Jimmy Ford found some space in the Cooper hauler to make the show. 2016 Yreka champion Jimmy Lipke and rising Northern California star Justin Foux were also there. The competition level was high with the money on the line.
Rumor had it that Justin McCreadie and teammate Braxton Possinger we're going to be elsewhere. McCreadie is the current Oregon State point leader. The interesting thing to note is that Justin went ahead and signed up for the Crack The Whip Race. Last year, this race didn't go well for either he or season opener winner David Marble as they crashed before the race officially got started.
What is remarkable is watching the interest rise in the IMCA Sport Modified class. We seem to be approaching a time where on a regular night, we might need a B Main. The 23 car field was very close to that cut off point. The field has seen a few newcomers including Brian Knorr, Steve's Lysinger, Brandon Wilson, John Rowden and Jacob Hoppes. Jacob was making his debut, though he still has some bugs to work out in his car.
The Ryland's were intent on bringing the money home. We've talked a lot about Fred Ryland in the racing community, and with the accolades he has achieved in his career, who can blame anybody for talking about him? However, wife Patti Ryland has had some good numbers through the years. She is a past Four Banger champion at Antioch, winning the honors twice, a Top 3 Hobby Stock competitor and also a Top 5 IMCA Modified racer at Antioch. She has won Main Events in each class, and she set the early pace in Saturday's Main Event. Unfortunately, she looped it and settled for a still respectable ninth place finish.
It's kind of surprising to hear Jimmy Ford talk about how nervous he is before the Main Event. Jimmy has had a fast car all year and has settled for second a couple of times when things got a little bit rough between he and the driver running for the win. Jimmy is generally a smooth racer who likes to get his car to the finish line wherever that might be. Through the years, he's driven just about everything, including Street Stocks, Late Models and Mini Stocks. He's also a two-time Marysville Mini Stock champion.
Ford has won races at Medford in the past and he was hoping this would be his night. Patti's husband Fred Ryland was in pursuit behind Ford and reigning champion Mike Medel. Fast Freddy made a pair of inside passes in Turn 2 on laps nine and ten and emerged with the lead. Once he got it, he wasn't about to let the $1,600 first prize escape him. Ford settled for yet another second place finish, but his car is in one piece too.
We're two races into the IMCA Sport Modified championship chase, and finding Mike Medel's name near the top of the list is no surprise. Medel enjoyed a good weekend as he finished second at Willamette the night before and third at his home track. Willie McFall is also in the championship hunt, but the guy leading things is 2015 Mini Stock champion David Marble. Mable did well in the very competitive field as he finished fifth. It's one point at a time in the IMCA system with only Main Event points counting, so every position you can finish higher in the Main Event will make a difference. It's a little early yet to be saying that one of these three drivers will win the championship, but all three are off to a good start.
Getting back to Justin McCreadie, after winning the Crack The Whip Race, Justin finished ahead of Marble for the fourth place feature finish. This will keep him ahead in the standings in the IMCA State championship battle despite the fact that Jorddon Braaten was up north picking up a pair of feature victories himself. McCreadie had finished third at Willamette. What is interesting is the not so well kept secret of the Pacific Sport Mod Challenge Series and the nice little cash prizes available for the top drivers at season's end. Braaten has pocketed the winner's share for the past two seasons, but he finds himself trailing McCreadie so far this year. It's still close between the two, and anything can happen.
While we talked about the big three in the Sport Modified point race so far, there are still a couple of drivers hoping to make a challenge. Tied for fourth after the big weekend were Danny Rule and Brandon Wilson. Rule didn't have a very good night, but Wilson finished seventh behind Foux. Foux had picked up a heat race win earlier in the evening. Behind Wilson In eighth was Jon Rowden. Jon had purchased the car from Glen Severson back in 2016 and he was making his first start with his new colors.
There was a lot of talk about who would win the big money with $2,000 on the line for the IMCA Modifieds. Mark Wauge's name immediately comes up as he has won this race before. Also, Mark picked up a nice paycheck in Yreka the previous week in the John Arnberg Memorial. The bounty hunter of the group, Nick Trenchard, was also in Yreka finishing third. Trenchard was the two-time reigning champion of this race. He served a little notice to everybody that he was intent on bagging the big bucks when he won his heat race and then picked up $200 for his victory in the Crack The Whip Race.
The news wasn't so good for Wauge. He had a front row start for his heat race, and his motor gave up on him as they were taking the green flag. Not the kind of luck he was looking for, and he was forced to sit on the sidelines and watch Trenchard put on a driving clinic in winning his third Haudenshild Tribute race. Trenchard was so fast that nobody even got close to him. In recent seasons, Nick has had a knack for winning the big-money races on the West Coast, and from what we can see, he'll be a threat in the upcoming big races as well.
While first place was not a battle, it was still interesting watching Trenchard maneuver his way through slower traffic in the rapidly run Main Event. The battle was for second, and it may still surprise some people that Cowboy Duane Orsburn was in that battle. The two time Street Stock champion is getting the car that he bought last year dialed in gradually, and he was giving two-time track champion Albert Gill everything he could handle. Gill knew he had a good car after winning another heat race.
He may not have been expecting Orsburn to make the pass, but Orsburn got around him and held second for numerous laps before Gill finally made the pass on lap 22. Gill is once again in a championship battle at Southern Oregon Speedway as he did a great job in finishing second. For Orsburn, the battle for third got intense between he and Trophy Dash winner Dave Duste Jr. Seeing Duste back at the track is a welcome sight, and he seemed to have his car coming on strong in the waning laps of the race as he made a charge up a few positions to get third. Trying to get third back, Orsburn spun and finished further back in seventh.
What's amazing is the caliber of talent in the field. Despite the fact that other big races up north and down south kept visitation to a minimum, you had the aforementioned racers in the field as well as reigning champion Jesse Bailey, track superstar John DeBenedetti, CJ Putnam and James Welshonse. Any one of those drivers is capable of bringing home a victory. Bailey brought it home to a respectable sixth behind Preston Jones. Jones had won his heat race earlier in the evening. It's not a matter of if but when Jones will get his first win in this class. DeBenedetti was wheeling the #222 car for Brian Bowman and finished eighth. Putnam finished 10th in a car that the team just got this season.
The Calculated Comfort Outlaw Pro Stock drivers were chomping at the bit to get back to Southern Oregon Speedway. There were a few drivers expressing an interest in just racing at the track, and some of the loudest voices came from area racers Dean Hackworth and Dan Randall. Hackworth was a staunch supporter of Pro Stock racing last season at the track and finished second in points as the top rookie in the field. This year, the Hackworth team has four cars. Three of them were at the speedway, though they were dialing some bugs out of them. Dean never made it onto the track for the Main Event. Randall, meanwhile, just missed the Top 10 behind rookie Brian R Hammond.
The field has gained some really good drivers in the last couple of years. It would take a whole column to talk about the accomplishments of Dr. Scott Lenz. His championship pedigree goes back to the old Medford Raceway at the Posse Grounds. Scott also won this race last season and came into the night as perhaps the driver to beat. Not to be forgotten in the mix is 2016 champion Steve Borror. Steve won this race in 2016 as well as an impressive drive from last to win the Crack The Whip Race that night.
The Crack The Whip Race this year and the two $200 prize that came with it, went to John David Duffie. John has won many Main Events at Southern Oregon Speedway through the years and battled with legendary racers Jimmy Walker and Frank Ward III to get some of those wins. These drivers enjoy coming to Southern Oregon Speedway anytime they can, and they certainly put on a good show.
Borror won the first race of the year with the group in Yreka and was leading when he unfortunately spun. That put the lead in the hands of Lenz. Once he got it, there wasn't anybody on the track that was going to prevent him from picking up the $1,200 paycheck for the victory. Lenz also hosted a party in the pits for the racers afterwards and is certainly viewed as a true sportsman in the group.
You didn't just have the previous two champions in the field. 2015 champion Jeffrey Hudson was there as well. Car owner Scott Bennett has had Jeffrey driving for him during the past year, and the kid looked very impressive in closing out the season with a pair of victories. He got close this time, settling for second and holding off Borror, who finished third.
Longtime Pro Stock competitor and club president Scott Flowers was engaged in a good battle for that third position for most of the race. Johnny Cobb and Jeff Haudenshild were in it as well. Cobb managed to take a checkered flag ahead of Flowers, who would finish fifth. When we talk about drivers who are due to get a win on the tour, the name Scott Flowers appears at the top of the list. However, there is a good group of racers in this field, and you're going to get a good show every time the Pro Stocks are in town.
The Late Model division has been gaining new drivers this year, and Brian Bowman finally brought his car out as did Jason Schultz. We heard about Schultz purchasing one of the cars from Rapp Racing last season and also that Jason had raced previously in Big Block Modifieds back east. Originally, word was that long time competitor Rich McCoy was going to give the car its shakedown run, but it was Jason behind the wheel figuring things out on this night.
Further up in the field, Brian Bowman was battling heat race and Trophy Dash winner Miles Deubert and reigning champion Nathan Augustine for second. Deubert spoke earlier about some of the challenges he's had this year. Steering issues at the previous race left him having to rig something up to get him to the finish line. He finished sixth that night.
What perhaps none of these drivers were expecting was the man at the front of the pack, Dave Foote. Foote has been making quite a bit of progress with his car this year. Last year, he seemed to be stuck in third place. This time, he led all the way to become the third feature winner of the season. Augustine was on a mission to take over the lead, but he got in a tangle with a slower car, leaving Nathan's car with extensive damage. The good news is the absence of Bob Dees, John Dees and Mike Linder meant the only driver making a move closer to the lead was Deubert, who finished second. It's definitely close up front now
Bowman meanwhile, made some good laps and finished a respectable third at the checkered flag. Also making the next Trophy Dash in fourth was Don Garrett Jr. Word is that Augustine is looking to rent a ride for a week while he is working on putting another car together.
It's talked about a lot how important it is to get the next generation of racers into the sport. Demographics show that the audience is getting older and the younger generation is losing interest in cars and working on them. Ashland High School has an auto shop class, and their teacher has gotten his students involved in building and racing two cars. On Saturday night, both John Ferreira and Ethan Doty were behind the wheel again. Ferreira is driving the popular PT Cruiser.
There are a few teens out there in the field, including Dylan Irving, who just turned 15, teammate Brandon Wonsyld and Ashtin Hedges. Hedges has been looking very good out there lately and won his third straight heat race. The Main Event appeared to belong to him before his car lost power on the backstretch on lap 15. This one had to be a heartbreaker to lose in such fashion, but Jason Stoutenburgh was rewarded for his perseverance.
The reigning champion got a Trophy Dash win, but he lost power leading the heat race, won by 2016 champion Tim Hedges, just ahead of Chris Boynton. This also put Jason last on the grid. By the time Ashtin had his mechanical issues, Stoutenburgh was the leader. Once again, he would see Brandon Wonsyld in his rear-view mirror. Wonsyld brought out a lap two yellow flag to put him at the back, but he charged his way to a second place finish. The battle at the top of the point ladder is between these two, and Brandon still leads by just one point.
A bad Main Event finish earlier this season has Tim Hedges playing catch up with the lead duo. Luck was on his side when he got his heat race win, and he found himself in a battle on the last lap for third between himself and Zach Nelson. Nelson had steering issues and was just lucky to get it to the finish line, settling for fourth behind Hedges. The Hedges team fielded four cars. Tim didn't think his #14t car was quite ready, but he went ahead and brought it out and allowed David Miller to wheel the #4t car as Miller's car was down for the count. David brought it home to a sixth place finish behind Brea Tritchler. For Brea, this was her second Top 5 finish of the season.
It is great to see the JOAT Labs Hornets division responding so well this year in the car count department. Just a few years ago, this division might have been on the schedule, but it was an afterthought. Now, cars are being built and more drivers are coming out all the time. You have to start somewhere in racing before you can get to the upper classes, and this is a good place to start. The fact that there are so many young drivers in the field is also encouraging.
Southern Oregon Dwarf Car racers are racing hard for the victory, and it's anything but easy to get it done. In five association races, there have been four different winners. Just Camden Robustelli has done it more than once as he won the two races in Yreka to get the season started. Guy Tow and Josh King are the other winners. One driver who's been struggling just to get a Top 5 finish was Brock Peters. Brock ended up sixth in the previous race after winning the A Dash.
The team went back to the drawing board, and the result was Brock picking up an impressive victory. You knew it was just a matter of time. However, the guy likely to be leading the standings when the point sheet is finally released is Robustelli. That is, when you adjust for the throwaway rules. Camden did miss a race, but his two wins the second place finish he earned on this occasion will certainly help him. Robustelli had a great battle of Kalvin Morton down the stretch before making a last turn pass to get the second place finish. Morton was probably a little bit disappointed, but this was one of his best results of the year next to his big win in Cottage Grove. Much like we've been saying about Brock Peters, you're not likely to keep Morton out of the Winner's Circle for long.
Two other drivers you're probably going to see at the top of the point list are Ryan Smith and Chad Cardoza. Both had finished as high as second in championship points, and both are due for a championship. Ryan Smith won the A Dash to get his night started, but he lost what was a really good battle with Cardoza for fourth in the feature, settling for fifth.
Josh King found himself driving the #14 car as the #109 car still wasn't quite ready yet. This is a car that has been wheeled by past SODCA champion CJ Putnam. Two time champion King collected the sixth place finish ahead of Brett James, who was wheeling the #4us car for Jerry Hauck. The James family has been associated with Medford racing for decades, going back to when his Brett's grandfather, Cecil James, was the original promoter at the old Posse Grounds Speedway in the 1950s. And of course, his father Markey James is a legend in the racing community as well.
Jesse Lorenz finally got his Mod Lite to run a little bit better for an eighth place finish. The team was thrashing on that car all night to get it right, and he finished ahead of Kaycee Sheeler and a Top 10 finish for rookie Ashleigh Strain. Strain led the newcomers of the class as Dan Halbert finished behind her in 11th and Michael Johnson ended up 13th. Johnson admits that he's still getting used to the car after having raced Mini Stocks in previous seasons, but the kid has a knack for driving. He'll get this down.
At Siskiyou Motor Speedway, the track finally allowed the Jefferson State Jalopy Association to make their first laps. JJ Smith and Karl Bernstein have been working on these cars for over a year, and they just finished their fourth car prior to this race. The only thing lacking was a driver for one of their cars, leaving them with three cars for their debut. These cars are a unique breed, resembling a bigger version of a Dwarf Car, but they give the track something else to offer the fans.
The Mini Stock division had a respectable showing, but the results were similar to the previous week. 2015 champion David Steele won again. David has won the last five races in which he has started at the track, and it was difficult for anybody to keep up with him in the Main Event on this occasion. He also won the Trophy Dash. We haven't seen a point sheet yet, but even after missing one race, David will likely be close to the lead.
The three drivers you expect to see battling for the point lead are doing just that. In this case, 2014 Mini Stock champion Mike Whitaker picked up a second place finish. It was his best finish of the season so far as there have been five different second place finishers in the first five races. If you're keeping track, those drivers are Whitaker, reigning two-time champion Marilyn Yawnick, 2005 champion Terry Kendrick, David Marble and Steve Goetz.
Kendrick, behind the wheel of his fast pickup truck, finished third, just ahead of heat race winner Yawnick. Marilyn is the only other driver to win a Main Event so far. If any other driver is going to get a win this week, chances are they're going to have to beat to Steele to do so. Darek Alford has the former Devin Weiser car this season. Like Zac McMurray, he is a teen competitor. Alford picked up his first ever heat race win, holding off Dennis Jorgensen to get it. Could a Main Event victory be just around the corner for him?
The IMCA Sport Modified division continues to see new winners in the Main Event. There are now five different winners as Jorddon Braaten, Justin Foux, DJ Bottoms, Tim Elias and now Trevor Tiffee are your winners. Tiffee and Ryder Boswell knew going into the night that one of them would be the new point leader as incoming leader Rich McCoy was a no-show. The question was, who would it be? They battled in the heat race and the Trophy Dash, with Tiffee coming out ahead both times. Trevor wasn't done. Though they enjoyed several side-by-side laps, Tiffee motored ahead and got the win and the point lead.
Second place finisher Boswell has won Mini Stock Main Events in the past. He finished runner-up in the championship in 2013 behind his brother, Colt Boswell. Father Pastor Brad Boswell is a past champion at the speedway as well. Ryder has been plugging away at it for the past couple of years, and he's due to get his first career win in this division. Perhaps it will come at the next race?
We've been waiting to see some competitors in the field who were there last year. Two of the drivers who finally showed up this past week were Randy Wright and Gary Foster. Wright finished third in the standings last season and he finished third in the Main Event. He's still looking for a Main Event victory after finishing as high as second last season. Still yet to be seen this season are Colton Cheffey, Jack Waldon III, Colt Boswell and the debut of Ethan Killingsworth.
The track will be having an Outlaw Open Comp race on June 16th. Some of the Modified drivers were concerned that they didn't have cars that quite met the IMCA sanctioning, so there was a lobby to make something happen. Could this be something that gets some more cars back out at the track? We're hoping so.
Coos Bay Speedway put up a $100 bounty to anybody who could beat Brody Montgomery on the race track. Unfortunately, there were no new drivers coming to town to try to claim what could have been a $600 winner's payday. Montgomery has been fast all year, and he picked up the win ahead of Kristy Grout. Attrition was pretty heavy in the preliminaries as four drivers had scratched prior to the Main Event. It's somewhat surprising that there are no takers for the big NASCAR prize money being offered in this class. By last year's numbers, Montgomery stands to win $5,000 for the championship when you factor in the state honors. Even second and third in the points at Coos Bay promises to make good money, and at this stage it looks like easy money for the regulars.
Coos Bay Speedway has some good racers in the area. Reigning champion Mike George has chosen not to defend, and Preston Luckman generally goes to Cottage Grove. Past champions Trina Post and Toby McIntyre have yet to be seen this season. Loren McIntyre and Jared Bemetz haven't raced either. If there was local support behind this effort, Coos Bay could still have a respectable Late Model show with 10 to 12 cars showing up. One of the drivers running this class is also running his car in the Sportsman Late Model division, two time Sportsman Late Model champion Wayne Butler.
The Hornet division continues to offer the biggest car count at the track, and there have been five different winners in six races. The latest driver, Tyler Tullos, used his win to take over the point lead. He beat one time winner Hannah Robison, and championship hopeful April Warmack was a Main Event scratch. The nice thing about this division is you don't know who will win on any given week. If you're keeping track, wins have been recorded by two-time winner Braden Fugate, Trace Fugate, Warmack, Robison and Tullos.
It's almost becoming easy to guess who the Mini Outlaw winner is going to be. There are now six races in the books, and two-time reigning champion Sam Talon has won five of those races. The night he scratched from the Main Event, John Henry got the win. What might be interesting is to see the fast VW Beetle of Rob Lauver return to the track and present a challenge to the point leader.
When the track returns to action for Ladies Night on June 23rd, the Winged Sprint Car division will be on the roster. Kayla Green had been racing with the BCRA Midget Lites in California when the opportunity became available to drive one of Chuck Prather's Sprint Cars. After two events, Green has two Top 5 finishes and a four point lead over Brett Hulsey. Hulsey also has two Top 5 finishes and was fourth in the standings last year. The two wins have been recorded by Ian Bandy and Lawrence Van Hoof so far. Van Hoof is the reigning champion. The race held for the Interstate Sprint Car Series recently didn't count for track points, but past champion Kyler Barraza picked up the win in that race. They don't have a huge count of Sprint Cars, but eight to ten cars is a good possibility for the next race.
Likewise, Orland Raceway is building their Wingless Gas Sprint division and has had seven different competitors so far. At the recent event, it was Josh Tucker scoring his second win of the season. Anytime you can hold off multi time champion Josh Jacobo to get a win in Orland, you're doing pretty well.
The track put the money on the line for the B Modified division and the 600 Micro classes. The last time a Modified race was at the speedway, it was about eight years ago when about a half a dozen competitors came to put on a bit of an exhibition race for the fans. You could see a noticeable increase in attendance as people wanted to see how these cars would work.
Many of the competitors race at neighboring Silver Dollar Speedway and Marysville Raceway. Jake Van Tol is a past champion at the speedway in Mini Modifieds and Mini Trucks, and he thrilled the home crowd with a feature win after a good battle with past track Pure Stock champion Jerry Bartlett. The fans are already crying for more, and another event is set for July 28th.
The Micro division brought roughly 20 cars as several drivers wanted to see how they could do with the wing and without the wing. Orland Raceway star BJ Martin and the Michelet team were there. It was young up-and-coming driver Cody Gray pocketing $700 as the teen racer won both the winged and wingless races. What's nice is the track gave the fans something different to look at and gave their Mini Stock and Mini Truck classes a week off.
The popular Pure Stocks were racing, and it was a battle to see if there could be another new winner in the field. Two time winner Jeremy Langenderfer and Richard Vanderploeg have won so far. Shannon Collins has had an up-and-down season so far, but he was running pretty strong at the last race. Unfortunately, 2015 champion Paul Stevens was running just a little bit stronger. He would be celebrating his birthday a week later, but he got an early start on the party
as he held off Collins to get the win.
The nice thing about seeing Orland Raceway do things like this is it shows Rich Hood is working to make things just a little bit more special at the fast 1/5 mile dirt oval. The budget is limited, so you have to be careful where you pick your moments and what you choose to do with them. B Modifieds are definitely a winner on the little track. Another winner on the little track will be coming on June 30th with the first of two visits for the California Hardtops
Outlaw Kart Pit Stops
With the big track at Southern Oregon Speedway hosting a Monster Truck event with Dwarf Cars in support, we're going to hold off on the Roger Haudenshild Tribute notes and talk a little bit about Little Southern Oregon Speedway. This is the 1/8 mile track on the facility that trains some of the future stars that make it up to the big track.
During the past four or five years, the Kart program has fallen on challenging times. There are many factors that contribute to this as Kart racing in Oregon and Northern California isn't what it once was. The cost factor in keeping 500 Open Karts running has led to a steep decline in kart count. Drivers don't want to bring their karts to the track unless they're running for a big purse. Big purses are not going to come unless you can get big crowds to come watch.
What you're left with is anywhere from a dozen to 16 500 Open Karts in the Medford area, but people won't even take advantage of the track running on Friday night to get some laps. You also have drivers in the 250 Kart class looking for a move up beyond the 500 Open Karts. They're already looking over at the big track. Several drivers have made that move into the Kendall Oil Winged Sprint Car division.
When you look at the other classes, the biggest support seems to be coming in the Beginners Box Stock division. Lots of young drivers are now taking their first laps at Little Southern Oregon Speedway. It's a family affair. The Henson family has young Carson Henson in a Beginners Box Stock. Carson is already a champion at Yreka Indoors this past offseason. He is a fast learner, and we just may see him racing with his older sister on the big track when he's old enough.
Mike Wheeler is a name that everybody knows. When there's a big 500 Open show, you better believe he's going to be there, oftentimes picking up the win. Mike Wheeler Jr becomes the third generation of his family to go racing. Young Mike has won three races in a row in Yreka and is hoping to get his first win at his home track.
You also have the DeBenedetti family represented. Jayme DeBenedetti just got started in the Beginners Box Stock class last year at Yreka Indoors, and she won one of her heat races in the Medford season opener. Older brother Vinny DeBenedetti has come through the ranks from Beginners Box Stocks to Box Stocks and is now running a 250 Kart. We just saw where young Albert Gill made his Beginners Box Stock debut in Yreka last week. His father is a two-time champion in IMCA Modifieds and has raced at Southern Oregon Speedway for some 20 years.
The Grimes family has been supporting the speedway pretty well during the past few years. Trevor Grimes is now the reigning 250 Kart champion, and he won the season opener last time out. The night really looked like it was going to belong to 2016 champion Bodee Weiser, but traffic slowed him down just enough for Grimes to make his move. Bodee doesn't come alone. Brother Braden Weiser is out there running, and the two finished second and third behind Grimes in the season opener. Step brother Dillen Lausen did a good job finishing third in the 500 Open Kart class. For father Mike Weiser, it's about having fun and bonding with his boys at the race track.
The Grimes family has two other members out there racing. Kiley Grimes won the 2016 Beginner Box Stock championship and came within a whisker of winning it again last year as she settled for second. She has made her move up to the Box Stock class, leaving Isaac Grimes as the latest family member to compete in the Beginners Box Stock division. You have to start somewhere. Isaac was just getting comfortable in his kart at the opener and ran at the back of the pack. As he gets more seat time, he'll get faster.
That's the thing about the Beginners Box Stock class. It can be intimidating for these kids to get behind the wheel, and sometimes their kart is at the track and they don't drive. When they do get behind the wheel, some will run the bottom line at their own speed. This is the place to learn, and every one of those kids can be proud of how they've done.
Malachi Johnson had a little bit of swagger about him when he started racing at the speedway in 2016. You could tell this kid had confidence in what he was doing. Last season, even a blown motor that put him out for a week didn't stop him. He made a charge and won the last three races to win the Beginners Box Stock championship. He is out to repeat this year, but he'll find the competition just a little bit tougher this time around. Malachi had a difficult time during the heat races at the opener, but he rebounded quite nicely, coming from the back of the pack to a third place finish.
Finishing second in the Beginners class was Shailene Horn. Shailene had a second place finish back in 2016 and ranked second in the standings. We hadn't seen her too much this past season, but she did a good job in finishing second In the Main Event again. She also had a second place finish recently in Yreka behind Wheeler.
Chayce Smith has just been going everywhere he can go to get more seat time. The kid is only 5 years old, and he Is driving like he's been around for years. Coming from Hayfork, he's made most of the Yreka races during the past two seasons. He won every race he started at the Medford season opener.
Once you get comfortable behind the wheel of your kart and get a little bit older, the Box Stock division awaits you. Kiley Grimes was just a bit nervous about driving, and she thought about not even racing. However, she went out there and gave it a good run and took checkered flags in all of her events.
Another driver moving up from the Beginner class this year is Jacob James. James won a pair of Main Events last season before dropping out of the scene for a while. He won his heat race and finished fourth in the Main Event this time out. It won't be a surprise to see him pick up a win in this class as the kid seems to possess the skills and the patience it takes.
Of course, Taylor Fuller will be very tough to beat. Fuller has already won championships in the Beginners and Box Stock divisions at Yreka. This year, he's not only running the Box Stock division, he's also making his first laps in a 250 Kart. In the Box Stock division, he won a heat race, and he also won the Main Event. He also made what was probably the move of the night in the Bragging Rights Dash when he made two passes on the last lap to get the victory. His mother informs us that he wasn't even going to run that race. He had to be talked into it.
Keaton Augustine was fast at the opener, but it seemed to be an eventful weekend for him. When it was all said and done, he still put it together for a second place feature finish. Keaton drives perhaps the nicest looking kart in the field with a beautiful baby blue paint job. He is the fourth generation of his family to go racing, and his father is the reigning Late Model champion on the bigger track. Racing is in the Augustine family's blood.
When last we saw Ryan Hirschback, he was crashing his black #11 kart and might have been out of racing at that point. But the Hirschback family has been racing for quite some time as well. They got Ryan a new kart, and he looked good all weekend in finishing second in both of his heat races and capping it off with a third in the Main Event. We've heard that they're only doing this part time, but if Ryan can make the schedule, he could be a contender for the championship.
The 250 Kart division saw an increase to nine karts for the opener. The Weiser brothers have been taking their show on the road and doing well wherever they go. They had a couple of podium finishes in Yreka and actually brought home the victory in the season opener. Bodee Weiser is the 2016 champion, as mentioned above. He was the only driver other than Tanner Holmes to get a feature win that year in the division.
Bodee found the fast way around the little track and Illustrated that beautifully by winning both of his heat races and the Bragging Rights Dash. It appeared as if nobody was going to touch him in the Main Event. His undoing was traffic that ran the high line that he was running through Turns 3 and 4. That enabled Trevor Grimes to make the pass underneath and steal the victory away. When Grimes caught traffic in the same turn later, he was able to make the move and keep Weiser behind him. Running as well as he was, Bodee had to be a little disappointed, but he still did a good job. Brother Braden also had a strong night as he won one of his heat races and finished third in the Main Event.
Grimes really did a great job last season in running two karts, but the team knew that there was room for improvement in the 250 ranks. They got a new Kart for the season, and hopes were set a little bit higher. Trevor's preliminary effort yielded him one heat race win, but he saved the best for last by picking up his most impressive feature win yet. Trevor means to defend the championship that he won last year, but he knows he'll have to go out there and earn it. With nine races left to go, anything can happen.
Brionna Fuller has driven pretty much everything on the kart level and even a 600 Micro. She has won a UAS Speedway Kart championship and a Box Stock title in Yreka. She was wheeling her 250 Kart on this occasion, which may have been the first time that she and younger brother Taylor were on the track racing in the same division. As Brionna returns, you'll have to keep an eye on her. She is definitely a threat to win a Main Event.
Vinny DeBenedetti has climbed through the ranks at the kart track. Because he's a big kid, he had to move up from the Box Stock division rather than run another season there. He showed his toughness when he flipped his Box Stock last season and returned to make his debut in the 250 division. He did well in the opener in fifth
You might have assumed that Mike Wheeler had everything well in hand in the 500 Open division. Wheeler kicked things off with a heat race win, which did nothing to dissuade those thoughts. It was in the second heat race where 2016 champion Johnny Burke surprise him by scoring the victory. Burke wasn't done. He was leading the Bragging Rights Dash when motor issues reared their ugly head and took him out of the game. He appeared to have something for Wheeler, but the Main Event battle they could have had was not to be. Wheeler won the Bragging Rights Dash and picked up the Main Event win in comfortable fashion.
Kenny Boardman was busy all weekend trying to get his son's kart ready for his Beginners Box Stock debut. On Sunday, he pulled out his 500 Open and made a pair of passes to finish second in the Main Event. Kenny also did the track preparation in the days leading up to the race. Dillen Lausen was behind the wheel of the former Merissa Henson kart and finished third in the Main Event. Henson has another kart already and she finished fourth. Hopes are high that maybe there could be a couple more karts coming out next week. Unfortunately, Colby Bergquist had work to do on his kart after flipping in his heat race to end his night.
Speedway Karts put on a pair of good shows in their visits last season, and they are now a part of the roster this year. Steve Rambo Is enjoying his time in these open cockpit racers. Rambo picked up a win in the 4 Cycle class Main Event and also scored a $200 second in the KT100 race. He had second for a while in the UAS Speedway Kart race, but he lost that to Daniel Kravitz. These two drivers and Speedway Kart feature winner Jeremy Brown ran both the UAS and KT100 races.
Unfortunately for Larry Fuller, he never quite could get his UAS Speedway Kart to the finish line. He was fast, but he watched the Main Event finish from the sidelines in sixth. Past Yreka champion Ed Grubb also seemed to have a few difficulties in getting a fourth place finish ahead of Trey Hornbrook.
Due to the fact that there was another Speedway Kart race running further down in California, kart count was down just a bit. The one thing about the UAS Speedway Karts is they go around that track pretty quickly and you have to be up on your game when you're behind the wheel.
