InsideGroove - Race Report

LARRY HOOD FINISHES TITLE YEAR WITH THIRD WIN

Oildale, CA -- Last year’s Western Region rookie of the year and Bakersfield Speedway track champion Larry Hood wrapped up his second straight track title with his third 25 lap IMCA Modified feature win of 2004 Saturday night as the track staged it’s final 2004 point race. The teenager cut back on his traveling schedule in 2004 as the team fielded three cars at most of the local events. He won the championship by 19 points over his uncle Mike Hood and Jeff Miller edged out Steve Morrison for third in the standings by just 6 points. The track also honored the husband and wife race team of Jim and Lin Deines as they have announced that 2004 will be their final season of competition. Lin finished fourth in the feature and Jim was 7th. Engine builder Darren Hopkins won the 15 lap super street stock feature in a late race duel with Bill Little. Robby Sawyer fell out early, but still was crowned 2004 track champion with a final 40 point margin over teammate Zach Forster. Moving over to the Steve McGowan car, rookie Justin Schweitzer got his first 20 lap hobby stock win and fellow rookie Sean Minor was a season best second. Mike Wilson, the 2004 Freedom Series champion at Chowchilla, was third across the line but was disqualified when he did not report to post race tech. Richie McGowan won his second straight hobby stock track title, also with a 40 point margin over runnerup Steven Johnson. Wayne Dotson led the final 17 laps to get his second 20 lap American Stock win with Mike Armitage in second. With a sixth place finish, Michael Johnson was crowned track champion with a final margin of just 9 points over Sam Henry, who battled through the B Main event to finish third in the 20 lapper.

The IMCA Modifieds split 17 cars into three heat races with Ventura Raceway regulars Josh Houghton and Bill Waltman joining the action along with Barona racer Robert Pierce. Heat wins went to Steve Morrison, M Hood and Miller with Miller also taking the dash honors from the pole. After being slowed 7 times for caution flags in the first 13 laps, the modifieds ran their final 12 laps with just a single yellow flag. Lonnie Welch paced the first 12 laps from 4th starting. Miller charged from 8th to 2nd on lap 1 and Chris Mendenhall raced into third on lap 3. Miller stalled on a lap 4 yellow and restarted in the rear after pitting. Mendenhall took over second and a second spin ended the race for Pierce. L Hood started 11th and gained fourth on lap 5. He and Sylvester both drove around Chett Reeves for the 2-3 slots on lap 11 and Welch stalled after leading 12 rounds to hand the top spot to L Hood. Mendenhall settled into third and Reeves retook third from Sylvester. The final yellow came on lap 19 for a tangle between Morrison and M Hood and that gave Waltman the opening he needed to leap all the way to third. L Hood paced the final 13 laps in his Xtreme Chassis for the win with Mendenhall a season best second over Waltman, L Deines, Morrison, Sylvester, J Deines and Darrell Hood. Rookie Sylvester finished fifth in points ahead of George Scott.

The super street stock field was 8 cars as both Sawyer and Forster returned from racing in a $5000 to win show in Lubbock TX the previous weekend. Sawyer actually finished fifth on the first qualifying night at Lubbock, but came up five pounds light at the scales and then fought mechanical woes for the remainder of the weekend. Forster was the only California car to qualify for the A Main in Texas. Little won the heat race over Hopkins and Forster and he also took dash honors. Little and Jeremiah Van Scoy shared the front row for the 15 lap feature and Wayne Heurung was a scratch. Little led the first 10 laps. Hopkins took second from VanScoy on lap 2 and Forster also got by for third. Sawyer was running fourth when he broke on lap 5 and Hopkins used an inside move to take the lead from Little on lap 11. Little regained the lead on lap 12, but Hopkins came back to take the lead for good on lap 14. Hopkins won with Little second ahead of Bill Stevens as both VanScoy and Forster were late dropouts. Rookies claimed the top three spots in points with Sawyer the champion over Foster and VanScoy. Heurung ranked fourth in his first full season of action here and Little climbed to fifth in the final standings.

The hobby stocks split 22 cars into three heat races. Winners were Charles Paul in wife Rachel’s car, Wilson and champion McGowan. Wilson added the dash win over Paul. All 22 cars survived to start the main event with Minor and Schweitzer on the front row. Schweitzer took a quick lead over Minor and Wilson. Wilson gained second on lap 5 and was making an inside groove challenge at Schweitzer when the first yellow fell on lap 9 for a spin by Cliff Partain. Wilson pulled off his pass for the lead on lap 12 and Bryan Terry pitted with a flat on a lap 12 caution with Minor now third over Steven Johnson and Spicer. C Partain lost an engine for the last yellow on lap 13. The 16 year old Schweitzer was able to retake the lead from Wilson on lap 14 and pace the remainder of the time shortened race. Minor ran second and Wilson was DQ’d from third for not reporting to tech. That moved S Johnson into third ahead of Paul, McGowan, Spicer, Clyde Benson and usual dirt modified driver Gary Dutton. McGowan ended the year with a 40 point margin on S Johnson and 70 ahead of Spicer. Benson was fourth in the final listing ahead of Tom Klamorick.

With 25 cars on hand, the American Stock show was expanded to four heats and a B Main to determine the 22 feature starters. Heat winners were champion Johnson, Dotson, James Cecil and Johny McKinley, all from front row starts. Dotson added the dash as he outraced talented rookie Rick Childress Jr. Henry had to come from 8th to win the 10 lap B Main, leading the final 6 laps. Christine Carl ran second over newcomer Sunny Miranda. The feature started a car short when Rick Bennett did not report. Lloyd Reed Jr paced the first 3 laps before a yellow flag. Dotson had started fifth and was third in two laps. Dotson took second from Jackie Wood on lap 3 and the lead from Reed Jr on lap 4. J McKinley raced into second and fifth place Roxie Johnson broke an axle for a lap 5 yellow. Armitage took second from J McKinley on the restart and Cecil broke into the top five on lap 8. Cecil leaped to third on lap 10 when Wood was forced to pit with a flat tire. A tap from Chris Martin sent Cecil spinning out of third place for a lap 12 yellow. Martin was penalized to the rear for the restart. The race was redflagged on lap 15 when Mike McInnerney flipped without injury. Dotson stayed out front for the final 17 laps for his win ahead of Armitage, 13th starter Henry, Childress Jr, J McKinley, champion M Johnson, Matt Morris and Martin. M Johnson won the title by just 9 points over Henry with Martin another 58 points back in third. Carl finished fourth, 25 points back of Martin. Jason Bannister climbed into fifth place on the final night.

The track will stage a practice night on Oct 2nd before the big Budweiser Nationals weekend on Oct 8-9. The dirt late models, dirt modifieds, super streets and hobby stocks are all featured on the two day event with the late models going 100 laps on Saturday night.

Summary American Stock Dash-Wayne Dotson, Rick Childress Jr, James Cecil. Heat 1-Michael Johnson, Childress Jr, Mike Armitage, Christine Carl, Steve McKinley. Heat 2-Dotson, Roxie Johnson, Chris Martin, Rick Bennett, Conrad Feliks. Heat 3-Cecil, Jason Bannister, Matt Morris, Adam Wadkins, Sunny Miranda. Heat 4-Johny McKinley, Jackie Wood, Lloyd Reed Jr, Robert Swearengen, Sam Henry. B Main-Henry, Carl, Miranda, S McKinley, Wade Meinke, Dan Kennison, Lonnie Sullivan, Mike McInnerney, Feliks, Bennett. A Main-Dotson, Armitage, Henry, Childress Jr, J McKinley, Johnson, Morris, Martin, Bannister, Carl, Kennison, Miranda, Meinke, Sullivan, McInnerney, Cecil, Wood, Feliks, Johnson, Reed Jr. Hobby Stock Dash-Mike Wilson, Gary Dutton, Charles Paul. Heat 1-Paul, Dutton, Rick Spicer, Bryan Terry, Matt Wankum. Heat 2-Wilson, Tom Klamorick, Jesse Bowles, Sean Minor, Kathy Irwin. Heat 3-Richie McGowan, Steven Johnson, Justin Schweitzer, Geoff Menees, Jim Perry Jr. Main-Schweitzer, Minor, S Johnson, Paul, McGowan, Spicer, Clyde Benson, Dutton, Amy Hedden, Irwin, Wankum, Lou Wolfe, Bowles, Shane LeBlanc, Eric McGough, Menees, Klamorick, Perry Jr, Cliff Partain, Terry, Eric Partain. Super Street Stock Dash-Bill Little, Darren Hopkins, Zach Forster. Heat-Little, Hopkins, Forster, Wayne Heurung, Robby Sawyer. Main-Hopkins, Little, Bill Stevens, Forster, Jeremiah VanScoy, Sawyer, George Ohmsted. IMCA Modified Dash-Jeff Miller, Chett Reeves, Bill Waltman. Heat 1-Steve Morrison, Waltman, Mike Scott, Lonnie Welch, Lin Deines. Heat 2-Mike Hood, Reeves, Marvin Leister, Robert Pierce, Nick Sylvester. Heat 3-Miller, Chris Mendenhall, Larry Hood, Buck Cox, Josh Houghton. Main-L Hood, Mendenhall, Waltman, L Deines, Morrison, Sylvester, Jim Deines, Darrell Hood, Reeves, Scott, Miller, M Hood, Welch, Leist, Pierce, Houghton, Cox.

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