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SUPER TRACK SCENE

by LYN PHERIGO

"ERICKSON WINS MODIFIED MAIN EVENT AT SAUGUS SPEEDWAY"

Canoga Park's Jim Erickson won his first-ever Modified main event Saturday night at Saugus Speedway,

pi loting the Erickson Auto Parts Chevelle to victory in the fea ture event. Mike Barnett , Newhall , scored

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his first stocker ova I trium ph of 81 and Ra y Hooper Jr , Va lencia, captured his fi rst figu re 8 ma in event .
Erickson, from his outside-front-row starting position in the 22-car field, powered into the lead at the

drop of the green starting flag and led every lap of the race. Chuck Pittenger, Northridge, who finished

second, pressured Erickson from lap 9 to 25 but Erickson pulled away in the final 15 circuits and won by

over a quarter-lap Hans Wesski, Simi, won a race-long battle for third from fellow-townsman Ron

Hornaday Jr. who finished fourth. Charlie Saied, North Hollywood, was fifth and current point leader

Tru Cheek, Sylmar, was sixth. They were the only cars of the 15 finishers on the lead lap.

Gary Johnson, Valencia, set fast time of 16·06 in the sleek, first-time-out Durbin Inc. Camaro.

Ken Davis, West Covina, won the trophy dash, Erickson and L.A. Woodside, Saugus, won heat races in

other Modified action.

Barnett also won from the outside-front-row starting position but pole-sitter Bryan Hayden, Canyon

Country, led the initial nine laps before Barnett gained the lead and we nt on to victory. It was, as usual,

a very competitive battle with 15 of the 24 starters finishing and all of them running on the lead lap. J im

McAlister, Cha tsworth, fi nished second ahead of John Cran, Reseda, third, Rona ld tv\a in, Cha tsworth ,

fourth and Dave Ha rrison, Sylmar, fifth. Kevin McCurdy, Ve ntura, won the dash whi le Barnett and Main

were victorious in the preliminary heat races.

Hooper, out of his fourth starting position, went to the front on the first lap and led the rest of the way

in his figure e ight triumph . Te n of the fifteen finishers were running on the lead lap at the c heckered.

Newha 11 's David Hard won the trophy dash and Jim Garde Ila, Valencia, was first in the heat race.