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By Mike Leone
May 25, 2007 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Bushnell, OH)…After six months of planning and promotion, the speculation ended Friday night at Ron Nielson’s Raceway 7. Dick Barton will go down in the record books as the very first winner of the FASTRAK Northeast Late Model Touring Series topping a superb field of 20 competitors. A shower delayed the start of the history-setting night some 30 minutes, but the majority of the rain stayed south and the rest of the night remained rain-free as fans were treated to great racing on the tacky, dust-free surface.
Late Model standout Dick Barton has won over 200 races and numerous championships throughout his illustrious career; now he can now add a FASTRAK Northeast Touring Series event to his resume. The Ashville, New York driver came out on top of a furious battle with Jay Watson to capture the 25-lap $1,500 to-win feature in an event that had just two cautions and only two lapped cars.
“This is PURE racing,†expressed Barton after he climbed from his winning race car in victory lane. “This is what it’s all about- just racing. Jay (Watson) and I were real even and it just took an instance and I got him. You look under the hood and it’s the same motor and everyone’s on the same Goodyear tires. It’s so much fun and the track surface has been good here every week. This motor can be claimed for $5,000; if it is, good, we’ll get a brand new one. It’s all about the teching and that will make it survive. The procedure is very straight forward. They pull the valve cover and then check the spacer for size plus the cam, rocker arms, carburetor, and distributor are all checked.â€
Alan Dellinger drew the pole position for the feature event, but it was New York invader Greg Oakes overtaking one of the region’s greats for the early lead. Barton, who started seventh, cracked the top five on lap two when he passed former Mod Lite racer Jeff Teeters. One lap later Barton slipped past Bump Hedman for fourth.
Watson began pressuring Dellinger for second on lap four, while Barton closed in making it a three-car race for second just before the first caution waved for former Empire Super Sprint racer Kyle Drum. Under caution, Dellinger pitted moving Watson and Barton up to second and third. Dellinger re-entered the event at the tail of the field.
When racing resumed, Watson found the high side to his liking using a sweeping move off turn two to power past Oakes for the lead. Barton followed and nipped Oakes for second at the line. Barton set his sights on Watson and looked under the leader on lap eight, but Watson maintained his advantage. On laps 10 and 11 Barton closed back in and was all over leader. Watson though continued to lead as green flag racing took place.
Lapped traffic didn’t come into play until the 17th circuit when the leaders dealt with another former Mod Lite competitor in Jack Nutter. Stock car graduate Chad Myers was the second and final lapped car Watson and Barton would face. On laps 18 and 19, Watson tried to find the best way around Myers as Barton was right there in the exciting duel. The duo then ran side-by-side on laps 19 and 20 keeping the fans on the edge of their seat in suspense.
Finally on lap 21, Barton used some of his 23 years of experience in a Late Model to make a great move slipping under and past Watson as the two raced off turn two. Barton and Watson crossed under the line in first and second to count lap 21 before the second and final caution was displayed for Teeters, who came to a rest.
Barton mastered the double-file restart choosing the outside and getting a great restart to lead the event’s final five laps to capture the inaugural feature event for the FASTRAK Northeast Series. Barton’s victory came in Neilson’s Bolt Place/All Sound Group/Custom Vinyl Graphics-sponsored #28B and he credited all the people behind the scenes for giving him a great race car. Barton has the early lead in the Northeast Touring Series standings, which will award the Series champion $5,000 and 2008 Bullitt Chassis worth $3,395 plus puts him in good shape toward the $50,000 National Championship.
Watson was a strong second. Oakes, a former big winner in the E-Mod division, held off Stock Car great Tom Snyder, Jr. for third. Hedman was fifth. Dellinger charged back through the field to collect sixth. Jon Law finished seventh, but was disqualified at the scales for being too light moving 19th starter Todd Andrews up to seventh. John Watson was eighth. Veteran Late Model racer Steve Hollabaugh came home ninth in a competitive run over Carl McKinney, one of the region’s top E-Mod racers.
Barton drew the number one pill at the beginning of the night earning him the pole position of the first 10-car, 8-lap heat race, which he was victorious in. Rodney Phillips won an excellent heat race number two in which the top four cars would have been covered with a blanket and doing it amazingly with a $3,000 GM 602 engines.
“We were very thrilled with 20 quality race cars and drivers for the inaugural show on a very threatening weather night,†stated Northeast Co-Director Vicki Emig. “There was actually another seven drivers that paid their membership for the Series that did not show. All of these drivers and tracks need commended for sticking their necks out when a lot of naysayers said it would never fly. These drivers will be remembered as the pioneers for this Series many years from now. The fans tonight got a good taste of just how competitive the racing is going to be. We’re greatly looking forward to the growth of FASTRAK here in the Northeast.â€
FASTRAK Northeast Late Model Series (25 laps): 1. DICK BARTON ($1,500) 2. Jay Watson 3. Greg Oakes 4. Tom Snyder, Jr. 5. Bump Hedman 6. Alan Dellinger 7. Todd Andrews 8. John Watson 9. Steve Hollabaugh 10. Carl McKinney 11. Larry Kugel 12. Rodney Phillips 13. Chad Myers 14. Jack Nutter 15. Jeff Teeters 16. Tom Kemp 17. Bob Vogt, Jr. 18. Mark Osburn 19. Kyle Drum 20. Jon Law-DSQ (light).
Lap leaders: Oakes (1-4), Jay Watson (5-20), Barton (21-25)
Heat winners: Dick Barton, Rodney Phillips.
Car count: 20
The Northeast Touring schedule is approximately 15 events at 11 different tracks in four states. The events will pay a minimum of $1,200 to-win highlighted by the $5,000 to-win event at Mercer Raceway Park on Wednesday, July 4.
The next event will be this Sunday, May 27 at Eriez Speedway, which is located outside of Erie, Pa. in Hammett, Pa. The 25-lap feature will pay $1,500 to-win. Gates open at 3:30 p.m. with racing at 5. Take Interstate 90 to exit 8 (Route 8). Go south on Rte 8 approximately 2.5 miles towards Hammett, Pa to Tate Rd. Turn right onto Tate Rd and follow until the “T” intersection. At the “T” turn left onto Lake Pleasant. Go approximately .3 miles to Sampson Rd and turn right. Eriez Speedway is on the left. For more info check out www.eriez-speedway.com or call 814-796-6747.
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Partners of the FASTRAK Racing Series Include: Goodyear Racing, GM Performance Parts, Maypole Chevrolet, Duralite Wheels, PPM Racing Products, Heintz Performance, MK-Direct, Braswell Carburetion, Mastersbilt Racing Chassis, TNT Racing Chassis, Rocket Racing Chassis, Modern Chevrolet and Schoenfeld Headers.