by Tommy Goudge,Photo Credit – Dale Calnan/ImageFactor.ca
(August 17, 2012) – Dustin Daggett is again alone in second on the Ohsweken Speedway all-time Sprint Car feature win list after a dominating performance in Friday night’s third round of the Northern Summer Nationals series. Daggett bested a field of 45 Sprint Cars from four American states and two Canadian provinces to get his 11th win at the Styres family-owned facility. Jack Myers went back to the Engine Pro Racing Winner’s Circle again after another Lighthouse Tattoos Thunder Stocks feature win, while Jeremy Hughes got another HRW Automotive Mini Stocks victory, and Kathi Dickie took the Pierced Parts Bombers win.
NORTHERN SUMMER NATIONALS SPRINT CARS
Chris Steele and Kyle Patrick were given front row starting spots in the outlaw-style redraw before the feature began, and Steele used the opportunity presented to him by Dustin Daggett to jump out to an early lead. The race was only two laps old when Todd Hoddick spun and brought out a yellow flag, but not before Northern Summer Nationals championship contender Justin Barger moved from sixth to second. Shane Stewart was also on the move early in the race, as he was into fourth by lap five after starting eighth, but the two-time Canadian Sprint Car Nationals winner eventually dropped out of the race with ignition problems.
Steele didn’t enjoy a clear track for very long, as slower traffic became a factor by lap seven. Dustin Daggett started third in the feature and pounced on both Steele and Barger on lap eight, making an outside move stick in turns three and four to take the lead. The race was slowed twice for caution flags at the halfway mark and again after the white flag flew, but Daggett had several lapped machines between himself and the rest of the field each time. He had moved through the slower traffic at a torrid pace, despite a front wing which had been knocked askew.
Daggett took the feature win by 3.286 seconds, while Barger settled for the runner-up spot after a good fight with Steele, who came home third. Alain Bergeron moved from his starting spot in row six to claim the fourth position, while Kyle Patrick came home fifth.
“This car was working pretty good,” Daggett said in the Engine Pro Racing Winner’s Circle. “It became a pretty big handful when the nose wing fell back like that. I’ve been having a lot of issues with that stuff. I’ve got to get that figured out. The lapped cars just moved out of the way just at the right time, and we were able to snake through there and put a lot of lapped cars between me and second.”
Barger’s second place finish on Friday night helped him to pad his points lead heading into Saturday night’s Northern Summer Nationals finale at South Buxton Raceway, where he claimed the win in the second round of the series in June.
“I was just a little too tight behind the lapped cars to keep up with Dustin,” Barger said after the race. “He nailed the setup there pretty good, so we’ve got to work on it a little bit to come back for the Canadian Sprint Car Nationals, but all in all a pretty good night.”
Chris Steele was content with his podium finish, and was the highest finishing weekly Corr/Pak Merchandising Sprint Car driver in the field.
“There’s some pretty good guys here, and some pretty good guys behind me too,” said Steele afterwards. “The car got really loose at the end there, and I was just struggling to hold on. I’m lucky to finish third.”
Heat races for the 45 car field were claimed by Justin Barger, Scott Kreutter, Dustin Daggett, Chris Steele, and Adam West, while Dain Naida and Jim Huppunen won the B-Mains.
LIGHTHOUSE TATTOOS THUNDER STOCKS
Brittany Gyokery and Ryan Beagle began the Thunder Stock feature on the front row, but many eyes were on the drivers starting towards the back of the field, where nightly contenders for feature wins such as Jack Myers, Mike Thorne, and Brad Herron began their race. It didn’t take long for the championship contenders to make their way to the front, as they had much to gain with points leader Wyatt Van Wart missing the feature after a flat tire in the B-Main.
Myers continued his dominance of the division of late by getting to the front and pulling away for his fifth feature win in the last six races. He was chased to the line by Herron, Thorne, Devin Habiuk, and Chris Dickie.
“I found the middle groove was working really good,” said Myers after the race. “I tried running the high groove – I didn’t think there would be much left after the Sprint Cars had it, but there was still lots left. It’s unfortunate (for Wyatt). Don’t want to see anyone get taken out like that, but I’ll take it when I can.”
Heat races for the 35 car field were claimed by Ryan Dinning, Brett Rodwell, Brad Herron, and Lee Winger, while Devin Habiuk won the B-Main.
HRW AUTOMOTIVE MINI STOCKS
Matt Pleil and Jonathan Ayrton made up the front row for the Mini Stock feature, but it didn’t take long for Jeremy Hughes to make his way to the front from the sixth row. Championship leader Karl Sault chased Hughes through the pack, and got to the inside of Hughes briefly in turns one and two, but couldn’t complete the pass. Hughes drove away after that, and went on to claim his fourth feature win of the season. Sault settled for second, followed by John Cote, Mike Evers, and Robin Elliott.
“It was a pretty good race,” said the winner afterwards. “(Turns) three and four are really greasy down low, and the first corner I slid up and door-slammed somebody. I hope they’re not upset. I knew that if I just stayed on the top of that, if anybody was going to try to pass me on the low side, they wouldn’t be able to get around me.”
Heat races for the 28 car field went to Craig Erskine, John Cote, and Jeremy Hughes, while Karl Sault won the B-Main.
PIERCED PARTS BOMBERS
Kathi Dickie and Dwight Staats were on the front row for the Bomber feature, and Dickie got the lead when the green flag came out. Jeremy May chased Dickie for much of the event, and tried his best to take advantage of a few close calls with slower traffic, but Dickie prevailed to take her second win of the season. May took the runner-up spot, followed by Davey Boughton, Max Chechalk, and Brady Longboat.
“I actually wasn’t expecting to come out and do very well, because the last few weeks have been terrible,” said Dickie after the race. “To come out and win is fantastic. I felt (May) a few times. He wanted the win just as bad as I did.”
Heat races for the 16 car field went to Joe DeBoer and Jeremy May.
NEXT WEEK AT OHSWEKEN
Kids Race presents the Modified Lite Stars International Championship Tour racing for the Canadian National Autism Foundation this Friday, August 24. The Corr/Pak Merchandising Sprint Cars, HRW Automotive Mini Stocks, and Pierced Parts Bombers are also part of this special edition of Friday Night Thunder, plus the Lighthouse Tattoos Thunder Stocks will contest the Brock Leonard Memorial 50, with $500 going to the winner. Gates open at 6:00 with racing starting at 7:45!
COMING SOON
Advanced reserved seat tickets for the 8th annual Canadian Sprint Car Nationals coming up on Friday, September 14, and Saturday, September 15 at Ohsweken are on sale now! Please visit www.OhswekenSpeedway.com and call 1-888-720-RACE to order yours today!
FRIDAY NIGHT THUNDER 2012
RACE REPORT – AUGUST 17
OHSWEKEN SPEEDWAY
OHSWEKEN, ONTARIO
“NORTHERN SUMMER NATIONALS”
EVENT SPONSOR – JONES BROWN MOTORSPORT INSURANCE
TOTAL ENTRIES – 124
NORTHERN SUMMER NATIONALS SPRINT CARS (45 entries)
HEAT RACES (10 laps each – Top 18 in passing points transferred to A-Feature):
Finish. [Starting Position] Number Name (Hometown)
ENGLER MACHINE & TOOL HEAT RACE #1
1. [4] 5b Justin Barger (Montrose, NY), 2. [1] 67c Steve Collins (Belfast, NY), 3. [6] 49 Todd Hoddick (Cheektowaga, NY), 4. [8] 0 Glenn Styres (Ohsweken), 5. [3] 27h Tom Huppunen (Fenwick), 6. [9] 07x Dain Naida (Tecumseh, MI), 7. [5] 51 Bryan Howland (Auburn, NY), 8. [7] 7x Jamie Collard (Burford), 9. [2] 30g Steve Goldner (Aylmer) DNF. Time – 2:20.960.
GRISDALE RACING PRODUCTS HEAT RACE #2
1. [1] 52 Scott Kreutter (Alden, NY), 2. [2] 01 Mikey Kruchka (Hamilton), 3. [6] 8b Alain Bergeron (Saint-Pie, QC), 4. [9] 5m Brad Malloy (Niagara Falls), 5. [4] 21 Don Adamczyk (Williamsville, NY), 6. [7] 42w Rick Wilson (Joyceville), 7. [3] 11j Chris Jones (Demorestville), 8. [8] 70 Jim Lingar (South Bend, IN), 9. [5] 15 Mike Ferrell (London). Time – 2:24.684.
O’NEIL’S FARM EQUIPMENT HEAT RACE #3
1. [4] 80 Chris Steele (Fenwick), 2. [3] 5 Keith Dempster (Alton), 3. [6] 35 Jared Zimbardi (Salamanca, NY), 4. [5] 3r Shane Ross (Thedford), 5. [1] 51L Lee Ladouceur (Alexandria), 6. [8] 9 Jim Munsie (Pickering), 7. [7] 94 Stan Zanchin (Fort Erie), 8. [9] 43 Scott Sherk (Port Colborne), 9. [2] 2 Brad Lodge (Stouffville). Time – 2:24.969.
BEST WESTERN CAIRN CROFT HOTEL HEAT RACE #4
1. [4] 2m Dustin Daggett (Grand Ledge, MI), 2. [7] 3g Shane Stewart (Bixby, OK), 3. [1] 14h Jim Huppunen (Fenwick), 4. [2] 57 Charlie Sandercock (Carrying Place), 5. [9] 10 Mitch Brown (Brantford), 6. [6] 15aw April Wilson (Joyceville), 7. [5] 40 Sammy Steiss (Ohsweken), 8. [8] 66 Frank Baranowski (Mount Hope), 9. [3] 67 Chris Durand (Port Stanley) DNF. Time – 2:23.559.
JONES BROWN MOTORSPORT INSURANCE HEAT RACE #5
1. [2] 30 Adam West (Ridgetown), 2. [5] 33k Kyle Patrick (Tilbury), 3. [9] 71 Travis Cunningham (Grimsby), 4. [6] 25 Warren Mahoney (Lefroy), 5. [3] 79 Dick Mahoney (Newmarket), 6. [8] 5c Conor Mahoney (Waterdown), 7. [1] 21j John Burbridge, Jr. (St. Williams), 8. [4] 10c Bob Crawford (Sutton) DNF, 9. [7] 11 Jamie Turner (Caistor Centre) DNF. Time – 2:28.009.
NORTHERN SUMMER NATIONALS SPRINT CARS
B-MAINS (12 Laps each, Top 4 finishers in each transferred to A-Feature)
Finish. # Name (Starting Position)
AWESOME RACEWEAR B-MAIN #1
1. 07x Dain Naida (2), 2. 27h Tom Huppunen (5), 3. 51 Bryan Howland (8), 4. 21 Don Adamczyk (4), 5. 11j Chris Jones (9), 6. 9 Jim Munsie (3), 7. 94 Stan Zanchin (7), 8. 67 Chris Durand (13), 9. 3r Shane Ross (1) DNF, 10. 2 Brad Lodge (12) DNF, 11. 21j John Burbridge, Jr. (11) DNF, 12. 66 Frank Baranowski (10) DNF, DNS. 51L Lee Ladouceur (6), DNS. 11 Jamie Turner (14). No Time.
AWESOME RACEWEAR B-MAIN #2
1. 14h Jim Huppunen (1), 2. 57 Charlie Sandercock (2), 3. 42w Rick Wilson (4), 4. 5c Conor Mahoney (3), 5. 40 Sammy Steiss (8), 6. 79 Dick Mahoney (5), 7. 43 Scott Sherk (7), 8. 15 Mike Ferrell (11), 9. 70 Jim Lingar (9), 10. 7x Jamie Collard (10) DNF, 11. 15aw April Wilson (6) DNF, 12. 30g Steve Goldner (12) DNF, DNS. 10c Bob Crawford (13). No Time.
NORTHERN SUMMER NATIONALS
SPRINT CAR FEATURE (25 laps)
Finish. # Name (Starting Position)
1. 2m Dustin Daggett (3)
2. 5b Justin Barger (6)
3. 80 Chris Steele (1)
4. 8b Alain Bergeron (11)
5. 33k Kyle Patrick (2)
6. 52 Scott Kreutter (5)
7. 14h Jim Huppunen (20)
8. 71 Travis Cunningham (7)
9. 0 Glenn Styres (13)
10. 10 Mitch Brown (16)
11. 27h Tom Huppunen (21)
12. 67c Steve Collins (17)
13. 07x Dain Naida (19)
14. 5 Keith Dempster (14)
15. 5m Brad Malloy (9)
16. 42w Rick Wilson (24)
17. 30 Adam West (10)
18. 11j Chris Jones (25)
19. 57 Charlie Sandercock (22)
20. 51 Bryan Howland (23)
21. 5c Conor Mahoney (26)
22. 25 Warren Mahoney (18) DNF
23. 01 Mikey Kruchka (15) DNF
24. 3g Shane Stewart (8) DNF
25. 35 Jared Zimbardi (12) DNF
26. 49 Todd Hoddick (4) DNF
No Time.
Lap Leaders – Steele (1-13), Daggett (14-25)
LIGHTHOUSE TATTOOS THUNDER STOCKS (35 entries)
HEAT RACES (8 laps each – Top 5 finishers in each transferred to A-Feature):
Finish. Number Name (Hometown)
ENGINE PRO RACING HEAT RACE #1
1. 8 Ryan Dinning (Caledonia), 2. 40 Terry Osmond (Cambridge), 3. 9 Dave Silverthorn, Jr. (London), 4. 85b Luke Greiner (Barrie), 5. 4 Brittany Gyokery (Jarvis), 6. 85h (), 7. 04b Rick Book (Stoney Creek) DNF, 8. 62 Brian Pescetti (Stoney Creek) DNF, 9. 29 Jim Gracey (Dunnville) DNF.
6 NATIONS BINGO HEAT RACE #2
1. 77 Brett Rodwell (Caledonia), 2. 84rk Ryan Beagle (Vittoria), 3. 3b Blaine Barrow (Welland), 4. 13 Kacey Huffman (Hamilton), 5. 23 Tim DeBoer (Caledonia), 6. 00 Robbie General (Ohsweken), 7. 11r Bryce Richardson (Port Colborne), 8. 48 Mike Graham (Caledonia), 9. 00x Craig White (Smooth Town). DNF.
O’NEIL’S FARM EQUIPMENT HEAT RACE #3
1. 12 Brad Herron (Waterford), 2. 68 Aaron Turkey (Ohsweken), 3. 91 Ryan Turner (Caistor Centre), 4. 38 Terry Martin (Ohsweken), 5. 31 Dave Bailey (Hagersville), 6. 17 Rob Disher (Grimsby), 7. 28 Jim Lampman (Caistor Centre), 8. 57 Murray Nicholls (Hamilton), 9. 333 Kameron Kocarik (Fonthill) DNF.
JONES BROWN MOTORSPORT INSURANCE HEAT RACE #4
1. 2 Lee Winger (Caledonia), 2. 55 Mike Thorne (Caledonia), 3. 1 Chris Dickie (Brantford), 4. 33m Jack Myers (Wainfleet), 5. 33t Cory Turner (Caistor Centre), 6. 5h Devin Habiuk (Port Robinson), 7. 04 Wyatt Van Wart (Cambridge) DNF, 8. 10 Jake Brown (Brantford) DNF.
LIGHTHOUSE TATTOOS THUNDER STOCKS B-MAIN
(10 laps – Top 4 finishers transferred to A-Feature)
1. 5h Devin Habiuk, 2. 17 Rob Disher, 3. 28 Jim Lampman, 4. 11r Bryce Richardson, 5. 10 Jake Brown, 6. 00 Robbie General, 7. 00x Craig White, 8. 29 Jim Gracey, 9. 62 Brian Pescetti DNF, 10. 85h DNF, 11. 04 Wyatt Van Wart DNF, 12. 48 Mike Graham DNF, DNS. 57 Murray Nicholls, DNS. 04b Rick Book, DNS. 333 Kameron Kocarik =.
LIGHTHOUSE TATTOOS THUNDER STOCKS
A-FEATURE (20 laps)
Finish. Number Name (Starting Position)
1. 33m Jack Myers (15)
2. 12 Brad Herron (16)
3. 55 Mike Thorne (14)
4. 5h Devin Habiuk (21)
5. 1 Chris Dickie (13)
6. 33t Cory Turner (10)
7. 17 Rob Disher (22)
8. 8 Ryan Dinning (17)
9. 91 Ryan Turner (8)
10. 38 Terry Martin (7)
11. 28 Jim Lampman (23)
12. 68 Aaron Turkey (6)
13. 85b Luke Greiner (20)
14. 40 Terry Osmond (18)
15. 77 Brett Rodwell (3)
16. 23 Tim DeBoer (9)
17. 13 Kacey Huffman (5)
18. 2 Lee Winger (12) DNF
19. 31 Dave Bailey (4) DNF
20. 3b Blaine Barrow (11) DNF
21. 9 Dave Silverthorn, Jr. (19) DNF
22. 4 Brittany Gyokery (1) DNF
23. 10 Jake Brown (24) DNF
24. 84rk Ryan Beagle (2) DNF
HRW AUTOMOTIVE MINI STOCKS (28 entries)
HEAT RACES (8 laps each – Top 5 finishers in each transferred to A-Feature):
Finish. Number Name (Hometown)
ENGINE PRO RACING HEAT RACE #1
1. 48 Craig Erskine (Brantford), 2. 44 Dale Cooke (Hamilton), 3. 92 Matt Pleil (Kitchener), 4. 72 Kevin Hilborn (Brantford), 5. 11 Mike Giberson (Caledonia), 6. 10 Laura Hughes (Flamboro), 7. 43 Sarah Miskiewicz (Cambridge), 8. 81h Lee Hils (Dundas), 9. 66 Brandon Janssens (Woodstock), 10. 89 Bill Watson (Guelph).
STYRES GAS BAR HEAT RACE #2
1. 38 John Cote (Hamilton), 2. 12 Jonathan Ayrton (Hamilton), 3. 99 Robin Elliott (Woodstock), 4. 84 Dale Gyokery (Jarvis), 5. 53 Sarah Rutherford (Dundas), 6. 05 Dave Goodacre (Brantford), 7. 27 Ashton Reekie (Hamilton), 8. 22 Brittani Myers (Hamilton), 9. 69 Rob Twitchett (Dundas).
O’NEIL’S FARM EQUIPMENT HEAT RACE #3
1. 10j Jeremy Hughes (Burlington), 2. 69e Dan Erskine (Caistor Centre), 3. 55 Rob Slater (Dundas), 4. 79 Steve Miller (Paris), 5. 64 Doug Erskine (Hamilton), 6. 81 Karl Sault (Dundas), 7. 02 Mark Czuba (Burlington), 8. 7 Jason Lungaro (Hamilton), 9. 265 Mike Evers (Caledonia).
HRW AUTOMOTIVE MINI STOCKS B-MAIN
(10 laps – Top 9 finishers transferred to A-Feature)
1. 81 Karl Sault, 2. 02 Mark Czuba, 3. 81h Lee Hils, 4. 7 Jason Lungaro, 5. 22 Brittani Myers, 6. 05 Dave Goodacre, 7. 265 Mike Evers, 8. 10 Laura Hughes, 9. 43 Sarah Miskiewicz, 10. 27 Ashton Reekie, 11. 69 Rob Twitchett, 12. 89 Bill Watson, 13. 66 Brandon Janssens DNF.
HRW AUTOMOTIVE MINI STOCKS
A-FEATURE (20 laps)
Finish. Number Name (Starting Position)
1. 10j Jeremy Hughes (12)
2. 81 Karl Sault (16)
3. 38 John Cote (7)
4. 265 Mike Evers (22)
5. 99 Robin Elliott (13)
6. 81h Lee Hils (18)
7. 64 Doug Erskine (11)
8. 7 Jason Lungaro (19)
9. 44 Dale Cooke (9)
10. 48 Craig Erskine (14)
11. 69e Dan Erskine (10)
12. 79 Steve Miller (8)
13. 05 Dave Goodacre (21)
14. 22 Brittani Myers (20)
15. 43 Sarah Miskiewicz (24)
16. 12 Jonathan Ayrton (2)
17. 10 Laura Hughes (23)
18. 84 Dale Gyokery (6)
19. 02 Mark Czuba (17)
20. 11 Mike Giberson (4)
21. 55 Rob Slater (5) DNF
22. 72 Kevin Hilborn (15) DNF
23. 92 Matt Pleil (1) DNF
24. 53 Sarah Rutherford (3) DNF
PIERCED PARTS BOMBERS (16 entries)
HEAT RACES (6 laps each)
Finish. Number Name (Hometown)
HEAT RACE #1
1. 42 Joe DeBoer (Hagersville), 2. 44 Tylor Brock (Dunnville), 3. 007 Ian Myerscough (Burlington), 4. 33 Mike Lewis, 5. 16x Dwight Staats (Ohsweken), 6. 6 Wayde Thorne (Waterford), 7. 21 Scott McPhail (Hannon), 8. 07 Savannah Jonker (Woodstock).
HEAT RACE #2
1. 16 Jeremy May (Hamilton), 2. 66 Brady Longboat (Ohsweken), 3. 5 Kathi Dickie (Brantford), 4. 23 Dusty DeBoer (Hagersville), 5. 18x Davey Boughton (Carlisle), 6. 97 Max Chechalk (Hamilton), 7. 707 Danny Shantz (St. Agatha), 8. 92 Corey Jones.
PIERCED PARTS BOMBERS
A-FEATURE (15 laps)
Finish. Number Name (Starting Position)
1. 5 Kathi Dickie (1)
2. 16 Jeremy May (3)
3. 18x Davey Boughton (8)
4. 97 Max Chechalk (12)
5. 66 Brady Longboat (5)
6. 23 Dusty DeBoer (6)
7. 16x Dwight Staats (2)
8. 33 Mike Lewis (10)
9. 44 Tylor Brock (9)
10. 707 Danny Shantz (14)
11. 07 Savannah Jonker (15) DNF
12. 92 Corey Jones (16) DNF
13. 42 Joe DeBoer (4) DNF
14. 6 Wayde Thorne (11) DNF
DNS. 21 Scott McPhail (13)
DNS. 007 Ian Myerscough (7)
UP NEXT @ OHSWEKEN SPEEDWAY:
FRIDAY, AUGUST 24, 2012
“KIDS RACE” PRESENTS:
THE MODIFIED LITE STARS INTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP TOUR
RACING FOR THE CANADIAN NATIONAL AUTISM FOUNDATION,
PLUS CORR/PAK MERCHANDISING SPRINT CARS,
LIGHTHOUSE TATTOOS THUNDER STOCKS “BROCK LEONARD MEMORIAL 50”,
HRW AUTOMOTIVE MINI-STOCKS,
& PIERCED PARTS BOMBERS
ADULTS $12, SENIORS AND STUDENTS $10, KIDS 12 AND UNDER FREE!
SPECTATOR GATES OPEN @ 6:00 P.M., RACING @ 7:45 P.M.