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Stephen Allard finishes 2nd to cap off championship
By Gary Thomas
Chico, CA - August 24, 2007...With the 2007 Silver Dollar Speedway championship already decided prior to championship night, Chico’s Stephen Allard was focused on going all out and trying to chase his fourth win of the season. That goal was very nearly accomplished, only to have the 25 lap main event cut short due to curfew and having to settle for a second place finish.
After qualifying second fastest in the 32 car field during Coca Cola championship night at Silver Dollar, Stephen lined up sixth in the scheduled 25 lap main event. The surface remained racy and hooked up all night which made for some fantastic racing on the 1/4 mile. SA was on the hammer early and got by Mason Moore to place the Johnny’s Lock & Safe, Cross Creek Trucking, Finley Farms No. 1m into second place within the first couple laps. The 34 year-old then set his sights on leader Andy Forsberg and gave several strong runs at Forsberg in turns one and two, but played it safe and waited for the race to come to him.
Lap 10 saw a caution and during the stoppage it was decided to cut the race back to 20 laps with curfew looming ahead. Unfortunately for Stephen on the restart he had a lap car separating himself from Forsberg and it allowed the 92 machine to escape as the green flag came back out. As traffic came into play, however, it gave Stephen a shot and he rapidly closed back in on Forsberg. With the laps winding down Stephen gave it everything and when the checkered flag flew he fell about one car length short of Forsberg and winning the six foot tall Coke Night trophy.
It was disappointing in the fact that the shortening of the feature took away a possible shot at victory. That’s racing though and the night as a whole was very strong and ended with Stephen bringing home his 12th top five finish of the season in the Feather Falls Casino Friday night point season. The final stats for the Silver Dollar Speedway season also show one fast time, three A-main wins, five heat race victories and 13 top 10's. Stephen and 1m Racing officially won the championship by more than 60 points.
Stephen was interviewed after the race by Silver Dollar Speedway announcer/PR guru Troy Hennig on the front straightaway and said, " I want thank my car owner Skip Jones and every person that helps out with this race team. I wouldn’t be out here as the champion if it weren’t for each and every one of my crew members and sponsors. This championship was tough and it took a lot of hard work. I can’t thank my crew guys enough. I also want to thank all the fans that come out and support us every week."
The track title is the first solo championship for Stephen of his career. He was a co-champ with Shane Scott in 1996, but nothing compares to this. It means a lot to Stephen to win the championship and shows just how talented he truly is. The title is also the first for 1m Racing since 1992 and the whole team is extremely happy to get this championship as we now look forward to the upcoming Gold Cup Race of Champions.
This year’s Gold Cup is shaping up to be one of the best ever and the anticipation is huge. Over 90 cars are expected for the event and just making the A-main on Saturday will be a feat in itself. Stephen has had a very strong car all year at Silver Dollar Speedway and with a little luck he’ll be a certain contender when the 54th annual installment of the event goes green on September 6.
For the latest news on 2007 Silver Dollar Speedway champion Stephen Allard log onto http://www.stephenallard.com
Photos by Davy Thomas
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www.sprintcarchallengetour.com
www.placervillespeedway.com
www.stocktondirttrack.com
www.thunderbowlraceway.com
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After winning the Silver Dollar Speedway 410 track championship, Stephen Allard and 1m Racing will turn our attention towards the 54th annual Gold Cup Race of Champions. A few years ago at the Gold Cup Stephen finished fourth during his prelim night and brought home an 18th place during the 40 lap finale. He'll look to the put it into the A-main once again in a couple weeks.
www.sprintcarchallengetour.com
www.placervillespeedway.com
www.stocktondirttrack.com
www.thunderbowlraceway.com
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