Race: Points Race #04
Date: 5-23-2004
Location: Richmond, Va.
Track: 360 West Shopping Center
Temperature: 94°F

Points race #4 is in the books a full week after race #5. Huh? Yeah that's right. Our good friends at VORRA scheduled in a few rain dates this year which allowed us to get in race #4 before the regionals get here.
The track layout was modified slightly from the last weekends scheme but met with approval from most drivers.
Track setup again ran late due to limited man power. Once again we need man power to arrive at the track early to get the track laid out so practice can start earlier. Who knows, we may even be able to run longer mains!
It is important to mention that quite afew people hung around to help with track take down which did not go un-noticed. It was much appreciated.
Qualifying started with 1/8th scale and even with the slightly longer racing configuration, most drivers were turning lap times within 1/2 of a second of last weeks layout.

In 1/8th scale, John Laster took TQ honors with a 21 lap effort in 5:00.19. He also TQ'd in Nitro Touring Pro with a 20 lap on a 5:04.75 and 1/10th Electric Touring with a 15 lap @ 4:06.35. John's getting to be quite the qualifying man.
The remaining classes, Nitro Touring Sport, Nitro Truck, & Nitro Monster Truck's top starting spots were claimed by Ashley Stringer, Stan Medlin, & newcomer Lorenzo Allen, in that order.
Because of the late starting time mains were run after a short break. Eighth scale was first on the tarmac with Mark Poore outlasting John Laster & Mike Bowman in the early going to secure a his second victory of the year. Ken Harris and Stan Medlin had one of the best battles on the track going lap after lap rubbing on each other (see the doughnut on Stan's body) without causing any serious altercations. Returning to R/C after a extended hiatus, David Ezzell ran well and finished the main with his car intact. He said that's a successful day. I must agree. Terrance Brown was forced to retire early due to mechanical demons.When the smoke cleared, the order was Mark, Ken, Stan, David, Mike, John and Terrance.

Next up on the track was Electric Touring. John Laster proved his TQ was no fluke and drove off to a commanding lead. Joe Harler made a bold attempt to run him down early but couldn't muster enough horsepower to pull it off. Preston Pollard and Angie Ingram had a good battle going and finished within a lap of each other. Louis Pollard had to call it quits early due to problems. In the end it read like John, Joe, Preston, Angie, & Louis. Chris Booberg and Tommy Ingram failed to start.

When Monster trucks took to the track all bets were on TQ, Stan Medlin, but when the green flag waved Earl Ingram showed some muscle. Stan attempted to run him down but mechanical problems saw him park his truck at the 5 minute mark. Tommy and Earl battled the whole race long to finish very close to each other. As the main wound down, Earl prevailed over a hard driving Tommy Ingram and early retiree, Stan Medlin.

Now the the trucks were done the Nitro touring classes were abut to get underway. First up, Nitro Touring Sport. Pole sitter Ashley Stringer ran off and hid from the rest of the field leaving Chris Booberg and David Basl to entertain us. These guys put on a driving clinic showing off their many manuvers. When the clock ticked down, Ashley finished solidly in first with Chris, David, Paul Knab, & Joe Harler following behind.

Last but certainly not least, Nitro Touring Pro burnt the track up and had probably the most exciting battle of the day between Mike Bowman and John Laster. I think these guys were trying to make up for their poor performances in eighth scale. Mike's car was pushing and Johns was loose. That made for a interesting battle. Where one driver was good, the other was bad, and vica versa. When all the fuel stops were done and checkered flag flew Mike prevailed. John would finish in a close second as both drivers turned 60 laps. Following them was a hard driving Kevin Randolph just a lap and a half back. Jamie Donati and Terrance Brown would cross the finish line soon there after in that order.

Remember, the Region 2 Championships, June 5-6, 2004
This will be the next race and we hope to see you there. Until then,
---Mark Poore


Copyright © 2004 V.O.R.R.A. (Virginia On Road Racing Association)