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THR race report for 7/17/04


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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

July 20, 2004

 

Contact: Thunder Hill Raceway, 512.736.8230

 

FUN AND GAMES AT THUNDER HILL RACEWAY

 

By Jon Sagester and Chuck Licata

 

KYLE-It started with a laugh, transcended into a gasp, and ended with applause at Thunder Hill Raceway last Saturday night (July 17).

 

Oh, and there was some out-and-out good racing among the professional drivers, too.

 

The auto racing was turned over to the amateurs for a few minutes during intermission for the ongoing THR Games. The teams were composed of a driver and a navigator. The “Fear Factor” twist was introduced when the driver was given a racing helmet with the faceplate taped so he couldn’t see. It was the navigator’s job to guide the driver (and the car) around the 3/8-mile track.

 

The first team – composed of driver Allen Leming and navigator Bobby Klingeman – toured the track in 39.69 seconds, bringing forth gales of laughter from the stands as they made their “curly-que” way around the track.

 

The second team of Robert Van Ness (driver) and Benny Cox (navigator) didn’t fare as well. It was reported that as they were coming out of Turn 2, the navigator said, “Turn…and give it the gas!” As could be predicted, the car ended up sideways in a ditch on the back straightaway! All ended well when the wrecker towed them to the finish line and the team exited the car to a resounding round of applause. Van Ness understated, “It was fun.”

 

With the professionals it was a different story. The A-Line Auto Parts (AAP) Street Stocks fielded 19 cars for their 30-lap feature race. It was a race of attrition though, with just eight cars completing the 30 laps.

 

Bruce Hinson (Marble Falls) picked up his first win of the season after starting on the pole and leading all the way to the checkered flag. Terry Tschoerner (Taylor) stayed on Hinson’s bumper for nine laps before he drifted to the outside land on the back straight and five cars moved ahead of him.

 

Shawn Paul Lehman (Manchaca) took over second place on the 10th lap and pushed Hinson for 17 laps. San Marcos’ Cary Stapp worked his way up from a 12th-place start and took over second place with just four laps left in the race. It was Hinson who had the power and held off everyone for the win. Cary Stapp finished second and Bobby LaFont (Volente) came in third.

 

The AAP Street Stock points race remains tight with only 56 points separating the top four positions. Bobby Teer, Jr. (Comfort) leads with 1,023 points, followed by Doug Ayers (Pflugerville) with 980, LaFont with 978 and Stapp with 967.

 

Gary Chancellor (Bastrop), David Hassinger (Kyle) and Jay Simon (Lakeway) continued their dominance in the Capital City Trade & Technical School (CCTTS) Hobby Stock class.

 

The race started with Jay Gordon (San Marcos) on the inside pole and Simon on the outside. Hassinger started seventh and Chancellor ninth. By the sixth lap, Chancellor had taken over the lead; on the next lap, Hassinger went outside of Gordon for second place. Jay Simon followed Hassinger for third place.

 

For the next 12 laps, Hassinger used the outside lane to pull alongside Chancellor on the straights, but didn’t have the power to get ahead and fell back on the curves.

 

The checkered flag waved on Chancellor, then Hassinger and Simon. The CCTTS Hobby Stocks points race has Hassinger in first with 1,199, Joe Tschoerner (Bartlett) second with 1,064, Kevin Bowen (Hutto) third and Tracy Tschoerner (Taylor) fourth with 1,016, just 83 points out of first place.

 

For the Grand Stocks it was Don Chrudimsky crossing the finish line first, with Walt Judkins placing second, and Eddie Siegmund third.

 

San Marcos Daily Record Sports Editor Randy Stevens served as Grand Marshall Saturday night, with the races dedicated to the employees of the local newspaper. Stevens, well recognized for his writing and editorial duties in the nine years, has been with the Daily Record, Stevens was honored last year as “Best Columnist in Hays County.”

 

Next Saturday (July 24) the touring Texas Dwarf Cars will join with the THR Late Models, A-Line Auto Parts Street Stocks, Capital City Trade & Technical School Hobby Stocks, THR Grand Stocks and Mini-Cup Series in providing the fast paced action at Thunder Hill Raceway. There will also be a Celebrity Race in the Grand Stocks cars at intermission – scheduled to appear are Erin Hogan from KVET-AM, Jen Ohlsen from KXAN, Jeff Power from News 8 Austin and Jose Brown from Jammin' 105.9.

 

The THR Games will continue with teams drawn from the audience to participate in a “Monkey Bars” competition. The winning team, each week, will compete in the THR Games Championships on Sept. 18, with the winners receiving mini-motorcycles, valued at over $2,000. The grand prizes are being donated by JJ’s Pocket Bikes of Round Rock.

 

The grandstand gates open at 5:30 p.m. every Saturday night, with racing following the opening ceremonies at 7 p.m. For information, call (512) 262-1352, or visit the website at www.Thunderhillraceway.com.

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