PLACERVILLE, CA (8-1-09) - Once again the grandstands at ASA Sanctioned Placerville Speedway were filled to capacity at Placerville Speedway to witness the annual Family Chevrolet Tribute to Al Hinds Civil War race at Placerville Speedway. In the sixth running of the classic that pays tribute to the late local pioneer of dirt track racing here, Colby Wiesz of Colfax become the fifth different driver to take home the rich $3000 to win.

"It's always special to win a race like this," said Wiesz. "The extra bonus money is great but winning a race that honors someone like Al Hinds means even more. I'd like to thank Family Chevrolet for putting this thing on again and all these great fans for coming out and watching us. It feels good to be back in the winners circle here."

Wiesz routinely drives for Roseville based car owner John Taylor for the weekly Red Hawk Casino series. On this particular night, Taylor was vacationing in Santa Cruz and Wiesz was aboard his family owned #21 for the evening.

The waving of the green flag in the 30-lap feature event saw pole sitter Jim Richardson of Grey Eagle take the lead as he powered ahead of Justin Johnson of Shingle Springs. Richardson held the lead position for the first four laps until Johnson powered around him to take the lead. As the local favorite charged to the front of the pack, the spectators went into a frenzy, supporting their local hero in his quest to win Placerville Speedway's second richest race of the year.

Johnson stretched his lead out to a couple of car lengths early in the race as Wiesz worked his way up from sixth position. Defending series champion and current point leader Sean Becker was lurking his way into the top five as well. Wiesz closed the gap between he and Johnson on the ninth lap and moved into the steal the lead one lap later when Johnson momentarily slid sideways on the low side of the second turn.

"He was having a really strong run in front of me, "said Wiesz. "I knew I wasn't going to get by him unless he made a mistake and that was the only mistake he made and I was able to get past him. I knew he was going to be charging hard behind me for the rest of the race."

Wiesz was correct. Johnson regained focus and continued to charge his way back towards the lead. Becker, who started tenth, moved into the top three on the 22nd lap and dueled with Johnson for the bridesmaid position, taking in on the 27th circuit.

At the finish line, Wiesz posted his win with an advantage of 1.858 seconds over Becker. He became the fifth different driver to win the $1000 bonus from Family Chevrolet in the history of the race. Former winners include Roger Crockett who won the first round Tribute to Al Hinds races. Andy Forsberg, Kyle Hirst and David Robinson Jr. complete the list of former champions.

With his second place finish, Becker contributed to his already healthy point lead. His closest rival for the championship, Stephen Allard of Chico, recently chose to bow out of contention for the series title which allows Brett Rollag of Rohnert Park to advance.

"I'm definitely happy with second place tonight, I went from tenth to fifth on that opening lap and then I started to spin out and had to do it all over again," said Becker, who won a $100 bonus for fast time courtesy of Executive Barber Studio in Placerville. 'So to recover like this make me pretty happy. As far as the points, we're happy to have such a good lead now but having Stephen back out of the running like he has is not the way we want to win this deal. We're looking forward to Calistoga next week."

Johnson's third place finish was his first podium placement in Civil War action and his hometown fans gave him a warm welcome to the victory lane celebration. He credited his father, Ernie and his crew for all the hard work that has produced great progress this year.

"It is such an honor to be standing here with these two drivers and running with them up front tonight," said Johnson. "I just just have to thank all the sponsors that support me and really thank my Dad, he's my crew chief and my car owner and he works really hard to keep me out here every week. This is really exciting for us."

Johnson was one of nearly two dozen drivers that participate in a pre-race car show and bbq at Family Chevrolet in Shingle Springs Saturday afternoon. An estimated 800 race fans attended the event to visit with drivers, enjoy live music and a free lunch. The annual affair was deemed a success by dealership owner Tony Montalbano and Placerville Speedway.

"We want to thank Tony and his entire staff for putting this annual race on," said Bill Sullivan, Director of Communications for Placerville Speedway. "This annual race is all about bringing the community together to recognize a very special man in the sport and Family Chevrolet is a great partner to Placerville Speedway. The car show and the race was a huge success."

Saturday's event opened with a very emotional tribute of a different nature as Sullivan and speedway officials gathered on the infield to pay an emotional tribute to Pastor Don Wilson. For the last five years Wilson has been the track chaplain here and departed Sunday morning for Millington, TN to accept a new job.

Following a spectacular National Anthem performed by local vocalist Shauna Granade from the band "Xstadic", Wilson said farewell to staff and spectators and was given a lengthy standing ovation from the fans and was presented with a letter of interest from another dirt track near his new home who is interested in his services.

"I'd just like to thank everyone for their support of me over the years," said Wilson, who departed for his trip shortly after the tribute. "I have made a lot of new friends here and I will miss everyone. I'll think about this place every Saturday night. It's very special to me and it's probably the thing I am going to miss the most aside from my kids."

Next Saturday Placerville Speedway will host the annual Jack London Bash Hall of Fame Picnic at the fairgrounds prior to a night of racing that includes BCRA Midgets, Wingless Midget Lites, the Capital City Midgets, Wingless Sprint Cars and Pure Stocks. For further information visit www.placervillespeedway.com.