March 27, 2013 Grass Valley, California: Feels like
home. Cool mountain air is invigorating. Tall trees blot brilliant sunshine.
“Where the grass is greener and the snow is whiter,” bragged the late Mike
Goodhue, who lived here for 43 years. I have made pilgrimages to the Goodhue
ranch since 1987 when, not coincidentally, the first Mini Gold Cup brought the
World of Outlaws to Silver Dollar Speedway. Many a prospector has wandered into
these woods never to be found.
Last weekend in Central California was no
ringing endorsement for The Outlaws. Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare ate wings on
Friday and tires on Saturday. Such a shame it was too because Tulare can be
very, very good. This past weekend in Stockton and Chico was a better example of
why this sprint car series is called The Greatest Show on Dirt. Friday gave one
of the largest crowds in club history a late night but also a late three-wide
victory strike by Kyle Larson, Nor Cal’s gift to the racing world. Saturday saw
local product Paul McMahan (like Larson, a native of the Sacramento suburb of
Elk Grove) emphatically toss his hat in the ring to be World of Outlaws champion
by winning Mini Gold Cup in a spectacular conclusion that spit second-place Chad
Kemenah through the air as sixth-place David Gravel skidded backward through
infield grass.
Five days between Tulare and Stockton were spent in Visalia,
where many rigs dropped anchor. Outlaws have been at the Holiday Inn on 198
since Kings Speedway in Hanford first appeared on the schedule in 1985. In ’88,
I watched rival crewmen throw Richard Brown in the motel pool to celebrate his
Kings conquest with Doug Wolfgang and Gary Stanton. In 2013, Brian Brown, Cody
Darrah, Kerry Madsen and Joey Saldana all had transporters there.
Two exits
east at Motel 6 was the Kinser and Sides family. Several years ago, Jason and
Paul Sides were welcomed into Steve Kinser’s inner circle, using The King’s
court in Bloomington, Indiana and occasional experimental pieces. Who would not
nurture friendship with the world’s greatest? Monday when The King complained
that brakes were sticking on the truck that pulls his souvenir trailer, Jason
and Paul dove underneath to fix the problem. The energy of the brothers from
Bartlett, Tennessee is infectious. One speculates a solution, the other offers
slightly different diagnosis and they immediately tear the machine apart to
determine which is correct. Paul put a headlight in my car in about two minutes.
Jason produced a propane stove and grilled burgers and steaks for two nights.
Spending a week in the low dollar part of town can bring peddlers. I ordinarily
worry about rural racers falling prey to an urban con. Two Sides however, are
from Memphis, meaning there was a better chance that the hustler might get
hustled. Paul became proud owner of remote control helicopter and The White
Album by The Beatles.
Sides encountered one homeless black man at Motel 6
that played guitar and sang. After point standings had dropped them from second
to tenth, Paul announced that their California curse had been lifted by this
random “Robert Johnson” character. Happy days were ahead. After they rolled into
Stockton and Jason rolled twice, I asked Paul about his fraudulent witch doctor.
“I’m kickin’ his ass!” Sides said.
When in Visalia, I enjoy staying with
Steven Tiner, who was returning from the tragic Civil War opener at Marysville
while I was leaving Tulare. There were racers all over Tiner’s floor. Rob Hart
(he and Steven were Dennis Roth’s 2010 team behind Danny Lasoski) and Keneric
tire buster Rod Larraway occupied spare bedrooms. Jac Haudenschild and Finley
Farms crew chief Cory Guy filled the couches. I chose the Sides Motorsports
truck as my Monday and Tuesday bed. Wednesday is Dollar Taco Night (and two
dollar Coronas) at Azul’s as I shifted to the Tiner townhouse to fill space
vacated by Jac and Cory, who joined Kinser and Sides at Motel 6. To keep myself
and the public safe, Steven drove my Escort back from the bar. He had loaned his
BMW to Hart.
Just before bailing from Visalia (where Morrow and Walnut
contains In & Out Burger and Jamba Juice, perfect Cali corner) I was
contacted by Randy Mussell, who had ridden my Escort from Oakland to Tulsa for
the 2012 Chili Bowl. I had not seen Randy or Dan Smith since Trophy Cup. This
time, they jumped a train to Stockton to see the World of Outlaws christen the
San Joaquin Fairgrounds. I was solicited to shuttle them from the motel in
exchange for free downtown lodging.
The city of Stockton is in sorry shape.
America’s third least literate city ranks seventh in auto theft, tenth most
dangerous, and largest to ever file bankruptcy. Money sure did flow on Friday
when a reported 10,570 spectators streamed into the fairgrounds at $40 a head
and $10 to park. Paying to park is an element of baseball, football and
basketball from which fans of auto racing are generally immune. An estimated
3500 paid $50 to enter the pits and gawk at Tony Stewart.
As organizers of
virtually all of their California races, the World of Outlaws experienced modest
ticket sales in Stockton after announcing how a dirt oval would be constructed
in the center of a mile horse track. Once confirmation came that Tony Stewart
would make his winged Golden State debut, ticket sales rose appreciably. On the
Friday morning of the race, “standing room only” was all that remained. It could
also describe the cluster around Tony’s trailer.
Stockton 99 Dirt Track was
the bright idea of Tony Noceti, pavement promoter at the Stockton 99 Speedway
since 2009 who signed a 10-year lease in 2011. Race organizers often see
spacious seating and add the track as something of an afterthought. Cal Expo and
Delaware State Fairgrounds came to mind. Noceti did better by laying out a nice
3/8th mile with adequate banking and great clay. Friday wind was fierce,
requiring extra water that made it extra sticky. No fewer than ten cars did
flip, largely from losing arguments with one mean cushion.
Is there anything
that Kyle Larson can accomplish that might still astound us? Maybe he could win
at Bristol in his first appearance? Oh yeah. He almost did that. Maybe he could
clean up crime in Stockton? Or maybe he could qualify a heavy stock car on two
miles of asphalt, fly from Fontana to Stockton, strap on a Paul Silva sprint car
that was a bare A.R.T chassis four days earlier, make it third fastest, take the
lead, lose the lead, and then sweep to victory around the hottest driver of the
day, Tim Kaeding. No, even that difficult deed almost seemed routine. Sixth in
Saturday’s NASCAR 300 rendered Larson incapable of anything other than observing
at Chico, where he has hoisted last two Gold Cups.
Some of Kyle’s best
Stockton laps were nullified by yellow and red lights in his heat race. After he
blew around his Finley Farms ride, Larson saw Haudenschild sit up in the seat
and attack the cushion with vigor. But entering turn one, Jac jumped sideways
and snapped into a nose-to-tail cruncher that threw an axle 20 yards. Kyle won
that heat to make the pole dash, where he earned the inside second row start for
the feature. On lap three, he seized command from McMahan, surrendered to
Kaeding on a lap ten restart, and then stalked T.K through traffic. In turn one
of lap 26, Larson lagged behind Jason Statler. But in turn three of lap 28, Tim
was troubled by Sam Hafertepe and helplessly watched Kyle sail around both. In
turn four, Austen Wheatley spun. Under caution, most expected Kaeding to return
to first. The Outlaws however, were past midnight and invoked a rare “split
yellow” that kept Kyle out front. On the final restart, Kaeding crowded Larson
but could not land his third win in six starts.
McMahan led Friday, fell to
fifth at the finish, and led Saturday all the way to 10k. “Right before the
drivers meeting,” Paul said of Silver Dollar, “Barry Jackson told me that we’ve
got a contract to sign. I got pretty excited.” As platinum member, McMahan has
pledged participation in the entire World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car Series.
Apparently all he needed was a nickname. John Gibson dropped “Paul’s to the
Wall!” at Stockton. The Voice of The Outlaws altered music to include “Comin’ at
You Live” by Tesla as cars assembled for hot laps and “Last Chance” by Jet just
before Last Chance B-main.
Chad Kemenah’s concussion at Tucson put him on a
plane from San Diego to Indianapolis to have his head examined. “He told me to
consider another profession,” Chad said of the doctor who previously relieved
bleeding on his brain. Absent from Tulare, the Ohio champ finished sixth at
Stockton and second at Chico, where the $5500 check went to repair a second hard
crash in three weeks to the Bob Hampshire tribute car.
Not happy with traffic
or rules of procedure, Tim Kaeding followed second at Stockton with tenth at
Silver Dollar. Though not platinum members like McMahan and Chad Clemens,
Kaeding and Roth will race extensively with the World of Outlaws this
summer.
Tony Stewart added to his legend this week, even before he poked Joey
Logano. California had never seen Stewart in a sprint car other than asphalt
Beast 360s at Madera and Irwindale. He showed NorCal that he came to compete by
notching ninth at Stockton and winning heat, dash and third-place in his first
ever Silver Dollar race. Stewart jumped two initial starts to lead seven laps
until McMahan blasted by. On the last corner, Gravel jumped sideways and nerfed
Tony, who tangled wheels to send Kemenah into cartwheels. Bringing his outspoken
style to Chico’s front stretch, Stewart threw rocks at the double-file restarts
of the World of Outlaws which, ironically, lifted them from NASCAR.
Kasey
Kahne’s Great Clips effort behind Daryn Pittman produced fourth on Friday and
ninth on Saturday to remain 78 points ahead of McMahan atop the standings.
Stockton put them to work swapping an engine before hot laps. Pittman qualified
quickest anyway. Only the second Roth racer, driven by Kyle Hirst, timed faster
than Sage Fruit at Silver Dollar.
Willie Croft (Lamar 3c) and Jonathan Allard
were Stockton’s ninth and tenth drivers to get upside-down. Saturday’s show in
Allard’s hometown of Chico began with Jonathan making several laps in memory of
his brother, Stephen. In victory lane, Paul McMahan was misty as he spoke of
Stephen and Kenny Speck.
On a San Joaquin Fairground with feint resemblance
to his Minot hometown, Donny Schatz sailed around Stockton’s upper shelf from
row seven to third. He worked the top at Chico too until he climbed Evan Suggs
and spilled in turn three.
Kerry Madsen continued to dig out of deep holes,
starting a Stockton B-main collision that put Wayne Johnson on his lid before
charging from Row 12 to seventh in the A-main with punctured wing. Friday marked
the fourth field in nine to bury Madsen deep enough to earn KSE Hard Charger.
Kerry’s Kent Performance Center car used Integra shocks at Tulare and Factory
Kahne at Stockton. Madsen could not climb from Chico’s C-main.
No one at
Stockton expected 45 cars: a season high. No one expected the B-main to last 30
minutes either. In the final feet, Craig Dollansky and Kraig Kinser ran dry of
methanol just shy of the finish. Provisional starting spots are offered in order
of points, so Dollansky and Kinser bumped Jason Sides from his second feature in
as many weeks. Stockton was a mess for Sides, who turned over in his heat, went
from second to almost last in first corner of the B, turned over in the B,
pushed back off, drove to a transfer, then finished fifth. Chico was scarcely
better, though Jason did make the A-main.
Jac Haudenschild held a Silver
Dollar transfer spot until Rico Abreu and Jason Meyers made him sixth after 12
laps. One tough 55-year old, Jac walked off a savage crash at Stockton, where he
wore the Dan Motter fire suit that he acquired in autumn when he thought Dan was
going to back Jac and Bonzai Bruns on the Tom Leidic 59. Motter instead paired
with Joey Saldana and angered Patty Haudenschild, wife to the winner of the
first Mini Gold Cup in 1987 for El Paso trash merchant Ted Lee.
Abreu staged
a show on Saturday by winning the C, and taking the last transfer from Meyers in
the B. But early in the A, Abreu jumped Dollansky’s right rear and wrecked in
turn three, making more work for tireless Paul Silva.
Brian Bloomfield,
champion of the World of Outlaws with Meyers in 2010-11 and winner of Ohio Speed
Week with Stevie Smith in 2012, has joined Sammy Swindell’s band of Big Game
hunters in 2013. Bloomfield and Smith were parked by the indictment of San Jose
financier Chris Luck of GLR Investments. Luck and Chad Clemens co-owned Stevie’s
Black Bandit.
Mini Gold Cup concluded with a green/white/checkered double
file restart that placed David Gravel outside of McMahan. In the first corner,
Gravel got sideways in the cushion, surrendered several spots, retrieved a few
in turn three, jumped sideways again, glanced off Stewart, and slid backward to
sixth. David is scheduled for a fourth week as substitute for Bill Rose at
Merced, which is the same Friday when All Stars are at Attica, signaling an end
to Gravel’s full-time participation in that series.
Gravel and Shane Golobic
(Von Schriltz 121) staged Saturday’s best battle for second-place. Shane did not
start Stockton’s B, but finished fourth at Mini Gold Cup. Roger Crockett’s first
outlaw start since Las Vegas finished fifth. Eighth at Stockton was Steve
Kinser’s best finish of 2013.
Austen Wheatley camped at BR Motorsports in
Visalia with father Shannon (“Rooster”) and Ed Wilson of Memphis and qualified
fourth fastest on Friday with a Wolf Weld powered by Shaver Specialties. Last
year, Rooster had Doug Wolfgang in Washington as welder.
Terry McCarl left
Cancun, Mexico to qualify seventh at Stockton and go C-to-B at Silver Dollar in
the throwback Offill 88. One of the Offill pilots of the past was Ronnie Day,
who watched Friday with Damion Gardner and Andy Forsberg.
Matt Mitchell
figured he would rather race a winged 410 than wingless 360 so he headed to
Stockton and Chico with crew consisting of ex-Lealand McSpadden mechanic Terry
James and Dwight Cheney, car owner to Dave Darland on occasion. They were given
winged guidance by Richard Brown, who won at Kings in 1988 and departed Cole
Wood after Yuma 2013.
Grass Valley has been a little pan of gold for four
nights. Thursday will take me to San Jose to see and hear Jimmy Thackery &
The Drivers. Friday is the third annual World of Outlaws appearance on the
Merced Fairgrounds. Saturday is either USAC Western States Midgets at
Bakersfield or Civil War 360s at Antioch. Another week left to my own
devices.E
ok
