While weather forecasts leading up to Saturday looked
questionable, Mother Nature decided to grace Riverhead Raceway
with mild temperatures and plenty of sun for the final practice
prior to the official start of the 2008 racing season.
Competitors from nearly all divisions were out in force, taking
advantage of the opportunity to turn some laps on the track and
turn some wrenches in anticipation of next week's double-header
season opener.
Modifieds
There were more than 15 Modifieds on hand for practice,
including a couple of drivers who brought multiple cars. Dave
Brigati once again had both his Riverhead and WMT cars on hand.
John Fortin brought out his Riverhead car, as well as a new car
that he hopes to do some traveling with. Veterans like Bill Park,
Wayne Anderson, Chris Young, Dan Jivanelli and Chuck Steuer took
advantage of the chance to make some adjustments, while 2007
Charger champion John Ellwood used the day to get seat time
behind the wheel of his new ride. Rusty Turbush was present
and practicing his familiar #17x. Howie Brode, JR Bertuccio,
Justin Bonsignore and Dave Sapienza were also among those
shaking down their Modifieds, as was former multi-division
champion Bobby Gardner.
Late Models
A handful of Late Models were signed into the pits for the
second practice day, with hopes for a strong turnout next week.
Artie Pedersen Jr. took a hard hit into the wall with his Late
Model last week, and the car was not repaired in time for this
week's practice. Defending champion Dan Turbush was turning
practice laps, as was former champion Roger Oxee. Ken Alfano and
Kevin Metzger took advantage of the final practice as well. Tom
Rogers Jr. gained some seat time in a unnumbered white car,
while John Gloor IV's car was also unnumbered this week but
sported a camouflage paint job. Chris LaSpisa made his second
practice appearance after having taken some time off, and both
Kevin Metzger and Ken Alfano made their first appearances for
practice.
Figure Eight
Relatively few Figure 8 cars were on hand for practice this
week, which gave those who were in attendance an opportunity to
turn more laps with less traffic. Defending champion Roger
Maynor made his first practice appearance this week, as did Tom
Graff. Paul Specht and Kenny Hyde were both on hand to take in
some practice. Returning to the division full-time this year is
Arne Pedersen, who took some laps in his new ride, which is
owned by Mike Mujsce.
Chargers
The Charger division showed up in force, with more than 15 cars
running practice. With last year's champion moving into the
Modified division, the race for the title in this class should
be wide open in 2008. Chris McGuire and Chris Turbush were both
on hand to make their presence known. Garret and Chris Frabizio
both turned some practice laps, as did Frank Scimeca Sr. and
Frank Scimeca Jr. Alan Reeves, Jeremy McDermott, Daryn Miller
and Thore Foss all grabbed some seat time, as did Bob Baker and
Kory Comiskey. Frank Dumicich Jr. once again had his #42 on
hand. Former Blunderbust competitor Peter Cataldo, who purchased
the former Dennis Scott #28, took advantage of the chance to get
some seat time as well.
Blunderbusts
Surprisingly, there were fewer Blunderbust cars on hand for the
second practice than there were for the first. Defending
champion Tommy Walkowiak and veteran driver Bill Wegmann were
both apparently happy with their results from last week and
opted to leave their cars home. Sophomore competitor Rob Bader,
after having suffered motor issues last week, returned for the
second practice and even let Walkowiak turn some laps in his
car. Anthony Battisti and Ray Shannon both returned after having
some mechanical issues the week before. Artie Pedersen Jr.
turned some laps in his Blunderbust car, as his Late Model
suffered damage last week. Veterans Chris Busick and Joe
Pingitore also got some laps in. Tom Sullivan, who suffered a
series of mechanical problems last season, appeared to still
have a monkey on his back, as he fell victim to engine issues
once again. Terry Stiles made his first practice appearance and
had some mechanical issues as well. Jessica Larsen turned her
first practice laps of the 2008 season, as did Tom Pickerell.
Super Pro Trucks
There were 13 Super Pro Trucks on hand for the final 2008
preseason practice, although 2007 champion Dan Grennan was not
present. Lou Maestri was on hand in preparation for his run at a
third championship in the division. Dave Koenig, Frank Dumicich
Sr., Frank Dumicich Jr. and Erin Dumicich were also on hand to
make their presences known. Both Peter and Keith Rotzi turned
practice laps, as did Kathleen Hallock. Relative newcomer Mike
Power got some seat time, as did rookie Roger Turbush. Shaun
Gouldsbury was in attendance for his second practice appearance,
after having taken some time off. Anthony Daleo was present with
a new paint job on his unnumbered truck. Wayne Meyer's #41 was
on hand, but was driven by someone else as Wayne was not able to
make it to practice.
Legends
While there was still a substantial number of Legends cars on
hand, there seemed to be fewer present for the second practice
than there had been for the first. There was one driver known to
be racing their Legends car at Waterford this week, and there
may have been more. There was also a Legends race at Mountain,
which may have impacted car counts. Legends drivers who turned
some practice laps included Glenn Maningo, Timmy Solomito, John
Beatty, Gregory DiCanio and Dennis Deuel. Former champion Tony
Naglieri was on hand for his second practice appearance, as were
Joe Sedotto, Michael Malone and Jim Byrne. Silas Hicock Sr. and
Silas Hicock Jr. both had cars on hand, as did "Wild Bill"
Hicock. Paul Dodorico was on hand, getting some practice laps in
a second car that he has, while Tom Sherman brought two cars
with him to the track. Bryan Johnson suffered some damage after
hitting the wall during one of his practice rounds, but repairs
were made to the car and he turned some more laps later in the
afternoon.
Enduros
There were many Enduro cars in the pits for practice, with
particularly strong showings in the Grand Enduro and 4/6
Cylinder Truck Enduro classes. It was announced by Mike
Cappiello and Jim Maggio that Grand Enduro cars will be
permitted to utilize one-way scanners to be used as receivers to
monitor the track frequency at 461.200. It was also announced by
Bob Finan that Carquest Auto Parts would be sponsoring
podium-style trophies for the top three finishers in all Enduro
classes in 2008, as well as trophies for the divisional points
champions at the end of the season. In all, there were 26 Grand
Enduro cars, 16 4/6-Cylinder Trucks, 7 8-Cylinder cars and a
combined total of 7 4-Cylinder and 6-Cylinder cars that took to
the track for practice.
News and Notes: Stephen Halpin joined Bob Finan in the
announcers' booth this week in Jeff Bressler's absence, and it
certainly was a flashback for some fans. One announcement that
came from the booth related to tires, and it is expected that
official PR from the raceway office will be coming. All drivers
and teams are reminded that the treating of tires is not and
will not be permitted at Riverhead Raceway. The officiating
staff intends to check tires with a durometer during the season.
With one week left until Opening Night, it was interesting to
see some of the new paint schemes. A lot of cars, however, are
still in primer or are incomplete, and it is expected that many
of these will look quite different a week from now.
Riverhead Raceway has a busy weekend planned for next
weekend, beginning with Opening Night on Saturday and continuing
into Sunday. Teams are reminded that the pits will open at 10
a.m. next Saturday only in order to leave extra time for pit
parking and any tech inspections that need to be completed.
Following Opening Night, the pits will open at 12 p.m. on a
weekly basis. Grandstand gates open at 3 p.m. The pit gate will
open at 10 a.m. on Sunday also, with the grandstands opening at
12 noon.
Source: Tracy Chirico/LongIslandJam.com
Posted:
April 26, 2008
