Cody Gerhardt claims the 

Harvest Classic victory

The POWRi Bay Cities Racing Association (BCRA) midgets took part in the action-packed 47^th annual Harvest Classic at Madera Speedway on Saturday night September 14^th, 2019 for the series’ final 2019 visit to the Madera District Fairgrounds.   

David Goodwill was the fastest qualifier with a best lap of 14.000 seconds in his own #3g midget, which edged out Cody Gerhardt in the Lucas Oil-sponsored # 60 midget who posted a 14.100 second lap.  The third fastest qualifier was Cody Jessop in the #00 midget at 14.136 seconds with Blake Brannon fourth with his best time around the 1/3-mile Madera oval recorded at 14.202 seconds.

BCRA overall points leader Robert Carson was unable to complete his qualifying run in the Howard & Karen Segur #99, and BCRA stalwart JR Williams did not present his #74 Fontana-powered midget for qualifying. Unfortunately, shortly after time trials were completed, the Brannon #40 was withdrawn from the rest of the program with power steering issues. 

The pair of Cody’s’, Jessop and Gerhardt, shared the front row for the start of the 8-lap heat race and battled side-by-side for the entire first lap. As the pair entered turn one for the second time, Jessop forged ahead and held the advantage for the rest of the race with Gerhardt second, Goodwill third, Williams fourth and Carson fifth at the drop of the checkered flag.    

With the points totaled from the heat race finish using the POWRi system Jessop ad Gerhardt again shared the front row for the start of the 30-lap feature race for the POWRi BCRA midgets which was video-taped for later airing on the MAVTV network. At the drop of the green, Jessop leapt into the lead hounded by Gerhardt as Goodwill lurked close behind in third place. 

The race’s only caution flag flew on lap seven as Robert Carson coasted the #99 to a stop at the entrance to turn one. After Carson was pushed to safety into the infield, the race resumed after the initial restart was called back as the field was not aligned nose-to-tail at the start/finish line.

Once underway, Gerhardt looked high and low for a way past leader Jessop, and he got the #60 midget alongside Jessop’s #00 in the third and fourth turn on the twelfth lap and completed the pass with an outside move in turns one and two. 

Once in front, Gerhardt laid down some quick laps and pulled away with his 20^th lap his fastest at 13.898 seconds, faster than his qualifying time. Over the final few laps of the race, Goodwill made several attempts to pass Jessop but just could not get close enough to make a move.

At the drop of the checkered flag, Gerhardt held a 3.4 second advantage over Jessop with Goodwill in third close behind. JR Williams soldiered on for a fine fourth place finish two laps behind the winner, with non-finisher Robert Carson in fifth place.

As the POWRi/BCRA midgets continue their 80^th anniversary season, the next scheduled events are on October 12 for a rare split program  - the dirt cars will be at Keller Motor Speedway in Hanford, while the pavement cars will be in action the same day at Stockton 99 Speedway 

Photos by the author 

Upcoming POWRi BCRA

races scheduled

 

POWRi BCRA has three pavement races scheduled that we encourage all racers and fans to attend. 

On Friday July 5th, both the midget and the vintage midget divisions will be in action at Lakeport Speedway located on the Lake County Fairgrounds for a double points race followed by a large fireworks show.  Then on the following day, Saturday July 6th, both the midget and the vintage division race at Ukiah Speedway located on the Redwood Empire Fairgrounds

On Saturday, July 13th, the POWRi BCRA midgets will be at Madera Raceway for the annual Gerhardt Classic and the track has posted $1,500 to win and $200 to start the 50-lap classic.  POWRi BCRA midgets that race at Lakeport and Ukiah will have their entry fee waived for the Madera race.

Kern County Raceway hosts

historic first POWRi BCRA race

The Bay Cities Racing Association (BCRA) kicked off its 80^th year of racing action and entered a new era with the first-ever Performance Open Wheel Racing Inc. (POWRi) BCRA Lucas Oil Midget Series race Friday night March 15, 2019 on the 1/3-mile Dirt Track at Kern County Raceway near Bakersfield. 

Seventeen mighty midgets posted qualifying times, topped by Austin Liggett in his own #83 midget. Liggett’s fast lap of 15.233 seconds edged out Chase Johnson in the Del Morris #47M by just .078 seconds, with Maria Cofer third in the John Cofer #57 at 15.331 seconds. Robert Dalby, Cory Elliott and Shannon McQueen rounded out the fastest six qualifiers.

The first heat started with a bang, as while the pole sitter Michael Faccinto streaked out of turn four on the first lap, CJ Sarna took a tumble back in the pack after contact with Jake Swanson. Sarna’s car was finished for the heat race, but Swanson’s crew replaced his flat right front tire and Jake rejoined at the back of the field for the complete restart. 

On the race’s first recorded lap, Liggett dropped to the low side through turn four and took the lead from Faccinto. By lap four Swanson had worked his way up through the field to run second behind Liggett with Dalby in third.  On lap seven, Faccinto pulled his #71R Morris Motorsports car into the infield, and the finishing order was Liggett, Swanson, Dalby and Ben Worth.

The second heat race was dominated by Bakersfield College student Cory Elliott, who obviously lost none of his talent in his during his short absence from midget racing, as the #11E went wire-to-wire. After eight laps, Elliott crossed the finish line ahead of Chase Johnson, Terry Nichols, Frank Guerrini III, Dylan Ito, and Robert Carson. Robert is the son of three-time BCRA champion Glenn Carson, and the grandson of the late BCRA legendary car owner Howard Segur. Robert’s grandmother is the owner of the #99 midget with which Robert is contending for 2019 POWRi BCRA Rookie-of-the-Year honors.

The third heat race had trouble on the first lap, as Shannon McQueen spun to a stop at the end of the backstretch after contact with another machine, but #7 McQueen Racing machine restarted and the 2011 BCRA Dirt Series driver champion rejoined the tail of the field for the restart.  At the drop of the green, Maria Cofer shot into lead and streaked away from the field and the 2017 BCRA champion won the heat race in convincing fashion ahead of McQueen, rookie Troy Morris III, and Gage Rucker in the Cory Kruseman entry.

While POWRi BCRA officials totaled up the passing points from the heat races to determine the feature race lineup, Frank Guerrini III’s F&F Racing #63 was withdrawn with engine issues, but CJ Sarna’s hard working crew affected repairs to the #20 machine following the heat race mishap.

Top points earner Liggett shared the front row with Maria Cofer for the start while Elliott and Johnson were deployed in the second row, and Swanson and McQueen shared the third row for the start of the 25-lpa main event. At the drop of the green flag, Cofer shot into the lead with Johnson and McQueen in hot pursuit. The action was slowed on lap two as Rucker spun to stop in turn three, and on the restart, Cofer’s car pulled a big wheel stand which allowed Chase Johnson to slip by into the race lead.

On lap five, Cory Elliott moved into fourth place, but his charge forward was halted for the moment when the yellow flag flew on lap eight as the #71R Morris Motorsports entry piloted by Faccinto rolled to a stop in turn two with engine maladies. On the restart, the field charged hard into turn one, but Elliott’s car caught a rut and went for a ride that ended against the turn one outside wall. Cory emerged from the car uninjured, but the #11E machine was done for the night.

After the third restart, Johnson began to stretch his lead and built up an eight-car cushion by lap 14 over Cofer, as Liggett, McQueen and Swanson rounded out the top five positions. On lap 15, Dylan Ito’s Josh Ford Racing #73 lost its left rear wheel and came to a stop out of turn two on the backstretch.  After the race’s final restart, Johnson again began to pull away as behind him Cofer fell to third place behind Liggett. Swanson began a late race charge to the front, and Jake moved into second place on lap 22 while Cofer reclaimed third place. 

Johnson held a ten-car advantage over Swanson at the checkered flag, with Maria Cofer third, Austin Liggett fourth and Robert Dalby in fifth place. Sixth through tenth place finishers were Shannon McQueen, Ben Worth, Terry Nichols, Troy Morris III, and Kyle Beilman.  Gage Rucker was eleventh with CJ Sarna twelfth and Robert Carson rounded out the finishers in thirteenth. The non-finishers were in order Dylan Ito, Cory Elliott, and Michael Faccinto with Frankie Guerrini, who did not start the feature, was scored seventeenth.  

The POWRi BCRA midget series returns to the Dirt Track at Kern County Raceway on May 3, 2019 for the series’ next dirt track race.

The first pavement race for

POWRi BCRA midgets

at Madera Speedway

The Performance Open Wheel Racing Inc. (POWRi) Bay Cities Racing Association (BCRA) Lucas Oil Midget Series presented a non-points exhibition race for the MAVTV Midget Series at the historic 1/3-mile paved Madera Speedway on Saturday March 16, 2019, the first pavement race of the new POWRi BCRA era.  

2018 BCRA overall champion Jesse Love in the 51Fifty Energy Drinks sponsored Van Dyne #5 topped the time trials speed chart with a blistering 13.974 second lap. Second qualifier Jerome Rodela in the Trench Shoring/Ed Pink Racing Engines #25 midget was just .019 of a second slower, while David Goodwill in his #3 midget wound up third with a best lap of 14.030 seconds.

Teammates Dylan Nobile and Cody Gerhardt claimed fourth and fifth qualifying spots respectively, while Toledo Ohio USAC Silver Crown racer Austin Nemire claimed sixth quick honors in the Charles Breidinger #80X Honda-powered midget. Rookie contender Robert Carson did not post a qualifying time with the Segur #99 and Cody Jessop unfortunately withdrew his #00 before qualifying with engine woes.

Both Nemire and Goodwill were late scratches as the field assembled on track for the heat race. At the drop of the green flag, Rodela shot into the early lead ahead of Gerhardt and Love. Love worked past Cody on lap three, then Nobile relegated his teammate to fourth place on lap five, as Carson pulled his machine into the infield. The finishing order for the eight laps was Rodela, Love, Nobile and Gerhardt. 

After the new POWRi BCRA race director Don Thornburg totaled up the passing points from the heat race, Rodela started from the coveted pole position with the young phenom Love alongside while Nobile and Gerhardt shared the second row for the 40-lap feature race. At the drop of the green flag, Rodela and Love raced side-by-side around the track for the first lap before Jerome pulled ahead in his Toyota-powered machine as the pair crossed the stripe for the first time.

By lap seven, Rodela had extended his advantage to 10 car lengths over the 14-year old Love, while Nobile rode in third place ahead of Gerhardt. By lap fourteenth, the dominant red-and-white #25 midget held a straightaway advantage over second place, which was extended to ½ alp by lap 26.  On lap 32, Rodela lapped past fourth place Cody Gerhardt  on his way to a dominant nine-second $1500 victory at the drop of the checkered flag over Love, Nobile and Gerhardt, while 2019 POWRi BCRA series Rookie-of-the-Year contender Robert Carson in the Segur #99 scored a solid fifth place.   

The Performance Open Wheel Racing Inc. (POWRi) Bay Cities Racing Association (BCRA) Lucas Oil Midget Series returns to action on April 27 at the lightning fast new Stockton 99 Speedway paved track along with the Gun Slingers Wing Sprint Car Series, North State Modified Series, Legends of Kearney Bowl, BCRA Midgets, Western US Midgets and the Vintage Midget division.

The POWRi BCRA Lucas Oil Midget Series returns to Madera Speedway for a double points MAVTV Midget Series $1500-to-win race on May 4 as part of a back-to-back POWRi BCRA dirt/asphalt midget racing weekend. 

Jesse Love claims the Harvest Classic

13-year old racer Jess Love of Menlo Park California made history Saturday night at Madera Speedway as he won the 46^th annual Harvest Classic and became the youngest winner in the storied 79-year history of the Bay Cities Racing Association.  

Love started his night by qualifying second in BCRA time trials, as he powered his Van Dyne-powered 51 Fifty energy drinks to a time of 14.089 seconds, just 13/1000 of a second slower than fast qualifier Mark Maliepaard in his Esslinger-powered Fit & Finish Hot Rod Interiors Special. Perennial Madera standout Chad Nichols timed in third fastest in the orange #17 Shanonian Esslinger, with David Goodwill fourth and Cody Jessop fifth overall.

2013 BCRA Hall of Fame inductee Jimmy Screeton made his return to racing in the #1N Shanonian entry and qualified sixth fastest with Cody Gerhardt seventh fastest as the team battled fuel delivery issues.

US Western Speed 2 midget standout Toni Breidinger, USAC’s winningest female driver joined the BCRA field in her family’s #26B Honda-powered midget with an eighth-place qualifying effort, and Joey Iest, currently second in USAC Western Speed 2 midget point standings, qualified ninth, with the ageless JR Williams tenth and Austin Carter in the second Jessop Western Speed2 racing entry rounded out the qualifying field in eleventh.  Frankie Guerrini was unable to make the qualifying call as his Bob Rosen-owned Mr. Espresso midget suffered an oil pump issue during practice and was withdrawn.         

Chad Nichols claimed the lead of the first heat race at the drop of the green flag, was never challenged, and brought home the win over Jessop, Maliepaard, Gerhardt and Austin Carter. Screeton proved that was just as fast as ever as he led the second heat for several laps before he surrendered the lead to Jesse Love on lap six and trailed Love to the finish line. Goodwill finished third, with Iest fourth and JR Williams in fifth place.

Late in the evening, after the 10-car BCRA feature pushed off as the last race of the night, Chad Nichols jumped into the lead in the first turn trailed by David Goodwill, Love, Maliepaard and Jessop. On lap three, BCRA stalwart JR Williams pulled his midget into the infield, and then on lap five Love maneuvered past Goodwill to take over second place, five car lengths behind Nichols, then three laps later Maliepaard dropped Goodwill to fourth place.

On lap 13, Love began to reel in the leader Nichols and an epic duel ensued as Jesse in the blue #5 Van Dyne looked first to the high side then the low side of Chad, all the while glued to the rear nerf bar of the orange #17. On lap 21 as the pair entered turn three of the fast Madera 1/3-mile oval, Love dove to the bottom and after wheel-to-wheel contact, emerged with the lead briefly before Nichols recaptured the point.

On lap 24, Love again tried the inside move into turn three and again the lead cars bumped and both bobbled, with Nichols was scored the leader at the start-finish line. Finally, on lap 28, Love moved past Nichols in turn three to take the lead for good and finished the 30-lap feature .391 seconds ahead of Nichols to score his historic first BCRA feature win.

Mark Maliepaard recorded the race’s fastest lap and scored a strong third place finish, with Cody Jessop in fourth place and Goodwill fifth.  Cody Gerhardt finished sixth, with Jimmy Screeton a lap behind the leaders in seventh, trailed by Toni Breidinger in eighth place and Austin Carter in ninth, two laps in arrears. JR Williams, with the only car that did not complete the race was placed tenth.

Jesse Love, left, and car owner Tres Van Dyne, right 

celebrate Love's historic BCRA feature victory

BCRA wishes to recognize and thank the USAC Western Speed2 midget car owners, mechanics and drivers that made the necessary changes to their cars and joined the regular BCRA racers to present a thrilling non-stop race for the fans.

The mighty midgets of the Bay Cities Racing Association return to action on September 29^th at the unique ¼-mile paved Lakeport Speedway on the grounds of the Lake County Fairgrounds.

Mark your calendars now for the big BCRA year-end doubleheader at the lightning-fast paved Stockton 99 Speedway on Saturday October 27th and Sunday October 28^th as part of the ‘Gun Slingers Sprint Car Series Championship’ weekend, with two complete shows that will also include the BCRA vintage division.                  

Jerome Rodela wins the 2018 Gerhardt Classic

On a warm July Saturday, the mighty midgets of the Bay Cities Racing Association (BCRA) invaded the lighting fast 1/3-mile Madera Speedway for the annual Fred Gerhardt Classic. Jerome Rodela paced time trials in the Trench Shoring-sponsored Toyota with a best lap of 14.150 seconds trailed by Mark Maliepaard in the Morris Insurance/Hot Rod Interiors Esslinger at 14.203 seconds. Young phenom Jesse Love in the 51 Fifty sponsored Van Dyne midget was third fastest at 14.209 seconds with Chad Nichols in the Shanonian Esslinger fourth at 14.234 seconds.  

Rookie Cody Jessop qualified fifth fastest in the #00 midget, followed by defending BCRA champion Maria Cofer in the Arata #88 in sixth place, and David Goodwill seventh in his own #3G midget.  Nick Foster Junior, with only two laps of practice in the #08 Jessop US Western midget, timed in eighth at 15.289 seconds and the ageless JR Williams qualified ninth in his own #74 car. Cody Gerhardt’s #29 midget was unable to make the call for qualifying as the result of an engine issue uncovered during routine maintenance.

During the Western US Midget feature, the Jessop entry suffered an ignition failure which forced Nick Foster Junior to scratch from the evening’s feature starting field. The BCRA midgets arranged in the traditional rows of three abreast took the green flag for the 50-lap feature, and Chad Nichols grabbed the lead from his outside front row starting position trailed by Goodwill, Rodela and Love as middle front row starter Maria Cofer fell to fifth place. The yellow flag flew on lap four as Maria spun the black #88 midget to a stop inside of turn two following contact with Mark Maliepaard. Cofer restarted at the tail of the field but had lost a lap to the leaders.

After the lap seven restart, Jerome Rodela began to pressure Goodwill for second place as Nichols sprinted away to a five-car advantage. Rodela got past Goodwill on lap 18 and began to carve away at Nichols’s advantage as the handling of the #17N appeared to erode. Over the next handful of laps, attrition from the heat claimed two cars, as Cody Jessop retired with overheated brakes, followed a few laps later by Cofer with engine overheating issues. On lap 32, Rodela ducked the #25 Toyota-powered midget underneath Nichols’s orange #17N through turn four took the race lead and began to pull away.

After Mark Maliepaard retired the #51 with apparent fuel issues, on the lap 37 restart, Nichols looked low underneath Rodela’s #25 through turn one but was unable to make the pass. Jerome pulled away built a straightaway lead and won by 2.86 seconds over Chad Nichols, followed by David Goodwill in third, Jesse Love in fourth place and JR Williams finished fifth. Non-finisher Mark Maliepaard was credited with a sixth-place finish, trailed by Cofer and Jessop.

The BCRA schedule will remain pavement focused as the next stop for the BCRA midgets is July 14^th at the historic high-banked Stockton 99 Speedway in a program that also includes the Gun Slingers Winged Sprint Car Series, the BCRA Vintage Midget Division and the California Hard Top Association. The pit gates are scheduled to open at 1 PM, with the racing action set to begin at 6 PM.

Jerome Rodela wins

his second Vukovich Classic 

16 years later!

On Saturday night May 5, The Bay Cities Racing Association midgets joined the BCRA vintage midget division, the NCMA Sprints, Madera’s own CSS/360 Super Modifieds class, the Legends of Kearney Bowl, the USAC Western US Pavement Midgets, and the Legends of the Pacific series for the 28^th annual Vukovich Classic at the 1/3-mile asphalt Madera Speedway.  

Jerome Rodela set the pace in time trials as he toured the oval in his Trench Shoring sponsored Toyota powered midget in 13.873 seconds to edge Scott Pierovich in Del Morris’ Esslinger powered #17K whose best lap was 13.941 seconds. Mark Maliepaard was third quick at 13.980 seconds with youngster Jesse Love III fourth in the #5 Van Dyne Engineering machine, and Chad Nichols five-time Vukovich champion, wound up fifth after a costly bobble on his second timed lap.

David Goodwill made his inaugural 2018 BCRA appearance and qualified sixth, followed by Frankie Guerrini III in Bob Rosen’s familiar #4 with defending series champion Maria Cofer in eighth place in the Arata Racing #88. Nine-time BCRA champion Floyd Alvis made his first 2018 appearance in his green #18 midget and qualified ninth and JR Williams rounded out the Vukovich Classic qualifiers.

In the evening’s first heat race, Chad Nichols started on the pole position and shot into the lead trailed by Rodela who made a nifty inside move underneath Guerrini to claim second place. Before the first lap was completed, Floyd Alvis felt a vibration in the drivetrain of his midget and pulled into the infield. On lap 4, Maliepaard took the inside line through turn three to claim third place from Guerrini, and then the running order remained unchanged to the checkered flag. The finishing order was Nichols, Rodela, Maliepaard and Guerrini.      

As the field for the second heat roared into the first turn, Goodwill edged ahead of Cofer as Pierovich and Love ran side by side before Scott pulled ahead to claim third place. Lap after lap, Pierovich looked to the high side of Cofer as the pair entered turn one, but he just couldn’t make the move stick for the second position.  As the field raced through turns three and four on the final lap, Pierovich got around Cofer on the high side to claim second behind Goodwill, with Love fourth and Williams in fifth place.

After the heats races were completed, Western US Midget racer Cody Jessop became BCRA’s newest member and 2015 USAC Western HPD Midget Champion’s #00 midget was slotted to start at the tail of 30-lap feature. Welcome Cody and thank you!

After the re-draw for the feature lineup, Frankie Guerrini and Maria Cofer shared the front row with Nichols and Goodwill in row two, Pierovich and Maliepaard made up row three and fast qualifier Jerome Rodela started on the outside of the fourth row. As the field accelerated out of turn four for the initial green flag start, the Rosen #4 experienced engine problems and did not come up to speed. With the inside row starters bottled up behind Guerrini, Maria Cofer streaked into the lead trailed by Goodwill, Rodela and Maliepaard.  Both Guerrini and Alvis coasted their cars into the infield off the back straightway as the field completed lap one.  

On the sixth lap as the field raced down the back straightaway, the engine in Cofer’s #88 suddenly blew up in a cloud of smoke and oil. Chaos reigned as the trailing drivers looked for an opening but Nichols and Pierovich both became involved, with #17N sustaining some front fascia damage but was able to continue, while Scott made contact with another car with his front nerf bar and spun to stop backwards in turn three as the red flag was displayed.

After the Madera Safety Crew cleaned up the spilt oil, the remaining car pushed off and the race resumed with Rodela in the lead ahead of Goodwill, Maliepaard, Nichols, Pierovich and Love.

On lap eight as JR Williams also retired his red and gold #74 machine to the infield, Jesse Love moved the blue Van Dyne #5 past Pierovich into fifth place, then on lap 10, Scott coasted the #17K into the infield with engine problems. On lap 12, Love moved around Nichols for fourth place, as Chad battled apparent handling problems with Shanonian Esslinger.

By lap 18, Jerome Rodela had built up a five-car length cushion over second place Maliepaard who in turn held a seven-car length lead over third place Goodwill. Love trailed David’s #3g by five car lengths with Nichols ten car lengths behind Jesse.  In the closing laps, Love closed to within three car lengths of Goodwill, but was not close enough to make a move for position.

At the end of thirty exciting laps, Jerome Rodela claimed his second Vukovich Classic championship, sixteen years after his first Vukovich win in 2002. Mark Maliepaard finished 3-1/2 seconds behind with a well-deserved second place after a spirited drive, trailed by David Goodwill, Jesse Love and Chad Nichols, with all the finishers on the lead lap. Among the non-finishers, Scott Pierovich finished sixth, JR Williams seventh, with Maria Cofer eighth, Cody Jessop ninth, Frankie Guerrini tenth and Floyd Alvis in eleventh.

Looking ahead on the schedule, the next race for the BCRA midgets will be on May 26^th at the Stockton dirt track as part of the $5000 to win “360 Sprint Car Open” then on the weekend of June 8 and 9 the BCRA midgets will stay on the dirt and make back-to back appearances at Ocean Speedway on Friday night the eighth followed by Petaluma Speedway on Saturday night the ninth along with the King of The West sprint car series.        

 

 

 

Mark Malipaard claimed his first

BCRA win in the 2018 season opener

 

After the cancellation of the co-sanctioned event at Bakersfield Speedway two weeks earlier, the mighty midgets of the Bay Cities Racing Association (BCRA) opened the 2018 season at Madera Speedway the day before Easter.    The BCRA Midgets were joined at the Pombo-Sargent Classic by the USAC Western Midgets, Legends of Kearney Bowl, 360 supermodifieds, Pacific Challenge Series super late models and the BCRA Vintage Midgets.

Unfortunately, two of the midgets entered in the program driven by Nick Chivello and David Prickett suffered mechanical problems during the Friday afternoon practice session, which reduced the BCRA entry list to seven cars. In single car qualifying, Chad Nichols in the #17 Shanonian Esslinger edged Scott Pierovich in the Morris #17P by just 5/1000 of a second to grab the top honors with a best lap of 14.014 seconds.

Jerome Rodela in the #25 Trench Shoring Toyota-powered machine timed third, with Cody Gerhardt fourth, followed by Mark Malipaard, 13-year old Jesse Love in the Van Dyne #5 and defending BCRA champion Maria Cofer rounded the field in the Arata Racing #88.

13-year old rookie Jesse Love and the Van Dyne #5

Cofer started the heat race from the pole position alongside Malipaard, who jumped into the lead at the start but Rodela soon took the lead and began to pull away from the rest of the field. On lap six of the 8-lap heat race, Rodela’s car suffered a braking problem and he spun to a stop inside turn two. Rodela’s brake problems forced his retirement, and Malipaard led the final two circuits to claim the win ahead of Pierovich, Gerhardt, Nichols, Cofer and Love. Rodela made repairs to his car in time for the feature.

The BCRA midgets lined up for the start of the 30-lap feature

The redraw for the lineup for the 30-lap feature event resulted in a full invert, with the young rookie Love tagging the back of the field for the flying start. At the drop of the green flag, Malipaard grabbed the lead into turn one with Rodela, Nichols and Pierovich in hot pursuit.

On lap 10, as the field entered turn three, Rodela’s car swung high out of the groove as his braking problems resurfaced, and Jerome pulled into the infield and retired from the event.  Five laps later, the yellow flag flew for the first time as Gerhardt spun to a stop in turn two because of a blistered right rear tire which forced his subsequent retirement.

When the green flag flew again, Malipaard continued to hold his leading position  and he set the race’s fastest lap on lap 21 with a blazing 13.679 second, while Nichols and Pierovich battled for second position.  Scott began to look to the outside of Chad’s orange machine through turns one and two beginning on lap 24, but was unable to make the pass.

On the final lap as the trio entered turn three, Nichols braked late to try to move around the outside of Malipaard’s #51 car, but Chad’s move fell short and Pierovich cut underneath Nichols to grab second place but Chad recovered second place at the checkered flag.

Winner Mark Malipaard interviewed in Victory Lane

Mark Malipaard jubilantly celebrated his first career BCRA feature victory on the main straightaway ahead of Nichols, Pierovich, Jesse Love, and Maria Cofer, as Gerhardt and Rodela failed to finish. The BCRA midgets will return to action on April 7 for the first dirt track event of the 2018 season on the exciting 1/3-mile dirt Merced Speedway on the grounds of the Merced County Fairgrounds.      

Photographs by the author       

Cody Gerhardt wins season finale

Maria Cofer claims the championship

 

 

Ten of Bay Cities Racing Association’s (BCRA) best pavement midgets were on hand Saturday September 30 at the Madera Speedway for the 2017 season finale. Chad Nichols in the #17N Shanoian Special sped around the 1/3-mile paved oval in 14.193 seconds to claim the top qualifying honors, trailed by Scott Pierovich in the Morris #71R with a best lap of 14.267 seconds.

Cody Gerhardt timed in third fastest trailed by Mark Maliepaard as David Goodwill rounded out the fast five. Leading the second group was third generation racer Davey Hamilton Junior in the Bob Rosen #4, followed by Maria Cofer, JR Williams and Floyd Alvis.  Nick Foster Junior was unable to make the call for time trials in the second Shanoian Special as the #1N suffered from an engine vibration.

Alvis and Cofer led the field to the green flag for the first 8-lap preliminary heat race and Cofer surged into the lead and held the point for the first two circuits. Nichols moved up from his fifth starting spot into second place on the second lap with an outside pass in turn one, then claimed the lead one lap later with another turn one outside pass.

One lap later, Gerhardt charged past Cofer into second place, which dropped Maria in the Arata #88 into third place trailed by Goodwill and Alvis. The running order remained unchanged over the last three laps, all run under the green flag. Foster was unable to answer the call for the second preliminary heat race, which was led wire-to-wire by Davey Hamilton Junior trailed by Pierovich Maliepaard and JR Williams.  

Fastest qualifier Nichols pulled the number “6” pill in the redraw for the starting feature lineup, which positioned Davey Hamilton Junior on the pole position with David Goodwill alongside for the start of the 30-lap season finale feature. Foster was able to take the green flag shotgun on the field but the engine vibrations were so severe that he pulled off as the field entered turn one on the first lap. At the drop of the green flag, Hamilton sped into the lead trailed by Maliepaard Gerhardt Pierovich and Nichols.

Hamilton held a slim lead while the trailing four cars battled among themselves, as between laps seven and ten Maliepaard battled all around the track for second place with Gerhardt finally able to make the high groove work and he began to track down Hamilton. On lap 16, Gerhardt moved low underneath Hamilton as the pair entered turn three. On lap 19, as Goodwill headed down the back stretch his engine went off song, and the #3G came to a stop on lap 20 at the exit of turn two to bring out the race’s first caution flag.

Nichols had a head of steam on the restart and blasted past Maliepaard and Hamilton on the outside of turns one and two to claim second place, but Chad’s evening came to an abrupt end on lap 27 as the #17N coasted into the infield out of fuel.  Cody Gerhardt sped under the twin checkered flags to claim a popular win over Maliepaard, Pierovich, Hamilton, 2017 BCRA season champion Maria Cofer, Floyd Alvis and JR Williams in seventh place. Nichols was scored in eighth position ahead of fellow non-finishers Goodwill and Foster.

 

photo of Maria Cofer by the author

 

 

After the event in the pit area the Arata Brothers’ trailer was a scene of celebration in honor of Maria Cofer’s crowning as the 2017 BCRA champion. Maria continued her family’s tradition of championships, as her father (and crew chief) John was the 1994 United States Auto Club (USAC) Western States series king.

Maria piloted the Arata’s immaculate black #88 #88 on the pavement and drove her father’s red white and black #57 on the dirt portions of the 2017 BCRA schedule. Maria will collect her championship trophy at the annual BCRA awards banquet to be held on January 20 2018 at the Hilton Hotel in Stockton California.  

Chad Nichols dominates the

 2017 Harvest Classic

 

On Saturday night September 16, the mighty midgets of the Bay Cities Racing Association (BCRA) were in action at the ultra-fast Madera Speedway paved oval as part of the 45th annual Harvest Classic. The first car out for time trials, the #17 Shanoian Special Esslinger-powered Beast chassis piloted by Chad Nichols, spun on the slick surface during his second lap and had to settle for his first lap time of 14.455 seconds.

Chad’s time wound up being fifth fastest, as the six fastest cars all broke into the 14-second bracket. Cody Gerhardt in the Eskesen Racing Beast powered by a Mopar engine set the night’s fastest time with a best lap of 14.352 seconds, to edge out Mark Maliepaard’s best lap of 14.359 seconds in the Maliepaard & Morris’ #51 Beast/Esslinger.

David Goodwill was third fastest qualifier in his Beast/Mopar, trailed by Scott Pierovich in Morris’ #71R midget, while Nichols’ teammate Nick Foster timed in sixth fastest in the #1N Shanoian Beast/Esslinger at 14.601 seconds. Maria Cofer, Floyd Alvis, JR Williams and 2106 BCRA champion Bobby Wilson rounded out the night’s qualifiers.

Chad Nichols jumped into the lead from the pole position in the night’s first 8-lap heat race and led all the way to the checkered flag trailed by Gerhardt, Goodwill, Cofer and JR Williams. Nick Foster grabbed the lead at the start of the second heat race with Mark Maliepaard in hot pursuit before Mark bobbled as he tried for the lead on lap four and spun to a stop at the head of the front straightaway. Maliepaard restarted at the tail of the field but had lost a lap in scoring as Foster cruised to victory over Pierovich, Alvis and Wilson.

The BCRA 30-lap feature was the last event of the evening following the hobby stocks, USAC HPD midgets, winged sprint cars, NCMA sprint cars, Super Modifieds, Legends of Kearney Bowl, California Hard Tops, and two sessions of pulling tractors. Teammates Nichols and Foster shared the front row for the start and Nichols sped into the lead at the drop of the green flag, as behind him Foster battled Malipaard for position and Gerhardt moved up to make it three car battle for third place behind Nichols and Pierovich.

Following a lap eight restart for Bobby Wilson’s second spin of the race, Gerhardt executed an outside pass of Maliepaard to secure third place. The three leading machines then streaked away from the rest of the field as they wove through traffic and built up a 6 car advantage over fourth place Foster by lap 20. As the laps wound down, Gerhardt tried an inside move on Pierovich for second place but could not maintain another momentum to complete the pass.

On lap 24, David Goodwill felt the Mopar engine in his #3G machine tighten up and he shut it down and coasted to a stop on the high side of turn number two. Neither Pierovich nor Gerhardt could challenge over the last five laps, and Chad Nichols took the Harvest Classic win. Fourth place went to Nick Foster, with Maliepaard fifth and BCRA points leader Maria Cofer sixth after she battled braking problems over the last half of the race. Floyd Alvis and JR Williams rounded out the finishers, and Goodwill and Wilson failed to finish.

The BCRA midgets return to Madera Speedway on September 30 in a program with the 75-lap Open Hobby Stock Race, USAC HPD Midgets, BCRA Midgets, Super Modifieds, Legends of the Pacific, and the Legends of Kearney Bowl.

Alex Schutte dominates Gold Cup midgets

 

 

Twenty midget racers were on hand at the famed Sliver Dollar Speedway in Chico California on Thursday night September 7 for a joint Bay Cities Racing Association (BCRA)/United States Auto Club (USAC) Western States midget race. The mighty midgets were part of the second night of racing for the four-night 64th annual “Gold Cup Week” non-winged program together with the USAC/CRA sprint cars.  

Following the three preliminary hot lap sessions, the #3 machine of Sparky Howard and the #35W car of Nate Wait were both withdrawn from further competition due to terminal mechanical problems. Shane Golobic topped the field in single car time trials with a best lap of 14.256 seconds in the Wood #17W, followed closely by Courtney Crone at 14.275 seconds in the Jerome Rodela owned #25 Toyota-powered machine.

 

Chad Boat in the Tucker/Boat #84 was a just tick behind at 14.318 seconds, followed in fourth by Ronnie Gardner the only one competitor signed up for “double duty” with both a sprint car and midget ride in the Ted Finkenbinder #3F at 14.379 seconds with BCRA points leader Maria Cofer fifth fastest at 14.435 seconds.

In the first 8-lap heat race, Alex Schutte who started on the front row by virtue of his sixth-fastest qualifying time out-dragged pole sitter Randi Pankratz into turn one and never looked back as he streaked to victory over Golobic, Pankratz and Robert Dalby. Post-race inspection found that Golobic’s #17W car had lost its muffler during the race and the car was disqualified, which moved Pankratz and Dalby up to second and third place respectively with Gardner and Cody Hodgson rounding out the top five finishers.  

In the second heat race, front row starter Michael Faccinto jumped in the lead ahead of pole sitter Frankie Guerrini and led all eight circuits to finish ahead of Crone, Cofer, the #63 of Guerrini, Cory Elliott’s #11E and Floyd Alvis who celebrated his 83rd birthday on September 1.

Oklahoma’s Michele Decker in Shannon McQueen’s Spike/Esslinger #7D continued the night’s trend of front row domination as she led wire-to-wire in the third heat race from her pole starting position. Behind Michele at the finish were Boat, Mason Daniels, David Prickett, McQueen and JR Williams still on the comeback after his traffic accident following the Stockton dirt track race.

The re-draw for the eighteen-car starting field for the 30-lap BCRA/USAC “Light up the World Beverages” feature race put Alex Schutte on the coveted pole position in his family’s #28 midget with Michael Faccinto alongside, while the second all-female row was comprised of Decker and Pankratz. The third row was all Toyota power with Crone and Boat while the fourth row was shared by young guns Dalby and Cofer. By virtue of his heat race disqualification, Shane Golobic was slotted sixteenth on the grid alongside Shannon McQueen in her trademark pink blue and black Boss chassis #7.

As the field charged into the first turn at the drop of the green flag, chaos erupted back in the field which eliminated the top two drivers in the BCRA points chase. Maria Cofer lost control due to a deflating right rear tire and spun in front of Floyd Alvis; both cars suffered heavy damage and were moved to the infield by the track safety crew, finished for the night. The first ragged restart attempt was called back, but the second attempt was clean as Alex Schutte shot into the lead over Faccinto. On lap two, Decker got around Faccinto to claim second place.

The red flag flew on lap five after a serious crash in between turns one and two that involved fourth-place driver Chad Boat whose car half-spun to a halt and was struck by the machines of Pankratz and Dalby. Boat’s chassis suffered a broken left front shock absorber mount so Chad was done for the night.

 

The cars of Dalby and Pankratz went to the work area and with the concerted volunteer efforts of the members of several crews both cars were able to restart at the tail of the field. When racing resumed within a few laps Dalby’s machine pulled into the infield with a battery problem while Faccinto’s machine retired with an apparent engine failure

On lap eleven the running order remained Schutte, Decker, Crone and Pickett as those front four cars had separated themselves from the pack. By lap 16, Golobic had gained ten positions to run sixth, and two laps later Shane caught a pair of breaks as Courtney Crone brought out the caution flag with power steering problems for the second straight event. Courtney’s retirement moved the #17W to fifth and bunched up the field for the single-file restart.  

On lap 19, Gololbic’s blue #17W machine moved past Mason Daniels’ #33M to claim fourth, then two laps later, Shane made a daring outside pass around Prickett through turns one and two to claim third place. On lap 28, as Schutte continued to lead, Golobic made another turn two outside pass, this time on Decker to claim second, and then Prickett passed the #7D which dropped Decker to fourth place.

At the drop of the checkered flag, Alex Schutte picked up the wire-to-wire Gold Cup win trailed by Shane Golobic, David Prickett and Michele Decker as Mason Daniels rounded out the top five finishers. Sixth through tenth finishers were Frankie Guerrini, Shannon McQueen in seventh up from fifteenth,  USAC Western States points leader Ronnie Gardner eighth with USAC Western States runner-up Cory Elliott ninth and Randi Pankratz who recovered from her lap five accident and finished tenth. The non-finishers in order were Cody Hodgson, Courtney Crone, Robert Dalby, Michael Faccinto, Chad Boat, JR Williams, Maria Cofer and Floyd Alvis.   

The BCRA midgets return to action on Saturday September 16th at Madera Speedway as part of the 45th Annual Harvest Classic presented by Midland Tractor and John Deere.  In addition to the mighty midgets, the Western Winged Super Sprint Series, USAC HPD Midgets, Super Hobby Stock Series, NCMA Sprints, CSS/360 Super Modifieds, Legends of Kearney Bowl, and the California Hard Tops will all be in action, with a special added feature multi supercharged engine pulling tractors.

           

 

 

ALEX SCHUTTE

CAPTURES

 PLACERVILLE GOLD

 

Fourteen “mighty midgets” from the Bay Cities Racing Association (BCRA) invaded “Knoxville on the Hill” Placerville Speedway on Saturday July 1 2017 for a dramatic evening of racing in tandem with the track’s 360 cubic inch winged sprint cars.

There were two interesting entries; new BCRA member Ronnie Gardner, the reigning four-time USAC Western States midget champion was behind the wheel of Ted Finkenbinder’s Esslinger powered #3F midget, and Bakersfield’s Cory Elliott was the only driver to pull “double duty” as he debuted his new winged sprint car.

Elliott’s night started off with a problem as his #11E midget refused to fire off for wheel-packing, but the Elliott crew quickly diagnosed and resolved the mechanical gremlins in time for Cory to join the field for the warm-up sessions. Anaheim’s Robert Dalby was the fastest in hot laps with a best lap of 12.069 seconds with a back-up lap of 12.269 seconds.

Alex Schutte toured the Placerville banked ¼-mile oval in 12.325 seconds followed by Michael Faccinto in Mike Sala’s #19W at 12.378 seconds and Elliott rounded out the top four with a best lap of 12.407 seconds. Randi Pankratz’s car failed to fire for warm-ups with assistance from John Cofer and BCRA officials the #8 Edmunds machine’s fuel delivery problem was quickly rectified.  

The BCRA drivers had earlier drawn for starting positions in  the two seven-car 8-lap preliminary heat races. The first heat race featured the ageless Floyd Alvis on the pole with Terry ‘the Panda’ Nichols alongside.

 

As the field raced into turn three on the first lap, the cars of Alvis, Schutte and Frankie Guerrini made contact. Schutte and Guerrini were able to continue but Alvis spun to stop and was hit by defending BCRA champion Bobby Wilson’s #87. With the track blocked, Faccinto’ s #19W midget rolled over once and came to rest on all four wheels.

Michael indicated that he was suffering from neck pain and the Placerville Speedway safety crew did a superb job of removing him from the car on a back board. After he was transported to the local hospital, X-rays proved negative and Michael was released, albeit very sore but otherwise OK. All BCRA officials fans and drivers wish Michael a speedy recovery and look forward to seeing him back in action soon. 

When the race restarted with all the cars except Faccinto’s, Terry Nichols took command and used the groove around the inside of the track trailed by Aussie driver Danny Carroll in the Sean Dodenhoff #9C and Wilson. Frankie Guerrini was the only driver to try and use the high groove in the F& F #63 but did not experience any success. Wilson slipped by Carroll to take second place for a few laps, but at the finish Carroll slipped past to finish second behind Nichols with Guerrini fourth, and Schutte who battled brake problems fifth and Alvis sixth.

In the second heat race, Ronnie Gardner in the #3F grabbed the lead at the drop of the green flag as Maria Cofer hung tough in second place and fought off passing attempts first by David Prickett in the #22Q and late in the race from Cory Elliott who moved up from his sixth starting spot. At the drop of the checkered flag the finishing order was Gardner, Cofer, Elliott, Prickett, Pankratz, Dalby and the #74 of JR Williams.

The winner of the first heat race, Terry Nichols drew the ‘10’ pill for the feature re-draw, so Randi Pankratz was scheduled to start on the pole position, but first she and her crew thrashed to change out the birdcage on her Edmunds midget’s rear suspension. Meanwhile, Elliott was doing his ‘double duty’ in the sprint car B main but fell just short of transferring to the feature.

At the drop of the green flag for the 25-lap feature, Randi Pankratz took the race lead and held on as she used the low groove around the inside of the clay oval with Schutte in close pursuit.  Fifth place starter Elliott immediately began to use the top groove and raced up to battle for second place before his car began to experience an apparent fuel delivery problem which got progressively worse. 

The caution flag flew on lap 7 when Wilson hopped over Dalby’s rear wheel as the pair entered turn three which eliminated Wilson for the night, The top five running order under caution was Pankratz, Prickett, Schutte, Cofer and Carroll with Gardner in sixth place. Elliott took his #11E to the work area under the caution, but the Elliott crew was unable to diagnose the problem and he returned at the tail of the field. Meanwhile Guerrini retired with a flat left front tire and JR Williams retired his #74 midget with a fuel leak.

After the restart, Ronnie Gardner used the high groove to move the #3F midget up to battle for third place but he soon retreated back to the sixth. On lap 11, Schutte moved back into second place, and then on lap 21, Alex squeezed underneath Randi as the pair entered turn three side-by-side. The pair bumped and Schutte emerged from the scramble with the lead as Prickett and Carroll took advantage to drop Randi’s #8 midget to fourth place.

The action slowed on lap 23 after Maria Cofer who was battling a rear brake issue collided with Pankratz and both cars came to a stop between turns one and two. Cory Elliott was scored in fourth flag under the caution flag behind Carroll, but when the green flag was displayed, Elliott powered into third place as Carroll also encountered brake problems.

Alex Schutte battled back from problems early in the evening to win the 25-lap feature with David Prickett second while Cory Elliott recovered from his earlier misadventures to finish third in a car that Cory complained was not running right. Terry Nichols finished a strong fourth after he started in tenth place, while Danny Carroll finished fifth ahead of Alvis, Pankratz, Gardner and Cofer, as Williams, Dalby, Guerrini and Wilson failed to finish.

The BCRA midgets return to action on the 1/3-mile Madera Speedway pavement next Saturday July 8 for the 100-lap Gerhardt Classic which will feature the racers taking the green flag in a three-abreast start. It will be an action-packed night of racing with the   BCRA midgets vintage division will also be on the program along with the Western Winged Super Sprint Series, USAC HPD Midgets, NCMA Sprints, CSS/360 Super Modifieds, Legends of Kearney Bowl, Senior Open Vintage Super Modifieds, and the NCPRO 4 Modifieds.

One final note - be sure to get your ticket orders in now for the July 15 Jack London Picnic and BCRA Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Details are available on the BCRA website at http://www.bcraracing.com/