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Riverhead, NY Feb. 27th
By Bob Finan
The Suffolk Association of Figure Eight Racing has announced they will honor their 2022 champion Joe Warren Jr. of Ridge and car owner Sean Hansen of Mastic Beach at their annual S.A.F.E.R. Annual Awards Luncheon Sunday April 2nd. The event, long dubbed “the best party in racing” is set for the Sea Cove Italian American Bar & Grill of Center Moriches and also recognizes the top five in S.A.F.E.R. points from 2022, announce 2022 Special Award winners and induct the class of into the S.A.F.E.R Hall of Fame.
The road to the 2022 S.A.F.E.R. title for Joe Warren Jr. became clearer Wednesday night August 3rd when he and former teammate Vinny Delaney wowed the fans who turned out for the midweek special with a door slamming race to the finish with Warren prevailing. Aside from the excitement of the finish, Warren also delivered Sean Hansen his car owner his first career victory. Hansen, a long time S.A.F.E.R. member as both a driver and car owner had toiled in the sport for decades before Warren earned him his first trip to victory lane. Aside from honoring the championship tandem, the top five drivers. will be feted for their 2022 efforts. Gary Fritz Jr. of Mastic Beach, Ryan Warren of Ridge, Cody Triola of Bay Shore and Vinny Delaney of Islip Terrace completed the S.A.F.E.R. top five with all receiving their point fund checks.
The battle for the 2022 S.A.F.E.R. Rookie of the Year was a tight one going right down to the final race of the season. Ryan Warren edged out Cody Triola for the freshman honors. The other 2022 S.A.F.E.R. Special Award winners will be revealed at the luncheon.
An extended S.A.F.E.R. Hall of Fame Class of 2023 of seven will be enshrined April 2nd. The late Eddie Partridge, Riverhead Raceway owner and visionary will be inducted along with former championship car owner Cindy Berner of Berner Motorsports and popular longtime track announcer Stephen Halpin were all voted in by the club’s board of directors. Partridge, with his wife Connie and nephew Tom Gatz purchased Riverhead Raceway prior to the 2016 race season keeping short track racing and S.A.F.E.R. Figure Eight racing alive. Cindy Berner and her husband Michael are former S.A.F.E.R. championship car owners through their Berner Motorsports when Cindy’s brother Tom Rogers Jr. was winning races and titles. Despite their racing interests moving to the Crate Modifieds with son Michael at the wheel, Cindy remains a S.A.F.E.R loyalist and supporter. Stephen Halpin, the veteran announcer at Riverhead Raceway not only promotes the club via his talent on the mic, Halpin also made sure S.A.F.E.R. had a home for their monthly meetings at his restaurant TJ Halpin’s when the club was seeking a home for the gatherings. The trio were selected by S.A.F.E.R. board members.
Four 2023 S.A.F.E.R. Hall of Fame inductees were voted in with Tom Ferrara, Kan Darch, Terry Fallon and Richie Carman the quartet being enshrined. Tom Ferrara ranks 8th on the all-time Riverhead Raceway win list with 20 victories to his credit and despite recently retiring from driving he along with Jessica Cohan-Quilliam breathed fresh air into the club after the COVID-19 pandemic. Ken Darch during his Figure Eight driving days was a valued S.A.F.E.R member and support and remains so with the club to this day despite moving to the NASCAR Modified ranks, first as a driver and then a championship car owner with his wife Denise and driver Tom Rogers Jr. For many years Terry Fallon served the track as an inspector but after retiring from that post moved into a crew chief role with driver Gary Fritz Jr. In the just completed 2022 campaign Fritz & Fallon teamed to win the Ken Hyde Sr. tribute race late in the season catapulting them to the Miller Lite Triple Crown Series championship. While he never raced with the Figure Eights or S.A.F.E.R., Richie Carman is a staunch supporter of both and in fact all things racing at Riverhead Raceway through his United Exhaust Shop of Bohemia. Richie and staff provide many a S.A.F.E.R. racer with custom exhaust work.
The 2022 S.A.F.E.R. Annual Awards Luncheon will run from 2:00 pm through 6:00 pm Sunday April 2nd with tickets $85 per person. A luncheon buffet will be available with beer, wine & soda available, plus the presentation of awards. You can purchase tickets via Venmo through either Tom Ferrara, Jessica Cohan-Quilliam or Kim Hyde.
The Sea Cove Italian American Bar & Grill is located at 361 Main Street, in the heart of the Center Moriches.
The 2023 S.A.F.E.R Figure Eight season gets underway Saturday evening May 6th as part of the seven division NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series opening night program at Riverhead Raceway. The 2023 track schedule is available at www.riverheadraceway.com.
