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Labor Day Weekend 2008 will be remembered as the traditional sprint car racing debut of the Benson Racing Team. The location of the debut is one that most who have never raced without a wing would not have picked – the beautiful but dangerous Calistoga Speedway. For the Benson Racing Team competing in the Louie Vermeil Classic August 30th and 31st, 2008 was something that the Calistoga based team felt was something akin to destiny.

While the team learned a volume of knowledge about what it takes to compete in a traditional sprint event the most positive thing that came out of the weekend beyond that was that it was a safe one. Mike Benson timed in 23rd fast out of 32 cars on Saturday and improved that to 20th out of 31 cars on Sunday. Additionally the team missed a direct transfer out of their heat races and just barely so on Saturday as another competitor beat them by a nose for fourth place in that heat race. At the end of the weekend’s racing the team’s best finish was a ninth place finish in the semi main which is where they finished both Saturday and Sunday.

At this time it is unclear when the team will compete in another traditional sprint racing event. Both the team and driver believe that with these two events under their belt they can be competitive the next time the opportunity presents itself. Many veteran drivers, let alone drivers with no experience racing without a wing, admit being a little intimidated by the prospect of racing “topless” at a place as fast as Calistoga. The Benson Racing Team can confidently put that apprehension behind them as they consider the prospect of future traditional sprint events.

Almost immediately following the busy Labor Day Weekend the team competed in a rare Wednesday event at Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico on September 3rd. The event was the “Pacific Sprint Invitational” which kicks off the prestigious “Gold Cup Race of Champions” and is open only to the top 31 teams in the California Civil War Series. Since the team holds down a solid fourth place in the standings there was no question about whether or not they would be invited to compete in this high profile event.

The evening started off with driver Mike Benson setting the 22nd quickest qualifying time out of the 31 cars making time trial runs. Disappointed as they were with their qualifying time the team dug in and made the most of it as the pressure was on to maintain their top four position in the standings. In heat race competition a direct transfer to the feature event was secured by placing fourth.

Lining up eighteenth in the 30 lap feature event the team knew they had their work cut out for them. A march toward the front was going to be necessary in order to maintain their position in the point standings and the feature event was 30 laps around the lightning quick high-banked quarter mile oval. At the conclusion of the feature event the team had secured an impressive eighth place finish and maintained a comfortable lead on the competitor that holds fifth place in the standings.

With just three races remaining in the California Civil War Series and all of them on the high speed quarter mile ovals the team loves to compete on the goal of a top five finish remains in reach. This coming weekend on September 13th the team will make their fourth and final appearance of the season at Petaluma Speedway. After that it is their second longest tow of the year to Ocean Speedway in Watsonville on September 20th before returning to the familiar confines of Placerville Speedway for the series finale on September 27th.

Traditional 410 Sprint Cars return to Calistoga Speedway for 2 days of USAC Non Wing Sprints & Midgets. 1435 N Oak St, Calistoga, CA – (707) 942-5111 – Calistoga Speedway: View Map