surfnsprint

Race #15

Ventura Raceway

August 26, 2006

all photos by shootnsprint

There occur moments in time where the gods of circumstance decide to play with the witches of happenstance. The ordinary affairs of everyday are pushed aside and privileged people are treated to something special. I believe promoter extraordinaire Jim Naylor has brought us to such a time. I feel like we are at some kind of atomic raceway where a cast of hard core drivers are completely shredding the open wheel dirt track envelope. Last night I saw more guts, drama, crashing, comedy, fate and redemption than a track or website can hold. If you were there, you know the real story was the titans battling up front, but let me tell you a few things that happened on the way….

I know he’s getting the most pictures but what can I do? Taylor, absolutely sick in turn two.

Quick Trip through the Pits:

First off, how about Brian Camarillo! This kid is improving faster than the exponential learning curve allows. Jacked his heat race last night and really made his own luck. Then finished top ten in the main event right behind his dad. Talk about a rising star! If you include the erstwhile Rob Kershaw, three Agromin cars rolled consecutively across the finish top ten. Also knocked out to see hard working Derek Buckley finish tenth…..Funniest story: I have been telling Chris Wakim that my youngest is his biggest fan. Chris recounted how one year he was in the latrine pre race, standing at the urinal doing his business. He looked to his side to see a four year old also taking care of business. The kid looked up at him and said “how’s the car, Chris?” “Pretty good” says Chris, nodding nonchalantly. And that was it!.... I heard that Steve Conrad is replacing Tom Stansbury in the Bach 410 machine next year. This really bummed me out because Steve is one of my favorite Ventura drivers. Selfish of me, good for him, smart of Bach…..I waved at Cliff but he didn’t really respond. He was sicker than a dog last night, probably ate some raw oysters while he was in Nova Scotia for the break! His ace crew covered for him all night. Scott Holder was in San Diego, says it was a business conference but he looked pretty tan. I was in San Francisco for the break and found out about a cool little track in Petaluma. Gotta go back and check it out. Kierce doesn’t take breaks, finished fifth in Hanford and third in Santa Maria. I saw the in car tape from Hanford and it was off the rocker!…. But mostly, everybody was stoked to be back in Ventura!

Heat Races:

I mortgaged my soul for some new camera gear and photographed the heats from the infield. Talk about the belly of the beast. I never really appreciated how a Modified lifts up on its rear haunches when irritated. Or how ugly it can get between Alderman and Bach as they compete for the same dirt in turn two. That’s some mean love going down there!

First senior heat put John Richards in the wind and away. Talked to John a few weeks back and he is such an interesting guy. It’s all about cars and planes and this guy’s way too young for his age. McArthur, Badger and Bach shared the transfer with him and I suspect would agree with me. Second senior heat had that young bully Ron Butler teasing all the other kids. Prosser, Stassa and Moon tried to catch him but Butler was having things his way. The third senior heat brought out Champ Wily Miller and speed demon Ross Millar. Wiley prevailed as he is prone to do, with Culver, Millar and Gentleman Jim Porter closing ranks behind him.

We now switch to the VRA Sprints. Heat one was a tough son of a gun! Crawford took the pole and beat the track over the head with it. Snappy and confident, he looked ready for the main event. Espinoza was on his butt, but couldn’t quite catch. Little did we know the roles would soon be reversed. Taylor and Wakim started fourth row and had to work for their transfers with Conway and Figueroa getting caught in the crossfire. (Was that Cody Kershaw in that heat?!) Second heat had the newly empowered Steve Conrad blasting from the front row to the finish line. Wes Richardson ran an outstanding second followed by a sluggish Troy Rutherford and Ron Tjaarda. Third heat starred Brian Camarillo being chased by Billy Camarillo, Joe Henderson and Doctor Mark Weitzman. Richard McCormick blew something in the engine; Prosser caught a berm, bounced infield and had to watch the heat from there! The fourth and final heat was all about Kevin Kierce, I remember thinking how calm and smooth he looked, just another heat race. Donald Houghton took second, don’t know anything about him, I gotta check him out! Brandon Thomson looks very good in third while Derek Buckley reaches down deep to steal fourth from Errol Sack. Sack was driving hard, my best photo was of him but I screwed up the focus. Sorry Errol! Special thanks to Frank Bigham and Dave Wolf for all the camera help.

The Two Semi Main Events:

First semi had Angel Figueroa taking the pole position and making it happen. He had no problem getting out front and gone. Hobie Conway was in it as was Jake Vail. Oren Prosser Jr. came from the eighth row to the third spot. Dennis Rodriquez only lasted five laps, what a crappy year he’s having. Although Angel is way out front, the rest of it is side by side action. Conway spins to the rear but its hard racing that puts Angel and Jake Vail in the main event.

Second semi has Tom Hendricks dominating the action. Rob Kershaw gives him hell but can’t quite get around him. Tom Harper and Errol Sack also wanted to party, but they have to leave after this song. It’s Hendricks and Kershaw filling the last dance card, Prosser from the first semi gets the alternate. (Was that Cody Kershaw finishing fifth!).

Senior Sprints Main Event:

Ross Millar got the jump and ran like a rabbit. This guy is fast and getting faster. Jeff Culver was running with him chased by Steve Stassa. Further back I could see Wiley Miller working up a head of steam. Bach and Alderman were mixing in the corners even further back. Bruce Douglas was MIA. Culver and Stassa were battling in the second position. Stassa got around him and started after Millar in earnest. Now Culver is fighting Miller but loses that battle also. They all start getting into some traffic and Stassa finally nicks Millar for the lead. Somebody drops a nerf bar in turn one and we are yellow, we start again and then there’s more problems in both turns one and four. On the green its Stassa out front and a pitched battle between Millar and Miller. There is another crash on the eighteenth lap and they decide to checker the new law firm of Stassa, Millar and Miller. Pretty good racing for my dollar, I think this is Steve’s first win this year and he is fourth in points. Bach and Alderman are leading points in that order. Bruce Douglas is maintaining the third point’s position. Five races to go. Love the seniors.

VRA Sprint Car Main Event

The main event turned out be the best kind of sprint car racing. A battle up front between the point’s leaders, a battle in the middle between the same and solid racing in the back. Espinoza ran to the front and put the hammer down. Perfect track conditions with passing on the bottom and top. Crawford was in fine form as he settled in directly behind Luis for the chase. Kierce was on the move from the fourth row and Wakim was on the move from the sixth row. Nail biting action from the get go was suddenly interrupted when Prosser got up against the wall in turn one. Richardson left the field with a brake problem and the green kicked back in. Again its Luis and Jimmy in a high stakes speed brawl. Then you’ve got Billy Camarillo, Kevin Kierce and Brian Camarillo holding the fifth spot. Forthright as Brian is, here comes Taylor and Wakim. Everybody is swinging high except Bill Camarillo who is trying to get a jump on the bottom. Espinoza and Crawford are in fierce race with Luis really getting the best of it! Jake Vail was out, Rutherford was out and Crawford was out (didn’t see what happened). Wakim had spun himself in turn three and had to go to the back. A few laps later he got out completely in spectacular fashion. Coming down the front straightaway he locked wheels with Ron Tjaarda and took his own Jet Blue. Crowd cheered when he walked away from the carnage. Track was red, crews were wrenching then we kicked off again. Now it’s for the marbles as Luis and Jimmy take up again. Espinoza is ruthless and killing it! Crawford is reaching for anything when he suddenly hits a bump in turn four and drops a half second. Louis turns it into another time zone. Crawford is no longer catching Luis, he is now just maintaining second place. Kevin Kierce is dealing with Greg Taylor and this third place action starts heating up. An incredible display of driving ability as Kevin and Greg start trading slide jobs. All clean, all fast, just riveting the crowd to their seats. It is cutting edge racing, but is strictly for third place. Espinoza wins this race by really driving faster than anybody on the track. Crawford is aching in second, Kierce just clears Taylor for third, Taylor fourth and Mighty Joe Henderson takes another top five finish. Then its Billy Camarillo, Brian Camarillo, Rob Kershaw, Brandon Thomson and Derek Buckley rounding out the top ten. This has to be one of the hottest races of an incredible season. Luis Espinoza justifies his points lead, Crawford is a half second behind him, Taylor is still third in points, Kierce makes a big move from fifth to fourth and Rutherford stays in the top five. Bandits coming… 410’s warming up…. We now return you to your normal broadcast…..

Luis and Stephanie Espinoza enjoy the moment.