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Ventura, CA....March 27......After
winning his heat race from an outside front row start, Chris Tramel charged from
4th to score a $1000 win in the 30 lap VRA unwinged 360 sprint car main event at
Ventura Raceway Saturday night. It was Tramel's third win of the young season
and he thanked crew chief Matt Dale and sponsor Buena Body Shop for their help.
Outside front row starter Luis Espinoza pocketed $750 for his second place run
and fifth starter Ronnie Case ran third, worth $500. Chris Tonoli made it three
wins in three races in 2004 at the track as he won the 20 lap IMCA Modified main
event from 7th starting. Point challenger Wes Richardson battled from 11th to
place second ahead of Kathy Pierson. Mark Gallimore won the 20 lap VRA Modified
main event from 4th starting. That snapped a two race winning streak for Rick
Rodarte and pulled Gallimore into a tie with Rodarte for the point lead. Andrew
Greiman got his first win of 2004 in the 20 lap pony stock main with previous
week winner David Peterson second ahead of Joel Chavez. Mike Frazier settled for
8th, but maintained his point lead.
With
several of the Senior Sprints joining in on an off night for them, the VRA
unwinged 360 sprint cars had a 35 car turnout and used their normal four heat
format. The top four in each heat move into the 30 lap A Main. Espinoza turned a
pole start into a win in heat 1 over 4th starting Bill Welch. Tramel started
outside front row in his heat 2 victory over pole starter Ronnie Case. Shawn
Kautz also started outside front row as he won heat 3 ahead of pole starter
Steve Ostling. Blake Miller took heat 4 from the pole ahead of fifth starter and
point leader Tom Stansberry. This left 19 cars to be split into a pair of 10 lap
B Mains with the top two finishers in each advancing. Usual Senior racer Ron
Bach won the first B Main from the pole over third starter John Wright, Mike
Broome and Jonas Reynolds. Tony Dighera took the second B Main from the pole
with Larry Lloyd second ahead of Tom Downing, Mark Weitzman and John Nock. B
Miller, Espinoza, Kautz and Tramel made up the front two rows for the 30 lap
feature. The top 11 finishers were on the lead lap with everyone else one lap
down. Tramel won ahead of Espinoza, Case, B Miller, Welch, Chris Wakim, Rob
Kershaw and 18th starter Dighera. Ostling, Steve Conrad and Kautz also finished
lead lap. Stansberry elected to start in the rear and finished one lap down in
12th.
The IMCA Modifieds
had 13 cars and pole starter Damon Redman won the first heat ahead of Gary
Curtis. Kathy Pierson turned an outside front row start into a win in heat 2 as
she beat teammate Tonoli, who came from fifth. Ed Shelton was out after two laps
in the 20 lap feature, but 8 cars finished lead lap with Tonoli coming from 7th
to win ahead of 11th starter Richardson. Pierson started 4th and finished third
ahead of Curtis, Will Smith, rookie Josh Houghton, Brett Lynsky and Brad Prows.
The 9 VRA Modifieds raced in a single heat race with Ric Bronson winning from an
outside front row start. Gallimore came from 7th to finish second ahead of Dave
Lidren. Bronson, George Kreider IV, Lidren and Gallimore made up the front two
rows for the 20 lap feature and Gallimore won with Lidren second ahead of
Kreider. Rodarte came from sixth to finish 4th, but saw his two race winning
streak snapped. Jody Davis ran fifth, the final lead lap finisher. Bronson, Jeff
Goodard and John Duque were all one lap down with Marty McLaughlin out on lap
12.
The 19
pony stocks were split into a pair of heat races. Greiman won from an outside
front row start in heat 1 over Jon Everhart. Point leader Frazier won heat 2
from fifth with Brad Long second. Long and Greiman had the front row for the
main event and Greiman got his win ahead of sixth starting Peterson, fourth
starter Chavez, Adam McPhail and 12th starting Jim Evens. Frazier was the final
lead lap finisher in 8th behind Dave Revard and Everhart. Frazier's point lead
is 40 points over Peterson, 45 ahead of McPhail and 65 in front of Chavez.
Summary
Pony Stocks
Heat 1-Andrew Greiman, Jon Everhart, Dave Revard, Adam McPhail, Jon Mortenson.
Heat 2-Mike Frazier, Brad Long, David Peterson, Joel Chavez, Ed Cutler.
Main-Greiman, Peterson, Chavez, McPhail, Jim Evens, Revard, Everhart, Frazier,
Mortenson, Ed Niedzwiecki, Paul Johnson, Candice Ramey, Lucinda Strub, Steve
Klingberg, Jesse Farless, Norm Hatcher, Brad Long, Cutler, Tom Stephens
Sr.
VRA Modified
Heat-Ric Bronson, Mark Gallimore, Dave Lidren, George Kreider IV, Jody Davis.
Main-Gallimore, Lidren, Kreider, Rick Rodarte, Davis, Bronson, Jeff Goddard,
John Duque, Marty McLaughlin.
IMCA Modified
Heat 1-Damon Redman, Gary Curtis, Josh Houghton, Brad Prows, Brett Lynsky.
Heat 2-Kathy Pierson, Chris Tonoli, Will Smith, Ed Shelton, Rick Johnston.
Main-Tonoli, Wes Richardson, Pierson, Curtis, Will Smith, J Houghton, Lynsky,
Prows, Joe Porche, Rick Johnston, Luke Ailken, Redman, Shelton.
Unwinged 360 Sprint
Heat 1-Luis Espinoza, Bill Welch, Chris Wakim, Rob Kershaw, Ron Bach.
Heat 2-Chris Tramel, Ronnie Case, Steve Conrad, Kevin Kierce, Tony Dighera.
Heat 3-Shawn Kautz, Steve Ostling, Joe Henderson, Bruce Douglas, Mike
Broome.
Heat 4-Blake Miller, Tom Stansberry, Will Perkins, Ron Butler, Larry
Lloyd.
1st B Main-Bach, John Wright, Broome, Jonas Reynolds, Ron Wade, John Woodward,
Nadine Keller, Guy Woodward, Brandon Thompson, Dennis Rodriguez.
2nd B Main-Dighera, Lloyd, Tom Downing, Mark Weitzman, John Nock, Shawn Torbert,
Kim Lewis, Charles Turner.
A Main-Tramel, Espinoza, Case, B Miller, Welch, Wakim, Kershaw, Dighera, Ostling,
Conrad, Kautz, Stansberry, Henderson, Lloyd, Butler, Perkins, Wright, Bach,
Kierce, Douglas.
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