LaValley Building Supply Pure Stocks to Take Center Stage for the Cody LaFfont Memorial at Claremont Motorsports Park on Friday, May 28th
3/14/2021 — Claremont Motorsports Park has made official the return of the Cody LaFont Memorial for the LaValley Building Supply Pure Stock division. The 2020 version was highly anticipated and more than lived up to expectations and the 2021 event looks to be bigger and better.
This year’s race will be part of day one of a two-day Memorial Day racing extravaganza. Not only will fans get to see this race but there will be four other divisions in action as the Route 103 Auto Late Model Sportsman, the R.E Hinkley Street Stocks, the In City Sugar Shack Mini Stocks and the Avery Insurance Six Shooters will all take to the speedway. All of this action will kick off at 7:30pm on Friday, May 28th. In addition, this will be the first fan appreciation night of the season at the Thrasher Road speed plant meaning that general admission will be just $5.00.
This race, started five years ago, memorializes Cody LaFont, a young racer and Claremont Motorsports Park superfan. LaFont was a favorite among his peers in the pit area and to this day is deeply missed making this race that much more meaningful.
The annual extra distance, extra payout race for one of the speedway’s most popular divisions has turned into a must-attend event for fans and competitors alike. Track general manager Mike Parks along with the LaFont family and Mercedes West-Sabins have been hard at work over the past several weeks hammering out details and making plans so that the fifth annual running of this event will be the best yet.
“We are really excited to be able to host this event in 2021”, stated Parks during a recent planning session. “It was a huge success in 2020 and with the help of the LaFonts and Mercedes, we hope to far eclipse that success. With the money being raised we hope to be able to offer a record purse for this division.”
For the 2020 event, it was Mercedes West-Sabins who stepped in to guide this event to its success. For 2021 she has vowed to make it the race of the century. “This race has huge meaning to both the community and the race track” Said West-Sabins. “We just want to keep Cody’s memory alive the only way he would have wanted it… at the track.” She went on to say, “I miss my friend every day and my goal isn’t to make this the biggest pure stock race of the year but the biggest race period”.
For 2021 there will be a number of changes for this event, the biggest being the format. The race will be run in three segments and scored Monza style. This means that the winner of each segment gets one point, second gets two, third gets three and so-on. The lowest total score is declared the winner with the tiebreaker going to the highest finisher in the third segment. “We wanted to add a degree of difficulty to this year’s race”, stated Parks. “Mercedes, the LaFont’s and I tossed around numerous ideas and this was what we finally settled on”. West-Sabins added, “Cody’s parents and I really want to make this an event, not just a race and this will go a long way towards that goal”.
In 2020 It was Joey Jarvis, one of Cody’s oldest friends, coming out on top in a car owned by LaFont’s father Ken and raced by Cody before his untimely death. Now, Jarvis will return to defend his title in a brand new car built by him and a few of his closest friends. “To win the 2020 Cody race was without a doubt at or near the top of my career accomplishments”, says Jarvis. “I’ve won a lot of races in a lot of divisions but that was cool!” When asked about the new format, the second generation driver said “It’s gonna be fun, it’s something we don’t get to do so I’m looking forward to it”.
As the 2021 race season looms ever closer, West-Sabins and her team continue to seek sponsorship for this event. “We are accepting any and all donations and have numerous ways for sponsors to be involved”, she said. “We would love to have a record purse for this event as well as bonus money on the line for our competitors”. Any individual, group or business who would like to help support the race can contact Mercedes on Facebook or at racing24cody@gmail.com.
For more information on this event or any event on the Claremont Motorsports Park schedule go to www.claremontmotorsportspark.com or check them out on their various social media platforms.
Purse (as of 3/14/2020)
1st $1000.00
2Nd $650.00
3rd $450.00
4th $250.00
5th $175.00
6th $160.00
7Th $150.00
8th $140.00
9th $130.00
10th thru 24th $125.00
Sources: claremontmotorsportspark.com