April 10, 2006 –Austin, Texas – A welcome cold front moved into Austin Friday night as racers wound up a long day of practice prior to round three and four of the Southwest Regional Cup at Iron Rock Raceway last weekend. The 60-degree weather held through most of Saturday morning, though temperatures rose in the afternoon laying down a thick coat of rubber on the new 0.70-mile track configuration.
In all, 13 classes were represented with 124 entries recorded for the weekend, the largest classes being 125 Senior Shifters and TaG Seniors.
On Saturday, Ryan Kinnear dominated the 125 Senior class in his Intrepid both in the prefinal and final, with a time of 44.1. Starting on pole, with Chris Jennings (CRG) beside him, Kinnear took his lead and kept it throughout, leaving Jennings to fight off Garrett Boone and James Bayliss for second. Sunday, it was Bayliss on pole and Kinnear off-pole after an exciting pre-final. But the finals saw Kinnear take off from the pack early. Boone and Bayliss scrapped for second place until Boone spun out in lap eight and had to retire from the race; Bayliss followed suit in the same lap, breaking an axle. Jennings, whose kart gave him trouble early on, made up the gap quickly, going from fifth to second, and Chance Terrel picked up the speed to finish third. Nicco Renna also put in a good weekend performance, finishing in fourth place.
TaG Senior was especially exciting, with some excellent driving by Kosmic drivers Nicholas Boulle and Macie Wyly; Ruebin Weir in his Intrepid; Gary Butler, Intrepid, and Nick Lucido in a CRG. On Saturday, teammates Boulle, Wyly and Butler battled it out in both the pre and the finals, demonstrating excellent passing on tough turns to finish first, second and third in the finals. Sunday, they returned to a track that combined the Seniors with TaG Masters and Juniors. In the prefinals, however, a tangle slammed the three into the barriers of the first turn taking them out. Lucido was black flagged in the seventh, leaving Ital Kart driver Tyler Mann and Ruebin Weir to finish first and second. Wyly and Boulle were back for the finals to make up time, starting at the back of the pack. Mann came off the pole to hold his lead for most of the race until the seventh lap put him out of the game. By the 13th lap, Boulle was also gone, and Wyly took a wide lead, followed by Weir and Lucido.
While the TaG Seniors fought for place on Sunday, it was a Junior that actually showed everyone how it was done. Fourteen-year-old Birel driver Morgan LeBaron shot past the Mann in the first couple of laps and stayed well ahead of the field for the entire race. He had done the same in the pre-finals and on Saturday, when (perhaps in a bit of showing off) drove one-handed for most of the final, Erik Macke, his closest competitor, a good 40 seconds behind. Look out Seniors, LeBaron is hoping to earn an exception so he can move on up.
TaG Masters also put on a good show on Saturday, as Tim Self in his Intrepid did his best to get past Dave Pauly. Birel, in the pre only to see both end up in the wall. In the finals, it was Juan Castillo and Self in the lead, seconds apart for an exciting finish.
In other races, Kevin Bosien (Birel) took first in Stock 125 both days. Rich Phillips took first in 125 Masters in a close race again Roberto Navarro, both driving Birels. Birel drivers Kyle Delgado and Kyle Maynard traded firsts and seconds in 80cc Junior over the weekend. Austin Self (Intrepid) took first in TaG Gazelle and Junior 1 both days. In TaG Novice, first went to Austin Osborne (Intrepid) in Round three, Joshua Hargett in round four. Kayla Delgado and Cole Runco, each in a Birel, took firsts on Saturday and Sunday in Yamaha Jr.; and in Kid Karts, everyone was a winner, with Kennedy Carter taking home first on Saturday and Ayrton Payne cheerfully displaying his first place trophy Sunday afternoon.
Naskarts, a special four-stroke class at Iron Rock, also put on a show for the crowds at each day’s end. Young Curtis Loeffel took first on Saturday against a group of, you might say, more seasoned gentlemen. Sunday, Mike Steinman took first.
Team Iron Rock was also an eye-opener at the SWRC. Six different lovely ladies were introduced to the teams and the crowd as they took on their role as Iron Rock’s karting “ambassadors.” They spent much of their week promoting the SWRC to local radio stations and the general public at outdoor events.
In addition, Kids Racing for Kids made its debut at Iron Rock. The non-profit program, founded by Tim Self and hosted by the SWRC, presented a $3,000 check to the Dell Children’s Medical Center in Austin. Thus far, eight racers between the ages of 5 and 15 are participating in the volunteer-based program to benefit organizations that provide services to children.