White Stops Moulton’s Streak, Wins Don Graham Memorial Firecracker 100

#19 Brandon White earned his fourth straight Don Graham Memorial Firecracker 100 Saturday night

Eureka, CA (July 8, 2018) – Redwood Acres Raceway was fortunate to have beautiful weather this past Saturday night for one of the biggest races of the 2018 season. Bi-Coastal Media Night at the Races which featured the late models in a 100-lap main event and a spectacular firework display which concluded the evening’s festivities. While the Bandolero and Legends divisions had the night off, roadrunners, bombers and mini stocks were the other divisions in action for the evening.

Jennifer Murrell was fast time for the Compass Community Credit Union roadrunners with a time of 21.766. Nick Ford took the race lead at the start of the first feature event. His biggest rival in the 2018 season has been Tim Ratzlaff and the two engaged in a race-long dual for the lead. The lead changed four times between both drivers. With two laps remaining, Ratzlaff gained the upper-hand and was able to fend off Ford for the win. Murrell, Lindsey Zito and Amanda Lohr rounded out the top five.

Zito jumped into the lead on the second main event which was run backward. Zito led the first five laps until Ratzlaff took over. On lap nine, Zito’s left front tire began to spark as the cords in her tires started to fail. As she entered turn two, her tire went flat and she lost control. Zito ended up hitting the rear-end of Ford’s car and both drivers were out of the race. Ratzlaff went unopposed the rest of the race as he won by over eight seconds. Lohr placed second with Allison McCarty and Murrell third and fourth. Zito was credited with a fifth-place effort.

The Fortuna Wheel & Brake/Four Star Realty bomber division qualifications were paced by Wyatt Roach with an 18.117. Ryan Walters took the trophy dash victory. Sam Brown led the first five laps of the feature event but was overtaken by R.J. Randall on lap six. Randall began to pull away as the other drivers tried to sort things out. With 10-laps remaining there appeared to be contact between Brown and Walters with both drivers hitting the wall between turns one and two. Brown was unable to continue while Walters tried to continue the race but was unable to due to the severe damage he sustained. Randall continued to lead in the subsequent restart and was able to maintain a comfortable gap over the rest of the field. At the checkered flag it was Randall winning over Jim Redd, Bethany Rapp, Roach and Chris Naughton.

Qualifying for the Humboldt Hydroponics mini stock division was paced by Brian Murrell, Sr. with a 19.039. The mini stock trophy dash win was taken by Brett Murrell. Nick Ford let the opening lap of the main event but was passed by Brian Murrell, Jr. on lap two. Murrell, Jr. gapped the rest of the field with his lead being nearly a straight-away over second place. Eugene Palmer moved to second with Murrell, Sr. running third. On lap 15, Murrell, Sr. took second and tried to catch his son. Lap 20 proved to be the turning point for the race. Murrell, Jr. spun out of the lead off turn two moving Murrell, Sr. to the point. Just moments later, a major wreck took place in turns three and four with Brett Murrell, Rick Estes and Ken McCarty all sustaining major damage.

Murrell, Sr. led the Palmer and the rest of the field to the restart. Palmer’s vehicle began to have issues which moved him out of the second position and struggling to finish the race. The final few laps came down to the father/son duo of Murrell, Sr. and Murrell, Jr. With two laps to go, Murrell, Jr. was right on his father’s bumper. Murrell, Sr. was able to withstand his son’s late run and was first at the finish line. Scott Taylor was second followed by Nick Ford and Trevor Eacret.

Brandon White’s 15.802 time set the standard in the Mid-City Motor World Super Six Challenge Series late model division. The heat race finishes determined the starting positions in the main event. The first heat was won by Dane Nissen. The second heat got off to a bad start as an incident took place down the backstretch which damaged the cars of Luke Hall and Marty Walsh. The incident dealt Walsh another bad blow for 2018 as he was unable to fix his car for the feature. Hall was more fortunate as his damage was repairable. Alan Cress earned pole position in the 100-lap feature with the win in the second heat race.

Cress used his front row start to take the lead on the first lap of the Don Graham Memorial Firecracker 100 presented by NorthCoast Lighting and Electric. Cress held the lead until lap 10 when White was able to get under and by for the top position. The race was slowed as incidents involving Dustin Walters, David Miller, Scott Baker and Chris Sarvinski all ran into trouble. White was able to maintain his lead after every restart and looked to have the best handle all race long. The second position swapped hands on lap 50 as Dane Nissen took over the spot from Cress. White had a comfortable lead over the rest of the field in the final few laps. Mic Moulton moved by Cress into third and he and Nissen battled with three laps remaining. At the finish it was White taking his fourth-straight Firecracker 100 victory. Nissen held off Moulton for second. Cress placed fourth with David Henderson finishing fifth.

Racing at Redwood Acres Raceway returns Saturday July 23rd. It will be a special weekend as the late models and North State Modifieds will both be in action. For more information on the upcoming races and the rest of the season, visit the track’s website www.RedwoodAcresRacing.com or Facebook page www.facebook.com/RedwoodAcresRaceway

Don Graham Memorial Firecracker 100 Highlights Weekend At Redwood Acres Raceway

Eureka, CA (July 2, 2018) – Redwood Acres Raceway’s biggest race in the summer season is lined up for this Saturday night. The Don Graham Memorial Firecracker 100 for the Mid-City Motor World Super Six Challenge Series late models has become a yearly tradition at the Acres. Bi-Coastal Media and McMurray and Sons will be presenting the big event which will feature a thrilling fireworks display.

The points race in the Compass Community Credit Union roadrunners is an absolute runaway. Nick Ford has a stranglehold over the field as his gap over second place Lindsey Zito is 71 points. Third place features a tie between Tim Ratzlaff and Ronny Crump. Amanda Lohr rounds out the top five as she is 129 points behind the leader.

The Bandolero division will not be in action this weekend but is quickly becoming a crowd favorite as the youngsters in the division have put on tremendous racing in the first season for the division. Aiden Kimberling has been steady all year long and is the leader in the standings. Second place Lane Anderson has been the driver to beat on a weekly basis. Anderson is nine points behind Kimberling despite missing the May 27th race. Kadence Mace is third in the points standings but 45 behind Kimberling. Maleesa Miles is fourth in the standings and is the only driver other than Anderson to have a main event victory. Trey Daniels is 123 points behind in fifth.

The NorthCoast Lighting & Electric Legends division will also have the week of. This season has been dominated by Chris Lawrence. In spite of Lawrence’s control of the division, Tyler Peach is only 37 points behind. Aiden Daniels and Katina Baker are rookies in the Legends class and are third and fourth in the standings. Brent Mack is in the fifth position but is 113 points behind Lawrence.

Jim Redd leads the Fortuna Wheel & Brake bomber division. His closest competition is Ryan Walters who is 51 points behind Redd. Wyatt Roach has returned to racing at the Acres and is 53 points behind Redd. Sam Brown is 71 points being Redd while Doug Way is 79.

Going into this weekend’s race, only 11 points separate the two leaders in the Humboldt Hydroponics mini stock division. Brian Murrell, Sr. holds down the lead followed by Eugene Palmer. Scott Taylor is in the third position in standings but is 35 points behind Murrell. Gary Klinetobe is 41 points behind Murrell and Trevor Eacret is in fifth, 59 points behind the leader.

Race number four for the Mid-City Motor World Super Six Challenge Series late models will be the feature Saturday night. Mic Moulton has to be the heavy favorite going into this weekend’s Don Graham Memorial Firecracker 100 as he has won all three races this season. However, his advantage over second place David Henderson is 14 points. Marty Walsh is a surprising third in the standings in spite of having a season of bad luck. Veteran Dane Nissen is fourth with Kenny Demello finishing out the top five.

As always, gates open at 5:00 PM while racing will start at 5:30 PM. For more information on this weekend’s big race as well as the goings on for the 2018 season you can visit Redwood Acres Raceway’s website www.RedwoodAcresRacing.com or on Facebook www.facebook.com/RedwoodAcresRaceway

2017 Redwood Acres Raceway Finish Stats (As of today)

Roadrunners

Driver	4/29	5/13	5/28	5/28	6/10	6/10	7/1	7/1	7/22	7/22	8/5	8/5	8/26	9/9	Average Finish
5 - Jordon Paiment	-	4	-	4	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-		4.0
10 - Daniel Buell	3	1	1	6	3	1	2	4	2	1	2	1	1		2.2
12 - Jake Keeling	4	3	5	2	-	-	4	5	3	5	3	2	10		4.2
19 - Brandi Robertson	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	4	6	-		5.0
21 - Lindsey Zito	-	-	-	-	5	7	5	6	5	7	9	-	4		6.0
22n - Natya Hanson	5	8	3	-	2	2	6	3	-	-	-	-	-		4.1
24 - Michelle O'Dell	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	5		5.0
31 - Nick Ford	2	2	4	1	1	4	3	1	1	3	1	8	3		2.6
31f - Dylan Ford	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	6	7	-		6.5
48 - Tim Buzzard, Jr.	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	2		2.0
65 - Tim Ratzlaff	1	5	2	3	7	3	1	2	4	2	10	3	7		3.8
68 - Jennifer Murrell	7	7	6	5	8	5	8	7	7	9	5	9	6		6.8
83 - Andy Savage	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	8	6	8	4	9		7.0
88 - Bob Ratzlaff	6	6	7	7	4	6	7	8	6	4	7	5	8		6.2
98 - Gage Ethridge	-	-	-	-	6	8	-	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0
99 - Dominic Vogelsang	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	9	8	-	-	-		8.5

Legends

Driver	4/29	5/13	5/28	6/10	7/22	8/5	8/26	9/9	Average Finish
3 - Buddy Cox	-	-	-	-	-	3	-		3.0
3/08 - Brian Kamisky	-	-	7	-	-	1	-		4.0
8c - Anissa Curtice	-	4	11	-	-	-	-		7.5
08 - Derek Copeland	-	-	1	-	-	-	1		1.0
12c - Cody Winchel	-	1	2	-	-	-	-		1.5
18 - Bianca Barajas	-	-	-	-	-	-	9		9.0
18x - Joe Brattoli	-	-	-	-	-	6	3		4.5
21 - Tyler Krupa	-	-	-	-	-	-	7		7.0
22 - Brent Mack	1	5	10	-	3	5	-		4.8
24e - Brad Curtice	-	2	4	-	1	4	-		2.8
25 - James McBride/Kennedy Banfill	5	6	-	-	-	-	-		5.5
27 - Tyler Peach	2	-	6	1	4	7	4		4.0
29 - Mkinzy Uselton	3	7	9	2	5	9	8		6.1
57 - Daniel Whitley	-	-	3	-	2	2	5		3.0
62 - Bradley Henderson	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
62 - Jim Sturges	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
82 - Robert Miller	-	3	5	-	-	-	2		3.3
98 - James Nichols	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
99 - Dominic Vogelsang	4	8	8	3	-	8	6		6.2

Bombers

Driver	29-Apr	13-May	28-May	10-Jun	1-Jul	22-Jul	5-Aug	5-Aug	26-Aug	9-Sep	Average Finish
1 - Nick Green	-	-	-	-	-	-	6	8	-		6
2 - Raymond Taylor	-	4	-	-	-	-	-	-	-		4
5 - Jeff French	-	-	-	-	1	8	3	3	1		3.2
10 - Kolby Jackson	3	-	7	8	2	2	5	6	3		4.5
12 - Ryan Walters	-	-	-	-	-	-	2	2	-		2
13 - Donovan Cox	-	-	-	-	-	-	15	4	-		9.5
14 - Richard Knight	-	-	-	-	-	-	12	14	-		13
17 - Bethany Rapp/Ray Rapp	4	2	9	5	7	9	11	9	5		6.8
31 - Kim Sorrels	5	-	8	6	6	5	10	10	9		7.4
41 - Daniel Pinne	6	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-		6
44 - Jim Redd/Donnie Brown	1	3	5	4	3	7	7	5	7		4.7
47 - Ron Duke, Jr.	-	-	-	-	-	6	-	-	-		6
52 - Ryan Ahrens	-	-	-	-	-	-	4	12	-		8
61 - James Moore	-	5	6	3	-	-	-	-	-		4.7
63 - Dave Jones	-	-	3	-	-	-	-	-	-		3
66 - Jimmy Sorrels	-	7	10	7	8	3	14	13	6		8.5
72 - John Lally	2	1	4	9	4	1	8	1	8		4.2
77 - Erick Ray	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	11	-		6
88 - Sam Brown	-	-	-	-	-	-	9	7	2		6
96 - R.J. Randall	-	-	2	1	5	-	-	-	-		2.7
96x - Mike Sullivan	-	-	1	2	-	-	13	-	-		5.3
99 - Chris Naughton	-	-	-	-	-	4	-	-	4		4

Mini Stocks

Driver	4/29	5/13	5/28	6/10	7/1	7/22	8/5	8/26	9/9	Average Finish
1 - Nick Green	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	11		11.0
01 - Brandon Katri	-	-	-	-	8	6	8	-		7.3
3 - RC Brown	8	-	-	-	-	-	-	14		11.0
4 - Rick Estes	9	-	7	4	5	-	-	-		6.3
4x - Ken Murrell	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	7		7.0
6 - Trevor Eacret	5	5	4	6	4	9	6	12		6.4
07 - Cole Peterson	-	9	-	-	-	-	-	-		9.0
8 - Scott Taylor	3	6	6	5	3	8	4	3		4.8
11 - Brett Murrell	-	1	2	1	1	2	1	1		1.3
13 - Brian Murrell	1	2	9	2	6	1	3	10		4.3
14 - Jarrett Mayo	-	3	-	10	-	-	-	-		6.5
17 - Ed Robinson	7	-	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0
18 - Eugene Palmer	2	4	1	3	7	3	2	2		3.0
22 - Kayla Foster	-	-	-	-	-	8	9	13		10.0
44 - Nick Ford	-	-	8	9	9	7	-	8		18.2
55 - Troy Lee	4	7	5	7	10	4	10	5		6.5
57 - Jon Zaugg	6	8	-	8	-	-	7	6		7.0
88 - Sam Brown	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Thunder Roadsters

Driver	29-Apr	13-May	28-May	10-Jun	22-Jul	5-Aug	26-Aug	9-Sep	Average Finish
03 - Corey Toole/Paul Baker	8	5	8	-	-	7	5		6.6
4 - Chris Lawrence	5	-	5	4	4	3	3		4
15 - Paul Peeples, Jr.	2	2	1	1	1	-	-		1.4
18 - Mac Collado	9	7	9	6	5	8	6		7.1
23 - Chris Sarvinski	3	4	4	-	-	4	-		3.8
38 - Aaron Byers	4	-	-	-	-	-	-		4
39 - Jason Mitchell/Tyler Peach/Dax Kinsey	7	6	6	5	6	6	4		5.7
55 - Brandon Williams/Ken Eastburn/Donnie Brown	-	-	7	7	-	5	-		6.3
66 - Tommy Payne	1	3	2	2	2	2	2		2
95 - Ronnie O'Neil	6	1	3	3	3	1	1		2.6

Late Models

Driver	4/29	5/13	6/10	7/1	7/15	8/26	Average Finish
1 - Craig Baker	-	-	-	-	-	19	19.0
2 - David Henderson	12	2	1	17	3	1	6.0
5 - Scott Baker	14	13	7	6	13	13	11.0
7 - Tyler Avelar	-	-	13	-	-	-	13.0
8 - Kenny Demello	2	4	12	8	10	20	9.3
10 - Mic Moulton	3	1	2	10	6	3	4.2
11 - Riley Watson	10	6	-	-	-	-	8.0
12 - Marty Walsh	5	9	3	4	2	8	5.2
15 - Richard Knight	6	5	11	14	-	-	9.0
15j - Jeremy Hopkins	7	11	-	-	-	-	9.0
19 - Brandon White	1	12	-	1	7	2	4.6
19II - Dennis DelBiaggio	-	-	-	13	-	16	14.5
22m - David Miller	-	-	-	2	-	-	2.0
23 - Brandon Ash	-	10	-	3	-	-	6.5
24 - Ryun Leazer	8	8	6	5	9	9	7.5
26 - Dane Nissen	-	-	-	-	12	5	8.5
27 - Sheyne Demello	-	-	9	7	-	15	10.3
28 - Tim Crenshaw	9	17	5	-	-	-	10.3
28f - J.D. Frey	-	-	-	-	-	6	6.0
28x - Myles Anderson	-	-	-	-	8	10	9.0
36 - Luke Hall	-	-	-	9	4	7	6.7
38 - Eddie Klein	15	-	-	-	-	12	13.5
40 - Al Acuna	11	-	-	-	-	-	11.0
47 - Mike Bourbon	13	14	15	11	14	-	13.4
48 - Jim Walker	-	16	-	16	-	-	16.0
51 - Leonard Ward III	-	-	-	-	-	-
57 - Ryan Walters	16	7	10	15	11	11	11.7
63 - George Young	-	15	14	-	-	17	15.3
75e - Eric Gannon	4	3	4	12	1	4	4.7
84 - Ken Hallis	-	-	8	-	-	14	11.0
88 - Dustin Walters	-	-	-	-	5	18	11.5

White Dominates, Wins Second Straight Firecracker 100

By Matthew J. Sullivan

One of the most highly anticipated events of 2016 took place at Redwood Acres Raceway this past Saturday nights the 3/8-mile paved oval played host to the Don Graham Memorial Firecracker 100 presented by Bi-Coastal Media. The race was named in honor of former Acres racer, Don Graham who passed away several weeks ago. In addition to the racing on track, a spectacular fireworks show capped off a fantastic evening for a packed grandstand of fans.

Due to the schedule for the night, heat races were scrapped in favor of ‘A’ and ‘B’ trophy dashes for each division. Bethany Rapp set fast time in the California State & Federal Employees Credit Union roadrunner division with a 20.939. Dominic Vogelsang and Steve Paiment were the winners of the two trophy dashes. In a unique twist, the first 10 laps of the 20 lap feature were run in the normal counter-clockwise manner while the final 10 laps were ran clockwise. Vogelsang led the opening six laps before Rapp took over the lead. The caution came out at halfway to turn the field around and running backward proved to be advantageous for Rapp who went virtually unchallenged in remaining laps. At the finish it was Rapp winning her first ever feature over rookie James Nickles. Paiment took third while Tyler Peach and Jake Keeling rounded out the top five.

It proved to be a fantastic night for James Moore in the Fortuna Wheel & Brake bomber class. Moore set quick time with a 18.325 and took the trophy dash victory. Moore had stiffer competition in the 25-lap feature event. John Lally led the opening eight laps until Matt Simon took the lead. Moore finally maneuvered his way to second on lap 12 and after brief battle, was able to snatch the lead away from Simon on lap 15. Simon did all he could to hang on to Moore but wasn’t able to. At the finish it was Moore winning by three seconds over Simon followed by Ryan Ahrens, Lally and Kimberly Sorrels.

Dylan Hagmann was surprisingly quick in his first-ever start in the Humboldt Hydroponics mini stock division as he set fast time with a 18.928. Brian Murrell, Jr. and Jarrett Mayo were the two victorious drivers in the trophy dash races. Murrell, Jr. held the lead in the first two of the 25-lap main before giving way to Rick Estes. Unfortunately, Estes’ time in the lead was short as he lost power which handed the lead to Mayo. The best battle on the track was for second as Eugene Palmer and Gary Klinetobe fought which allowed Mayo to pull away to a comfortable lead. At the finish it was Mayo winning by three seconds. Palmer held off Klinetobe for second while Hagmann and Brett Murrell completed the top five finishers.

17.322 was quick time for the Thunder Roadsters set by Chris Sarvinski. In the trophy dash, Sarvinski had trouble as he and Ronnie O’Neil made contact in turn three which resulted in irreparable damage to Sarvinski’s car. Donnie Brown was the trophy dash victor. The 25-lap main featured one of the best races of the season as O’Neil and Tommy Payne had a spectacular duel for the race lead. Brown led the opening stages of the race before losing the lead to Aaron Byers. On lap 10, O’Neil took the lead and it was at that point that he and Payne staged their epic duel. Payne got by O’Neil on lap 17 but O’Neil was able to retake the lead on lap 21. O’Neil was able to hang on from there as he narrowly took the win over Payne, Byers, LeRoy Marsh, Jr. and Brown.

Cody Winchel was fastest in qualifying for the Legends division with a 18.061. Larry Cantrall and Robert Miller were victorious in the two trophy dashes. Brent Mack led lap one of the 25-lap main but couldn’t hold off Miller who took the lead on lap two. Miller has been dominant in the division in 2016 but had a serious challenge in Winchel. On lap 11, Winchel used the inside line to take the race lead. Winchel was able to pull away at the end thanks to Miller having his hands full with Brad Curtice. At the finish it was Winchel taking the win over Miller, Curtice, Colby Furia and Mack.

The Mid City Motor World late model field featured several scratches before racing took place. Both David Henderson and Luke Hall had issues in Friday’s open practice and were unable to race. On Saturday, engine troubles sidelined Marty Walsh for the night during qualifying. Roseburg, Oregon driver Brandon Ash set fast time for the Don Graham Memorial Firecracker 100 with a 15.848. Richard Knight won the slower dash while Ash won the quicker. During trophy presentations, Ash pulled the number eight pill for the invert for the 100-lap feature which fittingly put Eric Graham, Don’s son on the pole.

Graham led the opening five laps of the main but it was Brandon White who appeared to have the best car in the field. White took the lead from Graham who got stuck on the outside line and lost several positions. The story of the race was attrition as several cars fell out during the event including Ryun Leazer, Mic Moulton and Mike Sackett. At the front it was White holding around five car lengths over Ash in second.

Things got interesting on a restart with 15 laps to go as Ash made contact with White in turn one to take the lead. White fell to fourth but quickly regained his composure and moved by Knight for third. A subsequent caution allowed White to make a great restart and move by Ash for the lead. Ash fell back to fifth as White pulled away over Graham who methodically made his way back to second. At the finish it was White winning his second straight Firecracker 100 over Graham. Ash recovered to take third while rookie Eddie Klein had his best run of the season in fourth. Another rookie, Tim Crenshaw had a solid run and rounded out the top five in fifth.

Racing on the 3/8-mile at Redwood Acres Raceway is off for several weeks before returning on July 23rd. The North State Modifieds will be the featured attraction at the Acres for the second and final time in 2016. One of the most anticipated events of the year follows on August 2nd when the Spears SRL Southwest Tour Series returns to the 3/8-mile paved oval for the third time.

Outlaw kart racing at the Acres returns Saturday July 16th. After that event, there will only be two more chances to see the karts in action. Saturday July 30th is the second to last event for the karts while Saturday August 27th is the final event of the year. For more information on everything going on at Redwood Acres Raceway, please visit the track’s official website www.racingtheacres.com