Island Insight
by Greg
Berkowitz
Five divisions took to the track Saturday night at Riverhead
Raceway for the first part of a Labor Day doubleheader. As the
2010 season draws to a close, the various championship points
battles are tightening up, and driver’s chances to make a move
are running out. In the Blunderbusts, Tommy Walkowiak followed
up his win last weekend with a runner-up finish in the 20-lap
feature. However, he could have easily made it a win, albeit at
the expense of another driver. Walkowiak, who is going for his
fourth championship in five years, started mid-pack but caught
the leaders by lap nine. For the rest of the race, Walkowiak was
nose-to-tail with Rob Bader Jr. Walkowiak made numerous attempts
to get around Bader, but was seal the deal. On the back
straightway on the final lap, the two cars got together and the
right front of Walkowiak’s Chevy clipped Bader’s left rear. As
Bader spun towards the infield, he narrowly avoided hitting a
stack of junk cars set up for the monster truck show later that
night. It seemed like this would hand the win to Walkowiak,
which would have been his fifth of the year, but to the
amazement of many fans, Walkowiak appeared to deliberately get
off the throttle, allowing Bader to pull back on track and
resume his position in first place just in time to cross the
line and take the checkered flag for the win.
While Walkowiak solidified his lead in the Blunderbusts, the
points race for the Modifieds continues to provide late season
drama. After the first three events were either caution-free or
limited to one yellow, the Modifieds’ 35-lap feature saw two red
flags, numerous yellows, and several multi-car wrecks. The top
three in points were all involved in a caution at one point.
Points leader Tom Rogers Jr. was caught up in an 11-car wreck on
lap one that sent him behind the wall for 21 laps. Chuck Steuer,
who entered the night third in points, had pitted earlier and
had restarted prior to the wreck in the back of the field and
was able to avoid the Talladega-style “Big One.” Second-place in
points John Fortin was involved in a separate multi-car wreck a
lap later and would return to track 20 laps down. Steuer took
advantage of his competitors’ misfortune and finished in the top
five, thereby keeping his title hopes alive. After the dust
settled, Rogers leads Fortin and Steuer, who are tied for
second, by 12 points. Meanwhile, Chris Young managed to survive
the event and finish first, earning career win No. 32, which
moved him into third on the all-time wins list, tied with Bill
Park. Park also earned his 32nd win this season.
The night of racing closed out with a thrilling 50-lapper
from the Truck Enduros. For nearly the entire race, the top two
drivers, Ben Gregor and Shawn Wanat, battled for the lead. As
the two racers ducked and weaved through lapped traffic, they
swapped the lead several times. Gregor led early until getting
boxed in by lapped cars, which allowed Wanat to take the lead.
Wanat appeared poised to take down another win as the raced
neared the final laps, but lapped traffic played a role once
again, allowing Gregor to catch and pass Wanat just in time for
the white flag.Gregor crossed the finish line just in front of
Wanat, giving him his second consecutive win. By the end of the
race, Wanat and Gregor were the only two trucks on the lead lap.
Source: Greg Berkowitz/LongIslandJam.com
Posted: September
6, 2010
