Fast Fridays Speedway
Gold Country Fairgrounds
1273 High Street
Auburn, California
Hooligans V Twin Race Night
Fast Friday's Motorcycle Speedway,
Gold Country Fairgrounds
Gold Country Fairgrounds
Venegas comes alive-wins scratch main event
By Michael Kirby (Story & Photos)
AUBURN, CALIFORNIA, August 18, 2017
Never to be counted out, Charlie Venegas came alive putting it all together Friday night at Fast Fridays Motorcycle Speedway at the Gold Country Fairgrounds in Auburn winning the scratch main event. A veteran speedway rider with a career that spans nearly 30 years “The Edge” laid it all on the line and dominated the scratch main event.
Out of lane one in the night’s finale, Venegas flew out of the gate with an excellent start and got inside to lead Billy Janniro, Austin Novratil and Dillon Ruml around the track. Venegas only increased his lead with each lap widening his distance. It was the first scratch main event win for Venegas who has been recovering from a shoulder injury he suffered early in the season. “I have been working my back to get up to speed from the injury, I knew I have been working towards this and this week I told myself tonight is the night,” he said. Ruml, up from Southern California was second, Novratil was third and Janniro was fourth.
In the handicap main event it was Dillon Ruml that took the top honors. Ruml won a hard fought battle with Louie Mersaroli to win the main event. Ruml obviously warming up for the fourth round of the AMA National Speedway Championship which will be held at Fast Fridays on September 16 was undefeated in the handicap program. But the pesky Mersaroli really gave Ruml a run for his money in the main. Mersaroli was second, Janniro was third and Bart Bast was fourth. “I felt good, I was out of four and actually I was pretty confident I could get there but I really had to get there on the first corner to make it stick,” Ruml said. “We’re really just coming up to get the set-up dialed for the upcoming national,” he said.
Fast Fridays hosted a special Hooligans V-Twin night opening the track to the big bikes. Four riders brought out their Harley-Davidson’s and v-twin engine bikes to race. The guys put on quite a show, though it was Pete Demas who had a v-twin flat track bike that took the main. Daniel Marsh was second and Bob Richards was third.
Lawrence McNutt who is wearing the paint off the winner’s podium this year picked up his third Division II main event win of the season. Friday night riding off the 50 yard line McNutt just added another 10 yards to his starting line for next week. McNutt began the season on the 20 yard line and has steadily moved further from the start line and now lines up back with the big boys. McNutt was able to hold off Rick Shafer who finished second and who is also doing really well in Division II. Charlie Haines finished third. All three of these guys are proving even older riders are still highly competitive. Shafer also won the trophy dash and McNutt was second.
Division III has an upstart rider who will probably not be in D-III for very long. Foresthill’s Chance Grove picked up his second main event win in three weeks and his second main event win in a row Friday night. Grove just raced his first race three weeks ago and is now the man to beat in Division III. The 16 year-old is fast turning heads at the track. Finishing second was Casey Cornilsen and third was Ray Holt Jr. Jr.
Anthony Dion won the youth main event. Dion is consistently improving usually making the main event every week. Dylan Wagner was second and Kyle Cunningham was third. Landon Norton took the youth consolation main event followed by Cameron Krezman and Timmy Dion.
Fast Fridays Results for 8-18-17
Scratch Main Event
1-Charlie Venegas, 2-Dillon Ruml, 3-Austin Novratil, 4-Billy Janniro
Scratch Consolation
1-Bart Bast, 2-Russell Green, 3-Bryan Yarrow, 4-Tommy Hedden
Handicap Main Event
1-Dillon Ruml, 2-Louie Mersaroli, 3-Billy Janniro, 4-Bart Bast, 5-Bryan Yarrow, 6-Russell Green
Handicap Consolation
1-Jeremy Estes, 2-Tommy Hedden, 3-Daniel Faria, 4-Shawn Eldridge, 5-Nick Dion
Division II Main Event
1-Lawrence McNutt, 2-Rick Shafer, 3-Charlie Haines
Division II Consolation
1-Mike Achilles, 2-Casey Cornilsen, 3-Brian Leventon
Division III Main Event
1-Chance Grove, 2-Casey Cornilsen, 3-Ray Holt Jr. Jr. 4-Les Veale, 5-Jake Estes
Division III Consolation
1-Peter Pecorilla, 2-Michael Bretzing, 3-Tim Dion
Youth Main Event
1-Anthony Dion, 2-Dylan Wagner, 3-Kyle Cunningham, 4-Sterling Martin
Youth Consolation Main
1-Landon Norton, 2-Cameron Krezman, 3-Alex Martin, 4-Timmy Dion
Hooligans V-Twin Main Event
1-Pete Demas, 2-Daniel Marsh, 3-Bob Richards
Photos By Michael Kirby
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Grass Valley’s Anthony Dion won the youth main event. |
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Charlie Venegas celebrates his scratch main event Friday night with the Fast Friday’s trophy girls. For the first time this season Venegas was the fastest man of the night at Fast Fridays. |
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Daniel Marsh was one of the four riders that brought their V-Twin bike to the special Hooligans Night at Fast Fridays. |
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Dillon Ruml, up from Southern California won the handicap main event. |
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A special Hooligans V-Twin program was included in the program Friday night. Pete Demas (far left) won the main event. |
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Loomis resident Lawrence McNutt won the Division II main event for the second time in three weeks. |
Photos By Michael Kirby
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