|
Five Races, Five Faces Grace Rolling Wheels Weekend Winner’s Circle
Elbridge, NY – September 22, 2007 –Rolling Wheels Raceway Park PR
The 21st Annual World Series of DIRT Track Racing Weekend concluded on Saturday night at Rolling Wheels Raceway Park with a big five-star show staged at the popular Elbridge oval in the heart of DIRTcar Racing NorthEast country. Billy Decker, Brett Hearn and Gary Tomkins captured Advance Auto Parts Super DIRTcar Series Big-Block Modified Triple 50s while Chris Higgins (Sportsman) and Louie Jackson (Pro Stock) claimed 30-lap feature race wins in their respective Hoosier Tire-Sunoco Race Fuels Mr. DIRTcar Series Championship runs.
Starting third on the 30-car grid aboard the LJL Racing no. 91 Gypsum Wholesalers-Stadium Int'l-Quality Hardwoods/Bicknell entry, Decker took advantage of a lap 17 caution and out-dragged Ryan Phelps on the ensuing restart to make the final lead exchange before cruising on to a decisive victory in the Paine Motorsports 50.
“Right now we’re just going out and trying to win every race,” said Decker, following his fourth Series victory of the season to keep him third in the Mr. DIRTcar Championship point standings with just three events remaining. “They’re all big races this time of year and nothing will be handed to you that’s for sure.
Pole-sitter Vic Coffey crossed the line second ahead of Jimmy Phelps, Tim Fuller and Hearn to kick off the unique tripleheader for tour travelers.
Hearn charged from seventh in round two and used a lapped car to pick and roll around leader Pat Ward on lap 14 en route to his Advance Auto Parts Series-best seventh victory of the season in the Finger Lakes Radio 50.
“After fading in the first race I just didn’t think we had anything tonight,” said Hearn, on the heels of his tour-high seventh extra-distance win of the ’07 campaign to stand second on the Mr. DIRTcar points chart. “We made some good adjustments at the break but on that cool down lap we broke a rear shock mount so we have to go back and do some welding pretty quick.”
Hearn posted his all-time high 98th career tour triumph despite his Madsen Motorsports no. 20 Wentworth Custom Homes-Kruger/TEO machine suffering a broken shock mount with Coffey, Jimmy Phelps, Fuller and Tomkins filling out the final front-five.
Fourth-place starter Tomkins waited patiently in the nightcap before sprinting past pole-sitter Justin Haers on a lap 24 restart and holding off Ryan Phelps to capture the Owasco Beverages 50-lap finale.
“We found a set-up that goes good with this track and tonight the car was just a rocket,” said Tomkins, following his third 50-lap Advance Auto Parts Series win of the season with all coming at Rolling Wheels. “Tonight was a little rough because we had a problem in the first race so we had to start in the back. We were really good in the second one, we weren’t going to win but definitely had a top-five car. Then we made a little adjustment for the last one and I just tried to take my time.”
Chasing Tomkins’ no. 84 Honeoye Auto Parts-Red Parker & Son Excavating/Bicknell mount across the line behind Ryan Phelps, Jimmy Phelps, Fuller and Bert Hard Charger Billy Decker.
2005 Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Rookie of the Year Higgins ran away to victory on Saturday night picking up his first career Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Series feature in the ‘Budweiser 30’ at Rolling Wheels. The Syracuse native put his Line-X no. 19h out front on lap 7 and was never again contested on his way to victory.
“We’ve been fighting for these series races for a while,” exclaimed Higgins in victory lane. “My guys did a heck of a job getting this car dialed in the way it needed to be. We knew it was going to be slick, but we weren’t sure which lane to set up for. We ended up setting it up for the bottom and boy did she move.”
Canadian invader Mike Bowman jumped in the lead from the drop of the green, setting a comfortable pace at the front of the field with third-place starter Higgins looking for the fast lane. Higgins began to mount a charge before a jam up on the front straight caused three cars to spin. Dan Sellen, Mike Mandigo, and Mr. DIRTcar points leader Joe Williams all swapped ends just before the starter’s tower, with each driver continuing although Williams’ record tying win streak would stop at four straight on this night.
After searching for grip on the slick Rolling Wheels racing surface, Higgins finally found the bite he needed on the low side in turn four on lap seven. Bowman however, did not back down, immediately trying Higgins on the outside the following lap, but Higgins proved to be too much.
By the halfway point Higgins had built an insurmountable straightaway advantage over Bowman, Jipp Ortiz, Greg Panunte, and pole-sitter Mark D’Ilario. Bowman found a ray of hope though on lap 19 when Mike Storms lost the handle on his ride, yet that ray turned into a very small glimmer as Higgins again pulled away on the lap 19 restart leaving Bowman and company to fight for the runner-up spot.
As Hile, Ortiz, Panunte, and D’Ilario battled, Higgins and Bowman had checked away from the field. For Higgins it was his fourth top 5 finish of the season, while Bowman managed his first top-5 in his fifth start. “I can’t thank my crew enough, it all goes to them,” Higgins said. “They get me here and gave me a chance to win. I’m just a small piece of the puzzle. We’ve got a big crew that helps us out here, and we couldn’t do it without them.”
Racing out of Akwesasne, Ontario, Jackson played the waiting game Saturday night, running in the top-five all night before taking advantage of race leader Ricky Thompson’s late race spin to park his Brass Horse Grill, No.18 in victory lane in the "Dirt Track Digest 30" at Rolling Wheels.
"I finished second here last year so it feels good to finally make it to victory lane after coming so close," said Jackson , following his third career Mr DIRTcar Series Victory. "I had to be there at the end, my crew chief say’s don’t show all your cards too early, so that’s what we did tonight."
Russ Marsden grabbed the initial lead and fought off early race yellows and restarts as the 21st World Series of DIRT Track Racing Weekend continued at the Fast Track. Marsden’s luck suddenly changed on a lap 11 when he slowed with a flat tire sending him to the pits and ending any chance for his first tour victory.
On the restart Pete Stefanski led Ricky Thompson right there to battle for the lead and on lap 19 Thompson was finally able to muscle by Stefanski and grab the lead. Coming off turn two on the 23rd circuit Stefanski got a run on Thompson and the two made contact sending Stefanski off the back chute. Stefanski maintained control and only dropped back to fourth. Yet with five laps to go Lady Luck didn’t smile on Thompson as he suddenly spun all on his own going into turn one to give up the point.
Jackson inherited the top spot on lap 26 and was able to open a six car-length advantage over the rest of the field to grab his first win at Rolling Wheels. Eastern New York Runner Dale Charbonneau came home second followed by Stefanski, Allen Peters and Denis Gauvreau, who eventually lost all his points and money after failing to participate in the customary post-race technical inspection.
Rolling Wheels Raceway Park returns to action during Super DIRT Week XXXVI when the ‘Fast Track’ hosts a Mr. DIRTcar twin-bill for 358-Modifieds and Sportsman on Friday, October 5 and comes right back the following night with the traditional Sprint Car Challenge featuring all the top winged warriors from the URC, ESS and ASCS Patriot groups.
For more information regarding Rolling Wheels, contact DIRTcar Racing NorthEast Headquarters during the week at 315/834-6606, call RWR (315/689-7809) on raceday or visit www.rollingwheelsraceway.com on the internet anytime.
21st WORLD SERIES OF DIRT TRACK RACING EVENT SUMMARY
UMP/DIRTcar PRO STOCK
DIRT TRACK DIGEST FEATURE (30-Laps) – 1) 18-Louie Jackson(13), 2) 4c-Dean Charbonneau(6), 3) 2-Pete Stefanski(4), 4) 88-Allen Peters(1), *5) 72-Denis Gauvreau(12), 6) 28-Don Barnes(11), 7) 73-PJ Peters(7), 8) 113-Frank Guererri(9), 9) 05-Jocelyn Roy(22), 10) 11s-Steve Lewis(8), 11) 99-Mike Martin(26), 12) 47-Dave Bissonnette(5), 13) 4-Roch Aubin(24), 14) 48-Dion Oakes(27), 15) 6-Stephane Lebrun(18), 16) ba98-Steve Johnston(28), 17) 49-Bill Woodward Jr.(23), 18) 71-Scott Gribben(19), 19) 111-Russ Marsden(2), 20) 37w-Ricky Thompson(10), 21) 93-Dick Parkhurst(14), 22) 98t-Jack Terrell(17), 23) 188-Dave Papineau(20), 24) 15-Patrick Hobbs(25), 25) 0-Mike Vaughn(21), 26) 14-Mitchell Jock(16), 27) 26-Don Carlson(3), DNS 12-Clayton Benedict.
*Refused post-race inspection, loss of all points and money.
Heat Races
#1: A.Peters, Stefanski, PJ Peters, Thompson, Jackson , Jock, Gribben, Roy , Hobbs , Johnston (DNS).
#2: Marsden, Bissonnette, Lewis, Barnes, Parkhurst, Terrell, Papineau, Martin, Woodward.
#3: Carlson, Charbonneau, Guererri, Gauvreau, Benedict, Lebrun, Vaughn, Aubin, Oakes.
DIRTcar SPORTSMAN
BUDWEISER FEATURE (30-laps): 19h-CHRIS HIGGINS, 71-Mike Bowman, 5J-Chris Hile, 99p-Greg Panunte, 0-Jipp Ortiz, 08-Mark D’Ilario, 11J-Don Spatorico, 10-Tim Currier, 25G- Nick Guererri, 67g-Eric Giguere, 3k-A.J. Kingsley, 2p-John Juhl, 58-Scott Schrader, 66-Dan Wiesner, 19-Joe Wiiliams, 7-Paul Guererri, 777-Tyler McPherson, 4h-Daryl Hilkert, 79s-Mike Storms, 58L-Jim LaRock, 11h-Bill Hallet, 12-Dan Sellen, 87-Shawn Donath, 2L-Loren Lincoln, 46-Bill Coleman, 8L-Phil LaVare, 11-Mike Mandigo, 99-Larry Wight, 4-Dave Reilley, d28-Shane Donath, 56-Steve Schumacher.
QUALIFYING
Heat Races
#1: N. Guererri, D’Ilario, MacPherson, Shawn Donath, Hallett, Schrader, Wright, Pratt, Flannigan, Schneider.
#2: Bowman, Higgins, Chris Hile, Sellen, Juhl, Sears Jr., Carleton, Steiner, Occhino.
#3: Ortiz, LaVare, Reilley, Storms, Wight, Schumacher, Prevo, Davidson, Howiesfeld, Rudy.
#4: Spatorico, Shane Donath, Kingsley, Currier, Mandigo, Hilkert, Hotchkiss, Quick, Hilton, P. Guererri
#5: Panunte, Giguere, LaRock, Coleman, Williams, Fink, Friesen, Wiesner, Lincoln, Pitcher, Desmoreau
Consolation Round
#1: P. Guererri, Mandigo, Hallet, Wiesner, Fink, Sears Jr., Prevo, Occhino, Quick, Pratt.
#2: Williams, Juhl, Schumacher, Lincoln, Wright, Steiner, Pitcher, Hotchkiss, Schneider.
#3: Wight, Schrader, Hilkert, Carleton, Flannigan, Davidson, Hilton, Rudy, Friesen, Desormeau.
DIRTcar BIG-BLOCK MODIFIED
Feature #1 – Paine Motorsports 50
1 3 91 Billy Decker/ Unadilla , NY ($3,000)
2 1 32c Vic Coffey/ Leicester , NY
3 7 98h Jimmy Phelps/Baldwinsville,NY
4 11 19 Tim Fuller/Edwards, NY
5 10 20 Brett Hearn/Sussex,NJ
6 8 3 Justin Haers/ Phelps , NY
7 2 99 Ryan Phelps/Fulton,NY
8 12 42p Pat Ward/Genoa,NY
9 4 14j Alan Johnson/Middlesex,NY
10 13 7x Steve Paine/Waterloo,NY
11 21 77x Dale Planck/Cortland,NY
12 16 27j Danny Johnson/Rochester,NY
13 5 49 Billy Dunn /Watertown,NY
14 23 42b Kevin Bates/ Lake Ariel , PA
15 6 99b Chuck Bower/Lansing,NY
16 18 21k Randy Chrysler/Lewiston,NY
17 20 02 Roy Bresnahan/ Palermo , NY
18 26 X Chad Phelps/Mexico,NY
19 25 18 Sean Beardsley/Central Square, NY
20 19 121 Joe Beyea/ Genoa , NY
21 27 0 Russ Hefti/ Elbridge , NY
22 15 48too Dave Rauscher/Waterloo,NY
23 29 16 Mike Bowman/ Baldwinsville , NY
24 14 44s Matt Sheppard/Waterloo,NY
25 9 84 Gary Tomkins/ Clifton Springs , NY
26 28 b2 Bob Henry Jr./Clay,NY
27 24 13 Brett Tonkin/ Carbondale , PA
28 22 60 Kenny Stafford /Homer,NY
29 30 6n Eric Palmer/Cresco,PA
30 17 6 Pat O'Brien/Kingston,ONT
Feature #2 – Finger Lakes Radio 50
FIN STR CAR# DRIVER
1 7 20 Brett Hearn/Sussex,NJ($3,000)
2 10 32c Vic Coffey/ Leicester , NY
3 9 98h Jimmy Phelps/Baldwinsville,NY
4 8 19 Tim Fuller/Edwards, NY
5 25 84 Gary Tomkins/ Clifton Springs , NY
6 5 99 Ryan Phelps/Fulton,NY
7 2 7x Steve Paine/Waterloo,NY
8 6 3 Justin Haers/ Phelps , NY
9 1 77x Dale Planck/Cortland,NY
10 24 44s Matt Sheppard/Waterloo,NY
11 3 14j Alan Johnson/Middlesex,NY
12 30 6 Pat O'Brien/Kingston,ONT
13 13 49 Billy Dunn /Watertown,NY
14 15 99b Chuck Bower/Lansing,NY
15 14 42b Kevin Bates/ Lake Ariel , PA
16 16 21k Randy Chrysler/Lewiston,NY
17 4 42p Pat Ward/Genoa,NY
18 17 02 Roy Bresnahan/ Palermo , NY
19 20 121 Joe Beyea/ Genoa , NY
20 26 b2 Bob Henry Jr./Clay,NY
21 19 18 Sean Beardsley/Central Square, NY
22 21 0 Russ Hefti/ Elbridge , NY
23 23 16 Mike Bowman/ Baldwinsville , NY
24 27 13 Brett Tonkin/ Carbondale , PA
25 22 48too Dave Rauscher/Waterloo,NY
26 12 27j Danny Johnson/Rochester,NY
27 29 6n Eric Palmer/Cresco,PA
28 11 91 Billy Decker/ Unadilla , NY
29 28 60 Kenny Stafford /Homer,NY
30 18 X Chad Phelps/Mexico,NY
Feature #3 – Owasco Beverages 50
FIN STR CAR# DRIVER
1 4 84 Gary Tomkins/ Clifton Springs , NY ($3,000)
2 3 99 Ryan Phelps/Fulton,NY
3 6 98h Jimmy Phelps/Baldwinsville,NY
4 5 19 Tim Fuller/Edwards, NY
5 28 91 Billy Decker/ Unadilla , NY
6 1 3 Justin Haers/ Phelps , NY
7 7 32c Vic Coffey/ Leicester , NY
8 17 42p Pat Ward/Genoa,NY
9 11 14j Alan Johnson/Middlesex,NY
10 9 77x Dale Planck/Cortland,NY
11 15 42b Kevin Bates/ Lake Ariel , PA
12 2 7x Steve Paine/Waterloo,NY
13 13 49 Billy Dunn /Watertown,NY
14 26 27j Danny Johnson/Rochester,NY
15 16 21k Randy Chrysler/Lewiston,NY
16 21 18 Sean Beardsley/Central Square, NY
17 20 b2 Bob Henry Jr./Clay,NY
18 19 121 Joe Beyea/ Genoa , NY
19 14 99b Chuck Bower/Lansing,NY
20 25 48too Dave Rauscher/Waterloo,NY
21 27 6n Eric Palmer/Cresco,PA
22 24 13 Brett Tonkin/ Carbondale , PA
23 8 20 Brett Hearn/Sussex,NJ
24 23 16 Mike Bowman/ Baldwinsville , NY
25 10 44s Matt Sheppard/Waterloo,NY
26 22 0 Russ Hefti/ Elbridge , NY
27 18 02 Roy Bresnahan/ Palermo , NY
28 29 60 Kenny Stafford /Homer,NY
DNS 12 6 Pat O'Brien/Kingston,ONT
DNS 30 X Chad Phelps/Mexico,NY
QUALIFYING
Integra Shocks Time Trials
Steve Paine/Waterloo,NY (22.343 sec./100.703 mph)
Heat Races
#1: R.Phelps, J.Phelps, Tomkins, Paine, O’Brien, Beardsley, Bates, Bowman, M.Ward, Whaley.
#2: Hearn, Coffey, A.Johnson, Sheppard, Ra.Chrysler, Planck, Hefti, Ro.Chrysler, G.Tonkin, Isabell.
#3: Decker, Haers, Bower, Rauscher, Beyea, Stafford , Palmer, Potter, Dagenais, Kitchell.
#4: P.Ward, Fuller, Dunn, D.Johnson, Bresnahan, Henry, B.Tonkin, C.Phelps, Juhl.
Consolations
#1: Planck, Bates, Beardsley, Hefti, Bowman, Ro.Chrysler, M.Ward, Whaley, G.Tonkin, Isabell(DNS).
#2: Stafford , B.Tonkin, C.Phelps, Henry, Palmer, Juhl, Dagenais, Potter, Kitchell.
|
|
