by Tommy Goudge
(June 10, 2011) – A total of 112 cars and drivers signed in for round 2 of Ohsweken Speedway’s Friday Night Thunder on June 10.
Jared Zimbardi, Shawn Sliter, Lee Winger, Karl Sault, and Trevor Roszell were the men left standing in the Engine Pro Winner’s Circle at the end of an entertaining night of racing.
CORR/PAK MERCHANDISING SPRINT CARS
Derek Jonathan led the first 4 laps of the Sprint Car feature before fellow New York driver Jared Zimbardi got past in turn 4. Sophomore driver Mitch Brown made his way to second, and had a chance to take the win when Dain Naida and Tom Huppunen crashed in turn 2 with 18 of the 20 laps in the books. Brown’s car faltered on the restart though, and Zimbardi cruised to the feature win. Travis Cunningham came home second, followed by Mikey Kruchka, Kyle Patrick, and Derek Jonathan
“I didn’t know who was running where or anything,” Jared told the crowd afterwards. “I knew we were good on the bottom, but I didn’t know who was running up top, so that can kind of play games in your head. I’ve got to thank everybody for coming out tonight even though the weather was kind of iffy.”
MOD-LITE STARS CHAMPIONSHIP TOUR NORTH
Shawn Sliter dominated the first appearance of the Mod-Lites at Ohsweken in 2011, while several drivers put on a show racing for the runner-up spot. Sliter cruised to the win, followed by Josh Sliter, Paul Klager, Derek Wagner, and Derek Moore.
“It was not too bad on the bottom,” said Sliter afterwards. “It was a little rough, but I love this place. It’s awesome. I got to thank my car owner John, my brother Ray for letting me drive it, and the whole crew.”
LIGHTHOUSE TATTOOS THUNDER STOCKS
Lee Winger made an early move for the lead and held on the rest of the way to claim his first Thunder Stock win of the season, but it was not easy. Winger’s right rear wheel got packed full of mud, and nearly forced him out of the race.
“I was wondering, I thought I had a flat tire,” said Winger after the race. “I was going to pull off, and then I was like if that thing’s flat I’d be right slow because that’s the drive tire, so it’s a good thing I didn’t pull off.”
Wyatt Van Wart, Mike Thorne, Devin Habiuk, and Larry Czinege, Jr.
rounded out the top 5.
HRW AUTOMOTIVE MINI STOCKS
Karl Sault remained undefeated to begin his Mini Stock career with a second consecutive feature win on Friday night. This one was more difficult, as he couldn’t get to a transfer spot in his heat race and had to run the B-Main. He drove up through the field in the feature from 19th on the grid.
“The track was a little slippery for this car in the heats,” said Karl in the Engine Pro Racing Winner’s Circle. “Coming from the back was a lot more fun this week, because I had to fight with traffic.”
Jake Brown, Trevor Goulding, Kevin Hilborn, and Mike Taylor finished out the top 5.
PIERCED PARTS BOMBERS
Trevor Roszell negotiated traffic successfully to claim the Bomber feature win, while the action was hot and heavy behind him. Rodney Rutherford, Sarah Rutherford, Craig Dowd, and Dave Patton claimed top 5 finishes.
NEXT WEEK AT OHSWEKEN
Lighthouse Tattoos presents “Brant County Night” next Friday, June 17.
Twin 15’s for the Lighthouse Tattoos Thunder Stocks are on tap, along with Corr/Pak Merchandising Sprint Cars, HRW Automotive Mini Stocks, and Pierced Parts Bombers, plus a Mini-Van Figure 8 race and demolition derby! Gates open at 6:00 with racing starting at 7:45!
FRIDAY NIGHT THUNDER 2011
ROUND 2 RACE REPORT – JUNE 10, 2011
OHSWEKEN SPEEDWAY
OHSWEKEN, ONTARIO
EVENT SPONSOR – BS&B RADIATOR
CORR/PAK MERCHANDISING SPRINT CARS (25 cars) HEAT RACES (8 laps each – Top 16 in passing points transfer to Feature, Top 12 redraw for feature starting spots):
ENGLER MACHINE & TOOL HEAT RACE #1
1. 7x Jamie Collard (Burford), 2. 12c Tom Huppunen (Fenwick), 3. 07x Dain Naida (Tecumseh, MI), 4. 31 John Burbridge, Jr. (St. Williams), 5.
81 Derek Jonathan (Lewiston, NY), 6. 49 Todd Hoddick (Cheektowaga, NY), 7. 10c Bob Crawford (Sutton), 8. 96 Shane Butler (St. Thomas), 9. 67 Chris Durand (Port Stanley) DNS. Time – 1:49.488
GRISDALE RACING PRODUCTS HEAT RACE #2
1. 35 Jared Zimbardi (Salamanca, NY), 2. 5d Dave Dykstra (Port Colborne), 3. 01 Mikey Kruchka (Hamilton), 4. 90 James Evans (Beamsville), 5. 10 Mitch Brown (Brantford), 6. 38 Brad Knab (Arcade, NY), 7. 30g Steve Goldner (Aylmer), 8. 52 Jesse Costa (St. Thomas). Time
– 1:50.303
BS&B RADIATOR HEAT RACE #3
1. 11 Jamie Turner (Caistor Centre), 2. 71 Travis Cunningham (Grimsby), 3. 80 Chris Steele (Vineland), 4. 14h Jim Huppunen (Fenwick), 5. 33k Kyle Patrick (Tilbury), 6. 0 Glenn Styres (Ohsweken), 7. 7 Kyle Moffit (South Dayton, NY), 8. 5 Keith Dempster (Alton). Time – 1:52.514
AWESOME RACEWEAR B-MAIN
(10 laps – Top 4 finishers transfer to A-Main) 1. 0 Glenn Styres, 2. 7 Kyle Moffit, 3. 5 Keith Dempster, 4. 30g Steve Goldner, 5. 38 Brad Knab, 6. 10c Bob Crawford, 7. 52 Jesse Costa, 8. 96 Shane Butler DNF, 9. 67 Chris Durand DNS. Time – 2:16.050
CORR/PAK MERCHANDISING
SPRINT CAR FEATURE (20 laps)
Position. # Name (Starting Position)
1. 35 Jared Zimbardi (3)
2. 71 Travis Cunningham (8)
3. 01 Mikey Kruchka (6)
4. 33k Kyle Patrick (15)
5. 81 Derek Jonathan (2)
6. 5d Dave Dykstra (10)
7. 5 Keith Dempster (19)
8. 7x Jamie Collard (12)
9. 10 Mitch Brown (4)
10. 07x Dain Naida (11)
11. 14h Jim Huppunen (14)
12. 49 Todd Hoddick (16)
13. 7 Kyle Moffit (18)
14. 0 Glenn Styres (17)
15. 12c Tom Huppunen (7)
16. 11 Jamie Turner (9)
17. 90 James Evans (1)
18. 30g Steve Goldner (20)
19. 80 Chris Steele (5)
20. 31 John Burbridge, Jr. (13)
No Time
SPRINT CAR AWARDS:
Nathan Ackland State Farm Insurance “Top Gun” (highest in heat race passing points): Jared Zimbardi RNB Restorations Feature Winner: Jared Zimbardi