JOHNSON 'SLIDES' TO VICTORY IN 23RD ROLLING WHEELS CHALLENGE CUP
ELBRIDGE, NY.....Rolling Wheels Raceway kicked off it's 35th consecutive season of racing Sunday (April 27) afternoon with the 23rd annual DIRT Challenge Cup.
It hardly seemed like a new season was underway as the results mirrored those of 2002 with Phelps' Alan Johnson capturing the Advance Auto Parts Modified Super DIRT Series showdown. Johnson won the final three big-block feature races staged at Rolling Wheels last year en route to the track title as well as the overall Hoosier Tire-Sunoco Race Fuels Mr. DIRT Championship.
In companion events on the Beachy's Toro-Auto Trader card, Bob Henry,Jr. was the first across the line in the 20-lap Sportsman main while Greg Dechick took top honors in the non-stop Four-Cylinder finale.
With Johnson's sponsor Jim Beachy watching the action from high atop the VIP Tower, Johnson proceeded to set fast time in the JE Pistons Time Trials, circling the 5/8-mile clay oval in a time of 20.932 sec. (107.491 mph). His only setback the rest of the day was re-drawing the 13th starting position to start the 100-lap feature.
"The outside was only good for so long, I just had to wait for it to dry out to make up some ground," said Johnson, following his $6,000 triumph, his 33rd career win in both Advance Auto Parts SDS (4th all-time) competition and in Rolling Wheels' (2nd) record book. "The more heat that got in the tires the better the car seemed to work. This is just about the greatest car you could ask for with all the sponsorship support and we definitely have the equipment to repeat (Mr. DIRT)."
New Jersey star Brett Hearn out-dragged pole-sitter A.J. Romano to lead the first circuit following an early caution period that knocked out veteran Jack Johnson and upstart Justin Haers before a single lap could be scored. Under green flag conditions Hearn opened up a commanding lead early ahead of fourth-place starter Billy Decker and Steve Paine with Johnson taking advantage of the sun-baked surface to crack the top-10 with 10 laps complete.
The laps continued to click off and Decker methodically cut away at Hearn's lead while the duo was forced to maneuver through traffic. The pair swapped the point twice on lap 23 before Decker finally broke free among lap cars to seize the top spot the following circuit.
A second yellow flag flew on lap 26 for Jimmy Phelps, who had exited the track high in turn three amidst a cloud of dust. During the slowdown Paine hooked bumpers with Tom Sears,Jr. yet was allowed to resume his third-place position before the green lights reappeared.
Another slowdown on lap 33 was the result of Pennsylvanian Frank Cozze's TEO machine breaking on the back chute before riding airborne in turn three and getting rammed by Eckerd 200 champion Vic Coffey in the aftermath. No injuries were reported but both the Cozze 44 and Coffey 32c mounts were dragged to the pits for the remainder.
It took only two more laps under green when runner-up Hearn suddenly slowed to bring out the fourth and final caution flag on lap 40. With an electrical fire the culprit as reported over the team radio, Hearn eventually lost 12 laps in the pits to make repairs and was not a factor the remainder of the way.
By the halfway mark, Decker and Paine were pacing the field but it was the no. 1 red, white & blue Elaine James Motorsports-Doughboy Racing/Bicknell entry that had reached the show position and was "A.J. Slideways" now filling their mirrors. First it was Paine falling on lap 72 then it was Decker on lap 82, and that's the way it ended with Johnson scoring a convincing straightaway victory under the checkers.
Tim McCreadie finished fourth and Gary Tomkins was scored in fifth, the last car to complete the prescribed 100-lap distance out of 32 that ran under the initial green flag. Romano, Pat Ward, Bobby Varin, Bob McCreadie and Steve Hulsizer settled in among the top-10, each one lap down to the winner.
The big-block Modified main was round number three of the Advance Auto Parts SDS with Johnson also earning a guaranteed starting spot in the Eckerd 200 Super DIRT Week championship.
Henry bolted from sixth to third on the opening lap, then tracked down early leader Tim Clemons on lap eight to force the final exchange on his way to an eight car-length Sportsman feature victory. However, in the customary post-race tech inspection, Henry was fined his first-place earnings and lost his points after suffering a carburetor infraction with his potent no. B2 Eliminator Automotive/Birosh machine.
Only three caution periods slowed the action, two for minor spins by Mark Yorker (lap 4) and Al Johns (lap 13) and one for Jason Potter after his open-wheel car rammed the front stretch wall on lap seven.
Clemons, who won his first Sportsman race at Rolling Wheels in 1991, settled for second-place ahead of opening day Weedsport winner Tim Sears, Greg Doust, John Pfeffer and reigning division points king Eldon Payne,Jr.
Dechick was in position to inherit the point and $125 payday when a lap car spun out leader Dan Alfred with just a half-dozen circuits remaining in the 20-lap 4-Cylinder Enduro. Alfred had held the top spot since overtaking Craig Dingy on lap four before finishing ahead of third-place runner Dan Deline in a money position.
The same full-fender class returns to Rolling Wheels for another event on July 3.
Action returns to the popular Elbridge oval on Sunday, May 18 when Rolling Wheels Raceway hosts another special afternoon program. Spring Fling '03 features a 50-lap big-block DIRT Modified main event along with a 20-lap Sportsman finale and the first points race on the Empire Sports Network Pro Stock Super DIRT Series. Race time is 2 p.m.
The O'Reilly World of Outlaws take center stage at the 'Fast Track' on Wednesday, May 18 in the annual Double Duel on DIRT Twin 25s. The sprint/modified doubleheader begins with time trials before heat races take the green flag at 7 p.m.
FAST TRACK FOOTNOTES:
The opening field was strong with 56 Modified, 34 Sportsman and 15 Enduro entries filling Rolling Wheels' pits both inside and outside the track ..... Decker (207) retained his lead in the Advance Auto Parts SDS point standings after a third straight runner-up tally. Paine (196) ranks second while Johnson (174) vaulted from ninth to third with his first top-5 showing. Last year Johnson waited until Aug. 7 before scoring his first SDS win at Canandaigua ..... Accompanied by his victory Friday at Brewerton Speedway, A.J. now has 299 career DIRT-sanctioned big-block Modified feature wins. Bob McCreadie (301) is DIRT Motorsports' all-time win leader ..... Cayuga County Fair Speedway hosts round four of the 2003 Advance Auto Parts Modified Super DIRT Series as part of it's annual Memorial Day celebration on Sunday, May 25. The 100-lap Castrol Bill McNabb Hall of Fame Classic leads off with JE Pistons Time Trials at 6 p.m.
BEACHY'S TORO-AUTO TRADER 23rd DIRT CHALLENGE CUP SUMMARY
ADVANCE AUTO PARTS SUPER DIRT SERIES
MODIFIED FEATURE(100-laps): ALAN JOHNSON, Billy Decker, Steve Paine, Tim McCreadie, Gary Tomkins, A.J. Romano, Pat Ward, Bobby Varin, Bob McCreadie, Steve Hulsizer, Chuck Hebing, Joe Beyea, Tim Fuller, Matt Sheppard, Chuck Bower, Doug Hoffman, Jason Barney, Steve Poirier, Butch Tittle, Randy Chrysler, Kenny Tremont, Brett Hearn, Darryl Ruggles, Danny Johnson, Frank Cozze, Vic Coffey, Jeff Heotzler, Tom Sears,Jr., Jimmy Phelps, Scott Prentice, Justin Haers, Jack Johnson.
HEAT 1: Heotzler, Beyea, Hulsizer.
HEAT 2: Sears, Hebing, Varin.
HEAT 3: Coffey, Decker, Tomkins.
HEAT 4: Sheppard, Hearn, Cozze.
HEAT 5: Romano, Poirier, B.McCreadie.
HEAT 6: Ward, T.McCreadie, Chrysler.
CONSI: Hoffman, Bower, Phelps.
CONSI: Prentice, Haers, Barney.
CONSI: Fuller, Ruggles, J.Johnson.
ADDED: D.Johnson, Tremont, Tittle.
JE PISTONS TIME TRIALS: Alan Johnson 20.932 sec. (107.491mph), Steve Paine 20.998, Chuck Bower 21.103, Bobby Varin 21.113, Vic Coffey 21.227, Brett Hearn 21.284, Darryl Ruggles 21.315, Tim McCreadie 21.354, Kenny Tremont 21.359, Tom Sears,Jr. 21.409, Scott Prentice 21.469, Matt Sheppard 21.616, A.J. Romano 21.639, Pat Ward 21.669, Jerry Higbie 21.706, Doug Hoffman 21.714, Billy Decker 21.764, Justin Haers 21.768, Bob McCreadie 21.799, Tim Fuller 21.813, Jeff Heotzler 21.896, Chuck Hebing 21.936, Gary Tomkins 21.984, Frank Cozze 21.987, Todd Stewart 22.127, Randy Chrysler 22.141, Steve Hulsizer 22.149, Jeremie Corcoran 22.167, Vince Vitale 22.238, Jason Barney 22.243, Steve Poirier 22.256, Alex Hoag 22.289, David VanHorn 22.301, Jimmy Phelps 22.301, Danny Johnson 22.307, Rich Eurich 22.385, Ryan Odasz 22.500, Jack Johnson 22.534, Ryan Phelps 22.566, Jeff Isabell 22.611, Ray Bliss 22.621, Karl Comfort 22.748, Butch Tittle 22.758, Dave Axton 22.779, Joe Beyea 22.799, Ryan Bartlett 22.826, Jimmy Horton 22.853, Mike Adderley 22.857, Jeremy Markle 23.102, Chuck McKee 23.211, Mike Fusco 23.217, Allen Shiffler 23.247, Chris Shultz 23.677, Donnie Elliott 23.802, Jim LaRock 24.145, Jim Burke NT.
SPORTSMAN FEATURE(20-laps): BOB HENRY,JR., Tim Clemons, Tim Sears, Greg Doust, John Pfeffer, Eldon Payne,Jr., Tom Perrego, John Scarborough, Russ Hefti, Loren Lincoln, Ron Loveless, Darrell Ebersole, Dan Wiesner, Chad Phelps, Phil LaVare, Jamie Yannone, Gus Hurlburt, Mark Yorker, Rob Bussey, Sammy Reakes IV, Al Johns, Ben Tucker, Brian Murphy, Jason Potter.
HEAT 1: Hefti, Payne, Doust, Murphy, Yannone, Hurlburt.
HEAT 2: Clemons, Perrego, Scarborough, Lincoln, Pfeffer, Phelps.
HEAT 3: Sears, Henry, Wiesner, Yorker, Bussey, Potter.
CONSI: Ebersole, Tucker, LaVare, Johns, Loveless, Reakes.
FOUR-CYLINDER ENDURO FEATURE(20-laps): Greg Dechick, Dan Alfred, Dan Deline.