Quick Nights Mean Happy Thoughts

(Author's Note: No, this does not include the penalties that came out of the Late Model race. I'll put up another entry (that'll be three on the day) in regards to that. Until then, enjoy the article of the week.)

After the craziness that was part of July and most of August, it was finally time to get back to normal. Stafford hosted a five division, five-program feature for the first time in what seemed like forever. They hoped it didn’t seem like forever, however, which made things interesting as usual.

The DARE Stocks kicked things off. With a little help, Albert Saunders was the first leader of the race. He had help from Josh Wood, who was running second and right on his back. Over the course of the next two laps, the lead switched hands from Wood, to A. Saunders, and right back to Wood. Within the very next lap, he’d have a new challenger in Cory Casagrande, who found a way to get around A. Saunders and into second. C. Casagrande attempted to make a move around for the lead by the halfway point, and as they crossed the line, the lead officially changed hands. The top four cars remained fairly close to each other (all while putting distance between themselves and the rest of the field). Andrew Hayes got around A. Saunders for the third position. Meanwhile, C. Casagrande was putting distance on everyone else, lapping most of the cars in his path. The entire race ran green from start to finish, and by about a half straightaway, it was C. Casagrande picking up his third win of the season (100 pounds doesn't hurt again). Wood finished second, over Hayes in third and A. Saunders in fourth.

Up next? The Limited Late Models. Dan Flannery was a man on a mission when the race began, pulling out in front early. Dave Yardley, III moved into second, following close behind. It took three laps before Yardley caught up to Flannery. It took just about four laps for him to take the lead. Flannery kept close, but he was followed by a trio (and then four) of drivers, with Jesse Hinze leading the charge. The first caution of the event came out with nine laps on the board, when Robert Farrington, Jr spun in turns three and four. This bunched the field up for a restart; one that Yardley happened to win. The fight for second was between George Nocera, Jr and Flannery. In less than a turn, Nocera picked up the spot. Nocera attempted to catch up to him over the course of the next few laps, but he would be on the same row as Yardley when they went back to green - the next caution came out with seven laps to go. What was the reason? Chris Cook and Farrington spun in turns three and four. The dragrace occurred on the restart, as the leaders ran down the frontstretch single file. Yardley won the battle and returned right back out in front. Nocera kept close in second. Further back, Andrew Durand was running in what was originally thought was fifth. The track officials decided otherwise, and for the second time in the race, he was black flagged for overagression. This time, however, he was brought onto pit road. Back on the track, the action began in the battle for the lead. It seemed as though it was going to be a good last lap, but the caution came out before they crossed the line to take the white flag. Again, Farrington spun - this time, he spun in turns one and two. It set up a green white checkered finish. It started right back where it picked up; the leaders once again fighting for the lead. Yardley came across the stripe, taking the white flag as the leader. Nocera tried a few desperation moves on the final lap, attempting to make a pass for the lead. Every attempt ultimately failed, giving Yardley his second win of the season. Nocera finished second. Flannery retook the points lead after finishing third, with Rob Dow on the board in fourth.

The fendered part of the program would end with the Late Models. Dave Wray took the early lead, with the inside row going at the drop of the green flag. Scott Cook was in second, followed by Dillon Moltz in third… But the racing action would be cut short after a lap. The caution was for Corey Hutchings, who had a problem with the right front tire issue, sending him through the grass. Seconds after the caution came out, Ryan Posocco had problems with the right rear tire, sending him high up into turn three. The caution didn’t come out for him; however, he spent most of the caution on pit road to fix problems. On the restart, the lead changed. Cook made the move around Wray to take over possession. The rest of the field took shape as well - Moltz was now running in second, with most of the usual front-runners following behind. Moltz and Keith Rocco caught up to Cook, and it was almost halfway when Moltz began to try to find a way around Cook for the lead. After the field made it to the halfway point, the lead train was six cars big - including Woody Pitkat, Tom Fearn, and Michael Bennett. With eight laps to go, another move for the lead was made. The loser was Moltz, who got loose and was ultimately shuffled back to seventh after losing a three-wide fight for second (the winner of that was Pitkat, who took the inside row). It looked as though it was all over. But on the last lap, the caution came out. John Blake found the wall on the backstretch and scraped it as the leaders were coming. Debris was left behind, and it was why the field was bunched up for a green white checkered finish. Cook got loose on the restart (or at least it looked like he did), giving Pitkat the lead on the restart. Being loose didn’t hurt, and Cook found himself in second. The distance was more than enough, however, and in the end, Pitkat was the one who found victory lane for the fifth time. Cook had to settle for second, with Bennett in third. In fourth was Moltz.

The SK Lights were next. In the beginning, Harry Wheeler was the first leader of the race. It soon became a three-wide fight as Wheeler got up high. Zachary Aszklar was in the middle and found himself winning the battle, setting himself in the first position. He picked up the lead just in time, as after they crossed the line to complete the lap, the caution came out with only one lap on the board. Dylan Liseo and Stephen Greer were involved in an accident in turns three and four, putting the field under an early yellow. When the race went back to green, it was Aszklar right back out in front. Second was between Erica Santos and Earl Pelletier. Unfortunately, things went haywire as the top three cars battled for the lead. Santos and Aszklar got out of shape. As Aszklar found a way to keep the car under control and still going, Santos was heading straight for the safer barrier. She missed it. Unfortunately, something broke on the car, and she was stranded in turn one. The caution came right back out on the very next lap. Aszklar got his spot back as he technically wasn’t involved in the caution. Getting that spot back for the restart didn’t work, as a new leader emerged in Pelletier. But Aszklar wasn’t backing down yet, and was right back in the thick of things, challenging for the lead in a matter of about a lap. Thomas Barrett, Jr and Joey Cipriano joined the two, among other drivers. With eight laps on the board, Barrett took over second. Also on that lap was the third caution. Aszklar’s run ended abruptly as he spun in turn four, just out of the way enough so that other cars weren’t collected in the caution as well. Cipriano was sent to the back of the field during the caution. On the restart, Barrett worked his magic and made the move around Pelletier for the lead. Matt Galko managed to get second. He wanted first, though. As the two leaders passed the halfway point, the battle for the lead began. Galko tried to get around Barrett for the lead; it didn’t work. He’d have another crack at it on the restart. With 11 laps on the board, Heather DesRochers spun in turns three and four - with a little help from Jay Goff. He got black flagged and was sent to the back of the field. The all-youth front row led the field to the green on the restart, where Barrett once again took over as leader. Galko remained close at hand, however, and wasn’t willing to back down. His car had other plans, and with seven laps to go, Galko found the safer barrier in turn one. Other cars spun shortly afterward (Victoria Bergenty, Cipriano, Tony Santangelo), and the caution came out. This put Tommy Membrino, Jr on the front row with Barrett when the restart happened. Membrino seemed to have a problem on the restart, giving the inside row the advantage. In the process, Aszklar bounced up and passed Barrett with six laps to go. Barrett wanted the lead back and attempted to pass Aszklar for the lead. That would have to wait until the restart, as a caution came out (also with six laps to go) when Ted Cain spun in turn two. This time, Barrett didn’t get going on the restart, and Aszklar was the beneficiary, taking the lead once again. Pelletier attempted to take over, and did with five laps to go. Barrett moved into second, and ultimately, moved back into the lead - that pass was with three laps to go. Through the final laps of the race, the real action was for the second through fourth spots. In the end, the winner was Barrett, who won his eighth race of the season. Second was Membrino, with Aszklar in third, barely beating out Pelletier, who finished fourth.

The last race of the night was for the SK Modifieds. Sean Foster didn’t come up to speed when the race began, giving Jeff Malave the lead. Behind him, on his bumper, and recovering nicely after the problem, was Foster. Four laps into the race, the first caution came out for Christopher Jones, who appeared to have something break on the car. He wound up stuck in turn four, and that brought out the yellow. On the restart, Malave jumped right back into the lead. Foster was still sticking close to him, however. Behind them, it was a pack of cars battling for position. A nice third place run for Curt Brainard ended when he slid up high in turns one and two. It was a setback, and he found himself towards the back of the pack when he managed to regain things. The pack slowly evaporated, spreading out, with Ted Christopher and Ryan Preece being the two main drivers to break free. Christopher decided to join the party up front in a major way, passing Foster for second with 13 laps on the board. The lead was in his sights. He attempted a pass for the lead with 17 laps on the board, and barely succeeded as the leaders crossed the line. He finished the pass on the very next lap. Also making a charge was Preece, who was third by the halfway point. Considering when the pass for the lead was made, and compared to usual Christopher moves, it was almost shocking that the lead wasn’t bigger than what it was at the lap-29 point. It was a nice-sized lead. It was also growing. Reason why? Malave and Preece were fighting for second. Also added in the mix was Keith Rocco, who joined the party in fourth. The four drivers continued racing close over the course of the final laps of the race, but in the end, a winless streak was broken. Christopher picked up his first win of the season. Malave finished second. Preece ended up in third, with Rocco winding up fourth.

Note: Each race (on its own) was completed within a half hour. Longest race of the night belonged to the SK Lights (26:51).

Next week, it's the start of the September Series - the three races that make up the last weeks before the Fall Final. As an added bonus, there are fireworks. It’s the last time you’ll be seeing those up above the track this year. A five-feature program? It's all there. Weather permitting.