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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
USAC West Coast Sprint Car Series
JACE VANDER WEERD IS BACK ON TOP AT HANFORD’S JIM EVETT MEMORIAL
By Lance Jennings
OCTOBER 6, 2015... Leading all 30-laps, Jace Vander Weerd of Visalia, California won Saturday’s “Jim Evett Memorial” at Hanford’s Keller Auto Speedway. For Vander Weerd, the USAC West Coast Sprint Car triumph earned $1,500 plus an additional $3,000 from lap money raised by the Evett family. Mike Spencer, “Hollywood” Danny Faria Jr., Fast Qualifier Jake Swanson, and Richard Vander Weerd rounded out the top-five drivers.
Racing the family owned #88 Vander Weerd Construction / Stone Gate Development Maxim, Jace Vander Weerd scored the biggest win of his career. The former USAC/CRA Rookie of the Year began his night by qualifying sixth out of nineteen racers and taking fourth in his heat race. Starting on the pole position, Vander Weerd held off several challenges by Mike Spencer to maintain the lead. Several caution flags would halt the action, but Jace had excellent restarts and hit his marks to earn his first victory of the year. Ranked third in points and moving to eighth on the win list, Vander Weerd has two heat race victories, one Competition Suspension Inc. / Rod End Supply Semi-Main Win, and thirteen top-10 finishes to his credit.
Temecula, California’s Mike Spencer pressured Vander Weerd for the top spot but had to settle for second at Hanford. Piloting Mark Priestley’s #7M Sander Engineering / Roy Miller Freight Lines Maxim, the five-time USAC/CRA Champion was fourth quick in time trials and ran third in his heat race. In limited starts, Spencer is nineteenth in the point standings with three top-10 finishes and 17 feature laps led on the year.
“Hollywood” Danny Faria Jr. of Tipton, California scored third in the “Jim Evett Memorial.” Driving Junior Bowman’s #17V Buster & Ziggy Enterprises / SurfnSprint Spike, Faria qualified third overall and placed third in his heat race. Closing in on his second championship, “Hollywood” has a 143-point lead with three feature wins, two Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, one top-qualifier award, six heat race victories, twelve top-10 finishes, and 88 feature laps led.
After earning his first Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, Anaheim, California’s Jake Swanson ran fourth in the 30-lap feature. Piloting Tom and Laurie Sertich’s #92 Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror / Ram-Bull Racing Buckley, Swanson claimed fourth in his heat race and left Hanford ranked sixteenth in points. To date, the USAC/CRA regular has one Competition Suspension Inc. / Rod End Supply Semi-Main Win and three top-10 finishes in the campaign.
Visalia, California’s Richard Vander Weerd charged from ninth to score fifth in the “Jim Evett Memorial.” Racing the family owned #10 Vander Weerd Construction / Stone Gate Development Maxim, Vander Weerd was ninth fast in time trials and won the 10-lap Saldana Racing Products / Keizer Wheels Heat Race #3. The 2011 Champion is second in points with two feature wins, one Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, four heat race victories, two DMI / Ultra Shield Race Products Hard Charger Awards, ten top-10 finishes, and 43 feature laps led.
Bud Kaeding of Campbell, California was back in USAC West Coast action and earned his second DMI / Ultra Shield Race Products “Hard Charger / Best Passing Job” honors with a sixth place run from fourteenth. Driving Junior Bowman’s #29 Buster & Ziggy Enterprises / Kaeding Performance Maxim, Kaeding qualified fourteenth overall and ran second to Terry Schank Jr. in his heat race. Heading to Tulare, the 2012 Champion is eighth in the standings with one feature win, one heat race victory, seven top-10 finishes, and 19 feature laps led on the year.
Tracy, California’s Austin Liggett raced to victory in the 10-lap Extreme Mufflers Heat Race #1. Piloting the family owned #83 Excel Environmental Services / Home Connections Inc. ART, Liggett was seventh quick in time trials and scored tenth in the feature after a late caution ended his top-five run. In limited starts, the 2012 Rookie of the Year is thirteenth in the standings with four heat race victories and five top-10 finishes.
Making his first USAC West Coast start, Terry Schank Jr. of Santa Rosa, California won the night’s 10-lap DJ Safety Heat Race #2. Racing Roger Gleeson’s #1 Joe Hunt Magnetos / King Racing Products Spike, Schank qualified eleventh overall and scored sixteenth in the “Jim Evett Memorial.” Terry left Hanford tied for fifty-fourth in the championship chase.
This Saturday, October 10th, the USAC West Coast Sprint Car Series will battle at Tulare’s Merle Stone Chevrolet Thunderbowl Raceway. The KRC Safety Fall Shootout will also showcase the King of the West and Western RaceSaver Sprint Cars. For more information, visit www.tularethunderbowl.com or call 559.688.0909.
The USAC West Coast Sprint Car Series thanks Amsoil, Hoosier Tire, Chris Kearns Presents, Competition Suspension Inc., DJ Safety, Diversified Machine Inc., Extreme Mufflers, Keizer Wheels, Pyrotect Racing Cells, Rod End Supply, Saldana Racing Products, Ultra Shield Race Products, and Woodland Auto Display for their support. If you or your company would like to become part of the series, email PR Director Lance Jennings at [email protected].
For more information on the series, visit www.westcoastsprintcars.com, and www.usacracing.com. You can also find exclusive content on the USAC West Coast Facebook and Twitter pages. Loudpedal Productions has DVDs available for purchase that feature the USAC West Coast Sprint Cars and for more information, call 805.407.7229 or visit www.loudpedalvideo.com.
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USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR RACE RESULTS:
October 3, 2015 – Hanford, California – Keller Auto Speedway at Kings Fairgrounds – “Jim Evett Memorial”
WOODLAND AUTO DISPLAY TIME TRIALS:
1. Jake Swanson, 92, Sertich-15.872; 2. Trey Marcham, 73, Ford-15.879; 3. Danny Faria Jr., 17V, Bowman-16.064; 4. Mike Spencer, 7M, Priestley-16.068; 5. Troy Rutherford, 11, Rutherford-16.074; 6. Jace Vander Weerd, 88, Vander Weerd-16.077; 7. Austin Liggett, 83, Liggett-16.079; 8. Dennis Howell, 62, Howell-16.082; 9. Richard Vander Weerd, 10, Vander Weerd-16.203; 10. Max Adams, 5X, Adams-16.358; 11. Terry Schank Jr., 1, Gleeson-16.359; 12. Jeff Sibley, 42N, Sibley-16.390; 13. Gary Paulson, 51, Paulson-16.413; 14. Bud Kaeding, 29, Bowman-16.441; 15. Tristan Guardino, 81, Watt-16.453; 16. Shannon McQueen, 87, Van Meter-16.837; 17. Cody Majors, 54, Majors-17.218; 18. Jonathan Logan, 32, Evett/Logan-17.552; 19. Todd Miller, 96, Miller-NT.
EXTREME MUFFLERS HEAT RACE 1: (10 laps)
1. Liggett, 2. Paulson, 3. Spencer, 4. Swanson, 5. McQueen, 6. Adams. NT
DJ SAFETY HEAT RACE 2: (10 laps)
1. Schank, 2. Kaeding, 3. Rutherford, 4. Marcham, 5. Howell, 6. Majors. NT
SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS / KEIZER WHEELS HEAT RACE #3: (10 laps)
1. R.Vander Weerd, 2. Guardino, 3. Faria, 4. J.Vander Weerd, 5. Sibley, 6. Logan. NT
FEATURE: (30 laps – With Starting Positions)
1. Jace Vander Weerd (1st), 2. Mike Spencer (3rd), 3. Danny Faria Jr. (4th), 4. Jake Swanson (6th), 5. Richard Vander Weerd (9th), 6. Bud Kaeding (14th), 7. Max Adams (10th), 8. Tristan Guardino (15th), 9. Cody Majors (17th), 10. Austin Liggett (7th), 11. Shannon McQueen (16th), 12. Gary Paulson (13th), 13. Dennis Howell (8th), 14. Jonathan Logan (18th), 15. Troy Rutherford (2nd), 16. Terry Schank Jr. (11th), 17. Trey Marcham (5th), 18. Jeff Sibley (12th). NT
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**Miller flipped during qualifications. Sibley flipped during the feature.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-30 J.Vander Weerd.
DMI / ULTRA SHIELD RACE PRODUCTS HARD CHARGER: Bud Kaeding (14th to 6th)
USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS:
1. Danny Faria Jr.-861, 2. Richard Vander Weerd-718, 3. Jace Vander Weerd-659, 4. Trey Marcham-651, 5. D.J. Johnson-607, 6. Tristan Guardino-535, 7. Ryan Bernal-478, 8. Bud Kaeding-448, 9. Landon Hurst-443, 10. Jeff Sibley-375, 11. Brody Roa-362, 12. Troy Rutherford-325, 13. Austin Liggett-314, 14. Shannon McQueen-300, 15. Max Adams-263, 16. Jake Swanson-205, 17. Matt Mitchell-181, 18. Kyle Smith-176, 19. Mike Spencer-168, 20. Colby Copeland-166.
2015 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR SERIES SCHEDULE
DATE - TRACK - LOCATION
October 10: Thunderbowl Raceway - Tulare, CA (KRC Safety Fall Shootout)
November 19: *USA Raceway - Tucson, AZ (Western World Championships / Grudge Series / $1,500-to-Win)
November 20: *USA Raceway - Tucson, AZ (Western World Championships / Grudge Series / $1,500-to-Win)
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November 21: *USA Raceway - Tucson, AZ (Western World Championships / Grudge Series $3,000-to-Win)
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* = Co-Sanctioned Event with USAC Southwest Sprints.
This schedule is subject to change.
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