After Colorado, the racers headed north to the Midwestern State of Ohio. This time, the Summit Motorsport park in the small city of Norwalk, about 60 miles west of Cleveland was their destination for the weekend and the Summit motorsport park was the host. Opened in 1963, The huge and beautiful facility saw the influx of thousands of street outlaw fans flooding through the gates with smiling faces; happy to see their favorite drivers, talk with them, get autographs and take photos as souvenirs for the beautiful encounter.
Temperatures ranged BETWEEN 48-65 degrees accompanied with light winds. What seemed to be pretty cold weather but it did not stop the fans as they took spots in the bleachers, ready to see their favorites go head to head the whole day.
Racing started with the first round of invitationals; 36 cars drew from the bucket and we had 16 races for the first round of eliminations. Just as from the previous race at the Bandimere Speedway, the top racers in points were eliminated early in the rounds so it quickly turned into a “dog fight” of the other racers who saw this as a golden opportunity to write their names in stone amongst the winners of an NPK event.
The 5th race of the second round saw Mike Murillo paired with Ryan Martin, the most dominant figure in the history of no prep. What seemed to be a good pass for Mike had a catastrophic end as his car ended up in flames at the end of the track. Luckily some quick acting by standers amongst which was Corey Swanstrom were able to run the burning car and save Mike before the fire department could get there to put out the fire.
Third round saw Ryan Martin self eliminate after another controversial red light which has been termed “foul” by fans worldwide but his fate was already sealed. With Ryan out of the way, the competition became a “dog fight” to the remaining contestants who saw this as the perfect opportunity to push hard for the trophy.
Semifinal round saw Kallee Mills a first timer at this level paired with Kye Kelley and Jim Howe another first timer at this level was paired with Justin Swanstrom. What is worth noting is that this was Kallee Mills and Jim Howe’s first time in the semifinals but Kallee’s run was put to an end after suffering a loss from Kye Kelley meanwhile on the other hand Jim Howe was sending Justin Swanstrom back home.
Now down to the final 2 pairs, Jim Howe being a new face at this stage was hugely considered the underdog. I could hear fans saying “another easy one for Kye” on the other hand were those saying this is Jim’s first time at this level and the fire and determination in him will get him a win against Kye Kelley who might be having a cool head since he is not going up against his Nemesis (Ryan Martin). The drivers did their burnouts, warmed up their tires, as they slowly backed up, every driver’s crew members and fellow drivers were at the back of the starting line checking every inadequacy to make sure their driver is not influenced by external factors. Then the bets started pulling in, people locking-in bets left and right. Looked more like a medieval marketplace. Then comes the final moment when the world stops and the lights turn green! Going down door to door the 1/8 mile was Jim Howe on the right in the orange screw blower Camaro lane and Kye Kelley on the left lane in the nitrous charged Camaro. No one was ready to make it an easy ride in the park for the other but going over the finish line, the sensors activated the win light and it is the guardian Camaro for the win! First time in the final and he secures a win for himself and his whole team. Jim howe is the winner of the no prep kings Summit motorsport park event
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