After a successful opening weekend at Grays Harbor Raceway,
the Northwest Sprint Challenge Series is now set to run a two-night event at
Steve Beitler’s Skagit Speedway, and a very large field of winged 360 sprint
cars are expected.
ALGER, Wash. – After a successful opening weekend at Grays Harbor Raceway,
the Northwest Sprint Challenge Series is now set to run a two-night event at
Steve Beitler’s Skagit Speedway, and a very large field of winged 360 sprint
cars are expected.
This Friday and Saturday’s events at the 3/10-mile, high-banked bull ring
will also be the first on the NSCS schedule to allow non-ASCS legal cars
with restrictors to compete. Cars that are not ASCS-legal won’t be able to
earn points, but they are welcomed to race with the NSCS this weekend.
Medford’s Roger Crockett will lead the pack to Skagit with the lead in the
NSCS point standings (114) after winning the opening event at Grays Harbor
in dominating fashion. Crockett is with Henderson Motorsports this season
and both have seen success together at Skagit in the past as Crockett won
the 1998 Skagit 360 Nationals. Henderson Motorsports would later win three
more 360 Nationals and a Dirt Cup with Steve Kent behind the wheel. Crockett
will be one of the drivers to beat again this weekend.
Crockett himself has not won at Skagit since taking the preliminary feature
in the 1999 Skagit 360 Nationals, but could put an end to his Skagit
dry-spell this weekend.
Looking to turn around his luck at Skagit is second place points man Billy
Nutter, who struggled in his last visit to Skagit in 2005 when he failed to
make the main event. The former Northern Sprint Tour champion out of Central
Point, Ore. finished a strong second at the opener at Grays Harbor.
Langley, Brit. Col. driver Travis Rutz, who sits third in the standings with
107 points (one behind Nutter), will be another driver to look out for as he
has earned the reputation for being fearless at Skagit. Rutz roared to the
win at the Skagit 360 Nationals last year and again dominated in the Kasey
Kahne Foundation event a few weeks later. With the spotlight on Skagit
again, Rutz could be considered as one of the favorites to win on either
night.
Having the run of the night, 18th to fifth, at the opener at Grays Harbor,
Henry Van Dam of Enumclaw, Wash. has been hot. Van Dam also has victory at
Skagit in weekly competition and another weekly event victory at Grays
Harbor to his credit in the last three weeks. Like Rutz and Crockett, Van
Dam could be a favorite as well.
Skagit Spedway also has a strong local field of 360 sprint car racers, which
include last season’s track champion Steve Kilcup. Jason Bloodgood has run
very well also, winning the 360 sprint car main event at Skagit the last two
weeks.
Three NSCS rookies currently sit in the top 15 in points, including Jon
Farrell at eighth with 83 points. J.J. Dishneau sits 11th with 73 and Evan
Funk is 15th with 66. Funk won three main events at Skagit Speedway last
season.
Other top NSCS drivers expected to make the journey to Skagit include
Oregon’s Brendan Boyce, Idaho’s Shawn Smith, last year’s NST Rookie of the
Year Seth Bergman and Robbie Vaughn.