MERIDIAN, Idaho — The season draws to a close Friday and Saturday at ASA-sanctioned Meridian Speedway with the Coors Light Championships, including the fast and exciting finish to the ASA Northwest Sprintcar Racing Association season.
The ASA NSRA brings the best open-wheel drivers from around the Northwest -- including several from the Treasure Valley -- to the paved quarter-mile for two days of open-wheel racing. Officials expect upwards of two dozen sprint cars to run in front of the largest crowd of the year at the speedway.
Race fans have the chance to see down-to-the-wire championship racing as Meridian season championships will be decided in Non-Winged Sprints, Mini Stocks, Legends and Domino's Pizza Bandoleros (on Friday) and the Super Stocks, Street Stocks, ASA Modifieds and Honkin' Hornets (on Saturday). The Thunder Dogs wrap up their championship and the 2009 season at Meridian with the wildly popular Boat Race of Destruction on Saturday night. Twenty entries will pull boats around the track until they are obliterated into tiny pieces.
Two-day tickets for the final weekend of racing cost $30. Adult admission is $15 on Friday and $18 on Saturday. Admission each night is $12.50 for senior citizens and military personnel, $11 for children 7-11 and children 6 and younger get in free. Fans can avoid long lines at the gate by purchasing advance tickets at NAPA Auto Parts stores in Meridian and Kuna.
Gates open at 4 p.m. and racing begins at 6:30 p.m. both nights.
For more information, visit www.meridianspeedway.com or call (208) 888-2813.
Roseburg, Ore.'s Matt Hein, who won the Diamond Cup in the spring during the first 2009 stop at Meridian for the ASA NSRA, roars back into Idaho with his eyes fixed on back-to-back season championships. The 2008 series champ owns a 69-point lead over second-place Jeff Montgomery of Langford, British Columbia, with two main events left this weekend.
Seemingly every driver in the top four has a shot at glory with points available each night.
The Meridian Winged Sprint track championship will be decided, too, as points in the ASA NSRA action will count toward the local series, too. Cory Lockwood, third in the ASA NSRA points race, trails fellow Nampa, Idaho, driver Chris Ratterree by 46 points heading into the final races of the Meridian championship chase.
On Friday night:
Johnny Giesler will try to wrap up the Non-Winged Sprints title by holding off fellow Meridian racer Wyatt King.
Two more Meridian drivers, series leader Eddie Abels and close runner-up Ray Bolinger, continue to duke it out for the Mini Stocks championship. Abels owns a 19-point lead with one race remaining after he won last weekend's main event to surge ahead of Bolinger. The pair traded the lead late in the race to thrill the fans.
Travis Anderson will try to hold off fellow Boise driver Camron Madsen in the final Legends feature of the year.
Another tight championship will be decided when Boise's Andrew Clark tries to hang on to a shrinking lead against Chase Gilbertson in the Domino's Pizza Bandoleros. Gilbertson pulled out a feature victory last week to inch within three points of Clark heading into the finale.
On Saturday night
Jaramie Fuss of Kuna, Idaho, looks to stay on cruise control to wrap up the Street Stocks championship. A multiple-time feature event winner this year, Fuss leads Nampa's Marv Weaver by 162 points and could break the 1,000-point barrier with another solid night.
In the Super Stocks, Nampa's Dennis Brodigan enters the final night with a 53-point lead over Boise's Phillip Zubizareta is 53 points back. Mountain Home, Idaho's Terry Lydell trails by 70 points.
Eagle, Idaho's Tom Hill will try to complete a surge to the summit in the ASA Modifieds. He has a 63-point lead over Meridian's Chris Fenton.
Vern Cornish of Nampa will try to wrap up the entry-level Hornets championship. He's driving his second Eagle Talon of the year, but he still has 45-point lead over Eric Harry of Boise with one race left.
Tommy White of Boise has a 101-point lead over Jim Anderson of Meridian in the Thunder Dogs, but anything can happen during the Boat Race of Destruction that will close out the season at Meridian.
As an American Speed Association-sanctioned track, Meridian Speedway is part of the ASA Member Track National Championship for the Modified division.
The goal of the ASA Short Track National Championship is to activate a measuring system that takes into account many variables, such as field size, inversion, wins and number of races in a season, and create a level playing field to determine who is the ‘best-of-the-best’ of the ASA Member Track Champions Nationwide.
The ASA Joe Gibbs Driven National Member Track Champion Award was designed to give the National Champion exposure with one of the top teams in racing — Joe Gibbs Racing. Joe Gibbs Driven Oil, a division of Joe Gibbs Racing, sells the actual oil products developed and used by Joe Gibbs Racing to racers at all levels. More information can be found at www.joegibbsdriven.com.
The ASA Member Track program is comprised of a network of short tracks around the United States, as well as a variety of regional and national touring series. For news and information from all the racetracks and tours involved in the American Speed Association, visit www.ASA-Racing.com.
American Speed Association
Northwest Sprintcar Racing Association
2009 points standings
Through eight of 10 races — 1. Matt Hein, Roseburg, Ore., 535 points; 2. Jeff Montgomery, Langford, British Columbia, 466; 3. Cory Lockwood, Nampa, Idaho, 429; 4. Andy Alberding, Roseburg, Ore.; 5. Justin Mack, Benton City, Wash., 379; 6. Greg Ochs, Colville, Wash., 287; 7. Greg Middendorf, Snohomish, Wash., 276; 8. Todd Coleman, Lynnwood, Wash., 262; 9. Jim Brock, Sutherlin, Ore., 230; 10. Jeff Bird, Lake Shawnigan, B.C., 187
Meridian Speedway
Meridian, ID
2009 points standings
(Through Sept. 19 races)
ASA Modifieds — 1. Tom Hill, Eagle, Idaho, 873 points; 2. Chris Fenton, Meridian, Idaho, 810; 3. Rus Ward, Boise, Idaho, 761; 4. Shelby Stroebel, Nampa, Idaho, 751; 5. Charlie Ham Jr., Boise, Idaho, 722
Winged Sprints — 1. Chris Ratterree, Nampa, Idaho, 693 points; 2. Cory Lockwood, Nampa, Idaho, 647; 3. Sierra Jackson, Middleton, Idaho, 582; 4. Cody Veenstra, Emmett, Idaho, 532; 5. Matt Elliott, Nampa, Idaho, 411
Non-winged Sprints — 1. Johnny Giesler, Meridian, Idaho, 925 points; 2. Wyatt King, Meridian, Idaho, 870; 3. Rob Grice, Nampa, Idaho, 671; 4. Zach Wilson, Boise, Idaho, 466; 5. Erik Miller, Middleton, Idaho, 434
Super Stocks — 1. Dennis Brodigan, Nampa, Idaho, 502 points; 2. Phillip Zubizareta, Boise, Idaho, 449; 3. Terry Lydell, Mountain Home, Idaho, 432; 4. Rick Baldwin, Middleton, Idaho, 431; 5. Gale Carter, Boise, Idaho, 377
Late Model Lites (Final) — 1. Rob Powers, Meridian, Idaho, 601 points; 2. Jim Bailey, Middleton, Idaho, 572; 3. Shaun Tubbs, Nampa, Idaho, 556; 4. Kale Freedman, Meridian, Idaho, 545; 5. Joe Barton, Nampa, Idaho, 521
Street Stocks — 1. Jaramie Fuss, Kuna, Idaho, 936 points; 2. Marv Weaver, Nampa, Idaho, 774; 3. David Short, Meridian, Idaho, 686; 4. Chad Bess, Nampa, Idaho, 638; 5. Steve Bosselman, Nyssa, Ore., 570
Mini Stocks — 1. Eddie Abels, Meridian, Idaho, 844 points; 2. Ray Bolinger, Meridian, Idaho, 825; 3. Jason Sanders, Caldwell, Idaho, 716; 4. Tyler Burlingame, Meridian, Idaho, 554; 5. Donovan Parker, Boise, Idaho, 458
Late Models — 1. John Nesmith, Meridian, Idaho, 249 points; 2. Jeff Jefferson, Yakima, Wash., 215; 3. John Dillon, Eagle, Idaho, 190; 4. Dan Buckley, Emmett, Idaho, 171; 5. Travis Milburn, Eagle, Idaho, 165
Legends — 1. Travis Anderson, Boise, Idaho, 785 points; 2. Camron Madsen, Boise, Idaho, 733; 3. Rob Collins, McCall, Idaho, 547; 4. Ben Matheson, Pasco, Wash., 483; 5. Tom Matheson, Pasco, Wash., 405
Thunder Dogs — 1. Tommy White, Boise, Idaho, 578 points; 2. Jim Anderson, Meridian, Idaho, 477; 3. Chris Carlson, Boise, Idaho, 474; 4. Dion States, Meridian, Idaho, 427; 5. John Pinkston, Nampa, Idaho, 391
Hornets — 1. Vern Cornish, Nampa, Idaho, 723 points; 2. Eric Harry, Boise, Idaho, 688; 3. Travis Pavlacky, Fruitland, Idaho, 677; 4. Art Heath, Nampa, Idaho, 630; 5. Mike Davis, Boise, Idaho, 583
Jr. Stingers (Final) — Champion: Andrew Clark, Meridian, Idaho, 343; 2. Chance Davis, Emmett, Idaho, 260; 3. Colton Nelson, Meridian, Idaho, 252; 4. Jonathan Hull, 161; 5. Mike Williams, 153
Domino's Pizza Bandoleros — 1. Andrew Clark, Meridian, Idaho, 295; 2. Chase Gilbertson, 292; 3. Brok Kidd, Meridian, Idaho, 259; 4. Keegan Myers, Kuna, Idaho, 108; 5. Russell Housel, 84
