9/11/2022
Redwood Acres Raceway
Action-Packed Nights Delight Redwood Acres Fans Friday And Saturday
North Coast race fans were treated to two full back-to-back nights of racing at Redwood Acres Raceway on Friday and Saturday. Friday’s event was Fan Appreciation Night with all fans entering the raceway for free. The race was a rescheduled event due to CAL FIRE’s use of the fairgrounds in August. Saturday featured the highly anticipated debut of the Gunslinger Sprint Cars while the Upstate Bomber Series also entertained fans for the night. Shafer’s Ace Hardware presented the weekend’s events.
Jeremy Doss set a quick 17.611 time in Friday’s qualifying for the Legends division. Brandon White won the heat race. The feature race saw the resumption of what’s been a familiar sight in 2022, White and Doss racing for the win and trading the lead back and forth throughout the race. Doss was able to gain the lead in the late stages to take the win over White, Chris Lawrence, Maleesa Miles and Scott Taylor.
Bomber qualifying was paced by Loren Powers, Jr. with a 17.962. Ryan Walters and Jordon Paiment were the heat race winners. Powers was untouchable in the feature race as he was able to take the win over Jeremy Doss, Terry Pittman, Walters and Tyler Krupa. Powers’ win gave him the chance to win a $1,000 bonus in the following day’s Rumble In The Woods 50 for the Upstate Bombers.
Brian Murrell, Jr. was fast time for the mini stocks with an 18.859. Murrell followed that up with a victory in the heat race. Jarrett Mayo was able to maneuver his way through the field to take his first main event win in 2022. Joe Bonomini led much of the race but placed second followed by Gary Klinetobe, Murrell, Jr. and Cole Peterson.
Fast time for the roadrunners was Tanisha Ratzlaff with a 20.389 qualifying lap. Brian Hopkins won the 10-lap heat. Ratzlaff dominated the main event, taking the win over Hopkins, Dylan Ford, Wayne Marsh and Nick Ford.
The Gunslinger Sprint Cars joined the action Saturday night. Aaron Willison set a blistering 13.102 lap in qualifying, less than five tenths of a second off of the all-time track record held by Rebel Jackson, Jr. in a super modified. Willison took the heat win while Austin Carter won the four-lap trophy dash. Willison put on a driving display in the 30-lap feature which lasted for 11 minutes and 46 seconds even with a few caution periods. Kyle Alberding made a late-race lunge on the race’s final restart but Willison would not be denied as the Canadian took the victory. Alberding placed second followed by Austin Carter, Adam Carter and Adam Anderson.
The Upstate Bomber Series was in action Saturday and Brandon White was the fastest qualifier with a time of 17.937. White won the first heat while Doss won the second. The 50-lap Rumble In The Woods featured a total purse of $7,500. It took a while for the race to get going as several caution periods slowed the early laps. White was able to take the lead away from Loren Powers, Jr., pulled away from the pack and was virtually unchallenged as laps clicked away. Doss did everything he could to try to reel in White but didn’t have enough. White took the $3,000 victory over Doss. Powers placed third, Terry Pittman fourth and Raquel Krupa fifth.
Jeremy Doss was the man on Saturday in the Legends. Doss was fast time with a 17.837. Chris Lawrence won heat one with Doss taking heat two. Doss sliced quickly through the field in the feature to get to the race lead. Brandon White followed him through and hoped to continue the battle with Doss up front but as the race wore on, it was clear White didn’t have the handling he needed to give Doss trouble. Doss took the main event win over White. Aiden Daniels placed third with Kylie Daniels taking fourth and Tyler Avelar coming home fifth.
Gary Klinetobe was fast time for the mini stocks with a 18.902. Klinetobe was also the heat race winner. The 25-lap main was a real thriller as Klinetobe was forced to use every trick in the book that he knew to hold off Gannon Cyphers and Jarrett Mayo. Cyphers in particular was all over Klinetobe’s rear bumper but he was never able to shake Klinetobe out of the lead. At the checkered flag it was Klinetobe winning over Cyphers and Mayo. Brian Murrell, Jr. placed fourth while Jerry Peterson was fifth subbing for his son Cole Peterson.
Saturday was a special day for Brian Hopkins. He paced qualifying with a 20.593 then took the heat race victory. Hopkins led the feature race from start-to-finish to capture his first main event ever. Tanisha Ratzlaff was second followed by Nick Ford, Dylan Ford and Landon Green.
The 2022 season for Redwood Acres Raceway concludes Saturday September 24 with the annual Fall Spectacular. Track champions will be crowned in all five local divisions of late models, Legends, bombers, mini stocks and roadrunners. The North State Bomber Series will also be making an appearance for the high-dollar Dale Baldwin Memorial race.
Redwood Acres Raceway would like to thank all of the donors who made Saturday night’s first annual Bike Giveaway possible as over 50 bikes were donated to local kids. For more information, visit RacinTheAcres.com or find RAR on Facebook or Twitter @RacinTheAcres.
Submitted By: Matthew Sullivan