Fast Fridays Speedway
Gold Country Fairgrounds
Auburn, California

1999 Week 2
Fast Fridays Speedway, Auburn, CA
Friday May 14, 1999
From Gary Roberts

Auburn's second event of the season took place under a dark sky that looked all night like it was just about to really dip down. By the end of the evening a few minor spots of rain fell, but nothing to impair some good racing. The stands were not as full as the previous week, may be it was the fact that the Sacramento Kings (Is this grouse-shooting or something?) were playing at home, maybe it was the weather.

Results

Scratch Main
1. Mike Faria
2. Billy Janniro
3. Bart Bast
4. Bobby Hedden
Mike Faria got the gate and was chased hard by Bobby Hedden for three and a quarter laps, when Bobby's engine dropped a valve.

Scratch Consi
1. Jim Sisemore
2. Charlie Venegas
3. Chad Felicio
4. Bob Hicks

Handicap Main
1. Bobby Hedden
2. Charlie Venegas
3. Jim Sisemore
4. Bart Bast
5. Mike Faria
6. Tommy Hedden qualified, but was a non-starter Bobby Hedden fought his way through and looked very fast. Brother Tommy had fallen in his scratch heat and took no further part in the event. He took an ambulance ride to hospital where he was diagnosed to have compressed vertebrae, so he will be out for a while.

Handicap Consi
1. Billy Janniro
2. Vance Felicio
3. Chad Felicio
4. Robert Curry
5. Bob Hicks
6. Scott McNeil

Division 2 Main
1. Gary Moranville
2. Dave Lynch
3. George Snodgrass
4. Harlan Bast Snr.
5. Shawn Eldridge
6. Scott Olney
Dave Lynch made the trek up from LA and lead his heat until 10 yards before the flag where he got pipped by Scott Olney. Gary Moranville did exactly the same thing to him in the main!

Division 2 Consi
1. Tom Adams
2. Eric Veale
3. Matt Browne
4. Mike Browne
5. Bill Thomas

Division 3 Main
1. Ivan Sevart
2. Craig Boone
3. Mike Odekirk (Tom Odekirk?)
Young Jamie Hughes lead most of the race and looked all set for winning this one until Ivan Sevart crept up on him in the last turn and there was a drag race for the first place. 10 yards before the checkered flag, Hughes hit the wall. Full credit to Ivan, who is Bart Bast's nephew, he has done progressively better each week and has been deserving a main event win for a while.
Also in the race, Don Webster, Brian Ballard, Bill Warnock, and Jamie Hughes. No idea of the results from 4th onwards. Too many new riders and races went by too quickly.

Junior Division 1
1. Eric Carrillo
2. Bryan Yarrow
3. Jon Curry
4. JJ Martynse
Chris Kerr was looking good early in the evening until he ran hard into the wall between turn 4 and the starting gate, about 10 yards further round from where his sister did the same thing last week. I understand he has nothing broken, but he was shaken up and his bike was a mess so was unable to take further part in the event. Since Ryan Fisher is no longer racing in the Junior class, it became a race between top juniors Eric Carrillo and Bryan Yarrow.

Junior Division 2
1. Alex Marcucci
2. Brenton Bast
3. JT Mabry
4. Ray Linn

Junior Division 3
1. Mark Carrillo
2. Danny Easley
3. Greg Hooten Jnr.
4. Paul Johnson
5. Chris Olney

For those who enjoy sideshows, there were a couple of backwards races, both won by Vance Felicio. Last year some riders moved the peg to the left side. This year, they were wearing steel shoes on the right foot. Professionalism is creeping into this event.

A fourth division 3 heat was added, to keep the number of riders in each race at a sensible level. This was appreciated by the third division competitors. Several lower division riders complained that the track was too grippy, but this made for some very fast races by the division 1 riders. As always, another great night of racing at Fast Fridays.

Gary Roberts - gary_rob@ix.netcom.com