Fast Fridays Motorcycle Speedway
Gold Country Fairgrounds
Story and Photos by Michael Kirby
Last Friday night, Fast Fridays Motorcycle Speedway staged an endurance event in Auburn, California, equal to no other at the Gold Country Fairgrounds. Auburn has long been known as the “Endurance Capitol of the World” for the interesting endurance challenges that are staged in its back yard. The Western State Endurance Run and the Tevis Cup Equestrian Ride, both 100-mile events, finish in Auburn. Numerous other physical challenges from triathlons to mountain-bike races are staged in the nearby mountains and give Auburn the “endurance capital” distinction.
In the 25-lap speedway finale combining the Handicap consolation and Handicap main-event riders into one endurance race brought 12 riders onto the track, with their handicap yardage being doubled. Riders Billy Janniro and Tommy Hedden, for instance, lined up 120 yards from the starting gate, and other riders were started at twice their regular handicap yardage. On a normal night, Scratch speedway races are four laps and Handicap speedway races are six laps, and these riders would be racing more than four times that amount, battling fatigue and mechanical failure. When he tapes went up and the contest was on, who would be the strongest rider to endure? Would experience or youth be the deciding factor?
Within several laps, 2011 25-lap main-event winner and current National Speedway Champion Billy Janniro dropped out with mechanical problems. As the race progressed, several more riders ended up on the infield, unable to go on, and Bob Hicks now had a commanding lead over Bart Bast, Ryan Bast and Alex Marcucci, who were now battling for second, third and fourth place.
Hicks, who’d had a great night in the rest of the program, continued to dominate, and with Janniro out, it was a four-man race for most of the 25 laps.
With just laps to go, Hicks and Alex Marcucci tangled in turn three, both of them losing valuable time and yardage that could not be made up late in the race, and Hicks fell out of first place. That left Bart and Ryan Bast to duke it out for the remaining laps, and Tyler Warren now pulled into a possible winning position.
Bart’s decades of speedway experience and consistent riding ability proved the deciding factor in this race, as he outlasted Ryan for the checkered flag and the endurance title. Ryan finished second, and the 17-year-old Warren grabbed third with an impressive ride.
In the Division One Scratch program, Billy Janniro continued to dominate with another main-event win. Auburn’s own Tommy Hedden was second, and Bob Hicks, who is on a tear, finished third after winning all his heat races in both the Handicap and Scratch programs. Bart Bast was fourth. The win gives Janniro seven of 10 Scratch main-event wins at Fast Fridays this season and sets him up as the man to beat as he defends his National Speedway Championship title later in the season.
First-year rider Colton Duncan won the Division Two main event. The 17-year-old steadily moved through the Division Three ranks and has had solid performances in Division Two in weeks past. Second was Jamison Dilkey, and Chris Casey was third.
Eddie Marsalla was first in the Division Three main event, followed by Kurt Cornchuck in second and Kevin Smith in third.
David Mersaroli won the Youth A main event, followed by his brother Louie Marsaroli in second. Jeremy Faria was third.
Ten-year-old Colton Hicks won the Youth B main event, and Caleb Clinton won the Run What U Brung main event.
Next week, the action continues at Fast Fridays as the Extreme Sidecars make another visit to the Gold Country Fairgrounds for round four of their series.
Fast Fridays Motorcycle Speedway at the Gold Country Fairgrounds
Auburn, California
Results: July 27, 2012
DIVISION 1 SCRATCH MAIN: 1. Billy Janniro; 2. Tommy Hedden; 3. Bob Hicks; 4. Bart Bast.
DIVISION 1 25-LAP HANDICAP MAIN: 1. Bart Bast; 2. Ryan Bast; 3. Tyler Warren.
DIVISION 2 MAIN: 1. Colton Duncan; 2. Jamison Dilkey; 3. Chris Casey.
DIVISION 3 MAIN: 1. Eddie Marsalla; 2. Eddie Kurt Kornchuck; 3. Kevin Smith.
YOUTH A MAIN: 1. David Mersaroli; 2. Louie Marsaroli; 3. Jeremy Faria.
YOUTH B MAIN: 1. Colton Hicks; 2. David Faria; 3. Daniel Casey.
RUN WHAT U BRUNG: 1. Caleb Clinton.