VENTURA, California – Cory Kruseman started up front, stayed there and won the USAC/CRA sprint car main event at Ventura Raceway.
Kruseman (who is from Ventura) has won countless races at the Raceway, where he started his racing career. But the victory in the USAC/CRA feature was not the only win for Kruseman. Austin Mero (Kingsburg), driving a car owned by Kruseman’s team, won the Wags Dash feature and pocketed $3,500.
The other winners at Ventura were Ron Bach (Ventura) in the VRA Senior Sprint division and Thomas Short (Carpinteria) won the Junior Midgets feature.
Kruseman started on the outside of the front row in his main event. He led every lap, but there were enough restarts that returned put the field directly behind Kruseman and made the crowd favorite work for his latest victory.
“We were pretty good on the exits and not too good on the entry,” to the corners, Kruseman said. “I decided to practice what I teach and take what the track gave me.”
Tony Jones (Norco) finished second to Kruseman and Danny Sheridan (Santa Maria) took third.
“Cory’s good,” Jones said after the race. “He knows this track just a little bit. I was going to follow him for at least 20 laps. I just wasn’t close enough,” at the end of the race.
Bach’s victory was his fourth of the season and it helped tighten the points chase in the division. He now trails championship leader Rob Kershaw by only 30 points. Willey Miller (Yorba Linda) finished second in the race, Kershaw (Oak Park) was third.
After Kruseman won his race, he spoke briefly with each of the drivers on his team before they took part in the Wags Dash, a special event for struggling racers. Mero listened to his mentor and made use of the advice, leading most of the race and making strong restarts a key part of his victory.
Jay Hicks (Torrance) finished second to Mero and Rick Hendrix (Palmdale) finished third.
Short won his first main event of the season. Luke Boles (Goleta) was second, followed by Jessica Clark (Westlake Village).
| VRA Senior Sprints |
|---|
| 1. Ron Bach, Ventura, 20 Laps; 2. Willey Miller, Yorba Linda, 20 Laps; 3. Rob Kershaw, Oak Park, 20 Laps; 4. Bob Alderman, Calabasas, 20 Laps; 5. Bruce Douglass, Ventura, 20 Laps; 6. Russel Deblauw, Ventura, 20 Laps; 7. Tim Moon, Ventura, 20 Laps; 8. Mike Cook, Long Beach, 20 Laps; 9. Ed Schwarz, Santa Fe Springs, 20 Laps; 10. Ron Butler, Santa Barbara, 20 Laps; 11. Tom Fish, Ventura, 20 Laps; 12. Gil Mahoney, La Crescenta, 20 Laps; 13. Dave Lowenstein, Rancho Cucamonga, 20 Laps; 14. Cliff Warren, Camarillo, 20 Laps; 15. Oren Prosser Sr, Pasadena, 20 Laps; 16. Chris Meredith, Thousand Oaks, 20 Laps; 17. Steve Stasa, West Hills, 17 Laps; 18. John Richards, Ventura, 6 Laps; 19. Ed McWiliams, San Diego, 0 Laps; 20. Bill Badger, Canyon Country, 0 Laps; 21. Chuck Tyler, Lancaster, Did not show Top 10 in points: 1. Rob Kershaw, 2110; 2. Ron Bach, 2080; 3. Bruce Douglass, 2010; 4. Tim Moon, 1820; 5. Bob Alderman, 1815; 6. Cliff Warren, 1710; 7. Willey Miller, 1600; 8. Ron Butler, 1425; 9. Danny Miller, 1410; 10. Gil Mahoney, 1355 |
| USAC/CRA Sprint Cars |
| 1. Cory Kruseman, Ventura, 30 Laps; 2. Tony Jones, Norco, 30 Laps; 3. Danny Sheridan, Santa Maria, 30 Laps; 4. Tyler Brown, Norco, 30 Laps; 5. Allan Ballard, Bakersfield, 30 Laps; 6. David Cardey, Riverside, 30 Laps; 7. Blake Miller, Yorba Linda, 30 Laps; 8. Garrett Hansen, Manhattan Beach, 30 Laps; 9. J. Hicks, Torrance, 30 Laps; 10. Cody Williams, Yorba Linda, 30 Laps; 11. Jimmy Crawford, Ventura, 30 Laps; 12. Mike Spencer, Temecula, 30 Laps; 13. Greg Bragg, Visalia, 30 Laps; 14. Luis Espinoza, Castaic, 29 Laps; 15. Henry Clarke, Orange, 4 Laps; 16. Bobby Michnowicz, Torrance, 3 Laps; 17. Rodney Argo, Long Beach, 2 Laps; 18. Rip Williams, Yorba Linda, 2 Laps; 19. Rick Hendrix, Palmdale, 2 Laps; 20. Josh Ford, Camarillo, 2 Laps Ventura Raceway does not calculate points for this class |
| VRA Junior Midgets |
| 1. Thomas Short, Carpinteria, 20 Laps; 2. Luke Boles, Goleta, 20 Laps; 3. Jessica Clark, Westlake Village, 20 Laps; 4. Riley Helland, Ventura, 20 Laps; 5. Austin Figueroa, El Segundo, 20 Laps; 6. Nick Valenzuela, Ventura, 20 Laps; 7. John Butcher, Santa Barbara, 20 Laps; 8. Brennan Rogers, Camarillo, 20 Laps; 9. Amanda Poertner, Fullerton, 20 Laps; 10. Cameron Dougan, Camarillo, 20 Laps; 11. Tyler Jerman, Palmdale, 20 Laps; 12. Michaela Stanton, Camarillo, 20 Laps; 13. Mark Garrett, Oxnard, 20 Laps Top 10 in points: 1. Luke Boles, 2700; 2. Brennan Rogers, 2640; 3. Cameron Dougan, 2570; 4. Riley Helland, 2560; 5. Jessica Clark, 2550; 6. Nick Valenzuela, 2510; 7. Tyler Jerman, 2495; 8. Austin Figueroa, 2480; 9. Mark Garrett, 2450; 10. Michaela Stanton, 2440 |
| Wagsdash |
| 1. Austin Mero, Kingsburg, 20 Laps; 2. J. Hicks, Torrance, 20 Laps; 3. Rick Hendrix, Palmdale, 20 Laps; 4. Steve Conrad, Quartz Hill, 20 Laps; 5. Bobby Michnowicz, Torrance, 20 Laps; 6. Luis Espinoza, Castaic, 20 Laps; 7. Hobie Conway, Ventura, 20 Laps; 8. Dennis Rodriguez, Camarillo, 20 Laps; 9. Jimmy Crawford, Ventura, 20 Laps; 10. Bruce Douglass, Ventura, 20 Laps; 11. Tony Everhart, El Cajon, 20 Laps; 12. Tom Hendricks, Simi Valley, 20 Laps; 13. Cody Williams, Yorba Linda, 17 Laps; 14. Kevin Kierce, Reseda, 17 Laps; 15. Ludwig Solberg 4th, Upland, CA, 9 Laps; 16. Henry Clarke, Orange, 7 Laps; 17. Brien Kinney, Beaumont, 1 Lap Ventura Raceway does not calculate points for this class |
