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SUNNY Temp: 102 °F Wind: NNW at 8 mph Saturday, June 28, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend June 18, 2003 Kasey Kahne, right, gets tangled up with Tim Kaeding during an early heat at Tuesday night�s sprint car racing at Southern Oregon Speedway. Kaeding�s car rolled off the track but he was not seriously injured. Mail Tribune / Roy Musitelli Challenge lives up to its name By DON HUNT Mail Tribune WHITE CITY — Tim Shaffer showed what patience and perseverance can do for a race car driver on Tuesday night. The veteran driver from Aliquippa, Penn., charged from the middle of the pack to win the inaugural Golden State Challenge sprint car race before an appreciative crowd of 2,200 at the Southern Oregon Speedway. Shaffer, who started 11th in the 22-car field, methodically worked his way toward the front and finally passed Brent Kaeding of Campbell, Calif., on the final lap to take home the top prize of $3,000. Kaeding, nicknamed the "King of California" because of his 11 Golden State Challenge series point titles and 62 main event wins, held on for second. Advertisement Jimmy Carter of Cloverdale, B.C. took third, followed by Kevin Pylant of Santa Cruz, Calif., and Tim Kaeding of San Jose, Calif. Local favorite Bill Nutter of Central Point wound up 12th in the 30-lap event. "The track was dry and it was extremely hard to pass," said Shaffer, a regular member of the World of Outlaws series who has two wins on that circuit this season. "But I stayed patient early with the hope that some of the drivers would get loose, which they did. "And then I just slowly worked my way up, passing a car here and a car there." Shaffer was in fourth place by the 16th lap and then zipped past Pylant and into third on the 22nd lap. Three laps later he passed Carter for the runner-up position, and then it was a dogfight between him and Brent Kaeding over the final five laps. "I knew the laps were starting to count down," Shaffer said. "Then I saw the white flag (meaning there was one lap remaining) and thought, I’d better get him (Kaeding) now." Shaffer got underneath Brent Kaeding on turn No. 1 of the final lap and generated enough impetus to thrust him into the lead for the first time. "It was a good race, but second place sucks," said Brent Kaeding, who nonetheless took home $1,500. Just five days earlier, Brent Kaeding experienced a similar fate in a race at Chico, Calif., when his son, Tim, passed him on the final lap. Brent Kaeding leads the Golden State Challenge points race, but that was of little consolation Tuesday. "I’m not used to getting passed on the last lap like that, especially twice in one week, but we’ll just keep digging," said the elder Kaeding, who will head north for the Dirt Cup race this weekend at Skadgit, Wash. Northern Sprint Tour points leader Roger Crockett of Eugene had mechanical problems during a heat race, but came back to win the B main and take sixth in the main event. Former NST points champion and current Busch Series driver Kasey Kahn of Enumclaw, Wash., wasn’t as fortunate. Kahn, who had trouble with his set-up, finished 18th in the main event. Tim Kaeding gave the fans a thrill during a heat race when he flipped his car several times coming out of turn three. He had to replace his front end, rear end and several other components on his car but came back to take second in the B main and fifth in the main event. Nutter, the Central Point driver, had a very respectable finish considering he was running a 360 cubic-inch engine. Most of the other drivers were operating 410s. Nutter pocketed $500 for being the top 360 finisher, and another $300 for making it into the main event. Tuesday’s Results FAST TIME — Roger Crockett, 12.102. FIRST HEAT — 1, Jonathan Allard; 2, Jimmy Carter; 3, Shane Matthews; 4, Stephen Allard; 5, Craig Stidham. SECOND HEAT — 1, Andy Forsberg; 2, Doug Lippincott; 3, Brian Coelho; 4, Toni Lutar; 5, Dennis Moore. THIRD HEAT — 1, Brad Furr; 2, Jason Statler; 3, Tim Schaffer; 4, Brent Kaeding; 5, Kevin Pylant. B MAIN — 1, Roger Crockett, Eugene; 2, Tim Kaeding, San Jose, Calif.; 3, Wayne Williams, Monterey, Calif.; 4, Kasey Kahne, Enumclaw, Wash.; 5, Jason York, Chico, Calif.; 6, Bill Nutter, Central Point; 7, Mike Quigley, Gardnerville, Nev.; 8, T.J. Winningham, Gold Hill; 9, Brad Furr, Pleasanton, Calif.; 10, Matt Rogers, Medford; 11, Mike Melwicks, Surrey, B.C.; 12, Melissa Yates, Roseburg. A MAIN — 1, Tim Shaffer, Aliquippa, Penn.; 2, Brent Kaeding, Campbell, Calif.; 3, Jimmy Carter, Cloverdale, B.C.; 4, Kevin Pylant, Santa Cruz, Calif.; 5, Tim Kaeding, San Jose, Calif.; 6, Roger Crockett, Eugene; 7, Brad Furr, Pleasanton, Calif.; 8, Jason Statler, Los Gatos, Calif.; 9, Toni Lutar, White Rock, B.C.; 10, Stephen Allard, Chico, Calif. 11, Craig Stidham, Fresno, Calif; 12, Bill Nutter, Central Point; 13, Jason York, Chico, Calif.; 14, Dennis Moore, Grinnell, Iowa; 15, Andy Forsberg, Auburn, Calif.; 16, Brian Coelho, Tulare, Calif.; 17, Doug Lippincott, Minden, Nev.; 18, Kasey Kahne, Enumclaw, Wash.; 19, Wayne Williams, Monterey, Calif.; 20, Mike Quigley, Gardenville, Nev.; 21, Jon Allard, Chico, Calif.; 22, Shane Matthews, Marysville, Calif. Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Rogue Valley Auto Finder Rogue Valley Job Finder --> Rogue Valley Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Real Estate Showcase Food for Thought Hike of the Week Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Openings Prime Times