Local-boy-makes-good, Todd Annarummo came home to Seekonk for his first win in the Modified Racing Series 100-lap race on Saturday night. Annarummo, from nearby Swansea, who campaigned Seekonk in Pro Stocks before going to the Modified Tour, hauled down his second modified victory in a month at the one-third mile oval; he won the Open Wheel Wednesday Modified Madness 100. This time it was Les Hinckley from Windsor Locks, CT, who hounded him to the finish line; Stephen Masse, who had done the honors back on July 28, had a dreary day, unable to get really into the thick of the action. He’d been forced to qualify in the consolation heat, and finished 18th on the evening. Jon McKennedy, Chelmsford, MA, who had taken third earlier, had a strong fourth place finish and led early laps before Annarummo went to the lead. Dwight Jarvis, Ascutney, VT, finished third and Seekonk veteran Jimmy Kuhn from West Bridgewater, MA, took fifth.
Preston, CT, driver Ken Barry jumped out to the lead from his pole position, followed by McKennedy from the outside pole. Chris Pasteryak, Lisbon, CT, making a return from a broken wrist which interrupted his midseason, grabbed third from his inside second row starting slot. Annarummo started down low in the third row and was on tap for fourth out of the starting blocks.
The very fast field strung into a line and began turning in fast laps until Jack Bateman of Canaan, NH looped it in the second turn on lap six. The restart had Barry, McKennedy, Pasteryak and Annarummo in that order, with Pennsylvanian Rowan Pennink and Vermonter Dwight Jarvis in the third row.
The front four began a determined battle at the front. Pasteryak began to fall back, yielding third to Annarummo and McKennedy then took the lead from Barry. Annarummo wasted no time in challenging Barry for second, pulling alongside for a brief duel. Barry fell back to third, while Annarummo began to bother Kennedy.
On lap 17, multi-time Seekonk champ Vinny Annarummo, and Todd’s father, took a loop in front of the starter’s stand, then went to the pit area. The restart had McKennedy and Todd on the front row with Barry and Pasteryak at their backs. Pennink and Hinckley, who would mount a serious challenge to Annarummo at the end, were the third row.
McKennedy went to the lead at the green and Annarummo settled into second. Pasteryak claimed third and Barry and Hinckley ducked it out for fourth. Hinckley took over the position with Barry settling into fifth.
The twenty-seventh circuit had Max Zachem around in turn four, collecting Jacob Dore. Both went to the pits for some cosmetics, and then returned.
McKennedy and Annarummo were at the front, but now Hinckley had the low side of the second rank with Pasteryak on his shoulder, Kuhn was now behind Hinckley and Jarvis behind Pasteryak. Barry and Pennink filled out the fourth rank. The leaders came out door-to-door and fought in earnest. McKennedy had an edge at the stripe, but Annarummo battled back. They were side-by-side on lap 28, and then Annarummo took an edge on the next rotation. He began to slowly pull ahead, and was in a 1-car lead over McKennedy on the thirty-second circuit.
Hinckley wasted no time in challenging McKennedy as Annarummo moved out to a 3-car lead on lap 38. Pasteryak and Jarvis were wheel-to-wheel behind them on lap 42. Three circuits later, Hinckley went to McKinney’s outside for the pass in a wheel-to-wheel battle.
The leaders were beginning to encounter lapped traffic, and this worked to Hinckley’s favor, as McKennedy got stuck down low behind traffic and Hinckley claimed second place. McKennedy got free and held on to third with Jarvis and Kuhn following.
Annarummo continued to lead at the halfway point, with a six-car lead over Hinckley. Kuhn began to set up McKennedy for a pass on lap 52 and Hinckley began to close up on the leader around the fifty-fifth rotation. With lapped traffic coming up the leaders were closing up, but he still had a 3-car lead with 40 laps remaining.
Hinckley closed up the gap and began looking both high and low to get into the lead. He tried outside, then fell back into a following position on lap 73, then tried underneath on lap 75. On the next circuit, as the battle between Annarummo and Hinckley reached a fevered pitch with Hinckley trying to push by underneath, Pennink spun out, raising the caution flag. At this point, despite intense racing, 21 of the 24 starters were still competing on the oval.
Annarummo came out on the pole as Hinckley went to his outside. Jarvis and McKennedy were followed by Kuhn and Pasteryak. They were nerf bar-to nerf bar on the restart. Very slowly edging ahead, Annarummo took full possession of the lead on the backstretch of lap 80. Hinckley was not giving up, however, and glued himself to the leader’s tail. Jarvis was doing the same to Hinckley and McKennedy was clamped on to his tail.
Annarummo, unable to shake his antagonist, set his gaze on the lapped traffic coming up and began to negotiate his way through. Hinckley dogged his tracks. With 10 to go, they emerged into some clear air, but Hinckley pounced again. Jarvis, McKennedy and Kuhn were following.
After more stragglers, Annarummo shot into a short stretch of open track with 6 laps remaining and Hinckley dogging his every move. Kuhn was again challenging McKennedy for fourth. The few laps wound down. Two lapped cars, side-by-side slowed the two leaders, and as they went to pass, they bumped slightly, then the lapped traffic broke open and Annarummo bolted through, pursued by Hinckley.
They came out on the white flag flying in the starter’s hand. Hinckley closed, then moved alongside down the backstretch. Annarummo held a half-car lead entering the third turn with Hinckley gaining ground. Out of four, they drag raced to the checkers with Annarummo taking it at the stripe with a .159 second lead over his antagonist. Jarvis crossed behind them, with McKennedy holding off Kuhn for fourth. Rob Goodenough, Pasteryak, Barry, Joey Jarvis and Dore rounded out the top ten.
Ryan “The Rocket” Vanasse again found himself in Victory Lane at Seekonk Speedway, further cementing his divisional lead at the Cement Palace. Vanasse, from Warwick, took over the lead on a lap-17 caution and led the rest of the 30 laps to the checkered flag. Acushnet driver Matt Breault, who had been plaguing Vanasse much of the latter portion of the event, claimed a well-earned second, followed by last week’s winner, Pawtucket’s Gerry DeGasparre, Jr., Robert Pelland III from Cranston and Kyle Casper of Somerset. Weymouth’s Jonathan Dickerman had raced to fourth place, but lost his standing through post-race technical inspection.
Pelland and Dennis Stange had led off from the front with Stange going high and wide to try for speed to pass on the outside, but Pelland grabbed the lead. Stange took a bump from Cape Codder Robert Hussey, which put him very high on the track, and though he saved the car from a spin, it dropped the Athol driver into fifth spot.
Dickerman dueled Hussey for the second spot, running the outside and Fall Riverite Frank Duquette nabbed fourth. Dickerman nosed forward to claim second with Hussey on his tail. Duquette began harassing Hussey with Breault in turn bothering him. Stange was high alongside Breault, trying to move forward. Vanasse settled in behind Breault, moving up from his starting position in ninth.
Dickerman began to close up the five lengths to leader Pelland, and they were nose-to-tail by the tenth lap, with Duquette in third, followed by Breault, Hussey and Vanasse. Vanasse moved easily by into fifth place as Dickerman headed around Pelland, aiming for the lead.
Duquette closed up behind the two leaders.
On lap 14, Dickerman nosed ahead but Pelland grabbed the lead back at the outset of the next circuit before Dickerman got loose in turn two, which dropped him back to fifth behind Hussey. This gave Duquette the opportunity to go to the outside of Pelland, and he pushed past down the backstretch. He wasn’t quite past in turn 3, when he moved toward the low groove, and his rear fender caught Pelland’s nose, sending him into a loop. Duquette went to the rear as an accident car and officials declared an assist on Pelland, who had to restart at the back.
Vanasse had moved into third by the time of the spin and inherited the lead for the lap 17 restart. He had Breault on his outside, Dickerman and Hussey behind him and Tyler Thompson and DeGasparre in the third row. Breault ran hard off turn 2 on the restart and ran door-to-door with Vanasse as Dickerman and Thompson gave chase. By lap 20, Vanasse had edged into the lead over Breault, who was not giving up. Thompson got sideways off turn 2, but held on, as DeGasparre seized the opportunity to move into third.
On lap 22, Colbey Fournier looped in turn 4 to bring out the yellow. This gave Breault the opportunity to work beside Vanasse again with Dickerman and Thompson behind them. DeGasparre and Kyle Casper followed.
Again, it was door-to-door down the backstretch between Vanasse and Breault, with Vanasse by half a fender. He had resumed the lead by lap 24. Breault, Dickerman, DeGasparre and Pelland followed.
It was parade laps for Vanasse for the remainder of the 30 circuits, with a 2-car lead by the 26th. On lap 27, DeGasparre moved under Dickerman for third spot, and the eventual outcome was evident on lap 28. Vanasse stormed under the checkered flag, 2 lengths ahead.
Radical Rick Martin nailed down his fourth Sport Trucks win of the season and gave himself some breathing room over Ted Berube in the points race for the championship, as his adversary finished in sixth. Westport-based Martin had started seventh on the field. Berube, from Somerset, came from the tenth position.
Quincy’s Michelle Dumas led off on the pole with Portsmouth’s Bob Andreozzi on her shoulder. Andreozzi attempted to outrun her on the outside at the outset, but Martin made a huge move up the inside into third place by lap 2 and went under Dumas into the lead. Andreozzi completed the pass on the surprised Dumas with Dan Leach stepping into third, followed by Dumas, Cornell, and Dylan Estrella.
It was a complete change of fortune over the previous week for Martin with the lightning move to the front. The previous week had seen an engine failure as he blew a hole in one of his pistons in that event, sending up a huge cloud of smoke.
Leach, celebrating his 17th birthday, came chasing Martin after getting past Andreozzi. Leach’s truck was quick on the evening. Estrella followed, about 5 cars back with New Bedford’s Lenny Guy studying his tailgate. By lap 8, Martin was nursing a 1-car lead over the persistent Leach.
Dumas spun to the infield off turn 4 to bring out the first caution. The lap 8 restart had Estrella and Guy lined up behind Martin and Leach. On the green, Martin was off fast, with Leach on his heels. Estrella nabbed third while Guy and Fall River’s Ed Gannon diced it up over fourth. Gannon garnered the spot, but Cornell went around coming out of turn 4 bringing up a lap 10 restart.
Again, Martin nailed the lead and Estrella sneaked under Leach for second. The pair battled until Eric Boyko smoked his engine on the front stretch. The yellow came out and the field began to slow, but Leach and Guy did pirouettes going into turn one after getting into fluids left on the surface by Boyko’s debacle. They did retain their positions, as the yellow had already flown.
The caution brought the restart back to the previous laps, costing Estrella his move to second. Martin ran to the lead again, but this time Leach was able to get back down and deny Estrella the underneath move. However, on the next circuit, Estrella made the move below Leach into the runnerup spot. And a lap later, Guy went low into third, settling Leach into 4th.
Mike Cavallaro, who had won 3 races since returning to the Trucks Division at midseason, including last week’s confrontation, had quietly moved into fifth ahead of Leach by lap 17. On that circuit, Andreozzi suffered a spin in turn two to bring out a caution.
Martin had Estrella on his shoulder for the restart on lap 17. He grabbed the lead, but Billy Clarke went around in turn four and collected Jariah Roderick, who lost his left front fender in the collision. Roderick limped from turn 4 up the pit entrance, and Clarke claimed the rear of the field.
On the re-restart at lap 17, Estrella got the jump on Martin and cut down in front and Martin let him have the lead. Guy, Cavallaro, Gannon, Berube, Mike Ronhock and Leach followed.
The lead did not last, as Martin went back around Estrella on the backstretch in lap nineteen.
The race settled into a straight line, save Cavallaro moving into fourth on lap 22. However, he was unable to move past Guy until the final circuit when Guy slipped up the track in turn two, allowing Cavallaro underneath into third. Martin drove it home for the win with Estrella on his tailgate. Cavallaro grabbed third followed by Guy, Gannon, Berube, Ronhock, Leach, Dane Saritelli and Ron Cornell.
It looked like Kenny Bamford’s return to racing had been rewarded with a Street Stock victory, but shortly after racing was over for the night, both he and second place finisher Chris Rioux had been denied in tech inspection and Mark Henshaw was elevated from third to his first victory of the season. The change gave second through fifth to Steve Axon, Rey Lovelace, Paul Newcomb and Manny Dias.
In the hotly-contested struggle for Street Stock champion for the 2010 season, Scott Serydynski and Ryan Lineham battled in the middle of the pack with Lineham hoping to hold on to the slim 5-point lead he brought into the evening. However, with Serydynski coming home in sixth and Lineham 10th, it appears the slim margin will swing the other way, setting up a dogfight through the end of the season. Mike Mitchell’s ninth on the evening tightens his third place up, but Axon’s runner-up on the evening should vault him over Mitchell into third. Chris Beaulieu helped sharpen his hold on fifth by nabbing eighth on the evening. Doing him a favor were Rioux with the DQ and Ray Negley who struggled to 14th in last night’s action.
Attleboro’s Brian Spillane leapt to the lead at the outset and appeared to have the night well in hand, quickly leaving Tauntonian Tony Oliveira behind. Tiverton’s Scott Bruneau followed Spillane through from the low side of the second row, and the two immediately began hurling grenades at each other for the first 10 of 25 scheduled laps. Two cars together on the backstretch called the field around for a restart on lap 9.
Spillane and Bruneau lined up on the front row and battled under the green flag with Bamford chasing them in third. On the next lap, Negley spun in turn 2, bringing out a caution. Bamford had gone under Bruneau into second, and when Bruneau came down to the low groove, he pushed Negley into the infield grass. Officials rewarded Bruneau a trip to the rear for the assist. After a brief discussion with trackside officials, he went into the pit area for some repair work. It was a good break for Lineham, as the Coventry driver’s right rear quarter had been pushed in and was spewing rubber smoke from a very bad tire rub. Lineham had been taking the race in an uncharacteristically patient fashion following his third win on the season the previous week. He was in and out of the pits in time for the restart.
The lap 11 restart had Spillane and Bamford brawling off the front of the grid, with Spillane going back to the lead. Rey Lovelace settled into third, behind Bamford and Henshaw laid claim to fourth. At mid-pack, Lineham was showing some smoke from the right rear with Serydynski on his tail.
Lap 16 saw Mike Lema and Mitchell at war in the pack and some rubbing had Mitchell in a spin in turn one. Serydynski nearly wrecked but a quick response saw him just carom off the spinning Mitchell into turn 2. He was able to continue. Mitchell made a lap so he could express his displeasure to Lema, then headed for some pit work.
On the restart, Walter Carpenter spun, bringing the same group back to try again. This time, Bamford was too quick on the outside and the field was again called back. Three tries is a charm and the antagonists rocketed off the front to battle for an entire lap. Finally, Spillane moved ahead while Bamford was caught outside Henshaw, who was moving up from his spot low on the second row.
Lap 18 saw a caution for debris on the track, and again Spillane and Bamford were on the front with Henshaw and Rioux behind them. Lovelace and Newcomb made up the third row.
Again, Spillane and Bamford was wheel-to-wheel, see-sawing the lead. On lap 20, Spillane resumed the lead at the stripe and Lovelace got under Bamford for second. Henshaw and Rioux debated over fourth, door-to-door. But on lap 22, Joe Fernandez looped in turn 3. At this point, back in mid-pack, Serydynski had managed to get two cars up on Lineham.
Three loud reports from the front on the green seemed the reason Bamford wavered at the restart. However, Lineham and Lema got together coming out of turn two, bringing out another caution. Both ran to the pits for repairs while the field reassembled. Lineham was back to the end of the pack on the restart with Serydynski in ninth. Spillane’s car died on the restart and Lovelace got into the rear of the rapidly decelerating leader, spinning him into the grass in front of the starter’s stand and starting a big scramble among the following vehicles. Spillane’s motor was dead at the starting line and he was pushed to the pits. Now, Bamford had the pole and Lovelace, getting his spot back, was on the outside with Rioux and Henshaw behind them.
This time, with a single-file restart, the field went back to racing with Bamford in the lead. Rioux took over second and they stretched it out the final three laps to the checkers. Lineham came alive and began some high side passing, enabling him to move up into 10th by race’s end.
The wait seemed over for Bamford’s return to winning, but post-race tech did not run in his favor, nor did Rioux survive the inspections, leaving Henshaw to claim the laurels.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Dave Darling holds off the best from P.A.S.S. DeGasparre, Lineham and Cavallaro carry checkers
When the afternoon started, the Johnson Landscaping Chevy of 2 time Seekonk champion Dave Darling was only there to shake the car down and get ready for the rest of the 2010 A.R.C. championship chase. “We had no plans on racing tonight,” Darling stated in Victory Lane. “We just got the car back, and wanted to see how the car was. I guess someone convinced Gary Johnson, car owner, to buy a set of tires and race. It might have been my father.”
When the initial green dropped, nobody in the house was ready for what came next. 103 green flag laps to start the race. Rick Martin took the lead from the drop of the green, but was pressured by Derek Ranstrom, who settled in right behind. For the first 50 laps, they had opened up a lead over the rest of the field, up to half a straightaway at one point. As the second third of the event went on, the field started to close in on the lead duo.
Defending race winner Tom Scully Jr ran third for most of the first 50 laps, but as they hit the one-third mark, Travis Benjamin moved past and started to close in on the top two. Scully started to fade, and Darling moved into fourth on lap 51. The pair started hunting down Martin and Ranstrom, and by the half way mark, the top four cars were nose to tail.
Benjamin moved up the racetrack, and started to put heavy pressure on Ranstrom, and moved into second on lap 79. That would only last for several laps, as started to slide back, and settled back into third. Ranstrom moved back into second, and started to give Martin a lot of pressure for the lead. The four-time Seekonk Champ was starting to lose his grip on the racetrack, and was using every trick in the book to keep Ranstrom behind. Ranstrom finally was able to squeeze underneath Martin As they crossed under lap 100 Ranstrom became the second leader of the 150.
Lap 103 saw the first caution of the event when Travis Benjamin cut down a right front tire, and couldn’t make it back to the pits. On the restart, Darling moved under Martin, and took over second. Martin was starting to slide around the third-mile oval, and on lap 107, Martin got a little to loose, and as he tried to save it, Trevor Sanborn made contact with him, sending Martin around.
Darling had saved enough tires for the run at the end, and used the restart to move himself into the lead on the restart. Darling had to put up with the West Boylston native, as Ranstrom put pressure on Darling for the next 20 laps. Sanborn, who started twelfth in the 24 car field, was on the move, and on lap 132 moved past the former P.A.S.S. Outlaw Champ, and set his eyes on the prize. But there was one thing keeping him away, and that was Darling.
Sanborn closed in on the Rehoboth native, but fell a couple of car lengths behind at the end. Darling picked up the win, the second in a row for the Seekonk regulars. Sanborn held on for second, with Ranstrom, Ben Rowe and Johnny Clark rounding out the top five.
1 52 Dave Darling 150
2 44 Trevor Sanborn 150
3 35 Derek Ramstrom 150
4 48 Ben Rowe 150
5 54 Johnny Clark 150
6 8 Cassius Clark 150
7 98 Adam Bates 150
8 73 Joey Doiron 150
9 71 Gary Drew 150
10 85 Nick Ribbie 150
11 17A Scott Alexander 150
12 75 Gary Smith 150
13 14 Rick Martin 149
14 17X Ray Parent 149
15 88 Kevin Casper 149
16 90 Craig Weinstein 149
17 12 John Dabrowsski 147
18 1 Randy Turner 144
19 2 Tom Scully 142
20 96 David Hutchins 137
21 17 Travis Benjamin 101
22 7 Donnie Whitten 86
23 33 Richie Dearborn 69
24 30 Fred Astle 30
In the 30 lap Late Model feature, Gerry DeGasparre spared no time, and moved from his second row starting position into the lead before the first lap was completed. Once out front, the four time LM champ was not about to let someone else take away the goal. Jon Dickerman moved into second, behind DeGasparre, and tried to wrestle away the lead. The first caution came out on lap four, when Frank Duquette went around on the backstretch, collecting Kevin Folan and Tyler Thompson. Thompson was the only driver not able to continue.
Dickerman, Bobby Pelland III and Dennis Stange settled into a rhythm, clicking off the laps in time. Matt Breault started using the outside lane, and worked himself into fourth by lap eight. He was able to make it past Pelland at lap 11, but started to backslide, allowing Pelland to get back by. Defending Champion Ryan Vanasse was the next to move under Breault and take away the position. Kyle Casper and Kyle DeSouza also moved past by the lap 20 mark.
Vanasse was on the march, and moved past Pelland on lap 19, and past Dickerman on the 21st circuit. He quickly moved up to the rear bumper of DeGasparre, but was not able to overtake DeGasparre, and had to settle for second. Dickerman finished third, with DeSouza and Casper rounding out the top five.
Mike Cavallaro’s return to the Sport Trucks has brought back memories of domination, as he picked up his third win in four races. Cavallaro started ninth, and after a couple of early restarts, he was up to third by lap four. As he and Rick Martin weaved in and out of traffic, it seemed whoever got to the front first was going to pick up the win. That race in a race went to the wayside when Martin was forced to pit on lap five for mechanical issues. His night would end on lap 16, when his engine started to pour enough smoke out of it that it encompassed the entire speedway. Flames were seen from under the hood of the Richie’s Auto Radio machine, and he pulled off the track, ending his night.
Michelle Dumas was the early leader, and held off Billy Clarke and Dan Leach for the first five laps, until Cavallaro pulled past and into the lead on lap 6. Ed Gannon III followed through on lap eight, and started to close in on the three time champ. Gannon held on to second until the 18th circuit, when Ted Berube moved into the runner-up spot. Try as he might, he could not move past Cavallaro and had to settle for second. Dylan Estrella took over third on lap 23, and completed the race there. On the final lap, Dan Leach squeezed past Gannon and finished fourth. Gannon rounded out the top five.
Twenty six cars took the green flag for the 25 lap Street Stock feature. Chris DeMoura jumped past pole-sitter Gerard Berthelette and set the early pace. Brian Spillane settled into the runner up position. Points leader and defending champion Mike Mitchell saw his hopes for a repeat take a big hit when he was forced to pit on lap one. When he came back out, he had lost a lap to the field, and had to settle for a 21st place finish.
Patrick Delaney took a turn running second, but slid back after only a handful of laps in second, when Scott Bruneau took over on a lap 12 caution for Sparky Arsenault. The next caution came out when Delaney and Bruneau tangled on the following lap.
Steve Axon lined up to the outside of the front row, with Ryan Lineham third. By the time lap 14 was completed, Axon had a slight lead on Lineham, while DeMoura slid back to third. Axon’s lead only lasted two laps, as Lineham took over on lap 16. While Lineham led the rest of the way, Rey Lovelace was trying to close in, and moved past Axon for second at lap 17. The pair continued to battle each other down to the wire, where they finished in a dead heat for the runner-up position. Axon was credited with second, while Chris Rioux worked his way up from 21st to fourth in the final rundown. Chris Beauleau rounded out the top five.
When the initial green dropped, nobody in the house was ready for what came next. 103 green flag laps to start the race. Rick Martin took the lead from the drop of the green, but was pressured by Derek Ranstrom, who settled in right behind. For the first 50 laps, they had opened up a lead over the rest of the field, up to half a straightaway at one point. As the second third of the event went on, the field started to close in on the lead duo.
Defending race winner Tom Scully Jr ran third for most of the first 50 laps, but as they hit the one-third mark, Travis Benjamin moved past and started to close in on the top two. Scully started to fade, and Darling moved into fourth on lap 51. The pair started hunting down Martin and Ranstrom, and by the half way mark, the top four cars were nose to tail.
Benjamin moved up the racetrack, and started to put heavy pressure on Ranstrom, and moved into second on lap 79. That would only last for several laps, as started to slide back, and settled back into third. Ranstrom moved back into second, and started to give Martin a lot of pressure for the lead. The four-time Seekonk Champ was starting to lose his grip on the racetrack, and was using every trick in the book to keep Ranstrom behind. Ranstrom finally was able to squeeze underneath Martin As they crossed under lap 100 Ranstrom became the second leader of the 150.
Lap 103 saw the first caution of the event when Travis Benjamin cut down a right front tire, and couldn’t make it back to the pits. On the restart, Darling moved under Martin, and took over second. Martin was starting to slide around the third-mile oval, and on lap 107, Martin got a little to loose, and as he tried to save it, Trevor Sanborn made contact with him, sending Martin around.
Darling had saved enough tires for the run at the end, and used the restart to move himself into the lead on the restart. Darling had to put up with the West Boylston native, as Ranstrom put pressure on Darling for the next 20 laps. Sanborn, who started twelfth in the 24 car field, was on the move, and on lap 132 moved past the former P.A.S.S. Outlaw Champ, and set his eyes on the prize. But there was one thing keeping him away, and that was Darling.
Sanborn closed in on the Rehoboth native, but fell a couple of car lengths behind at the end. Darling picked up the win, the second in a row for the Seekonk regulars. Sanborn held on for second, with Ranstrom, Ben Rowe and Johnny Clark rounding out the top five.
1 52 Dave Darling 150
2 44 Trevor Sanborn 150
3 35 Derek Ramstrom 150
4 48 Ben Rowe 150
5 54 Johnny Clark 150
6 8 Cassius Clark 150
7 98 Adam Bates 150
8 73 Joey Doiron 150
9 71 Gary Drew 150
10 85 Nick Ribbie 150
11 17A Scott Alexander 150
12 75 Gary Smith 150
13 14 Rick Martin 149
14 17X Ray Parent 149
15 88 Kevin Casper 149
16 90 Craig Weinstein 149
17 12 John Dabrowsski 147
18 1 Randy Turner 144
19 2 Tom Scully 142
20 96 David Hutchins 137
21 17 Travis Benjamin 101
22 7 Donnie Whitten 86
23 33 Richie Dearborn 69
24 30 Fred Astle 30
In the 30 lap Late Model feature, Gerry DeGasparre spared no time, and moved from his second row starting position into the lead before the first lap was completed. Once out front, the four time LM champ was not about to let someone else take away the goal. Jon Dickerman moved into second, behind DeGasparre, and tried to wrestle away the lead. The first caution came out on lap four, when Frank Duquette went around on the backstretch, collecting Kevin Folan and Tyler Thompson. Thompson was the only driver not able to continue.
Dickerman, Bobby Pelland III and Dennis Stange settled into a rhythm, clicking off the laps in time. Matt Breault started using the outside lane, and worked himself into fourth by lap eight. He was able to make it past Pelland at lap 11, but started to backslide, allowing Pelland to get back by. Defending Champion Ryan Vanasse was the next to move under Breault and take away the position. Kyle Casper and Kyle DeSouza also moved past by the lap 20 mark.
Vanasse was on the march, and moved past Pelland on lap 19, and past Dickerman on the 21st circuit. He quickly moved up to the rear bumper of DeGasparre, but was not able to overtake DeGasparre, and had to settle for second. Dickerman finished third, with DeSouza and Casper rounding out the top five.
Mike Cavallaro’s return to the Sport Trucks has brought back memories of domination, as he picked up his third win in four races. Cavallaro started ninth, and after a couple of early restarts, he was up to third by lap four. As he and Rick Martin weaved in and out of traffic, it seemed whoever got to the front first was going to pick up the win. That race in a race went to the wayside when Martin was forced to pit on lap five for mechanical issues. His night would end on lap 16, when his engine started to pour enough smoke out of it that it encompassed the entire speedway. Flames were seen from under the hood of the Richie’s Auto Radio machine, and he pulled off the track, ending his night.
Michelle Dumas was the early leader, and held off Billy Clarke and Dan Leach for the first five laps, until Cavallaro pulled past and into the lead on lap 6. Ed Gannon III followed through on lap eight, and started to close in on the three time champ. Gannon held on to second until the 18th circuit, when Ted Berube moved into the runner-up spot. Try as he might, he could not move past Cavallaro and had to settle for second. Dylan Estrella took over third on lap 23, and completed the race there. On the final lap, Dan Leach squeezed past Gannon and finished fourth. Gannon rounded out the top five.
Twenty six cars took the green flag for the 25 lap Street Stock feature. Chris DeMoura jumped past pole-sitter Gerard Berthelette and set the early pace. Brian Spillane settled into the runner up position. Points leader and defending champion Mike Mitchell saw his hopes for a repeat take a big hit when he was forced to pit on lap one. When he came back out, he had lost a lap to the field, and had to settle for a 21st place finish.
Patrick Delaney took a turn running second, but slid back after only a handful of laps in second, when Scott Bruneau took over on a lap 12 caution for Sparky Arsenault. The next caution came out when Delaney and Bruneau tangled on the following lap.
Steve Axon lined up to the outside of the front row, with Ryan Lineham third. By the time lap 14 was completed, Axon had a slight lead on Lineham, while DeMoura slid back to third. Axon’s lead only lasted two laps, as Lineham took over on lap 16. While Lineham led the rest of the way, Rey Lovelace was trying to close in, and moved past Axon for second at lap 17. The pair continued to battle each other down to the wire, where they finished in a dead heat for the runner-up position. Axon was credited with second, while Chris Rioux worked his way up from 21st to fourth in the final rundown. Chris Beauleau rounded out the top five.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Spencer, DeSouza, Martin & Beauleau pick up Mid Season Championship Honors.
Ken Spencer ended his two-season drought of Pro Stock wins in a convincing fashion after a second-lap spectacular crash halted the race for a major cleanup. The Taunton native hadn’t visited Victory Lane since a win in the 2008 season. Spencer, Rob Murphy from Rochester, MA and Westporter Rick Martin dueled for the lead throughout the feature. The trio finished the race in that order, just ahead of Ryan Vanasse and defending champ, Fred Astle. Astle’s fifth place finish juggles the leadership in points in the division at this mid-season race: Dave Darling, who nabbed the seventh spot on the night had been nursing a 1-point lead over Astle, and the 4-point differential edges Astle 3 points ahead of Darling.
At the outset, Murphy leapt off the high side of the front row, ahead of polesitter Phil Meany of Gardner, MA, getting the track to himself entering the first turn on lap 2. Meany got wide in turn one as Westport’s Dave Hutchins went to his outside. Opportunistic Spencer dived in underneath, making it 3-wide in turn 2. Coming out, the dynamics saw Meany get up into Hutchins, who was forced to the backstretch wall. The outside tires mounted the barrier amid a fury of sparks and rode the middle of the wall, tilting the car at a 45-degree angle. The pack began to scramble, but Acushnet’s Mike Brightman took a full force hit as Hutchins came down off the wall. Brightman had to be taken off on the hook and spent a great deal of time in the pits with suspension repairs. He returned, but only after losing many laps. He finished with 13 of the 45 circuits to his good. This was a bitter pill, as he had been just behind Astle and Darling in the points standings.
Also hauled from the track was the car of Westporter Billy Manchester, former Pro Stock division racer at Seekonk who is now the gas man/shock specialist for Greg Biffle's Sprint Series car on the Roush/Fenway racing team. Borrowing the backup car from his friend Hutchins, Manchester was taking a tour of his home track while his NASCAR team was in the northeast. Jeramee Lillie also had to be removed to the pits. Manchester returned a lap down, but managed all but a single lap and Lillie returned looking like a modified with his nose gone, to manage 43 laps.
The lap 2 restart saw a front row reversal, with Murphy on the pole and Meany above him. Spencer was behind Murphy and Tom Scully, Jr. was on the outside. The always-dangerous Martin was low in the third row with Darling on his shoulder and Astle at his back.
Murphy forged to the lead at the drop of the green and Spencer followed him into second. With Meany on the outside, Martin and Scully began a battle for position. Martin edged the Saunderstown, RI driver for the position. By lap 7, Murphy and Spencer were brawling over the lead with Martin patiently following for a shot at the spoils. Astle, Darling, Scully, Meany and Jake Vanada paraded behind them. Spencer had edged ahead of Murphy by the lap's completion and wily Martin leapt at the opportunity to run to Murphy's outside, where they battled through laps 8 and 9. Astle and Darling followed.
By lap 10, Spencer was working a 3-car lead on the field and Martin, having bested Murphy on lap 10, was drawing his sights on the leader. It was a parade over the next five laps, with Spencer working the front, chased by Martin, Murphy, Astle, Darling, Scully and Vanada. Martin was closing on the leader by lap 15 and by lap 18, Spencer had only a one-car lead. Martin was knocking on the door through lap 25 with Murphy again closing in, followed by Astle and Darling. The lead trio was nose-to-tail by the 27th circuit.
On the 29th rotation, the lead trio was beginning a dogfight, with Murphy looking to duck under Martin, but Kyle Casper ran into some suspension problems in the front stretch, forcing his car to pitch and yaw and dive onto the infield grass of turn 1, bringing out the caution flag. The lap 29 restart had Spencer on the pole and Martin on his right shoulder with Murphy at his back. Astle was on the outside of row 2 with Darling down low on the third and Scully up high. Spencer clawed his way to the lead on the restart, while Murphy followed him under Martin and the two began warfare for second spot.
Lap 33 saw Lillie spinning in turn four to bring out another caution, which would be the final yellow flag of the evening.
Spencer and Murphy resumed the dogfight as the green dropped with Spencer leading by a half car on the backstretch and Murphy by a nose at the start-finish line on the front. Martin was again following and watching them battle. Ryan Vanasse, who had edged carefully through the field to seventh on the restart, now went wide to leap into the fourth spot, getting around Vanada, Darling and Astle in a big leap.
The race became a very wild parade for the final laps, with the exception of Vanada wedging himself between Astle and Darling by lap 38. A brawling trio of Spencer, Murphy and Martin surged under the checkered flag for the 1-2-3 finish, followed by Vanasse, Astle, Vanada and Darling. Scully, Kevin Casper and Meany rounded out the top 10.
Fairhaven, Massachusetts driver Kyle DeSouza started the Late Model race on the pole and led all competitors under the checkered flag, but it was a race that saw him battle for the front and change places with Jonathan Dickerman through the 35-lap midseason race for Late Models. It was the first win for the division's rookie, who has moved steadily through the divisions since starting several years back in the Seekonk Youth Racing Association's 600 and 750 divisions.
Dickerman, from Weymouth finished in the runnerup spot, but not easily beaten in a hard, clean race with only two mid-race restarts to slow the action. Warwick, RI's Ryan Vanasse, Gerry DeGasparre, Jr.of Pawtucket and Matt Breault from Acushnet, MA rounded out the top 5.
DeSouza started on the pole with Dickerman on his outside. Dickerman was quick to the lead at the start, but Hyannis' Rick Shinn was knocked to the infield at the start, suffering some damage to his body metal at the nose. He restarted at the end of the pack. This time, the racers were off in fashion with Dickerman again surging to the lead on the backstretch. Behind DeSouza, Seekonk's Mike Cavallaro and Tyler Thompson from Somerset, MA, diced it up for third place Cavallaro settled into third by lap 3, and Middleboro's Randy Burr had gotten by Thompson for fourth. By lap 5, the field was Dickerman, DeSouza, Cavallaro, Burr, and Ryan Vanasse, who had moved up from his eighth starting spot.
DeSouza, not to be denied, pulled up on Dickerman on lap 6 to renew warfare. He made an underneath move on the leader on the following circuit and they were side-by-side through lap 8. DeSouza had the lead to himself by lap to, but Dickerman was pursuing, followed, still, by Cavallaro, Burr, Vanasse and now divisional multi-champ DeGasparre in sixth.
Shinn's damage brought him into a spin on lap 12. DeSouza had the pole on the restart with Dickerman outside. Cavallaro and Burr were the next row, and Vanasse and DeGasparre made up a dangerous third spread on the grid. Kyle Casper, who won the first three bouts of the season and continues to lead the division, was joined in the fourth row by Frank Duquette.
Dickerman edged ahead the face-off as the green fell in a real battle, side-by-side through lap 13. But Robert Pelland III brought out a caution with a spin in turn 4. It was the final of the 35-lap event. Dickerman's slight edge gave him the pole over DeSouza on the restart, which he didn not waste. He continued to lead through lap 15, while Vanasse slipped into fourth place behind Cavallaro.
Dickerman and DeSouza continued to dice for the lead, 8 cars ahead of the pack. Vanasse, having passed Burr, now was wrestling with Cavallaro for third and slipped underneath into the position. It hung Cavallaro on the outside and DeGasparre seized the opportunity to go underneath for fourth. Kyle Casper and Middleboroite Jimmy Rosenfield also nabbed the advantage, shuttling Cavallaro back to seventh.
On lap 21, DeSouza dropped down and went under Dickerman to regain the lead. Vanasse began to pursue to make up the distance to Dickerman. The leaders continued to struggle, nose-to-tail, with Vanasse beginning to close. DeSouza worked a 2-car lead over Dickerman by lap 27, and added two more lengths over the next pair of circuits. Now, it was becoming a challenge between Dickerman and Vanasse for fourth, with DeGasparre on their tails. Over the final 3 laps, DeSouza continued to run for the win while Vanasse toiled to get past Dickerman. At the stripe, it was Dickerman holding him off by a nose with DeGasparre and Breault finishing out the top 5.
Chris Beaulieu, The Woonsocket Rocket, took over Seekonk Speedway's midseason Street Stock feature from his outside pole starting position and raced to the final checkers for a big, 30-lap win over Coventry, RI's Ray Negley by 5 carlengths, 1.l427 seconds. Beaulieu started on the front, outside Crystal Serydenski and it was hard racing between the pair from the outset. Serydenski, from Johnston, RI, forged a lead which saw Beaulieu struggling to get down into the low groove at first, but by lap 5 it was again a dead heat between the duo and continued into lap 6, when hard-charging Gerard Berthelette spun, while Beulieu had a fender on Serydenski, giving him the pole on the restart.
However, Tim Eaton, Craig Pianka, and Joe Fernandez tangled up in the front stretch by the starter's platform on the restart, so the field came back to try again. Beulieu bested Serydenski for the lead on the backstretch, but it was trouble again, as Patrick Delaney spun on theback side after suddenly slowing, setting up a big scramble which sent Ron Barboza, Sr. into the back wall. Delaney and last week's winner, Ryan Lineham were towed to the pits, while Barboza was pulled from the wall. Delaney, Barboza and Pianka retired from the feature at this point.
The lap 8 restart saw Beaulieu outrun Serydenski once again. Crystal had some handling problems, sending her up the track, and a line of cars was able to take advantage and move under her. Negley, who had restarted third, was after Beulieu, followed by North Dighton's Chris DeMoura and Cranston driver John Geremia III. Manny Dias was black-flagged for a flapping hood and he retired 11 laps down.
By lap 15, Beaulieu had a long lead over Negley and the field, which he pushed out to 8 cars on lap 17, where he began to encounter lapped traffic. He slipped easily through.
On the 22nd go-around, Steve Axon, driving out of Attleboro, MA, looped, collecting Pawtucket's Chris Rioux in the crash. Both restarted at the tail of the field. Beaulieu and Negley battled at the green with Beaulieu again going to the front followed by DeMoura, Scott Bruneau, Tony Oliviera and Mike Mitchell. Mitchell and tim Caton spun between turns 3 and 4, bringing up a lap 23 restrt. Beaulieu and Negley faced off from the front row again, with Beaulieu taking the lead in the second turn.
By lap 27, Beaulieu had a comfortable 5-car lead on Negley, who was now being troubled by Bruneau, who had passed DeMoura. Bruneau made a final dash at the line, almost nipping Negley, who held on for second, while Beaulieu romped home under the checkers. DeMoura and Michael Lema of Taunton, MA, rounded out the top 5.
Westport, Massachusetts driver Rick Martin added to his midseason divisional points lead over John Paiva with another victory on the season in the 30-lap feature, holding off New Bedford's Lenny Guy to the finish line. Guy finished second, ahead of Seekonk's Mike Cavallaro (last week's divisional winner) and Paiva of Fall River. Ted Berube of Somerset, MA, rounded out the top 5.
Seekonk, MA driver Billy Clarke, who has been racing at Seekonk since the 1940's, led off from the pole, but Berube, on his outside, went to the lead on the first lap. Paiva followed Berube from the outside of the second row, and had the lead early in lap 2. Michelle Dumas of Quincy, starting 8th, suffered a spin and the start was called back to the first lap, placing Berube on the pole with Paiva on his outside. Clarke started low on the second row with Guy alongside. Martin sat on the outside, behind Guy.
On the green, Paiva managed to surge to the lead by lap 3 with Berube falling in behind and Guy on his coattails. Martin managed to get around Clarke into fourth while Cavallaro was moving up from his 10th spot on the starting grid.
With Paiva trying to escape Berube on lap 6, Bob Andreozzi from Portsmouth spun in turn 4. This put Paiva on the pole with Berube on his outside. Guy was low behind paiva with Martin behind Berube. Berube fell back on the start, with Guy pulling in behind Paiva and Martin settling down in third. Berube finally got down into the groove in 4th place.
By the ninth circuit, Paiva was showing a two car lead on Guy, Martin and Berube. Cavallaro was moving rapidly toward the front. On lap ten, Clarke and Dylan Estrella rubbed paint in turn 3, sending Estrella to the infield grass and bringing a caution. Paiva was a way at the green flag, chased by Guy, Martin, Berube, Clarke and Cavallaro. Martin took a quick move under Guy to get into second place on the 12th lap while Berube and Clarke dueled for fourth. Paiva, Martin and Guy began to put distance on the field.
Martin slid under Paiva in lap 16 and into the lead on the following circuit; Guy settled in to gnaw at Paiva's tail. Dumas and Dan Leach got into each other, spinning and bringing out the caution and a lap 19 restart. Martin again grabbed the lead from the pole while Guy came up from the low side of the second row to get under Paiva for second. Paiva was stuck on the outside and Cavallaro was coming up quickly. Martin went out to a 4-car lead on Guy over the next 4 laps, while Cavallaro edged Paiva for third. On the twenty-fifth completion, Martin led Guy, Cavallaro, Paiva and Berube with a long gap back to Estrella and Clarke..
With three to go, Martin had a comfortable 5 car lead over Guy, which he carried under the checkered flag for his third Sport Trucks win of the season. Guy, Cavallaro, Paiva and Berube rounded out the top 5.
At the outset, Murphy leapt off the high side of the front row, ahead of polesitter Phil Meany of Gardner, MA, getting the track to himself entering the first turn on lap 2. Meany got wide in turn one as Westport’s Dave Hutchins went to his outside. Opportunistic Spencer dived in underneath, making it 3-wide in turn 2. Coming out, the dynamics saw Meany get up into Hutchins, who was forced to the backstretch wall. The outside tires mounted the barrier amid a fury of sparks and rode the middle of the wall, tilting the car at a 45-degree angle. The pack began to scramble, but Acushnet’s Mike Brightman took a full force hit as Hutchins came down off the wall. Brightman had to be taken off on the hook and spent a great deal of time in the pits with suspension repairs. He returned, but only after losing many laps. He finished with 13 of the 45 circuits to his good. This was a bitter pill, as he had been just behind Astle and Darling in the points standings.
Also hauled from the track was the car of Westporter Billy Manchester, former Pro Stock division racer at Seekonk who is now the gas man/shock specialist for Greg Biffle's Sprint Series car on the Roush/Fenway racing team. Borrowing the backup car from his friend Hutchins, Manchester was taking a tour of his home track while his NASCAR team was in the northeast. Jeramee Lillie also had to be removed to the pits. Manchester returned a lap down, but managed all but a single lap and Lillie returned looking like a modified with his nose gone, to manage 43 laps.
The lap 2 restart saw a front row reversal, with Murphy on the pole and Meany above him. Spencer was behind Murphy and Tom Scully, Jr. was on the outside. The always-dangerous Martin was low in the third row with Darling on his shoulder and Astle at his back.
Murphy forged to the lead at the drop of the green and Spencer followed him into second. With Meany on the outside, Martin and Scully began a battle for position. Martin edged the Saunderstown, RI driver for the position. By lap 7, Murphy and Spencer were brawling over the lead with Martin patiently following for a shot at the spoils. Astle, Darling, Scully, Meany and Jake Vanada paraded behind them. Spencer had edged ahead of Murphy by the lap's completion and wily Martin leapt at the opportunity to run to Murphy's outside, where they battled through laps 8 and 9. Astle and Darling followed.
By lap 10, Spencer was working a 3-car lead on the field and Martin, having bested Murphy on lap 10, was drawing his sights on the leader. It was a parade over the next five laps, with Spencer working the front, chased by Martin, Murphy, Astle, Darling, Scully and Vanada. Martin was closing on the leader by lap 15 and by lap 18, Spencer had only a one-car lead. Martin was knocking on the door through lap 25 with Murphy again closing in, followed by Astle and Darling. The lead trio was nose-to-tail by the 27th circuit.
On the 29th rotation, the lead trio was beginning a dogfight, with Murphy looking to duck under Martin, but Kyle Casper ran into some suspension problems in the front stretch, forcing his car to pitch and yaw and dive onto the infield grass of turn 1, bringing out the caution flag. The lap 29 restart had Spencer on the pole and Martin on his right shoulder with Murphy at his back. Astle was on the outside of row 2 with Darling down low on the third and Scully up high. Spencer clawed his way to the lead on the restart, while Murphy followed him under Martin and the two began warfare for second spot.
Lap 33 saw Lillie spinning in turn four to bring out another caution, which would be the final yellow flag of the evening.
Spencer and Murphy resumed the dogfight as the green dropped with Spencer leading by a half car on the backstretch and Murphy by a nose at the start-finish line on the front. Martin was again following and watching them battle. Ryan Vanasse, who had edged carefully through the field to seventh on the restart, now went wide to leap into the fourth spot, getting around Vanada, Darling and Astle in a big leap.
The race became a very wild parade for the final laps, with the exception of Vanada wedging himself between Astle and Darling by lap 38. A brawling trio of Spencer, Murphy and Martin surged under the checkered flag for the 1-2-3 finish, followed by Vanasse, Astle, Vanada and Darling. Scully, Kevin Casper and Meany rounded out the top 10.
Fairhaven, Massachusetts driver Kyle DeSouza started the Late Model race on the pole and led all competitors under the checkered flag, but it was a race that saw him battle for the front and change places with Jonathan Dickerman through the 35-lap midseason race for Late Models. It was the first win for the division's rookie, who has moved steadily through the divisions since starting several years back in the Seekonk Youth Racing Association's 600 and 750 divisions.
Dickerman, from Weymouth finished in the runnerup spot, but not easily beaten in a hard, clean race with only two mid-race restarts to slow the action. Warwick, RI's Ryan Vanasse, Gerry DeGasparre, Jr.of Pawtucket and Matt Breault from Acushnet, MA rounded out the top 5.
DeSouza started on the pole with Dickerman on his outside. Dickerman was quick to the lead at the start, but Hyannis' Rick Shinn was knocked to the infield at the start, suffering some damage to his body metal at the nose. He restarted at the end of the pack. This time, the racers were off in fashion with Dickerman again surging to the lead on the backstretch. Behind DeSouza, Seekonk's Mike Cavallaro and Tyler Thompson from Somerset, MA, diced it up for third place Cavallaro settled into third by lap 3, and Middleboro's Randy Burr had gotten by Thompson for fourth. By lap 5, the field was Dickerman, DeSouza, Cavallaro, Burr, and Ryan Vanasse, who had moved up from his eighth starting spot.
DeSouza, not to be denied, pulled up on Dickerman on lap 6 to renew warfare. He made an underneath move on the leader on the following circuit and they were side-by-side through lap 8. DeSouza had the lead to himself by lap to, but Dickerman was pursuing, followed, still, by Cavallaro, Burr, Vanasse and now divisional multi-champ DeGasparre in sixth.
Shinn's damage brought him into a spin on lap 12. DeSouza had the pole on the restart with Dickerman outside. Cavallaro and Burr were the next row, and Vanasse and DeGasparre made up a dangerous third spread on the grid. Kyle Casper, who won the first three bouts of the season and continues to lead the division, was joined in the fourth row by Frank Duquette.
Dickerman edged ahead the face-off as the green fell in a real battle, side-by-side through lap 13. But Robert Pelland III brought out a caution with a spin in turn 4. It was the final of the 35-lap event. Dickerman's slight edge gave him the pole over DeSouza on the restart, which he didn not waste. He continued to lead through lap 15, while Vanasse slipped into fourth place behind Cavallaro.
Dickerman and DeSouza continued to dice for the lead, 8 cars ahead of the pack. Vanasse, having passed Burr, now was wrestling with Cavallaro for third and slipped underneath into the position. It hung Cavallaro on the outside and DeGasparre seized the opportunity to go underneath for fourth. Kyle Casper and Middleboroite Jimmy Rosenfield also nabbed the advantage, shuttling Cavallaro back to seventh.
On lap 21, DeSouza dropped down and went under Dickerman to regain the lead. Vanasse began to pursue to make up the distance to Dickerman. The leaders continued to struggle, nose-to-tail, with Vanasse beginning to close. DeSouza worked a 2-car lead over Dickerman by lap 27, and added two more lengths over the next pair of circuits. Now, it was becoming a challenge between Dickerman and Vanasse for fourth, with DeGasparre on their tails. Over the final 3 laps, DeSouza continued to run for the win while Vanasse toiled to get past Dickerman. At the stripe, it was Dickerman holding him off by a nose with DeGasparre and Breault finishing out the top 5.
Chris Beaulieu, The Woonsocket Rocket, took over Seekonk Speedway's midseason Street Stock feature from his outside pole starting position and raced to the final checkers for a big, 30-lap win over Coventry, RI's Ray Negley by 5 carlengths, 1.l427 seconds. Beaulieu started on the front, outside Crystal Serydenski and it was hard racing between the pair from the outset. Serydenski, from Johnston, RI, forged a lead which saw Beaulieu struggling to get down into the low groove at first, but by lap 5 it was again a dead heat between the duo and continued into lap 6, when hard-charging Gerard Berthelette spun, while Beulieu had a fender on Serydenski, giving him the pole on the restart.
However, Tim Eaton, Craig Pianka, and Joe Fernandez tangled up in the front stretch by the starter's platform on the restart, so the field came back to try again. Beulieu bested Serydenski for the lead on the backstretch, but it was trouble again, as Patrick Delaney spun on theback side after suddenly slowing, setting up a big scramble which sent Ron Barboza, Sr. into the back wall. Delaney and last week's winner, Ryan Lineham were towed to the pits, while Barboza was pulled from the wall. Delaney, Barboza and Pianka retired from the feature at this point.
The lap 8 restart saw Beaulieu outrun Serydenski once again. Crystal had some handling problems, sending her up the track, and a line of cars was able to take advantage and move under her. Negley, who had restarted third, was after Beulieu, followed by North Dighton's Chris DeMoura and Cranston driver John Geremia III. Manny Dias was black-flagged for a flapping hood and he retired 11 laps down.
By lap 15, Beaulieu had a long lead over Negley and the field, which he pushed out to 8 cars on lap 17, where he began to encounter lapped traffic. He slipped easily through.
On the 22nd go-around, Steve Axon, driving out of Attleboro, MA, looped, collecting Pawtucket's Chris Rioux in the crash. Both restarted at the tail of the field. Beaulieu and Negley battled at the green with Beaulieu again going to the front followed by DeMoura, Scott Bruneau, Tony Oliviera and Mike Mitchell. Mitchell and tim Caton spun between turns 3 and 4, bringing up a lap 23 restrt. Beaulieu and Negley faced off from the front row again, with Beaulieu taking the lead in the second turn.
By lap 27, Beaulieu had a comfortable 5-car lead on Negley, who was now being troubled by Bruneau, who had passed DeMoura. Bruneau made a final dash at the line, almost nipping Negley, who held on for second, while Beaulieu romped home under the checkers. DeMoura and Michael Lema of Taunton, MA, rounded out the top 5.
Westport, Massachusetts driver Rick Martin added to his midseason divisional points lead over John Paiva with another victory on the season in the 30-lap feature, holding off New Bedford's Lenny Guy to the finish line. Guy finished second, ahead of Seekonk's Mike Cavallaro (last week's divisional winner) and Paiva of Fall River. Ted Berube of Somerset, MA, rounded out the top 5.
Seekonk, MA driver Billy Clarke, who has been racing at Seekonk since the 1940's, led off from the pole, but Berube, on his outside, went to the lead on the first lap. Paiva followed Berube from the outside of the second row, and had the lead early in lap 2. Michelle Dumas of Quincy, starting 8th, suffered a spin and the start was called back to the first lap, placing Berube on the pole with Paiva on his outside. Clarke started low on the second row with Guy alongside. Martin sat on the outside, behind Guy.
On the green, Paiva managed to surge to the lead by lap 3 with Berube falling in behind and Guy on his coattails. Martin managed to get around Clarke into fourth while Cavallaro was moving up from his 10th spot on the starting grid.
With Paiva trying to escape Berube on lap 6, Bob Andreozzi from Portsmouth spun in turn 4. This put Paiva on the pole with Berube on his outside. Guy was low behind paiva with Martin behind Berube. Berube fell back on the start, with Guy pulling in behind Paiva and Martin settling down in third. Berube finally got down into the groove in 4th place.
By the ninth circuit, Paiva was showing a two car lead on Guy, Martin and Berube. Cavallaro was moving rapidly toward the front. On lap ten, Clarke and Dylan Estrella rubbed paint in turn 3, sending Estrella to the infield grass and bringing a caution. Paiva was a way at the green flag, chased by Guy, Martin, Berube, Clarke and Cavallaro. Martin took a quick move under Guy to get into second place on the 12th lap while Berube and Clarke dueled for fourth. Paiva, Martin and Guy began to put distance on the field.
Martin slid under Paiva in lap 16 and into the lead on the following circuit; Guy settled in to gnaw at Paiva's tail. Dumas and Dan Leach got into each other, spinning and bringing out the caution and a lap 19 restart. Martin again grabbed the lead from the pole while Guy came up from the low side of the second row to get under Paiva for second. Paiva was stuck on the outside and Cavallaro was coming up quickly. Martin went out to a 4-car lead on Guy over the next 4 laps, while Cavallaro edged Paiva for third. On the twenty-fifth completion, Martin led Guy, Cavallaro, Paiva and Berube with a long gap back to Estrella and Clarke..
With three to go, Martin had a comfortable 5 car lead over Guy, which he carried under the checkered flag for his third Sport Trucks win of the season. Guy, Cavallaro, Paiva and Berube rounded out the top 5.
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