Photo by "Tailgate" Rodriguez
A look back at the 2011 King of the West 410 Sprints Royal Court
Driver Number 11- “Tough guy” Brent Bjork
Rio Vista, CA – January 5, 2012…Persevering through some less than stellar luck in 2011 Fremont, California’s Brent Bjork capped off his third year of 410 Sprint Car racing by bringing home an eleventh place finish in the final Golden State King of the West Series standings.
The recently turned 21-year-old competed in all but one event on the KWS trail this past season and also scored a career best finish in April with the series.
The lone race Bjork missed came on August 6 at Kings Speedway, just one night after a grinding crash resulted in a concussion, which ultimately left him just on the cusp of the top-10 in the final point tallies.
“It was a good year overall and we can’t thank Dan Simpson and the King of the West Series enough for all of the hard work they put in,” Bjork commented. “The payout and prizes are pretty unbelievable and it’s the best thing going out here right now. Nobody in California has ever done what Dan did for the drivers and fans this past year.”
The KWS campaign started off with Bjork suffering a dislocated elbow in the main event at the season opener, but even despite the pain, he was able to finish the race. Showing grit and toughness he came back just two weeks later and tallied a sixth place finish at his home track of Ocean Speedway.
“That was a pretty rough way to start the season no doubt,” Bjork said. “I actually think it happened when I caught the berm midway through the main event and had the steering wheel jerk my arm. During one of the red flags I had the elbow popped back in and told them to push me off, because I wasn’t going to call it a night.”
Bjork’s best outing of the season came at the Marysville Raceway Park on April 30, where he qualified solidly and claimed a fifth place finish in the feature. It marked his first ever top-five finish with the Golden State King of the West 410 Sprint Car Series.
“Even despite the bad luck we had some good finishes over the course of the season and had a fast car,” he said. “I really have to thank Mike Johnson & Johnson Lumber, Bobby Miller & RM Aluminum Products, Joel Kaeding, Bob Passama and my mom and dad for their support.”
The former Golden State Rookie of the Year also claimed a Pit Stop USA hard charger award this past season, with that coming at the prestigious Pombo/Sargent Classic in Tulare. During that night Bjork started 21st on the grid and picked his way forward to earn a fine seventh place finish in the main event, a career best at the Thunderbowl.
To learn more about Brent Bjork and Bjork Racing log onto his website at http://www.bjorkracing.com/home.html
The Golden State King of the West 410 Sprints would like to thank the following companies for their support this season: Goodyear Racing Tires, Kaeding Performance, Pit Stop USA.com, Hoseheads.com, Grant’s Fine Art, Auto Meter Products Inc., Contingency Connection, Maxim Chassis, Amerikote, Abel Chevrolet, Bully Dog, Red Horse Performance, JE Pistons, KSE Racing Products, Hunt Magnetos, Weld Racing, Racing Optics, Butler Built Performance, HoservilleCA, Angellos ATV Rental, Rogue Regency Inn, Williams Motorsports, DES Inc. and Simpson Percherons.
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- Gary Thomas on Jan 05, 2012
- Article Date: 1/5/2012 by Gary Thomas