Entering Saturday night, Doug Miller held a slim 3 point advantage over Bobby Ervien, in the Open Wheel Modified championship standings. This would be the last race of the 2011 season at Citrus County Speedway, so it was time to leave all the cards on the table for these two drivers, this would be their last chance to prove who the champ was.
Their pressure packed night would start with the 10 lap heat race, Ervien would start 5th, and Miller would start 8th. With each position being worth 1 point, similar to the NASCAR points system, every position counted. Ervien would get the best of Miller in the heat race, finishing one position ahead, which earned him 1 more point than Miller. Now the point difference was down to 2 points for their 40 lap feature.
In the 40 lap feature race, each position is worth 2 points. That meant all Miller needed to do, was finish in front of Ervien to secure the championship. But that would prove to be a very difficult task, with the quality drivers in the field. Wayne Morris (198) and Herb Neumann Jr (01) would occupy the front row for the start of the feature event. Morris would get the jump on the field and move to the top spot before the first caution came out at lap 2. On the restart, 3rd place starter Robbie Cooper (98) would put the pressure on Morris for the lead, and wrestle away the top spot. Back in the pack, both point contenders were doing everything they could to move through the pack, without damaging their racers. Miller was able to move from his 7th starting spot at the green, to pass Ervien who started in the 6th position, putting Miller in the point lead for the time being. Miller would settle into the 6th position with Ervien just behind in 7th. Lap 12 saw Richie Smith (42) get loose going into turn 1, which caused Miller to check up to avoid contact. That opened the door for Ervien, who pulled even with Miller on the inside off of turn 2. Miller and Ervien would race side by side for the next 3 laps, each trying to get the advantage. Miller would find the traction he needed, and drive back around the outside of Ervien to take back the 6th position, and the points lead. Shortly after, contact between Neumann and Smith would bring the caution out once again, and both drives would be sent to the rear of the field. Cooper would lead on the restart, and open his lead back up, before the caution would wave once again for contact between Neumann and Smith on lap 24. Both drivers were black flagged, and sent to the pits for the rest of the race. This now moved Miller to the 3rd position, with Ervien right in his tire tracks in 4th. Cooper would once again rocket back to a comfortable lead, but the battle raged behind him. 4th place starter L J Grimm was charging from the back of the pack after an early race spin. He would get by Ervien for 4th, and then go to work on Miller for 3rd. There were several tense moments over the last 10 laps of the race, as these three drivers battled for the 3rd position, and two of them battled for a championship. Cooper would go on to take a convincing victory with Morris coming home in the runner up position. Miller would survive the battle for the 3rd position over the final few laps, securing the 2011 Open Wheel Modified points championship.
The Sportsman division saw the best battle for the lead all night long. Cody Stickler (99) and Ernie Reed (55) put on one of the best battles for the lead all year. Both drives were able to race each other clean and hard. Stickler would prove to have what he needed to take over the top spot, and go on to take his division leading 5th feature win of the season. Reed would come home in the 2nd position followed by Brandon Morris (56) in 3rd. Morris was one of the most consistent drivers week in and week out in the Sportsman division this season. He was able to take 4 feature victories and 4 heat race wins on the way to the 2011 Sportsman points championship.
19 Taylor Made Homes Pure Stocks took the green for their 20 lap feature. Scott Werstein (45) and Eugene Malverty (55) would bring the field to the green flag. Malverty would move to the top position, bringing Michael Martin (76) with him. Malvery and Martin would battle for the top position, before contact on lap 10 would send Malverty for a spin. Martin would take blame for the incident, giving Malverty back 1st place. Malverty would survive a few more late race cautions to take his 1st victory of the season. Early challenger Sheri Makula would come home in the 2nd position ahead of 15th place starter Carl Peters (39) in 3rd.
Jeff Eberly would get back to his winning ways taking the victory in the 20 lap Sheldon Palmes Insurance Mini Stock feature. Adam May would take advantage of his pole position to come home in the 2nd spot, just ahead of a hard charging Jessey Mallory in 3rd. 2011 points champion Jeremy Sharrone (32) didn’t have the kind of night he wanted, suffering a broken throttle cable only 9 laps into the feature. Sharrone battled through a mid season slump which saw mechanical gremlins put him behind in the championship chase. Sharrone also was forced to build a brand new racecar after a hard wreck just past the halfway point in the season. It would have been easy to give up, but he and his family never did, and now they have been rewarded for all their hard work.
14 Pro figure 8 cars played Russian Roulette in the intersection for their 20 lap feature. Wayne Calkins (14) went into the night as the points leader, with an 18 point lead over Joey Catarelli (6). At 2 points per position, Catarelli would need to finish 10 spots ahead of Calkins to take the championship. Catarelli would make a race of it, but a broken transmission on lap 10 would end his chase, and secure the championship for Calkins. Mason Love (01) would prove to have the car and skill he needed to take the victory over point champion Calkins who finished 2nd, and Thomas Peet (85) in 3rd.
15 women got behind the wheel for the 20 lap Powder Puff feature. This is a chance for the wives, girlfriends, moms, and sisters to get behind the wheels of their guys machines. Vicky Veltman would take advantage of her 4th starting spot, and move to the lead early in the race. Veltman would prove that she’s been paying attention all these years watching her brother Jesse, and Uncle Mike win multiple races. This was Veltmans’ 1st time ever in a racecar, but she looked like she was right at home. Veltman would take the victory going away, while Lori Ickes (20) and Karen Peters (5) were left to battle for the 2nd position. Ickes would make a late race move in traffic to secure the 2nd position, with Peters coming home in 3rd.
The Citrus County Speedway will now be closed till the start of the 2012 racing season. Please stay tuned to the track website and www.citruscountyspeedway.com or the speedway Facebook page for off season updates, and look for the 2012 schedule to be released. The speedway would like to thank it’s drivers, crews, and fans for a great 2011 racing season. See you at the races!