Points competition heats up at Thunderhill Raceway

[debwill]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

Contact: Debbie Williams, 210-685-0400 (cell), debbie@thunderhillraceway.com

Thunderhill Raceway Public Relations Director

 

Points competition heats up at Thunderhill Raceway

 

KYLE, TX (June 29, 2008) – Fans were treated to impressive show for the Texas Roadhouse Night at the Races at Thunderhill Raceway (THR) on Saturday – including plenty of close, wheel-to-wheel action by the local drivers.

 

The Texas Pro Sedans kicked off the evening with their 20-lap feature event. Tom Johnson (Kingsland, TX) held the lead for most of the race but was penalized several positions due to a technical infraction. The current points’ leader, Mike Merrell (Kingsland, TX), was awarded the victory following the post-race inspections.

 

Mike Steinman (Austin, TX) claimed victory in the 20-lap NasKart race – holding off Brian Kuempel (Austin, TX) who has already won several of the NasKart events at THR this year.

 

The Pro Trucks were next on the agenda, and Jason Marshall (Leander, TX) took the checkered flag on the 50-lap event. Marshall was stripped of the win during a post-race technical inspection, and second-place finisher Jim Albert (Lockhart, TX) was awarded the victory.

 

The Pro Modified ExpressJet 50 was the featured race of the evening, and the close racing action did not disappoint the fans. Tuffy Hudson (Ingleside, TX) started on the pole, but the driver of sleek #44 black and silver machine, HE Naumann (Del Valle, TX), challenged Hudson for the lead. Naumann started in the third position and managed to slip by Hudson and Mark Chrudimsky (Hutto, TX) to take over the lead on Lap 12. JC Umscheid (Alvarado, TX) tried to squeeze under Naumann during the last few laps, but Naumann held his line to claim a narrow victory.

 

In the Thunder Stock feature race, young Anthony Gordon (San Antonio, TX) started on the outside pole. He grabbed the lead early in the race and managed to hold off several strong competitors – including Gary Chancellor (Bastrop, TX) and Joey Tschoerner (Bartlett, TX). Gordon made it all the way into victory lane, followed by Chancellor and Tschoerner. Mason Teague (Paige, TX) had the Thunder Stock points’ lead going into Saturday’s race, but his fifth-place finish opened the door for Tschoerner to snatch the lead – ending the night six points ahead of Teague.

 

The ASA A-Line Super Stocks began with a fiery situation on the first lap of their feature event. The black #18 car driven by Mickey McKim (Manchaca, TX) broke out into flames caused by a fuel spillage. The safety crews quickly extinguished the fire, and McKim was able to rejoin the field on the restart – finishing the race in the fifth position.

 

Cary Stapp (San Marcos, TX), the current THR A-Line Super Stock points’ leader, started the 40-lap feature race in the eighth position. Stapp quickly worked his way up through the field – grabbing the lead on Lap 15. Stapp holds a commanding lead in the Super Stocks and is currently running second in the West Region of the ASA Short Track National Championship. Saturday night’s win could possibly put Stapp back in the lead this week (regional results released on Tuesday of each week).

 

Seventeen Grand Stocks took the green flag for the last race of the night – a fast-paced and entertaining 25-lap feature event. The current points’ leader, Carolyn Aramendia (San Antonio, TX), started near the rear of the field (14th position) and quickly picked off her male competitors as she headed for the front. Aramendia finally worked her way up to the second position and posed a strong challenge to Art Ganss (Driftwood, TX) for the lead. Although Ganss managed to hold off Aramendia to claim the checkered flag, Aramendia is still holding a slim lead in the points’ race over her brother-in-law, James Aramendia (San Antonio, TX).

 

The next race scheduled for Thunderhill Raceway will be held on Saturday, July 12, starting at 7:00 p.m. The racing action will be highlighted by the ExpressJet Pro Modifieds, Pro Trucks, Dwarf Car Racing Series of Texas and the Allison Legacy Race Series– along with the Thunderhill Raceway ASA A-Line Super Stocks, Thunder Stocks, Grand Stocks and NasKarts.

 

Thunderhill Raceway is a 3/8-mile, asphalt D-shaped oval stock-car race track that’s located at 24801 IH-35, just north of San Marcos (TX) near Yarrington Road (Exit #210). For more information on Thunderhill Raceway, visit the THR website at www.thunderhillraceway.com.

 

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