Trackside Now: 43rd Annual World Series of Short Track Racing
Wednesday, 2/11/09 - Day Six of Nine at New Smyrna
New Smyrna Speedway - New Smyrna, Florida
Thursday - 12:05am ET - Here are the full results from all of the feature events this evening - hot off the press. We're signing off for tonight and we'll be back tomorrow to do it all over again.
Crate Late Models
1
91Patrick Laperle
91Patrick Laperle298David Wagner
98David Wagner3127Kyle Maynard
127Kyle Maynard451Stephen Nasse
51Stephen Nasse540Eric Chase
40Eric Chase635Joseph Gase
35Joseph Gase769Josh John
69Josh John811Austin Kirkpatrick
11Austin Kirkpatrick946Nick Glaze
46Nick Glaze1023James Weller III
23James Weller III1131Shaun McWhirter
31Shaun McWhirter1228Terry Horak
28Terry Horak1393Brandon Johnson
93Brandon Johnson145Bryce Walker
5Bryce Walker155XKyle Delisle
5XKyle Delisle167Landon Cassill
7Landon Cassill1721XBlake Koch
21XBlake Koch1890Rebecca Kasten
90Rebecca Kasten1943Tommy Martins
43Tommy Martins204Thor Anderson
4Thor Anderson213Cole Powell
3Cole Powell2217xTanner Berryhill
17xTanner Berryhill2346BMatt Cohen
46BMatt Cohen249Kurt Jett
9Kurt Jett253XMichael Pilla
3XMichael PillaLimited Late Models
12A.J. Curelli
2A.J. Curelli28Drew Brannon
8Drew Brannon338Kirk Hooker
38Kirk Hooker426XJustin Larson
26XJustin Larson519Bobby Good
19Bobby Good69ZZachary Donatti
9ZZachary Donatti782Daniel Maddox
82Daniel Maddox863Austin Pickens
63Austin Pickens957Joe Winchell
57Joe Winchell1051Landon Cassill
51Landon Cassill114BAlan Bruns
4BAlan Bruns1221XBlake Koch
21XBlake Koch1326Jessica Murphy
26Jessica Murphy14119J.R. McMichael
119J.R. McMichaelFlorida Modifieds
11Wayne Jefferson
1Wayne Jefferson289Larry Lee Collins, Jr
89Larry Lee Collins, Jr336Nick Diano
36Nick Diano466Jerry Symons
66Jerry Symons515James Tucker
15James Tucker622Scott Bishop
22Scott Bishop72XRyan Preece
2XRyan Preece842Richie Smith
42Richie Smith915XRobert Deal
15XRobert Deal1053Dave Dobbins
53Dave Dobbins1138Ricky Moxley
38Ricky Moxley1254David Hite
54David Hite1313Kevyn Terry
13Kevyn Terry144BAlan Bruns
4BAlan Bruns156XDon Morse
6XDon Morse1633Gary Fountain
33Gary Fountain1791Dean Slappey
91Dean Slappey180JR Bertuccio
0JR Bertuccio195Ed Hartin
5Ed Hartin2098SRobbie Cooper
98SRobbie Cooper217XRodney Brooks
7XRodney BrooksTour-type Modifieds
179Ronnie Silk
79Ronnie Silk20Ted Christopher
0Ted Christopher359Matt Hirshman
59Matt Hirshman412Jimmy Blewett
12Jimmy Blewett550Kevin Goodale
50Kevin Goodale69Robert Grigas III
9Robert Grigas III758Eric Goodale
58Eric Goodale82XRyan Preece
2XRyan Preece980Frank Ruocco
80Frank Ruocco1073Jonathan McKennedy
73Jonathan McKennedy1114Louie Mechalides
14Louie Mechalides1276Shelly Perry
76Shelly Perry1391John Jensen
91John Jensen1422Charles Hossfeld
22Charles Hossfeld1521Richard Savary
21Richard Savary162J.R. Bartuccio
2J.R. Bartuccio1789Steven Whitt
89Steven Whitt189NHPete Jarvis
9NHPete Jarvis1996Russell (Butch) Perry
96Russell (Butch) Perry201Darwin Green
1Darwin Green2170Timothy Zacharias
70Timothy Zacharias2272D J Chasse
72D J ChasseSK Modifieds
112Jimmy Blewett
12Jimmy Blewett291Frank Ruocco
91Frank Ruocco389Brad VanHouten
89Brad VanHouten48Tom Ferrell III
8Tom Ferrell III571Jimmy Zacharias
71Jimmy Zacharias659David Cranmer
59David Cranmer710Rob Schultz
10Rob Schultz879Chris Jensen
79Chris Jensen917Russell Savoy
17Russell Savoy1023Timothy Zacharias
23Timothy Zacharias119Robert Grigas III
9Robert Grigas IIISuper Late Models
170Jeff Choquette
70Jeff Choquette236Tim Russell
36Tim Russell311David Rogers
11David Rogers47Jeff Scofield
7Jeff Scofield510XJohanna Long
10XJohanna Long678BJ McLeod
78BJ McLeod75Jeremy Colangelo
5Jeremy Colangelo884Wayne Anderson
84Wayne Anderson910Jack Landis
10Jack Landis1073Sam Watts
73Sam Watts1158XEdward Nevin Gainey
58XEdward Nevin Gainey127Doug Elliott
7Doug Elliott137XPerry Lovelady
7XPerry Lovelady1418Bruce Gowland
18Bruce Gowland1533Derrick Wood
33Derrick Wood1675Don Keithley
75Don Keithley1758John Coffman
58John Coffman189Frank Alberson
9Frank Alberson1968Russell Shaw
68Russell Shaw2060David Myer
60David Myer2123Rusty Ebersole
23Rusty Ebersole2283Karl Willard
83Karl Willard2392Cale Gale
92Cale Gale24112Stephen Weaver Jr.
112Stephen Weaver Jr.2584XMatt Bowers
84XMatt Bowers26119J.R. McMichael
119J.R. McMichaelWednesday - 11:22pm ET - We just woke up to find that Jimmy Blewett won the SK Modified race. We almost fell asleep during that one because it wasn't even close. Blewett has now won every SK Modified race of Speedweeks so far.
This time, it was Frank Ruocco, Brad Van Hooten, Tommy Farrell and Jimmy Zacharias rounded out the top five finishers.
Wednesday - 11:15pm ET - Bobby Grigas, III slowed on the first lap of the SK Modified race and came to pit road. He appears to be done for the race. Jimmy Blewett (of course) leads.
Wednesday - 11:10pm ET - The final feature race of the night is up next. The SK Modifieds are scheduled to take part in hot laps and then 20 laps of feature racing. Jimmy Blewett and Bobby Grigas, III will lead the field to the green flag. Blewett has swept every night of SK Modified racing so far this year at Smyrna Speedweeks.
Wednesday - 11:01pm ET - Patrick Laperle has won his third straight Crate Late Model feature. david Wagner finished in second place.
On the final lap, Landon Cassill and Tommy Martins got together in turn three, which made things a bit of a mess in the final moments of the race.
Wednesday - 10:58pm ET - Patrick Laperle has taken the lead from David Wagner. There are fewer than 10 laps to go in the race.
Wednesday - 10:56pm ET - At the halfway point of the Crate Late Model race, it is shaping up to be a great battle for the lead between David Wagner, who has the spot, and Patrick Laperle who wants it badly.
Wednesday - 10:52pm ET - David Wagner took the lead from Patrick Laperle on lap one, but Laperle stuck close by to make the race interesting. The caution came out on lap three for a spin off turn four by James Weller.
Wednesday - 10:50pm ET - The track has gone from red to yellow and hopefully, we'll be back green for a complete restart of the Crate Late Model feature shortly. Patrick Laperle will lead the field to that green flag, foloowed by David Wagner and Joey Gase.
Tanner Berryhill and Matt Cohen are both okay after their wreck. Both will be done for the night though.
Wednesday - 10:38pm ET - On lap one of the Crate Late Model feature, Tanner Berryhill and Matt Cohen got together in turn three. The red flag has come out to clean up the incident.
Wednesday - 10:35pm ET - The Crate Late Models are set to go green shortly for their feature. The winner of the last two races, Patrick Laperle, will start from the pole position.
Wednesday - 10:22pm ET - Wayne Jefferson has led from start to finish in the Florida Modified feature. Larry Collins, Nick Diano and Jerry Symons were close behind.
Wednesday - 10:13pm ET - At halfway in the Florida Modified feature, Wayne Jefferson still leads with Larry Collins, Jerry Symons, Tank Tucker and Nick Diano in pursuit.
Wednesday - 10:02pm ET - The caution is out on lap eight for Rodney Brooks. The right front tire went down on his Modified and he was headed down the track in a shower of sparks.
Wednesday - 10:00pm ET - On the restart of the Florida Modified feature, it was Wayne Jefferson who took the lead. Right now, we are to lap five and Jefferson leads Larry Collins and Jerry Symons.
Wednesday - 9:55pm ET - On lap one of the Florida Modified race, the #54 of David Hite and the #22 of Scott Bishop spun on the frontstretch. Bishop did an especially great job of staying out of the way and not getting harpooned by the rest of the field coming to the green flag.
The caution came out, the lap counter reverted to zero and there will be a complete restart.
Wednesday - 9:49pm ET - The 50-lap Florida Modified feature is up next. Jerry Symons will lead the field to the green.
Wednesday - 9:43pm ET - Jeff Choquette won a lightning quick Super Late Model feature over Tim Russell, David Rodgers, Jeff Scofield and Johanna Long.
Wednesday - 9:40pm ET - The laps are clicking off in the super Late Model feature. Jeff Choquette has a comfortable lead over Tim Russell, David Rodgers and Jeff Scofield with five laps to go.
Wednesday - 9:30pm ET - David Rodgers took the lead at the start of the Super Late Model feature. But his lead only lasted two laps. That was when he and Wayne Anderson slid up the track in turn two and Jeff Choquette squeaked by for the lead.
At lap four, the caution is out for the stopped car of Rusty Eversole.
Wednesday - 9:18pm ET - The Super Late Models are lined up on pit road and ready to race. They will be led to the green flag by Tim Russell, David Rodgers and Wayne Anderson.
Wednesday - 9:16pm ET - There is a slight adjustment to your top five from the Tour Modified John Blewett Memorial 50. The unofficial finishing order is in fact Ronnie Silk, Ted Christopher, Matt Hirschman, Jimmy Blewett and Kevin Goodale.
Wednesday - 9:14pm ET - Ronnie Silk has won the John Blewett Memorial 50 feature race. Rounding out the top five are Ted Christopher, Kevin Goodale, Matt Hirschman and Jimmy Blewett.
Wednesday - 9:12pm ET - On the restart, Bobby Grigas slid up the track and into the marbles. that took him out of the second position.
Wednesday - 9:10pm ET - On lap 46, Ryan Preece had a run on Eric Goodale for second place on the backstretch. Preece pulled out and Goodale threw a block on him. they touched and Goodale went spinning down low. Preece made it to the end of the straightway when his right rear tire went down. He then slid up into Chuck Hossfeld, who impacted the outside wall in turn three.
Preece drove away and got a new tires. Goodale also drove away and pitted. Hossfeld will need to come in on the back of a wrecker.
Ronnie Silk currently leads Bobby Grigas, Ted Christopher, Frank Ruocco, Matt Hirschman, Kevin Goodale, Jimmy Blewett, Jon McKennedy, Louie Mechaldes, Eric Goodale and Ryan Preece.
Wednesday - 9:05pm ET - With 10 laps to go, Ronnie Silk now leads by a full straightaway.
Wednesday - 9:03pm ET - Right now, Chuck Hossfeld has a half-straightaway lead with 15 laps to go.
Wednesday - 8:59pm ET - On the restart, Eric Goodale threaded the needle and took second place away from Chuck Hossfeld, who slipped back to the fifth position. Meanwhile, Richard Savary's #21 erupted in a cloud of smoke on the restart and he dropped off the track.
Ronnie Silk has checked out from the field for the moment. The rest of the current top five runners are Eric Goodale, Ryan Preece, Bobby Grigas and Chuck Hossfeld.
Wednesday - 8:56pm ET - On lap 23, the #76 of Shelly Perry spun on the backstretch and the #89 of Steve Whitt spun into the fronstretch wall right at the start-finish line. Those two incidents brought out the caution.
Ronnie Silk currently leads Chuck Hossfeld, Ryan Preece, Kevin Goodale, Bobby Grigas, Ted Christopher, Richard Savary, Frank Ruocco, Matt Hirschman and Jimmy Blewett.
Wednesday - 8:52pm ET - The #9NH of Peter Jarvis pulled down pit road after slowing on the track. Moments later, the #96 of Butch Perry looped itself in turn four. There appeared to be no other cars involved in that incident.
Kevin Goodale has now pulled out of the top five and down pit road under caution. Also pitting are J.R. Bertucccio, Shelly Perry, Louie Mechalides and Jimmy Blewett.
Ronnie Silk currently leads Chuck Hossfeld, Richard Savary, Ryan Preece, Eric Goodale, Ted Christopher, Frank Ruocco, Bobby Grigas, Jon McKennedy and Matt Hirschman.
We're at lap 16 and about to go back to green.
Wednesday - 8:46pm ET - At lap 11, Ronnie Silk took over the lead from Chuck Hossfeld. Hossfeld fought hard for a few laps before giving up the spot. The top five remains the same.
Wednesday - 8:44pm ET - At lap six, the top five runners are Chuck Hossfeld, Ronnie Silk, Richard Savary, Ryan Preece and Kevin Goodale.
Wednesday - 8:42pm ET - Matt Hirschman pulled down pit road and his team jacked up the rear of his car. They worked on it for awhile and then Hirschman returned to the track. He just barely got back in line in time for the restart.
Wednesday - 8:39pm ET - The field jammed up on the restart. Matt Hirschman slid sideways at the start fo the fronstretch and hit the water barrels at the end of pit road with his side nerf bar. It was a hard hit, but the barrels did their job and kept damage to a minimum.
Hirschman drove away and put himself back into position. However, race director Dick Brooks has told him to go to the rear. So far, Hirschman has not complied with that request and risks getting his scorecard pulled.
Wednesday - 8:36pm ET - We're on lap two of the Modified feature. Chuck Hossfeld pulled fromt he pole to the lead early on and Ronnie Silk soon gave him a run for the position. Silk had just tried to dive under Hossfeld for the lead, but the caution came out for a solo spin featuring Louie Mechalides in turn two.
Right now the top four are Hossfeld, Silk, Matt Hirschman and Peter Jarvis.
Wednesday - 8:33pm ET - The engines have been fired up and the Modifieds are taking a few pace laps before they'll transition to about four hot laps and will then take a few more proper pace laps before the start of the feature race.
Wednesday - 8:25pm ET - Louie Mechalides will drive the #14 Bear Motorsports Modified tonight. He'll start from the tail of the field.
The #14 Bearmobile has had engine troubles this week, while Mechalides hasn't been quite happy with the performance of his own car. So both teams put their heads together - placing Mechelides powerplant into the #14 Modified to see if everyone could change their luck. We'll see what they can do together tonight.
Wednesday - 8:20pm ET - Currently, we are in a holding pattern for an autograph session with the Tour-type Modified field. There are plenty of fans that are taking advantage of the opporunity to meet their favroite racers and the fronstretch here has a pit party-like feel to it.
Right before the Modifieds rolled out onto the frontstretch to line up for the session, the #14 Bear Motorsports Modified took some hot laps around the speedway. The car was to be driven by Frank Ruocco this week, but engine problems kept the car sidelined while Ruocco ended up in the seat of Joe Brady's #80 car instead. so who is in the #14 tonight? We don't know. It has been added to the rear of the field and we're working to try and find out who is going to wheel it in the 50 lap John Blewett, III Memorial 50 tonight.
Wednesday - 8:10pm ET - During the off-season at New Smyrna, there have been many NASCAR Sprint Cup teams that have tested here. That fact played into the how A.J. Curelli drove as he won the Limited Late Model feature here tonight.
"With the NASCAR guys here so much, that bottom groove is worn out," said Curelli. "You have to go up top. I got blocked in, so I fell back to about ninth. I just went to the outside and passed everyone. I put it on cruise control about halfway through the race."
There was plenty of mayhem in the Limited LM feature, did that mean that Curelli was involved in any contact....casual or otherwise?
"No, not one bit," Curelli replied.
That didn't mean that Curelli wasn't worried about some of the contact going on around him.
"Please don't put me in the wall," is what Curelli reported to have been thinking during the race.
Wednesday - 7:58pm ET - A.J. Curelli has won the Limited Late Model feature. He was followed to the line in the 25-lap feature by Drew Brannon, Kirk Hooker, Justin Larson and J.R. McMichael
Wednesday - 7:54pm ET - With 17 laps in the books, A.J. Curelli has led a current field of seven Limited Late Models to the restart.
Wednesday - 7:50pm ET - Joe Witchell, Landon Cassill and Austin Pickens got together battling for second place on the backstretch. The result was a pig pile of cars parked together. Everyone is okay, but there will be a lengthy clean-up of the cars.
That incident allowed Drew Brannon to sneak into second place. A.J. Curelli still leads.
Wednesday - 7:47pm ET - The top five isn't a good place to be in the Limited Late Model race.
J.R. McMichael and Jessica Murphy got locked together coming out of turn two and dropped to the rear of the field. No caution was displayed because both drivers kept trucking along. That happened on lap 15.
One lap later, David Weaver spun by himself, out of second place. He had just been passed by A.J. Curreli for the lead, but no contact was made between those two drivers.
Curelli nows leads Justin Larson, Joe Witchell and Landon Cassill.
Wednesday - 7:41pm ET - Austin Pickens has visited victory lane in the Limited Late Model race, but it wasn't something he wanted to do. Pickens spun his #63 down the frontstretch and ended up right where victory lane is located. He drove away and will restart the race at the tail end of the field. The race is now eight laps old.
David Weaver, J.R. McMichael, Justin Larson, A.J. Curelli and Jessica Murphy are the current top five runners.
Wednesday - 7:38pm ET - David Weaver leads the Limited Late Model field at lap six, but he is facing quite a challenge from J.R. McMichael.
Wednesday - 7:35pm ET - In has just been announced that after the Limited Late Model feature is run, the track is going to hold an autograph session for the drivers of the Tour-type Modified division.
Wednesday - 7:30pm ET - 2008 NASCAR Nationwide Series Rookie of the Year Landon Cassill will compete in the Limited Late Model division tonight, as well as the Crate Late Model class. Cassill will wheel the #51 car (no relation to us here) in the Limited LM feature.
Wednesday - 7:25pm ET - The anthems have been sung and we will be off racing here fairly shortly. The Limited Late Models will take to the track first tonight.
Wednesday - 5:50pm ET - Jerry Symons is the fastest qualifier for the Florida Modified race. Here is the field rundown. Please keep in mind that all times are unofficial.
166Jerry Symons18.477
66Jerry Symons18.47721Wayne Jefferson18.505
1Wayne Jefferson18.505398Robbie Cooper18.572
98Robbie Cooper18.572489Larry Lee Collins, Jr18.651
89Larry Lee Collins, Jr18.651515Tank Tucker18.751
15Tank Tucker18.751642Richie Smith18.76
42Richie Smith18.76722Scott Bishop18.833
22Scott Bishop18.83384BAlan Bruns18.911
4BAlan Bruns18.911938Ricky Moxley18.919
38Ricky Moxley18.9191091Dean Slappey18.925
91Dean Slappey18.9251133Gary Fountain18.939
33Gary Fountain18.9391236Nick Diano18.963
36Nick Diano18.9631313Kevyn Terry19.035
13Kevyn Terry19.03514OOJR Bertuccio19.062
OOJR Bertuccio19.0621553Dave Dobbins19.083
53Dave Dobbins19.083167XRodney Brooks19.114
7XRodney Brooks19.1141754David Hite19.384
54David Hite19.384185Ed Hartin19.792
5Ed Hartin19.792196David Morse19.81
6David Morse19.81Wednesday - 5:25pm ET - Wayne Anderson topped the field in Super Late Model time trials. here are the times that the competitors in that division turned in qualifying:
184Wayne Anderson17.538
84Wayne Anderson17.538211David Rogers17.545
11David Rogers17.545336Tim Russell17.669
36Tim Russell17.669410Johanna Long17.732
10Johanna Long17.732570Jeff Choquette17.804
70Jeff Choquette17.804678BJ McLeod17.953
78BJ McLeod17.953710Jack Landis18.034
10Jack Landis18.034805Jeremy Colangelo 18.144
05Jeremy Colangelo 18.144907Jeff Scofield18.208
07Jeff Scofield18.2081023Rusty Eversole18.212
23Rusty Eversole18.2121118Bruce Gowland18.642
18Bruce Gowland18.6421258xNevin Gainey18.663
58xNevin Gainey18.66313112Steve Weaver18.707
112Steve Weaver18.707149XDavid Elliott18.906
9XDavid Elliott18.906157518.925
7518.9251633Derek Wood19.132
33Derek Wood19.132177XPerry Lovelady19.135
7XPerry Lovelady19.1351858John Coffman19.256
58John Coffman19.256199Frank Alberson19.461
9Frank Alberson19.4612068Russ Shaw20.118
68Russ Shaw20.118Wednesday - 4:55pm ET - We had a little bit of a computer crash, but we're back online with the results of qualifying for the Tour-type Modifieds. Chuck Hossfeld set fast time. Jimmy Blewett skated up the track on his first attempt at a warm up lap with what could have been a lower ball joint problem. He was towed into the pits and went out late in the session to post a midpack time.
The cars of Louie Mechalides, Darwin Green and Rob Fuller did not take a qualifying lap.
122Chuck Hossfeld17.028 Seconds
22Chuck Hossfeld17.028 Seconds279Ronnie Silk17.072
79Ronnie Silk17.072300Ted Christopher17.086
00Ted Christopher17.086421Richard Savary17.088
21Richard Savary17.088559Matt Hirschman17.11
59Matt Hirschman17.11658Eric Goodale17.136
58Eric Goodale17.13672XRyan Preece17.174
2XRyan Preece17.17489NHPete Jarvis17.232
9NHPete Jarvis17.232950Kevin Goodale17.272
50Kevin Goodale17.2721073Jon McKennedy17.274
73Jon McKennedy17.2741180Frank Ruocco17.302
80Frank Ruocco17.3021212Jimmy Blewett17.373
12Jimmy Blewett17.373 1309Bobby Grigas17.421
09Bobby Grigas17.4211489Steve Whitt17.493
89Steve Whitt17.4931591John Jensen17.508
91John Jensen17.508162JR Bertuccio17.619
2JR Bertuccio17.6191796Butch Perry17.645
96Butch Perry17.6451876Shelly Perry17.764
76Shelly Perry17.764Wednesday - 4:20pm ET - Any guesses on who was quickest in the SK Modified time trials? The results are below:
112Jimmy Blewett17.430 seconds
12Jimmy Blewett17.430 seconds209Bobby Grigas17.656
09Bobby Grigas17.656359David Cranmer17.832
59David Cranmer17.832491Frank Ruocco17.915
91Frank Ruocco17.915571Jimmy Zacharias18.057
71Jimmy Zacharias18.057689Brad Van Hooten18.121
89Brad Van Hooten18.121710Rob Shultz18.244
10Rob Shultz18.244879John Jensen18.435
79John Jensen18.435917Russ Savoy18.866
17Russ Savoy18.8661023TJ Zacharias19.576
23TJ Zacharias19.576Wednesday - 4:03pm ET - Currently, the track is quiet. But there will be plenty of qualifying action to take place shortly. The Tour-type Modifieds, SK Modifieds, Florida Modifieds and Super Late Models will all take part in time trials tonight. Qualifying was scheduled to kick off at 4pm, but right now there are only four SK Modifieds lined up on pit road.
Wednesday - 3:45pm ET - Tuesday night brought a very special win for Ryan Preece, who won for the first time in his grandfather’s Florida Modified. Preece got out of the car with his trademark smile and got to shake hands with his granddaddy Bobby Judkins.
“That was awesome,” said Preece. “On that last lap, I saw the #36 coming and I heard the motor skipping a little bit and I thought ‘Oh No, here’s the Spring Sizzler all over again.’ My hat is off to everybody who has helped us this week my crew, my grandfather, they never got down after all the problems we have had. My grandfather has been wanting me to win one for him and I gave it to him tonight, it doesn’t get any better then this.”
Wednesday - 3:40pm ET - The Tour Modifieds have put on some great shows during the first few days of the 2009 Speedweeks edition. Perhaps the biggest question is what is going to happen next? On the opening night several wrecks put Jimmy Blewett in victory lane. The next night, Matt Hirschman made big time repairs to earn the second victory of Speedweeks. Night three found Sprint Cup driver Ryan Newman in victory lane. Last night, we saw Ted Christopher win for the first time this week. It really makes you wonder who will be the favorite in tonight’s 50-lap event for the Tour Mods. We asked Christopher last night what he thought about the fifty lapper.
“We’ll worry about that tomorrow. Right now, I am just glad we got the win tonight,” said Christopher right after the race ended. “Any time you can have car this good it’s something special. When you can pass Ryan Newman on the outside like that it’s pretty f***** * awesome.”
Wednesday - 3:35pm ET - As we get closer to the final nights of action the point races are starting to heat up. With Landon Cassill crashing out early in the Crate Late Model feature the points are now wide open. David Rigan was second in points and looked to capitalize on the Cassill’s rough night. However, Rigan was taken out in a wreck under yellow. That allowed Patrick Laperle to shake up the point race dramatically. After five nights of action the Quebec native has taken the points lead.
“That was a win to be proud of,” said Laperle. “That was a real race. I saw Cassill and the 23 (Jimmy Weller) get together and I knew we had a chance after that. We are happy with the point lead, we’re just happy to be in racing in Florida. This is my Daytona 500.”
Wednesday - 3:30pm ET - After his fourth straight win in the SK Modifieds everyone in that division is wondering one thing - can Jimmy Blewett be beat this week? We asked the man himself what would it take to dethrone him.
“Offer the owner a lot of money for the car and make it so I can’t race,” said Blewett. “I am just out there driving. You can’t ask for a better piece of equipment. This car just has the best of everything and hard to beat that.”
We're doing our best to try and make things a little bit more interesting in the SK Modifieds. Speed51.com is offering a $151 bounty to the first driver who can beat Blewett on the track on win an SK race. The catch? Dumping him won't work as Blewett will need to be running at the finish of the race for the bounty to be paid.
Wednesday - 3:25pm ET - More than halfway through Smyrna Speedweeks, the point leaders towards the overall 2009 championships for the 43rd Annual World Series of Short Track Racing are Ted Christopher (Tour-type Modifieds), Jeff Choquette (Super Late Models), Patrick Laperle (Crate Late Models), Jimmy Blewett (SK Modifieds), Drew Brannon (Limited Late Models) and Nick Diano (Florida Modifieds).
Here are the full point standings from the week so far:
Wednesday - 3:00pm ET - On SPEED TV tonight, starting at 8pm, The SPEED Report will feature a story on Ryan Newman's adventure in a Modified this week at New Smyrna Speedway. Our own Bob Dillner and his TV helpers have been out at the track this week to film the story and also to feature several short track drivers on the cable network.
Wednesday - 2:15pm ET - Hello again from New Smyrna Speedway (FL), where we are here for the Wednesday edition of Trackside Now from the 43rd Annual World Series of Short Track Racing. So far, today has been devoted to practice without any major going-ons.
Meanwhile, there is plenty of other racing action around the area this week. We all know about the action over at Daytona International Speedway, but the short tracks in the area are alive too.
Not too terribly far from New Smyrna, the Orlando Speedworld is in action this week with their annual Winternationals for Legends, Bandoleros and Thunder Roadsters. Our sister website, LegendsNation.com will be at the track to provide live updates throughout the day.
The racing has been down and dirty over at Volusia Raceway Park this week as well, with Sprint Cars, Late Models and Modifieds are tearing up the dirt track. Even though we're a little partial to asphalt racing and limit our dirt fun to playing with tractors, we have heard that there is some great racing action that has taken place over there this week. Best of all, our friends over at DirtRacingDigest have been covering the action extensively. So be sure to check out that coverage
And finally, here are a few housekeeping items:
Here is today's schedule and a link to a PDF of every day's schedule for you to view, download and print.
Today's Schedule
9:00am - Gates Open / Tech Open
10:00am - SK/Tour-Type Mod Tech Open & Tire Room Open
10:30am - Fuel Open
11:30am-3:00pm - Practice (rotating divisions)
4:00pm - Qualifying (Super Late Model, Tour Modifieds, Florida Modifieds and SK Modifieds)
6:15pm - Driver's Meeting
7:20pm - Opening Ceremonies (Invocation and National Anthems)
7:30pm - Feature Racing Begins
Feature Races:
Late Models (25 laps)
Tour-type Modifieds - John Blewett, III Memorial 50 (50 laps)
Super Late Models (30 laps)
FL/IMCA Mods (50 laps)
Crate Late Models (25 laps)
SK Modifieds (20 laps)
If you see something that raises your hackles, jump over to the Speed51.com Speedweeks discussion forum at MotorsportsLounge.com and share your opinions. It is a great place to interact with other fans and comment about our coverage and the action here at New Smyrna.
You can catch up and see what has been going on here so far this week, by reading our Trackside Now coverage of the first four nights of racing. There is also a Speed51.com index page of all the stories leading up to Florida Speedweeks for your reading pleasure.
DISCUSS THE SPEEDWEEKS EVENTS IN THE OFFICIAL SPEED51.COM SPEEDWEEKS COVERAGE FORUM AT MOTORSPORTS LOUNGE NOW! (CLICK HERE)
The Florida Modifieds (Top - Jim Dupont Photo) and the Tour-type Modifieds (Bottom - 51 Photo) both have 50 lap features scheduled for tonight.
Jeff Choquette's #70 Super Late Model
David Rigin's #24 Late Model
Peter Jarvis' #9NH Tour-type Modified. (Jim DuPont Photo)
Patrick Laperle
Bobby Grigas, III (#09) might be the most likely candidate to de-throne Jimmy Blewett in the SK Modifieds. (Jim Dupont Photo)
Austin Picken's #63 Limited Late Model
A.J. Curelli stands in victory lane after the Limited Late Model feature race. (51 Photo)
The fans are out in force tonight - and they got to take part in an autograph session prior to the John Blewett Memorial 50 Modified feature. (51 Photos)
Ronnie Silk in victory lane after the John Blewett, II Memorial 50 (51 Photo)
