February 22, 2025
Southern National Speedway

by Tim Corder

Bootleg Racing’s Street Stocks Series roared into Southern National Speedway for its eighth race of Season 32 on February 22, 2025.  Jeffery Hardin started on the pole and led all 40 laps, beating Scott Negus to the checkered flag by 0.482 seconds.  Aiden Young took the final podium position and James Lowe and Chris Davis rounded out the top 5.

The race was slowed by just one caution on lap 3.  Exiting turn 2 Steve Hilbert contacted Chris Haizlip, Hilbert spinning as a result onto the back stretch.  Karl Graves also spun as the field tried to navigate around the spinning Hilbert.  The green came back out on lap 8 and the BRL drivers put on their typical close, but clean, racing for the rest of the event.  All but five of the 17 drivers completed the race without incident points.

Only two drivers failed to complete all 40 laps of the event.  Scott Negus showed great speed and race craft, winning both the Fastest Lap of the Race and the Hard Charger of the Race Awards in his second place finish.  Negus turned his 13^th lap of the race in just 15.386 seconds, and, he picked up seven spots from his 9^th place starting position.

The next race of the season will be held at Oswego Speedway on March 1^st.  The Series last visited Oswego in Season 31 on October 19^th, 2024.  That event was caution free with Jeffery Hardin claiming the checkered flag.

February 1, 2025
Stafford Speedway

by Tim Corder

Bootleg Racing’s Street Stock series took to historic Stafford Speedway for race 5 of Season 32 on February 1, 2025.   Ryan Senneker brought the field to the green flag but in the end, it was Ed Foster that claimed the checkered flag, his second win of the season. Completing the top 5 were Todd Liston, Jason Menda, James Lowe, and Donny Moore.

Senneker led the first lap of the race but was passed by second-place starter Ed Sprenger in turns 3 & 4 on the second lap.  Sprenger held the lead for 5 laps before Todd Liston took over the point on lap 7 by passing Sprenger on the inside of turns one and two.  On the same lap eventual winner Ed Foster passed Sprenger on the backstretch to move into second. Liston led until lap 19 when he appeared to slightly get loose in turns one and two. Foster moved to the inside of Liston and completed the pass on the backstretch for the lead, ultimately leading 22 laps of the event.

Some drivers speculated that, rather than monitoring the event, the Tower officials may have tuned into the broadcast of the Cook Out Clash heat races in Bowman Gray. The yellow flag failed to wave a single time despite several incidents of spinning cars during the race. The largest melee occurred on lap 3 when Tom Hilbert, running 4^th at the time, got loose exiting turn 4.  Hilbert’s spinning car bounced off John Wilson’s car, which straightened Hilbert out. Wilson spun to the front stretch grass because of the contact. Eighth place Bruce Pearson, trying to avoid the slowed Hilbert, crossed the nose of 10^th place James Lowe. Pearson joined Wilson on the front stretch grass as a result. All cars involved were able to continue. Hilbert finished 13^th, Wilson 14^th, Pearson 12^th, and Lowe an impressive 4^th.

 Notable awards from the race included:

Highest Finishing of Each Model: Ed Foster (1^st, Thunderbird); Todd Liston (2^nd, Monte Carlo); James Lowe (4^th, Camaro)

Fastest Lap of the Race: Scott Negus, 21.575 seconds (Lap 5)

Hard Charger: Donny Moore, gained 10 places (Started 15^th, Finished 5^th)

Clean Machines (Finished Race with 0 incident points): Foster, Liston, Menda, Moore, Young, Blohm, Negus, Sprenger, Senneker

James Lowe continues to lead the championship standings by 4 points over Ed Foster.  Scott Negus kept third in the points, 12 points behind Lowe.  Donny Moore’s 5^th place finish moved him into a tie for 4^th with Aiden Young.  The pair are 13 points out of the championship lead.

Myrtle Beach Speedway hosts the next event of the series on February 8^th. The series last visited The Grand Strand on May 10, 2024, during Season 30. Donny Moore led 37 of the 40 laps to win the caution-free event.