It’s once again that time of year as Auburndale Speedway switches from the regular stock car racing format to the craziness of the “Night of Destruction II” this Saturday night.

As always, the School Bus Figure-8 race will highlight the wide variety of events that will take place. Also highlighting the evening will be a first-ever RV-Camper Demolition Derby along with a Front Wheel Drive Demo Derby, Chain Race, Flag Pole Race, Skid Car Race, Motorcycle stunts and a whole lot more.

Grandstand gates will be opening at 3 pm at which time the band Aggie Road and Joey Foley will perform on the front stretch through 6 pm. Then it’s time for 45 minutes of school bus rides around the track for the fans. There will also be a bounce house/slide for the kids in operation from 3-6 pm. Regular concessions will be available along with other specialty vendors, so plenty of great food and drink will be available.
Adult admission is $20 with kids 5-12 $10. All kids 4 and under are free. Pit passes are $30. Parking will be $5 and a different parking pattern will be used this time, so make sure to watch for the signs and attendants that will help you get parked quickly and safely. Fans are asked to get to the speedway as early as possible to avoid the long lines close to time of the event.

STEVEN O’STEEN INHERITS STREET STOCK WIN AT AUBURNDALE SPEEDWAY

For the first time in recent memory Auburndale Speedway began its racing program Saturday evening with not a cloud in the sky and once the sun set it was a beautiful night for racing.  The pits were jammed with the largest car count of the year and the race teams performed in front of the biggest crowd of the season next to the Night of Destruction.

All in all it would be a late night for everyone.  Hot laps were delayed for nearly a half-hour when one of the Legend Cars soaked the track in fluid and that meant all qualifying would be delayed until just after 7 pm.  Five and a half hours later, the remaining fans (and there were quite a few who stuck out all the way to the end) headed to their cars just before 12:30 am although no one was complaining after the great action they witnessed.

The “Fall Fling” 125 for the Super Late Models, rained out two weeks previous, was added to the Faith and Family night program and 17 race teams were on hand to do battle.  Qualifying saw Steven King as the big surprise as the fourth generation racer tripped the clocks at 13.680 seconds topping the 16.720 lap turned in by Josh Todd who was just three-one-thousandths of a second quicker than Auburndale Super-8 Late Model Series point leader Chris Fontaine.  Matt McCrary and Jett Noland were fourth and fifth quick.

King’s pill draw luck wasn’t very good as he drew a ten to invert over half the field for the start and it would be just part of a very “eventful” evening for him that eventually would turn out OK.  When all was said and done, Kevin Macy, driving a team car to Todd’s, would start on the pole with veteran driver Charles Kopach starting second in his brand-new machine.

Macy zipped out to an early lead as Kopach got trapped on the high side and fell back.  Macy held the point until Steven King was sent spinning in turn four off the bumper of Cody Martell to bring out the caution on lap five.

Both drivers restarted at the tail of the field as Jamie King dropped out with problems early.

Roger Blevins was behind the wheel of veteran owner Rick Newton’s #01 machine and he showed his strength by taking over the top spot from Macy just after the green reappeared.  Blevins was looking good as the faster qualifiers were diligently working their way toward the front of the pack.  Brandon “Bones”

Duschscherer was hugging the inside line and slipped by Blevins for the lead on lap 16 bringing a high-flying Todd with him.  Lap 19 saw the second yellow flag of the race as Macy went for a wild spin off turn four courtesy of Matt McCrary.  Both took a trip to the rear of the restart line-up.

On the restart Ft. Pierce driver Jeff Johnston, make his first career Super Late Model start, spun going into turn one to keep the caution out.

Johnston’s dad, Chet Johnston, was a regular Late Model competitor for many years all over Central Florida.  Johnston had veteran driver Henry Shepherd as his crew chief as they were working the bugs out of both their new car and new driver.

Duchscherer was holding strong up front as the battle for second was a great one only to be slowed again as Macy spun again in turn four on lap 27.

Several cars took evasive action to miss the spinning car and Steven King was forced to pit to have a loose fender pulled from his racer.

On the restart, Blevins snuck back by Todd for second and brought Fontaine along with him.  Lap 36 saw the yellow back out again for a three car melee in turn four involving Noland, Kopach and Brian Dorer.  All continued but Joe Boyd, running fifth at the time, suddenly headed pit side for a check of his machine while Alexa Anderson’s car stalled and she need a push to the pits.

Both Boyd and Anderson were able to return to the fray, though.

Todd used the restart to charge back into second place and he began stalking leader Duchscherer.  Action was slowed again for a Noland spin in turn two.

Fast qualifier Steven King, despite all his problems, had now worked his way up to sixth for the restart.

Again things got crazy behind the leader as Blevins raced back into second bringing McCrary with him relegating Todd to fourth.

Lap 48 saw Johnston spin in turn three and the following restart was negated when Kopach looped his mount in turn two as well.  The restart was not a good one for Blevins as he slipped high and quickly found himself all the way back in sixth.  Todd zoomed by Fontaine for third spot as Duchscherer and McCrary ran one-two.

At the half-way mark it was Duchscherer leading McCrary, Todd, Fontaine, Noland, Blevins, Steven King, Dorer, David King and Alexa Anderson.  Ten laps later Johnston spun again in turn one and backed into the wall ending his night.  Also now out of the race were Boyd, Kopach and Kendall Anderson.

With 50 laps to go only ten cars were left on the track although all ten would eventually make it to the finish.  Todd slipped by McCrary for second on lap

77 as the field settled into some green flag racing.  The next caution would come out on lap 94 for Dorer’s spin on the back stretch.

Todd got by Duchscherer for the lead just after the restart and was just a nose in front when the caution was out again for a spinning David King in turn two.  The restart saw Fontaine go for a spin off the bumper of Steven King with both going to the back of the field for the restart.

At this point Todd began to check out slowed only by Alexa Anderson’s slow spin in turn one on lap 113.  Todd again pulled away on the restart and took the checker several car lengths ahead of Duchscherer with McCrary third.

Blevins ended his strong night with a great fourth place finish while Steven King rebounded from his crazy race to get fifth spot.  Noland took the sixth just in front of Fontaine with Dorer, Alexa Anderson and David King rounding out the top ten as the only cars running at the end.  Taking eleventh through 17th, all DNF’s, were Johnston, Kopach, Kendall Anderson, Boyd, Macy, Martell and Jamie King.

“I can’t say enough about my team and all the hard work they’ve put in to get us here,” said Todd.  “And to be here with my buddies Bones (Duchscherer) and Matt (McCrary) all on the front stretch after this race is really cool,” Todd continued.  McCrary seconded Todd’s thoughts.  “All three of us meet for lunch a few times a week and it’s just really neat to be up here after running 1-2-3” he said.  All three are local home-grown Auburndale Speedway drivers who basically grew up at the track and have worked their way up through several lower classes to earn their Super Late Model rides.

The other big race of the night was a 50-lap contest for the “Outlaw” Street Stocks running under the rules used by the former Sunshine State Challenge Series.  A bit of a disappointing field of eleven cars signed in but they were all quality machines and put on quite a show.

Cody Stickler, driving the Richie Smith #42 hot rod, set quick time at 14.744 seconds, over a tenth of a second faster than second and third place qualifiers Richard Elkins, Jr. and track Street Stock point leader Steven O’Steen.  The top six in time trials were inverted for the start with pole sitter Ross Francisco taking the early lead.  Francisco was looking very strong until his machine suddenly quit during the ninth lap and he slowed to a stop on the back stretch to bring out the yellow flag.

Danny Caylor inherited the lead and was setting a good pace with O’Steen moving into second just before Elkins went into a spin after tangling with Bobby Mobley.  Mobley dropped out after the altercation.  Stickler, who had taken a $200 challenge to start the race from the rear of the grid, slipped into second on the restart and began to put the pressure on Caylor, finally taking the point on lap 20.

From there the race ran all the way to the checker under green with O’Steen taking over second on lap 24.  O’Steen did his best to close on the fleet Stickler even slapping the wall a couple of times during his pursuit.  In the end Stickler was just too strong and he took the apparent win by a large margin over O’Steen.  However both Stickler and apparent third place finisher Kenny Gibson were disqualified in tech for illegal shocks.

That handed the win to O’Steen with Caylor ending up with second and Devin McLeod third.  Rounding out the finishers were Elkins, John Smith, Gilbert Corbin, Todd Brown, Mobley and Francisco.

The Legend Cars were out in force with 17 cars needing a pair of heat races to set the field for their 25-lap feature.  After the heat race wins were taken by Jim Smith and Seth Adams it was Smith taking the feature lead from his pole starting position.

This race would see a number of caution flags, one for a wild front stretch altercation that eliminated both of the Little Gator Motorsports cars driven by Jade Hubert and Noah Cornman.

Smith held sway until lap 18 when Adams got under him for the point and he never looked back from there in scoring his fourth win in a row here after getting a late start on the season.  A late scramble saw 15-year-old Jarrett Wagman come home with the second spot in just his sixth start in a Legend Car and second race at Auburndale.  Point leader Smith held on for third ahead of Devin McLeod who gave Bob Wilson’s car a great run to the front.  Fifth went to Taylor Hosford trailed by Alan Heifnar, Kyle Pitts, Christian Baker, Mitch Verhaagh and Dylan Brewer who was making his first-ever start here.  Rounding out the finishers were Brandon Hershey, Rusty Mallett, Jeremy Condrey, Cale Nolen, Cornman, Hubert and Chris Hamm.

Danny Burchfield led the first 16 laps of the V-8 Bomber feature before giving way to David Purvis who led until lap 22 before heat winner James Wright III took over the point.  But shortly thereafter Wright and Purvis tangled up and had to go to the rear of the restart grid.  That put Burchfield back in the lead and he drove his way to his first win of the season.

Purvis and Wright rebounded to finish second and third ahead of Jody Gill, Brian Harbin, Ronnie Abney, Jimmy McCloud and Travis Todd.

Keith Cantrill led all the way to win the Scrambler feature race, his second win of the year, holding off Chuckie Harrison and Fred Wilson.  David Williams took fourth trailed by Danny Burchfield, Jr., Reggie Ware II, Zach Ware, Brian Conger and heat winner Dennis Dean who dropped out early with engine trouble.

When Chris Narramore, Sr. had late engine woes, his son Chris Narramore, Jr.

caught and passed him for the lead and the victory, his eighth of the season.

The elder Narramore held on for second over Bruce Cozad and Freddy Martin.

David McCaig and Jason Sopczak were unable to start the feature.  Narramore, Sr. won the heat race.

Russell Bush grabbed the lead from Douglas Herrin, Jr, on lap 14 and went on to win his first Mini Cup feature of the year.  A late charge by Maria Martins gave her the second spot over Herrin, heat winner Brey Holmes, Wilson Martins, Easton Bush and Bill Rychel.

L.J. GRIMM TOPS MODIFIEDS

It was quite a night of racing Saturday at Auburndale Speedway as eight classes ran features with the action producing two first-time winners.  A fine crowd was on hand under perfect weather conditions.

The night began with a bit of irony.  Earlier in the afternoon it was announced that former NASCAR/ARCA star James Hylton had lost his life in a highway crash while returning home from Friday’s ARCA event at Talladega Superspeedway.  For many veterans at the speedway it was a sad day for sure as many of us had followed Hylton’s long career.

Of all the cars in the pit area, there was only one carrying the number 48, Hylton’s number throughout most of his career.  That car was the Mini Cup machine driven on the night by young Brey Holmes who really had never heard of Hylton.  The Mini Cup feature was first up on the night and it was Holmes who zipped past Clay Samuels with two laps to go to put the #48 in victory lanes as the first winner of the evening.  Samtuels held on for second.  Bill Rychel, who spun out of the lead on the second lap, came back to finish in third spot ahead of Russell Bush, Easton Bush, Bryton Horner and Douglas Herrin, Jr.  Herrin was going for his fourth consecutive win but suffered mechanical issues during the caution flag for Rychel’s spin on lap two and was forced pit side.

The big race of the night would be for the Pro Trucks and they were out in force with 22 teams signing in to compete in the 50-lapper.  Qualifying was held under bright sunshine and warm temperatures and the drivers struggled getting a handle on the slick race track.  Jason Lester of Palmetto was easily the fastest as he clicked off a lap of 14.505 seconds, quite a bit quicker than the 14.565 lap turned in by Bartow’s Cody McDuffie who was seeking his third Pro Truck win in a row.  17-year-old Derek Pugh of West Palm Beach was third quick at 14.596 followed by Becca Monopoli, Leroy Moore and Big Donnie Burkhalter.  Those six would then be the inversion for the start of the half-century run.

Burkhalter sped to the lead at the drop of the green only to have the start called back for a William Kerns spin.  Burkhalter again took the measure of the field as the race got under way.  Fifth-starting McDuffie quickly worked his way to third spot right behind Monopoli.  Seventh-starter Danny Anderson charged up to fourth just before Jabob Nicoletti spun on the front stretch to bring out the first yellow flag on lap five.

Burkhalter continued to hold the top spot while McDuffie slipped by Monopoli for second two laps after the restart and set sail after the leader.

Nicoletti looed his truck again on lap 11 for another caution.  Leroy Moore, running fifth at the time, headed for the pits and did not return.

The restart saw the beginning of a great battle between Burkhalter and McDuffie that was quickly interrupted as Kerns spun in turn four for another yellow.  Sixth-running Mike Kohut pitted for adjustments and returned before the restart.  Again the two front runners rsumed their side-by-side battle before the caution came out a fourth time for a big scramble among trucks running at the back of the field that saw Billy Carlbert, Jr. get turned around.

McDuffie got the run he needed on the restart and he passed Burkhalter for the lead.  Meanwhile, fast qualifier Jason Lester, who had been biding his time, got by Anderson for fourth bringing Pugh with him.  Pugh had fallen back as far as eighth after starting fourth.  McDuffie began to pull away only to see yet another caution, this time for a back stretch tangle between Jeff Williams and Cody Krucker on lap 25.

Two laps after the restart, Pugh ducked under Lester to take fourth spot.  The field continued under green until lap 37 when Williams spun off turn four.

Burkhalter tried hard to pass McDuffie on the restart but had to settle back into second in front of Monopoli as the lead trio sped away until Colt Cecil spun in turn two during the 43rd lap and was hit by Carlbert’s truck.  Cecil was done for the night while Carlbert continued.

McDuffie’s truck seemed to stumble on the restart and Burkhalter took advantage grabbing the lead away although McDuffie was right back on his tail gate.  Pugh had just ake third from Monopoli when Mini Cup winner Brey Holmes spun in turn two.  Burkhalter held sawy on the restart and was looking good only to see a final yellow flag on lap 47as Kohut’s truck slowed suddenly with what appeared to be an overheating issue with Holmes spinning to miss him.

The final restart was a dandy.  Burkhalter slid up the track in turn two just enough to let McDuffie get beside his rear fender.  But Pugh saw an opening and dove under both of them, taking the lead.  Ever the opportunist, Lester followed Pugh right on by to take second.  Burkhalter managed to recover in third while McDuffie was hung out to dry.

Pugh crossed the stripe to score his first-ever Pro Truck victory while Lester and Burkhalter trailed closely.  Cody Blair came out of nowhere to claim fourth while a disappointed McDuffie held on for fifth.  Monopoli faded to sixth ahead of Anderson with eighth through tenth positions going to Carlbert, Krucker and Holmes.  Twelve of the 22 starters were still running at the finish with Tyler Davis and Kristen Clements the last two trucks still in competition.  Rounding out the finishers (all DNF’s) were Kohut, Cecil, Carter Brown, Williams, Mick Lizzano, Brennon Pletcher, Nicoletti, Kerns, Marc Kemick and Moore.

A somewhat bewildered Pugh was as happy as could be in victory lane and thanked his mom and dad along with crew chief Bobby Shelton and set-up man Mike Toemmes who unfortunately was not on hand due to ongoing medical issues.

Lester was very happy with his unexpected second place run but even happier that he set fast time for the first time in his career earlier in the evening.

Burkhalter said he “gave this one away” in the closing laps but was still happy with his truck.  “I really think we’ve got something for the the rest of the year,” he said.

The Open Wheel Modifieds were scheduled to run a big 75-lap contest but when only seven cars showed up, the drivers and track officials agreed to cut the race to 40 laps with only a small cut in the purse.

Herb Neumann grabbed the early lead but gave way to L. J. Grimm on lap four.

Only two minor cautions late in the race slowed the event as Grimm sped away to a comfortable victory.  Neumann looked like a sure second until falling out during the final caution flag period on lap 35.  At that point Matt McCrary picked up the second spot and held it to the checker ahead of a tight battle with Shawn Harper and Ricky Coffin who claimed third and fourth.  Norman Dismuke debuted his new machine in fifth ahead of Neumann and Marilyn McCrary.

The 30-lap Legend Car feature saw a number of caution periods and a familiar face back in victory lane.  Greg Welage of Cincinnati, OH, who also has a home in Punta Gorda, returned to action along with his son Jason and led the opening two laps before Seth Adams came storming by.  From that point it was Adams all the way despite having his pace slowed by the numerous yellow flags that were all for just minor incidents.  The fans were entertained by the constant position-swapping going on behind Adams, though.

Jim Smith eventually made his way to second and added to his current point lead in the class.  Las Vegas, NV visitor Michael Anderson had a good run for third in his first visit to Auburndale Speedway.  Young Brandon Taylor scored a nice fourth place finish in just his second race in the class while 13-year-old lady driver Jade Hubert was fifth.  Jason Welage was sixth followed by Bob Wilson, Cale Nolen, Blake Boyette, Gavin Sexton, Greg Welage, Mitch Verhaagh and Alan Hiefnar.

Another good field of Modified Mini Stocks were on hand and put on quite a show.  The initial start was called back for a three car tangle in turn one but all cars continued.  Tim Scalise snared the early lead but Fred Harrison was quickly on the move.  Harrison started deep in the pack but was already up to third place by the conclusion of lap three then took second two laps later with Chris Spring right behind him.

Harrison caught and passed Scalise for the top spot on lap 11 with Spring following suit four laps later.  The 30-lap run was halted on lap 17 as jimmy Frazier blew the engine in his car oiling down the track through the first and second turns.  Fortunately all cars made it through despite a little “slipping and sliding.”  Just after the restart the final caution appeared as Chris Falkner and Scott Bumgardner spun in unison in turn two.

Although Spring closed to his bumper several times, Harrison held on for the win, his first here in quite some time as he has just returned to racing at Auburndale after around a three year hiatus.  Spring was a close second while Scalise scored his first career podium finish.  It was this first time ever that Dodge-powered cars finished 1-2-3 in a Mod Mini feature here.  Fourth and fifth went to Clint Holmes and Matt Cummins who had a nice run in a new car after showing up late.  Rachelle Rudolph came home sixth trailed by Falkner, Dave Barnett, Bumgardner, Frazier, Mike Kerrivan, Dave Davis and T. J. Tanner.

Despite having to run his car in third gear after a late race restart, James Wright III held sway to score another V-8 Bomber win and add to his point lead.  Wright took the lead from David Purvis on lap five and sped to the win despite two cautions and his tranny problem.  Danny Burchfield was third followed by Ronnie Abney, Jammie “Wild Child” Dunnahoe, Jr., Jamie Castleberry and Purvis.

Put yet another win sticker on the windshield of Chris Narrmore’s Q Mini Stock as he claimed his fourth win of the year in the class.  Freddy Martin grabbed the early lead but saw Chris Narramore, Jr, move out front on lap 12.  The senior Narramore was not to be denied this week, though, as he passed his son on lap 20 and drove to a comfortable win as this was the only race all night to run green to checker.  Narramore, Jr, was second with Bruce Cozad in his “usual” third spot.  Martin came home fourth ahead of Duker Holley, T. J.

Tanner, David McCaig and Ashley Eldridge.

Travis Todd led all the way to claim his first-ever win at Auburndale in taking the Scrambler feature.  Although his teammate Danny Burchfield brought out the red flag blowing an engine mid-race, Todd streaked to a fairly comfortable win over Chuckie Harrison and his dad Chuck Harrison.  All three were driving Saturns.  Wayne Dunnavent, Jr. was fourth in his first race here trailed by Burchfield, Serena Young, Trevor Appling and Joe Mezenbach (all DNF’s)

It was just “one of those nights” at Auburndale Speedway Saturday night as anything that could go wrong…. well… it did.

The entire show got off to a late start as a pair of brief showers dampened the track during hot laps. Despite the delay, action still got going only 15 minutes late.

The big race of the night was the WPCV 97.5 Country Radio Earth Day 125 “Super 8” Series race for the Super Late Models. Due to the rain, qualifying was held during the middle of the heat races for the other classes.

Joe Boyd of Riverview, winner of the season-opening Super 8 Series event back in March, was fast once again as he set quick time of 13.568 seconds topping the 13.582 lap of Winter Haven’s George Gorham, Jr. with Josh Todd of Polk City third quick at 13.589.

As has been the case for big races here recently, the position re-draw did not go Boyd’s way as the top eight cars from time trials were inverted for the start placing Auburndale drivers Chris Fontaine and Ron Lofquist on the front row. Lofquist was making his first start at Auburndale in quite some time with a brand-new car to boot.

Overall this race would not be pretty as the 125 laps produced two red flag periods and another 15 caution flags before the marathon would end nearly an hour and a half after it started.

Fontaine jumped out to an early lead only to see Todd go for a spin in turn two to bring out the first of the many yellow flags on lap four. Gorham and Boyd, who started seventh and eighth, were already up to fourth and fifth after the restart.

Fontaine continued to set the pace but the caution re-appeared on lap nine for Todd who stopped up high in turn four. The earlier incident had torn a hole in the radiator of his car and he stopped it before any damage could be done to the engine. Not a good night for Todd who had a podium finish last time out.

At the same time Becca Monopoli pitted to have a tire rub fixed.

Things got really chippy on the restart as Lakeland’s Steve Dorer aggressively took the top spot on lap 13 with Gorham also slipping by Fontaine four laps later. The field finally got into some good green flag action as the top five of Dorer, Gorham, Fontaine, Boyd and Lofquist pulled away from the rest of the contenders.

Lap 32 saw Matt McCrary go for a spin off turn two while Boyd got spun off turn four just after the caution was displayed. Boyd got his spot back in the line-up while McCrary took his car pit side as did Blaise Hetznecker although both quickly returned to the fray.

Fontaine was still strong and re-captured second place from Gorham on the restart. Meanwhile Brandon Duchscherer was charging taking fifth spot on lap

40 after starting the race from tenth. Six laps later Fontaine forged his way by Dorer and back into the lead.

Dorer and Gorham then began a fender-wanging duel that saw them both nearly spin each other out on the 47th lap. In fact, Duchscherer dove inside to take third place but the pass was negated by a caution flag for debris on the track. Brian Dorer and Noah Cornman pitted during the yellow but returned.

Duchscherer slipped by Boyd for fourth on the restart just before Hetznecker fell off the pace and retired to the infield on lap 55. One lap later David King spun in turn 4 to bring out the yellow again.

Things got testy on the restart as both Dorer and Boyd spun with track officials seeing Gorham as the culprit for the rough action. Gorham was thus black-flagged and went to the pits for a consultation with officials before returning and restarting at the tail of the field. The cars of Duchscherer and Monopoli also received damage. Duchscherer made a brief pit stop while Monopoli stayed on track.

After all the wild action the new top five now found Fontaine leading Boyd, Jett Noland, Monopoli and Jamie King. Noland slipped into second on the restart as Boyd stayed high and tried to regain the spot but spun in turn one after Noland drifted up in turn one causing Boyd to lose it in the “marbles.”

Boyd pitted and returned but his car would never be as fast as it was earlier.

Dorer pitted during the yellow and did not return.

On the restart the caution was out yet again as Lofquist went for a spin courtesy of Monopoli. There were now 11 cars still in the running, all on the lead lap. Jamie king got by Noland on the restart as the yellow was again displayed when Noland was turned by Brian Dorer. Monopoli pitted to have the bowed-up hood on her machine removed while Boyd also headed for the pit area and called it a night.

Fontaine continued to hold off all challengers as Duchscherer was again on the move as he got around Cornman for third on lap 69. David King spun in turn two during the 75th lap collecting Lofquist but both were able to continue.

Again, both Duchscherer and Gorham were charging hard and moved into second and third by lap 79 and appeared to be a bit quicker than leader Fontaine.

Action was slowed again on lap 81 as Jamie King was sent for a spin by Noland.

Brian Dorer then spun on the restart to keep the yellow out then spun again on the next restart just after Gorham made a pass on Duchscherer for second.

The next restart saw Monopoli take fourth spot as her car now seemed to have “come in” while Duchscherer re-passed Gorham for the runner-up spot on lap 90.

Finally some more green flag racing ensued as Fontaine, Duchscherer and Gorham raced in tight formation up front.

Noah Cornman, driving a great race, had his evening come to a quick end as his car began smoking heavily while he was running fifth on lap 104. Cornman pulled to the infield where the caution came out on lap 107 to check a possible fire in his car. The smoke was actually steam as the car had run so hot it blew the radiator cap off.

It would take several tries to get past the 107th lap starting with Monopoli spinning on the restart and getting hit by Jamie King’s car. King stayed out while Monopoli pitted but did not make it out for the restart.

The next restart saw the worst incident of the night as Fontaine and Duchscherer bumped together in turn four with Duchscherer spinning. Lofquist had nowhere to go and drove over the front end of Duchscherer’s car while Noland also clobbered the Duchscherer machine with Brian Dorer also getting front end damage as well.

This required a long red flag period as both the Duchscherer and Noland cars were done for the night. Lofquist pitted but returned minus the body work on the right side of his new racer. Monopoli returned before the restart and was still on the lead lap while Dorer stayed on the race track.

track officials ruled that Fontaine was at fault for the incident and he went from the lead to the rear of the restart line-up while Gorham now assumed the top spot over Brian Dorer and David King. That pair apparently didn’t like running up front as they tangled on the restart heading into turn one.

Believe it or not the rest of the laps were run under green as Gorham led the remaining distance to score a hard-fought victory. Fontaine was still strong but could never mount a challenge after moving back up into second while Lofquist drove his battered car to third ahead of Brian Dorer and Jamie King.

Noland returned to the race and hung on for sixth while Monopoli fought an ill-handling car over the final laps to finish seventh, the last car of the 15-car field still running although everybody still out there was on the lead lap.

Gorham had a bit of a problem just getting out of his car as his legs were cramping up. “It was a long race, I guess.” said Gorham. “I’ve never had cramps after a race so I guess I probably need to get into the gym,” he joked.

“You know this is a home grown team that works their butts off. We stay up sometimes until two, four o’clock in the morning working on this thing then get right back up and go to work but being here right now makes it all worth it,” Gorham continued.

Fontaine did not come to victory lane obviously upset by the call that took him from the lead. Lofquist was probably as shocked as anybody that he got a top three finish. “You’re right, this is, or was, a new car but the damage is really not that bad and i think we can fix it fairly easy,” he said.

Undaunted, Gorham came back to score another victory, this time in the V-8 Bomber feature again driving the potent Camaro owned by Roy “Bubba” Healey.

This race would also see a rash of caution flags and four different leaders.

Heat winner Bobby Mobley led the first six circuits while Danny Burchfield would then lead a trio of laps before being passed by James Wright III who had pitted after a lap two incident to replace a flat tire.

Wright led through lap 16 but his car was not handling like he wanted and Gorham sped by to lead the rest of the way to take the win over Wright, Burchfield, Mobley, Jody Gill, Ronnie Abney, Jamie Castleberry, Buddy Smith and David Purvis who broke an axle on the ninth lap.

It was yet another “family affair” in the Q Mini Stocks as Chris Narramore, Jr. took the lead from Fred Martin on the second lap then raced to his third win of the year over his dad Chris Narramore, Sr. Bruce Cozad scored yet another third place finish in front of Martin, David McCaig, Duker Holley, T.

1. Tanner and Amber Eldridge. Donald Gatlin was unable to start the feature.

Narramore, Jr. also won the heat race.

Jim Smith defeated a short field of Legend Cars to claim his second win of the year after earlier winning the heat race. Joey Langis was a distant second ahead of Jade Hubert, new driver Brandon Taylor and Cale Nolen. Kyle Pitts did not start.

Douglas Herrin, Jr. again dominated the Mini Cup class to score his third win in a row. The 13-year-old driver was over a straightaway ahead of second place Clay Samuels. Heat winner Brey Holmes was third trailed by Maria Martins, Bill Rychel, Russell Bush and Kameren Wozunk. Bryton Horner had problems during the heat and did not start the feature.

.

OFFICIAL FINISH – SUPER LATE MODELS (125 Laps):

1) George Gorham, Jr. #03

2) Chris Fontaine #47

3) Ron Lofquist #49

4) Brian Dorer #97

5) Jamie King #33

6) Jett Noand #50

7) Becca Monopoli #59X

8) Brandon Duchscherer #23 – DNF

9) David King #22 – DNF

10) Noah Cornman #30 – DNF

11) Joe Boyd #5 – DNF

12) Steve Dorer #10 – DNF

13) Blaise Hetznecker #17 – DNF

14) Matt McCrary #54 – DNF

15) Josh Todd #0 – DNF

To say it was a very long Saturday night (and Sunday morning) at Auburndale Speedway was definitely an understatement as fans first had to endure an hour-and-a-half rain delay followed by three races dotted with numerous red flags, cautions and lengthy track clean-ups. Despite the action not ending until just after 1 am, a large crowd stayed to the bitter end and were treated to some fine racing between all the delays.

The big race of the night was the Spring 125 for the Super Late Models presented by WPCV 97.5 Country Radio. Seventeen Super Late Model teams were in attendance and it was a big surprise when Polk City’s Josh Todd topped the time trials with a lap of 13.740 seconds in a brand new car that was “right out of the box.” Aaron Williamson timed in second quick at 13.782 just ahead of the 13.812 lap of Brandon Duchscherer who was also at the wheel of a sparkling new ride. Local veteran Chris Fontaine was fourth quick while fifth fastest was Noah “Lil’ Gator” Cornman who was impressive in his first-ever visit to the track. The invert would be an eight placing Devin McLeod on the pole for the big race.

McLeod sped out to an early lead as the field raced close behind him. Lap 11 saw the first caution flag fly when Jeff Gordon spun his machine on the back stretch. Joe Boyd had the outside front row on the restart and made quick work of McLeod to grab the top spot. John Coffman looped his mount on lap 15 to bring out yellow flag number two.

Boyd pulled out to a near straightaway lead by the time the next caution was unfurled on lap 34 as Gordon spun on the front stretch. On the restart, Fontaine zipped by McLeod for second. Duchscherer slipped by McLeod on lap 40 bringing Williamson and Todd with him. McLeod’s car was faltering and he dropped back to sixth while Boyd again built up a big lead.

Lap 48 saw the yellow out again for a Coffman-Cornman tangle in turn one with both continuing. On the restart Duchscherer, Todd and Williamson freight-trained Fontaine to move up in the running order behind Boyd. The field then settled into some green flag racing although McLeod was continuing to have a rough go of it and dropped from the running on lap 67. Four laps later the right front tire went down on Williamson’s car and he exited to the pits in a shower of sparks as the caution came out yet again.

Just after the restart a multi-car melee took place in turn four that eliminated Cornman from the running. The red flag was displayed for a lengthy clean-up of fluids on the track. Once the field took the green again Todd was on a mission as he moved by Duchscherer into second on lap 82 and set his sights on Boyd. Shortly after, Blaise Hetznecker and Steve Dorer got by Fontaine to move into fourth and fifth places. Dorer then got by Hetznecker for fourth on the 97th lap.

Meanwhile Todd had moved up on Boyd to challenge for the lead as Fontaine fell from the race on lap 99 with a sick engine. A final caution flew on lap 104 as Coffman spun in turn two setting up a dash to the checker.

Todd battled side-by-side with Boyd for a couple of laps but had to settle in behind him. From that point Boyd held sway to the checker with Todd right in his slipstream. Duchscherer came home third while Dorer, who had started well back in the field, coming home fourth after a fine drive. Fifth went to Hetznecker while Williamson rebounded for a sixth place effort. David King, Brian Dorer, Stuart Dutton and Coffman rounded out the top ten.

Also on tap was a 50-lap run for the Brandon Ford Wheel Man Sportsman Series presented by Gagel’s Auto Parts, Racecar Engineering and Autotech Collision Center. 22 top machines signed in to do battle with Clermont’s Jason Vail topping qualifying with a lap of 14.276 seconds. Second in time trials was Aaron Williamson who tripped the clocks at 14.285 followed closely by Devin McLeod, Travis Roland and Brett Jenkins. Vail would find himself starting mid-pack as the invert was a whopping 14 cars.

Despite the big field, the start was clean as Rex Struble led the opening circuit before giving way to Adam Briggs who was out front when the first caution flew on lap six for a tangle between Brett Jenkins and Mark Peterson.
Vail was said to have caused the incident by getting into Jenkins and he went to the tail of the restart line-up.

Struble got back by Briggs on the restart with Joe Winchell and Craig Cuzzone moving up to second and third on lap 12. Lap 19 saw Williamson and Colton Bramlett get together going down the front stretch with Bramlett going hard into the wall. Bramlett’s car was towed from the track – not a good way for the night to end for the young man who celebrated his 16th birthday the day before. Williamson pitted but returned after repairing the damage to his car.

The veteran Winchell turned up the wick after the restart and snared to lead from Struble while Cuzzone slipped into second on lap 26. One lap later, Briggs spun to bring out the yellow and he took his mount pit side.
Meanwhile, Vail had moved into the top ten with Williamson also charging back into 11th.

The restart was aborted when Brett Jenkins and Rick Reed got together on the front stretch, however both kept going with minor damage. The next attempt saw Williamson spin in turn three as something broke on his machine. He pitted but did not return. Try number three saw a massive mess take place off turn four. When the dust settled, the cars of Brandon Morris, Vail, McLeod, Steven O’Steen and Shawn Jenkins all had damage. All but Jenkins stayed in the running.

Action resumed but only for a pair of laps before Cuzzone and Struble tangled coming down the front stretch with both spinning wildly into turn one.
Cuzzone was done for the night while Struble continued. On the ensuing restart McLeod moved into second spot bringing Travis Roland with him just before Brandon Martin spun on the front stretch to bring out the caution on lap 31.

McLeod out-gunned Winchell on the restart and grabbed the lead with Roland following him into second. Winchell was now being hounded by Vail for third.
The final yellow flag flew on lap 45 as Brett Jenkins spun in turn three.

The old term “rubbin’ is racin'” held sway on the last restart as there was plenty of contact among the leaders. McLeod held his own while Vail made a banzai charge to second. Winchell and Roland traded paint with Winchell grabbing third at the checker followed by Roland and Morris. Jesse Henley finished off a steady run with a sixth place effort while Brooke Storer, Struble, Mark Peterson and Brett Jenkins completed the top ten.

The Legend Cars were in action for 25 laps with 13 cars in the starting field.
Old pro Mitch Verhaagh zipped into the early lead but action came to a screeching halt on the third lap when the engine exploded in Taylor Hosford’s car going into turn three while she was running third. Despite a massive amount of smoke, Hosford guided her car into the infield while everyone else avoided any major altercations.

On the restart a traffic jam took place in turn four with half of the remaining field involved. Everyone was able to continue. Jim Smith sped to the point on the restart only to see the caution fly yet again for a tangle between Alan Hiefnar and Joey Langis. Then on the restart it was Mike Verhaagh and Blake Boyette tangling in turn one.

From that point it was all green as Smith made quick work of the field. Seth Adams was looking strong in a guest stint driving for Dave Fusco, moving up to second before falling out with mechanical ills late in the going. Kyle Pitts made a late charge but had to settle for second behind Smith who claimed his first career Legend Car feature win here.

Mitch Verhaagh capped a great run with a third place finish ahead of Hiefnar and his brother Mike Verhaagh. Sixth went to Langis while Sam Cornman, Gavin Sexton, Bob Wilson, Boyette, Cale Nolen, Adams and Hosford completed the finishing field.

It was another family affair in the Q Mini Stocks as Chris Narramore, Sr. took the lead from Bruce Cozad on the 17th lap then sped to victory over his son Chris Narramore, Jr. Cozad held on for third ahead of Fred Martin, Tav Gary, Duker Holley, T. J. Tanner and Donald Gatlin.

Douglas Harrin, Jr. dominated the Mini Cup feature for his second win in a row. Brey Holmes brought Bill Rychel’s machine home a distant second over Clay Samuels, Bryton Horner and Doug Higbie. Maria Martins did not start.

OFFICIAL FINISHES – AUBURNDALE SPEEDWAY – 3/10/18:

SUPER LATE MODELS (125 Laps):

1) Joe Boyd #5
2) Josh Todd #0
3) Brandon Duchscherer #23
4) Steve Dorer #94
5) Blaise Hetznecker #17
6) Aaron Williamson #67
7) David King #22
8) Brian Dorer #97
9) Stuart Dutton #58D
10) John Coffman #58
11) Chris Fontaine #47
12) Paul White #25
13) Devin McLeod #21
14) Noah Cornman #30
15) Jett Noland #50
16) Jeff Gordon #158
17) Jamie King #24

BRANDON FORD WHEEL MAN SPORTSMAN SERIES (50 Laps)

1) Devin McLeod #5
2) Jason Vail #407
3) Joe Winchell #92
4) Travis Roland #54
5) Brandon Morris #56
6) Jesse Henley #3
7) Brooke Storer #9
8) Rex Struble #69
9) Mark Peterson #73P
10) Brett Jenkins #199
11) Steven O’Steen #41
12) Rick Reed #4
13) Jason Bartram #73
14) Brandon Martin #53
15) Craig Cuzzone #4C
16) Shawn Jenkins #43
17) Aaron Williamson #67
18) Charlie Brown #11
19) Lucas Rodriguez #51
20) Colton Bramlett #22
21) Roger Blevins #129
22) Adam Briggs #14

Auburndale Speedway began the 2018 racing season with comfortable weather, a great crowd and plenty of outstanding racing.  When all was said and done, four very familiar faces graced victory lane along with one very pretty new one.

Fifteen Pro Trucks were in attendance with Bartow’s Cody McDuffie turning a lap of 14.437 seconds to earn fast time honors.  Young Derek Pugh of West Palm Beach was second quick at 14.580 followed by the 14.600 lap of Rodney Haddock who towed down from Hillard to compete.  Austin Pickens and Jason Lester rounded out the “fast five” on the night.

McDuffie picked a six for the inversion and that placed sixth-fast qualifier Danny Anderson on the pole for the “Super Bowl 75” flanked by Lester on the outside.  Lester got the jump on the field and led the opening two circuits before William Kerns brought out the caution with a spin in turn two.

Anderson got by Lester for the top spot on the restart as McDuffie started making his move.

McDuffie passed Pickens for third spot on lap nine then zipped by Lester for second two laps later.  Pugh got by Pickens for third on lap 16 as all eyes were now on the battle for the lead as McDuffie was totally dialed in using the outer groove to zoom by Anderson on lap 17 to assume the point.

The next yellow flag appeared on the 29th lap as Colt Cecil got into the lapped truck of Dakota Hunt sending Hunt for a spin in turn two.  Hunt dropped out just before the green flag returned while Cecil returned to action briefly before also calling it a night…

Lester got by Anderson for second on the restart but Anderson returned the favor on lap 44.  The race remained under green until lap 57 when newcomer Carl McCormick (teammate of Haddock) spun in turn four after contact with Nick Haag.  Both were able to continue as McDuffie continued to have a field day at the front of the pack.  The final yellow came out on lap 67 for Mike Kohut’s spin in turn four.

From that point McDuffie simply ran and hid from the rest of the field.

McDuffie, who ended the 2017 season with a big win in the Joey Coulter Charity 212 in December, picked right up where he left off.  “This truck is awesome,” said McDuffie in victory lane.  “I just point it where I want it to go and it does it… it’s such a fantastic feeling to be in a truck this good,” he continued.  McDuffie dedicated his win to his aunt who was celebrating her birthday at the track.

Anderson came home the runner-up and said he had a blast, especially the side by side racing he did with Lester who took the checker in third to complete the podium.  Derek Pugh capped a great night with a fourth place effort making a late-race pass of Austin Picken who rounded out the top five.

Sixth went to Devin Kyle who had a smooth, steady run all night.  Completing the top ten were Mike Kohut, Carl McCormick, Nick Haag, Rodney Haddock and Todd Haag.  The remaining finishers were Brey Holmes, William Kerns, Colt Cecil and Dakota Hunt.

After the race, the top three finishers were brought to tech inspector Rick Brooks’ “Room of Doom.”  Items checked were rear ends, axle, drive shafts, flywheel, transmission and crank weight.  All three passed and results were made official.

Seth Adams got his season off to a great start by leading all the way to capture the 25-lap Legend Car feature.  Adams won his heat and earned the pole for the nightcap and had a relatively easy go of it as the race was slowed just twice.  The first caution was displayed on lap five as Tim Hunt and Sam Cornman tangled coming down the front stretch.  Hunt’s car was towed from the track as something had broken in the rear end of his machine.  Cornman continued but spun again by himself in turn two on lap eight for the second and final yellow flag.  He later fell out of the event.

Adams cruised to victory over his teammate Kyle Pitts and first heat winner Jim Smith.  Mike Verhaagh claimed fourth while Taylor Hosford was fifth.

Rounding out the finishers were Mitch Verhaagh, Alan Hiefnar, Blake Boyette, Christian Baker, Dave Fusco, Cale Nolen, Cornman and Hunt.

2017 Q Mini Stock champion Chris Narramore, Sr. won his heat race, started from the front row of the 20-lap headliner and won the all-green race by a straightaway over second place Donald Gatlin.  Narramore’s son, Chris Narramore, Jr. brought his new ride home in third ahead of John Cummins, Jr. and Bruce Cozad.  Sixth went to Fred Martin ahead of first heat winner T. J. Tanner, David Walls, Dalton Herman and David Myers, Sr.

Another 2017 track champion, James Wright III, also led every lap in claiming the 25-lap V-8 Bomber feature over Danny Burchfield, Brandon Duchscherer, Aaron Holmes, Jeff McCaw, Wesley Rounds and Ken Larsh.  Wright also won the heat.

After winning the heat race, 14-year-old Maria Martins led all the way to claim a very popular victory in the Mini Cup 15-lap feature.  It was her first-ever feature win in the class and she had to hold off a hard-charging Douglas Herrin, Jr. to do it.  Russell Bush took third trailed by Clay Samuels, newcomer Bryton Horner and Kameren Wozunk.

Andy Travis held off Justin Ryan to take home the win in a 10-lap match race for the Scrambler cars.

RESULTS – PRO TRUCK SUPER BOWL 75 – 1/27/18

1) Cody McDuffie, Bartow #25

2) Danny Anderson, Bradenton #50

3) Jason Lester, Palmetto #7

4) Derek Pugh, West Palm Beach #3

5) Austin Picken, Windermere #34

6) Devin Kyle, Pinellas Park #2

7) Mike Kohut, Lehigh Acres #11K

8) Carl McCormick, Jacksonville #131

9) Nick Haag, Windermere #53

10) Rodney Haddock, Hilliard #31

11) Todd Haag, Windermere #54

12) Brey Holmes, Lakeland #57

13) William Kerns, Auburndale #69

14) Colt Cecil, Lakeland #19

15) Dakota Hunt, Lakeland #99