August 12th
By Mike Weber
With the motorsports season winding down, River City Speedway division leaders Clyde White, Stephen Kaptur, Teagan Fischer and Bob Berg each recorded top three finishes Aug. 12 to solidify their position atop the Columbia County Racing Association point standings.
Berg, the defending Four-Cylinder Division champion seeking a second straight title, was a two-time winner in his Cozy Lawn Maintenance/Green Lion sponsored Dodge Neon with wins in the main event and heat race. Berg is atop the standings with four races left on the schedule.
Fischer, 16, recorded a sweep of Dwarf Car Division races as she took the checkered flag in the trophy dash, heat race and main event with her TFT Construction dwarf car. Fischer, of Warren, leads the point standings by a large margin and will probably win the division title. Is she wins it, Fischer would be the youngest driver ever in the track's 33-year history to win a title in an adult racing classification.
"Yes it sure was exciting to get a sweep," said Fischer, a St. Helens High junior. "I think I've had a couple of races this year like today's. We've been traveling to other tracks to race this summer and I've competed in some races with 30 cars. So it's kind of nice to race here with fewer cars, because you don't have to worry about trying to avoid any wrecks and it's nice to actually finish a race. I'm really hoping to win the championship, which would really mean a lot to me because I've been involved in motorsports for a big part of my life."
Cody Smith of St. Helens, drove his Eaton's Tire and Service Center 1976 Chevrolet Camaro to victory in the Sportsman Division main, marking his first ever series win in just his second race ever in the class. Smith started fifth in the seven-car main and then he maneuvered his way into the front on lap 15 of the 40-lap event
"I really thought that I was going to lose the lead late in the race when Clyde White got right behind me on lap 33, but I was able to hold him off," said Smith, a former Street Stock Division champion (2014). "I thought it was pretty cool to get the win and it was nice to have a few more cars in the race (seven) than we've had in previous races. Hunter Gollyhorn and I both recently moved up to the Sportsman class so that we would have more cars in the division."
Vancouver's Robert Jenner was runnerup, followed by White in third with his D & S Light Truck Parts Chevy Impala. White of Longview, is atop the Sportsman standings as he's seeking to win his first ever division title. Sandy's Ryan White took fourth and Woodland's Devon Reed was fifth.
Tom Zywicki of Portland, was a two-time winner as he captured the Street Stock Division main event and heat race. Terry King of Warren was runnerup with Greg Brumbaugh of St. Helens in third. Gary Kordosky Jr. of St. Helens, was fourth. Natasha Rye of Warren, took fifth in the Fast Lube & Oil/McMullen Water Systems Chevy Malibu, owned by Justin McMullen of St. Helens.
Vancouver's Don Jenner and his son Matt had a repeat performance of the Aug. 5 Modified Division main when they were first and second. Don Jenner won the main a second straight week, with Matt in second. Division leader Stephen Kaptur of St. Helens took third place. Don Jenner had a sweep of events as he also won the trophy dash and heat.
In the Tracer Division (youth's age 13-16), defending series champion Ryan Potter of Vernonia, notched a main event win. Kelso's Trenton Brogan, 13, won the heat and trophy dash with his Ram Light Truck Salvage Dodge Neon.
There's four events remaining on the CCRA schedule with the next event on Aug. 19.