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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend August 19, 2005 Rogers bags first two wins of ‘sprint’ career By DON HUNT Mail Tribune For 2½ seasons and nearly 40 races, Randy Rogers failed to win a sprint car feature race. The Medford engineer claimed rookie-of-the-year honors in 2003, won a heat race in 2004 and bagged a trophy dash that same year. But when it came time for the main event, Rogers kept coming up empty-handed. The victory drought ended on Aug. 6 at the Southern Oregon Speedway when Rogers triumphed in dramatic fashion, passing Dan Menne on the final turn of the final lap to take the checkered flag. Last Saturday, Rogers returned to the winner’s circle at the Cottage Grove Speedway. "That first win is something I’ll never forget," Rogers, 31, said. "To be able to pass someone like Dan Menne — one of the local heroes — at the end of the race really made it special. Advertisement "The crowd was supportive and every one of the drivers came up and shook my hand, including Menne. It was a special night for sure." Why the sudden turnaround? Rogers points to two factors. One, he logged a bunch of seat time during the Northern Sprint Tour’s "Speedweek" during the second week of July. Rogers never qualified for an A main during the six-day, five-race extravaganza against the top sprint-car drivers on the West Coast. But the experience was invaluable. Two, Rogers made some significant changes to his chassis set-up following a test-and-tune session on Aug. 3, three days prior to his victory in White City. Rogers’ older brother, Matt, drove the car during the test-and-tune session and felt that something was amiss. Matt Rogers, one of the Rogue Valley’s top race car engine builders, drove a sprint car at the Southern Oregon Speedway from 1998 until 2003, when he gave way to his brother. "It was comfortable to drive but it was turning too hard in the corners," Matt Rogers said. "The car wasn’t getting through the corners like it should." After consulting with a couple of other drivers — including Menne — the Rogers brothers made several changes to the suspension and torsion bars. Three days later, Randy Rogers qualified third, won the trophy dash and then the feature race. In the race at Cottage Grove, Rogers started third, quickly slipped to fourth but then began reeling in the leaders. He shot past Anthony Nunez with nine laps left and led the rest of the way. Unlike most drivers, Randy Rogers had no experience racing around an oval track when he first got behind the wheel of a sprint car. His father and brother competed in drag racing, but the younger Rogers was mostly an observer. "We had a ‘68 Firebird and I raced it maybe a half-dozen times," Randy Rogers said. "That was the extent of my experience. I never raced go-karts or motorcycles or anything like that." The Rogers brothers decided to put Randy behind the wheel two years ago because of Matt’s increasingly heavy involvement in engine-building. "Neither of us had any reason to think I’d do any better than Matt," Randy Rogers said. They do now. WITH FOUR STRAIGHT victories and five wins in his past six starts, pro stocks specialist Frank Word III is the hottest racer at the Southern Oregon Speedway. However, the most consistent driver since the season-opener on April 30 is mini stock points leader Tony Christopher. Christopher has finished no worse than fourth in all but one of his 10 starts at the speedway, with three wins, three seconds and a third to his credit. His only hiccup came on June 25 when a flat tire caused a 19th-place finish. A longtime friend and pit crew member of modified driver Dave Duste, Sr., Christopher decided to race his own car last year. Her emerged as rookie of the year in the mini stock class. "I decided last year to make a run at it with my own car," said Christopher, who built a Pinto from the ground up. "With four kids, I never had the time to race my own car, but now the oldest is 15, the youngest is 8 and they’re all at the track." With only three mini stock races left, Christopher owns a 52-point lead over runner-up Milt Carter. FORMER TWO-TIME modified points champion Tom Glover will rejoin forces with Medford car owner Ron Martin and compete in the Lon Skinner Memorial on Sept. 2-3 at the Southern Oregon Speedway. Glover dominated the modified class in 1996 and won another points title in ‘98. He’s set to race Martin’s newest car, a 2006 Pro Chassis that’s made in Minnesota. Nationally prominent modified driver Jon DeBenedetti of Rogue River will race one of Martin’s other two cars, a 2006 Loose Gruff, at the Lon Skinner event. DeBenedetti is coming off a 16th- place finish at the world’s richest modified race, the $100,000-to-win Alltel 100 in Batesville, Ark. Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail Rogers bags first two wins of �sprint� career ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker dvd-r Distance Education Computer Security Ztech Media Hosting Sports Equipment Online Casino Reviews Student Loans tcg student loan consolidation Online Pharmacy online casino Myspace Home Equity Loans Windermere Van Vleet Rogue Valley Travel Reservationstogo Hotel Reservations Southern Oregon Loans Online Casino News Natto Kinase Nattokinase Casino Gambling Sites Budget Website Templates Investments & Loans Advertisement s