NOR CAL

MARCH 14^TH

APRIL 18^TH

MAY 15^TH – SHOOTOUT

JUNE 12^TH

JULY 11^TH

AUGUST 15^TH

SEPT 12^TH

OCT 17^TH – BANQUET

SO CAL

JAN 24^th

FEB 28^TH  

MARCH 28^TH

APRIL 25

MAY 15^TH – SHOOTOUT

JUNE 27^TH

JULY – OFF

AUGUST 29^TH

OCT 3^RD – BANQUET

10-16-08 Jim Russell Norcal Rotax Challenge Race #9 Race Recap

The Jim Russell Norcal Rotax Challenge Series returned to the Dixon Kart Track for the third time in 2008 and with a strong turnout of 37 drivers, there were some great performances at this tough Norcal track. 

Senior Rotax

With the largest class of the day of 13 drivers, the Senior race turned into a very interesting affair.  With series points leader Gregory Liefooghe still nursing some very sore ribs, a much desired win was being looked at  by some of the other top drivers like Nikola Radosavljevich and Matthew Powers.  But no one told Brett Buckwalter.  Brett was at the race to support a few Cameron Karting customers, but when one of his customers could not make the race on Sunday morning, Brett jumped in this kart and planned to just have some fun. 

In Qualify, Powers took the pole over Nikola with Buckwalter 3^rd, Larry Fraser 4^th and Andrew Novich 5^th.  On the start of the Pre-Main, Powers took the lead with Fraser getting ahead of Nikola to take over 2^nd, Buckwalter 3^rd and Nikola getting shuffled down to 5^th.  On the third lap, Fraser tried for the pass going into turn one but contact with Powers occurred and Matt spun off.  Fraser lost momentum and fell back to third and later would finish 12^th.  After the contact, Buckwalter took the lead with Nikola making a pass to take 2^nd.  These two pulled away from the rest of the field and finished 1-2 with Kirsten Gee taking 3^rd, Raymond Bustamante Jr 4^th and David Harwin 5^th.  In the Main, Buckwalter and Nikola immediately pulled away from the pack with Nikola on the veteran Buckwalter’s bumper the whole way.  The second battle on the track was for 3^rd through 7^th.  Gee lead the early laps over Bustamante with David Arnstein and a recovered Matt Powers right behind.  Harwin spun early on in the race and had to settle for an 11^th place finish.  Nikola stayed right on Buckwalters bumper but could not pull in that extra 3 feet needed to make a good pass, thus it was Brett winning and Radosavljevich 2^nd just .17 seconds back.  Kirsten Gee lead a four kart pack to the line to take 3^rd followed by Raymond, Arnstein and Powers.  These 4 karts were separated by just over one half of a second.

Junior Rotax

Light fields of only 4 karts, but these 4 drivers are all amongst the top 6 drivers in the points.  The surprise in Qualify was Jordan Miller putting her kart on pole ahead of defending champ Jordan Jadallah followed by Brody Zink and Bryce Hylbert.  At the start of the Pre-Main, Jadallah used his experience on the start to take the lead away from Miller as they went into turn one.  Jadallah then proceeded to pull out to a 3 second win followed by Miller, Hylbert and Zink.  At the start of the Main, Miller was not able to turn the tables on Jadallah and had to settle into 2^nd going into turn one.  But the young lady from Sacramento was able to stay closer and finished 2 seconds back at the end of the 15 lap race followed by Hylbert and Zink.  With the win, Jadallah takes over the points lead for the first time in 2008 and setting up a championship battle with absent Donavon Wheeler at the October 25^th finale.

Rotax DD2

At the beginning of 2008, there were three drivers challenging for the DD2 class honors, January Grove, David Arnstein and Glen Poy-Wing.  In June, young Kyle Gimple rented a DD2 kart to try the class out and took 4^th behind the 3 top runners.  Since June, the Minden NV, native has been liking the DD2 class more and more and getting faster with each race and taking a second overall last month at Infineon.  In Qualify, Kyle stepped it one more notch by taking the pole ahead of Arnstein, Grove and the other 6 drivers.  In the Pre-Main, Kyle held his lead going into turn one with Grove holding off Arnstein to take over 2^nd.  Gimple went on to take the win by 2 seconds followed by Grove, Arnstein, Bruce Weir and Chris Debruine.  In the Main, Gimple went into turn one in first again, but Arnstein got the better of Grove and took over 2^nd place.  Gimple controlled the race lead and only a driver error would keep him from his fist win of the year.  Making no errors, Kyle went on to the win.  Arnstein held off Grove to take 2^nd by about one half seconds.  Weir and Debrunine were nose to tail the whole 15 lap Main event but on the last lap they got too close and touched which sent Debrunine’s kart over Weir’s kart.  Weir’s kart was out and Debrunine had to settle for a finish just behind Weir.  Thus, 4^th went to Cameron Craig, with Weir 5^th one lap down.

Rotax Masters and Rotax Masters Light

With 8 Masters and 3 Masters Light entries, these two classes were combined for this event.  In Qualify, Lights Marc Pingol took pole over Masters David Carlisle with Mike Lawler (Lights) 3^rd, and Masters drivers Chris Debrunine 4^th and Jerry Pretti in 5^th.  At the start of the Pre-Main, the lighter karts of Pingol and Lawler lead into turn one followed by Carlisle.  Pingol lead the initial laps, but Lawler made the pass for the lead and won by less than 2 tenths of a second.  Carlisle took 3^rd overall but first in the Masters class followed by Pretti and Debruine.  In the Main, again the lighter karts of Lawler and Pingol opened up a slight lead at the dropping of the green flag.  But this time Lawler opened up a slight lead and went on to take a 2 second win with Pingol in 2^nd.  Third in Lights and 9^th overall was Mary Beth Wilson.  Carlisle controlled the Masters class and went on to a 3 second win over Pretti.  Jay Brosius got faster in the Main and challenged Debrunine and made the pass mid way through the race to take 3^rd in class and 5^th overall followed by Debrunine and Bill Brosius.  With his win, Carlisle locks up the 2008 Masters Class Championship for the 2^nd year in a row.

The next race will also be the final race in the 2008 Jim Russell Norcal Rotax Challenge Series.  The finale will be October 25^th at the Infineon kart track.  For more information about the Jim Russell Norcal Rotax Challenge Series, contact race director Ric Shaw at ricshaw_srp@hotmail.com

10-7-08 MMS TaG World Championship Report

MMS has had an astounding 2008 season. The Tag World Championships were no exception. With three drivers entered, and two winning the finals for their classes, the event was nothing short than impressive.

AJ Whisler of the FirstKart USA team was the lone TaG Senior competitor. The seasoned driver was able to have a very successful weekend finishing top-three in both heat races. To top it off Whisler won the Final event on his MMS-tuned Parilla/Leopard.

TaG Cadet driver Flinn Lazier competed in both Cadet 1 (MMS/Gazelle) and Cadet 2 (MMS/Comer) classes. The start of the weekend was a breeze, qualifying 1^st in Cadet 1 and 2^nd in Cadet 2. With bad fuel during part of the weekend, much work was done before the final events. Lazier would finish Cadet 2 in 2^nd with a fast time of the Final.

“I really had a great weekend and all the MMS drivers did a great job,” said Doug Sharp, engine builder and tuner for MMS. “The TaG engine is such a strong program in this country. I think that the way we finished at the TaG Worlds proves our packages are fast.”

MMS will next be attending the STARS Final next weekend, and then off to the Super SuperNationals. Anyone interested in the MMS services for these events should contact owner Mike Botelho at 775.322.4549.

10-15-08 Kartel Motorsports Stars Finale Action

Luis Tyrell qualified pole in the Stars Comer division by .653. Tyrrell was not in the National championship hunt, however fresh off his first Stars win in Seattle, Luis was hungry for another. Luis had successful heat races winning all three by more then a second. Tyrrell was on fire and had looked to sweep all the races for the weekend. Starting pole in the Final Luis looked fast early to get another win. The field had grouped together and ran down Luis by working together in the draft. Several times Luis would get shuffled back as far as fifth but wouldn’t be stopped as he work his way back to the point time and time again. As he white flag flew Tyrrell was running third. Making a pass for second, Luis set his sites on the leader. Racing to the Line Luis had a run on the leader for the win, but just missed by .024 of a second settling for second and a successful podium finish. In the second Final Luis again took the lead early. Bad luck would strike the young gun as a throttle cable would break and Luis had to work the throttle by hand. Luis did a tremendous job capturing the attention of all on the sidelines as he would hold on by using one hand on the wheel, and the other on the carb working the throttle and finishing 11^th

Brendan Phinny was in the battle of the National Championship but for the JICA Category, but struggled early in the practice sessions with motor troubles. His struggles would continue as he would qualify 20^th just over a half a second off from fast time. Phinny would not give up as he would keep his nose clean in the heats to secure a top starting position in the Finals. Starting ninth, Brendan had his work cut out for him. Staying out trouble to get solid points for the National Championship bid, Brendan was patient and worked his way up through the pack. With smart driving, Brendan secured a 5^th place finish and some much needed points. In the second Final Brendan got shuffled back early, but the young pilot continued to work and be patient. Coming through the pack, Brendan again scored a top five with a 4^th place finish scoring himself the National JICA championship

Sr drivers Chris Scribner and Neil Alberico would both bring their A game to the Stars Tag division. Scribner was fast all weekend as he was a long shot for the National Championship, and had not won a Stars event all year. Chris however grabbed the Gatorz pole position by a tenth over second position. Scribner would go on to score two wins and a second in the heat races to secure the Pole position for the Finals.  Neil however struggled in qualifying with motor troubles, but would not give up. Neil ran solid heat races to give himself the 9^th starting position coming through the field with solid passes. In the first Final Scribner would make battle for the lead as Neil would come through the field to catch the lead battle. Scribner and the lead kart got together, and this opened the door for another Top Kart driver and Alberico to do battle for the top spot. Neil stayed patient on his bid for the lead, and as the white flag flew Alberico made a daring turn three pass on the leader to secure his first Stars win for the rookie. Scribner would battle back to sixth, but would later be penalized and put back to 21^st

The second Final would lead to more success for the Kartel duo and their bid for wins. Scribner and Alberico would battle early in the lead pack. Alberico would get caught in a battle with another kart, causing him to lose the lead pack. Scribner made several passes for the lead as the race progressed. The last five laps however Scribner would be patient in third as the leaders would swap the position coming down to the final laps. On the last lap Scribner would make his move on the second position kart, and then drag race to the line to capture his first Stars win of the season and securing a Kartel Motorsports sweep of the Stars TAG division

Next up for Kartel Motorsports is the Nor Kal IKF Series in Monterey, California on October 17th-19th. From there the team will head to Davis, California at the end of October to finish off the 2008 IKF season. Kartels next National event will be the 2008 Supernationals at the Rio Hotel in Las Vegas on the 20th-23rd of November. Arrive and Drive opportunities are still availabe for all events this year, Contact Kartel at 916-217-2181

10-15-08 Jim Russell Calling all 80 Shifters

October 26 will be the last Jim Russell Sunday Series race of 2008.  Like September, where the Sunday Series opened up the schedule to include the TaG Grand Masters class (which will run again on October 26), race director Ric Shaw will be opening up the schedule to add Senior 80 and 80 Masters (30 to 44 years) to join the 80 Grand Masters class (45 years and up).  This will be the last chance to run the long straight National Track in 2008.  The 80 rules are Norcal IKF engines, YHC Bridgestone tires, 110 ERC Fuel with Burris Hi-Rev castor of Motul 800 oil.  Weight is 360# for Senior 80, 380# for Masters and Grand Masters.  The normal  Infineon 14” muffler rule will be changed to allow 12” mufflers for this race.  All mufflers must be of original condition and sound performance. 

:  10-7-07 Jim Russell Norcal Rotax Challenge at Dixon this weekend.

The Norcal Rotax Challenge Series, sponsored by the Jim Russell Racing Drivers Schools, will run Race #9 of the 2008 season at the tough and physical Dixon Kart Track this coming weekend.  Practice is scheduled for Saturday and racing on Sunday.  The Rotax classes will be part of the normal Dixon Kart Club race that also runs on Sunday.

This will be the third time the Norcal Rotax Challenge will run at the popular Dixon track.  The five Rotax classes will run in 4 different race groups: Junior Rotax, Senior Rotax, Rotax DD2 and Rotax Masters/Rotax Masters Light.  The Masters and Masters Light classes will run together, but scored separate.  Tight points battles exist in all the classes, thus entries should be strong and the racing very tight.

If you have ever wanted to look over the Rotax Series, this event will be a good event to come and see.  Total prizes for the 2008 Norcal Rotax Challenge is over $17,000 in racing school classes, helmets, car/truck tires and other prizes contributed by the Jim Russell Racing Drivers Schools and other sponsors such as Snap-on Tools, Dave’s Dive Shop, April Phillips Design Works, Oakland Autoworks, Molecule drivers suit care products and many more

10-8-08 Prairie City Race Action

The Challenger class was exciting, Cody the Fireman Stillwell grabbed the pole with a 50.447, Caitlynn Eckhardt was trying to put Cody's flame out and got a great start giving her the top spot on the heat for 2 laps until Cody pulled his fire boots on and headed to the front to put out her fire. He pulled out on lap 3 and grabbed the lead. Stillwell 1st/ Eckhardt 2nd/ Laspina 3rd. The main was almost a dead repeat on the heat with Eckhardt trying Stillwell on the start line and pulled her lap 1 -2 move. Stillwell dug deep and got her again on lap 3 and brought it home with the main finish the same. This win should put him up to first in points and Eckhardt 2nd in championship points.

Hpv 1

Kartel’s Jarred " The Hitman" Campbell grabbed the pole with a fast time of 47.173, Campbell hit the gas and said later to the field leading every lap in the heat race. Jr Raczko jumped in the battle and picked up 2nd place for laps 1-3 and Kartworlds Cole " Koolaid" Davis decided he wanted a piece of the action and slipped into 2nd place on lap 4 not having enough to catch Campbell he held on to the place with Nitro Nick bringing home 3rd. In the main Jr Raczko didn't want any part of the hitman so he quickly jumped out in first place and checked his rear view mirror to watch Campbell do battle with Tucker Dunbar who held 2nd place on laps 1 and 2 and Campbell wanting the spot pretty badly. The hitman drew a pointed black flag and a # board warning him to settle in and race, he got a pass on Dunbar and moved up to 2nd place leaving Dunbar and Bordogna’s Nitro Sommers who had the fasted time during the main of 46.978 but unable to do anything with all the traffic. The final lap showed Raczko 1st, Campbell 2nd, Nitro Nick 3rd, Jacobs 4th, Dunbar back to 5th.

Hpv2

Bordogna’s Troy Buckman grabbed the pole with a 45.163 and looked good for the start but Kartel’s Shelby Sander has a super start and pulls off a green to checker run leaving First time PC driver Rachel Jean Briggs in second place for a lap before Buckman took over and finished up second. In the main Shelby showed her hand to Buckman too soon and he was not about to let a repeat of the Heat race happen so Buckman just took the lead from green to checkers and let the rest fend for themselves. Shelby had no choice but to settle for 2nd place because it was pretty much follow the leader with Buckman getting away and Bordogna’s Justin Cole wanting her place.


Hpv 3-

Bordogna’s Jamie Sander, picked up pole with 45.746, looking good after being squished under a kart last race most drivers wouldn't even be sitting in a kart let alone 2 karts and two tough fields after what she went through on Sept. 14, she showed everyone that she was here and they better pay attention to her even if she talks softly, she pounds the pedal to the metal and was gone in the heat race green to checkers leaving the two Kyle's to dice it up between them. Kerkhoff was 2nd and Mau 3rd . In the main Jamie again just floored it and left the two boys to battle among themselves as she placed her kart in cruise control ( 45.251) and took a sunday drive out there Kyle & Kyle were squaring off at every turn. Looking for a place to pass was hungry Mau, who also drove double duty in the Tag Senior class. He made a sweet lap 8 pass leaving Kerkhoff with a 3rd place finish with Jamie #1, Maui in 2nd place

Hpv4 Jr

Ryan Rasberry- had the pole with 45.020, Bordogna’s Troy Buckman seemed to want the top spot as he made his move on the green leaving the field with Rasberry taking 2nd and new comer Rachel Jean Brigg also doing double duty in 3rd place. In the main Rasberry was all over Buckman but couldn't quite get by him leaving it a repeat of the heat race with Troy Buckman picking up a Win with Rasberry nipping at his heels in second place and 3rd place was Kartel’s Shelby Sander also a double duty driver.......how about Dad Curt who pits on 4 karts all day long plus anyone who brings one by for help........hats off to him

Jr 1-2 class:
 
California Kartworld's Cole Davis held 1st place for the whole race with Bordogna's Nitro Nick having fast time and spinning on the first corner he had to play catch up to “Kool Aid”  Davis who tried to quickly check out and get away with Jr. Raczkoo in hot pursuit. Davis didn't have much to worry about though with a points lead of 147 after this weekend he is sitting pretty about now.
 

Kid Kart:
 
Fast time was Christian Maxwell he picked up a qualify time of 1:00.394 in the heat Hunter Kelly wanted it pretty bad and grabbed laps 1-3 until Maxwell grabbed the lead back and cruised home for first chased by Kelly and Wyatt Couch. In the main Christian Maxwell pulle d a fast time out of his helmet of 58.752 leading he whole race not wanting to share the top step with anyone, Wyatt Couch tried to please his sister who was left on the sidelines watching after her turn one accident last race left her with a hot pink cast on her arm and a kart longing for her to race. Wyatt didn't get the win for his big sister but he came a close second and held off Blake Milton who on laps 1-4 was breathing down his neck wanting his spot and on lap 5 Hunter Kelly decided that he needed 3rd place more than Milton did and took the spot away. The Finish was Maxwell 1st, Couch 2nd, Kelly 3rd.
 
80 Shifter Masters:
 
Emmick's Tony Rodriquez might have come into the race down 75 points but he was far from done for the year as he layed the smack down challenge on the boys and pulled a fast time of : 45.585
RicK Gutzke the points leader wasn't afraid of losing any points, he jumped out there with a nice lead for laps 1-5 until Rodriquez chased him and was able to slip by on lap 6 and went on to win the race and set himself pretty for the main event. You could almost hear the pin drop out there when the visors went down and the green light flashed a go signal the boys took off and Rodriquez never looked back. Rodriquez- 1st, Gutzke 2nd, Bolen 3rd.
 
Super Sportsman Lite:
 
Surprise Surprise Emmick's Curt Lopez picked up the fast time of 47.248, with a very nice points lead he had no worries from anyone in the pack other than not getting into a turn one battle.
The Battle for the Day was between Brian Gallagher and Kemp who finished the day only 10 points apart for 2nd in points. In the Main Gallagher was sitting in Second place on laps 2 and 3 and on lap 4 he and Kemp were doing battle and Gallagher ended up shuffled back to 5th place,Geoff Nickless and Sean Klinger took advantage of the shuffle and Klinger picked up 3rd place from laps 4-7 when Nickless with a 47.913 got by but couldnt' catch Kemp in time who was turning a 48.040, the final was Lopez 1st, Kemp 2nd, Nickless 3rd. With only 10 points difference for 2nd place coming into the final race you better grab a spot on the fence !!
 
Tag Masters:
 
Grab the bag of popcorn and watch these crazy old guys race. They are fast and don't have to worry about going to work sore like the young guns. California Kartworld's drivers: John Chandler with fast time of 44.612 and Kartworld’s Mike Hays fighting with Emmick’s Crazy Ray Zarick for the Championship were going to be tough out there, The heat race Hays took off and lead the whole race with Chandler and Ray Zarick in tow behind. These drivers were grouped so close that you could have walked between them without touching the ground. In the main Mike Hays got the green and ran for his life with the faster Chandler trying to chase him down with lap times of 44.809 against Hays 44.958, but it just wasn't enough to get by Hays for any chance of a win. The final had a shake up with Crazy Ray picking up a Dq for the day leaving Hays 1st, Chandler 2nd, Kartworld’s Woody Poynter 3rd.  Zarick now is only hiding 10 extra points in that leather jacket, don't miss this class on the last race
 
Tag Senior:
 
Get ready to bite your nails and sweat out the finish:
The most watched class always with major players involved and a lot of fast drivers in there mixing it up. Kartel’s Jon Ban the Points leader came into the Day making a statement by breaking his own track record after Gary Lovoti said in the drivers meeting that the track was too slick and there wouldn't be any records set out there, however Ban threw down a smoking lap of 43.975 against
 teammate Kartel's Tyler Espinosa time of 44.513 The Class had pretty much a 5 way points battle going on still for 2nd place in points for the Championship. In the heat Ban took the lead and said " see ya later" as he won by almost a straight away from his team mate who grabbed 2nd place away from Bordogna’s Jamie Sander, Tyler drew a pointed black flag for his attempted passes on Jamie earlier in the run but finished the race clean and was ready for the main with Jamie Sitting pretty behind Ban again, Tyler outside pole with Kemp behind him in 4th. in the main Ban took off for turn one with Jamie trying to keep up leaving enough of a gap for Andrew Kemp to jump in behind Ban. Going into turn one Kemp got into Ban sending him sideways with smoke off his tires and noise in the air that drew attention to the track for the impending crash. Espinosa and Kevin Brown got together slightly as a after fact from Ban's turn one incendent sending Espinosa into the Barriers. Ban pulled it together and didn't lose but one spot and on Kemp's tail by turn 3, Kemp with speeds of 44.900 held Ban off for 5 laps running a defensive line. Ban got a run on Kemp on lap 3 going into turn 6 and ran up over Kemps tire. The karts were all nose to tail chomping at the bit until Kemp broke. Ban quickly checked out after Kemp's Dnf and pulled off his fast times and picked up another win with a nice lead over the pack. California Kartworld's Brandon Phillips had the best seat in the house glued to Ban's back bumper on laps 1-6 and picked up a 2nd place he Dedicated to his Grandfather who is in the hospital very ill. 3rd place went to Jamie 2 tough 2 tame Sander who made a last lap pass on Kevin Brown grabbing herself a 4 point difference in 2nd place points against Brown with Phillips moving himself up a spot - 29 and Kemp fell back - 43 points. This will again be a fierce battle between Sander/Brown and the New Comer Phillips close enough to push for a spot and Kemp having to race smart to stay in the top 5

Story By : Bev. Ban

10-7-08 NNKC Championship Race Finale

Northern Nevada Kart Club hosted Championship Race #9 (make-up race for Sept 7^th) Sunday Oct 5^th, 2008.  The weather was perfect at 75 degrees with clear sky’s which paved the way for some good racing. 

TaG Junior was first up with 2 karts coming out for this race.  Chelsi Wagner took pole with a fast run of 37.3.  She would go on to win both heats over Christian Scholz.  That set up the main event as Wagner bolted into the lead and never looked back for her 6^th win of the year and the TaG Junior Championship well in hand. Scholz would finish runner-up.

TaG Novice was next on grid as 6 karts came out to play.  Billy Sewell got on track first with a pole run of 37.7.  Rich Adams would go on to win both heats in commanding fashion.  In the main, Adams would take the lead with a quick Amy Lim in tow.  Point’s leader Sewell would get caught behind newcomer Derrick Delong and that let Adams pull away for the victory and also take the TaG Novice championship away from Sewell.  Lim would finish in 2^nd followed by Sewell in 3^rd.

Formula 80 Senior lined up with only 5 karts for the showdown.  Mark Nason quickly jumped right back on his fast pace with a pole of 36.4.  Nason would go on to win the first heat.  Cameron Bellamy would win the 2^nd heat.  In the main, it was Nason again grabbing the lead with Bellamy and Gerry Williams in tow.  Steve Dow would capitalize on Bellamy and William’s incident and take over 2^nd.  Nason would take the checkers by 7 seconds over Dow in 2^nd and Cameron Bellamy in 3^rd.  Nason would also celebrate his Formula 80 Senior championship.

TaG Cadet pulled up to grid as 3 drivers wanted to prove their abilities.  Trever Listman grabbed pole at 40.4.  Listman would go on to win both heats.  The main would prove the way for the championship between point’s leader Justin Hoekman and Listman.  Listman would take the lead from the start while Hoekman battled along with Garrett Dixon.  Hoekman was finally able to pull on Listman’s rear bumper and try to make the pass at turn 1-2 but came a little too close with contact and his front bumper fell off.  Listman was able to pull away and take the victory and the TaG Cadet championship.  Second place goes to Dixon and 3^rd to Hoekman. 

TaG Senior came out next with 7 karts to race.  Brian Rivera grabbed pole with a run of 37.0.  Rivera would go on to win the first heat over Tyler Wamre.  In the second heat invert, Rivera was on his way for another heat win until Curt Baker made an inside move going into turn 6 on the last lap to make it stick and steal the win.  That brought out the main event as Rivera was on pole with Baker off pole.  Baker would take the lead into turn 1-2 with Rivera in tow.  Wamre would have mechanical problems and DNF.  That left Baker and Rivera to fight it out for the championship.  Rivera would try unsuccessfully 4 times in turn 1-2 to make a pass stick cleanly but was unable to get it done.  Baker crossed the finish line first and claimed the TaG Senior championship. Rivera followed in 2^nd and Troy Berry in 3^rd. 

Rotax Max brought out 6 drivers again as this has become a tight battle for the championship.  Nick Wadlow grabbed pole with a 37.6.  But it was Chris McCabe winning the first heat.  The second heat was claimed by Pete Morley.  In the main, the green flag waived and it was Morley getting the lead and never looking back with a fast McCabe on his bumper.  Morley would squeeze out the win followed by McCabe in 2^nd and Eric Dean would bounce back from an earlier crash to come in 3^rd and secure his 1^st Rotax Max Championship.    

Formula 80 Masters took to the course next as 6 racers showed up for this class.  Mark Nason once again showed his “Big Head” by snatching pole with a 36.3.  Nason would go on to win the 1^st heat.  Cameron Bellamy would go on to win the 2^nd heat.  The main event had Nason on pole followed by Bellamy off pole.   The green dropped and it was Nason getting the lead and pulling away for his 5^th win on the season.  Williams would get by Bellamy 2 laps from the end to secure 2^nd place.  Steve Dow would come in 3^rd.  This would give Nason his 2^nd championship on the day!

Jr1-2 Cycle took to the track last as 6 racers lined up for this one.  Austin DeMent again showed his speed as he has done all year long with a quick pole run of 40.5.  Logan Wyman would take advantage of DeMent’s unfortunes and go on to win the 1^st heat.  In the 2^nd heat, DeMent would come back to take the win.  That set-up the main event as DeMent would get into an incident in turn 3 and have to DNF with mechanical problems.  Travis Barr would take the lead and check out from the pack with a 5 second victory.  Logan Wyman would finish in 2^nd with Trever Listman in 3^rd.  DeMent would pick up another Jr 1-2 Cycle championship along the way.   

The season is over.  It has been an eventful one.  It has been full of stories, laughter, good times and bad.  I hope everyone had fun and please join us at our meetings the first Tuesday of every month.  Thanks to all that helped and gave their time and effort to the club in making it a great year for all members to enjoy.

Brian Rivera

NNKC - President

9-29-08 Jim Russell Sunday Series Race #6

A sunshiny warm day greeted the largest field of the year at the Jim Russell Sunday Series here at Infineon Raceway.  51 drivers turned out to run the Reverse National track layout.  The high turnout was due to a special running of the TaG Grand Masters/Masters class.  This group of drivers has not been on the Sunday series card this year but was added as a reunion race to get the ‘old’ drivers out for some fun.  This class will run again on Oct 26 for Race #7.

HPV2 - Puma

The HPV2 field was the largest of the year with 13 drivers plus one lone Puma.  Joseph Keaton put his loaner kart on pole over points leader Kathryn Cornell, Conner Ford, Dylan Lupton and Bobby Tifft.  Kathryn showed why she is the points leader by taking control at the start of the Pre-Main and went on to her first race win of the year, but just barely over Keaton edging him out by just .052 seconds.  Lupton got by Ford to take the 3^rd, Ford 4^th and Tifft 5^th.  On the start of the 15 lap Main, the outside row of Keaton and Ford got in front of the inside row of Cornell and Lupton and this is how they ran for the whole race.  Keaton pulled away slightly at the end to take a 1 second victory with Ford just 2 tenths of a second in front of Cornell.  Lupton took the 4^th less than a second in front of Tifft and 6^th place finisher Daniel Langon.  Shantae Barudoni took the Puma win.

Comer

5 Comers took the track with new comer Jay Dennis taking the pole ahead of Doug Braddock Jr and Michael Avansino.  In the Pre-Main, Braddock took the lead from the off-pole and led the entire way until the dash for the checkered flag.  Dennis looked like he was going to settle for second when he made a outside pass down the straight away to take a one tenth of a second win over points leader Braddock.  Avansino was 3^rd, Austin Makeev 4^th and Trevor Mathis 5^th.  In the Main, Jay made a strong start to avoid being beat to turn one.  And once in the lead, Jay Dennis went on to a dominating 8 second win.  But Jay was not the only one to get a good start.  On the start Avansino stuck to Jay’s rear bumper and was able to squeeze past Braddock to take second.  The veteran Braddock had his hands full trying to set up a pass on the much improving Avansino.  Braddock almost had a pass made when the two toughed in the turn and Braddock had to fall back.   Doug caught back up to Michael but time ran out for him to make another pass attempt.  Thus, Jay Dennis the winner, Michael Avansino 2^nd, Doug Braddock Jr 3^rd, Austin Makeev 4^th and Trevor Mathis 5^th.

Gazelle and HPV1

The Gazelles and HPV1 karts ran combined for the first time in 2008.  The speeds of the 2 different class of karts were very close, thus it made for some interesting racing.  In the Qualify, the HPV1 karts of Austin Thomas and Doug Braddock Jr were on the front row with the next 4 karts being Gazelle’s lead by points leader Maxx Marian followed by Ben Barudoni, Noah Hermansen and Robbie Rodrigues.  In the Pre-Main, these 6 karts all ran nose to tail for the entire race, which was very nerve racking.  Braddock took the lead at the green and held it all the way to take a 3 tenths of a second win over Thomas.  Barudoni got in front of Marian on the start and ran right on Thomas’ rear bumper to make sure Marian could not get by.  Rodrigues got by Noah to take the 5^th overall and 3^rd in Gazelle.  For the Main, the to top HPV1 karts were started about 50 yards in front of the Gazelles so that both classes could have clear track and this split worked well.  Braddock took the lead at the green and was never headed in the HPV1 battle.  Thomas hung close to Braddock until he made a small error late in the race and fell back a couple of seconds.  In the Gazelle battle, the lead went back and forth between Barudoni and Marian with Hermansen and Rodrigues having their own battle for 3^rd.  In the end, Barudoni took the Gazelle win by a slim 1 tenth of a second margin.  Hermansen also edged out Rodrigues by a similar 1 tenth of a second margin to take the 3^rd in class with Robbie 4^th and Tommie McCarthy in 5^th.

80 Grand Masters/Masters

The 80 shifter class had 6 entries.  Ron Tamba, the lone Masters driver took the pole ahead of Marc Stanley, Ahmiel Freed and Tom Nelson.  In the Pre-Main, Stanley took the lead off the green and Tamba fell back.  Ron made an attempt to pass early on and spun so he had to restart and thus finished 6^th.  Stanley drove on to the win, but just a half second over Tom Nelson who just nipped Freed at the line by 1 hundredth of a second.  Points leader Michael John took 4^th.  In the Main, Tom Nelson was on a mission to take his first win of the year and put the pressure on Stanley.  But shifting problems slowed Tom and he had to settle for 6^th overall.  Ron Tamba then drove up through the field and was up to second when he spun and had to settle for 5^th.  The surprise of the Main was Michael John.  He qualified over 2 ½ seconds off the pace, but he got his kart working right in the Main and came through to put pressure on the lead.  Stanley was in the lead for the entire race, but the action behind was fun to watch.  In the end, Marc took a 3 second win, Michael John in 2^nd, Freed 3^rd just ½ second back and Steve Petersen 4^th.

TaG Grand Masters and Masters

14 Grand Masters (over 45) and 4 Masters (over 35) lined up to have a fun race.  For most of the field, this was the first time back to Infineon in 2008 since the Grand Masters class was not offered this year.  The large turn out did not go un-noticed to the Jim Russell team.  The class was run to the 2007 rules which run on YHC tires, allow National Cup Parilla motors and the weight was 390 pounds.  In Qualify, Ken Western dusted off his kart and put it on pole ahead of Randy Wetmore, Masters driver Larry Fraser (who was on a Chinese kart), Jim Zootis and Ray Zanotto.  It was strange to see the traditional starting start again at Infineon, yes a standing start.  With the slower speed of the standing start, all the drivers made it though turn one in good order and the 10 lap Pre-Main was on.  Wetmore used his veteran smarts and took the lead at the green and held it to take a ½ second win over Western.  Fraser was another second back in 3^rd, the veteran ProKart driver Zootis in 4^th with Bill McCallister working his way up to 5^th.  In 6^th was Mat Kattanek who had to start 18^th due to motor problems in the morning practice.  A spare engine was brought over from the Dixon race for Mat to use.  In the Main, all eyes were on the front row to watch the Randy and Ken show.  Prior to the green, Fraser’s engine quit, so he was out.  The start was another safe start and all drivers got through turn one without an incident.  Wetmore took the point like in the Pre-Main, followed by Western.  But picking off the opposition one by one was the IKF veteran Kattanek.  Mat used superior braking to make his passes and by mid race, he went by Wetmore and into the lead.  Mat then just continued to pull away to take a convincing 4 second win, Wetmore coming home 2^nd followed by Western, Zootis and Ray Zanotto in 5^th.  Ray took 1^st in the Masters class.  One other driver of note, Peter Toft, father of Jason Toft, came home in 13^th place.  This was Peter’s first ever kart race.  After wrenching so many years on Jason’s kart, it was fun to watch the roles reversed and Jason working the wrenches for his dad.