by Lance Jennings
PETALUMA, CA – OCTOBER 6, 2013… Taking the lead from Greg Bragg on lap 74, Norco’s Ronnie Gardner scored the “2nd Annual John Soares Classic” victory at Petaluma Speedway. The special 101-lap main event was the ninth Honda USAC Western Midget victory for Gardner as he ties Dave Darland, Bobby East, Kasey Kahne, and Rich Vogler on the series win list. Shane Golobic, Bragg, Shannon McQueen, and Taylor Simas followed the point leader to the checkered flags.
Racing the Six8 Motorsports’ #68 Baldozier Racing / Esslinger Engineering Stewart, Ronnie Gardner out-qualified the twenty-two car field, earned his sixth fast time award, and broke his old track record set in June. With the top-10 in qualifying earning direct transfers to the feature, Gardner did not have to compete in an 8-lap heat race. The former USAC/CRA Most Improved Driver left Petaluma with a 256 point advantage with two heat race victories, sixteen top-10 finishes, and 186 feature laps led to his credit.
“The Fremont Flyer” Shane Golobic motored past Bragg to claim second in the “Soares Classic.” Piloting Doug Bock’s #26 Carson R&D / Astro Titanium Spike, Golobic qualified fifteenth overall and won the night’s first heat race. In limited Honda USAC Western Midget action, the versatile driver has one feature win, two heat race victories, five top-10 finishes, and 60 feature laps led on the season.
After leading the first 73 laps, Greg Bragg of Visalia had to settle for third at Petaluma. Driving the Dave Thurston owned #11 Bruce Thurston Enterprises Spike, Bragg was seventh fast in time trials and did not have to run a heat race. The former California Lightning Sprint Car Champion has earned two heat race victories, one semi-main win, five top-10 finishes, and one hard charger award in limited appearances.
Tehachapi’s Shannon McQueen claimed fourth in Petaluma’s 101-lap main event. Piloting the McQueen Racing #7 Lucas Oil / Simpson Race Products Spike, the defending series champion qualified second fast and sat out heat race action. Currently fourth in the point chase, McQueen has one fast time award, one heat race victory, three hard charger awards, and eight top-10 finishes in the campaign.
Taylor Simas of Orland scored fifth in the “John Soares Classic.” Racing the Doug Bock owned #62 Carson R&D / Astro Titanium Spike, Simas was fifth quick in time trials and did not have to run a heat race. As this writing goes to press, the Wingless Spec Sprint graduate has six top-10 finishes in USAC Western Midget action.
San Jose’s Nick Foster Jr. raced to victory in the program’s second heat race. Driving Dave LaMott’s #0 Finishline Construction / Power-Up Concrete Pumping TCR, Foster qualified sixteenth and placed sixth in the “Soares Classic.” In limited USAC appearances, the veteran driver has one top-10 finish on the season.
The Honda USAC Western Midget Series will take a break, returning to action on November 14th for the 3-day “Western World Championships” at Canyon Speedway Park. Co-sanctioned with the Honda USAC National Midgets, the Peoria, Arizona events will also showcase the USAC SouthWest and West Coast Sprint Cars. For more event and ticket information, visit www.canyonspeedwaypark.com or call 602.258.RACE (7223).
The Honda USAC Western Midget Series would like to thank Amsoil, Hoosier Tire, Rugged Radios, and Western Performance Parts for their support. For more information on the series, visit www.usacracing.com or follow the series on Facebook (www.facebook.com/
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HONDA USAC WESTERN MIDGET CAR SERIES RACE RESULTS:
October 5, 2013 – Petaluma, California – Petaluma Speedway – 2nd “John Soares Classic” – Co-sanctioned with BCRA
QUALIFICATIONS:
1. Ronnie Gardner, 68, Six8-14.200 (New Track Record); 2. Shannon McQueen, 7, McQueen-14.420; 3. Chris Ennis, 86, Ennis-14.491; 4. David Prickett, 15, Neverlift-14.525; 5. Taylor Simas, 62, Bock-14.532; 6. Scott Pierovich, 35, Pierovich-14.561; 7. Greg Bragg, 11, Thurston-14.644; 8. Frankie Guerrini, 63, Guerrini-14.665; 9. Alex Schutte, 28, Morris-14.774; 10. Randi Pankratz, 8, Pankratz-14.779; 11. Nick Chivello, 27, Chivello-14.786; 12. Gary Conterno, 55, Conterno-14.939; 13. Terry Nichols, 45, Neverlift-14.948; 14. Pete Davis, 00, Davis-14.951; 15. Shane Golobic, 26, Bock-15.143; 16. Nick Foster Jr., 0, LaMott-15.296; 17. Floyd Alvis, 11X, Alvis-15.319; 18. Sparky Howard, 3, Howard-15.731; 19. Bill Lindsey, 8X, Lindsey-15.433; 20. J.R. Williams, 74, Williams-15.585; 21. Michael Donaldson, 9, Donaldson-16.116; 22. Rick Holbrook, 2, Holbrook-16.805.
FIRST HEAT: (8 laps – no points)
1. Shane Golobic, 2. Bill Lindsey, 3. Floyd Alvis, 4. Gary Conterno, 5. Michael Donaldson. NT
SECOND HEAT: (8 laps – no points)
1. Nick Foster Jr., 2. Pete Davis, 3. Sparky Howard, 4. J.R. Williams, 5. Terry Nichols. NT
FEATURE: (101 laps)
1. Ronnie Gardner, 2. Shane Golobic, 3. Greg Bragg, 4. Shannon McQueen, 5. Taylor Simas, 6. Nick Foster Jr., 7. Randi Pankratz, 8. Sparky Howard, 9. Gary Conterno, 10. Floyd Alvis, 11. J.R. Williams, 12. Chris Ennis, 13. Alex Schutte, 14. Michael Donaldson, 15. Frankie Guerrini, 16. Scott Pierovich (#00), 17. David Prickett, 18. Bill Lindsey, 19. Rick Holbrook, 20. Nick Chivello. NT
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**Scott Pierovich flipped during qualifying.
**Terry Nichols flipped during the second heat.
**Nick Chivello flipped on the first lap of the feature.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-73 Greg Bragg, Laps 74-101 Ronnie Gardner.
NEW HONDA WESTERN DIRT MIDGET POINTS:
1-Ronnie Gardner-1,094, 2-Jake Swanson-838, 3-David Prickett-733, 4-Shannon McQueen-533, 5-Randi Pankratz-498, 6-Cody Swanson-458, 7-Scott Pierovich-400, 8-Terry Nichols-357, 9-Trey Marcham-348, 10-Johnathon Henry-301.