Category: Series/Season Standings

Thursday Night “Under the Lights” Series, Round 4 — Night Moves & Lexan Lightning: The Sportsman Division Steals the Show

Wow! While we typically have a little drama in the Expert ranks, this round of the series was all about the Sportsman division bringing the heat on the Experts. A big thanks to Dean for his superb promotional skills, bringing together another great group of Slotheads for some extremely competitive racing and an absolutely outstanding array of great food and hydration products.

AI-Generated Analysis

The April 23-24 “Under the Lights” event at Stewart Raceway II was a masterclass in trigger control and endurance. The SR3 Road Course (with that treacherous squeeze lane) separated the contenders from the pack, yielding some spectacular battles between the Expert and Sportsman classes.

Short Story

Here is the final breakdown of the April 23–24 “Under the Lights” event, separated into the Sportsman and Expert divisions. This highlights just how intensely the Sportsman drivers challenged the overall standings.

Sportsman Division Summary

The Sportsman division was the true story of the event, with drivers consistently outperforming class expectations and taking the fight directly to the Experts.

  • John Rogers: John led the Sportsman charge, securing an incredible 2nd place overall across the entire field with 378 total laps and 205 points. He captured 5 segment wins across the four races and recorded a blisteringly fast 3.223-second lap in the Viper V-SPEC class. He also laid down the fastest lap of the entire event in the Mustang class (6.797s).

  • Cece Caro: Cece was the ultimate endurance driver, finishing 4th place overall with 360 laps and tying for 3rd in overall points (186). She accomplished the rare feat of winning a segment in every single car class she entered (4 total segment wins) and matched John Rogers’ 3.223-second fast lap in the Viper V-SPECs.

  • Ramsey Wright: Competing in three of the four races, Ramsey captured 6th place overall with 241 laps and 122 points. His strongest showing was in the Mustang class where he broke the 100-lap barrier (104 laps), and he achieved a personal event-best lap of 6.689s in the Lites.

  • Trakker Clay: Trakker also ran a three-race schedule, finishing right behind Ramsey in 7th place overall with 231 laps and 101 points. He successfully secured a segment win in the tricky Mustang class and logged his fastest lap of the night (7.090s) in the Lites.

Expert Division Summary

The Expert drivers had to fight tooth and nail to defend their positions on the leaderboard, especially on the technical SR3 Squeeze Lane track.

  • Dean Donaldson: Dean relied on his veteran consistency to secure 3rd place overall with 362 laps and 186 points, narrowly beating Cece Caro by just two laps for the final podium spot. He picked up 2 segment wins over the course of the event and laid down a 3.298-second fast lap in the Viper V-SPECs.

  • Dustin Jolley: Despite only running the first three races, Dustin was a dominant force, taking 5th place overall with 267 laps and 169 points. He tied for the most non-Stewart segment wins (5 total) and was a constant threat at the top of the heat charts, clocking a 5.776s fast lap in the Lites.

  • Joe Clarke: Joe completed a solid three-race run to finish 8th place overall with 220 laps and 108 points. His best pure speed came in the Lites class, where he recorded a 6.592s fastest lap.

  • Steve Stewart: Steve secured 1st place overall with 395 laps and 239 points. He collected 11 segment wins and the overall fastest lap of the event at 3.211s in the Viper V-SPEC class.

Let’s drop the green flag on the results!

Event Summary: A Sportsman Revolution

The overarching story of this event is the incredible rise of the Sportsman drivers challenging the established Expert hierarchy. While Steve Stewart (Expert) secured the highest overall lap count, the true fireworks happened throughout the rest of the field.

Cece Caro (Sportsman) deserves a massive standing ovation for her phenomenal overall results. She logged a staggering 360 laps across all four grueling races, securing 4th place overall and tying for 3rd in total points. Her ability to stay smooth, keep the car in the slot, and put pressure on the Expert class is a testament to her growing skill.

John Rogers (Sportsman) was an absolute powerhouse, capturing 2nd place overall with 378 laps. Time and time again, John out-paced the Experts, proving that pure speed and consistency can shatter class boundaries.

Dean Donaldson (Expert) utilized his veteran experience to navigate the squeeze lane, banking 362 laps to edge onto the overall podium in 3rd place.

The Sprinters: Partial-Event Highlights

A grueling 4-race schedule isn’t for everyone, but the drivers who joined for the first three legs left a massive impact on the timing sheets:

  • Dustin Jolley (Expert): Dustin was a lethal force in the opening three classes, racking up 267 laps. He finished 2nd in the Midgets and consistently threatened the top of the leaderboard.

  • Ramsey Wright (Sportsman): Ramsey put together a beautiful 241-lap campaign. His performance peaked in the Mustang class with a rock-solid 104 laps.

  • Trakker Clay (Sportsman): Trakker drove a smart, tactical series to claim 231 laps. His consistency in the tricky Mustang class (103 laps) was fantastic.

  • Joe Clarke (Expert): Joe brought the heat for 220 laps, saving his best push for the Mustang class where he broke the 7.3-second barrier.

Detailed Race Analysis

Race 1: MegaG+ 1.7 65 Mustang Ken Miles Team Clarke (i)

The opening race set the tone for the Sportsman uprising. John Rogers (S) tied Expert driver Dustin Jolley at 111 laps, with John laying down an incredibly fast 6.797s lap. Dean Donaldson (E) stayed right in their mirrors with 110 laps. Cece Caro (S) drove a brilliantly clean race to bank 106 laps, easily holding off the rest of the pack.

Pace Summary (Best Segments)

Driver Class Total Laps Fast Lap Best Median Lap
Dustin Jolley Expert 111 6.810 7.372
John Rogers Sportsman 111 6.797 7.400
Dean Donaldson Expert 110 6.896 7.866
Cece Caro Sportsman 106 7.310 8.194
Ramsey Wright Sportsman 104 7.601 9.136
Trakker Clay Sportsman 103 8.119 8.747
Joe Clarke Expert 92 7.242 10.069
Steve Stewart Expert 120 6.834 7.319

Race 2: Mega-G+ 1.7 Lites (Support Class)

The Lites class requires incredible momentum management. Dustin Jolley (E) and John Rogers (S) engaged in another epic duel, deadlocking at 77 laps apiece. Cece Caro (S) was spectacular, falling short of the leaders by just one single lap (76 laps) and putting down a blazing 5.927s fast lap. Dean Donaldson (E) and Trakker Clay (S) rounded out a highly competitive top-mid field.

Pace Summary (Best Segments)

Driver Class Total Laps Fast Lap Best Median Lap
Dustin Jolley Expert 77 5.776 6.364
John Rogers Sportsman 77 5.838 6.163
Cece Caro Sportsman 76 5.927 6.302
Dean Donaldson Expert 71 5.520 6.662
Trakker Clay Sportsman 65 7.090 7.771
Ramsey Wright Sportsman 63 6.689 7.412
Joe Clarke Expert 61 6.592 8.785
Steve Stewart Expert 80 5.511 5.870

Race 3: OS3 TFX Midget Paper (i)

These paper-bodied midgets are notoriously tricky to drive. Dustin Jolley (E) found the sweet spot, pacing the field (aside from Stewart) with 79 laps. John Rogers (S) again showed his versatility, slotting in right behind with 78 laps and the second-fastest lap of the class (9.306s). A brilliant three-way tie emerged mid-pack, with Cece Caro (S), Ramsey Wright (S), and Dean Donaldson (E) all grinding out exactly 74 laps in a true test of nerve.

Pace Summary (Best Segments)

Driver Class Total Laps Fast Lap Best Median Lap
Dustin Jolley Expert 79 9.618 10.480
John Rogers Sportsman 78 9.306 10.500
Cece Caro Sportsman 74 9.545 11.082
Ramsey Wright Sportsman 74 9.857 11.211
Dean Donaldson Expert 74 9.878 10.778
Joe Clarke Expert 67 9.813 12.864
Trakker Clay Sportsman 63 10.514 12.301
Steve Stewart Expert 80 8.817 9.687

Race 4: Viper V-SPEC SPEC STOCK Lexan

With the field narrowed down to four endurance warriors, the Lexan Vipers delivered absolute warp-speed lap times. John Rogers (S) capped off a brilliant event by completing 112 laps, keeping the pressure on the Experts until the final buzzer. Dean Donaldson (E) locked in 107 laps with a blistering 3.298s best lap, while Cece Caro (S) finished her iron-woman run with 104 laps, dipping down into a 3.223s fastest lap—proving her reflexes are sharp enough to run at the absolute limit.

Pace Summary (Best Segments)

Driver Class Total Laps Fast Lap Best Median Lap
John Rogers Sportsman 112 3.223 3.517
Dean Donaldson Expert 107 3.298 3.601
Cece Caro Sportsman 104 3.223 3.449
Steve Stewart Expert 115 3.211

Segment Wins Breakdown

Winning a segment requires absolute focus. Here is a breakdown of the segment victories by driver and car class for the April 23-24 races:

      • John Rogers (Sportsman) – 5 Total Wins: Mustang (1), Lites (1), Midget (2), Viper V-SPEC (1)
      • Dustin Jolley (Expert) – 5 Total Wins: Mustang (1), Lites (2), Midget (2)
      • Cece Caro (Sportsman) – 4 Total Wins: Mustang (1), Lites (1), Midget (1), Viper V-SPEC (1)
      • Dean Donaldson (Expert) – 2 Total Wins: Mustang (1), Lites (1)
      • Trakker Clay (Sportsman) – 1 Total Win: Mustang (1)

Here is the breakdown of the absolute fastest single laps recorded during the April 23–24, 2026 races.

While the Expert class captured three of the four fastest overall laps, the margins highlight just how fiercely the Sportsman drivers were pushing the limits. John Rogers (Sportsman) struck first by claiming the fastest lap in the opening Mustang race. In the final Viper V-SPEC race, Sportsman drivers John Rogers and Cece Caro were only 0.012 seconds behind the absolute fastest time of the night.

Fastest Laps: April 23-24 Event

Car Class Track Fastest Driver Category Lane Lap Time
MegaG+ 1.7 65 Mustang Ken Miles Team Clarke (i) SR3 Road Course Squeeze Lane John Rogers Sportsman Green 6.797s
Mega-G+ 1.7 Lites (Support Class) SR3 Road Course Squeeze Lane Steve Stewart Expert Blue 5.511s
OS3 TFX Midget Paper (i) SR3 Road Course Squeeze Lane Steve Stewart Expert Blue 8.817s
Viper V-SPEC SPEC STOCK Lexan Stewart Raceway II Straight Road Course Steve Stewart Expert Blue 3.211s

Notable Runner-Ups

    • Lites (Support Class): Dean Donaldson (Expert) was a mere 0.009 seconds off the fastest lap, clocking a 5.520s in the White lane.
    • Viper V-SPEC: John Rogers (Sportsman) and Cece Caro (Sportsman) tied for the second-fastest lap at 3.223s, with both drivers achieving this blisteringly fast time in the Yellow lane.

Series Standings after Round 4

The Sportsman drivers continued to show immense dedication, with John Rogers and Cece Caro banking a massive amount of laps and points that rival the top Experts.

Sportsman Division – Final Points Standings

John Rogers took the top honors in the Sportsman division, breaking the 600-point threshold, while Cece Caro secured a highly impressive second place in the class with over 500 points.

Rank Driver Total Points Total Laps
1 John Rogers 606 1201
2 Cece Caro 508 1123
3 Trakker Clay 161 379
4 Ramsey Wright 122 241
5 Jeff Seltzer 94 254
6 Jerry Strebig 72 157
7 Bev Seltzer 67 235
8 Mark Wialbut 65 235

Expert Division – Final Points Standings

In the Expert class, Dustin Jolley managed to edge out Dean Donaldson in total points (737 to 716) despite Dean completing 81 more total laps across the event. Kevin Webster rounded out the Expert field, having competed primarily in the early stages of the event.

Rank Driver Total Points Total Laps
1 Dustin Jolley 737 1401
2 Dean Donaldson 716 1482
3 Joe Clarke 246 567
4 Kevin Webster 125 288
– Steve Stewart 860 1566

As always, thank you to all of you participating in this way-cool series and all the swag and goodies you bring to the events to help make this kind of program so successful.

Next Thursday night is out for Kathy and me. Maybe Friday might work, we’ll see. If not, the following Thursday looks doable for us right now. I’ll post a couple of Round 5 Google Calendar options ASAP.

Note: You can skip one race in each series and still be in the points hunt. We take the best four events of each driver to determine the five-event series winner in each division.

Okay, shut up and drive.

Monday Night “Under The Lights” April 6, 2026 — Only Two Races, But They Were Epic!

AI-generated race analysis from the April 6th and 7th events at the SR3 Road Course Squeeze Lane, segmented to highlight the intense battles within both the Expert Division (Steve Stewart, Dean Donaldson, Dustin Jolley) and the Sportsman Division (Jeff Seltzer, Bev Seltzer, Mark Wialbut).

Overall Event Summary & Closest Finishes

The combined results across both classes created two distinct, thrilling narratives: a battle for second place in the Expert division and an absolute dead heat in the Sportsman division.

    • The Expert Duel: Steve Stewart dominated the event overall with 310 total laps. However, the closest finish of the entire event was between Dean Donaldson and Dustin Jolley. In Race 1, they tied exactly at 97 laps. In Race 2, Dean squeezed out 195 laps to Dustin’s 194. Ultimately, Dean claimed 2nd place overall with 292 laps, besting Dustin’s 291 by a single lap.

    • The Sportsman Dead Heat: Jeff Seltzer comfortably led the Sportsman group with 254 total laps. The battle for 5th overall, however, resulted in an exact tie in lap count between Bev Seltzer and Mark Wialbut, both completing exactly 235 laps across both races. Bev claimed 5th place on a tiebreaker, edging Mark out on segment points (67 to 65).

Race 1 Detailed Report: MegaG+ 1.7 Formula e (18v)

Track: SR3 Road Course Squeeze Lane

Segment Length: 25 Laps

Steve Stewart ran a flawless race, winning three of the six segments to take 1st place. Dean Donaldson and Dustin Jolley fought hard, both ending on the same lap, with Dustin officially taking 2nd on points/run time. In the Sportsman group, Jeff Seltzer put together a highly consistent run, while Mark and Bev traded fastest times in the later segments. Details

Race 1 Driver Performance Table

Place Division Driver Total Laps Total Points Fastest Lap Lane of Fastest Lap
1 Expert Steve Stewart 100 58 5.454s Orange (Seg 3)
2 Expert Dustin Jolley 97 58 5.540s Blue (Seg 6)
3 Expert Dean Donaldson 97 56 5.404s White (Seg 6)
4 Sportsman Jeff Seltzer 87 46 5.785s White (Seg 4)
5 Sportsman Mark Wialbut 85 32 6.009s Green (Seg 3)
6 Sportsman Bev Seltzer 78 32 6.175s Green (Seg 6)

Race 2 Detailed Report: Viper V-SPEC SPEC STOCK Lexan

Track: SR3 Road Course Squeeze Lane

Segment Length: 35 Laps

With longer segments, the Viper V-SPEC class allowed for blistering speeds. Steve Stewart again took the win, but the lap times plummeted across the board. Dean Donaldson set an incredibly fast pace, logging the overall fastest lap. The Sportsman division saw a massive highlight from Mark Wialbut, who laid down a lap time that rivaled the Experts. Details

Race 2 Driver Performance Table

Place Division Driver Total Laps Total Points Fastest Lap Lane of Fastest Lap
1 Expert Steve Stewart 210 93 4.269s Orange (Seg 4)
2 Expert Dean Donaldson 195 71 4.169s Green (Seg 4)
3 Expert Dustin Jolley 194 68 4.694s Blue (Seg 3)
4 Sportsman Jeff Seltzer 167 48 4.985s Green (Seg 5)
5 Sportsman Bev Seltzer 157 35 5.295s Blue (Seg 4)
6 Sportsman Mark Wialbut 150 33 4.468s White (Seg 5)

Note: Data extracted from and.

Sportsman Highlights:

      • Mark Wialbut’s Breakout Lap: While finishing 6th in lap count, Mark’s 4.468s lap in Segment 5 was absolutely spectacular. It was faster than Dustin Jolley’s best lap and earned Mark a permanent spot in the track record books.

      • Jeff Seltzer Breaks the Barrier: Jeff successfully broke the 5-second mark, logging a 4.985s lap to solidify his grip on the Sportsman lead.

      • Bev Seltzer’s Consistency: Bev hit her stride in Segment 4, laying down her best lap of 5.295s and securing the laps needed to tie Mark overall for the event.

New Track Records (Set April 6, 2026)

The aggressive driving from both divisions resulted in several new track records at the SR3 Road Course Squeeze Lane. Most notably, Sportsman driver Mark Wialbut captured a Lane 2 record alongside the Experts.

MegaG+ 1.7 Formula e (i) 18v Records:

      • Lane 2: 5.404s — Dean Donaldson

      • Lane 4: 5.454s — Steve Stewart

      • Lane 5: 5.517s — Steve Stewart

Viper V-SPEC SPEC STOCK Lexan Records:

      • Lane 1: 4.567s — Dean Donaldson

      • Lane 2: 4.468s — Mark Wialbut

      • Lane 3: 4.169s — Dean Donaldson

      • Lane 4: 4.269s — Steve Stewart

      • Lane 5: 4.403s — Dean Donaldson

      • Lane 6: 4.688s — Steve Stewart

We had a little controversy during the technical inspection of the Viper SPEC STOCK class podium finishers. Dean’s car had .328 front tires installed, while everyone else was running .350 fronts.  In Dean’s defense, our currently published rules “related” to this class of car, allow front and rear tire diameter changes, unrestricted.  We currently call this class “Viper V-SPEC SPEC STOCK Lexan,” which is not exactly accurate. HOPRA.net rules allow any diameter front or rear silicon tire. However, our version of the HOPRA rules allows a Lexan body, which HOPRA’s rules do not, only a factory hardbody.

So, all that said, I’m proposing that we clarify our rules for our Viper “SPEC STOCK” class (aka: Box Stock), which has, for the last year or so, verbally specified a completely stock (standard build) V-SPEC V1 Level-4 chassis, with only low-profile shoes, rear tire compound and diameter changes, and a Lexan body allowed. All other HOPRA SPEC STOCK rules apply. This will be considered our “Lite” version of the Viper V1 chassis.

To avoid further confusion, I’m in the process of updating our active car rules and will republish them as soon as possible.  The reason for our “Lite” or “Box Stock” classes is to better support entry into our program by drivers who lack the interest and/or the skills to “tune” or otherwise prepare cars for racing. I recognize the interest of several drivers to go faster and allow more modifications. I will work on a proposed set of new rules for both our MegaG+ 1.7 and our Viper V-SPEC platforms, which will give our more tech-savvy drivers more flexibility to prepare cars and compete in these higher-level car classes.

Season Points Standings Summary 🏁

Here is how the leaderboard looks when separated by skill level:

Expert Division 🏆

These drivers currently hold the top positions in the overall standings:

      • Steve Stewart: 4280 points

      • Dean Donaldson: 3573 points

      • Dustin Jolley: 3204 points

      • Joe Clarke: 1194 points

      • Kevin Webster: 278 points

Sportsman Division 🏎️

The Sportsman field is much larger, with several drivers in a close battle for the division lead:

      • Ramsey Wright: 570 points

      • Jeff Seltzer: 490 points

      • Joe Vargas: 330 points

      • Bev Seltzer: 325 points

      • Bill Whiteside: 300 points

        (Note: There are 21 additional drivers in this division further down the standings)

A big thanks to this awesome group of drivers for bringing great things to share (except Dean, who was supposed to bring SAUSAGES!) Seriously, it was a great meal prepared by Kathy, and all kinds of treats to go along with it. Thank you all!!

Given that we were only able to get two races completed in almost six hours, we may have to reinstitute a strict RMS-controlled 90-second rotation time. We’re taking way too much time between segments these days.

Okay, shut up and drive!

Race Report: Wednesday Night Under The Lights, Jan 14, 2026

Carnage in the Viper-built Super 7 IROC race.

It looks like the “Promoter of the Year” competition is heating up for 2026. We had two new drivers visit Stewart Raceway for this “Under the Lights” event on SR3.

First, a warm welcome to Phil Rogers and Ramsey Wright. Phil is a local resident who lives just a few miles away near Full-Speed and Seltzer Racing Teams. Ramsey is a college friend of Team Jolley’s, Dustin Jolley. Both new drivers seemed to have a great time, and we look forward to their return to Stewart Raceway for more slot car action soon. Phil hadn’t raced slot cars since the 70’s. Ramsey has been a slot-car enthusiast since he first discovered them, but had never raced on a routed track.

Short Story
Place Name Laps Points Total Time
1 Steve Stewart 245 142 2032.795
2 Dean Donaldson 239 120 1991.125
1 Dustin Jolley 236 119 1977.112
2 Jeff Seltzer 231 98 2052.440
3 Bev Seltzer 206 85 2055.125
4 Ramsey Wright 202 85 2005.230
5 Phil Rogers 71 28 710.348

Dustin and Ramsey arrived too late to get much practice in, but after a very nice dinner of pan pizza, salad, and cheese bread, we got down to business with racing.

Race 1: Jag Hobbies PR-5 GT F1 Hardbody (IROC)

We again used this new House IROC set of PR-5 GT chassis’ with AFX/Racemasters F1 hardbodies to kick off the night. With seven drivers, we had nearly enough participants to run a normal race without excessive interruptions from track-call button(s).

We actually had eight people in the paddock, so the Race Director decided to cut the lanes down to four, leaving three drivers free to corner marshal, and Kathy available to handle track calls on the keyboard. SR3 typically requires four corner marshals to pull off a fluid and timely raceday.

Unfortunately, one team in the paddock vehemently opposed this prescription, sparking controversy. Once all that got settled, and the opposition team finally gave up insisting we run all six lanes with individual driver track-call buttons, we got underway with four lanes, 25-lap segments, and a 30-lap fuel allocation.

These cars are pretty quick (4.960) on SR3, but not quite as “stuck” as a Viper F1 Lexan (4.657). Still, a good platform for new drivers to get up to speed on routed tracks quickly. Dustin Jolley led this race from the second segment all the way to the final segment. Of course, the newly upgraded Expert driver, Dean Donaldson, was having none of that and took over the second-place position from Bev Seltzer at the end of segment three, holding on to second until the final segment, just one point behind the race leader Dustin Jolley.

Newcomer, Ramsey Wright advanced from 4th to 3rd going into the final segment, but was done with his rotation with 42 points. Dustin Jolley was also done with his rotation, leading with 56 points, and Dean Donaldson, in second, had finished his rotation with 55 points. Home Cook’n was in 4th overall going into the final segment with 48 points. Was the leaderboard about to get shuffled?

Team Seltzer came out of the gate in the last segment blazing. Jeff Seltzer had put the hammer down and completed every lap with very consistent times, finishing 2nd in the segment and securing the third podium spot. Bev Seltzer was on fire in this one also, clearly getting back in her groove. Bev completed all 25 laps, had the fastest median lap time, and won the segment handily. When the two Experts were removed from the leaderboard, Jeff finished the race in 2nd and Bev in 3rd. Very sold driving by Team Seltzer!  Dustin Jolley’s 56 points were just enough to put him in 2nd overall and 1st in the Sportsman class. Great driving!  Details

Place Name Laps Points Total Time
1 Steve Stewart 100 59 725.646
2 Dustin Jolley 97 56 673.951
3 Dean Donaldson 95 55 656.617
4 Bev Seltzer 89 45 714.937
5 Jeff Seltzer 96 44 746.281
6 Ramsey Wright 83 42 668.954
7 Phil Rogers 71 28 710.348
Race 2: Viper Super 7 NASCAR Eric Lane Set (i)

We lost Phil Rodgers after the first race, which I’m sure felt like being thrown into a pit of Vipers. Phil actually did pretty well, considering he’s been away from slot car racing for quite a spell.  We hope he enjoyed the experience and returns to racing with us again soon.

Phil’s departure changed the marshaling situation, so we went back to six lanes and track calls for crashes. This extends the runtime considerably, which shortens the number of races possible.

This IROC set is a lot like running a Viper V-SPEC L4 hardbody car, but with a little less speed and handling, mostly because stock Tyco 440-X2 NASCAR hardbodies are used.

This one seemed like three races going on at once. The two Experts, Dean Donaldson and Home Cook’n, duked it out the entire race, swapping the race lead nearly every segment. Sportsman drivers, Dustin Jolley and Jeff Seltzer, battled for the third podium spot the whole race, and Bev Seltzer and Ramsey had a heated battle going for 4th overall in the last few segments.

New driver, Ramsey Wright, had a good groove going, battling Dustin for third until the fourth segment, when Jeff Seltzer made his move in the Green lane to drop Ramsey (Blue lane) down to fifth place, and fighting off a hard-charging Bev Seltzer, who was just one lap down on him going into the final segment.

In the end, Home Cook’n won the Expert battle by just one lap, Dustin won the Sportsman battle by four laps, and Ramsey bagged the final Sportsman podium by just two laps ahead of Bev Seltzer.  Details

Place Name Laps Points Total Time
1 Steve Stewart 145 83 1307.149
2 Dean Donaldson 144 65 1334.508
3 Dustin Jolley 139 63 1303.161
4 Jeff Seltzer 135 54 1306.159
5 Ramsey Wright 119 43 1336.276
6 Bev Seltzer 117 40 1340.188

We lost Full-Speed Racing and Team Seltzer after Race 2, and it was pretty late in the evening. Dustin, Ramsey, and I played around with a few of Ramsey’s tricked-out cars, then called it a night around 1:00 AM.

A big thanks to everybody for contributing to another great night of “Under the Lights” racing!  The highlight of the night (for me) was seeing Ramsey come down the driveway with a handmade slot-car box. I have one of those that I made in woodshop during my high school days in the mid-seventies. That was cool!

Still way too early to post seasonal points, but I predict that Dustin Jolley will be the next Sportsman driver to advance to the Expert ranks.

If you're the Sportsman points leader for 5 consecutive raceday events, you advance to Expert.

Due to the NFL Playoffs, no Saturday track action this week. Kathy’s and my Mom’s favorite teams are both playing Saturday. Hopefully, we can get another “Under the Lights” event in the books this coming week, and maybe even a Saturday event; we’ll see.  Have a great weekend!

2026 Season Kicks Off With A Friday Night “Under The Lights” Event

3-ohm Mayhem in the PR-5 GT IROC race.

We were shooting for a doubleheader (Friday night and Saturday), but we couldn’t field enough teams for Saturday. Probably a good thing, since Friday night’s event went well past 1:00 AM.

Short Story
Place Name Laps Points Total Time
1 Steve Stewart 312 178 3420.310
2 Dustin Jolley 303 157 3494.790
3 Dean Donaldson 274 131 3578.762
4 Mike Langell 262 98 3506.202
Race 1: Jag Hobbies PR-5 GT F1/Indy Hardbody (IROC)

The latest fleet addition to Stewart Raceway, these cars are very nearly as fast as a Viper V-SPEC L4 car, and they’re out of the box. I think with a paper Modified body, they’ll be as fast, or faster. Put some aftermarket silicon tires on them, and look out!

The new IROC set debuts on SR2’s straight road course in a 30-lap fuel race with no marshals and the Track Call FOB.

Dustin came off the starting line blazing in this one after only a few minutes of warm-up. Dustin won two segments, Home Cook’n won two. Dustin took the overall win with some superb driving and some good fortune in the final segment. Mike Langell (pronounced “Looungell”), had a significant first segment, besting Home Cook’n by 3 laps!

Going into the final segment, Home Cook’n had a very slim lead of just one point on Team Jolley, who managed a very nice 2nd place finish in the tricky Red lane in Segment 3. Home Cook’n managed to get a nice gap on everybody early on, but racing is never over until the checkers fly. In the last few laps, Home Cook’n got tangled up in a crash, and Dustin managed to get through the carnage and pulled ahead for the win. Never give up!  Details

Place Name Laps Points Total Time
1 Dustin Jolley 114 58 1743.112
2 Steve Stewart 113 56 1728.365
3 Mike Langell 97 42 1751.195
4 Dean Donaldson 88 32 1767.821
Race 2: Mega G+ 1.7 Corvette C8 (IROC)

Back to SR3’s Fast Esses road course… New Expert driver, Dean Donaldson, had a terrific run in this one with a 1st and two 2nd place segment finishes. Dean prefers Vipers, but this result shows that he’s more than capable of driving the “less-stuck” cars as well.  Details

Place Name Laps Points Total Time
1 Steve Stewart 99 58 862.716
2 Dean Donaldson 96 53 859.096
3 Dustin Jolley 94 49 855.746
4 Mike Langell 86 28 864.304
Race 3: Jag Hobbies PR-5 GT F1 Hardbody (IROC)

Yep, we ran this awesome IROC set again on SR3. This time, Kathy handled the Race Director chores and flagged the race. This race was pretty competitive in the first segment, but not all that close in the end. Team Jolly and Team Full-Speed (Donaldson) remained very close throughout the battle, with Dustin placing 2nd in three segments and Dean placing 3rd in three. Team Langell had clearly over-hydrated before or during the final race and would finish well off the pace, though he did have a few blazing laps to his credit.  He’s on target for “2026 Best Young Driver.”  Details

Place Name Laps Points Total Time
1 Steve Stewart 100 64 829.229
2 Dustin Jolley 95 50 895.932
3 Dean Donaldson 90 46 951.845
4 Mike Langell 79 28 890.703

It’s a bit too early in the season to post points standings (See overall results above). However, Team Jolly obviously earned his 2025 Rookie of the Year honors, and Team Full-Speed continues to improve his driving skills.

So, how did the new Jag Hobbies PR-5 GT platform do? On SR2’s straight road course, Home Cook’n clicked off a 3.464 in the Blue lane. With Eric Lane’s Viper V-SPEC L4 F1/Indy set, Jordan Walker clicked off a 3.119 lap in the Blue lane back in July of 2024. On SR3, the fastest lap for Eric’s way cool Viper set is a 4.526 in the White lane. Dustin clicked off a blazing 3.695 lap Friday night in the Blue lane with the PR-5 GT. This is the fastest lap I know of on SR3!

We’re not going to be able to pull off an “Under The Lights” event this coming week, but Saturday or Saturday night are possibilities. Stay tuned for invites.

Okay, shut up and drive!

2025 Racing Season Year End Bash

The 2025 Stewart Raceway racing season ends with four races, good pizza, great eggnog, and the following well-deserved award presentations:

      • Junior Champion: Abe Maddox
        Abe only did 18 races in 2025, but his three overall race wins, multiple lap records, and a 3.1 placing average earned him his second consecutive Junior championship.
      • Sportsman Champion: Dean Donaldson
        In his very first season at Stewart Raceway, Dean completed a whopping 64 races in 2025 and finished with a 2.4 placing average, 10 lap records (SR2 & SR3), and six overall race wins. Dean joins the Expert driver ranks for the 2026 racing season.
      • Rookie of the Year: Dustin Jolley
        Dustin didn’t discover Stewart Raceway until October, but quickly established himself as a very talented and versatile slot car racer. Dustin completed 19 races with a 2.3 average placing, four race wins, and seven lap records in a variety of lanes and cars. Dustin is expected to upgrade to the Expert ranks early in the 2026 season.
      • Most Improved Driver: Jared Johnson
        Jared doesn’t get to race much (only six races in 2025), but when he does race, he’s typically on or near the podium. In their third season at Stewart Raceway, Team Johnson has been a force in both the Junior ranks and now the Sportsman ranks. Team Manager, Jared, invested in a Viper V-SPEC car and two MG+ 1.7 F1 cars during the 2025 season. Team Johnson also invested in a new development driver with the birth of his third child, Luke. I’m sure we’ll see Luke in the paddock in 2026 and beyond.
      • Team of the Year: Team Maddox
        We didn’t do much organized team racing in 2025, but the Team Maddox duo of Abe and Shaylin is clearly a force in any racing at Stewart Raceway. With Abe being our top Junior driver and Mom, Shaylin, holding nearly 20 lap records, and bagging two overall race wins in 2025, they easily won the Team of the Year honors.
      • Promoter of the Year (recruiter): Dean Donaldson
        We’ve always shown great appreciation for drivers who bring new drivers into the fold. Dean has set a very high bar for this recognition going forward. Dean introduced nine (9) new drivers to our program in 2025.  With that level of recruiting, we can now typically run a weekly program with enough drivers and marshals to support an official race day/night easily. Dean is also very active each week, chasing down RSVPs and urging drivers to attend events—hat tip to Dean for outstanding contributions to our hobby/sport.
      • Best Eggnog of the Year: Kathy Stewart
        Well, surprisingly, there wasn’t very much competition for this award. Kathy cleaned out Safeway’s stock of a delicious Eggnog brand that Eric Lane introduced to us at our end-of-season bash in 2024. This stuff is good!
Racing Short Story

The important thing to note here is that Team Maddox took over for Home Cook’n in Race 3, starting in segment 4 of 6. Both Shaylin and Abe switched off in the final three segments, which very likely kept Home Cook’n in the hunt for the Expert overall. Abe bagged a second-place finish in segment 5, which netted 13 points.

Place Name Laps Points Total Time
1 Steve Stewart 338 210 3055.293
2 Dean Donaldson 338 194 3901.942
3 Jeff Seltzer 310 141 2964.951
4 Bev Seltzer 242 80 2520.254
5 Mike Langell 190 79 2238.219
6 Dustin Jolley 146 68 1795.775
Race 1: Viper V-SPEC SPEC STOCK Lexan

Dean Donaldson cements his Sportsman Championship win and advancement to the Expert ranks with a win in the fastest race of the day.  Details

Place Name Laps Points Total Time
1 Dean Donaldson 99 58 601.807
2 Steve Stewart 98 58 639.526
3 Jeff Seltzer 90 40 617.176
4 Bev Seltzer 79 32 632.561
Race 2: Viper V-SPEC SPEC STOCK Lexan (Dash Race)

Bev Seltzer, getting back to racing after a long layoff, shows her stuff with a nice podium finish in a hard-fought Dash race with the fastest car we run. Details

Place Name Laps Points Total Time
1 Steve Stewart 40 16 254.780
2 Bev Seltzer 40 14 113.362
3 Dean Donaldson 38 11 259.974
4 Jeff Seltzer 34 7 103.923
Race 3: Tyco 440-X2 Wide-Pan Porsche 935 Hardbody

This one was a great example of why less lanes and more marshals is better. We had six drivers, so we decided to run six lanes. Which left us with just a race director at the keyboard and one marshal, making this a very long race due to many crashes forcing yellow flags. Home Cook’n led this one at the halfway mark, but handed over the reins to Team Maddox. Thanks to Abe’s and Shaylin’s driving, the team was able to secure a nice podium position. The detailed results show Dustin winning this one on laps. However, when sorted by points, then laps, which is our typical method of scoring, Dean came out the winner with Dustin bagging the final podium spot. Details

Place Name Laps Points Total Time
1 Dean Donaldson 143 73 2650.090
2 Shaylin Maddox, Abe Maddox, S. Stewart 140 72 1787.480
3 Dustin Jolley 146 68 1795.775
4 Jeff Seltzer 132 54 1819.615
5 Mike Langell 137 47 1830.633
6 Bev Seltzer 123 34 1774.331
Race 4: Viper V-SPEC F1/Indy 1.7 (i) Lexan Eric Lane Set

This bunch loves Vipers, so we pulled out Eric “Fast” Lane’s coveted set of Formula V Lexan IROC cars and went racing again. The results below are deceiving; this race was short, very intense, and each segment ended the same. Jeff Seltzer bagged the final podium spot over Mike Langell, largely due to his best segment run in the more difficult Blue lane with the second fastest median lap time of 5.398.  Details

Place Name Laps Points Total Time
1 Steve Stewart 60 64 373.507
2 Dean Donaldson 58 52 390.071
3 Jeff Seltzer 54 40 424.237
4 Mike Langell 53 32 407.586

Other than the painfully long Race 3, it was a great day and evening of racing, good food, and a great bunch to hang out with. A big thanks from Kathy and me to all who showed up and made it a great and fun event!

That’s a wrap for our 2025 racing season. Thank you all for your continued support of our racing program. Kathy and I wish you all a very Happy New Year, and look forward to an even better 2026 season.