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Traditional Sprint Car FanSite |
See You At The Races!!! |
| JOSH FORD WINS $1000 FEATURE
AT VENTURA RACEWAY by Gary Jacob |
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Wingless 360 Sprint Cars, Ford Focus Midgets and IMCA Modifieds |
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Ventura, CA.April 22....Outside front row starter Josh Ford won Saturday
night's curfew shortened 25 lap VRA wingless 360 sprint car feature for a $1000
payday at Ventura Raceway. With a $750 second place finish, Troy Rutherford
moved into the early season VRA point lead. Coming off a win in Hanford on
Friday night, Danny Sheridan joined the VRA action and drove the Kittle
Motorsports entry to a $500 third from his 11th starting spot. Opening night
winner Greg Taylor settled for sixth. The senior sprints had their 2006 season
debut. Defending champion Wiley Miller was unable to start the 20 lap feature.
Veteran midget and sprint car racer Rick Hendrix now qualifies for the Senior
division and he won from an outside front row start. Bob Alderman ran second
ahead of Ron Bach and Bruce Douglas. The USAC Ford Focus Midgets brought a 29
car turnout and Cameron Veach won the 15 lap feature ahead of heat winner Bobby
Michnowicz, his point leading brother Chris Veach and Chico CA long tow Quintin
Crye. Robby Josett again swept the Junior Ford Focus action with wins in the
heat and feature. Jonathan Henry was second in both events. The IMCA Modifieds
made their rain delayed season debut at the ¼ mile clay oval and speed parts
dealer Jack Parker won from sixth starting in their time shortened 17 lapper.
Gary Curtis ran second and State of California point chaser Bill Waltman battled
from 14th to get third. Santa Maria's David Addamo won a heat race and ran
fourth in the feature ahead of ageless veteran Tom Topping. Thirty nine cars appeared in the VRA wingless 360 action. They were divided into four heat races with the top four advancing from each. Defending track champion Blake Miller has moved up into the 410 action in 2006, but returned on a dark night for that division. He won the first heat over Rutherford and San Jose long tow Michael Trimble. Chris Wakim beat Ford and Bakersfield's Alan Ballard in heat 2. Hard luck Clark Templeman III outraced Oren Prosser Jr and Rob Kershaw in heat 3. Taylor did win heat 4 over rapidly improving IMCA Modified graduate Wes Richardson and Sheridan with hard charger Jimmy Crawford in 4th. Only three cars each advanced from the two B Mains and Bill Camarillo won the first over John Wright, Ron Tjaarda, Errol Sack and Derek Buckley. Rookie Donald Houghton was 6th and Rusty Carlile ran 11th after racing in Hanford on Friday night. Jeremy Ellertson raced to a win in the second B Main ahead of Joe Henderson and hard charger Kevin Kierce. Angel Figueroa just missed a transfer in fourth ahead of Jeff Fiscus. Trimble had the pole for the scheduled 30 lap feature ahead of Ford, Wakim, Templeman, B Miller and Taylor. Trimble and Wakim got together in turn 2 and Templeman slammed hard into the fence to heavily damage his machine. Trimble's night was also over and B Miller had to restart in the rear. Rutherford took an early lead over Ford and Taylor. Crawford and the rim riding Sheridan were climbing through the field. Ford and Crawford were both riding a low line and Ford fell back to fourth with a bobble. Ford raced back to third behind Rutherford and Sheridan with B Miller also storming back to gain fourth. Dennis Rodriquez stalled for a caution. The low line was working for Ford as he passed both Sheridan and Rutherford to regain the lead. B Miller flipped in turn 4 and the race was called complete after 25 circuits with Ford leading 7th starting Rutherford, Sheridan, 13th starter Crawford, 14th starter Steve Conrad, Taylor, Ballard, last starting Kierce, Richardson and Rob Kershaw. Rutherford's point lead is 65 over Crawford and 90 ahead of Taylor. Conrad is fourth ahead of Luis Espinoza. The senior sprint car division runs identical machines to the VRA action and divided 24 cars into three heat races. Bach beat Hendrix and Danny Miller in heat 1 with Alderman winning heat 2 over Tim Moon and Chris McArthur. W Miller outraced Ross Millar and Mark Chuhaloff in heat 3. Millar had the pole for the 20 lap feature with Hendrix alongside. W Miller gave up his third starting spot when his car refused to fire. Bach lined up fourth with Alderman moving into third. Hendrix was never headed as he won the feature over Alderman, Bach, 13th starting Douglas, 19th starter Steve Stasa, 18th starting Oren Prosser Sr, Bill Badger, Tom Harper, John Woodward and Grady Winkler. D Miller, Millar and Bill Leonard were eliminated in a tangle. The large Ford Focus Midget group was also divided into four heat races. Michnowicz won heat 1 over Cameron Veach and Robby Hawks. Chris Veach beat Jenna Frazier and Tom Fish in heat 2 and Jake Vail won heat 3 over Crye and Bobby Owens. Keith Janca outraced Carson City NV senior citizen racer J R Williams in heat 4. Nic Faas got the B Main win over Keith Iaia, Dennis Howell, Mike Collins and Cody Williams. Cameron Veach led all 15 laps of their shortened main event from his pole start. Michnowicz ran second ahead of Chris Veach, Crye, Frazier, Brett Engstrom, Janca, Howell, Collins and C Williams. Chris Veach holds a 5 point lead on Michnowicz and is 19 up on Janca. Crye is another 11 points back in fourth. Next dirt event for this traveling series is May 20 back here at Ventura. The heat and feature had the same finish for the Junior Ford Focus Midget action with Josett beating Henry, Dakota Kershaw and Justin Kierce. Sixteen IMCA Modifieds were divided into a pair of heat races and Addamo won heat 1 from third starting in his JetMod ahead of Joe Weaver and 8th starting Brad Prows. Double division Donald Houghton won heat 2 from fourth with pole starter Randy McGraw second ahead of third starting Curtis. Parker started 7th and ran fifth in heat 2. The redraw for the opening night feature lineup put Curtis and Rick Rodarte on the front row ahead of McGraw, Addamo, Weaver and Parker. Both Randy Miller and pony stock graduate David Peterson were feature scratches to leave a 14 car field. McGraw was out in just four laps and Prows went out on lap 12. The top 11 finished on the lead lap with Parker beating out Curtis and Waltman. Waltman has been busy towing to Imperial and Bakersfield in his attempt to get the state point championship. Addamo ran fourth ahead of Topping, Brett Lynsky, Santa Maria division rookie Tim Breshears, Houghton and Waltman travel mate James Stowe. Steve Bulpit and Rodarte also finished lead lap. The VRA wingless 360 sprints and the IMCA Modifieds return on April 29 along with the VRA dwarf cars, pony stocks, Junior Ford Focus Midgets and mini dwarf cars. Summary IMCA Modified Heat 1-David Addamo, Joe Weaver, Brad Prows, Brett Lynsky, Tim Breshears. Heat 2-Donald Houghton, Randy McGraw, Gary Curtis, Rick Rodarte, Jack Parker. Main-Parker, Curtis, Bill Waltman, Addamo, Tom Topping, Lynsky, Breshears, Houghton, James Stowe, Steve Bulpit, Rodarte, Weaver, Prows, Randy McGraw. Junior Ford Focus Midget Heat-Robby Josett, Jonathan Henry, Dakota Kershaw, Justin Kierce. Main-Josett, Henry, D Kershaw, J Kierce. Ford Focus Midget Heat 1-Bobby Michnowicz, Cameron Veach, Robby Hawks, Charlie Holmes, Joseph Fabozzi. Heat 2-Chris Veach, Jenna Frazier, Tom Fish, Chuck Glass, Keith Iaia. Heat 3-Jake Vail, Quintin Crye, Bobby Owens, Rob Kershaw, Dennis Howell. Heat 4-Keith Janca, J R Williams, Brett Engstrom, Gordy Edwards, Nic Faas. B Main-Faas, Iaia, Howell, Mike Collins, Cody Williams, Thomas Gray, Nick Carlson, Aaron Schankerman, Ricky Kirkbride, R Kershaw. A Main-Cameron Veach, Michnowicz, Chris Veach, Crye, Frazier, Engstrom, Janca, Howell, Collins, C Williams, Fabozzi, J Williams, Glass, Owens, Edwards, Iaia, Vail, Fish, Holmes, Faas. Senior Sprint Car Heat 1-Ron Bach, Rick Hendrix, Danny Miller, Mike Cook, Bruce Douglas. Heat 2-Bob Alderman, Tim Moon, Chris McArthur, Tom Harper, Dave Marini. Heat 3-Wiley Miller, Ross Millar, Mark Chuhaloff, Bill Leonard, Grady Winkler. Main-Hendrix, Alderman, Bach, Douglas, Steve Stasa, Oren Prosser Sr, Bill Badger, Harper, John Woodward, Winkler, Marini, Jim Porter, John Richards, Millar, D Miller, Cook, Moon, M Chuhaloff, Leonard, Chuck Tyler Sr, Jeff Culver, McArthur. Wingless 360 Sprint Car Heat 1-Blake Miller, Troy Rutherford, Michael Trimble, Steve Conrad, Bill Camarillo. Heat 2-Chris Wakim, Josh Ford, Alan Ballard, Luis Espinoza, Jeremy Ellertson. Heat 3-Clark Templeman III, Oren Prosser Jr, Rob Kershaw, Dennis Rodriguez, Mark Weitzman. Heat 4-Greg Taylor, Wes Richardson, Danny Sheridan, Jimmy Crawford, Kevin Kierce. 1st B Main-Bill Camarillo, John Wright, Ron Tjarda, Errol Sack, Derek Buckley, Donald Houghton, Brian Camarillo, Tom Hendricks, John Nock, Weitzman. 2nd B Main-Ellertson, Joe Henderson, K Kierce, Angel Figueroa, Jeff Fiscus, Nate Ziegler, Tom Schneider, Ty Schlender, Heidi Tresler, Victor Davis. A Main-Ford, Rutherford, Sheridan, Crawford, Conrad, Taylor, Ballard, Kierce, Richardson, R Kershaw, Espinoza, Wakim, Rodriguez, Wright, B Miller, Henderson, Bill Camarillo, Ellertson, Prosser Jr, Tjaarda, Trimble, Templeman. |
