With just two races of the ten race series remaining the Sea Galley ‘Crab Legs 100’ at Yakima Speedway could be a turning point for the top two drivers in the points chase. Saturday the opening night of the two-day Labor Day Stock Car Extravaganza the Late Model Challenge Series will be the featured series. The 100-lap race on the fabled .5-mile oval will be a big test for point leader Troy Conrad (Tacoma, WA) and second in the points chase Shelby Thompson (Spokane, WA).
It seemed to be a sure championship for Conrad three races back. After two strong finishes and qualifying efforts Thompson has closed the gap to five points. Thompson is riding high after capturing his first LMCS win at the series’ last outing.
Conrad started the season with five top five finishes in a row including two wins. Thompson started with four top fives and no wins. In the last three races Thompson has finished third, second and first in that order. Conrad has struggled with a seventh and two sixths.
When the series was last at Yakima Speedway on May 20 Conrad finished third to Thompson’s fourth. Occasional series competitor B J Tidrick (Yakima, WA) won the 100-lap main.
The series fast qualifier receives 5-points with a 1-point drop per position for the remaining fast four. The winner of the Sea Galley ‘Crab Legs 100’ will garner 100-points with second and third places garnering 3-points less each with fourth to the last place finisher having a 2-point drop off per position.
The best Late Model and NASCAR drivers in the Northwest converge for two days to attempt at taming the .5-mile oval that many consider untamable. The NASCAR Elite Division Northwest Series drops by for the final time in its long history at Yakima. NASCAR has decided to eliminate the Northwest Series after this season. Yakima has hosted the second most races during the 22-years of the series. On Saturday September 2 the Northwest Series drivers will qualify for starting positions in the two 25-lap qualifying heats. The finishing order of the two heats will be the lineup for the Aero Exhaust 200 on Sunday September 3.
The Late Model Challenge Series race #9 takes place on Saturday with qualifying and a last chance race deciding the starting field for the Sea Galley ‘Crab Legs 100’.
Drivers expected to compete in both Series are Brandon Riehl (Portland, OR), Jeff Bailey (Pasco, WA), Jason Fraser (Snohomish, WA) and Erick Hargraves (Yakima, WA).
