By Marty Czekala
The A-Verdi Storage Containers CRSA Sprints, powered by Super Gen Products, are set for a two-in-three weekend.
First, the series returns to Land of Legends Raceway in Canandaigua on the Fourth of July for round two of the DisBatch Brewing Company Challenge. After that, a trip to Genesee Speedway in Batavia July 6.
The race in Canandaigua is part of the Super DIRTcar Series’ Stars and Stripes 76 undercard. It is the second of three races in which CRSA is involved in an SDS event.
Last time at Land of Legends, Matt Rotz scored his first 305 Sprints win, holding off Bobby Parrow in the final laps.
Genesee Speedway will host “The Future Stars of Sprint Cars” for just the second time. The 1/3-mile facility hosted the eventual season finale on Sept. 22, when Dalton Herrick took the checkered flag.
Here’s a look at the stories entering the weekend.
Tune In: Action can be seen Thursday live on DIRTVision with Marty Czekala. Both races will have updates on the MyRacePass app featuring lineups, results and more.
Last Race: A return to the Afton Fairgrounds Speedway May 31 for CRSA to continue the Joe’s Garage Southern Tier Series. With nine to go, Kyle Pierce took advantage of Jeff Trombley’s blown motor to take the lead and not back for his first win of the season, the fifth of his career.
This was a race in which the one that got away returned to him. Last time at Afton, Pierce was leading when he ran out of fuel in the final laps, giving the win to Dalton Herrick.
“Anytime we can win, or even in the top 10, that’s a great day for us,” said Pierce post-race. “To finally get a win is a great way to start the summer months.”
Mike Kiser finished second, while Dalton Herrick was third.
We know Drama: In the last three races of action, exciting moments have unfolded amongst the leaders in the second half of the race. Rotz had to hold off a hard-charging Parrow in the final laps for his first career sprint car win at Land of Legends. Back at Weedsport, Parrow broke a rear end to give Jordan Hutton the win. Now, May 31 at Afton, it was Trombley’s engine giving away to give Kyle Pierce his first win.
Bad Luck June: Mother Nature did not play nice with “The Future Stars of Sprint Cars” in the sixth month of the calendar. Last month, the first race at Fonda was tentatively dropped due to a stacked card featuring makeup features. In contrast, the previous three scheduled races at Utica-Rome, Penn Can and Outlaw were rained out.
This marks the first time in series history (excluding the 2020 COVID-19 season) that CRSA did not race in June.
The lone race at Outlaw was postponed to Aug. 16, setting up a two-in-two weekend alongside Woodhull the next day. CRSA is still working with Fonda, Utica-Rome, and Penn Can track officials to find a makeup date.
What’s Happening?: With postponements the last few weeks, some drivers have had a few places to run. The first? Land of Legends Raceway in Canandaigua. On June 15, 23 drivers checked in. In the end, Timmy Lotz recorded his first 305 Sprint victory over Darryl Ruggles and Bobby Parrow.
“Those (yellows) kept coming one after another, was just hoping they’d stop,” said Lotz in victory lane. “Was trying to figure out how to get around all that (lapped traffic), so I’m glad the caution came out for that (last) one. I didn’t even know it was the checkers, thought we still had one more (lap) to go and then I see (Hixson) throw the doubles (checkered flags) so I knew I was good to go.”
Johnny Kolosek and Ruggles have also won in recent weeks of action.
Other tracks drivers ran included Empire Super Sprints action at Freedom Motorsports Park, which featured Hutton finishing eighth; Sprint Cars of New England at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, which saw Tyler Chartrand finish runner-up in one of the A-Features; and USAC East Coast Sprints at Utica-Rome, which saw Billy VanInwegen finish runner-up.
Last Time at Land of Legends: On May 18, CRSA kicked off the DisBatch Brewing Company Challenge and featured a first-time winner in Matt Rotz. The No. 77 has raced 305s for the last four years and led all 20 laps, holding off Bobby Parrow in the final laps to become the 78th different winner in CRSA history.
“The past month and a half have had excitement surrounding the win,” said Rotz. “A lot of people have been congratulating me on it. We’re excited for the next CRSA race and hoping to get a good starting spot. I’m hoping to try and keep my title as the DisBatch Brewing Company Challenge points leader right now. But the Fourth of July spectacular, that’s another big race. We’ll see how it goes.
Last Time at Genesee: Dalton Herrick drew the pole and dominated the 25-lap feature to score his third win of 2023. Approaching race night, two races (at the time) were left to go in the season, and Jordan Hutton had a 45-point lead on Herrick. The point margin was cut significantly as an issue with the fuel system took him out of a good finish with seven laps to go.
Car Counts: With the increase in driving 305s, the car count record could be broken. On May 17, 38 drivers checked in, a record before Weedsport May 26 broke it again with 42 cars.
By the Numbers: In 20 races of action at Land of Legends, the average car count is 23.4 cars. The last three races have averaged just over 33 vehicles, with the track record increasing in each race. Darryl Ruggles leads in series wins at the Land of Legends with five and in top fives with 12. Jeff Trombley, looking to become No. 1 in all-time wins, currently stands with 14 career wins, three at Land of Legends, tied with Alysha Bay.
From the Frontman: “We’re sick of Mother Nature! She canceled our month of June. What better way to start July than an Independence Day spectacular at a weekly track for 305 Sprint Cars? We’re excited to return to CRSA competition.” ~ Mike Emhof
From the LOLR Track Promoter: “July 4th is a special time of the year for all of us at Land of Legends. Not only do we have the best Modified drivers in the region, but also the best 305 Sprint Car drivers too. The last time we had CRSA in May, we saw an incredible feature with a high car count. What better way to celebrate America’s independence than to have both the Super DIRTcar Series and the CRSA Sprints together at Land of Legends Raceway? It’s going to be an awesome night!” ~ Paul Cole
From the Genesee Track Promoter: “We are very excited! The people loved it when CRSA was there last September. It gives our fans something different to watch than just our weekly classes. It’s going to be an exciting Saturday night!” ~ Kurt & Bonnie Stebbins
Up Next: CRSA takes the weekend of July 11 off, then returns to action July 19 at Afton Fairgrounds Speedway for the third round of the Joe’s Garage Southern Tier Series. Can’t make it? Action can be seen live on Dirt Track Digest TV.
Standings
1. 66 Jordan Hutton 624 pts
2. 22 Tomy Moreau -16
3. 9K Kyle Pierce -25
4. 29 Dalton Herrick -26
5. 3A Jeff Trombley -31
6. 21B Blake Warner -40
7. 28 Ron Greek -40
8. 410 Jerry Sehn Jr. -58
9. J27 John Cunningham -85
10. 99 Adam Depuy -139
DisBatch Brewing Company Challenge Standings
1. 77 Matt Rotz 161 pts
2. 80 Bobby Parrow -5
3. 48A Alysha Bay -6
4. 3A Jeff Trombley -9
5. 22 Tomy Moreau -12
6. 23 John Smith -13
7. 10 Nathan Pierce -14
8. 21B Blake Warner -18
9. 21Z Zach Sobotka -21
10. 18C Dan Craun -21
Previous Winners @ Land of Legends
1. Darryl Ruggles (5) 2018×3, 2020, 2022
2. Jeff Trombley (3) 2018, 2019, 2021
3. Alysha Bay (3) 2018, 2019, 2022
4. Jordan Hutton (2) 2023×2
5. Erik Karlsen (1) 2019
6. Johnny Kolosek (1) 2019
7. Cory Spark (1) 2020
8. Bobby Parrow (1) 2021
9. Jason Whipple (1) 2021
10. Dalton Herrick (1) 2023
11. Matt Rotz (1) 2024
Previous Winner @ Genesee
1. Dalton Herrick (1) 2023