Will this be a Big Year
For Late Models???? Sprintcar Thunder Series returns!
Rolling Thunder e-Mag. Issue 16 Aug/Sept 2011 Editors; Ray Solomon, & Brett “Pirate” Swanson PHOTO’S Courtesy of: Pirate Media. Swanson.1@bigpond.com Geoff Gracie Photos inactionphotos.com.au MEDIA RELEASES: • Pirate Media—Brett Swanson • Dean Thompson (DMT Media). • SRA Media. (Ian vale). • Formula Motorsports Group Pty Ltd. • All Stars Media
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CONTRIBUTORS; Brett Swanson Ray Solomon Dean Thompson Got something to contribute? All contributions welcome send to swanson.1@bigpond.com or ray@fmg.au.com
COPYRIGHT:
Material contained in Rolling Thunder Racing E news is protected under the Commonwealth Copyright Act 1968. No part of this publication may in any form or by any means be reproduced without the prior written permission of the Publisher. The publisher has taken all reasonable precautions to ensure the complete accuracy of material contained in this publication, however, it is a condition of receiving this magazine that the Publisher does not assume any responsibility for any loss or damage which may result from the content of material published in this magazine. Although Rolling Thunder Raceway Promotions Inc uses its best endeavours to ensure the accuracy of everything it publishes, the Fair Trading Act 1985 requires Rolling Thunder Raceway Promotions Inc to disclaim any belief in the truth or falsity of information whish is supplied to it and which is published in other than editorial comment. Unsolicited editorial contributions are welcome, how ever, no responsibility can be accepted for their safety or return. The options of contributors are not necessarily those of the Publisher.
7 Lambeck Drive Tullamarine, Victoria. Australia. 3043 PH: 03 9338 0120 FAX: 03 9338 0315
Rolling Thunder Raceway announces 2011/2012 Race Dates and Classes.
Rolling Thunder Raceway in Bacchus Marsh – Victoria, will once again awake from its winter slumber with a new season of speedway action revolving around the reconstituted Sprintcar Thunder Series and the burgeoning Late Model Sedans. The awesome Late Model Sedans will conduct their inaugural Victorian Championship as well as a couple of other shows while the thundering V8 Dirt Modifieds will make their debut here with a couple of shows also. AMCA nationals will again be prominent as will various other sedan classes such as the VSC Open Sedans and the Formula V8 sedans. The Sprintcar Thunder Series was inaugurated on remembrance day in November 2006 to give an emphatic push for 360 cubic inch engined Sprintcar racing in Australia. It was ultimately successful in the Garden State leading to the creation of the Australian Sprintcar All Star Series which is conducted across both Victoria and South Australia. Throwing its support behind the All Star Series, Rolling Thunder Raceway eventually sacrificed its own Sprintcar Thunder Championship Series allowing the All Stars to become the pre-eminent 360 Sprintcar series in Australia. Now the time has come to resurrect the Sprintcar Thunder Series as a Victorian companion based championship to the All Stars series. The Sprintcar Thunder Series will be open to all ASCS, SCCA and VSC Sprintcars. “We are in no way trying to compete with the All Stars series but rather augment it and give 360 Sprintcar competitors more race dates, especially within Victoria,” said an STS spokesman. “In fact we have worked with the All Stars to set our calendar to avoid direct clashes with them as the last thing we want to do is to force competitors to choose between one series or the other as that doesn’t help either of the series’ or the fans by splitting the fields.” As in previous series, Rolling Thunder Raceway will be the mainstay of the Sprintcar Thunder Series with Ballarat’s Redline raceway also hosting a couple of shows as they’ve done previously. The possibility also exists for a couple of other venues to run a round of the Sprintcar Thunder Series. Both of these tracks, which will hopefully be confirmed soon, have not run Sprintcars for some time. Also, the Sprintcar Thunder Series will be ground breaking in another way for Victorian fans with Redline Raceway deciding to run a two night show in conjunction with Rolling Thunder Raceway on the January Australia Day Long weekend - the traditional date for the Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic (This year the classic has been moved forward a week but the Australian Sprintcar Championship will be conducted in Adelaide on the Australia Day weekend). Additionally the Sprintcar Thunder Series will be concluded on the Easter Saturday night at Redline in another
break from tradition. “In discussions with Mick Purdie from Redline Raceway it was decided to run on the Easter Saturday as we both felt that a lot of Victorian Sprintcar fans don’t travel to Mt Gambier for the Easter Saturday night,” said the Rolling Thunder Raceway spokesman. “This way we are giving those Victorian fans the opportunity to see three nights of Sprintcar racing without having to leave the state, once again putting the local fans first.” As a point of difference the Sprintcar Thunder Series will be conducted along the lines of the very successful Lucas Oil ASCS National series in the USA with each driver contesting only one heat, but over a greater number of laps than usual, with the top five heat finishers locking straight into the first 10 feature positions. The remaining spots in the final will be filled via the B-Main.
Late Model Sedans are a growing class in Australia with a solid footing in Western Australia, Queensland and New South Wales and are in their infancy in South Australia and Victoria. Rolling Thunder Raceway was the first Victorian track to ever run Late Models back in January 2006 when they hosted a dozen cars from West Australia and New South Wales. More recently the Late Models were here as part of the Trans Tasman Sedan Challenge. The big banger sedans will get two warm up events in November and December before the inaugural Victorian Late Model Championship is conducted the week after the National Championship on February 4th. Formula V8’s will be the main-stay V8 sedan category at the big bowl with AMCA Nationals also helping sate the appetite of V8 speedway fans. VSC Open Sedans, ASCF Junior Sedans, Open Sedan Juniors, Standard Saloons, Street Stocks, Australian Wingless Sprints and SDAV Hot Rods will also have their time under the bright lights of Bacchus Marsh. Veteran Sprintcar racer Wayne Milburn has also developed his own “budget” V8 Wingless Sprintcars based around the Aluminium Holden V8 engine and they will also be given the opportunity to demonstrate their ability on numerous occasions and once numbers grow they may become a regular racing class.
A track championship will also be conducted for all classes while negotiations are being conducted with the Limited Sortsman’s and Super Rods for a potential race date. Rolling Thunder raceway reconfirms its commitment to recognise all forms of speedway licensing be it SCCA, VSC, ASCF or other. Rolling Thunder Raceway 2011/2012 proposed race dates and classes (dates and classes may be subject to change) September 18 – Sunday (Day)
Scrutineering/Practice Day
All Classes
October 16 – Sunday (Day)
Opening Meeting
Formula V8’s, Street Stocks, 1200 Juniors, Open Sedans, Open Sedan Juniors , 1200 Juniors, Marsh Modifieds
October 29 – Saturday
Sprintcar Thunder Series – Sprintcars, Standard Saloons, Formula V8’s, AusRound 1 tralian Wingless Sprints, Marsh Modifieds.
November 19 – Saturday
Sprintcar Thunder Series – Sprintcars, V8 Dirt Modifieds, Street Stocks, Open Round 2 Sedans, Open Sedan Juniors
December 17 – Saturday
Christmas Thunder
December 28 – Wednesday
Sprintcar Thunder Series – Sprintcars, AMCA Nationals, Standard Saloons, Round 3 Formula V8’s
January 7 – Saturday
Sprintcar Thunder Series – Sprintcars, Street Stocks, Open Sedans, Open SeRound 4 dan Juniors, Formula V8’s
January 27 – Friday
Sprintcar Thunder Series – Sprintcars, Standard Saloons. Round 5
January 28 – Saturday
Sprintcar Thunder Series – Sprintcars - Redline Raceway, Ballarat. Round 6
February 4 – Saturday
All V8 Night
March 17 - Saturday
Sprintcar Thunder Series – Sprintcars, Street Stocks, Open Sedans, 1200 JunRound 7 iors.
April 7 – Saturday
Sprintcar Thunder Series – Sprintcars – Redline Raceway, Ballarat Round 8 – Final
April 21 – Saturday (Twilight meeting).
Track Championship
All Classes. AMCA Nationals
June 17 – Sunday
Sponsors Day
All Classes
Late Model Sedans, Formula V8’s, 1200 Juniors, SDAV Hot Rods, TBA
Late Model Sedan Victorian Championship, V8 Dirt Modifieds, AMCA Nationals, Formula V8’s
“ Class and race date updates and details about the Sprintcar Thunder Series format can be obtained from the Rolling Thunder raceway website at www.rollingthunderraceway.com.au
QUICK NEWS Sat 28th Timmis Speedway— Mildura (VIC). MAY 2012 Sat 5th Redline Raceway— Ballarat (VIC) 3pm Start. Sat 19th Waikerie (SA). Sun 20th Riverview Raceway—Murray Bridge (SA)Day Show / Nyora Day Show TBC Where a date shows events in both SA and Victoria this means that the Victorian cars will run the Victorian event and the SA cars will obviously support their home states events.
The South Australian Late Model Association (SALMA) is set for a big season with events in both Victoria and SA. SALMA—RACE DATES. “The Greatest Show on Dirt” OCTOBER 2011 Sat 22nd Blue Ribbon Raceway—Horsham (VIC)SALMA Rd 1. NOVEMBER 2011 Sat 5th Timmis Speedway— Mildura (VIC) SALMA Rd 2. Sat 19th Rolling Thunder Raceway—Bacchus Marsh (VIC)/ Borderline Speedway— Mt Gambier (SA) TBC. Sat 26th Murray Bridge (SA) SALMA Rd 3. DECEMBER 2011 Sat 3rd Borderline Speedway—Mt Gambier (SA) South Australian Championship/ SALMA Rd 4 TBC. Sat 10th Whyalla (SA)/ Alexandra Speedway (VIC). Sat 17th Rolling Thunder Raceway—Bacchus Marsh (VIC), JANUARY 2012
Sat 7th Speedway City (SA) SALMA Rd 5. Sat 14th Lismore (NSW) New South Wales Championship. Fri 27th & Sat 28th Sydney Speedway—Parramatta (NSW) Australian Championship. Sun 29th - Rain Date. FEBRUARY 2012 Sat 4th Rolling Thunder Raceway—Bacchus Marsh(VIC) Victorian Championship/ SALMA Rd 6. Sat 11th Waikerie (SA). Sat 18th Nyora Raceway— Nyora (VIC) TBC. Sat 25th Renmark (SA). MARCH 2012 Sat 3rd Western Speedway— Hamilton (VIC) SALMA Rd 7. Sat 10th Renmark (SA). Sun 11th Riverview Raceway—Murray Bridge (SA). Sat 17th Speedway City— Virginia (SA). Sat 24th Redline RacewayBallarat (VIC) SALMA Rd 8 APRIL 2012 Fri 6th & Sun 8th EASTER Timmis Speedway - Mildura (VIC) $10.000.00 to win Sat 21st Brisbane International Speedway—Archerfield (QLD) Thunder 30 $5000 to win.
All dates are subject to change.
Earl Gaerte dies. One of Racing’s greatest engine builders, Earl Gaerte has passed away. Earl, who founded Gaerte Engines, in Rochester, Indiana, and became one of racing's greatest engine builders, passed away on Monday, August 8.
Statewide Fire Protection Services Statewide Fire Protection Services has come on board to support Rolling Thunder Raceway for the upcoming 2011/12 season. Established in 1996, Statewide Fire Protection is 100 % Australian owned and oper-
1800 00 22 12
Eureka Series. The Series is surely one of the strongest in the country and KTM are pleased to be a part of it and look forward to being involved once again in the Series”
ated. Servicing Melbourne Metro and Regional Country areas with fully accredited and QAS approved Workshop & Testing Sta tion, which ensures that the best service possible is provided to their customers Statewide Fire Protection Services employ only fully accredited and QAS approved technicians. If it’s fire related, then Statewide can help you. Statewide Fire Protection Services provide a diverse range of fire services including: ♦ ♦
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KTM Australia doing it again with the SRA By Ian Vale
KTM Australia is committed to the Victorian Eureka Garages & Sheds Sprintcar Series for a third season putting yet another KTM motorbike up as a carrot to win in the top ten of the Series. This season the KTM Top ten bike is the new 350 EXC-F model valued at over $12,000. Each season this KTM has been a prize that has created special interest amongst the Eureka Series competitors. Such is the level of competition just to finish in the top ten is hard enough in itself, so the efforts to make the top ten and have a one in ten chance of taking home the new KTM motorbike valued at over $12000 has the drivers putting their best efforts in to be in the Top ten during the Series. Once again the winner of the motorbike will be drawn by way of a random draw at the annual presentation dinner which has proved to be a very exciting part of the night. Jeff Leisk from KTM goes on to say ”We have been happy with our relationship over the years and are pleased to be involved with the SRA through the
The Sprintcar Racing Association of Victoria thanks Jeff and KTM for there continued support and would also like to thank Avalon Raceway and Premier Speedway for there assistance in making the KTM award possible. To find a KTM dealer near you or to keep up with the KTM range of motorbikes and apparel go to www.ktm.com.au Eureka Garages & Sheds in for nine Eureka Garages & Sheds have taken the Sprintcar Racing Association of Victoria Open Series naming rights for a ninth season. The SRA can only ask, dose it get any better than this? Eureka is more than a naming rights sponsor, the company has not only been a part of the series for many years but has been very instrumental in making
this Eureka Garages & Sheds Sprintcar Series one of the leading Sprintcar Series’ in this country. Thanks to Eureka Garages & Sheds the Series continues to grow with high car counts at each round and now for the 2011-2012 season the Series will take in a record fourteen rounds in three States at eight different venues. Already at this early stage the SRA have been receiving interest from some of the name drivers around the country to join the Series on a regular basis. Once again Eureka Garages and Sheds will fund a major part of the Series point’s fund that will again see the Series winner taking home $10,000 as the 2011-2012 season champion. The current Eureka Series Champion John Vogels was very pleased to hear that Eureka Garages and Sheds are once again the naming right sponsors stating, “This is wonderful to have Domenic (Sabatini) and his company with us once again, he has been so good to us and the Series. It seems to be going from strength to strength. With the Eureka Series going to fourteen rounds this season I am sure this will attract more of the top competitors to the Series. It will be harder to win but I will be ready to defend my Eureka Garages & Sheds Sprintcar
Series title in the new season and I really hope to be able to win a few of the rounds this year, it sure is good to have Eureka Garages & Sheds again.� The SRA takes this opportunity to once again thank Domenic and his team at Eureka Garages and Sheds along with all the staff from the other Eureka branches for the continued support that the company has given to the SRA over the last eight season’s and we are looking forward to another great partnership during the 2011-2012 season. For information on the Eureka Garages and Sheds products go to their web site at www.eurekagarages.com or if you visit one of the branches or are making a purchase don’t forget to let them know the Sprintcar Racing Association of Victoria sent you.
Neil Sayer ousted. Long serving head of the ASCF Neil Sayer has been ousted from his position and has been replaced by Queenslander Paul Gannon. Sayer has been a controversial leader in recent times and his removal is seen as something of a back lash by the members who saw the need for a change at the senior level.
Late Model US son of a gun for Lismore Speedway. Second generation American racer Devin Moran will contest the 2012 New South Wales Championship at Lismore Speedway on January 14. His appearance in the state title is part of a four-fixture east coast campaign in which he will also contest the Australian Late Model Championship at Sydney Speedway on January 27 and 28. He will make his Australian debut in Sydney on Saturday, January 7 when he contests the Sydney Sweepstakes main event. Moran, son of Donnie Moran, winner of the 2001 Eldora Million, is aged 16 and the teenage tearaway of the US Late Model scene. Lismore promoter David Lander said last week Moran’s appearance at his venue is eagerly awaited. This is one teenager who is in a big hurry and already during his short career in America he has set a significant milestone. Two years ago he became one of the youngest-ever feature race winners of any race car category in American auto racing history when he took out his inaugural main event nudging 15 years of age at the Muskingum County Speedway in Zanesville, Ohio. In fact he was a recent feature race winner at the same venue. “Donnie Moran (pictured) is a name well known to Australian fans courtesy of his many visits to this country over the years, so it’s great to see the next generation of the Moran racing clan with his son heading Down Under,” David Lander said. Devin, from Dresden, Ohio, will drive a current model car out of the Ross Nicastri workshop in Sydney. Car is the 2011 Mastersbilt Gen-X Pontiac Late Model which was recently campaigned in America by Nicastri before he purchased and shipped the sleek machine to Australia.
If the Son of a Gun is only half as good as his legendary father, fans in Sydney and Lismore are set to witness some exciting track action from the youngster. Devin is currently placed third in the Late Model season point score series at the Muskingum venue and he is currently enjoying a strong season in American mid-western Late Model competition. Nicastri witnessed first hand Devin Moran’s on-track performances and came away impressed. “We went to an All Stars race at Millstream Speedway and he was second fastest qualifier. He ran side-by-side with his father in a heat so he’s fast and he certainly looked good,” Ross said. Devin is well aware of the increasing car counts on the Australian Late Model scene and is keen to take on the Australian drivers. He is quietly confident of putting on a big show for the Aussie followers in their own backyard. Donnie Moran has enjoyed plenty of successes over the years in American Late Model racing, none more significant than in 2001 when he became the winner of the Million Dollar race at the Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio. Donnie is a four time winner of the World 100 (also held at Eldora) and in 1996 he was the first driver to win the Dream and World 100 in the same year. He made five consecutive season visits during the ‘eighties as a member of the touring American sedan team and was the last winner of the prestigious Marlboro Grand National at Liverpool City Raceway before the track’s closure in 1989. Editors note—Wouldn’t it be good to see the teenage tearaway also contest the inaugural Victorian Late Model Championship at Rolling Thunder Raceway (Bacchus Marsh, VIC) on February 4th?
51st GOODYEAR KNOXVILLE NATIONALS 2011
Donny Schatz wasted little time finding his way to the front of the 51st Goodyear Knoxville Nationals on Saturday night at historic Knoxville Raceway. Normally a driver who excels in the latter stages of a race, the four-time World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series champion quickly th charged from 13 to fifth, then set his sights on the lead of the $150,000-towin, 50-lap main event. Schatz struggled through his qualifying night on Wednesday when motor issues forced his car into the pits, but he was saved by strong time trial and heat race performances that blunted the effects of his rough time in the A-main. "I was sweating bullets when I thought were going to have to come through the Last Chance Showdown after we finished 24th in
that main (qualifying night)," said Schatz, of Fargo, N.D., who drives the Tony Stewart Racing STP/ Ar mour All/Che vr o le t. "Thankfully we had enough points to qualify to start 13th in Saturday's show. My car was awesome all night long. The motor, the chassis, everything was great. The bottom was a place where my car was able to work really well early on and as the race progressed, I kind of wore out that line so I had to move up a bit. I'm very lucky to be with great people and I
need to thank the over 1,100 people the signed up for our sign and ride program. It was really cool to get all of those people into victory lane tonight." Once the green flag flew, Schatz quickly mounted a charge to the front. Lap by lap, Schatz picked off car
after car until a restart on lap 14 gave him the opportunity to make his move for the lead. Riding the low side, Schatz made it a three-wide coming down the front stretch underneath front row starters Sammy Swindell and Brad Sweet. From that point, Schatz held off hardcharging Oklahomans Daryn Pittman and Shane Stewart, who wound up second in his third consecutive event during the Goodyear Knoxville Nationals after being the runnerup in Friday's Q20 Race of Champions and the Premier Chevy Dealers World Challenge. "This guy over here started two rows in front of me and in a few laps, I couldn't see him it all," Stewart said as he motioned towards Schatz at the post-race press conference. "I looked up at the scoreboard during our first caution and noticed he was already in the top three. I feel really proud of our work. My team did a great job and we passed a lot of cars." Swindell earned the pole through a strong run on his qualifying day, but settled for third in the A-main.
"We just weren't fast enough," said Swindell, of Germantown, Tenn., who won the event in 1983. "During the red, we didn't change much, just put two new rear tires on and I got a bad restart when we came off of that red. I was racing really hard towards
4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14.
the end to make up that ground I had lost but I just didn't have enough."
15.
Defending Goodyear Knoxville Nationals Champion Tim Shaffer put on another excellent display of driving talent as he charged from the 19th starting position to finish fourth with Pittman finishing in fifth. Outside pole-sitter Sweet was 8th after qualifying for his first Goodyear Knoxville Nationals A-main and led four laps early on. Current World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series points leader Jason Meyers experienced mechanical woes after changing gears during the event's pit stop and finished 22nd.
17. 18.
A main (started), 50 laps: 1. 15, Donny Schatz, Fargo, ND (13) 2. 57, Shane Stewart, Bixby, OK (17) 3. 1, Sammy Swindell,
16.
19. 20. 21.
Germantown, TN (1) 83x, Tim Shaffer, Aliquippa, PA (19) 27, Daryn Pittman, Owasso, OK (5) 13, Mark Dobmeier, Grand Forks, ND (7) 21, Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO (6) 9, Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA (2) 9. Lance Dewease (24) 7, Craig Dollansky, Elk River, MN (18) 41, Jason Johnson, Eunice, LA (20) 83, Paul McMahan, Nashville, TN (16) 13. Stevie Smith (21) 15H, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Sunnyvale, TX (11) 55, Terry McCarl, Altoona, IA (14) 11, Steve Kinser, Bloomington, IN (8) Don Droud Jr. (23) 56, Davey Heskin, St. Michael, MN (10) Kraig Kinser (22) 2, Dale Blaney, Fowler, OH (3) 51, Fred Rahmer, Salfordville, PA (9)
22. 14, Jason Meyers, Clovis, CA (4) 23. 92, Kerry Madsen, St. Marys, NSW, Aust. (15) 24. 17A, Austin McCarl, Altoona, IA (12). Lap Leaders: S. Swindell 1, Sweet 2-5, S. Swindell 6-14, Schatz 15-27, Pittman 28, Schatz 29-50. KSE Hard Charger: Shane Stewart (+15) The Knoxville Nationals encompasses a four-day format unmatched in all of dirt track racing. The prestige of winning the event far outweighs the generous purse that exceeds $1,000,000. With points meaning everything, and every wheel turned on the track meaning points, there is no time for a break at the “Granddaddy of them all�. Steve Kinser has stood atop the podium an unprecedented twelve times, and owner Karl Kinser has graced victory lane an amazing fourteen times with three different drivers.
Knoxville Nationals Tough On Chad Kemenah August 18th, 2011 By: Joe Burrage
Kemenah continued to work the bottom of the speedway and was able to make up some ground in turns one and two and that The Knoxville Nationals is a race that every allowed him to move up to the eighth posisprint car driver, team and car owner wants tion with three laps remaining. to win at least once in their career. Kemenah never got that one yellow flag he needed and crossed the finish line in the On the Wednesday night Chad Kemenah’s eight position all the way from the 15th night went from fifth quick in qualifying to horrible in a blink of an eye as the right rear starting spot. axle broke sending Kemenah hard into the turn four wall. Kemenah would climb out of “We gave it everything we had tonight,” the car unharmed but the race car was de- said Kemenah. “The track was very fast and stroyed and the brand new motor was hurt narrow making it hard to pass on but I as well. found a few spots that allowed us to move up. We really needed a yellow flag but “Everyone always says if you qualify well at never got it so it is what it is. Hopefully next the Knoxville Nationals and stay out of trou- year we can have a better showing at the ble you will get locked into the A-Main on Knoxville Nationals. We are going back Saturday night,” said Kemenah. “We timed home to Ohio to regroup for the North and in South Dakota trips so we have a lot of work Fifth quick overall and the rear axle decides that needs to be done but we will be ready to break on us during our heat race and the for our next World of Outlaws race that’s for end result is a lot of torn up equipment and sure.” disappointment. We were able to get another car built on Thursday so I have to thank Adam Brough and Scott Euler for there hard work.” Chad Kemenah was not the only driver that had a tough week during the 51st Knoxville Nationals, Jason Sides, Jac Haudenschild and Tim Kaeding all struggled earlier in the week. Kemenah was scheduled to start in the 15th position in the C-Main and the track was very fast and narrow during the very cool evening. Kemenah had to get to work fast with only 15-Laps to work with and only the top two drivers would transfer to the 22-Lap, BMain. Kemenah got a great start and was able to move up one position going into turns one and two. From there Kemenah kept the Golden Flavor Sesame Sticks No.63 sprinter glued to the bottom of the speedway where he started to make some progress. Just after the halfway point of the race Kemenah was running in the 11th position and desperately needed a yellow flag to bunch the field together.
Chad’s Sponsors include: Golden Flavor Sesame Sticks, Hampshire Racing Engines, Maxim Chassis, MS Motorsports, Key State Ag Service, Kears Speed Shop, Champion Racing XP Performance Lubricants, Jeffery Winter Construction, Accu Force Shock Dyno, Banshee Graphics, SSE Helmet Designs, Media Camping Center, Real Racing Wheels, Winters Rear Ends, Chiappelli Motorsports.
What’s in a name? If you scan through an edition of the National Speedway Directory you’ll come across some fantastic names for speedways and race tracks across America. Here’s just a few we found interesting. Roaring Knob Motorsports – Markleysburg, PA. (What can we say except that racing is meant to get a man excited). Headhunters Motor Club Dragway – Eatonton – GA (Not sure that this would entice you to race there).
Fast Trax Speedway – Chatham―Louisiana. (Sounds like a slot car set) No Problem Raceway – Belle Rose – Louisiana (Love the attitude) Gingerman Raceway – South Haven – Michigan (Full of angry Fanta Pants’ers) Battlefield Raceway – Philadelphia – Mississippi (It can end up looking like a war zone) Why Not Motorsport Park – Meridic – Mississippi (But why?) The Speed Bowl – Red cloud – NE (Really!!)
Suicide Circle Speedway – Albany GA. (Again similar to the above. Hope it’s not indicative of the tracks safety standards and history).
Uranium Capital Speedway – Milan – New Mexico (No lights needed here. The whole place just glows in the dark).
Noise Park Raceway – Idaho Falls – Idaho (What??? I can’t hear you -Der!!).
Geographical Center Speedway – Rugby North Dakota (Must be the true heartland)
Rapid Speedway – Rock Rapids – Iowa (Well, it’s not meant to be slow).
Race City USA – Hermiston – Oregon (The whole town is behind this venue)
Dirtona Raceway – Hugoton – Kansas (Just the way we like it)
Barnyard Raceway – Chepechal – Rhode Is-
Soggy Bottom Speedway – Morgantown – Kentucky (Did you spill something??)
land (The only racetrack in RI) (Do they race cars or animals? Could be related to Cowtown Speedway) Hemi Speedway – Mt Croghan – South Carolina (No Chevy’s allowed) Winner Speedway – Winner – South Dakota (Only one car per race) Cowtown Speedway – Fort Worth – Texas (Steer clear of this place. Not a good MOOve to race here. All puns intended) Hot Rod Hill Motorpark – Bryan – Texas Lady Luck Speedway – Lubbock – Texas (Need plenty of this sometimes) Speedorama – Lufton – Texas Rolling Thunder Raceway – Ararat – Virginia (What??? Might have to sue these guys for stealing our name) Sumerduck Dragway – Culpeper – Virginia (It’s just not cricket) Big Muddy Raceway Park – Glen rock – Wyoming (The locals don’t like small dusty racetracks)
Australian Self-starting Sprintcar Association (ASSA) V8 Wingless Sprintcars – New hope at a budget price. Traditional “Wingless” Sprintcars are arguably the most exciting form of our great sport of speedway with their bellowing V8’s and their old school “back ‘em in” style, and that is part of the reason the Australian Wingless Sprints (AWS) have become such a successful category in such a short time (if you ignore their previous long history as Sportsmans in Victoria). Many people have proposed an all V8 wingless class in Australia, most notably AMCA Nationals creator Dale Matthews who envisioned a 410 cubic inch crate engined category, which stalled in its infancy when Matthews was afflicted with a bout of cancer and could no longer put his drive, determination and flair into progressing the class as he so wanted. The idea was not lost however, as veteran racer Wayne Milburn looked at the concept from a similar, but different angle. The V6 powered AWS cars had taken off on a scale exceeding everyone’s expectations for one very simply reason – cost. The one down side to the AWS cars however was the noise – they didn’t have that raucous V8 sound that most Aussies love to hear. With that in mind Milburn toyed with the idea of how best to develop a cost effec-
tive, low budget, self starting, V8 wingless sprintcar and hit upon the idea of installing the 5.7 litre, Holden V8 alloy engine into a sprintcar chassis. “These GenIII Holden engines can be purchased second hand for between two and a half and three and a half thousand dollars from just about any wreckers,” stated Milburn. “With an adaptor kit that contains everything you need to install one in a sprintcar chassis and run them on methanol for about another three thousand dollars, I believe you can build a car for about $15,000 which is about the same price as a V6.” “The whole idea is that it stops someone with a bunch of money coming in and spending a lot of money to have the best engine in the class and the biggest advantage as happens now in VSC, 360 or open sprintcars,” Milburn continued. “And the other thing that the tracks like about them is that you don’t need push vehicles and the loss of time that it takes to fire up winged sprintcars.” Milburn recently shook down his prototype at Rolling Thunder Raceway with an engine that had over 100,000kms on it before it was installed into his sprintcar. “The car performed perfectly and I was pleasantly surprised with its performance and how well it went,” Explained Milburn. “Without a wing it had enough kick to get loose and spin the wheels and was really responsive, and best of all it sounded right.” The car ran faultlessly with various invited and experienced “winged” sprintcar racers all suitably impressed with its speed and
ability. “I hope to have a number of cars up and running before the season starts now that I’ve got all the engineering sorted out and I’ll start building up more cars this week,“ Said Milburn who is naturally enthused about the project. “My long term plan is to offer two options for drivers who can either buy the adaptor kit and build their own cars or they can lease a car from me where all they’ll have to do each night will be turn up and race.” “On top of all that, this would be a perfect stepping stone for the V6 guys looking to step up to something a little quicker for very little extra money,” Milburn concluded. Milburn has already had interest from tracks that have heard the whispers about the car but has decided that initially the cars will be restricted to running at Rolling Thunder Raceway in the first instance while they hopefully build in interest and numbers. For their part, Rolling Thunder Raceway have agreed to allow Milburn to demonstrate the cars at each and every race meeting while also agreeing that once suffi-
cient numbers of cars have been established they will become a regular racing class at the Bacchus Marsh venue. For anyone interested in viewing the car it will be having a second shake down run at Rolling Thunder Raceway, Bacchus Marsh on Sunday August 21st and will also be on display at the annual Avalon swap meet the following weekend. Further information can be also be obtained directly from Wayne on 0427 350 482.
Alexandra’s trail blazing three hour enduro!!! The Alexandra & District Speedway Club held the first ever 3 hour Enduro on Saturday August 20th and it was the duo of Paul Turnbull and Dehne Sparrow from Victoria’s Western Districts that headed home as the inaugural winners with the local Alexandra team of Luke Fallon & Matthew Ridd second and Damian Miller and Crash N Bash champion Jason McKendry in third. Prior to the 3 hour final 12 heat races were run in order to set the field’s starting positions for the Enduro. The event was a team’s event with 4 rounds of heats. You could have one or two cars with two cars being the more efficient option so that you still had a car circulating and completing laps whilst you repaired, refuelled or rested the car and driver and you could have 3 drivers as long as each driver drove at least one heat themselves. Every driver had to have a turn in the feature however there was no stipulation on how long each driver had to do, this was something Turnbull and Sparrow took advantage of in their tactics when they struck mechanical trouble in one of their cars. Team Miller/McKendry won the first heat when Miller driving a V8 VS Commodore led home Turnbull and Brett Petrou from team Petrou/Phillips. Peter Cox in his Torana Hatchback of the Shane Simpson/Peter Cox team won in front of Brendan Dennis/Peter Hampton and Brad McClure of the McClure/Jason Holt team driving the Leigh Bourke owned former Steve Gartner Street Stock. Then the big V8 Super Sedan panelled former Amca Chassis car of Mark & Colin Lincoln who started last in the race took the win in the third heat from Luke Fallon and Lenny Bates Jnr of the Bates/Karl Haisma team.
Chiminello #94 leading McClure #60 , Turnbull #19 and Greg Scott #70
DALE MORRISON!
DALE MORRISON!
Jamie Lock who was paired with his dad Rob won the first heat of the second round in a Justin Hampton owned Street Stock with the Rob Gorman/Anthony Chrystie team second from Craig Phillips. In the most spectacular aftermath to any heat win this season Dale Morrison who was in a two car team with Rick McCormack crossed the line sideways and instead of heading down the off shute and into the pit enclosure found himself in the dog leg and bounced over the lip and went over and over anywhere between 5 and 9 times depending on which eyewitness was correct, totally destroying the car and lucky enough not to be seriously hurt. Jason Holt finished second in front of Shane Simpson. The Colin & Mark Lincoln combination then won the final heat of the round from Ridd and the team of Colin & Dylan Campton a father and son team. The pairing of Austin Corcoran & Peter Newlan then won the first heat of round three from the Darryn & Jayde Aarts Torana and McCormack. Turnbull then took the win for his team in the next from Greg Scott from the Greg & Daniel Scott & Harley Bishop team and McClure. The Fallon/Ridd duo then won the last heat in round three ahead of Colin & Mark Lincoln and Bates Jnr. The final round began with a McCormack win now in a paring with Darryn Aarts and his son Jayde followed by the Rob Gorman/Anthony Chrystie car and the Tim McPherson/Jack Chiminello team. Mark & Colin Lincoln locked in a third heat win and their fourth top two placing out of four runs by winning their last heat with Ridd next and the Cox/Simpson combination after them. With points calculated the line up for the feature in team order was: Team # 92 Mark & Colin Lincoln, # 42 Ridd/ Fallon, # 7 Simpson/Cox, # 60 McClure/Holt, # 19 Turnbull/ Sparrow, # 15 Haisma/Bates, # 9 Aarts/McCormack, # 26 Daniel Kettles/Gary Stanley,# 54 Rob Gorman/Anthony Chrystie, # 24 Dennis/Hampton, # 5 Petrou/Phillips, # 90 Corcoran/ Newlan, # 70 Scott/Scott/Bishop, # 94 McPherson/Chiminello, # 43 Lock/Lock, # 11 Mi-
chael Gorman/Brody Chrystie, # 8 Steve & Mick Lincoln, # 81 Campton/Campton, # 1 Miller/McKendry,# 3 Daniel Simpson/Chris Heard, # 36 Debbie Jones/Greg Parks/Rob Garlick, # 02 Casey Newlan/Debbie Norris,# 44 Mal & Anthony Brennan, John Corcoran/ Kylie Rae and # 47 Gary & Adam Monti. The 3 hour event began with the Lincoln #92 machine off pole straight to the front with a gradual increase of space between them and the chasing teams right from the drop of the green. The Ridd/Fallon, Cox/Simpson, McClure/Holt and Turnbull/Sparrow combinations all put some distance between them and the rest of the field in the initial stanza. Every team had different tactics and different sized fuel tanks. The lead car had a tank that allegedly was a 100 litre tank. McClure for example was running a 30 litre tank. So the lead Lincoln team had a one stop strategy where they would lose laps to circulating competitors on the track whilst they refuelled which would take them longer than others.
Sparrow and Turnbull — Victory Celebration
The other disadvantage they had was they were a one car team and had no second car to send on track whilst they attended to the lead car. Whilst the teams behind the lead car of Cox/Simpson, Ridd/Fallon and McClure/Holt all had to pit within the first hour, the Turnbull/Sparrow car stayed out much longer before taking advantage of a yellow light situation and heading to the pits. What the rest of us were about to find out was that the second team car had mechanical issues and a tactic was put to plan where that car would come on track as he was tagged into the race and roll around on the yellow laps and compete in as many racing laps as required until his team signalled him to come into the pits and that Turnbull was refuelled, hydrated and ready to go again. The Dennis/Hampton car rolled in turn three and was put back on its wheels and after a
quick pit stop re-joined the field to continue on. It was at least 90 minutes or more in the race before the Colin/Mark Lincoln car headed to the pits to refuel and during this time Turnbull got back a couple laps he lost and gained 2 laps over the Lincoln team. Ridd and Fallon were still up the pointy end of the race and in front of the Lincolns before they needed another stop. The Lincolns who were waiting for Turnbull/Sparrow to take another pit stop and try and catch back up onto the lead lap were drifting further back as Turnbull made time on each lap before the Lincolns’ engine let go on their V8 and rods broke through the engine. They were finished. Michael Gorman and Brody Chrystie a pair of 17 year olds moved up to fourth place and third at one stage before being caught and passed by Miller and McKendry who were a two car team with one strong car and the sister car suffering issues all night pushed up from 19th place and found themselves in third as the 3 hour time limit approached. When the time limit was over with 245 laps completed victory was taken by the Turnbull/Sparrow team with Turnbull doing around 237 of the 245 laps due to the mechanical failure of the other team car in an amazing effort. Second was the first team of local’s home in Fallon & Ridd then Miller/ McKendry and the younger Gorman/ Chrystie combination of Michael & Brody. Haisma & Bates Jnr made it two Crash N Bash Club cars in the top five with current Australian Street Stock Champion Brad McClure and his team-mate Jason Holt in sixth then Kettles/Stanley, Corcoran/ Newlan, Steve & Mick Lincoln and Casey Newlan & Debbie Norris the last team to finish from 25. In the top ten there were six two car teams and four single car teams with the latter
more so due to attrition with 15 teams not finishing. The best placed single car team being Michael & Brody Chrystie and the best placed Independent team (meaning non seasonal state body team) being the winning combination of Turnbull and Sparrow who only come to Alexandra for the 100 lapper and now the Enduro. After the event Dehne Sparrow shared some wonderful words on his co driver’s performance. “That was the most amazing drive I’ve ever seen. I would have loved to compete in more laps myself, however the car is set up for Paul and his longer frame and it just wasn’t possible for me to drive the thing so we put in place a strategy where I would circulate on yellow laps and go until he was ready. I am so grateful for the opportunity to be his team-mate and for the drive of this second car which is a top car to drive, it just didn’t run tonight like it did at the Queen’s Birthday weekend. It feels great to win the first event and we couldn’t have done it without our crew.”