NMRA-TQ MIDGET 2010 AWARDS BANQUET
By noderel:
Moorpark, CA, Feb. 5, 2011 - National Midget Racing Assn (NMRA) TQ Midget teams held the 2010 awards banquet Saturday night here at Aloha Ranch. Champion driver/car owner West Evans was honored for his first driving championship and became the sixth different champion since 2002. The 47-year old former super-modified driver started racing USAC-TQs in 1988. He was the key person in 2002 for continuing TQ midget racing in western states after USAC, which sanctioned TQ racing from 1987-2001, switched to Ford Focus midgets. NMRA sanctioned TQ racing from 1957-1986 and has done so for the last nine years with Evans at the helm. Evans' Spike/Suzuki No. 38 won the 2010 car owner championship for his third NMRA car owner title with the second car in his stable. Four owners have won the nine NMRA championships since 2002.
Following a no-host cocktail hour and a buffet dinner of salad, dinner rolls, BBQ chicken breast and tri-tip roast, plus desert, host Evans recognized 2010 NMRA officials Steve Parke, Don Wilcox, Melissa DeMello, Nick and James Hiler. plus fellow NMRA board members Parke, Kenny Wiley, Todd Chicasawa, and Dave Lambert. All received NMRA plaques for their service. The top ten drivers and car owners were recognized from tenth to first for their 2010 results. Owner/driver Ron Ahrendt again served as master of ceremonies,recognized guests and awarded door prizes to attendees during the evening. .
SPECIAL AWARDS: Brian Baker, 21, of Taft, received the Curly & Cookie Merrill Rookie of the Year trophy. The former mini sprint and off-road racer returned to California from Oklahoma and competed in a car he purchased after watching TQs compete in Bakersfield. Bruce Hiroshima won the hard charger award. Dave Lambert received most improved driver recognition and Amanda Thomas was the tenacity award winner. Ahrendt took the racer to racer award for unselfishly helping other racers. NMRA photographer Robert Reeder was the seventh recipient of the Otto Family Sportsmanship of the Year Perpetual Trophy. The six prior winners of the Otto trophy were: Ahrendt, Tim Kennedy, Bob DeMello, Chikasawa, Lambert and Parke. The award was commissioned by widow Gay Otto and her son Tony in memory of long-time NMRA officer and official Ron Otto, who died unexpectedly after retiring and moving north to Nipomo.
Baker told the audience, “Thanks to you all for your help and thanks to the guys who broke down.” He won the final race of the year on October 16 at Santa Maria Speedway in only his fifth TQ event. He said his identical twin, Adam, and his father Brian will compete for the 2011 rookie award as part of a three-car Baker TQ midget team. Long-time owner Lambert, who became a rookie driver in 2009, accepted his award and quipped, “I had an advantage. I started from dead slow and pretty much got in everyone's way.” He won his first main event on August 14 at Perris. Champion Evans quoted soccer star Mia Hamm on an individual award being a team award. He said the 2010 championship was a team award. He thanked his dad, Mike, and mom, his wife Paula, teammate Chuck West, and chief mechanic Bob DeMello who worked on both the No. 36 and 38 Evans Motorsports TQs.
2010 SEASON RECAP: The 14-race 2010 NMRA season visited three clay tracks—Perris, Bakersfield and Santa Maria—and had eight different feature winners—Hiroshima (2), Jimmy Dodson, Anthony Lopiccolo, Dakota Schweitzer (2), Evans (4), West (2), Lambert and Baker. Evans, of Moorpark, earned his driving title by 20 points (783-763) over his first cousin West, of Clovis. Eighteen drivers and 16 car owners earned 2010 points. The top ten drivers in order were: Evans, West, A. Lopiccolo, Hiroshima, Ahrendt, Lambert, Schweitzer, Amanda Thomas, Dodson, and Scott Niven. The top ten car owners were: Evans 38 driven by C. West for all but one event when Greg Edenholm drove it, Evans 36, Paul Lopiccolo 21, Hiroshima 5, Ahrendt 87, Lambert 55, Parke 59, Ed Thomas 40, Dodson 6 and Niven 66.
2011 SEASON: The 2011 NMRA racing schedule was distributed and lists 12 dates at two tracks with two dates to be announced. Bakersfield Speedway was designated the NMRA home track and has ten dates, including the season opener on March 26. Other dates at the third-mile banked clay Bakersfield track are: April 9 and 23, May 21, June 25, July 2 and 23, August 6 and 20, and September 10. Santa Maria Speedway will host TQ races on June 4 and September 17. The October 8 and 22 dates remain TBA currently.
A handful of TQs staged demonstration runs during the January 29 Monster Jam event on the dirt surface at Angel Stadium in Anaheim. They will return to the major league baseball stadium Saturday, February 12 for demonstration runs during the monster truck program. NMRA-TQ sponsors are VP Racing Fuels, Schroeder Torsion Bars, Ringers Gloves, Racing Optics, American Racer and aliigroup.com. The full racing schedule and 2010 final point standings are available at www.nmra.us and at www.wstqmidgets.com.