Damian Lindberg, from Forest Grove (near 100 Mile), went a perfect three-for-three at the Merritt Speedway on the weekend, winning his section of the dash as well as the featured heat and main events to sweep the Hobby class for the first time in his young racing career.
Lindberg has shown consistent improvement in his relatively short time racing stock cars on the dirt track — steadily adding maturity, patience and savvy to his youthful enthusiasm and trademark brand of bold, pedal-to-the-metal driving.
The combination worked well for Lindberg in his final race Saturday as he managed to avoid a multi-car pile-up in the late stages of the 30-lap main event that resulted in just four vehicles finishing the race.
Another up-and-comer on the stock car racing circuit is Aldergrove’s Tiffany MacDonald. The 27-year-old driver of a hot-pink and white 1980 Camaro 350 won the Street division’s dash and heat races on Saturday night — both times edging her dad, Paul, in his ’68 Chevy pickup.
Damian Lindberg
The elder MacDonald got his measure of revenge, however, taking the main event from his daughter who had to settle for second.
Other double winners at the Merritt Speedway on the weekend were Merritt’s Bill Fader and former Merrittonian Challen Hughes (now living in Penticton) in the two Bomber classes.
There were a number of less-fortunate driver-car combinations at Saturday’s night of racing.
Merritt’s Jack Allgrove and Clayton Scott from Kamloops had their evening’s activities end early as the two Hobby-class racers got tangled up on lap three of the dash event and had to sit the rest of the night out with substantial vehicle damage.
After setting the fastest time in the six-and-eight cylinder Bomber class during warm-ups, Brock Fader’s night also ended early due to a pair of broken U-joints.
The hard-luck story of the evening, though, had to be Vernon’s Gene Lengert. The first-timer at the Merritt Speedway just couldn’t get his ‘for-sale’ Monte Carlo going all night due to fuel-pickup issues.
A non-starter in the Hobby dash and heat events, he failed to go the distance in the main event, too.
This year’s final weekend of stock car racing at the Merritt Speedway is on October 11 and 12. Time trials begin at 1 p.m. and racing starts at 2 p.m. on both days.
