SCFTA Perris - Round 5
May 18th, 2013
Article by Jamey Blunt
#62 Derrick Porter took the early lead in the Open Novice class and never looked back.
Here in turn one #208 Jeremy Templeman (who faded to sixth) has the inside line.
#17D Danny Manthis hung in there to finish in fifth...
Rodney Rutherford Photo
The Premier Senior +70 and Super Senior +60 classes ran together,
but were scored separately. #3j DeWayne Jones won the +60 class
and #0 "THE" Preston Petty won the +70 class. Hidden are #22 David
Molitor, #50 Mel Stoner, with #58 Jack Neeley at the back of the photo.
#35 Tim Watters was the only rider in the Senior +50 Novice class
to lap in the fifteen second bracket. His 15.93 second lap time earned
him the victory and bragging rights!
Jamey Photo
#82 Travis Petton the 4th was another double winner at round five.
Petton's most exciting race came in the 85-100cc 2stk Novice final
where he fought his way into the lead by the last lap. He also stood on
the top step in the 65-70cc 2stk Novice class. His fastest lap on his
85 cc was 15.83 seconds.
#95 Tom "TOO FAST" Ferguson is the main man in the Classic Vintage
field. Even though he races a smaller displaced machine in the H.D. Sprint
he always finds his way to the front. His fastest lap was 15.93 seconds!
The only rider in the field to dip into the fifteens!!!!
#98 Evan Harich was also a double winner at Perris capturing victory
in both the Youth 85-100cc 4stk Beginner and 85-100cc 2stk Beginner
classes. His lap time on the 4stk was 17.22 sec.
#46 Colin Petton my only be four years old, but this is
his second full season of racing. Colin took the victory
in the Youth 50cc 2stk Novice class with a fastest lap
of 25.25 seconds.
#7 Zach Gross was a double winner at Perris.
Taking the Youth 50cc and 65-70cc 4stk Beginner
classes. His fastest lap time was 22.36 seconds!
#07 Allison Stacey is fast becoming the benchmark
in the Youth 250cc class. Stacey had the fastest lap of the race at
15.74 seconds.
Take a look at Robert Bushes eyes (#44) in early Pro Heat Race
action. They are closed!!!! #26 Dylan Morin, #141 Chad Foster, #88e
David Bush, #45e Ian Foulds, and Nick Gil Hidden on outside...
#19r Brad Rudy won the Vet 35+ heat race over #42 Will Ott,
but in the main event the tables were turned. Rudy finished second
to Ott. Rudy still had the single fastest lap of the race at 15.86 seconds
to Ott's 16.14 second lap time.
#82e Travis Petton Jr. entered turn one in last place.
But by races end was in first, putting on quite a show
in the process. #6 Joe Steffen finished in second with #70L
Jimmy Lundgren (the early leader) third. Petton's fastest lap
time was 15.15 seconds.....
#82e Travis Petton Jr. was last into turn one but by
races end finished at the front. Here he passes #6 Joe Steffen
to take over the lead. Petton's fastest lap was 15.15 seconds.
#17r Nick Gil picked up his second Pro victory at round five.
Gil took over the lead by the end of the first lap and never
looked back, leading all twenty laps..
At round five of the S.C.F.T.A. #17r Nick Gil (shown here with
hisfather Rudy the starter) showed his first pro race win was no
flukeas he led all twenty laps of the pro final for his second pro
class win.
#95 Clayton Williams was spotted in the pits at
Perris with a new look. Williams competes in the Youth
85cc and 250cc classes.....
#82e Travis Petton Jr. put on a show in the Bomber class.
Petton went from last in turn one to victory by the time
the checkered flag came out...
S.C.F.T.A. Round #5 Perris Raceway
5-18-2013
Article by Jamey Blunt
Photos by Rodney Rutherford,
Donnie Walters & Jamey Blunt
"Rarely do members of a family grow up under the same roof." (Richard Bach)
Think about it, the flat track community is a tight knit family. For
that matter almost anyone who races or has raced a motorcycle for any
amount of time has felt this kinship, regardless of the chosen
discipline. In fact it can be noted they even speak a language all
their own. Of course there are the exceptions, as there are to every
rule, the sibling or child who received the transference of love of
things with two wheels and an engine. But for the most part the
majority of the motorcycle family grew up under different roofs. For
round five of the S.C.F.T.A. one hundred eight family members made up
eighteen heat races and sixteen main events on a seventy five degree
Saturday that saw race temperatures fall to just sixty nine degrees by
main event time.
Colin Petton at four years of age already has a full season of racing
under his helmet. For 2013 Colin switched rides and now throws his leg
over a 50cc KTM 2stk mount which he used to capture the victory in the
Youth 50cc 2stk Novice main. Zach Gross was round five's first double
main event winner, taking victory in the Youth 50cc 4stk Beginner class
over Cody Morin and Zach Templemen (competing in his very first race).
Gross then came right back out on the track to win the Youth 65-70cc
4stk Beginner main event over Natalie Gross and Paige Britt.
Eight riders comprised the Youth 250cc Open class which just seems to
step it up a notch with every round. Justin Hanson nailed the start to
lead the field into turn one with Clayton Williams running in second
and Allison Stacey third. Exiting turn four for the first time Stacey
got a wheel under Williams and made her move into second going up the
front straight, Monica Gil settled in at fourth with Noah Bush in
fifth. On the second run through turn three Reece Watowa went down but
thankfully was to her feet quickly and unhurt. Three laps complete had
Stacey taking over at the lead with Hanson then going down between
turns one and two advancing Williams to second and Gil to third. By the
end of lap four James Ott recovering from a terrible start (this night
was Ott's twelfth birthday and he runs #12) had worked his way forward
and locked his sights on Bush in fourth. At the white flag Ott slipped
past Bush for fourth as Hanson had rejoined the race in last place. The
final tally was Stacey, Williams, Gil, Ott, Bush, Harley Legowski
(running quietly in sixth) and Hanson.
Travis Petton the 4th was another double class winner. First in the
Youth 65-70cc 2stk Novice class over Grant Holmes and then in the
highly completive Youth 85-100cc 2stk Novice field where he really had
to work hard for it. Clayton Williams led this class off the line as
Monica Gil hit the front straight wall bringing out the red flag
stopping the race. On the full re-start (which was now being started by
a flag as the light system had lost power and the green flag would have
to be used the rest of the evening) Grant Holmes led this time all the
way to turn four when Williams got a drive and took the lead away.
Petton ran in third with James Ott fourth, Evan Harich fifth and Noah
Bush sixth. With three laps complete the top three riders had separated
themselves from the rest of the field. Entering turn three for the
fourth time Petton ran a wheel up under Holmes to take away second
position. All this while Ott had found a new line that was working for
him and was starting to close in on Holmes as Petton (who just turned
the fastest lap of the race at 15.83 seconds) was also closing in on
Williams and pulled alongside down the back straight and took the lead
away from Williams as they took the white flag. Williams pushed hard at
this point and almost threw it away in turn one but made a great save,
though short lived as he lost it again in turn two and hit the ground.
Holmes and Ott both got past Williams as he quickly got to his feet and
still managed to finish in fourth. Petton took his second victory of
the evening over Holmes and Ott with Bush a solid fifth.
Joe Pape has been riding a Triumph in the Classic Vintage field this
season producing better results for himself. In the main event Pape was
first off the line into turn one but "Too Fast" Tom Ferguson riding the
smaller H.D. Sprint knew he had to act quickly and not let Pape get any
kind of lead so he shot to the inside of Pape to take over the lead on
the exit from turn two. Fred Berger was away in third with James Kohls
fourth and Lenny Rodriguez fifth on a barrowed H.D. courtesy of Joe
Pape. Once out front Ferguson pulled a ten bike length gap in the first
two laps and finally broke the fifteen second barrier with a 15.93
second lap time. For the rest of the race the order would remain the
same except for Kohls getting past Berger for third overall (Berger
actually was the only 250cc bike and scored separately) as Ferguson
continued to pull away while Pape's Triumph billowed more and more
smoke lap after lap. At least the insect problem was controlled by
Pape's bike!
The fastest of the Senior Vet +50 Novice heat races was won by Tim
Watters of Lompoc Calif. For the main event Watters picked up where he
left off, at the front with Steele Fiedrich in second and Robert "BBQ
Bob" Stettler in third. Three laps complete had Rich Barnes take away
fourth place position from Fred Berger all while Fiedrich was attached
to the backside of Watters like a Great White with a Seal pup. Watters
fastest lap time of 15.93 seconds was the quickest of the race to
Fiedrich's 16.16 second lap as the white flag came out. At the
checkered flag Watters took the win by a bike length over Fiedrich with
Stettler third, Barnes fourth, Berger Fifth, and David Crivello sixth.
The Bomber class had Travis Petton Jr. starting on pole but watching
the starting lights that were dead. By the time he realized the
starting flag waved he quickly dumped the clutch which sent his front
wheel skyward making him lay on the tank and seat to keep the bike from
flipping over backwards, this causing him to enter turn one in dead
last position. Jimmy Lundgren had no such problem and is always a good
starter and led the pack through turns one and two with Joe Steffen in
second and Steele Fiedrich in third. At the completion of the first lap
Petton was already up to fifth and pressuring Tim McWhorter for fourth.
Two and a half laps down had Petton on a charge as he advanced to third
and locked his sights on Lundgren and Steffen. Entering turn one for
the third time Petton put a wheel under Steffen and took over at second
on the run down the back straightaway. Then on the exit from turn four
Petton bumped Lundgren wide to take over the lead as they made contact.
This in turn pushed Lundgren so wide that Steffen followed Petton
through into second. Now once up front with a clear track Petton put
his head down and turned a 15.15 second lap as he pulled away. At this
point as well McWhorter had found a way past Fiedrich into fourth with
Dan Kane running in sixth. Steffen working the middle of the racetrack
was trying everything he could to catch Petton and got to within a bike
length at one point but this was Petton's race and he had worked hard
for it. Steffen would finish a close second with Lundgren falling back
some fourteen bike lengths in third.
Brad Rudy had a war on his hands in the Vet 35+ class, but none the
less was victorious in his heat race and started from pole. Rudy was
ready and shot to the front as the pack left the line. Derrick Porter's
race was over from the start as he stalled his bike at the stripe. Will
Ott ran in second with Joel Kath third and Robert Stettler fourth. For
the first two laps Rudy was flawless working an inside line protecting
his lead while Ott was attempting different lines trying to fid a way
to get a drive past Rudy. Lap three Rudy even turned the fastest lap of
the race at 15.86 seconds to Ott's fastest of 16.14 seconds. With two
laps remaining Ott went around the outside of Rudy to inch just barely
ahead and quickly dropped down to the inside to cut Rudy's line off and
take the lead away. Once out front Ott pulled a small gap and was
protecting his line from any retaliation from Rudy (who is a high
school teacher racing on this night rather than being a chaperon at his
schools prom) as he went on to claim the victory. Kath remained lonely
in third with Stettler fourth and Eric Cleveland fifth.
Ten riders made up the Open Novice main event with heat race winner
Scott Hanson sitting on pole. Hanson from Arizona was away first
followed by Derrick Porter, Paul Claybaugh and Danny Manthis. Entering
turn one for the second time Porter took the lead away from Hanson and
quickly set sail to get away from the entire field. Jeremy Templeman
was moving forward up to seventh and pressuring for sixth while on the
next lap Porter was coming into lappers putting Jim Baydelm a lap down.
By the white flag Porter had almost a full straight lead over Hanson
who in turn had a full straight over third place Claybaugh. At the
checkered flag a strung out field had the finishing order Porter,
Hanson, Claybaugh, Monte Watowa (the biggest gainer), Manthis,
Templeman into sixth, and LJ "John" Gronek in front of Joe Melton.
Past Pro class champion David Bush led the field for the twenty lap pro
main event into turn one only to have Nick Gil quickly take the lead
away on the exit from turn two to lead on the first run down the back
straightaway. Ian Foulds a crowd favorite looking stronger than he has
in quite some time ran in third with Chad Foster fourth, Dylan Morin
fifth, Robert Bush sixth, and Nick Armstrong seventh. Two laps complete
saw Foulds get by David Bush for second while Gil at the front inched
out a four bike length gap. A lap later Foster would get by David Bush
as well moving him into third. By this point Armstrong had found a way
past Robert Bush into sixth putting Robert at the back of the field. On
lap four entering turn one Armstrong and Morin both found a way past
David Bush as Foulds was closing steadily on Gil. On lap five Morin had
found his rhythm and was past Armstrong and running in fourth closing
in on Foster in third. Back up front Gil was smooth and riding mistake
free but protecting his line from Foulds. At about the half way mark
Foulds had a moment in turn two but saved it, though it allowed Foster
to latch onto his back wheel all while Morin who turned the fastest lap
of the race at 14.94 seconds was closing in. Up front Gil had opened up
a 1.4 second cushion on the way to his second pro class victory. On lap
eleven Foster was showing Foulds a wheel and ran it under him on the
exit from turn two but couldn't make it stick. By now Morin was in this
fight as well. On the next run through turns one and two Foster dove
under Foulds into second and in the blink of an eye Morin followed
Foster through as well dropping Foulds to fourth. Foulds came right
back at Morin but couldn't make the pass stick while all this fighting
for position allowed Gil to obtain a three second gap at the front. All
Gil need do at this point was put it on cruise control for a victory.
But the battle for second between Foster and Morin was the only place
undecided in the remaining laps. With two and a half laps remaining
Morin stuck a wheel under Foster exiting turn two but couldn't make it
stick. Then on the exit from turn four Foster ran into Morin's front
wheel (or Morin ran into Foster's back wheel) as they came up the front
straight with two laps to go. Then through turns one and two Morin ran
under Foster to take over at second as Gil took the white flag with a
four second margin. Foster was a bike length back making a final run at
Morin that would come up just short as Gil took his second pro class
main event victory.
Foulds would finish a solid fourth with Armstrong fifth, and David Bush sixth in front of Robert Bush.
Youth 250 Open
1. Allison Stacey
2. Clayton Williams
3. Monica Gil
4. James Ott
5. Noah Bush
6. Harley Legowski
7. Justin Hanson
Youth 50cc 2 Stk Novice
1. Colin Petton
Youth 50cc 4 Stk Beginner
1. Zach Gross
2. Cody Morin
3. Zach Templemen
65cc-70cc 2 Stk Novice
1. Travis Petton IV
2. Grant Holmes
65-70cc 2 Stk Beg
1. Ava Bush
65-70cc 4 Stk Beg.
1. Zach Gross
2. Natalie Gross
3. Paige Britt
85-100cc 4 Stk Beg
1. Evan Harich
2. Alex Crosby
3. Reece Watowa
4. Matthew Ott
85-100cc 2 Stk Novice
1. Travis Petton IV
2. Grant Holmes
3. James Ott
4. Clayton Williams
5. Noah Bush
85-100cc 2 Stk Beg
1. Evan Harich
2. Matt Ott
85-100cc 4 Stk Novice
1. Monica Gil
2. Sara Cords
Classic Vintage 500-750cc
1. Tom Ferguson
2. Joe Pape
3. James Kohls
4. Lenny Rodriguez
Classic Vi ntage 250cc
1. Fred Berger
Super Senior +60
1. De Wayne Joners
2. David Molitor
Premier Senior + 70
1. Preston Petty
2. Mel Stoner
3. Jack neeley
4. Ralph Forzelt
5. Allan Girdler
Open UnClassified
1. Chad Foster
2. Colt Foster
3. Jimmy Gillen
750cc Vintage
1. Jim Ottele
Men’s 100cc 4 Stk
1. Billy Katkov
Senior Vet +50 Novice
1. Tim Watters
2. Steele Fiedrich
3. Robert “BBQ BoB” Styettler
4. Rich Barnes
5. Fred Berger
6. David Crivello
7. Jim Barnes
8. Paul Claybaugh
9. Wes Zober
10. Danny Mathis
Senior Vet + 50 Amateur
1. Corey Bauman
2. Larkin Wighty
Senior Vet + 50 Expert
1. Jim Ottele
Bomber
1. Travis Petton
2. Joe Steffen
3. Jim Lundgren
4. Tim M<cWhorter
5. Steele Friedrich
6. Dan Kane
Vet’s +35
1. Will Ott
2. Brad Rudy
3. Joel Kath
4. Rovert “:BBQ Bob” Stettler
5. Eric Cleveland
6. David Crivello
7. Derrick Porter
Vintage 360/250cc 2 Stk Experts and Novice
250 Expert
1. Will Ott
250 Novice
1. Harley Legowski
360 Novice
1. Tim Watters
Open Novice
1. Derrick Porter
2. Scott Hanson
3. Paul Claybaugh
4. Monte Watowa
5. Danny Manthis
6. Jeremy Templeman
7. LJ “John” Gronek
8. Joe Melton
9. Erick Cleveland
10. Jim Baydelm
Open Amateur
1. Rich Hanson
2. Colt Foster
3. Bill Britt
4. Joel Kath
5. Allison Stacey
6. Corey Bauman
7. Jimmy Gillen
Open Pro
1. Nick Gil
2. Dylan Morin
3. Chad Foster
4. Ian Folds
5. Nick Armstrong
6. David Bush
7. Robert Bush
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