Palmer continues Legends Streak; Corey, Voglesong, Brouwer, Civardi win
Waterford, CT — The Waterford Speedbowl raced against Mother Nature on a damp, chilly May evening but got the full Wild ‘n Wacky Wednesday race program in, concluding shortly after 9pm. Taking down wins were Jason Palmer who continued his string of four straight Legends Car victories, while it was Brad Voglesong returning to the winner’s circle in the Super X- Cars, and Rob Corey, Bubby Brouwer and Kathy Civardi all picking up their first wins of the year.
The Super X-Car race started with Ken Dowling III out to the early lead while the field battled behind. Two and three wide racing abound ended with Charles Beal, winner the past two weeks, making contact into the turn 3 wall forcing him to retire from the race. On the restart Dowling again would jump out to the lead with Rob Corey chasing him down and making an inside pass with five laps to go. Caution waved again for a spin between turns three and four. John Yagmin and Jon Porter moved into contention on the restart, both taking a turn challenging Corey on the outside but neither could make the pass. Corey would go on to win by two car lengths over Yagmin.
Justin Rau led the 20-lap Legends Car race at the drop of the green flag. Caution waved two laps in when Carl Blandina and William Munro made contact in turn one, ending both competitors nights. Veteran George Whitney would move in and contend with Rau for the top spot, moving alongside to the inside by halfway. Rau would prove to be racy in the outside lane as the battled raged on. Meanwhile, a red-hot Jason Palmer had moved into third and was chasing down the battle for the lead. A restart changed the complexion of the event, as Rau faltered from the lead setting up another Whitney-Palmer battle for the win. The pair would race side-by-side for several laps to the checkered flag, with Whitney getting loose in turn four allowing Palmer to take the checkered in a near replay of an event just two weeks ago.
The 20-lap X-Car race saw Dustin Gage open up a sizable lead in the early stages while the field sorted out behind. Brad Voglesong was the man on the move, moving into the top-five by lap five. Heavy lapped traffic factored in as the race approached halfway, with Daniel Madore, Voglesong, and Pete Zaikarite all moving in to challenge Gage when caution waved for an incident amongst lapped traffic in turn three. Action got hectic on the restart when Madore missed a shift while running second. Madore and Zaikarite dropped back, Voglesong took command to the inside of Gage, and John Bowes and Patrick Williams became factors. Voglesong would master the late race restarts to win over Williams, Bowes, Zaikarite, and Steve Violette.
Bubby Brouwer passed early leader Brian Rondeau to win the 15-lap X-Modified event, his first of the season. Dean Christensen moved past Rondeau for second, and Rondeau finished third.
Kathy Civardi reigned supreme in the 8-cylinder Women on Wheels event.
All results are unofficial pending post-race technical inspection.
Wild ‘n Wacky Wednesday returns next Wednesday, June 3 with the NEATV Trucks joining the action. Racing gets underway at 7:00pm and is just $7 for adults, and free for all youth age 14 and under.
Saturday Night May 30, the Speedbowl will complete the Budweiser Modified Nationals featuring the 150-lap NASCAR Whelen All-American Series SK Modified event which pays the winner a cool $5,000. The Bob Valenti Auto Mall Late Models will race 50-laps, while the Street Stocks and Norwich Bulletin Mini Stocks compete in 30-lap wheel to wheel events. Grandstands open at 1pm with qualifying action starting at 3pm. The popular pit party, where fans can meet the drivers and see the cars up close, begins at 5pm with main events to follow. For more information, please visit www.speedbowl.com or contact the track office at 860.442.1585.
Speedbowl Wild ‘n Wacky Wednesday 5/27 finishers, hometown:
Legends Cars (20-laps): 1. Jason Palmer, Berlin; 2. George Whitney, Westbrook; 3. Tony Flannery, E. Hampton; 4. Dennis Pantani, Branford; 5. Giovanni Giarratana, Newington; 6. Roger Coss, Lafayette, NJ; 7. Christian Pedersen, New Canaan; 8. Alessandra Vitelli, Woodbridge; 9. Stan Carpenter, Auburn, MA; 10. Ed Field, Deep River; 11. Justin Rau, Farmington; 12. John Weaver, Ashland, MA; 13. Carl Blandina, Milford; 14. William Munro, N. Branford
X-Cars (20-laps): 1. Brad Voglesong, Middletown; 2. Patrick Williams, Middletown; 3. John Bowes,Willington; 4. Pete Zaikarite, E. Hartford; 5. Steve Violette, Canterbury; 6. Dustin Gage, Madison; 7. David Amspacher, Groton; 8. Wilson Tenrreiro, Griswold; 9. Richard Gullage, Rockfall; 10. Christopher Garside, Waterford; 11. Daniel Madore, Sterling; 12. Gary Stone Jr., Northford; 13. Jeffrey Lee, Norwich; 14. Wayne Shifflett, Preston; 15. Shawn Butler, Jewett City; 16. Paul Smith, Clinton; 17. Arthur Phillips, Norwich; 18. Bruce Hall, Ledyard; 19. Rick Mollo, Ansonia; 20. Nicole Harris, Groton; 21. David Dallesandro, Coventry; 22. Mike Trask, Plainfield; 23. Michael Marvin, Colchester; 24. Randy Johnston, Westerly, RI; 25. James Ruddock, Oakdale; 26. Nathan Lloyd, Mystic; 27. Josh Barrie, Voluntown; 28. Onie Pierce, Norwich
Super X-Cars (20-laps): 1. Rob Corey, S. Windsor; 2. John Yagmin, Tolland; 3. James Consalvo, E. Hartford; 4. Steve LaRose, Griswold; 5. Mike Maskell III, Quaker Hill; 6. Michael Caprio, New Haven; 7. Al Potter, Waterford; 8. Alex Canestrari, Ledyard; 9. Bill Schmitt, Wyoming, RI; 10. Dan Moon, Exeter, RI; 11. Shawn Perkins, Groton; 12. Kevin Moon, Exeter, RI; 13. Ken Downling III, Branford; 14. R.J. Cunningham, Clinton; 15. Dale Treadway, Griswold; 16. Brian Norman, Clinton; 17. Paul Sheldon, Guilford; 18. Tylor DiFrancesca, Lisbon; 19. Chris Bissell, Jewett City; 20. Taylor-Marie Moran, Preston; 21. Charles Beal, Ledyard; 22. Robert Norman, Clinton; DNS – Jim Lynch, Wood River Jct., RI; DQ – Jon Porter, Canterbury
X-Modifieds (10-laps): 1. Bubby Brouwer, Waterford; 2. Dean Christensen, Granby; 3. Brian Rondeau, Blackstone, MA; 4. Rob Gallaer, Sherman; 5. Paul French, Andover; 6. Billy Parker, Groton; 7. David Flammia Jr., Waterbury
Women On Wheels (10-laps): 1. Kathy Civardi, Ledyard; 2. Taylor-Marie Moran, Preston; 3. Kim Bickford, Griswold; 4. Kim Parker, Manchester; 5. Carol Shaw, Old Saybrook
Sources: Waterford Speedbowl PR