Crockett smokes NWWT sprints

If you’re Roger Crockett, winning never gets old. It’s even better when you’re out of your element. Running without the wings for just the second time in his career, Crockett took the checkers in the NorthWest Wingless Tour 360 sprint car Summer Shootout event at Cottage Grove Speedway on Saturday night.

Ironically, Crockett also won his first time out in a non-wing car. However, that September show at Willamette Speedway was a on a very dry slick track where he needed to just carefully idle around the bottom of the track. Saturday at Cottage Grove, he was kept busy by a tacky, fast and challenging track.

The next currently scheduled event in the inaugural season for the NorthWest Wingless Tour is Saturday, July 18th at Cottage Grove Speedway. More information on the NorthWest Wingless Tour can be found online at http://www.nwwinglesstour.com

Rivers recovering after NWWT crash

Sprint car racer Jeffrey Rivers is at home recovering after a hard crash in Saturday's NorthWest Wingless Tour sprint car feature at Cottage Grove Speedway.

According to the Rivers Family, the young driver out of Lebanon, Ore. suffered a concussion in the crash as well as broken blood vessels in one eye and a hurt knee. Rivers drives the John Rivers No. 45 Chevy-powered Rocket. Rivers started the scheduled 30-lap NorthWest Wingless Tour main event inside the fourth row. Rivers moved up to the second position behind leader Kyle Miller on Lap 11. On Lap 17, Rivers began putting pressure on Miller for the lead. Miller was running at the very top of the track while Rivers was pulling even with Miller using the very bottom of the track in the turns. Miller was able to see Rivers getting alongside and on Lap 19 he tried to go low to see if he could stay ahead of Rivers.

Problem was, Rivers and Miller went for the same piece of track at the same time. Rivers right side wheels went over Miller's left side wheels as they rounded the second turn of the 1/4-mile, high-banked clay oval. The contact resulted in Rivers going for a wild tumble upside down entering the back stretch, ending his evening. John Rivers says Jeffrey hopes and expects to be well enough to return to competition in time for the NorthWest Wingless Tour's next event, which is Friday, June 5th at Willamette Speedway. The event is the first night of the NWWT's Summer Shootout Series, which concludes the next night at Cottage Grove Speedway. Jeffrey's health is one thing, but finances are another. The No. 45 is an unsponsored car and funds are tight at the moment.

Despite the lack of sponsorship, the Rivers Family is hopeful they will be back on the track June 5th. More information on the NorthWest Wingless Tour can be found online at http://www.nwwinglesstour.com.

NWWT: Barraza/Margeson grab wins

When local classes were rolling onto the track for hotlaps, Kyler Barraza was not around and it was speculated that the NorthWest Wingless Tour's inaugural sprint car feature winner would not come at all.

A few hours later, Barraza was sitting in victory lane after a wild evening to make himself 2-for-2 in NWWT competition. The NWWT midgets held their inaugural event on Saturday and it was Tacoma, Wash. driver Evan Margeson, a standout in pavement midgets, sweeping the entire evening in his first ever dirt midget start. It was his first time racing at Cottage Grove Speedway.

The NorthWest Wingless Tour's next races are on back-to-back nights in June as the NWWT's first "Summer Shootout" takes place on June 5th and 6th at Willamette Speedway and Cottage Grove Speedway. Points will be tallied over the two nights and the top five point scorers in each division will earn bonus money from the NWWT.

More information on the NWWT can be found online at http://www.nwwinglesstour.com