Pikes Peak Saturday Qualifying

COLORADO RACER LEADS LATE MODELS, TRANS-AM RACERS TO HIGHLIGHT SUNDAY'S ACTION

FOUNTAIN, Colo. - Ray Daniels of Monument, Colo., won the pole position for Sunday's 50-mile SARA Late Model Stock Car race in the Children's Hospital Grand Prix of Colorado at Pikes Peak International Raceway.

The major race of the Children's Hospital Grand Prix weekend is Sunday's SCCA NTB Trans-Am which begins at 1 p.m.

Gates open at 8 a.m. with the US F2000 race to start at 10:15 a.m. and will be followed by the Trans-Am on the road course, and the 25-lap Cornwell Tools USAC Sprint Cars at 2:45 p.m. and the 50-lap SARA Late Model Stock Cars at 3:45 p.m.

Daniels, who set a track series record with a one-mile lap of 27.507 seconds, was followed by four Coloradans as Front Range racers led Friday's qualifying.

"We built a little different motor (for this race),'' Daniels said. "It's been untested but we're real happy with it. "We've got a pretty good race car. I'm ready for it."

SARA has a core of 20 regular drivers but the group of 25 Colorado entries will put 38 cars on Sunday's starting grid. Ray Daniels of Monument starts from the pole, Cornwell Tools USAC Western States Sprint Cars

Rick Brown of Eugene, Ore., cut 8 mph off the PPIR Sprint Car record Saturday en route to winning the pole for today's 25-lap Cornwell Tools USAC Western States Sprint Cars. Brown's 1-mile lap time was 25.941 seconds at 138.776 mph.

"I just drove as hard as the old car would go," Brown said. "We set it up for quick couple of laps. We'll have to reset it (Sunday) for the big event."

Richie Sherrill of Wheatridge, Colo., qualified 14th. American City Racing League

Chris Ronson, driving for Team Las Vegas, ended a two-year drought by winning his first American City Racing League SS2 title.

"After 2 1/2 years of frustration I knew I was a better racer than that," he said.

"The car kept getting looser and looser. Midway through the race it was almost undrivable. I had to make sure I didn't make a big mistake."

In ACRL S2 division, Mike Johnson, who co-starred on MTV's Real World during the shows stint in London three years ago, won the title by edging out his dad, Duke Johnson.