Tag: Stockton

The New Stockton 99 Speedway Media Release – 1-23-2012

Media Relations – David Holman

Nothing says Spring like the accelerating smell of high-octane mixed with hot rubber and the undeniable roar of engines at the Toughest Test in the West that is the Stockton 99 Speedway! This Season, for all intents and purposes, holds forth promises, and expectations, to be the very best that has come our way during the perpetual rise of the New Era. The list is relentless! And the list begins on Sunday, February 12th, with the Speedway’s Fourth Annual Swap Meet.

First and foremost, the Old Girl will be sporting a new Premier Division that will come in the form of the Grand American Modifieds. And, within this Division, thanks to Ron Sutton’s Winner’s Circle and Star Racing Supply, another Division, so to speak, will exist for the less horsepower and fewer frills Modifieds wanting to run. The Management at Stockton has worked diligently with the management at Roseville to make this a two-track Series without conflicting race dates. That, in itself, should draw the attention of many racers, which in turn should increase the car-counts to make for some unbelievable, hard-core racing results. For more information on this please visit the Speedway’s Website or give them a call at (209)466-9999.

Also, after several years of abstinence, the K&N Pro Series West will make a rare visit to the Speedway on Saturday, May 5th. These large horsepower, heavy hotrods will be an absolute pleasure to watch as they try to negotiate the tight turns on the quarter-mile paved oval. If you’re making plans to attend this race, you more than likely better begin making them now, and come out early the day of the Event, because on this night, it will be standing room only as management plans on a full house.

Not to be outdone, the SRL SPEARS Southwest Tour Series will be a frequent flyer at the 99 this year with three dates: March 31st, June 9th and August 18th. These are three more races you simply won’t want to miss. Last year the Championship Battle went down to the wire with Prunedale Great, Jim Pettit II, capturing the crown in the final couple races. This year, Pettit is expected to return, stronger than ever, to defend this prestigious Title. There will be some additional oldcomers and newcomers, so this should definitely pan out to be a very exciting year for this Series.

At this point, let’s not forget the fan-favorite Legends of the Pacific. This series is one of the tightest and best run touring series that visits us each and every year. And this year will certainly be no disappointment as these little guys come to roost no less than eight nights at the storied venue. Also, the Vintage Hardtops return for the nostalgia lovers in the grandstands, which happens to include almost everyone who frequents the Speedway. The Northern California Pro-4 Modifieds will be back in action as well. These little four-cylinder open-wheelers flat out get after it on the high-banks of Stockton. If you haven’t had the pleasure of watching them race, you need to make it a point this year as they always put on a great show.

And, of course, this reporter would be remiss in the omission of the track’s regular Divisions; the lifeblood of Stockton 99 Speedway’s return to glory. The Western Late Models will return to action with a nearly-full cup of racing on the agenda. The Super Stocks, last year’s Premier Division, will be back in a lesser capacity with fewer races. Also on the weekly ticket will be the Bombers, Basically-4-Cylinders, Mini Cups, Enduros and the Open Wheel Touring Divisions. There will be plenty of racing for every flavor imaginable, so take stock and start marking those calendars!

Many, many more exciting things are planned for the New Year, including Tony Queirolo Night and Johnny Brazil night, once again. So please stay tuned for updates as they become available. With very little doubt, Stockton 99 Speedway will be the place to be this Racing Season, to quench the thirst of even the staunchest of critics!

The New Stockton 99 Speedway is located at 4105 N. Wilson Way, ¼-mile west of Highway 99. For more information on tickets and times, please contact the Speedway Office at (209)466-9999 or visit their Website at www.stockton99.com.

The New Stockton 99 Speedway is sponsored by Jackson Rancheria Casino & Hotel, Budweiser, Alamo Alarm and Stockton Hampton Inn and Suites and Lodi Holiday Express.

Saturday, July 9th, Stockton 99 Speedway presents USAC Open Wheel Night featuring USAC Western Classic Racing Series Sprint Cars, USAC Western Midgets, Ford Focus Midgets and Jr Focus. This is a great opportunity to see local legend, 6-time USAC Champion, Tony Hunt from Lincoln, who is the points leader in the USAC Western Classic Series. This is the inaugural year of the series featuring 8 races on pavement and 8 on dirt. Tony usually dominates on pavement after winning the 2010 USAC Western States Championship last year, which is an all pavement series.

In second place in the series, 65 points back, is Shauna Hogg from Citrus Heights. She is one point ahead of Geoff Ensign from Sebastopol.

For all the open-wheel lovers and all those who are addicted to high-powered speed, this is one you won’t want to miss because these four-wheel rockets haul the mail, circling the tricky quarter-mile oval in the 12 second range. Don’t blink!

Pit Gates open and registration begins at noon with practice commencing at 2:00 PM. The Grandstands open at 4:00 PM with qualifying set for 4:00 PM and green flag racing slated for 6:00 PM. Ticket prices for the evening will be as follows:

General Admission (16+) $15

Juniors (11-15) $10

Kids 10 & Under FREE

Seniors (60+) $10

Military (W/ Military ID) $10

Family $40

(2 General + 2 Junior’s)

FRIDAY PRACTICE: All Open Wheel Divisions welcome on July 8th for Friday Night Oval Testing. In an effort to keep costs down for the fans and drivers with the rising costs of operations, it has become necessary to keep the grandstands closed on practice day.

Pit Gates Open 2pm
2:30pm Pre-Tech
3pm – 7pm Practice
Open Testing Day

The New Stockton 99 Speedway is located at 4105 N. Wilson Way, ¼-mile west of Highway 99. For more information on tickets and times, please contact the Speedway Office at (209)466-9999 or visit their Website at www.stockton99.com.

The New Stockton 99 Speedway is sponsored by Jackson Rancheria Casino Hotel, California Welding Supply, Budweiser, Alamo Alarm and Stockton Hampton Inn and Suites and Lodi Holiday Express.

For the second time this year, I made the trip from Fair Oaks down to Stockton to watch my niece and nephew, Rachel and Jared Williams from Herald California, race at Delta Speedway. Jared races micro sprint cars in the Multi class, Rachel competes in the 3/4 Restrictor class at the 1/8th mile dirt track at the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds. Both cars are sponsored by Halm Metal Fab in Sacramento. Jared was last year’s Rookie of the Year Award winner and finished 3rd in the points standings in the Multi class.

The first race I attended was on May 7th and due to the strange spring we had in Northern California, we nearly froze to death. This time it cooled off nice, but not too cold. So far this year, Jared is in 2nd place in the championship standings and trails Amanda Evans by only 22 points.

It was kind of one of those nights where things just didn’t start off right for Rachel. During hot laps her car kept cutting out with some sort of intermittant electrical problem. She struggled with the car all night, never really getting to race hard like she wanted to.

Jared’s car looked real fast in Heat #1. He started in the back and worked his way to 3rd and battled for the 2nd spot, but couldn’t get around Matt DeMartini in the No. 6 car. The win went to Jared’s good friend, Matt Peterson, last year’s Champion.

In the second heat, Jared started on the outside of row 1 and took the lead on the first lap. After a quick caution, he again took the lead on the restart. After 3 laps, Jared was pulling away from DeMartini and Matt. I knew he had this race won. Then, on the final turn of the next lap Jared came coasting around and pulled into the infield. Apparently, his chain had come off and bent the shaft so he immediately shut it down. It looked like he would take a big hit in the points standings on this night.

After they got his car back to the pits, a lot of other teams came by to check on his car and offer advice on what to do to fix it. Jared even thought of racing home to Herald to get a spare engine but there just wasn’t time. Larry Williams, Jared’s Dad, tried to think of anything he could do to get Jared back out on the track, but it appeared hopeless.

Then Mike Martin, driver of the 2m car in the Multi class approached Jared and offered to let him drive his car. Mike explained that he wasn’t racing for points and he knew Jared was. He was willing to sit out the race so Jared could continue his pursuit of the season points championship. Jared appeared shocked at first, but Mike assured him that he was serious so Jared reluctantly agreed. They then headed over to talk to the race officials to explain their plan.

When they returned, they had a new plan. Mick Evans from Manteca, has a daughter Kayla that races in the non-wing class and Amanda in the Multi class. Mick volunteered Kayla’s non-wing car for Jared to run in the Main so Mike wouldn’t have to sit out the race. Since they both ran Pace Chassis, if they hurried, they could attach the wing from Jared’s car right after the non-wing race. The surprising thing to me was that Mick’s daughter, Amanda, is the points leader in the Multi class that Jared is chasing. Even so, he was still willing to loan his other car to Jared so he could race and not get too far behind in the points standings.

Let me just say here, I am continually amazed at the way the racing community sticks together. These are tough, competitive people, who at times can be fighting on the track but when someone needs help, it seems like there is always someone there with a tool or a tire or whatever is needed so they can just race. I can’t imagine that this sort of thing happens much in other sports but it seems to happen all the time in racing and at all different levels. I was so impressed first with Mike Martin who was willing to sit out the Main event and then later, with the Evans family, for loaning their car to Jared even though he is right behind Amanda in the points standings. I am also proud of Jared that these people think enough of him and his family to offer this kind of help.

Well, wouldn’t it be a great story if I said Jared, who had to start at the rear of the field, raced his way from 14th place and won the race? It didn’t quite work out that good. He did race his way up to 6th place but couldn’t quite catch Amanda Evans who finished 5th in the 30 lap race. Jared’s buddy, Matt Peterson was the winner. Matt is having a great year so far. He has 3 Main wins in the Multi class and 1 win in the non-wing class.

After the race, I stuck around with the family while they removed the wing from the Evans car and loaded up the trailer for the trip home. Racing is something the Williams family does together. Jared’s Grandpa, Steve Clapp, who is a pilot, has made emergency flights to pick up parts when needed. Jared’s cousin, Josh Paulsen comes every week and is a big help to Larry in the pits. Jared always has a big rooting section including his Mom, Judy and girlfriend Joy as well as brothers, Kyle, Nick and Levi and sisters Jamie, Rachel and Kaylee. It was a long night, we got out of there a little before 1 a.m., but it was worth it. What looked like a disastrous night for Jared had turned out not too bad. Let’s just hope that the motor can be repaired without too much expense and that we can do it again next week.

To follow Jared’s progress during the year please visit www.jaredwilliamsracing.com.

If anyone is interested in sponsorship opportunities or would just like to help Jared Williams Racing, please contact me here: tnewey@norcalcarculture.com