LATE NIGHT WITH YOUR HOST TIM KENNEDY ... OCTOBER 1, 2005 ... IRWINDALE

Following is subject story for next issue. 
Spr Lt Mdls, Figure 8s, Speed Trks, Spr Mods - By Tim Kennedy 
Irwindale, CA., Oct. 1 - LONGEST was the operative word at Irwindale 
Speedway Saturday night with about 5,000 enthusiastic spectators present. The 
track ran the longest NASCAR Lucas Oil Super Late Model race (a non-points 200 
lap-Open), plus the longest Figure 8 race--a one-hour World Championship for the 
track's largest F-8 winner's payoff ($10,000). The concluding race for the 
touring ASA Speed Truck Challenge series made Saturday one of the longest, if not 
the longest, racing nights at IS. Trucks opened racing with a trophy dash at 
6:45 p.m and concluded racing at 11:33 p.m with a 75-lap barn-burner in which 
two lead-swapping rookie drivers made contact and spun across the finish line 
in a thrilling finish with the checkered flag waving above them. 
Winners of the three features were Figure 8 regular "Barefoot" Billy 
Ziemann, Speed Truck rookie Bobby McGowan, 19, and SLM rookie Brian Ickler, a 
20-year old, off-road, desert racer/first year driver at IS. Second quickest 
qualifier Ickler started second in a 28-car field with drivers from four tracks, 
including Las Vegas and Mesa Marin. With a three-car inversion, Brandon Loverock 
came from fifth grid position to lead the first 100 laps. A 20-minute 
intermission followed and all cars returned to the pits. Loverock led Ickler by five 
yards when the yellow flag flew at lap 101 for the planned break. Pole-sitter 
Dave Beat was third at mid-race, with Kevin Thompson and Dan Moore completing 
the top five and 17 cars on the lead lap. 
A four-car Super-modified Racing League (SRL) demonstration 10-lap race 
entertained fans during the SLM intermission. A. J. Russell, from Fresno, 
passed early leader Rick Cameron on lap four and paced the final seven laps over 
Kirk Wartman, Cameron and Jim Birges. Russell turned the fastest lap at 15.353 
(117 mph) which is just shy of the all-time track record of 15.154 (118.781 
mph) set by Troy Regier during 2000 when SRL ran point races at IS. 
One of the most frightening crashes in track annals occurred on lap 42 of 
the SLM race and caused a ten-minute red flag. Fifteenth and 16th place cars 
of Greg Pursley, a 2005 NASCAR GN West driver, and David Ross made contact in 
turn three and slammed into the crash-wall. Pursley's car quickly erupted into 
flames from the back end. The inferno from spilled fuel engulfed the car's 
interior to the driver's seat. It was reminiscent of Dale Earnhardt, Jr's 
well-publicized fiery crash last year in a sports car race at Infineon Raceway in 
Sonoma. The red flag flew immediately. In seconds, Pursley tumbled out of the 
car onto the track and rolled away from the No. 13 Monte Carlo in which he won 
the 2004 IS track title, Sunbelt Region and NASCAR Dodge Weekly Racing Series 
National Championships. IS safety workers extinguished flames quickly and 
paramedics tended to Pursley. He walked to the track ambulance and was examined by 
Los Angeles County paramedics called to the scene. Although shaken by the 
scary crash, Pursley reportedly declined transport to a hospital. 
The SLM final 100-laps began with another three-car inversion, putting 
Beat on the pole and Ickler alongside, with Loverock third. Ickler passed Beat 
on the inside through the third and fourth turns and led to the lap 200 
checkered flag. He collected $4,000 in his family-owned Ford Taurus. His best prior 
finish was second. Runner-up Beat, in a Dodge Intrepid, finished half a 
straight behind Ickler for his best IS finish in only his second outing this season. 
His career best was fourth two weeks ago. Veteran Ron Esau, in a Chevy Monte 
Carlo, finished third, three-quarters of a lap behind Ickler. The three San 
Diego area residents were the only drivers on the lead lap. Eric Richardson, Mesa 
Marin's 2005 champion, Mike Mulhall, Tony Jackson, James Bruncati (driving 
his first race of 2005 in the Ford Taurus raced by rookie Andrew Phipps to the 
2005 IS championship) and Mark Perry ran 199 laps. Loverock, the leader after 
100-laps, faded gradually during the final 100-laps and finished ninth, with 
198-laps. Fourteen of the 28 starters finished. 
The Figure 8 Cisco Burger World Championship presented by West Coast 
Choppers and Pick Your Parts followed the SLM 200. Three six-lap heat races 
divided the 20-car field that included four drivers from Washington and three from 
Indiana. Heat races started straight up by qualifying times and finishes 
determined starting positions for the one-hour race. Fred Bear, winner of this IS 
F-8 Open for the past two years, set fast qualifying time of 17.690, won his 
heat race and dominated the one-hour race in his F-8 Special. He lapped the field 
twice by lap 60. The red-flag stopped racing four times--on L 15-to replace 
an infield drainage metal plate at the intersection, on L 52-to remove fluid in 
turn one, on L 60-to remove a loose wheel from the track and on L 86-for a 
two-car rear-end collision at the X. Leader Bear thought the one-hour race was 
over when he saw the number 60 atop the scoring pylon and his car number (94) 
in P.1. He put the nose of his car against the front straight wall and did a 
smoky tire burnout. However, the race was not finished. It began at 9:49 and the 
lap 60 red flag came at 10:27 p.m. 
Drivers returned to the track and Bear returned to the front with 12 cars 
still on the track. Bear still held a two lap advantage on second place Corey 
Turner, the Indianapolis Speedrome 2005 late model rookie of the year, with 
IS 2005 F-8 champion Steve Stewart third and Ziemann fourth. Bear led to the 
lap 86 red flag at 10:43. Fearing a possible tire problem from his lengthy 
burnout after lap 60, Bear drove to the pits to change tires when racing resumed. 
He returned to the track with a one-lap lead. However, he did not wait for 
approval to enter the track at the backstretch. The starter waved the black flag 
at Bear numerous times for a consultation stop. Bear did not stop and drove to 
lap 101 when the checkered flag appeared at 10:49 with ten cars still racing. 
Thinking he had won, Bear stopped at the starting line and was told he 
had not won. The scoring pylon listed Ziemann, Jesse James (Monster Garage TV 
show host) and Turner as the top three finishers. A preliminary scoring recap 
showed Turner, Ziemann and James with 100-laps and Bear with 98 after officials 
penalized him three laps for not obeying the black flag. Bear drove to the 
pits. Turner and his crew celebrated on the front straight. However, Turner's 
winning car was disqualified during post-race technical inspection and he was not 
listed in the final rundown. Winner Ziemann collected $10,000 and runner-up 
James received $3,500. Both ran 100 laps. Fourth place Bear (98 laps 
officially) moved up to third and took home $2,000. Indiana's R. J. Norton, Jr (96 laps) 
won $1,000 for fourth. Rusty Stewart (90), Tony Curtis (90), Steve Stewart 
(87) and Washington's Don Eslick (83) rounded out the top eight finishers. Bear, 
Norton and S. Stewart won the three heat races and the first three starting 
positions. The F-8 race was taped for future telecast on Speed Channel. 
The touring ASA Speed Truck Challenge ran the final race and 25 trucks 
took the lap one green flag at 11:01 p.m. Series champion Lee Hatch led the 
first eight laps from row one. With a ten-truck inversion, fifth starter Spencer 
Clark, from Las Vegas, took command on lap nine. The NASCAR GN West rookie 
opened a 15-yard advantage by lap 20 of the 75-lap race that was taped for later 
airing on The Outdoor Channel. Justin Fisher (from eighth) and McGowan (from 
12th) traded second place at the one-third mark. McGowan, a USAC Ford Focus 
Midget graduate and winner of the Ford Focus Midget main at IS last Thanksgiving, 
settled into second place at lap 55 and then reeled in Clark gradually. 
Inside-running McGowan passed mid-track leader Clark on lap 68 in the 
fourth turn, but Clark reclaimed the point on lap 69 with an outside pass in turn 
four. McGowan retook the lead during lap 71 on the inside in turn four and 
the two young drivers diced evenly side by side for three laps with several 
cross-over passes. Clark forced leader McGowan up the track towards the wall in 
turn two and led lap 74. McGowan came back hard on the final lap and executed a 
strong inside pass in the second turn. As McGowan came off the fourth turn 
towards the waving checkered flag, Clark's right front fender hit McGowan's left 
rear quarter panel hard. McGowan's truck spun across the finish line first. 
Clark also spun across the finish line second, 0.223 seconds behind McGowan and 
0.176 seconds in front of fellow rookie Matt Jaskol. Fans cheered and 
applauded the great duel and "refuse to lose" desire by both drivers. 
McGowan became the ninth different winner in 12 ASA Speed Truck features 
and sixth different 2005 rookie winner. Twenty-one of the 25 starters finished 
with 14 drivers on the lead lap and five drivers down a lap. Fastest 
qualifier Alex Haase won the six-lap trophy dash. ASA Speed Truck remaining races 
during October will be in San Bernardino and Blythe, CA. 
For complete results see www.IrwindaleSpeedway.com. <http://www.IrwindaleSpeedway.com.>