2019CalSpeedMagazineMay

T he threat of rain loomed in the days ahead of Tri-C Karters round #3, but instead it would be (mostly) sunny skies that would welcome the series this past Saturday. The chance of inclement weather kept a few people away on race day, but the CSK Racing group would still see several drivers on the podium when the final checkers flew… 100CC TAG MASTERS The ultra competitive 100cc Masters class would again be hard fought, with the development of the VLR chassis for the category helmed by Mark Connell. Once again he was a threat for the front all day, narrowly missing out on his second pole position in qualifying. Starting from P2, he would lead the majority of the first heat before finally settling for second after a last lap pass. In the second heat he would slot into second spot, but motor woes would see him slip to third before the checkers fell. The CSK Racing team would make a few adjustments between the final heat and the Main, a race that would see a pair of red flags before the 16 laps ran out. Although he would get a solid start, the first red flag would negate all, with no green flag laps being completed. The second start would see him come out of the first few curves in 3rd, and it looked likely another podium was in the works before the second red flag came out and bunched up the field. After the restart, Connell would slip one more spot, the team missing the setup a bit this time around. Finishing just off the podium wasn’t what Connell wanted, but it still was a solid points day in the championship, where he currently sits 2nd. 100CC TAG MASTERS (TOP 5) 1. Robert Perez 795 2. Mark Connell 761 3. Steve Jasinski 744 4. Bryan Williams 712 5. Chad Hawkins 704 206 MASTERS The CSK Racing trio of Lukas Dziemidok, Jose da Silva, and Sean Bradley would be at the front all day for 206 Masters, with da Silva scoring first via his first pole position of the season. Dziemidok would strike back in heat one however, scoring the win with da Silva and Bradley -who scored fast lap- right on his heels. Heat 2 would be more of the same, the three drivers breaking away from the rest of the field and finishing 1-2-3 in the same order; again with Bradley coming away quickest. The Main unfortunately would not go as smoothly, as Bradley would befall trouble in lap one, forcing him to fight back from last right away, eventually settling for 4th. Jose da Silva would be right in the thick of the fight however, leading from the start with Dziemidok just behind. Lukas took his turn at the front after a couple of laps, the duo working together to try and pull away from the rest of the field. About halfway through however, they began to swap positions, and with just a couple of laps to go, it was Lukas in front of Jose. A small mistake from Da Silva would see him slip down the charts, however, allowing Lukas to cruise to his 2nd win in a row for the season. 206 MASTERS (TOP 5) 1. Lukas Dziemidok 800 2. Jose da Silva 767 3. Steve Jasinski 746 4. Sean Bradley 720 5. Mikey Griffin 713 SENIOR 206 Green-white-checkered qualifying for the 206 Senior category would be a close one, with CSK Racing’s TJ Blackledge just missing out on pole position, followed by stablemates Lukas Dziemidok, Seth Willits and Sean Bradley. Once the green fell for the first heat race however, the driver on point was Blackledge, getting out to a comfortable lead after a turn 1 scuffle behind him, and cruising to the win. Unfortunately the aforementioned trio of Dziemidok, Willits, and Bradley would all get collected, and push to get back towards the front. The second heat would be a tougher task, as TJ held off the charge from karting vet Riley Dugan for the top spot, and his second heat win. Behind him, point leader Willits made good on his continued fight to the front, finishing 3rd and in position to finish with solid points. Photos by Heather Perrin Round 3 May 11