CHUCK BOWER FINALLY GETS TO BREWERTON VICTORY LANE!
Brewerton, NY…Chuck Bower has been trying for the last four years to get a victory in Brewerton’s tough DIRT Modified division. All the hard work finally paid off on Friday as he passed Pat Ward in traffic and went on to victory in the Avon Products of Oswego County 35-lap Modified feature event. Other winners included Tony Buffa, Bob Bradt, and Todd Williamson.
A couple of quick yellows made for some tense moments before we finally got started in the Modified feature, and one of them eliminated the 1 of Alan Johnson. Ryan Baye in his small block led one quick lap before the 9 of Tim McCreadie took over on lap 3. Mike Hulsizer, also in a small block, was running strong early and mixing it up near the top five.
The race went green until lap 12 when Lance Petzoldt slowed on the back straightaway. Petzoldt took the 29 into the pits and McCreadie had his father’s 9 working well at the front of the pack. Behind “Tenderfoot” when the race went back to green was Bill Gill, Pat Ward, Ryan Baye, and Mike Hulsizer. Drivers such as Jim Gabriel, Chuck Hebing, and Chuck Bower were making their way from deep in the field at this point toward the top five.
Ward began to close on McCreadie around the halfway point of the 35-lap feature, and actually caught him and took the lead on lap 23 as the 9 began to drift high in the corners. Bower was on the warpath, moving into fifth on lap 24, and storming into second just three laps later.
As Bower hunted down the Gypsum Wholesalers 56 of Ward, traffic began to play a part and by lap 30 the 99B of Bower was right on Ward’s tail. After putting the pressure on the leader for two laps, the Currier Plastics 99B advanced to the head of the fastest class at the track and never let up on his way to his first career Brewerton victory.
At the line it was Bower with a crowd-pleasing win, followed by Ward, Tim McCreadie, Jim Gabriel, and Ryan Baye. The NGK Spark Plugs Halfway Leader was the 9 of Tim McCreadie. Tim’s father Bob McCreadie did not race at Brewerton on Friday night.
The Dwarf Car feature started with a multi-car melee in turn one before the first lap was completed. When the track was cleared, the rest of the race was all deuces, as the 2x of Troy Van Allen had the lead by lap 2 and appeared to have the inside track to the feature win.
The 2 of Tony Buffa was not convinced, however, and nipped at the heels of Van Allen until the halfway point on lap ten, when he took the lead. Behind Buffa and Van Allen, Pat Pontello was third at halfway, with Shawn Hort fourth and the 4 of Dan Boyce running in fifth.
Van Allen continued to chase Buffa, but could not find his way by. On lap 17, Van Allen’s thoughts of victory ended when one of his wheels abandoned ship in turn four, causing him to spin and the yellow flag to fly. Buffa now had Pontello, Boyce, Dan Magner, and Barry Virts behind him with just 3 laps left in the race.
The top five on the restart held their positions to the end, except for Virts, who was passed by the 32 of Carl Crawford, Jr. for the fifth position. Buffa was the winner, with Pontello, Boyce, Magner, and the 32 of Crawford rounding out the top five. The NGK Spark Plugs Halfway Leader was the 2 of Buffa.
The Four Cylinder Feature followed the same pattern as the first two features had, as there were two yellows and a red flag in the first four laps of the event. Aaron Backus was the worst of those who spun or crashed, as he rolled his racer on the back straightaway. He was ok but the car will need some attention during the week.
The 10 of Nicholas Barr led for a couple of laps before being passed by the 17 of Chuck Powelczyk. Rick Angle blasted through the field like a quarter-keg of dynamite, picking up second by lap 5 and trading paint with Powelczyk for the lead.
The two came together several times before the A28 of Angle ended up with a right front flat that sent him shooting across the race track into Powelczyk, causing a caution just past halfway on lap 10. This left Jim LaLone with the lead, but he fell victim to the flat tire syndrome on the restart and faded back through the field.
When the dust settled, Todd Williamson, never before a feature winner at Brewerton, found himself out front with his 14. Mike Lewis in the 33x tried to stay with Williamson, but it was to no avail as the crowd saw another first-time winner sitting in victory lane.
When the checkered flag flew it was Williamson winning and doing a roof dance, followed by Lewis, Harvey Calkins, Jr., Chris Bargabos, and the 05 of Brett Hubbard. The NGK Spark Plugs Halfway Leader was the 17 of Powelczyk, who came back through the field to sixth at the end after the tangle with Angle.
The front row for the IMCA feature saw two rookies pacing the field. At the drop of the green it was Jim House in the 5 getting the jump on the 35 of John Matyjasik. The pair ran first and second throughout the first six laps of the race, as behind them many of the high point men were making their way from the back of the field.
Bob Bradt, a three-time feature winner with the 10 and an employee of House’s at Reymore Chevrolet, was chasing his boss and Matyjasik down in an attempt to get win number four. He had second by lap 7, and just as the halfway sign was being shown took the lead from his boss in fine style.
Matyjasik, trying to wrestle control from Bradt, spun in turn one ending his chances for victory with the 35, but he was able to restart at the rear of the field with half the race left to go. He would make a fine comeback for himself, reaching for an 8th place finish.
At the front of the field, Bradt was leading the 5 of House, with the 133 of John Bell third and the 222 of Dick Weiland running fourth. Second through fourth were battling for position on lap 17 when they tangled in turn four, bringing out the yellow. None were heavily damaged, but all of them would lose their positions at the front of the field, shaking up the running order.
Mike Chilson now sat behind Bradt in second, with Bill Anderson Jr., Les Hubbard, and the 20A of Bill Anderson Sr. rounding out the top five. Anderson Sr. and Rob Keller tangled on the restart, leaving Keller on the hook to the pits and slowing the pace yet again.
Bradt held on for the final two circuits and put win number four in his pocket. Chilson had a great run for second, with Hubbard, Carmen Vona, and Bill Anderson Jr. rounding out the top five. The NGK Spark Plugs Halfway Leader was the 10 of Bradt.
The next race at Brewerton is Friday, July 14th. It will be Syracuse Crunch night at Brewerton, with a special appearance by their mascot “Crunch Man.” The DIRT Modifieds, IMCA Modifieds, ESDCA Dwarf Cars, and 4-Cylinders will be joined by the Jetettes Women’s Racing Series for a five-star show that gets underway with gates opening at 5:30. The first racing green flag will be thrown at 7:30 sharp. For more information, contact the track office at (315) 668-6906 or see them online at www.brewertonspeedway.com.
MODIFIEDS: CHUCK BOWER, Pat Ward, Tim McCreadie, Jim Gabriel, Ryan Baye, Chuck Hebing, Tim Fuller, Jim Phelps, Steve Hulsizer, Bill Gill, Billy Decker, Mike Hulsizer, Matt Quinn, Steve Babicek, Tim Murphy, Joel Thomas, Randy Storms, Tim Vincent, Frank Doll, Lance Petzoldt, Jeremy Corcoran, Alan Johnson.
ESDCA DWARF CARS: TONY BUFFA, Pat Pontello, Dan Boyce, Bob Magner, Carl Crawford Jr., Barry Virts, Ken Gamlen, Oly Johnson, Mike LaSalle, David Orr, Steve Miller, Ed Lawton, Brenda Rice, Troy Van Allen, Rob Garafolo, Shawn Hort, Dave Reales, Nate Phelps, Eric Crawford.
FOUR CYLINDERS: TODD WILLIAMSON, Mike Lewis, Harvey Calkins Jr., Chris Bargabos, Brett Hubbard, Chuck Powelczyk, Walt Van Epps, Jason Amidon, Kevan Cook, Tim Koch, Jim LaLone, Russ Cusson, Roy French, Rick Angle, Roger West, John West, Nicholas Barr, Joe Bribre, Aaron Backus, Bob Whipple, Mike Humphrey, Mark Warner, Derrick Van Epps, Steve Coit.
IMCA MODIFIEDS: BOB BRADT, Mike Chilson, Les Hubbard, Carmen Vona, Bill Anderson Jr., Ron O’Neil, Dane Keller, John Matyjasik, Ken Rogers, Ken Klinkowsky, Jon Amidon, John Bell, Doug McKane, Mike Adderly, Jim House, Bill Anderson Sr., Tony Finch, Don Alvord, Colleen Finch, Dick Weiland, Rob Keller, Kevin Battelle, Dustin Geers, Sean Lias.