By Lance Jennings
SANTA MARIA, CA – AUGUST 5, 2013… After a break in the schedule, the cars and stars of the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series are ready for a special “northern swing” to Watsonville and Santa Maria. The Friday, August 9th event at John Prentice’s Ocean Speedway will pit the powerful 410s against the USAC Western Classic Racing Series. The following night, the USAC/CRA Sprint Cars will make their last visit of the season at Ruben and Katy Munoz’s Santa Maria Speedway.
Friday’s race will mark the sixth USAC/CRA event hosted by the Watsonville quarter-mile facility. Last June 14th, “The Demon” Damion Gardner passed Bud Kaeding on the final lap to score the dramatic feature victory. Previous wins at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds were earned by “The Kruser” Cory Kruseman and Mike Spencer, each with two main event wins. Friday’s action packed card will also feature 4-Bangers, American Stocks, and BAD Dwarf Cars. The Spectator Gates will open at 4:30pm and Racing is set to begin at 6:00pm.
Santa Maria Speedway will showcase the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Cars for the sixteenth time in series history. On June 15th, “The Demon” Damion Gardner grabbed the lead from “Hollywood” Danny Faria Jr. on lap seventeen and powered to his first Santa Maria victory. With two wins at the 1/3-mile facility, “The Kruser” Cory Kruseman, Mike Spencer, and Austin Williams are tied for the series lead. Other Santa Maria winners include “Super” Rickie Gaunt, Mike Kirby, “The Ripper” Rip Williams, “Smooth” Tyler Brown, Nic Faas, Garrett Hansen, “The Bullet” Blake Miller, and “Showtime” Danny Sheridan. On Saturday, the California Lightning Sprints, C&D Bonding Hobby Stocks, CDCRA Dwarf Cars, and QRC Outlaw Karts will share the spotlight. The Spectator Gates will open at 4:00pm, Time Trials at 5:00pm, and Racing is scheduled for 6:00pm.
Concord’s “The Demon” Damion Gardner leads the Amsoil USAC/CRA standings and holds a 44 point advantage over the competition. Racing Mark Alexander’s #4A Scott Sales Company / Advanced Racing Suspension Spike, Gardner was fourth at the July 4th “Firecracker 30” at Perris Auto Speedway. To date, the 2005 Champion has five feature wins, four Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, five heat race victories, one dash win, twelve top-10 finishes, and 91 feature laps led on the year. “The Demon” will have his sights on another Watsonville and Santa Maria “sweep.”
Nic Faas of Huntington Beach is second in the championship point chase. Piloting Mark Alexander’s #4 Scott Sales Company / Competition Suspension Inc. Spike, Faas claimed his second win of the year at the “Firecracker 30.” Currently, the 2008 Rookie of the Year has three Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, two heat race victories, twelve top-10 finishes, and 47 feature laps led on the season. Nic will be looking to gain valuable points with victories at Watsonville and Santa Maria.
Sitting third in the USAC/CRA point chase is Temecula’s Mike Spencer. Driving Ron Chaffin’s #50 Grubstake Mini Storage / Madera Produce Maxim, Spencer was second in the “Firecracker 30.” The five-time champion enters Friday’s action with one feature win, three Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, four heat race victories, one Keizer Wheels / Racing Optics Hard Charger Award, nine top-10 finishes, and 17 feature laps led. Mike will have his sights on adding the billet first place trophies from Watsonville and Santa Maria to his collection.
Bud Kaeding of Campbell is fourth in the point standings. Racing Junior Bowman’s #29 Buster & Ziggy Enterprises / Kaeding Performance Bullet, Bud did not compete in the “Firecracker 30.” To date, the three-time Oval Nationals Champion has yet to win a feature, but has one Dash win, one Competition Suspension Inc. / Rod End Supply Semi-Main win, nine top-10 finishes, and 25 feature laps led on the year. Kaeding won the USAC Western Classic portion of Watsonville’s “Howard Kaeding Classic” on July 12th and will be one of the favorites to watch at both race tracks.
Yorba Linda’s Matt Mitchell is fifth in the USAC/CRA standings. Piloting his #37 MPD Racing / A.R.T. Enterprises entry, Mitchell placed sixth at Perris after starting twelfth. Currently, the former USAC Western Midget Rookie of the Year has one main event win, two heat race victories, one Competition Suspension Inc. / Rod End Supply Semi-Main win, eight top-10 finishes, and 30 feature laps led to his credit. Matt will be looking for his first feature wins at Watsonville and Santa Maria.
Among the other USAC/CRA drivers expected to be in action are Austin Williams, “The Cadillac” Cody Williams, Brody Roa, Ryan Bernal, Richard Vander Weerd, “The Ripper” Rip Williams, Seth Wilson, “Super” Rickie Gaunt, Markus Niemela, Jace Vander Weerd, “The Kruser” Cory Kruseman, “and more.
With four top-10 finishes, Stockton’s D.J. Johnson leads the USAC Western Classic point standings. Ryan Bernal, Tony Hunt, Shauna Hogg, Colton Slack, Matt Streeter, James Sweeney, Scott Hall, Colby Copeland, and Nathan Washam round out the top-10 drivers. Other WCRS drivers expected to compete at Watsonville are Jim Richardson, Klint Simpson, Gordon Rodgers, Marty Hawkins, “The Human Highlight Reel” Geoff Ensign, Tom Baker, and more.
All competitors must run quiet mufflers at the Watsonville and Santa Maria events. Ocean Speedway has a strict muffler rule and asks competitors to run the Extreme Ventura Legal (4615-3535-8), FlowMaster Suitcase, Spintech Suitcase, or Extreme (6014-3530) and Spin Tech 180 degree mufflers. Santa Maria Speedway has a standard track rule (95dB at 100 feet), similar to those used at California Fairgrounds. Local track sound standards must be met in order to compete and failure to do so risks disqualification.
Per USAC/CRA rules, 360 iron-block powered Sprint Cars can run their local track or series approved Hoosier tires on all four corners. Cars must pass a tech inspection and one-way radios are mandatory for drivers. USAC/CRA charges a $25 entry fee to all competitors, which includes a transponder rental. Aluminum block 410 powered cars must run either a Hoosier HT2, HTW (105x18x15), DT3, or F55 Right Rear tire. USAC Western Classic Racing entries must follow series rules to earn championship points.
Ocean Speedway is located on the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds in Watsonville, California at 2601 E. Lake Avenue. Adult Tickets are $20, Senior Tickets (over 65) are $19, and Kid Tickets (12-6) are $15. For more information, visit the track’s website at www.oceanspeedway.com or call (831) 662-9466 (WINN).
Santa Maria Speedway is located 1/4-mile north of the 101/166 interchange at 1900 Hutton Road in Nipomo, California. Adult Tickets are $20, Military and Senior Tickets are $18, Kid Tickets (12-6) are $6, and Kids Tickets (5 & Under) are FREE. For more event information, visit the track’s website at www.racesantamariaspeedway.com or call (805) 315-2023.
The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series would like to thank Hoosier Tire, BR Motorsports, Circle Track Performance, Competition Suspension Inc., DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror Inc., Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Racing Optics, Rod End Supply, Rugged Radios, SBI Fuel Systems, Saldana Racing Products, Weld Racing, and Woodland Auto Display for their support. If you or your company would like to become part of the series, email PR Director Lance Jennings at lwjennings@earthlink.net.
For more information on the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series, visit www.usacracing.com/cra or follow the series on Facebook (www.facebook.com/pages/USAC-
——————————
AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS:
1-Damion Gardner-803, 2-Nic Faas-759, 3-Mike Spencer-628, 4-Bud Kaeding-564, 5-Matt Mitchell-519, 6-Austin Williams-461, 7-Cody Williams-441, 8-Brody Roa-420, 9-Ryan Bernal-359, 10-R.J. Johnson-330, 11-Richard Vander Weerd-309, 12-Rip Williams-301, 13-David Cardey-292, 14-Seth Wilson-246, 15-Rickie Gaunt-243, 16-Charles Davis Jr.-232, 17-Markus Niemela-223, 18-Bryan Clauson-210, 19-Jace Vander Weerd-201, 20-Cory Kruseman-197.
USAC WESTERN CLASSIC SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS:
1-D.J. Johnson-295, 2-Ryan Bernal-290; 3-Tony Hunt-247; 4-Shauna Hogg-224, 5-Colton Slack-167, 6-Matt Streeter-157, 7-James Sweeney-150, 8-Scott Hall-125, 9-Colby Copeland-120, 10-Nathan Washam-113, 11-Jim Richardson-112, 12-Klint Simpson-101, 13-Marc Mackay-97, 14-Gordon Rodgers-94, 15-Marty Hawkins-86, 16-Geoff Ensign-71, 17-Richard Vander Weerd-68, 18-Jace Vander Weerd-62, –Max Adams-62, –Tanner Swanson-62.