Sunny skies and the sounds and
smells associated with racing greeted all as they
entered the track for the first of two practice sessions
for tuning and setting up their race cars. Attendance
was good, with many new paint schemes to be seen around
the pits. A lot of the cars are unfinished works in
progress, as they have been painted, but not yet
lettered and numbered, which caused some amount of
confusion about who was who. Bob Finan and Jeff Bressler
did a pretty good job by days end by identifying almost
all of the cars and putting driver’s names with them to
end any confusion there.
The Modifieds had a nice turn out,
with almost twenty drivers in attendance. Jimmy Blewett
drove Lew Hallock’s back-up car in practice, helping himself
get used to Riverhead’s ¼ mile, and in return helping Lew’s
team get their car set up for racing. Kenny Darch was out
with his new # 03 Mod looking as sharp as his Fig-8 car
always does. John Denniston, in his own #3 Mod for this
season, also looks good with a red paint scheme. Also
shaking down their rides were Bill Park, Wayne Anderson, Dan
Jivanelli, Mike Andrews Jr., Tom Rogers Jr., Chuck Steuer,
Dave Sapienza, Chris Young, Eddie Brunnhoelzl III, Larry
Altholtz, Ken Vogel Jr., Sal Accardi Jr., and Ken Heagy.
Best of all, no incidents occurred as the drivers carefully
practiced their cars in preparation for the upcoming season.
The Late Model drivers had a
handful of drivers in attendance, with Dave Brigati, Scott
Kulesa, Rob Tribuzio, Mike Mortimer, Glenn Tyler, Roger Oxee
and Billy Wheeler out for the day. There were a few others,
but without numbers, your truly didn’t get to find out who
they were. Roger Oxee had new, easier to read numerals and
graphics on his car, a great improvement for the fan in the
stands. Dave Brigati has his usual sharp looking black paint
job all set for the new season, just needs to get the car
lettered. Again, all drivers had a good day with no major
incidents, just good tune-up driving in preparation for the
season.
The Chargers had a good showing,
and since I didn’t get all who were there, I’ll just mention
the few who I managed to get written down. Jimmy Donnelly,
Eric Goodale (fast time in one session), Dan Turbush with a
new ‘flamed’ number 8 on his car, Rusty Turbush, Jeremy
McDermott, rookie Kevin Orlando, Chris McGuire, Charlie
Rittenhouse, Thor Foss, and Mike Brigandi. One other rookie
also attended and was given her own 5 lap shake down
session: Debbie Fleming, the winner of Dan Dombal’s raffle,
ran nicely , if somewhat slowly, during her turn on the
track, but let’s face it, every new driver needs time to get
accustomed to the track and car. Debbie put on a fine
showing of her driving skills and left to the applause of
the pit stand spectators. Again, there were more, but some
only ran briefly and left, and some had no identifiable
numbers on their cars, and it’s not easy to get to everyone
in one day. As with the other divisions, no major incidents
as everyone just wanted to get the feel of the car back
after the too long off season.
The Blunderbusts had probably the
biggest contingent on hand as they were sent out in separate
groups for their practice sessions, as going all at once
might have caused problems. Many new paint schemes for 2005,
with Joe Fischett going with a nice black and white design,
Doug Watson opting for a Gold and Black scheme, reminiscent
of Earnhardt’s Bass Pro paint job, and a few others, who I
could not identify due to a lack of numbers and time for me
to inquire. The Blunderbusts will be as strong as ever this
year, and should remain the exciting division they’ve been
for a number of years now.
The Fig-8 cars had a low car count,
with only few cars in attendance, unless I missed some
others. Bill Steen and Roger Maynor (new RED paint job) were
the only two I could identify, though I saw a few that
looked like Fig-8 cars.
The Super-Pro Trucks were also
sparsely represented, with only a few on hand. Bobby Gardner
was there with his new #45 and set fast, unofficial, time
during one session. Also on hand were Bryan Sescila, 2004
Champ Lou Maestri, Frank Dumicich Jr., and rookie Jason
Agugliaro, who will drive Dave Brigati’s 98x for 2005.
Agugliaro was given a few separate practice laps to accustom
himself to the truck as he followed Dave’s LM for his laps.
Dave has high hopes for his driver, letting me know how
talented he feels Agugliaro is.
All in all, it was a very good day
for everyone, the weather was just about perfect, and it was
nice to get to see the many friendly faces we’ve missed
seeing over the Winter months. Next week, hopefully more
vehicles will be numbered, and attendance will be even
greater, all in anticipation of a great 2005 racing season
at Riverhead. The newly rebuilt 3rd and 4th
turn wall is in place, some additional blacktop has been put
down, especially in areas that needed it, and Riverhead is
ready to present another fine season of racing to all the
fans on Long Island. The Jam will be there to cover it for
you each week, and we will do our best to help you all get
the news and pictures you need and want throughout the
season.
Source:
Walter Johnston/LongIslandJam.com
Posted: April 16, 2005
