Not sure what it is about Paradise Raceway, but I always have a great time and always look forward to having a reason to come back and do it all over again.  This time it was Round #2 of the Lost Coast RC Racing Series that brought us back to paradise.

Practice started Friday and for most of the day the weather was great, temperatures reached around 95F or so, with a slight breeze and a decent amount of shade around the track, it was a nice day of practice today.  Saturday about 11:00am racing began, we had about 10 heats packed full with 7 or 8 cars per heat in open and expert classes. I believe that we had a total of 60+ entries for the day.

We ran two rounds of qualifying IFMAR style and rocket rounds were used to seed for the mains.  The racing was quite tight since the track here is on the smaller side, but it makes for an exciting time to watch because carnage is always available, and once in a while you’ll see a great pass that demands respect. 

With round #1 of heats complete and just about finished with round #2, we had a freak storm that brought a quick down pore of rain, and a light & thunder show to follow.  The small black cloud overhead lasted only a short while and once the large drops of rain stopped we finished the 2^nd round and began running the mains.  There were B and C mains for most classes and with 15 minutes to each lower main it was going to be a long haul and a test of mechanical skills to make the bump to the show, the top 2 bumped up…

Sportsman Truggy A-Main

1. Carlos Macias

2. Dan Jurgensen

3. Marty Lawerence

4. Kerk Bloomgren

5. John Dell’amico

Note: Dan took the lead from the start and within minutes passed he was sitting comfortably in the first position, and the only thing that looks to be able take the win from him was a mechanical problem.  Meanwhile, there was a heated battle going on between second, third and fourth places.  Carlos, Marty and Kerk were going at it back and forth, mistakes were made and great laps were accomplished but it looked to be anybody’s race for these mentioned positions because they all were running about the same speed.

A while has gone by and first pits are being made, still most everybody who started the race is still in the hunt for a podium position.  Then the first problem occurred, it looked that Dan had a mechanical issue that put him back down towards the lower positions in the field, and that left the door open for 3 guys who were in the hunt for their first victory of the year.  It was a battle till the end, Carlos had the lead, Kerk had the lead and Marty also had a taste of leading the pack, but towards the end, Marty tagged a pipe on the back straight taking out a shock on the front of the truck that delegated him to a finish of 3^rd place.  Not bad since he had to limp around the track for a few minutes and he still managed a podium spot. 

Time was running out and the battle continued between Carlos and Kerk for their quest in a victory well deserved.  At about the 5 minute mark it still looked that it would be a photo finish, but unfortunately Kerk started falling off pace and Carlos kept it smooth trying to keep the car on all fours.  In the end it was Carlos who put a victory together in the Sportsman Truggy Class, also noting that Dan came back to finish in the second position after being out of the race for a few laps.

Expert Truggy A-Main

1. Red Patten

2. Jason Melfa

3. Kelly Hammer

4. Jack Vaughn

5. Bob Summers

Note: Red made his debut in Truggy in great fashion putting down an awesome performance that leads him to a deserving and exciting victory.  Based on previous performances, Jason Melfa usually finds himself sitting in the top positions on the leader board.  From the start of the race it was a battle between Red and Jason and this went on for a long while making this a fun race to watch, but towards the middle of the race Jason had a mechanical issue that put him down to far to catch Red while he was still on pace. 

This complete race is on video and should be up later tonight on June 23^rd or by tomorrow afternoon.

Sportsman Buggy A-Main

1. Dan Jurgensen

2. Carlos Macias

3. Tyler Marr

4. Kent Schell

5. Randy Midkiff

Note: Congrats to Dan and Carlos for putting in another great performance to take #1 and #2 spots.

Expert Buggy A-Main

1. Joel Hernandez (SX8/Werks)

2. Red Patten

3. Dan Davidson

4. Jason Melfa

5. Mark Schroeder

Note: #3 Qualifier Levi Wyren was putting in a good run battling for a 2^nd to 3^rd position, and it looked that he would continue that battle until a throttle servo gave out at about 6 minutes in.

After the last raced was officially logged into the system, it was around 8:00pm with light still available and awards were presented to the TQ driver and top 3 finalists in each class.  It was a great weekend of racing, and it seemed that most had a lot of fun.  Thanks to the Paradise crew for a great track and a good time, thanks again for the hard work completed for this race.  To the Humboldt RC team, great job.

Photos are posted in the photo gallery under the Northern California Listing, and videos will be added throughout the week.