Unclebig
07-21-2012, 02:38 AM
Skyline Speedway Results FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
McGuire McBest In Shutts Memorial
Mitchell Magical in OVSCA Sprints/Carpenter Captures Malta Mods
By Scott Wolfe
STEWART, OHIO-It was one of those rare summer nights when everything just seems to fall into place. Such was the case Friday night July 20th when area storms pounded villages within only a few miles of Skyline Speedway, yet the racetrack was spared for a great night of racing. The heavy, damp air and early drizzle left the 3/8 mile speedplant, tacky and fast throughout the night, setting the stage for a blistering new track record and Jack Shutts Memorial feature win by Grayson, KY driver Josh McGuire.
Washington, WV driver Greg Mitchell claimed his first-ever 410 sprint feature over Josh Davis and Jimmy Stinson, while Tyler Carpenter, S. Parkersburg, WV brought home the win in the MALTA AMRA Modifieds, and Coleton Perine won the WRA Mike's Auto Body Mini-Wedge main.
A moment of silence was held in memory of Sarah Bond, wife of longtime Ohio Valley racing legend Ronnie Bond and mother of Larry and Andy Bond, multi-time late model and modified champions. Sarah herself was a pretty good racer back in the powder puff days, winning many races before finally hanging up the helmet. Many racers, led by the racing Roush family collected $800 for the Bond family. Skyline Speedway on behalf of the Bond family would like to thank all the fans who contributed to this cause.
Josh McGuire has won at Skyline all but four times he has made the trip from his 'Ole Kentucky Home'. Two times he broke, and two other times he suffered close defeats. Friday night (July 20) McGuire was on top of his game.
McGuire's US Steel #41 blistered the Skyline Speedway track record with a resounding 12:04 clocking, eclipsing the eight-year old record of 12:18 set by John Brown back in 2004. McGuire narrowly missed a clean sweep with a second place finish to Zach Dohm in the fast car dash (dedicated to the late Sarah Bond). 21 of the 31 cars signed in for the evening set times in the 12 second bracket, compliments of a super-fast race track.
At the start of the 35-lap 4th annual Shutts Memorial A-main for AMRA Late Models, Dohm of St. Albans, WV powered the Seymour Logging entry into the lead over McGuire and the Salt Rock Express-- Eddie Carrier, Jr.
Carrier shuffled McGuire back to third as that trio survived a gaggle of early cautions. Each time Dohm emerged the leader, but as green flag laps began to mount, Dohm started to pull away. McGuire bagged Carrier on lap eleven, then sought to run down Dohm, who by that time had a quarter-lap lead.
Dohm's mount appeared to slow as the laps ticked off and on lap 14 McGuire blew by to take the point. McGuire then took the boys to the wood shed, lapping all but the top five cars. As one facebook fan posted, "Josh McGuire drove like a madman possessed. He handed out an old fashioned sheddin' in the Super Late Model class and the track made for some crazy, exciting racing."
In a masterful performance, McGuire more than half-tracked his nearest competitor Carrier, who had long-since passed Dohm for second. The only other victims not becoming McGuire's prey were fourth place Rod Conley and Ralph Withem. Conley blasted by Withem on the last lap to take fourth.
The centerpiece of Friday's racing was the heavy, fast track that saw cars broad sliding the high-banks in the mid-12-second range during the feature. The high speeds contributed to a higher level of attrition, but the quality of the racing was second to none. Nelson Freshour was the hard charger in the Tru-Tech AMRA Late Models moving up seven positions from 17th to 10th.
Rounding out the top ten were McGuire, Eddie Carrier, Jr.; Zach Dohm, Rod Conley, Ralph Withem, Chris Garnes, Freddie Carpenter, Harold Redman, Kevin Wagner, and Nelson Freshour.
Said McGuire in victory lane, "The key tonight was us making a little harder tire selection. I thought once the tire kicked in and we got some laps under our belts that we would have a good chance. We were a little loose at first, but once we went green flag racing and ran consecutive fast laps the car just took off."
"Take off? Josh was just downright fast tonight," noted second place Carrier, Jr. "I had a pretty good car. The track roughed up a little in the middle, so I just wanted to run a straight line and not tear anything up."
"The track got a little rough, but we were very fortunate to get to race tonight considering most every place else got rained out. You have to give Billy (Jarrell) and the track crew credit. I just tried to take care of my equipment, 'cause I got to race tomorrow night," laughed Carrier before accepting his second place hardware.
Taking a deep breath and showing serious signs of fatigue, third place Zach Dohm noted, "I admit I'm beat. I chose a little too soft of tire and it hooked up too good and made me tight. The car would hardly turn left, so I had to go higher (on the track) to get the car to turn. We were so tight that we were up on two wheels most of the time and right now I am really beat. Congrats to Josh and Eddie on good runs."
"I'd have liked to started first and finished first, but this is a good run against a great field."
Nick Corbitt took a scary flip after taking over a transfer spot in his qualifying heat. Airborne some 15-20 feet Corbitt landed right-side up, doing heavy damage to his car, but emerging only shaken. Lance Webb found a similar fate in the Sprint car feature with a slow roll-over on the back chute. He too was uninjured.
The 25-lap OVSCA 410 sprint car feature was also a red-hot barnburner. Pole-sitter Aaron Higgins had a short-lived lead, yielding the top spot to two-time champion Jimmy Stinson. Stinson began to pull away from the rest of the pack as Higgins and Wayne McPeek sparred for second. Following a restart, McPeek challenged Stinson, but after scrubbing off some speed McPeek saw Stinson drive off into the sunset.
Meanwhile, Greg Mitchell was strategically picking off cars in a high speed chase to the front. As Stinson approached traffic Mitchell began to close in on the leader at a rapid pace. On lap 12 the caution flew for Jesse McCreary who was in a top five slot after posting his second consecutive heat win.
Stinson pulled away on the restart, but Mitchell's cushion-riding mount was faster on the high side and blasted by Stinson two laps later. There Mitchell's Maxim #001 was indeed the class of the field as the former Skyline Late Model champ frantically searched for a smooth, fast line to his first-ever feature win.
Stinson never recovered as Mitchell blasted on to the ever-popular win, where he was joined by a throng of fans in victory lane. Ironically, Mitchell's car donned a "For Sale" sign that he quickly removed after picking up the win.
As Mitchell emerged from the (not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word)pit, he let out an echoing victory yelp. "I attribute this win to Don Spiker. He has been with me for 14 years and all the time I've been in the sprint car," said the winning Mitchell. " I'm better on a heavier track and not as good on a dry slick. I was fortunate to get a good start and the car really hooked up. I thank Billy Jarrell for providing a great race track and thank God for the chance to race tonight. I have to thank the God's for sprinkling down some goodness on me tonight. It's a great, great night. "
Josh Davis was the hard charger in the OVSCA Sprints moving up seven positions from 9th to 2nd. Davis broke a shock in the heat, but finished the race. In the feature the Chillicothe ace had newfound speed with all four wheels on the ground, overcoming hard charges from Wayne McPeek and making a late-race pass of Stinson. One of the best on-track battles was a Davis, Crabtree, McPeek Higgins battle over the duration of ten or so laps in the middle of the event.
Rounding out the top ten were Mitchell, Josh Davis, Jimmy Stinson, Kory Crabtree, Wayne McPeek, Aaron Higgins, Nathan Skaggs, Dave (not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word)son, and Jesse McCreary.
A stacked field of some of open wheel's best drivers from three states highlighted the MALTA AMRA Modified racing card. Gary Long of Fredericksburg, VA made the long tow to Skyline only to get involved in an accident that sent him to the pits in the B-main.
Heat winners were Mike McPherson, Chris Stotts, and Tyler Carpenter with Roy Roush picking up the B-main win. Chris Stotts got the initial jump, but after a lap one accident eliminated outside pole sitter McPherson, another number 8--the Shaw-Kryptonite Chassis #8 powered by owner Jerry Perine horsepower jumped into the lead and never looked back.
Carpenter blitzed down the straight-aways and drove hard into the turns. Each lap he gained more of an advantage over the nearest competition with a blistering pace-setting explosion. Stotts and two-time National Champion Kenny Johnson challenged early, but there calls for number one went un-noticed.
Robert Garnes put his mount high against the fence in a barnstorming effort from sixth to second. At the midway point, it appeared that Garnes may have the fastest car, but as the race progressed Tyler pedaled away and on to victory.
McGuire McBest In Shutts Memorial
Mitchell Magical in OVSCA Sprints/Carpenter Captures Malta Mods
By Scott Wolfe
STEWART, OHIO-It was one of those rare summer nights when everything just seems to fall into place. Such was the case Friday night July 20th when area storms pounded villages within only a few miles of Skyline Speedway, yet the racetrack was spared for a great night of racing. The heavy, damp air and early drizzle left the 3/8 mile speedplant, tacky and fast throughout the night, setting the stage for a blistering new track record and Jack Shutts Memorial feature win by Grayson, KY driver Josh McGuire.
Washington, WV driver Greg Mitchell claimed his first-ever 410 sprint feature over Josh Davis and Jimmy Stinson, while Tyler Carpenter, S. Parkersburg, WV brought home the win in the MALTA AMRA Modifieds, and Coleton Perine won the WRA Mike's Auto Body Mini-Wedge main.
A moment of silence was held in memory of Sarah Bond, wife of longtime Ohio Valley racing legend Ronnie Bond and mother of Larry and Andy Bond, multi-time late model and modified champions. Sarah herself was a pretty good racer back in the powder puff days, winning many races before finally hanging up the helmet. Many racers, led by the racing Roush family collected $800 for the Bond family. Skyline Speedway on behalf of the Bond family would like to thank all the fans who contributed to this cause.
Josh McGuire has won at Skyline all but four times he has made the trip from his 'Ole Kentucky Home'. Two times he broke, and two other times he suffered close defeats. Friday night (July 20) McGuire was on top of his game.
McGuire's US Steel #41 blistered the Skyline Speedway track record with a resounding 12:04 clocking, eclipsing the eight-year old record of 12:18 set by John Brown back in 2004. McGuire narrowly missed a clean sweep with a second place finish to Zach Dohm in the fast car dash (dedicated to the late Sarah Bond). 21 of the 31 cars signed in for the evening set times in the 12 second bracket, compliments of a super-fast race track.
At the start of the 35-lap 4th annual Shutts Memorial A-main for AMRA Late Models, Dohm of St. Albans, WV powered the Seymour Logging entry into the lead over McGuire and the Salt Rock Express-- Eddie Carrier, Jr.
Carrier shuffled McGuire back to third as that trio survived a gaggle of early cautions. Each time Dohm emerged the leader, but as green flag laps began to mount, Dohm started to pull away. McGuire bagged Carrier on lap eleven, then sought to run down Dohm, who by that time had a quarter-lap lead.
Dohm's mount appeared to slow as the laps ticked off and on lap 14 McGuire blew by to take the point. McGuire then took the boys to the wood shed, lapping all but the top five cars. As one facebook fan posted, "Josh McGuire drove like a madman possessed. He handed out an old fashioned sheddin' in the Super Late Model class and the track made for some crazy, exciting racing."
In a masterful performance, McGuire more than half-tracked his nearest competitor Carrier, who had long-since passed Dohm for second. The only other victims not becoming McGuire's prey were fourth place Rod Conley and Ralph Withem. Conley blasted by Withem on the last lap to take fourth.
The centerpiece of Friday's racing was the heavy, fast track that saw cars broad sliding the high-banks in the mid-12-second range during the feature. The high speeds contributed to a higher level of attrition, but the quality of the racing was second to none. Nelson Freshour was the hard charger in the Tru-Tech AMRA Late Models moving up seven positions from 17th to 10th.
Rounding out the top ten were McGuire, Eddie Carrier, Jr.; Zach Dohm, Rod Conley, Ralph Withem, Chris Garnes, Freddie Carpenter, Harold Redman, Kevin Wagner, and Nelson Freshour.
Said McGuire in victory lane, "The key tonight was us making a little harder tire selection. I thought once the tire kicked in and we got some laps under our belts that we would have a good chance. We were a little loose at first, but once we went green flag racing and ran consecutive fast laps the car just took off."
"Take off? Josh was just downright fast tonight," noted second place Carrier, Jr. "I had a pretty good car. The track roughed up a little in the middle, so I just wanted to run a straight line and not tear anything up."
"The track got a little rough, but we were very fortunate to get to race tonight considering most every place else got rained out. You have to give Billy (Jarrell) and the track crew credit. I just tried to take care of my equipment, 'cause I got to race tomorrow night," laughed Carrier before accepting his second place hardware.
Taking a deep breath and showing serious signs of fatigue, third place Zach Dohm noted, "I admit I'm beat. I chose a little too soft of tire and it hooked up too good and made me tight. The car would hardly turn left, so I had to go higher (on the track) to get the car to turn. We were so tight that we were up on two wheels most of the time and right now I am really beat. Congrats to Josh and Eddie on good runs."
"I'd have liked to started first and finished first, but this is a good run against a great field."
Nick Corbitt took a scary flip after taking over a transfer spot in his qualifying heat. Airborne some 15-20 feet Corbitt landed right-side up, doing heavy damage to his car, but emerging only shaken. Lance Webb found a similar fate in the Sprint car feature with a slow roll-over on the back chute. He too was uninjured.
The 25-lap OVSCA 410 sprint car feature was also a red-hot barnburner. Pole-sitter Aaron Higgins had a short-lived lead, yielding the top spot to two-time champion Jimmy Stinson. Stinson began to pull away from the rest of the pack as Higgins and Wayne McPeek sparred for second. Following a restart, McPeek challenged Stinson, but after scrubbing off some speed McPeek saw Stinson drive off into the sunset.
Meanwhile, Greg Mitchell was strategically picking off cars in a high speed chase to the front. As Stinson approached traffic Mitchell began to close in on the leader at a rapid pace. On lap 12 the caution flew for Jesse McCreary who was in a top five slot after posting his second consecutive heat win.
Stinson pulled away on the restart, but Mitchell's cushion-riding mount was faster on the high side and blasted by Stinson two laps later. There Mitchell's Maxim #001 was indeed the class of the field as the former Skyline Late Model champ frantically searched for a smooth, fast line to his first-ever feature win.
Stinson never recovered as Mitchell blasted on to the ever-popular win, where he was joined by a throng of fans in victory lane. Ironically, Mitchell's car donned a "For Sale" sign that he quickly removed after picking up the win.
As Mitchell emerged from the (not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word)pit, he let out an echoing victory yelp. "I attribute this win to Don Spiker. He has been with me for 14 years and all the time I've been in the sprint car," said the winning Mitchell. " I'm better on a heavier track and not as good on a dry slick. I was fortunate to get a good start and the car really hooked up. I thank Billy Jarrell for providing a great race track and thank God for the chance to race tonight. I have to thank the God's for sprinkling down some goodness on me tonight. It's a great, great night. "
Josh Davis was the hard charger in the OVSCA Sprints moving up seven positions from 9th to 2nd. Davis broke a shock in the heat, but finished the race. In the feature the Chillicothe ace had newfound speed with all four wheels on the ground, overcoming hard charges from Wayne McPeek and making a late-race pass of Stinson. One of the best on-track battles was a Davis, Crabtree, McPeek Higgins battle over the duration of ten or so laps in the middle of the event.
Rounding out the top ten were Mitchell, Josh Davis, Jimmy Stinson, Kory Crabtree, Wayne McPeek, Aaron Higgins, Nathan Skaggs, Dave (not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word)son, and Jesse McCreary.
A stacked field of some of open wheel's best drivers from three states highlighted the MALTA AMRA Modified racing card. Gary Long of Fredericksburg, VA made the long tow to Skyline only to get involved in an accident that sent him to the pits in the B-main.
Heat winners were Mike McPherson, Chris Stotts, and Tyler Carpenter with Roy Roush picking up the B-main win. Chris Stotts got the initial jump, but after a lap one accident eliminated outside pole sitter McPherson, another number 8--the Shaw-Kryptonite Chassis #8 powered by owner Jerry Perine horsepower jumped into the lead and never looked back.
Carpenter blitzed down the straight-aways and drove hard into the turns. Each lap he gained more of an advantage over the nearest competition with a blistering pace-setting explosion. Stotts and two-time National Champion Kenny Johnson challenged early, but there calls for number one went un-noticed.
Robert Garnes put his mount high against the fence in a barnstorming effort from sixth to second. At the midway point, it appeared that Garnes may have the fastest car, but as the race progressed Tyler pedaled away and on to victory.