Rocky Mountain Race Week 1.0 Hits the Finish Line – Goldstone Becomes Second Competitor to Average a 6-Second Time, Index Class Battles Go to the Very End, and 19 Class Champions are Crowned in Tulsa
Six days of driving and racing reached the ultimate conclusion last night, as the tenth running of Rocky Mountain Race Week (RMRW) Presented by Sick the Magazine hit the finish line at Tulsa Raceway Park.
Back to where the week started in Oklahoma, a little more than 240 of the 314 vehicles and seven of twelve motorcycles that started the event on Sunday, could say they completed the final day’s 132-mile drive to survive the final hurdle of an event spanning over three states, four tracks, and 100-plus degree temperatures.
Route 66 + drag-and-drive = the ultimate event of 2024? Don’t miss Edelbrock Sick 66, October 10th-18th, 2024. It’s Route 66, plus 6 different race tracks and over 50 checkpoints. Don’t miss your chance to join us - either as a competitor, or as part of Sick Ward - CLICK HERE for more information.
Coming into this year’s RMRW, only one competitor had ever posted a 6-second average: Larry Larson with a 6.91 at the inaugural event in 2015. Bryant Goldstone aimed to not only make it two drivers in that elite club, but challenge the long-standing record of Larson.
Battling through a ripped oil pan, fuel injector issues and problems making boost, Goldstone continued to pound out 6-second runs throughout the week. He opened with a 6.81 at 216 mph on Sunday, then overcame the ripped oil pan in route to Texas, where he dropped a best of the week 6.76 at 218 mph.
Thunder Valley saw Goldstone produce a 6.93 at a lifting 180 mph, giving him two drives to make and one track to negotiate to complete RMRW 1.0. Thursday’s drive greeted Goldstone with alternator issues, but he made it to Mo-Kan Dragway.
Four possible goals were now within reach: winning class, completing an all 6-second week, taking over the RMRW average record, and becoming the second competitor with a 6-second average. After getting loose on the first run, Goldstone came back around for a second shot. He needed a 7.132 or better to take the record, and unfortunately the second run came in at 7.342, pushing his average to a 6.962.
However, Goldstone completed the drive back to Tulsa Raceway Park and staged the ’73 AMC, securing his third major drag-and-drive win of the season, and his second victory in two weeks’ time.
Jim Parkison led the Outlaw Street class from start to finish, clocking the quickest times at each and every track visit. The ’78 Chevrolet Camaro started with an 8.61, then improved to an 8.40, an 8.39 and an 8.42 to finish the week with an 8.461 average.
The only other competitor to clock 8-second times in the class, an 8.74 average was good enough for Brady Davis to collect second place, and Kenneth McGarry claimed third with an 8.90 average.
Limited Street had Ryan Minyard leading from the first day with his ’78 Chevy Malibu, but Steven Willingham would stay right on his tail the entire week.
Minyard opened up a solid lead with an 8.79 and 8.68 on the first two track days, but Willingham tried to close the gap by running quicker at Thunder Valley and Mo-Kan, the latter producing his best run of the week at 8.519.
Willingham’s average came in at 8.70, but it came up short of the 8.68 average from Minyard, giving the Malibu driver the class victory.
The eighth-mile based Rowdy Radial class had three cars capable of low 5-second performances, but by the end of the week, it was down to Donavan Linwood and Aaron Shaffer.
A past winner in the Limited Street class, Shaffer made the move to the 26-inch-tall x 8.5-inch-wide tire class, and gave Linwood a solid effort.
But the ’89 Mustang of Linwood was in control from start-to-finish, using a pair of 5.18 laps from Tulsa and Thunder Valley to arrive at a 5.20 average for the victory over Shaffer’s 5.46 average.
Hot Rod was all Walter Doyle, as he commanded the class from the word ‘go.’ The ’66 Chevelle had Tim Meyer and his ’67 Pontiac breathing down his neck after Texas Motorplex on the second day of racing, but Doyle dug deep for a pair of 8-second blasts at Thunder Valley and M-Kan, an 8.61 and 8.70, to compile an 8.91 average.
Meyer’s 9.31 tally finished second in the averages, and fellow Chevelle owner Danny Romanski’s 9.85 average scored the third spot.
Stick Shift brought 28 gear jammers to the start of RMRW, and a familiar name started the week on top when ‘Bangshift Billy’ Armstrong produced a 9.11 time slip.
Although Armstrong slowed with issues at the third track of the week, Thunder Valley Raceway Park, he rebounded for a 9.06 pass on the final day to average 9.31.
That was enough to secure the win over Nathan Curran’s 9.43 average and the 9.67 tally from Joel Magill to round out the top three spots.
Small Block Naturally Aspirated was all Sean Stanford, and the 2020 model Chevy Camaro laid down all 9-second laps.
He started with a 9.57 at Tulsa, capped the week with a 9.58 at Mo-Kan, and dropped a 9.65 and 9.64 at Texas Motorplex and Thunder Valley. That put his average at 9.61, over eight tenths of-a-second ahead of second place Keith Horton and PJ Schultz landed in third.
Only one Index class of the five contested had the same leader from start to finish, and it was the largest one as well, the 12-Second Index class. Nearly 50 rides staged up at Tulsa Raceway Park for the chance to post the best pass on Sunday, and Nicholas Roberts would do the best with a 12.006 pass.
After the drive day was complete, Roberts brought the heat to Texas with a perfect 12.000 pass on day three. A 12.025 pass at Thunder Valley would be Roberts slowest pass of the week, but kept him at the front of the pack.
The final shot for the group to unseat Roberts would be Mo-Kan, but Roberts slammed the door with a 12.015 pass to compile a 12.011725 average.
Derek Keller did the did of the rest for the second spot, using a trio of 12.00 runs, including one perfect 12.000 pass, for a 12.01425 average in his 2004 Silverado pick-up. Chris Allen added another pick-up truck to the top three with his 2023 F-150 calculating out at 12.03275. Sick the Magazine editor Luke Nieuwhof completed his first drag-and-drive event as a competitor, averaging 12.14 to finish fifteenth out of 43 rides that finished in the class.
Austin Allsup stayed the most consistent and the quickest ride in the Junior Street class, with his quickest run on day one 9.073 and the slowest on day three at 9.108.
Between the two, he clocked back-to-back 9.08 passes at Thunder Valley and Mo-Kan, securing his second-straight Junior Street class victory!
In stark contrast to the winners of Unlimited, the lead changed hands in several class throughout the week, sometimes on each day of competition!
Ultimate Radial started the event with Ricky Daniels in front of Brad Thiessen as both competitors clocked 7.9-second times, but Thiessen jumped in front at Texas Motorplex after a 7.61 to 7.85 advantage over Daniels.
Thiessen strengthened the lead with a 7.61 at Thunder Valley, but the tide turned at Mo-Kan when Thiessen lost either a head gasket or a cylinder head was damaged, slowing him to an 8.82.
That gave Daniels the chance to get by, and he did with an 8.03 pass for a 7.89 average and the class win. Jason King claimed second when Thiessen couldn’t return to Tulsa, and Trevor Wilson landed third.
The Pro Street class didn’t start with Adam Crego at the front of the pack, but he made sure to end the event in the top spot.
The 1968 Chevy Nova was the lone car in the class to produce 8-second time slips at every track, and after the initial leader Mike Hazelwood joined four other class competitors on the sidelines, Crego kept the hammer down to finish with an 8.78 average.
David Bell’s Chevrolet pick-up averaged a 9.05 for second place, and Anthony Reed’s 9.55 snatched up third.
Motorcycle started with five riders in the 9-second range on day one, but by day two, Shane Werner moved past Chris Baker and Dustin Moody for the top spot.
He continued to light the scoreboards with the best runs of the class, and his 9.72 average would earn first over Donavan Leeder in second, and third place Pete Chongris.
The Gasser class had five eligible rides at the start of RMRW, but by the time they rolled into Thunder Valley Raceway Park, only two remained.
It would be a tight battle between Reggie Moore and Fred Cullon, and the 12.08 average from Moore’s 1930 Model A was quick enough to hold off the 12.11 average from Cullon.
A game of musical chairs played out in the Naturally Aspirated Big Block class, and Carlos Astor would be the first to lead with his ’81 Cutlass clocking a 9.43 pass on day one.
By the end of day three, Astor was out, and Bob Ruppel had gotten the lead with a pair of mid 10-second passes. But right behind him was John Daugherty, and the spot changed hands after Thunder Valley was complete, as Daugherty’s 10.51 average led the 10.55 from Ruppel.
The final day saw the slots change one more time, as Ruppel’s best of-the-week 10.20 pass moved his average to 10.46, just a tad bit ahead of the Daugherty’s 10.48 average to give Ruppel the win. Zane Ogle’s 11.53 average would take the third spot.
The quickest of the Index classes, 9-Second Index had Jeremy Wilson and his 1972 Nova in the top spot through the first two track days with a stellar 9.009 average.
But at Thunder Valley, the lead changed hands to Shawn Slaubaugh, who put his 2001 Pontiac Trans Am in front. He ran up his fourth-straight 9.0-second pass at Mo-Kan to amass a 9.033 average to keep Wilson’s 9.04 average at bay by just seven thousandths of-a-second! Dustyn Caudle’s familiar ’78 Isuzu pick-up grabbed the third spot.
In the 10-Second Index class, it was an all-Ford battle at the top. The 2015 Mustang of Mike Mead grabbed the early lead with a 10.01 shot at Tulsa, but Kyle Calkins was within reach with a 10.05 pass for his ’78 Fairmont.
Both slowed a tick in Texas, but Mead remained ahead thanks to a 10.07 to 10.09 time slip difference. Back in Oklahoma, Calkins started to make up the difference with a 10.02 pass over Mead’s 10.04.
On the final track day at Mo-Kan, Mead posted his slowest time of the week at 10.08. that gave Calkins just enough room to slip around with a 10.03, finalizing his average at 10.0529 for the win.
Mead was just .0026 of-a-second behind at 10.0555 for second, and Brandon Coddington added some Chevrolet flavor to the top three with a 10.07 average from his ’68 Camaro.
In contrast to the 10-Second class, it would be all General Motors in the top three of the 11-Second Index class. Landon Jensen started the week in the front spot, thanks to the 11.002 time slip he collected in Tulsa.
The ’76 Chevy Nova stayed in front at Texas Motorplex with an 11.019 result, and Jensen held on in Thunder Valley with an 11.058 result.
But Derek Lewis was within reach of that top slot, and when Jensen slipped to an 11.11 at Mo-Kan, Lewis pounced with an 11.04 to jump to the number one spot with an 11.04025 average, putting Jensen less than a hundredth of-a-second behind into second with an 11.049625 average!
David Glanzer rounded out the top three with his 2009 Pontiac carding an 11.054 average.
It would be a household battle between husband and wife in the 13-Second Index class, with Nichole Ledesma taking the initial lead with a 13.012 pass in Tulsa with the family 2023 Mustang Mach E.
Husband Alan wasn’t too far behind with a 13.067 run in the sixth spot after day one, but jumped into the top spot in Texas with a 13.015, while Nichole slowed to a 13.089.
Back in Oklahoma, Alan carded his second-straight 13.01 pass, but Nichole did a little better with a 13.003 run, narrowing the average difference to just .004 of-a-second!
That meant the showdown was set for Mo-Kan, and the tables would turn as Alan slowed to a 13.066, while Nichole stayed hot with a 13.01, giving her a 13.028575 average to finish just over a hundredth of-a-second ahead of the 13.0395 average from Alan.
Robin Mackey made it an all-Ford top three with a 13.0725 for the third spot.
The final Index class would be the 14-Second Index version, and Jennifer Gilliard started the week number one courtesy of the 14.018 from her 2023 Dodge Durango.
That lead would change hands in Texas, as Gilliard slowed to a 14.35, allowing Jennifer Burst to guide her 2015 Camaro into the top spot with a 14.06 average.
Burst produced a second-straight 14.04 in Thunder Valley to stay at the top, but fellow Mopar runner Josh Odom was just .008 of-a-second behind on averages!
Burst clocked a 14.09 at the final track in Mo-Kan, her slowest run of the week, and that gave Odom the room to maneuver around her with his 2006 Dodge Magnum for a 14.02 final run, and a 14.05395 average for the win.
Travis Boltman slid into second with a 14.06025 average from his 2010 Camaro, and Burst claimed third with a 14.06625 average.
The final day includes several options, including three shootouts, a large bracket race, and even fun runs for the Roadweekers!
The quickest eight cars landed in the Fast As F*** 8 Shootout class, where Steven Willingham took the win over Jim Parkison.
Rookie RMRW participant Ben Wakeling scored the Bad Mother F***** 8 Shootout victory, Jack Crawford picked up the Quick 16 Shootout win in his 1972 Ford LTD, and Cameron Thorpe survived seven rounds to capture the Bracket Race title.
Written by Derek Putnam. Photos courtesy of Sick the Magazine, 1320 Video, Chris Story Foto and Steve McDermott.
If you have thoughts / feedback / ideas, please e-mail us at derek@sickthemagazine.com