The penultimate points race was held last Saturday at the Lakeport Speedway. All four of our local classes, the Modifieds, Mini-Stocks, Street Stocks, and Bombers raced to position themselves for the end-of-the-season dash for the championship trophies.

Fans and racers alike got to participate in a “who’s really got the horsepower” Burn-Out contest. Cars were stopped against a rail to hold them in place, and the drivers had 60 seconds to translate raw power into the biggest exhibition of noise, exhaust flame, and towering columns of smoke.

As always, it was the cheering and hollering of the fans that decided the outcome. “Cadillac” Pat Sperling from Lakeport, in that monster speedway Cadillac, came back from defeat to win for a second time this season. Andy “The Grinch” Norton from Lakeport came in second with his #69 Boat Racer, and Robert Taylor from Lakeport was third with a Trans-Am.

The Modified fast time of 12.507s was set by Bob “Mighty Mouse” Strauss from Lucerne. A mid-race yellow allowed David Furia from Kelseyville to close back up, take the lead from Rick Tommila, and carry it all the way to the finish of the main event.

The Mini-Stocks fast time of 13.990s was set by Robert Schmidt from Lucerne. The main event was led for the first half by Jay Strugnell, and then by Robert Schmidt. A late-race yellow allowed Don Presler to close back up and race Schmidt for the lead. When Schmidt spun-out on the backstretch in lap 27, Presler from Nice claimed the checkers.

The Street Stock fast time of 13.376s was set by Andy Vander Veer from Santa Rosa. Vander Veer had a solid lead in the main event, until Mike Bray blew a tire and collected him on the backstretch in lap 15. He was never quite able to catch back up to the eventual winner, Mike Rose from Lakeport.

The Bomber fast time of 14.452s was set by Terry Pittman. Richie Schwarm Jr. held the lead in the main event for the first half doggedly pursued by Roman Rose and George Abella. Rose was outside Schwarm in lap 17 when they split three-wide around the lapped car of Brad Laird on the backstretch. This put both in bad position and speed for turn three, and both broke loose and spun creating a big pile-up. This left Abella from Lakeport in the lead to fend off the pursuit of Jon Waner and Jimmy Sorrels, to claim victory.

As a result, George Abella now lags Roman Rose by only two points coming into the final points race, and Waner leads Dylan Rose for third by only one point.

Airport Auto Brokers Late Models

The 17 car Late Model field was led to the start of the 50 lap main event by Mike Bourbon and Jimmy Stillman. Stillman nosed into the outside lead as Forrest Kuecker followed closely in third. These three out-paced Steve Taylor inside Jarrod Beddow, and the rest of the pack behind them.

At the back, Eric Williamson was running alone since Chris Straka had faded back to the outside of Allen Gibney, pushing Miles Anderson behind him. In the second lap, Williamson broke loose in turn one sending him into the wall. He bounced back out down the track sideways just as Straka and Gibney caught up.

Gibney dodged to the inside, but Straka pegged Williamson in the left-rear. Behind him, Anderson cut to the inside, but Williamson was still traveling downhill and Anderson ran straight into his left-front. Mike Swaney, who was running behind Straka and Anderson, could not see the wreck and, when the cars in front swerved, found himself running into the rear of Straka. Williamson and Straka had to retire during the yellow. Anderson eventually rejoined the race.

Stillman and Bourbon led the single-file restart. Kuecker got inside Bourbon and took second in lap four. Steve Taylor set his sights on Bourbon and third place while Charlie Collins, Bill Binns, Noel McCormack Jr., and Rick Rose freight-trained Sean Caturegli, Kevin Ostern, Eric Graham, and Jarrod Beddow to the back.

Taylor got inside Bourbon to take third in lap nine, and now Bourbon took that long outside ride to the back. Collins did the same to Taylor in lap 11, but Taylor managed to drop back inside behind Rose in seventh place. While this jockeying was going on, Stillman and Kuecker had out-paced the field, but when they tried to lap Swaney in lap 18, it slowed them down so much that the pack caught back up.

In lap 20, Rose had just taken the inside groove from McCormack to challenge for fifth, when Taylor dove into the turn one infield to bring out another caution.

Stillman and Kuecker led them to the green and McCormack immediately took to the outside of fourth place Binns behind Collins. McCormack finished his pass in lap 24, and Rose followed him into fifth in lap 26 when they lapped Anderson which pushed Binns back.

McCormack and Rose were now free to run on the outside. McCormack leap-frogged Collins in lap 29 and started to chase down second place Kuecker. As McCormack tried the outside of Kuecker in lap 37, Rose got to the outside of Collins and again used the lapped car of Anderson to push Collins back and take fourth.

Meanwhile, Kuecker was having none of this outside pass business. He dug in and again pulled ahead of McCormack. McCormack waited until Kuecker moved a little too high and shouldered his way to the inside, taking second in lap 40. Kuecker tried to rally back, but Rose pinned him low as he tried to follow, and McCormack was free to stalk Stillman.

Two lap later, McCormack caught up to the rear of Stillman. In another two laps, Rose stole the inside groove from Kuecker and pulled into second, and McCormack swung to the outside of Stillman. At lap 46, Stillman was in the lead by less than his bumper. McCormack pulled out by half his car length on the backstretch, and Stillman drove into turn three for all he could trying to pull back ahead. However, in turn four, he broke loose and spun into the infield for the last caution.

McCormack and Rose restarted the field and held their positions to the checkers. McCormack finished first, followed by Rose, Kuecker, Collins, and Binns. Swaney won the B dash, and Binns the trophy dash.

Modifieds

Sean Sweeney and Rick Rose led the 11 car Modified field to the start of their main event. Both stayed side-by-side for nine laps while Rick Tommila faded back on the outside pushing Bob Strauss, Mike Smithhart, and Ron Connor back with him.

In lap ten, Rose pulled out into a half-car lead as Danny Bishop swung to the outside of Chuck Pruett to challenge for fourth behind Mike Sullivan. Sweeney rallied back on the inside and again pulled up even with Rose. Bishop continued forward to the outside of Sullivan and David Furia followed to the outside of Pruett. Mark Marek settled inside of Smithhart in seventh and eighth, and Connor inside of Strauss behind them.

By lap 21, all five pairs were dead even around the track. One lap later, Smithhart broke loose in turn four and spun into the wall facing backward. Strauss had nowhere to go and wound up nose-to-nose with Smithhart for the first caution.

After one false start, Sweeney and Rose brought the field to the restart, but as they accelerate out of turn four, Sweeney and Rose make contact causing Sweeney to wobble and slow back into Sullivan. This causes Sullivan to push (lose front tire grip) in turn one and sends him to the outside so hard into Bishop that both of Bishop’s front tires lift off the track.

Bishop and Sullivan head straight for the turn one wall but, at the last instant, Sullivan catches some grip and pulls out. Bishop hits the wall hard. The reaction causes Strauss to spin through turn one, and Smithhart also fetches into the wall. Sweeney, Rose, Bishop, and Smithhart all had to retire during the caution.

Sullivan and Pruett are left to lead the restart ahead of Furia inside fast-time Marek. Pruett takes the outside lead as Marek makes the outside pass on Sullivan for second, and Furia follows for third. However, all eyes are on the front because Pruett is holding his own against the points leader Marek.

Marek doesn’t get to the outside of Pruett until lap 27, and then can not complete the pass. For two laps, Pruett pushes his nose back out front down the frontstretch. When the white flag dropped, they were dead even around the track and into turn four. Marek dug for all he was worth and crossed the line less than half his car ahead of Pruett. Furia crossed third, Sullivan fourth, and Connor fifth. Bishop won the trophy dash and his heat race, and Sweeney the other heat race.

Mini-Stocks

Jason Pratt and Micheal Adkins held the pole row for the start of the Mini-Stock main event. Adkins took the outside lead as Pratt fell back pushing the inside line of Jessica Aceves, David Coyne, Robert Schmidt, and Stevey Coyne behind him.

The outside line of Jay Strugnell, Marcus Hatfield, Dale Balmer, and Don Presler quickly freight-trained Adkins on back. Robert Schmidt, who had reeled out from being pushed back to just behind Presler, swung to the inside after passing Adkins and passed Presler for fourth.

Hatfield swung to the outside of Strugnell to challenge for the lead, but Balmer moved up to his inside and he faded back to the outside of Schmidt. In lap six, Balmer moved to the outside in turn one to challenge Strugnell, and Schmidt moved ahead behind Strugnell. Hatfield tried to move up as well on the outside behind Balmer, but broke loose and spun in turn two collecting Presler for a caution.

Strugnell and Balmer led the restart and Balmer took off on the outside. Schmidt swung outside behind Balmer and took second in lap seven. Balmer and Schmidt out-paced the field as Presler, now in the back, took to the outside and started the long climb up.

By lap 14, Presler had passed Aceves for fourth just behind Strugnell. Aceves was lapping D. Coyne on the inside in turn three when they touched left-rear to right-front, and Aceves spun through turn four stopping sideways blocking the track – just as the two leaders came hurtling through the turn.

Both Balmer and Schmidt T-boned Aceves on the driver side with brutal force. Parts and sheet metal were flying everywhere as Schmidt was stopped short and sideways in turn four, and Aceves and Pressler spun into the infield. Aceves stopped hard when the rear of her car hit the infield tires, and Balmer coasted around the tires to stop nose first into the other side.

Schmidt and Aceves were rattled but ok. Balmer was very shook up and had to be cut out of his car by the track emergency crew, and taken to be checked out. Schmidt and Aceves retired to the pits.

Strugnell and Hatfield led the restart, and Strugnell took the inside lead followed by Presler as Hatfield settled into third. Strugnell and Presler stretched their lead as Presler looked for any opening for the lead.

In lap 17, Presler was outside Strugnell on the backstretch when they had to lap Kasandra Norton who was low in turn three. They were three-wide when Strugnell and Presler got tangled. Strugnell’s car literally climbed up and across the left-front of Presler, locking them together as they slid toward the turn four wall. Presler managed to get loose and around the turn to cross the finish line as a yellow-checker was thrown for time.

Because of the crash that caused the last yellow, Hatfield found himself the winner, followed by D. Coyne, Presler, Strugnell, and Balmer. Presler won the trophy dash, and Aceves and Schmidt the heat races.

Bombers

The 11 car Bomber pack was led to the main event start by Brad Laird and Billy Stillman. Just after the start line, Jon Waner, starting just behind Laird on the inside, darts out inside the slower Laird three-wide and into the lead in front of Stillman. And it gets wilder from here.

The two leaders take off as Laird pushes the inside line of Andy Norton, Richie Schwarm Jr., Jimmy Sorrels, and Dylan Rose on back. Bob Mook is in third followed by Richard Bray, and Robert Byers (substituting for George Abella who lost an oil fitting after the trophy dash). Schwarm managed to dart out from behind Norton to follow Byers. In lap two, Norton spun out into the turn four infield for the first caution.

Waner and Stillman led the restart and took off side-by-side. Bray fell back on the outside pushing Schwarm back with him. In lap five, Waner got his nose out in front of Stillman on the backstretch and completed the pass in turn four, but they were both rubbing and banging down the frontstretch.

In turn one, Stillman gets loose and fishtails through turn two, sliding sideways down the backstretch into turn three for another caution. Stillman had to retire, and Waner had to visit the pits to change a tire.

Mook and Byers led the restart and Byers nosed out into the outside lead, completing the pass in lap nine followed by Roman Rose. In lap 11, R. Rose managed to slip to the inside of Byers and was even with him on the backstretch but, in turn four, Schwarm was outside of D. Rose when they tangled turning Schwarm sideways and into D. Rose. This shot D. Rose to the inside and hard into Bray. D. Rose was bounced back to the outside forcing Schwarm to dodge low, and Norton behind him had nowhere to go but nose into D. Rose. D. Rose had to retire during the caution.

Byers and R. Rose brought them to the restart, after one false start, and they ran side-by-side. Behind them, the field strung out with Mook in third, followed by Norton, Schwarm, Waner, and Laird. In lap 14, R. Rose had finally nosed out into the lead when Waner and Schwarm tangled on the backstretch for another caution.

R. Rose and Byers started them up again, and R. Rose pulled out front. In lap 16, R. Rose suddenly fell back in turn two even with Byers, then behind him on the backstretch, and even further back around the turns. He had a rear-right tire going flat causing his under-carriage to drag sparks through the frontstretch. Finally, a yellow had to be thrown and R. Rose retired.

Byers and Waner started them for the last time. Byers took the inside lead and Schwarm moved up inside Waner. Waner spent the next seven laps desperately trying to find some grip out there, but could not advance. In lap 27, Mook spun into the turn four infield, and the yellow-checker was thrown for time. Byers finished first, followed by Schwarm, Waner, Norton, and Mook. Bray won the trophy dash, and Stillman his heat race.