It seems as though Altamont Raceway Park’s misfortune is Dave Byrd’s benefit. Once again, due to restrictions that require Altamont to run only day races, Dave was afforded the opportunity to do what Dave Byrd fans crave to see. Dave raced at two different venues in the same day, racing at AMP, in the SRL Southwest Tour in the day show and then taking on the challenge of having the stamina to do it all over again in the late model race at Madera Speedway in the evening show.
Dave kicked off the quest for the double day with a good start in the tour race, tenaciously running lap after lap with the fastest cars on the track, avoided the big one and bringing home a solid third place finish.
Several competitors were complaining of heat related issues after the race with the track’s EMT crew giving assistance. Dave almost immediately after the finish of the Tour Race, jumped in his ride to Madera Speedway, leaving him an hour and a half to rest and cool off on the ride south.
The call was made to Madera Speedway promoter Kenny Sheppard on the way out of ARP to get an update on the status of the Madera Speedway program. The concern was, Dave had already missed qualifying, and if there was over a 20 car field, Dave would have to make the semi-main in order to race his way into the field. As it turned out, Kenny stated that there were exactly 20 late models and that Dave would be able to start at the rear of the field.
Hotwood, the series sponsor, required the track to have 100 green flag laps of racing, this was a benefit to Dave, as it gave him time to methodically work through the field. Dave steadfastly worked his way to the front until ultimately taking the lead. On the next lap, the yellow came out and the controversy began. Fans and competitors could clearly see that Dave was leading the lap before the yellow was displayed, with the other competitors lining up behind Dave on the yellow flag laps. The other cars at the front of the field didn’t move around Dave until they were told to by the track officials, placing Dave back to the second row for the double file restart. On the ensuing restart, the first and second place cars, raced side by side for the remainder of the laps. Byrd ran a close third for the remaining few laps with the undeserving leaders giving each other several body shots, which left angry Byrd fans with hope that just maybe, Dave could benefit from their unruly racing. The race ended with Dave finishing third.
The controversy was just getting started as fans displayed their displeasure and confusion. Initially, Al Ganolla, the race director, in an unprecedented show of effort to explain the bizarre call, came down to the front straightaway. Al’s explanation was that no matter what it looked like, the transponders didn’t show that Dave was leading on any of the laps prior to the yellow. The crew and fans expressed that they knew what they saw, but the team moved on to complete the required tech inspection, knowing that once the race was restarted, the outcome was set.
The track officials have since completed a comprehensive review of the finish of the race. They completed a study of the several video angles that are customarily recorded and then compared the videos with the transponder readings. The officials have since been open to the fact that something isn’t right. They admit the videos clearly show Byrd leading, but at the same time the transponder records read that he wasn’t. The team is working with the track to improve the procedure for inspecting where the transponders are located on the chassis’ and whether dummy transponders are being used.
Dave Byrd is partnered with: Performance Electrical, Strandwold Properties, Jack McCoy Enterprises, Freight Train Peters Racing Engines, Ringers Gloves, Team Chevrolet, Foletta Bros, Inc., Swendeman Hardware, Bob Strandwold Racing, Madera Auto Center, Madera Toyota, Toyota Certified Used Vehicles, Madera Chevrolet, Country Club Auto Body, MTD Farms, Foletta Bros, Inc., Madera Mobile, Perko’s Café & Grill, Robert V. Jensen, Inc., Central Valley P & S, Schroeder Torsion Bars, Jason’s Mobile Graphics & Decal, Kragen Auto Parts, Electronic Sorting Service, Schoettler Tire, Inc., AmeriPride Uniform Service, BG, Jim & Pam Garcia, Kenny Whalen Racing, Sargent Racing, Webster Motorsports, Country Builders and Construction, Pro-Chassis by Kellen Chadwick.
