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| David Henderson leads the late model point standings at Redwood Acres Raceway |
By Matthew J. Sullivan
Race three of the 2015 season at Redwood Acres Raceway is set for a special Memorial Day Salute to the Troops weekend event. Besides the local divisions racing on May 24th, a Sunday afternoon, the Acres will play host to the popular North State Modified Series. In addition, Sunday’s races will feature race number one of the Tri-Holiday series of races for the late models.
With only two races completed, the point races are still tight in all five local divisions. In the Humboldt Hydroponics roadrunners, Dylan Ford holds the championship lead thanks to his main event win in the most recent race on May 9th. Jett Taylor and Daniel Buell are tied for second, 16 points in arrears to Ford. Andrew Pimentel is fourth while rookie driver Shawn Malloy is fifth. Dustin Walters was also a main event winner on May 9th and he is the current leader in the bomber division. James Moore is seven points behind in second while Lance Martins, Michael Knight and Tyler Avelar round out the top five in standings.
The mini stock class has had an influx of cars the first two races of the season. Only six points separate the top three in standings. The duo of Leonard Ward and Chris Champagne lead by three points over Rick Estes while Eugene Palmer is third. Former roadrunner champion, Jarrett Mayo is fourth in points while Dylan Ford is fifth. The Bear River Hotel and Casino Thunder Roadsters will have a week off this Sunday which allows Robbie Nelson the opportunity to enjoy his lead in the division a while longer. Nelson leads Paul Peeples, Jr. by only one point while Mike Ward, Chris Lawrence and Thomas Payne are third through fifth.
David Henderson has appeared to be the class of the field thus far in the Mid City Motor World late model division and sits in the lead by eight markers over Jedd Ambrosini. Ryun Leazer is third in the standings followed by Richard Knight and Tyler Avelar. The standings could shake up after Sunday night’s race with the addition of cars and drivers for the first Tri-Holday race.
The North State Modified Series is two races into their 2015 campaign. This weekend’s race will be the first of two scheduled for the series at the Acres. Michael Mitchell leads Cody Braund by four points in the year-long battle for the championship. Darrin Knight is third followed by Tripp Gaylord and veteran racer Guy Young. The NSMS has yielded strong car counts so far with 23 cars racing at All-American Speedway and 21 showing up at the intimidating bullring that is Lakeport Speedway. There should be another strong field on Sunday with Oregon drivers joining the California modified racers.
The weekend kicks off on Saturday the 23rd with a test and tune for all cars. On Sunday the 24th grandstands open at 4:30PM and racing begins at 6:00PM. As a special thank you to those who have served in the military, admission into this Sunday’s races is free with a military ID. More information regarding this weekend’s big event can be found at Redwood Acres Raceway’s official website, www.racingtheacres.com .