Perris Raceway – Perris Ca.
April 3rd,2011
Round # 2
Article by Jamey Blunt
Photos by Janice Blunt
Round two of the S.C.F.T.A. at
Perris Raceway was held under gray threatening skies that didn't dare
rain on this parade. This was a somewhat special day as not only were
races scheduled but a memorial of sorts for Wayne Hosaka who passed
away on January 16th. Wayne who founded the Flattrack.com website was a
racer through and through whose own professional career was cut short
in the second race of the Grand National season in 1971 at Ascot Park
in Gardena California. In that crash Wayne suffered a broken neck
permanently losing most of the feeling in his body from the neck down.
Wayne the talented artist, basketball coach, gardener, who played the
harmonica, was honored on this day with a parade backward lap and a
bell made from a welding tank hung from the side of the announcer's
tower to be rung so as to call the riders meeting at all future events.

At
intermission after the heat races a backwards lap was held for Wayne
Hosaka, founder of Flat Track.Com. With it ending having all the riders
lining up along the front straight facing the crowd.

A
bell made from a welding tank was hung from the corner of the
announcer's tower to be run when calling the riders meeting. This in
rememberance of Wayne Hosaka.
Once all the heat races were
completed, the one hundred eleven riders sorted into their mains, the
backward lap finished and the track resurfaced and prepped, it was time
for the main events. Kicking things off was something new at Perris, a
Dash 4 Cash where the fastest pros from their heat races square off for
a four lap sprint lap race. $261 was collected from the pits and
bleachers alike for the dash.

#42 Kayl
Kolkman shot to the front in the four lap Dash 4 Cash and never looked
back. #37 Jimmy Wood tried hard to get past Kolkman but just couldn't
quite catch up. Kolkman also lowered the track record in the dash to
14.42/100 seconds besting Henry Wiles record set last year.
Riders making it to the dash
were David Bush, Jimmy Wood, Kayl Kolkman, Mark Cernicky, Kenny
Malaguarnero, and Jeff Evans. Kolkman nailed the start to lead into
turn one from the first flash of green from starter Rudy's hand. Wood
dropped in behind Kolkman in second with Evans third, Cernicky fourth,
and Malaguarnero fifth, with Bush opting not to start. Kolkman had a
three bike length gap at the front with Wood going with him as they
pulled away from the rest of the field. Lap two saw Kolkman on a
perfect track lower the track record to 14.42/100 seconds holding Wood
at bay. By lap four and the checkered flag the only change in the order
was for fourth where Malaguarnero got past Cernicky.
In honor of Wayne Hosaka all the
senior classes (50+, 60+, & 70+) would pay money on this day, not
to mention all the donated products to be given out or raffled off.
Special thanks go out to Alex of Kon Tiki for all his hard work and
year after year support and to Mike Ochs from Ochs Oil for all the
gallons of VP racing fuel.

On
the first trip down the back straight in the Super Senior +60 main
event #4 Vince Graves leads with #37 Ron Moore, #96 Jack Alexander, #51
Dennis Kanegae, #15 Freddie Edwards, #26 Donnie Walters, #58 Kevin
Stafford, and #81 Don Danner giving chase!
The Super Senior +60 was first
up of these paying events, former grand national race winner Freddie
Edwards made it just ten feet off the line before tasting Tara Firma
bringing out a red flag. On the full restart Vince Graves took point
over Ron Moore, Tim Thomas, and Edwards. From the start Graves was
riding the upper half of the race track leaving a huge door open for
anyone fast enough to match his pace to pass through. Which by lap two
both Moore and Thomas did dropping Graves to third. On lap three
between turns one and two Jack Alexander went down and was unhurt. By
this time Dennis Kanegae had recovered from a poor start and was up to
sixth behind Donnie Walters and was applying pressure. At the front
Moore riding an inside line turned the fastest lap of the race at
15.30/100 seconds as he inched away. With two laps remaining Graves
seeing the error of his ways dropped to a low line and his lap times
improved to a 15.47/100 second lap. But it was too little too late, as
time ran out with Moore taking the win by over three seconds from
Thomas, Graves was third, Edwards sore and alone in fourth, and on the
final lap Kanegae took fifth away from Walters.

Former national rider #55 Tom Horton easily spanked the Classic Vintage
500-750 filed. Horton and his beautiful Triumph cruised around the
Perris 1/4 mile at 16.03 seconds.
Lancaster California's Tom
Horton and Jeff Apple from a long racing heritage were so close in lap
times that it could have been anyone's race in the Vintage 500-750cc
class. Horton's fastest time was a 16.03/100 second lap to Apple's
16.07/100 seconds. Horton read starter Rudy perfectly and led Jack
Alexander into turn one. Apple was away in the third place position
with number one plate holder for this class Lenny Rodriguez in fourth.
Isaiah Canales ran in fifth but was first 250cc machine in this
combined field. On the second time into turn three Alexander took a
very high line which allowed Apple to pull alongside. They came up the
front straight fighting for the second place spot but Alexander chopped
off Apple's line and held position into turn one. While behind them and
Canales James Kohls and Joe Pape were going at it for fifth and sixth
in the 500-750 class. (Remember scored separately) On lap four Apple
had to force the issue as Horton was getting away, he couldn't waste
any more time trying to get past Alexander. So entering turn one Apple
made a hard pass on Alexander to take over at second. At the white flag
Apple was closing on Horton who had backed it down not feeling the need
to push. Entering turn three for the final time Horton only had a bike
length lead and Apple ran it in deep to square up the corner for a
strong drive out. But it wasn't to be as Apple came up a bike length
short to Horton. Alexander finished third with Rodriguez fourth,
Canales fifth (1st 250) Kohls fifth (500-750) and Pape sixth.

#88 Jim Rosa was a half second faster than any of the other Vet 35+
riders. He posted a 15.18/100 second lap on his way to the main event
victory.
Jim Rosa posted the fastest lap
time in the heats for the Vet +35 class. On the start of the main event
Rosa and Paul Herman hit turn one side by side. Down the back straight
and into turn three Rosa left it turned on just a little longer and
established himself as the leader. Herman ran second with John Lundgren
third, Art Guilfoil fourth, and Shawn Culp Fifth. Gary Williams who was
in sixth made short work of Culp to take away fifth and set his sights
on Guilfoil in fourth. By the completion of three laps Wood Carlson who
was away in eighth had made a charge and was up to sixth. At the white
flag Rosa had a three second cushion over Herman and had turned his
fastest lap time of 15.18/100 seconds. By this time as well Lundgren
has closed on Herman and Williams and Carlson has advanced past
Guilfoil. But Carlson wasn't finished yet as his last lap charge netted
him fourth by the stripe making the final tally Rosa, Herman, Lundgren,
Carlson, Williams, Guilfoil, and Culp.

#47
Jim Wood topped #16 Joe Steffen in the Senior Vet +50 final. Wood
posted a fastest lap on this day of 15.20/100 seconds. Both riders race
out of the Mr. Ed's stable.
Eleven riders in the Senior Vet
+50 class (The second Vet Class to pay Money) had Jim Wood and Joe
Steffen enter turn one side by side. Gary Evans ran in third with Jim
Ottele fourth, Tom Horton Fifth and Jeff Gonzales sixth. Wood with
Steffen glued to his backside began to slowly inch away from the rest
of the pack. With three laps complete the front two had over a three
second gap from Evans who was struggling to hold off Ottele. At the
white flag everything seemed settled as no one seemed to try any
harder. Wood came home with the victory and the fastest lap of the race
at 15.20/100 seconds with Steffen second, Evans third, Ottele fourth,
Horton fifth, and Gonzales sixth.

Every
rider in the Vintage 250 & 360 2-Stroke class is FAST! But on this
day Jim Wood was the fastest of the fast! #75 Ryan Gifford, #47 Jim
Wood, #55 Tom Horton, #6 Joe Steffen, & #12e Jeff Lessley.
Jeff Lessley from Delano
California on his rare Champion Framed Hodaka led the 250 – 360 2
stroke expert class through turns one and two. But by the completion of
the first lap class champion form 2010 Jim Wood took over at the front.
Ryan Gifford (The only 360cc machine in the race) ran in third with Tom
Horton fourth and Joe Steffen fifth. On the exit from turn two for the
third time Lessley tagged Wood's rear wheel which warranted a look from
Wood. With this Wood picked up his pace and the front two dropped
Gifford like he was tied to a post. By lap four Horton dropped out of
the race as Steffen was getting some extra wind. Wood went on to the
victory followed by Lessley, Gifford, and Steffen.
Danny Perkins was the only rider
in the Bomber class to break into the fifteen second barrier. Tom
Horton had the quickest reflexes off the line but Perkins had taken
over by turn two and never looked back. His fastest lap of 15.74/100
seconds was untouchable, at least on this day. Horton was in second
with David McNeeley third, Jimmy Lundgren fourth, John Lundgren fifth,
Jeff Gonzales sixth, and Keith Speir seventh. Two and a half laps in
Perkins was stretching out his lead while Horton and McNeeley were
fighting over second. The Brothers Lundgren were also going at it for
the fourth place position. At the end of four laps McNeeley was into
second and Horton was under attack from Jimmy Lundgren. Then entering
turn three Jimmy Lundgren shot past Horton for third while Gonzales who
had caught fire made the pass stick on John Lundgren for fifth. A lap
later Horton had faded way back and Gonzales was up to fourth, with
Jimmy Lundgren locked in on McNeeley. At the white flag Jimmy Lundgren
made a push down the back straight and with the mistake from McNeeley
going wide in turn three he secured second position. This made the
final finishing order Perkins, Jim Lundgren, McNeeley, Gonzales, and
John Lundgren.
From the outside of the front
row David Reinhard got a flyer of a start that starter Rudy let go with
David McNeeley in second and Nick Gil in third in the Open Amateur
final. On the second trip down the back straight Gil took second away
from McNeeley while Paul Herman settled in at Fourth with Austin
Williams fifth. In a drag race up the front straightaway on the third
lap Gil took the lead away from Reinhard and posted a 15.52/100 second
lap the next time around. On lap four with Herman closing McNeeley went
wide between turns one and two letting Herman slip past for the third
place position, at the front Gil with a clear track was gone and Herman
and McNeeley were closing fast on Reinhard. Out of turn four for the
final time Herman and McNeeley tangled but neither went down making the
finishing order Gil, Reinhard, Herman, McNeeley and a distant Williams.

National
#37 Jimmy Wood had something to prove in Round two's Pro Main Event.
Wood secured the lead by lap two of the twenty lap final and lowered
the track recored to 14.34/100 seconds on lap three on his way to
winning the main.

After losing the Dash 4 Cash to
Kolkman Jimmy Wood knew he had to get a good start or at least not let
Kolkman get away in the twenty lap pro main event. Off the line Kolkman
led with Wood right beside him down the back shoot. Entering turn three
Wood inched ahead and led the first lap across the stripe. Kayl Kolkman
stayed by the side of Wood applying pressure but Wood held tough and
his line. It was a battle of wills and finesse worthy of any chess
match. Lap three saw Wood clear at the front for his first full clean
lap and he lowered the track record (that Kolkman just set in the dash)
to 14.34/100 seconds! At this point third place Jeff Evans was already
a full straight back of the front two. In fourth ran Kenny Malaguarnero
with David Bush fifth and Robert Bush sixth. At the half way point Wood
only had a four bike length gap over Kolkman as they were approaching
lappers. Also by lap ten Malaguarnero had displaced Evans for third but
he was a full straight behind the leaders. Baring an incident the race
was between Wood and Kolkman. By lap fifteen Wood was a litter better
through traffic than Kolkman and had extended his lead to two seconds.
At the checkered flag Wood had lapped up to fifth place and had a three
second cushion over Kolkman. Malaguarnero was secure in third with
Evans fourth and David Bush fifth. After the race Wood had this to say,
"It was an awesome weekend coming here racing, I do a lot of testing
here and I gotta thank Jeremy from Race Tech who dialed me in right
before the main. He made a bunch of changes and it was great right off
the bat so it was good, it was fun. Can't wait to go to De Quoin and
give it a go at the national."
Round three of the S.C.F.T.A. is
scheduled for Saturday the 16th of April on this newly established ¼
mile oval at a facility that started way back in 1957 by Gerry and
Grace Burton.

#53 Alyissa Flores picked up her first victory of the year in the youth
65cc class. (#17 Noah Bush, #95 Clayton Williams, #54 Frank Flores, #7x
Grant Holmes)

#151
Billy Katkov was the class of the field in the men's 4-stroke final.
His 16.45/100 second lap time was more than a full second faster than
anyone elses.
April 3, 2011
Youth 50 cc
1. Grant
Holmes Porterville
2. Ava
Bush Valencia
Youth 85
1. Clayton
Williams
2. Moncia Gil
Riverside
3. Jaycee
Hesperia
Youth 65cc
1. Alyissa
Flores Sylmar
2. Frank
Flores Sylmar
3. Grant
Holmes Porterville
4. Noah
Bush Valencia
5. Clayton
Williams Bakersfield
Super Senior + 60
1. Ron Moore
2. Tim Thomas
Chandler AZ
3. Vince
Graves Palm Springs
4. Freddie
Edwards Riverside
5. Dennis
Kanegae Riverside
6. Donnie
Walters Riverside
7. Kevin
Stafford Viola Ill
8. Sal Peluso
San Deigo
9. Don Danner
San Deigo
10. Jack
Alexander Bakersfield
Men’s 4 Stroke
1. Billy
Katkov Fountain Valley
2. Mark
Cernicky Costa Mesa
3. Ian Folds
Senior Novice
1. Corey
Bauman Los Angeles
2. Larkin
Wight Lucerne Valley
3. Fred
Berger Bakersfield
4. Shane Van
Sickle Leona Valley
5. Craig
Sprecher Inglewood
Classic Vintage 500-750
1. Tom Horton
Lancaster
2. Jeff Apple
3. Jack
Alexander Bakersfield
4. Lenny
Rodriguez Palmdale
5. James Kohl
santa Paula
6. Joe Pape
Culver City
Classic Vintage 250
1 Isaiah Canales
Bakersfield
Open Novice
1. Nick
Ottele Redlands
2. Emmy
Bush Acton
3. Roy
Stafford Pinon Hills
4. Corey
Bauman Los Angles
5. Tom Sahli
Tujunga
Senior Vets + 50
1. James Wood
Redlands
2. Joe
Steffen San Jacinto
3. Gary
Evans Murrieta
4. Jim
Ottele Redlands
5. Tom
Horton Lancaster
6. Jeff
Gonzales Tul;are
7. Larry
Earhart Panarama city
Vets 35+
1. Jim Rosa,
Hesperia
2. Paul Herman
Grand Terrace
3. John
Lundgren Simi Valley
4. Woody
Carlson Spring Valley
5. Gary
Williams Bakerfield
6. Art Gilfold
San Bernardino
7. Shawn Culp
Scottsdale AZ
Vintage 250 2stk Novice
1. Steele
Fredrich Corona
2. Michael
Fritz Garden Grove
3. Joe Pape
Culver City
4. Shane Van
Sickle Leone Valley
5. 199 ?
360 vintage 2stk Novice
1. Monte Roberts El Cajon
2. Rick Logan
Vintage 250 2 stk Expert
1. James Wood
Redland
2. Jeff
Lessley Delano
3. Joe
Steffen San Jacinto
4. Tom
Horton Lancanster
Vintage 360 2 stk Expert
1. Ryan Gifford
Knobby
1. John Rudder
Auga Dulce
2. Richard
Hanson Corona
3. Ryan
Reed Orange
Bomber
1. Danny
Perkins Rancho Santa Marg.
2. Jim
Lundgren Santa clarita
3. David
McNeeley Chula Vista
4. Jeff
Gonzales Tulare
5. John
Lundgren simi Valley
6. Brad
Rudy Long Beach
7. Keith
Speir Bakersfield
8. Tom
Horton Lancaster
9. Shawn Culp
Scottsdale Az
Premier Senior + 70
1. Ron Moore
2. Peter
Torojan San Juan Cap.
3. Allan
Gridler Rainbow
Vintage 750
1Tom Horton Lancaster
2/ Steve Craft Bakersfield
2. Jeff
Apple
Open Amateur
1. Nick Gil
Riverside
2. David
Reinhard Mentone
3. Paul Herman
Grand Terrace
4. David Mc
Neeley Chula Vista
5. Austin
Williams Bakersfield
6. Harley
Legowski Orange
7. Jim
Lundgren Santa Clarita
Pro Main
1. Jimmy Wood
Redlands
2. Kayl
Kolkman Ventura
3. Kenny
Malaguarnero Lakeside
4. Jeff Evans
Agoura
5. David Bush
Valencia
6. Robert
Bush Acton
7. Branden
Rothell Madera
8. Mark
Cernicky Costa Mesa

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