In between North State Challenge Series races, Luke Hall, driver of the No. 36 Turnbull Motorsports Chevrolet, has been running Sportsman Division races to stay sharp at Redwood Acres Raceway, his home track. Hall even took the checkered flag in the feature there on June 2.

Now, he is set to return to Redwood Acres to continue his 2007 NSCS campaign this Saturday night with one mission – change his luck in the Main Event. In the last NSCS start at Redwood Acres on April 28th, Hall posted the fastest qualifying lap but finished 12th after getting caught up in a spectacular crash. The following week at Altamont, he blew an engine and did not start. On June 9th at Shasta Raceway Park, Hall set the third fastest qualifying mark but had more bad luck as a fire erupted under his hood shortly after the green flag. He did return to the race after repairs but eventually had to retire in 18th position.

“We keep saying something has got to change,” Hall said. “We are fast in qualifying, and I try to just run a good pace in the Trophy Dash races, so that we are ready to go for the feature, but something jumps up and bites us. I know we can be competitive, but we just haven’t been in a position to show what we can do. I know Redwood Acres as well as anyone, so we’ll show up this Saturday and try to put our best foot forward.”

The North State Challenge Series presented by Scottfeild Executive Hotels is the feature race in this Saturday’s Redwood Acres Fair Classic. The lineup includes all the regular divisions, along with the 100-lap NSCS race.

After engine problems in the May 12th North State Challenge Series race at Altamont Motorsports Park forced Luke Hall to the sidelines, the Northern California Late Model racer was determined to make the most of his time in between that race and this Saturday’s race at Shasta Raceway Park.

Despite spending countless hours with his team rebuilding the engine in the No. 36 Turnbull Motorsports Chevrolet, Hall focused on some Sportsman Division races at Redwood Acres Raceway in Eureka, Calif., to stay sharp.

Last Saturday, Hall was the sharpest in the field, winning the Sportsman main event and ending a three-race win streak for Barry Barnwell.

Getting to the main was a bit scary for Hall, who got collected in a multi-car pileup in the heat race. Hall fixed the damage in time for the 30-lap feature, and after the first caution flag on lap two, he was able to take the lead and stay on point the rest of the way. Hall built a commanding lead, but Barnwell chipped away at his lead late in the race. With two laps to go, Barnwell was charging but got loose in turn two, and Hall was able to hold him off for the checkered flag.

“I am very happy to pull this win out,” said Hall, who qualified third and finished second in the Trophy Dash. “Our car was fast, and when we got out front, the car handled great, and we were able to maintain a pretty good pace throughout. It got exciting at the end. It feels good to get a win, and hopefully we can use this track time and experience to our advantage with the upcoming North State races.”

Hall returns to Shasta this weekend where he has been fast in past NSCS races but doesn’t have the results to show for it.

“We’ve been fast and qualified well there, but something always seems to happen in the heat race or main event to mess our night up,” Hall said. “We need our luck to change in the North State. A wreck hurt us in the first race and not starting the second race set us back. There aren’t many races left on the schedule to overcome any more setbacks. We’ll be ready. It’s a fun track to race, and I am looking forward to it.”

After a disappointing start to his 2007 North State Challenge Series season, Luke Hall returned to his home track last Saturday night in Eureka, Calif., for a little Late Model Saturday night “fun” at Redwood Acres Raceway.

The previous week, Hall was unable to start the North State race at Altamont Motorsports Park because of engine trouble. In the series season opener on April 28th at this same Redwood Acres facility, Hall set the fastest lap in qualifying but finished 12th in the race after two separate on-track mishaps.

Trying to put all that behind him, Hall and the Turnbull Motorsports team wanted to get back to having some fun, so the team jumped into the weekly Late Model race at the Acres.

In the Sportsman Division, Hall was fastest in one of the early practice sessions and then qualified third. He finished second in the Trophy Dash and won going away in his heat race. In the 30-lap feature, Hall started in the back and turned out to be the car to watch as he charged through the field.

Brandon Barnwell, who posted the fastest qualifying lap and won the Trophy Dash, climbed to the point in the Main on Lap 6. On Lap 10, Hall had moved into fifth place, and two laps later he was in fourth position with his sights on Barnwell. With 10 laps to go, Hall had moved into second place as Barnwell held nearly a straightaway lead. The crowd watched as Hall inched closer over the remaining laps, but time ran out as he pulled up near Barnwell’s bumper a couple of times unable to overtake him.

A solid second-place finish for Hall may be just what the doctor ordered in putting some of the team’s early season North State woes behind them.

“We’ve had a tough start in the North State, so it was fun to come out here and race with these guys,” Hall said. “We knew we would be fast, but the main thing was to just have some fun and challenge for the win, and we did both. I really wanted to get the win but ran out of laps. I hope this showing helps turn our luck around in the North State now.”

Hall returns to North State Challenge Series action on June 9th at Shasta Raceway Park. For more information on the team, visit www.turnbullmotorsports.com and on the NSCS, log on to www.northstatechallengeseries.com.

Luke Hall, driver of the No. 36 Turnbull Motorsports Chevrolet, got his season off to a fast start April 28th at Redwood Acres Raceway, but the team’s joy in turning the fastest qualifying lap soon faded to disappointment after getting caught up in two crashes in the North State Challenge Series Presented by Scottfield Executive Hotels season opener.

After garnering the fastest lap and finishing third in the Trophy Dash, Hall started 10th in the Main Event after the invert. With the field taking the green flag, outside pole sitter Blair Aiken veered into the outside wall causing a pile up in his wake. Hall sustained some damage but was able to continue. Before the midway point, Hall was then involved in a spectacular crash through the grass that left his No. 36 atop the driver’s side roof of Mike Lovell’s #75, causing a red flag on lap 45. Neither driver was injured, and Hall was able to grind out a 12th-place finish.

“We were fast from the start of the day, and I knew we had a great car. It’s just disappointing that we didn’t get to show it,” Hall said. “We were able to battle back and get some points. Now, we just have to regroup and be ready for Altamont and stay focused on our overall goal of running up front and competing for a championship.”

Round two of the NSCS Super Late Model season takes Hall to a place he has never raced, Altamont Motorsports Park in Tracy, Calif., this Saturday. It will be Hall’s first time on a 1/2-mile paved oval.

“I am looking forward to this race, especially running faster speeds and seeing how we stack up against the others,” Hall said. “Preston O’Dell, our crew chief, and I have been working hard to get the car prepared, and I think we’ll have another fast race car there. This should be an exciting event for all the North State competitors and especially the fans.”

For more about the race, check out these links:

North State Challenge Series

Racing West