Wayne Wins One for an Old Friend
by
Walter Johnston
The weather was perfect, the
crowd was big, and the racing was almost perfect. What a night!
We would get to witness a first-time winner in the Super Pro
Trucks, repeat winners in Figure 8 and Blunderbusts, a first
time winner in the Late Models and Chargers, and a spectacular
win in the Tom Baldwin Memorial 77. All in all, it was a very
good night of racing for almost everyone over the course of the
night.
The
Golden Auto Body Night
Super Pro Trucks started off the night’s features, with
#97 “Dangerous” Dave Koenig and #10 “Dynamite” Dan Turbush on
the front row. Turbush would gain the advantage at the start,
but Koenig stayed right behind him. #98x Dave Brigati moved up
to third, getting by #66 Mike Albasini, and #30 Shaun Gouldsbury.
The first caution of the race came out when Gouldsbury spun
after contact with #44 Jay Agugliaro, who was sent to the rear
by officials for rough riding. The race resumed, only to go
yellow again after contact between #34 Bryan Sescila and #42
Frank Dumicich Jr. On the restart, Turbush maintained his lead,
but now Brigati moved up to second, which he held for 2 laps
until Koenig reclaimed second spot. Turbush built himself a very
commanding lead, only to see it go away as Albasini spun in turn
2, bringing out another caution. On the next restart, Turbush
held his lead over Koenig, but now the battle for third was
between #45 Bobby Gardner and #9 Troy Ferdinando. Gardner
prevailed, and set his sights on Koenig. With 5 to go, Gardner
got by Koenig for second, but Turbush had checked out, and
Gardner had to settle for second at the finish, with Koenig
third, Ferdinando fourth, and Agugliaro fifth. Tonight’s Super
Pro Truck win would represent Dan Turbush's fifth different
division at Riverhead in which he's been a winning driver.
Running early on the card, the
Figure 8's were next up, with #74 Carl Baxter and #63 Paul
Specht on the front row. Baxter grabbed the early lead, with #47
“Slim Jim” Donaldson getting into second early, and #8 Tom Kraft
third. Donaldson got the lead from Baxter, but Baxter got under
him and repassed the second-generation driver to reclaim it
while Kraft followed through for second. The battle for the lead
has the field breathing on them as #13 Mike Mujsce, Sr. and #28
Roger Maynor battling for third spot as Donaldson slipped
further back in the field. Mujsce and Maynor came together in
turn 4, with Mujsce spinning into the infield, while #10 George
Sprague moved into fourth spot. 2 laps later, #8 Tom Kraft
suddenly spun in turn 3, dumping oil all over around his car,
and yellow was out. A lengthy clean up ensued but soon after
racing resumed with Baxter now leading Maynor, but yellow flew
once again as #58 Kenny Hyde and #29 Will Farrell got together.
With a seemingly never-ending series of cautions, officials
called for a single file restart, and Baxter led Maynor and
Sprague, with #85 Arne Pedersen now in fourth and Mujsce now
fifth. Soon after the green flag waved Sprague got by Maynor for
second, and Maynor suddenly slowed, way off the pace, but
continued running. Baxter and Sprague ran away from the rest of
the field, holding a huge lead that would cause them to have to
avoid the majority of the field as all approached the X from
different sides. Baxter was able to hold the lead through all
this, until last lap, when his lead caused him to slow at the X
first, and, in a daring move, Sprague in the #10 Pavco
Industries Chevrolet took advantage and shot by him on the
outside for the lead and the win in one of the most exciting
Figure 8 finishes in recent memory.
Next on the long day of great
racing, would be Charger feature, which saw #44 Mark Gibbs and
#73 Brian Doyle on the front row. Gibbs got the early lead over
Doyle, and Doyle was soon passed for second by #25 Charlie
Rittenhouse, with #13 Garret Frabizio in fourth, all running
single file. Behind them, side by side battles were going on
everywhere. #22x Justin Bonsignore caught and passed Frabizio
for fourth, and #00 Mike Bologna got by Frabizio for fifth. #17x
Rusty Turbush, who had mechanical trouble and was parked in the
infield, close to the track on the front stretch, was suddenly
side-swiped by #27 Jimmy Donnelly, who had been battling #01 Rob
Tribuzio for position, and Donnelly, trying to regain control,
was hit again in turn 2, sending him hard into the wall and
ending his night, and bringing out caution. With the green back
out, Gibbs and Doyle again contended for the lead, but #3 Don
Ahlers, in his recently purchased car from LMS Engineering,
suffered a right front flat and slammed the first turn wall,
then was hit by #57 Thore Foss, who was trying to avoid the
wreck, but slid into Ahlers left side, bringing out caution once
again. On the restart, Gibbs held his lead, and Doyle stayed
right with him, as the two drivers pulled away from third-place
Bonsignore. On lap 14, #8 Dan and #81 Chris Turbush got together
in turn 3 after Dan spun from contact with another car, and
Chris could not avoid him. Dan recovered after the yellow, but
Chris was done for the night with a broken and missing brake
rotor. Giibs and Doyle resumed their battle once again, with
Bonsignore and Bologna staying right behind. On lap 16, #61 Mike
Coll suffered a right front flat, crashing where Ahlers had
earlier, and yellow was out again. On the restart, Gibbs got
away from everybody, and sailed home to his first Charger
victory at Riverhead. After losing one due to a rule infraction
a few weeks ago, it was a sweet victory for the 44 team.
The Late Models came out next,
with #98 Doug Wholey and #12 Dennis Krupski on the front row.
Wholey sprinted to the lead at the start, but #99 “Jumpin” Jack
Orlando and #08 “J-rod” Jarrod Hayes both got by Krupski to run
second-third, just as Krupski's driveshaft came loose, causing a
multiple car crash and spin fest on the frontstretch. As the
rest of the field scrambled to avoid it, Mike Mortimer suffered
the worst damage, a punctured oil line, which necessitated a
lengthy clean up around the track. During this caution, about
half the competitors went to the pits for repairs. On the
restart, #98 Wholey got out front again, with Orlando right on
his bumper, and Hayes and #35 Kenny Alfano loomed in the
background. On lap 3, Orlando found his way around Wholey, as
Hayes held third, with #01 Rob Tribuzio fourth and #42 Billy
Wheeler fifth. Orlando built himself a comfortable lead, as the
obviously slower Wholey held off Hayes' attempts to get by him.
Hayes saw an opening while on the front stretch at one point,
but Wholey drifted high, and Hayes brushed the wall hard. Coming
out of turn two moments later, Wholey spun off into the infield,
and a recovering Hayes shot by to take second, and resume his
quest to catch Orlando, who had a huge almost half lap lead over
the rest of the field. On lap 20, #10 Scott Kulesa spun in turn
2, bringing out a caution which would close up the field and set
up a 5-lap sprint to the finish. On the restart, Orlando and
Hayes took off, leaving the others behind, when a fading
Tribuzio was passed by Wheeler, who was immediately passed by
#28 Glenn Tyler, and then #1x Dave Brigati, putting Wheeler back
to fifth as Orlando sailed home with his first Late Model win.
The Blunderbusts, running
later in the program than usual, were next. #6 Scott Sepe and #3
Doug Watson led the field to the green, with Watson getting the
immediate lead off turn 2, with #42 Wayne Meyer coming through
for second, #19 P.J. Vecchio third, and #09 Joe Fischett running
fourth. There was a lot of action going on behind the leaders,
as drivers jockeyed for positions. On lap 8, caution flew as #7
Tom Sullivan spun going into turn 3, and was penalized a lap for
not getting restarted until the yellow flew. On the restart,
Watson held the lead, but 2 laps later, Meyer got by him
momentarily. Watson retook the lead, and #79 Bill Wegmann joined
the battle as Meyer got loose and faded back. #00 Tommy
Walkowiak now joined the battle between Watson and Wegmann. As
they drifted high coming off the corner, Walkowiak shot by both
of them, taking the lead. Walkowiak was never seriously
challenged after that, taking his fifth win of the season in the
division. After the checker flew, the caution lights did not
come on immediately, causing some competitors to think they were
still racing, and some minor wrecks took place.
Now came the race we've
waited a year for – the Tom Baldwin Memorial 77 by Unique Golf.
This race, due to overwhelming lap sponsor support, would
feature each of the qualifying 24 teams getting $77 to start,
and lap money paid out through the top 7 positions. Also, the
top 7 qualifiers in time trials re-drew for starting position,
another tribute to Tom Baldwin and his #7 team. In time trials,
#20 Bill Park set fast time, 11.857 seconds, with #15 Wayne
Anderson, 11.913, #84 John Fortin, 11.917, #79 Dave Roys,
11.952, #12 Dan Jivanelli, 11.958, and #31 Tony Ferrante Jr.,
11.967, all under the 12 second mark, and #5 Jimmy Blewett,
12.003, rounding out the top 7.
Special treats for the drivers
and the fans were NASCAR Nextel Cup Crew Chief Tommy Baldwin Jr.
and his son, Tommy Baldwin III pacing the field in one of
Tommy's old #7 Coupes, restored from his early days. In
addition to the famed #7 coupe, Charlie Jarzombek's #1 radical
right steer coupe driven by Ed Densieski, and Marty Himes black
and white Ford Crown Victoria led the pace. Finally, for the
race itself, Ray Morturano took to the starter's stand as
honorary starter to flag the race. The pace laps were run with
the pole position left open in honor of Tommy.
At the drop of the green, #84
John Fortin, who redrew outside pole, pulled away from
polesitter #31 Tony Ferrante into the lead, with Jivanelli
third, Anderson fourth, and Jimmy Blewett fifth. The top 8
immediately formed a single file, as Fortin took a strong lead.
On lap 6, the first caution flew for #93 Sal Accardi Jr, as he
spun going into turn 1, and might I add quite skillfully as he
avoided danger and quickly recovered. On the restart, Fortin
held his lead, but Jivanelli moved by Ferrante for second, as
Ferrante and Anderson now contended for third spot. Fifth place
starter Jimmy Blewett, suffering from some sort of power loss,
was dropping back quickly, as he slowly ran the apron of the
track. On lap 18, #45 Mike Curtis brushed the wall, bringing out
the caution. This provided a great opportunity for Blewett to
duck into the pits for repairs, but he was now 3 laps down.
Fortin held the lead once more as green was back out, with
Jivanelli holding second, as Anderson and Ferrante went at it
for third spot. On lap 21, a multiple car spin and crashes in
turn 1-2 bought out yet another caution, with just about all
being able to pull away and resume racing. Fortin still held the
lead on the restart, but Jivanelli got along side momentarily,
while Ferrante spun into the infield off turn 4. Ferrante
recovered to remain on the lead lap, just in front of Fortin. On
lap 30, Accardi, Jr. suddenly lost power and was not able to
pull into the infield, so caution flew again, allowing Ferrante
to catch the rear of the field. On the restart, Anderson got
under Jivanelli, and was joined in the hunt by #11x Chuck Steuer
and #05 Joe Hartmann, as Jivanelli got shuffled back. On lap 33,
another pile-up in turns 1-2 brings out another yellow. On the
restart, Hartmann got by Steuer for third, but Fortin and
Anderson were now pulling away from the whole field in a race of
their own. That ended quickly on lap 41, as #49 Chris Young spun
in turn 4, and under this yellow, some drivers, including
fourth-place Steuer, decided to opt for fresh rubber, while most
of the front runners elected to maintain their track position.
On the restart, Fortin got the jump on Anderson, who stayed
glued to Fortin's bumper as Hartmann and #10x Mike Andrews, Jr.
battled for third spot. On lap 45, Ferrante spun in turn 4
again, this time damaging his car, and the yellow is out once
more. The race resumed with the front 3 nose to tail, but on lap
49, #96 Howie Brode's spin in turn 3 brings yet another caution.
Fortin keeps the lead still, with Anderson looking high and low
for a way around, knowing that Hartmann, Andrews, #28 Glenn
Tyler, and #79 Dave Roys are right behind, awaiting their
opportunity to try for the front. On lap 54, Jivanelli and #33
Ken Heagy got together on the back stretch, with Heagy getting
the worst of it, and leaving on a double-hook. With the green
back out, nothing changed as Fortin fights to hold the lead, but
on lap 61, Fortin went a little high exiting turn 2, and
Anderson seized the opportunity to take over the lead. Hartmann
followed Anderson's example, and got by Fortin for second.
Fortin's tires seemed to be give out, providing a path for Bill
Park, on fresher rubber to pass for third spot, while Chris
Young, recovering nicely after his earlier spin, gets by Fortin
and takes fourth. But Anderson had checked out at this point,
and sailed home in the #15 Eastport Feeds Chevrolet with a very
convincing and emotional victory in his friend Tommy's Memorial
race.
News and Pit notes...Tommy
Baldwin Jr. and Tommy III rushed away quickly after asking me
what next event was, and finding out it was the Modified consi.
" I can't wait to see this, I miss Modified racing so much,"
said Baldwin... I spoke with Ray Morturano, whose wife, Noreen,
made a special Tom Baldwin Memorial checkered flag for the
winner of the event, which Ray presented to Wayne Anderson in
Victory Lane... Nice to see John Fortin back in his first
appearance anywhere in 2005, and even nicer to see a good run by
the 84 team...Also nice to see Tony Ferrante, Jr. run Tommy's
Race... 31 Mods signed in, but #55 Steve Tooker withdrew for
mechanical reasons prior to time trials... The Tom Baldwin
Memorial provided a good preview for next week's 200 lap NASCAR
Whelen Modified Tour race... Buzz Chew Dodge representatives
were on hand for victory lane ceremonies in each division for
the night… Track crew worked much harder than usual, cleaning up
two separate oil spills (Figure 8 & Late Model features), which
require harder work than soaking up water, and they did a great
job of getting it done in a timely manner... Peter Rotzi has
sent word that his son Keith will be making a special racing
appearance for the next Late Model 50-lapper... Sorry Enduro
fans, I didn't get results before leaving track, but hopefully
they are elsewhere on the site... Next Sunday is a big Enduro
show, with Spectator Drags, Super Pro Trucks, and Car Rollover
contest for lovers of daytime shows... It sure beats mowing the
lawn, which is this Sunday's project at my house... See everyone
next week, 'til then, be healthy, be safe.
Source:
Only on LongIslandJam.com
Posted: July 31, 2005
