Winnemucca, NV…It was a night for firsts Friday night at the Winnemucca Regional Raceway. The question of ‘who will beat Robert Miller’ was answered. Going into the I.M.C.A. Modified feature race, Rapid Robert was on a six race win streak at the quarter-mile clay oval. In fact, no one other than the Western Regional point leader had won a feature at the track and hauled off more gold than Butch Cassidy, a Winnemucca legend. Although Butch took his from trains and stagecoaches, Miller earns his from racetracks. Just as Butch was caught, Miller knew that some night his streak would end. And end it did Friday night. The races were nearly cancelled due to persistent rain but the drivers packed the track to an almost perfect condition.
Miller lined up outside row three. Not bad but he had to be concerned with some of those top dogs ahead of him. Two of the hottest rookies in the Western Region occupied the front row. Seventeen year-old Larry Hood (The Sundance Kid) was on the pole while Bill Smith III sat right alongside of him. Sundance is the current Bakersfield Speedway point leader and is third in points in the region. If that wasn’t enough, The Kid is the leading candidate for Rookie of the Year in the region and is third in the nation. Not too shabby!! Smith, from Sparks, can almost match The Kid. He is second for ROY contention regional and fifth in the nation. Wow!!
Another Sparks driver lined up in the second row---Shawn Marlow, still looking for his first feature win. So is The Kid. Battle Mountain’s Ward Amberson, a many time champion at his home track, anchored row two. In the third row were Rodney Sweet and Miller. Sweet’s still searching for that elusive initial victory after wining two weeks back at Battle Mountain and being disqualified. Behind Miller, there was Summit Raceway point leader Joe Rigsby the Ryndon Rocket and another of the Battle Mountain Boys Randy Artz, winner last week at Summit and at the Mountain. A couple of Nicks, Ayers and Jordan rounded out the field.
The Kid took off like one of Rigsby’s rockets at the initial green but Smith followed closely. Marlow settled in third with Sweet and Miller rounding out the top five on lap five. Sweet called it ‘night-night’ on lap eight, handing fourth place to Miller. Hood led lap after lap in the fast paced race but Ayers force starter Lincoln Litchfield to wave his yellow flag. As the field bunched up for the anticipated green, Amberson hit Artz who made Miller get out of shape as they left turn four. Amberson went around the other two as they went green. Miller roared to life and so did Artz. No obstruction, no yellow, but if Miller and/or Artz had their wits with them, a yellow would have came out if one stayed there. Instead of fourth and fifth, the two were now seventh and eighth. Go directly to jail. No first down.
The next green as Hood and Smith mix it up as the raced as if the ROY competing would be decided on this race. Smith got by Hood on the nineteenth lap and the two practiced their dance steps and Marlow set out that dance and roared into the lead. Amberson took advantage of that also and went into second and Miller to third. Marlow had the lead and no one could catch him. Miller’s streak was over and Marlow, using an old Miller car, beat the old pro. Amberson finished in second and Miller finished third and Hood settled for fourth.
This was Marlow’s first feature win and he was ecstatic. “For my first win, it was great. The track was excellent and I’ll be back again. It’s great to beat Robert Miller and the rest of those guys. A lot of different tracks were represented here but I beat my mentor…Robert. This car is an old Miller car and he took me under his wing to show me everything. Maybe he showed me too much. I want to thank Robert, Nick Jordan, Jeff Robinson, mom and dad, Dave Vevo, and Nicole Stewart. Without those guys, I wouldn’t be there tonight. Thanks, guys.” The young charger also checked in with his first clean sweep as he raced to victory in his heat race and followed it up with a trophy dash win.
Miller: “The engine was flat..no response when I put my foot into it. Track was great and I’m happy to see Shawn win. Now I have to start a new streak.” For the record, Miller has won twenty-three features so far this season. No one else is close.
Winnemucca driver Gary Ogburn Jr. won the fifteen-lap Mini Mod feature in only his third race ever. He beat out local drivers Doug McGibbon and Ken Knight as he won wire-to-wire. This young driver could be a star in the making. Point leader Tim Garner was a spectator tonight as he lost his engine last week at Elko. In the Pro Stock division, Brian Thorp looks unbeatable every night out as he outdistanced Battle Mountain driver Dave Wearin for the feature victory. It looked bleak for Thorp earlier as Frank Iturriaga, the Battle Mountain star, led for the first eighteen laps but a yellow flag tightened up the event. Before the caution, Iturriaga had nearly a ¾ lap lead over Thorp. Thorp charged past the leader to take first and was never headed. Thorp is the point leader here and at Summit Raceway in Elko and is second place at Battle Mountain Raceway. Thorp turned in a clean sweep, as he won his heat, trophy dash and the feature race.
All three divisions will return here on Friday night August 8 at 7:30.
WINNEMUCCA REGIONAL RACEWAY
JULY 25, 2003 RESULTS
I.M.C.A. MODIFIEDS
Heat one: Shawn Marlow, Bill Smith III, Robert Miller, Randy Artz, Nick Ayers
Heat two: Larry Hood, Ward Amberson, Rodney Sweet, Joe Rigsby, Nick Jordan
Dash: Shawn Marlow, Randy Artz, Larry Hood, Ward Amberson
Feature: Shawn Marlow, Ward Amberson, Robert Miller, Larry Hood
Nick Ayers, Randy Artz, Bill Smith III, Joe Rigsby, Nick Jordan
Rodney Sweet
WRRA PRO STOCKS
Heat: Brian Thorp, Frank Iturriaga, Nick Keller, Dave Wearin, Frankie Smith
Dash: Brian Thorp, Frank Iturriaga, Dave Wearin, Nick Keller
Feature: Brian Thorp, Dave Wearin, Nick Keller, Calvin Hartley, Frank Iturriaga
Frankie Smith, Walt Frazier DNS
WRRA MINI MODS
Heat: Doug McGibbon, Ken Knight, Brian Jonas, Gary Ogburn, Jr.
Dash: Doug McGibbon, Ken Knight, Gary Ogburn, Jr. Brian Jonas DNS
Feature: Gary Ogburn, Jr. Doug McGibbon, Ken Knight, Brian Jonas DNS
