LOS ANGELES – Irwindale Speedway billed the June 12 race as Motorhome Mayhem/NASCAR Night on the half and third-mile ovals.
With COVID-19 pandemic restrictions eased, more tickets were available. All 4,100 tickets were sold online before race day.
The message “Race sold out” was posted on the speedway website. The same message on signs in front of the speedway greeted arriving fans. The event hosted the most spectators in the 6,500-seat grandstand since the February 2020 All-Star Showdown event.
The event attracted 111 cars in 10 classes, including two traveling circuits. Two divisions had separate class winners in the same race. The racing schedule was so full that three preliminary main events were run between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. shortly after spectator gates opened. A SoCal heat wave was into the 90s earlier during time trials and the temperature was still 88 degrees when racing started.
The first of two 18-car enduro mains opened racing at 5:09 p.m. on the third-mile. Drivers completed 30 caution-free laps in nine minutes with four leaders. Overall and sport class winner Rick Conti (1999 Acura Integra) started from 13th and led the final 15 laps. Robert Rice (Honda Accord) finished fourth and topped the slower stock class. A season-high 15 mini stocks ran 25 laps on the same oval. Austin Edwards, 16, led the final 21 laps in a Ford Pinto for his first victory. All 13 starters finished with nine on the lead lap.
Feature three was the new Bill McAnally Racing Drivers Academy race using Toyota Camrys on the half-mile. The four drivers ran a 35-lap race with stage breaks after 10 and 25 laps. Drivers restarted two-by-two. Fastest qualifier and second starter Gabe Sommers, 17, from Wisconsin, led every lap. Canadian Amber Balcaen, 29, started first and finished second. Cole Moore, 23, from Northern California, ran third. Jolynn Wilkinson, 16, from Alabama, placed fourth. The four drivers raced a 35-lap main during Friday night open practice for all divisions. Moore won while Sommers, Balcaen and Wilkinson followed.
Moore won the first eight mains in the new driver development series at All American Speedway in Roseville, Calif. from March 26 to May 15. Academy drivers also raced two NorCal road courses —Thunderhill in Willows and Sonoma. Dylan Lupton and Jesse Love won. Irwindale races were events 11 and 12 of a 30-race schedule at five speedways in California, including Kern County Raceway Park in Bakersfield.
Opening ceremonies and the National Anthem took place at 6:45 p.m. Then the traveling SPEARS Modified Series raced 60 laps on the half-mile. Fast timer Jeremy Doss, 24, drew sixth after the eight quickest qualifiers drew for starting spots in a 14-car field. Second starter Travis Thirkettle led the first 24 laps by as much as 35 yards. A caution flag resulted in a two-by-two restart. Doss shot into the lead and defeated Thirkettle by 2.105 seconds. Ten drivers finished the 31-minute race, with eight on the lead lap.
After the race new point leader Doss had 828 points. Former point leader Eddie Secord had 805, Thirkettle 795 and Travis McCullough 794. Doss has three victories (two at Irwindale and one in Bakersfield), while McCullough has two (Irwindale and Roseville). The next SPEARS Modified Series race at Bakersfield on June 26 will be co-featured with two other SPEARS series – the SPEARS SRL Southwest Tour and SPEARS Pro Late Model Series.
The first of two NASCAR pro late model 30 lappers on the half-mile followed. Fast timer Trevor Huddleston, 25, led every lap from the pole for his 66th victory at Irwindale. The second enduro raced 20 laps on the third-mile in the opposite direction (clockwise). Chris Voight (Honda Accord) led every lap for the overall and stock class triumph. Ian Rotundo (2001 Honda Prelude) started 11th and finished third overall. He won the sport class.
Event six was the combined spec late models/race trucks 35-lap race on the half-mile. Both series have similar lap times. A four vehicle crash on lap 28 entering turn three caused a 36-minute red flag. The race was called complete and 50-point victories went to Andrew Porter (trucks) and Troy Andersen (cars). Kenny Smith, the oldest Irwindale series champion at 74, went to a hospital for medical evaluation and was discharged within 24 hours.
Video of the crash was posted to YouTube under the title “Terrifying crash at Irwindale Speedway June 2021.”
Two races on the third-mile followed. Evan Garvy, 20, won his first INEX Legend car main with nine of 13 starters completing all 20 laps. Jay Henson (Camaro) topped the 20-lap street stock race with 10 cars. Officials stopped scoring apparent winner Craig Rayburn’s Camaro on lap 15 after he jumped a restart twice.
The second NASCAR pro late model feature, reduced to 25 laps because of time constraints, raced next with the first eight finishers from the first race fully inverted by finishing positions. Seventh starter Dean Thompson, 20, won by 2.069 seconds over junior late model graduate Cody Kiemele (14 years, 11 months). A lap-two four-car crash entering turn three involved four cars including Huddleston’s. The red flag flew for 18 minutes to remove cars and clear debris. No injuries resulted. An earlier street stock oil spill also delayed the program 12 minutes for track clean-up.
Management moved the 10-minute aerial fireworks show forward one event. It ran from 10:30 to 10:40 p.m. with track lights dimmed. The final event was the 14 mini-motorhomes 20-lap Figure-8 race on the third-mile and across the infield X-intersection. Robert Rice led all 20 laps with only minor contacts at the X. Almost all the 4,100 patient, entertained spectators were still seated at the 11:03 p.m. checkered flag after the busiest program at Irwindale in decades.