By:  Larry Jewett

4/17/2010

 Only one feature was completed for East Bay’s Saturday program before rain showers changed the plans, washing away the rest of the night.

The rain arrived after six laps were completed in the Outlaw 4 class feature. The rain stopped and the track was re-prepared after 90 minutes. The cars returned to the track, but so did the rain, spelling the end to the night’s action.

Before the rain came, Roger Crouse picked up his third consecutive Gagel’s Auto Parts Open Wheel Modified feature event. Crouse took the lead from John Bradley with just a few laps remaining in the 15-lap main. “I ran hard tires,” Crouse said in Victory Lane, “and he (Bradley) was on soft tires. We were able to get him in the end.” Bradley kept second and took the division point lead. Austin Sanders was third, ahead of Bobby Dixon and Alex Boerner. Heat races were won by Dale Kelley and Kyle Bronson

All divisions were able to hold their heat races. Outlaw 4 preliminaries were won by Chris Zimmerman and Brian Danforth. The Racecar Engineering Late Models had three preliminaries, taken by Josh Peacock, Jack Nosbisch Jr. and Paul Gibbs. The East Bay Sprint heats were taken by point leader Gene Lasker and Danny Martin Jr. A trio of motorstats.com 4 Cylinder Bombers heats were won by Kever Raulerson, Raymond Vann and Roberto Morfin Sr.

The Racecar Engineering Late Models will have double features next week (April 24) with the Outlaw 4s picking up their feature with six laps complete in addition to a full program. The East Bay Sprint main will be made up on May 22 and the motorstats.com 4 Cylinder bomber make-up will be May 1.

ASA sanctioned racing returns to East Bay Raceway Park on Saturday, April 242010.  The Limited Late Models will be featured with an event sponsored by Advance Auto Parts that sees an increased payout in top positions. Double features for the Racecar Engineering Late Models and Outlaw 4 class will be part of the menu, as well as the Precision Kia Street Stocks, Dirt Daubers and Florida Old Time Modifieds. For more information, go to www.eastbayracewaypark.com or call the track office.

By:  Larry Jewett

4/10/2010

“This one is for my dad,” were the words of Limited Late Model racer J.R. Prather Jr., who returned to Victory Lane for the first time since his father, a long time supporter of East Bay, passed away a little more than a year ago. “I tried so hard last year and this is a new year. I was thinking of dad when I crossed the line.”

Prather’s win came from the outside pole of the 15-lap main. “When you’re in the position, you have to seal the deal,” he said. Prather grabbed the lead from the start to back up his heat race. Alex Boerner was thrilling the crowd with his outside runs that moved him into second place by lap 9. Boerner put the pressure on, but Prather was focused on hitting his marks. Boerner kept second as Forrest Gough rallied from an earlier spin for third. William Hampton and Daniel Woody rounded out the top five. Phillip Cobb joined Prather as a heat race winner.

Matthew Haynes became a double winner in the Outlaw 4 class, backing up his win from two weeks ago.  Haynes went wire-to-wire in a caution-free affair. Brian Danforth, Billy Howard, 2009 division champion Stephen Hohlbaugh and Charlie Staats completed the top five. Chris Zimmerman and Howard were heat winners.

Roger Crouse made an outside pass on race leader Buzzie Reutimann and parlayed it to his second straight Gagel’s Auto Parts Open Wheel Modified victory. “He has a lot of experience here,” said Crouse of Reutimann. “I tried the outside and it was faster. I can’t believe I passed Buzzie Reutimann outside.” No one else passed Reutimann as he took second, ahead of John Bradley, Bobby Dixon and Austin Sanders, who started 12^th in the main. Reutimann and Dixon took preliminary wins.

Former asphalt racer Jeff Rodgers has taken a liking to dirt track racing. Despite starting in the back, Rodgers slipped past race leader Garry Sheffield on the eighth lap and held on to claim his first-ever dirt win in the Street Stock class. Clarence Pratt made a last lap pass on Buck Woodhouse to finish second. Fourth went to Sheffield and former feature winner Thomas Pratt claimed fifth.

Defending champion Jim Baker vaulted from the pole to claim a feature win in the motorstats.com 4 Cylinder Bombers. Elliott Morgan added another top five to his resume with a steady second place. John Detamore rallied back to take third, ahead of Jimmy Williams and Patrick Tabb. Roberto Morfin Jr. saw a top five taken away when he refused an engine claim. Baker, Morfin Jr. and Detamore won the heats.

Collin Kruse topped the 10-car field in the Dirt Dauber finale, despite a spin on lap 10.

ASA sanctioned racing returns to East Bay Raceway Park on Saturday, April 17, 2010.  The Racecar Engineering Late Models, East Bay Sprints, Gagel’s Auto Parts Open Wheel Modifieds, Outlaw 4s and motorstats.com 4 Cylinder Bombers are in action. A special driver’s autograph session for Late Model and Sprint drivers will be conducted at intermission. For more information go to www.eastbayracewaypark.com or call the track office.

By:  Jason Loughren

04/03/2010

 It was another wonderful night for racing in Tampa Bay as fans packed the grandstand at East Bay Raceway Park.  Over 100 cars were on hand for a pre-Easter joy ride around the fastest dirt track in the South.

 The Street Stocks were the first class to hit the track for their 15-lap feature event.  Donnie Reed and Gary Sheffield had an awesome battle for the lead as the laps wound down.  Reed was able to make a pass for the lead as Sheffield and Ed Hill were fighting for position.  Reed held off James Hook for the win.  The win was Reed’s 3^rd of the young season.  Hook finished 2^nd.  Thomas Pratt came home in the 3^rd position.  Jarod Gay fought off early troubles and finished 4^th and Kevin Silvia hung on for a 5^th place finish.  Reed and Hook won the heats.

 The East Bay Sprints were up next and Gene Lasker was the man to beat.  Lasker started 4^th and was in the lead by the end of the 1^st lap.  Lasker drove away from the field and won the race in convincing fashion.   Danny Martin, Jr started 5^th and finished 2^nd.  Tony Agin finished 3^rd.  Rocky Sullivan and Tim George rounded out the top-5.  AJ Maddox and Tim George were victorious in the heats.

 Matthew Haynes won his first feature event of the season in the Outlaw 4’s holding off the late charge of Michael Gulvin.  Gulvin finished 2^nd.  Cecil Martin started the main event in the 9^th position and battled his way to a 3^rd place finish.  Billy Howard ran in the top-5 all night long and finished 4^th.  Charlie Staats started on the pole and finished 5^th.  Haynes and Gulvin won the heats.

 Twenty Racecar Engineering Late Models took the green flag in their 25-lap feature event.  Jack Nosbisch, Jr. won the race as he held off the challenge of Bryan Bernhardt to take his first win of the season. Bernhardt finished 2^nd.  Wallace Peacock started on the pole and finished 3^rd.  Travis Varnadore started 8^th and finished 4^th.  Mavrick Varnadore started 14^th came home with a strong 5^th place finish.  Dennis Williams, Roger Crouse, and Nosbisch won the heat races.

 In the Motorstats.com 4 cylinder bombers thirty-two cars started the feature event.  Roberto Morfin, Sr. started 5^th and swapped the lead with Elliot Morgan for many of the 15 laps.  Morfin, Sr. was victorious as he took the checkered flag by a slim margin over Morgan. Morgan finished 2^nd.  Raymond Vann battled early for the lead and finished 3^rd.  Roberto Morfin, Jr. started 8^th and finished 4^th.  Gary Killeen started on the pole and raced to a 5^th place finish.  Red Vann appeared to have a 4^th place finish but was disqualified in post race inspection.  Dalton Epps, Morgan and Killeen took the heat races.

 ASA Sanctioned racing returns to East Bay Raceway Park on Saturday, April 10, 2010 with the Limted Late Models, Gagel’s Open Wheel Modifieds, Street Stocks, Outlaw 4’s, Motorstats.com 4 cylinder bombers and Dirt Daubers all in action.  There will also be fan participation races.. For more information go to www.eastbayracewaypark.com or call the track office.

By:  Larry Jewett

3/27/2010

There are plenty of drivers who would be happy with 26 feature wins in a career, but imagine winning features in 26 consecutive seasons. For Roger Crouse, it’s a reality as Crouse picked up the Gagel’s Auto Parts Open Wheel Modified main to add to his personal streak.

Crouse had to make his way past Austin Sanders to grab the lead for the prestigious win. The pass came late after Crouse slipped past for second just before the halfway mark. Three laps later, Crouse made his move and pulled away from the field. With the win coming so early in the season, the pressure is off to keep the streak alive. Sanders kept second ahead of Bruce Harvey who rebounded from an early race incident. John Bradley and Shane Burrows collected top five finishes. Heats went to Buzzie Reutimann and Bradley.

“We put a hard tire on the left rear tonight,” said Crouse. “We don’t usually do that and the track was coming in for us.”

The Outlaw 4s started the night with heats going to Amanda Rogers and Billy Howard. Bo Howard had the early lead, but spun in turn two to jam up the crowd. The race had trouble getting going with few laps completed after 15 minutes, due to several cautions. Billy Howard caught the lead, but saw Matt Haynes blast by on lap 8. A lap later, Billy Howard was back in front. Haynes and Rogers tangled on the frontstretch, slipping Rogers back to fourth. Billy Howard picked up his first win of the year, ahead of Haynes, Brian Danforth, Rogers and Travis Staats. “I wish my dad had been here to see this,” said the winner. “ I want to thank the 2 for racing me clean.”

James Hook, Thomas Pratt and Buck Woodhouse won heats in the Street stocks, who saw wild action in their 15-lap feature. A 21-car feature saw Jarod Gay grab the early lead and hold off Donnie Reed, the division point leader. Deeper in the field, Mike Wilson and Gary Sheffield made contact on the frontstretch with Sheffield ending up on his roof. The driver was not injured. On the restart, Reed managed to slip past Gay. Defending feature winner Thomas Pratt was the car on the move in the late stages, but Pratt ran out of laps. Reed picked up his second feature win of the year, ahead of Pratt, Gay, Buck Woodhouse and Ed Hill

In the Racecar Engineering Late Models, the Peacock name stayed in Victory Lane, but this time it was Wallace Peacock. Two-time feature winner Josh Peacock could do no better than second. Bryan Bernhardt charged to third after a visit to the tail. Fourth went to Travis Varnadore while Jimmy Waldrop claimed fifth. Bernhardt, Steve Mathis and Jack Nosbisch Jr. won preliminaries.

The Limited Late Models saw Forrest Gough and J.R. Prather Jr. as heat winners. Only one caution permeated the 15-lap main. John Bradley shot to the lead to go wire-to-wire for his first feature win of the season. The defending champ of the division was chased to the line by Phillip Cobb, who matched his second place from last week. Gough, Jason Pope and Tommy Evonosky completed the top five.

The Florida Old Time Modifieds heat was taken by Lars Amundsen with the feature going to Tommy Zwally.

ASA sanctioned racing returns to East Bay Raceway Park on Saturday, April 3, 2010.  The Racecar Engineering Late Models, East Bay Sprints, Street Stocks, Outlaw 4s and motorstats.com 4 Cylinder Bombers are in action. To commemorate Easter, fans aged 12 and under will take part in an Easter candy giveaway. For more information go to www.eastbayracewaypark.com or call the track office.

By: Jason Loughren
3/20/2010

Fans and drivers gathered at East Bay Raceway Park Saturday guaranteed to see their own version of March Madness as around 100 cars signed in ready to go. The action was fast and furious as another great crowd packed the grandstand at the Clay by the Bay on Cutter Power Equipment Night.

Eighteen cars started the 15-lap Street Stock feature event. Ed Hill started on the poll and led the early laps. Thomas Pratt ran near the front the entire race and battled Hill and Donnie Reed for the lead on a late lap caution restart.

After taking the lead on the restart, Pratt won the race in convincing style. Reed started 4th and finished 2nd. Pole sitter Hill finished 3rd. James Hook started last and finished 4th with a strong run. Buck Woodhouse rounded out the top-5. Reed and Pratt won the heat races.

The Limited Late Models made their first run of the young season as full field of cars took the green flag. The action was frantic during the early laps as William Hampton, Alex Boerner, Forrest Gough and JR Prather, Jr. battled at the front of the field. A lap 8 red flag was brought out as William Hampton’s fuel cell ruptured in turn 3 after heavy contact from the cars driven by Thomas Scott and Tommy Evonosky.

A great job was done by the track safety crew to quickly and safely remove the spilled racing fuel from the racing surface. Tim Powers took the lead after the mayhem on lap 8 and was able to hold off the hard charging Phillip Cobb to take the win. Cobb started in the 14th position and finished 2nd. Alex Boerner ran in the top-5 all race and finished 3rd. Dan Darnell and John Wilson rounded out the top-5. Prather, Jr. and Gough won the heat races.

In the Racecar Engineering Late Models Josh Peacock won his second feature event of the season after starting in the 6th position. Peacock battled with Philip Cobb for the win as the laps wound down. Cobb finished 2nd. Bryan Bernhardt finished 3rd after starting 8th. The pole sitter Mavrick Varnadore finished 4th. Paul Gibbs hung around the top-5 all night long and finished 5th. Bernhardt and Dennis Williams won the heat races.

Twenty nine Motorstats.com 4 Cylinder Bombers took the green flag for their 15 lap feature event. Roberto Morfin, Jr. was able to hold off the hard charging Robert Kissam to take the win. Kissam appeared to have a 2nd place finish but was disqualified. Elliot Morgan was the hard charger of the night, started 14th and worked his way to a 2nd place finish. Jim Baker had a solid run and finished 3rd. Kever Raulerson finished 4th and Robert Purcell rounded out the top-5. Bubba Puyear, Morfin, Jr. and Robert Kissam won the heat races.

The newest class of racing at East Bay the Dirt Daubers continued to thrive as all time high of 13 cars hit the wet track. Cal Lange was credited with the win in the Dirt Daubers after four other cars were disqualified post race inspection.
ASA Sanctioned racing returns to East Bay Raceway Park on Saturday, March 27, 2010. The Racecar Engineering Late Models, Limited Late Models, Gagel’s Open Wheel Modifieds, Street Stocks, Outlaw 4’s and Old Time Mods will be in action. For more information go to www.eastbayracewaypark.com or call the track office.

By: Jason Loughren
3/13/2010

After a rainy Friday all over the state of Florida it was a perfect night for racing at the Clay by the Bay. Fans welcomed back the regular season of racing in grand fashion with six classes of door slamming action along with the fan participation races at the intermission. Over one hundred cars helped start the season in exciting fashion at East Bay Raceway Park.

In the Gagel’s Open Wheeled Modifieds Buzzie Reutimann used a mid- race pass on Austin Sanders to take the lead and eventually the win. Reutimann quickly made his way to the front of the field from a 6th place start and was able to hold off the strong run of Sanders. Sanders, who was the pole sitter finished 2nd. Bruce Harvey battled his way to a third place finish. Alex Boerner started in the 9th position and finished in the 4th position. John Bradley rounded out the top-5. Reutimann and Bruce Harvey won the heat races.

The Outlaw 4’s took to the track next with eleven cars taking the green flag for their 15 lap feature event. Cecil Martin started on the front row and quickly built a wide lead over the field. Martin was able to survive numerous restarts on route to his first victory of the season. Brian Danforth finished 2nd. Matthew Haynes finished with a strong 3rd place finish. Travis Staats and Amanda Rogers rounded out the top-5. Amanda Rogers and Haynes won the heat races.

Twenty cars started the 15 lap Street Stock feature event. Donnie Reed started in the 7th spot and quickly worked his way through traffic to the front of the field. Buck Skinner and Reed battled for the lead during the early laps until Skinner blew a radiator ending his night. Reed was able to hold off pole sitter Buck Woodhouse to take the win. Buck Woodhouse finished 2nd. James Hook started back in the 10th spot and battled his way to a 3rd place finish. Gary Sheffield drove in the top-5 all night long and came home with a 4th place finish. Matt Bozeman appeared to have a 5th place finish but was DQ’d in post race tech inspection. Roy Woodhouse ended up being credited with the 5th place finish. Sheffield and Reed won the heat races.

In the Racecar Engineering Late Models Josh Peacock found his way to victory lane after a dominating performance. Peacock took the win after starting on the front row and leading the entire event. J Jimmy Waldrop had a strong run and finished in the 2nd position. Phillip Cobb started and finished 3rd. Paul Gibbs ran in the top 5 all race and finished 4th. Wallace Peacock finished 5th after starting in the last position. Gibbs and Waldrop won the heat races.

The East Bay Sprints hit the track for the first time this year. Kurt Taylor started on the front row and drove away from the field in a caution free main event. AJ Maddox battled his way to a 2nd place finish after starting 7th. Jeanette Burnette finished in the 3rd spot. Tim George ran strong and finished 4th. Gene Lasker rounded out the top-5. Lasker and Maddox won the heat races.

In the Motorstats.com 4 Cylinder Bombers Raymond Vann held off a last lap restart challenge from last season’s points champion Jim Baker to take the win. Baker finished 2nd. Red Vann started on the pole and finished 3rd. Wayne Kissam started 17th and finished 4th. Robert Kissam rounded out the top-5. Baker, Kissam and George Handy were victorious in the heat races.

ASA Sanctioned racing returns to East Bay Raceway Park on Saturday, March 20, 2010. The Racecar Engineering Late Models, Limited Late Models, Street Stocks, Motorstats.com 4 Cylinder Bombers, and Dirt Daubers will be in action on Cutter Power Equipment Night. There will also be kid’s bike races. For more information go to www.eastbayracewaypark.com or call the track office.

TAMPA, FL…..2/13/10…..Wet grounds and cold weather on Saturday forced Miracle Motorsports to cancel the final All Star Sprint Car race scheduled for tonight at East Bay Raceway Park.

 The series was able to race on Thursday when Mark Smith managed his first win at East Bay over a field of 35 cars.  Friday night rain washed out the entire show.

 The East Bay Winternationals continues with the NeSmith Late Models set for February 18, 19 and 20.  They will be joined by the Mod Lites.  The following weekend brings the ASCS 360 Sprints and the Florida Mini Sprints on February 25, 26 and 27.

 On March 3^rd through the 5^th, the UMP/NASRA Late Models will be in town to wrap up the Winternationals before the regular season starts here on March 13.3

Camargo, IL (2-12-10) by Kelly Brown – Public Relations Director – As the saying goes “when it rains it pours,” and unfortunately right now rain is pouring at East Bay Raceway Park, with the rain in the area officials have decided to cancel the event for tonight (February 12, 2010).

Ticket Information

Ticket prices for Saturday, February 13th can be purchased for $30 for general admission and the pit passes will be $35.

Race Cast Live

Those who cannot attend the event can tune in on the internet. RACE CAST LIVE, an online live motorsports video website will be carrying the event online. RACE CAST LIVE uses a Pay-by-the-Hour system through the TodoCast platform and features HD. This isn’t a race with one camera; a play-by-play announcer will be piped in with high quality footage on multiple cameras. Check it out at www.racecastlive.com.

Official Hotel Information

Open to both fans and racers the Days Inn Tampa North will be offering a racer special that is $45.00 a night and a free hot breakfast will be included.

Days Inn Tampa North
701 East Fletcher Ave
I-275 & Fletcher Ave Exit 52
Tampa, FL 33612
For Reservations Call (813) 977-1550 or (866) 895-6584 or
Email: Daysinn05280@aol.com
*Racer Fan Special $45.00 (1-2 people)*

Either at the track or at home the O’Reilly All Star Circuit of Champions allows fans to enjoy the racing action at East Bay Raceway Park. For the most up to date information on the All Star Circuit of Champions and the 2010 edition of Winter Nationals, bookmark www.allstarsprint.com on your computer.