Champion Raceway held their year end banquet on November 26th at Rostel's Restaurant in Central Point. With a large turnout, good food, good drink and camaraderie, a great time was had by all. The champions and runners-up in each category were presented with their trophies, and the sponors and racers were given a special thanks for making this such a successful year. Mike Morales, on behalf of the ET Finals Team, presented Jim with a special thanks plaque. It featured a 3-D picture of Jim's car, with the names of all the ET team members along the sides. To see pictures of the banquet, click here.
Champion Raceway is pleased to announce that Cascade Block will sponsor the entire Friday Night series in 2007 as they did in 2006. Dian Skudstad and her team have been huge supporters of the track and we are thrilled to have them back in 2007. Please thank them for their support of the track by supporting their business. They have an awesome selection of block, brick and stone for any of your landscaping or building needs.
It's hard to believe that we've come to the end of the racing season already!! It always seems it starts too late and ends too soon!!! However, for those who were experiencing end of the season breakage, maybe the timing was just right!! In any event, we brought the season to a close with a great Cascade Block Friday Night Drags program, followed on Saturday with the National Dragster Challenge race.
Friday night's car count was the largest of the year, with a total of 156 cars participating. This race also finalized the points standings for the Friday series, with few changes in the top positions. To see Friday's results click on ['06 Race Results] button to the left, and for the final points standings click on ['06 Points] button.
Saturday's National Dragster Challenge also had a good turnout, with everyone anxious to try their hand at winning the coveted Wally. There were a few trying moments with the new timing system, but otherwise the event went off well with several very happy racers taking home a Wally! Congratulations to Mike Morales, Super Pro; Mike Hedgecock, Pro; Michael Wescom, Sportsman; Michael Campbell, Motorcycle; Jake Pereira, High School and Aaron Frei, Jr. Dragster. For Saturday's results, click on the ['06 Race Results] button to the home page.
On Saturday we also held the run-off for the Motorcycle Championship, between Scotty Pollacheck and Jerry Stinson. Scotty prevailed in a double red light start, which unfortunately happened first for Jerry. It was still a close race with Scotty's 8.963 run on a 8.92 dial against Jerry's 9.474 on a 9.45 dial. Congratulations to Scotty on winning the 2006 Motorcycle Championship.
Beginning Friday September 22nd, Champion Raceway kicked off the final Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Race in Division 6 for 2006. Over 270 cars competed over the three days, with many of the top racers in Division 6 and 7 in attendance. To add to the excitement, we hosted the largest field of Alcohol Funny Cars and Dragster's in the track's history. For that matter, it was the largest field of Alcohol competitors in any of the Division 6 races during 2006. In addition, the crowd pleasing jet cars were on hand, who wowed the crowd with the final pass of the evening on Friday and Saturday. To add to the excitement, the track lights were turned off for their runs!!
It was a great weekend of racing, with numerous races determined by margins in the ten-thousands of a second, a very competitive field of 10 Alcohol Dragsters and 16 Alcohol Funny cars, and competitive and beautiful cars in the stock, super stock, super street, super gas, comp and top comp classes, along with the numerous dragsters in super comp and top comp.
Visit Drag Race Central for all the detailed results.
In addition to all the other racing taking place during the Summit E.T. Finals, Kelly Peterson and Tom Brooks had their run-off at the end of the test and tune session on Thursday to determine the track champion. With their teammates cheering them on, it was decided at the line when Kelly had that dreaded red light. It was a tight competition and we congratulate them both on a great year! Congratulations Tom on being Super Pro Champion!!!
Starting September 6th, the Northwest's best bracket racers descended on Champion Raceway for the Division 6 Summit ET Finals. Sixteen of the nineteen Division 6 tracks were represented, with a total of 493 cars entered.
On Thursday NHRA began tech inspections, and the track ran a test and tune session for any racers who wanted an early shot at trying out the track. A total of 277 racers elected to run their cars, with 3 runs for each class being available. Friday was time trials day, with everyone getting 3 time trials in preparation for Saturday and Sunday eliminations.
Saturday started out early with a pancake breakfast hosted by Champion Raceway and the Southern Oregon Drag Racers Club. All racers and their crew were invited to the free breakfast from 7:00 - 9:00 am. Promptly at 9:00 racing started with a time trial run for the Jr Dragsters and High School competitors, followed by a final time trial run for the rest of the classes. That lead into the elimination rounds for Jr. Dragster and High School, followed by the 'Race of Champions' competition. The Race of Champions pitted the 4 best racers from each track, in each of the 4 classes, against each other. This is the most coveted race, as the winner in each class gets to represent Division 6 at the season Finals in Pomona. Competition was fierce at both the individual and team level, as these races also counted toward team points for the Track Manager's Cup. Results for Jr. Dragsters, High School, Race of Champions and Track Manager's Cup can be found at Saturday Results.
Congratulations to the Champion team for placing 2nd in the Manager's Cup, and to Mike Wescom who was runner-up in Sportsman, Eric Barker who went to the semi-finals in Sportsman, Tom Brooks who went to the semi-finals in Super Pro, and Chris Fraioli who went to the semi-finals in High School.
Following Saturday's racing, everyone was treated to live music from "Hot Gossip", with lots of dancing, celebrating and overall good times enjoyed by all.
Sunday morning brought elimination rounds for all classes. The weather was perfect, the track was superbly prepped and tons of team spirit was in the air. Results for each class can be found at Sunday Results.
Congratulations to the Champion Team for placing 4th overall -- the best results ever for a team from the track. Congratulations to Paul Breedlove for winning Sportsman, George Smith for a semi-final finish in Super Pro and Jeremy McGee for a quarter-final finish in Super Pro. A great effort was put out by the entire team, a tremendous amount of team work was shown throughout the weekend, and a lot of camaraderie was built. We look forward to building on this framework and carrying it forward to next year's team.
A special thank you is extended to all who helped to make this event a success. In addition, we'd like to recognize Pastor Dave and his youth group for doing an outstanding job cleaning up the grounds Friday and Saturday night, it was greatly appreciated!!
Pictures provided by Rich Carlson
©
Aerial photo by AeroImages ©
On August 26th, Champion Raceway held the 1st Annual Nitro Summerfest and Fox Hunt, sponsored by River City RV and Profile Grinding and Machine. All ladies had free admission, which helped bring out a good size crowd of spectators. Everyone got to enjoy great racing which featured Baxter Auto Parts’ West Coast Top Sportsmen, AA/Fuel Altereds, AA/Supercharged and bracket cars. In addition to the racing, the crowd and racers were treated to live music from ‘Hot Gossip’.
Before eliminations got underway, Ricky Ruiz presented Don and Bobbie Harper with a beautiful plaque commemorating all their years of contributions to the drag racing industry and Champion Raceway.
In the Top Sportsman ranks John Campoy (Medford, OR), added to his win column and points lead by beating Brandon Watkins (Sparks, NV). Campoy had a better reaction time along with a 7.65 @ 164.30 to beat Watkins’ 7.90 @ 172.48.
Ricky Ruiz and Dave Hix treated the crowd to several passes in their AA/Fuel Altereds, with a best run by Ricky Ruiz of 6.654 @ 191.53. Dave Thompson and Mike Molea had their AA/Supercharged cars out, with Molea running a 7.179 @ 183.63 and a 7.505 @ 186.60 for Thompson. Roger Ponder and Sloan Taylor ran their altered’s with respective best runs of a 7.298 @ 182.32 and a 7.909 @ 177.15. Mike Lema also ran his front engine dragster.
Bracket 1 brought out a wide range of cars from throughout Oregon, all looking to take home the guaranteed purse of $1,000. Local racer Phil Greer grabbed the win in his ’56 Chevy with a 9.40 @ 141.07 against Ron Cunningham’s ’65 Chevelle with a 13.06 @ 99.77.
Bracket 2 was made up of all local racers, with a double breakout win for Jonathan Repp in his Pontiac powered dragster with a 8.832 @ 138.99 against Andrew Larsen’s faster Chevy powered dragster with a 7.713 @ 168.65.
Overall a great time was had by all, with everyone looking forward to an even bigger event next year. (9/3/06)
Photos by Dennis Vollmar
On August 19th, Champion Raceway held their final race in the E.T. Championship series along with their King of the Track competition. The afternoon began with very tight points standings, and a question in most classes of who the ultimate champions and contenders for King of the Track would be.
After completing the ET race, and sorting out the points battles, there were ties for the championship in Super Pro, Sportsman and Motorcycle. A final race will be run to determine the champion in these classes. Champions were crowned in Pro, High School and Jr. Dragster. Congratulations to Mike Hedgecock, Pro Champion; Jake Pereira, High School; and Aaron Frei, Jr. Dragster.
The resulting King of the Track contenders were: Super Pro - Kelly Peterson and Tom Brooks, Pro – Mike Hedgecock and Jim Alcorn, Sportsman – Chuck Herndon and Charlie Allin and Motorcycle – Scott Pollacheck and Jerry Stinson.
In first round Jerry Stinson (’84 Ninja) holeshot Kelly Peterson (dragster) and ran a 9.483 et on a 9.45 dial against her 7.935 et on a 7.90 dial. Charlie Allin (71 ElCamino) fouled against Tom Brooks (67 Baracuda) who ran a 10.511 on his 10.44 dial. Mike Hedgecock (85 Mustang) and Scott Pollacheck (76 Kawasaki) were almost even on the line, with Scott taking the win with his 9.82 on a 9.78 dial against Mike’s 10.759 on a 10.65 dial. The final pair pitted Jim Alcorn (67 Lemans) against Chuck Herndon (70 Chevelle) with Chuck prevailing on his 13.198 on a 13.17 dial against Jim’s 11.598 on a 11.54 dial.
Second round pitted the bike’s against the door cars, with Scott Pollacheck winning on Tom Brook’s red light and Chuck Herndon beating Jerry Stinson with a 13.17 run on a 13.16 dial against Jerry’s 9.471 on a 9.43 dial.
In the final, Chuck Herndon ran a 13.116 on a 13.16 dial against Scott Pollacheck’s 9.654 on a 9.80 dial, and took his ’70 Chevelle to the win in a double breakout.
All year the points race in the ET Championship series has been very close, and the final race on Saturday 8/19 added even more excitement. Several racers made big moves in the points race, giving us some new leaders and creating ties in several categories. To see points standings click here.
Congratulations to the following racers who won their class:
Super Pro - Tom Brooks
Pro - Mike Hedgecock
Sportsman - Chuck Herndon
Jr. Dragster - Aaron Frei
High School - Jake Pereira
Congratulations to the following racers who are tied in their class (a final race will be run to determine the champion)
Super Pro - Kelly Peterson & Tom Brooks
Update - Kelly & Tom had their run-off on Thursday 9/7.
Tom took the honors when Kelly fouled out.
Sportsman - Charlie Allin & Chuck Herndon
Update -- Chuck and Charlie had their run-off on
Friday 8/25. Chuck took the honors in a close race ultimately
decided at the starting line. Congratulations Chuck!!
Motorcycle - Scott Pollacheck & Jerry Stinson
We've added a Photo Gallery button to the navigation bar, with just a few pictures to give you an idea of how this will look. Anyone is welcome to submit photos to have added to the Gallery. The only rules are that along with the picture you must provide the date taken, and a description. Descriptions must include the name of the car owner and make/model (if a picture of your car), or if pictures of people, the date/place and names of people in the picture. Any racing related pictures are welcome, and we'll do our best to accommodate everyone, but final decisions on which pictures are used will rest with management. Submit pictures along with their descriptions to webmaster@championraceway.com
To help cut down on the massive amount of time it's taking to publish the points updates for Friday Night Drags, we've changed the way the information is presented. You will now see a summary with just the names and totals of the top 25 in points for each category. If you still want to review the detail by race, there is a link you can click on which will open an Excel spreadsheet will all the detail in it. If you don't have Excel you won't be able to view this information -- in that case you can email webmaster@championraceway.com and we can find another way for you to get the information. At this time we are not changing the way the information is presented for the ET Championship Series.
On Friday July 14th, Champion Raceway had their first wedding held at the track!! Chris and Barbie Darland had a brief ceremony, then opened up our Friday Night Drags program with a pass down the track as husband and wife. We wish them many years of happiness and successful racing!! (pictures will follow when we get them).
On July 7th through the 9th, River City RV and Profile Grinding & Machine hosted the 3rd Annual Northwest Reunion held at Champion Raceway. Racers from Canada, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, California and Arizona were in attendance. The event was a huge success, and included for the first time a contingent of A-Fuel dragsters. The AA/Supercharged gassers were also in full force, and to add to the excitement Darren Bay with his ‘Warped Speed’ jet car took on Richard Smith’s jet car ‘Nighthawk’.
In A-Fuel Chris Bates from Cottonwood, CA won with a 8.90 @ 158.55 pass when Bill Wayne, Bullhead, AZ, red lit and then laid down a 7.54 @ 189.24 pass. In AA/Supercharged Gary Reinero, Merced CA, took on Scott White, Seaside OR, and beat him with a 7.19 @ 192.30 vs a 7.20 @ 185.94. The A/Altered class pitted Frank Fuentes, Tracy CA, against local racer Chris Malott, White City OR. Frank won the round with a 8.00 @ 181.74 when Chris broke at the line. B/Altered racer Logan Eickman, Salem OR, beat Caryl Lankford, Lakeport CA, with a 8.92 @ 149.43 against a 9.07 @ 144.63 run. In the B/C Gasser class Rocco Marsiano, Redding CA, beat local racer Richard Fish, Central Point OR, with a 10.14 @ 131.23 against a 10.56 @ 125.86 run. For Inliner/Flathead Harry Blecha, Carmichael CA, beat Glen Terry, Oroville CA, with a 10.65 @ 124.31 vs a 16.63 @ 78.27. Bracket 1 came down to two local racers, both running Dodge’s. Wayne Selden, Rogue River OR, took home the win in his ’54 Dodge ‘Old Blue’ (12.00 @ 111.15) when Ron Fremming, Ashland OR, red lit. Jr. Dragster pitted Aaron Frei against Forrest Angwin with Aaron taking the win on a 8.02 @ 81.39 pass.
To climax the qualifying on Saturday Champion Raceway hosted a huge BBQ for all the racers and their crew. It was a sight to see – great racing, great food and great people!!
Next year Champion Raceway plans to do a three race series with a high point champion crowned in each class. The high point champion will receive $2,000 in cash, along with some great contingency prizes, bragging rights and a great trophy. Be sure to check back for updates to this series and all the other great racing at Champion.
John McKnight from Absolute Golf Cars provides golf cart rentals at the major events at Champion. You must make a reservation at least one week prior to the race, then the cart will be available when you arrive at the track. Cost is $50 per day. Call John or Jim at 541-956-9701 to reserve a cart.
Last week Jim had a productive meeting with Randy Hutton (parks department) and the Big Bore Shooters who have the shooting range across the track's east side pit/parking area. They reached agreement on filling in and leveling the berms from the 200 foot mark back to the entrance of the track. This is great news and will allow us to have level parking for the ET Bracket Finals and Division Race!! Excavation should start in the next couple weeks.
In addition to our track photographer, Larry McFarland will be at all our major events taking pictures, which are available for purchase. He was here for the Gasser Nationals and took hundreds of pictures, so we encourage you to contact Larry and see what he has available. Larry's contact information is:
Grandstand Photography
Larry McFarland
2258 Chicago Ct. SE
Albany, OR 97322
541-928-4061
larmcf@comcast.net
Due to the many problems experienced at the Reston Hotel, we have partnered with Windmill Inns of Medford for our new host hotel. Contact information for the Windmill can be found under the "Track Info" button on the left.
Points are now posted under the '06 Points button. If you raced at one of the E.T. Championship races, and your name is not listed it means we did not receive a points sign up sheet from you.
All questions related to points are to be addressed to: points@championraceway.com.
For those of you who don't already know this, Dennis Vollmar is our track photographer and he's always busy taking photos at our races. He's probably got a cool picture of your car that you can purchase, or if not he'll gladly take some for you. The pictures are very affordable, so If you want pictures of your car, just ask him! Here's his contact information:
Dennis & Gail Vollmar
14207 Ravenwood Drive
Klamath Falls, OR 97601
541-882-0101
dvollmar@charter.net
Be sure to review the ET Schedule/Info page for updates/changes. Fee for Motorcycles has been revised, and the payout schedule has been added.
Groundbreaking has begun on the new bathrooms!!!! The first step was completed when the crew from Bill's Backhoe pulled up the cement pads in the area where the new bathroom will be built. Construction can now get underway, and will start soon.
The old barbeque stand has been converted to the new enclosed beer stand, with the help of Ed, Dave & Kenny. In addition, Blacksmith's Bar & Grill donated two new beer taps to the stand.
Gene Hollingsworth and Jeff Schulz built a new ticket booth for the spectator side of the track.
Thanks to all for your support and help with these ongoing projects!!!!
Are you interested in working at the track and having a great time this season??? We are looking for some additional people to join the team, so if you have an interest please contact Jim Taylor at 541-830-DRAG (leave message) or send him an email at manager@championraceway.com.
Yes, it's true!!! Broadband wireless internet service is coming to the track!!!! We'll update you with more details as they unfold.
The track officially opened for the 2006 season on April 28th with the first Friday Night Drags event, sponsored by Cascade Block. There was an outstanding turnout of racers and spectators for this first race of the season, with 118 cars and 300+ spectators. With the help of numerous volunteers over the previous weeks, the track was scraped, lots of clean up was completed and the program was ready to roll! See the results page for Friday night's winners.
Friday's successful turnout was followed by another success on Saturday, with 61 cars running in the test and tune session and 28 chassis certifications completed. From all accounts a great time was had by all.
We're excited about the season, and hope the participation and interest will continue to grow through the year. Our next event is Cascade Block Friday Night Drags on May 5th, followed by our first E.T. Points race on Saturday the 6th, sponsored by NIC Industries and Racer's Edge. See the 2006 Schedule for details on times and fees.
On Saturday April 22nd, the track was opened for a test session for cars running quicker than 8.99. This was set up by Jim to accommodate the request of several racers needing some test time, and to give the crew a chance to get out to the track and make sure everything was running and in good order for the Season Opener the following weekend.
The day went well, with only a few minor glitches coming up -- a good omen for the start of the season!! A good time was had by all who attended, with lots of opportunities to run down the track, trade stories, and get assistance from fellow racers.
Here's a few pictures from the session, courtesy of Gene Hollingsworth!
Over the next several months, we're planning to have work parties on each Saturday there isn't an E.T. race or other event. Work parties will run from 9:00 - 5:00 each Saturday, so please come for all or part of the day -- whatever amount of time you can contribute.
The next work parties will be on May 13th and May 20th. We'll be doing grounds clean up (leaves, weeds, etc); painting, work on return road lights, build ticket booth for spectator entrance, and whatever else comes up. If you are able to help with any of these projects, we encourage you to come lend a hand. Any help will be greatly appreciated!!!!
Thanks to all of you that have helped so far!!
© copyright 2006, 2007, 2008 Champion Raceway
