Bobby Bender wins his 2nd race @ the P.A.S
2nd Sturat Sr. 3rd Seth Kramer
Here is another great story from Charlie … it was great to see you Charlie & Susan. Don’t stay away so long!
LIGHTNING’S LIGHT UP THE PAS
On May 23rd, the California Lightning Sprints returned to their home track, The Perris Auto Speedway, for another night of racing Madness and Mayhem … Mini Sprint Style. The “winged” Lightning’s had 20 cars show up for this event, which is a great showing considering the state of our economy. Besides, the head-lining 410’s only drew 21 cars for their show.
By the time the main events were ready to be run, the grandstands were starting to get some true, die-hard, racing fans in the seats and the noise levels were rising toward the levels we remembered from the good ole days.
Thanks to a great promotional event put on by the PAS, the snack bars were doing a two-for-one deal on almost everything except drinks (no beer), and the fans were having a great time and were anxious for the big events to begin.
On this beautiful spring evening, the Lightning’s were all gathered to put on a great show and do their battling on the clay. The heat races were going as expected with the usual suspects finishing in their expected finishing positions. The only real surprises were when Donna Kotlinski laid her #88 car over in turn #1 (after losing a front right shock bolt) without any real damage to herself or her car. Her husband and crew chief, Mike, had her ready to go for the main. Tuff as nails this chick is.
The 410’s ran their main event with the regular drama and it was a really good show which included some banging and bruising. After the post race interviews with these drivers, it was finally time for the California Lightning Sprints to enter the track. The cars lined up tight after a few warm-up laps and then they charged the starting line like a swarm of bees. It was instantly apparent that Bobby Bender #4 was going to let it all hang out tonight, as he took a quick lead and never surrendered it.
Tim Brown, with a brand new 1200cc bullet in his #22 HenchCraft, looked great from the start, and he held onto the front pack of 3-4 cars til the 16th lap, when he spun after getting pressure from Stuart Hielscher #5, Seth Kramer #12 and Stuey Hielscher #9. Tim had a great race going only to be sent to the back. He fought his way back to 9th position and Stuart Hielscher #5 came from the middle pack starting position to capture a 2nd place finish and a spot on the podium. What a masterful race he drove … smooth as silk as he moved up through the pack, picking off car after car. Great Race, Stuart.
Seth Kramer, of the Kramer Bros. Racing stable, fought a great battle with Stuart #5, Tim #22, Stuey Jr. #9 and Corey Ballard #20 to earn a hard fought podium finish in 3rd place. It’s hard to find a more deserving driver in this club as Seth can ALWAYS be found hanging out in someone else’s pit area working on their car or supplying them with some needed parts or info. After the last couple of horrible seasons Seth has had, it is really nice to see him finishing up front and gaining some well earned points. Besides … Seth has a new addition to the family and he’s going to have some great stories to tell around the dinner table in the up-coming years. “Daddy…tell me about some of those races again”.
Bobby Bender took the top spot tonight. Finishing in a brilliant manner, he led this field of talented drivers from the start to the finish, driving a very smooth race and hitting all of his marks. Bobby mentioned after the race, that he and his brother AJ have a standing bet that the one who finishes higher in each race doesn’t have to drive the rig home that night. I vaguely remember Bobby stating that he would probably still have to drive home as he doesn’t trust his little brother to drive their huge trailer home safely. Remember … AJ #21 (little brother – who is 16 years old) had trouble passing his drivers exam last year. AJ ….we love you dearly. It’s a bitch being young, good looking and talented. Congrats to our top 3 finishers.
Some other notable mentions were Corey Ballard #20 who finished in 4th place. This was my first time watching this guy and he is F-ing fast. I’m quite sure we’ll be seeing him on the podium soon. Johnny Bluntach #18, finished in 5th place keeping him in a great spot in the point’s race. I truly love this racing Bluntach family as they are the exact model of the classic phrase “The Family that races together, stays together”. Chris Dickey #11 back at the track after some very tuff racing luck lately, finished 6th. Good to see you and your sweetheart again – thanks to you both for “SERVING” for us all!
AJ Bender #21 finished 7th after a tough night of racing. Stuey Hielscher #9, after being sent to the back for being involved in a spin with Tim Brown #22, raced his way back to 8th. Tim Brown #22 battled back to gain a respectable 9th place finish and Jason Bennett #61 captured 10th place.
The rest of the field was rounded out with Karl Von Yokes #00, Guy Maresch #50, Jim Squire #54, Dan Hillberg #82, Dale Gamer #17, Joel Williams #20x, Donna Kotlinski #88, Jarrett Kramer #14, Tobey Sampson #72 and Shane Rosson #6 finishing in this respective order. Some highlights of the race featured Shane Rosson #6 bouncing off the wall coming out of turn #2 putting him in the trailer with mechanical failure. Jarrett Kramer #14 had worked his way up through the field after a mid-pack starting position, only to have a motor go south on him midway through the race, belching smoke and ultimately bursting into flames. Obviously, Jarrett’s night was over too.
On a side note, I’d like to mention the caring and generous racers within the California Lightning Sprint club. The whole club decided to donate all of their winnings from this event towards the Robert Early Recovery Fund. These donated funds will be used to help with expenses incurred from the horrible accident that club member and racer, Robert Early, was involved in last month. We all want to wish Robert a speedy and healthy recovery. Hurry back Robert!
With that said, I wanted to throw out a “Thanks” and “great to finally get to talk to you” to Steve Galvan of “Left Turn Racing” for all his help in getting Guy Maresch and his #50 car moving forward. Awesome Steve, you are a class act!
Another great night of racing for the California Lightning Sprints as it was really apparent that the crowd appreciated their “Balls-to-the-Walls” style. It was great to get back to California again to see all of our old friends, to meet and make some new friends and especially to be able to see some Lightning’s in action again.
A VERY SPECIAL THANKS go out to Guy and Lisa Maresch #50, for their fine hospitality hosting us in their beautiful home while we were visiting. Susan and I are so lucky to have great friends like you two. Congratulations go out to my brother Bill and his new bride Nancy on their wedding, which we attended the Friday night before the races. It was a beautiful night at the country club, filled with love, happiness, dancing and fun. Susan & I want to tell each and every one of you thanks for making our visit as special as it was. We miss you all. You guys are all so lucky to be able to race together, hang out, fight with each other and share fellowship. You never realize what you had until it’s gone.
That’s My Story, and I’m sticking To It!
Charlie Johnson
Lug-Nut-Twister & Teller-of-Tall-Tales
Durango, Colorado
