bwa39
08-10-2008, 08:25 PM
On Saturday night, August 9, Kenny Miller became the year's first repeat winner in the 600cc Micro-Sprints at Lanco's Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway. Miller, from Birdsboro, PA, is also the first to win a non-stop, 600cc main event at the Clyde. The 25-lapper took just four minutes, 47 seconds to complete.
Lex Burritt shot from his outside-pole starting spot to take the early lead in the Viper Chassis winged feature for the 600cc Micro-Sprints. Miller, who took the green in fourth, followed Burritt in the high lane to grab the runner-up spot.
With Burritt's SB3 firmly planted on the cushion, Miller worked the low line as he applied pressure to the leader. His Habecker Excavating/ Stallard No. 5m finally pulled even with Burritt on the backstretch, then surged ahead as they throttled off turn four on the 12th trip around the banked oval.
Mike Rutherford, the eighth-place starter, snared second from Burritt with four to go. Two circuits later, tenth-starting Heath Hehnly wrestled the runner-up slot from Rutherford.
Miller, meanwhile, was expertly negotiating lapped traffic, far in front of the battles behind him. Less than five minutes after the green flag waved, Miller was dashing under Tim Gehret's checkered.
"I could have used a couple of yellows," smiled Miller in victory lane. "I was really loose, and it would have been nice to be able to make some adjustments inside the car."
Hehnly, the 600cc point leader, finished a distant second, with Rutherford cashing in for third. Lex Burritt and Billy Ney, in their best Clyde Martin efforts of the season, completed the top five.
Hehnly echoed Miller's comments about making adjustments under yellow, but he wasn't sure it would have helped him pass the winner. "Yeah, I could have made my car a little better (with some time to adjust the handling), but Kenny was so good tonight, I don't know that we could have beat him."
Rutherford also wished for a caution, not only to adjust his car, but to catch his breath. "There was certainly no time to adjust under green," stated the Newmanstown, PA ace. "And I was getting so tired, there was no way I was going to take a hand off the wheel to try anything."
With 38 cars on hand, the 600cc heat races fell to Rutherford, Chris Gerhart, Hehnly, and Ney. Twin consolations were taken by Scott Smith and Brent Ely.
Pole-sitter Mark Ewer remained at the head of the pack for 21-laps in the Viper Chassis 270cc headliner. Greg Miller and Dave Falini waged a duel for the second spot during the first half of the 25-lapper, with Falini securing the position just before the halfway point.
Rutherford advanced from his tenth-starting position to run fourth by the time lap five was scored. He used the high groove to sweep past Miller, then ducked low to slip by Falini for the runner-up spot with six to go. Falini and Rutherford banged wheels in turn one as the pass occurred, with Falini's Viper Chassis No. 74F shooting up the banking. "I hate that Dave and I got together, but he came down a little and I was already committed to the bottom," explained Rutherford after the race. "I didn't want to pass him that way."
With four trips left, Rutherford muscled his way inside Ewer's No. 20R. Blasting off corner number four, Rutherford's Kaylor Petro/Hyper shot in front of Ewer to take command.
At the finish, it was Rutherford, Ewer, and Falini nipped a fast-closing Mike Uhrich for third.
The 270cc point leader, Richie Hartman, won the first heat race, with Rutherford and Falini also registering victories in the qualifying events.
Last year's Rookie of the Year in the Sportsman class, Steve Drevicki, snatched the top spot from current rookie Matthew Swift on a lap seven restart. Drevicki then sped off, leaving his competitors to fight it out for runner-up honors in the Viper Chassis-sponsored race.
Kenny Miller, currently atop the Sportsman standings, weaved a speedy path toward the front after starting 12th. Miller zipped into third in the early stages, then stalked Swift for several laps before he was able to get by the teen from Mt. Gretna, PA.
A yellow flag, just eight laps from the end, brought Drevicki back to the rest of the field. Miller was waiting to pounce on the youngster, but another caution - for Swift, who suffered mechanical failure, ending his best run of the season - forced another restart before Miller could make his move.
As the green reappeared, Drevicki surprisingly pulled away from Miller, who leads the class with five wins in 2008. But this time, Miller could only watch as the Engle's Frame & Body/Viper No. 91 became smaller and smaller in front of him.
Drevicki motored to his third triumph of the year, with Miller and Sheena Schaefer crossing the stripe in second and third, respectively. Billy Logeman and a surprise visitor, Michele Miller, made up the top five.
Sportsman heats went to Kenny Miller, Drevicki, and Logeman. Donna Geib won the consolation.
In the Viper Chassis 125cc main event, Cody Drace passed Sheena Schaefer for the lead in turn two on a restart with four complete. Two circuits later, eighth-starting Heath Hehnly charged into the runner-up position.
Hehnly ran down the leader, but Drace, looking for his first Clyde Martin victory, wasn't giving up without a fight. The Drace Trucking No. 11 was hooked up in the outside lane, forcing Hehnly to attack in the low groove. As the handling on Drace's mount began to fade, Hehnly acclerated under him on the backstretch. Sliding through three and four side-by-side, Hehnly's Cocalico Plumbing & Heating/ Pork Producers No. 7 drew ahead as they rocketed out of four and onto the front chute to complete lap 18.
Try as he might, Drace could not hold on to second as the race entered its final stages. Brian Sholley got by him, then Dave Grube skated past his No. 11 with two tours remaining.
Hehnly took the black-and-white silks ahead of Sholley to earn his third victory of the season in the 125cc division. Grube was third, with Drace and Russell Pannebecker rounding out the first five.
Hehnly and his teammate on Gary Gorski's team, Jesse Maurer, were victorious in the two heat races for the 125's.
Richie Hartman began the evening second in the 250cc Four-Stroke point standings, just 21 markers behind Chad Rhoads. When Rhoads slowed and fell out of the feature on lap one, Hartman had to be licking his chops. And he made the most of his golden opportunity, winning his seventh main of the season - but it wasn't easy.
Taking the green from the inside of row six, Hartman rumbled into fourth place as lap three was shown on the scoreboard. Two revolutions later, as Ryan Gabers grabbed the top spot from his brother, Jared, Hartman followed the Schwarr Concrete No. 29 into second.
Ryan Gabers would not give up the point, however, as Hartman looked high and low in attempting to overtake the leader.
Lapped traffic, with only three circuits left, proved to be the difference in this one. Stuck behind two slower cars in turns one and two, Gabers chose the high line to get around them. Diving to the bottom, Hartman moved by the leader as the slower cars drifted up the banking in front of Gabers.
Hartman cruised through the final tours, winning handily over a disappointed Gabers. Craig DeSantis trailed in third, with Jason Johnson and Lewis Kepple completing the top five.
"With Chad out, I was thinking about the points and taking it easy," Hartman commented afterward. "But then Ryan went high to get around those lapped cars, and I had to take advantage of the opening. Sometimes you get lucky, and tonight I was lucky."
DeSantis and Hartman recorded heat race victories.
Kenny Miller almost had a clean sweep of 600cc features on Saturday, but slight contact with a lapped car forced Miller to spin out of the lead in the wingless nightcap.
The incident occurred on the backstretch with 14 of the 25-laps complete, and it handed the top spot to Jimmy Glenn.
Glenn utilized the bottom groove to maintain his lead, as Billy Ney cleaned off the loose stuff in the highest possible lane on the race track.
On a restart with six to go, Glenn moved up because, as he put it, "I saw some brown up there." Ney, realizing his rim-riding style wasn't going to get it done, switched to the bottom in an effort to pass the leader.
Glenn held on for the win, with Ney grinning from ear-to-ear over his second-place run. Brenden Bright came on during the final laps to pass Jamie Kostic for third, and Mike Rutherford came from 19th to finish fifth. Jeremy "Jay Dog" Lynch earned the $100 Hard Charger Bonus, navigating his way from 22nd on the grid to finish sixth.
Notes from the Clyde...the track surface was absolutely awesome on Saturday; super-smooth and fast, providing multiple grooves and plenty of passing in each of the six features.
Evidence of the excellent track surface: the lack of caution laps in the main events. Three of the six features were completed in less than ten minutes (each), with the winged 600cc main running from green to checkered in less than five minutes! And the Sportsman drivers completed their feature in a little over 11 minutes.
The wingless 600cc event was highlighted by a large bonus, available to drivers who could win from the back of the pack. The 24 drivers who signed up to run the race drew for their starting spots. Drivers who picked the first five positions were given the option to start in the rear, and three of them (Jeremy Lynch, Alex Bright, and Monnie Wonder III) agreed to forfeit their spots and try to come from the back. Lynch had the best shot at getting that $400 bonus, racing his way from 22nd to sixth.
[END]
Lex Burritt shot from his outside-pole starting spot to take the early lead in the Viper Chassis winged feature for the 600cc Micro-Sprints. Miller, who took the green in fourth, followed Burritt in the high lane to grab the runner-up spot.
With Burritt's SB3 firmly planted on the cushion, Miller worked the low line as he applied pressure to the leader. His Habecker Excavating/ Stallard No. 5m finally pulled even with Burritt on the backstretch, then surged ahead as they throttled off turn four on the 12th trip around the banked oval.
Mike Rutherford, the eighth-place starter, snared second from Burritt with four to go. Two circuits later, tenth-starting Heath Hehnly wrestled the runner-up slot from Rutherford.
Miller, meanwhile, was expertly negotiating lapped traffic, far in front of the battles behind him. Less than five minutes after the green flag waved, Miller was dashing under Tim Gehret's checkered.
"I could have used a couple of yellows," smiled Miller in victory lane. "I was really loose, and it would have been nice to be able to make some adjustments inside the car."
Hehnly, the 600cc point leader, finished a distant second, with Rutherford cashing in for third. Lex Burritt and Billy Ney, in their best Clyde Martin efforts of the season, completed the top five.
Hehnly echoed Miller's comments about making adjustments under yellow, but he wasn't sure it would have helped him pass the winner. "Yeah, I could have made my car a little better (with some time to adjust the handling), but Kenny was so good tonight, I don't know that we could have beat him."
Rutherford also wished for a caution, not only to adjust his car, but to catch his breath. "There was certainly no time to adjust under green," stated the Newmanstown, PA ace. "And I was getting so tired, there was no way I was going to take a hand off the wheel to try anything."
With 38 cars on hand, the 600cc heat races fell to Rutherford, Chris Gerhart, Hehnly, and Ney. Twin consolations were taken by Scott Smith and Brent Ely.
Pole-sitter Mark Ewer remained at the head of the pack for 21-laps in the Viper Chassis 270cc headliner. Greg Miller and Dave Falini waged a duel for the second spot during the first half of the 25-lapper, with Falini securing the position just before the halfway point.
Rutherford advanced from his tenth-starting position to run fourth by the time lap five was scored. He used the high groove to sweep past Miller, then ducked low to slip by Falini for the runner-up spot with six to go. Falini and Rutherford banged wheels in turn one as the pass occurred, with Falini's Viper Chassis No. 74F shooting up the banking. "I hate that Dave and I got together, but he came down a little and I was already committed to the bottom," explained Rutherford after the race. "I didn't want to pass him that way."
With four trips left, Rutherford muscled his way inside Ewer's No. 20R. Blasting off corner number four, Rutherford's Kaylor Petro/Hyper shot in front of Ewer to take command.
At the finish, it was Rutherford, Ewer, and Falini nipped a fast-closing Mike Uhrich for third.
The 270cc point leader, Richie Hartman, won the first heat race, with Rutherford and Falini also registering victories in the qualifying events.
Last year's Rookie of the Year in the Sportsman class, Steve Drevicki, snatched the top spot from current rookie Matthew Swift on a lap seven restart. Drevicki then sped off, leaving his competitors to fight it out for runner-up honors in the Viper Chassis-sponsored race.
Kenny Miller, currently atop the Sportsman standings, weaved a speedy path toward the front after starting 12th. Miller zipped into third in the early stages, then stalked Swift for several laps before he was able to get by the teen from Mt. Gretna, PA.
A yellow flag, just eight laps from the end, brought Drevicki back to the rest of the field. Miller was waiting to pounce on the youngster, but another caution - for Swift, who suffered mechanical failure, ending his best run of the season - forced another restart before Miller could make his move.
As the green reappeared, Drevicki surprisingly pulled away from Miller, who leads the class with five wins in 2008. But this time, Miller could only watch as the Engle's Frame & Body/Viper No. 91 became smaller and smaller in front of him.
Drevicki motored to his third triumph of the year, with Miller and Sheena Schaefer crossing the stripe in second and third, respectively. Billy Logeman and a surprise visitor, Michele Miller, made up the top five.
Sportsman heats went to Kenny Miller, Drevicki, and Logeman. Donna Geib won the consolation.
In the Viper Chassis 125cc main event, Cody Drace passed Sheena Schaefer for the lead in turn two on a restart with four complete. Two circuits later, eighth-starting Heath Hehnly charged into the runner-up position.
Hehnly ran down the leader, but Drace, looking for his first Clyde Martin victory, wasn't giving up without a fight. The Drace Trucking No. 11 was hooked up in the outside lane, forcing Hehnly to attack in the low groove. As the handling on Drace's mount began to fade, Hehnly acclerated under him on the backstretch. Sliding through three and four side-by-side, Hehnly's Cocalico Plumbing & Heating/ Pork Producers No. 7 drew ahead as they rocketed out of four and onto the front chute to complete lap 18.
Try as he might, Drace could not hold on to second as the race entered its final stages. Brian Sholley got by him, then Dave Grube skated past his No. 11 with two tours remaining.
Hehnly took the black-and-white silks ahead of Sholley to earn his third victory of the season in the 125cc division. Grube was third, with Drace and Russell Pannebecker rounding out the first five.
Hehnly and his teammate on Gary Gorski's team, Jesse Maurer, were victorious in the two heat races for the 125's.
Richie Hartman began the evening second in the 250cc Four-Stroke point standings, just 21 markers behind Chad Rhoads. When Rhoads slowed and fell out of the feature on lap one, Hartman had to be licking his chops. And he made the most of his golden opportunity, winning his seventh main of the season - but it wasn't easy.
Taking the green from the inside of row six, Hartman rumbled into fourth place as lap three was shown on the scoreboard. Two revolutions later, as Ryan Gabers grabbed the top spot from his brother, Jared, Hartman followed the Schwarr Concrete No. 29 into second.
Ryan Gabers would not give up the point, however, as Hartman looked high and low in attempting to overtake the leader.
Lapped traffic, with only three circuits left, proved to be the difference in this one. Stuck behind two slower cars in turns one and two, Gabers chose the high line to get around them. Diving to the bottom, Hartman moved by the leader as the slower cars drifted up the banking in front of Gabers.
Hartman cruised through the final tours, winning handily over a disappointed Gabers. Craig DeSantis trailed in third, with Jason Johnson and Lewis Kepple completing the top five.
"With Chad out, I was thinking about the points and taking it easy," Hartman commented afterward. "But then Ryan went high to get around those lapped cars, and I had to take advantage of the opening. Sometimes you get lucky, and tonight I was lucky."
DeSantis and Hartman recorded heat race victories.
Kenny Miller almost had a clean sweep of 600cc features on Saturday, but slight contact with a lapped car forced Miller to spin out of the lead in the wingless nightcap.
The incident occurred on the backstretch with 14 of the 25-laps complete, and it handed the top spot to Jimmy Glenn.
Glenn utilized the bottom groove to maintain his lead, as Billy Ney cleaned off the loose stuff in the highest possible lane on the race track.
On a restart with six to go, Glenn moved up because, as he put it, "I saw some brown up there." Ney, realizing his rim-riding style wasn't going to get it done, switched to the bottom in an effort to pass the leader.
Glenn held on for the win, with Ney grinning from ear-to-ear over his second-place run. Brenden Bright came on during the final laps to pass Jamie Kostic for third, and Mike Rutherford came from 19th to finish fifth. Jeremy "Jay Dog" Lynch earned the $100 Hard Charger Bonus, navigating his way from 22nd on the grid to finish sixth.
Notes from the Clyde...the track surface was absolutely awesome on Saturday; super-smooth and fast, providing multiple grooves and plenty of passing in each of the six features.
Evidence of the excellent track surface: the lack of caution laps in the main events. Three of the six features were completed in less than ten minutes (each), with the winged 600cc main running from green to checkered in less than five minutes! And the Sportsman drivers completed their feature in a little over 11 minutes.
The wingless 600cc event was highlighted by a large bonus, available to drivers who could win from the back of the pack. The 24 drivers who signed up to run the race drew for their starting spots. Drivers who picked the first five positions were given the option to start in the rear, and three of them (Jeremy Lynch, Alex Bright, and Monnie Wonder III) agreed to forfeit their spots and try to come from the back. Lynch had the best shot at getting that $400 bonus, racing his way from 22nd to sixth.
[END]