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Sideways Saturdays Speedway
Cal Expo - Sacramento, CA
Sideways Saturdays Speedway
Cal Expo - Sacramento, CA
Saturday July 28, 2001
Sideways Saturday's penultimate event of the year went off reasonably
well, except for missing the curfew finish time of 10.30 again.
Several riders complained about the track, but from where I was
standing on the center green it looked reasonably flat, very
consistent, in fact probably better than it has all year. A photograph
in Cycle News a couple of weeks ago showed a top European event, with
the rider's back wheel a good 3 inches off the ground. Surely not the
billiard table track surface, that some seem to expect at Cal Expo.
Second Division rider, Rachalle Kerr took Mike Rooney's job as
announcer for the night and did a great job. For our sport to get more
visibility, I believe this could turn into a great opportunity for an
attractive lady, with articulate communication skills. Possible future
career move here?
Scratch Main
1 Eric Carrillo
2 Bart Bast
3 Chad Felicio
4 Tommy Hedden
Eric Carrillo followed his great form from the previous night with a
main event win. He got the gate, and withstood a challenge from Chad
Felicio for the first three laps, then when Chad let Bart take over
second place, from Bart for the last lap. Well done, Eric!
Scratch Consi
1 Bob Hicks
2 Chris Kerr
3 Bryan Yarrow
A fairly unspectacular race. Jim Sisemore, out for a "one-nighter" qualified for the event, but was a non starter. Bryan Yarrow's bike
failed as the tapes went up. Chris Kerr fell, leaving Bob Hicks no
option but to take the win.
Handicap Main
1 Bart Bast
2 Eric Carrillo
3 Chad Felicio
4 Scott Olney
5 Paul Orlandi
Again, Jim Sisemore was a non starter
Handicap Consi
1 Glenn Moore
2 Bob Hicks
3 Jon Curry
4. JJ Martynse
5 Bryan Yarrow
6 Tommy Hedden
Glenn Moore is one of the riders who I think of as the back bone of
our sport. He shows up every week and rides in the handicap heat at
the start of the meeting, when the track is at its worse. Depending on
who else shows up on the night, he might get a scratch ride. Last
night he held on to take a well deserved win in the Handicap Consi.
Div 2 Main
1 Ron Woodsford
2 David Fonts
3 Robert Mellor
4 Shawn Eldridge
5 Matt Browne
6 Kevin Fereira
Div 2 Consi
1 Bill Warner
2 Johnny O'Connor
3 Harlan Bast Snr
4 Mike Boyle (So. Cal)
5 Bill Dixon
6 Devin DeFreece
Div 3 Main
1 Pucho Bagnis
2 Richard Gutzke
3 Dennis Chandler
4 David Baker
5 Dean Blankenbiller
6 Randy Martin
First time Speedway racer Randy Martin lead this race until the last
corner, when he fell, allowing first time Speedway racer Pucho Bagnis
to win. Pucho also won the Supermotard event at Cal Expo earlier this
year, and has now decided to turn his hand to Speedway. I suspect his
future progress will be rapid. In the past he rode World Superbike in
Europe in 1994.
Div 3 Consi
1 Dan Chandler
2 Mike Hooten
3 David Quick
4 Bruce Baker
5 Geno Bellino
6 Eric Ryan
Juniors Div 1
1. Justin Boyle
2. Mark Carrillo
3. JT Mabry
Juniors Div 2
1. Bruce Bast
2. Pete King
3. Paul Johnson
4. Amanda English
5. Jay Ricketts
Junior Div 3
1. Ricky Felicio
2. Ricky Adams
3. Mitchell Johnson
4. Hunter Morris
5. Ronny Woodsford
Next weekend will be Sideways Saturdays track championship. It will
also be their last event at Cal Expo. Next season they hope to find a
track elsewhere. It is unfortunate that Cal Expo did not work out.
Personally, I don't think too many Speedway people will be
disappointed. We all object to Cal Expo's $6 parking charge and the
prices charged at the concession stands (again managed by Cal Expo,
not the promoter) and in particular their warm beer. As a Brit I enjoy
room temperature live beer, but dead American beer must be frozen
before anyone could be expected to drink the stuff.
I say THANK YOU, to Cher and Dane Besneatte, who have put in a lot of
time, effort and their own money to keep Sideways Saturdays going at
Cal Expo. I know we all look forward to being part of their success,
wherever they are able to find a new home next year.
Gary Roberts - groberts@iee.org
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