For more info, please visit DIRT and Merrittville Speedway.
By Don Post, DIRT Sportsman Series Reporter
Thorold, ONT — July 23, 2005 — It took Kyle Inman 18 laps to move into the top-five
Saturday night at Merrittville Speedway however the final ten circuits paid the
bills. The Darien, N.Y. Sportsman hotshoe discovered the bottom of the ultra wide
and fast 3/8-mile layout was the place to race. Inman cashed in as he battled his
way to the first Sunoco/Aplus Sportsman Super DIRT Series win of his career in front
of a huge crowd in the 50 lap headline event on Avondale Food Stores Night at the
Canadian venue. A great combined field of 36 DIRT Sportsman teams towed into Pete
and Nancy Bicknell’s spotless facility on a beautiful night for racing in Southern
Ontario.
It took four heats and two consis to trim the field to 30 starters as West Region
point leader Russ Hefti of Jordan, N.Y. in his Clearview Windows-Sunsetter
Awnings-Bicknell Chassis with Tommy Car power started the main on the point. By
virtue of his win in heat #3 and the luck of the draw, it put the veteran right
where he wanted to be.
The evening’s top-12 positions were filled by the luck of the draw from the top
three heat race finishers. Joining Hefti on the front row was Thorold, Ont. native
Guy Bougie in his Speed Palace, Peninsula Press Sponsored mount. As the field came
to the green Hefti moved to the front in the first five laps as Merrittville points
leader Wayne Conn, Jr. moved his S&W Service Centre-406 Auto Parts Bicknell into the
runner-up slot with Bougie and fellow St. Catharine’s racers Rob Knapp and Mike
Bowman completing the top-five. The first of six caution flags flew on lap five when
rookie Matt Higgins and fellow East Region pilot Rob Bellinger made contact and
collected Can-Am Series winner Brian Sage in turn four action.
The restart allowed just one lap to be recorded before Merrittville regular Alan
Sleight tangled with Roger Chrysler to slow the field briefly for the second time on
lap six. The green found Hefti still at the point with Conn on his rear crash bar as
Port Colborne, Ont. veteran Rob Ledingham made his presence known with his New
Generation powered K&N Filters-Humberstone Speedway Bicknell moving to third. Knapp
raced fourth with track regular and Humberstone Series winner Bill Bleich now in
the front-five.
The yellow again slowed action for a minor tangle in turn three as young rookie Matt
Williamson mixed things up with Welland’s Doug Spiece for the third time. The
restart enabled just one lap to get in the books as Conn put heavy pressure on early
leader Hefti as the multi-time Merrittville feature winner moved to the outside of
Hefti as the first lead change of the race came on lap 12. Conn then began to draw
out to a near full straightaway lead on the invader from Jordan, N.Y. as Ledingham
and Knapp were joined by Lake Ariel, Pa. rising star Kevin Bates as things seemed to
settle in on the racing surface. A spin once again by Doug Spiece slowed the action
as lapped traffic had yet to become what would be a huge part in the outcome of the
race.
The lights again went green on the talent laden field and by lap 18 Kyle Inman
stepped into the fast front five for the first time, dropping Knapp to sixth on the
score sheets. Inman ran his Original Pizza Logs-Hardner Trans. - Grow Green Bicknell
aggressively into the third position at the 20 lap mark and closed on the leaders.
The final yellow of the first half of the event flew on lap 23 with Mark Dixon of
Durham, ONT, along with veteran pilot Billy Shantel,Jr. of Canastota, N.Y at the
keyboard of the Bicknell 9g formerly piloted by Boyd McTavish, spinning in turn
four.
This yellow set the stage for some of the best racing on the Series to date as Inman
raced like a man on a mission slipping past Hefti on the restart with his sights set
on leader Conn. As the race moved to lap 30 Inman and Conn put on a crowd pleasing
side-by-side race as they exchanged the lead several times, each lap crossing the
stripe in a near dead heat on three occasions. The third lead change of the wild
action came on lap 33 as Inman willed his piece to the front in a nice move at the
bottom of turn four. As this took place at the front there were changes in very
tight quarters just behind the leaders. Ohsweken winner Martin Polhill raced from
his 15th starting position to the top-five just as Bates in his Locklin’s Bottled
Gas-Blaise & Green Racing Bicknell slowed out of turn four to bring out the race's
final yellow. Bates stated following the race, “We think we broke an axle, it’s
really tough coming all the way up here and have a top five go away in a heart beat
late in the race." The young charger looking for the overall Hoosier Tire-Sunoco
Race Fuels Mr. DIRT title took a hard hit in overall markers as he finished 24th in
the final feature order.
The last yellow set the stage for a wild 14 lap sprint to the checkers as the top
five faetured Inman, followed by Conn, Hefti, Polhill and new top five racer Mike
Bowman of St. Catharines in tight quarters as the green flew for the final time.
Hefti found new life on the outside lane as he tracked Conn down and took over the
runner-up slot on the 38th circuit as the fans came to their feet with the top three
in question at every turn. Hefti was determined as he has not found victory lane to
date on the Tour and wasn’t to be denied as lap 41 was scored with the lead changing
for the fourth time. The crowd watched closely as the two raced to the line making
contact as they hit the mid point of the front straight. Both drivers gave each
other room to recover without harm and raced on with Hefti at the point and Inman
with the low side open. The Ransomville regular used that part of the speedway as
his competitors were on the rim. Inman said “It seemed strange everyone moved to the
top and I had the bottom to myself but it seemed to work.”
The Darien, N.Y native became the leader for the fifth time as the crowd was treated
to a great battle for the top spot on laps 44 and 45 as Hefti was not settling for
second. The duo raced side by side exiting turn two and Hefti made it stick as he
became the sixth leader, however not the final in the race. The two lap sign was in
the air as traffic became the main issue for veteran Hefti as he confirmed in the
pit’s following the race. “The lapped cars were all over the track in the end, and
it was a bad deal all together. We had plenty left and the car was strong, these
guys were everywhere," said the disappointed Central N.Y. racer. Inman put the
Bicknell on the bottom and seemed to get lost in traffic as he came home with his
first ever Series victory. He stated, “This was great as the car was working on the
top and bottom in the last 15 laps, but the front two guys chose the top and it
opened up the door for us to win.” Following Inman and Hefti to the line was Mike
Bowman in his Industrial Hose & Hydraulics Bicknell, with a great move to third in
the final two laps. Wayne Conn held on for fourth and Polhill completed the top
five. Sixth through tenth went to Rob Knapp, in his Little Brothers Service
Center-Bicknell with GM Crate power, Bill Bleich in the Bazaar Marketing Highland
Video Bicknell, long hauler Jim Dallett of Vineland, N.J. in the Casino
Horizen-Bicknell, with Kevin Wills of Ransomville ninth. Young 15 yr. old Matt
Williamson, son of BRP Randy Williamson in his rookie year did a great job bringing
his John’s Shell Gas Bar-Dagwood’s Restaurant GM Crate powered Bicknell mount to a
fine 10th-place. Post race inspection found third place finisher Mark Bowman with
illegal headers and was thus disqualified, moving everyone up on in the finishing
order from fourth back.
Sunoco/Aplus Sportsman Super DIRT Series – Merrittville Speedway, July 23, 2005
Event Summary [*Official box score posted on www.dirtmotorsports.com and can be
viewed by first selecting 'DIRT NorthEast' on the corporate homepage then clicking
'Sunoco/Aplus' logo on homepage]
FEATURE
FIN STR CAR# DRIVER / HOMETOWN
1 11 20k Kyle Inman/Darien,NY
2 1 0 Russ Hefti/Jordan,NY
3 3 8c Wayne Conn,Jr./St.Catharines,ONT
4 25 71m Mark Potter/Lockport,NY
5 15 15 Martin Polhill/Thorold,ONT
6 5 2k Rob Knapp/St.Catharines,ONT
7 7 108 Bill Bleich/Thorold,ONT
8 26 95 Jim Dallett/Vineland,NJ
9 14 111 Kevin Wills/Ransomville,NY
10 18 6 Matt Williamson/St.Catharines,ONT
11 30 +m96 Marcel Pecore/Brockville,ONT
12 8 19j Rob Ledingham/Port Colborne,ONT
13 23 3 Alan Sleight/St.Catharines,ONT
14 20 p38 Rob Pratt/Brockport,NY
15 16 5 Dave Dykstra/Port Colborne,ONT
16 24 99c Nick Cupolo/Thorold,ONT
17 27 16w Lance Willix II/Theresa,NY
18 13 11 Brian Sage/Brockport,NY
19 9 8 Rob Bellinger/Dexter,NY
20 21 88b Doug Spiece/Welland,ONT
21 2 67b Guy Bougie/Thorold,ONT
22 19 56 Dereck Lemyre/Hamilton,ONT
23 10 77jr Bill Willard Jr./St.CatharinesONT
24 6 42b Kevin Bates/Lake Ariel,PA
25 28 88 Don Spiece/Thorold,ONT
26 17 9g Billy Shantell,Jr./Canastota,NY
27 22 m11 Mark Dixon/Durham,ONT
28 12 19h Chris Higgins/Syracuse,NY
29 29 t21 Roger Chyrsler/Lewiston,NY
*30 4 71 Mike Bowman/St.Catharines,ONT
*disqualified for illegal headers,
+Drove no.1 Bicknell house car entered by Mark Dilario.
DID NOT QUALIFY(6)
1-Mark Dilario/St.Catharines,ONT
9jr.-Tim Zack/Dain City
11z-Darin Zumpe/Durham, ONT
13-Dennis Giancola/St.Catharines,ONT
20j-Jay Mallory/Newfane, NY
84-Paul Gaboury/Welland, ONT
Heat Races:
#1- Mike Bowman, Chris Higgins, Bill Bleich, Brian Sage, Dereck Lemyre, Doug
Spiece, Lance Willix ll, Roger Chrysler, Jay Mallory.
#2- Rob Bellinger, Kyle Inman, Bill Willard Jr, Kevin Wills, Matt Williamson, Mark
Dixon, Nick Cupolo, Rob Pratt, Tim Zack.
#3- Russ Hefti, Kevin Bates, Wayne Conn Jr., Martin Polhill, Billy Shantel,Jr.,
Dennis Giancola, Alan Sleight, Mark Potter, Brian Sage.
#4- Rob Knapp, Rob Ledingham, Guy Bougie, Dave Dykstra, Mark Dilario, Jim Dallett,
Paul Gaboury, Marcel Pecore, Don Spiece.
Consolation Races:
#1- Billy Shantel,Jr., Dereck Lemyre, Don Spiece, Alan Sleight, Mark Potter, Lance
Willix ll, Roger Chrysler, Darren Zumpe, Jay Mallory, Dennis Giancola.
#2- Matt Williamson, Rob Pratt, Mark Dixon, Nick Cupolo, Jim Dallett, Don Spiece,
Mark Dilario, Paul Gaboury.
2005 Sunoco/Aplus Super DIRT Series Point Standings
Combined (thru Merrittville 7/23)
RANK POINTS DRIVER
1 190 Russ Hefti/Jordan,NY
2 176 Kyle Inman/Darien,NY
3 155 Kevin Wills/Ransomville,NY
4 146 Brian Sage/Brockport,NY
5 145 Marcel Pecore/Brockville,ONT
6 142 Wayne Conn,Jr./St.Catharines,ONT
7 130 Rob Ledingham/Port Colborne,ONT
8 128 Jim Dallett/Vineland,NJ
9 120 Kevin Bates/Lake Ariel,PA
10 108 Chris Higgins/Syracuse,NY
11 108 Nick Cupolo/Thorold,ONT
12 105 Roger Chyrsler/Lewiston,NY
13 101 Rob Bellinger/Dexter,NY
14 98 Lance Willix II/Theresa,NY
15 85 Mark Potter/Lockport,NY
16 80 Martin Polhill/Thorold,ONT
17 76 Rob Knapp/St.Catharines,ONT
18 72 Bill Bleich/Thorold,ONT
19 62 Jeff Stevenson/Watertown,NY
20 62 Matt Williamson/St.Catharines,ONT
21 56 Alan Sleight/St.Catharines,ONT
22 54 Greg Doust/Jamesville,NY
23 54 Rob Pratt/Brockport,NY
24 52 Dave Dykstra/Port Colborne,ONT
25 48 Scott Parliament/LaFargeville,NY
26 46 Sammy Reakes IV/Fulton,NY
27 45 Jason Riddell/Cardinal,ONT
28 44 Shawn Donath/South Onondaga,NY
29 44 Doug Spiece/Welland,ONT
30 43 Guy Bougie/Thorold,ONT
31 42 Dereck Lemyre/Hamilton,ONT
32 41 Billy Willard,Jr./St.CatharinesONT
33 40 Don Spiece/Thorold,ONT
34 40 Mark Dixon/Durham,ONT
35 40 Billy Shantell,Jr./Canastota,NY
36 40 Mike Bowman/St.Catharines,ONT
37 10 Darren Zumpe/St.Catharines,ONT
38 10 Mark Dilario/St.Catharines,ONT
39 10 Tim Zach/Dain City,ONT
40 10 Dennis Giancola/St.Catharines,ONT
41 10 Jay Mallory/Newfane, NY
42 10 Paul Gaboury/Welland, ONT
West Region (thru Humberstone 7/3)
RANK POINTS DRIVER
1 205 Russ Hefti/Jordan,NY
2 191 Kevin Wills/Ransomville,NY
3 182 Rob Ledingham/Port Colborne,ONT
4 175 Bill Bleich/Thorold,ONT
5 155 Wayne Conn Jr./St.Catharines,ONT
6 130 Roger Crysler/Lewiston,NY
7 128 Brian Sage/Brockport,NY
8 127 Rob Knapp/St.Catherines,ONT
9 119 Stan Zanchin/Fort Erie,ONT
10 117 Rick St.Pierre/Welland,ONT
11 114 Guy Bougie/Thorold,ONT
114 Nick Cupolo/Thorold,ONT
114 Kyle Inman/Darien,NY
14 107 Martin Pohill/Thorold,ONT
15 100 Jeff McGinnis/Ransomville,NY
16 85 Scott Kerwin/Newfane,NY
17 83 Kevin Ridley/Geneva,NY
18 81 Darren Zumpe/St.Catharines,ONT
19 80 Jason Boyle/Middleport,NY
80 Mark Chiddy/Colden,NY
21 76 Mike Jeffery/Ransomville,NY
22 72 Tony Purgarich/Ransomville,NY
72 Don Spiece/Thorold,ONT
24 68 Mark Potter/Lockport,NY
68 Jeff Leggett/Pt.Colborne,ONT
26 65 Billy Willard,Jr./St.Catharines,ONT
65 Eric Giguere/Geneva,NY
65 Curtis Friesen/St.Catharines,ONT
65 Dave Just/Ransomville,NY
65 Rob Pratt/Brockport,NY
65 Stan Lament/Niagara-o-t-Lake ONT
65 Dave Dykstra/Pt.Colborne,ONT
33 62 Paul Gaboury/Welland,ONT
34 60 Kevin Sharpe/Pt.Colborne,ONT
35 58 Dennis Giancola/St.Catharines,ONT
36 56 Steve Schumacker/Lockport,NY
37 54 George Bosse/St.Catharines,ONT
38 50 John Kaas/Welland,ONT
39 48 Ken Winfield/Fort Erie,ONT
40 46 Ed Cain/Newfane,NY
41 45 Tom Flanagan/St.Catharines,ONT
42 44 Greg Martin/Youngstown,NY
43 42 Chuck Hossfeld/Ransomville,NY
44 41 James Strassburg/Niagara Falls,NY
45 40 Tim Zack/Dain City,ONT
40 Bill Gill/Fort Erie,ONT
47 35 Scott Just/Ransomville,NY
48 25 Lee Mallory/St.Catharines,ONT
25 Francisco Pereira/Etobicoke,ONT
25 Steve Ruddy/Middleport,ONT
25 Dereck Lemyre/Hamilton,ONT
25 Mark Dixon/Durham,ONT
25 Tony Cowell/Woodstock,ONT
25 Dan Wiesner/Geneva,NY
25 Jay Mallory/Newfane,NY
56 10 Bob Broomfield/Youngstown,NY
10 John Smith/Niagara Falls,NY
10 Sandy Pembleton/Lewiston,NY
10 Bernie Pangrazio/Elba,NY
10 Doug Coons/North Tonawanda,NY
61 10 Jim Zimmerman/Lockport,NY
East Region (thru Thunder Alley 6/24)
RANK POINTS DRIVER
1 280 Greg Doust/Jamesville,NY
2 253 Kevin Bates/Lake Ariel,PA
3 237 Marcel Pecore/Brockville,ONT
4 224 Rob Bellinger/Dexter,NY
224 Lance Willix II/Theresa,NY
6 186 Chris Higgins/Syracuse,NY
7 160 Joe Williams/Scotia,NY
8 147 Mike Bowman/Baldwinsville,NY
9 145 Jordan Bennett/Pennellville,NY
10 143 Sean Carman/Stockton,NJ
11 136 Russ Hefti/Jordan,NY
12 133 Roy Bresnahan/Palermo,NY
13 112 Jim Dallett/Vineland,NJ
14 100 Jeremy Pitcher/Fulton,NY
15 80 Kevin Ridley/Geneva,NY
16 76 Rick Amo/Schenevus,NY
17 72 Mike Conrow/Sterling,NY
18 65 Rick McCready/Watertown,NY
19 62 Tim VanBrocklin/Watertown,NY
20 58 Jeff Stevenson/Watertown,NY
58 Jason Riddell/Cardinal,ONT
58 Steve Babicek/Binghamton,NY
23 56 Jeremy LaSalle/Brockville,ONT
56 Josh Hefti/Jordan,NY
25 54 Brett Tonkin/Carbondale,PA
26 50 Eric Giguere/Geneva,NY
27 10 Doug Shattell/Baldwinsville,NY
10 Matt Butler/Canton,NY
MERRITTVILLE MOMENTS
*Merrittville brought out some of the East Region's best as 10 of the nearly 40
teams on hand raced out of what some would call the weaker of the two regions.
Unexpected entries included GM Crate powered Troyer mount of 16 yr old Rob Bellinger
carrying AJ Missert Inc.- JT Construction sponsorship out of Watertown, N.Y. Along
with Theresa, N.Y. open-wheel racer Lance Willix ll who recently recorded his first
ever Series win at Thunder Alley Speedpark in June.
*Youth seems to be the order of the day as the West Region has its share of young
future stars. One that opened some eyes is 15 yr. old Matt Williamson who carries a
great future. The son of Randy Williamson of BRP is a very polite well mannered
student of racing. He seems to learn and listen to his mentors with every turn of
the wrench or twist of the steering wheel. He pilots one of the many GM Crate
powerplants and his slight build does not give away his new skills he picks up each
time he straps in his mount.
*Brockville, ONT racer Marcel Pecore who ran into terminal mechanical issues in the
fourth heat race seemed to be out of the show. That is until Mark Dilario of St.
Catharines who had the Bicknell House Car with another of many GM Crate engines
failed to qualify in his heat and respective consi. Pecore carried a provisional
starting spot coming out of the Can-Am Combined event, enabling him to strap into
the former Gary Tomkins-driven Bicknell car and start scratch. He brought the car
home for a very respectable 11th place finish.
*Long hauler Jim Dallett, a full-time school teacher in New Jersey drove the Casino
Horizen, Performance Powered Bicknell to a fine eighth place finish from his 26th
starting slot. He also used a provisional from Can-Am to make the field and complete
a great run to the top-10. Dallett stated prior to racing, “It really is kind of a
bad deal for us as we can make most of the Series events until September when school
goes into session. That's obviously not the time of year I can get away with my
teaching. We do like coming up here as the competition really makes us work, we just
need some better luck.” They got their wish at Merrittville in a great run.
*Six of the eight different winners to date in 2005 on the Sunoco/Aplus SDS have
been first time SDS winners in what is leading up to one of the most competitive
seasons to date in the history of this popular series.
*Anyone who may not be sold on the GM Crate Motor Program should take their
respective arguments to Nancy Bicknell. As you will get a very strong rebuttal as
this lady has done her homework on the subject. Nancy said, “This program has all
the ear marks of saving racing at this level from the simple aspect of economics.”
Nancy has the history on every GM Crate Team in the Western N.Y. and Southern Canada
and feels without a doubt this program will not only bring new blood into the sport,
it will allow some racers that just could not afford to put $12 to $15,000 into
engines to keep up with competition back in and be competitive.
*Merrittville Speedway has seen many improvements since the Bicknells have taken the
reigns, and the fans have benefited. A very clean, and neat facility greets them
each week, the staff runs a very efficient program and fans are greeted each week by
a full pit log. Erica Bicknell controls the operations day to day at Merrittville
and handles the busy schedule in a very gracious manner, as do all the Bicknell
family members involved.
*Through veteran photographer Alex and Helen Bruce I was given the opportunity to
tour the Bicknell Racing Products shop in St. Catharines, Ont. early on Saturday
prior to racing. Following the tour given by Randy Williamson, who took time out of
his busy schedule to show us the facility, it is very easy to see why Bicknell is
the supplier of choice in the Northeast. I thank Alex and Helen for their
hospitality and tour of the St. Catharines area. Fans who have yet to take in a show
at Merrittville need to put it on the list of tracks to attend, you will not be
disappointed.
UPCOMING EVENT:
The next event on the Sunoco/Aplus Sportsman Super DIRT Series stops at “The Land of
Legends" at the Canandaigua Speedway as the Advance Auto Parts Modified Super DIRT
Series host the headline 100-lap Big Block stop. The West Region of the Sunoco
Sportsman Super DIRT Series goes 30 laps at the lightening fast flat half mile clay
oval. The date to mark on your schedule is Thursday, August 11.
2005 SUNOCO/APLUS SPORTSMAN SUPER DIRT SERIES SCHEDULE
Day-Date Track(Laps)
Location/Winner
Fri-May 6 Thunder Alley Speedpark (30L-E)......................GREG DOUST
Sun-Jun 12 Cayuga County Fair Speedway (30L-E).............JEREMY PITCHER
Fri-Jun 17 Ohsweken Speedway (50L-W)...........................MARTIN POLHILL
Fri-Jun 24 Thunder Alley Speedpark (30L-E)......................LANCE WILLIX II
Fri-Jul 1 Ransomville Speedway (50L-W)........................JEFF McGINNIS
Sun-Jul 3 Humberstone Speedway (50L-W)......................BILL BLEICH
Wed-Jul 13 Can-Am Motorsports Park (30L-C).....................BRIAN SAGE
Sat-Jul 23 Merrittville Speedway (50L-C).............................KYLE INMAN
Thr-Aug 11 Canandaigua Speedway (30L-W).......................Canandaigua, NY
Fri-Sep 9 Ransomville Speedway (50L-W)..........................Ransomville, NY
Fri-Sep 9 Brockville Ontario Speedway (30L-E)..................Brockville, ONT
Sat-Sep 10 Genesee Speedway (40L-W)...............................Batavia, NY
Sat-Sep 10 Can-Am Motorsports Park (30L-E).......................LaFargeville, NY
Fri-Sep 16 Brewerton Speedway (40L-C)..............................Brewerton, NY
Sat-Sep 17 Rolling Wheels Raceway (30L-C)........................Elbridge, NY
Sat-Sep 24 Canandaigua Speedway (50L-C).........................Canandaigua, NY
Fri-Sep 30 Fulton Speedway (30L-C)....................................Fulton, NY
Wed-Oct 5 Can-Am Motorsports Park (30L-C).......................LaFargeville, NY
Fri-Oct 7 Rolling Wheels Raceway (30L-C).........................Elbridge, NY
Sat-Oct 8 New York State Fairgrounds (30L-C)...................Syracuse, NY
Sat-Oct 22 Bridgeport Speedway (50L-C) .............................Bridgeport, NJ
E=East Region(5), W=West Region(6), C=Combined(10).
SUNOCO/APLUS SPORTSMAN SERIES SPONSORS
The DIRT MotorSports™ Sunoco/Aplus Sportsman Series is brought to fans across the
Northeast by several sponsors and partners, including series sponsors Sunoco Race
Fuels, Advance Auto Parts, Hoosier Racing Tire and DART Machinery. Promotional
Partners include AMB i.t., RACEceiver, Zippo Lighters and F.X. Caprara Car Companies
and the contingency sponsors are Bicknell Racing Products, Bilstein Shocks, MSD
Ignitions and Wrisco Industries.