REPEAT WINNERS FIND THE FAST AISLE IN FAIRVIEW MALL - FAN APPRECIATION NIGHT AT MERRITTVILLE
By Alexis De Wolfe
A night presented in memory of the late Colleen St. Amand provided for some great racing in all divisions at Merrittville Speedway.
The merchants of the Fairview Mall and the St. Catharines Standard were joined by the employees of TRW with a highlight of their special night - a Shopping Car Showdown at Intermission.
Tim Knapp (2nd from left) was the big winner - earning a $500 Fairview Mall Gift Certificate.
819shop.JPG (52235 bytes)
In Stock Car action it was all repeat winners on Saturday night. Mike Ward (95) dominated in the street stock feature, while Lee Webber (17) won his sixth dwarf feature of the season. Ken Sargent (25) won the Pro Stock feature. Chad Brachmann (3) made it five in a row with his sportsman win, and Pete Bicknell (1) came from the back of the pack to win the modified feature.
All feature winners received awards in memory of Colleen - wife of Pit Steward Bob St. Amand, with the modified feature winner receiving the Colleen St. Amand Memorial Trophy.
'Bob Senior' was also presented a memorial award by Merrittville Speedway.
819amand.JPG (56489 bytes)
Bob Sr. (left) with memorial award to honour recent passing of Colleen St. Amand.
Track staff Jim Irvine, Gordy Wilson, Chris Wood & Kathy Rodgers make the presentation.
Tony Visca (49) and Al Smith (48) started the street stock feature in the front row, and Visca jumped to the early lead, only to wipe out coming out of turn two, leaving him at the back of the pack. Greg Ayres (17) went flying off the track with him. Lloyd Cichocki (8c) tried to push Chris Crawford (4c) down the track on the restart, but it didn't help him much. Al Stewart (a1) and Kevin Soules (7k) spun out together in turn one on the fifth lap. The top five before the restart were Crawford, Mike Ward (95), Cichocki, Chuck Martin (3) and Mike Dooley (310c). Ward and Crawford went side by side for the lead but Ward clinched it coming out of turn four. Martin and Rob Knapp (Y2K) were up to fourth and fifth spot on lap six. Cam Fournier (02) broke on the front straightaway bringing out the caution on lap eight. Knapp managed to get around Martin for second spot on lap 11. Yellow came out on lap 13, leaving a two lap dash for the checkered.
headward.jpg (49470 bytes)Ward came in the lead, followed by Knapp, Crawford, Martin and Dooley.
John Wrobel (6) and Scott Gailer (33) started on the front row for the dwarf feature, but Lee Webber (17) quickly moved up into second spot, behind Wrobel. Chris Rimmen moved into the lead after the first caution of the race. Jeff Johnson (63) moved up into second spot on lap 3 with Webber sitting back in third spot. Wally Billings (37) the man on the move on lap four, moving up to challenge Webber for third, but was unable to hold onto it. Webber scooted under Johnson and Rimmen on lap seven to take the lead going through one and two. Wally Billings made the move up into third spot on lap twelve, and kept his forward charge gong moving into second spot on the last lap. Webber held it for his sixth feature win being followed by Billings, Johnson, Rimmen and Dave Russell (88).
Dave Gifford (34c) and A.J. Whelan (31j) ran side by side for the first lap, but Ken Sargent (25) took the high side around them to clinch first spot. Don Spiece (88) made a brave move splitting Gifford and Whelan to move into third spot on the second lap. The first caution came out on the second lap as John Zimmerman (6) lost control in turn four. Sargent and Spiece were side by side for the restart with Spiece pushing Sargent all the way down the back on the third lap. Darren Kish (99) grabbed third spot on lap four by getting under Gifford. Sargent and Spiece ran a great race, neither one would let the other have a large advantage. Jeff Dayman (5) moved up to run alongside Kish on lap twelve, but couldn't get around him.
headsarg.jpg (4242 bytes)Sargent managed to hold onto it until the checkered and was followed in by Spiece, Kish, Dayman and Ron Reece (400) – making a return for the first time in 200 in Dan Gilbert’s pro stock.
Brian Elliotson (30) and Ken Walsh (7s) started the sportsman feature in the front row, with Walsh jumping to the early lead. It turned into a demo derby in turn four however as Elliotson spun out and took Garry Moreash (124), Bob Davidson (73) and Shawn Sliter (71s) with him. Walsh took the lead once again on the restart with John McKenney (19j) right behind him. Paul Ashton (3a) moved up to challenge McKenney, but McKenney spun out in turn four and caused some damage to a few other cars. Ashton moved up to challenge Walsh in turn four, but the yellow came back out as Paul Cunningham spun out between three and four. Brachmann tried to make a move up the outside to get around Pete Cosco (17c) and clinch third spot and he did it on lap eight. Yellow back out on the track on lap nine as Glen Styres (00) spun out in four. Brachmann was up to third spot on lap nine. Ashton moved up into the lead on lap 10 as Walsh went wide out of four. Walsh lost control and went over Brachmann's tire, losing his own left rear tire. The yellow came out and he was towed from the track. Brachmann went wide on lap 12 and lost position to Ashton and Rouse. Ryan Hunsinger (2) had moved up into the lead. Brad Rouse (18r) sitting in second spot pushed Hunsinger down the front stretch and Rouse managed to get the lead out of turn four on lap 16. Brachmann moved back up into third spot on lap 17.
headbrac.jpg (47751 bytes)Brachmann moved up into the lead on lap 22, and held it to the checkered. Rouse broke on the last lap leaving the top five as Brachmann, Randy Chrysler (21k), Hunsinger, Wayne Conn (8c) and John Hagerman (71). Ashton went into the pits on the last lap with car problems. Post tech inspection disqualified Hunsinger moving all cars up one position.
Joe Middlemiss (11j) took the lead at the green flag of the modified feature with Don Spatorico (65) right behind him. Caution came out as Pete Bicknell (1), Jamie Turner (11), Fred Carleton (96), Bill Krull (33), Chris Ricker (13) and Boyd MacTavish (7m) got piled up in turn four. Middlemiss held his lead on the restart, but caution came out again when Ricker got nailed from behind and spun out in turn four. The cars all got moving off under their own power however. Rob Krull (123) moved up to their spot on the restart. Fred and Luke Carleton (96b) were engaged in a brotherly battle for fourth spot with Fred a nose ahead on lap six. Ken Cosgrove (9) flew under Luke Carleton to clinch fifth spot on lap eight. Krull went around Spatorico for second on lap eight, while Middlemiss just sat out ten car lengths in front of the pack. Cosgrove managed to clinch fourth spot on lap 11. Yellow was back out on the track on lap 13 as Ricker once again spinning out in four, but he managed to get going, and joined the tail of the pack. Rob Krull moved up to challenge Middlemiss on the restart, but was unable to get him. By lap 16 Krull managed to get just a nose ahead of Middlemiss. Bicknell was sitting in sixth spot on lap 16. Middlemiss held the field off on the restart as Krull made a move for it and pulled well ahead. Middlemiss managed to catch him on lap 20. Bicknell put on a major push and flew past Cosgrove for fourth spot on lap 21 and he managed to get around Middlemiss on lap 23. Bicknell started putting the moves on Krull for the lead and got up beside him on lap 25. Krull managed to hold him off until the backstretch of lap 27 when Bicknell flew around him. Krull broke on the front stretch of lap 28, retiring to the pits for the night. The top five was Bicknell, Middlemiss, Larry Lampman (42), Cosgrove and Brian Stevens (44). Cosgrove fell out of the top five, leaving Scott Wood (38) in fifth spot. bickhead.jpg (47189 bytes)Bicknell held it to the checkered and was followed by Lampman, Stevens, Middlemiss and Wood.
Pete Bicknell was presented the Colleen St. Amand Memorial Trophy from the St. Amand family.
819mod.JPG (55501 bytes)
Pete is surrounded by Colleen St. Amand's grandchildren as they presented him the award in her honour.
Join us at Merrittville August 26th when the Empire Super Sprints return for their second visit of the season. The final event of August 2000 presented by Modern Landfill will also feature the Street Stocks, Pro Stocks, Sportsmen and 358 Modifieds. For further information call 905-892-8266 or visit merrittvillespeedway.com.