Matt Crafton of Tulare, CA has a busy weekend planned. First off, on Friday he will compete in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race in Dover, Delaware. After the race he will fly to Toledo, Ohio to race in the Menards 200, an ARCA series event at Toledo Speedway. He will drive the No. 88 Menards Ford Fusion for Kimmel Racing. This was all arranged by Matt’s primary sponsor Menards to put on a good show for the fans in Ohio. Here is some more info from ThorSport Racing.
Matt Crafton from Tulare CA, driver of the No. 88 Menards Ford Truck
Sandusky, Ohio -May 10th, 2011 – Matt Crafton, driver of the No. 88 Menards / Certainteed Chevrolet Silverado, makes his eleventh NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start at Dover International Speedway on Friday, May 13th for ThorSport Racing. With four top ten finishes and his best finish of fifth in 2008 for Crafton, currently third in driver points, he feels as ready as he’ll ever be to take on the “Monster Mile.”
“I’ve had concussions here, been life-flighted out of here, had good days and had bad days,” the driver said. “Welcome to the Monster Mile, it can eat you alive or give you the best ride you’ve ever driven. It’s one of my favorite racetracks, and I really mean that. It’s crazy to say at a place that’s beaten me up before, but that’s the beauty of Dover. You have to trust your instincts and not make any mistakes. We’re ready this year from all fronts to attack.”
Doing “double driver duty,” Crafton will fly directly from the Truck Series race to compete in the ARCA Racing Series Menards 200 in a Kimmel Racing-fielded entry, the No. 88 Menards Ford Fusion.
“Speaking” for Autism in Dover
The No. 88 Menards / Certainteed Chevy will also don the Autism Speaks Puzzle logo for the Dover Lucas Oil 200 on Friday as a tribute to children with autism. “This is the second year in a row that we’ve supported Autism Speaks, and it’s a great way that we can raise awareness for a group doing good things across the country,” Crafton continued.
Adopting Servicemembers for the No. 88
The No. 88 pit stall will have three extra “honorary pit crew” on Dover weekend, as the ThorSport Racing team supports members of the Dover Air Force Base. Staff Sergeant Erik Chittick, the 436th Civil Engineer Squadron Crew Chief; Technical Sergeant Heather Michaud, the 436th Civil Engineer Squad Fire Inspector; and Technical Sergeant James Ellis of the 9th Airlift Squadron; will all get to “catch tires” with Mechanixwear gloves alongside the No. 88 crew.
ThorSport Racing's No. 88 Menards Ford Truck driven by Matt Crafton of Tulare, CA.
“It’s really neat to have any kind of military members with us at any race, but Dover is very special,” said Crafton. “They do so much at Dover AFB and are usually not recognized, to include the ‘honor flights’ of our fallen service men and women. These are folks who quietly serve, and it’s an amazing facility that I’ve toured before. I’m glad we can show them a fun day of racing and being part of our team.”
Carrier Joins Forces with TSR to “Keep Racing Cool”
Carrier, the world leader in air conditioning, heating and refrigeration systems, has joined forces as the Official HVAC provider for ThorSport Racing. As part of the partnership, Carrier will provide heating and cooling systems for ThorSport Racing’s new 100,000-square foot facility in Sandusky, Ohio – opening to the public in August 2011. For more information on Carrier, visit www.Carrier.com.
Getting “CSI” on the “ISO” at Dover AFB
As a “thank you” from the Dover AFB staff, the ThorSport Racing No. 88 and No. 13 teams will be touring the C17 Flight Line and the C5 ISO-Chronical Inspection on Thursday night alongside Max & Tati Papis; and crew members from Red Horse Racing. Well known as the “CSI” of Dover AFB, the crew will be touring wings and tails of planes – watch out drivers, no wing walking!
The strange spring weather in Northern California continues. After a week in the 90’s, Saturday night it was windy, cold and raining in some areas. The racing in Chico was canceled due to rain but in Placerville they were able to get a complete night of racing in. Here is the report:
PLACERVILLE, CA (5-7-11) – The 2011 Fast and Furious Dirt Track Racing Season resumed at Placerville Speedway Saturday night with four divisions of racing on the quarter mile clay oval. Late in the day heavy clouds moved into the area and the eyes were closely following the radar from the point the green flag waved in qualifying. With a combined effort by track officials and all of the competitors a fast paced racing program took place to treat the fans to a full night of racing just moments before the rain began to fall.
“I really have to credit my whole crew for their hard work tonight, things got a little intense when the weather moved in and we weren’t sure we were going to beat the rain once we got started,” said track promoter Alan Handy. “Thanks to the great team work of all our officials and strong fan support on another night where Mother Nature tried to win, we got a great night of racing completed and I have to thank everyone involved.”
Colby Wiesz the "Colfax Comet" back in victory lane in Placerville. Photo by Donna Peter.
In the winged sprint car division, the driver that is known as The Colfax Comet returned to victory lane at Placerville with his new Rosser Motorsports race team. Former champion Colby Wiesz led every one of the 25 laps in the Hoosier Racing Tires feature event. The win didn’t come without a defensive effort by Wiesz, who was challenged throughout the race by defending track champion Andy Forsberg of Auburn.
Wiesz started Saturday’s event on the outside of the front row. With the waving of the green flag he powered the #23R Rosser Rocket around pole sitter Chad Compton of Fair Oaks to take lead he would never relinquish despite the challenges of Forsberg who quickly muscled his way up from the eighth place starting position.
Once Forsberg closed in on Wiesz a dogfight ensued that lasted for most of a race that saw its share of caution periods. The most serious delays came at the expense of Placerville’s CJ Humphreys who suffered a violent flip down the front stretch to draw a red flag. Rookie driver Matt Land of Elk Grove, who won his first career heat race earlier in the night, drew the second red flag of the event when he flipped over in the third turn after a collision with Steve Osborne. Both drivers walked away without injury.
As the race entered its final stages,Wiesz was racing the lower line of the track while Forsberg was racing on the top of the track trying to gain the moment to power past Wiesz. Forsberg is known for his high line driving style at Placerville that has proved successful time and time again. Although his car was working well down low, Wiesz was well aware that he had to defend the high line of the track to pull off the win.
Moving up to the high line of the track, Wiesz forced Forsberg to race the lower groove in the final stages of the race. Forsberg raced both high and low searching for a trump card in which he could use to overtake Wiesz. His hard fought efforts came up short at the checkered flag. Wiesz was followed across the line by Forsberg, Placerville’s Scott Russell, Placerville’s Jimmy Trulli who started 7th and Sean Becker of Antelope who rounded out the top five.
“This was one of those nights where having that fancy scoreboard at this place really paid off,” said Wiesz. “I used it to my advantage tonight because once I saw Forsberg had moved into second place behind me I knew I was going to have to find something to work with up top because that’s his fast line. This car worked high and low tonight. I can’t thank Rich Rosser and this whole team for this opportunity to drive for them this year, it’s a great team and they do a great job on a tight budget. It’s nice to get a win here with them.”
Matt Tilford of Orangevale wins Pure Stock division race. Photo by Donna Peter.
In the Pure Stock division Saturday night, the name Tilford returned to victory lane once again. This time, it was former Rookie of the Year Matt Tilford of Orangevale returned to the driver’s seat for the first time this season and drove his way to a victory that broke point leader’s Clarence Holbrook’s early season undefeated status.
Tilford started the 20-lap race on the outside of the second row behind Woodland’s Rick Grunert, Holbrook and Marek Bernert of Orangevale. In the first three laps of the race, Tilford made it clear he meant business and that Holbrook’s two race win streak was in jeopardy. After trailing the leader for the first half of the race, Tilford made the move on the 12th lap when he powered past Holbrook to take the lead out of the fourth turn.
Once in front, Tilford drove the #92 camaro to a lead of several car lengths. Holbrook eventually suffered a flat tire and fell out of contention. In the final laps of the race Tilford was trailed by Burney McClure of Nevada City. Rick Grunert of Woodland finished in third followed by Chris Van Roekel of Grass Valley and John Hollow Horn Bear who garnered a top five.
“I really have thank my whole family that works together to get this car out here, no matter which one of us is driving it,” said Tilford. “Clarence was driving a really good race this was his race to win and I finally had a good run to get by him there. I really want to wish all the Mom’s a happy Mother’s Day tomorrow and thank all of the people and sponsors that pitch in and keep this #92 running strong.”
Tom Arbogast of Auburn gets his first win of the year in the Limited Late Model division in Placerville. Photo by Donna Peter.
In the Limited Late Model feature event, Auburn’s Tom Arbogast drove his way to his first feature win of the year. The evening’s race brought additional sponsorship from the Wilton Garage and Arbogast knew his odds were good at picking up the added cash when he started on the pole for the feature event that was shortened to the 15 lap mark due to incoming weather.
At the waving of the green flag, Arbogast muscled into a healthy lead. He was challenged throughout the race by Auburn’s Matt Davis. At the finish line Arbogast was followed by Davis and the defending track champion Dan Brown Jr of Grass Valley. Doug Grandboise of Jackson finished in fourth followed by Les Friend of Galt.
“I really want to thank Wilton Garage for sponsoring tonight’s race,” said Arbogast. “It’s great to see people supporting this division that were still working on growing. I think we have a great division coming together and I really want to thank Alan Handy and the fans for showing their support in it. We had a good car tonight, I have to thank my crew and my family. We’ve had some struggles getting this thing set up but we kept at it and I think we finally have it figured out.”
The three track regulars were joined by the Midget Lites of the Bay Cities Racing Association Saturday night. Cory Green of Elk Grove led all 15-laps of the feature race to take home the win. Green was followed by Cameron Beard of Turlock, Joey Hoover of Rancho Cordova, Pete Paulson of Woodland and Jason Sneep of Newark. For complete details on this division visit www.bcraracing.com.
Racing at Placerville Speedway is presented by Handy Racing Promotions Incorporated. The 2011 racing season is sponsored by Red Hawk Casino, Hoosier Tires, Riebes Auto Parts, The Mountain Democrat, Coors Light and Pepsi Cola. Additional promotional consideration includes Carls’ Jr. Resturants, The Windfall Classifieds, Arnolds for Awards, Minuteman Press, The Paint Spot, Dunn Consulting, ADCO Driveline, Roger Miller Concrete and more.
Championship point racing resumes next Saturday at Placerville Speedway. The grandstands will open up at 5 p.m. on Saturday night. Qualifying begins at 6:30 p.m. followed by heat races at 7. Adult tickets will be $13, Juniors and Seniors will be $11, Children $6. Those five and under will be admitted for free. All seating at Placerville Speedway is first come-first serve at 5 p.m. Learn more about Saturday’s event at www.placervillespeedway.com. It’s all happening at Placerville Speedway, where more than one million fans have entertained with fast and furious dirt track racing all summer long since 1965.
Last weekend was the busiest of the year so far in Northern California. Almost every track and series had races going on. Here is a report from Handy Racing Promotions on the California Civil War Series and Hunt Magnetos Wingless Sprint Car events at Placerville Speedway.
PLACERVILLE, CA (4-30-11) – The 2011 Fast and Furious Dirt Track Racing Season began to live up to its name Saturday night at Placerville Speedway in a very big way. Last night brought the biggest race of the season to the 46 year old quarter mile dirt track and along with it came its largest crowd, one which was standing room only early into the night.
Stephen Allard from Chico. Photo by Donna Peter.
When the checkered flag waved, veteran driver Stephen Allard of Chico took home a hard earned $2000 victory Saturday night in a race that kept the fans back and forth from being on the edge of their seats or on their feet from start to finish. Allard was aboard the #77f Sprint Car fielded by Finely Farms for Saturday’s event. He shared the glory in victory lane with Mason Myers of Browns Valley, winner of the Hunt Magnetos Wingless Sprint Car Division.
“I can’t thank this team enough for giving me the opportunity to drive for them,” said Allard. “We’re not really sure what the future plans are at this point but they have given me a really good race car and I’m glad I was able to give them a win here tonight and good race for all of these fans that came out to watch us.”
The Hoosier Tires Civil War Race Series is a 14 race campaign that takes place at six well known California race tracks from the sierra foothills to wine country and the California coastline. The series boasts overall car counts and competition that is second to none as drivers compete for more that $250,000 over the year and a $40,000 championship fund that will pay $10,000 to the champion alone this year, the highest in the history of the series.
A total of 35 cars formed the roster in Saturday’s winged sprint car division Saturday night. In qualifying Allard turned an 10:949 to earn the fifth fastest lap of the night. Shawn Wright of Lodi was the fast qualifier of the night with a 10:813 second lap.
After winning the first heat race of the evening, an eight car inversion resulted in Allard starting on the outside of row four for the 30-lap feature event. When the green flag waved he quickly set his sights on the top three position as Herman Klein of Sacramento took the early lead off the outside of the front row and went to battle with Visalia’s Steven Tiner who started third. Pole sitter Greg De Caires of Elk Grove suffered a drive train failure at the waving of the green flag and veered into the infield to avoid an incident.
After chasing him for six laps, Tiner took the lead from Klein in turns one and two while Allard was still back in the fifth position. As the front runners raced their way into lapped traffic. On lap eight Allard advanced in the fourth position before overtaking Sacramento’s Kyle Hirst for third and then moving into second place over Klein on lap 14.
Once in the bridesmaid position, Allard searched for a faster line than Tiner on the dry slick race track as the two leaders broke away from the pack in lapped traffic. With 22 laps down, Allard dove to the inside of turns one and two and took the lead. He was nearly crashed out of the top spot moments later when he was struck by the lapped car of David Silveria on the back stretch. While Allard was able to maintain his line, Silveria climbed the backstretch wall and rolled over along with Shane Golobic who rolled over violently trying to avoid the incident.
The red flag worked in the favor of Tiner and put his #94 back on the pole for the restart with eight laps to go. Once the green flag waved Tiner and Allard went to battle once again both fighting for the low line of the track. On lap 27, Allard went to the high side of turns three and four and muscled his way outside of Tiner, taking the lead as they approached the front stretch. At the checkered flag Allard was followed by Tiner and Klein. Antelopes Sean Becker finished in fourth with Elk Grove’s Nicole Miller rounding out the top five.
“When that red flag came out I knew it wasn’t going to help us,” said Allard. “I was lucky I wasn’t part of it. I knew Steven (Tiner) would be tough to pass the second time without any traffic in front of us. Down low is where the moisture was but luckily I found something in three and four. I can’t thank my crew enough tonight, they gave me a great car for this track.”
Although he was happy with a podium finish Saturday, Tiner was disappointed with the end result as he wanted to give his team a win. He explained the adversities he was faced with late in the race that led to the end result.
“I’m happy to finish where we did, anytime you run second in one of these races you did well but I think we had the car to win tonight,” said Tiner. “The power steering started going out there in those final laps and it took everything I had to stay up there. I though we had second chance with that red flag but he was really fast once he went up top. I just really wanted a win for these guys, they deserve it working so hard on this car for me.”
In the Hunt Magnetos Wingless Sprint Car feature, Mason Myers of Browns Valley led all 20 laps of a caution flag flogged feature event. The feature event saw its share of crashes from start to finish that Myers was lucky to avoid. The biggest one of the night involved multiple cars in the opening turn and completely blocked the track requiring every two truck in attendance to clean up.
Mason Myers of Browns Valley. Photo by Donna Peter.
In the end, Myers went to victory lane for the very first time in his career at the conclusion of the race. He was chased across the line by his brother Cody Myers. DJ Johnson of Stockton finished in third followed by Johnny Reeves of Elverta and Matt Streeter of Galt. A total of 23 wingless cars were in competition Saturday night.
Racing returns to Placerville Speedway this Saturday night with championship point racing for 360 sprint cars, limited late models, pure stocks and dwarf cars. The 2011 racing season at Placerville is presented by Red Hawk Casino, Hoosier Racing Tires, Riebes Auto Parts Pepsi and Coors Light. Associate partners include the Mountain Democrat, Arnolds for Awards, Windfall Classifieds, Carls’ Jr, the Paint Spot, Dunn Consulting, Minute Man Press, Roger Miller Concrete and ADCO Driveline. For complete results of Saturday’s race visit www.placervillespeedway.com.
The grandstands at Placerville Speedway will open up once again at 5 p.m. on Saturday night. Qualifying begins at 6:30 p.m. followed by heat races at 7. Adult tickets will be $13, Juniors and Seniors will be $11, Children $6. Those five and under will be admitted for free. All seating at Placerville Speedway is first come-first serve at 5 p.m. Learn more about Saturday’s event at www.placervillespeedway.com. It’s all happening at Placerville Speedway, where more than one million fans have entertained with fast and furious dirt track racing all summer long since 1965.
