Fri, 15 Oct 2004, 02:07 PM It’s Crunch Time

By Bob Frey Photo copyright 2004 Auto Imagery, Inc. & Barry Bergeron

Between the race in Chicago and the one in Reading this past week there has been so much attention focused on the professional classes that some of the battles in the sportsman classes have gone almost unnoticed. Including the D-4 Lucas Oil race this weekend in Louisiana the sportsman have four races at which they can claim points on the divisional level and two on the national scene. For some, including those who have both national and divisional races to claim, the schedule will pose a problem since the final D-2 race in Gainesville falls on the same weekend as the Las Vegas national event. And of course you always have that age old conundrum about which race to attend if you want to win rounds, gain points and avoid some of the other contenders in your class at the same time. It always seems that this little game of cat and mouse is almost as much fun as the racing itself, at least to those of us on the outside. I’m sure that it’s really serious stuff for those who still have a chance at winning the title and something that they all give a great deal of thought, and rightfully so.

Dan Fletcher

For the casual fans out there you have to remember that the sportsman racers gain points in an entirely different way than the pros who can claim every point they earn at every race. Not so for the sportsman racers who can claim points only at a specific number of national and divisional races and once you reach your limit, you’re done. A few years ago Pat Austin, one of the best ever in the alcohol class, won an amazing nine races and still finished third in the points because he had reached his maximum number of races to claim before he reached his maximum performance potential. In the two top sportsman classes, alcohol dragster and funny car, racers can claim points at eight national and eight divisional races and they take their top five finishes on each level. The remaining classes can claim points at their best 3 of six national and five of eight divisional races. Some of the “professional” sportsman racers, like David Rampy and Dan Fletcher for example, far exceed the number of national races at which they can claim points but they still have no real mathematical advantage over the other sportsman racers who don’t travel all over the country. And regardless of class, it always seems like there are several of the sportsman battles that come right down to the final divisional or national event of the year and this year looks like it will be no exception.

Randy Meyer

Beginning with the race at No Problem Raceway this weekend, several sportsman racers will try to add to their totals and move up in the standings. The top class, alcohol dragster, probably won’ t change much this weekend since the main contenders for the throne are either out of divisional racers or live so far away that a trip to Louisiana wouldn’t make much sense. Bill Reichert, who drives the Bar’s Leaks car, is the current points leader and he has one national event left to claim. Although Bill has done very well this year he hasn’t won a national race and he has to at least reach the final round in his last race to add points to his total, and that’s not an easy task even for a guy like Bill who has one of the best cars in the country. A win or runner-up in Pomona would add to his total and make him really tough to catch. Randy Meyer, who owned the car that won the Lucas Oil Championship last year, is now driving that car and he is currently in second place, and like Bill he has only one national event remaining at which to claim points. Randy would need a good finish and an early exit by Bill if he hopes to overtake him in the standings. Whether he does it or not, you have to admit that Randy has done an amazing job, winning the title one year as an owner and almost winning it the next year as a driver. Meanwhile, Mitch Myers, who is from Oregon, has both a divisional and a national event remaining and I’d fully expect him to run the final Division 7 event of the year in Las Vegas and then head over to Pomona. Having said that, Mitch could choose to fool everyone and run in Louisiana this week or he could go to Gainesville for the D-2 finale in a couple of weeks to complete his eight divisional races. Or he could come all the way to Atco, New Jersey next week for the final Division 1 race of 2004, although I must admit that other than the Vegas deal none of those options look like a real strong choice for a guy from Oregon. Although, if I remember correctly Mitch’s crew chief, Steve Boggs, lives in Ohio and that’s not that far from Atco. Hummmm… The rest of the alky dragster class is pretty much running for positions with several top ten spots still up for grabs. One of the drivers who stands out is Chris Demke, the D-7 Jeg’s Allstar representative. Chris, who drives for Jerry Maddern, has 578 points, about a hundred less than the leaders, but he has only entered six national and six divisional events so, in essence, he’ ll leave points on the table at the end of the season. Now I’m not saying that he could have won it, but with four final rounds on the division level and a national event final round to his credit he has had a very good season and he could still finish in the top five and that’s a pretty good year in anyone’s book.

Cy Chesterman

The Top Alcohol Funny Car class is over and Cy Chesterman is going to replace Frank Manzo as the Lucas Oil Champion this year. That means that for the first time since 1996 someone other than Frank will be crowned the champion in the TA/FC class. Cy has done it with a strong performance on the division level in D-5 where he is perfect. Throw in three national event wins and you have a wonderful season for the cigar-smoking Mr. Chesterman who, along with his crew chief Dan Hutchmeir, has fielded one of the best cars in the class for years. The others in the top ten, including Frank, will be jockeying for position down the stretch and the second spot is still up for grabs. Jay Payne currently holds down that spot and looks like a lock although Dennis Taylor could still catch him if he runs the table at his last couple of races. Of course that would mean that Dennis would have to travel to one of the east coast divisional races and that’s probably not going to happen. Still, like Chris Demke, Dennis has had a great season, one that I think both he and his sponsors will be very proud of. And then there is Jackie Stidham, who isn’ t even counted among the top ten drivers at this point despite having a sensational year. All Jackie has done this year is amass 399 points on the divisional level where it looks like he is going be the D-4 champ. Toss in his amazing run at the Jeg’s Allstars and it’s easy to see that if Jackie took his show on the road the other teams would have another driver to contend with in the battle for the championship.

Jeff Hefler

Whatever happens over these last few weeks try to do yourself a favor and catch one of the Lucas Oil divisional races in your area because they provide some truly outstanding racing. This week, for example, the D-4 alcohol dragster title should be decided between Ashley Force and Shelly Howard while Jeff Hefler, Larry Stewart and Buz Post will slug it out for the Super Stock crown. That same Jeff Hefler will also go toe to toe with his dad, Jerry Hefler, R.J. Sledge and the leader, Jimmy Hidalgo for the Stock title. Plus there are some good battles in the other categories as well. So check it out and enjoy all the action at No Problem Raceway, or you could just wait and join Mitch Myers in New Jersey next week. Wait a minute, that’s not really going to happen, is it?