CATALANO, WHITTAKER TAKE SECOND STRAIGHT WINS, WYLIE SWEEPS CUP LITES TWINS ON AUGUST 15TH

Two late race caution periods proved to be very beneficial to Amy Catalano, as the Ontario, NY racer took advantage of the situation to motor into the top slot and grab her second consecutive NASCAR Raginwolf.com SST Pro Modified main at the Holland NASCAR Motorsports Compelx on Saturday evening, August 15th. Scott Wylie of Blasdell, NY showed that a week’s rain delay did not hamper him, as he swept to a pair of wins in the weather-delayed Debbie Graff Memorial Twin 30's for the visiting Cup Lites Series.

In other action, adding to win streaks seemed to be the theme of the evening, as Dave Whittaker of Orchard Park, NY took his second straight Late Model of Tomorrow main, Nik Welshans of West Falls, NY made it three straight in Pro Four action, Eric Brown of Holland also hit for the trifecta in the Thiel Motorsports 4-cylinder Hornet race, while Mae Urban of Cheektowaga took her second consecutive Thiel Motorsports Queen Bees win. Jim Loffredo of Orchard Park, NY notched his second Charger main of the year, Jamie Collard of Pricneton, ON sped to his second Holland win of the season in the main for the visiting Casey’s TQ Midget Series, and Jason Adams of East Aurora, NY earned season win number two in the M&M U-Pull-It Figure 8 Car feature.

In the 40 lap NASCAR Raginwolf.com SST Pro Modified event, it looked as if Amy Catalano would have to be content with a fourth place showing, after she successfully battled by Joe Evans for the spot on lap 33, as top three Mike Fiebelkorn, Jr, Justin Shepker, and Patrick Emerling were out in front by nearly a full straightaway. However, Emerling’s ride suffered a mechanical issue, pitching the car into a spin in turn 4 and bringing out the yellow on lap 34. This was the break that Catalano was needing, as this put her on the tails of Fiebelkorn and Shepker on the restart. The Fiebelkorn ride balked on the green, allowing Shepker and Catalano to power by into the top two spots, only to have the yellow re-appear two laps later when Evans had an oil line let go. This second restart gave Catalano the opportunity to power her Hawk Frame and Axle mount under the Shepker ride, and from there, she drove away to hold a five car length advantage at the checkers. Fiebelkorn and Shepker put on a great battle for second over the final two circuits, with Fiebelkorn prevailing by inches. Neil Hopkins drove a steady race to place fourth, while early race leader Jeff Ruddy completed the top five.

In the first of the Debbie Graff Memorial Twin 30's for the Cup Lites Series, Scott Wylie overcame some clutch troubles in his Direct Buy Chevrolet to slip by Dave Whittaker for the lead just two laps from the finish of the caution-free race. Whittaker, who had led from the opening green, then held off furious last lap charges from Mark Hoch and Dan Tybor for the runner-up slot.

In the nightcap 30, Wylie snared the top spot on lap 13, but was unable to shake Glenn Attanasio, who was shadowing him throughout. Atttanasio kept it close, but was unable to get a good run on Wylie and had to settle for a second place finish, while Hoch took another third.

Not happy with giving up the lead in the first Cup Lites race, Dave Whittaker reversed the trend in the 25 lap Late Models of Tomorrow race, as he battled his Mantelli Trailer Sales/VSP Graphics Ford by Alan Fisher for the lead on lap 12, and drove away to win the caution-free race handily. Fisher, who led the first 11 tours, kept a challenging T.J. Johnson at bay to record the runner-up finish.

Jim Loffredo worked his A-Z Transmissions Monte Carlo by Al Grimmer on the 19^th lap of the 30 lap Charger main, then fought off a late race challenge by points leader Dave Krawczyk for the win. Joe Eck, Grimmer, and Mark Harsch rounded out the top five, season best finishes for each of the three.

Jamie Collard had the Vince Christiano owned machine hooked up on the outside of the high-banked oval, as he used the top side to sweep by Camden Barber for the lead on lap 10, and sped away for a dominating victory in the 20 lap feature for the Casey’s TQ Midget Series. Barber placed a distant second, just ahead of the challenging Rich Watkins.

An early race skirmish put Nik Welshans about a half lap in back of the lead pack in the 25 lap Pro Four main, but a lap 10 yellow flag brought the field back to him. On the restart, Welshans started picking off his rivals one-by-one, getting by Chad Pusloski for second on lap 18, and finally working his Klispie Motorsports Nissan by Jason Eck for the lead on lap 22. The win was the fourth of the year for Welshans. Eck edged Pusloski in a great side-by-side battle for second.

A last minute car switch didn’t hamper Eric Brown in the 30 lap Thiel Motorsports 4-cylinder Hornet main. After his new car wouldn’t fire up in the line-up chute, he hopped aboard his "old faithful" that Josh Hunter had been slated to drive, dropped to the tail of the field, and roared through the pack, getting by Jason Adams for the lead on a lap 26 restart. Adams held on for second, while Ashley Kirchberger, in her first appearance of the year, came from deep in the pack to claim third.

A good first lap run put the Stylin’ Tatoo ride of Mae Urban in front, and Mae led to the checkers in the 15 lap Thiel Motorsports Queen Bees race. Sylvia Miszczak and points leader Samantha Lutz put on a stirring battle for second, with Sylvia getting the position by inches at the checkers.

Jason Adams led the 12 lap M&M U-Pull-It Figure 8 car race wire-to-wire, surviving a couple of close calls at the "x" en route to the victory. Marty Hughes took second, with Mike Eckam in third.

In the annual Faster Firefighter event, Vincent Alimonti of the Newton/Abbott Fire Department took the victory in the finale ahead of Patrick Eck from the Buffalo FD and Rick Litwin from the Lackawanna FD. The firefighters competed in Speedway provided strictly stock four cylinder racers, with three heats determining the entrants in the finale.

News and Notes – Scott Wylie was a busy racer - in addition to his Cup Lites wins, he hopped aboard the Scott Jarrell Late Model and recorded a fourth place showing in his first outing in that car, and had an unexpected run in the Hornet race, when he and the crew tried to get the "new" Eric Brown car running - they were successful in starting the car, so Scott climbed in and gave it a trouble-shooting ride ... The next generation of the racing Carbones debuted, as Tony Carbone, in his first ever race, did a nice job in avoiding trouble and recorded a lead lap eighth place finish in the Hornet event ... Late Model racer Nick Crassi did a remarkable job to place sixth in his race after his week - though his Gowanda home and business were relatively unscathed by last Sunday’s flooding, Nick serves as the Village’s disaster coordinator, so he spent most of the week with very little sleep working with authorities and relief agencies to assist the many people victimized by the flood waters ... The program endured a short delay after a turn1/2 light standard failed to immediately get to power - after a quick repair job, the lighting came back to life and proved to be problem free for the balance of the night ... Points battles are tight in most classes, with only three regular race dates left in the season – Justin Shepker holds just a 14 point bulge over Mike Fiebelkorn , Jr. in the Pro Mods, while just 2 markers separate Eldon King III and T.J. Johnson in the Late Models of Tomorrow chase - a mere 6 points breaks up top three Jason Eck, Nik Welshans, and Chad Pusloski in the Pro Fours battle, while Mike Eckam leads Jason Eck by 9 points in the Figure 8 Car standings.

On Saturday, August 22^nd, the Holland NASCAR Motorsports Complex, in conjunction with the Metro Group, will offer free admission to anyone proving residence in the flood damaged communities of Gowanda and Springville. The race program will feature the NASCAR Raginwolf.com SST Pro Modifieds, Late Models of Tomorrow, Chargers, Pro Fours, M&M U-Pull-it Figure 8 Cars, and the Thiel Motorsports 4-cylinder Hornets and Queen Bees. The program will start with the annual Bar Cup Challenge, as area tavern owners and bar maids will take to the track in Speedway provided 4-cylinder racers. Pit gates will open at 3:00, with grandstand gates opening at 4:15. The Bar Cup Challenge will get underway at 5:15, with the NASCAR racing program following at approximately 7:15. Adult general admission is just $10. For more information, contact the Holland office at (716)-537-2272.

RESULTS SUMMARY – August 15, 2009

NASCAR Raginwolf.com SST PRO MODIFIEDS – 40 laps: 1. (started 13th) AMY CATALANO, 2. (11) Mike Fiebelkorn, Jr., 3. (8) Justin Shepker, 4. (9) Neil Hopkins, 5. (2) Jeff Ruddy, 6. (14) Jeff Patton, 7. (3) Don King, 8. (5) Kevin Miller, 9. (12) Joe Evans, 10. (10) Patrick Emerling, 11. (4) Ed Weber, 12. (7) Tim Welshans, 13. (1) Mike Stevenson, 14. (6) Kevin Lewis.

CUP LITES SERIES – Debbie Graff Memorial Twin 30’s

1st 30 Lap Feature: 1. (5) SCOTT WYLIE, 2. (2) Dave Whittaker, 3. (3) Mark Hoch, 4. (6) Dan Tybor, 5. (1) Glenn Attanasio, 6. (4) Jeremy Ratajczak.

2nd 30 Lap Feature: 1. (6) SCOTT WYLIE, 2. (2) Glenn Attanasio, 3. (4) Mark Hoch, 4. (3) Dan Tybor, 5. (1) Jeremy Ratajczyk, 6. (5) Dave Whittaker.

Heat Race Winner: Mark Hoch.

LATE MODELS OF TOMORROW – 25 laps: 1. (6th) DAVE WHITTAKER, 2. (1) Alan Fisher, 3. (3) T.J. Johnson, 4. (9) Scott Wylie, 5. (4) Joe Carbone, 6. (2) Nick Crassi, 7. (5) Eldon King III, 8. (8) Jason Gwin, 9. (7) Jason Kline.

CHARGERS – 30 laps: 1. (started 9th) JIM LOFFREDO, 2. (10) Dave Krawczyk, 3. (5) Joe Eck, 4. (3) Al Grimmer, 5. (2) Mark Harsch, 6. (4) Ted Welshans, 7. (12) Matt Welshans, 8. (11) Mark Hoch, 9. (14) Mike McDonald, 10. (7) Jerry Kosmowski, 11. (8) Jim Mallaber, 12. (1) Rich Carnes, 13. (13) Tom Northem, 14. (4) Shawn Lafferty, 15. (15) Jerry Carpenter. Did Not Start – Rob Miszczak.

Casey’s TQ MIDGET SERIES – 20 laps: 1. (started 14th) JAMIE COLLARD, 2. (4) Camden Barber, 3. (12) Rich Watkins, 4. (13) Mark Schulz, 5. (11) Justin Mapes, 6. (2) Mike Blair, 7. (7) Dean McConnaughey, 8. (6) Jonathon Reid, 9. (3) Jim Fleischman, 10. (10) Vince Christiano, Jr., 11. (5) Charlie DiRosa, 12. (9) Arik McGruder, 13. (15) Shawn Nye, 14. (8) Russell Knutsen, 15. (17) Ryan Hessler, 16. (16) Chad Heywood, 17. (1) Nelson Rung.

PRO FOURS – 25 laps: 1. (started 7th) NIK WELSHANS, 2. (4) Jason Eck, 3. (6) Chad Pusloski, 4. (3) Josh Hathaway, 5. (1) Mike Eckam, 6. (5) J. D. Roberts, 7. (9) George Quintana, 8. (10) Jason Adams, 9. (8) Joe Mastrocicco III, 10. (2) Bob Marzec, 11. (11) Eric Brown.

Thiel Motorsports HORNETS – 30 laps: 1. (started 23rd) ERIC BROWN, 2. (8) Jason Adams, 3. (22) Ashley Kirchberger, 4. (12) Samantha Lutz, 5. (15) Bill Lutz, 6. (17) Mae Urban, 7. (2) Jesse Baker, 8. (18) Tony Carbone, 9. (10) Dennis Felton, 10. (1) Butcher Palmer, 11. (9) Ben Russo, 12. (7) Jerry Toms, 13. (19) Cory Johnson, 14. (21) Elaine Pimpo, 15. (16) Jeff Szafraniec, 16. (14) George Quintana, 17. (20) Jammer, 18. (24) Scott Wylie, 19. (11) Eric Marzec, 20. (3) David Warrior, 21. (13) Kim Marzec, 22. (5) Kyle Skoney, 23. (4) T.J. Drennan, 24. (6) Robin Frey. Did Not Start – Josh Hunter.

Thiel Motorsports QUEEN BEES – 15 laps: 1. (started 2nd) MAE URBAN, 2. (4) Sylvia Miszczak, 3. (6) Samantha Lutz, 4. (7) Ashley Kirchberger, 5. (5) Kim Marzec, 6. (1) Robin Frey, 7. (3) Elaine Pimpo, 8. (8) Marcia Sullivan.

M&M U_Pull_It FIGURE 8 CARS – 12 laps: 1. (started 1st) JASON ADAMS, 2. (4) Marty Hughes, 3. (6) Mike Eckam, 4. (3) Jesse Baker, 5. (2) Jason Eck, 6. (5) Waylon Price, 7. (7) Butcher Palmer.

Source: Rick Mooney / Holland PR
Posted: August 16, 2009

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