After hosting over one thousand costumed children at its annual trunk or treat event, Meridian Speedway closed its summer season Saturday, October 27, as the quarter-mile oval hosted the Halloween Championship. The Teleperformance Claimer Stocks, Project Filter Pro-4s, TEAM Mazda Mini Stocks, Big Daddy’s Barbecue Hornets, High School Tuners and Junior Stingers provided a full evening of short track racing thrills.
Thirteen eleven to fourteen-year-old racers crowded the quarter-mile for the 25 lap Junior Stinger main event. Karly Hearne was quick out of the blocks and raced her way to the lead in her first main event start. But Jodi Moen was fast too, and on lap three the Jerome, Idaho racer took the low line to the lead.
Behind the front pack, quick-qualifiers Cody Castricone and Rusty Houpt sliced their way through the field, and by lap five the two held second and third on the Pepsi-Cola scoreboard. One lap later Castricone dove to the bottom and claimed the point in his Lissa’s Learning Ladder, Fast Glass machine with Houpt’s Boise Spring Works, Drip Catchers racer in hot pursuit.
As the leaders wound their way through lapped traffic Castricone and Houpt came together, and as Castricone chased his car up the track Houpt to draw side-by-side for the lead with a bevy of lapped cars ahead. Houpt made a lane first through the middle, then around the third lane to clear the slower traffic. Castricone matched Houpt’s moves, and with five laps left closed on the leader’s rear bumper.
But Castricone’s run came up short and he settled for second behind Houpt. Though Castricone lost the race, his strong late season showing catapulted him to the Junior Stinger Championship.
Championship contender Arin Flagstade led the High School Tuners to their final twenty lap feature of 2018. Flagstade’s stay atop the leader board was short-lived as Meridian, Idaho’s Hailey Rogers piloted her H&H Accounting, Goodwill Finance machine to the lead on lap two.
Rogers wasn’t safe up front, as one lap later standings leader James Strickwerda cleared traffic and ducked low for the lead. As Strickwerda drove his PBT Auto Sales racer to a comfortable lead Rogers turned her attention to Junior Stinger main event winner Houpt, who stormed around the low side of Rogers for the runner up spot.
Though Houpt closed on Caldwell, Idaho’s Strickwerda through the race’s final stages, he was unable to mount a serious challenge for the lead and settled for second behind Strickwerda. Despite missing the High School Tuners’ first feature, Strickwerda dominated the middle and late season to collect championship honors in the Caleb’s Chop Shop Winner’s Circle.
The TEAM Mazda Mini Stocks wrapped their season with a thirty lap main event. On the break James Pahl powered his way to the lead with Blake Coria in his tire tracks. Coria quickly found the handle on his Cutter’s Grand Barbecue, BC Towing machine and slid around Pahl to the lead. But Coria wasn’t safe up front either as he came under fire from championship long shot Jason Sanders of Caldwell, Idaho, who took the lead and dropped Coria into the clutches of Mirinda Miles.
The Coria-Miles battle went awry on lap three when contact drove both drivers headlong into the front stretch concrete. Miles’ racer was destroyed, while Coria’s crew affected enough repairs for him to return to action.
On the restart Sanders sped back to the point with Melba, Idaho’s Billy Shipp in tow. Behind the leaders, title contenders Jayson Wardle and Fred Vigil found one another in traffic and followed each other forward. As the race crossed halfway Wardle and Vigil sat third and fourth. A spin by Sanders in troublesome turn four brought out a caution flag and reset the field with Shipp inside Wardle and Vigil.
The green flag waved and Wardle piloted his King’s Royal Lawn Care, Catapult 3 machine to the top of the Pepsi-Cola scoreboard. But Vigil’s Ben’s Auto Glass, Larry H. Miller Collision Center entry was quick too, and kept pace with Wardle until the yellow flag waved again for a vicious crash involving Luke Wolverton’s Julie Hart with Premiere Mortgage, Hart Construction racer.
With the green flag back in the air Wardle and Vigil went to war for the lead. Kuna, Idaho’s Wardle staked his claim on the outside while Nampa, Idaho’s Vigil committed to the inside. While Wardle kept his momentum up around the outside, the shorter way around the track would prevail as Vigil took over first place with ten laps left and cruised across the Caleb’s Chop Shop Victory Stripe for the win.
While Vigil’s win closed the championship gap it wasn’t enough to dethrone Wardle who scored his first TEAM Mazda Mini Stock championship.
After a hard-fought season the Project Filter Pro-s rolled into a thirty lap feature that would decide their title. On the break Nampa, Idaho’s Ben Harris shot to the lead in his Kim’s Kars, H&H Auto machine. But Ben’s brother Jordan Harris was on the march, and powered his way to the top of the Pepsi-Cola scoreboard on lap five. An early caution slowed the field and brought championship rivals Brendon Fries of Meridian, Idaho and Kenny Chandler of Kuna, Idaho to the outside groove on the restart.
The green flag waved and Fries sped into the lead with Chandler’s Project Filter, Fairly Reliable Bob’s racer on his rear bumper. Chandler jabbed high and low through the race’s middle stages as he looked for a way around Fries’ Chick-fil-A, Boise Boys Transportation entry, but found none. With time winding down Chandler tried to bump Fries out of the way, but Fries held station up front. Finally with the white flag in the air Chandler motored around the outside of Fries for the victory.
Though Chandler picked up his sixth win to tie Fries’ total on the season, Fries was awarded the Project Filter Pro-4 championship.
Scott Cooper and Ed Griffith led the Teleperformance Claimer Stocks to green for the season-ending YMC Mechanical 75. Kuna, Idaho’s Cooper was quick out of the blocks and took his machine to the top of the Pepsi-Cola scoreboard early. As the pack jockeyed for position a blown engine on the back stretch led to Jamie Hyde and championship leader Josh Fanopoulos sliding into the turn three concrete. Hyde’s car was forced to the pit area with suspension damage while Fanopoulos avoided serious contact and carried on.
Cooper again sprang to the lead on the start, this time with Brian Hyde’s Hyde Bros Racing, Guppies Hot Rod Grille machine in his mirrors. Hyde made his move on lap fifteen to the lead and quickly pulled away from the field. Hyde enjoyed his lead for ten laps before Griffith spun in turn two and retook the track in front of the leader. This allowed Nampa, Idaho’s Preston Henderson to close on the leader, and on lap 25 it was Henderson out front in his Certified Services, Lissa’s Learning Ladder racer.
Henderson led the way through the race’s middle third while championship contenders Taylor Occhipinti and Josh Fanopoulos worked their way forward. Occhipinti was first to challenge Henderson, but didn’t have enough in his Marv’s Tire Service, Dillon Performance Engines car to take the point. As Occhipinti settled into line Orangeville, California’s Erick Ray began his march to the front.
With twenty laps left Ray arrived on Henderson’s rear bumper. Ray methodically searched high to low for a way around Henderson, but the Nampa, Idaho racer drove hard to keep the top spot. With a dozen circuits left Ray lost patience and began to dive inside Henderson at every turn. But Henderson somehow fought off the attacks to maintain the lead until a lap seventy caution slowed the field and brought Ray to his bumper for the restart.
The wear on Henderson’s car showed as the green flag waved and Ray cruised to the lead. A resurgent Fanopoulos would follow Ray’s lead and work his way past Henderson before the checkered flag, but couldn’t do anything to track down Ray, who claimed his second straight season-ending YMC Mechanical 75 victory.
Fanopoulos’ second place run was good enough to keep him ahead of Occhipinti, and he collected the Teleperformance Claimer Stock championship.
The Big Daddy’s Barbecue Hornets began their 20 lap feature by plowing through a minefield of pumpkins on their way to green. When the green flag waved pandemonium broke out. After clinching Rookie of the Year honors in the TEAM Mazda Mini Stocks, James Pahl piloted his Ray’s Auto Care machine around the infield to make his way forward on lap one, while three and four wide racing took place throughout the rowdy pack. Despite being moved to the rear of the field due to a novelty rule, being made to pirouette down the back stretch, and running a dozen laps on a water-soaked raceway, Caldwell, Idaho’s Pahl fought his way forward and claimed the division’s final 2018 feature.
After making the most of every bonus point opportunity throughout the season Pahl added a Big Daddy’s Barbecue Hornets championship to his growing list of accolades.
With another thrilling race season in the history books, Meridian Speedway turns its attention to the newly announced Winter Heat series. Stay tuned to meridianspeedway.com for event dates and race times, and keep up to speed with the fastest crowd in town by texting ‘meridianspeed’ to 84483. From all of us at Meridian Speedway, thank you for making the 2018 season a resounding success, and we look forward to seeing you back under the big yellow water tower soon. As always, we’ll have a seat waiting for you at your NASCAR Home Track, Meridian Speedway.
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