At a Loss For Words, Really.

I really don't know how to word this entry. These kinds of things are the hardest entries I write about, because it's hard to choose the right words. No matter what, the right thing to do is pull through.

I come with the saddening news that former Stafford Pro Stock and SK Modified driver Jay Miller died earlier this week at the age of 35.

He had been racing at Waterford for the past few seasons and had won his first career SK Modified race at the Bowl this year a little under three weeks ago. At Stafford, he won one Pro Stock race; that coming on July 7, 2000. (And as far as past track programs are showing, at least one SK Modified "21 Means 21" race the following year.)

Sorry for giving you the basics, but like I said above, I don't really know what to say. Rest in peace.

SMS Gets the Lucky Dog

Well, if there was ever a new rule to be enforced at Stafford Motor Speedway for the weekly divisions, it would have to be the lucky dog rule. If you don't already know what it is, let me explain it: It's literally the term for someone who is allowed to get their lap back after a caution.

But it's a slight precaution that comes along with this addition of the lucky dog.

To tell you the truth, it's a slight bit confusing in regards to the rule. I heard that if a driver spins out under his/her own power and has the entire field passes him/her under green, they fall a lap down. Just like the Sprint Cup, that driver can earn their lap back by not being a caution car when the caution comes out again.

Sounds kind of crazy, right? Well, I know that they've had problems with people spinning out and sitting in the spot they're in, so they're taking some action against it. Is it just a test with spinning out under green, or is this the only way someone's going to be able to get their lap back? I didn't hear anything in regards to this rule today, except for what the boys in the press booth said during the feature for the SK Lights. I guess time will eventually tell.

Weekly write-up to come sometime this week, of course. I just wanted to make sure this gets its own entry, however.

Fourth of July Fireworks: On the Track. Plus Extreme Tuesday Quick Results.

Hi, all. Well, there's so much to talk about and not enough time to do it all in! A regular week with enough drama like a soap opera? Why not! One caution-free feature leads the charge in this week's installment of the blog, since my notes don't detect anything preview-worthy. It's all of the stuff that got left out of the notes that make this week memorable. I'll explain as we get into the event that was: The Fourth of July.

We started off with racing of the open-wheeled variety as the SK Lights took to the track. For the first three laps of the race, the leader was Mike Lane. Two cautions on two consecutive laps bunched the field back up. On lap-4, a three-car spin/accident occured coming out of turn four, involving the cars of Shawn Brule, Adam Skowyra, and John Walmsley. Lane would get the lead on the restart, but another yellow came out after Steve Zukowski and Chris Bakaj were involved in a turn-three accident. Again, it would be Lane on the restart, yet this green flag run would last for four laps as Brule and Tommy Membrino spun in turn two on lap-9. Lap-11 would see a lead change as Chris Matthews was able to get around Lane for the lead, with Mark Bakaj coming up to follow. On lap-13, Kyle Spencer would spin in turn two, bringing the field back to yellow. Another lead change would occur on the restart, when Bakaj got around Matthews. Matthews wouldn't be in second for long, as he'd take the lead back only a few laps later. The final caution came out on lap-18 when Fred Nees, Jr and Earl Pelletier were involved in a two-car accident in turn four. A late race restart would be key in this feature, and Matthews would have the advantage. He held off Bakaj to score his fifth win of the season. Bakaj, George Nocera, and (at that time, apparently) Lane rounded out the board. Now what happened to Lane? He was scored as last on the results page, and I hadn't heard anything about it.

Afterwards, we switched over to the land of the fullbodied autos with the Late Models. There were only three cautions, but there was time to make a move or two inbetween the second and third ones. But let's start at the beginning with this. The front two for most of the race were Scott Cook and Brian Chapin from the early stages of the race (through a lap-9 accident on the backstretch involving five drivers and a lap-11 caution where Patrick Townsend basically went up in smoke). But Ryan Posocco was coming through the field. He was third by the time the second caution came out, and he passed Chapin on lap-25. Meanwhile, Cook's lead had been erased after a lap-26 caution involved the likes of Mike Mordino, Doug Blowers, Jr, and Victor Pomerleau. Cook would eventually lose the lead on lap-27 to Posocco, and that would be the end of this race. Posocco took down his second win of the season, with the rest of the board reading as follows: Cook, Michael Bennett, and Wayne Coury, Jr.

Following them were the Limited Late Models. Jeff Hubbell was the leader for the first two laps of the race, but that's exactly how long it was before the first caution of the event. Lauren Cooper spun in turn three, bringing the yellow out for the field to see. Both Charlie Newman and Rob Dow moved past Hubbell on the restart while Hubbell started to slide backwards through the field. The next caution was on lap-9, when Kevin Gambacorta spun on the backstretch. On the very next lap, debris (not dirt!) was spotted on the frontstretch. It was the front bumper from someone's car; and for the record, I do not know whose front it was. But it was big enough to bring out the caution, so it did. Newman was once again out front on the restart, and Dow was once again behind him. But two laps later, it was back to yellow as Carla Botticello and Darrin Havanec were in an accident in turn four. The very next lap brought another caution, and it was Botticello once again. This time, she spun on the backstretch. The final restart saw Newman and Dow back out front respectively, with nobody posing a challenge to either one of the two drivers. It would be like that as they crossed the finish line; Newman winning his first race of the season, and Dow coming in second. Michael Nadeau finished third, and David Capriati in fourth.

Back to the open-wheeled gang with the SK Modifieds. The feature last week wasn't as chaotic as it had been in recent weeks, but there was tons of action to write about, especially in the second half of the race. The first half of the race was smoother than a baby's bottom, with the top-three cars running away from the field -- Doug Coby, who led all of the laps through this point in time, Kenny Horton, and Frank Ruocco. But a caution on lap-22 erased the lead that the three of them had on the rest of the field, when Woody Pitkat, Brad Hietala, and Willie Hardie wrecked on the backstretch. Coby would lose his lead on the restart, as Ruocco would get by him. But behind them, the chaos was just getting started. On lap-24, Todd Owen would spin in turn four to bring out the caution once again. The restart would go in Ruocco's favor, with Coby starting to slip back until both Keith Rocco and Ted Christopher would move by him for second and third respectively on lap-27. They went back to yellow on lap-29 after Bo Gunning spun in turn four. Five laps later, with Ruocco still in the lead, the cars of Gunning, Pitkat, and Zach Sylvester got together for yet another caution; this time, coming out of turn four. On lap-37, Wade Mattesen spun in turn four. And on the very next lap, two incidents: The first of which being for Horton spinning on the backstretch; the second being for a multi-car accident coming out of four. Every restart, it was either Christopher or Rocco on the outside. And on every restart, it was Ruocco taking advantage. The true battle was for second, but Christopher seemed to slip back. Rocco had one last shot to get around Ruocco on the final lap, but it wasn't going to happen. It was the first win of the season for Ruocco, followed by Rocco, Tom Bolles, and Christopher.

Finally, we came to the DARE Stocks. This may indeed be the shortest "feature" recap I've done this season. Reason? Green to checker. How'd we get that way? Jesse Hinze held the lead from the drop of the opening green flag to lap-7 when Todd LaPorta took over. LaPorta wasn't the only one to go around Hinze, as both Don Wood and Dan Flannery followed. On lap-11, Flannery moved past Wood for second, and on the very next lap, went past LaPorta for the lead. Wood would also make the move around LaPorta, but Flannery would hold him off to become the second multiple-race winner in the division this season. Wood finished second, followed by Jeff Jolly and Scott Roy.

In other news, the CARQuest Extreme Tuesday was held. Didn't go, but I thought it would be nice to list the winners: Chris Perley in the ISMAs, Bobby Santos, III in the NEMAs, and Norm Wrenn in the Pro-4 Modifieds.

And that's going to be it for this week. I know, I know. I should try to be more punctual with this kind of thing. (If it makes me happy, I would blame the heat. But I did that last year...) So you know what's going to happen tomorrow, right? A regular week of action awaits with only three of the five divisions going out for heats. The schedule is up for those of you who are looking for it. Until tomorrow, stay safe and dry.

Late Model 100 and Other Features

So much to talk about and not much time to do it in! I admit to wanting to start this yesterday, but I had spent too much time doing things that, in most people's minds, may have been personal. I come here strictly on business, however; ready to get this going. In this week's edition: The biggest race of the night was (in my opinion) anything but, because a race previous stole the stage as the most dramatic. I think it's time to open up the floodgates and release the hounds. Or, in other words, open up the notes and give you the (somewhat late) tale of the Late Model 100 and the rest of the features.

We'll start with the Limited Late Models. They went over the line with the time limit in the race previous to this one. I assure you that nobody had to play the time limit card with this race. This story can't start where the last one left off, because we were starting anew and starting from the point in time in the previous feature might not work out in the end. Michael Nadeau held down the fort for the first four laps, but a caution four laps in the race bunched the field back up; the caution was for Lauren Cooper who spun in turn four. Again, it was Nadeau out in front. But this duration was for only three more laps as Sean Foster wrecked on the frontstretch to bring out the caution for the second time. The final caution occured on lap-12 when Jeff Hubbell spun on the backstretch. Not too long after the restart, Joey Ferrigno worked his way around Nadeau, bringing both Kevin Gambacorta and Bill Davis with him. Gambacorta and Davis battled with each other, giving Ferrigno all of the comfort room in the world... Or at least as much as necessary so he could take down the win. Gambacorta won the battle for second, with Davis and Nadeau coming in third and fourth respectively.

There was a slight diversion from the features so the Late Models could run in their 16-lap last chance qualifier kind of event. There was only one caution in the entire event; brought to you on the very first lap of the event and in the first turn. Those involved (either directly or indirectly) were Mike Connelly, Rick Charette, John Warren, and Kyle Nosal. (I have him written down, but why isn't he on the finishing order?) Other than that, you had two leaders: Doug Blowers, Jr, who lead the first eight laps, and Michael Bennett, who lead everything else to pick up the win. Rounding out the top-four were Dillon Moltz (who wound up being disqualified from the original heat race, hence the transfer into the 16), Blowers, and Mike Quintiliano.

The open-wheeled portion of the night now rolled around, beginning with the SK Lights. We started with Harry Wheeler out in front, and like the first two races, there was an early caution that forced the field to slow down. The first caution for this race was on lap-2 after Kyle Spencer and Tommy Membrino, who spun coming out of turn two. On the very next lap, the caution came out for debris. When lap-4 rolled around, Joe Allegro, Jr moved past Wheeler for the lead. But again, the caution came out. And it came out on lap-6, when Shawn Brule spun in turn two. Back to green, and it was Allegro still out in front. This next green flag run lasted from the restart until lap-12 when Membrino spun once again; this time, in turns three and four. Three laps later, Ted Cain and Rick Burwood brought out the caution yet again via a two car accident in turn four. The last yellow occured only three laps later as Brule stalled up in turn three (don't know exactly what happened). On the restart, Mark Bakaj took over the lead and held off the challenge of Allegro to win his second race of the season. Chris Matthews and Neil Provost, Jr rounded out the rest of the top-four.

In a performance that will once again recieve the "most chaotic race of the evening" award, we bring forth the SK Modifieds. Where should I start with this one? At the top. The leader for the first four laps of the race was Doug Coby, before giving way to Woody Pitkat on lap-4. And that's when everything begins. On lap-5, Kenny Horton spun in turn two. The onsuing restart was the only restart that led to a false start in the whole night, so they had to do it all over again. Thankfully, the attempt was successful and Pitkat once again jumped back into the lead. The next caution wouldn't occur until lap-16 when Wade Mattesen and Brad Hietala spun in turns one and two. Two laps later, the caution came out again for a three car accident on the backstretch involving Bo Gunning, Steven Reed, and Frank Ruocco. (I have a sudden urge to write a Bingo reference, if you kind of know what I mean.) Back to the action up front, and we still find Pitkat up front. Again, the caution flew two laps later for Willie Hardie spinning in turn four. Pitkat was back out front, but again, the field would see yellow. This time, it would fall on lap-29 as Glenn Griswold spun in turns three and four. The restart remained the same: Pitkat in front; yet more gold would be displayed on lap-32 when Ted Christopher spun in turn two. If you think that we were done here, we were far from done. Lap-39 gave us two incidents. The first of which had Chris Jones at a sudden and dead stop on the backstretch. Again, the second attempt wasn't so successful as Tom Bolles and Jimmy Blewett were involved in a crazy incident on the backstretch. Bolles was going backwards down the backstretch and didn't hit a thing, which is officially a nominee for save of the year. Of course, that set up a two-lap dash to the finish. Pitkat held off Keith Rocco to win his first race of the season. Rocco, Jeff Malave, and Todd Owen rounded out the top-four.

And now, we come to the feature attraction of the evening: The Late Model 100. For some reason, I always think that extra distance races take forever and a day to complete. After this race? Boy, was I ever wrong. Scott Cook held the lead for the first three laps before the caution came out on lap-3. The yellow flew for Doug Blowers, Jr, who spun and kind of got into his own little accident in turn three. On the restart, it was Cook out in front once again, and he would hold a solid lead at one point until lap-19 when Brian Chapin sent him spinning in turns one and two, bringing out the second of few cautions. Chapin would be black flagged for sending Cook around, giving the lead to Corey Hutchings. And that's when the green parade started. The next lead change didn't occur until lap-27, when Hutchings lost the lead to Joe Rzeszutek. Rzeszutek had the lead until lap-67, when Dillon Moltz made his way through the field to claim the top spot. After that, nobody was able to catch Moltz. The rest of the race ran caution-free, though there was almost a moment with two laps to go when someone got loose going down the frontstretch. Thankfully, whomever it was managed to keep the car straight, and the final two ticked away with Moltz winning his third straight race of the season. Finishing off the board were Rzeszutek, Hutchings, and Ryan Posocco.

Concluding the program were the DARE Stocks. Cliff Saunders held the lead from the first lap to the fourth lap, but the first (and only) lead change of the race occured on lap-5 when Robert Thompson eventually took over. There was only one "true" caution in the event, happening on lap-6, when John Lampro, Jr apparently blowing an engine. The caution didn't come out until he was in turn one, but whatever was dumped on the track was down the frontstretch a ways. The rest of the race ran caution free, except I stated that there was only one "true" caution since the race finished under a yellow/checker because Tony Membrino, Jr had hit the wall in turn two. That brought out both the yellow and the caution flags (strange), and that put Thompson in victory lane for the first time in his career. The rest of the board showed Norm Sears, Scott Roy, and Don Wood.

Well, that would be it for this week's little thing. (Though I don't think "little" is the proper term. I digress.) I shall pop in here quickly to remind you that there shall be more racing tomorrow -- if necessary, of course. There will be fireworks in the skies if there isn't already some before we get the program started. The schedule is at the usual spot, so that's all I have to say for this week. Stay safe and dry, and I hope to see you tomorrow.

The Trip to Loudon

I'll get to the usual bits of information later this week (read: before Thursday gets here!), but I'm here today because I come with my own coverage of the Saturday portion of Loudon weekend.

When I went in 2007, I went in sunshine and warm weather. Hate to tell you, but this time around, it was the complete opposite. Foggy on the trip up, and cloudy all day. Cooler than usual. Oh, and did I mention that on the way home, there was rain? Yeah, I guess you can't always have a Kodak moment.

When I find time this week, I'll put some videos up on YouTube. Two of them are videos I took of the Sprint Cup and their final practice -- if you don't know what it's like to stand on down near the frontstretch as anything speeds by you at 100+ miles an hour, the first of the clips will be for you. It's almost like an adrenaline rush. The other footage of final practice was from my seat 25 rows up in turn one (surprise!).

The first of the two races was the Whelen Modified Tour, and it came with the closest race I have ever seen in the history of me seeing these guys race. Ted Christopher had a really good car, and a good number of his passes came while going into turn three, but it was overshadowed by the very end of the race.

Another YouTube clip shall follow, hopefully, but this one is the last lap of the event followed by my commentary after the fact. And it was Chuck Hossfeld coming out on top over Christopher. The difference was a very close .002 seconds. Other than that, the video's speaking for itself.

The other race was the Nationwide Series event, and there was also something along the lines of last lap dramatics. Unlike the Modifieds, however, it was more like a last lap yellow. The winner of the second race, after leading a good portion of the race, was Tony Stewart.


The report from home on Sunday was another story. The rains came and ended the Sprint Cup race prematurely. Stewart was the front runner and ended up leading the most laps, but Kurt Busch ended up winning the race.

Hate to cut this short, but that's all I'm able to tell you. Like I said before, I'll get to the weekly blog as soon as possible -- Monday I'm starting. So until then, stay safe and dry.

A Regular Week Was Anything But

So, here we go! Another solid week of racing occured at Stafford this past Friday night. Sure, it was the first regular program of the season, but it didn't truly feel like a regular program. Sure, there happened to be fireworks in the sky, but there were more than fireworks in the sky and there were plenty of them on the track. First off, rain came and cleaned out all hope of trying to get qualifying in. The track was left with a features-only kind of night. Yet with that, we didn't get out until a later time (read as: after 11).

Coming up: One race has to end under the influence of a yellow/checker situation; though it's not what you think it is, someone gets the ax from the board in the Late Models, the SK Modifieds have their wildest feature of the season to date. I'm pretty sure that the title of this entry here sure does fit the mood, so with that all said, I'll say we get right into the important stuff. Like the features.

First up on the agenda: The DARE Stocks. The first eleven laps of the race ran fairly smoothly. Vince Gambacorta lead the first five laps, then gave way to Matt Chiarizio. On lap-8, there would be another lead change when Scott Roy challenged Chiarizio for the lead and won. Roy would now be out in front and would remain there as the caution came out on lap-12 for a two-car accident. Bill Dunn ended up on the frontstretch while Todd LaPorta wound up stopped in turn one, bringing out the yellow. (Other cars may or may not have been involved in the accident. The two drivers who are listed are the only two I remember and wrote down.) As the green came back out, Roy went back out in front and he would win his first feature of the season. (The track's summary says "several restart situations". Not true. It was one restart.) Finishing off the board were Dan Flannery, Chiarizio, and Norm Sears.

Your next feature to take to the track were the SK Lights. After a special 15-lap event on the 13th, they were back to a normal 20-lap feature. Usually, a good number of cars are wrecked and torn up by the time this event is over. Not this week. Starting at the top like we always do, we find that Harry Wheeler assumed the top spot early on in the race. He would have a half-straightaway lead at one point during the race, but both David Webb and Chris Matthews caught up fast. Matthews was able to pass Webb and then Wheeler by lap-16, but he was only out in front for two laps before two cautions came out on consecutive laps. On lap-18, Heather DesRochers became the victim of a one-car accident in turn one; and on the very next lap, it was Ted Cain spinning in turn four. And on both of those restarts, Matthews would have little to no contest. He would score his fourth win of the season, followed by Alan Provost, Wheeler, and Raymond Grassetti.

And now, a possible candidate for "Most Outrageous Race"... The Limited Late Models were next to show what they were made of. Let me tell you, this race does not end the same way the first two had. They didn't even get a full lap in under green before the caution came out. a spin/accident combination in turns three and four was reason for the yellow, courtesy of Shawn Thibeault and Carla Botticello. (It was more like a spin as both cars were able to drive out of there.) When the race went back to green, it was Darrin Havanec in the lead, and for three laps. On lap-3, the caution came back out for a multi-car spin in turn two. I couldn't tell you who was in that one (sorry), because everyone drove off. Havanec pulled back out to the lead on the restart, but again, the caution would come out. It was on lap-5, and again, it was for Botticello spinning in turn two. Another quick yellow, this was, and we were back to green with Havanec in the lead. But Ed Charette, Jr was coming, and not too long after the restart (the next lap), he passed Havanec for the lead. The caution would come back out on lap-8 when Michael Nadeau spun in turn four. After yet another yellow, the track was cleared quick enough to get the race back underway. A lap or two after the restart, Bill Davis would make his bid for the lead count by passing Charette. And this is where chaos starts. Four cautions in four laps would slow everything down. The madness started on lap-11, when Joey Ferrigno would have a problem and sail up to the wall in turn two. On lap-12, Charette and David Capriati spun in turns one and two. The restart on lap-12 didn't exactly work out, as there was a multi-car accident on the backstretch. The word on the street was that if another yellow came out, the race would stop there because of the time limit (that I didn't know was imposed). Wouldn't you know it -- on lap-14, the caution came out one final time. This time, it came out for Michael Chaves and Robert Dow, who wrecked on the frontstretch. So not only did the yellow fly, but the checkered flag came out with it. In front at the time of the final caution was Davis, and he would be the winner of the event. The rest of the board would be Charlie Newman, Havanec, and Charette.

Another candidate for "Most Outrageous Race" would be the SK Modifieds, who took to the track not too long after everything was squared away with the Limited Late Models. I hate to admit it, but where's smoke, there's (proverbial) fire; and the SKs showed that it was very much the case in this feature. We start with Doug Coby holding down the fort as the leader of the event for the first two laps before the first yellow came out for a four-car accident in turn three. Those involved were Corey Hutchings, Billy Bolton, Willie Hardie, and Brad Hietala. (Technically, people did drive away from the scene.) Back up front, it would be Coby back out and into the lead; but he would end up losing the lead after a caution in turn two and on the backstretch on lap-7, which also involved Richie Pallai, Jr, Glenn Griswold, and Brett Gonyaw. This gave the lead to Woody Pitkat, and his reign in the front officially began. It came to a quick halt on lap-11 as Bo Gunning apparently blew up in turn two, sending the field back under yellow. Pitkat would be back out in front on the restart, but again it would be short-lived when a multi-car accident in turn three put the field back into a caution state of mind on lap-12. On lap-15, Kenny Horton was stuck up high in turn four; and on lap-19, it was Wade Mattesen in the same predicament, but in both turns three and four. Another lead change occured on the lap-19 restart: Keith Rocco took over for Pitkat; yet for Pitkat, things would start to take a turn for the bad later on. At the lap-25 mark, Ted Christopher would now assume the lead after passing Rocco. The next caution would come on lap-27 for Pitkat, who spun in turns three and four. Now at this time, while Christopher was still up in front, controversy ensues. Christopher spins in turns three and four on lap-29, giving the lead back to Rocco. But Jeff Malave was black flagged for turning TC around, and they'd both have to go to the back of the field. So now that Rocco was back out in front and things were all sorted out, would things start to calm down? Not in the slightest bit. Bolton would spin again on lap-32 in turn two; Coby would spin (again) in turns three and four on lap-35; and then a four car accident took place on the frontstretch on lap-37. Those drivers involved in the four-car wreck (not all of those involved had serious damage) were Kirk Zervas, Todd Owen, Woody Pitkat, and Coby. Two laps later, with Rocco still out front, Bolton spun one more time in turn four to set up a two lap race to the finish. At this time, Christopher had caught back up to the front, yet he couldn't find a way to get around Rocco for the win. Rocco won his first win of the season, followed by Christopher, Jimmy Blewett, and Tom Bolles.

At long last, the Late Models took their turn. Scott Cook held the early lead before rendering it over to Corey Hutchings after the first few laps. (I'm not sure when the lead change was. Excuse me.) The first caution took place on lap-8 when Scott Foster, Jr and Tom Fearn spun in turn one and two. On the very next lap, it was another two-car spin; it was in turn two and it involved Duane Noll and Walt Wosko, Jr. Another lead change occured on lap-13 when Michael Bennett got around Hutchings, but the joyride would come to a stop on lap-18 when the caution came out for dirt in turn two. (Yellows for dirt on the track have been like frequent flyer miles lately.) Going back to green, Dillon Moltz was coming, and on lap-20, he made the move around Bennett. That would be the pass for the win, as Moltz took down the win; his second of the season and in a row. Bennett would finish second, followed by Mike Mordino and Ryan Posocco. But the board would not stay like that after Tech, and Mordino was disqualfied because his car did not meet the minimum frame height requirement.

And here we are. Since tomorrow is Friday, it's race day then! And to kick off the weekend, we're going to have a special occasion. The Late Models are going to have their first 100-lap event of the season. I'm sure you'd like the schedule, so if you click that link, you'll go there. I'll be back next week with news on the Extreme Tuesday event going on in two weeks, and if the weather cooperates, I'll be including a little thing about my second trip up to New Hampshire for the combination Whelen Modified Tour/Nationwide Series event. But for now, let's focus on Friday's event. Until then, stay safe and dry; and I hope to see you at the track.

Rocco Nearly Lost It... Yet Now Leads Standings

I'm in the middle of doing my weekly entry, but I found this piece of information interesting. So I'm bringing it up.

There was nearly a disqualification after the SK Modified race Friday night. News came out today (Tuesday) about Keith Rocco's brake cooling ducts. It was a question as to whether or not they were a problem. Pictures were taken and sent down to NASCAR. The parts were legal. But they were not the only parts in question. Other parts on Rocco's car that raised eyebrows were the crankshaft, rods, and pistons. Woody Pitkat's team felt there was a problem with those, and officials did an extensive check-up which came up empty handed.

Since the win still holds up, Rocco holds first place in the Whelen All-American Series national standings.

NASCAR: New England Starts on Saturday

I'll start working on my blog entry this week right after this one. I'm just here to quickly remind you that if you get NESN -- that's the New England Sports Network, home to the Red Sox and Bruins -- then you can watch NASCAR: New England every Saturday for the next ten weeks. The season starts this Saturday at 4pm EST. I hear that the premiere episode this season is the SK Modified race from Spring Sizzler weekend, so if you're not busy, please go check it out! Now onto writing up that weekly entry!

NHRA News

Your weekly entry is going to come this week; don't worry about that. This special Saturday night entry is coming to you with some saddening news from the NHRA front. Yes, they're still having their races this weekend in New Jersey. And yes, this weekend will be dedicated to a fallen racer. A fallen comrade. Regardless of what one may drive on a weekly basis; regardless of what one may root for on a daily basis; the racing community has always come together to praise the life of another racer. This is no different.

Tomorrow, the show will go on. On in memory of Scott Kalitta.

If you've seen the video of the crash that aired at 7pm EST, I hope you never have to see the crash video ever again. If you're one of the ones who hasn't gotten a chance to see the tape, I hope you don't have to watch it. I viewed it, and I nearly felt like crying. That feeling of sadness came to me quick, almost to the moment I saw what had exactly happened. To be quite honest with you, I will not go into detail about what has happened or had happened.

It all happened, however, while one person was doing what he loved to do. He died doing something that was in his blood.

He made it into the show through the qualifying run that took his life. In the tree that came out, as qualifying is now stopped, he was seeded 13th. At this moment, that's not the most important thing. My thoughts are with his family and the entire NHRA side of the racing spectrum.

100 in the 100

This is just a preview of what's coming up in this week's installment of the blog. Also coming in this story: Red flags in back to back races, a disqualification in the biggest race of the night (someone who's up on the board doesn't finish on the board for long), and I apologize about something I went and said in a past week or two. With that said, are you ready? Great. Let's get this going, then!

We just jumped right into the swing of things with the first feature of the evening. That was the Late Model's make up race from way back when. Okay, so it was originally scheduled for May 23, but I think you get the point. Michael Bennett would get the early jump in this one, but when there's a car that wants to do good, there's always something that stops him. No, the caution three laps into the race did not come out thanks to the leader, but it was for Kyle Nosal who spun in turn one. It was a quick caution, and the race resumed with Bennett still out in front. The race would be green up until the halfway point, where Brian Chapin was in a minor accident in turn three, which brought out the caution again. Again, it would be Bennett out in front, but he would have some competition when Ryan Posocco would try to find a way to get by Bennett. It would be no use, and it would be Bennett taking his first win of the season. Posocco finished second, followed by Dillon Moltz and Mike Quintiliano. (And I admit to not catching this part, but after Bennett won the race, he parked the car near the wall in turn one, got out, and showed off the rear deck lid that has a memorial to the late Dave Rowe. The race would be dedicated to him.

There were some heats to take care of (in the name of the SK Lights), but after that, it was back to business. And when we picked back up with the features, we were going to have the DARE Stocks come out for their race. We did. Bill Dunn gained possession of the lead early and would lead until lap-4 as Robert Thompson got into an accident on the frontstretch. Everything was cleaned up, the field went back to green, and it was Dunn back out front. Your next caution took place on lap-11 when Matt Davis spun in turn one. Dunn would once again get back out in front, but we would only get to lap-13 before the next caution, involving Kyle Casagrande and Megan Bienkowski, who wrecked on the frontstretch. After extensive cleanup, the race would resume for the final few laps. It wasn't a race for the win -- Dunn took down his first win of the season. The true battle was for second, with Jeff Jolly and John Kasper dueling it out over the last laps. Jolly would just get over the line by a nose over Kaspar for second and third respectively, with Peter Bourque in fourth.

The next race on the agenda would be the Limited Late Models. But it comes with a price, and that price was on the opening lap as there was a multi-car spin/accident in turns three and four. Drivers involved in this included (and may or may not be the only four involved) Charlie Newman, Joey Ferrigno, Greg Butler, Jr, and Lori-Jo Rzeszutek. (Please don't shoot the messenger here if I put down any wrong numbers in my notes. I feel as though it happens all of the time.) Meanwhile, up in front, it was Darrin Havanec up front and in the lead until another caution came out on lap-11 when Robert Dow, Michael Nadeau, and Shawn Thibeault caused an accident in turn two. Havanec would hold the lead again, but the lead would soon belong to Sean Foster on lap-13. Foster would not have any competition as he would win his first race of the season. Rounding out the top-four were Andrew Durand, Ed Charette, and Bill Davis.

Kids, it was finally time for the biggest race of the evening. (No other race, in my opinion, could live up to that title.) It was time for the SK Modified 100 to get underway. Last year, there were a grand total of 13 cautions. (Yeah, I feel the irony regarding this already.) Significantly less in terms of yellows this time around, I can assure you of that. Let's start at the top, shall we? Doug Coby lead the first three laps of this race until Todd Owen took control on lap-4. Owen would have the lead for what seemed like an eternity -- well, nearly a full regular-length SK Modified feature. We wouldn't have our first yellow until lap-39 when Bo Gunning spun on the frontrstretch. Alongside of Owen for the restart was Ted Christopher, and he took over the lead on the restart. The next green flag session would turn out to be a short one as there was a multi-car accident on the frontstretch on lap-41, bringing out the next caution. Christopher would once again put himself out front, and this is where we had the second of two long greens of the event. Into the picture came both Chris Jones and Woody Pitkat, and in this green flag run, the leaders would start to run into the potential lapped traffic. Thankfully, nothing happened as cars were being lapped by the leaders other than the whole "being lapped" thing. Okay, without getting too carried away, the next caution wouldn't be until lap-90, and that would be for Eric Berndt, Brad Hietala, and Jimmy Blewett in a three car accident in turns three and four. The field tried the restart, and that didn't settle so well for quite a few cars. I'm calling it a multi-car accident in turn one. But anyway, it came down to Christopher and Pitkat in a ten-lap race to the finish. Pitkat would close in on Christopher multiple times before the end of the race, but he just couldn't pull off a pass. Call me crazy, but it was the 13th day of the year and the 100, but however you look at it, it was Christopher in victory lane for the second time in '08. Pitkat would finish second, followed by Tom Bolles and Keith Rocco. Christopher was awarded a plaque in honor of the milestone, and his name will grace section A of the general admission grandstands. (Section A is to the far right of the stands when you walk onto the midway from the ticket booth, all the way down at the turn one end.) Meanwhile, the boys in Technical Inspection had other ideas about the rest of the board. Upon inspection of Pitkat's car, they found that the car did not meet the minimum frame height requirement, and he was dropped to last place in the finishing order.

Next up on the schedule, it was the SK Lights. Apparently this 15-lap feature they had Friday was "special" since they were going to go back to a 20-lap feature for the next program (more on that later). But they had to race this race first, and I'm going to state that I think it was anything but a race. Anyway, let's start with the facts: Heather DesRochers had the lead for the first two laps of the race until a yellow came out for David Webb, who spun on the frontstretch. They tried again on the restart, but couldn't get the full lap in as the caution came out again for Harry Wheeler, Todd Clark, and Tommy Membrino, Jr, who were involved in a three-car accident in turn three. On lap-4, Alan Provost took the lead from DesRochers, but the lead would last for a lap as (once again) the caution came out for a two-car accident with Shawn Brule and Tony Santangelo. The very next lap would provide the biggest fireworks of the night. There was a multi-car accident in turn four, but that wasn't the worst part of it. The worst part was when a fire ignited in the mass of cars that had been stacked up against the wall in the turn, coming from what Mark Bakaj's car. Everyone walked away from the incident, but the red flag came out because of the fire. It took (maybe) a good five to ten minutes to get everything cleaned up. And when it did, the race was back underway. Provost jumped back in the lead and would hold it until lap-10 as debris in turn four sent the field back into a yellow state of mind. Again, it got cleaned up and it was back to green. The rest of the race ran smoothly, and it was Provost who would win his first race of the season. Rounding out the rest of the board were Joe Allegro, Jr, John Walmsley, and Adam Skowyra.

Finally, the stage was set for the final race of the evening. We went back to the Late Models as they had to run their race that was originally scheduled for the sixth of the month. It all started off with Tom Fearn leading the first two laps, but Dillon Moltz took over possession of the lead. Corey Hutchings would follow Moltz and attempt to challenge him for the lead on a few restarts towards the end of the race. He had three shots to do so. The first shot was on lap-22 after Kyle Nosal, Brian Chapin, and Walt Wosko, Jr gave us a combination spin/accident kind of thing in turns three and four. On the restart, Hutchings and Moltz battled for the lead, but Moltz edged out Hutchings coming out of two and away he went. That lead would be short lived because of another caution that came out four laps later. More spin/accident problems occured, this time in turn two and courtesy of Nosal, Doug Blowers, Jr, and Dave Wray. For the third straight race, they tried a restart on the same lap, and that didn't work out the way anyone would have wanted it to. Woody Pitkat, Blowers, and Don Acker, Jr brought out the third caution on the same lap after an accident in turn three. This time, however, the red flag had to come out so that the track safety team could attempt to fix the fence. (Though I swear that it was to fix the fence over in turn two, but that just may have been an incorrect notion on my part.) After another lengthy yellow, Hutchings and Moltz would do battle for the lead one final time, and it was Moltz to come out on top in both that battle and overall as he would take down his first win of the season. Mike Quintiliano would get by Hutchings for second, leaving Hutchings for third, while Ryan Posocco finished fourth.

Okay, now it's time to apologize for something I said in an earlier entry. Two weeks ago, I went on and gave you a rant about stuff that happened during the 5/30 SK Modified feature event. I was angry about people getting positions back that (in my opinion) shouldn't have, and I got confirmation from someone who had evidence of the events in question that what I thought was a complete misunderstanding. I heard from my source that coming to a near complete stop when there is an accident right in front of you does not necessarily mean that you're involved in the caution. I heard one thing, but another thing happened, and I let my opinions loose two entries ago. It was my bad for saying what I said, and next time I hear something, I'll try to confirm that it did or did not happen there so I don't look foolish two weeks later. Again, I'm sorry about my heart being on my sleeve, and I promise that it won't happen again.

Now that we've gotten that taken care of, I'd like to inform you that tomorrow is Friday! I hear that it's supposed to be a regular program (weather permitting) with fireworks in the skies at dark. Anyone under the age of 14 who is under the watch of an adult will get in for no charge at all. SK Lights are not going to qualify, and I don't know why this is going to be the case, but that's what the schedule says and I'll use it as gospel. So if we don't get postponed or cancelled tomorrow, I'll see you at the track. If you're going out over the weekend to the Travelers, have a safe trip. For hockey fans, the NHL draft is on Friday night and Saturday morning and afternoon, so in the event of the wet stuff, you can check that out on Versus at about 7:00pm Friday (first round) and NHL.com at around 9:45am Saturday (second round). So whatever you decide to do, stay safe and dry and I will definitely have something written up this weekend.

Clarifications

The proverbial "police blotter" was released recently. I've been brought up to date with my notes from this past week. Let's give you the information.

I had in my notes that Tony Santangelo had originally finished second in the SK Light feature, but the finishing order on the track's site proved otherwise. That listed that he finished 17th. The penalty page states that he "spun the leader during the feature" and was "removed from position and placed to 17th in the final finish order". Don't blame the messenger for that one, kiddies. I didn't know what the reason was until tonight.

And in other "noteworthiness"... Scott Cook was the other driver to have a noteworthy penalty. It says "actions detrimental to the sport of auto racing". Usually, that carries a penalty of a week off (usually, not all of the time). But listed under penalties? "Disqualified for the remainder of the evening." Look, I clearly failed to see what exactly happened here. So don't come and serve me my butt on a silver platter here because I can't tell you exactly what I think about this.

Other than that, there was the usual case of rough riding penalties.

15 for the SK Lights?

I rechecked the track's site to see if I missed anything I wasn't supposed to miss this week (only because I got everything taken care of early with what happened on Friday and all), and it finally comes to me:

A 15-lap SK Light Modified feature event has also been added to the Friday, June 13th schedule.

Now, hold on here. For the past four races, they've had one race go over the time limit. Is it back to the reason of "too many cautions"? They've had an average of 4.2 yellows per event (I did the math), but there's nothing that proves or disproves this.

And the schedule of events even says so, so I don't know if they're really racing a 15-lap feature. More on this story when Friday rolls around... I hope.

Schedule's Out

The schedule is out for Friday night's program. I thought that they were only going to take care of what they had to take care of (ie: make up races), but man, I was wrong.

You want the SK 100, two Late Model races, the make-up DARE Stock and Limited Late Model races from last week, all while putting in a feature for the SK Lights? That doesn't make a hint of sense. At the rate this is going, I'd imagine that the Lights will be up to five features this season. Nobody else will have run that many races at this point in time.

By the way, it would be nice if the starting lineups for the four races not run next week could be posted on the track's site. You know, I don't want to be surprised to see something I'm not expecting to see.

Anyway, we'll try this all over again at the end of the week (weather permitting). Until then, stay cool.

We Got Some Stuff In...

Hey! I hope you guys (and girls) had a semi-good Friday evening, because we didn't get much done. More on that after the quickest recap session of the season so far. A consolation race and a feature were all that had been noted during what was supposed to be the night of the SK Modified 100. So with that under our belts, I'm going to give you those recaps now.

We started the night off with the Late Model 16 event, and it was Scott Cook who led things off with the lead at the start of the race. The lead would be his for three laps before the first caution came out for the trio of David St. Amant, Tom Butler, and JJ Hill, who were involved in an accident on the backstretch. All three of them would be done for that race, but they would be qualified for the feature. Meanwhile, Cook regained possession of the lead on the restart, but coming up behind him was Ryan Posocco. On lap-16, the two would touch and Cook would be sent for a spin in the grass on the frontstretch, and that would bring out the second caution of the event. Posocco would be black flagged for that, and that would give the lead to Don Acker, Jr. The final laps would run without interruption, meaning Acker would take down the win. He was followed by Patrick Townsend, Brian Chapin, and Mark St. Hilaire.

After that, it was time for the first (and only) feature of the night: That of the SK Lights. Your leader at the drop of the green was Heather DesRochers, but it wasn't long before she would give way to Tony Santangelo. (I forget what lap the lead change took place on. I was getting out of the paddock area right at the drop of the green and made the trek to my usual seat while the early green session was going on. I was paying attention to the race, I swear.) Anyway, Santangelo would be in the lead on lap-11 as a pair of spins brought out the yellow -- okay, at least one of them did. Steve Zukowski spun on the frontstretch while Tony Membrino, Jr spun in turn four. (They would both wind up going to the back of the field.) The green came back out with Santangelo still in the lead, but the lead would only last for three laps as Shawn Brule spun in turn two, sending the field into the second caution of the event. On the restart, it was Neil Provost, Jr getting the lead from Santangelo, yet this would be a three-lap excursion at the front as a third caution came out. This time, it was for a multi-car accident in turns three and four. The green came back out, and one lap later, Neil (first name basis here because of possible confusion factor) would get loose or something. This put Santangelo back out in front, but he wouldn't have the lead for long. As the very next lap came along, Chris Matthews passed Santangelo for the read. Santangelo would make one more move to try to get around Matthews, but it wasn't going to work. Matthews would win his third feature of the season, followed by Santangelo, Ted Cain, and George Nocera. (Now what's going on with the finishing order on the track's site? They have Santangelo finishing 17th...)

At this time, the Late Model crews came out onto the track and into the infield, getting all set up for their feature. But fog was starting to roll in and there was a mist in the air. Stafford decided to pull the plug on the night's activities. But the rest of the event (plus a bonus race) will be run next week. The SK 100 and the other three races that were still on the schedule at the time of the postponement will be run along with the Late Model race that was supposed to be run all the way back on May 23. Oh, and as far as I know, they don't need to qualify for anything, and it should be features only.

Regardless of what the schedule is supposed to look like (and I'll make sure to write something in regards to that and any possible clarifications in regards to the stuff I wrote this week), we'll try the big race all over again... Weather permitting. I know, it's hot now. But until then, stay safe, dry if it rains, and cool since it's going to be muggy and steamy.

And the Thunder Rolls. [Still Racing as of 9:25]

Did you hear them? I'm sure those near where I live could. That was the sound of thunder over my head. It was pretty loud, to tell you the truth. But it's gone, and according to my sources (Weather Channel, since it was the only station actually giving me a weather report at about 9:30 in the morning), it'll be isolated if they do come back. It's a shot in the dark with the thunderstorms, but hell... It should be a nice night. It won't be raining later tonight. Should be all good there.

Meanwhile, the track's site carries a last update time of 9:25, with "56 degrees under overcast skies". They say we're going racing; I'd like to see the report in a few minutes if they decide to update it. They'd have to dry the track somehow, because it's not going to be warm enough to dry the track using nothing but mother nature. When I get a better update from the site, I'll post it. If I don't wind up posting, take it as "we're still racing tonight" and "I'll see you later tonight".

On the other hand... If we're not, I'll post and tell you otherwise. But this is not otherwise.

[Cliff] Notes From 5/30

I've got so much to write about and not enough time to cover it all! We have to get moving here, or else I'm going to have to work on this during the morning hours on Friday, and I'm not going to want to do that. (I've only worked on it during the early morning hours (ie: midnight), so I know how it feels. Get it delayed past that, and it's a problem.) But anyway, let's discuss the preview for this week's entry: The Limited Late Models run two features, a disqualification spawns from the DARE Stock feature, and possible controversy in the SK Modifieds. Let's not waste any time with this. The green flag is flying over this week's blog.

For the record: It shall be a tad bit different from weeks previous. No, it's not because I don't feel like writing a blog entry this week. I've been in rough shape this week with a lot of things going on. This week's entry will still have everything you'd like to know -- plus a little bit more, in a way -- but in a more condensed format. You want it? Here we go.

Limited Late Model [5/23 make up]
Cautions: Five
Leaders: One
Lead Changes: None
Winner: Rob Dow

DARE Stocks
Cautions: Three
Leaders: Five
Lead Changes: Four
Winner: Dan Flannery

SK Lights
Cautions: Four
Leaders: Three
Lead Changes: Two
Winner: Mark Bakaj

Late Models
Cautions: Six
Leaders: Four
Lead Changes: Three
Winner: Ryan Posocco

SK Modifieds
Cautions: Five
Leaders: Four
Lead Changes: Three
Winner: Bo Gunning

Limited Late Models [5/30]
Cautions: Three
Leaders: Two
Lead Changes: One
Winner: Andrew Durand

Now, here are a few comments from my point of view.

First off, in the DARE Stocks: Though Norm Sears originally finished second in the feature, at some point in the race, he rough rode or overagressed on the track, and therefore, the second place finish was taken away.

Second, in the SK Modifieds (a possible early nomination for "Gripe of the Season"): Did my ears get the better of me, or did I hear that Chris Jones was in a caution with three other cars when the board read "14"? I thought I heard it. The people around me thought they heard it. It just didn't look like it happened if it did, because when the board read "15", guess who was in another accident? Yes, it was Jones. If he was in that accident... If I swear that I heard his name announced as a caution car in the caution previous, would you care to clarify why he got his spot back or at least why he started fifth on the restart before the backstretch wreck? I don't mean to sound like a jerk, but if he wasn't in that caution, please clarify that before the green drops. I stood there in utter amazement (or confusion, or you could add another emotion here) as the green came out because if he was a caution car in the yellow previous, he shouldn't have been up that far. If anybody wants to explain why the ending was what it was, shoot me an e-mail or catch me at the track tomorrow. I shall listen to you, but still, I find this crazy.

Speaking of tomorrow, we've got racing (weather permitting)! If you think that my possible nominee for "Gripe of the Week" was a gripe, you may not have heard it all until this next week passes. I find that 40 laps for the SK Modifieds is cool and all, but I'm getting excited for an extra distance race for them. Tomorrow night is the SK Modified 100. Last season, Woody Pitkat won this race (and the four immediately following it) after pitting with 21 laps to go for tires. Coming back through the field, he overpowered Ted Christopher on a night where he also won the Late Model race in top form. Will this night be any different? Will bad luck reign supreme over those who have suffered through it for long enough, or will it move on to possible and definite top runners? You and I shall find out in a little over a full day. The schedule is here; check it out and I will see you then. I hope.

The TSI 150 That Was Run After Midnight.

In the last "extended" episode of the View From Turn One, it had rained for three straight weeks. Would the track be forced to postpone/cancel a fourth straight program? Well, there was action at the track on Friday as the Whelen Modified Tour continued its tour and the five weekly divisions revived the season. Week two was in progress. Coming up in this entry... Two races on the program are shortened, and the program is in jeopardy because of a minor issue. We start, however, with qualifying for the Whelen Modified Tour's TSI Harley Davidson 150. A grand total of 37 cars were on hand to take time, with only 31 of them actually going into the show later on in the night. Unlike the Spring Sizzler, when all of the cars in attendance were inserted into the lineup, some of these drivers were not going to return. Out of the drivers in attendance, the fastest qualifier happened to be Chuck Hossfeld, who got around the track in 18.132 seconds (equals out to 99.272 miles an hour). 30 other drivers would also be sent into the field through either their fastest time or a provisional, and the stage was officially set for the main event.

But of course, first thing's first.

Pardon my limited knowledge of the first "feature" to roll off for the evening: The Late Model 16. I thought that the article on the track's site would have something about the race, but I've read and reread it. Nothing. So here's what I know happened. There was one caution in the entire event, occuring on lap-5 as Kyle Nosal and Joe Rzeszutek spun/got into an accident coming out of turn four. Other than that, it was pretty much a clean race. Wayne Coury, Jr took down the win, followed by Mike Mordino, James Civali (yeah, you read that right), and Rick Charette. (Again, I'm sorry that I can't tell you more about that race.)

And then, we got into the feature event portion of the program. The fireworks kicked off with the SK Lights and their 20-lap event. Aaron Goff was the leader of the race from the drop of the green flag to lap-6 when he spun in turns three and four to bring out the first caution. That incident gave the lead to John Walmsley, who lead for two laps before giving way to Chris Matthews. Matthews would assume that position for two laps as the second caution of the race came out for Goff and another driver that I cannot remember at the moment. (I know it was a white car.) Back to green, and it was Matthews once again out in front. This lead was only good for three laps, because the cautions just kept right on coming. On lap-13, the chaos began as Ted Cain, Chris Bakaj, and Michael Lane spun in turn one. That was cleaned up (and driven off), and the race resumed... For three turns. The yellow came back out on the restart as a multi-car accident occured in turn three. Again, the caution was out and the field was bunched up. And for the third time on the same lap, the field recieved the green only to see the yellow come out once again. This time, it was for Lane, Joe Allegro, Jr, and a car that I couldn't get in a three-car accident. By this time, however, the field had passed its time limit of twenty minutes, so they got a yellow/checker combination. Matthews was still at the head of the group at the time the race was halted, so he picked up his second straight SK Light race of the season. Walmsley finished second, followed by Mark Bakaj and Harry Wheeler.

As the pit crews and drivers of the SK Modifieds came out onto the track, the safety team was busy trying to fix a piece of fence in the turn two area that was harmed during the SK Light feature. The fence work took some time, but it eventually was fixed and the 40-lap feature for the SKs was underway. It was originally Glenn Griswold on the pole for this feature, but Wade Mattesen made sure that the lead was his when the race started. He'd have the head for the first six laps and the first three cautions. On lap-2, Todd Owen spun in (what I think was) turn three to bring out the first caution of the event; lap-4 had him and Kenny Horton in another turn two incident, and on lap-6, it was a third straight turn three melee site as it was a multi-car accident. Numerous cars spent time on pit road for repairs. But back out on the track, Mattesen would lose the lead and second place to both Brad Hietala and Ted Christopher, and they'd have it for about a lap as Richie Pallai, Jr and Horton spun on the backstretch to bring out yet another caution. Both were able to drive away, and the race resumed with Hietala still in front. He'd only have the lead for a lap and three turns, however, as he and Christopher got together and spun in turn four to bring out the caution on lap-12. Woody Pitkat would be the new leader of the race, and the speed of the race would pick up dramatically from this point until less than ten laps to go. The next caution would fall on lap-32 as Vincent Anglace and Curt Brainard spun on the backstretch. Three laps later, the cars of Hietala, Billy Pauch, Jr, and a white car (I'm now telling myself I've got the wrong number, so now I'm confused) were in an accident coming out of four. On the restart, it was still Pitkat out front, but Christopher had fought his way from out of nowhere, and by lap-37, he had retaken the lead. On what was going to be the final lap, Horton spun in turn four to bring out the caution. You'd think that all of this was going to lead to a two-lap shootout for the win, right? Wrong. The rain had come, and the race had to end under a red/checker. Christopher had taken down the win; Pitkat was second, Jeff Malave third, and Bo Gunning fourth. (Sidenote: Malave had been accused of violating the tire rule that had been in place this season, but a press release out Tuesday denied that accusation.

It was an hour or so later, and the rain stopped. The DARE Stocks helped out in getting the track dry; so while they were already out there, why not race? The 15-lap feature was the next race on the agenda. The race started with Barry Fluckiger getting the advantage as leader, but a multi-car accident going into turn three on lap-2 set the field up to do it once again. Fluckiger would take the lead again, and the race would be caution free until lap-13 when Matt Chiarizio spun on the frontstretch and stalled in the infield grass. Another caution would come out on the the last lap when Jesse Hinze spun in turns three and four. With only a few laps to make a move, Norm Sears would pass Fluckiger and hold on to win his second DARE Stock race of the season. Don Wood and Jeff Jolly would also pass Fluckiger, and those would be the top-four drivers.

By this time, it was getting too close to midnight for my mother, as she had been sick for about a week, so I let her off of the hook by going home. I missed all of the Whelen Modified Tour race, but I can tell you that Chuck Hossfeld wound up winning that race. Other noteworthy news out of it: Jimmy Blewett, who originally finished fifth in the race, was disqualified in regards to his carburetor and dropped to a last-place finish.

So where does that leave us? Well, the Limited Late Models and Late Models practically showed up at the track for no reason at all, as it was about one o'clock in the morning by the time things died down at the track. So their races had to be moved to future dates. The Limited Late Models will be running two features in tomorrow's program, as the race originally scheduled for last week will be the first thing in the books. The rest of the schedule can be found here. It's late, and I'm done. So it'll be less than 24 hours when we do this all over again. Good night, and have a pleasant tomorrow.

Let the Sunshine In

It's half past noon here in "Small Town" Connecticut, and the sun's shining. I'm still not ready for the night, but I'm going to get ready in about an hour and a half. This has the makings for a great night of racing. We're actually going to have some racing this month. And it's the Modified Tour.

You have one busy weekend, followed by three weeks off, and now you have another busy night. It'll be worth the wait. I'll see you guys at the track, and a longer entry will be up before the 30th. I'm still not sure if I'm going to be there because of other commitments (and I really don't need to have these limited engagements), so stay tuned.

Schedule of Events

First off, let me start by saying that I am surprised that there is no rain date for this week's event. I'd think that just in case it does rain on Friday, the track would be prepared to move the date to Saturday. But I guess that's why I'm not part of the track's management.

Anyway, I've got the schedule of events for Friday night's TSI Harley Davidson 150 event for the Whelen Modified Tour. Note that there are going to be no heats for all divisions. Consolation races will be run if necessary.

Three days from now. Here's to hoping it's going to be a dry one.

Three Strikes

Eh, I kind of figured something wasn't going to go down tonight. Anyone got any good ideas for indoor plans? I'm not a huge NBA fan, and there's nothing on television...

Seriously, though, the event's not going on. Track cancelled the program (with an update time of 11:27am). I could take it like a man for a third straight week, or I can start thinking about how it's giving me withdrawls. I hate to sound like a little kid, but my God. You can only take a 20-year-old to so many places these days!

Okay, calm down. I know how upset I'm going to make myself now because I'm going to start putting myself down. Let's hope that next week won't be a washout. I told you yesterday that the Tour'll be here. (Is there someone who's now planning a Saturday night rain date just in case? It worked the last time.)

Stay safe and dry, and If I feel like writing up anything inbetween now and next Friday, I'll do so.

NASCAR Day?

Tomorrow (May 16) is supposed to be the fifth annual celebration entitled NASCAR Day. Per the official NASCAR Day site, the premise of the day is very simple: NASCAR Day is a one-day celebration of the NASCAR spirit and its fans.

To put it lightly, there won't be any sort of celebration if tomorrow's program is rained out. From what I've read and seen so far, it looks like it's going to be a morning of sitting around, waiting for some sort of news to pop up on the track's site.

If we're not rained out (big if there!), there is no word on what the schedule of events is. I'd find something on the site by now, but nothing has come up. (They trying to tell us something a while in advance here?) Either way, cancellation of the program or not, I'll be back to write something up before next week.

Hey... As long as that weekend doesn't get rained out, it might be all good. We've got plenty of reminders since it's a Whelen Modified Tour race and all...

LM 100 Postponed

I told you I couldn't guarantee a long entry this week. There's nothing but rain (but when I woke up this morning, there was a short lull in the action), which forced the fine folks in management to postpone the first of two Late Model 100 events to June 27. So that's two wins this season for Mother Nature. Okay, we'll just try again next week. I knew it wasn't going to happen today about two days ago, anyway. Stay safe and dry, and hopefully we can get an event completed next week.

A Guarantee

I can guarantee you that an entry will be written at some point this weekend. I can't guarantee that it will be a long entry, however. There is a strong chance that there will be a second straight washout, so if it comes down to it, I'll be writing an entry stating so. It'll be early on Friday, the entry will. Keep it here for that.

I can guarantee something else. I'll give you the entry list for the upcoming TSI Harley Davidson 150 happening on May 23. It's the second appearance of the season for the Whelen Modified Tour. The last update was done at some point today. Two weeks from now, it's going to be a long night.

Other than that, kids, stay safe and dry. I know you'll be looking for drier pastures. (Like the mall tomorrow? I'll be there, as long as I'm not outside getting soaked.)

Too Wet for Week Two

The program for tonight, based on the site, has been "cancelled". Stafford's next event will be the Late Model 100 next week -- weather permitting.

I guess this is it for the day, although I may dish out a few more entries throughout the course of the week. But for now, stay safe and dry. (And I'll have to make some new plans.)

Friday Weather Update

It's 10:49 here at VFT1 "headquarters", and as of 10:35am this morning, we have no idea if we're going racing or not. Currently, there's a little graphic on the front page of the site with the words "foggy and misty skies" along with how tonight's racing program is in question. So I have no clue what's going on. I'm holding off on my usual Friday plans until I get a definite answer. Lord knows I'm not the kind of person who spends all of this time to get ready and whatnot, only to find out plans have been put on hold or cancelled. But yeah. Just stay seated, and another update will come later today.

Day Two.

In the last entry, I talked about all of Saturday's news and finishes from the first half of the Spring Sizzler. In this installment, we shall look at what happened on Day Two. There wasn't much on the schedule, but a claim of a "threat of weather" made sure that everything was out of the way before 6pm. (There wasn't a threat of anything, mind you, because the sun came out in the middle of the Modified Tour race.) But because I've put this half of the blog until Thursday -- *slaps self upside the head* -- let's just get this done and out of the way before I put it off any longer. With that, let's begin.

And as tradition like the past God-knows-how-many years (I've lost track, honestly, so I'm not looking to pick fights over it), Sunday's action started with the SK Modifieds. The action in that race started with Eric Berndt out in front until a lap-4 incident with Corey Hutchings and Zach Sylvester spinning in turn one brought out the first yellow in the event. On the restart, Berndt lost the lead to Woody Pitkat, and he would have the lead for a solid one lap as Bo Gunning spun in turns three and four on lap-5... Which was the second caution. When the green came back out, it was Pitkat once again out in front, but once again, a caution would tighten the field back up. This time, the caution came out on lap-8 when Kenny Horton and Curt Brainard wrecked coming out of turn four. Pitkat resumed command of the field on the restart for only two laps as... You guessed it. The caution flew on lap-10 for dirt that had kicked up onto the track surface in turn four. That was all cleaned up and racing resumed with Pitkat right back out front. Five laps later, however, the caution flew after Brad Hietala, Willie Hardie, and Kurt Lenahan were involved in a three-car accident on the backstretch. Pitkat would hold onto the lead on the restart, but at the 18-lap mark, he seemed to fumble, which allowed Rob Summers to gain possession of first. Summers would be in the lead on lap-19 when the caution would fly again for a two-car accident on the backstretch involving Sylvester and Frank Ruocco. After the cleanup commenced, the green came back out and it would be Summers at the head of the field with Pitkat still behind him. The lead would belong to Summers until lap-24 when Wade Mattesen spun in turn two to bring out the final caution of the feature. Summers went back into full control on the restart, but even with Pitkat inching closer on every lap, it wouldn't faze him and he took down his first win of the season. Pitkat would finish second, followed by Chris Jones and Keith Rocco.

We take a break from the full recap (and I took a break from full-fledged notes) because the next race was the Whelen Modified Tour's 200-lap main event. Cliff Notes version of this, kids: Thirteen cautions equaling out to a whole 71 laps of caution laps. Seven lead changes between five different drivers. And after one hour, 47 minutes, and two seconds, Ted Christopher won career feature number 98 after he finished first in the race. The next three to finish were Eric Beers, Chuck Hossfeld, and Mike Stefanik.

I took the notes back out for the final feature of the weekend, which happened to be the Late Model feature. We start with the opening lap of the event here. Wayne Coury, Jr took the lead from the outside of the front row and held it for three laps as the caution came out for Scott Foster, Jr who spun in turn three. It was a quick caution, and the green came right back out to the tune of Coury still in the lead. The race would be green for quite a few laps, and the next yellow would not be seen until lap-12 when Doug Blowers, Corey Hutchings, and Michael Bennett got together in turns one and two. It would be green and then yellow on lap-13 for a two-car "spin" of sorts as Foster and Brian Chapin spun in turns three and four. On the restart, Coury would still be in command, but his tenure as the leader would be cut short on lap-18 as things got a little chaotic. The yellow would come out for a spin on the frontstretch, courtesy of Dillon Moltz. Then on the second attempt, Bennett would spin in turn three (and I think some damage was done there, but it couldn't have been much since he finished in 12th). In the (final) restart, Coury eventually lost the lead to Tom Butler, who would hold the lead until lap-22 when Woody Pitkat took over, bringing Mike Quintiliano along with him. Pitkat would prove to be too much, and he would come across the stripe to pick up his first (Late Model) win of the season. Quintiliano would finish second, Ryan Posocco would be third, followed by Butler in fourth.

So that's two race days and two blog days. So now that the Sizzler is officially behind us, we divert our attention to the first Friday night of the season. The place won't be as chaotic Friday as it was this past weekend, I can tell you that much. The schedule of events is here, weather permitting (there is a "threat of weather", but it doesn't look like it could be much unless it hits the pavement). With all of that being said, it's time for me to close this edition. The blog doesn't officially turn three years old until later this month, but it is the three month anniversary of this thing. (May 16, 2006 was the date of the first entry. Short, because of rain.) But until tomorrow, stay safe and dry and I hope to see you at the track.

2008 Spring Sizzler...

Day One. Yes, I'm deciding to play the "two entries in three days" card here as I do all of Saturday's stuff in one entry and then Sunday's stuff in another. At least I've got my priorities in one bunch here. But at least I know I'm not going to be sitting here for five hours, plugging away at a large entry. So we'll take it one step at a time.

And speaking of taking it a step at a time, let's start with the first step of Saturday afternoon: Time trials for the Whelen Modified Tour's 200-lapper on Sunday. A solid group of 35 cars lined up to present two laps each... Well, almost all of them, and some not so fortunate than others. There was the spin before Jimmy Blewett took the green flag for his two, and when he turned around, went to the start of the backstretch and tried to get as much momentum to (supposedly) take his two laps, NASCAR didn't like that and didn't accept either time. He was allowed to redo his trial, but he was only allowed to do one lap. That lap was the fourth fastest out of all drivers.

But the driver at the head of the board was 17-year-old Ryan Preece, with a time of 18.057 (or 99.684 miles an hour). That time earned him the Coors Light pole award for the Spring Sizzler. He was also the youngest driver in the history of the Modified Tour to set fast time.

Also to make note: All 35 cars were able to start in Sunday's event because track management was just so darn nice.

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Okay, so now that we got that out of the way, it was time for the Stafford weekly divisions to get their qualifying on. The order of qualifying was something like this: SK Lights, SK Modifieds, Limited Late Models, DARE Stocks, and Late Models. (I might have screwed it up somewhere down the line. Apologies.) But for the record, with the occasional close encounter of the caution kind, things went pretty smoothly.

And then we get to features. There were only three full-length features and one last chance qualifier that was actually considered a last chance qualifier (the Late Model 16 and no SK 21?), and the reasoning behind that was anyone's guess. So that allowed me to stay in the paddock area for a little while longer as the SKs were finishing up their 10-lap consolation event. After that ended, I paraded to the usual seat in the general grandstands to watch the features.

Saturday's opening feature happened to be the SK Lights. And what do you know? On the first lap, in turn one, there was a caution. It was for the cars of Michael Lane and Harry Wheeler. Lane's car needed the wrecker, so his afternoon was done before the first lap was officially counted. By this time of day, I felt extremely thirsty and needed a cool beverage. On my way to a booth, I caught myself in numerous places for the next three yellows. I wound up with different angles of CJ Lacativa's spin in the frontstretch grass on lap-2; Chris Bakaj spinning in turn two on lap-7 (and I believe it was a two-car incident but am not fully sure); and finally Wheeler's second incident on lap-10 as he spun once again in turn four. I finally got back to my usual seat to check out a wild finish, but not before a caution on lap-15 involving Neil Provost, Jr spinning in turns three and four. This is where the action heats up. Chris Matthews held onto the lead until the green came out and George Nocera powered past him (taking Mark Bakaj along with him). Unfortunately, this lead would only last a whole two laps as the caution came back out on lap-17 when Aaron Goff spun in turns three and four, setting up the field for the final laps. With two laps to go, Matthews retook the lead and that would practically be the end of it as he took down his first win of the season. Alan Provost would finish second, soon followed by Nocera and Raymond Grassetti.

Next up on the itinerary was some full-bodied action with the Limited Late Models. And I'm sorry for any early spoilerage, but this was a start-to-finish win in progress. Bill Davis gained early possession of the lead at the start of the race, and it seemed as though nothing could stop him -- including when the field was frozen on lap-11 after Darrin Havanec spun on the frontstretch to bring out the first caution of the event. Davis regained the lead on the restart, but only for four laps as the second yellow of the feature came out for a four-car accident in turns three and four (drivers involved: Jeff Hubbell, Lauren Cooper, Kevin Gambacorta, and Robert Dow). Again, Davis took the lead when the green came back out, and he would still have it on lap-17 when the caution once again revealed itself after Carla Botticello spun in turn four. Davis regained the lead, but it would start to get harder to keep as Sean Foster was breathing down his neck. The pressure would build up as a lap-19 caution would tighten the field back up one last time (the caution was for Botticello, Gambacorta, and Ed Charette, Jr who were involved in an accident/spin in turns one and two). Foster would challenge Davis for the lead by racing side-by-side with him, but it was too late. Davis would come to the finish first, picking up his first win of the season. After him was Foster, Joey Ferrigno, and Andrew Durand.

The cleanest "feature" of the afternoon happened to be the DARE Stock feature. Jeff Jolly was the first leader of the event and held onto the lead up until a lap-7 caution involving John Kasper, Todd LaPorta, and a third car that I might have misidentified in my notes. Either way, all three of them were involved in a spin/accident in turns three and four, and that obviously brought out the yellow. On the restart, it looked like Jolly had the advantage, but Norm Sears was coming up fast. At lap-8, he managed to get around Jolly, and it would ultimately be the pass for the win. Sears cruised to his first win of the season, followed by Jolly, Scott Roy, and Tom Stirk. After the race, the technical inspection experts revealed the car of Scott Roy to exceed the maximum compression ratio of 11:1, which meant that he was disqualified from the finishing order.

Saturday's final action on the race track occured when the Late Models had their 16-lap last chance qualifier. No cars were harmed in the making of this race (torn apart, I mean), and only one car lead laps. That car would be driven by Scott Foster, who would score one of the final spots in the feature on Sunday. The rest of the board looked as follows: Don Acker, Jr, Jim Mavlouganes, and Tom Fearn.

And that would be it for Saturday. Tomorrow, I finish up the action of the Sizzler by giving you reviews of the SK Modifieds and Late Models, along with a little thing about the Whelen Modified Tour race. Until tomorrow, you know what to do. Stay safe. (And dry.)

The Last of the...

Mohecans? No. Unless I was reading that book right now, of course.

I'm talking about the last of the season previews. As you may have already read up on, I kind of figured that the DARE Stocks were getting one of those preview things. And what do you know? I come to the track's site to see that it was done. The DARE Stock season preview is up, meaning we should be all set to roll off and take the proverbial green flag.

The countdown stands at 12 days (and lots of change) and counting. The wait is almost over.

Season Preview for the Limiteds; Other Pre-Sizzler News

Three previews down; two to go. This week, the Limited Late Models get their turn in the limelight as their season preview is released. Go check that out.

And in other news, the first of two swap meets will be held at the track this Sunday. The Sizzler is definitely not that far behind. Only two more weeks as of this upcoming Sunday. The waiting period is almost over. And so is the season of shorter entries.

I'll be back next week with the preview for the DARE Stocks as it gets down to crunch time.

SK Light Season Preview

I kind of figured that someone was getting a season preview in the near future. This week, it's the SK Lights who are in the limelight. When you have a free minute, check it out.

Only a little less than a month left before the Sizzler's here...

Sizzler '08 News

With a little less than 28 days to go until the Spring Sizzler, Stafford Speedway announced a few things in regards to the greatest race in the history of spring. First off, there's an open practice scheduled for the 19th of April. All divisions racing at Stafford this year are eligible to attend the practice except for the Whelen Modified Tour. (It's the week before the Sizzler, and the Tour doesn't allow drivers to practice at the upcoming track in the week leading up to the event.)

Secondly, the first two of many entries have been filed for the Whelen Modified Tour event as part of Sizzler weekend. You can expect to see this list updated multiple times in the next month. But yes... As of yesterday, two entries have been recieved.

So that's it for now. More news to come when I find it. Until then... *waves and exits*

Late Model Season Preview

I know, I know. This isn't "today" as I put it in the last entry. But I might as well come back to at least acknowledge the fact that I have tried not to slack off this offseason like I did last offseason.

Anyway, to the news. The title bascially says it all. About a week removed from the release of the SK Modified season preview, Stafford released the Late Model season preview today. Not a whole heck of a lot has to be said here. Straightforward and to the point (which is basically the same thing said twice).

I'm sure the track'll release previews for the other three divisions. Stay tuned for those if they do wind up coming out. If not, more news to come within the next 31 days. (One month removed from the Spring Sizzler. Can't wait.)

To Get You in the Mood...

I'm getting ready to head out the door, but before I go, I wanted to get you the link to the SK Modified season preview. If last season was any indication for what's coming up this season, I know I wouldn't want to miss anything.

Just think... Only 33 days and change before the Spring Sizzler gets here! (And only a week until the start of April. Where has the winter gone?)

More past news to come when I return home tonight.

Speedway Expo...

Just letting you guys know that Speedway Expo at the Big E fairgrounds starts up tonight and runs through the weekend, ending on Sunday. It is not going to be held in the same building as last year. It will be in the Mallary Complex... Down at the gate 9A entrance -- the dome-shaped top. The weekend kicks off at 5pm. Tickets are $15 per adult at the gate; adults being classified as anyone over the age of 12.

Nothing major in terms of an entry, I know. But it's something so I don't go a month without an entry. I'll try to make something longer in March, or I'll make a few somethings up along the way. But anyway... If you decide to head up that way this weekend, have a fun time.

New Year, New Headlines

Hey there! I hope your winter has been good so far, and your new year has started off on the right foot. I know I haven't been totally diving into the whole blog thing recently (and the reason is neither the fact that I haven't found the time nor the fact that I just don't want to do it during this time), but since I'm checking the Stafford site on a daily basis -- or close to it -- I see that there's a couple of stories that have popped up since around the Christmas season. I should really give you the gist of these stories. Links are provided; click on the story to go to the page at the SMS site.

-- Doug Coby has a SK Modified ride for the '08 season. He will be teaming up with the Johnson Motorsports team and will be driving the #15.
-- SMS is working in conjunction with Johnson Chassis (in Concord, NC) to come up with a new chassis project for the Late Models.

And if you're looking for something to do over the winter months that's racing related, there's an indoor dirt track in Windsor called Mototown USA. They race motocross and quads, but the track began a 12-week series a la the outdoor race track in New England on Sunday. They have sprints and Modified-like cars among the divisions participating. This series runs up until April 20th, which gives fans a chance to catch their breath before the Spring Sizzler. Stafford has a representative amongst the drivers competing in this program... Ted Christopher. I didn't go to the first program, but he is teaming up with Jack Arute in the 750cc Mini Sprint division, driving cars for a team called Haskell Motorsports. The Haskell Motorsports team claimed the track championship at the Whip City Speedway this past season.

So that's basically what's going in SMSland. As more stories start popping up on the home page, I'll try to pop in here and give you stories. They'll probably be entries like this, where I have a couple of headlines in one blog. But I will be back a few more times before the Sizzler. Until then, stay safe and enjoy the first full week of the new year.