From Lance Jennings
Santa Maria, CA — (May 28, 2014) — This Saturday, May 31st, the Honda USAC Western Midget Series will make their only appearance at Tulare’s Merle Stone Chevrolet Thunderbowl Raceway. Promoted by Steve Faria, the action packed card will also showcase the USAC West Coast Sprint Cars, winged Racesaver 305 Sprint Cars, and IMCA Modifieds. The front gates will open at 4:30pm and racing is scheduled to begin at 7:00pm.
Saturday’s race will mark the fifth appearance of the Honda USAC Western Midgets at the Tulare County Fairgrounds. P.J. Jones claimed the inaugural victory on September 7, 1988 as Robby Flock, Sleepy Tripp, and Tracy Hines have also claimed feature wins at Tulare. Heading into the event, Bryan Clauson holds the 1-lap qualifying track record of 15.628, set on November 13, 2010.
After scoring his first win at Bakersfield on May 3rd, Trey Marcham of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma sits atop the dirt series and ranks second in the overall points. Piloting Keith Ford’s #73 Berry Pack / King Racing Products TCR, Marcham has one fast time award, one heat race victory, two top-10 finishes, and 12 feature laps led to his credit. Last season’s Rookie of the Year will be looking to extend his point lead with a victory at Thunderbowl Raceway.
Redding’s Alex Schutte ranks second in the dirt points and is the overall series point leader. Racing the Schutte/McElwee #28 Aircraft Electrical Components / Ontario West Spike, Schutte ran seventh in the Bakersfield main event. Heading to Tulare, the 2010 Champion has three top-10 finishes on the year and will have his sights on his third series win.
Ronnie Gardner of Norco has climbed to third in the dirt series and fifth in the overall points. Driving the Six8 Motorsports #68 Baldozier Racing / Esslinger Engineering Stewart, Gardner ran second to Marcham in the Bakersfield feature. Entering Saturday’s race, the defending champion has one fast time award and two top-10 finishes in the campaign. Ronnie will be looking to move up the standings by earning his tenth series victory.
Orange’s Jarid Blondel sits fourth in the dirt points and ranks third in the overall standings. Piloting his #98 G&J Aircraft / Repair Service Edmunds, Blondel scored fourteenth at Bakersfield Speedway. As this writing goes to press, the young driver has two top-10 finishes and will have his sights on his first main event win at Tulare.
Johnathon Henry of Stockton ranks fifth in the dirt series and ninth in the overall point chase. Racing Chad Nichols’ #17 Team 17 Racing Spike, Henry placed third in the Bakersfield main event. In limited starts, the versatile driver has one heat race victory and one top-10 finish on the season. At press time, it is unknown if Johnathon will miss the Tulare show to compete elsewhere.
Among the other drivers expected to be in action are Sean Dodenhoff, Jake Swanson, Troy Rutherford, Steve Davis, Shannon McQueen, Tyler Dolacki, “The Wild Child” Chris Ennis, Scott Pierovich, Ricky Shelton, Terry Nichols, and more.
SCHEDULE CHANGE: The September 27th race scheduled at Visalia’s Plaza Park Raceway has been cancelled. That date has been replaced with a show at Lemoore Raceway on July 26th. Please update your schedules.
Tulare’s Merle Stone Chevrolet Thunderbowl Raceway is located at the Tulare County Fairgrounds at the corner of Bardsley and K Streets. Reserved tickets are $15 and General Admission seats are $13. Advance tickets are on sale and can be purchased by calling the track office at 559.688.0909. For more event information, visit the track’s website at www.tularethunderbowl.com.
The Honda USAC Western Midget Series thanks 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/usacwsmidgets).
This Saturday at Tulare, VanLare Steering Repair will award certificates for Fast Time, Heat Race Winners, plus 5th, 10th, 15th, and 20th in the main event. Their support is appreciated very much and you can get more information on their Sprint Car & Midget steering box and pump repair services by calling 707.481.8000.
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HONDA USAC WESTERN DIRT MIDGET POINT STANDINGS:
1. Trey Marcham-137 2. Alex Schutte-119, 3. Ronnie Gardner-107, 4. Jarid Blondel-80, 5. Johnathon Henry-62, 6. Sean Dodenhoff-60, 7. Jake Swanson-59, 8. Terry Goodwin-53, 9. Troy Rutherford-50, –. Steve Davis-50, 11. Chad Nichols-46, 12. Shannon McQueen-42, –. Tyler Dolacki-42, 14. Chris Ennis-41, 15. Scott Pierovich-39, 16. Ricky Shelton-31, –. Terry Nichols-31.
HONDA USAC WESTERN MIDGET POINT STANDINGS:
1. Alex Schutte-172, 2. Trey Marcham-137, 3. Jarid Blondel-130, 4. Chad Nichols-116, 5. Ronnie Gardner-107, 6. Jake Swanson-102, 7. Scott Pierovich-78, 8. Darin Snider-73, 9. Johnathon Henry-62, 10. Sean Dodenhoff-60, 11. Nick Chivello-58, 12. Terry Goodwin-53, 13. Steve Davis-50, –. Troy Rutherford-50, 15. Shannon McQueen-42, –. Tyler Dolacki-42, 17. Chris Ennis-41, 18. Ricky Shelton-31, –. Terry Nichols-31.
2014 HONDA USAC WESTERN DIRT MIDGET SERIES SCHEDULE
DATE – TRACK – LOCATION
May 31: Tulare, CA – Thunderbowl Raceway
July 5: Santa Maria, CA – Santa Maria Speedway (Party At The Coast)
July 19: *Hanford, CA – Kings Speedway (Jim Evett Memorial)
July 26: Lemoore, CA – Lemoore Raceway
August 9: *Petaluma, CA – Petaluma Speedway (John Soares Classic)
August 30: Calistoga, CA – Calistoga Speedway (Louie Vermeil Classic)
August 31: Calistoga, CA – Calistoga Speedway (Louie Vermeil Classic)
September 4: *Chico, CA – Silver Dollar Speedway (Gold Cup Race Of Champions)
September 20: Bakersfield, CA – Bakersfield Speedway
November 20: #Peoria, AZ – Canyon Speedway Park (Western World Championships)
November 21: #Peoria, AZ – Canyon Speedway Park (Western World Championships)
November 22: #Peoria, AZ – Canyon Speedway Park (Western World Championships)
November 27: #Perris, CA Perris Auto Speedway (Turkey Night Grand Prix)
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* = Co-Sanctioned Event with BCRA Midgets.
# = Co-Sanctioned Event with USAC National Midgets.
This schedule is subject to change.
2014 HONDA USAC WESTERN PAVEMENT MIDGET SERIES SCHEDULE
DATE – TRACK – LOCATION
June 7: *Madera Speedway – Madera, CA (Pombo/Sargent Classic)
July 12: *Madera Speedway – Madera, CA (Gerhardt Classic 100-laps)
September 13: *Madera Speedway – Madera, CA (Harvest Classic)
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* = Co-Sanctioned Event with BCRA Midgets.
This schedule is subject to change.