The winged warriors of Sprint Car racing made their first regular season appearance at East Bay for 2006 and brought some exciting action.
Street stocks opened the program as 22 cars rolled onto the track for the 15-lap main. Polesitter Mac Kersey grabbed the early race lead, but the field was slowed for a couple of yellow flags. Once the racing resumed, Donnie Reed moved to second, but heat winner Paul Gibbs came into the contest. Gibbs passed Reed near the halfway mark and started to move onto the race leader.
Kersey held the lead until Gibbs made a power move to snatch the lead on lap 12. Gibbs brought the field to the checkered to claim his first feature win of the year. Kersey, making his first start of the year, held on for second. Reed grabbed third, ahead of last week’s winner Daniel Lewis and Steve Burch. In addition to Gibbs, Matt Collins picked up a heat race win.
Limited Sprints took the track for their 20-lap presentation as the Kelly brothers, Andy and Skeeter, held the front row. Skeeter Kelly took the early race lead, but the fastest car on the track was clearly Greg Leonard’s machine.
Leonard shot past Kelly and stretched the lead to over a half-lap lead until a red flag flew. Once underway, Leonard picked up where he left off, but Paulie Milum was coming to give the leader a challenge. Milum moved to second with four laps to go, but time was in Leonard’s favor. He kept Milum in the distance to score the feature win. Heat race winner Milum posted a strong second with Skeeter Kelly third. Fourth went to Tim George, who captured the first heat, with Frank Beck rounding out the top five.
Travis Varnadore took the early lead in the Outlaw 4 class until being bypassed by 2005 class champion Chad Rose. Rose brought last week’s feature winner and current point leader Pete Grantham into contention as the duo squared off, A caution with five laps remaining set up the first of a series of showdowns between the powerful cars.
The race was appeared headed for the checkered flag when Austin Gillman spun on the front straight with the driver’s door exposed, forcing a caution.
On the single lap finish, Rose was able to hold onto the lead, but Grantham was challenged in the backstretch. Alex Boerner swept by to claim second at the flagstand, followed by Grantham, heat winner Zach Amundsen, and Robert Douglas. Grantham’s night started positive with a heat victory. Feature winner Rose saw his night get off to a shaky start as his car caught fire during the heat. Repairs were made by the crew to get the car competitive for the feature win.
The second appearance of the 4-cylinder Bomber class saw the division under scrutiny after rough driving episodes of a week ago. A couple of drivers saw their heat finishing positions disallowed for infractions. The preliminaries were won by point leader Michael Tuggle and the Odessa Flash, George Christiansen. In the 15-lap main, Tuggle took the early lead, setting his sights on back-to-back feature wins.
Buck Skinner picked up the top spot, but mechanical problems ended his race early. J.L. Moorehead, who started near the rear of the 21-car, took over the lead and would not be denied, earning his first feature win for 2006. Tuggle boosted his point lead with a runner-up charge. Mario Shelton rebounded from a caution to claim third, ahead of Ken Laramee and Jimmy Alvis.
The night’s finale featured a 25-lap contest for the Sprint Cars. Danny Jones, who won the first heat, drew a number one, meaning the field started straight up. Jones was joined by second heat winner terry Witherspoon for the start of the main.
The feature got off to a slow start as several cautions and a red flag stopped progress. The field was reduced from its original; 17 cars to 10 cars before a lap was completed. Once the race was underway, Jones vaulted out front with Witherspoon giving chase.
Sport Allen charged to the runnerup spot within the first few laps, passing Jones for the lead by the sixth circuit. From that point, Allen left the rest of the field to decide how they would split the purse from second back Allen raced uncontested to gather the win, a great comeback after a disappointing heat race. Jones held on for second with Witherspoon claiming third. Brian Eckley and Daryl Smith rounded out the top five
Racing action returns to East Bay Raceway Park Saturday with a five-division program on tap, including the return of the Late Models and Open Wheel Modifieds.
Complete information is available at www.eastbayracewaypark.com.
