Epping, NH – A huge throng of fans turned out to watch the rebirth of the traditional Star Classic and they weren’t disappointed. It was a classic race!  And, it was a perfect day for Russ Wood at Star Speedway Saturday. He led all 150 green flag laps, collecting the lion’s share of the over $10,000 in lap money and bonuses, plus the $5,000 winner’s share of the purse.

It had not been a great year for the Holbrook-Wood team until then, with a blown motor almost keeping Wood out of a race he’d won five times over the years. Then a borrowed motor from fellow competitor Howie Lane, made it all happen. Wood, by virtue of time trials and handicapping, sat on the pole and he took full advantage of the position. Taking off with first his teammate Rob Summers, then five-time Classic winner Chris Perley challenging the entire distance, Wood was able to stay out front through traffic and cautions. It was a very big boost to what has been a declining season of late.

Race winner, Russ Wood, is surrounded by 2nd-place finisher, Chris Perley (right) and 3rd-place finisher, Jon McKennedy (left) in victory lane

Russ, amidst a huge throng of well-wishers, said in victory lane. “I want to thank Howie Lane for our borrowed motor. Without that we wouldn’t be here. Thanks to Jeff Holbrook and the entire crew for working so hard, my parents and wife and kids  – everyone whose supported us this year. We’ve had an up and down year. This makes it all worthwhile.”

With a lot of lap money and a halfway bonus of $1,000 to give incentive, Russ mapped out his strategy. “I was kind of thinking lap money at the beginning. I knew Chris would be coming. I figured he’d blow right by me. But, my car was really not bad. We borrowed a motor from Howie and it was good on power. I can’t believe that we held off Chris. I knew when he got close. I saw the flashes from the cameras. I was just saying, ‘let me pull this off and help us make up for some of the year’. This is awesome, beating Chris and Jonathon. They were fast. Just beating them was something. And, to tie Bentley with six Classic wins is pretty special. It’s not a bad position to be in to be tied with him. I love racing here and I love this race. Thanks for everyone who came out to watch.”

The driver behind Wood for 100 of the 150 lap grind was Chris Perley, who also went into the race with five previous wins of the prestigious event and who was the opponent Russ feared the most. Perley was happy finishing second in a race he deemed as fun.

“This was a great run. I got tight early and didn’t know if it would get better or worse and it got worse. But, it was tough racing. I was able to stay with Russ for most of the race and kept him honest. Lap traffic was tough. It was a good one and a lot of fun. I’m happy to bring the car home in one piece and head on to the next shot. Congratulations to Russ. He did good. It’s nice to race with Russ. It always is. The track was fun, the crowd looked good… it’s nice to be back to the old stomping grounds.”

Chris Perley (11) chases Russ Wood (29)

Taking the third podium finish was Chelmsford’s Jon McKennedy, who doesn’t race supers very often, but when he does, his record is an enviable one. He commented after his run, “We had a good run. We started twelfth and worked our way up to third. It was a tough race. We had a bunch of cautions and a lot of lap cars between every one. Overall it was a good day. It’s the first time we brought the car out all season. We set fast time and due to the handicapping, we had to start twelfth.

“I would have liked to win. This is my third Classic in a row and we’ve been close all three times. At the end of the race we had a pretty good car but it took four or five laps to get going after a caution. Once the tires got hot and the stagger shrunk down, the car would come back to life. Congratulations to Russell. He’s the master around this place. He’s raced here for many years. It’s good to see him win.”

Sixteen cars were locked in from time trials with the top twelve handicapped by ISMA rules. The consi finished lined up the rest of the field. With some bad finishes in the past few races, veteran Russ Wood and teammate Rob Summers made up the front row in the 24-car field. It was Wood taking the point from the green, a spot he would not relinquish.

An early caution for Ben Seitz slowed the pace but green flowed after as Wood and Summers tried to shake off Eddie Witkum, Johnny Benson and quickly up from tenth, Chris Perley.

Traffic soon came into play on the famed bullring as Wood began to lap cars by lap ten as Summers followed. Perley was third a distance behind the lead duo when yellow fell again on lap 22 for Dave Sanborn in the Lane 9.

The slowdown allowed Perley to close the gap on Wood and Summers as Benson, Witkum, Justin Belfiore, Mike Lichty and McKennedy threaded through the traffic left by the leaders as the race stayed green for a long spell.

Perley (11) spent much of the race trying to find a away around the Rob Summers No. 35

Just before the lap 50 mark, Perley moved up on Summers as Wood was struggling with a trio of slower cars ahead. On lap 49, Perley became the nemesis for Wood and it would be all their ballgame for the next 100 laps.

Yellow flew again on lap 56 when Dave Duggan’s 51 was into the wall in four. Justin Belfiore pulled the 98 pitside at this juncture, not to return. On the restart of his mishap, Johnny Benson stopped the Lichty-owned 74 coming out of turn one and he too was out for the night.

Wood and Perley, two of supermodified’s greatest, showed the large crowd on hand, why they should be so named. The red 29 and the black 11 diced in and out of traffic in awesome fashion as they headed for lap 75 and an extra $1000 contributed by the fans who bought special 2011 Star t-shirts.  Wood picked up that bonus and then continued to tally at least $25 for each lap he led.

A spin by Eddie Witkum brought the intense action to a halt on lap 108. A red was dropped and due to the number of caution laps already run, refueling was allowed as the 97 was taken to the pits.

The race resumed with Wood and Perley now in a different time zone. Timmy Jedrzejek ran in third on the track, but was fifth in the rundown as he had just been gone down a lap prior to the red. Rob Summers and Jon McKennedy were the only remaining cars in the lead lap.

At the 120 mark, it was evident, that the winner was going to be a tiebreaker of sorts with both Wood and Perley tied for most Classic wins with five. Timmy J ran behind Perley in the 5th place spot with Summers third just ahead of McKennedy in fourth.

Mike Lichty (84) battles with Tim Jedrzejek (32) - Lichty would finish 6th while Jedrzejek would land the Soule Racing No. 32 in 5th

Lap 130 found Summers turned around bringing out the yellow and McKennedy continuing after tapping the 35. Summers went to the rear and the 79 held its spot.

A couple attempts at the restart of this lap saw a tangle between the 37 of Locke and the 17 of Seitz with Seitz done for the night. Then Locke pulled in as attrition increased. Another attempt at green found Craig Rayvals off in turn one but he was restarted at the tail.

The race finally got to green and stayed that way for the next 20 laps with no change out front as Wood and Perley stuck together, still slicing and dicing in and out of traffic. McKennedy held onto third while Summers was mired back a distance in fourth. Jedrzejek ran pretty much alone in fifth, coming across under the checkered ahead of the 35.

Summers said succinctly of his fourth.  “I’m happy for the whole team that Russ won. We needed that bad. Russ borrowed that motor from Howie and it’s really cool for him to win. We were off a little bit then we got tight. Then I got a little help and got spun around. That kind of sucked. But, hey we came back and finished fourth in one piece. I guess it was a decent day. Hopefully we can continue on for the next couple races.”

Race winner, Russ Wood, is surrounded by 2nd-place finisher, Chris Perley (right) and 3rd-place finisher, Jon McKennedy (left) in victory lane

Ohioan Jedrzejek, who had not raced at Star for over a decade, was quite pleased with a fifth and his growing progress in the Soule 32. “We’re happy with fifth tonight. We started fourteenth after a qualifying run that we didn’t put down too well. I had to start back there in the pack but I knew right away we had a decent car. I just kept coming and coming. I was watching guys starting to slip and every time someone would slip a little, it would give me another spot and another spot. Unfortunately we got down a lap just before that red flag. And, then we were almost on a lap of our own there for a little while, at least the first car on our own lap. We just had to run it out and not give up any more spots. After the refueling and we got some heat in our tires, I actually felt like the car was pretty good again. We made it to the end and we’re happy to pull it in the trailer and get a fifth place finish. I think we’ve made some more progress on the setup as Danny’s been working on it pretty hard. I was pretty happy with what we had tonight.”

Mike Lichty, Joey Scanlon, Mark Sammut, Craig Rayvals and Ben Seitz completed the top ten.

SUMMARY 46th Star Classic, Sept. 10, 2011

*Top 16 time trailers locked into field, top 12 handicapped

*Fast time: Jon McKennedy (11.261)

*Consi: Ben Seitz, Rick Wentworth, Dave Sanborn, Bobby Haynes Jr., Dan Bowes, Mike Ordway Sr., Dave Duggan, Mike Netishen

Star Classic 150: 1. Russ Wood (29), 2. Chris Perley (11), 3. Jon McKennedy (79), 4. Rob Summers (35), 5. Timmy Jedrzejek (32), 6. Mike Lichty (84), 7. Joey Scanlon (88), 8. Mark Sammut (78), 9. Craig Rayvals (04), 10. Ben Seitz (17), 11. Danny Bowes (18), 12. Jeff Locke (37), 13. Eddie Witkum (97), 14. Joe Gosek (00), 15. Ray Graham Jr. (90) 16. Dave Duggan (51), 17. Dave Sanborn (9), 18. Jon Gambuti (14), 19. Johnny Benson (74), 20. Justin Belfiore (98), 21. Mike Ordway Sr. 22. Bobby Haynes Jr. (44), 23. Rick Wentworth (10).  Mike Netishen (01) dns.

Kevin Timmerman entered Friday evening with a slim lead over Mike Leaty in Spencer Speedway’s NASCAR Sportsman Modified points chase. However, two runner-up finishes in his orange and white No. 17 secured his position atop the standings, ending the night (and season) a mere 12 points ahead of Leaty in the final totals, thus successfully defending his track title.

The duo would start side-by-side in row No. 2, with Leaty taking the lead away from Daryl Lewis, Jr. on lap No. 3. Doing all he could to help his own cause, Leaty would lead the next 96 laps en route to the win. However, running second much of the way, Timmerman would keep Leaty’s No. 1 in sight the whole night. Eddie Hawkins bumped him back to third in the closing laps, but his third-place finish was still good enough to earn him the title. However, the Hawksins No. 33 would later fail its post-race inspection, promoting Timmerman to second and adding on a few extra points for good measure.

Timmerman’s second-place finish continued a streak of 14, top-five finishes in 14 Spencer starts in 2011. Neither Timmerman nor Leaty finished outside the top five all season, with Leaty picking up one more win than Timmerman at season’s end. However, it was Timmerman’s greater number of podium finishes that earned him that extra advantage, rewarding him with the track championship.

Listen to – Kevin Timmerman

Leaty was pleased with his feature win, but disappointed that he came up short in his bid to earn the HJ Motorsports No. 1 team the season crown.

Listen to – Mike Leaty

After taking the lead away from Lewis on lap No. 3, Leaty soon had Timmerman on his heels after Lewis dropped to third. The lead duo left Lewis behind as they ventured towards lapped traffic on the 10th lap. However, a spin by Andy Jankowiak would soon bring out the race’s first caution. With 14 laps in the books, Leaty led Timmerman, Lewis, Erich Stritzel and Dave Catalano. Hawkins, Amy Catalano, Jimmy Zacharias, Bobby Holmes and Terry Cheetham filled out the top 10.

Leaty caught the tail of the field on the 24th lap, now holding a 10-car length lead over Timmerman. The 29th lap saw Stritzel’s No. 20 suddenly slow and pull pitside with motor woes for the second time in the evening while running solidly in the top five. With 30 laps in, Leaty, Timmerman, Hawkins, Lewis and Dave Catalano commanded the top five.

By the 40th lap, Leaty appeared to have his No. 1 car on a rail, leading Timmerman’s No. 17 by a full straightaway. Running third, Hawkins had just caught Timmerman. Lewis and Zacharias filled out the top five.

Green flag racing continued as Leaty was raced through heavy lapped traffic at the halfway mark. His advantaged continued to grow.

The yellow finally flew on the 80th lap after the Scott Combs No. 80 slid off turn No. 4. Somehow, his modified found the lone tree standing in the would-be open field. Combs was OK, but a lengthy delay resulted in a red flag.

The top five remained unchanged with Amy Catalano, Ryan Beeman, Dave Catalano and Andy Lewis joining them as the only cars left on the lead lap.

Again, Timmerman was unable to unseat Leaty on the double-filed restart. Lewis would drop out of the top five, as Zacharias and Amy Catalano moved into the fourth and fifth-place positions respectively.

Timmerman was able to hang with Leaty for the first 10 laps, but soon began to fade. Hawkins would hound him in the closing laps, taking away second with five trips to go.

Leaty took the white with 20 lengths to spare, mirroring the margin one lap later to claim victory.

Timmerman would finish second after the Hawkins DQ. Finishing third, Zacharais was satisfied with his night.

Listen to – Jimmy Zacharias

Amy Catalano claimed fourth.

Listen to -Amy Catalano

Lewis rounded out the top five, with opening feature winner, Dave Catalano, landing his No. 54 in sixth.

Listen to – Dave Catalano

Modified Feature #2 (100 Laps) 1. Mike Leaty (1), 2. Kevin Timmerman (17), 3. Jimmy Zacharias (1z), 4. Amy Catalano (64), 5. Daryl Lewis, Jr. (10),  6. Dave Catalano (54), 7. Jeff Ruddy (9), 8. Bobby Holmes (22), 9. Bobby Lippa, Jr. (15), 10. Jake Boreman (67), 11. Paul Jeffers (47), 12. Fred Taylor (44), 13. Matt Lees (05), 14. Tom Wiest (35), 15. Ryan Beeman (16), 16. Andy Lewis (65), 17. Andy Jankowiak (X), 18. Scott Combs (80), 19. Steve Fuchs (0), 20. Terry Cheetham (11), 21. Erich Stritzel (20), 22. Mark Cline (81), DNS – Timex Morgan, DQ – Eddie Hawkins

Modified Feature #1 (35 laps) 1. Dave Catalano, 2. Kevin Timmerman, 3. Andy Lewis, 4. Amy Catalano, 5. Mike Leaty, 6. Daryl Lewis, Jr. , 7. Ryan Beeman, 8. Jake Boerman, 9. Bobby Lippa, Jr. 10. Bobby Holmes, 11. Fred Taylor, 12. Matt Lees, 13. Mark Cline, 14. Scott Combs, 15. Steve Fuchs, 16. Erich Stritzel, 17. John Semmler, DNS – Timex Morgan, DQ – Eddie Hawkins

Lewis, Stritzel, Hawkins and Jankowiak won modified heats.

Growing up, every young (and young at heart) racecar driver dreams of someday making “the pass.” The scenario of coming from behind on the final lap of the biggest race, in front of a roaring crowd and claiming victory has played out in the minds of every driver at every level of racing.

On Sunday afternoon at the Oswego Speedway, a 43-year old Canajoharie, N.Y. supermodified pilot named Otto Sitterly, played out “the pass” on the track, seizing his second Budweiser International Classic 200 with an outside venture on Classic teammate Mike Lichty.

Car Owner, John Nicotra & Classic winner, Otto Sitterly share victory at Oswego

The fact that Lichty was driving a team car, negated the probability of Sitterly making a bonsai-type move that would put both of the John Nicotra-owned cars in danger. However, he wasn’t about to let the teammate factor determine the outcome.

“It wasn’t something that I’d planned for laps,” Sitterly said of his last-lap pass. “I kept trying to do the crossover, roll high into three … But, Lou Cicconi told Mike to keep the car low. I saw him tapping the rail. Mike may have kept it just a little too low for what he needed to do.”

Sitterly says he decided to give it a go on the outside rather than try another sling-shot move down low.

“That last lap, I was against the wall where the line is. When I went to roll the outside of him, I didn’t know if I was going to do a crossover or what. When I got up even with him, I said I’m going to bang this throttle one time here. I got next to him and that’s just what I did. I banged the throttle … The sparks would’ve flew before I would’ve not gassed it up. I wouldn’t have just let him go.”

Seeking his first Classic win, Lichty knew he could expect to see Sitterly making an outside bid on the final lap – especially seeing how he knew he’d accidentally left it open. However, the teammate factor played a role in how he handled the situation as well.

On the final lap, Lichty (6) would lead Sitterly (7) through turns one and two, but the tables would turn half a lap later when Sitterly passed him off of the fourth corner for the win.

“I was so conservative on the white flag lap,” Lichty said. “Going into one and coming out of two, I really pinched it low and drove straight into the corner and Otto got a nice, big run on the outside. Once he showed me a wheel, I picked up the throttle a little bit. I had all the wheel I could into it and I just drove right straight up to the fence. I’m like ‘You know what, I could run him right up to the third groove and there’s going to be one car in the fence and we’re going to come out with a win.’ But I’d rather see a one-two finish for John and everybody, you know.”

Lichty added that if it were his own car, he would’ve risked running it further up the track to defend his lead.

“We had the race,” he said. “If it wasn’t a team car, we would’ve won, because, the throttle would’ve been in it a lot sooner. And we would’ve been right into the side of him. And we would’ve had the groove coming out of four to win it. It’s a team car and my big thing is, I don’t wreck equipment. I get so mad when stuff goes wrong, my fault or somebody else’s fault. I get so disappointed. Hey, we’ll take it. I think we built a lot of ground with Nicotra and I’m happy to run the Classic next year for him.”

Listen to – Mike Lichty

The race may have been storybook-like, but as a whole, Sitterly’s season fell more along the lines of  turbulent rather than “dreamy.” He racked up more feature wins than his fellow competitors, yet endured some of the hardest hits. The luck factor that champions usually depend on to fall their way simply wasn’t there for the four-time track title holder in 2011, as Sitterly fell short in his bid to defend his 2010 points crown.

During this past season, controversy and conflict reared their ugly heads on more than one race night and the Sitterly-Nictora Racing team often found themselves in the thick of it. The unwelcome distractions tested Sitterly and his team, but they always persevered. Nicotra Racing’s response was often answered with a win.

A horrendous wreck on the final lap while dueling for the $10,000 to-win Mr. Supermodified title was answered the following night out with a feature win. Contact from behind that sent Sitterly spinning into the wall one week ago, ended a surging bid for victory and a possible successful title defense. It too, was answered with a win – a Classic win.

Sitterly knows the cars his team brings to the track are nothing less than the best he could ask for. That in itself makes winning the expected outcome. Heading into Sunday’s 200-lapper, it was the non-racing factors that made him wonder the outcome of the race.

“I know that we have good cars and I know what we’ve got to have at the end of the race,” Sitterly said. “My concern before this race was not like a setup or if our car is going to break. I didn’t have any of that as a concern. What I had a concern for was, and this is a credit to all of the guys around me, Mike Lichty, Ray Graham, Randy Ritskes, Joey Payne. It’s amazing that I’m saying those names, (laughs). Those guys were all good during the day to run with. If they’re listening or if anybody’s listening, that’s how I want to race. Let’s go out and race clean and have a good time. We can all appreciate each other afterwards. If you’ve got a faster car, you win. If you don’t, you might finish second, third, fourth, fifth or wherever it may be. It’s all nice to load them up and just race each other clean. And they all did it today.”

Listen to – Otto Sitterly

With 35 laps to go in the 55th running of the International Classic 200, a four-car battle for the win had taken shape. Having been in command since passing early race leader, Randy Ritskes on lap the 130th lap, Iowa’s Ray Graham, Jr. was enjoying a comfortable lead over the Ritskes No. 88, Lichty’s No. 6 and Sitterly’s No. 7. Running third, Sitterly had tried to move around the No. 88 to keep pace with Graham, but to no avail.

“Ritskes was really difficult,” Sitterly said. “No discredit, a lot of credit to Randy. He knows how to run so that you can’t pass him that easily. While struggling with him through traffic … I was actually trying to get him by using traffic and I was on the bottom lane. Mike was able to get me on the outside, pin me behind a lapped car.”

With Graham racing unchallenged ahead, Lichty had used lapped traffic to maneuver his way around Sitterly on the 140th lap to take his turn at getting by the No. 88. Lap after lap, Ritskes held off challenges from the young International Super Modified Association (ISMA) competitor. Finally, with 34 trips to go, Lichty’s efforts paid off with an inside move on Ritskes off of turn No. 4.

Early in the go, Ritskes (88) and Payne (99) set the pace. Ritskes would lead for 130 laps before Graham took command.

Immediately, Lichty began to close the gap on Graham. Four laps later, Sitterly mirrored the Lichty move off of turn No. 4 to pass Ritskes for third. Ritskes tried to keep pace, but the lead trio would leave him behind.

Each looking for their first Classic win with 25 laps to go, Graham appeared to be fighting a loose No. 90 while Lichty’s No. 6 began to show a push between the turns. On the 180th lap, Sitterly shot back underneath Lichty, thanking him for paving the way past Ritskes 10 laps prior.

Lichty began to fall back a few lengths as a familiar battle ensued between Graham and Sitterly. They began to race away from Lichty and Ritskes, but were heading  towards heavy lapped traffic. Like so many times this past season, lapped traffic would soon play its part in the closing laps.

4-car battle for the win sees Graham (90) leading Lichty (6), with third place changing hands as Sitterly (7) slips underneath Ritskes (88).

On the 184th lap, the duo raced out of turn No. 2. With Joe Gosek’s No. 00 just ahead of them, Graham took the high line while Sitterly dipped his No. 7 under the No. 00. They raced three-wide down the backstretch, putting ninth-place running Gosek down a lap in the process. The lead twosome emerged in turn No. 3 with Sitterly coming away with the lead.

In the midst of lapped traffic, Lichty had closed back in on the race leaders. With 14 to go, Sitterly was running towards a brick wall of lapped cars. Lichty ducked underneath Graham for second and stayed low, maneuvering under Sitterly’s trapped No. 7 for the lead in turn No. 3. While Lichty was moving under Sitterly, Graham was taking a chance on the outside of the No. 7. A reaction to the lapped traffic sent Sitterly up the track just enough for the left-front of Graham’s No. 90 and right-rear of Sitterly’s No. 7 to touch. Contact sent Graham into the fourth-turn wall in hard fashion. His bid for Classic win No. 1 was over.

Graham and Sitterly prepare to take Gosek high and low in their first-place battle. After going three-wide down the back straightaway, Sitterly would be the new leader.

Listen to – Ray Graham, Jr.

Race officials determined Lichty to be the new race leader as he had inched ahead of Sitterly when the yellow had flown. Nine laps ticked away under caution, setting up a seven-lap shoot-out for the win.

At the drop of the green, Lichty hugged the inside lane, push and all. Sitterly kept pace, searching for a way around his team machine. The No. 6 and No. 7 cars dashed any hopes their chasers may have had of becoming a late-race spoiler.

Lichty held on for 6 ½ laps, taking away the inside lane and forcing any pass attempt to be ventured on his right side. At first, looking for a sling-shot/crossover move off of turn No. 4, Sitterly took his No. 7 to the outside between the third and fourth turns. Seeing no realistic shot on the inside, he made the decision to stick with the outer lane. Hanging it out there, his No. 7 was able to carry enough speed off of turn No. 4, making the pass at the exit of the turn. As the new leader, Sitterly raced the final 100 yards to the checkered flag.

Owner of the No. 6 and No. 7 supermodifieds, Nicotra said he wasn’t nervous about what might have happened if his two drivers had thrown a little more at each other. With his third car, driven by Chris Perley, finishing in sixth, he says he was just happy all three of his cars could be rolled on the trailer, let alone, landing in the top 10.

Listen to – John Nicotra

Ritskes backed up a runner-up finish in the points chase with a third-place run in the Classic, leading 130 laps. Ritskes was one of only three drivers in the top 10 who earned top-10 finishes in last year’s race as well.

Listen to – Randy Ritskes

One week ago, Dave Danzer racked up his first feature win, putting an exclamation point on his Rookie of the Year crown. Adding more accomplishments to one of the most successful supermodified rookie seasons ever, Danzer earned Classic Rookie of the Year honors with a fourth-place run.

Listen to – Dave Danzer

New Hampshire resident, Tim Snyder, ran strong all day long, bringing the “Zero Hero” team a top-five Classic run.

Listen to – Tim Snyder

Snyder (0) finished the day fifth, while Perley (5) would pilot the Nicotra No. 5 to a sixth-place finish.

Finishing behind Chris Perley – who drove the third Nicotra Racing team car to a sixth-place finish – Oswego rookie Bobby Haynes piloted his No. 44 to an impressive seventh-place finish.

Listen to – Bobby Haynes, Jr.

Finishing behind 2011 track champ Joe Gosek, Brian Sobus landed his 11-year old C & C chassis No. 79 supermodified in ninth place. It was his second top-10 finish in just two Classics.

Listen to – Brian Sobus

Vickery, Ohio’s Moe Lilje rounded out the top 10.

On Friday night, Shaun Gosselin competed in his first winged supermodified race, impressing many. Saturday, he struggled in his time trial run and was forced to run Sunday’s B-Main.

Qualifying third, Gosselin earned himself the 31st starting spot on the grid. By the 66th lap, he’d advanced his No. 26  18 positions. The second-year driver would climb as high as 11th before falling out on the 184th lap.

Listen to – Shaun Gosselin

Having run second to Ristkes through the first half of the event, Joey Payne’s No. 99 began to slip and slide its way back through the field. Once taking advantage of a caution period to pit for fresh rubber, Payne came back out on the track and raced his way up to eighth place before losing the rear-end on his No. 99 with six laps to go.

Listen to – Joey Payne

Driving in the International Classic for the first time, Johnny Benson, Jr. was finally able to compete in the even his father won in 1966. He wasn’t able to equal his father’s accomplishment, but he did much better than dad did in his maiden Classic voyage, finishing 13th to his father’s 30th-place finish in 1964.

Listen to – Johnny Benson, Jr.

Friday night, Joey Scanlon scored his best Oswego finish with a third-place run in the winged supermodified portion of Classic Weekend. Deciding to take the wing off and stick around for the 200-lapper, Scanlon found himself in victory lane in the B-Main.

Listen to – Joey Scanlon

2011 International Classic top three - Sitterly (1st-center), Lichty (2nd-right) & Ritskes (3rd-left)

55th Annual International Classic 200: 1. Otto Sitterly (7), 2. Mike Lichty (6), 3. Randy Ritskes (88), 4. Dave Danzer (52), 5. Tim Snyder (0), 6. Chris Perley (5), 7. Bobby Haynes, Jr. (44), 8. Joe Gosek (00), 9. Brian Sobus (79), 10. Moe Lilje (2), 11. Jerry Curran  (24), 12. Brandon Bellinger (02), 13. Johnny Benson, Jr. (74), 14. Joey Payne (99), 15. Ray Graham, Jr. (90), 16. Shaun Gosselin (26), 17. Pat Lavery (22), 18. Dave McKnight, Jr. (08), 19. Michael Muldoon, Jr, (20), 20. Bobby Bond (05-B) 21. Kelly Miller (81), 22. Stephen Gioia, III (9), 23. Mike Bond (25), 24. Gary Morton (70), 25. Craig Rayvals (94), 26. Michael Barnes (98), 27. D.J. Shullick (15), 28. Shawn Muldoon (1), 29. David Gruel (50), 30. Tim Jedrzejek (32), 31. Jeff Abold (05-A), 32. Joey Scanlon (86), 33. Hal LaTulip (56), 34. Kody Graham (21)

Bud Lite B-Main: 1. Scanlon (86), 2. Miller (81), 3. Gosselin (26), 4. Bellinger (02), 5. LaTulip (56), 6. Joe Chillemi (14), 7. Guard Nearbin (78), 8. Gruel (50), 9. Rod Sauder (33), 10. Lou LeVea (61). DNS -  11. Dan Connors, Jr. (01)

Western New York driver Chuck Hossfeld knew he had the best car on Saturday night at Oswego Speedway and overcame any challenger en route to the Race of Champions Parts Plus 200 Modified win on Classic Weekend.

Although Hossfeld’s No. 22 racked up the second best time during trials, he still wasn’t happy with it in qualifying. But once his crew had made their adjustments, the car made short work of the field.

“Well we were really strong here for the Race of Champions race here in July, but we had a parts failure and I was disappointed with how we qualified today and then we made some adjustments on the car and made it better, whatever, and we really ended up with the best car and the best strategy and today was our day.”

Modified 200 Top 3 - 1st-Chuck Hossfeld (center), 2nd-Daren Scherer (right) & 3rd-Lee Sherwood (left)

Hossfeld was particularly successful in passing situations. He attributed the 22’s effectiveness to the simple fact that the Supermodifieds had inadvertently created a better track for the modifieds.

“What’s nice about coming here Classic weekend is the Supers are running and putting a lot of rubber down and so that makes a wider groove for us. But when we come here on our own, it’s more of a track position race. This made it really fun. We could have an outside groove and a bottom and stuff and I was really able to pass people. But I attest that to them running today and yesterday with the Supers,” he said.

Tony Hirschman started on the outside of the first row and pounced on the lead early with Hossfeld, Daren Scherer, Billy Putney, and Earl Paules in order behind him. Lee Sherwood started with pole position, but slid out of the top five almost immediately after the race began.

Nearly 50 laps of racing passed before Hossfeld was able to maneuver into the lead, beating Hirschman on the outside lane in the near straightaway. In turn, Hirschman’s No. 48 car appeared to die off, sliding back to fourth place by lap 50.

Scherer’s No. 3 car began challenging Hossfeld, but it never delivered a crucial pass.

Jan Leaty’s No. 6 car provided some drama in the top five when it catapulted into fourth place on lap 77 of the 200-lap race.

The yellow caution flag came out on lap 95 when three cars gathered in turn four. Several cars took the time to head to the pits after the caution, shuffling the top five altogether, among them Hossfeld’s 22.

By lap 105, however, Hossfeld was back among the top five behind first-place running Putney who was followed by Hirschman and Kyle Ebersole.

Another caution flag shrunk the field when Tommy Cloce shifted the position on his No. 69 car as Jan Leaty tried to pilot his No. 6 into the top five, but instead landed in the turn-three foam on lap 106.

On the restart, Hossfeld seized third and by lap 122 he had snuck past Hirschman once again to take second, but Putney was pulling away with the lead.

Finally, on lap 134, Hossfeld powered past Putney going into turn two to take over the lead for the last time.

Scherer chases Hossfeld in the closing laps of the modified 200

Hossfeld noted that he his No. 22 car had little left for his closest challengers by the end of the 200-lap race.

“I didn’t have much more to hold him off. We had put so many cycles on our tires that it was going to be tough to continue. We would have needed a long green run to get ahead again. So he was pressuring me. He did what he had to do, but he’s a gentleman, … you don’t have to be scared of him crashing into you or doing something stupid. So it worked out well,” Hossfeld said.

Scherer added that his car had also experienced its own share of strain.

“The car was kind of used up at the end but I tried. I tried. Without doing anything I should have, I tried and second is good enough for me today,” said Daren Scherer.

With only a few laps remaining, tempers flared in the top five when Hirschman and Jimmy Zacharias collided between turns three and four. In the pit area, Zacharias was visibly upset, but crews intervened before the situation could escalate.

Parts Plus Modified 200: 1. Chuck Hossfeld (22), 2. Daren Scherer (3), 3. Lee Sherwood (95), 4. Kyle Ebersole (5), 5. Earl Paules (8), 6. Mike Leaty (25), 7. Jimmy Zacharias (71), 8. Tony Hirschman (48), 9. Bill Putney (88), 10. Doug Reaume (14), 11. Tommy Cloce (69), 12. Rusty Smith (34), 13. Nick Barzee (31), 14. Jan Leaty (6), 15. Will Hebing (51), 16. Chris Risdale (1), 17. Eddie Hawkins (2), 18. Jim Storace (47), 19. Andy Walko (27), 20. Mike Ordway, Jr. (9X), 21. Matt Clemons (71X)

Andrew Schartner drew pole position and held off dangerous past-champions for 100 laps on Saturday night to claim his first Small Block Supermodified Classic victory at Oswego Speedway.

After starting in the inside second row position, veteran SBS driver Russ Brown took second away from Mark Castiglia almost immediately and harassed Schartner through most of the race. On numerous occasions, Brown’s No. 79 car appeared on the verge of overtaking Schartner’s No. 18, but a last minute correction helped the Weedsport driver hang onto his lead.

Andrew Schartner poses in victory lane after winning the 2011 SBS Classic at Oswego

During one such instance on lap 40, Brown had the inside on the near straightaway and when Schartner maneuvered to reclaim the lane, the 79 clipped the left rear on the 18.

In victory lane, however, Schartner said that his greatest adversary in the race was also his greatest ally in preparing the car for Classic. Schartner offered the usual thanks to his crew, but also noted that Brown provided considerable help in getting the No. 18 race ready.

“That’s class. And that means a lot,” Schartner said.

“He had some issues with handling this weekend, so we helped him out,” Brown said. “He beat us. What else can I tell you? We were better than him until he and I came together there, going into turn one. I thought he saw me, apparently he didn’t see me. We came together and it bent the spindle. After that, I was just hanging on for dear life. Overall, we just flat got beat.”

Schartner said winning the Classic was an overwhelming feeling.

“I’m speechless. I was tearing up during my cool down lap because this is just something that really means a lot to me. And I can’t thank enough people,” Schartner said.

Fast time setter Brown – who has won three SBS Classics in his Oswego Speedway career – said his car had developed problems that contributed to his third place finish – most notably, the lap No. 40 contact with Schartner. Nevertheless, he credited Schartner and his crew on the victory.

“Give credit to those guys. Andrew and those guys did a good job,” he said.

Not even one lap had passed when the first of several dramatic crashes forced a yellow flag. Replays revealed little, but at the end of the wreck, George Knight’s No. 12 had rolled over into the foam just past turn three after catching a wheel from Dennis Rupert’s No. 99.

It’s a rarity for a small block supermodified to end up on its roof. Knight was OK, but his No. 12 suffered extensive damage. Rupert’s No. 99 was wounded enough for its night to end as well.

On the restart, Schartner led, followed by Brown, Castiglia, Mike Bond, and Dave Cliff in order.

As early as lap two, Brown was menacing Schartner – particularly on the inside lane. He noted that he was eager to get up front in order to spare his car the wear involved in pursuing the leader.

“When you follow a guy like that, it’s hard to save your tires because you have to follow in his tracks. I figured Bond was coming quicker than he was and when you’re up front, you can make your own line. You don’t have to use the brakes up, you don’t have to use the tires up,” Brown said.

Listen to more from – Russ Brown

On the 10th lap, the top five’s order was shuffled after the second wreck of the night occurred when Bond’s No. 26 sent up a cascade of sparks before coming to rest against the wall in turn one. Something had apparently flown off of Castiglia’s No. 90, puncturing a tire on Bond’s machine. Castiglia limped his No. 90 to the pits for repairs. He would return to finish 14th. Bond’s race was over.

On the restart, Cliff, Jason Simmons, and Jack Patrick followed the race leaders.

Brown (79) looks under Schartner (18) heading into turn No. 2. Cliff (06) runs third.

Two more minor wrecks marred the racing before a preplanned stop on lap 50 enabled the drivers’ crews to adjust the stagger on their cars.

Five laps later, the red flag dropped again – this time for a wreck when Cameron Rowe’s No. 77 car spun between turns one and two. JJ Andrews was unable to avoid the No. 77 and struck it squarely. Mike Bruce was also caught up in the tangle, but drove away unscathed.

Both Andrews and Rowe were able to exit their cars on their own.

Around lap 60, Brown began to fall off of Schartner’s pace. On lap 78, Cliff was challenging for the second spot.

Finally, on lap 80, the two-time SBS Classic winner took the inside lane away from Brown off of turn No. 4 to assume second.

Once in second, Cliff had nothing for the No. 18 either.

“The car was good,” Cliff said. “I don’t think I would’ve had anything for Schartner. Earlier on in the race I might have been a little better on longer runs, but at the end, it was definitely his race. He was the best car at the end.”

Listen to more from – Dave Cliff

When lapped traffic became an issue, his No.06 and Brown’s No. 79 were able to compress the distance, while Schartner tried to negotiate his way through the stragglers.

Schartner conceded that lapped traffic became his most significant obstacle during the race’s waning moments.

“The thing with the guys in the back is sometimes you can find that weak spot where they really slow down on the edge of a corner or they struggle getting out so you can plant it on that,” he said. “Then guys really hold a really good line and drive a really difficult way to pass them. It’s not quite being at the front, but they’re really difficult to deal with when you get into lapped traffic and I was praying for a yellow…If I was able to get them there, I’d be able to hold them off behind me. I didn’t want to get stuck behind a lapped car while Brown or somebody flies around me on the outside. It worked out but I was nervous those last four laps.”

Listen to more from – Andrew Schartner

SBS Classic top 3 - 1st-Andrew Schartner (center), 2nd-David Cliff (right), 3rd-Russ Brown (left)

When he was free of lapped traffic, Schartner was able to sustain a solid lead over the field en route to his first Classic triumph.

Patrick finished in fourth, followed by Heroth in fifth.

Listen to – Jack Patrick

Listen to – Kreig Heroth

Tim Barbeau was credited with sixth, with Bryan Haynes crossing the line in seventh.

Listen to – Bryan Haynes

20th Annual Bud Lite SBS Classic: 1. Andrew Schartner (18), 2. David Cliff (06), 3. Russ Brown (79), 4. Jack Patrick (9), 5. Kreig Heroth (44), 6. Tim Barbeau (50), 7. Bryan Haynes (37), 8. Mike Bruce (22), 9. Shawn Muldoon (80), 10. Brian Osetek (00), 11. Dalton Doyle (1), 12. Stan Gates (91), 13. Rob Pullen (2), 14. Mark Castiglia (90), 15. A.J. Bernys (24), 16. Lou LeVea, Jr. (95), 17. David LaTulip (27), 18. Brad Haynes (86), 19. Will Hadcock (43), 20. Jason Simmons (98), 21. Cameron Rowe (77), 22. J.J. Andrews (93), 23. Kevin Jackson (65), 24. Steven Hutchinson (25), 25. Barry Kingsley (23), 26. Mike Bond (26), 27. Dennis Rupert (99), 28. George Knight, Jr.  (12)

SBS B-Main: 1. Jackson (65), 2. Gates (91), 3. Brad Haynes (86), 4. Doyle (1), 5. Rupert (99), 6. Knight (12), 7. Hutchinson (25), 8. Hadcock (43)

By – Chris Porter
Photos – Jim Feeney

Kicking off 2011’s Classic Weekend, Chris Perley pocketed his seventh winged supermodified feature win at the Oswego Speedway on Friday night, his second at the lakeside oval this season. The Rowley, Mass. native and multi-time International Super Modified Association (ISMA) series champion completely dominated the 55-lap feature event in his Vic Miller-owned No. 11. Perley took the checkered flag with just under half a lap’s lead on second-place finisher, Tim Ice.

Chris Perley poses in victory lane after winning the Bud Select 55

Perley’s win was never in doubt. Following his involvement in an early race snafu with then, fourth-place running Bobby Dawson, on the ninth lap, Perley reluctantly went to the rear of the field. Even then, the question wasn’t whether or not he would get to the front, it was how quickly it would be done. Once put at the rear of the field, he would begin a 13-lap annihilation of his fellow competitors. By the 22nd lap, Perley had caught the race leader. Taking four laps to measure up Ice’s No. 77, Perley launched his way around Ice and seemingly into another zip code. By 39th lap, he commanded a full straightaway advantage on the No. 77.

“Tonight, the car was so good that I had to just aim it,” Perley said. “I just had to not hit stuff, it was a bullet. It was a great car. It was one of the best one’s we’ve had in years. I know we’ve won races here, but it was a great car. It was a blast, a fun night.”

Listen to more from – Chris Perley

Joey Scanlon and Ice led the field to the green to begin the 55-lap winged open-invitational. Ice snagged the top spot early, leading Johnny Benson, Jr., Joey Scanlon, Dawson and Paul White across the line to complete the maiden lap.

The top five spread apart as Perley made his way up through the field from the 10th starting position. Perley bested White on the outside between turns three and four to bust into the top five on just the fifth lap. Moving in on Dawson for fourth, Dawson’s No. 28 slowed dramatically as it headed into turn No. 3. Perley tagged its rear-end, sending both into a spin.

Neither car suffered any damage as both were sent to the rear of the field for bringing out the caution flag. With mechanical problems of his own prior to the spin, Dawson took his No. 28 nose-first into his pit. Perley stopped at the flagger’s stand to plead his case, saying Dawson was the cause of the accident and that he spun to avoid the No. 28. He wanted his position back, but race officials disagreed. The No. 11 was sent to tail.

Mark Sammut (78) and Ted Christopher (61) fall victim to the high flying No. 11 of Chris Perley. Sammut would finish 8th, with Christopher doing one better in 7th.

With eight laps in the books, Ice led Benson, Scanlon, White and Ted Christopher. Mark Sammut, Ray Graham, Jr., Shaun Gosselin, Tim Jederzjek  and Mike Lichty completed the top 10.

Ice had no problems on the restart, as Graham’s No. 90 flew into third, besting Sammut, Christopher and White all on the same lap. Behind them, Perley was already making quick work en route to his return to the front.

Green flag racing was short-lived, as the caution flag flew for debris in turn No. 4 on the 14th lap. Perley cruised under the caution flag in seventh place.

Chris Perley (11) sizes up Tim Ice (77) halfway into the feature event

At the drop of the green, Graham zipped past Benson on the outside for second. Just behind them, Perley was flying into fifth.

While Graham worked on Ice for the race lead, Perley’s march continued. Again, the high side was used on the 15th lap. This time, Scanlon fell to Perley, giving up fourth. Two laps later, Benson watched as Perley’s No. 11 walked past his No. 74 and into third.

Perley’s lone hiccup came on the 20th lap, when Graham denied the No. 11 second place after Perley stuck his nose on his No. 90′s high side. The same thing would happen on the 21st lap, but on lap No. 22, Perley shot past Graham for the runner-up spot.

Moments after the passs, Graham’s No. 90 slowed and pitted with overheating problems. Benson’s No. 74 had ducked into the infield half a lap earlier.

Ice and Perley held a full straightaway on their chasers. Perley’s first chance at the lead took place on the 24th lap. An outside look proved fruitless on Ice’s No. 77. However, two trips later, a sling-shot move off of turn No. 4 resulted in Perley’s No. 11 moving under the Ice machine. Once again, Ice would be denied victory in the Port City. It would end up being his third second-place finish in his last four winged Oswego starts.

Immediately, Perley began to pull away. With a full stretch lead, Perley moved in on moderate lapped traffic on the 40th lap. Picking off stragglers one-by-one, Perley played the final dozen laps in “safe mode.” With plenty of room to spare behind him, he was reluctant to dive into the thick of the traffic.

Winged super top three, Perley (center), Ice (right) and Scanlon (left) pose at the victory podium

Ice wasn’t able to close the gap, but finished second with plenty of room to spare of his own over third-place finisher, Scanlon. It was Scanlon’s best run at Oswego.

Listen to – Tim Ice

Listen to – Joey Scanlon

Lichty crossed the line in fourth, with Texas invader, White, driving the Steve Miller-owned No. 16 home in fifth. It was White’s best finish at Oswego.

Listen to – Paul White

Small Block Supermodified (SBS) drivers took their time trials on Friday night. With the top eight drivers qualifying for a redraw for their SBS Classic starting spot on top of receiving a bye in Saturday’s qualifiers, it was division veteran, Russ Brown, leading the way with the night’s fastest lap. It was Brown’s first appearance of the season, and piloting the Brian Sobus-owned No. 79, it appeared Brown hadn’t lost his touch. Brown drew starting spot No. 3.

Listen to – Russ Brown

After a bone-jarring accident last Saturday night, Fulton’s Jack Patrick put in a long week in the garage piecing his Dodge-powered No. 9 back together. A trip to chassis builder Ray Hedger resulted in a new rear clip being slapped on his small block supermodified, as well as major repairs to the front. The work seemed to pay off, however. Patrick drew starting spot No. 8, but was happy that the car seems to be back where it was prior to last weekend’s wreck.

Listen to – Jack Patrick

Newly crowned 2011 SBS track champ, Mike Bond, stopped the watches third fastest. Bond says it’s a long race and he’s just as happy starting in row No. 2. Not a fan of the two-segment change made to the 100-lap event, Bond said he’s just going to run it like any other race.

Listen to – Mike Bond

Jason Simmons has had a roller coaster of a season. He nearly graced victory lane numerous times, often ending a run atop the field with a “DNF” come race’s end. Simmons landed his No. 98 in fourth in the time-trial rundown Friday evening. He’s happy he won’t need to risk consi action or having to drive up through the thick of the field, but also knows working on his consistency will play a crucial role in where his No. 98 sits in the final rundown after Saturday’s 100-lapper.

Listen to – Jason Simmons

ATQMRA Feature Winner, Alison Cumens

Alison Cumens won the 25-lap American Three Quarter Midget Racing Association (ATQMRA) feature event. The Lindell, Pa. native took the lead away on a sling-shot move heading into turn No. 1 on the ninth lap. Cumens was never challenged again, coasting to the win with a half-lap margin of victory over second-place finisher, Robin Johnston. Matt Janisch filled out the podium. Piloting the No. 39 car, Cumens became only the second woman to ever win a feature event at the Oswego Speedway. Star Matteson won an SBS feature back in 2002.

Bud Select Winged Super 55: 1. Chris Perley (11), 2. Tim Ice (77), 3. Joey Scanlon (88), 4. Mike Lichty (84), 5. Paul White (16), 6. Tim Jedrzejek (32), 7. Ted Christopher (61), 8. Mark Sammut (78), 9. Charlie Schultz (7), 10. Craig Rayvals (04), 11. Shaun Gosselin (26), 12. Brandon Bellinger (02), 13. Ray Graham, Jr. (90), 14. Johnny Benson (74), 15. Bobby Dawson (28), 16. Bobby Haynes, Jr. (44), 17. D.J. Shullick (49) DNS – Jamie Timmons (27), Trent Stephens (19)

Heat #1: 1. Benson (74), 2. Graham (90), 3. Gosselin (26), 4. Jedrzejek (32), 5. Christopher (61), 6. Dawson (28), 7. Rayvals (04), 8. Timmons (27), DNS – 9. Bellinger (02)
*Timmons damaged his No. 27 after tagging the third-turn wall.

Heat #2: 1. White (16), 2. Perley (11), 3. Sammut (78), 4. Ice (77), 5. Scanlon (88), 6. Haynes (44), 7. Lichty (84), 8. Schultz (7), 9. Shullick (49)
*Schultz and Shullick tangled at the drop of the green. Both cars suffered damage.

*Trent Stephens walloped the first-turn wall, rear-end first, earlier in the day during practice. Stephens was OK, but his No. 19 suffered day-ending damage.

SBS Time Trials: – 1. Russ Brown (79) 19.415, 2. Jack Patrick (9) 19.541, 3. Mike Bond (26) 19.601, 4. Jason Simmons (98) 19.604, 5. Andrew Schartner (18) 19.608, 6. Kreig Heroth (44) 19.694, . Mark Castiglia (90) 19.773, 8. David Cliff (06) 19.804, 9. David LaTulip (27), 10. Rob Pullen (2), 11. Mike Bruce (22), 12. J.J. Andrews (93), 13. Cameron Rowe (77), 14. Tim Barbeau (50), 15. Bryan Haynes (37), 16. Lou LeVea, Jr. (95), 17. Shawn Muldoon (80), 18. Barry Kingsley (23), 19. Brian Osetek (00), 20. A.J. Bernys (24), 21. Kevin Jackson (65), 22. Stan Gates (91), 23. Brad Haynes (86), 24. Dalton Doyle (1), 25. George Knight, Jr. (12), 26. Steven Hutchinson (25), 27. Dennis Rupert (99)

WILLIAMSON, NY – The race of the evening was between Spencer Speedway officials and Mother Nature. At 8:45 the rains fell forcing racing to be called for the night, bringing the 2011 points season down to just one race remaining, Friday, September 9.

“We saw on the radar the weather coming. We moved the show along thinking we could beat the rains. All we got to was lap 11 of the Super Sixes feature and then the skies let loose,” stated promoter John White. “We did our best to get a complete show, forgoing even the winners’ interviews, but we fell just short.”

As for the features run, wins went to Tim Faro in the Super Sixes. Faro used an outside pass on lap six to get around Rick Wilson. As the field came down to try and complete lap 12 of 20, the rains fell causing the front runners to lose traction and start spinning. As the lap was not completed the race reverted to lap 11 on the scoreboard.

Kris Hillegeer (blue 18) takes the lead from Tom Fecteau (33) in Super Stock action

For Faro it was his sixth feature win in the Super Six division in 2011, and his second in a row. Faro has now clinched the Super Six track championship.

In the Auto Value Four Cylinder Scorpions the win went to point leader Mike Bradshaw. It was Bradshaw’s fifth win in that class in 2011. Bradshaw has all but locked up the Auto Value Scorpion title. He leads Alison Knoepfler, the only driver within striking distance, by 38 points.

Finally in the Super Stocks, Kris Hillegeer returned to victory lane to extend his dominating point lead over the rest of the field. Hillegeer has earned enough points to lock up the 2011 Spencer Speedway Super Stock Championship. His record currently includes six wins in 11 starts.

In the NASCAR Sunoco Modifieds the 2011 Spencer Speedway title has come down to Kevin Timmerman and Mike Leaty. Just 15 points separate thee two going into the final night of racing with two feature races being run.

The Auto Value Scorpions was the first feature on the track. Outside pole sitter, and heat winner, Otis Bradshaw took the early lead in his Acura Integra with Beth Dennie in second and Zach Willis in third.

Dennie was able to make her move on Bradshaw for the lead on lap eight. Following her through the hole left open on the bottom was Willis for second and Bradshaw’s brother Mike moved into third.

Mike Bradshaw was now on the move. On lap 10 he grabbed second from Willis and then set sights on Dennie. As the field exited the second turn on lap 11, Bradshaw ducked low and powered by Dennis for the lead. He then began to pull his Honda Prelude away from the rest of the pack.

At the finish line it was Mike Bradshaw with the win, followed by Willis, Alison Knoepfler, Joe Clark and Otis Bradshaw. Dennie fell out of the front running pack when she drifted high in the fourth turn on the final lap.

The Super Stocks were next up, with Billy Gleason grabbing the early lead over multi-time feature winner Kris Hillegeer and Tom Fecteau. Fecteau may have been running his best race of the season keeping his Chevy Malibu in contention all race long.

Gleason lost the lead to Hillegeer on lap 11, when Hillegeer used the patented low power move exiting the second turn. Hillegeer won followed by Gleason, Fecteau, Mitchell Wright and Jim Steffenhagen Jr. aboard the number 22 normally driven by Willie Strusz.

Pushing the show along the Super Sixes followed the Super Stocks? checkers onto the speedway. With the green flag, it was Rick Wilson grabbing the lead. As he began to pull away the yellow flew. Kailea Nelson had coasted to a stop at the top of the fourth turn.

The green shown again and a pack of five top runners raced side-by-side with Wilson still in the lead. On lap four Brian Hallett drifted high in the fourth turn and gave up second to Tim Faro. Faro then used the high line to pass Wilson for the lead on lap seven.

Once in front Faro began to pull away from the field. Wilson now had to try and hang onto second as he battled Chris Andolino, Brand Allen and Hallett, now in fifth. Officials could feel rain drops on lap ten. The field made the race official completing the halfway mark in the race.

On lap 12, the field exited the fourth turn and scrambled as cars lost traction down the front stretch due to the wet surface. The yellow flew without the front runners getting the lap in the record book, resulting in reverting back to lap 11?s running order. The rain intensified forcing the flagger to throw the checkers ending the race.

With rains pelting down and the prospects of completing the program looking bleak, management had to “pull the plug” on the racing program for the night. The 35-lap Sunoco Modified feature will lead off the program next week at 7 p.m. sharp.

SPENCER NOTES:

*Track announcer Bill Vandeweghe was back behind the microphone following a week off under doctor’s orders

*.RoC Sport-modified 100 winner, Bobby Holmes was on hand for the first time at Spencer. He seemed to take to the flat half mile, turning very respectable lap times.

*Just one week remains in the 2011 NASCAR Racing resumes at Spencer. Friday, September 9, will feature a full program of NASCAR racing in all divisions. It will also be championship night at the speedway. The Sunoco Modifieds will be running their final Spencer/Chemung/Holland Challenge event of the season in Spencer, a 100-lapper. The first race up is the rain-delayed 35-lapper for the Sunoco Modifieds. A planned appearance by the Casey Midgets that night has been canceled. A special start time for the night has been set at 7:00 p.m. sharp. For more information go on Spencer Speedway go to www.spencerspeedway.org.

Spencer Speedway is located just fifteen minutes east of Rochester, NY, along Route 104 in the Town of Williamson. Spencer Speedway is the local “NASCAR Place to Race” for Central New York. Points earned each week at Spencer are counted into the national NASCAR Whelen All-American Points. Just three weeks of racing remain in the 2011 NASCAR season at Spencer.

NASCAR WHELEN ALL-AMERICAN NIGHT SUMMARY

AUTO VALUE 4-CYLINDER SCORPIONS

HEAT 1:  O. Bradshaw, B. Dennie, A. Knoepfler, J. Clark, A. Montgomery.

HEAT 2:  Z. Willis, K. Bertolone, M. Bradshaw, B. Bradshaw, R. Peets.

FEATURE (15-laps):  MIKE BRADSHAW, Zach Willis, Alison Knoepfler, Joe Clark, Otis Bradshaw, Bro Bradshaw, Beth Dennie, Kevin Bertolone, Russell Peets, Dave Bradshaw, Austin Montgomery, Dale Lazzaro, Richie Gross, Alison LaManna

SUPER SIXES

HEAT 1:  T. Faro, V. Grant, B. Hallett, A. VanHall, E. Ruffell.

HEAT 2:   B. Allen, R. Wilson, C. Andolino, R. Hillegeer, T. Youngs.

FEATURE (11-laps): TIM FARO, Chris Andolino, Rick Wilson, Brandon Allen, Brian Hallett, Adam VanHall, Van Grant, Ryan Hillegeer, Troy Youngs, Kailea Nelson, Denny Coyle, Erick Ruffell.

SUPER STOCKS

HEAT: B. Gleason, T. Fecteau, K. Hillegeer, J. Steffenhagen Jr., M. Wright.

FEATURE (20-laps):   KRIS HILLEGEER, Billy Gleason, Tom Fecteau, Mitchell Wright, Jim Steffenhagen Jr., Steve Malin, Brandon Larner.

SUNOCO MODIFIEDS

HEAT 1:  M. Leaty, D. Catalano, E. Hawkins, J. Boerman, J. London.

HEAT 2:  A. Lewis, R. Beeman, T. Morgan, E. Hawkins Sr., S. Combs.

HEAT 3:  K. Timmerman, E. Stritzel, B. Lippa Jr., A. Catalano, B. Holmes.

FEATURE: Rain Delayed Feature Line-Up(35-laps): Dave Catalano, Bobby Lippa Jr., Andy Lewis, Erick Stritzel, Eddie Hawkins, Ryan Beeman, Mike Leaty, Timex Morgan, Kevin Timmerman, Jake Boerman, Ed Hawkins Sr., Amy Catalano, Jody London, Scott Combs, Bobby Holmes, Steve Fuchs, Matt Lees, Daryl Lewis Jr., Fred Taylor

SOUTH PLATTSBURGH – George Foley of Saranac Lake took command of the Dick Nephew Memorial 50 with 10 laps to go and went on to his third win of the season in the Casella/Jim Pulsifer Logging No. 34 Saturday at Airborne Speedway. He sped past point leader on the low side second place then swung outside to overtake Greg Atkins for the lead.

The DIRTcar Modifeds were racing topless – without roofs – a twist that Foley has found is to his liking. “It does make the handling a little different,” he said, “but we have a couple of little changes we discovered a couple of years ago that work pretty good.” Foley started ninth and managed to avoid a front stretch melee on lap two that destroyed Patrick Dupree’s machine and brought out the red flag.

Dupree, running out of races to overtake point leader Roy and defend his track title, had just begun a daring three-wide move exiting turn four when trouble ahead sent him scraping along the top of the wall. His Saranac Country Store No. 24 and Canadian Pat McGrail’s Brossard Mazda No. 10 left on the wrecker. Neither driver was seriously injured.

Atkins and Roy were waging a terrific duel for the lead when Foley arrived. “I don’t think Roy saw me,” Foley said. “I picked up a push after I got the lead though and I had to work hard to protect the bottom.”

Roy made it around Atkins to claim second. Atkins was a close third, four car-lengths ahead of Roger Labreche (4th) and Pierre Berthiaume (5th). Richard Tisseur and Leon Gonyo spent much of the event racing side by side for 4th until Gonyo lost a right front tire and spun Tisseur out. Positions 6-10 went to Aaron Bartemy, Vince Quenneville, Jimmy Ryan, Andy Heywood and Mike Phinney.

“I’ll be sore in the morning, but I’m okay,” Dupree said. “Somebody in the middle of the pack was faltering or making a mistake and it became a bad deal for everybody.”

“I was right behind the 24 (Dupree) and I saw sparks so I got off the throttle and dove down,” Roy said. The Napierville, Quebec driver can clinch his second Airborne title with a 12th or better finish at next week’s regular season finale – the Mike Watts Memorial 50.

Kevin Boutin of Fairfax, Vt. won the Renegade 50 convincingly. The defending Renegade champion took the lead from Robert Gordon at the halfway mark and was never headed. Gordon regained second place from Josh Terry  with three laps to go. Terry, Lance Rabtoy and Rob Favreau completed the top five.

Bucko Branham drove the Liquor & Warehouse No. 20 to his 4th win in the J&S Steel Sportsman feature. Point leader Robin Wood rebounded from a wreck in his heat race and came from the rear of the field to finish second. Nick Heywood, who challenged Branham for the lead for a dozen laps, finished third. Danny Sullivan and Shawn Duquette were next in line.

John Bradley of Morrisonville scored his first career win in the NAPA Mini Modified feature. Bradley bested Speedy Bresette, Erick Sayles, Josh Leclaire and Kris Clark.

Josh Durivage of West Chazy won the Busch Bomber feature.

Modifieds: 1. George Foley,  2. Martin Roy,  3. Greg Atkins,  4. Roger Labreche,  5. Pierre Berthiaume,  6. Aaron Bartemy,  7. Vince Quenneville,  8. Jimmy Ryan,  9. Andy Heywood,  10. Mike Phinney,  11. Chris Cayea,  12. Maxime Viens,  13. Mike Reyell,  14. Craig Reyell,  15. Jim McComb,  16. Mike Wells,  17. Bryant Trim,  18. Adam Bartemy,  19. Kris Vernold,  20. Mikael Labreche,  21. Richard Tisseur,  22. Matt Woodruff,  23. Leon Gonyo,  24. Jim Introne,  25.Pat McGrail,  26. Patrick Dupree

Port City native, David Danzer, graduated from his rookie season in style Saturday night at the Oswego Speedway. The first-year driver piloted his No. 52 Hawk Chassis supermodified to victory in the regular season finale at the lakeside oval, holding off newly crowned 2011 Track Champion, Joe Gosek.

Danzer took the lead on the opening circuit of the 50-lap main event, dominating the majority of the race. While most eyes were affixed on the whereabouts of the title-seeking trio of Gosek, Randy Ritskes and Otto Sitterly in their points fight in the regular season finale, Danzer enjoyed leads of 20-car lengths and full straight-aways.

Feature winner, Dave Danzer (center), poses with newly crowned track champ, Joe Gosek (right) and championship runner-up, Randy Ritskes (left)

Numerous accidents forced frequent restarts, where Danzer was able to avoid all-to common rookie mistakes. The final restart pitted Gosek (still hungry for his first win of the season) on the rear bumper of the Danzer Racing No. 52. However, Danzer held his line and hit his marks on his final lap atop the field, taking the checkered flag and earning his way into Oswego’s history books.

“We won Rookie of the Year, that’s something we were aiming for,” Danzer said. “We got that and a feature win all in one night. You can’t ask for anything better going into Classic. This is amazing, it’s just unreal. I can’t believe it.”

Danzer began racing in the Small Block Super (SBS) division in 2004, but wasn’t able to taste victory in that division until 2008. Winning a big block super feature against drivers he grew up watching was a dream come true. The bottle of champagne held tightly in his hand after Saturday night’s win tasted even sweeter.

Dave dedicated the win to his father, Craig, who fielded supermodified teams from the mid-1980s through early 2000’s. A fifth-place finish, Dave said, had been his father’s best finish.

When asked if he could top Saturday night with a miracle run in next weekend’s International Classic 200, Danzer was confident that he could carry the momentum over.

First-time feature winnner, Dave Danzer

“I think we can,” Danzer added. “I think we’ve got a heck of a shot at it. We’ve got to work on fuel mileage this week, but that car is unbelievable. I think we’ll time trial in the top six. That car is just on a rail. It’s the best piece Hawksby ever built, he said.”

Listen to more from – Dave Danzer

It was only fitting that chasing Danzer across the stripe was Gosek. Shut out of the winner’s circle all season, but always close by, his second-place finish earned him the track championship.

Despite denying he was racing for a title, Gosek’s 2011 style fit that of a title contender. Essentially racing to roll it on the trailer every night, avoiding chancy situations, yet getting the most out of the car his crew gave him, Gosek put himself in position to win it all on Saturday night.

“It’s a great accomplishment for our whole team, myself and all of our owners and just everyone,” Gosek said of winning his second Oswego Speedway supermodified track championship. “… I played defensive all year and we didn’t get caught up in any accidents. Now we need one more week to stay out of trouble and keep the car in one piece and I’ll be happy.”

2011 Track Champion, Joe Gosek & family

Gosek knows he has a winning team, despite not coming across the line first in feature competition this season. A track championship is measured as a collective body of work.

“We’ve got so many guys that help any little way they can,” he said. “They’ve got some nickname for us, ‘Old Farts Racing Team.’ We put in the time we can and we feel we prepare the car well. Just all the guys that have been with me for 20, 30 years. It’s kind of cool that this is payoff for the whole season of good work. It’s not one race, it’s not two races, it’s for the whole year. We finished every race. We were down laps in one race, that’s it. That’s pretty good. I wish we could’ve won one, but oh well, maybe next week.”

Listen to more from – Joe Gosek

Heading into the feature, all Gosek needed to do was finish ahead Ritskes, and not let Sitterly finish too far ahead of him. He only led Ritskes by a mere five points, while Sitterly sat just 27 digits off the lead.

Danzer took flight at the drop of the green, leading Stephen Gioia, III, Tim Snyder, Jeff Holbrook and Bob Bond across the line to complete lap No. 1. By the fifth lap, Danzer had 10 lengths on the field, by the 10th lap, his lead was a full straightaway.

Running second, Gioia continued to fend off challenges from Snyder when the race’s first caution flew for a turn-four tangle between Steve Abt’s No. 85 and Kelly Miller’s No. 81. Both suffered race-ending damage.

With 14 laps in the books, Danzer led Gioia, Snyder, Holbrook and Pat Lavery. Joey Payne, Dave Gruel, Gosek, Bond, Ritskes, Sitterly and Ray Graham, Jr. completed the first dozen.

On the restart, as Danzer fled the pack, Snyder and Holbrook sandwiched Gioia’s No. 9 between turns one and two. The trio went three-wide with Snyder earning the runner-up position. Gioia fell to second, while Holbrook maintained third.

Gosek (00) fends off challenges from Ritskes (88) on lap 33. Lavery chases both through corners 1 & 2

Again, Danzer’s lead grew to 10 lengths just five laps into green-flag racing. At the halfway mark, his No. 52 had doubled it’s advantage. In turn, Snyder held 20 lengths on Gioia.

Sitterly had begun to make progress, moving around Ritskes on the 17th lap and Gosek on the 26th lap. The Canajoharie native knew that if he were to have a crack at defending his title, he needed to do what he ventures out to do every Saturday night, win.

Charging from the 12th starting spot, Sitterly broke into the top five on the 29th lap, passing Payne in turn No. 3. However, half a lap later, heading into turn No. 1, Payne knocked Sitterly sideways from behind. Sliding up towards the wall, Sitterly spun his tires to try and avoid contact, but to no avail. His No. 7 slammed the foam barrier. There would be no successful title defense.

While a visibly upset Sitterly stormed back to his pit, Payne’s No. 99 was pushed away. With neither driver was available for comment at night’s end, both car owners stood behind their drivers and offered own thoughts.

Listen to – John Nicotra

Listen to – Pat Strong

With Sitterly out of the title picture, all Gosek needed to do was keep the Daratt Farms No. 88 behind him. With 29 trips in, Danzer led Snyder, Gioia, Holbrook and Gosek. Lavery, Ritskes, Gruel, Ray Graham and Kody Graham finished out the top 10.

Gosek (00), Lavery (22) & Ritskes (88) slip through the scene after the No. 99 & No. 7 come together in turn No. 1

Danzer had another good restart, but after a few laps of green-flag racing, debris in turn No. 2 reset the field for another restart. Again, Danzer’s startup was flawless, as behind him, Holbrook was finally able to slip under Gioia for third.

Danzer continued to set the pace up front while Gosek kept his eye on where the No. 88 was on the leader board. With five to go, Danzer’s advantage was a full straightaway over Snyder and Holbrook. Just a handful of laps remained for him to earn win No. 1 when the caution lights flashed for contact in the middle of the field.

Kody Graham’s No. 21 had tagged Payne’s No. 99 heading out of turn No. 2. With Payne crossing back in front of him, Michael Muldoon was left with nowhere to go, popping the outside wall.

Again, Danzer’s lead evaporated. With four laps to go, Snyder, Holbrook, Gioia and Gosek were his nearest chasers. Ritskes sat just one position in back of the No. 00.

With 4 laps to go, Snyder (0) and Holbrook (35) chase Danzer (52) shortly after a race restart through turns 1 & 2

Shortly into the restart, Snyder’s No. 0 came around off of turn No. 2 after possible contact with Holbrook‘s No. 35. Ray Graham, Lavery, and Payne were all collected in the melee, though only the Snyder and Graham supermodifieds exited via the hook.

Holbrook had his first shot at Danzer on the restart. However, Danzer wouldn’t budge. Behind them, with Ritskes on his tail and a championship to secure, Gosek began hounding Gioia’s No. 9. With two to go, Gosek was able to put one car between Ritskes and himself, passing Gioia for third place.

As Danzer rounded the fourth turn and with the flagger having Danzer Racing’s gold in hand, it was the other hand waving a yellow flag that the rookie driver saw waving as he raced past the checkered stripe. Holbrook had spun between turns three and four. The red flag was given for teams to refuel as their caution lap allotment had expired. With just one lap remaining, Danzer would need to hold off “Mighty” Joe Gosek.

It wasn’t his best start, but Danzer held his line as the green flag began to fly. Attention turned toward the championship battle as Ritskes suddenly darted under Gioia’s No. 9 as the trio raced towards the one-to-go line. Danzer put a length on Gosek while Ritskes attempted an inside pass on the No. 00 off of the fourth turn as the all three made their way to the waving checkered.

It was Danzer earning the win by one quarter of a second over newly crowned track champ, Gosek. If Ritskes had been able to sneak past Gosek on the final lap, he would’ve still come up one point short.

Listen to – Randy Ritskes

Earning his way to a fourth-place finish was Double-Deuce Racing’s Lavery.

Listen to – Pat Lavery

The Danzer crew poses in victory lane at Oswego

Scoring his first top-five finish since his return to supermodified racing following a racing injury suffered in 2009’s International Classic, Gioia landed his No. 9 in fifth.

Listen to – Stephen Gioia, III

***UNOFFICIAL RESULTS***

Feature 50: 1. David Danzer (52), 2. Joe Gosek (00), 3. Randy Ritskes (88), 4. Pat Lavery (22), 5. Stephen Gioia, III (9), 6. David Gruel (50), 7. Kody Graham (21), 8. Shaun Gosselin (26), 9. Joey Payne (99), 10. Jeff Holbrook (35), 11. Brandon Bellinger (02), 12. Tim Snyder (0), 13. Ray Graham, Jr. (90), 14. Michael Muldoon (20), 15. Bobby Bond (25), 16. Bobby Haynes, Jr. (44), 17. Otto Sitterly (7), 18. Steve Abt (85), 19. Kelly Miller (81), 20. Joe Chilemi (14), 21. Guard Nearbin (78), 22. Hal LaTulip (56), 23. Dave McKnight (08)

Heat #1: 1. Holbrook (35), 2. Ritskes (88), 3. Gioia (9), 4. R. Graham (90), 5. Muldoon (20), 6. Abt (85), 7. Nearbin (78), 8. McKnight

Heat #2: 1. Danzer (52), 2. Snyder (0), 3. Lavery (22), 4. Gosek (00), 5. K. Graham (21), 6. Gosselin (26), 7. LaTulip (56)

Heat #3: 1. Gruel, 2. Sitterly, 3. Bond, 4. Payne (99), 5. Bellinger (02), 6. Miller (81), 7. Chilemi (14), 8. Haynes (44)

Mexico, N.Y. native, Mike Bond, put an exclamation point on winning his third Small Block Supermodified (SBS) track title Saturday night at the Oswego Speedway, with a last-lap pass to win the regular season’s final feature event. It was his fifth win of the year and only added to his lead on the all-time SBS win list.

Jason Simmons' No. 98 and Mike Bond's No. 26 battle for the win in the SBS feature

With all of the feature wins he’d racked up since joining forces with car owner, Terry Solazzo, it may sound surprising that this was the first track title for the drive-owner combo. Since winning back-to-back championships in 2003 and 2004, Bond has finished runner-up in the points chase three times.

The three-time SBS Classic winner and 2008 Oswego Speedway Hall of Fame inductee will attempt to win his fourth SBS Classic 100 next weekend and is slated to attempt to qualify the Ed Matteson-owned No. 25 big block supermodified that his brother (Bob) normally drives in the International Classic 200.

“When Terry hired me to drive,” Bond said, “I told him ‘I want to win the championship and you want to win the Classic.’ Now we’ve got both of them. So, we’re both happy. This is like a dream come true tonight. The car owner told me we had to win tonight because last week we kind of just rode for points. He told me I couldn’t wreck the car last week. I had to finish in the top five so we could go race tonight. He wanted to win tonight. Jason and I had a heck of a battle there. I feel bad for Jason. He put a lot of time and effort into that car.”

Listen to more from – Mike Bond

It was deja-vu all over again for the victim of Bond’s last-lap pass, Jason Simmons. If Simmons were to quote Yogi Berra, he might say “I wish I had an answer to that because I’m tired of answering that question.”

Once again, Simmons appeared to be on his way to victory when his hopes of capturing that first checkered flag vanished in the presence of a readied wave of the checkered flag.

Rookie, Dalton Doyle took command at the start of the 30-lap feature event, bringing Simmons, Mike Bruce, Bond and Lou LeVea, Jr. across the line to complete lap No. 1. It was lap No. 2 that saw Simmons take command with his No. 98 machine. Doyle slipped out of the top five, as Bruce, Bond, Kreig Heroth and Andrew Schartner filed in behind the race leader.

Bruce was unable to challenge as Simmons took an all-too familiar sizable lead over his chasers in the early go. However, Bond shot underneath the Bruce’s No. 22 on the ninth lap, putting the No. 98 on his radar.

Initially trailing the race leader by 15 lengths, Bond methodically moved in on Simmons. Lap-by-lap, knocking off car length after car length, Bond caught the No. 98 on the 16th lap. A peek to the inside by Bond’s No. 26 let Simmons know he was there. However, Simmons already knew who was there, later admitting he was keeping an eye on the leader board.

What Bond administered on the first-feature, win-seeking, Simmons from that point on was relentless pressure from both sides of the No. 98. Contact off turn No. 4 between the two upped the stress levels as Bond floated his small block super along each side of the race leader.

Mike Bond poses in victory lane with his wife Debbie

Having been racing many lengths off the pace of the two leaders, Bruce continued to command the chase from behind as as lapped traffic began to play its part. Simmons refused to back down as Bond would inch aside lap after lap as the duo raced into turn No. 3 and out of turn No. 4. Just three laps remained as the twosome made their way through lapped traffic.

Suddenly, Jack Patrick’s No. 9 made heavy contact with the spun Will Hadcock No. 43 in turn No. 1. The caution allowed the leaders to catch their breath, but it was at the expense of a heavily damaged No. 9. Patrick later said that in order for his potent Hedger Chassis to make the Classic, it will not only need a rear clip, but possibly a front clip as well. Neither driver was injured in the bone-jarring collision.

With only three trips to go, Simmons would lead Bond, Bruce, Schartner and Heroth back to racing. Bond’s No. 26 lost traction on the restart, losing two lengths to the No. 98. However, after one lap, Bond went back to work on the race leader.

With Simmons guarding the inside, Bond’s only option was the outside lane. On the final lap, Simmons hugged the lower end of the racing surface too closely as he raced off of turn No. 2. Bond’s No. 26 shot to the outside, getting its best run into the third turn since first challenging Simmons. As the two raced side-by-side towards turn No. 4, the back end of Bond’s No. 26 kicked sideways, but he’d already cleared the low-groove running Simmons car. The No. 26 took the checkered flag in grand fashion, doubling the team’s reasons to celebrate on Saturday night.

With a spirited run, Simmons placed second. It was a triumph in itself just getting the car back to being race ready after it took a hard lick the previous night out.

Listen to – Jason Simmons

Bruce crossed the line in third.

Listen to – Mike Bruce

Schartner’s fourth-place run, coupled with Patrick’s early exit landed the Crow Motorsports No. 18 in second in the final points standings.

Listen to – Andrew Schartner

Backing up last week’s win with a solid top-five run, Pullen’s No. 2 placed fifth.

Listen to – Rob Pullen

Rookie of the Year honors went to David LaTulip. After his heat race, LaTulip determined his motor was toast. Needing to earn points to stay ahead in the tight rookie points chase, LaTulip was in need of a ride for the feature.

Bryan Haynes won his first heat race earlier in the night and was poised to start the feature on the front row. However, learning of LaTulip’s situation, Haynes offered up his No. 37 small block super so Rookie of the Year honors could be settled on the track.

LaTulip finished 13th, earning just enough points to stay ahead of fellow rookie A.J. Bernys.

Listen to – David LaTulip

SBS Feature 30: 1. Mike Bond (26), 2. Jason Simmons (98), 3. Mike Bruce (22), 4. Andrew Schartner (18), 5. Rob Pullen (2), 6. Kreig Heroth (44), 7. Dave Cliff (06), 8. Mark Castiglia (90), 9. A.J. Bernys (24), 10. Tim Barbeau (50), 11. Barry Kingsley (23), 12. Dalton Doyle (1), 13. David LaTulip (37), 14. Brad Haynes (86), 15. Jack Patrick (9), 16. Will Hadcock (43), 17. Brian Osetek (00), 18. Lou LeVea, Jr. (95), 19. Dennis Rupert (99), 20. Cameron Rowe (77)

Heat #1: 1. Doyle (1), 2. Rowe (77), 3. Patrick (9), 4. Simmons (98), 5. Pullen (2), 6. Barbeau (50), 7. Hadcock (43)

Heat #2: 1. Bryan Haynes (37), 2. Heroth (44), 3. Bond (26), 4. Osetek (00), 5. Kingsley (23), 6. Castiglia (90), 7. Brad Haynes (86)

Heat #3: 1. Bruce (22), 2. Schartner (18), 3. Cliff (06), 4. LeVea (95), 5. Bernys (24), 6. LaTulip (27), 7. Rupert (99)