InsideGroove - Race Report

OLSON SURVIVES LATE ACCIDENT FOR SIXTH WIN AND CHAMPIONSHIP

Anderson, CA --

Overcoming a hard crash on the front stretch with just six laps to go, Randy Olson wrapped up his Tri-State Challenge Series championship season by leading the final 28 laps to score a $1,500 win the 60 lap main event at Shasta Speedway Saturday night. The victory gave Olson six wins in the ten race series and he swept the two Shasta Speedway stops on the schedule. Olson's Miller Lite sponsored Monte Carlo uses a Port City Chassis and Automotive Associates engine. Series point runnerup, Howard Ford, the 1998 NorCal Late Model champion, ran a strong $850 second to Olson and visitor Mark Reed from Bakersfield drove his Food-4-Less sponsored mount to a $750 third in his first Tri-State Challenge Series race. Teenager Greg Anderson and Shasta Speedway legend Roger Gannon rounded out the top five as a strong 31 car late model field was on hand. The event served a dual purpose as the teams not only concluded the Tri-State Challenge Series, but warmed up for the $4,000 to win Win River Casino 150 open comp on Oct 1-3.

Ford paced the strong field through time trials with his 14.345 lap as Eureka's Mic Moulton was second fast at 14.397. A near tie for third fast saw Olson at 14.402, Anderson at 14.403 and Reed at 14.404. The fastest 16 made the 60 lap main through time trials with the final six spots determined in a 15 lap B Main. Olson won the dash ahead of Anderson and Ford. With their fast heat wins, Rick Spencer from Eugene, OR and Randy Hvall from Grants Pass, OR earned fourth row starting spots for the 60 lapper as the Tri-State Series inverts the six fastest qualifiers at the front of the main event lineups, putting Shasta Speedway's own Mike Russell on the pole for the A main alongside Reed. Russell was underpowered, using his Saturday night late model sportsman engine. Terry Smith and Tom Glover earned the front row for the 15 lap B Main with their slower heat wins. In a rare B Main start, Gannon led the first five laps before Glover beat him to a yellow flag to claim the lead. Glover led the final 10 laps to win with Gannon second ahead of T Smith, Dane Smith, Jim Parnell and Joe Wilson. Larry Bayless had night long engine woes and only ran a couple laps of the B Main before retiring. Brad Wasmund's night ended with a heat race crash as did Hank Hilton's. Mark Ingersoll had motor problems in time trials and Greg Pigg's night ended in hot laps.

With the invert 6 lineup at the front for the 60 lapper, Russell led the first 7 laps. Reed settled into second ahead of Anderson, Olson and Ford. Olson got around Anderson for third on lap 5 and Ford was fourth on lap 7. When a spinning Donna Fouts was hit by Joe Wilson, Russell slowed and a tap from Reed sent him spinning. Russell was forced to restart in the rear on lap 9 with Reed the new leader. Reed does most of his racing on the NASCAR Southwest Tour and was coming off an appearance in Monday's LA Street Race, the richest event on that series. Reed led Olson, Ford, Anderson and Mike Sackett as racing resumed. Carson City's Jerry Alec Jr spun for a lap 13 yellow flag and Olson made a strong inside groove run at Reed only to be repulsed on lap 18. Road racer Mac McGarry spun for a yellow flag and Moulton pitted. After a brief side by side duel, Olson took the lead from Reed with an inside pass in turn 1 on lap 33 and Ford followed him with a similar move in turn 3 on the same lap. Debris forced a yellow flag. On lap 37, a bumping incident between fifth place duelers Sackett and Spencer sent Donnie Brown hard off the track in turn 2 and involved Mike Walker, Alec and Fouts at the other end of the track. Walker was racing for the first time since his ugly early season crash at Stockton as he debuted a new car and was racing with a metal rod in his wrist. The incident eliminated Spencer, Brown and Walker. Randy Hvall took over fifth, but lost the spot to Gannon on lap 40 as a spun Parnell was hit by Sackett. That ended the night for both of them. Ford made one strong inside groove run at Olson on lap 46, but Olson pinched him off. Dane Smith had climbed to sixth by lap 50 with Donnie Graham and the rebounding Russell in the top 8. McGarry returned after a long pit stop and nearly proved to be Olson's downfall. On lap 54, Olson went high to lap him, but McGarry stayed high and Olson punted him into the front wall. When Olson took the yellow flag, his hood was badly buckled, blocking his vision, but somehow it leveled on the following lap. Olson led the remaining laps for the win with Ford a strong second ahead of Reed, Anderson, Gannon, D Smith, Graham, Hvall, Russell, Glover, Alec and T Smith.

Summary Fast Time-Howard Ford 14.345 Dash-Randy Olson, Greg Anderson, Ford. Heat 1-Terry Smith, Joe Wilson, Jim Parnell, Terry Gardner, Lee Duman. Heat 2-Tom Glover, Roger Gannon, Greg Baumgartner, Dane Smith, Mike Carver. Heat 3-Rick Spencer, Mike Sackett, Anderson, Bill Ward, Mike Walker. Heat 4-Randy Hvall, Donnie Brown, Olson, Ford, Jerry Alec Jr. B Main-Glover, Gannon, T Smith, D Smith, Parnell, Wilson, Carver, Baumgartner, Duman, Gardner, Larry Bayless. A Main-Olson, Ford, Mark Reed, Anderson, Gannon, D Smith, Donnie Graham, Hvall, Mike Russell, Glover, Alec, T Smith, Donna Fouts, Wilson, Ward, Parnell, Sackett, Mac McGarry, Spencer, Brown, Walker, Mic Moulton.

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