3-28-04
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Rolling
Thunder Series (Presented
by Rock Island Racing) A
Division of TRAC Paul Powers Past Ellis For Two in a Row
Ten racers made the trek to FRANCIS MCENTEE’S Squealin’
HO Raceway, ON March 28th, for race number 4 in the
2004 Rolling Thunder Series. Located just outside of the Cleveland
National Forrest, and about 10 miles north of Tecate, Mexico,
MCENTEE’S tricky little raceway is always worth the trip, and close
fast racing is always a guarantee. On this day, series leader, RICK
JOCHAM, and defending Series Champ, MIKE ENGELAGE, were not able to
make the race, leaving valued real estate open for the Final. As the first of two Round Robins began, the pace was fast and the field was pretty well bunched. Defending his win from the last Rolling Thunder race, MATT PAUL began another of the strong, fast performances that we’ve now come to expect from him, posting a fast lap of 6.324, on his way to a big 101 lap total. Although this was a great total, MICKEY HURTADO was equally as fast in his freshly built rocket , and kept it a hair cleaner than PAUL, finishing with 102 laps. At this point however, the big story of the day was the emergence of San Diego’s SCOTT ELLIS, who dazzled the Squealin’ HO fans, grabbing the top honors with a 102 total of his own, including a new record setting lap of 6.314! ELLIS was on fire and clearly the man with the ‘target’ on his back. Rounding out the top 5 in Round 1, were ROCKY
GERMAN with 100 laps, and GREG WILLEY, also with 100 laps, just behind
GERMAN in track position by about 18 inches! In the second of the Round Robins, where the
score would be added to the total from the first round, for a
cumulative total, the track and/or the racers slowed down the pace
from the first round, with one exception…..ELLIS, who set the track
ablaze again, upping his total by a lap, to 103, for a cumulative
total of 205 laps, and solidly in control of Pole position for the
Final. Next in line was HURTADO, with 100 laps and a cumulative total
of 202, for the ‘outside pole’. WILLEY stayed tough, posting a 98,
for a 198 lap total. PAUL
and GERMAN both raced
hard to amass 96 laps each, allowing PAUL to take the fourth spot, by
a lap, over GERMAN. The
battle for the last spot in the Final was a good one and nearly saw
young MICHAEL HURTADO, by virtue of a strong, solid run, going to the
Final. But alas, PAUL HAGAN held off HURTADO 94-93, to nab the last
spot in the big dance. Great run, Michael. You’re getting close! In the Final, the pace picked WAY back up, with 5 of the 6 Finalists posting totals of 103 laps or better! WILLEY had trouble off the bat, on the Blue lane, only posting a 22, and virtually eliminating him from the hunt, immediately! The other 5 racers however, were putting on a show of speed and control, posting mostly 26’s and 27’s. Earlier, PAUL and GERMAN had speculated that it would take 104 laps to win the race, a total that nobody had reached so far. How wrong they were, as a 104 total turned out to be 4th place!! Again ELLIS set the pace, never dropping under 26 laps for the entire race. Awesome run, Scott! With one heat remaining, ELLIS had only to sit and watch, waiting to see if his huge 105 total would be enough for his first Rolling Thunder win. This total would be assumed to be a winning total however, going into this last heat, there were still four racers on the track that could still win. About half way through the heat, PAUL put himself a lap up on the field, and was chasing the 105 of ELLIS. As ELLIS watched, PAUL needed every bit of horsepower that he had, as well as some good fortune to stay away from any traffic or wrecks. When the flag came down, PAUL showed that he had exactly what he needed, as he prevailed, with a stellar effort of a whopping 106 laps, including the new track record of 6.216 seconds, giving PAUL his second straight Rolling Thunder victory, and vaulting him to the number one spot in the series, as well as the new ‘Top Dog’ in the current 2004 power rankings. Congratulations, Matt! The race for the final spot on the podium couldn’t have been closer, as GERMAN, HURTADO, and HAGAN duked it out, all producing totals well above their day’s best. HAGAN stayed about a half-lap behind HURTADO and GERMAN, who raced side-by side, for over 20 of the final laps of the race. They went back and forth several times but, a late fishtail by GERMAN allowed HURTADO to get past him. In the final minute, GERMAN began to gain some ground on HURTADO but, it was just too little-too late, as HURTADO’S 104 lap total prevailed over GERMAN’S 104 lap total, by about 2 feet! HAGAN was just about to cross the line for lap 104 as well, as the time ran out and the checkers were waved. This was one of the most intense races of the season, thus far. When the race is still undecided, with 5 racers in the running, on the last heat…that’s racin’! Those who missed out on this race will not want to miss out on it, when we return to the Squealin’ HO, in September. Thanks again to all who made the trip and provided for a great race. Thanks to Francis for providing a great racing environment, and, as always, thanks to our generous sponsors. At this race, PAUL won a sweet ’59 Bonneville t-jet, by MEV, and GERMAN won the book on restoration, also provided by MEV. Thanks again, Mike! The next race will be on Mickey Hurtado’s brand new track, on Sunday April 18th. The track will be open and available for practice on Saturday, April 17th at 4PM till ?. On Sunday, the pits will open at 9:30, for a 10:45-ish NAS-T-JET start. C ya there!
Finishing
Order 1.
MATT PAUL
175+3+2+5=185 2.
SCOTT ELLIS
170+5+5 =180 3.
MICKEY HURTADO
165+4+4 =173 4.
ROCKY GERMAN
160+2+1 =163 5.
PAUL HAGAN
155 6.
GREG WILLEY
150+1+3 =154 7.
MICHAEL HURTADO
146 8.
FRANCIS MCENTEE
142 9.
JEREMY HURTADO
138 10. CHRIS JACKSON
134
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