Corey Heim, driver of the No. 11 Safelite Toyota, takes the checkered flag to win Saturday’s Craftsman Truck Series Toyota 200 at WWT Raceway. Logan Riely/Getty Images
ENJOY ILLINOIS WINNER QUOTE
‘This is huge for me. This is huge for this team. I’m so glad I was able to get a win with Brian (Wilson) as my crew chief in the Cup Series. You never know when it’s going to happen again. Just drove my butt off, hope for the best.’
– Austin Cindric, who outfueled Ryan Blaney to win Sunday at WWT Raceway
Austin Cindric in Victory Lane Sunday at WWT Raceway.
DAVID JENSEN / GETTY IMAGES
XFINITY RECAP
• Saturday’s PACIFIC OFFICE AUTOMATION 147, Portland International
WINNER: SHANE VAN GISBERGEN
NewZealander Shane van Gisbergen claimed his first Xfinity Series victory in Saturday’s Pacific Office Automation 147 at Portland International Raceway. The popular Kiwi celebrated the hardearned win with a burnout all the way around the 1.967 mile road course and then climbing out of his Chevy and topping it off by kicking a soccer ball into the thrilled crowd.
It was a popular win all-around for the 35-year-old three-time Australian Supercar champion, but he had to work for it. The series rookie – who won the inaugural Chicago Street Race in his first NASCAR Cup Series start last summer – led laps early in the No. 97 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet but struggled with race re-starts for much of the day. He lost positions on the early restarts and even had to overcome a couple miscues – dropping his tires off track into the dirt – before steadily and masterfully working his way forward in the closing laps to challenge for the win.
He passed the day”s most dominant driver, JR Motorsports’ Justin Allgaier on the final restart with four laps to go and pulled away to a .941- second victory over the series veteran, who led a race best 46 of the race’s 75 laps.
JR Motorsports’ Sam Mayer, van Gisbergen’s Kaulig teammate A.J. Allmendinger – who started last in the field – and Sam Hunt Racing’s Ed Jones – an IMS A sportscar and Indy Car veteran – rounded out the Top-5.
• Saturday’s TOYOTA 200, World Wide Technology Raceway (IL)
WINNER: COREY HEIM
The early bird got the victory on Saturday afternoon at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway.
In a long green-flag run to start tile final stage of the Toyota 200, Corey Heim brought his No. 11 TRICON Garage Tundra to pit road before any of the other top trucks made greenflag stops, and the move paid off with optimum track position.
Heim held the top spot for a restart on Lap 138 of 160 and led the rest of the way, beating runner-up Christian Eckes to the finish line by 1.854 seconds, earning a $50,000 bonus as the winner of the second Triple Truck Challenge.
The victory was a welcome turnaround after Heim’s truck was disqualified from second place May 24 at Charlotte for three lug nuts not secure. Heim won for the fourth time this season—all within the last eight races—the second time at Gateway and the ninth time in 53 career starts.
Note: The start of the race was delayed for two-and-a-half hours by rain… The final Triple Truck Challenge race is scheduled for June 28 at Nashville Superspeedway. Heim and Sanchez, last week’s Charlotte winner, could collect an additional $100,000 as the winners of two of three events in “The Trip.” A $50,000 bonus is available to all other drivers.
Cindric outduels (outfuels) Blaney
Austin Cindric’s win at WWT Raceway Sunday was his first since he won the 2022 DAYTONA 500 as a rookie, a dry spell that lasted 85 races.
MThen it was Blaney’s turn to suffer game-changing misfortune.
“Never thought in my mind we were short,” Blaney said. “One of those things. Gosh, proud of the 12 boys. We were fast. Had my work cut out for me holding off Christopher. That was a fun battle. I don’t know what happened to him.
“Yeah, one lap short, which just stinks. Congrats to the 2 team. They did a good job all day. Props to them, Austin. Proud for Team Penske and Ford.
“Really happy with our showing today. I don’t know what I’ve got to do to get some luck on our side. Gosh, wrecked the last two points races. Thought we had a great shot to win today. Ended up bad.”
Bell was fresh from victory in the rainshortened May 26 Coca-Cola 600 and had a car that was dominant from the outset. He passed pole winner Michael McDowell on Lap 41 to win Stage 1 and stayed on the track under caution for Josh Berry’s collision with the Turn 3 wall to win Stage 2.
In the closing laps, it seemed inevitable that Bell would overtake Blaney, until Bell’s engine turned sour.
“I have no idea what happened,” said Bell, who rolled to a seventh-place finish. “Some sort of motor issue. I’m surprised that I made it to the end. Glad we were able to salvage something out of it.
“You don’t get race cars like that very often. Whenever you do, you need to take advantage of it. Disappointing day.”
Tyler Reddick finished fourth and Logano fifth, followed by Austin Dillon, Bell, Sunoco rookie Carson Hocevar (a career-best eighth), Justin Haley and Larson.
On Lap 140, the final circuit of Stage 2, Kyle Busch and Larson were battling in close quarters for the seventh position when Larson’s No. 5 Chevrolet broke loose underneath Busch’s No. 8 Camaro, sending both cars sliding into the outside wall.
Busch’s car was damaged beyond repair and exited the race in the 35th position— the first DNF of the season for the twotime Cup champion. Larson, on the other hand, was able to salvage the lOth-place result.
“We can’t afford days like this,” said Busch, who is winless this year and squarely on the bubble for a Playoff spot. “Yeah, he got loose and wiped us out.”
ADISON, 111. – Surprise and elation were the watchwords for Team Penske driver Austin Cindric, who won Sunday’s Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway at the expense of teammate Ryan Blaney.
The race was Blaney’s to win—until the reigning Cup Series champ ran out of fuel on the next-to-last lap and handed the lead to his teammate. Cindric charged past Blaney at the finish line and completed the checkered-flag lap as Blaney rolled slowly to 24th-place result.
The victory was Cindric’s first since he won the 2022 DAYTONA 500 as a rookie, a dry spell that lasted 85 races. Nevertheless, Cindric expressed conflicting emotions after he climbed from his No. 2 Ford.
“This weekend was a great weekend for everybody involved,” Cindric said. “But, yeah, to have two cars in the fight, eventual 1-2. Heartbroken for those guys.
“This is huge for me. This is huge for this team. I’m so glad I was able to get a win with Brian (Wilson) as my crew chief in the Cup Series. You never know when it’s going to happen again. Just drove my butt off, hope for the best.”
All three Team Penske drivers—Cindric, Blaney and Joey Logano—made only three pit stops to at least four for all other competitors. They stayed out under caution for the Stage 2 break and restarted 1-2-3 on Lap 149.
After pitting early in the ensuing cycle (Blaney on Lap 176, Cindric on Lap 177 and Logano on Lap 179, Blaney gained a spot on Cindric and began working his way through the field, improving his position as cars ahead of him came to pit road.
On Lap 217, when Kyle Larson pitted, Blaney assumed the lead, but with the race’s fastest car—the No. 20 Toyota of Christopher Bell—in hot pursuit. Bell soon caught Blaney and pulled alongside several times before engine issues caused Bell to slow dramatically.
“I’m blowing up, I’m blowing up,” Bell radioed to his crew.
But Bell, who had won the first two stages, nursed his car to the finish with help from Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Martin Truex Jr. Three laps down and mired in 34th place, Truex repeatedly pushed Bell’s Camry in the closing laps.
High school teams prep to host summer camps
ARTESIA — Summer is here, and that means a chance for future Bulldogs and Lady Bulldogs to work on their skills with high school athletes and coaches through summer programs and camps.
BASKETBALL Lady Bulldog Recreational Basketball Also on Monday, June 3, the Lady Bulldog basketball program will begin hosting open recreational basketball, continuing four days a week through the end of the month at Bulldog Pit. Sessions include:
• Grades K-3: 8-8:50 a.m.
• Grades 4-6: 9-9:50 a.m.
• Grades 7-9: 10-10:50 a.m.
Lady Bulldog Kids’ Camp
The Lady ‘Dogs will host their kids’ camp Monday through Wednesday, June 24-26, at the Pit. Cost is $60 per camper and $45 for each additional sibling, with sessions to run as follows:
• Grades K-3: 1-3 p.m.
• Grades 4-9: 1-4 p.m. Registration will run from noon – 1 p.m. Monday, June 24. The camp will include skill development, coaching from varsity staff and players, contests with awards for winners, scrimmages, and free sno cones on the final day. Each camper will also receive a t-shirt and basketball.
For more information, contact head coach Candace Pollard at 575-910-4034.
SOCCER Kids’ Camp
Tuesday through Thursday, June 25-27, the Artesia High School soccer program will host a kids’ camp for boys and girls at the Mack Chase Athletic Complex. Cost is $60 per camper, with a $5 discount for each additional sibling.
Sessions will run as follows: • Ages 4 years through kindergarten: 8-9 a.m.
• Grades 1-2: 9:30-10:30 a.m.
• Grades 3-5: 4-5 p.m. Registration deadline for this camp is Thursday, June 20. In-person registration will be held from 6-7 p.m. each Tuesday and Thursday until June 20 at The Mack, or register online using the included QR code. Campers who register by Thursday, June 13, will receive a free soccer gift.
For more information, email artesiasoccerclassic@ gmail.com.
Bulldog Development Camp
On Friday, June 28, the Bulldog soccer team will host a development camp for boys in grades 6-8 only. Cost is $125 per camper, with a $5 discount for each additional sibling. The fee includes lunch, a snack and a t-shirt. The schedule will include:
• 8-9:30 a.m.: Session 1
• 9:45 a.m.: Snack and tactics • 10:1511:45 a.m.: Session 2
• Noon – 1 p.m.: Lunch
• 1-2:30 p.m.: Session 3
• 2-3 p.m.: Break
• 3-4:30 p.m.: Session 4 Registration deadline for this camp is Thursday, June 20. In-person registration will be held from 6-7 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays until June 20 at The Mack, or register online using the included QR code.
Under the Lights Tournament
The Bulldog soccer program will host its Under the Lights fundraiser tournament Saturday, July 13, at The Mack.
The tournament will be 5v5 for U8 through U14 and 3v3 for U6. Early registration cost is $350 for 5v5 divisions and $300 for 3v3 divisions through July 3 with a four-game guarantee. The top three teams in each division will earn medals. Games will run from 3-11 p.m.
For more information, contact Natalie Jones at 512-294-0469 or natalie@ 5v5soccer.com.
VOLLEYBALL Kids’ Camp
Monday through Wednesday, July 1-3, the Bulldog volleyball team will host a kids’ camp at Bulldog Pit.
Cost is $75 per camper and will include a t-shirt through Sunday, June 9. Campers may still register after June 9 but will not receive a shirt.
Sessions will run as follows:
• Grades 3-6: 9 a.m. – noon
• Grades 7-8: 1-4 p.m. To register and for more information, call 575-308-6336.
FOOTBALL
The Bulldog football team will hold its summer weights and skills program in July.
The program will run Monday through Friday, July 1-23, at Bulldog Bowl. Sessions will include:
• Grades 7-8: 9-10 a.m.
• Grades 5-6: 10-11 a.m. No sessions will be held on Thursday, July 4. Campers should bring a water bottle and good shoes (cleats optional) each day.
Roswell man sentenced for sexual exploitation of minors
ALBUQUERQUE — A Roswell man who used the messaging app Snapchat to groom and eventually sexually exploit two young girls has been sentenced to 235 months in prison after pleading guilty to federal charges of criminal sexual acts against minors.
There is no parole in the federal system. According to court documents, between September 2022 and Nov. 18, 2022, Juan Rodriguez, 40, engaged in a sexual act with Jane Doe 1, a 12-year-old minor female, on three occasions. Prior to engaging in sexual activity with the girl, Rodriguez had communicated with her via Snapchat.
During the summer of 2021, Rodriguez engaged in a sexual act with Jane Doe 2, an 11-year-old minor female whom he had also previously communicated with on Snapchat.
In his plea agreement, Rodriguez admitted knowing the girls were minors when he initiated communication with them.
After completing his term of imprisonment, Rodriguez will be required to serve 10 years of supervised probation and must register as a sex offender.
Hobbs Baby Box saves second infant
HOBBS — A second infant was safely surrendered to Hobbs’ Safe Haven Baby Box late last month.
The City of Hobbs reported that, during the week of May 20, a healthy newborn boy was placed in the Baby Box at Hobbs Fire Department’s Station 1. The child marks the second released to Hobbs’ Baby Box since its installation in May 2023. The first infant was surrendered in September 2023.
The newborn was transported to Covenant Health Hobbs Hospital for evaluation before being turned over to the Children, Youth and Families Department.
“This Safe Haven Baby Box is about the safety and future of the child,” the City of Hobbs said in a release. “The responsibility of a parent is waived without judgment or punishment to preserve the child’s health and well-being. The baby box at Fire Station 1 is an environmentally controlled incubator device designed to keep an infant in a secure and safe environment with sufficient oxygen, a comfortable temperature, and equipped with a transparent door and safety alarm to immediately notify the operator(s) that an infant has been placed in the device.”
There are currently seven Safe Haven Baby Boxes in New Mexico, also including Carlsbad, Roswell, Alamogordo, Belen, Espanola and Farmington. In March, the Pregnancy Help Center of Artesia and City of Artesia officials announced that plans were in the works to install a Baby Box at Artesia General Hospital.
The public is reminded that, under the New Mexico Safe Haven for Infants Act, babies up to 90 days old can also be taken to Safe Haven sites — which include hospitals, police departments and fire departments — for surrender without fear of criminal charges. Unlike Baby Boxes, however, infants taken to these sites must be left with a person rather than dropped off. Basic health information may be requested but does not have to be provided.
Parents warned of dangers of leaving children in hot vehicles
ROSWELL — With temperatures already reaching triple-digits in Southeast New Mexico, the Roswell Police Department and Roswell Fire Department are urging parents and caregivers to be aware of the dangers hot vehicles pose to young children.
“Parents and other child caregivers must raise their awareness of the importance of never leaving children inside unattended vehicles,” the RPD wrote in a release. “The temperature inside a parked vehicle can quickly reach lethal levels in hot, or even warm, weather. Babies and other young children, and pets as well, are not able to escape a hot vehicle on their own.”
The departments urge residents to be cognizant of the fact that all it takes is a brief distraction — trying to hurry through a busy day or dealing with stress or other emotions — to cause a parent or other caretaker to exit a vehicle without thinking about a child who was along on the trip.
“Don’t let a moment of forgetfulness turn into a tragedy,” said the release. “Take whatever steps necessary to remember a child is with you, and certainly never knowingly leave a child in the car for even what you think will only be a brief moment.”
Outside temperatures don’t have to be sweltering to become dangerous for children. Even with an outside temp of just 80 degrees, the inside of a closed vehicle can quickly reach 110 or higher. Under the summer sun, it takes only 10 minutes for the temperature in a vehicle to rise nearly 20 degrees. Leaving a window cracked or parking in the shade are not sufficient safeguards.
Trapped inside a vehicle, a child’s body temperature can rise up to five times faster than an adult’s. A child can die from heatstroke when his or her body temperature reaches 107 degrees.
Most parents cannot imagine themselves leaving, even accidentally, their child in a hot vehicle, yet statistics show that more than half the instances of child death under these circumstances occur after the child was accidentally or unknowingly left in the vehicle. Remember, young children, especially babies, often fall asleep in their car seats, becoming silent passengers. Rear-facing seats look the same, whether occupied or not, when viewed by someone from the front seat.
The second most common instance of children dying in hot vehicles is when children get into the vehicle on their own to play. Never leave children alone in or around vehicles, and always lock vehicles when you leave them. Do not leave keys or remote door openers where a child can reach them.
For more information and safety suggestions, visit kidsandcars.org.
All She Wrote
Let’s start with the good news: New Mexico is number one on an important ranking. We have the nation’s lowest property taxes, and they’ve been the lowest for a long time.
The reason goes back in history to the 1800s, when New Mexicans lost land to tax sales because they didn’t understand American taxation imposed on them, and the territory was infested with unscrupulous lawyers. Today property tax rates reflect the reality that in New Mexico many people are land rich and cash poor.
Other components in the Tax Foundation’s 2024 State Business Tax Climate Index are mixed.
When this year’s numbers came out, we hardly noticed because nobody could make political hay from it. Our overall ranking was 23rd. Not great but not horrible. The Tax Foundation called it “a respectable ranking.”
It hurts a bit because neighboring states did better: Utah, 8th; Texas, 13th; Arizona, 14th; and Oklahoma, 19th. However, Colorado was 27th.
The top five states in the overall ranking were Wyoming, South Dakota, Alaska, Florida and Montana. The worst (50th) was New Jersey, followed by New York, California, Connecticut and Massachusetts.
The foundation ranks tax systems as of July 1, 2023.
If we pry our ranking apart, we also learn that we rank 11th for unemployment insurance taxes and 13th for corporate taxes.
On the down side, New Mexico ranks 35th in sales taxes and 36th in individual taxes. Those two factors pull us down in overall rankings.
New Mexico’s gross receipts tax hits both goods and services, so it directly affects the cost of doing business. Businesses here have complained forever, and, except for a few half-hearted stabs at reform, it’s still with us and still climbing. Surprisingly, there are states where sales taxes are worse, like Arizona, Colorado, Oklahoma and Texas. If you’re driving across the state line to shop in these states, you’re hurting yourself and New Mexico.
Individual income taxes weigh heavily in the foundation’s measures, so states like Wyoming, South Dakota, Alaska and Florida, which have no individual income taxes, smell like roses. The foundation argues that individual tax codes can discourage people from becoming self-employed, and individual income taxes can also raise the cost of labor.
Arizona is 9th in this category after moving from a two-bracket, graduated rate system to a flat tax rate of 2.5%, joining 10 other states with a flat rate. Colorado reduced its flat rate to 4.4%. New Mexico plunged from 26th in 2021 to 36th in 2022, and there it remains.
What does that mean? The Tax Foundation likes the numbers in Wyoming and South Dakota, but do you really want to live there?
Last year, bloggers at the nonpartisan Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy compared top-ranked Wyoming with bottom-ranked New Jersey. “On nearly every economic measure, from number of Fortune 500 companies to overall economic output to entrepreneurship, New Jersey outperforms Wyoming – and by a long shot,” they wrote. “That’s because New Jersey has top-notch public schools, robust transportation infrastructure and other public goods – all made possible by the revenues raised by the very taxes that land it in the bottom spot of the Tax Foundation’s Index.”
The same number crunchers faulted the Tax Foundation’s tilt toward lower or no taxation, “even though state and local taxes make up a vanishingly small fraction of total business costs, and the services paid for with those tax dollars are crucial to the success of every business.”
Still, we can’t ignore the Tax Foundation. Site Selection Group considers the annual report a valuable tool in judging states. But it’s one many considerations, which include workforce, infrastructure, education, business friendliness and cost of doing business.
This election cycle, candidates may rail about New Mexico’s taxes. Yes, it’s important, but it’s not the only factor in growing the state’s economy.
(EDITOR’S NOTE: Sherry Robinson is a syndicated columnist whose work is distributed by New Mexico News Services.)
Vacationing on the cheap
I’m a big fan of vacations on the cheap, which is good, since I’ve seldom been able to afford anything first-class. Besides, top-dollar travel often overlooks the best stuff to see. Several years ago, when my family was younger and we were fairly new to the Land of Enchantment, we decided to take a New Mexico-centric vacation. My wife and I, along with our two daughters, got into our four-door sedan early one summer morning and left our northern New Mexico home in search of wonderment, which we found at just about every stop.
Our first stop was in Tucumcari, where we visited Mesalands Community College and its dinosaur museum. One of our daughters had developed an encyclopedic knowledge of the dinosaurs that once roamed the earth, so this stop was mainly for her — and she wasn’t disappointed.
Everyday, we were told, they would pull fossils out of a nearby mesa, and we got to see not only their discoveries but also their process of cleaning them up and putting them together into impressive exhibits.
Then we scooted down to Fort Sumner and boned up on Billy The Kid’s life and times. That one was for me. I’ve had a fascination with The Kid and his story ever since.
That night we made it into Roswell, where we stayed overnight and visited the UFO museum the next morning. Again, it was an educational experience, since the exhibits takes you through the 1947 incident that started it all.
Then it was on to Carlsbad, arriving at the Caverns in time for the Bat Flight, a twilight-tinged exodus of thousands of bats from the Caverns. It was quite a sight to behold — as were the Caverns, the next day, when we descended into the depths of the earth and ate at the subterranean restaurant they’ve built down there.
After a brief foray into El Paso and Ciudad Juárez for a day, we reentered New Mexico and visited White Sands National Park. We hit the dunes just before dark and watched as a thunderstorm, miles away over the Organ Mountains, joined forces with a beautifully setting sun to create the most spectacular 360-degree view of a sunset I’ve ever seen. The pictures we took didn’t do it justice; you had to have been there.
We stayed one night in Silver City, as our launching point into the Gilas, where we hiked to the ruins of an ancient civilization, the Cliff Dwellers, a great sample of the wonders hidden inside that incredible mountain range.
By then we were worn out, so as much as I wanted to show the girls the Very Large Array, we got on Interstate 25 North instead, and didn’t stop until we had made it back to home sweet home.
There’s just too much to see in New Mexico. Altogether, it cost us less than a week and around a thousand bucks. We tent camped and stayed in modestly priced motels, picnicked out of our ice chest and splurged on some good restaurant eating, and went through several tanks of gas. All told, we had a wonderful adventure being, well, a family.
But we only covered a sliver of what you can find in this state, and through the years we’ve made our way into other parts of this vast and enchanting country. Seems there’s something around every corner — especially if you’re willing to get off the beaten path.
Or, just go around the corner from where you live, where there’s bound to be something worth exploring.
In every corner of New Mexico, there’s something to see that’s worth the drive. I’ll leave it to you to discover it for yourself.
(EDITOR’S NOTE: Tom McDonald owns and operates the New Mexico Community News Exchange and the Guadalupe County Communicator in Santa Rosa. Contact him at tmcdonald.srnm@gmail.com.)