TOMKINS WINS WET CANANDAIGUA MAIN EVENT
CANANDAIGUA, NY...Waterloo's Gary Tomkins was up to the task, winning the 35-lap DIRT Modified feature driving his Honeoye Auto Parts number 84 to victory last Saturday on a very slick race track. Picking up the top honors in the 20-lap Sportsman feature was Bill Englert, his first time in victory lane. Young Chad Homan earned the 20-lap DIRT Street Stock feature.
Heavy rains set in around the speedway around 5:30 p.m., washing out most of the track preparations preformed by the track maintenance crew during the week. Many thought the racing should be canceled, however general manager Gary Montgomery stood fast and continue his efforts to run the races for the many fans present at the track. After nearly an hour and a half delay, the cars took to the track at 9:15 p.m. for their heat races. First up were the Pro-stocks. After much slipping and sliding it was determined that the Pro-stock heats were all of the qualifying races to be attempted for the night.
Montgomery called for a "features only" format to allow the competitors to regroup and the fans to see a show. Warm up sessions for the open wheel classes then helped to make the track more raceable.
The 20-lap DIRT Sportsman feature, followed by the 35-lap Modified feature and finally the 20-lap Pro-stock main event were then scheduled to take to the track. "We did our best to provide our fans and racers with an event," stated Montgomery. "The weather conditions were not the best, to say the least. I am very pleased in those drivers would supported our efforts to run this event. I can't thank them enough."
In the 35-lap Modified feature saw rookie Jeff Brownell race to an early lead from his outside pole starting position. Burnell found Dave Axton tight on his rear end, followed by Chuck Hebing and Pat Ward. The first of just five yellow flags flew on lap seven when Axton, who had been leaking rear end fluid earlier in the night, had the rear end of his car ignite into a ball of flames. Safety crews were quick on the scene to extinguish the flames and remove his car to the pit area.
Brownell continued to lead, now followed by Heading, Ward, Scott Ridley and Vince Vitale. The second yellow flew on lap 10, when Darryl Ruggles came to a stop on the front stretch with a flat right front tire. Hebing was pressuring Brownell, but the rookie held fast in first.
Ridley was the next to cause a yellow, on lap 16, when his car came to a halt with a flat right front in third turn. During this yellow, third place runner, Pat Ward came to a stop on the track and had to be pushed into the pits.
Gary Tomkins was the car on the move. But again the yellow flew on lap 20 for debris in the second turn. The final yellow flew four laps later when Vic Coffey made slight contact with the second turn wall. He was able to return to the race, two laps down.
On lap 27, Brownell drifted high in between turns three and four, allowing Tomkins the opportunity to slip beneath him and take the lead.
Tomkins took the victory by three car lengths over Brownell, who was bale to hold off Steve Paine. Finishing fourth was Tim Fuller. Danny Johnson rounded out the top five finishers.
The 20-lap Sportsman feature saw Bill Englert use his outside pole starting spot to take the lead over Ed Monroe, David Allen, John Plumb and Clay Parmelee. Top runner Steve Gray, complete with a new body and paint scheme, was the first to bring out the yellow, on lap three. Gray made contact with the second turn wall, but was able to continue at the back of the pack. The restart saw Paul Guererri loop his car in the fourth turn, as Englert continued his lead.
Bob Henry Jr. delighted the fans in his attempts to move up through the field. Henry made it to fourth when his car faultered and he stopped in the pit entrance, causing yet another yellow just past the halfway mark of the race. Englert held on for the victory followed by Justin Haers, Plumb and Parmelee. Track points leader, Karl Comfort, rounded out the top five.
The Pro-stock feature saw just 18 cars take the green. Mike Minutlo, again from the outside pole, took the lead. The race was just two laps young when the yellow flew when Josh Nichols slowed on the speedway. Nichols pitted his car and returned to the race on lap seven, five laps down to the rest of the field. Nichols's luck was about to prove worse, when on lap 11 the rear axle on his number 11 snapped sending the youngster hard into the front stretch wall. Nichols emerged dazed and was attended to by the ambulance staff on duty.
Meanwhile up front Brian Michels had been able to pass Minutlo on lap four for the lead. He had been able to build a five car lead until the caution on lap 11 for Nichols. Chad Homan was now running second folowed by multi-time feature winner Mike Cooper in third.
On lap 16 the final yellow flew when Tom Jansch, spun his number 24 in the second turn. The restart proved to be Michels's down fall. Homan quickly passed Michels for the lead. Michels faded back to seventh. At the finish line it would Homan with the win followed by Cooper, Jipp Ortiz, Jim McGuigan and Bobby Lutz.
The 10-lap Street Stock feature will lead off the racing activity this Saturday as the Pro-stock feature had ended just after curfew.
Race time this Saturday will be at 7 p.m. sharp. A complete program of DIRT Modified, Sportsman, Pro-Stocks and Street Stocks will round out a complete night of racing.
FANSWORTH CHEVROLET NIGHT SUMMARY
STREET STOCK
FEATURE LINE-UP for 8/19: Shane Yack, Mike Shaw, Brian Lloyd, Darrin Phippen, Vance Vanderwall, Tim Burnell, Butch Moore, Nathan Peckham, Leroy Lewis, Mike Ferens, Jim Cologgi, Jared Labarge, Eric Giguere, Frank Burnell, Fred Srock, David Eaton, Richard Briggs, James henry, Brad Steinruck, Glen Peters, John Rutkowski, Mike Welch, Don Batterson.
PRO-STOCK
HEAT 1: J. Miller, S. Fremouw, L. Burnett, Z. Shove, J. Nichols, B. Brown.
HEAT 2: Ri. Miller, S. Miller, M. Cooper, J. Ortiz, P. Hobbs, M. Minutlo.
HEAT 3: C. Homan, B. Michels, J. McGuigan, B. Lutz, D. Conant Jr., D. Weisner.
FEATURE (20-laps): CHAD HOMAN, Mike Cooper, Jipp Ortiz, Jim McGuigan, Bobby Lutz, Lee Burnett, Brian Michels, Steve Miller, Billy Brown, Dave Conant Jr., Dan Weisner, Jon MIller, Carl Reynolds II, Zack Shove, Mike Minutlo, Tom Jansch, Patrick Hobbs, Josh Nichols.
SPORTSMAN
FEATURE (20-laps): BILL ENGLERT, Justin Haers, John Plumb, Clay Parmelee, Karl Comfort, Eldon Payne, Steve Gray, Dale Darling, John Pfeffer, Larry Beardsley, David Allen, Ed Monroe, John Juhl, Russ Hefti, Wade Czymmek, Tim Johnson, Tom Juhl, Bob Henry Jr., Jim Rufiange, Ricky VanNeil, Paul Guererri, Joe Beyea.
MODIFIED
FEATURE (35-laps): GARY TOMKINS, Jeff Brownell, Steve Paine, Tim Fuller, Danny Johnson, Charlie Donk, Jim Gabriel Jr., Randy Miller, Chuck Hebing, Ray Bliss Jr., Vic Coffey, Vince Vitale, Scott Ridley, Gil Tegg Jr., Darryl Ruggles, Chuck Bower.