Leftovers: PASS 300 Weekend

Money, Heartbreak, Points and More

By Elgin Traylor

Clark Grabs Another Big Check at Beech Ridge

Johnny Clark racked up another $10,000 paycheck in the PASS 300 at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway (ME) to cash in big for the second time in seven days.  Clark has now taken home $37,350 of prize money in just two weeks.  Clark has been an amazing “big check” racer over the past several seasons as he has racked up nearly $200,000 in extra distance races.

Clark’s Money Bag

2004 – PASS DNK 250 - $25,000 – 1st

2004 – Oxford 250 - $14,250 (DNF)

2004 – PASS Atlantic Cat 250 – $6,000 – 1st

2005 – Oxford 250 - $17,800 – 2nd

2006 – PASS Atlantic Cat 250 - $10,320 – 1st

2007 – New Brunswick 250 - $19,700 – 1st

2008 – PASS Toyota Tundra 250 - $30,000 – 1st

2008 – PASS Beech Ridge 300 - $10,000 – 1st

2008 – PASS Mason Dixon Meltdown 250 - $10,000 – 1st

2009 – PASS Bastile 200 - $6,000 – 1st

2010 – Auto Value 250 – $26,350 – 1st

2010 – PASS Beach Ridge 300 - $10,000 -1st

Total 12 Races: $175,420

Rowe’s Title Hopes Dashed

Ben Rowe knew he had a big hill to climb as far as going after a fifth PASS north title after Johnny Clark’s performance thus far in 2010. Nothing went according to plan for Rowe at Beech Ridge either - as a battery issue caused the motor to skip, causing Rowe to lose several laps before eventually parking it with less than 100 laps to go.  Rowe will try to end the season in victory lane at White Mountain Motorsports Park on Friday night. It’s a track he has won at nine times in the past.   But he knows that the championship probably won’t be his.

“[Johnny] basically wrapped it up today,” said Rowe.  “But a championship isn't won on one race and it isn't lost on one race. It's what you do all year long. I feel he's had the better car all year long.

“We chased him, chased him, chased him -- and we kept it close as long as we could. It was fun, and we'll go to White Mountain and we'll try to go out and win it.”

Southern Drivers Struggle at Beech Ridge

PASS National Super Late Model points were on the line as well at Beech Ridge and all of the key drivers involved from outside of New England really didn’t have much effect on the overall race.  Preston Peltier and Jay Fogleman didn’t enjoy their trips north – with Peltier placing 15th and Fogelman finishing 26th  Those finishes let Peltier gain ground on Fogleman in the standing,.  At the same time Johnny Clark’s win propelled him into the title fight and he is in the thick of the battle going into the final PASS South event at Newport Speedway on October 16th.

Mike Rowe A Non Factor in PASS 300

Three-time Beech Ridge PASS 300 winner Mike Rowe had a weekend to forget.  An ill-handling racecar never got better as he circled the track during the event.  His weekend went sour with a spin in his heat race and the car never regained the handle all weekend.  Rowe finished 24th in the feature.

Title Number Five or Six?

Pending a major disaster, Johnny Clark is going to lock up his fifth PASS North title and third in a row on Friday night at White Mountain Motorsports Park.  That will push him past Ben Rowe who has four north titles. 

At the same time, Clark could win the National Title in October and that would give him six overall PASS championships - which is what Ben Rowe is at with four North, one South and one National title on his resume. 

Sanborn Never Finds Groove In Backup Car

Trevor Sanborn wrecked his primary ride in his heat race and never got enough time to make his car work in the PASS 300.  Sanborn, who has had a breakout season in 2010, will look to wrap things up with a strong run at White Mountain on Friday night.

“[I’m] A little frustrated, because it's my home track and we had a lot of people here to watch,” said Sanborn.  “It's just disappointing -- to the whole crew and me. We'll see what happens at White Mountain.

Andy Shaw Wins PASS Modified Championship at Beech Ridge

An emotional Andy Shaw climbed from his race winning and champion ride at Beech Ridge and breathed a huge sigh of relive.  Last year, Shaw won three races and missed the title after a penalty for a tech infraction cost him dearly.  So Shaw then had to wait another year to lock up a championship.  The victory at Beech Ridge was the 10th of his career in the PASS Modifieds, and his first championship.   

Video Leftovers

Johnny Clark took his second win in the PASS 300 at Beech Ridge and his fifth win this season in PASS.  (51 Sports Photo)

Johnny Clark talks about his win the PASS 300 at Beech Ridge. A four-tire pit stop was key for him getting out front. He almost lost a lap after getting boxed in his pit stall. Clark then took the lead with under 50 laps to go and then held off a hard charging Cassius Clark.

Drivers talk about their days in the PASS 300 at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway (ME). Driver order: Cassius Clark (2nd), Bill Rodgers (3rd), Richie Dearborn (4th), Scott Mulkern (5th), Travis Benjamin (7th), and Lonnie Sommerville (17th)

Ben Rowe's DNF ended his championship  chances.  (51 Sports Photo)

South driverJay Fogleman had a rough day.  (51 Sports Photo)

Mike Rowe had lots of trouble in the 300. (51 Sports Photo)

Trevor Sanborn started deep in the field. (51 Sports Photo)

The top four all battle for the top spot. (51 Sports Photo)