“Dr. J” Danny Johnson Makes a House Call at New Utica-Rome;
Tom Cannizzaro Declared Mr. DIRT Pro Stock Victor After
First Place Finisher Tom Kuck Was Disqualified
Vernon, NY…. Area race fans came out in droves to the New Utica-Rome Speedway on Wednesday August 25th for the Nice N Easy Grocery Shoppes Advance Auto Parts Super DIRT 358 Modified Series event and Mr. DIRT Pro Stock Series show. When it was all said and done, DIRT 358 Modified hotshoe “Dr. J” Danny Johnson was making a house call at the Vernon, NY speedway, and Tom Cannizzaro was reigning over the DIRT Pro Stocks.
The first ever Advance Auto Parts Super DIRT 358 Modified Series event held at the speedway looked to be a very promising race full of NUR regulars and the top DIRT Circuit Stars. The front row, comprised of Tom Kinsella and Steve Paine, led all 32 starters out of the gates and down to Starter Chip Burdick’s green flag. Paine grabbed the lead, but a yellow quickly came out for a slowing Alan Johnson in the No. 12T. Johnson was pushed pitside, and he was done for the night.
On the restart, Mitch Gibbs took second from Kinsella. NUR regulars Ron Holmes, J.J. Michaels, and Jeff Walton all began moving up close to the top five. Then, on lap 4, second place driver Tom Kinsella spun, collecting Roger Phelps, Ted Lamb, Jr., and Tim Fuller. Kinsella, Lamb, and Fuller were done for the night.
The next restart went well, but on lap 7, Gus Schmidt and Andy Bachetti spun simultaneously, which created a pile of cars. A red flag was necessitated, and involved were Schmidt, Bachetti, Brett Hearn, Vic Coffey, Roger Phelps, Todd Stewart, and Willy Decker. All cars suffered heavy damage and were not able to continue.
When the green lights came back on, Paine kept his lead, but Danny Johnson and Pete Bicknell were moving well up into the top 10 by the 11th lap. On the 14th lap, Dale Planck made his presence known with a pass of Mitch Gibbs, who had seemed to fade over the previous few laps. Then, a short yellow came out for a slowing Hector Stratton. Paine then had a serious challenge for the lead on the restart from NUR regular J.J. Michaels. To the roar of approval from the NUR crowd, Michaels took over the lead on the 16th lap. Then, another quick yellow period occurred when Danny O’Brien and Mike Ricci made contact in turn one and spun. Ricci was then sent to the pits for some post-incident banging.
Then, on the lap 22 restart, Danny Johnson took 3rd from NUR regular Ron Holmes, who was running well up on the topside of the speedway. Pete Bicknell continued his march towards the front when he took 4th from Holmes two laps later. Holmes, however, did not give up and moved back in on Bicknell and Danny Johnson. With a bonsai move, Holmes passed both Bicknell and Johnson for the 3rd spot. The action on lap 37 was slowed for a simple spin by Todd Burley. The green came back out again, but then on lap 43, track point leader Dale Planck slowed with a problem, which may have been his driveshaft breaking.
After two botched restarts, the action finally continued with Michaels continuing his lead. On lap 51, Bicknell stole the fourth spot from Johnson, and Bicknell then moved in on Ron Holmes. Bicknell grabbed the spot and this turned the focus on Holmes and Johnson. Johnson passed Holmes and then set his sights on Bicknell.
A few laps later, Bill Mullin was coming down the frontstretch and heading for the pit area off turn one. However, he pinched Mitch Gibbs into the wall at the starter’s stand, forcing yet another yellow. When Gibbs hit the wall, his car got airborne and did a 360-degree spin in the air. It was a spectacular accident, but Gibbs was able to continue for a few more laps until he went pitside. The green came out for the next handful of laps and the positions remained unchanged. Then, on lap 78, Pierre Dagenais, Dan Miller, and Mike Perrotte got together and forced another yellow.
The restart saw a tremendous battle between Johnson and Bicknell along with some trading of paint. Johnson forced his way down on the inside of the track and took the spot on lap 82. Johnson, running with a head of steam moved in on Steve Paine, the second place runner. A quick caution came out for Jeff Walton, but the action resumed and the battle between Paine and Johnson raged on. On the 91st circuit, Johnson catapulted himself into second spot with a great move on Paine. With the crowd on their feet, Johnson got closer and closer to leader J.J. Michaels, a 3-time feature winner at NUR this year. With 5 laps to go, Johnson made an inside move on Michaels and became the leader. On the final lap, Holmes made a pass on Bicknell, relegating Bicknell to 5th. Michaels, who seemed to slow in the final laps, lost second to Paine. As they crossed the line, it was Johnson the winner, followed by Paine, Michaels, Holmes, and Bicknell. With his 3rd place finish, Michaels received a guaranteed starting spot in the 358 Modified Championship during Super DIRT Week. The Bert Hard Charger of the race was Mike Perrotte, who started in 31st and finished in 11th.
Afterwards in Victory Lane, an excited Johnson commented, “I had the harder compound Hoosier Tire on my car, and the guys that ran the softer tire seemed to slow towards the end. The race went really well, especially the last 20 laps.” The win for Johnson, who started in 15th, was his second in a row on the Super DIRT 358 Modified Series as he won the night before at the Black Rock Speedway in Dundee, NY. In addition, with his two strong runs, Johnson moved closer to Steve Paine in the Super DIRT 358 Modified point standings. The last time Danny Johnson sat in Victory Lane at NUR was in a DIRT Big Block Modified in 1982 on the old 5/8 mile track.
DIRT 358 Modified heats were won by Ron Holmes, Vic Coffey, Jerry Higbie, Jr., Steve Paine, Tim Hindley, and Dan Miller. Roger Phelps, Pete Bicknell, and Andy Bachetti won the Modified Consolation races.
The Automotive Recyclers Association of New York Mr. DIRT Pro Stock feature was the biggest Pro Stock show held at NUR in quite some time. The $600 winner’s share of the purse brought out many of the top DIRT Pro Stock teams and the Mr. DIRT Pro Stock Championship Tour drivers. Frank Twing and Tom Barron led the feature field down to Starter Chip Burdick’s green flag, and Twing grabbed the early lead. On the 4th lap, Tom Cannizzaro challenged Twing for the lead, but he was slowed by a caution for Les Whyte, who lost a tire in turn one. On the restart, Tom Kuck wrestled the lead away from Twing.
At the halfway point, Kuck was the leader over Cannizzaro, Twing, Barron, and Dave Schulz. The final yellow flag of the Pro Stock feature was brought out by Dave Moyer, who slowed on the backstretch. The final restart brought no changes in position and Kuck led the rest of the way to the checkered flag.
Afterwards, in Victory Lane, Kuck commented, “I like this track, and I have not raced here in at least 10 years. Back then, it was daytime racing, but this place is really nice.”
Unfortunately, Kuck’s win was for naught, as his car was deemed illegal during a post-race technical inspection. This gave the win to second place finisher Tom Cannizzaro, who will get credit for his first career Pro Stock feature win at New Utica-Rome. The disqualification of Kuck has shaken up the Mr. DIRT point standings, as Dave Schulz may have taken the points lead. With his finish, Cannizzaro gets a guaranteed spot for the Rolling Wheels Raceway World Series Pro Stock event.
Pro Stock heat wins went to Frank Twing, Tom Barron, Tom Cannizzaro, and T.J. Fitzgibbons, while Bill Shantel, Jr. and Geoff VanRiper won the Pro Stock Consis.
The DIRT Pro Stock Dash for Cash was led the entire distance by Tom Barron, who received the top-prize of $300. Special thanks to Thomas Video for the idea of the event and for coordinating the entire effort. In all, various people and businesses raised $760 and all competitors were paid their share. Thanks to everyone who participated.
This coming Sunday August 29th at the New Utica-Rome Speedway is the first ever Hoosier Tire and Sunoco Racing Fuels Mr. DIRT Sportsman Series 30 lap feature event to be held at the track. Also in competition are the headline DIRT 358 Modifieds, DIRT Pro Stocks, and Pure Stocks. The gates will open at 4pm and racing will begin at 6pm. For more information, call the speedway at (315) 829-4557 or visit the internet homepage at www.newuticaromespeedway.com
Notes…. A total of 89 cars between both divisions came out for the special show (52 Modifieds & 37 Pro Stocks). An overfill crowd enjoyed the night’s events, which was ended by a Rollover Contest won by Rob Holeck of Verona. The jump of the infield pond by Dane Keller did not happen as expected because the pond has dried up and left a couple feet of wet mud at the base. The jump will definitely happen sometime in the future, however.
NEW UTICA-ROME SPEEDWAY RACE SUMMARY
NICE N EASY GROCERY SHOPPES
WEDNESDAY AUGUST 25TH, 1999
DIVISION: Advance Auto Parts Super DIRT 358-Modified Series: Race #9
TRACK: New Utica-Rome Speedway - Vernon, New York
DATE: Wednesday - August 25, 1999
Fin Str Car # Driver Team Laps $Won$
1 15 27j Danny Johnson / Rochester, NY Sweeteners Plus - A&C Speedworld / Troyer 99 3000
2 2 7x Steve Paine / Waterloo, NY Advanced Lubrication Specialties - Junell Corp. / Teo 99 2000
3 11 31 J.J. Michaels / Baldwinsville, NY Gypsum Wholesalers - Josall Roofing / Troyer 99 1500
4 7 82 Ron Holmes / Oneida, NY Ralph's Collision - WSI Recycling Services / Bicknell 99 1000
5 20 42 Pete Bicknell / St. Catherines, ONT Pyroil-Hoosier Tire Canada / Bicknell 99 800
6 13 00 Bobby Varin / Sharon Springs, NY Dover Brake-Cruickshank Racing / Troyer 99 600
7 5 8h Tim Hindley / Monticello, NY RAL Plumbing & Heating Supply / Teo 99 500
8 9 99j Jimmy Phelps / Baldwinsville, NY E&V Energy Co.-Finger Lakes Machine / Troyer 99 400
9 8 47h Jerry Higbie, Jr. / Middletown, NY Misner Agency-Superior Buidling Supply-Team Shaver / Teo 99 350
10 4 22 Dan Miller / St. Catherines, ONT Garden City Automotive-Jim's Factory Outlet / Bicknell 99 325
11 31 35 Mike Perrotte / Morrisonville, NY Adirondack Auto / Troyer 99 300
12 12 2j Jeff Walton / Saquoit, NY Hotel Willowvale-Ice Cream Factory / Kneisel 99 275
13 29 y2k Todd Burley / Spencerport, NY LET Racing Fab. - New England Racing Fuels / Troyer 98 250
14 24 124 Pierre Dagenais / Gatineau, QUE Quarry Dagenais / Troyer 98 230
15 18 12 John Barker, Jr. / Fulton, NY Shapiro Auto Sales-Sweet Inspirations Drive Inn / Troyer 85 220
16 26 17d Danny O'Brien / Kingston, ONT Pat's Radiator / Bicknell 84 220
17 3 2g Mitch Gibbs / North Norwich, NY Mirabito Fuel Group / Teo 73 220
18 32 3m Bill Mullin / Iroquois, ONT 730 Truck Stop-Tilbar Leasing / Troyer 68 220
19 23 77x Dale Planck / Homer, NY Nice N Easy Grocery Shoppes-Burton's Logging / Bicknell 43 220
20 27 76 Mike Ricci / Rosendale, NY Sember Construction / Olsen 22 200
21 10 87 Hector Stratton / Bennington, VT West Side Citgo / Teo 15 200
22 25 1x Willy Decker / Vernon, NY Westmoreland Golf Club / Bicknell 7 200
23 21 57 Andy Bachetti / Sheffield, MA Bachetti's Auto Sales / Teo 7 200
24 14 20 Brett Hearn / Sussex, NJ Brioschi-Madsen Overhead Doors / Teo 6 200
25 22 30 Gus Schmidt / Liverpool, NY Schmidt Trucking / Troyer 6 200
26 19 99 Roger Phelps / Fulton, NY Gypsum Express Ltd.-Beesmer Furniture / Teo 6 200
27 6 32c Vic Coffey / Leicester, NY Sweeteners Plus-A&C Speedworld / Troyer 6 200
28 30 72 Todd Stewart / Kingston, ONT R.W. Electric / Troyer 6 200
29 1 3 Tim Kinsella / Fayetteville, NY Tracey Road Equipment-Select Trucks / Bicknell 3 200
30 16 L82 Ted Lamb, Jr. / Clay, NY Taylor's Mini Mart-Lamb Racing / Teo 3 200
31 28 19 Tim Fuller / Edwards, NY Kinney Drug Stores / Olsen 3 200
32 17 12t Alan Johnson / Phelps, NY Thum Racing-State Line Camping Center / Teo 1 200
EVENT SUMMARY:
LAP LEADERS: Paine (1-15), Michaels (16-94), D.Johnson (95-99).
CAUTIONS: 12 for 24 laps.
HEAT WINNERS: Holmes, Coffey, Higbie, Paine, Hindley, Miller.
CONSI WINNERS: R.Phelps, Bicknell, Bachetti.
SYRACUSE SUNOCO RACE FUELS 200 QUALIFIER: J.J. Michaels.
BERT HARD CHARGER: Mike Perrotte.
TOTAL PURSE: $20,500.
DNQ Modifieds – Joel Doiron, Andy Romano, Pete Taylor, Ed Richer, Ronnie Johnson, Jim Rothwell, Rick Miller, Rich Ricci, Jr., Joel Thomas, Pat Ward, Mike Hulsizer, Rich Price, Jason Barney, Frankie Caprara, Ryan Baye, John Ramsey, Mike Colsten, Tim Burnett, Ron White, Jeff Brownell.
Mr. DIRT Pro Stock Series (25 Laps) – 1TOM CANNIZZARO, 2)Dave Schulz, 3)Bill Hallett, 4)Frank Twing, 5)T.J. Fitzgibbons, 6)Tom Denton, 7)Wayne Archer, 8)Bret Belden, 9)Jip Ortiz, 10)Kenny Gates, 11)Kevin Jordan, 12)Jason Rood, 13)Geoff VanRiper, 14)Dave Bruno, 15)Jeff Jones, 16)Ricky Breed, 17)Scott Moyer, 18)Mike Loney, 19)Joe Palmer, 20)Tom Barron, 21)Gerry Newman, 22)Dave Moyer, 23)Rob Noviczski, 24)Jim Normoyle, 25)Jerry Holmes, 26)Rich Murtaugh, 27)Bill Knapp, 28)Bill Shantel, Jr., 29)Les Whyte, 30)Tom Kuck (DISQ).
DNQ DIRT Pro Stocks – Chuck Jones, Frank Brunell, Joe DeSieno, Ed Kotary, Jim Burton, Stan Clark, Brian Jordan.
DIRT Pro Stock Dash for Cash (5 Laps) – 1)TOM BARRON, 2)Frank Twing, 3)Tom Cannizzaro, 4)Tom Kuck, 5)T.J. Fitzgibbons, 6)Brian Jordan, 7)Jerry Holmes, 8)Jason Rood.