Sharks, monsters, princesses and robots were on the loose at Colorado National Speedway last Saturday to celebrate Halloween. Drivers and team members parked their race cars in the infield for a trick-or-treat party to help fans get in the spooky season spirit. It’s a CNS tradition and the perfect way for fans to mingle with the drivers they’ve followed all season long. Once the costumed crowd settled into the grandstands, and the cars were led off the track by a parade of souped-up hearses, the perfect leaders for Halloween.
AC TRANSMISSION CENTER LEGENDS
FEATURE 1 The field of AC Transmission Center Legend cars was so large – 35 cars! – that competition was split up into several feature races. The first saw #75 Austin Hackenberg starting on the pole. He held a comfortable lead as the pack strung out behind him, at least until the #5 Gary Wegener mounted a charge to take the lead away. After a few attempts on the lead, and some light contact between the two cars, Hackenberg’s #75 couldn’t be bested, and he led flag to flag.
FEATURE 2 Austin Hackenberg #75 started on the pole again, but when the green flag waved, trouble followed as a couple cars went around in Turn 2. It was ruled that #75 Hackenberg had gotten a slow start at the beginning of the race, and he was forced to start in the third position behind the #04 Natalie Foster. However, #75 Hackenberg wanted the lead back, and set out on a mission to pass the cars in front of him. Another multi-car incident took away #04 Foster’s advantage, but when the race restarted she easily jumped back out to the front. She led a clean race ahead of #90 Chasen Groff and #32 Cody Milan, weaving through lapped traffic right up until the last lap … when #90 Groff stepped around her for the lead, and his first-ever Legend class feature win.
FAST FEATURE 1 The next race featured some tight competition between #66 Kyle Clegg and #22 Chris Eggleston, the season points leaders. Clegg #66 started on the pole, but quickly found himself under fire from #22 Eggleston and #15 Danny Medina. The three cars battled side-by-side for the race lead, but were slowed by a caution for a rather nasty wreck in Turn 3 that saw the #45 Cole Tuttle slammed into the wall beneath the scoring pylon, one of his tires separated from his car, sweeping several cars into the wreck with him. When the green flag dropped, it was the two championship contenders out front, with #66 Clegg defending the lead against #22 Eggleston. Clegg #66 saw the double checkered flags first to take the win.
FAST FEATURE 2 The season championship boiled down to a 30-lap feature race. #37 Tanner Scarberry started on the pole and opened up a healthy lead on the rest of the pack … for two laps. A few cars went around, causing a caution. The green flag saw #44 Alfred Matthews on the hunt for the lead, battling #37 Scarberry for a few laps before conceding. #66 Kyle Clegg, second in overall points heading into the night, was involved in an incident a few laps later. He was able to continue racing, but had to fight back through the pack to get to the front.
Scarberry #37 took the lead on the restart once more, but was prevented from running away with things for single-car incident that forced a yellow flag. Danny Medina #15 challenged for the lead on the restart and stole it. He held the lead for several laps before #22 Chris Eggleston mounted a charge to claim it for himself. With 11 laps left, Eggleston #22 gained the lead and took off with it. Medina #15 put some pressure on him, along with the #66 Kyle Clegg who had come back up through the field, but neither could make it stick. Eggleston #22 won the race and sealed his championship when the checkered flags dropped.
FEATURE 1: #75 Austin Hackenberg
FAST FEATURE 1: #66 Kyle Clegg
FEATURE 2: #90 Chasen Groff
FAST FEATURE 2: #22 Chris Eggleston
2021 AC TRANSMISSION CENTER LEGEND CHAMPION: #22 Chris Eggleston
QUICK TIME: #66 Kyle Clegg, 18.266
TBK BANK SUPER STOCKS/ROCK ‘N’ ROLL BREWERY PURE STOCKS
The TBK Bank Super Stocks and Rock ‘N’ Roll Brewery Pure Stocks were turned loose on the track at the same time. Jordan Abeyta #23 led the mixed field of 28 cars to the green flag, leading the #55 of Damien Lockhart as he set the pace for the night. At one point, every part of the racetrack had wheels on it as the pack fell into line behind #23 Abeyta. Lapped traffic posed a problem for the leaders, as the track was so packed there was hardly any room to let the leaders pass.
All in all, it was a pretty clean race, although some cars probably left with more dents in their sheet metal than they’d started with. When it was all said and done, it was Jordan Abeyta’s #23 winning the race after leading from start to finish, earning his first-ever feature win in the Super Stocks division. Ronald Johnson #34 finished seventh in the overall race, but was the highest-placing Pure Stocks finisher, earning him his first feature win in the division.
TBK BANK SUPER STOCKS FEATURE: #23 Jordan Abeyta
ROCK ‘N’ ROLL BREWERY PURE STOCKS FEATURE: #34 Ronald Johnson
QUICK TIME: #15 Jereme Wall, 19.478
BANDOLEROS
Much like the Super Stocks and Pure Stocks, the two Bandolero divisions shared a racetrack as the Outlaw and Bandit classes raced at the same time. The first feature was a clean race. The young drivers kept their noses clean, fighting bright sunlight as the sun dipped behind the horizon and some serious wheel-hop through the infield turns. #23 Javon Barnard of the Bandit division led from flag to flag and swept the night’s first feature win.
The second feature was led by #52, Nic Wall, the sole Outlaw division entry. However, he found some trouble with a tire barrier, damaging his comfortable lead, but not his racecar. He gathered his car back up and went on to finish second in the race behind the #33 Dillyn Kellogg. #33 Kellogg took home the Bandit class season championship, while #52 Nic Wall captured the Outlaw division.
WHITTAR RACING TRAINS
Though the championship had already been decided in previous weeks, the Trains took one more spin around CNS before the season ended. It was a pretty wild race, full of trouble as engine cars broke down and other trains lost their brakes. It was the #151 Crazy Train who made it through to win the race, followed by the #86 Last Call.
DEMO X
True to form, the Demo X competitors put on a heck of a show as the last cars on track for the 2021 race season at CNS. Full of spinouts, bumping and near-flips, the Light class was dominated by the #63 Jeep, and the Heavy class belonged to a pickup with #31 spray-painted on the sides. It was the perfect way to blow off steam after the long season, and give fans and drivers a good send-off to end the season on a high note.
On behalf of everyone at CNS, thanks to the drivers, sponsors and fans who make racing at our premier speedway possible. We look forward to firing things up again in the spring of 2022!
OFFICIAL RESULTS
Super Stock and Pure Stocks Pos No. Name Hometown 1. 23 Jordan Abeyta Denver 2. 55 Damian Lockhart Hudson 3. 07 Brent Cave Brighton 4. 1NE Troy Witthar Arvada 5. 14e Eric Phelps Cheyenne WY 6. 15 Jereme Wall Commerce City 7. 34 Ronald Johnson Westminster 8. 21 Chris Nelson Arvada 9. 15 Brendon Knowles Highlands Ranch 10. 19 Shelby Cortese Thornton 11. OH6 Mahkrysta Hilton Brighton 12. 86 Tim Coate Highlands Ranch CO 13. 13J Jason Hulvey Thornton 14. 8A Austin Richards Arvada 15. 41G Christopher Galvin Byers 16. 86I Ian Clark 17. 14g Brian Galvin Byers 18. 4 Chris Jordan Mead 19. 5C Kyle Carrasco (R) Hudson 20. 21 Jamie Ward Denver 21. 9 Cole Baker (R) 22. 13S Isaac Slinker Eaton 23. 13B Brandon Claiborn Lafayette 24. 38C Colton Green Arvada 25. 12 Ethan Sluder Hudson 26. 6 Terrence Gass Scottsbluff NE 27. 1JW Jared Wall Commerce City 28. 23A Alyssa Salazar Arvada
Legends
Feature 1 Pos No. Name Hometown 1. 75 Austin Hackenberg Greeley 2. 5 Gary Wegener Kalama WA 3. 04 Natalie Foster Westminster 4. 90 Chasen Groff (R) Denver 5. 32 Cody Milan Fort Collins 6. 61 Chris Archer Henderson 7. 14 Jacob Nutall (R) Parker 8. 51 Casey Wiggans (R) Colorado Springs 9. 9M Terry McBride Edgewater 10. 12 Bryanna Bruce (R) Wheatland WY 11. 18 JJ Sanders Aurora 12. 38 Garrett Wilson (R) Platteville 13. 17 BreAnn Birney Cheyenne WY 14. 95 Jessilyn Dike Westminster 15. 19 Larry Pachello Arvada 16. 42 Jim Bowman Livermore 17. 78 Ashlyn Himler Erie 18. 88 Paul Himler Erie
Feature 2 Pos No. Name Hometown 1. 90 Chasen Groff (R) Denver 2. 04 Natalie Foster Westminster 3. 32 Cody Milan Fort Collins 4. 14 Jacob Nutall (R) Parker 5. 51 Casey Wiggans (R) Colorado Springs 6. 75 Austin Hackenberg Greeley 7. 12 Bryanna Bruce (R) Wheatland WY 8. 9M Terry McBride Edgewater 9. 18 JJ Sanders Aurora 10. 38 Garrett Wilson (R) Platteville 11. 95 Jessilyn Dike Westminster 12. 42 Jim Bowman Livermore 13. 19 Larry Pachello Arvada 14. 17 BreAnn Birney Cheyenne WY 15. 5 Gary Wegener Kalama WA 16. 78 Ashlyn Himler Erie 17. 61 Chris Archer Henderson 18. 88 Paul Himler Erie
FAST Feature 1 Pos No. Name Hometown 1. 66 Kyle Clegg Westminster 2. 22 Chris Eggleston Thornton 3. 15 Danny Medina Colorado Springs 4. 21 Ryan Jones Arvada 5. 89 Zach Morris (R) Greenwood Village 6. 44 Alfred Matthews Arvada 7. 37 Tanner Scarberry Denver 8. 00 Chris Saykally Westminster 9. 87 Tim Trostel Thornton 10. 6 Scotty Scott Arvada 11. 40 Dillon Foster Arvada 12. 28 Adam Powers Silverthorne 13. 99 Tessa Marine (R) Littleton 14. 69 Haydon Moody Arvada 15. 03 Darrell L Stewart Arvada 16. 50 Tyler Wiggans Colorado Springs 17. 45 Cole Tuttle Blackhawk
FAST Feature 2 Pos No. Name Hometown 1. 22 Chris Eggleston Thornton 2. 15 Danny Medina Colorado Springs 3. 66 Kyle Clegg Westminster 4. 21 Ryan Jones Arvada 5. 37 Tanner Scarberry Denver 6. 89 Zach Morris (R) Greenwood Village 7. 6 Scotty Scott Arvada 8. 44 Alfred Matthews Arvada 9. 69 Haydon Moody Arvada 10. 03 Darrell L Stewart Arvada 11. 87 Tim Trostel Thornton 12. 00 Chris Saykally Westminster 13. 50 Tyler Wiggans Colorado Springs 14. 40 Dillon Foster Arvada 15. 99 Tessa Marine (R) Littleton 16. 28 Adam Powers Silverthorne DNS 45 Cole Tuttle Blackhawk
Trains Pos No. Name Hometown 1. 151 Crazy Train 2. 86 Last Call 3. 45 Trump Train 4. 77 Willie B Foundation Train 5. 311 Bipolar Express 6. 26 Slam Track
Bandoleros
Bandit Feature 1 Pos No. Name Hometown 1. 23 Javon Barnard Wheatridge 2. 33 Dillyn Kellogg Denver 3. 52 Nic Wall Commerce City 4. 61 Lilly Tuttle Denver 5. 5 Regan Fruge 6. 21 Madilyn Lange Wheatland WY 7. 60 Liam Hammond Brighton CO
Bandit Feature 2 Pos No. Name Hometown 1. 33 Dillyn Kellogg Denver 2. 52 Nic Wall Commerce City 3. 23 Javon Barnard Wheatridge 4. 61 Lilly Tuttle Denver 5. 21 Madilyn Lange Wheatland WY 6. 5 Regan Fruge 7. 60 Liam Hammond Brighton CO