Manzanita Speedway
Indiana's James wins opener at Manzanita
By M.J. Anderson
DirtonDirt.com correspondent
Scott James won $3,000. (C.C. Cillitto)
PHOENIX, Ariz. (Nov. 8) — A long trip to Arizona paid off for Scott James in the first night of the Western World Championships at Manzanita Speedway. Driving a Salem, Ore.-based car as a teammate to Rick Wyatt, the Lawrenceburg, Ind., driver led all the way in a race shortened to 15 laps because of electrical problems with the track lights. Boen wins finale | Manzanita slideshow
The polesitting James earned $3,000 for the victory in the non-points Western Allstars Super Late Model Series event, the first of two during the weekend at Manzanita. A $5,000 winner's purse is up for grabs on Saturday night.
Kelly Boen of Henderson, Colo., was the only driver to pressure James but settled for second with A.J. Kirkpatrick of Watsonville, Calif., third. Karl Tipton of Gilbert, Ariz., was the top-finishing home-state driver in fourth while Mike Marlar of Winfield, Tenn., driving for the California-based Bartels team, was fifth.
The race ran caution-free for 15 laps until a turn-one scramble saw Arizona driver Randy Carder flip his car. Carder wasn't injured. After the cleanup, the action was ready to resume when the track lights failed. After about a 20-minute delay, an electrician told track officials the repairs would take at least three hours, and the race was declared official.
The event, the first Late Model racing at Manzanita since 2004, drew 54 drivers from seven states including Bud I-5 Challenge champion Trevor Glaser of Tangent, Ore., and Southwest Dirt Racing Association champion Lonnie Parker Jr.
Kirkpatrick, James, Boen, Ron Bartels and Tipton won heat races. Parker and Mike Stadel of Rapid City, S.D., won consolation races. Among other drivers in attendance were John Anderson of Omaha, Neb., Dean Moore of Grand Junction, Colo., John Duty of Portland, Ore., and Kellen Chadwick of Oakley, Calif.
Western World Championships: (1) Scott James, (2) Kelly Boen, (3) A.J. Kirkpatrick, (4) Karl Tipton, (5) Mike Marlar, (6) Chris Shannon, (7) Brad Pounds, (8) Ron Bartels, (9) Kellen Chadwick, (10) Lonnie Parker Jr., (11) John Anderson, (12) Mike Balcaen, (13) Mike Stadel, (14) John Duty, (15) Keith Noyes, (16) Randy Carder, (17) Nick Bartels, (18) Jim Beamon, (19) Jeffrey Priddy, (20) Joey Moriarity, (21) Jimmy Whisler, (22), Art Lacy, (23) Lonnie Parker Sr., (24) Rob Sanders.
