July 20, 2024 ~ Dacono, CO
The skies over Colorado National Speedway were bright and clear for the first half of the night on Saturday, July 20th, 2024. Our Pro Trucks, Grand American Modifieds, Legends, and Bandoleros put on great shows for their Dash races; during our Pro Truck Dash, one race truck even unsuccessfully attempted a “Chastain” in Turns 1 and 2. A convoy of shiny tow trucks from our sponsors Denver West Towing and Dedicated Towing & Recovery, and a bunch of their friends turned a few laps before the National Anthem was sung, and the Domestic Disturbance Car Club showed off their gleaming classics during intermission.
Unfortunately, Mother Nature does make her presence known occasionally, and Saturday’s storm came in as fast as any of the race cars during qualifying. The once-friendly skies opened and made a lake out of our track, cutting the event short just before the second Bandolero Feature race took the green flag. Regardless, we had some incredible action in our Dash races, so keep reading to get caught up on the excitement.
Matco Tools Pro Trucks
Fast Dash – 10 Laps
The No. 85 of Jeff Walbaum and the No. 50 of Tyler Wiggans started on the front row. Walbaum got out front in a hurry despite pressure from Wiggans. The No. 33 of Tyler Davis and the No. 11 of Steve Johnson battled hard for P2, going briefly three-wide with the No. 9 of Curtis Heldenbrand. His truck slightly upset, Davis had to back out, and the No. 6 of Kip Sandell took on damage in the incident. A yellow flew for debris on the track as crews attended to the scattered car parts. The green waved again with Walbaum charging back out front, but Heldenbrand fought back on the bottom with Wiggans in tow. Heldenbrand barely grabbed the lead and began to stretch his advantage on the field. Single file, the pack continued to follow Heldenbrand around the speedway. Roe battled Walbaum for third, and as they headed toward the white flag, Roe dove low and got the advantage; holding down P2 while Heldenbrand won the race.
Dash – 10 Laps
At the drop of the green flag, the No. 21 of Chris Nelson led while the No. 88S of Brad Skufca slipped into P2, the pack stringing out single file behind them. Skufca delivered a shot to Nelson as they rounded Turn 4 on Lap 2, but it didn’t upset Nelson’s lead, and he maintained his position with ease and left Skufca to gather his race truck back up and try again. It looked like he might have something in Turn 2 but he backed out as Nelson slammed the door on him. It didn’t take long for him to pull even, though, and after a couple laps, Skufca passed Nelson, who had to defend his line against trucks two-wide behind him in P2 as the No. 69 of Sean Fry and No. 28 of Brian Weinmaster fought for third. Their fight allowed Skufca to strengthen his lead. They brought their battle to Nelson’s door. Nelson dipped low and lost a lot of ground as Weinmaster took second and Fry took third.
Near the back of the pack, the No. 71 of Tim Duvall was pinched into the wall as they raced three wide coming out of turn 4. Duvall rammed the wall again on the front stretch when he ran out of room. The impact tossed his truck on top of the concrete with the right side tires on top of the wall, and the driver’s side rubber skimmed the asphalt at the base of the wall, driver’s side down Duvall’s Truck slammed back down onto all fours, thus ending his unsuccessful attempt at a Radical Chastain. Track crews quickly descended on the battered truck and the race was red flagged. Thanks to a well-built machine, Duvall was ok after his intense ride, and officials elected to end the race due to safety inspection and perform necessary repairs to the track wall. Skufca took home the win after a dominant performance through the first nine laps.
Quick Time: No. 9, Curtis Heldenbrand, 17.082
Fast Dash: No. 9, Curtis Heldenbrand
Dash: No. 88S, Brad Skufca
Feature: Scratched due to weather
Sunoco Race Fuel Grand American Modifieds
Fast Dash – 10 Laps
The No. 13S, driven by Jordon Smith, and the No. 51, driven by Kyle Clegg, attacked the Fast Dash with vengeance, ditching the rest of the field as they fought two-wide for the top spot. Smith claimed it and settled into an uneasy lead, followed by Clegg and the No. 6 of Scotty Scott. Jace Hansen wheeled his No. 08 machine around Clegg for second, but before he could make a move on the leader, the No. 13 of Darin Clark stalled out in the Turn 2 pit entrance, causing a caution. Smith started on the front row next to Hansen; Hansen got the jump and took off, but not before pressure from Clegg started to heat things up. Clegg got into the back of Smith, who spun out in Turn 2; Clegg was sent to the rear and Smith was given his spot back. Smith and Hansen restarted alongside each other, and Hansen got quickly back to the top. The final time through Turns 3 and 4, Hansen sped across the line to win while several cars made contact in Turn 3.
Dash – 10 Laps
Damian Lockhart and his No. 55 assumed the point as soon as the race went green, followed hotly by the No. 7 of David Robinson. However, the No. 69 of Forest Smith surged into third place, taking the position away from Robinson, charging after Lockhart as laps ticked off. The pack filed out equal distance from one another until the No. 89 of Jacob Smith got a run on Forest Smith for P3, gaining ground in the turns but losing it on the straights. Jacob Smith took another shot at Forest Smith, but Forest Smith powered back on the high side to claim P2. Uncontested, Lockhart led flag-to-flag to win.
Quick Time: No. 08, Jace Hansen, 17.065
Fast Dash: No. 08, Jace Hansen
Dash: No. 55, Damian Lockhart
Feature: Scratched due to weather
AC Transmissions Legends
Fast Dash – 10 Laps
Danny Medina’s No. 15 jumped out front at the snap of the green, defending against a charge from the No. 12 of Bryanna Bruce and the No. 45 of Cole Tuttle. Medina took off and led the first lap, opening up seventh car-lengths on the pack, which jostled two-wide for position. The No. 6 of Scotty Scott charged out of the pack to assume P2 as the No. 03 of Darrell L. Stewart muscled his way into P3. Then, the No. 00 of Chris Saykally got turned around in T2, collecting several other cars, including the No. 27 of Brian Harlow, who was battling alongside him before the two cars made contact. The race restarted with six laps to go, putting Medina back out front as Stewart tried to lean on his rear bumper, shooting by Scott on the inside to claim second, but only for a few laps as the No. 78C of Colton Crocker emerged to defend the runner up position. As the checkered flag loomed, Crocker locked onto Medina and began to stalk him. Crocker caught Medina in Turn 1, and Medina tried to perform a crossover move to get his spot back, but it would be Crocker across the line first.
Dash – 10 Laps
Nicholas Gunther’s No. 56 leaped to the front of the line at the drop of the green flag as the No. 73 of Mike Markison charged into second. Markison quickly found himself fighting against the No. 21L of Madilyn Lange for second, two-wide. They kept it two by two for second as they flashed past the stand for the second lap, allowing Gunther to stretch out his lead. Markison finally got out in front of the 97, but now he had to defend a hard-charging Erik Bain, No. 62, who suddenly appeared to challenge him for P2. Out of Turn 4, they went three-wide for the lead; Bain outclassed them both, including the No. 01 of Gary Land, while Gunther started laying some distance down. Land took over second place and tried to look to the outside of Bain, swerving around a lapped car as the top two broke away. Land Mounted a charge on the outside, but Bain held down the lead. Land took one more shot at the lead out of Turn 4, but he ran out of time as Bain crossed the line first.
Quick Time: No. 78C, Colton Crocker, 18,448
Fast Dash: No. 78C, Colton Crocker
Dash: No. 62, Erik Bain
Feature: Scratched due to rain
Puzzle Effect Bandoleros
Outlaws
The No. 18 of Jake Boren and the No. 60 of Liam Hammond started on the front row, but as soon as they went four wide, the No. 12 of Aspyn Lange swung wide and passed every single one of them. Lange continued to lead while the No. 61 of Lillian Tuttle and No. 23 Peyton Opperman went side-by-side for second place, but then Lange was spun after contact with a lapped car. The yellow flag waved and just as they were about to go green again, they were waved off the track as lightning struck in the area. The race was not restarted as rain drenched the speedway shortly after the Bandos were sent away.
Bandits
The start to the Bandit Dash was a bit sketchy, but the No. 95 of Jaxon Muhler was able to get out of trouble and claim the race lead. In just three laps he’d caught the tail end of the field and was forced to navigate tricky lapped traffic but maintained a healthy lead on the No. 29 of Nora Smith through it all. He continued to lead and snagged the Dash win.
The No. 44 of Emersyn Weitzel shot into the lead for the Feature, but he was quickly caught by the No. 07 of Madison Stanley. Stanley got a little sideways as she slammed over the transition from the infield to the banking in Turn 1 and tried to dodge through heavy traffic, while the No. 14 of Austin Steinke charged through the field and began pressuring Muhler for second place. Stanley held down the lead until she spun out on her own. From there, the win would be decided between Steinke and Muhler. Steinke was able to execute the pass on Muhler heading to the stripe for the win.
Outlaw Dash: No. 12, Aspyn Lange
Bandit Dash: No. 95J, Jaxon Muhler
Bandit Feature: No. 14, Austin Steinke
We appreciate the cooperation of our fans, drivers, crews, and employees on Saturday night through rain and shine. Looking ahead, we can’t wait to see you this coming weekend for the Outlaw Figure 8s. Pick up your tickets here ahead of time and get ready for an adrenaline-inducing Figure 8s show you won’t forget.