By Tommy Goudge (June 19, 2009) – The first ever visit by UMP Modifieds to Ohsweken Speedway finished with Comber, Ontario’s Tim Richardson finding victory lane during round six of Friday Night Thunder. The Mod-Lite Stars Tour North was also on hand for the first of three stops at Ohsweken in 2009, and the field of twenty-two was bested by Shawn Sliter of Port Colbourne. The ESSO Thunder Stocks feature was wild and exciting, with Billy Bleich, Jr. slipping by points leader Shayne Pierce for the victory, while Mitchell Brown and Jesse McDonald continued their domination of the ESSO Mini-Stocks and Bomber divisions, respectively. With an extra division on the card and an extended intermission for the ever-popular autograph night, the fast-paced program was still finished before 11:00 p.m.
The inaugural UMP Modified Summer Sizzler event in conjunction with South Buxton Raceway took the green flag at Ohsweken with Joe Field and Brad McLeod on the front row. Field led from the start, but a caution quickly slowed the pace as Mario Toniolo made contact with the backstretch wall. On the restart, Tim Richardson made short work of Jim Dale’s #00 and began to give chase for the lead. Behind them, Justin Coulter was slicing through the field from his starting spot outside row five, and was in fifth by the time the second lap was complete. Field held the lead until lap ten, when Richardson slipped past. Shortly afterwards, Field pulled in to the infield with mechanical issues, handing the runner-up spot to Coulter, and third place to Jim Dale.
On lap thirteen, Curtis Coulter took over third from Dale, but neither of the Coulter boys could catch Richardson, a regular at Eldora Speedway currently sitting twelfth in the standings at that famous facility. Richardson led the remainder of the event, with both Coulters chasing him to the finish, while Dale held on for fourth, and Brad McLeod persevered to round out the top five. The win was worth $1,000 for Richardson, who is the leading candidate to claim the overall “Summer Sizzler” prize heading into the second half of the weekend Saturday night at South Buxton Raceway. Heat races for the twelve cars in attendance were won by C.J. Field and Jim Dale.
The Mod-Lite Stars North Tour brought a fine field of twenty-two to Ohsweken for the first of three tour stops at the track this season, with Paul Klager leading the tour standings heading into the evening. Jamie Gilbert and Klager began the twenty lap feature on the front row with Klager taking the early advantage, but Gilbert and Shawn Sliter began immediately to challenge for the lead. The caution flew on lap two for Tim Anderson, who spun out of the fourth spot. With the green flag back out, much of the first half of the race was contested at the front in three-wide fashion, with four official lead changes at the start/finish line among those three drivers in the first eight laps.
While the battle at the front was going on, Adam Leslie, Chris Steele, Josh Sliter, and hard charging Rick Brubacher were making gains on the front-runners, while also battling amongst themselves. Gilbert held his first solid lead of the night on lap eight, while the field began to sort itself out behind him. Gilbert led at the halfway point, followed by Shawn Sliter, Klager, Josh Sliter, Leslie, Brubacher, Steele, and Anderson who had made his way back to eighth, but spun again to bring out another caution.
With the green flag back out, Sliter went to work on Gilbert, making what would prove to be the winning move on lap thirteen while the battle raged on in the top five. Sliter held on for the last seven laps to take the win, while a near photo finish behind him resulted in Gilbert getting the second spot over Klager and Brubacher, with Leslie rounding out the top five. Heat races for the twenty-two Mod-Lites in competition were won by Gilbert, Klager, and Shawn Sliter, who also set a new eight lap track record for Mod-Lites on his way to the heat win.
Mark Saul and Ryan Dinning started the ESSO Thunder Stocks race on the front row, and it was Dinning getting the early lead. The action heated up quickly behind Dinning, with drivers racing three and sometimes four wide looking for their paths to the front. Points leader Shayne Pierce navigated his way through the pack to quickly take over the lead, but Billy Bleich and Jamie Cox were also closing in. Bleich and Pierce eventually separated themselves from the pack and fought it out for the victory, and it was Bleich who came out on top in the end, followed by Pierce, Cox, Brad Herron, and Ken Sargent in his first visit of the season to the Speedway. Heat races for the nineteen ESSO Thunder Stocks in competition were won by Bleich and Dinning.
Dan Stewart and Ethan Martin began the ESSO Mini-Stocks feature at the front, but with last week’s feature winner Rick Robinson not in attendance, the question was if anybody could beat points leader Mitchell Brown. The young Brantford driver answered that question by charging through the field quickly from his starting spot outside row four, and took the lead from Rick Emberson. Once out front, Brown was never seriously challenged, while Emberson was forced to the pits as the race wound to a close, leaving Kevin Hilborn to finish second, followed by Abel Castelein, Martin, and David Goodacre. Heat races for the fourteen Mini-Stocks in attendance were won by Brown and Martin.
In Bomber action, the first race of the season run in the clockwise direction took the green flag. Jesse McDonald showed he is comfortable no matter which direction he’s going around the track as he took the lead with a three-wide move when the race began, and never looked back. Karl Sault, Dale Cooke, Steven Hils, and Kacey Huffman rounded out the top five.
Friday Night Thunder resumes on Friday, June 19 when Grand River Electronics and BS&B Radiator present Twin 15’s for the ESSO Thunder Stocks, plus the return of the Corr/Pak Merchandising Sprint Cars, ESSO Mini-Stocks, Bombers, Kids Box Car races, Mini-Van Figure 8 Racing, and a Demolition Derby! Friday Night Thunder at Ohsweken Speedway offers affordable family entertainment just a short drive away from most mid-western Ontario locations. Friday Night Thunder Adult General Admission is just $10, while Seniors and Students are $8, and kids 12 and under are FREE! Please visit www.OhswekenSpeedway.com for more information. On Friday night, gates open at 6:00p.m., with the first race at 7:45p.m.
FRIDAY NIGHT THUNDER 2009
ROUND 6 RACE REPORT – JUNE 19, 2009
OHSWEKEN SPEEDWAY
OHSWEKEN, ONTARIO
EVENT SPONSOR – OUTHOUSE IMAGE AND DESIGN
Race Start: 7:45 P.M.
Race End: 10:50 P.M.
UMP MODIFIEDS “SUMMER SIZZLER”
HEAT RACES (8 laps)
Heat Race #1
1. c4 C.J. Field (Chatham), 2. 4j Joe Field (Chatham), 3. 0 Chris Van De Wiele (Rutherford), 4. 5c Justin Coulter (Leamington), 5. 66m Mario Toniolo (Belle River), 6. 43 Brad McLeod (Merlin). Time – 2:20.217
Heat Race #2
1. 00 Jim Dale, Jr. (Shrewsbury), 2. 5 Curtis Coulter (Leamington), 3. 5x Tim Richardson (Comber), 4. 22 Brian Speelman (Wyoming), 5. 55 Clayton Smith (Woodslee), 6. 20 Jeff Daniels (Chatham). No Time
UMP MODIFIEDS “SUMMER SIZZLER”
FEATURE (25 laps)
Position. # Name (Starting Position)
1. 5x Tim Richardson (3)
2. 5c Justin Coulter (10)
3. 5 Curtis Coulter (9)
4. 00 Jim Dale, Jr. (4)
5. 43 Brad McLeod (2)
6. c4 C.J. Field (7)
7. 0 Chris Van De Wiele (12) DNF
8. 20 Jeff Daniels (8) DNF
9. 22 Brian Speelman (11) DNF
10. 4j Joe Field (1) DNF
11. 55 Clayton Smith (5) DNF
12. 66m Mario Toniolo (6) DNF
No Time
MOD-LITE STARS TOUR NORTH
HEAT RACES (8 laps)
Heat Race #1
1. 53 Jamie Gilbert (Wellland), 2. 7 Tim Anderson (Ridgeway), 3. 18 Andy Tallman (Vineland), 4. 80 Chris Steele (Fenwick), 5. 31 Scott Billings (Waterloo), 6. 116 Bob Bredin (Niagara Falls), 7. 37 Wally Billing (Elmira), 8. 8m Joey Mastroianni (Welland). Time – 2:31.053
Heat Race #2
1. 1 Paul Klager (Beamsville), 2. 15 Adam Leslie (Port Colbourne), 3. 19 Jason Corless (Bolton), 4. 76 Dan Kviring (Brantford), 5. 2ez Blair Young (Niagara Falls), 6. 82 Mark Brighton (Ariss), 7. 117 Derek Bredin (Niagara Falls) DNS. Time – 2:28.044
Heat Race #3
1. 71 Shawn Sliter (Port Colbourne), 2. 17 Josh Sliter (Ridgeway), 3. 5c Jordan Curran (Welland), 4. 67 Rick Brubacher (St. Clements), 5. 33 Korey Howe (St. Catharines), 6. 14 Kellie Mason (St. Catharines), 7. 4 Greg Mills (Niagara Falls). Time – 2:27.611
MOD-LITE STARS TOUR NORTH A-FEATURE (20 laps)
Position. # Name (Starting Position)
1. 71 Shawn Sliter (3)
2. 53 Jamie Gilbert (1)
3. 1 Paul Klager (2)
4. 67 Rick Brubacher (12)
5. 15 Adam Leslie (5)
6. 17 Josh Sliter (6)
7. 5c Jordan Curran (9)
8. 80 Chris Steele (10)
9. 76 Dan Kviring (11)
10. 14 Kelly Mason (18)
11. 37 Wally Billings (19)
12. 7 Tim Anderson (4)
13. 31 Scott Billings (13)
14. 4 Greg Mills (21)
15. 8m Joey Mastroianni (22)
16. 2ez Blair Young (14)
17. 116 Bob Bredin (16)
18. 18 Andy Tallman (7)
19. 82 Mark Brighton (17)
20. 33 Korey Howe (15)
21. 19 Jason Corless (8)
22. 117 Derek Bredin (20) DNS
No Time
ESSO THUNDER STOCKS
HEAT RACES (8 laps)
Heat Race #1
1. 108jr Billy Bleich, Jr. (Port Robinson), 2. 17 Rob Disher (Grimsby), 3. 37 Jeremy Bean (Stoney Creek), 4. 13 Mark Saul (Hagersville), 5. 55 Mike Thorne (Caledonia), 6. 9m Tyler Anderson (St. Catharines), 7. 12 Brad Herron (Brantford), 8. 88f James Michael Friesen (St. Catharines), 9. 9 Glen Leinen (Hannon) DNF, 10. 33 Colin Court (Jerseyville) DNF
Heat Race #2
1. 8 Ryan Dinning (Caledonia), 2. 31 Dave Bailey (Hagersville), 3. 83 Lee Winger (Caledonia), 4. 44 Jamie Cox (Cambridge), 5. 25 Ken Sargent (Fenwick), 6. 88 Shayne Pierce (Wainfleet), 7. 1 Chris Dickie (Brantford), 8. 00 Robbie General, 9. 24k Kyle Magrin (Hamilton) DNF
ESSO THUNDER STOCKS A-FEATURE (20 laps)
Position. # Name (Starting Position)
1. 108jr Billy Bleich, Jr.(5)
2. 88 Shayne Pierce (12)
3. 44 Jamie Cox (8)
4. 12 Brad Herron (13)
5. 25 Ken Sargent (10)
6. 8 Ryan Dinning (2)
7. 83 Lee Winger (6)
8. 55 Mike Thorne (9)
9. 1 Chris Dickie (14)
10. 13 Mark Saul (1)
11. 33 Colin Court (21)
12. 37 Jeremy Bean (7)
13. 31 Dave Bailey (4) DNF
14. 17 Rob Disher (3) DNF
15. 88f James Michael Friesen (15) DNF
16. 9m Tyler Anderson (11) DNF
17. 24k Kyle Magrin (18) DNF
18. 00 Robbie General (16) DNS
19. 9 Glen Leinen (17) DNS
ESSO MINI-STOCKS
HEAT RACES (8 laps)
Heat Race #1
1. 10 Mitchell Brown (Brantford), 2. 05 David Goodacre (Brantford), 3. 27 Dan Stewart (Hamilton), 4. 88 Kelly Hallett (Wilsonville), 5. 55 Rob Slater (Dundas), 6. 113 Mark Thorne (Waterford), 7. 265 Mike Evers (Caledonia), 8. 9 Jonathan Ayrton (Hamilton) DNF
Heat Race #2
1. 77x Ethan Martin (Ohsweken), 2. 86 Rick Emberson (Paris), 3. 72 Kevin Hilborn (Brantford), 4. 28 Abel Castelein (Cayuga), 5. 11 Mike Giberson (Caledonia), 6. 7x Chase Hess (Ohsweken) DNF
ESSO MINI-STOCKS A-FEATURE (15 laps)
Position. # Name (Starting Position)
1. 10 Mitchell Brown (8)
2. 72 Kevin Hilborn (6)
3. 28 Abel Castelein (7)
4. 77x Ethan Martin (2)
5. 05 David Goodacre (3)
6. 11 Mike Giberson (10)
7. 27 Dan Stewart (1)
8. 265 Mike Evers (12)
9. 88 Kelly Hallett (5)
10. 113 Mark Thorne (11)
11. 55 Rob Slater (9)
12. 9 Jonathan Ayrton (14) DNF
13. 86 Rick Emberson (4) DNF
14. 7x Chase Hess (13) DNF
BOMBERS A-FEATURE (20 laps)
Position. # Name (Hometown)
1. 88j Jesse McDonald (Caledonia), 2. 81 Karl Sault (Dundas), 3. 4 Dale Cooke (Hamilton), 4. 6 Steven Hils (Dundas), 5. 13 Kacey Huffman (Hamilton), 6. 13c Corrie Cowell, 7. 113 Adam Riedel
UP NEXT @ OHSWEKEN SPEEDWAY:
FRIDAY, JUNE 26, 2009
GRAND RIVER ELECTRONICS AND BS&B RADIATOR PRESENT:
TWIN 15’S FOR ESSO THUNDER STOCKS
PLUS CORR/PAK SPRINTS, ESSO MINI-STOCKS, BOMBERS,
KIDS BOX CAR RACES, MINI-VAN FIGURE 8 RACING, AND DEMOLITION DERBY!
ADULTS $10, SENIORS AND STUDENTS $8, KIDS 12 AND UNDER FREE!
SPECTATOR GATES OPEN @ 6:00 P.M., RACING @ 7:45 P.M.