Motor Racing / Vince Kowalick : Curtis Finally Chased Down by Bounty Hunter

Gary Curtis, a man with a price on his head, finally was blasted dead in his tracks last week at Ventura Raceway. Figuratively speaking.

Bounty hunter Rock Ake of Moorpark ended Curtis’ stranglehold on the Mini Stock competition by posting a main-event victory June 9 in the 25-lap oval main event. Not only did Ake pocket the first-place prize of $60, he claimed the $100 incentive bonus track promoter Jim Naylor offered to anyone who beat Curtis to the checkered flag.

“Back in the ‘30s and ‘40s, bounties were quite popular,” Naylor said. “We figured, ‘this guy’s won a few races, let’s put a bounty on his head.’ ”

Since the season began in March, Curtis, a four-year track veteran from Camarillo, has been, well, murdering the competition on the one-fifth-mile dirt oval. Before losing to Ake, Curtis, 24, had won six oval main events, including four in a row, and four figure 8 main events.

“Gary’s an exceptional racer,” Naylor said. “I really think he’s going somewhere. He’s pretty spectacular.”

Curtis, the current points leader, rallied from 20th position to assume second place and was challenging for the lead with seven laps to go. But after a Turn 4 tangle and spin with leader Cory Kruseman of Ventura, Curtis was black-flagged to the pits, leaving Ake to rake in the win and the bounty.

More importantly for Ake, second in the points standings, the win left him just 10 points behind Curtis.

“It was the first time I had ever been black-flagged,” Curtis said, adding that he was none too pleased. “But I don’t like to stir up a bunch of stuff, so . . .

“I feel kind of flattered by (the bounty), but it just seems like you’re making it all too big. I mean, this is supposed to be a fun sport. It puts too much pressure on me and it puts too much pressure on everyone else.”

Ake admitted that bounty banter had permeated off-track talk between races.

“He races with a shark fin on top of his car, so some people we’re saying, ‘Let’s go shark hunting’ or ‘Let’s go bounty hunting,’ ” Ake said. “Everyone wanted it. There was a lot of talk about it. But I didn’t expect to win.”

Ake may unexpectedly find himself a marked man in the future.

Said Naylor: “If Rock starts winning, maybe we’ll throw a bounty on him.”

Racer’s edge: Which driver has the home-track advantage in tonight’s 125-lap NASCAR All-American Challenge Series Southwest Tour race at Saugus Speedway?

Is it Dan Press of Frazier Park, the current points leader and two-time Saugus champion?

Maybe Roman Calczynski of Sepulveda, the defending tour champion and another former Saugus titleholder?

How about Chuck Pittenger of Northridge, second in the points standings?

Or Ray Hooper Jr. of Palmdale, currently third?

Or Mike Kanke of Granada Hills (fifth), Ron Hornaday Jr. of Palmdale (eighth), Dennis Dyer of Palmdale (ninth) or Bob Lyon of Newhall (11)?

Actually, all eight of the above drivers--seven of them among the top 10 in the tour’s points standings--are former Saugus regulars. The field of 50, in fact, features more former Saugus regulars than drivers from any of the other 11 tracks on the 20-race tour.

“It’ll be a kind of a nostalgia deal in which the fans are going to come out and root for their favorite old hero,” NASCAR promoter Owen Kearns Jr. said.

Press, who has a 157-point lead over Pittenger after seven events, undoubtedly is the driver to beat.

“Home-field advantage plays a big part,” Press said. “It makes your day go easier. You’re not as keyed up going in.”

New man at the top: One week after being stripped of his third main-event win of the season, Will Harper finally made it to the top of Saugus’ Sportsman division points standings--by finishing second.

In a wild 40-lap main event Saturday night, Harper charged from sixth to second in the final 20 laps as leader Dave Phipps’ vehicle increasingly slowed as it dragged parts of the car’s body on the track.

Harper finished a half-length behind Phipps but leaped ahead of Gary Sigman of Carson--the points leader since the season began April 1--who finished 12th.

Qualifications: Charles Utts of Camarillo posted a new Street Stock division one-lap oval qualifying record of 16.37 seconds June 9 at Ventura.

Utts, who set the previous track standard last year with a time of 17.22, became the first driver in Ventura’s four-year history to crack the 17-second mark. Jack Smoot of Ventura became the second when he posted a 16.71 on the same evening.

Four drivers qualified within five-hundredths of a second for the Sportsman division trophy dash last Saturday night at Saugus.

Bobby Oliver of Granada Hills--who posted the fastest time--and Michael Ayers of Camarillo, John Watkinson III of Canyon Country, Harper, Jerry Bosson of Simi Valley and Rich De Long Jr. of Palmdale each posted times between 17.01 and 17.06 seconds.

Ayers won the dash with Watkinson and Harper close behind.

Gary Ebeling of Monrovia also set a one-lap track qualifying record for Mini Stocks last Saturday at Saugus with a time of 16.48.