Extreme Sidecar main event goes sideways for leaders at Fast Fridays

The evening was perfect in Auburn for week three at Fast Fridays Motorcycle Speedway on May 23. A near-capacity crowd showed up at the Gold Country Fairgrounds and was treated to an exciting evening of first-class speedway racing. The weather could not have been better as the sun went behind the stands. The program included the first of five visits from the Extreme Sidecars this season. Loyal Extreme Sidecar fans packed the Fast Fridays stands to watch five two-person teams on 1000cc three-wheel super bikes take to the tricky dirt oval. Competing in four heat races and the main event, the teams of Joe Jones and Johnny Glover, Robert Curry and Michael McGovern, Jason Fritze and Tiffiny Leppien, Wayde Boyd and Eric Lindauer, and Ace Kale and Brent Smith battled to the delight of the fans. Kale/Smith won the first race over Jones/Glover with Jones/Glover handicapping back 30 yards. Jones/Glover won the second heat with Curry/McGovern finishing second. Curry/McGovern led most of the race, but Jones/Glover pulled off a win at the tapes. In the third heat, Jones and Glover had a strong challenge from Fritze and Leppien but again, Jones/Glover got them in another come-from-behind win at the tapes. In heat four, all five teams were bunched in turn one, but it was the team of Boyd and Lindauer emerging for the win. Racing in the main event was tight, but with Jones and Glover leading, they uncharacteristically slid too far out of turn four on lap three and were forced into the infield as Boyd and Lindauer blew by them for the checkered flag. The Extreme Sidecars have four more appearances this season, culminating with the AMA Extreme Sidecar National Championships on Aug. 30. Billy Janniro had another great night, repeating his scratch main event win from the previous week. Janniro placed second to Darren Armbruster in a thrilling neck-and-neck heat race over all four laps. Janniro won his semifinal heat to transfer to the main event, where he lined up in the outside lane to face Broc Nicol, Russell Green and Charlie Trana, who was racing at Fast Fridays for the first time this season. As the tapes went up, this would unfold as one of the best main events in memory. All four riders got to turn one at the same time with no one giving an inch. The race continued like this for all four laps with the riders bunched inches apart and the lead changing several times. Janniro's years of experience as an 11-time AMA National Speedway Champion pulled him through for the win. Nicol was second, Trana was third and Green fourth. Danny Faria earned his first main event win this season in the handicap program. Faria was handicapped on the 10-yard line and did a great job of keeping the deeper yardage riders in line behind him as he also won his heat and semifinal races to turn in a perfect evening. Trana finished second and Green was third. Hunter Castillo came out on top in the Support Division, his first main event win of the season. Castillo was second in his first heat race and won his second heat. Castillo was challenged hard by Catherine Moore in each race. In the main event, Mike Newnham was second and Moore was third. Jameson Hutchinson won the Youth 250cc main event for the second week in a row. Hutchinson won all his races with Wesley Rearick finishing second, Caden Cavrikas third and Justin Gist fourth in each. Riley Rearick won his third main event in Youth 150cc D1. Rearick also won both of his heats. It was a great main event win with Hudson Jones and Zander Schroeder following closely behind Rearick. Jones fell back and Brady Wills filled his spot. Schroeder was second, Wills was third and Jones was fourth. Logan Kerr won all three of his races in the Youth 150cc D2 program, including the main event, his first of the season. Mason Howell was second and Leeann Emerson was third. Hank Hanaway won the Youth 150cc D3 main event, Dexter Orlando was second and Zeva Schroeder was third. The Pee Wees also wowed the crowd, as they do each week, with three heat races. The Team Challenge returns this week with round two of their season-long grudge match. Rounded one ended in a 9-9 tie.