Back to back top 5 finishes give Stratmeyer a share of the point lead in the Sunoco SRL Late Model.
The second round of the SRL Wild West Shootout came to Madera Speedway on April 20. Madera Speedway is one of the best tracks in Northern California and a favorite of SRL driver Tim Stratmeyer as it provides great side by side racing. The second race of the year saw 24 cars attempt to qualify for 20 starting spots. For the second race in a row, Stratmeyer Racing driver, Tim Stratmeyer went out late, 21st of the 24 drivers. Just in front of Tim was SRL ace Ken Boyd. Ken set the time to beat when he ran a 14.69 on his second lap. Tim went onto the speedway knowing that was the time to beat. The first lap clocked in at a 14.78 and on the second lap, Tim tied Ken with a 14.69. According to the rules, if a tie in qualifying times occurs, the driver that qualifies first gets the spot. This resulted is a 2nd place fast time and 4 points toward the nights points. For the first time in the SRL Late Model young history, a trophy dash was set for the 4 fastest cars. Chris Wadsworth was on the pole with Chad Nichols on the outside. Tim Stratmeyer and Ken Boyd shared the 2nd row. All 4 drivers battled for the top spot with some great side by side racing. When it was over, Chad Nichols owned the checkered flag and a nice trophy.
The top 8 qualifiers were inverted for the 100 lap main. This put the Tri-Valley Machine / Better Homes Realty Chevy of Tim Stratmeyer on the inside of the 4th row. At the start of the race, there was a lot of intense fighting for position. The racing was clean but very tight. Tim preferred the inside line and was able to get pass a few cars in the first 30 laps. The bumping and rubbing seemed to increase as the final laps closed in. He was riding in 5th place when the leaders, Ron Strminska and Chad Nichols got together while carving their way through traffic. This handed the lead to Ray Lawson with 15 laps togo. Nichols continued to maintain 2nd and Stratmeyer was now up to 3rd. The whole right side of Nichols's car had been torn off and the right front tire was rubbing the fender. One lap after going green again, Tim pulled low on Nichols and took 2nd down the back straight only to lose it to Nathan Tucker the next lap. The final caution came out with 5 laps togo when some of the drivers at the back of the field got together in turn 3. The track was blocked and the lead pack raced back to the yellow flag. Tim remained in 3rd and was looking to cap off a great night with his career best SRL finish. The green flag waved for the last time for what would become a 5 lap dash. Jeff Anthony was running 4th and got a great run on the restart. He pulled along the outside of the #28 Stratmeyer Racing Chevy and they ran side by side for a couple of laps. Jeff finally cleared Tim and as the drivers crossed under the white flag for the final lap, Tim was in 4th. As the lead pack entered turn 3, Cory Petero rammed Tim and got him out of shape. Tim gathered it up and crossed the line in 5th place. This was not the result he was looking for but is very happy to have the car come home in one piece.
With that 5th place finish combined with a 4th at the first race in Stockton now seats the #28 Stratmeyer Racing Chevy Monte Carlo atop the SRL point lead. Madera race winner, Ray Lawson and 7th place finisher Chris Wadsworth are tied with Tim for the points lead. Unofficially they all have 90 points as they head back to Stockton on May 11 for round 3. According to Tim, he wants to run strong but keeping the fenders on the car is a priority and Stockton has been known to damage cars due to the tight racing. Stratmeyer Racing would like to thank their sponsors: Tri-Valley Machine, Better Homes Realty and the Keys and Goswick families.
Anyone interested in a marketing partnership with Stratmeyer Racing should contact
Stratmeyer Racing at dhstratmeyer@sbcglobal.net
