Page 9 - 2022CalSpeedMagazineJan

Round 1 - Jan 22
The endurance arm of in the CalSpeed repertoire saw its 13th season get underway this past Saturday, as the 2022 Ironman Series campaign took to the Sportivo track to kick of the 10 round
championship. Met with high winds that would last the duration of not only the event but the day itself, having a partner would be paramount in a good finish, utilizing the draft to get the best lap time possible...
But before the once around the clock event could get underway, qualifying would have to take place, the sold-out field of 30 drivers taking to the track in two groups, each clocking a pair of laps in the green/white/checkered session to set the grid for the season opener. This is the lone time they would qualify -as each subsequent round is an invert from the previous event- and a familiar face would be atop the pile: Andres Prieto.
It was Prieto’s second pole position in as many years, and he would lead the field in the single-file start, and up the hill into Kimbrell for the very first time, towing fellow strong qualifiers Sean Fite, Ayrton Demoss, Jose da Silva, and Matt Justmann. Of the quintet that started out front, only the front three would stay there.
Working up from 11th on the grid, Sportivo ace Alyssa Yauney would start to make inroads to the front as soon as the green fell, snagging up 5 spots in the first lap alone. Linking up with up-and-coming talent Chase Nickells at that point, the pairing slowly started to make work on the lead group that was about a second up the road. Da Silva was caught on lap four, and dispatched on lap five, and the duo went to work again to eat up the second or so there was up to Ayrton Demoss in third. Having lost the draft of the top two, it was quick work for the pairing to bridge the gap t Demoss, but once there, Yauney wasted no time in claiming the leadership role, moving to the front of the three-pack to chase down the leaders.
Once there however, it was clear that any one of the group had a shot, with the new quintet of Fite, Prieto, Yauney, Demoss, and Nickells all showing they were the ones to beat. As is often the case, the difference would come in traffic, and in pit strategy, with the first of the front five to blink being the aforementioned pole sitter Andres Prieto, ducking down pit lane on lap 34, followed two laps later by Nickells. This would be the turning point for both drivers, each exiting in opener air, and with the wind what it was with no drafting partner, the front three would eventually break away.
The lead trio would wait until inside the ten-minute board held at start finish before electing to come down pit lane for the first time, with leader at the time Alyssa Yauney making the first move. The very next lap it was Demoss, followed by Fite after another circuit around; Demoss would exit right behind here, but Fite would lose a second in the transition, and then elect to undercut by pitting immediately again. The damage was done however, and now it was Yauney VS Demoss for the win, with the former again pitting first, and the latter following suit one lap later, this time finding his way by as the pair took the white flag. Yauney used the wind to her advantage up the main straight, re-taking the lead into the first corner, a lead she would not give up scoring the win, with Demoss settling for second, and Sean Fite round out the podium in third about three seconds astern...