-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

06/21/2010 - GET WELL, Tommy Kraft!

06/23/2010 - Saw TK today, looking well, glad he's okay!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

      On a beautiful afternoon and evening, the track celebrated with the Whelen Engineering sponsored races being run off in a crisp manner, as the evenings events seldom saw the yellow flag come out, with one large exception, and the races were run off so quickly that everyone experienced an early end to the evening, allowing many in the large crowd to enjoy a visit to the pit area after the races, always a fan favorite. The kids especially enjoy the chance to get to sit in the race cars of their favorites, as can be seen in the photos taken by a photographer/pit crew member on another web site.

      The night kicked off with time trials for the Blunderbust and Modified divisions.  Tommy Walkowiak, in the Blaze Fuel Oil sponsored #00 set fast time in the Blunderbusts, turning a 15.093 second lap to win $50 from Brigandi Bros. Towing, while Chuck Steuer, driving the Savin Copiers/Northeast Office Equipment #11 put down a blistering lap of 11.937 seconds to win $100 from Brigandi Bros. Towing. The Freshman Legends race followed time trials, with Vinnie Delaney and Justin Strumpf taking the top two spots to transfer to the Legend feature later on. 

Video of The Blunderbust finish

      The opening event of the evening’s features was the 30 lap, double point Blunderbust race, with Tom Pickerell and Paul Parisi leading the field to the green. Pickerell pulled out into the lead at the start, with Tom Sullivan moving quickly to contend with Parisi for 2nd, while Scott Maliszewski and Bill Wegmann ran side by side for 4th, while Tommy Walkowiak held 6th. Sullivan took over 2nd on lap 2 as Pickerell continued to lead, while Maliszewski took 3rd away from Parisi, who was stuck in undesirable high groove, and continued to lose positions. Pickerell stretched his advantage to 5 car lengths by this point, with Maliszewski getting by Sullivan for 2nd, while Walkowiak moved by Parisi into 4th, and Parisi now had his hands full with Terry Stiles battling him for 5th spot. Pickerell continued in the lead, with Maliszewski closing slightly on him as Walkowiak got by Sullivan to move up to 3rd spot. The top 3 started to pull slightly away from 4th place Sullivan, but just when it seemed they would expand the lead, they started to encounter slower cars, which closed up the margin separating the top 3, putting them all within a car length of one another. But the lapped cars showed due courtesy to the leaders, pulling down out of their way as the 3 car battle continued, with Pickerell holding off Maliszewski’s attempts to get by, while Maliszewski had Walkowiak right on his bumper lap after lap. By lap 13, the top 3 were running 5 car lengths or more in front of Sullivan in 4th, but still all over each other’s bumpers as the wove their way through traffic, but getting clear of lapped cars for the moment by lap 14. On lap 18, things got interesting, as Pickerell, Maliszewski and Walkowiak still ran in a tight pack. Walkowiak made a move to Maliszewski’s outside on lap 20, but Maliszewski was able to hold off the challenge, and Walkowiak fell back behind him once more. 2 laps later, traffic became an issue again, but Pickerell took to the high side, getting by a large group of lapped car cleanly as Maliszewski and Walkowiak followed behind, but Jimmy White was now between Pickerell and Maliszewski, allowing Pickerell a little time to breathe for a moment. But Maliszewski and Walkowiak finally got by White and started chasing Pickerell down once more on lap 24. 

     On lap 27, things got interesting. Pickerell got a little high, allowing Maliszewski to get a fender under him, but Pickerell was able to use a lapped car to hold him off, while Walkowiak got along side Maliszewski to challenge him for 2nd. They ran side by side down the back stretch, and got almost 3 wide entering turn 4 after they all got by the lapped car, with Walkowiak grabbing the lead from Pickerell off turn 2, as Maliszewski backed out of the 3 wide configuration. Maliszewski charged back to mount a challenge, with the trio getting 2 wide once more, with Maliszewski pushing through to 2nd as they took the white flag. Maliszewski then muscled his way under Walkowiak as they ran side by side down the back stretch and continued that way through turns 3 & 4, with Scott Maliszewski, in a car he borrowed from Ron Langdon, beating Walkowiak to the checkered flag by about 1 foot to take the win in a spectacular finish that had the whole crowd on their feet cheering through the last 2 laps. Tommy Walkowiak settled for 2nd, while Tom Pickerell was a very close 3rd, followed by Tom Sullivan and Terry Stiles to round out the top 5.  Many of his fellow competitors drove slowly by Victory Lane to give Scott Maliszewski a thumbs up salute on his tremendous win. 2nd place finisher Tommy Walkowiak parked his car nearby and gave Maliszewski a big congratulatory hug in Victory Lane. If you missed this race, you missed the best race in any division this season so far. 

      The Legends rolled out for their feature next, led by Glenn Maningo and Chris Turbush. Maningo took the lead at the start, but Turbush battled back, taking the lead at the completion of lap 1. Maningo followed in 2nd, with Silas Hiscock, Sr. in 3rd, while Anthony Cacioppo and Wild Bill Hiscock battled side by side for 4th. On the next lap, Hiscock, Sr. went high, giving 3rd to Cacioppo, with Paul Dodorico quickly taking 4th from Hiscock, Sr., who then lost 5th to Johnny Gloor IV. Turbush by then had a 5 car length lead over Maningo, as the field stretched out to a single file formation, with Turbush stretching his lead even more as the laps ticked off. The battle for positions further back saw Gloor and Dodorico battle for 4th, with Gloor taking 4th, while Tommy Rogers, Jr. had worked his way to 6th from his 12th starting position. But up front, Turbush was simply running away with the race, enjoying a 10 car length lead, when suddenly Cacioppo and Tom Sherman collided when Cacioppo got loose, with Sherman and Paul Dodorico locked together against Cacioppo as the trio slid into the infield, causing the first yellow of the race a lap later on lap 11, and wiping out Tarbush’s tremendous lead. 

      On the restart, Turbush and Maningo lead Rogers and Gloor to the line, with Turbush holding the lead as Rogers moved quickly to 2nd, banging on Turbush’s  rear bumper, as Timmy Solomito and Chris A. Young banged their way through into 3rd and 4th, but half a lap later, Young got punted and spun in turn 4, while Solomito moved into 2nd, with Rogers dropping to 4th, and Tony Naglieri moving up into 5th as the action heated up. Solomito was working hard to take the lead from Turbush, as those behind them were banging on their rear bumpers, with Rogers taking 3rd from Gloor, while Solomito still worked the outside to get by Turbush, when Turbush got punted by Rogers in turn 4, spinning from the lead as Gloor shot to the front as Solomito slowed to avoid contact with Turbush, but Solomito recovered to take the lead from Gloor on the back stretch, while Naglieri and Rogers battled for 3rd spot, while Kevin Nowak rode in 5th spot. Solomito pulled away out front as Gloor followed, with Rogers, Naglieri and Nowak filling out the top 5. Rogers then took 2nd away from Gloor, leaving Gloor to contend with Naglieri for 3rd, with Gloor holding the spot as Solomito pulled away up front as they got the one lap to go signal. Timmy Solomito held on to take the win, with Rogers crossing the line in 2nd, only to have race officials move him to last on the lead lap in the final finish (18th) after ruling he was rough riding for the Chris Young incident, giving 2nd to John Gloor IV, while Tony Naglieri, Kevin Nowak, and Wild Bill Hiscock rounded out the top 5. 

Legends Video is here Legends Video

     The Chargers were next with a 15 car field ready to take the green, led by Tom Anderson and Frank Dumicich, Jr. When the green came out, Anderson took a slight lead, but F. Dumicich battled back, with no clear leader after the 1st  lap. On the next lap, Anderson nosed out in front of F. Dumicich to take sole possession of the lead, with F. Dumicich following, while Brian Doyle and Erin Dumicich battled side by side for 3rd. Anderson now led F. Dumicich by a couple of car lengths as the battle for 3rd continued, while further back, Chris Turbush was starting to move up from his 9th starting spot, picking off one car at a time.  E. Dumicich finally took sole possession of 3rd by lap 5 as Doyle got shuffled back while riding in the outside groove, eventually settling into 7th spot, as Kevin Orlando, Chris McGuire, and Turbush all got by on the low side. Anderson continued to hold the lead by about 3 car lengths over F. Dumicich, as E. Dumicich, Orlando and McGuire rounded out the top five by lap 9. By lap 11, C. Turbush had worked his way into 4th behind E. Dumicich as the top 7 ran single file around the track. C. Turbush got loose after getting a shove from Orlando, but C. Turbush recovered to fall in behind Orlando in 5th, then shot by Orlando on the outside, a lap before McGuire’s car blew a motor, going off in a huge cloud of steam into the infield, as C. Turbush then  went to the high side of E. Dumicich 3 laps later as they traveled down the back stretch, but E. Dumicich squeezed him high, forcing him up near the wall as they neared turn 3, but E. Dumicich then spun on her own in turn 4, as the race continued under green while she tried to recover and rejoin the field. As Anderson came down the back stretch with a big lead going into turn 3 on lap 17, E. Dumicich suddenly accelerated, heading the wrong way into turn 3, colliding hard with leader Anderson, mangling the whole right side of his car, tearing off his rear wheel, as she continued and hit the wall in turn 3, bringing out an immediate caution as Anderson’s wounded car stopped in the infield, and the rest of the field took evasive action to miss hitting both cars. Track officials called for a momentary red flag to clean up Anderson’s and E. Dumicich’s cars and reset the field for a restart, while the chatter in the stands was about why E. Dumicich had not properly corrected her car before it took off in the wrong direction. Stuck throttle or trying to get to C. Turbush thinking he was responsible for her spin? Only she knows for sure, so we will not speculate here.

     With F. Dumicich now on the pole, and C. Turbush to his outside, the green waved once again, and F. Dumicich took C. Turbush high through turns 1 & 2 as C. Turbush battled him for the lead side by side, and they repeated this going through turns 3 & 4 before C. Turbush took the lead entering turn 1 as F. Dumicich tried to hook him entering the turn, but C. Turbush was clear and he pulled away cleanly to take the lead. Orlando now got under F. Dumicich to take 2nd as F. Dumicich bounced off Orlando’s side and hit the wall in turns 1 & 2 after getting hit in the rear bumper, while the race continued under green, with Chris Turbush continuing to the yellow/checker finish, and victory, as Kevin Orlando, Jay Henschel, Eric Lutz, and Jeremy McDermott rounded out the top 5. F. Dumicich wasn’t done yet, as he rolled off his position against the wall and attempted to clip C. Turbush as he went by on the cool down lap, but missed him as Turbush went way low onto the track apron to avoid contact. 

Charger Video is here

        Next up was the Modified double point, 50 lap event, with Tom Rogers, Jr. on the pole, and Justin Bonsignore to his outside. Rogers took off at the green, but Bonsignore stayed right with him all the way around for the first lap, with Jimmy Blewett applying pressure to Rogers from behind, but Rogers hung on, battling with Bonsignore until he pulled ahead and Bonsignore tucked in behind him. Eddie Brunnhoelzl took third away from Blewett on the next lap, as Rogers continued to hold the lead. Timmy Solomito and Chuck Steuer were behind all this, battling for 5th side by side, when suddenly Steuer wheel hopped Solomito’s car, but Steuer recovered nicely, missing the third turn wall and he settled back in to 10th spot for the moment. Up front, Bonsignore took a look under Rogers as Rogers came off the corner a little high, but Rogers held him off once more. The leaders encountered lapped traffic on lap 11, as Rogers brushed Tommy Sekulski’s car going down the back stretch, trying to get between Sekulski and Frank Saladino. Unfortunately, Sekulski’s contact with the wall caused the first caution of the race, as Sekulski’s night ended early. When the green flew once more, Rogers and Bonsignore took off side by side, but Rogers quickly moved out front again, but a lap later, Howie Brode spun in turn 4 after contact, and the yellow was displayed a lap later (lap 13) when he couldn’t get restarted. 

       The green flew again, with the same result as Rogers pulled away once more with Bonsignore right on his bumper, with Brunnhoelzl in 3rd, while Blewett and Chris Young battled for 4th, with Young taking it while Blewett dropped to 5th. Young and Blewett’s battle was not done yet, as Young faltered momentarily, causing Blewett to slow and drop back to 7th as Bill Park and Steuer moved by into 5th and 6th.  Rogers, Bonsignore and Brunnhoelzl continued to run 1-2-3 as the laps mounted up, as everyone on the lead lap ran single file by lap 19, and at half way (lap 25), Rogers and Bonsignore had pulled 5 car lengths ahead of Brunnhoelzl, but were about to encounter slower cars once more. On lap 26, Steuer got by Park to take 5th spot, while Rogers and Bonsignore stretched their lead over Brunnhoelzl to about 7 car lengths. Young tried to get by Brunnhoelzl on the outside, and Steuer quickly moved up onto Brunnhoelzl’s bumper, leaving Young hung up on the outside, dropping Young to 5th as Steuer got by on the low side. While that battle raged, Rogers and Bonsignore continued to motor on, extending their lead to 15 car lengths ahead of Brunnhoelzl by lap 30. By lap 35, Rogers pulled away from Bonsignore by about a car length, which was significant because Bonsignore had run no more than 5 feet away most of the race. On lap 38, John Beatty spun in turn 4, but quickly recovered and rejoined the race without a caution coming out. By lap 39, Rogers was now 3 car lengths ahead of Bonsignore, with Rogers looking just as strong as he’d been from the start. Behind them, Steuer had gotten by Brunnhoelzl to takeover 3rd spot, but he was  at least a quarter lap behind the leaders and posed no threat. Brunnhoelzl now had Young to contend with again, and Blewett had come back to 6th to ride Young’s bumper. On lap 44, Young got loose off turn 4, spinning into the infield as Blewett moved to 5th. Young recovered quickly and rejoined the race, and again, no caution. By lap 46, Rogers had pulled away to a 7 car length margin over Bonsignore. On lap 48, Brode spun again in turn 2 after contact, with no caution, as Tom Rogers cruised across the line to take the win, with Justin Bonsignore, Chuck Steuer, Jimmy Blewett, and John Fortin rounding out the top 5. 

Modified Video is at the top of the page. New format, enjoy!

         The previously scheduled mini-school bus raced morphed into a full sized school bus race, with 6 buses in the field, but Mike ‘Cheesebox’ Rommeney showed everyone how it’s done, taking the win easily. 

News and Notes: Co-Chief Steward Mike Cappiello made his return to the track as he continues to recover from the injuries suffered in a freak racing accident at the track a few weeks back. Mike reported he’s feeling much better, and he appreciates all the well wishes he’s gotten from competitors and fans alike. While walking is still off in his future after some physical therapy, Mike was able to perform his duties via golf cart for the evening and will be at the track weekly from now on. Good to have you back, Mike, continue to do what your doctors tell you to….  Dave Brigati missing the racing this week for the first time in a long time. Dave has a new Troyer Modified, just not ready to race yet despite hard work by his team, and the older car needed repairs, so Dave opted to sit out the night....  Jimmy Blewett drove Wayne Anderson’s #15 to a fine 4th place finish in Jimmy’s 2nd stint in the car. Wayne still hoping to drive again some time next month if he gets clearance….  No Mike Andrews or Ambrose team out for the double pointer, and no reason given…  Gershow Recycling #2 Modified arrived late on a rollback truck, but never entered into competition. Strange is the best guess on that one, since the driver was there….  Ken Heagy out for a shakedown of his new motor in his WMT #18 mount. Kenny very happy with the way it’s running, heading into NHMS tour race next week….  Good sized crowd on hand to witness the night’s racing, biggest of the season so far, I’d guess….  Tom Rogers, Jr. took off his driving suit and shoes before entering victory lane to supposedly prove he isn’t using traction control in his very hot Modified. Tom did his interview in his T-shirt and shorts, a first for Victory Lane interviews….  Tom Anderson to be congratulated on maintaining his composure after being taken out of a sure win in the Chargers in the incident with Erin Dumicich. Glad both drivers are fine, though Anderson will have an especially long week doing extensive repairs to his damaged race car…  Roger Turbush drove his Dad's # 8 very conservatively in the Charger race. Guess he didn't want to mess it up for Dan's return next week....  Kind of odd rule not allowing pitting for Legends cars during the feature. I know it speeds up the show, but it seems a bit unfair to not allow even changing a flat. Add to that, no one in the Legends buys welding insurance, having a tough effect on Iron Man welding….  As always, check back for videos that may be posted as Steve LaFountaine from LaFilms Productions sends them along....   That’s it for this week. Join us again next week for more reports on the action at the track. Until next time, live well and be safe. WJ