Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Crocker first woman to cook Outlaws win

Wednesday, Nov. 3, 2004 | 10:42 a.m.

Brian Hilderbrand covers motor sports for the Las Vegas Sun. His motor sports notebook appears Friday. He can be reached at bh@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4089.

Last weekend's World of Outlaws stop in Tulare, Calif., was an historic one for the winged sprint-car series, but it had nothing to do with Steve Kinser wrapping up his record 19th series championship.

Erin Crocker, a 23-year-old from Wilbraham, Mass., became the first woman to win a WoO preliminary feature when she captured last Friday's 25-lap race at Thunderbowl Raceway.

Crocker, who started sixth on the grid in the prelim, passed Paul McMahan for third place on lap 21 and then took the lead from Jac Haudenschild exiting turn 4. Crocker held off McMahan by 10 car lengths for the victory.

Although she has competed on the WoO circuit all season in car owner Mike Woodring's No.16 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Maxim, Crocker hinted that she is aware she has some detractors in the series, but chose to focus on the positive aspects of her first victory.

"I try to ignore all that," Crocker told the Visalia Times-Delta. "Just about every World of Outlaws driver congratulated me Friday. For them to make a special effort to do that just means a lot.

"When Steve Kinser and Danny Lasoski show you their respects, it goes a lot farther than any result or any critic would have to say."

Proving her Friday night victory was not a fluke, Crocker was leading Saturday night's A-main when her right rear tire went flat. Unable to continue, Crocker was relegated to a 15th-place finish as Terry McCarl won the event.

Crocker will join Kinser and Lasoski at the dirt track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway Friday and Saturday nights for the World of Outlaws season finale. Kinser won the A-main at LVMS in the spring and Lasoski won last year's season finale here.

Practice is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m., qualifying will start at 6:30 and heat races will begin at 7:05 each night. Tickets are priced from $25 to $35 (excluding tax) and are available at the LVMS ticket office. Spectator gates will open at 5 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

CHAMP CAR PREVIEW: Champ Car World Series officials are believed to be looking at holding their 2005 Champ Car spring training pre-season test at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in February.

Champ Car last week announced its 14-race 2005 schedule and the series is scheduled to return to Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Saturday, Sept. 24, as part of a doubleheader with the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

"We're going to pick a site out in the Western part of the United States that works for the teams and works for us and particularly as a good location for the press," Champ Car president Dick Eidswick said, while declining to elaborate on a specific site. "We're talking about having the spring training and the preview of the season probably the end of February."

LVMS general manager Chris Powell acknowledged that the topic of holding the test session and preview in Las Vegas has been discussed, but said the speedway and Champ Car do not have a signed agreement.

UNIQUE TEST: Six women, including Las Vegas resident Juliana Chiovitti, will take part in an Indy Racing League Infiniti Pro Series test with Nunn Motorsports next week at Texas Motor Speedway.

Team owner Kathryn Nunn is testing the drivers with the hope of offering the top performer a full-time ride in the Menards Infiniti Pro Series in 2005. Nunn campaigned cars in the developmental series for brother P.J. and James Chesson.

PAPIS, PRUETT PREVAIL: Former open-wheel drivers Max Papis and Scott Pruett captured the 2004 Rolex Sports Car Series Daytona Prototype driver and team championships by winning Sunday's Lexus Grand American 400K at California Speedway.

Papis and Pruett drive for team owner Chip Ganassi in the Rolex Series.