BICKNELL SETTING THE STANDARD AT MERRITTVILLE
By Alexis De Wolfe
Merrittville Speedway played host to St. Catharines Standard Carriers and Readers May 27th with quite a crowd on hand for the annual Mel Swart Spring Championships. Rookie Mike Dooley (310) took his first feature of the season with the street stockers, while Lee Webber (17) took the checkered in the dwarf feature. Jeff Dayman (5) held on to the lead in the prostock feature to finish ahead of the pack, while Randy Chrysler (21k) won the sportsman feature - making it four first time 2000 winners. Pete Bicknell (1) championed the modified feature in his Pillsbury Doughboy car - his second of the season.
Darlene Gifford (34c) started with the pole in the street stock feature. The pack went into one and two three wide and something had to give, it did in turn three as cars got together bringing out the first caution. Chris Crawford (4c), Lloyd Cichocki (8c), Randy Beck (50) and Jim Pigeon (73) were the casualties in this caution. Darren Zumpe (11z) had the lead going into the restart with Todd Saunders (1) knocking on his back door. Mike Ward (95), the winner of the last three features, moved up into third spot on lap three and was looking to challenge. Three cars got together again in turn four bringing out a second caution. Ward took the lead on the restart, but Zumpe spun him out on turn two, leaving Ward to go to the pits and get his car fixed up while Zumpe was sent tail for his part in the incident. Mike Dooley (310) inherited the lead on the restart and he made it a good one. The yellow flag flew yet again on lap seven as Pigeon and Saunders got together in turn four. Rob Knapp (Y2K) moved up and stole the lead from Dooley on lap ten, but Dooley managed to get back around him with one to go as Knapp slid back into third spot.
The top five were Dooley, Chuck Martin (3), Knapp, Cichocki and Crawford.
Chris Rimmen (7x) started with the pole on the dwarf feature and took the early lead with Ray Webber (77) and Bill Perry (9) behind him. Scott Gailer brought out the yellow after spinning on turn two. Ray Webber toasted Rimmen on the restart and started to run away with it. Lee Webber (17) and Perry managed to move up and take positions away from Rimmen, sitting themselves in second and third. The yellow flag flew on lap six as Dave Russell (88) and Jeff Johnson (63) got into each other on turn four. Lee Webber took the lead on the restart while Mike Green (3) started to make his move on the leaders.
Lee Webber held onto it to come down for the checkered followed by Ray Webber, Green, Wally Billings and Russell.
Rick Baker (78) and Shawn Keus (7s) held the pole for the pro-stock feature, but Tom Walker (81) blasted by them to take the lead on the first lap, bringing Jeff Dayman (5) up with him. Dayman wrangled the lead from Walker on lap four, leaving Walker to duke it out with Ken Sargent (25) for the runner up spot. Dave Gifford (34c) held up the leaders on lap seven as Dayman started to increase his lead on the pack. Keus got pointing the wrong way up in turn two on lap eight, bringing out the first caution of the race.
Dayman held onto the lead to take it to the checkered and was followed in by Sargent, Walker, Darren Kish (99) and Darryl Ebersole (43).
The Sportsman feature got off to a great start with Ken Walsh (silver7) taking the early lead over Brad Rouse (18r). John McKenney (57) stealing the lead on turn four of the first lap. Walsh and Rouse tried to battle back, but caution came out on the fourth lap for debris on the race track. Rouse broke on the restart and limped off the track, but came to rest on the off ramp and the yellow flew on lap seven in order to get him out of the way. Joe Meisel (15J) moved up to take third spot, for the restart. Randy Chrysler (21k) made a move on the restart and secured third spot, a lap later he moved up into second spot and started to reel in McKennney. The yellow flew again on lap nine as John Hagerman (71) and Glenn Styres (00) got together in turn four. Chrysler quickly shoots to the lead on the restart but McKenney took it back coming out of turn four on the tenth lap. Wayne Conn (8) moved up from the middle of the pack to take third spot on lap 12 with Chad Brachman (3) up in second spot. McKenney slid across the back straightaway on lap 18, slid into the infield bounced off the tire and took out ten feet of the fencing, but managed to get himself going and rejoin the pack, only to head to the pits with problems a few laps later.
The cars made a clean run to the finish as Chrysler came in first followed by Brachmann, Conn, Fred Carleton (96) and Rob Ledingham(9). Garry Moreash (69) and Luke Carleton got tangled in turn four, making for an interesting checkered as cars tried to avoid them. Moreash returned to racing Saturday night in the borrowed racer of Rob Pietz' after a spectacular end-over-end at Ohsweken during Friday's action.
Harry Sittler (37s) and Rick Richner (26) sat with the lead for the Modified feature. Richner jumped to the early lead as the pack go into turns one and two three wide. Dan Miller (22) ran into the back of Sittler on the front straightaway and ended up in the wall on the first lap. The bumping caused Jay Clause (4), Billy Krull (z1) and Jamie Turner (11) to crash into the rail on turn one, causing the red flag to fly on the first lap. Richner jumps to the lead again on the restart followed by Todd Gordon (8eh). There was almost a huge accident on the back straightaway as Rich Vinson (93) broke and slowed down but the pack managed to hold it together. The yellow flag flew, but only because Vinson couldn't clear the track. Don McGinnis (20) and Jimmy Begolo (16) jump up to third and fourth on the fifth lap and start chasing down Gordon. Pete Bicknell (1) in the Pillsbury Doughboy car crept up the inside to sit in second on lap 8. Richner held a good lead on Bicknell, but Bicknell sat behind him just waiting for him to make a mistake. Doug Swinson (5) brought out the caution on lap 21 as he got turned around on turn one. Richner held onto the lead for the restart, but on lap 28 he went high on turn one and Bicknell slipped under him to take the lead. Scott Wood (38) made his move through the pack to pass McGinnis and sit back in third spot.
Bicknell took his second feature win of the season, followed by Richner, Wood, McGinnis and Larry Lampman (42l). Tammy Willard ran the race in Bicknell's 42 car and moved from 20th spot to finish eighth.
Join us again next week when the Welland Tribune presents Summer Slam featuring a Full Card plus Small car demolition derby and a Ladies Race for Carrier and Reader Appreciation Night. Gates will open at 5:30 with the first heat at 7:30. For further information contact 905-892-8266 or visit www.merrittvillespeedway.com.