surfnsprint

timeless

If you were not at Ventura Raceway last night it will be hard for me to explain how beautiful it was. This jewel of a track was shining in the late afternoon California gold. The sea was sparkling in the background as race fans put up their feet and kicked back. The concession stands gave everybody a beer and a hot dog. It was poster night for Ventura’s own Cory Kruseman and this town sure is proud of him. I sat on the roof of the tower and watched one of those Amtrak things float by in the background. Two wide sprints, two wide and ten deep on the straightaway slowly creeping up on the cone, the drivers fidgeting as their collective nervous system suddenly tells the right foot to hammer down!.......

Quick trip through the pits:

Rick Hendrix, bringing it to the Senior Sprints

Finally got to meet Tom Stansberry and his dad, Ray. Tom has aced two championships at Ventura and so yeah, he likes this track. They were shaking down a new engine but graciously took time to talk to this pesky fan. Ray just got back from the Indy 500 and was telling me about Little 500, sprints on asphalt. I said it two weeks ago and I’ll say it again, pretty cool to have a dad wrenching your car…. Proudly sponsored by the Bach racing machine…(great shot of Bach by greywolfphotos.com in this week’s program)….

Next it was Danny Sheridan and his gang. Just wanted to tell him how inspiring his ride was back on April 22, Race 2 (see “Holy Sodbuster’s, Batman” in the surfnsprint archives). Still my favorite race for the current season. Danny is running about third or fourth in the USAC/CRA points and that’s no small thing. Loves Ventura, loves Santa Maria and loves racing. He pulled together his hardworking crew so I could take a picture.

Checked out Damion Gardner as he was talking to Heidi and Sam Tresler. This is a very thoughtful guy, soft spoken and reflective, took his time as he answered questions. Interesting story about learning to relax while driving. In the beginning, there would be a yellow and his arms would ache from clenching the wheel and he would realize he wasn’t breathing. Says his results improved once he started breathing while driving. He likes Ventura; this is his fifth race at this venue. Leading the USAC/CRA points, I suspect he will be breathing near the front of the pack tonight.

While all this is going on, the USAC and Ventura officials are running qualifying laps. These guys have killer equipment and they are all about splitting the atom. Jimmy “Neutron” Crawford shows them how it’s done with a 12.182. This is my lucky night because I’ve heard about Mike English for years and tonight I get to see him drive, subbing for an ill Rip Williams. He notches the second fast time with 12.261.Cory is third at 12.27 and Damion fourth with 12.275. The difference between 12.182 and 12.275 is about a tenth of second. I don’t know how to demonstrate a tenth of a second. Perhaps Professor Neutron can explain it to the class one day. (Kierce was in his 360 and was about three tenths of a second behind the leaders! Give em hell, Kevin.)

And Tricephus? That would be Hank Williams III.

Tom and Ray Stansberry, all about racing

VRA Senior Sprints

I was having such a good time in the pits I barely got back in the tower for heat one of the Senior Sprints. I want to say a howdy hey to Joyce who is going have a little shoulder surgery soon. We’re thinking about you and we’ll see right back here in the tower real soon. Heat one has Chuck Tyler is in this race and he goes from the pole to the hole. Wily Miller is charging right behind him as is Rick Hendrix. Bruce Douglas rides up the back of Rick’s rear tire and puts himself out. Rick seems ok and stays in third. Mark Chuhaloff inexplicably leaves the track. On the new start, Wily just grabs what is his and is followed across by Tyler, Hendrix and Harper in that order.

Second heat has Oren Prosser Sr. on the pole with Tim Moon next to him. John Richards and Bob Alderman are right behind them. We have a good start but this heat got sideways in a hurry. Oren had a clear lead, Alderman was making a good faith chase, Tim Moon took a weird trip across the infield and then suddenly Bill Leonard flips it turn four. He’s ok though and refires with a push! On the new green, Prosser holds off Alderman and they are followed across by Moon and John Richards. John Richards hasn’t missed a race yet; he just shows up every week and races his heart out.

Third heat and the crazy stuff continues. Jim Porter spins in the first lap… Chris McArthur is leading on the restart, Ross Millar on his tail, Brett Butler’s in there, so is Grady Wrinkler. Ron Bach, who started in the second row, hooks up with Porter in turn two, they do a little square dancing for the crowd, untangle and resume the race.?...another spin, another yellow…..Now we get racing and Millar edges McArthur for the front…Porter spins again and is asked to leave the dance…..Bach is now swinging high and takes third away from Butler….It’s Millar, McArthur, Bach and Butler. Ross Millar is turning into one fine race driver. Another Cory Kruseman driving school alumnus I do believe.

For the Senior Sprint Main Event, we stayed in the twilight zone and immediately had a yard sale in turn three. Leonard flipped it again, rolled into the infield and called it a night. He was ok. Wily Miller was out. On the new green, Bach and Hendrix start to slug it out when Butler flips it in turn 1.5 and it’s another parts picker picnic. So many cars involved I can’t keep it straight. Mike Cook is out. John Richards was out. Grady Winkler was out. Although spotted at the scene of the crime, Tom Fish and Ron Butler get a push and rejoin the crowd. Green again, yellow again and Jim Porter is sent home. Bob Alderman decides this is too fun and leaves the track. We are green! Hendrix, Bach and McArthur are at it with Harper and Prosser also running up front. Another spin, another yellow… Tim Moon starts looking for a cushion as everyone else is hugging the bottom. You have a dry slick track and it’s a tiny cushion Tim is pinning his hopes to. He starts moving forward and now he is fourth. Rick Hendrix is way out front, Bach is second, McArthur is third and Tim Moon is looking very aggressive in fourth. Now Moon is in third, Bach moves to the high side but misjudges in turn two, hangs up on the wall and loses positions. Tom Harper is really on the gas and it looks like he gets Bach’s spot! Fast and furious last laps with Hendrix firmly in first, followed by Harper, McArthur (who is Chris McArthur!) and the excellent Tim Moon. Tim took that cushion worth a nickel and turned it into a dime. Persistent Bruce Douglas takes fifth.

Never found out where Danny Miller was!

Thanks to everybody that’s been asking about my cousin, Ben, who fell 110 feet from a helicopter, landed on his head and survived! He walked out of intensive car at Tripler Naval Hospital last week, climbed into his wife’s car and they drove over to Rehab Hospital of the Pacific. He’ll be there for four to six weeks and then he gets to go home in time for their first baby. Thanks for all the wishes, prayers and positive feelings. In this life, anything is possible, attitude is everything.

wife Carrisa, Sergeant Ben, mom Lisa

USAC/CRA Sprint Cars

We are broadcasting from high atop of the tower at Ventura Raceway. I can see my racing buddies over at turn one. Washed in the afternoon sunlight, they got a program in one hand, a beer in the other and their eyes are on heat one of the 410 muscle movers. It started out with Chad Boespflug, Tom Stansberry and Greg Taylor converting the front rows to the lead positions. Suddenly Taylor uncharacteristically spins in turn two for no good reason. On the restart, Jimmy Crawford starts in with the high side. It works and soon he’s up to second. A few more laps and he is comfortably out front. Danny Sheridan is blazing second and with Boespflug and Tony Jones also in there swinging. The track seems to be going away for Stansbury and Taylor isn’t getting enough forward motion either. Jimmy Crawford, coming from the fourth row takes first, Sheridan from the third row in second, Tony Jones from the fourth row takes third and Boespflug hangs in there for fourth.

Second heat was clean and lean with front row Matt Stewart jumping ahead of Davey Pombo with Mike Kirby and Mike Spencer pushing them along. The action is hot with a lot of open wheel banging. I see Pombo drift down hard on Kirby but Mike keeps it together. Pombo is driving hard and he finally catches and passes Stewart. It’s Pombo, Stewart, Kirby and Spencer bunched up and crossing in that order. Exciting, skilled and aggressive sprint car driving. Mike English and Wes Richardson are going to the semi.

Josh Ford is heat three pole position and roars to the front on the green. Unfortunately there is a yellow, I didn’t see what happened but young Evan Suggs is out and Cory Kruseman, starting from the third row, spins and now has to go to the back. On the restart, Ford swings low and David Cardey aims high. Troy Rutherford and Blake Miller are also in this race and they take up third and fourth. Now Cardey spins in two and we are yellow again. On the new start, we have Ford and Rutherford dueling and we see Troy lay down a magnificent slide job. It’s now Rutherford, Ford, Miller and Kruseman. Kruseman is now on the gas and the crowd is impressed. I don’t think it took but two or three laps for him to pass the field. He has the speed of a gazelle with catlike reactions. I found myself thinking the other cars needed to get out of his way; they are really slowing him down! Troy and Josh got a thing going on and Blake Miller is definitely in the middle of it all. But it’s really all about the Kruser at the finish. Ford, Miller and Rutherford also cross, a little later in the afternoon! Wow.

Heat four has heavy hitters Damion Gardner, Michael Trimble and Kevin Kierce. Trimble takes the pole to the front but Nadine Keller spins and we are yellow. Trimble again in front, way out as Dwayne Marcum chases. Kevin Kierce and Damion Gardner start banking off the top. This is dusty dry slick and Naylor points out your set up crew better know what they are doing! Gardner on the gas, another display of speed and skill in Ventura’s tight quarters. Soon it’s Damion, Dwayne (don’t know Dwayne), Michael and Kevin. Kevin is really bedeviling Trimble. Nate Ziegler gets turned around in three and we have a green, white, checker to finish. Checkers has Gardner, Marcum, Trimble and Kierce.

Danny “Showtime” Sheridan and his crew pit in Ventura

The twelve lap semi main is a quick affair, putting Mike English on the pole and in the front position. He runs away with it, chased by Suggs, Stansbury and Richardson. It over in twelve laps with two yellows, advancing four (English, Suggs, Richardson and Taylor) with a provisional for David Cardey (don’t ask me!).

I take the main event line up sheet and head down to show my buddies the line up. I am making my way through thick crowds lined up for food and drink. There are a lot of people here tonight! As the cars load the track for the main event, I am up in turn one with friends discussing prospects. As flagman Phillip Stevenson shows the cars one, I am racing across deserted grounds to get back to the tower. There isn’t a soul alive in the concession area; every freaking fan was back in his seat for the start of the main event! And we are green!

With a beautiful roar the USAC/CRA sprints lunge for the first turn, local Kevin Kierce showing his visiting friends around the track! Matt Stewart spins and we are yellow. New start, this time Danny Sheridan is the tour guide, followed by Blake Miller, Mike Spencer and last weeks winner Tony Jones. Sheridan gets a good run going on everyone with Blake and Spencer banging it out behind him. Now Blake is being hassled by Tony Jones. And if things weren’t busy enough for the front runners, here comes Kruseman and Gardner. I don’t think the front runners even have to look; they know those two are coming! Sheridan is doing an incredible job banging the walls and starting to lap cars, but Cory is now on his tail and applying pressure. The pressure is that with Cory at this track you cannot afford the smallest error. I see Danny miss his line by a fraction and Cory picks up ten feet. Cory isn’t going make mistakes here, this racetrack morphs to his expectations. At sixteen laps, David Cardey spins and we are yellow. Amusing sign language as they put Cardey to the rear. The restart gives Cory what he needs and he notches Sheridan for the lead. Behind them it’s Gardner, amazing Mike English, vet Mike Kirby and the dedicated Blake Miller. Further back, erstwhile Josh Ford is collecting the most passes for the main event, moving from eighteenth to a final eighth. With five laps to go, Sheridan is more fired up then ever, he comes up hard behind the Kruser in turn three, catches a tire and goes into the wall! I don’t think it was anything malicious with either party, just racing. Cory shakes it off and continues his lead. On the restart, Gardner tries to seize his last opportunity and he is side by side with Cory in turn three. But forget it, it could have been the Pope Mobile next to him, Cory wasn’t going to follow anyone tonight. With his wife and daughter watching from the stands, his crew, his fans, his town, it looked effortless as he carried them all across the finish line.

Cory and Glenn, building a legend one race at a time

posted: 4:56 PM