News Feed
Sept. 8, 2010
BY DAVE GRAYSON
The Lucas Oil Modified Racing Series, presented by Rockstar Energy Drink, will be bringing their high energy brand of open wheel racing to the always challenging quarter mile oval at the ASA sanctioned Orange Show Speedway this Saturday night, September 11th, in San Bernardino-California.
The K&N Filters Topless 100 is one of the biggest events on the series' schedule. It has a $10,000 total purse, a winner's check worth $1,500 and a guaranteed $300 just for taking the green flag in the 100 lap A main. Those factors should insure that those thunder making, ground shaking, Lucas Oil-Rockstar modifieds will be racing a little harder and faster Saturday night.
When series officials announced a topless race they literately meant cutting the roof off of the cars. Series promoter Greg Scheidecker said that the idea for his series to race topless came from Richie Lewis the race director for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series who recently ran a nationally televised topless race in the mid west.
"It's a very exciting and fun race," Scheidecker said adding "the cars will be removing their roof and side panels for this race. It's a 100 lap race and the extra laps mean we will be administering our race is a slightly different manner. We will be counting the yellow flag laps during this extended event. Normally, during our standard 75 lap mains, we do not count yellow flag laps. That also means that in a situation where yellow laps are being counted you cannot pull of of the track, make adjustments and then restart at the rear of the field because you're going to be down a lap. So with us counting yellow flag laps, plus the race being 100 laps long, $1,500 to win and $300 to start, our race at the Orange Show Speedway is really going to be something to see."
Scheidecker also noted that the Orange Show Speedway fans will be afforded an opportunity to watch their favorite modified drivers manhandle their powerful cars. The absence of the roof and side panels will allow the fans to see everything going on inside the cockpit of the cars. "I'm hoping that Saturday night's race will become the first in a series of annual events, I think the K&N Filters Topless 100 is a win-win situation for everyone involved in it," Scheidecker said.
In addition to some intense modified racing action, the series will also be bringing an extremely modified points championship profile to San Bernardino. Those modifications were created following their last race at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway Bullring where some of the more prolific teams discovered there was not going to any Las Vegas luck. Many of these teams found themselves taking huge hits in the points while some of them rolled sevens in Vegas and found themselves moving up in the standings.
Riverside's Jim "Baby Face" Mardis will be returning to his home track this Saturday night looking for his second series win of the season. The Orange Show Speedway fan favorite is a former ASA Stock Pony Division champion and knows the fast way around the track. Mardis finished third in Las Vegas and that helped move him back to the top of the points standings. Ironically, it was a tough night during the series last appearance at the Orange Show Speedway, July 10th, that removed Mardis from the top of the standings to begin with.
Burbank-California's Tim "Poncho" Morse, thanks to his first series win at Las Vegas, moved from fifth to second in the standings. Morse has enjoyed some good runs in the past at the Orange Show Speedway and will be looking for a way to eradicate the four point lead that Mardis currently holds over him.
Las Vegas native Doug "Hound Dog" Hamm was one of the drivers who encountered the down side of Vegas luck at his home track last month. Hamm was en route to a solid third place finish before an unscheduled pit stop sent him backwards to 14th. Hamm dropped from first to third in the points standings and will be looking for a strong run in San Bernardino to work his way back to the top.
One of the series' heavy hitters is Chris Gerchman. The Lake Havasu City-Arizona driver arrived in Las Vegas last month second in the points and only four markers out of first. This was based on the strength of four consecutive wins in a row. But the luck ran out for the team at Las Vegas. A blown engine midway through the race killed any chance of a five peat win. The collateral damage also caused a free fall in the standings to seventh and 64 points out of first. Gerchman won the series' last race in July at the Orange Show Speedway. He'll be looking for an Orange Show sweep Saturday night while working his way back to the top of the championship standings.
But without question the one driver who had the worst luck in Las Vegas was James Cole. The driver, who commutes to the series' events from his native San Antonio-Texas, found himself caught up in an on track situation during the very first lap of the Las Vegas race. The hit in the points, from a 25th place finish, was devastating and the Cole team plummeted from third to ninth in the standings.
Yet another driver to keep a sharp eye on Saturday night is Dylan Kwasniewski. The young high school student from Las Vegas leaped to tenth in the standings last month following a hard charging second place finish at his home track. There's a reason why this talented young driver is only tenth in the standings. Schedule conflicts, involving other racing series, has only allowed him to make three of the Lucas Oil-Rockstar Modified events this year. However, those schedule conflicts appear to be behind him now and Kwasniewski plans on entering the remainder of the series races.
In addition to the excitement of the K&N Performance Filters Topless 100, the Orange Show Speedway's promotional team, Best In The West Racing, will also be treating the fans to ASA Racing sanctioned action from the JAM Sportswear Late Models, Pick A Part Street Stocks, Pro Fours and the Stock Car USA.
Saturday night is Law Enforcement Appreciation Night at the Orange Speedway. Law enforcement personnel will be admitted for only $7. General admission tickets are $15, $13 for seniors and students 11 to 18 years old while kids 10 and under will be admitted free when accompanied by a paid adult. The spectator gates will open at 4pm Saturday afternoon with the racing beginning at 7 pm. For more information about this exciting racing evening dial up their official website at www.bestinthewestracing.com. For more information about the Lucas Oil Modified Racing Series, presented by Rockstar Energy Drink, dial upwww.lucasoilmodifieds.com.
The Lucas Oil Modified Racing Series, presented by Rockstar Energy Drink, is strongly supported by a highly potent marketing concept known as "Team Lucas." Team members include: Lucas Oil Products, K&N Performance Filters, Magnaflow Exhaust Products, E3 Spark Plugs, General Tire, GEICO Powersports, CANIDAE All Natural Pet Food, MAV-TV, Dart Machinery and Rockstar Energy Drink.
The series is also strongly supported by a group of associate sponsors that includes Eibach Springs, Hoosier Tire West, Budweiser, Blue Water Resort & Casino, Sunoco Race Fuels, Frank's Radio and Racing Plus.
