JONES HOPING FOR MAGICAL NIGHT IN RMCS ACTION

Source: RMRCS/ds
Date: 05/15/2008

The Falls Brand "100" is the second of four races to be staged at the 1/3-mile paved this season and is the 18th series event to be run at MVS. Tom Hill of Eagle, Idaho picked up the victory at MVS last month and would like nothing more than to have a repeat performance. "We had a great car that night and I feel we are even better prepared this time around," Hill said. "This series is tough and with the race being 100 laps I think there will be a few more guys in the mix this time out."

Dave Minegar holds the track qualifying record at MVS with a quick lap of 14.216 seconds set last fall. He also holds the series records for most Sharp Powder Coating Fast Time Awards (16) and has already set fast time in both races this season. Minegar finished 4th at MVS last month and is looking to improve on that performance.

"You can't really take anything for granted," Minegar said. "With the inert we run it is important to qualify well so you get the points. You may not always be in position to win starting at the back but running in the top five guarantees a good point's night and that is what is important."

Even though he hails from Boise, Steve Jones is a local fan favorite at Magic Valley Speedway. Jones has raced at MVS for nearly twenty years winning well over 100 races and several track championships. This season Jones is stepping out of his comfort zone and competing for A-1 Heating and Air Conditioning Rookie-of-the-Year honors on the CarbonX RMCS Tour. Jones finished third in his series debut last month and would like nothing better than to score his first career victory in front of his many loyal fans.

"I am having a lot of fun so far with the RMCS," Jones said. "This is a whole different deal and the competition is really deep. I am still learning the car but I like the way it drives so I feel pretty good about Saturday night. I am a bit down on horsepower but that did not affect us to bad in the last race. So who knows, I just want to be there at the end."

Racing in the RMCS provides a rookie driver numerous challenges, least of which is logistical. "I have had to plan a lot differently this season," Jones continued. "I used to just get in the car each week and drive, but I am finding I am spending a lot more time in the shop working on the setup, which is critical in the series. I still have a lot to learn but I really like what Mike (Minegar) has done with this series. It is a lot of fun and is a great series to be a part of."

Dave Minegar leads the point standings by 26 markers over Tom Hill. Craig Bell is third with John Newhouse and Bobby Latham III rounding out the top five. Thane Alderman, Steve Jones, John Dillon, Dan Koyle, and Mike Marston are the second five in the standings. Dan Koyle leads Steve Jones in the rookie battle after two races.

CarbonX, the industry leader in fire resistant underwear and clothing, is enjoying their first season as title sponsor of the premier Late Model series. Along with CarbonX several new sponsors have joined the RMCS team including: Thompson Motorsports, Performance Solutions, Kidd Performance, and Joe's Racing Products. Long-time sponsors ESI, A-1 Heating and Air Conditioning, Sharp Powder Coating, Five Star Racing Bodies, Frank's Radios, and Hoosier continue their long association with the series

The RMCS utilizes a racing format not found in any other regional touring series around the country. The top 20 qualifiers are inverted for every race putting fast time in the 20th starting position. This format ensures race fans see what they paid for and that is passing. Each driver is awarded three points per position gained in the event. Through the history of the series, the winning driver has averaged a 15th place starting position. To ensure competition, the RMCS pays it purse based on total point accumulation for the event and provides several special performance awards for the event including: The ESI Hotshoe Award paying $400 to the driver who sets fast time and goes on to win the race. The award for this event is up to $1200 since it has not been won so far this season. CarbonX will pay a Lap Leader Bonus of $5 for every lap led. Sharp Powder Coating pays $100 for setting fast time at each series race. The Thompson Motorsports Halfway Challenge will pay $100 to the driver leading at halfway of each event; and the Thompson Motorsports Performance Improvement Award pays the driver $200 who improves the most positions over the previous event.

"We have had an interesting start to the season this year," stated Mike Minegar, president of the RMCS. "We had a great event at MVS last month but had a power outage in Salt Lake two weeks ago causing us to cancel the event before the green flag. We are excited to get back to racing and I know the fans in Twin Falls will see a great race Saturday night."

The CarbonX Rocky Mountain Challenge Series is a regional touring series that allows all competitors to race and gain experience on different types of racetracks. It is a high-quality professional racing series that offers maximum opportunity at an affordable price serving the intermountain West. The motto of the series is to "Race Hard and Have Fun!"

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