Dacono, CO ~ May 18, 2024
On Saturday, May 18th, 2024, four divisions hit the track at Colorado National Speedway for our third night of the season in front of a crowd of dedicated and passionate spectators. Even our youngest fans wanted in on the action, waving souvenir flags to celebrate our blisteringly fast Super Late Models, the ultra-competitive Legends, the youthful Bandoleros, and the Mad Max-esque Demo X racers to cap the night off. When the dust settled, Joe Prante was crowned winner of the Demo X Lite class and Dave Johnson of the Demo X Heavy class, joining the rest of the night’s winners in Victory Lane.
Bella Flooring America Super Late Models
Fast Dash – 10 Laps
Brett Yackey, No. 32, and Kyle Ray, No. 58, led the SLM Fast Dash field to green. Ray settled in behind Yackey with Darren Robertson’s No. 11 falling in behind him, while Ethan Hunter threw his No. 37 machine abreast of the No. 3C of Cassidy Hinds for sixth place. Hunter got away with the position, while up front, Ray gained on Yackey and tried to line up a pass on the outside. Even when it didn’t work, Ray wasn’t dissuaded, and he followed right in Yackey’s tire tracks as the field settled into a single file train behind them. Ray managed to get to Yackey’s bumper on the last lap, but it would be the No. 32 machine across the line first.
Dash – 10 Laps
Rudy Vanderwal and the No. 34 machine traded paint up front with Bruce Yackey’s No. 12. The battle was decided in Vanderwal’s favor as he swung into the lead on Lap 3, allowing Matt Martinez, driver of the No. 61, to force his way into the conversation. Yackey wouldn’t let go of Vanderwal, however, while the No. 22Y of Brian Yackey snuck up on Martinez for third. Martinez went a bit too high and let Brian Yackey past, while Bruce Yackey lost ground on Vanderwal. All told, Vanderwal earned the win.
Feature – 40 Laps
Fourteen SLM racers took the green flag for their first Feature race of 2024, and it didn’t get off to a smooth start. A chain reaction stemming from the No. 82 of Michael Scott stacked the field up, causing the No. 22Y of Brian Yackey to spin and collect Martinez in the No. 61. Brian Yackey had to pull off to address the damage sustained, while Martinez was able to continue. They lined back up to take the green again, and this time, Scott was able to keep his race car pointed in the right direction, although he washed up the track, allowing Vanderwal to jump to the inside. Vanderwal couldn’t complete the pass, though, and fell into the clutches of Ray, while Brett Yackey neatly put Hunter behind him for fourth. Ray lunged after Scott, challenging him side-by-side for the lead, and by the time the pack reached the front stretch on Lap 4, he had it. He checked out, leaving the pack to settle into a single file line behind him.
Scott found himself under fire from Brett Yackey for second place on Lap 13. While he tried to fend the No. 32 off, Scott plummeted to third. Brian Yackey, having made repairs to his No. 22Y machine, returned to the track – minus his front fascia. Meanwhile, Ray continued to lead, but had to dodge lapped traffic, allowing Brett Yackey to close the gap. Biding his time, Scott watched them both from third place. Lap 22 saw Brett Yackey right on Ray’s rear bumper for the lead. They touched and separated, and Ray maintained the position. Brett Yackey shone in Turns 1 and 2; Ray dominated in Turns 3 and 4. Then, disaster – Brett Yackey dove to the inside of Ray, but the two made heavy contact. Ray was sent spinning as the pack scrambled to avoid him, resulting in a fire under the No. 80 of Ray Daniels and a brief red flag to address the blaze.
Robertson and Scott made up the front row when the race restarted with 11 laps left. Brett Yackey and Ray had been sent to the rear for their involvement in the incident. Robertson and Scott clawed at each other for the lead, and Vanderwal held down third behind them. Scott shot up the track, settling into his preferred line on the outside, trying to use Robertson up. It came down to the last lap for it to be decided. In Turn 4, Scott mounted a charge on the outside, slingshotting ahead of Robertson as the two race cars shot down the front stretch. Scott’s high-line preference worked in his favor, finishing first by a nose over Robertson.
Quick Time: No. 82, Michael Scott, 15.950
Fast Dash: No. 32, Brett Yackey
Dash: No. 34, Rudy Vanderwal
Feature: No. 82, Michael Scott
AC Transmissions Legends
Fast Dash – 10 Laps
Darrell Stewart’s No. 03 led to the green and held onto the lead for the first lap. Wyatt Dent fought back on the outside, intent on putting his No. 68 machine to the point, although the No. 6 of Scotty Scott made a surprise entrance and blew past Dent and Stewart for the lead – at least until the No. 16 of Travis Roe took the position just one lap later. Meanwhile, the 88F of Cade Fox, with a little help from Stewart, grabbed second. Scott faded quickly and was passed by Danny Medina’s No. 15 and Peyton Saxton’s No. 12B. Fox continued his quest for the lead but couldn’t make it stick, riding right up on Roe’s rear bumper, stalking him all the way to the checkered flag.
Dash – 10 Laps
Just two laps in, the top three racers were already three-wide for the lead: the No. 17 of Jeremy Krueger, the No. 35 of Andrew Lee, and the No. 4W of Stuart Wilkerson. Wilkerson came out on top and started to lay some distance down on Krueger, who fell into second. The No. 53 of Taylor Baker spun, but was able to stay out of trouble and kept going. Then, Lee got a little wide and clipped the backstretch wall before he shot down in front of traffic. The field scattered and avoided hitting him, though, but a yellow flag finally dropped when the No. 18 of JJ Sanders got out of line and tagged the Turn 2 wall. That set Wilkerson and Krueger up for a front-row restart. Krueger fell behind Wilkerson, who didn’t look back, earning the Dash win.
Feature – 20 Laps
Lee and Gunther made up the front row for the first of two Legends features. They went three-wide on the backstretch on just the first lap, but the entire field was almost swept up into a wreck when Gunther, Lee and Garrett Wilson made contact, causing several cars to pile into one another and more yet to spin to the infield. Gunther got the worst of it – he lost a wheel, which bounced to the infield as the red flag flew. When the race finally went green and stayed green, Krueger took the lead over Wilkerson, but not for long, as Wilkerson executed a crossover and took the top spot on Lap 2. Dillyn Kellogg’s No. 33 and Sanders’ No. 18 duked it out for P3, hauling Wilson along with him. The No. 8 machine of Jason Schmerse had developed a tire rub that ultimately sent him around on Lap 5, causing a caution and lining Wilkerson up alongside Krueger for the restart.
Wilkerson easily leaped out front, leaving Krueger to hold down P2 ahead of Sanders. However, Wilson wasn’t content in fourth, and he picked off Sanders and Krueger in no time, setting sights on Wilkerson. They settled in after a minute, although Sanders’ race car waggled a bit on Lap 13, losing ground and letting Kellogg take fourth. Sanders continued to go the wrong direction and was passed by Preston Nakayama’s No. 48 for fourth just a few laps later. Wilson, holding down second place, rounded the track and began to cut into Wilkerson’s comfortable lead, but nothing would stand in the way of Wilkerson’s first Feature victory at CNS – not even a spinning car on the last lap.
Fast Feature – 25 Laps
The pack of 16 Legends found common ground on the bottom of the track, jostling for position behind the No. 12B of Saxton and the No. 88F of Fox. Medina put up a fight for P2 and took it away in short order, while the No. 12 of Bryanna Bruce lost ground to Stewart for fifth. Fox sawed on the wheel and shot around Medina for second and pulled away without contest. He began hacking away at Saxton’s lead. Behind him, in sixth, Stewart struggled with the handling of his car, almost tagging the wall and getting loose, surrendering two more spots and plummeting to eighth. Up front, Fox finally caught Saxton, pressuring him until he found a way around and muscled his way into the lead. Fox and Saxton ditched the field and continued to rough each other up, neither willing to back out and let the other get away with the lead. Their fight held both race cars up and let Medina close in. Still almost dead even, Fox and Saxton fought, ticking laps off as Saxton settled into an uneasy lead. Fox took one more shot at Saxton on the last lap but couldn’t make it stick. Saxton got to the checkers first.
Quick Time: No. 12B Peyton Saxton, 18.492
Fast Dash: No. 16, Travis Roe
Dash: No. 4W, Stuart Wilkerson
Feature: No. 4W, Stuart Wilkerson
Fast Feature: No. 12B, Peyton Saxton
Puzzle Effect Denver Bandoleros
Outlaws
Feature – 12 Laps
The Outlaw Dashes were scratched due to rain, but the track was dry just in time for their Feature event. Tanner McKim’s No. 08 and Aspyn Lange’s No. 12 started on the front row, but Lange tangled with the No. 60 of Liam Hammond and spun, allowing McKim to get away with the lead. Lillian Tuttle’s No. 61 held her line and overtook for second; she and Hammond closed on McKim for the lead. Tuttle nosed into P1 for a heartbeat, but McKim battled back to take it again, swapping the lead between the top four racers. Hammond got out front and stayed there for his first career victory.
Bandits
Group A Dash – 10 Laps
Austin Steinke put the No. 14 to the point in no time for the Bandit Dash – although not for long, as he went for a neat little spin heading out of the big oval and into the infield Bandolero track. The No. 95J of Jaxson Muhler took advantage of this and galloped into the lead, with Madison Stanley’s No. 07 and Nora Smith’s No. 29. Wind and lapped traffic became a factor, causing the small Bandoleros to get a bit sideways as Muhler continued to lead. He picked up the Dash win, outrunning the rain to put his No. 95J in Victory Lane.
Group A Feature - 10 Laps
Muhler picked up right where he left off for the Bandit Feature, opening up a massive lead on Steinke at the drop of the green flag. Smith and Stanley battled for P3; two laps later, Smith had the spot. Up front, Muhler tailed a lapped car but neatly passed them on the outside line, while Steinke patiently followed in P2. It looked like Muhler would sweep the win, but on the last lap, he made contact with Smith, who was a lap down, and spun out, allowing Steinke to surge in and snatch victory for himself.
Bandit Group B Feature - 10 Laps
Unfortunately, the rain washed out the Bandit Newbie Dash, but the weather had moved on and the track was bathed in sunlight by the time their Feature took the green flag. Ayva Snyder’s No. 24 took point after the green flag fell, although Conor Kellogg easily put her in the rearview and took the No. 72 machine to the front of the pack. Kellogg’s lead over Snyder only widened as the laps ticked down, and he deftly navigated lapped traffic to maintain it, lapping all but third place by the time the checkered flag dropped. In fact, it was Kellogg’s second consecutive victory this year.
BD Outlaw Feature: No. 60, Liam Hammond
BD Bandit Dash: No. 95, Jaxson Muhler
BD Bandit Group A Feature: No. 15, Austin Steinke
BD Bandit Group B Feature: No. 72, Conor Kellogg
Miss any of the action? Click Here to Watch the replay on LowBudget TV
OFFICIAL RESULTS
Super Late Model - 40 Laps
82 Michael Scott
11 Darren Robertson
43 Kody Vanderwal
37 Ethan Hunter
12 Bruce Yackey
34 Rudy Vanderwal
32 Brett Yackey
3C Cassidy Hinds
61 Matt Martinez
29 Matt Brunker
58 Kyle Ray
80 Ray Daniels
22Y Brian Yackey
07J David Johnson
Legend Fast Main - 25 Laps
12B Peyton Saxton
88F Cade Fox
15 Danny Medina
6 Scotty Scott
68 Wyatt Dent
16 Travis Roe
12 Bryanna Bruce
03 Darrell L Stewart
45 Cole Tuttle
75 Austin Hackenberg
00 Chris Saykally
27 Brian Harlow
21L Madilyn Lange
28P Adam Powers
01 Gary Land
21X Corey Pearson
Legend Main - 25 Laps
4W Stuart Wilkerson
38 Garrett Wilson
17 Jeremy Krueger
33 Dillyn Kellogg
48 Preston Nakayama
18 JJ Sanders
97 Billy Blevins
8 Jason Schmerse
73 Mike Markison
19 Dominic Moss
35 Andrew Lee
56 Nicholas Gunther
78 Ashlyn Himler
53 Taylor Baker
DNS 29 David Johnson
DNS 2 Tony Davison
Bandolero Outlaw - 12 Laps
60 Liam Hammond
08 Tanner McKim
61 Lilly Tuttle
5 Reagan Fruge
89 Justin Barnard
12 Aspyn Lange
23 Peyton Opperman
18 Jake Boren
Bandolero Bandit Group A Feature - 10 Laps
14 Austin Steinke
95J Jaxson Muhler
07 Madison Stanley
29 Nora Smith
44 Emersyn Weitzel
Bandolero Bandit Group B Feature - 10 Laps
72 Conor Kellogg
24 Aya Snyder
96 James Snyder
84 Kaylie Snyder
42 Lee Malavasic
77 Scarlett Jones
Demo X Lite: 48 Joe Prante
Demo X Heavy: 31 Dave Johnson
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