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Rolling Thunder Series
(Presented by Rock Island Racing)
A
Division of TRAC
Jocham Does It Yet Again!
On Saturday afternoon, June 26th,
after a bangin’ NAS-T-JET race on SCOTT ELLIS’ Cowles’ Mountain
Raceway, the Rolling Thunder Series moved into it’s 9th
race of the season, with a solid field of 18 racers, each trying to
figure out a way to stop RICK JOCHAM, a feat done only once this year,
by MATT PAUL, earlier in the season.
As the qualifying round robin began, it seemed
that that was possible, as it was the two ‘Scotts’, ELLIS and
DUNLAP, setting the pace, with 26 and 27 lap/heat totals. ELLIS even
posted a 28, on the deceptive White lane, en route to a whopping 107
lap total. This total held up for a 1st place finish and 5
big bonus points. DUNLAP
was almost equally as fast, as he posted a 106, just one lap off the
pace, for second place and 4 bonus points.
JOCHAM showed up for third place, with 104 laps, good for 3
bonus points, as VIC LICAUSI, a part-timer on this year’s circuit,
took 4th place for his 101 lap effort.
FRANCIS MCENTEE, another of team San Diego, was fifth,
collecting the last available bonus point in the round, for his 101
lap total. At this point, the field was cut from 18 to 12, with ROCKY
GERMAN being 12th, and
the last to qualify, with 95 laps. This was just about half of
a lap ahead of ROB BOWMAN, who was the first racer not to advance to
the Semi round.
In the semi’s, host ELLIS was hot again,
posting 107 laps, identical to his qualifying round. This time,
however, the 107 wasn’t enough
to top the field, as JOCHAM turned up the heat and laid down 108 laps,
good for ‘pole position’ in the Final, as well as 5 more bonus
points. ELLIS’ 107 did
get him the ‘outside pole’ and 4 more bonus points. LICAUSI added
2 laps to his qualifying round total, giving him a strong 103 laps for
third place and 3 bonus points. Fourth went to GREG WILLEY for his 102
laps, good for 2 bonus points, while MATT PAUL rounded out the top 5,
collecting the final bonus point, for his 101 laps. The ‘Lucky Dog
‘ spot went to DUNLAP, as he also ended with 101 laps, giving him
the last spot in the Final.
The Final quickly became a race between ELLIS
and JOCHAM, with DUNLA P hanging around, just close enough to
capitalize on any possible mistakes. ELLIS was strong and consistent,
laying down 27’s in three of the four heats, dipping to a 26 in the
other. Once again, he ended up with 107 laps. JOCHAM also laid down
three 27’s but, his other heat was a 28, giving him a 109 total, for
the win, and yet another 5 bonus points.
ELLIS took the runner-up spot with his strong run, holding off
DUNLAP, who finished with 105, for third place, using his newly
developed Speed Demon tires.
The race for fourth was close, all the way to the end, with
LICAUSI taking the honors for his 100 lap finish. Rounding out the top
5 was PAUL, whose 99 laps were just ahead of WILLEY’S 98.
This was a very fast race and a very tough course
to master. The San Diego guys took advantage of their familiarity,
with strong runs from their team members, throughout the day. ELLIS
gave out small placards to each racer for their respective finishing
positions…a classy move. Everyone enjoyed the challenge of the
track. We’ll be back.
As always, we thank our sponsors for their
support, helping us keep things interesting with incentive
‘gifts’. Please visit their websites and patronize their
businesses, for the finest in HO scale racing. Links to our sponsors
can be found on the Rock Island Racing website.
www.rockislandracing.com
The next race is in 2 weeks, on July 10th,
at Dunlap Motorplex, in Upland. There’s a rumor that there may be
some representin’ coming from Arizona. C’mon over guys. The more,
the merrier…and remember “keep it in the groove as long as you
can”!
C ya.
Finishing Order
1. Rick Jocham
175+3+5+5=188
2. Scott Ellis
170+5+4 =179
3. Scott Dunlap
165+4
=169
4. Vic Licausi
160+2+3 =165
5. Matt Paul
155+1 =156
6. Greg Willey
150+2
=152
7. Francis McEntee
146+1
=147
8. Greg Davis
142
9. Michael Hurtado
138
10. Lee Tipps
134
11. Mickey
Hurtado
130
12. Rocky
German
126
13. Rob Bowman
122
14. Erik Von
Neuman
119
15. Andrew
Davis
116
16. Chris
Jackson
113
17. Jeremy
Hurtado
110
18. Kyle
Bowman
107
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NAS-T-JET Series
(Presented by Rock Island Racing)
A
Division of TRAC
Dunlap Wins Second Straight; Takes Series
Lead
On Saturday June 26th, racers from
throughout Southern California, were waking before the roosters, to
make the journey down to Scott Ellis’ Cowles’Mountain Raceway, for
the 9th race of the season, marking the beginning of the
second half. Just as the days begin to shorten after June 21st,
our remaining season of racing is shorter than what we’ve already
finished. We are over the hump and on the way down the back side of
the hill, toward the season Championship.
Nine of the racers were traveling in tandem, with
4 in one car and 5 in Rocky’s van. About half way to the race, it
appeared as though the field may be very light, as the van broke down.
Luckily, the breakdown was right near a Freeway offramp, and there was
enough momentum to get to the top of the ramp, and down the hill to a
Chevron station. The outlook was grim and racers were beginning to
doubt that they’d ever make it to the race. Just at that moment,
master mechanic Greg Willey, noticed a disconnected wire. Mickey and
Matt took care of getting the wire reconnected (thank God for duct
tape), and the van started, and ran fine for the rest of the day. So,
we were all off to the races!
Going into the race, series leader ROCKY GERMAN
had a solid hold on the lead, 43 points ahead of the second place SCOTT DUNLAP but, in NAS-T-JET racing, things can (and do)
change quickly.
The race format was one big round robin, due to a
late start, with bonus points going to the top 5 racers, and an extra
added 5 bonus points to the winner. As things began, the 4-minute heat
lap totals were hovering in the 28-30 lap area. DUNLAP (#88 UPS
Taurus) had a great car from the onset, and being no stranger to this
raceway, he used this car to it’s full potential, posting 31 laps in
three of the heats, and a 30 in the other, for a blazing 123 laps.
This was good for 5 bonus points and an additional 5 bonus points for
the win. The closest
contender, FRANCIS MCENTEE (# 97 John Deere Taurus), who posted a
strong 120 lap total, good for second place and 4 bonus points. The
remaining spot on the podium was taken by race host, SCOTT ELLIS (#4
Kodak Monte Carlo), for his 119 lap effort, giving him 3 bonus points.
So, it was a ‘Team San Diego’ podium! GREG DAVIS (#18 Interstate
Monte Carlo) took 4th place, with 116 laps, for 2 bonus
points, and the remaining bonus point had to be shared between MICKEY
HURTADO (#3 Goodwrench Monte Carlo), and ROB BOWMAN (#6 Viagra
Taurus), ending their 113 lap efforts in the exact same place on the
track for the tie. This marked ELLIS’ first podium and BOWMAN’S
first Top 5. Way to go, guys! CHRIS JACKSON (#45 Sprint Intrepid) and
GREG WILLEY (#13 Zig-Zag Monte Carlo) also had 113 laps, for 7th
and 8th place respectively. Series leader, GERMAN, (#12
Alltel Inrerpid) had a horrible time of it, with a mediocre car and
even more mediocre driving. He finished in 11th place, with
only 108 laps, allowing DUNLAP to take the series lead. I guess it’s
obvious which race GERMAN will drop in the second half!
The race was tough racin’, with A LOT of paint
tradin’ goin’ on! It
was a good sized field of 14 racers. The track is extremely difficult
to navigate….especially with a NAS-T-JET! The track was, however, in
great shape and there were no issues with the lap counter/timer. ELLIS
provided a bevy of good food, available throughout the raceday,
allowing the day to move along more quickly. Great job of hosting your
first TRAC race, Scott! I’m sure that everyone will welcome a return
visit to your track. (I’m sure, too, that people will be showing up
for practice!)
The next race is on Saturday July 10, at Dunlap
Motorplex in Upland. C ya there!
Finishing Order
1. Scott Dunlap
175+5+5=185
2. Francis McEntee
170+4 =174
3. Scott Ellis
165+3 =168
4. Greg Davis
160+2
=162
5. Mickey Hurtado
152.5+.5 =153
5. Rob Bowman 152.5+.5=153
7. Chris Jackson
146
8. Greg Willey
142
9. Matt Paul
138
10. Michael
Hurtado
134
11. Rocky
German
130
12. Andrew
Davis
126
13. Jeremy
Hurtado
122
14. Kyle
Bowman
119
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