Gatorz Sunglasses & Grange Motor Circut: Party in the Desert!
May 2, 2007 (Orange, Calif.) - What may be the most remotely located kart track in the world - the Grange Motor Circuit in Apple Valley, Calif. - was the site of the fourth Gatorz Eyewear Golden State Karting Cup round of the 2007 season this past weekend.
Considering the location, as well as the fact that other series are beginning to see their numbers drop as the season wears on, many were surprised to see the Grange paddock stuffed full of trailers, canopies and karts. A full 93 entries were on hand to compete in the series' seven classes, the second-best turnout of the season (the season opener at Moran featured 98), including a mammoth 36 in the Alive Design Rotax International class.
Extra incentive for the competitors is the cash prize being put up by series sponsor Gatorz Precision Eyewear. The money will be dolled out to top three in points in Alive Design Rotax International, Dave�s Performance Rotax Masters, and Mychron4 Junior Rotax. With the prize set to be given after the series' next round at Willow Springs, the heat is being turned up on the points leaders of those classes.
The first race on the schedule for the afternoon was the Dave's Performance Rotax Masters class. John Crow has made this class his own personal stomping ground this season, but for the first time he was bumped off of pole when Ian Thomas grabbed pole, with Waqar Meyer second, and Crow third. Thomas, however, would be sent to the back after he was found to be two pounds underweight, promoting Meyer and Crow one position.
Crow, however, made the most of the start to get past Meyer in the first corner and cruise to a three second victory over Meyer and Erik von Zeipel. Thomas ran from the back of the grid to finish eighth.
With the roles reversed at the start, Meyer got the jump on Crow to take the lead. Crow would never be more than a few inches off of Meyer's bumper, with von Zeipel running uncontested in third. The race, however, would be stopped on the fourth lap after a massive crash in turn one that involved Thomas, who was charging to the front, Brian Hommel, and Greg Lawson. Thomas took the biggest impact, ending his race and requiring attention from paramedics, but was for the most part unharmed.
When the race restarted, the battle between Meyer and Crow resumed as well. Try as he might, Crow could not find a way past Meyer - even slight contact which sent Crow's kart in the air could not dislodge Meyer, and he took his first Masters win of the season. Crow crossed the finish line just behind, and von Zeipel was a distant third.
The Grange Mini Max class was second on the agenda. This class has seen a season long battle between Dakota Dickerson and Al Simpson, but this weekend would see another new face at the front, as IKF stalwart Raquel Martinez entered her first Gatorz Karting Cup race and put herself on pole. Predictably, Dickerson and Simpson were second and third.
The heat race saw a raging battle between Dickerson and Martinez, swapping spots for the lead before Martinez made the move stick for good on the penultimate lap. However, it was all for naught for Martinez, who was disqualified for a tech infringement at the end of the race and sent to the back for the main.
In a bizarre incident on the warm-up lap, Martinez, Holden Delcoure, and Joshua Jones ran into each other, eliminating them before the race began. Martinez would have likely run to the front and taken after Dickerson again, but as it was, Dickerson had another race long battle with Simpson. Dickerson finally got ahead for good with five laps to go and stretched a gap on Simpson by the checkered, for his third win of the season. Nicholas Silva ran uncontested for third.
Over a third of the weekend's entrants were in the Alive Design Rotax International class, which saw 36 karts line up to do battle. Some of the western states' top Rotax pilots, such as Greg Welch from Colorado, and Michael Self from Utah, made long hauls to see how they measured up in the toughest Champ Car Rotax Max Challenge in the country.
But in a bit of a surprise, series veteran Kenny Maler took pole as he scorched the earth ahead of Oregonian Spencer Raine and defending champion Joey Collins. One second covered the first nineteen karts on the grid, but in a big shock, series points leader Cory Pollock found himself mired down in eighteenth.
A series of waved off starts saw series newcomer Joshua Harris sent to the back of the grid for attempting to jump the start. The race, once finally underway, saw a predictable turn one stackup, with Maler leading the field from Collins and fifth starting Taylor Castle. Castle moved past Collins on the third lap, but Collins picked off Castle before picking off Maler two laps later and cruised to victory. Maler was second, but all of Castle's good work was undone when he was sent out of the techshed for his rear width being fractionally too wide. Roger Scott was credited with third place.
In the main event, Collins simply waltzed away from the field, cruising to a twelve-second victory. Self made his trip from Utah worthwhile by moving from his fifth starting position to finish second, while Maler ended his weekend in third position. Pollock, no longer the points leader, finished in eleventh.
The MyChron4 Junior Rotax class has seen Justin Coplen at the front for the first three races, but he could manage no better than sixth in qualifying as Miles Maroney took pole ahead of Cameron Jocelyn and Taylor Miinch. In the mess of a first lap, however, Mason Marotta took the point on the first lap, which he would hold only for two laps until Maroney took the position back. Jocelyn and Louie Pagano made their way past Marotta on the next lap and Jocelyn went to work on Maroney, making the pass for the lead with one lap remaining. Pagano was third, while Coplen was a DNF, along with Miinch.
Maroney made the final race boring, as he led from start to finish. Behind him, Jacob Pearlman held second until Jocelyn moved past him halfway through the race. Jocelyn set sail for Maroney, and while he caught him he could do nothing to make his way past, and crossed the line right on Maroney's bumper. Pearlman was third.
The final group of the day was the combined G-Phactory TAG Senior, Metal Manipulations Club Rotax, and Precision Works DD-2 classes. Run together, Ryon Beachner qualified first in TAG and first overall, with Las Vegas' Curtis Cooksey right behind and first in DD-2. John Stewart was third overall and first in Club Rotax.
When the heat race got underway, Cooksey put his two-speed transmission to good use and rocketed ahead of Beachner, and the two stretched ahead of the rest of the field. Beachner was never able to make his way around the DD-2 kart, and the race ended with Cooksey leading Beachner across the line. Stewart fell to fourth overall, behind TAG Senior competitor Rob Logan, but easily won Club Rotax.
The final race was a repeat of the Cooksey/Beachner battle, as Beachner was close for all 25 laps but could never make a pass. Cooksey took DD-2 honors and Beachner won TAG Senior. Behind them, Antoni Czerniewski aboard his DD-2 moved through the field to finish third overall, and had a close battle with Logan and Stewart, who won Club Rotax. Czerniewski also extended his lead in the DD-2 Mini series.
It is to be another quick turnaround for the Gatorz Karting Cup, as the series is back on track May 19 at the Willow Springs Kart Track.
The Gatorz Eyewear Golden State Karting Cup is the largest and oldest Rotax Max karting series in the United States. The series caters to the recreational racer and serious competitor alike, delivering competition, fun, camaraderie, and abundant track time. The Rotax Max karting series is the Official Karting Series of the Champ Car World Series. More information can be found at www.gatorzkarting.com or by calling Full Throttle Karting at (714) 289-0432.
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