Weekend ‘crazy’ for local tracks

MAT-SU — Brain Vaughan may be getting a bit nervous.

Vaughan, of Anchorage, has been leading the hobby stock class all season long at Capitol Speedway in Willow, but has seen his lead narrow in recent weeks thanks to a surge by Willow’s Nicholas Herdina. Herdina won six of eight heats over two days of racing during the dirt track’s Independence Day weekend, and now sits just 11 points back of Vaughan in the season standings. Herdina won twice on Friday, then swept all four heats Saturday to narrow the gap. He had entered the weekend trailing Vaughan by 168 points.

On Saturday, fans were treated to a special show, as four brave drivers turned out to participate in the demolition derby races. Before the final demo, racers took part in several “wacky” races, including a hard-boiled egg race, a scavenger hunt and a reverse race.

In the main demolition derby, driver Kevin Erickson outlasted team Willow Billy Racing to take home the top prize, while Don Brotzman finished third.

Speedway owner Nancy Wallace said Saturday’s races were the best-attended of the year both for fans and the number of drivers participating. A full four heats of racing were held in all classes both days, including sprint cars.

“We had an excellent weekend,” Wallace said. “Best of the year.”

Wallace said plenty of sunshine and lots of high-powered racing action brought fans out in droves.

“That’s what it takes,” she said. “Sunshine and people wanting to get out.”

Racing at the track, which is located at Mile 75.5 of the Parks Highway, will continue this weekend, with a full schedule of stocks and sprints set to get underway at 6 p.m. Saturday. For more information, visit www.capitolspeedway.org

“A good crazy”

Attendance at all three local tracks was booming over the weekend, with packed stands reported at both Alaska Raceway Park in the Butte and North Star Speedway in Wasilla.

North Star track manager Loni Mrozik said Saturday’s races at the paved oval were by far the most exciting of the year.

“It was a pretty crazy day,” Mrozik said. “We had double our normal attendance.”

Mrozik credited the big crowds to several factors. First, it was military appreciation night, with all service members getting in for free. Second, there was plenty on the line, with racers in four different classes competing for a piece of a $5,000 cash purse. Also, Mrozik noted that fans were treated to a burnout show by 49th State Street Hot-rodders.

All that action, she said, made for a busy night.

“It was crazy, but a good crazy,” she said.

In the money races, 15 drivers cashed in Saturday night. Prizes of $300 for first and $200 for second were awarded in three divisions in the Legends class. Mike Thomas (masters), Eddie Landes (semi-pro) and Tom Lake (pro) took home the top money, while Rod Pucak (masters), Kelly Sawyer (semi-pro) and Jeff Landrum (pro) each pocketed $200 for their efforts.The night’s biggest winner was Rob Tirpak, whose win in the late models class earned him a $700 check. Dana Pruhs got $500 for second, while Ray Butler earned a cool $300.

Alex Schwochert earned $500 for winning the mini-stocks, while Mike Schwochert got $300 for second and Butler pulled double duty and got another $200 for third.

Artie Niemi earned the $500 checkered flag in the thunder stocks, Rich Schwab got $300 for second and Tom Rench picked up $200 for third. Racing continues at the track Saturday night, with a full slate of “GCI Saturday Night Thunder” stock car racing action set to get underway at 6:30 p.m. Visit www.northstarspeedway.com for more information on the track, which is located off the Parks Highway at the Trunk Road exit in Wasilla.

Rain can’t spoil the show in the Butte

Rain spoiled the final day of races at Alaska Raceway Park in the Butte Sunday, but it didn’t come in time to spoil the excitement at the quarter-mile drag strip. On Friday, the track played host to jet car driver Bruce Andrew, who wowed the crowd with his machine, which looked more like the Batmobile than a race car.

Attendance on both Friday and Saturday was better than usual, track manager Laurie Smith said Monday.

In addition to the jet car exhibition, the strip also held two days of drag racing, including top eliminator, top dragster, top ET, juniors and open-air races. One of Friday’s big highlights was the run of 16-year-old Amanda Reimann, who bested five other drivers to notch her first career win in the top dragster class.

Racing returns to the strip this weekend, with the year’s second Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) Solo Cross event set for Saturday and Sunday. Gates open at 10 a.m. at the strip, which is located at Mile 12.4 of the Old Glenn Highway. Visit www.akracewaypark.com for more information.

Contact Matt Tunseth at 352-2265 or matt.tunseth@frontiersman.com

CAPITOL SPEEDWAY

WILLOW

Friday, July 4

HOBBY STOCKS

Trophy dash — 1. Nicholas Herdina; 2. Brian Vaughan; 3. Gary Spain; 4. Leo Loshock

Heat 1 — 1. Herdina; 2. Spain; 3. Brandi James; 4. Loshock; 5. Kimberly Keene

Heat 2 — 1. Herdina; 2. Vaughan; 3. Spain; 4. Keene; 5. Loshock

Main Event — 1. Herdina; 2. Spain; 3. Keene; 4. James; 5. Loshock

300 SPRINTS

Trophy dash — 1. Jake Baker; 2. Jeff Wallace; 3. Robert Watkins

Heat 1 — 1. Wallace; 2. Baker; 3. Watkins

Heat 2 — 1. Baker; 2. Wallace; 3. Watkins

Main Event — 1. Wallace; 2. Baker; 3. Watkins

360 SPRINTS

Trophy dash — 1. Tyler McDonald; 2. John McDonald; 3. Dave Hughes; 4. Doug Fisher

Heat 1 — 1. J. McDonald; 2. Fisher; 3. T. McDonald

Heat 2 — 1. J. McDonald; 2. Fisher; 3. T. McDonald

Main Event — 1. J. McDonald; 2. T. McDonald; 3. Fisher

MODIFIED LITE

Trophy dash — 1. George Park; 2. Doug Dechaiso; 3. Brian Vaughan

Heat 1 — 1. Dechaiso; 2. Vaughan; 3. Park

Heat 2 — 1. Park; 2. Dechaiso; 3. Vaughan

Main event — 1. Dechaiso; 2. Park; 3. Vaughan

MINI STOCKS

Trophy dash — 1. Jake Baker; 2. Grek Markee; 3. Pat Weissert; 4. Nathan Evans

Heat 1 — 1. Markee; 2. Baker; 3. Evans; 4. Weissert; 5. Fred Waltman; 6. Steve Courier; 7. Fred Lloyd

Heat 2 — 1. Markee; 2. Evans; 3. Baker; 4. Waltman; 5. Lloyd

Main event — 1. Markee; 2. Evans; 3. Baker; 4. Lloyd

PICK-UPS

Trophy dash — 1. James Ross; 2. Corbin McManus; 3. Paul Townsend; 4. Collin Gardner

Heat 1 — 1. McManus; 2. Ross; 3. Gardner; 4. Townsend; 5. Michael Gallagher

Heat 2 — 1. Ross; 2. McManus; 3. Gardner; 4. Gallagher; 5. Townsend

Main event — 1. Ross; 2. McManus; 3. Gallagher; 4. Townsend; 5. Gardner

STOCKS

Trophy dash — 1. Dean Nelson; 2. Ralph Gobert; 3. Linden Fyfe; 4. Mike Kriger

Heat 1 — 1. Mike Kriger; 2. Nelson; 3. Gobert; 4. Fyfe; 5. Michael Kriger; 6. Howie Fox

Heat 2 — 1. Gobert; 2. Nelson; 3. Fyfe; 4. Mike Kriger; 5. Michael Kriger; 6. Fox

Main event — 1. Mike Kriger; 2. Gobert; 3. Fyfe; 4. Michael Kriger; 5. Fox

DEMOLITION DERBY

Egg race — Sam Freelove

Scavenger — Donnie Brotzman

Reverse — Kevin Erickson

Demolition — 1. Erickson; 2. Team Willow Billy Racing (Robby); 3. Brotzman

Saturday, July 5

HOBBY STOCKS

Trophy dash — 1. Brian Vaughan; 2. Gary Spain; 3. Nicholas Herdina; 4. Leo Loshock

Heat 1 — 1. Herdina; 2. G. Spain; 3. Regina Spain; 4. Vaughan; 5. Loshock

Heat 2 — 1. G. Spain; 2. R. Spain; 3. Herdina; 4. Loshock

Main event — 1. Herdina; 2. G. Spain; 3. Vaughan; 4. R. Spain

300 SPRINTS

Trophy dash — 1. Jeff Wallace; 2. Royal Cutway; 3. Robert Watkins

Heat 1 — 1. Wallace; 2. Watkins; 3. Cutway

MINI STOCKS

Trophy dash — 1. Greg Markee; 2. Nathan Evans; 3. Fred Lloyd; 4. Steve Courier

Heat 1 — 1. Markee; 2. Lloyd; 3. Evans; 4. Courier

Heat 2 — 1. Markee; 2. Courier; 3. Evans; 4. Lloyd; 5. Fred Waltman

Main event — 1. Markee; 2. Evans; 3. Courier; 4. Lloyd; 5. Waltman

MODIFIED LITE

Trophy dash — 1. George Park; 2. B.R. Smith; 3. Craig Stacks

Heat 1 — 1. Smith; 2. Park; 3. Stacks

Heat 2 — 1. Park; 2. Stacks; 3. Smith

Main event — 1. Park; 2. Stacks; 3. Smith

PICK-UPS

Trophy dash — 1. Corbin McManus; 2. Collin Gardner; 3. James Ross; 4. Cheryl Lucier

Heat 1 — 1. Ross; 2. McManus; 3. Seth Siver; 4. Paul Townsend; 5. Lucier; 6. Gardner

Heat 2 — 1. McManus; 2. Gardner; 3. Ross; 4. Townsend; 5. Lucier

Main event — 1. Ross; 2. Gardner; 3. Lucier; 4. Townsend; 5. McManus

STOCKS

Trophy dash — 1. Linden Fyfe; 2. Guy Hamilton; 3. Michael Kriger; 4. Dean Nelson

Heat 1 — 1. Ralph Gobert; 2. Nelson; 3. John Clemmons; 4. Hamilton; 5. Howie Fox; 6. Michael Kriger

Heat 2 — 1. Nelson; 2. Clemmons; 3. Gobert; 4. Fox; 5. Michael Kriger; 6. Gene Pool; 7. Fyfe

Main event — 1. Gobert; 2. Fyfe; 3. Nelson; 4. Michael Kriger; 5. Fox; 6. Pool; 7. Clemmons

SEASON POINTS STANDINGS

STOCKS — 1. Dean Nelson, 880; 2. Ralph Gobert, 794; 3. Linden Fyfe, 686; 4. John Clemmons, 567; 5. Howie Fox, 424; 6. Michael Kriger, 231; 7. Steven Vial, 198; 8. Gene Pool, 127; 9. Mike Kriger, 118; 10. Guy Hamilton, 37; 11. Robert Potter, 18

MINI STOCKS — 1. Kory Madsen, 246; 2. Dale Brummer, 237; 3. Greg Markee, 186; 4. Fred Lloyd, 181; 5. Jake Baker, 162; 6. Steve Courier, 151; 7. Nathan Evans, 140; 8. Fred Waltman, 85; 9. Pat Weissert, 59; 10. Dave Burke, 44; 11. Seth Siver, 32; 12. John Reynolds, 30; 13. Pat Chipman, 26

HOBBY STOCKS — 1. Brian Vaughan, 634; 2. Nicholas Herdina, 623; 3. Regina Spain, 324; 4. Gary Spain, 282; 5. Leo Loshock, 91; 6. David Keene, 85; 7. Kimberly Keene, 68; 8. Brandy James, 19; 9. Paulson, 0

PICK-UPS — 1. James Ross, 912; 2. Corbin McManus, 579; 3. Paul Townsend, 496; 4. Collin Gardner, 282; 5. Seth Siver, 141; 6. Cheryl Lucier, 151; 7. Michael Gallagher, 38; 8. John Butcher, 32; 9. Brian Madson, 31; 10. Dozer, 7

300 SPRINTS — 1. Jeff Wallace, 479; 2. Jake Baker, 289; 3. J.R. Aman, 115; 4. Royal Cutway, 109; 5. Charles Goodenough, 80; 6. Robert Watkins, 40; 7. Perry Breeding, 31

360 SPRINTS — 1. John McDonald, 158; 2. Doug Fisher, 141; 3. Tyler McDonald, 118; 4. Bob Erdman, 108; 5. Pete Ischi, 98; 6. Dave Hughes, 92; 7. Clifford Barney, 70; 8. Earnie Segar, 69

MODIFIED LITE — 1. George Park, 229; 2. Doug Dechaiso, 159; 3. B.R. Smith, 96; 4. Graig Stacks, 32

NORTH STAR SPEEDWAY

WASILLA

Saturday, July 5

BANDOLEROS

1. Anita Braun (1st Heat 1, 1st Feature,130 pts); 2. Hannah Lewis (2nd, 2nd, 128); 3. Carly Meacham (3rd, 3rd, 126)

LEGENDS

1. Mike Thomas (1st, 1st, 130); 2. Tom Lake (3rd, 2nd, 127); 3. Jeff Landrum, 6th, 3rd, 123); 4. Rod Pucak, 5th, 4th, 123); 5. Kelly Sawyer, 4th, 6th, 122)

MINI STOCKS

1. Alex Schwochert (1st, 1st, 130); 2. Mike Schwochert (2nd, 2nd, 128); 3. Ray Butler (5th, 3rd, 124); 4. (tie) Jim Menard (4th, 4th, 124) and Bryan Barber (3rd, 5th, 124)

THUNDER STOCKS

1. Artie Niemi (1st, 1st, 130); 2. Rich Schwab (3rd, 2nd, 127); 3. Tom Rench (4th, 3rd, 125); 4. Keith Jones (2nd, 6th, 124); 5. Jim Langland (5th, 4th, 123)

LATE MODELS

1. Rob Tirpak (1st, 1st, 130); 2. Dana Pruhs (2nd, 2nd, 128); 3. (tie) Ray Butler (4th, 4th, 124), Paul Landes (3rd, 5th, 124) and Jimbo Nelson (6th, 3rd, 124).