Palmer Draws 140 Cars for NERRC #6
As the last NERRC event before the Championship finale at Thompson Speedway on October 4-5, the NER drivers showed up and turned out for the annual Pig Roast event at Palmer Speedway, September 7-8.
It was a gorgeous weekend for racing, with clear blue skies and cool temperatures. The ideal weather for setting new track records, which seven drivers did this last weekend.
While there were the typical spins and on-track incidents, for the most part, the weekend ran smoothly and efficiently. The Saturday night party included the pulled pork and chicken as the namesake for the event. The food was fabulous, some of the best BBQ we’ve had and served to the NER workers/families this year. As we head into the final stretch of NERRC racing, this was a great weekend of competitive racing, as witnessed by the 140 cars that showed up!
Photos are courtesy of Aaron Andino. To view his full gallery of images, click here.
Race Winners and New Track Records
As mentioned before, seven drivers broke the existing track records for Palmer over the weekend. Please congratulate the following:
B-Spec #29 – William Dergosits – 1:59.722
EP #4 – Scott James – 1:47.570
F5 #2 – Richard Johnson Jr – 1:50.176
GT1 #16 – Douglas Valley – 1:39.899
GT2 #93 – Glenn Kurkjian – 1:41.638
IT7 #47 – Anthony Parker – 1:54.699
T3 #38 – Darius Trinka – 1:45.054
Darius Trinka set the record during Race 1 on Saturday, a race he won. Then he went on to be the overall winner for Race 2 and Race 3 in Group 1 as well. Nice job Darius! Steve Owens also cleaned house in Group 2, winning all 3 races in SRF3. For the prod drivers, Scott James did the same in EP, and set his track record during Race 2. Saturday morning was when Douglas Valley and Glenn Kurkjian dropped the records in Group 3, setting new fastest times in GT1 and GT2 respectively. Group 4 was another CRE class filled with new drivers and instructors.
The FV drivers returned again after the Thompson event with another spectacular turnout. 27 FVs filled up Group 5 over the weekend. John Petillo won Saturday’s FV race and John Piscitelli swept all of Sunday’s FV races, and the one F5 driver in the middle of that crew, Richard Johnson, set his own track record on Sunday morning.
Group 6 was another of our larger classes, with 32 drivers in the IT/SM2/STL group. Rob Sturgis and Evan Karl were podium finishers all weekend long. Anthony Parker initially set his fastest lap record in IT7 during Race 1, but then beat that time and set it again during Race 3. William Dergosits did it in B-Spec during Race 3 at the end of Sunday as well.
The last group, wings and things, was the smallest of the weekend. Matthew Gendron took the green and checkered each race in his FA.
For the full list of race results and finishing positions, view the RESULTS: 2019 NERRC #6 – Pig Roast.
Palmer in Reverse
At the end of Saturday’s qualifying and racing sessions, the stewards opened up the Palmer course for two test sessions (open-wheel and closed-wheel) to allow competitors a chance to test driving Palmer in the reverse direction (clockwise). This is part of an ongoing investigation between the region, national office and club racing board to find alternative options for racing at Palmer.
Overall, the drivers that took to the reverse-direction course started out with noticeable caution. Braking points and apexes are all different running opposite. But at the end of each test session, it was obvious some drivers were beginning to feel some confidence and gave the track layout a fair shot.
Feedback Needed
For those drivers that ran those test sessions, the CRB is very interested in your feedback. Please contact JB Swan with any comments on your experience. We are looking for positives and negatives. What worked currently, and what might need to be adjusted in order to make a reverse-direction event at Palmer a reality.
For those workers, particularly flaggers, that were at the Pig Roast, we need your feedback as well. Were turn stations in appropriate locations? What about jersey barriers and tire walls? Is T&S easier to tape vehicles with them approaching from the opposite way?
Anyone that was at Palmer, we welcome your thoughts and opinions. Please reach out to JB and Jessie as they are collating all the feedback and experiences of everyone involved in the test sessions so that future plans can take all the information into account.
NERRC Standings and Points
With the championship coming to a close in just a few weeks, the Thompson event will be the last chance for those classes where the season winner is still up for grabs. We have 8 drivers that have already claimed their 2019 title, and at least 8 more that are too close to call. We encourage everyone to join us as we end the year with our DOUBLE POINTS championship race! Hats off to these drivers that have already claimed the 2019 NERRC Championship:
