KENT, Washington — Day one of the two day NOS Energy Drink ‘Road Course Challenge’ for the iRacing.com American Speed Association Northwest Late Model Tour at Pacific Raceways in Kent, Washington was good for some and not so for others. Gary Lewis (Snohomish, WA) had no problems all day and capped it off with the IPM (International Parking Management) Quick Qualifier Award. Jason Fraser (Snohomish, WA) was a close second. Third quickest Harold Raczynski (Duvall, WA) was a surprise to all.
Lewis once again showed his mastering of the road course. Every practice session he took part in he was the fastest. Lewis did skip the final practice not wanting to take any chances.
The day was not as smooth for some. Joey Tanner (Portland, OR) missed turn two ending in the tire barrier suffering significant damage to the right front. His Tidrick (Yakima, WA) led team was looking at an all nighter to get the car race ready for Sunday’s 40-lap feature.
Shane Biles’ (Woodinville, WA) day was very short with a motor problem early in the first practice sending him scurrying to see if it could be fixed. Mike Longton (Moxee, WA) lost control at the beginning of his qualifying attempt. The damage was enough to not let him to continue qualifying.
Just about everyone had some sort of issue during the day. Most if not all were solvable.
The only thing that did not go well for Lewis was the roll of the dice for the invert to be used for the start of Sunday’s feature. Rolling an eleven Lewis will have to be very cautious and patient to get back up front where he has been accustomed to.
Qualifying Results:
Gary Lewis 1:23.034, Jason Fraser, Harold Raczynski, Pete Harding, Kelly Mann, Brent Harris, Jeff Holden, Mark Sundberg, Joe McNeil, Jason Fiorito, Ed Thompson, Amanda MacDonald, Don Vickery, Jody Tanner. Did not qualify but will be expected to make the 40-lap feature are Mike Longton, Joey Tanner, Alan Cress, Ken Sleveland and Brad Stanwood. Shane Biles is questionable.
There is one more practice session scheduled for Sunday morning followed by the 40-lap NOS Energy Drink ‘Road Course Challenge’ at approximately 3:00pm.
