BACHETTI DOMINATES THE RACE OF KINGS AT LEBANON VALLEY
West Lebanon, NY- Andy Bachetti destroyed the field in the 100-lap Race Of Kings for 358-modifieds at Lebanon Valley Saturday night. The Sheffield, Massachusetts native wheeled his Benjamin Moore Paints-Albreada Waste-Teo #4 car to victory for the second straight year in this prestigious event. This was the seventeenth stop on the Turning Stone Casino 358-modified Super Dirt Series Trail. Lorne Browe was rewarded with $1,000 for winning the 30-lap sportsman feature. Rob Yetman won his fifth 20-lap pro stock feature of 2003. Other winners on the night included Pete Everett in the rookie pro stocks and Bob Burl, Tom Harkins, Pete Wiegand and Jeremy Pease in the pure stock mains. CARQUEST and CALLANAN INDUSTRIES brought us the action on day one of the Kings 200 Weekend.
Thirty-one 358-modifieds roared to life to start the 100-lap main event. Randy Chrysler and fast qualifier Rob Pitcher brought the field to the green flag. The caution flag flew on seven occasions for a total of 18 laps in the race. The first of those caution periods came on lap two as Chris Schultz slowed on the backstretch with a right rear flat tire. Matt Quinn went pitside during the yellow and dropped from the event. Problems for Pitcher as his car starting smoking heavily on lap four and he was forced to retire two laps later. Bachetti started fourteenth, but was up to fourth by lap 13.
Bachetti made short work of the three cars ahead of him and assumed the lead on lap 22. At the one-quarter mark of the race it was Bachetti, Chrysler, Matt Sheppard, Chad Brachmann and J.R. Heffner running in the top five. While Chrysler was holding off Sheppard’s advances for second, Bachetti opened up a full straightaway lead over them. The DIG SAFELY NY HARD LUCK AWARD came on lap 38 when Chrysler suddenly slowed and dropped from the race. K.C. Goewey made slight contact with the frontstretch wall on lap 50, but was able to continue. His eleventh place finish earned him the BERT Hard charger of the Race Award. Ten cars had dropped from the race by lap 59.
While Bachetti set it on cruise control there was some great racing going on towards the back half of the top ten. Heffner’s good run came to a sudden end on lap 81 as he pulled pitside. Rich Ricci Jr had quietly worked his way through the top ten and made his patented late race run in the final stages, pressuring Donnie Corellis for fourth the last twenty laps of the race. When Bachetti crossed the finish line he had a half-track lead over second place finisher Eddie Marshall. Sheppard was third, Corellis fourth and Ricci rounded out the top five. The guaranteed starting spots for the Sunoco/APLUS 150 at Super Dirt Week next month went to Marshall, Corellis, Jeff Heotzler and Bud Christmann.
The sportsman feature went an extra ten laps on Saturday night, but it did not matter to Lorne Browe. His L. Browe Paving #14 took the lead from the start of the event and never looked back. He most serious challenge came in the final stages of the races from Bobby Knipe, but they were not successful. Knipe started the race 24th and was seventh by lap five. A caution flag on lap 24 allowed Knipe to catch Browe and Art Collins. Knipe got by Collins on the restart but ran out of time to catch Browe and had to settle for second. 2003 sportsman track champion, Collins had to settle for third with Roy Bridge fourth and Frank Harper fifth.
Rob Yetman won his fifth 20-lap pro stock main event on Saturday night. He took his Beer Belly Bobs #7 into the lead on a lap four restart and looked to run away and hide. But a late caution changed all of that as Chris Crews was hunting for his first win of ’03. As the field came down the white flag Crews made his way into the lead. He drifted high in turn one, which allowed Yetman to squeeze passed back into the lead. As they came down the frontstretch for the checkered flag they were side by side. Yetman eked out the win by mere inches over Crews. Bill Lobdell had a career best third place finish. With Jay Corbin a career best fourth and Tom Brandt fifth.