The October Classic at Mesa Marin Raceway is always a top-notch event, day one proved to be no different. There was something like 35 of the 4-cylinder, (MSRA Pro-4) style cars that put an incredible show. I am not familiar with all the drivers of the different divisions that were running, of course I know Kenny Smith from his Winston West days and it is always a pleasure to see him and his family. They still take care of their visitors with the best food there is, I made two trips to their buffet (one when they weren’t looking).
The 4-Cylinders started with a 35 lap B-Main, followed by a 50-lap main event. It was an awesome show. Look forward to Kimberly Porter's recap on this one, coming to an Internet site near you soon!
The California Asphalt Modifieds were there and I won’t go into much detail, I think the reporter from the Bakersfield Californian summed it up best when he eluded to the fact that you don’t need a full field of cars when they race as competitively as these guys do. They have you holding your breath the entire event. They are fast and exciting.
Ricky Pierce, what more is there to say? That story has been written before; he dominated the thrilling Super TT event. I imagine the competition will be working on their equipment and practicing over the winter, we know Pierce will be.
Now for the Southwest Tour. Well, it was incredible. Names like Adam Andretti (son of Aldo), Ron Eaton, and Dave Byrd, dotted the field of regulars. Craig Raudman took another quick time. The rookie, Burney Lamar was 2nd quick and held on to second place for most of the 150-lap event. There were a few times that he had a nose under or on the outside of Raudman, but he was never able to make it stick. With only a few laps remaining he spun on the backstretch going from 2nd to 17th in a matter of seconds, still he finished on the lead lap and I think he proved he is a contender (not a pretender-I’ve always wanted to use that goofy phrase).
Adam Andretti competed in his first-ever SW Tour race and he finished the race, 3 laps down, but he finished. We sure hope to see more of him. He was very pleasant and of course it is fun to have an Andretti in the field!
Scott Brandt had to be a happy camper. After losing some ground in the rookie points hunt at Vegas, he brought the No. 58 Patrick’s Carpet in for a podium finish. He was the highest leading rookie and will remain the ROTY points leader as the Tour heads to Phoenix.
Bob Lyon came in 5th. I don’t know if anyone is noticing but he is having a great year and looks like he is ready for another win. He currently sits 4th in the NFSWS standings.
Jon Nelson and Auggie Vidovich, hot picks for the win came home 6th and 7th respectively. Ron Eaton, probably on his way to his winter hideout in Arizona, ran a consistent race and finished 9th. Dave Byrd in his first NFSWS race scored a top-ten. I finally had the opportunity to meet him after seeing his name for so long, what a nice guy!
Greg Pursley was not in the 70 car; instead it was Ryan Foster driving that number for owner points. I understand that Pursley will be at Phoenix. He should be a contender for the win there.
Now as for the race itself, well let’s just say that someone sitting next to me was hoping the pace car did not run out of gas. There were a lot of caution laps. The boys did not need to save their tires for this race. But like one of the announcers said, if we didn’t have the cautions, we might not have had that exciting ending.
And that had to be one of the best finishes, ever. Raudman was strong all night and looked like he had a wire-to-wire win in the bag, when LaMoure shot by him in the final moments of the race to win a very emotional first victory in the Tour. I don’t remember if LaMoure said it (I guarantee he was thinking it), that this one was for Mom. God had a happy angel in heaven for that finish. It was also a success for all the families of the missing. This is his chance to give these families more press.
There are a lot of guys that I am not mentioning, and I apologize for that. I am late for Part II of the October Classic! Got to get ready to go!
It should be an exciting day of racing. I saw Todd Burns and Michelle Gilliland at the track. That leads me to believe that two strong Irwindale contenders (Burns and David Gilliland) will be competing for the checkered flag today.
Looking for something to do after church? Drive on out to Mesa Marin. I think the first race starts at 2. See you there!
