THE L&J RACING BLOG
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Wizards California Modified State Championship!
Updated from 8/6/09 Ventura race plus correction on Cody Burke. He has 3 wins this year and a 3rd.
Brad " The Prodigy" Pounds 101pts
Alex " DaMan" Stanford 81 pts
Bobby " Jedi Master" Hogge IV 73pts
Danny " IceMan" Lauer 61 pts
Ryan " The Magician" McDaniels 60 pts
Clay " Cali Kid" Daly 49 points
Kenny Nott 46 pts
Mike " Iron Man" Johnson 35 pts
Cody " Geek Squad " Burke 33 pts
Dennis Redman 32 pts
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Bay Area Dwarf Cars Take On Turlock !
While our schedule had an
off weekend, ten of us were invited to Turlock to race in an
exhibition during the Monster truck show this past Sunday. Nine of us were able
to make it.
Greg Penny, Dean Pires, Punky Pires, Josh Pires, Gilbert Toste, Ernie Davila,
John White, Igor
Gandzjuk, & Billy Martinez. Shawn Jones was the tenth invite but due to car
damage from
the previous race he was unable to race but came out and gave the BAD tech guys
a hand
flagging the races. As you can tell from the pictures below it was a tight track
and it didn't go
with out its fair share of bumping and tangling but all in all it was a BLAST
and all the cars
rolled back into the haulers in one piece. The big winners of the night were
the fans whom
got treated to some great wheel to wheel action and were cheering with every
rooster tail,
spin out, and slide job.
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STATLER STOPS TARLTON FROM WINNING THREE, MAKES KEY RACE
Watsonville, CA – August 4, 2009….Sometimes in racing slower is faster. But at
Ocean Speedway Friday night slower speeds offered up a dramatic finish to fast
paced action in round eight of the GLR Investments 360’ sprint car series.
Grass Valley’s Jason Statler used 25 of 30 laps to maneuver his way through the
field and take the lead away from Fresno’s Tommy Tarlton in a main event that
ran non-stop finishing in seven minutes and forty-four seconds.
“Although we ran non-stop, it was a tough race,” Statler said. “My guys put a
very good race car underneath me; all I had to do was keep my head. We’ve had
our problems with the 360ci motor in this car, but I think we’ve got it figured
out. We usually try and make the car a little tight in the beginning, so in the
last half of the race as the car loosens up we get better. It was exceptionally
good tonight.”
Winner of the 2008 Johnny Key Memorial race, Statler guarantee’s himself a
starting spot for the 49th running of the Key race August 29. Joining Statler
will be fourth and fifth place finishers Evan Suggs and Ronnie Day, winner of
the prestigious open wheel event in 1998.
Tarlton and Salinas’ Keith Day, winners of the second and third heat races,
started on the front row. The two veterans raced nose to tail and side-by-side
through the fist third of the feature. Lapping slower traffic, Tarlton stretched
his lead and looked as though he was headed for his third feature win.
As the dry track conditions took on the look of black ice, the giant 18 inch
wide sprint cars tires were laying rubber to the hardened clay surface. Chassis
set-ups were becoming question marks in the minds of the front runners; and with
the luck of the draw inverting the top ten starters, the fast guys were moving
to the front. The two fastest cars, Two-time track champion Kaeding and Suggs,
starting ninth and tenth respectively found new life just after the half way
mark. Like Statler, the track was coming to them.
Salinas’ Ronnie Day moved from 15th into the top ten by the half way mark.
Statler finally passed Tarlton on lap 25. During the final two laps positions
were changing faster than the numbers on a Keno board. Kaeding using the high
groove passed Tarlton for second. Suggs slipped to fourth, R. Day improved ten
positions to complete the top five. Ricky Wright who started third finished
sixth. Cory Eliason, seventh, managed to stay in front of three teens, Justin
Sanders (15), Wes Gutierrez, and Brent Bjork completing the top ten.
K. Day missed the late race set-up and fell to 12th place; finishing behind 18th
place starter Santa Clara’s Brad Furr.
A change in track preparation created a dry-slick surface prior to practice and
qualifying. This condition produced slower qualifying times and race speeds for
everyone. It turned out to be some of the slowest qualifying times and race
speeds in the three-year history of the series. But it was no less exciting for
race fans and spectators.
Suggs, the night’s fastest qualifier with a 13.178 second fast lap also won the
first heat race, earning his second fast-time title this season, the young
Scotts Valley hot-shoe, who shared a part of the series point lead last month,
is the only driver to earn more than one top qualifying title this season.
Eliason had third fast time behind Kaeding. “Cowboy” Craig Smith was given a
clean bill of health returning to score fourth quick time a little more than a
tenth faster than Statler.
Tarlton shaved three points off Kaeding’s Lead and now trails the two-time
champion by six points. Suggs gained two points and remains third 12 points
behind. Sander’s remains fourth but loses five points to Kaeding and is 24
points out of the chase. Brad Furr, fifth, surrenders nine to fall 33 points
behind. Ronnie Day, sixth in the standings, lost two and is now 39 points off
the pace. Ricky Wright drops to 57 behind Kaeding but holds on to seventh place.
Jason Newton and Kurt Nelson are tied for eighth, 110 off the lead. Previously
Nelson and Cowboy were tied but Smith falls out of the top ten and ties Wes
Gutierrez for 11th at 120 points behind. Keith Day drops from 110 to 114 points
behind but hangs on to a top ten position.
With five races still on the schedule, only two drivers, Tarlton and Statler
have two wins each. With the competition and points chase closer than the past
two seasons, can anyone dominate the balance of the GLR series? Will the balance
of the season produce additional first time winners? Who will be the first to
find a winning combination and dominate the final few races of the GLR series?
August 14th is the last opportunity for three drivers to lock in starting spots
for the Key race. Your friend and mine, Gary Costa will be back on the 14th.
Position Driver City, State Points Behind
1 Brent Kaeding Campbell CA 407 Leader
2 Tommy Tarlton Fresno CA 401 -6
3 Evan Suggs Scott Valley CA 395 -12
4 Justin Sanders Prunedale Ca 383 -24
5 Brad Furr Pleasanton CA 374 -33
6 Ronnie Day 368 -39
7 Rick Wright Morgan Hill CA 350 -57
8 Jason Newton San Jose CA 297 -110 –
Kurt Nelson Gilroy CA 297 -110
10 Keith Day Salinas CA 293 -114
49th Running Johnny Key Classic Qualifiers (14 spots available)
1. Tommy Tarlton
2. Justin Sanders
3. Brad Furr
4. Kyle Larson
5. Brent Kaeding
6. Sean Becker
7. Jason Statler
8. Evan Suggs
9. Ronnie Day
Pit gate opens at 1:00 with the front gate opening at 4:00. Racing starts at 6.
Adults are $15, kids 6-12 $9, all kids under 5 free. Family $40 (2 Adults and 2
Children), Senior $12 with I.D. (65 yrs+). For more information please log onto
www.oceanspeedway.com or call the speedway at (831) 476-9466
The speedway is located at 2601 East Lake Ave in Watsonville, CA
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Ocean Speedway Winners July 31st 09
GLR Sprint Cars - Jason Statler
IMCA Modifieds - Cody Burke
Ocean Wingless Sprints - Billy Aton
American Stock Cars - Steven Montgomery
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Tight Points Battle Heads into Ocean Speedway for Round No. 8
GLR Investments Sprint Car Action
By Gary Costa
Watsonville, CA – July 27, 2009….This Friday evening, the GLR Investments 360
Sprint Car Series will be back in action once again competing on John Prentice's
¼-mile speedway in Round No. 8 Winged Sprint Car action. After the completion of
the GLR Investments Series Sprint Cars vs. Civil War race on July 17 that Kyle
Larson won, the points were shaken up, and a new point's leader emerged.
Evan Suggs in the Suggs Racing 33E and Justin Sanders in the North County
Plastering No. 17, both were plagued with unusual circumstances during the event
that has relegated Suggs to third in the points and Sanders fourth.
With only six races remaining, things are really heating up as we are getting
down to crowning the 2009 champion. Every race held thus far has been anything
less than entertaining. The July 31 event will also mark the third Johnny Key
Qualifying race. The action on the speedway has been fierce to get "locked in"
the prestigious 50 lap event.
Campbell's Brent Kaeding now sits atop the standings in the co-owned Mike Sala/Brian
Matherly Motorsports, Kaeding Performance No. 19. Kaeding put on a driving
display during the Civil War vs. GLR Series race. Kaeding charged from his 13th
starting spot to finish third in the wild 30 lap feature. BK battled for every
inch of real estate that he got, and continued to show why he is a 13-time King
of California champion and in deservingly in the Sprint Car Hall of Fame.
Easton's Tommy Tarlton has picked up major speed in the Tarlton & Son, Inc. No.
21. Tarlton has managed to leap from fourth in the standings to second. Tarlton
drove the wheels off of the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino sponsored mount in the
last event chasing Kyle Larson to the checkered flag, finishing second. Tarlton
remains the only repeat winner in the series.
Scott's Valley's favorite son, Evan Suggs had another dose of the tough luck
that has plagued the pilot of the No. 33E in the last three events. Suggs was
moving up nicely in the last event; unfortunately he spun in Turns 1 & 2,
dropping him down, but not out of the points chase. Look for Suggs to perform
his usual fan favorite all-out driving style on the ¼-mile surface.
16-year-old Justin Sanders was another driver to experience a tough evening
during the last event. Sanders, who was tied for the points lead with Suggs
going into the last event, got turned around during main event action, sideling
the young shoe for the rest of the evening. The second year Sprint Car pilot
will look to rebound this Friday.
Pleasanton's Brad Furr has been looming in the fifth place points standing for
the past few races. Furr flipped the BFR Motorsports No. 2 in his heat race, but
remarkably the capable team just about rebuilt the battered mount from top to
bottom in the pits, and Furr returned to action finishing 11th in the main
event.
Steve Osborne will be making a return to GLR Investments Sprint Car action.
Osborne was sitting tenth in the points standings before breaking his hand. The
pilot of the No. 9J is excited to be giving away one free indoor skydiving
flight to a lucky fan Friday evening.
A host of other drivers will be seeking the Round No. 8 GLR Investments 360
Sprint Car Series win including Grass Valley's Jason Statler, San Martin's Wes
Gutierrez, San Jose's Jason Newton, Morgan Hill's Ricky Wright, Jr., Visalia's
Cory Eliason, Gilroy's Kurt Nelson, Santa Cruz's Kevin Pylant, and many more.
Top-10 in GLR Investments Sprint Car Points
1. Brent Kaeding 355
1. Tommy Tarlton 346
3. Evan Suggs 341
4. Justin Sanders 336
5. Brad Furr 333
6. Ronnie Day 317
7. Ricky Wright, Jr. 302
8. Jason Newton 265
9. Kurt Nelson 257
9. Craig Smith 257
49th Running Johnny Key Classic Qualifiers (14 spots available)
1. Tommy Tarlton
2. Justin Sanders
3. Brad Furr
4. Kyle Larson
5. Brent Kaeding
6. Sean Becker
Pit gate opens at 1:00 with the front gate opening at 4:00. Racing starts at 6.
Adults are $15, kids 6-12 $9, all kids under 5 free. Family $40 (2 Adults and 2
Children), Senior $12 with I.D. (65 yrs+). For more information please log onto
www.oceanspeedway.com or call the speedway at (831) 476-9466.
The speedway is located at 2601 East Lake Ave in Watsonville, CA
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New enlargement size for you all.
We now offer 16X20 enlargements for $25.00
They look great in this large size!
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Just a note from Joe
Note to All Drivers from all parts of the USA and all Divisions!
Or any business involved with Short Track Racing.
Drop us an email and let us know you want your link on our site.
We are here to support you!
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The Wizards California Modified Top Ten!
Top 10 7/26/09
Brad " The Prodigy" Pounds 101pts
Bobby " Jedi Master" Hogge IV 73pts
Alex " DaMan" Stanford 71pts
Danny " IceMan" Lauer 51 pts
Ryan " The Magician" McDaniels 50 pts
Clay " Cali Kid" Daly 49 points
Kenny Nott 44 pts
Mike " Iron Man" Johnson 35 pts
Dennis Redman 32 pts
Richard " Animal" Papenhausen 31 pts
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One more thing to add to this weeks blog.
The 7-24 show at Ocean Speedway was one of the best I have seen in years.
120 cars , and some of the best racing I have seen !
All classes and drivers were a blast to watch and kudos to the Ocean Speedway Staff on a truly great show!
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Don't try this at home Kids!
JR Dawson Took a wild ride in IMCA Modified Heat Race Action!
The best part was John and JR Dawson were able to fix the car and run the semi and transfer to the A Main.
Well done guys !!!
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Ocean Speedway Winners 7-24-2009
IMCA MODIFIED "Mike Cecil Memorial - Jim Pettit II
Bobby Hogge IV wins the "Mike Cecil Memorial" Dash For Cash!
Ocean Speedway American Stocks - Wally Kennedy
Ocean Late Models - Jeff Decker
Bay Area Dwarf Cars - Gilbert Toste
Ocean Speedway Four Bangers - Grant Koontz
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