By Matthew J. Sullivan
The 2016 track championships at Redwood Acres Raceway in five of the six divisions are set to be decided this Saturday September 24th. While the late model championship was determined on September 10th, champions in the roadrunners, bombers, mini stocks, Legends, Thunder Roadsters will be decided on what is Maxwell’s Custom Automobiles Night at the Races.
The most points that can be earned in all five divisions on the night is 43. Any driver within a 43 point margin of the leader is mathematically still alive in the title hunt though of course the odds of making that much ground up are very low and would require the leader to miss an entire night’s worth of action on Saturday.
Tyler Peach currently leads the standings in the California State and Federal Employees Credit Union roadrunner division. Steve Paiment is second and was the early season leader in the standings but late season misfortune has cost him dearly as he is 25 points behind Peach. Dominic Vogelsang and Bethany Rapp are 40 and 42 points behind. Rookie, Patrick Sproul is fifth in standings and 45 markers behind Peach.
The title in the Fortuna Wheel and Brake bomber class was decided in the most recent event on September 10th. James Moore left that race with a 112 point lead, more than enough to clinch the 2016 championship in the class. The battle for second is a tight one as a single point separates Ryan Ahrens and John Lally. Kimberly Sorrels is secured in fourth while Tyler Avelar is fifth in the standings.
The Humboldt Hydroponics mini stock division is a three-man race with only six points separating the top three drivers. Gary Klinetobe currently holds a five point edge over Jarrett Mayo while Eugene Palmer is a point behind Mayo. Rick Estes is fourth in the standings and has been on a tear as of late in spite of missing a couple early season races. Daniel Buell is fifth and has had a strong rookie campaign in 2016.
In the Legends division, Robert Miller has a strong 29 point lead over Brad Curtice in second place. As long as Miller starts the main event, the inaugural RAR Legends championship will be his. Anissa Curtice is third in points with Brent Mack and M’Kinzy Uselton rounding out the top five in the division standings.
Tommy Payne’s lead in the Thunder Roadster division is seven points over Ronnie O’Neil. The two have raced hard all season long and often have finished near each other which will make O’Neil’s path to the title very difficult. Aaron Byers and Donnie Brown are tied for third but are 38 points in arrears to Payne. LeRoy Marsh, Jr. is fifth but well out of championship contention.
Mic Moulton wrapped up the 2016 Mid City Motor World late model track championship on September 10th thanks in part to David Henderson who subbed for Moulton in the final point race. Moulton was forced to miss the event due to an injury. Henderson was able to finish second in the main event to secure Moulton’s second late model championship at the Acres. The final point margin in the late models was 15 markers.
Second place in the standings was Marty Walsh who had a strong 2016 season. Perhaps the biggest factor as to what cost Walsh this year’s championship was a blown engine on the July 2nd Firecracker 100 event. Walsh was unable to start the feature event which resulted in no points on the night. Had Walsh been able to just start and park that race, he would have earned 16 points, 1 point more than Moulton in the final standings. Richard Knight placed third in the late model points just beating out Kenny Demello for the position. Rookie driver, Eddie Klein had several impressive runs in his rookie campaign and was fifth in the standings.
As mentioned, racing at Redwood Acres Raceway returns this Saturday September 24th for the final points race of the season presented by Maxwell’s Custom Automobiles. In addition to the championships being decided in the local divisions, the second boat race of the season will take place at the end of the night. Grandstands open at 5:00 PM while racing begins at 6:30 PM.
2016 at the Acres concludes October 7th, 8th, and 9th with the return of the Fall Spectacular. Late models and modifieds highlight the event while roadrunners, bombers, mini stocks, Legends and Thunder Roadsters will also be in action. For more information about the Fall Spectacular including entry forms and purse payout please visit Redwood Acres Raceway’s official website, www.racingtheacres.com