7/19/09
Birges and Tatro Take Pombo Victories
by Gerald Laurie
The Annual Al Pombo Classic at Madera Speedway featured the SMRA Supermodifieds and the
Madera Speedway 360 Supermodifieds in this fourth of six Super Saturday Events. Fresno’s Jim
Birges claimed the top prize for the Supermodified Racing Association traveling circus. Madera’s
own Lance Tatro was the top 360 finisher.
The 360 Supermodified Time Trials were topped by Lance Tatro(72) with a time of 13.392
seconds. He was followed by David Tuey(6) at 13.475, Kenny Kinchen(5) at 13.524, Lance Jackson
(18) at 13.550, and Willie Northammer(15) at 13.921.
Jeff Russell(85) was fastest of the Supermodified Racing Association Supers at 12.396 seconds.
Second through fifth fast were Troy Regier(98) at 12.441, Jim Birges(89) at 12.460, Bryan Warf(91)
at 12.527, and A.J. Russell(7) at 12.611.
Trophy Dashes were the next order of business. The 360 Supermod Dash featured Lance
Jackson, Kenny Kinchen, David Tuey, and Lance Tatro. Kinchen and Tatro blew around the
outside in turn two to take the top two spots over Jackson and Tuey on lap one. Tuey grabbed
third on the second circuit and that was the end of the passing. Kinchen took the checkers over
Tatro, Tuey, and Jackson.
The SMRA Supermodifieds lined up for their four lapper with A.J. Russell and Lonnie Adamson
on the front row. The back row consisted of Jim Birges and Troy Regier. Adamson faltered a bit
on the start and Regier split the area between Lonnie and Birges to grab the second spot on lap
one. Birges was able to pass Adamson in turn three and lap one ended with Russell leading over
Regier, Birges, and Adamson. Regier took several shots at A.J. over the next three laps, but wasn’
t quite able to complete the pass. Finishing order was Russell over Regier, Birges, and Adamson.
The 360 Supermodifieds ran two six lap heat races. The first heat featured Carl Johnson, Larry
Hinz, Kyle Vanderpool, and Doug Gould. The inside line proved faster at the start as Johnson led
over Vanderpool, Hinz, and Gould on lap one. And that is how they ran until the final lap when
Vanderpool spun in turn one to bring out the yellow with the checkers. Johnson was victorious
over Hinz, Gould, and Vanderpool.
The second 360 Heat race had Willie Northammer and Lance Jackson on the front row. Kenny
Kinchen, David Tuey, and Lance Tatro rounded out the field. Jackson and Tuey scooted around
Northammer on lap one with Kinchen and Tatro in fourth and fifth. Tatro moved to third and
Northammer dropped to fifth on lap two. Tatro took second on lap three with Tuey right on his tail.
Lap five brought the red and then the checkers as Jackson got loose in turn four and saved the
car by slowing dramatically at the start-finish line. Tatro contacted the left rear of Jackson’s car
and Tuey couldn’t avoid the mess as the entire front stretch was nearly blocked. The officials
decided to call the race at five laps and declared Jackson the winner over Tatro, Tuey, Kinchen
and Northammer. All three front runners sustained damage in the incident. Major thrashes
ensued for the 72 and 6 teams while Jackson loaded up with terminal damage for the evening.
The first SMRA heat race was paced by Lonnie Adamson followed by A.J. Russell, Jim Birges,
and Jeff Russell. Again, Adamson was slow on the start and dropped to fourth on lap one with A.
J., Jeff, and Birges in the top three spots. And that is how it ended. A.J. Russell won the heat over
Jeff Russell, Birges, and Adamson.
Heat number two featured Kenny White, Bryan Warf, Troy Regier, George Greenway, and Ray
Stebbins. Stebbins had some engine issues after push off and headed for the pits before the start
of the race. Warf took the lead over White in turn three to lead lap one. Regier was third and
Greenway fourth. Regier snagged second on lap five and then slowed after the white flag to allow
White back to second. Warf won over White, Regier and Greenway. Regier admitted later in the
pits that he mistook the white flag for the checkered before he realized everyone else was still
racing. That is a very rare miscue by the multi-time champion and winner of nearly eighty
Supermodified features.
The 360 Supermodifieds and the SMRA Supermodifieds were combined for a fifty lap feature.
With sixteen surviving entries(Lance Jackson and Ray Stebbins both scratched from the feature)
, the field was full and it looked like an interesting evening. The race was scheduled for a twelve
car invert. However, with Jackson scratching and Greenway electing to start in the back, Kenny
Kinchen inherited the pole position followed by David Tuey, Lance Tatro, Lonnie Adamson,
Kenny White, and A.J. Russell. Completing the invert were Bryan Warf, Jim Birges, Troy Regier,
and Jeff Russell. Behind the fast crowd were Willie Northammer, Kyle Vanderpool, Carl Johnson,
George Greenway, Doug Gould, and Larry Hinz. Lap one was led by Kinchen, Tuey, Adamson,
Russell the younger, and Birges. The yellow flew as Northammer spun coming off turn four.
On the restart, Adamson, Russell, and Birges got around Tuey and set sail after Kinchen. Lonnie
led lap three with A.J. second, Kinchen third, Birges fourth, and Jeff Russell moving into the top
five. A.J. took the lead and Kinchen dropped to fifth on lap four. Warf displaced Kinchen from the
top five on the fifth circuit Birges snookered Lonnie for second on lap six, Jeff Russell took third
on lap seven and then passed Birges for second on lap eight. The yellow light blinked on again
on lap nine when Northammer repeated his routine coming off turn four again.
There were no major changes on the restart and at the lap ten juncture, A.J. Russell led over Jeff
Russell, Birges, Warf, and Adamson. The top five 360 Supers were Kinchen, Tuey, Tatro,
Vanderpoll, and Johnson.
Adamson repassed Warf on lap eleven and then Bryan returned the favor on lap fourteen as the
leaders encountered lapped traffic. Troy Regier mounted a charge through the lapped traffic and
managed to displace both Warf and Adamson by lap seventeen. At the same time, Birges used
lapped traffic to pass Jeff Russel and took off after A.J. Russell. At twenty laps, the order was A.
Russell, Birges, J. Russell, Regier, and Warf. 360 order was Kinchen, Tuey, Tatro, Vanderpool,
and Johnson. Nothammer and Hinz, both joined Gould in the pits at this point of the race.
The yellow hanky waved in the wind once again on lap twenty five when Johnson stalled on the
backstretch. On the restart, Birges took a dive under Russell in turn three only to have the yellow
fly again when Vanderpool spun in turn one. This time on the restart, A.J. tried to protect the
bottom and Birges sailed around the top side to take the lead. Once in the lead, Birges started to
distance himself from the rest of the pack. As he again began lapping cars, he was taking no
prisoners as he passed high, low and up the middle between cars. At lap thirty, it was Birges over
A.J., Jeff, Regier, and Warf. Kinchen and Tatro were battling for the 360 lead side by side lap after
lap as Tuey faded when the power steering failed. Tuey was the third 360 and Vanderpool was
the remaining 360 survivor in fourth. The order remaine4d the same as the leaders tore through
the backmarkers. Birges brought everyone to their seats as he went three wide below the white
line on the front stretch to pass the Kinchen - Tatro battle on lap thirty seven. . Tatro took
advantage and followed Birges through to take the 360 lead. Order at forty laps was Birges,
Russell the younger, Russell the elder, Regier, and Warf. Tatro led the 360 contigent over
Kinchen, Tuey, and Vanderpool.
The last ten laps were more of the same as Birges consolidated his lead and started to pull further
away. At the checkers, Birges was victorious over A.J. Russell, Jeff Russell, Troy Regier and
Bryan Warf. Tatro, Kinchen, Tuey, and Vanderpool were the top 360 finishers.
With temperatures soaring up to 108 degrees and track temperatures reaching 153 degrees, not
only was the racing hot, but the weather was a scorcher as well for the Pombo classic at Madera
Speedway. Cooling off under the ceiling fan and air conditioner, I am the Racing Widow’s
Husband.
Madera Speedway Super Saturday Number Four
360 Supermodifieds
Qualifications: 1. Lance Tatro(72), 13.392; 2. David Tuey(6), 13.475; 3. Kenny Kinchen(5), 13.524;
4. Lance Jackson(18), 13.550; 5. Willie Northammer(15), 13.921; 6. Kyle Vanderpool(1), 13.992; 7.
Carl Johnson(07), 14.125; 8. Larry Hinz(4), 14.303; 9. Doug Gould(60), 15.686.
Trophy Dash: 1. Kinchen; 2. Tatro; 3. Tuey; 4. Jackson.
Heat1: 1. Johnson, Hinz, Gould, Vanderpool.
Heat 2: 1. Jackson; 2. Tatro; 3. Tuey; 4. Kinchen; 5. Northammer.
SMRA Supermodifieds Qualifications: 1. Jeff Russell(85), 12.396; 2. Troy Regier(98), 12.441; 3. Jim
Birges(89), 12.460; 4. Bryan Warf(91), 12.527; 5. A.J. Russell(7) 12.611; 6. Kenny White(26), 12.860;
7. Lonnie Adamson(14), 12.991; 8. George Greenway(8), 13.558; 9. Ray Stebbins(28), N/T.
Trophy Dash: 1. A.J. Russell; 2. Regier; 3. Birges; 4. Adamson.
Heat 1: 1. A. Russell; 2. J. Russell; 3. Birges; 4. Adamson.
Heat 2: 1. Warf; 2. White; 3. Regier; 4. Greenway; 5. Stebbins.
Combined 360 and SMRa Supermodified Feature: 1. Birges; 2. A. Russell; 3. J. Russell; 4. Troy
Regier; 5. Warf: 6. Adamson: 7. Tatro*; 8. Kinchen*; 9. Tuey*; 10. Vanderpool*; 11. Greenway; 12.
White; 13. Johnson*; 14. Northammer*; 15. Hinz*; 16. Gould*; 17. Jackson* (DNS); 18. Stebbins
(DNS).
* denotes 360 Supermodified.
Birges and Tatro Take Pombo Victories
by Gerald Laurie
The Annual Al Pombo Classic at Madera Speedway featured the SMRA Supermodifieds and the
Madera Speedway 360 Supermodifieds in this fourth of six Super Saturday Events. Fresno’s Jim
Birges claimed the top prize for the Supermodified Racing Association traveling circus. Madera’s
own Lance Tatro was the top 360 finisher.
The 360 Supermodified Time Trials were topped by Lance Tatro(72) with a time of 13.392
seconds. He was followed by David Tuey(6) at 13.475, Kenny Kinchen(5) at 13.524, Lance Jackson
(18) at 13.550, and Willie Northammer(15) at 13.921.
Jeff Russell(85) was fastest of the Supermodified Racing Association Supers at 12.396 seconds.
Second through fifth fast were Troy Regier(98) at 12.441, Jim Birges(89) at 12.460, Bryan Warf(91)
at 12.527, and A.J. Russell(7) at 12.611.
Trophy Dashes were the next order of business. The 360 Supermod Dash featured Lance
Jackson, Kenny Kinchen, David Tuey, and Lance Tatro. Kinchen and Tatro blew around the
outside in turn two to take the top two spots over Jackson and Tuey on lap one. Tuey grabbed
third on the second circuit and that was the end of the passing. Kinchen took the checkers over
Tatro, Tuey, and Jackson.
The SMRA Supermodifieds lined up for their four lapper with A.J. Russell and Lonnie Adamson
on the front row. The back row consisted of Jim Birges and Troy Regier. Adamson faltered a bit
on the start and Regier split the area between Lonnie and Birges to grab the second spot on lap
one. Birges was able to pass Adamson in turn three and lap one ended with Russell leading over
Regier, Birges, and Adamson. Regier took several shots at A.J. over the next three laps, but wasn’
t quite able to complete the pass. Finishing order was Russell over Regier, Birges, and Adamson.
The 360 Supermodifieds ran two six lap heat races. The first heat featured Carl Johnson, Larry
Hinz, Kyle Vanderpool, and Doug Gould. The inside line proved faster at the start as Johnson led
over Vanderpool, Hinz, and Gould on lap one. And that is how they ran until the final lap when
Vanderpool spun in turn one to bring out the yellow with the checkers. Johnson was victorious
over Hinz, Gould, and Vanderpool.
The second 360 Heat race had Willie Northammer and Lance Jackson on the front row. Kenny
Kinchen, David Tuey, and Lance Tatro rounded out the field. Jackson and Tuey scooted around
Northammer on lap one with Kinchen and Tatro in fourth and fifth. Tatro moved to third and
Northammer dropped to fifth on lap two. Tatro took second on lap three with Tuey right on his tail.
Lap five brought the red and then the checkers as Jackson got loose in turn four and saved the
car by slowing dramatically at the start-finish line. Tatro contacted the left rear of Jackson’s car
and Tuey couldn’t avoid the mess as the entire front stretch was nearly blocked. The officials
decided to call the race at five laps and declared Jackson the winner over Tatro, Tuey, Kinchen
and Northammer. All three front runners sustained damage in the incident. Major thrashes
ensued for the 72 and 6 teams while Jackson loaded up with terminal damage for the evening.
The first SMRA heat race was paced by Lonnie Adamson followed by A.J. Russell, Jim Birges,
and Jeff Russell. Again, Adamson was slow on the start and dropped to fourth on lap one with A.
J., Jeff, and Birges in the top three spots. And that is how it ended. A.J. Russell won the heat over
Jeff Russell, Birges, and Adamson.
Heat number two featured Kenny White, Bryan Warf, Troy Regier, George Greenway, and Ray
Stebbins. Stebbins had some engine issues after push off and headed for the pits before the start
of the race. Warf took the lead over White in turn three to lead lap one. Regier was third and
Greenway fourth. Regier snagged second on lap five and then slowed after the white flag to allow
White back to second. Warf won over White, Regier and Greenway. Regier admitted later in the
pits that he mistook the white flag for the checkered before he realized everyone else was still
racing. That is a very rare miscue by the multi-time champion and winner of nearly eighty
Supermodified features.
The 360 Supermodifieds and the SMRA Supermodifieds were combined for a fifty lap feature.
With sixteen surviving entries(Lance Jackson and Ray Stebbins both scratched from the feature)
, the field was full and it looked like an interesting evening. The race was scheduled for a twelve
car invert. However, with Jackson scratching and Greenway electing to start in the back, Kenny
Kinchen inherited the pole position followed by David Tuey, Lance Tatro, Lonnie Adamson,
Kenny White, and A.J. Russell. Completing the invert were Bryan Warf, Jim Birges, Troy Regier,
and Jeff Russell. Behind the fast crowd were Willie Northammer, Kyle Vanderpool, Carl Johnson,
George Greenway, Doug Gould, and Larry Hinz. Lap one was led by Kinchen, Tuey, Adamson,
Russell the younger, and Birges. The yellow flew as Northammer spun coming off turn four.
On the restart, Adamson, Russell, and Birges got around Tuey and set sail after Kinchen. Lonnie
led lap three with A.J. second, Kinchen third, Birges fourth, and Jeff Russell moving into the top
five. A.J. took the lead and Kinchen dropped to fifth on lap four. Warf displaced Kinchen from the
top five on the fifth circuit Birges snookered Lonnie for second on lap six, Jeff Russell took third
on lap seven and then passed Birges for second on lap eight. The yellow light blinked on again
on lap nine when Northammer repeated his routine coming off turn four again.
There were no major changes on the restart and at the lap ten juncture, A.J. Russell led over Jeff
Russell, Birges, Warf, and Adamson. The top five 360 Supers were Kinchen, Tuey, Tatro,
Vanderpoll, and Johnson.
Adamson repassed Warf on lap eleven and then Bryan returned the favor on lap fourteen as the
leaders encountered lapped traffic. Troy Regier mounted a charge through the lapped traffic and
managed to displace both Warf and Adamson by lap seventeen. At the same time, Birges used
lapped traffic to pass Jeff Russel and took off after A.J. Russell. At twenty laps, the order was A.
Russell, Birges, J. Russell, Regier, and Warf. 360 order was Kinchen, Tuey, Tatro, Vanderpool,
and Johnson. Nothammer and Hinz, both joined Gould in the pits at this point of the race.
The yellow hanky waved in the wind once again on lap twenty five when Johnson stalled on the
backstretch. On the restart, Birges took a dive under Russell in turn three only to have the yellow
fly again when Vanderpool spun in turn one. This time on the restart, A.J. tried to protect the
bottom and Birges sailed around the top side to take the lead. Once in the lead, Birges started to
distance himself from the rest of the pack. As he again began lapping cars, he was taking no
prisoners as he passed high, low and up the middle between cars. At lap thirty, it was Birges over
A.J., Jeff, Regier, and Warf. Kinchen and Tatro were battling for the 360 lead side by side lap after
lap as Tuey faded when the power steering failed. Tuey was the third 360 and Vanderpool was
the remaining 360 survivor in fourth. The order remaine4d the same as the leaders tore through
the backmarkers. Birges brought everyone to their seats as he went three wide below the white
line on the front stretch to pass the Kinchen - Tatro battle on lap thirty seven. . Tatro took
advantage and followed Birges through to take the 360 lead. Order at forty laps was Birges,
Russell the younger, Russell the elder, Regier, and Warf. Tatro led the 360 contigent over
Kinchen, Tuey, and Vanderpool.
The last ten laps were more of the same as Birges consolidated his lead and started to pull further
away. At the checkers, Birges was victorious over A.J. Russell, Jeff Russell, Troy Regier and
Bryan Warf. Tatro, Kinchen, Tuey, and Vanderpool were the top 360 finishers.
With temperatures soaring up to 108 degrees and track temperatures reaching 153 degrees, not
only was the racing hot, but the weather was a scorcher as well for the Pombo classic at Madera
Speedway. Cooling off under the ceiling fan and air conditioner, I am the Racing Widow’s
Husband.
Madera Speedway Super Saturday Number Four
360 Supermodifieds
Qualifications: 1. Lance Tatro(72), 13.392; 2. David Tuey(6), 13.475; 3. Kenny Kinchen(5), 13.524;
4. Lance Jackson(18), 13.550; 5. Willie Northammer(15), 13.921; 6. Kyle Vanderpool(1), 13.992; 7.
Carl Johnson(07), 14.125; 8. Larry Hinz(4), 14.303; 9. Doug Gould(60), 15.686.
Trophy Dash: 1. Kinchen; 2. Tatro; 3. Tuey; 4. Jackson.
Heat1: 1. Johnson, Hinz, Gould, Vanderpool.
Heat 2: 1. Jackson; 2. Tatro; 3. Tuey; 4. Kinchen; 5. Northammer.
SMRA Supermodifieds Qualifications: 1. Jeff Russell(85), 12.396; 2. Troy Regier(98), 12.441; 3. Jim
Birges(89), 12.460; 4. Bryan Warf(91), 12.527; 5. A.J. Russell(7) 12.611; 6. Kenny White(26), 12.860;
7. Lonnie Adamson(14), 12.991; 8. George Greenway(8), 13.558; 9. Ray Stebbins(28), N/T.
Trophy Dash: 1. A.J. Russell; 2. Regier; 3. Birges; 4. Adamson.
Heat 1: 1. A. Russell; 2. J. Russell; 3. Birges; 4. Adamson.
Heat 2: 1. Warf; 2. White; 3. Regier; 4. Greenway; 5. Stebbins.
Combined 360 and SMRa Supermodified Feature: 1. Birges; 2. A. Russell; 3. J. Russell; 4. Troy
Regier; 5. Warf: 6. Adamson: 7. Tatro*; 8. Kinchen*; 9. Tuey*; 10. Vanderpool*; 11. Greenway; 12.
White; 13. Johnson*; 14. Northammer*; 15. Hinz*; 16. Gould*; 17. Jackson* (DNS); 18. Stebbins
(DNS).
* denotes 360 Supermodified.
