Thoughts from Saturday: Our Aqua Fun Pools Street Stocks run 15 lap feature events. On Saturday, positions 2-6 were up for grabs through most of the race. Chris Heller, Todd Bowersox, Steven Dove, Greg Diehl, and Walt Lemmon dazzled us with their on-track ballet. Side-by-side, nose-to-tail, and even three-wide, these guys raced hard and they raced clean – each end of the speedway providing new opportunities to shuffle the deck. And if the close racing wasn’t enough, at one point the pack actually managed to creep within 2 car lengths of leader and eventual winner, Tim Drawbaugh. Despite years of such displays within the Street Stock division, the accompanying novelty and thrill seem only to increase, with time. No disrespect to Drawbaugh, but the REAL winners this week were the fans. As the checkers fell over the field, SNS official Scott Spidle keyed his radio. “Tim Drawbaugh,” he said, “you missed a helluva race.” No doubt. It was another good night for the x99. If you’re looking for real estate on the high side of the speedway, Chris Heller’s your agent. If it’s available, he’ll find it……and quickly. Todd Bowersox continues to impress with both pace and precision. Calculating and smooth, the 0 car has been a picture of stability through the corners, and down The Grove’s long straights, pulls well for the duration. An opening lap, multi-car incident at the exit of 2 spelled the end of the night for points leader Jeff Haag. Don’t look for the 29 to get caught up in another such occurrence. The Times, They Are A-Changin.’ Brett Pickel was also a casualty of the opening lap melee. Too bad. Given the 88p’s recent level of performance, it’s safe to suggest that the aforementioned 5-car freight train at the front of the field would have made room for one more. In his first SNS start of the year, Mike Zeigler Jr brought his 21a from 15th to 7th and picked up our Art Werx Hard Charger honors. Zeigler wasn’t specific about the changes he and the team made prior to the A, but this much is for certain…..whatever they changed, it worked. The last car running in heat #1, Ziegler’s 21a looked like an entirely new machine come feature time. Nice run for Walt Lemmon is heat #1. He led a stacked field back to the checkers to earn his first heat win of the year. In the world of superstition, 13 is an unlucky number. Tim Drawbaugh, however, lives in another world. Coming into this week’s event, #13 on the season, Drawbaugh and the Super 7 were 16th in points with but 2 Top 10’s to their credit. If it could break, the Super 7 had broken it. If there was an on-track incident, the Super 7 found it. Seasons like this are why some teams call it quits. Too much money. Too much effort. Very little in the way of result. Certainly not the level of desired fun. But then there’s the Principle of Self-Fulfilling Prophecy. If you speak it with conviction, you will begin to believe. If you believe, you are on your way to making it happen. Amidst his season of misery, Tim Drawbaugh had the tenacity to believe. The boldness to speak of once again standing on the front stretch at Williams Grove. Finishing 2nd in his heat, Drawbaugh was the night’s pole sitter. Jumping to the point, he was flawless through the corners. In 1 & 2 the Super 7 was…..well……Super. Really. It had been a long, dry, stretch. April 27, 2013 was Drawbaugh’s last Victory Lane appearance. Seasons like this are also why some teams just CAN’T call it quits. The taste of victory is oh so sweet. Climbing out of his machine, Tim Drawbaugh’s smile seemed oblivious to the season’s hardships. On this night, both car AND driver were up to the task. So much for superstition. Aqua Fun Pools Cool Move of the Night: The A-Main Freight Train provided some 13 laps of non-stop excitement. And while anyone within the top 6 could argue for honors, I’m going with Chris Heller. Watching him wheel it on the high side is a thing of beauty. Our Credit Connection Auto Sales Late Model heat races provided solid action once again, this week. Cam Zeigler ran plus-4 in heat number one to finish 5th from inside row 5. He may have had more for ‘em but the 21z bounced off the outside guardrail at the exit of 4 on lap 3 after tight-roping around the 88. Gutsy move. Heat # 2 featured Ron Kline’s mad dash from 6th to the checkers. En route to his first SNS heat win, the Leinbach Motorsports pilot blew by three 2014 feature winners…..in convincing fashion. Kline’s high side exploits and subsequent 4th place run in the feature suggest the NINE team is clicking. If only they would get out of his way. In heat #2, Sam Gallagher was like a thoroughbred looking for somewhere to run. Noticeably faster than those he trailed, the 25 car was desperate for some high altitude breathing room. Persistence pays. On the final lap when the field went low, Gallagher went hammerdown and made the jump from 5th to 3rd. Pretty. Some guys just like a challenge. And by “some guys” I mean Gene Knaub. A failed power steering pump in his heat saw The Rocket Man go from 18th in the A. In a feature dominated by green flag action, Knaub’s precision drive was, even by his standards, remarkable. Fighting ‘til the end, he secured the runner-up spot at the exit of 4 coming to the checkers. While such a run is a treat for the fans and a lot of work for the driver, it also makes our Art Werx Hard Charger calculations a whole lot easier. I think Roy Miller is having fun. He’s finishing races and he’s fast….and he’s also holding post-race press conferences in the pits. Says brother, Dale, “We do all the work and he gets all the glory.” If you know the Miller’s, that’s funny. If you don’t, you should. Wes Alleman looked early on like he was the man to beat. A flat left front on his way to the point, however, changed all that. Top Shelf recovered to run 8th. Pat McNeal’s solid 3rd place run in his heat speaks to some nice progress. Running Top 5 early in the A, P-Mac’s night ended on the front stretch with considerable damage to the left rear. “Man, you run it through your head and you still mess it up.” Post-race, Dan Zechman was concerned that his Victory Lane interview was lacking. Drivers are a funny lot. Zechman had just whipped one of the most competitive Late Model fields in the region…..and he was concerned about his interview. Okay, let’s see. He spoke intelligently about reading the track. He addressed his team’s efforts. He was enthusiastic and sincere. He talked about the historical significance of Williams Grove and how his own family’s racing heritage is a part of that history. He mentioned some concerns with his performance…..suggested that there was more to get out of the car. Sponsor mentions were finished prior to him exiting the car and his dad, Randy, rolled his Street Stock onto the front stretch to offer his congratulations and share in the moment. I’d say things went pretty well. Oh, wait. That’s right. There was that whole thing about hearing other cars near him. Guess he was right. He messed up. No one was even close. Credit Connection Auto Sales Cool Move of the Night: While there was no shortage of candidates on this night, the nod goes to Dan Zechman. On his way to scoring Grove victory #1, Zechman threw a NASTY* slider on the M1 as the pair worked their way through 3 & 4. Roy Miller fought back on the inside as they dashed the front stretch, but the 2z would claim the point on the back stretch and move on to the win. *The GOOD nasty. Bill Devine has seen a good couple of weeks behind the wheel of his 70d Super Sportsman. Saturday’s 4th place finish in heat #2 marks the 2nd consecutive week that Devine has made the handicap. Fun to watch. That’s more like it. The performance we’ve been waiting for arrived this week. Thank you, Kenny Edkin. The car handled, the engine hit, and the driver raced. It was a good night. Finishing 2nd in his qualifier, Edkin went 4th in the A. Through 18 laps of green flag action, the 75 moved to the runner-up spot and pursued the leader. Drawing within a car length of Tom Wyckoff’s 77w, Edkin made a bid for the point at the exit of 4 on lap 14. Though his first Sportsman victory eluded him, Kenny Edkin’s performance represented both considerable progress and realized potential. He advanced his position, held off challengers, consistently hit his marks, and raced for the win. Next stop: consistency. Hey, Tony Jackson! Man, it sure is fun to watch a driver’s confidence grow. You can see it in his car. While Bobby Hockenberry and the GSR team are struggling to regain their mid-season form, Hollywood’s +7 run from 18th is certainly a move in the right direction. Super Sportsman driver Eric Eckert was back in the pits recently. Don’t be surprised if The Wall Street Wizard dons his suit for The 100. Mike Enders’ win in heat #3 was his division leading 8th of the year. His last lap plummet from 8th to 12th in the feature will be the topic of this week’s pre-race Show and Tell Session at the 3b hauler. Stay tuned. Doug Dodson’s run from 23rd to 13th earned him our Sprint Aces Hard Charger Award. The 43 has been passing some cars, recently. I’m just sayin’. Nice to see Rich Eichelberger finish strong. Saturday’s 8th place finish from 13th continues Eich’s string of solid efforts. On the heels of a race-leading broken flywheel and last week’s DQ while running 2nd, the 8 team’s fast ways suggest their sights are set on the money. I guess the veterans are really good at dealing with our sport’s highs and lows. Breaking a 5 year winless streak is cause for celebration, right? A little yelling, some big hugs, fist bumps, whatever…….or not. After wiring the field and scoring his 1st Sportsman victory since his runaway win at The Port in ’09, Tom Wyckoff calmly exited his winning ride, removed his helmet, took a deep breath…..and smiled. Around the car, Fritz Wyckoff and the 77w crew checked tires…..their faces still in race mode. In retrospect, avoiding those highs and lows is probably what keeps Tom Wyckoff coming back. There can only be one winner. So on most nights, a driver loses. Sure, the racing is fun, but there has to be more to it than that. Why else would you spend more on fuel in one Saturday than most people spend in a month? Wyckoff’s tow from Jersey costs a pretty penny….and he and Jo Ann spend it week after week, all the while smiling. In Victory Lane, there were no Rahmer-esque quotes to print, no wing dances, no water bottles emptied on bystanders, and certainly no ego. Instead, following 20 laps of excellence, we were treated to a pleasant dose of humility from a man who, on this night, proved the best at what he does. And for that, we should all be grateful. Blazer’s Body Shop Cool Move of the Night: Vance Yinger. In the B at the exit of 2, Yinger put his 20y on the cushion and blew by the 91. It was exciting. It was perfectly executed. The battle for position was insignificant. In fact, neither driver made the transfer. But at an age when most men are searching for the remote and rambling on about the glory days, Vance Yinger is LIVING. 2014 marks 50 years since he first strapped on a helmet. I smile each time he wheels into the pits. Frankly, it makes me happy to consider that Vance Yinger has navigated the clay longer than most of his competitors……..have been alive. Game on.
Posted on: Wed, 13 Aug 2014 05:23:49 +0000
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