Rick Holgate Rockets To First Modified Victory At Five Mile
By BRETT DEYO
KIRKWOOD, NY - When Rick Holgate picked up Jim Crawn as a teammate for the 2005 season, he knew Crawn would be a valuable asset. He just didn’t know how much of a help he would be.
“As a Modified driver two weeks ago, I totally changed how you have to drive one of these,” Holgate said. “I was driving one all wrong, and Jim and I sat down and talked about how to drive an open-wheel car.” The advice worked for Holgate. The second-year Modified driver from Kingsley, Pa., turned a pole starting spot into his first career Modified victory Saturday night at Five Mile Point Speedway, fending off Dave Zona in the 30-lap feature.
Holgate, who last week relinquished the seat of his Tom and Terry Coar-owned car to teammate Crawn for the night’s second feature (Crawn suffered engine problems in winning the first), shot out to the lead on the start in his Wally Fiehl big-block-powered No. 6 Bicknell.
The early laps were plagued by incidents, including a red flag on lap one when a backstretch pileup sent Carl Nagel onto his side, and a fourth-lap jingle involved Gary Griffin and J.R. Crouse, who had been running in the top five. The latter moved Dave Zona into the runner-up spot. Zona, a Late Model ace in his return to Modified racing, actually worked by Holgate on a lap-six restart, but a quick caution negated the pass.
“I chose the bottom a few times and had a couple good restarts (against Gary Griffin),” Holgate said. “Dave Zona got up there and beat me off two but the caution came out. I said ‘that’s not gonna happen again’ and I chose the top. “The top was the place to be, hitting the right-rear on that cushion.”
As Holgate and Zona ran one-two, the man on the move was Alan Rudalavage. Making his second appearance of the season, Rudalavage throttled from 22nd starting position to crack the top three on lap 16. Five laps later, the Newton Lake, Pa., driver, wheeling a Bicknell equipped with a potent Finger Lakes small-block, whipped around Zona for second and closed rapidly on Holgate. However, Rudalavage suffered a punctured right-rear tire on lap 24. He hopped the cushion in turn two, then spun in turn three, ending his shot at the win.
Holgate cruised home in the final six laps to score the $1,000 triumph. It was the 31st career victory for the 40-year-old driver, who excelled in the Street Stock and Late Model ranks over the years. “At the end, I slowed up just to be cautious and smooth. I didn’t hear anybody.”
Zona, 37, of Montrose, Pa., was the runner-up, scoring his best finish since he joined Bill Chalker’s team during the off-season. “I needed the high side on the (early-race) restarts,” Zona said. “We were good early, but the car got loose at the end. We’ve really been loose all year, but this week we changed shocks and springs and it seemed better.
“I wanted to win,” Zona bottom-lined. “But I can’t complain about second.” Dan Hineline of Lake Ariel, Pa., raced from 15th starting position to finish third, ahead of 21st-starter Bobby Puckett and Brian Weaver, who drove to fifth despite heavy right-side damage from the first-lap skirmish.
Twenty-nine Modifieds signed in for competition Heat winners included Russell Hendrickson Jr., Dave Zona, Chris Ostrowsky and J.R. Crouse. Bobby Puckett topped the consolation.
Jeremy Holt’s luck finally turned around in Sportsman competition. Holt hammered the turn two wall and destroyed his primary car one week earlier. Resorting to teammate Joel Batzel’s back-up Teo-Pro car, the 30-year-old from Kirkwood, N.Y., drove to his second career victory in the 25-lap feature.
Holt started from the pole, but the $500 triumph didn’t come easy. He repelled Garden State veteran Ricky Rutt, who applied heavy pressure on four restarts that punctuated the final seven circuits, including a lap-24 caution that set up a one-lap dash to the finish.
“The other car is junk,” Holt said, adding that he switched his engine and outer tin to Batzel’s car. “We worked all week to get ready.” Rutt scored his best finish of ’05 in second. Jesse Kline of Bangor, Pa., finished third, ahead of Brian Puckett and 10th-starter Brian Decker.
It took five years, but Carl Heater finally reached Street Stock victory lane. Heater, of Daleville, Pa., emerged victorious from an ultra-competitive 25-lap feature, sliding inside a slowing Chris Strohl to regain the lead for good on lap 20.
Strohl, a talented teenager from Montrose, Pa., in his first ’05 start, had darted through traffic to snatch the lead one lap earlier only to drop his drive shaft on the backstretch. Heater spent the final five circuits fending off a fast-closing Bill Trego, who ran the high line to a runner-up finish. Darren Stout, Brett Barrett and Nick Petrilak rounded out the top five.
Bill Trego took his No. 31 to the outside, powered around his teammate and went on to win his second feature of the season. The veteran from Gouldsboro, Pa., worked by fellow Gillette Excavating driver Les Gillette on lap 13 of the 25-lap feature and raced on to the victory over Dan Pompey, Gillette, Nick Petrilak and Ken Taugher.
In six laps, Port Crane, N.Y.’s Mike Codington raced from sixth starting position to the lead, then outdistanced defending champion Charlie Gilbert to collect his first Pure Stock checkered of the season in the 20-lap main. Gilbert finished second, ahead of a quick Jeremy Shaw, Jamie Batzel and Matt Hayes.
Steve Dechow of Downsville, N.Y., slipped by Steve Mattson on lap three of the 10-lap Figure Eight main and weaved through traffic to come out on top of a 10-car field. Mattson and Billy Shoemaker finished second and third, respectively.
Racing resumes on Sat., June 25 with the 41st Heath Memorial, headlined by a 50-lap Modified feature paying $2,000-to-win plus lap money. The Sportsman, Street Stocks, FMP Modifieds and Pure Stocks will share in the lap money, and a $500 bonus will be given to winners with perfect attendance thus far in ’05 for all of the weekly divisions. The popular Legends Cars will join the program in their first appearance of the season.
Race time is 6 p.m. For more information, contact the speedway office at (607) 775-5555 or visit the website: www.fivemilepointspeedway.net.
COUNTER POINTS:The season’s best crowd filled the Point’s grandstands on Kirkwood Community Night. 29 Modifieds, 21 Sportsman, 19 Street Stocks, 24 Pure Stocks and 10 Figure Eights took part in the action….
The FMP Modifieds had the night off….
The track surface was lightning-fast, with a cushion on the outside. No break was taken prior to the Modified feature to apply water….
Mike Ricci returned for the first time since the Southern Tier Open and rallied to sixth in Jim Winchell’s No. 17 despite a bent right-front shock tower….
DIRT Hall of Fame inductee Carl Nagel didn’t let the opening lap incident slow him. Track crews righted his Steve Survilla-owned No. 7N Bicknell, which had rolled gently onto its side, and the veteran driver in his 46th season drove to a ninth-place finish….
Rich Keehle Jr. was up to third on lap nine, slowed when a bearing froze, stripping the splines on the left-front spindle of his No. 19….
RACE SUMMARY
MODIFIED FEATURE FINISH:
RICK HOLGATE, Dave Zona, Dan Hineline, Bobby Puckett, Brian Weaver, Mike Ricci, Jeff Emanuel, Brian Malcolm, Carl Nagel, J.R. Crouse, Glenn Knapp, Butch Klinger, James Cornell, George Hildebrant, Joel Batzel, Ryan Olsommer, Dana Wagner, Nick Barassi Jr., Alan Rudalavage, Russell Hendrickson Jr., Rich Keehle Jr., Tom Oleski, Jim Crawn, Gary Griffin, Chris Ostrowsky.
Did Not Qualify: Jim Allen, Barry White, Ray Menard, Kenny Hildebrant.
SPORTSMAN MODIFIED FEATURE FINISH:
JEREMY HOLT, Ricky Rutt, Jesse Kline, Brian Puckett, Brian Decker, Rick Raisner, Rich Wallace, Larry Lippincott, Ray Deemer, Eric Palmer, Ray Woodall Jr., Bruce Gould, Willard Knecht, Brad Grim, Matt Kaminiskas, Jim Christ, Archie Myers III, Mike Mammana, Ted Stout, Jason Heafy.
Did Not Start: Bill Deckelman.
STREET STOCK FEATURE FINISH:
CARL HEATER, Bill Trego, Darren Stout, Brett Barrett, Nick Petrilak, Les Gillette, Joe Krisovich, Randy Tyler, Ken Hineline, Gary Roberts, Chad Hyzer, James Millard, Ken Taugher, Chris Strohl, Bob Teribury, Josh Jenkins, Dan Pompey, Fred Christ, Mike Mills.
PURE STOCK FEATURE FINISH:
MIKE CODINGTON, Charlie Gilbert, Jeremy Shaw, Jamie Batzel, Matt Hayes, Kevin Beach, Chris Wood, Mahlon Shoemaker, Steve Polhamus, Joe Cisney, Darl Ellis Jr., Allen Metzgar, Chad Stone, Matt Spencer, Josh Towner, Jerry Whitmarsh, Eddie Felker, Frank Chapman, Steve Holmes, Sheppard Blodgett, Joe Rafferty Jr., Paul Carpenter, Jason Bond.
Did Not Start: Toby Sparks.
FIGURE 8 FEATURE FINISH:
STEVE DECHOW, Steve Mattson, Billy Shoemaker, Andrew Mattson, Jamie Paul, Jim Watson, Jesse Velez, Matt Snow, Steve Simpson.
Did Not Start: Fred Velez.