Perris Auto Speedway (The PAS)
VIEW
FROM THE PAS
BY:
SCOTT DALOISIO
May 26
PERRIS AUTO SPEEDWAY
VISTA PAINT PRESENTS THE NAPA AUTO PARTS/AUTO TRADER MAGAZINES SCRA SPRINT
CARS
PRESENTED BY VISTA PAINT
May 25, 2002
38 CARS
FAST QUALIFER
Charles Davis Jr. 16.625
HEAT RACE WINNERS (with starting positions)
Richard Griffin (6th)
John Scott (3rd)
Jack DeArmond Jr. (2nd)
Rodney Argo (2nd)
PASSING MASTERS DASH
Mike Kirby (2nd)
C MAIN
Dan Hillberg (1st)
B MAIN
Damion Gardner (2nd)
A MAIN
1. Mike Kirby (1st)
2. Rip Williams (2nd)
3. Steve Ostling (5th)
4. Damion Gardner (10th)
5. Charles Davis Jr. (9th)
6. Richard Griffin (7h)
7. Jeremy Sherman (3rd)
8. Gary W. Howard (4th)
9. John Scott (15th)
10. Rickie Gaunt (11th)
11. Bobby Graham (6th)
12. Mike English (13th)
13. Adam Mitchell (12th)
14. Verne Sweeney (14th)
15. Michael Hinrichsen(17th)
16. Rodney Argo (19th)
17. Greg DeCaires (22nd)
18. Bobby Cody (21st)
19. Bryan Venard (18th)
20. Jack DeArmond Jr. (19th)
21. Cory Kruseman (8th) (Flip)
22. Charlie Ekiss (16th) (Flip)
Mike Kirby put it all together and led from the green to the checkered to win
the Annual Salute to the Indianapolis 500 50 lap main event. While he led
all the way, Kirby had his hands full with both Rip Williams and Steve
Ostling throughout the main event. Both were able to challenge the leader
several times, but neither was able to relieve him of the lead.
Series point leader Cory Kruseman and Charlie Ekiss flipped in a crash coming
out of turn four and were done for the night. Tony Jones had a problem in
his heat race and then again in the B Main when he tangled with Danny
Sheridan and others and was done for the night. Jones, like Kruseman, was
shaken and walked to the ambulance. Ekiss was uninjured. The only
other
flip of the night was Dan Hillberg in the B Main and he also walked away from
the crash.
The NAPA Auto Parts/Auto Trader Magazines SCRA Sprint Car race slated for
June 1st at the Bakersfield Speedway has been canceled. SCRA's next race
will be on June 8th when Vista Paint presents them at Perris Auto Speedway.
Next Saturday (June 1st) the Dirt Late Models, Temecula Valley Mitsubishi
Super Stocks, Temecula Valley Pipe & Supply Street Stocks, Pick-A-Part
Cruisers and the Dwarfs will be in action at The PAS. The spectator
gates
will open at 4:00 PM and the first race will be at 6:30.
The month of June will be "Kid's Month" at The PAS. All kids age
12 and
under will be admitted free every Saturday night in June. For more
information call (909) 940-0134 or visit The PAS website at
www.perrisautospeedway.com.
****************************************************************************************************************************
May 21
THE PAS HOSTS 50-LAP SPRINT CAR MAIN THIS
SATURDAY!
(LAKE PERRIS, CA - MAY 20, 2002) Fans attending Perris Auto Speedway this
Saturday night will get something extra when Vista Paint presents the NAPA
Auto Parts/Auto Trader Magazines SCRA Sprint Cars Annual Salute to the
Indianapolis 500. Actually they will be getting 66% extra laps of main
event
action as Saturday's battle will be 50 laps around the lightning fast
Riverside county clay oval instead of the normal 30.
The extra 20-laps present several intriguing differences to the drivers and
their crews. Tire wear and fuel conservation become significant concerns,
as
does driver stamina. In addition, the extra 20-laps brings out the
possibility of more changing track conditions. In dirt track racing, track
conditions normally change throughout the program. The wrong set up can
make
a team that is running up front in the early going, nothing more than a back
marker when the checkered flag comes down after 50 laps.
If Saturday's race is anything like the last three SCRA events at The PAS, it
will not be decided until the last 50 feet of racing and the margin of
victory will be no more than one car length.
Last Saturday, Garden Grove's Tony Jones took his third SCRA main event win
of the year by less than a car length over Corona's Steve Ostling. Jones,
31, started seventh in the 22-car field. Early on he was not a player for
the lead, but late in the race he dazzled the crowd with several nifty moves
and he took the point position with five laps to and parlayed it into the
winner's paycheck. Three other drivers, Silver City, New Mexico's Richard
"The Gassman" Griffin, Rip Williams of Yorba Linda and Concord's
Damion
Gardner, also lead the main event.
Ostling, 39, who started tenth and who is known for passing a lot of cars in
main events, went to the inside of Jones as they exited turn four and headed
for the checkered flag. In the end he was a car length short and logged
his
second straight runner up finish at The PAS.
Jones came into last Saturday 24 points behind SCRA series leader Cory
Kruseman of Ventura. The win, coupled with Kruseman's sixth place finish,
allowed Jones to close to within 9 points heading into Saturday's 50-lapper.
Ostling and his #29 Fisher Motorsports/Watt Enterprises/Pacific Coast
Sportswear sprint car will be just inside the front gate to meet fans and
sign free autographs from 4:00 to 5:00 PM this Saturday.
May is Senior Citizen's Month at The PAS. All fans age 65 and over will be
admitted for the junior price of $9.00 on Saturday.
Spectator gates will open at 4:00 PM on Saturday and the first race will be
at 7:00.
Don't forget that at intermission the entire family can "Boogie" in
The PAS
Dance Contest with prizes for the winning dancers ages 12 and under.
Perris Auto Speedway is the world's premiere clay oval stadium. The fan
friendly track features an amazing 60,000-watt digital sound system, daytime
bright lighting, a wide variety of delicious food, spotless clean restrooms
and paved spectator parking. Best of all, the track supplies clean,
wholesome family entertainment every Saturday night.
Advance tickets for Saturday's race are on sale now by calling (909) 940-0134
or by going to the PAS website at www.perrisautospeedway.com
and clicking on
the online tickets icon.
Perris Auto Speedway is conveniently located on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds
approximately one hour East of Los Angeles. Take the 215 Freeway, exit at
the Ramona Expressway and go east two and a half miles to the fairgrounds.
For further information call (909) 940-0134.
SCRA DRIVERS POINTS as of 5/18/02
1. Cory Kruseman
Ventura CA 661
2. Tony Jones
Garden Grove CA 652
3. Richard Griffin
Silver City NM 605
4. Steve Ostling
Corona CA 595
5. Jeremy Sherman Phoenix AZ
560
6. Rip Williams
Yorba Linda CA 525
7. John Scott
Hesperia CA 524
8. Troy Rutherford
Ojai CA
523
9. Mike Kirby
Torrance CA 472
10. Rickie Gaunt
Torrance CA 399
11. Charles Davis, Jr Buckeye AZ
398
12. Damion Gardner Concord CA
398
13. Mike English
Norwalk CA 372
14. Gary W. Howard Fontana CA
267
15. Bobby Graham
Riverside CA 256
16. Levi Jones
Olney IL
213
17. Danny Sheridan Santa Maria CA
209
18. Tony Elliott Kokomo IN
198
19. Rodney Argo
Gardena CA 193
20. Adam Mitchell Escondido CA
166
May 14
KRUSEMAN GOES FOR SCRA RECORD SATURDAY
AT THE PAS!
(LAKE PERRIS, CA - MAY 14, 2002) When Vista Paint presents the NAPA Auto
Parts/Auto Trader Magazines SCRA Sprint Cars at Perris Auto Speedway this
Saturday night, a win by second-generation driver Cory Kruseman would allow
him to stand alone on top of SCRA's all-time victory list.
Last Saturday night at Manzanita Speedway in Phoenix, Kruseman, 31, won his
55th SCRA main event. That victory tied him with 25-year sprint car
veteran
Rip Williams of Yorba Linda. One of Kruseman's main combatants on Saturday
will be Williams, who turned 46-years old on May 5th.
Last season Kruseman won an astounding 12 main events at The PAS and 15 total
on his way to his first ever SCRA Championship. This year he has picked up
right where he left off as he has garnered three victories and leads Garden
Grove's Tony Jones by 24 points in the championship hunt. Two of
Kruseman's
2002 victories have come at The PAS.
Jones, who owns 12-lifetime SCRA wins, is seeking his first ever sprint car
championship. He finished third at Manzanita behind Kruseman and Jeremy
Sherman of Phoenix.
In addition to last Saturday's milestone victory, the Ventura based Kruseman
added another line to his already crowded portfolio last week when he was
voted #1 in the Sprint Car Hall of Fame's Spring Non-Winged National Sprint
Car Poll. Voted on by sprint car media members across the nation, Kruseman
took 9 of the 15 first place votes. Indiana's Tracy Hines (4 first place
votes) was second and Jones was third (2 first place votes).
Other SCRA stars finishing in the top 25 in the poll were: 5th Richard
Griffin, 8th Jeremy Sherman, 11th Troy Rutherford, 15th Mike Kirby, 16th
Steve Ostling, 18th Rickie Gaunt, 20th Rip Williams and 22nd John Scott.
May is Senior Citizen's Month at The PAS. All fans age 65 and over will be
admitted for the junior price of $9.00 on Saturday.
Spectator gates will open at 4:00 PM on Saturday and the first race will be
at 7:00.
Don't forget that at intermission the entire family can "Boogie" in
The PAS
Dance Contest with prizes for the winning dancers ages 12 and under.
Perris Auto Speedway is the world's premiere clay oval stadium. The fan
friendly track features an amazing 60,000-watt digital sound system, daytime
bright lighting, a wide variety of delicious food, spotless clean restrooms
and paved spectator parking. Best of all, the track supplies clean,
wholesome family entertainment every Saturday night.
Advance tickets for Saturday's race are on sale now by calling (909) 940-0134
or by going to the PAS website at www.perrisautospeedway.com
and clicking on
the online tickets icon.
Perris Auto Speedway is conveniently located on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds
approximately one hour East of Los Angeles. Take the 215 Freeway, exit at
the Ramona Expressway and go east two and a half miles to the fairgrounds.
For further information call (909) 940-0134.
SCRA DRIVERS POINTS as of 5/11/02
1. Cory Kruseman
Ventura CA 606
2. Tony Jones
Garden Grove CA 582
3. Richard Griffin
Silver City NM 562
4. Steve Ostling
Corona CA 533
5. Jeremy Sherman Phoenix AZ
502
6. Troy Rutherford Ojai CA
495
7. Rip Williams
Yorba Linda CA 466
8. John Scott
Hesperia CA 464
9. Mike Kirby
Torrance CA 432
10. Rickie Gaunt
Torrance CA 357
May 13
The 2001 SCRA yearbook is once again a fabulous and beautiful work of
art. Sixty-eight pages jammed with
over 180 exciting photos (including a center spread with 16 different color
photos), stories, statistics and history. Supplies
are limited so it is a good idea to get yours now.
You can get one at the track by seeing Paula Shuman in the pits after the
races or you can order over the phone or by mail.
Call (480) 940-2354 or send $10.00 + $3.00 shipping to: SCRA, PO Box
50937, Phoenix, AZ 85076… Vista
Paint will next present the NAPA Auto Parts/Auto Trader Magazines SCRA Sprint
Cars at The PAS this Saturday night, May 18th…
Don’t forget SCRA’s annual Salute to the Indianapolis 500 on May 25th.
That night of exciting action will be capped by a 50 lap main event.
May is “Senior Citizens Month” at The PAS.
All fans age 65-years of age and over will be admitted for junior ticket
prices. Those prices are $9.00 for
Sprint Car races… As a token
of appreciation to all competitors, Perris Auto Speedway held a free practice
session on Tuesday night May 7th and over 100 cars jammed the pits…
You hear people say that a tacky track is the best Sprint Car track.
I beg to differ! A track
that is to tacky is indeed very fast, but is normally the same from top to
bottom. That makes it hard, if not
almost impossible, to pass. The
last couple times SCRA was at The PAS, the track was drier than normal, but like
usual it produced sensational racing. At
the April 13th race, three of the four heats were won from the fourth
row (the other from the third) and the dash, which was won with a crowd pleasing
effort by Damion Gardner, was arguably the best ever staged at this facility.
By the way, the main was a war up front with Cory Kruseman, Richard
Griffin and Mike Kirby. Early in
the main, Gardner and 25-year veteran Rip Williams were also in the thick of the
battle. And, if Tony Jones hadn’t
been turned around, he would have been hunting for the lead as well.
From fourth through tenth, positions changed nearly every lap.
Notable passing jobs in the main were: John Scott 11th to 4th,
Steve Ostling 15th to 5th, Jones after restarting at the
back all the way to 7th, Jeremy Sherman 14th to 7th,
“Showtime” Danny Sheridan from 19th to 10th and Levin
Jones from 21st to 11th.
Give me a drier track with multiple grooves over a lightening fast tacky
track any day… Salute to Jarrett
Chaney who drove Rick Becker’s #67 for the first time and took fifth in the B
and thirteenth in the A main… Hey,
want to buy a Sprint Car? If you
do, call John Aden. He has a car
that is ready to be unloaded and put on the track.
Aden made two SCRA races this year, but due to a lack of time, he will be
unable to continue a 410 Sprint Car career.
Aden promotes the smaller track on the San Bernardino County Fairgrounds
in Victorville and his time is at a premium.
Something had to give and it is his Sprint Car racing endeavors.
If you would like to get in touch with him, drop me an E-mail at stssprts@aol.com.
I will be glad to forward his phone number… “Hotfoot” Troy Cline
has raced in the last two NASCAR Busch Series races…
Missing the April 27th race, but for the very best of reasons,
was Mopar driving “Flyin’” Brian Venard.
At 1:30 PM in Lakewood, Venard and fiancé Nicol Lynn Tucker were
married. A congratulations from
everyone at The PAS to the newlywed couple…
I have said it before and I will say it again, “patience young
driver’s, patience.” When SCRA
was at The PAS on April 13th, a talented future star threw away a sure transfer
and was done for the night before 7:30 PM because he got impatient, hit another
car and spun out… Two performances that have to be recognized from SCRA’s
April 13th at The PAS came from Marc Hart and Adam Mitchell.
Both transferred from the C main to the heats.
They started in the last row (row nine) of the B main.
Hart got the final transfer spot into the A main and Mitchell only missed
it by two spots. Both of them were
charging all night long and were worth the price of admission alone…
When
Vista Paint next presents the NAPA Auto Parts/Auto Trader Magazines SCRA Sprint
Cars at The PAS it will be the full moon Saturday night of April 27th.
Oh boy, it could be a wild one!!! Troy
Cline will be returning from North Carolina that night to drive #21J car…
After flying out from Indiana, two-time USAC Sprint Car Champion Tony
Elliott showed what a class guy he is the last time SCRA was at The PAS.
Elliott had qualified for the main event, but when Troy Rutherford did
not make the main, Elliott graciously gave up his seat so Rutherford could
continue his quest for the SCRA title… Speaking
of Rutherford, who last week celebrated his 29th birthday, he used
SCRA’s Easter weekend off to win the VRA 360 main event at the Ventura
Raceway. Finishing second was 19-year old Larry Lloyd Jr.
Lloyd is the son of ex-USRC Midget driver Larry Lloyd, nephew of SCRA car
owner Bill Lloyd Jr. and grandson of ex-Midget owner and driver the late Bill
Lloyd Sr.. Gary W. Howard came from
18th to finish 5th just ahead of VRA champ Gary Howard.
By the way, Gary W. Howard won the first heat race and Gary Howard won
the second heat race. You got all
of that??? Last week at Ventura,
sometimes SCRA racer Greg Taylor won the VRA main event over a field that
included Rutherford, Cory Kruseman and Mike Kirby…
California’s Brad Furr won the World of Outlaws main event at Texas
Motor Speedway a week ago Friday. It
was Furr’s second victory of the season, but the driver who finished second
overshadowed it. Kraig Kinser, son
of legendary Steve Kinser, ended up second for his best ever WoO finish…
Defending World of Outlaws Champion Danny “The Dude” Lasoski led the
WoO point standings after last weekends action…
Temecula Valley Mitsubishi has come on board and is the new sponsor of
the PASSCAR Super Stock Series... Surprise
entry in the Pick-A-Part Cruiser Class at Perris Auto Speedway last Saturday
night was Off-Road racing legend Walker Evans…
Speaking of the Pick-A-Part Cruisers, in a crazy scenario last Saturday,
a pair of brothers showed up with a brand new (to the class) Station Wagon.
They clearly showed in practice that they were very, very brave, but what
they did in their heat race was incredible.
They slammed the turn three wall and flipped three times.
When they came to a halt, they accomplished something I had never seen
before. The engine and transmission
were sitting about 15 feet away from the car!
AMAZING! Now, if that was
not enough, another Cruiser flipped in the same spot in the main event.
Who was the driver you ask? The
Father of the two brothers who flipped earlier!!!
Titanium has driven up the price in auto racing and now it is doing the
same in Baseball. Baseball bats
made with a titanium composite sell in the $300.00 neighborhood…
GPI USA has a neat, new safety product for Open Wheel cars.
It is a Drag Link Strap. The
loop of the strap fits over the Drag Link while the other end buckles to the
frame rail just in front of the headers. Broken
Drag Links are very dangerous not only to a driver who is flipping, but also to
the other competitors. The cost is
$10.95 which is just pennies to make racing safer.
For more information call GPI at (800) 538-7786…
On July 4th, Vista Paint will present the NAPA Auto Parts/Auto
Trader Magazines SCRA Sprint Cars at The PAS.
As is the tradition, the races will be followed by the best fireworks
show in Riverside County. Tickets
are on sale tonight at the souvenir stand.
You can also purchase advance tickets by calling The PAS office at (909)
940-0134 or by visiting the PAS website at www.perrisautospeedway.com…
Very sad to report that a lady who had a lot to do with the history of
racing in the Inland Empire recently passed away. Donna LaDouceur, the Mother of Inland Motorcycle Speedway
Promoter John LaDouceur and American Raceways Vice-President the late Kay Moran,
passed away on March 29th. IMS
was in operation at the Orange Show Fairgrounds in San Bernardino from 1975
through 1987 and it was definitely “The Only Reason For Wednesday Night.”
Like all of the family, Donna worked hard at making it that way…
Tonight marks the first appearance of the USAC Ford Focus Midgets at The
PAS. Josh Lakatos leads the points
over Phil Goodwine. Todd Hunsacker
won their last main event at Cajon Speedway…
Perris Auto Speedway t-shirts and caps are now available on the PAS
website at www.perrisautospeedway.com… Quadruple header at The PAS next
Saturday night featuring the first Figure 8’s, Temecula Valley Mitsubishi
Super Stocks, Temecula Valley Pipe & Supply Street Stocks and a Demolition
Derby…
April 27
VISTA PAINT PRESENTS THE NAPA AUTO
PARTS/AUTO TRADER MAGAZINES SCRA SPRINT
CARS
PRESENTED BY VISTA PAINT
APRIL 27, 2002
35 CARS
FAST QUALIFER
Damion Gardner 16.598
HEAT RACE WINNERS (with starting positions)
Richard Griffin (6th)
Tony Jones (6th)
John Scott (4th)
Jeremy Sherman (4th)
PASSING MASTERS DASH
Richard Griffin (4th)
B MAIN
Gary W. Howard (25th)
A MAIN
1. Rickie Gaunt (5th)
2. Steve Ostling (4th)
3. Cory Kruseman (9th)
4. Troy Rutherford (6th)
5. John Scott (15th)
6. Rip Williams (22nd)
7. Mike English (13th)
8. Mike Kirby (19th)
9. Danny Sheridan (21st)
10. Michael Hinrichsen (12th)
11. Adam Mitchell (17th)
12. Jeremy Sherman (16th)
13. Bobby Cody (20th)
14. Richard Griffin (1st)
15. Keith Williamson (17th)
16. Damion Gardner (8th)
17. Troy Cline (11th) DNF
18. Rodney Argo (18th) DNF
19. Tony Jones (3rd) DNF - Crash
20. Bobby Graham (7th) DNF - Crash
21. Gary W. Howard (10th) DNF - 2 Stops
22. Charles Davis Jr. (DNF) Crash
Highlight reel stuff again as the main event was a torrid battle between
Gaunt, Griffin and Ostling. Gaunt and Griffin traded the lead back and
fourth several times including one two lap segment where they swapped the
position four times. Griffin eventually spun late in the event and had to
restart at the back. Gaunt had the upper hand with a narrow lead over
Ostling as they took the white flag and when Ostling did a wheelie off turn
two on the last circuit, it gave Gaunt a little bit of extra breathing room
which he carried to his first checkered flag driving for the Alexander team.
Jones, second in points heading into the night, was running in the top five
when he spun in turn one early in the main and was clipped by Graham who
rolled over. Both were done for the night. It was Graham's first
night in
the Crossno #38 (he looked good and made the JE Pistons Passing Masters
Dash). Damion Gardner looked to be headed for a top five finish until a
flat
left front put him a lap down with five to go.
Lap three tangle saw Williams, Cody and Mitchell all come to a stop coming
out of four. All restarted and Williams came all the way to 6th at the
checkered.
Point leader Kruseman was involved in a multi car scrape as they took the
green flag for the second heat race. He could not restart and had to come
from the B Main to get into the A.
Denise Cline made her SCRA debut driving an Iron Block 360 owned by husband
Troy Cline. She started last in the B Main and passed several cars late in
the race using the high and low lines.
Only a couple of yellows in the preliminaries. Main event saw more than
it's
fair share of the yellows after the full moon started rising off turn two.
The final checkered flag came down at 9:28 PM.
The PAS will host the Freestylemx.com Tour this Friday (May 3rd) night
(spectator gates open at 6:00 PM). The Temecula Valley Mitsubishi Super
Stocks, California Champ Trucks, Dwarfs and Lightning Sprint Cars share the
bill on Saturday (spectator gates open at 4:00 PM). Vista
Paint will next
present the NAPA Auto Parts/Auto Trader Magazine SCRA Sprint Cars at The PAS
on May 18th. For more information call (909) 940-0134 or visit The PAS
website at www.perrisautospeedway.com.
April 14
PERRIS AUTO SPEEDWAY
VISTA PAINT PRESENTS THE NAPA AUTO PARTS/AUTO TRADER MAGAZINES SCRA SPRINT
CARS
PRESENTED BY VISTA PAINT
APRIL 13, 2002
44 CARS
FAST QUALIFER
Troy Rutherford 16.807
HEAT RACE WINNERS (with starting positions)
Steve Ostling (4th)
Damion Gardner (7th)
Rip Williams (7th)
Cory Kruseman (8th)
PASSING MASTERS DASH
Damion Gardner (1st)
B MAIN
1. Tony Jones (2nd)
2. Bobby Graham (7th)
3. Jeremy Sherman (5th)
4. Verne Sweeney (1st)
5. Jarrett Chaney (9th) - In Rick Becker's #67
6. Marc Hart (18th)
A MAIN
1. Cory Kruseman (3rd)
2. Mike Kirby (7th)
3. Richard Griffin (2nd)
4. John Scott (11th)
5. Steve Ostling (15th)
6. Mike English (6th)
7. Tony Jones (10th)
8. Jeremy Sherman (14th)
9. Gary Howard (13th)
10. Danny Sheridan (19th)
11. Levi Jones (21st)
12. Damion Gardner (1st)
13. Jarrett Chaney (18th)
14. Rickie Gaunt (5th)
15. Troy Rutherford (8th)
16. Charles Davis Jr. (12th)
17. Bobby Graham (16th)
18. Rip Williams (4th)
19. March Hart (22nd)
20. Rodney Argo (17th)
21. Verne Sweeney (9th)
22. Mike Hinrichsen (20th)
Fabulous night of racing. Three of the four heat races winners came from the
fourth row. The best JE Pistons Passing Masters Dash in the history of The
PAS saw pole sitter Damion Gardner drop to third and come back to the front
passing Cory Kruseman and Richard Griffin.
Main event turned into a three-way fight for the lead with Kruseman, Kirby
and Griffin. Kruseman led the last 13 laps but was constantly challenged by
either Kirby or Griffin. Kirby at one point dropped from fourth to eighth,
but charged back to second.
As with the heats and B main, there were several impressive passing jobs in
the A main. The record shows Tony Jones started 12th and finished 7th.
However, Jones had to restart at the rear after a tangle with Kirby (while
they were in the top five) and then came all the way back to 7th. Also, John
Scott 11th to 4th, Steve Ostling 15th to 5th, Danny Sheridan 19th to 10th and
Levi Jones 21st to 11th. Charles Davis Jr. was one of the fastest cars on
the track and was sixth when he was involved in a tangle and had to go to the
back.
Most serious incident of the night was Verne Sweeney taking a nasty flip down
the back straight early in the main. He was uninjured.
Phil Goodwine inherited the lead when J.J. Ercse dropped out with mechanical
ills and went on to win the 20-lap Southern California Ford Dealers USAC Ford
Focus Midget main event.
The PAS will host the Temecula Valley Mitsubishi Super Stocks, Temecula
Valley Pipe & Supply Street Stocks, Daredevil Figure Eight and a Demolition
Derby on April 20th. Spectator gates will open at 4:00 and the first race
will be at 6:30 PM. Vista Paint will present the NAPA Auto Parts/Auto Trader
Magazine SCRA Sprint Cars at The PAS on April 27th. The popular
FreestyleMX.com Freestyle Motocross Tour, featuring X Games Gold Medallists
Kenny Bartram and Tommy "Tomcat" Clowers, will invade The PAS on
Friday May
3rd. For more information call (909) 940-0134 or visit The PAS website at
www.perrisautospeedway.com.
April 7
FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
THE PAS HOSTS OPEN WHEEL DOUBLEHEADER SATURDAY!
(LAKE PERRIS, CA - APRIL 7, 2002) Perris Auto Speedway will play host to an
exciting Open Wheel doubleheader this Saturday night when Vista Paint
presents the NAPA Auto Parts/Auto Trader Magazine SCRA Sprint Cars and the
USAC Ford Focus Midgets.
Saturday will mark the fifth PAS appearance of the young season for the SCRA
Sprint Cars. The previous four outings have produced four different winners
in the highly competitive Series. Arizona's J.J. Yeley won the season opener
in early February. Former Ascot Figure Eight Champion, Mike Kirby of Lomita,
won the second SCRA main event of the year at The PAS. The third time out
the victory went to second-generation driver Tony Jones of Garden Grove and
defending SCRA Champion Cory Kruseman of Ventura won when SCRA last appeared
at the Riverside County oval on March 23rd.
Will the fifth night out produce the first repeat victor of the year at The
PAS? Odds are good that the answer to that question is "No."
Considering
that such former SCRA winners as Rip Williams of Yorba Linda, Silver City,
New Mexico's Richard Griffin, "Super" Rickie Gaunt of Torrance,
Norwalk's
Mike English, Corona resident Steve Ostling, Arizona's Jeremy Sherman, Ford
driving Rodney Argo from Gardena, "Haulin' Hollywood" John Scott and
Ojai's
Troy Rutherford are all looking for their initial PAS checkered flag of the
year, the deck is stacked against three of the first four 2002 PAS winners.
However, Kruseman, Jones and Kirby have the talent and machinery to back up
their previous wins. Yeley will not be on hand as he defending his 2001 USAC
Stoops Freightliner Sprint Car Series Championship in the Midwest.
Jones, driving a car co-owned by his Hall of Fame Father Bubby Jones and
Chino's Johnny Vermeer, leads the point race by 23 digits over Kruseman. At
SCRA's last race at The PAS Kruseman dominated the main event from the front
row, but many in the large crowd had their eyes on Jones. The 32-year old
did not cut a good lap in qualifying and was forced to start 14th in the main
event. He then put on a textbook show passing 11 cars to claim third spot
behind the likeable duo of Kruseman and Scott.
The USAC Ford Focus Midgets will be making their first ever PAS appearance on
Saturday and only their outing ever. Former USAC Three Quarter Midget racer
Keith Iaia masterminded the new series. Concerned with the rising cost of TQ
racing and dwindling car counts around 1997, Iaia decided something had to be
done. In 2002, his dreams have become a reality. Each car is powered by an
internally stock 2.0 liter Ford ZX3 engine (commonly found in the Ford
Focus). The engine has been configured to run on methanol with a Hilborn
Fuel Injector. In addition, the lubrication system has been modified and the
engine comes with a stainless steel header and muffler.
The best part of the series is the fact that it is affordable to many more
budgets of people wanting to go racing. The engine package only costs
$7,500.00. In addition, the series has the backing of the Southern
California Ford Dealers.
South Pasadena's Josh Lakatos, who won the Silver Medal in Pistol Shooting at
the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, won the series inaugural race on the
quarter-mile dirt oval in Bakersfield in March. Two weeks ago, Todd Hunsaker
of Chino Hills won the series' first pavement race at Cajon Speedway near San
Diego.
Spectator gates will open at 4:00 PM on Saturday and the first race will be
at 6:30.
Perris Auto Speedway is the world's premiere clay oval stadium. The fan
friendly track features an amazing 60,000 digital sound system, daytime
bright lighting, a wide variety of delicious food, spotless clean restrooms
and paved spectator parking. Best of all, the track supplies clean,
wholesome family entertainment every Saturday night.
Advance tickets for Saturday are on sale now by calling (909) 940-0134 or by
going to the PAS website at www.perrisautospeedway.com
and clicking on the
online tickets icon.
Perris Auto Speedway is conveniently located on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds
approximately one hour East of Los Angeles. Take the 215 Freeway, exit at
the Ramona Expressway and go east two and a half miles to the fairgrounds.
For further information call (909) 940-0134.
NAPA AUTO PARTS/AUTO TRADER MAGAZINE SCRA SPRINT CARS
1. Tony Jones 358
2. Cory Kruseman 335
3. Richard Griffin 326
4. Troy Rutherford 306
5. Jeremy Sherman 293
6. Rip Williams 292
7. Steve Ostling 275
8. John Scott 236
9. Mike Kirby 203
10. Tony Elliott 198
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA FORD DEALERS USAC FORD FOCUS MIDGETS
1. Josh Lakatos 72
2. Phil Goodwin 67
3. Timothy Barber 61
4. Bobby Owens 54
5. Todd Hunsaker 52
6. Randi Pankratz 48
7. Wayne McCormick 45
8. Steve Davis 39
April 7
Wanna’ talk about a hot
driver? Look no farther than Jeremy Sherman in Mark Priestley’s
yellow #7. Sherman swept both ends
of the 2nd Annual Gary Sokola Classic at Manzanita Speedway in
Phoenix. That gives him four
straight wins at Manzanita with SCRA going back to last year.
Remember when he started in the “D” Main at the Oval Nationals last
year and ended up with a top 10 finish in the “A” Main? Three races ago at The PAS, he went from 20th to fifth in the
A Main. The Shermanator is HOT!!!
On April 13th Vista Paint will present the NAPA Auto
Parts/Auto Trader Magazines SCRA Sprint Cars at The PAS…
Artist and sprint car fan Dale Frye has some fabulous sprint car racing
prints for sale on his website at http://www.dalefrye.com/WEB31502/Racing_Artx.html.
Among those featured are the likes of Cory Kruseman, Richard “The
Gassman” Griffin, Rip Williams, Ron Shuman and Midget Hall of Famer Danny
Oakes. Best of all, you can
purchase these fine prints and the proceeds go The Leukemia and Lymphoma
Society. Naturally, all of your
donations are 100% tax deductible… Dean
Mills, proprietor of Mills Video Productions, reminds everyone to look for SCRA
highlights every Sunday afternoon on the “Speed News” show on the Speed
Channel at 1:00 PM EST every Sunday and every Wednesday on ESPN2’s “Open
Wheel Wednesday” segment of RPM 2 Night…
By the way, Mills’ SCRA 2001 Year in Review video is available now and
it rates 4 Stars. To purchase a
copy call (818) 996-3631
or send E-mail to: MVPVDO@aol.com…
The ever-industrious Cory Kruseman is building a two-seat Sprint Car.
Kruseman has a full plate with full-time rides in SCRA and the USAC
Silver Crown Series. He also runs a
sprint car driving school at Ventura, has been known to conduct racer’s swap
meets and recently held a sprint car set up seminar … Nice guy and sometimes SCRA competitor Andy Forsberg finished
fourth in the first Civil War Series event of 2002 at Twin Cities Speedway in
Marysville... Thank you to Dr. Dick
Bergrren for featuring The PAS in the April issue of Speedway Illustrated.
Fine article with several great color photos of the racing and the
facility… Norm Bogan penned a
fine piece on the Ventura Raceway in the March/April issue of Flat Out
Illustrated… On March 9th,
Denise Cline made her first appearance in a 360 Sprint Car and won the VRA
“B” main at the Ventura Raceway. Denise
has been racing for 27 years and she is married to Troy Cline…
Did you see the car Tony Elliott drove in the Weld Wheels USAC Silver
Crown Series at Phoenix International Raceway?
Come on USAC. Keep it traditional. Next
thing you know they will allow fenders over the wheels…
Nice guy and longtime veteran Stock Car star Rick Becker looked better
than he ever has in a sprint car the last time he raced with SCRA at The PAS.
He finished 5th in the “B” main and 14th in the
“A.” Both of those finishes
came after he had his bell rung when a flipping John Scott came down on top of
him in their heat race… Good news
for PAS fans. Concord,
California’s Damion Gardner plans on heading south every time SCRA is at The
PAS in 2002. He recently spanked
field and won the JE Pistons Passing Masters Dash… Absolutely sensational to
see Rusty McClure back on the track doing what he loves a few weeks ago… Cal Smith made his first start of the year and finished 19th
in the Gary Sokola Classic in March…
Mar. 24
PERRIS AUTO SPEEDWAY
VISTA PAINT PRESENTS THE NAPA AUTO PARTS/AUTO TRADER MAGAZINES SCRA SPRINT
CARS
PRESENTED BY VISTA PAINT
MARCH 23, 2002
35 CARS
FAST QUALIFER
John Scott 16.803
HEAT RACE WINNERS (with starting positions)
Verne Sweeney (2nd)
Damion Gardner (3rd)
Rip Williams (4th)
Adam Mitchell (3rd)
PASSING MASTERS DASH
Cory Kruseman (1st)
B MAIN
1. John Scott (1st)
2. Jeremy Sherman (4th)
3. Steve Ostling (2nd)
4. Mike English (6th)
5. Lance Gremett (8th)
6. March Hart (10th)
A MAIN
1. Cory Kruseman (1st)
2. John Scott (8th)
3. Tony Jones (14th)
4. Rip Williams (6th)
5. Mike Kirby (2nd)
6. Charles Davis Jr. (5th)
7. Rickie Gaunt (4th)
8. Jeremy Sherman (10th)
9. Richard Griffin (3rd)
10. Steve Ostling (9th)
11. Rodney Argo (20th)
12. Troy Rutherford (22nd)
13. Gary W. Howard (7th)
14. Mike English (11th)
15. Lance Gremett (15th)
16. Jack DeArmond Jr. (12th)
17. Verne Sweeney (17th)
18. Adam Mitchell (16th)
19. Damion Gardner (14th)
20. Bobby Graham (18th)
21. Marc Hart (19th)
22. Robby Flock (21st)
Kruseman led the main green to checkered for his first win of 2002. Scott
very impressive from 8th to 2nd. Jones was spectacular coming from 14th to
3rd. Gaunt started fourth and dropped back as far as 15th before clawing his
way back to 7th place finish. Griffin changed an engine between the dash and
the main. Troy Rutherford had a flat tire in the B Main and did not
transfer. His teammate, Indiana’s Tony Elliott, graciously stepped out of
his car and a 8th place starting spot in the A main to let Rutherford have
the ride.
Flock flipped on the first lap of the main due to a big tangle in front of
him. He was out for the night. Sherman and Ostling brought a red flag a few
laps later with Sherman tipping over. Both restarted at the back. Mitchell,
who went from 16th to about 6th, got upside down hard in the main in turn
one. All drivers were uninjured.
The PAS will be dark next Saturday night so everyone can spend the Easter
weekend with family and friends. Vista Paint will next present the NAPA Auto
Parts/Auto Trader Magazine SCRA Sprint Cars at The PAS on April 13th.
Joining them will be the new USAC Ford Focus Midget Series. Spectator gates
will open at 4:00 and the first race will be at 6:30 PM each night.
Mar. 23
Vista Paint will next present
the NAPA Auto Parts/Auto Trader Magazines SCRA Sprint Cars at Perris Auto
Speedway on April 13th… If
you missed the Pennzoil World of Outlaws at The PAS in February, you missed the
fastest lap in the track’s history. Danny
“The Dude” Lasoski, driving a car owned by NASCAR Winston Cup star Tony
Stewart, blazed to a new all-time track record of 13.875.
The old record of 14.070, was set by Joey Saldana two years ago…
By the way, the Outlaw’s main event was extremely entertaining as time
after time youngster Daryn Pittman would drive away from the greatest Sprint Car
driver of them all, Steve Kinser, until they hit lapped traffic.
Kinser would reel the kid in when they hit the lappers, but yellow flags
and subsequent restarts would give Pittman the advantage again.
In a finish that even Hollywood could not do better, the “King”
caught the “Kid” in the final turn and they crossed the line side by side
with Pittman winning by a bumper… Neat
photograph on the first page of Rip Williams website showed him wrestling with a
Tiger! You can check his website out at www.ripwilliams.com…
Everyone from The PAS would like to send our condolences to the family
and friends of Jim San Angelo. A
Quarter Midget parent, San Angelo passed away on February 23rd after
suffering a heart attack at the Quarter Midget races in Pomona…
Time to buy PAS season tickets is running out!
They will only be sold until April 1st.
It is the best deal in racing. You
get tickets for 25 races and you pick any 25 nights you wish.
Reserved seat General Admission seats are $300.00 for adults.
That is $12.00 per race. General
Admission season seats are $250.00. That
is a mere $10.00 per race. It is a
great deal, but you hade better hurry to get yours before time runs out… Speaking of April 1st, that is the first day that
you will be able to purchase tickets to the annual July 4th SCRA
Sprint Car Race and Fireworks Extravaganza… Was Mike Kirby on fire when he won
the main event at The PAS on March 2nd or what?
He started the main in thirteenth spot and was up to fourth by lap 8.
He took the win by a comfortable margin over Cory Kruseman. That was two big passing jobs in two races by the Lomita
local. On opening day, Kirby went
from 22nd to 9th in the main…
Other drivers with fine passing jobs in that main included Kruseman 9th
to 2nd, Jeremy Sherman 20th to 5th, Steve
Ostling 22nd to 7th, Tony Jones 21st to 10th
and Charles Davis Jr. 19th or 20th
to 12th. More
incredibly, they came on a night when the wind howled all night long, but the
track stayed racey all evening. A
much deserved high five to the track prep crew.
All I would normally have expected from that night was a blue groove dust
bowl… Jones, Davis and Mark Nation all lost their original
starting spots and were sent to the back for being late on the track for the
“A’ main. Ostling had to go to
the back as after being bumped off, he pulled to the work area to tighten his
safety belts… Kudos to Kruseman’s owner Harlan Willis, Crew Chief Mike Nigh
and the crew of the #1. After
getting up side down on lap one of the first heat, they thrashed to get the car
on the track for the “B” and were rewarded with a second place finish in the
“A” main… With 43
cars on hand, there was a huge variation in chassis’.
The breakdown looked like this: 9
= Stinger, 8 = TCR, 4 = Okie, 3 = Avenger, 2 @ Gambler, Jon Boy, Sled, Ellis and
Extreme, 1 @ Victory, Meli, Stewart, Stealth, Renegade, Eagle, Challenger, J
& J and Drake. Top three
chassis’ in the main were: 1. Stinger, 2. TCR, 3. Sled…
Top three engines in the main were 1. RC Performance, 2. RC Performance,
3. Shaver Racing Engines… National
Speed Sports News has a fresh monthly insert titled, “Elbows Up” on Open
Wheel racing. Featured in the
February issue is sometimes SCRA star J.J. Yeley…
Brian Venard, who missed the opening day show as his car was not ready
and who broke in hot laps the second week, will also miss the April 27th
race at The PAS. The amiable second
generation driver will be taking that night off to get married…
Mar.
12
The
next appearance of the Auto Trader Magazine/NAPA Auto Parts Sprint Cars,
presented by Vista Paint at Perris Auto Speedway, will be Saturday night, March
23rd… A winner of a
company just joined up with a winner of a Sprint Car team.
The newest sponsor on the Ron Chaffin owned #50 driven by three times
SCRA Champion Richard “The Gassman” Griffin is Temecula Valley Pipe and
Supply… Last year at this time we
were talking a lot about Ron Williams’ Victory Race Cars getting into the
Sprint Car chassis building business. They
had a long history in Drag Racing. They
sold two chassis’ last year. One
to Lance Gremmet and one to Will “The Thrill” Perkins.
Gremmet is switching to an Avenger Chassis this year.
Perkins lived up to his nickname when he got upside down in major
proportions at a practice last season and promptly retired.
That car was put back on the jig and is now driven by rookie John Aden.
They will apparently be the only Victory Chassis’ coming out.
Proprietor Williams, who is a very nice guy, is now the Crew Chief for
John Force’s daughter as she begins her
NHRA Drag racing career… Sad to
report that Moose Racing lost a couple of sponsors from last year and for now,
is on the sidelines… While it is
sad news for Moose Racing, there is some good news for their former driver Danny
“Showtime” Sheridan. The Santa
Maria resident found a full time ride in Ron DiDonato’s Spin Tech Performance
Mufflers sponsored Sprint Car. Sheridan
drove it in the day race and got upside down in the main.
A week and a half later they put out a press release announcing they were
going to run as a team in 2002… Addition to your Perris Auto Speedway
schedule. Free Style Motocross on
Friday night May 3rd. The race is
being promoted by IRL star Davey Hamilton…
King Components is moving to a bigger facility in a month or so.
They specialize in bolt on sprint car parts. You can visit their website at www.kingcomponents.com… Cory
Kruseman passed his IRL test with PDM Racing on Monday February 11th
at Las Vegas Motor Speedway… Did
you know that cars with a letter in the number (like Dwight Chaney’s #21J) do
not receive points with SCRA? Therefore,
Chaney does not have any points for JJ Yeley’s win at the season opener three
weeks ago. Yeley got the driver
points. By the way, the main event
win was the first ever as an owner or a driver for Chaney… Hot, hot new web
page on the great Billy Wilkerson features some fabulous photos of the great
racer. You can visit the page at:
www.winglesswarriors.net/wilkerson/… Can
you name the west coast 360 Sprint Car organization that had a race scheduled at
a Los Angeles area pavement track, but they forgot to confirm with the track?
Thus, the race had to be cancelled!
Come on now, this one should be easy to figure out!!!
The best deal in racing, Season Tickets to The PAS, are available through
April 1st. Get this; you can get 25 reserved seat tickets for only
$300.00 (Reserved Junior Seats are $150.00 and Reserved Child Seats are
$100.00). That works out to $12.00
per race for adults. If you like
sitting in General Admission, you get 25 tickets for $250.00 or $10.00 per race
(G.A. Junior Season seats are $125.00 and G.A. Children Season Seats are $75.00.
What are you waiting for? Jump
on that deal now and save!!! Even
though SCRA will be away from The PAS with the Midwest and Eastern portion of
the Non Wing World Championship in August, The PAS will have a plenty of Open
Wheel action. The VRA Sprint Cars
(Ventura Racing Association) will be making their first two PAS appearances on
August 3rd and 17th.
The Lightning Sprint Cars will join them on the 17th.
On August 10th, USAC takes over the PAS with the Western
States Midgets and the Ford Focus Midget Series…
Ben Astenious, who flipped so hard in qualifying at The PAS season
opener, was back at work a couple of days later…
John Aden, driver of the red #77 SCRA Sprint Car, is the promoter of the
small (there are two tracks on the fairgrounds) oval track in Victorville… Tony Jones ex car owner Gene Cowherd is now a sponsor on the
Mark Alexander owned Rickie Gaunt #4 SCRA Sprint Car… Jake Argo will be leaving the family team to become the crew
chief for Josh Wise when the Riverside resident attacks the USAC National Midget
Series in the Midwest later this year…
Mar 10
PERRIS AUTO SPEEDWAY
VISTA PAINT PRESENTS THE NAPA AUTO PARTS/AUTO TRADER MAGAZINES SCRA SPRINT
CARS
PRESENTED BY VISTA PAINT
MARCH 9, 2002
41 CARS
FAST QUALIFER
Cory Kruseman 16.475
HEAT RACE WINNERS (with starting positions)
Jarrett Chaney (2nd)
Adam Mitchell (2nd)
Mark Nation (2nd)
Tony Jones (7th)
PASSING MASTERS DASH
Damion Gardner (1st)
C MAIN
Mike Boat (2nd)
B MAIN
Steve Ostling (2nd)
A MAIN
1. Tony Jones (3rd)
2. Rip Williams (4th)
3. Mike English (2nd)
4. Steve Ostling (10th)
5. Cory Kruseman (7th)
6. Richard Griffin (5th)
7. Damion Gardner (1st)
8. Charles Davis Jr. (8th)
9. Jeremy Sherman (14th)
10. Tony Elliott (6th)
11. Troy Rutherford (22nd)
12. Rodney Argo (16th)
13. Adam Mitchell (18th)
14. Rick Becker (11th)
15. Jarrett Chaney (17th)
16. Verne Sweeney (12th)
17. Danny Sheridan (15th)
18. Mark Nation (19th)
19. Mike Kirby (13th)
20. Bobby Graham (20th)
21. Bobby Cody (21st)
22. Levi Jones (9th)
Gardner lead the first few laps before Jones took the lead. Williams
mounted
several challenges, but Jones, who had lost his brakes, held him at bay.
Rutherford hit the wall and flipped in qualifying. Transferred from the
"C"
with a fourth place finish and then took the fourth and final transfer out of
his heat to the A main. He started 22nd in the main and ended up 11th.
Scott & English touched on the back chute in heat race three. Scott climbed
the wall, came back down and continued towards turn three. Just before the
turn, his right front dug in sending him into a series of violent flips and
contact with Becker. The car was destroyed, but Scott was not injured.
The night also featured the return of Rusty McClure. He missed qualifying
for the heats by two spots. He started at the back of the C main and ended up
fifth one spot out of a transfer.
Next Saturday night, The PAS will host a quadruple header featuring the
PASSCAR Super Stocks, Temecula Valley Pipe & Supply Street Stocks, Lightning
Sprint Cars and the California Champ Trucks. Vista Paint will present the
NAPA Auto Parts/Auto Trader Magazines SCRA Sprint Cars at Perris Auto
Speedway on March 23rd. Spectator gates will open at 4:00 and the first
race
will be at 6:30 PM each night.
Mar. 4
EX-ASCOT FIGURE 8 CHAMP LEADS SCRA AT
THE PAS!
(LAKE PERRIS, CA - March 4th, 2002) Mike Kirby, a former Ascot Park Figure
Eight Champion, will be the man to beat this Saturday, when Vista Paint
presents the NAPA Auto Parts/Auto Trader Magazines SCRA Sprint Cars at Perris
Auto Speedway.
Over the first two races of the year, the 37-year old father of two from
Lomita has dazzled the crowds at The PAS with breath taking races through the
pack. On opening day Kirby barley sneaked into the 25 lap main event by
taking fourth place (the final transfer spot) in both the "C" and
"B" mains.
In the "A" main, Kirby, who is the only driver to post wins in a Stock
Car
and Sprint Car at The PAS, started dead last (22nd) in his bright blue
sprinter. By the time the checkered flag came down he had clawed and
fought
his way to ninth spot on a day when it was tough to pass.
Last Saturday night, Kirby qualified 15th in the 43 card field. He notched
a
third place finish in his heat race and was forced to start in row six in the
30-lap "A" main. As soon as the green flag dropped, Kirby, the
Ascot Figure
Eight in 1984, 1985 and 1986, electrified the crowd with a furious charge to
the head of the pack. On his way to the front he had to pass several
well-known Sprint Car racing stars including Rip Williams, Mike English,
Richard "The Gassman" Griffin, Rickie Gaunt, John Scott and Illinois'
Levi
Jones. He skillfully got by all of them before zeroing in 2001 SCRA
Champion
and then race leader Cory Kruseman. On lap 22 Kirby made the move that
paid
the big money and wrestled the lead from Kruseman. He then moved away for
a
comfortable, crowd-pleasing victory.
Kruseman, who recently passed his Indy Racing League driver's test at Las
Vegas Motor Speedway, dominated Sprint Car racing at The PAS in 2001.
However, 2002 did not start out the way the veteran wanted. On opening day
the Ventura resident spun late in the race and ended up 15th. Last week
the
31-year old began the evening in fine style by out qualifying the field with
a lightning quick 16.684 lap on the Riverside County half-mile clay oval.
However, disaster struck in his heat race when Kruseman was caught up in a
crash and flipped hard causing severe damage to the Harlan Willis owned
racecar.
As soon as the car arrived back in the pits, the crew, led by chief mechanic
Mike Nigh, began thrashing. With additional help from other teams and
driver's, they barely made it out for the semi (their last chance to get into
the main).
Kruseman, who captured an astounding series record 15 main events wins in
2001, won last Saturday's semi, but was forced to start in row five of the
"A" main. Like Kirby, he blitzed his way to the front of the
pack. Kruseman
relieved Griffin of the lead on lap 11. The driver, who is referred to as
"The Kruzer" by his adoring fans, maintained the lead until Kirby
raced by on
lap 22. When the checkered fell at the end of lap 30, Kruseman was second
across the stripe.
Ojai's Rutherford was third last Saturday. The 28-year old has been the
only
driver to finish in the top three in the first two races of the long 2002
campaign. Thus, he holds a slim 13-point lead over Griffin in the
standings
coming into this Saturday's race.
TOP 10 SCRA POINTS
1. Troy Rutherford - Ojai, CA 137
2. Richard Griffin, Silver City, NM 124
3. Tony Jones - Garden Grove, CA 108
4. Mike Kirby - Lomita, CA 106
5. Levi Jones - Olney, IL
97
6. Cory Kruseman - Ventura, CA
95
7. John Scott - Hesperia, CA 94
8. Rip Williams - Yorba Linda, CA 93
9. Jeremy Sherman - Phoenix, AZ
84
10. J.J. Yeley - Phoenix, AZ
78
10. Bobby Graham - Riverside, CA 78
Saturday's event will include qualifying, four heat races, a dash, two
preliminary mains and a 30 lap "A" main event. Spectator gates
will open at
4:00 PM and the first race will be at 6:30.
On Saturday March 16th, The PAS will host an exciting quadruple header
featuring the California Lightning Sprint Cars, PASSCAR Super Stocks,
Temecula Valley Pipe & Supply Street Stocks and the California Champ Trucks.
The best deal in racing, money saving Perris Auto Speedway season passes, are
available through April 1st. For more information or to order them today,
call The PAS office at (909) 940-0134
Advance tickets for Saturday are on sale now by calling (909) 940-0134 or by
going to the PAS website at www.perrisautospeedway.com
and clicking on the
online tickets icon.
Perris Auto Speedway is conveniently located on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds
approximately one hour East of Los Angeles. Take the 215 Freeway, exit at
the Ramona Expressway and go east two and a half miles to the fairgrounds.
For further information call (909) 940-0134.
Mar. 3
VISTA PAINTS PRESENTS THE AUTO TRADER
MAGAZINE/NAPA AUTO PARTS SCRA SPRINT
CARS
PRESENTED BY VISTA PAINT
MARCH 2, 2002
43 CARS
FAST QUALIFER
Cory Kruseman 16.840
HEAT RACE WINNERS (with starting positions)
Mike English (6th)
Bud Kaeding (3rd)
Verne Sweeney (2nd)
Jeremy Sherman (3rd)
PASSING MASTERS DASH
Mke English (1st)
C MAIN
Lance Gremett (6th)
B MAIN
Cory Kruseman (1st)
A MAIN
1. Mike Kirby (13th)
2. Cory Kruseman (9th)
3. Troy Rutherford (3rd)
4. Richard Griffin (2nd)
5. Jeremy Sherman (20th)
6. Rip Williams (5th)
7. Steve Ostling – was slated to start 14th but had to start at the back
after his safety belts loosened and he had to go to the work area before the
start).
8. Gary Howard (10th)
9. Rickie Gaunt (4th)
10. Tony Jones – was slated to start 12th, but had to go to the back for
being late to the starting grid.
11. Levi Jones (7th)
12. Charles Davis Jr. – was slated to start 16th, but had to go to the back
for being late to the starting grid.
13. Bobby Graham (6th)
14. Tony Elliott (17th)
15. John Scott (8th)
16. Mark Nation – was slated to start 11th, but had to go to the back for
being late to the starting grid.
17. Steve Venard (15th)
18. Bud Kaeding (19th)
19. Verne Sweeney (21st)
20. Lance Gremett (22nd)
21. Michael Hinrichsen (18th)
22. Mike English (1st)
English led much of the early going in a team car to Rip Williams before
dropping out. The four cars that had to move to the back for the start
comprised the two back rows. Kruseman upside down in first heat barely got
the car fixed before the “B” main. Very entertaining main event.
Next Saturday night, Vista Paint will present the Auto Trader Magazine/NAPA
Auto Parts SCRA Sprint Cars at Perris Auto Speedway. The pit gate will
open
at 2:00 PM and spectator gates will open at 4:00. The first race will be
at
6:30 PM.
Feb 25
SCRA UNDER THE
LIGHTS AT THE PAS THIS SATURDAY!
(LAKE PERRIS, CA - FEBRUARY 24, 2002) After opening the 2002 season with
the
first daytime race in their history, the SCRA Sprint Cars, presented by Vista
Paint, return to action under the bright lights of Perris Auto Speedway this
Saturday night.
Included on the entry list for Saturday night are two SCRA regulars in
unfamiliar rides. Mike English and Danny "Showtime" Sheridan are
not in the
same rides they campaigned in 2001.
English, a 38-year old father of two daughters, will once again be a teammate
to veteran Rip Williams in one of the John & Sharon Jory owned, Vista Paint
sponsored sprinters. On opening afternoon at The PAS three weeks ago,
English, of Norwalk, started fourth in the 25 lap main and ran in the top
three until a flat tire sent him into the wall and out of the race on lap 16.
Driving for car owner Mark Priestly, English finished ninth in points in 2001
and 2002. The English/Priestly combo captured one SCRA main event at The
PAS. That came on March 11, 2000. In 1999, English nearly won the
National
Non Wing Open at Terre Haute, Indiana before settling for third behind
Frankie Kerr and World of Outlaws star Jac Haudenschild.
While English is driving for Jory this week, he is still trying to put a deal
together for the remainder of the 2002 season.
Sheridan sparkled with SCRA in 2001. Driving the popular Moose Racing #92
owned by Tom & Lauri Sertich of Huntington Beach, Sheridan fought his way to
a tenth place finish in the point standings in his first full season with
SCRA. A former Santa Maria Track Champion and the 1998 Bandit Series
Champion, Sheridan and the Moose team collected a trio of second place
finishes in 2001. However, due to the current economy, Moose Racing lost a
couple of sponsors and they were forced to park the racecar. That left
Sheridan without a fulltime ride.
Sheridan did pick up a ride with former CRA/SCRA driver Ron DiDonato for The
PAS season opener. He qualified 15th out of 45 cars and made the 25-lap
"A"
main after finishing third in the "B" main.
Disaster struck on lap three of the "A" main when Sheridan got upside
down
and flipped violently on the back straightaway. Things looked bleak, but
in
a press release dated February 18th, DiDonato and Sheridan announced that
they would be back as a team for the 2002 SCRA season beginning with this
Saturday night at The PAS.
Out of town invaders for Saturday's race include 2001 USAC Stoops
Freightliner Series National Champion J.J. Yeley, 25, of Phoenix, Arizona and
42-year old Tony Elliott of Kokomo, Indiana. Elliott, a two-time USAC
Sprint
Car National Champion, led much of the season opener driving for Gardner
Motorsports of Huntington Beach, but he cooked his tires and ended up 10th.
Yeley, who started third, won the race in a car owned by Dwight Chaney. It
was Yeley's first win at the Riverside County clay oval since May of 1996.
It was the first ever-main event win for Chaney as a driver or car owner.
Other favorites entered for Saturday include Ojai's Troy Rutherford, Tony
Jones of Garden Grove, defending SCRA Champion Cory Kruseman of Ventura,
three time SCRA Champion Richard "The Gassman" Griffin of Silver City,
New
Mexico, Rip Williams of Yorba Linda and Mike Kirby of Lomita.
Rutherford, 28, who also drives for Gardner Motorsports, finished second at
the season opener. Griffin, 38, finished third while Jones, 32 and the son
of Hall of Famer Bubby Jones, ended up fourth. Kirby, 37, a former Ascot
Figure 8 Champion, started last (22nd) and ended up ninth. Finishing two
spots behind him was Williams, 45, who is contesting his 25th year of Sprint
Car racing. Kruseman, 31, who came all the way from the "C" main
to the "A"
main, spun late in the race and finished 15th.
TOP 10 SCRA POINTS
1. J.J. Yeley - Phoenix, AZ
78
2. Troy Rutherford - Ojai, CA 76
3. Tony Jones - Garden Grove, CA 70
4. Richard Griffin - Silver City, NM 64
5. Levi Jones - Olney, IL
57
6. John Scott - Hesperia, CA 55
7. Bobby Graham - Riverside, CA
43
8. Tony Elliott - Kokomo, IN 41
9. Rip Williams - Yorba Linda, CA 40
10. Mike Kirby - Lomita, CA 38
10. Bobby Cody - Costa Mesa, CA 38
Spectator gates will open at 4:00 PM and the first race will be at 6:30.
Fans will be treated to 4 heat races, the JE Pistons Passing Masters Dash,
"C" &
"B" mains and a 30 lap "A' Main event.
Advance tickets are on sale now by calling (909) 940-0134 or by going to
www.perrisautospeedway.com and
clicking on the online tickets icon.
Perris Auto Speedway is located on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds approximately
one hour East of Los Angeles. Take the 215 Freeway, exit at the Ramona
Expressway and go east two and a half miles to the fairgrounds.
For further information call (909) 940-0134.
Feb 18
LASOSKI LEADS THE WORLD OF OUTLAWS TO
THE PAS!
(LAKE PERRIS, CA - FEBRUARY 17, 2002) Defending series Champion Danny "The
Dude" Lasoski heads the field as the Pennzoil World of Outlaws make their
only Southern California appearance of 2002 at Perris Auto Speedway this
Saturday night.
Lasoski, who turned 43-years old on February 3rd, is fresh off a sixth place
finish last Friday in the International Race of Champions (IROC) at Daytona
International Speedway. Despite it being his first race on pavement, Lasoski
finished ahead of NASCAR Winston Cup stars Bobby Labonte, Sterling Marlin,
Kevin Harvick & Dale Jarrett and Indianapolis 500 winners Buddy Lazier and
Helio Castroneves. Lasoski's car owner, NASCAR Winston Cup star Tony
Stewart, won the IROC race.
Last season Lasoski, who resides in Dover, Missouri, edged Indiana's Mark
Kinser by 30 points for the World of Outlaws crown. It was his first Outlaws
title and the closest points race in the Outlaws 24 years of existence.
Kinser's cousin, Steve, was third in last years Championship chase.
On his drive to the title, the popular Lasoski won four Pennzoil World of
Outlaws "A" main events. That gives him 37 lifetime wins, which is good
for
an eighth place tie with Ohio's Jac Haudenschild on the all-time list. Among
the four victories was his second win in the prestigious Knoxville Nationals
(his other win came in 1998) which paid Lasoski $125,000.00. Overall he
pocketed $444,920.00 with the Outlaws in 2002. In addition to his four "A"
main wins, Lasoski took the checkered first in five preliminary night mains.
He won the last Pennzoil World of Outlaws main at Perris Auto Speedway on
February 26, 2000.
Lasoski, who is the all time winningest driver at Iowa's Knoxville Raceway,
was nicknamed "The Dude" when he was a baby. The first time his
grandfather
saw him, he said, "That is my Little Dude."
Mark Kinser, 37, won the first five Pennzoil World of Outlaws races staged at
The PAS beginning on November 1, 1996. However, he has not taken a checkered
flag at the Riverside County clay oval since Halloween night in 1998. The
son of famous crew chief and car owner Karl Kinser, he paced the series with
16 "A" main event victories in 2001. That was the third straight year the
Oolitic, Indiana driver led the series in that category. Kinser, who drives
a Mopar, has 147 lifetime wins, which ranks third overall. He won World of
Outlaws Championships in 1996 and 1999.
Steve Kinser is simply known as "The King of the Outlaws." The 46-year old
from Bloomington, Indiana has won a mind boggling 16 of the 24 World of
Outlaws Championships. His last title came in 2000. Overall, he has
captured 451 "A" main events, which puts him first on the all-time list with
194 more wins than second place Sammy Swindell. In 2000, Kinser was voted
"The Greatest Sprint Car Driver of All Time" by a panel assembled by the
National Sprint Car Hall of Fame.
Swindell originally didn't plan on racing the early West Coast swing in 2002.
However, he will be at The PAS as a teammate to Aliquippa, Pennsylvania's
Tim Shaffer in one of Northern California car owner Dennis Roth's Beef
Packers entries. The 46-year-old driver from Cordova, Tennessee won the
World of Outlaws title in 1981, 1982 and 1997 and he has 257 "A" main wins to
his credit.
Other top Outlaws stars entered for Saturday night include Shaffer,
Minnesota's Craig Dollansky, Stevie Smith from Pennsylvania, North Dakota's
Donny Schatz, all-time PAS track record holder (14.070) Joe Saldana from
Indiana and Northern California natives Randy Hannagan, Brad Furr and Jason
Meyers.
Joining the Outlaws on the doubleheader program will be the California
Lightning Sprints. The Lightning Sprints are scaled down versions of full
sized Sprint Cars. They are powered by motorcycle engines and are chain
driven. It will be the first of eight appearances by the Lightning's at The
PAS in 2002.
Spectator gates will open at 4:00 PM and the first race will be at 6:30.
Advance tickets are on sale now by calling (909) 940-0134 or by going to
www.perrisautospeedway.com and clicking on
the online tickets icon.
Perris Auto Speedway is located on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds approximately
one hour East of Los Angeles. Take the 215 Freeway, exit at the Ramona
Expressway and go east two and a half miles to the fairgrounds.
For further information call (909) 940-0134.