TWIN FALLS, Idaho -- Kenny Vanderham had his hands full in the InterMountain Pro Trucks main event as he battled Ralph Kincheloe and Dan Koyle three wide around the track at the Magic Valley Speedway last Saturday night, but held on to win his first race of the season.
A caution at lap 19 brought the three drivers together after having to choose the inside or outside lane for the restart and Vanderham apparently made the correct decision.
The drivers were then all in contention for the lead as they raced door-to-door, but as usual in that situation when no one wants to give up the position, things have a way of working out for themselves.
It was Koyle who got the nod as he got loose in turn three while riding in the far outside lane of the trio, bringing out the second caution of the race. Koyle then had to make the restart from the rear while Kincheloe exited the track and spent the remainder of the race in the pits.
"At the restart I elected to stay behind Ralph (Kincheloe)," Vanderham said. "Then Dan Koyle came up along side and the battle was on. But I saw an opening in turn two and took it."
Vanderham’s problems were far from eliminated however, as Kevan Larson and Nick Lynch were quickly closing in with just 10 laps to go in the 40-lap race.
Lynch finessed his way around Larson on lap 33 and then set his sites on Vanderham. However, Lynch ran out of laps as Vanderham kept his foot to the floor, crossing the finish just a half truck length ahead of Lynch for the win.
"Early on tonight we were having troubles with the truck first being loose and then getting tight," Vanderham said. "But for the main event, we were hooked up."
Budweiser Grand Nationals driver Jerry Rice successfully fought off a persistent Louis Lopez to win the main event race and take over the points lead in the division. Rice made a key move at lap three, passing Lopez and Willie Dalton to assume the lead, but Lopez was not finished yet. Lopez shadowed Rice while Jerry McKean kept the pressure on Lopez as the three ran nose-to-tail for the remainder of the race. Rice refused to yield to however, holding off Lopez at every turn while going on to win his fourth main event of the season.
"There was no way I was going to the outside this week," Rice said regarding his inside pass on Lopez. "We really wanted this win tonight."
Randy Price had some bad racing luck on the evening as the motor of the No. 74 car expired before the main event race, eliminating him from the competition for the night.
NAPA Pony driver Jason Whited will enter the ‘Chase for the Championship’ July 29 in first place after sewing up the position with a win Saturday night. Whited closest competitors in the division, Lou Andersen and Josh Pitz, each had misfortunes in the main event race as they were caught up in separate incidences. Andersen, who was second in the point standings coming into the evening, received damage to the left-front door after making contact with another car in the aftermath of a four-car spin-out on lap one. Pitz was the next victim six laps later after going high in turn three trying to avoid a lap-car and going off the turn four embankment. Pitz then had to make his way into the pits to repair a flat tire but did manage a sixth place finish for the night while Andersen salvaged an eighth place showing. Kristi Fehringer edged Brent Fehringer for second and Shawn Nice had another strong run coming in fifth in the main event race.
Both Oliver Phipps and Bruce Henry needed good performances Saturday night in order to make it into the chase, but both drivers had disastrous outings. Phipps got together with Dustin Wilson in turn one of the heat race, pounded the wall as his hood flew off and flames emerged from the motor area of the car. Fortunately, Phipps was relatively unhurt, but his ride was finished for the evening, as seemingly were his chances to make it into the chase. Henry had his issues in the main event race, exiting the track after being involved in the lap-one incident. Ironically, both drivers ended up with the same point totals for the season and will both be eligible for the ‘chase.’
John Hoogendoorn was ‘robbed’ of a win in the Magic Valley Pipe Thunder Stock division race after guest driver of the No. 55 car Rob Vest, stole the lead from Hoogendoorn with four laps to go in the 25-lap race. Vest, a regular driver in the Pepsi Premier division, took advantage of a night off for the feature class to try his hand at a Thunder Stock car and earned the title of ‘Thunder-wacker’, which refers to the more experienced Nextel Cup drivers ‘stepping down’ to drive in a Busch Series race.
"I never even sat in the car before tonight," Vest said. "But it was pretty fun - and the car actually handled good."
Renee Lopez was crowned Queen Bee Champion for the 2006 season, capturing the title while winning her second main event race of the season. Misty Greco had held the lead up until lap five when a caution came out for a spin by the No. 8 car in the front stretch. Lopez took her position right next to Greco on the restart and quickly took the lead for herself and cruised to the win and season championship.
"I might give the warrior class try," Lopez said regarding the question of moving up to a different division in the future. "But I’m not moving up to a different division. I like to spectate, I’d rather just sit and watch."
RESULTS:
Budweiser Grand Nationals – 1. Jerry Rice; 2. Louis Lopez; 3. Jerry McKean; 4. Jeff Meads; 5. Ernie Hall; 6. Willie Dalton; 7. Bill Manker.
NAPA Pony Stocks – 1. Jason Whited; 2. Kristi Fehringer; 3. Brent Fehringer; 4, Shawn Nice; 5. Randy Grubbs; 6. Josh Pitz; 7. Wade Henslee; 8. Lou Andersen; 9. John Urie 10. Kevin Grubbs.
Magic Valley Pipe Thunder Stocks – 1. Rob Vest; 2. John Hoogendoorn; 3. Jim Shirley; 4. Jim Howard; 5. Criag Nuthak; 6. Shiela Harms; 7. Desi Ahrens; 8. Steve Edens; 9. Michelle Rouse; 10. Mike Dawson.
Quale Electronics Queen Bees – 1. Renee Lopez; 2. Misty Greco; 3. Chae Son Bollar; 4. Jessica Hansen; 5. Amber O’Brien; 6. Rachelle Mueller; 7. Amy Russell; 8. Keri Hatke; 9. Alicia Dalton.
InterMountain Pro Race Trucks – 1. Kenny Vanderham; 2. Nick Lynch; 3. Kevan Larson; 3. Stevie Fisher; 4. Wayne Gunderson; 5. Dan Koyle; 6. Ken Kennedy; 7. Dan Pehrson; 8. Mike Dawson; 10. Ralph Kincheloe.
