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Industry, CA., Sept. 17 – Charlie "the Edge" Venegas lived up to his long-time nickname in speedway cycle racing Wednesday night and won the 33rd running of the AMA/USA Speedway Cycle California State Championship. With $9,000 in cash and prizes at stake, 1,021 persons witnessed the event at Industry Speedway in the Industry Hills Expo Center. It was his second consecutive victory in the event at The Grand arena and his third overall in a classic that dates back to 1968 when Sonny Nutter won the first title. Venegas also won the title in 1997. No events were held from 1998-2005.
The 41-year old San Bernardino resident and past Industry Speedway track champion had won eight of the first nine 500-cc Division 1 mains this year and added another triumph August 27. He missed three main events this year and fell to third place in final track points for the 20-week 2008 season, the fifth year for Industry Speedway. With $5,000 of the total purse up for grabs to Division 1 riders, Venegas collected an estimated $2,500 for his victory Wednesday. He scored 13 points in his five four-lap heat races to become the high point rider of the night and champion. A maximum of 15 points was available if a D-1 rider could win all five of his four-rider heats. Sixteen riders competed and each rider had to start from every lane position from one through four. Riders earned points on a 3-2-1-0 basis.
Venegas won four of his five heat races and finished third in his fourth heat. Ricky Wells, 17, scored 12-points with his two heat victories (6 points) and three second place finishes (6 points) in his five races. The two major main event winners this year at Industry entered the fifth and final round of heats tied at 10-points each. Only Venegas and Wells had a shot at the California State Championship and the impressive golden eagle perpetual trophy. Venegas, in event 40 of the night, won his fifth heat. In event 42 Wells had to win to match Venegas' 13 points to force a run-off race between the two riders. However, Wells trailed Reno, NV veteran Mike Faria closely all four laps and earned only 2 points. At Industry this year, Wells, the second place rider in final 2008 track points by only 2 points, won six feature races to nine for Venegas.
Shawn McConnell, the 49-year old 2008 Industry Speedway track champion, scored 11 points with two heat wins, two seconds and one third and finished third in points Wednesday. Five riders—Faria, Bobby Schwartz, Jimmy Fishback, Tommy Hedden and Shawn Harmatiuk—tied for fourth place with 10-points each. Eddie Castro scored 9-points despite being disqualified for touching the starting gate tapes before the green in his first heat. Neil Facchini finished tenth with 7-points.
Eloy Medellin led all four laps in the $400 Division 2 500-cc championship race. He won both of his heats and tied at 6-points with Reno's Danny Faria to earn one of four starting positions in the D-2 final race. Bruce Marteney won the $200 Division 3 500-cc finale after compiling 5-points in his two heat races. Chris Thomas scored 6-points in winning both D-3 heats and led the first two laps of the D-3 final race. Thomas and Marteney collided on the backstretch and Thomas fell hard at the wall, ending the race. Marteney collected the cash and D-3 trophy.
An all-time Industry Speedway high of eight 1,000-cc motorcycle/sidecar teams raced for $1,000 in four heats with the field divided into four teams per race. Bob Brayton and his sidecar "swinger" Dwayne King won both heats for the maximum 6-points. The four highest teams in points met for a four-lap final race. Brayton/King led all the way and defeated Joe Jones/Jimmy Olsen, Dave Alexander/Matt Davis and Stuart Glass/Jack Straw. The 250-cc cycle Youth Division 1 (16 and under) championship race went to Austin Novratil, 13, over Gino Manzares, 15. The Youth D-2 (12 and under) final race went to little River McDougal who led laps 3 and 4 after passing Rocco Scopellite, 12, on the inside entering the third turn on lap 3. However, Scopellite had the most points with two wins and a second and won the title. During preliminary races, McDougal hit the backstretch wall, tumbled over his bars and landed face first on the track. He was able to walk to the pits and made all his subsequent races.
With eight riders in the $1,000 Mohican's Last Man Out Challenge Championship, the field ran two heats and eliminated four riders. The final race had Wells, Schwartz, McConnell and Hedden, who won $700 and the Mohicans 2008 championship ring. Venegas had been entered, but he relinquished his spot in the eight-rider special event to his friend Hedden, from Auburn, CA, who was competing at Industry for the first time this season. Hedden is a star at Fast Fridays Speedway in Auburn and has raced for promoter Venegas at his track in Vallejo, CA. After last-running McConnell and Wells had been eliminated in a pair of 1-lap races, Hedden and Schwartz ran a 4-lap race and Hedden led every lap for his lucrative triumph. Schwartz trailed by ten yards at the end.
During the second sidecar heat race, the third place team slowed at the checkered flag and the fourth place team veered to the infield. The sidecar clipped unsuspecting photographer Brad Pappalardo, a 15-year old Youth D-1 rider who had won the first heat and the August 29 Youth National Championship race at Auburn. With his legs knocked from under him, Pappalardo fell backwards onto the dirt infield and struck the back of his head. He reclined motionless on the ground as the ambulance crew rushed to his aid. After a couple of minutes, Pappalardo rose and was able to walk to the pits. He did not receive any broken bones from the contact. He did not compete in additional races and was transported to a hospital to check for a possible concussion.
With the Industry Speedway 20-week season concluded, riders are now focusing on three Saturday night races at Costa Mesa Speedway on the grounds of the Orange County Fairgrounds. The October 4 race is a U.S. National Speedway Championship event. The October 11 race is the Costa Mesa track anniversary race. Riders also have upcoming races at the Victorville and Perris fairgrounds speedway cycle tracks. Industry Speedway co-promoters Jeff Immediato and Bruce Penhall have a seven-year contract with Industry Hills Expo Center management to stage speedway cycle racing. They plan to have live Dish television coverage of some races at Industry next year to attract new spectators to the spacious Grand arena, the finest facility available for speedway cycle racing. .
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