09/05/2005

Joe & Joe Steal NEETS Labor Day Show
by Geno Ostrowski

 

Hundreds of spectators came out to Mountain Speedway on Monday (Labor Day) to witness the best enduro racing on the east coast, the ABC Car Crushing NEETS Holiday Stock Car Series.  The fans were on their feet for the ‘Joe and Joe show’, when Joe ‘Millionaire’ Jentile picked up his third win of the season in the Cottman Transmission 6/8 cylinder event, and Joe Grocholski nailed down his first NEETS career win in the Valley Service four cylinder division. 

 

Eighty-one year old Sandy Austin commenced the day’s events by singing the National Anthem.  Sandy is from Tampa, FL and also a POW of World War II.

 

First on the card for the afternoon was the Cottman Transmission 6/8-cylinder ‘White Collar’ 105-lap event.  Jack McElrath led the fifty-four car field to the drop of the green after starting on the pole, but when the first lap clicked off it was ‘Racin Rich Johnson out front.

 

Johnson held the point until the twelfth circuit when Joe ‘Millionaire’ Jentile overtook the top spot.  Howie Bott, Billy Pauch and Joe Kmetz chased the two front-runners.

 

Jentile surrendered the lead on lap thirty-five when he ducked into the pits.  Without stopping, he rejoined the field on the lead lap.  The change of events handed the lead to Pauch, but lapped traffic allowed Bott to overtake the top spot on lap fifty-one.

 

Only three circuits later, Johnson passed Bott for the top spot and led until lap seventy-four.  At this point in the race, Jentile had worked his way back through traffic, caught and passed Johnson.

 

As Glen Osborne and Jim White, Sr. joined the top five, it was the top two (Jentile and Johnson) out front dueling it out.  The two exchanged the lead five more times before the end of the event.  On lap 100, Jentile made the high-side pass on Johnson and the two dueled it out side-by-side over the remaining five laps.  Jentile, who is also the division point leader, took his third win of the ’05 season over Johnson by one-half car length.  Pauch was awarded the runner-up spot when Johnson was later disqualified during post race inspection. 

 

Bob Haeger led the sixty-two car Valley Service four-cylinder division field to the drop of the green flag in the ‘Blue Collar’ 105-lap event.  Haeger shot out front and lead the opening laps until Dave Holinbaugh took command on lap three.

 

The red flag was displayed on the fourth lap when Joe Thomas found the turn three wall.  Pat Verwys, who sits second in the standings was also involved in the incident and had to retire from the event.

 

After the green was displayed, Holinbaugh held the point over Haeger, but that all changed when Haeger went back into the lead on lap sixteen.  Meanwhile, Bobby ‘Peaseman’ Pease, Harry Sager, Bob ‘Madawg’ Wink and Pete Verwys fought for the remaining six positions.

 

Sager worked his way to the front and into the lead on the thirty-seventh circuit, but lady luck wasn’t on his side.  On the fifty-second circuit, another competitor spun Sager as he went down the front stretch.  Larry Spencer came out of the fourth turn, had nowhere to go and nailed Sager.  Spencer’s machine rolled 1-½ times and came to rest on the driver’s side.  Luckily, Spencer was not injured, but his vehicle was destroyed. 

 

When green flag racing resumed, there was a new name in the picture, and out front:  Joe Grocholski.  A few laps later, Pete Verwys moved into the third spot and set sail for the Wink (second place), but was later spun out in a turn one incident.

 

Grocholski led all of the final circuits and cruised to his first-ever NEETS win.  Pete Verwys rebounded from the earlier spin to finish second, while Mark Hammer, Dave Holinbaugh and Woot Lawrence rounded out the top five.

 

A big car demo-derby was also on the card, but will be rescheduled for a later date.

 

The NEETS charity of choice for the event was the Red Cross.  One dollar from each general admission will be donated to the Hazleton chapter of the Red Cross and used in efforts to help victims of hurricane Katrina.

 

The next ABC Car Crushing NEETS Holiday Stock Car Series event is the Components Corporation "FEMDURO" 51/51.  Components Corporation invites all drivers to "Get bent with us" under the lights on Saturday, October 8^th.  The 102-lap event will feature all lady drivers for the first fifty-one laps, and all male drivers for the second fifty-one-lap enduro fiesta.  Also on the card is the ‘mini van destruction’.  All the action begins Saturday, October 8^th at Mountain Speedway.  The NEETS charity for this event will be Checkered Dreams.  Please check the NEETS website at www.neetstour.net for the complete schedule, rules and race times.

 

 

Cottman Transmission 6/8 Cyl.

1. #41 Joe Jentile

2. #5 Tim Pauch

3. #29 Jim White, Sr.

4. #15 Glenn Osborne

5. #10 Tom Slee

6. #75 Howie Bott

7. #33 Tom Kapish

8. #72H Carl Heater

9. #3X Richard Deck, Jr.

10. #28 Dean Woolford

DQ: #1 Rich Johnson and #124 Mark Hammer

 

Valley Service 4 Cyl. Division

1. #30 Joe Grocholski

2. #12 Pete Verwys

3. #1974 Mark Hammer

4. #1002 Dave Holinbaugh

5. #34 Woot Lawrence

6. #57X Bob Wink

7. #472 Steve Elliston

8. #39 Rob Pyle

9. #62 Luke Colleran

10. #21 Pete Rabaglia

Source:  Geno Ostrowski/NEETS PR
Posted:  September 6, 2005