By Bill Sullivan/Sullivan Images Media
ELK GROVE, CA (4-24-10) – Elk Grove’s Billy Strange returned to Placerville Speedway’s winged sprint car division last Saturday night for the second Red Hawk Casino Championship point race. After a strong performance in the preliminary events, it appeared Strange would have no problem making into the top ten for the second straight week. Lady Luck, however, had a different plan.
“We had a great qualifying run, we qualified three tenths faster then we ever have at Placerville,” said Strange, who qualified 14th in the stellar field with a 10:533 second lap. “When the main event rolled around it was just a racing deal where two of us were going for the same spot. It was a disappointing end to a good night. I know we had a fast car. I just wish I could have had the chance to show it.”
After qualifying, it was apparent the #28x sprint car was ready for competition Saturday night in the 8-lap heat race. Strange started second in the event and went on to beat Sacramento’s Herman Klein to the finish line to earn his first win of the season and secure a starting position for the 25-lap A-feature.”
“We tried some different stuff on the car and the set up and it felt really good, it was fast,” said Strange. “I was running it just fast enough to stay out in front of the heat race and Klein raced me really clean the whole race.”
Saturday’s 25-lap feature event was plagued with caution flags and unusual events at Placerville. Defending two time Civil War Series champion Sean Becker even fell victim to a pair of spin outs. Strange, however, appeared to have one of the faster cars in the field in the early laps of the race.
Starting in the 11th position he quickly worked his way into the top ten and began setting his sights on the top five positions. Although he was ready and the car was ready to go to the front, fate had another plan Saturday and Strange suffered a roll over on the backstretch after a collision in traffic. The incident didn’t cause extensive damage to his car but a severed radiator hose forced him to the hauler for the remainder of the event.
“I was just waiting and trying to be patient out there because I knew we had a fast car,” added Strange. “We were actually ok to continue the race except for the puncture in the radiator hose kept us from continuing. I’ll be back this week for the Civil War event and set my sights on at least a top 15.”
This Saturday night, the Civil War Sprint Cars return to Placerville Speedway. This series brings nearly 40 of California’s best drivers together for one of 15 regional events at six different tracks during the year. Strange is ready for the challenge.
Strange Motorsports has a number of marketing partners that they are thankful for. Among their supporters are QWK Racing Components, ART Enterprises, Rex Hutchison Racing Engines, Kevin Sharrah Designs, Swepco Lubricants, Pronol Race Fuels, MotoWear International, America’s Tire, High Country Painting and Amerikote.
. To learn more about Billy Strange visit his official website at www.billystrangejr.com.