Dave Darling, Bobby Pelland III, Rick Martin & Ed Gannon Pick Up Saturday ARC Wins
SEEKONK, MA — Track Champ and points leader Dave Darling won once again, following the simple rule of staying out of trouble.
Darling took over the lead from Kenny Spencer at midrace, on a lap 19 restart. They had dueled on a lap 18 restart and again following cautions on laps 20, 22, 24, 29 and 30. Darling was able to hold on to the lead each time. The final ten laps ran caution free and Darling led Spencer over the stripe. Dick Houlihan, Fred Astle and Kevin Casper followed.
Signs for the race were bad from the first billowing of the green, as Kevin Folan and Mike Brightman were together and up into the wall before the starting line. They had started side-by-side and something had knocked Folan loose and into Brightman and they locked together in a slide into the wall at the base of the starter’s platform. Brightman pulled away and drove smoking to the pits. Folan, with his right front corner collapsed, had to be hauled to the pits before completing a lap. Brightman was able to return, but Bill Antonellis, who had been collected in the fray, was also out without finishing a circuit.
The complete restart put the field into a six lap run to the next caution. Polesitter Mike Mitchell took the lead over outside pole Kyle Casper, and Casper gave chase. Elmer Wing took over third but Spencer wound it up and overtook Wing for position. Lap two saw wing pursued by Tom Scully, Jr. and Dick Houlihan with Darling coming on and Kevin Casper on the outside. Freddy, Ryan Vanasse, Rick Martin and Bob Hussey followed.
[Photo Gallery] by Nicholas Teto
Darling had moved from ninth to sixth, behind Houlihan before the caution.
Under green, Mitchell came out first, but Casper came back and Spencer locked on to Mitchell’s rear bumper. Vanasse developed problems with his car, slowed dramatically and retired to the pits after eight laps.
Casper was working Mitchell’s outside, but now Darling was at their backs. Spencer was now on Darling’s tail with Scully, Houlihan, Brightman and Hussey in pursuit. Casper had his nose past Mitchell as Ken spencer came in underneath to take the lead out of turn two on lap 13. Scully followed under into second, but Wing was around in turn two. Casper, Spencer, Darling and Scully went in to the box for the restart and came out door-to-door with
Spencer edging ahead him on the outside. Casper fell off and Spencer took the front as Darling made an underneath move on Casper but was denied.
Struggles over position lasted a few seconds between restarts, but during the time, the field established positions which followed through the final ten consecutive laps.
1) Dave Darling 2) Ken Spencer 3) Dick Houlihan 4) Fred Astle 5) Kevin Caser 6) Bob Hussey 7) Mike Brightman 8) Kyle Casper 9) Tom Scully Jr 10) Dave Silvia 11) Rick Martin 12) Mike Mitchell 13) John Berchem 14) Cory Cleary 15) Elmer Wing III 16) Daryl Stampfl 17) Billy Joerres 18) Ryan Vanasse 19) Kevin Folan 20) Bill Antonellis
Bobby Pelland III shook of the tough luck that has plagued him much of the season to take the final step in the Phil’s Propane Triple Crown for Late Models. Pelland spoiled the night for rookie Branden Dion, who led four fifths of the race from the pole position.
The first 36 laps ran fault free until Ryan Lineham spun on lap 36 and went immediately to the pits for repairs. Lineham had been working Dion’s bumper since replacing Mark Hudson in second on lap seven. He darted back onto the track as the field roared through the starting box under green and gave chase. Pelland now was dueling Hudson for second. Hudson survived challenges underneath on restarts on laps 39 and 40. But Pelland took over on lap 41.
Bill Bernard had been mired in fifth, sixth and seventh much of the race, caught behind slower cars, but caught some free air after the lap 42 restart He was past Dylan Estrella after the green, , then Hudson. He bickered with Branden for three laps then leapt in behind Pelland with five laps remaining to harry him to the finish line.
On lap 46, Estrella got sideways and Hudson went around, collecting Branden. Lineham went to the pits for repairs. Dion was off on the hook for the end of his evening.
This put Pelland and Bernard side-by-side for the restart. Estrella and Jeramee Lillie filled the second row and Gerry DeGasparre, Jr. had Derek Anderson alongside in the third for a four-lap shootout.
Pelland held the edge on the green as Lillie jumped under Bernard and they traded paint in turn four. On lap later, Hudson was around in turn four, bringing a lap 48 restart.
Pelland and Bernard lined up again, going door-to-door out of the box. Pelland gained the lead over Bernard and Lillie battled outside Dave Hutchins, Jr. Behind them, Estrella, Charlie Rose and Anderson engaged in a late-race three-wide over fourth.
Bernard was unable to get past Pelland, who flashed over the stripe one-third of a second ahead. Hutchins was third, just .05 ahead of Lillie. Estrella won the three-wide festival for fifth, just ahead of Rose and Anderson. DeGasparre was eighth, Lineham ninth and Tyler Thompson Tenth.
1) Bobby Pelland III 2) Bill Bernard 3) Dave Hutchins 4) Jeramee Lillie 5) Dylan Estrella 6) Charlie Rose 7) Derek Anderson 8) Gerry DeGasparre Jr 9) Ryan Lineham 10) Tyler Thompson 11) Mark Hudson 12) Chad LaBassite 13) Brandon Dion
Rick Martin hustled from the Pro Stock to the Sport Truck and roared out to join the queue waiting for the start just before the field rolled to begin the Sport Trucks 25-lap feature. The hustle got him ready to do the same on track and he hustled to the front with ten to go, then held off persistent Mike Cavallaro for his second win in as many weeks. Martin and Cavallaro had arrived in the leader zone in unison and Cavallaro made one pass over the stripe in front before Martin took over on lap 15.
Dan Leach had led the first fifteen in dominant fashion, able to come away from several restarts quickly and take the front. But on a lap 13 restart, he had Cavallaro at his back with Martin on Mike’s bumper. Daryl Church fell back from the outside pole making the trio 1-2-3 through the lap and then Cavallaro went to the outside. Leach, going for his first win, moved up to fend him off and Martin, ever the opportunist, leapt in underneath. He was through so quickly he left Leach and Cavallaro still door-to-door and they continued to race until Mike eased him back to third. Scott Dion and Chase Belcher moved in behind them for fourth and fifth.
Cavallaro was able to drop Leach to third, and then Dion moved past with less than 5 remaining, leaving Leach to hold off Belcher for fourth.
1) Rick Martin 2) Mike Cavallaro 3) Scott Dion 4) Dan Leach 5) Chase Belcher 6) Anna Gregoire 7) Casey Sanchez 8) Brandon Dion 9) Nick Uhrig 10) Rob Murphy 11) Dave Haywood 12) John Paiva 13) Lenny Guy 14) Bill Schoeler 15) Rob Rainville 16) Mike Duarte 17) Jamie Salley 18) Jim Hawkins19) Russ Borges 20) Joey Wakefield 21) Daryl Church 22) Barry Shaw Jr DNS) Bill Clarke DNS) Nick Lascoula
Ed Gannon III had to disappoint his own nephew to win his first Street Stock feature of the season, as he started behind polesitter and nephew, Street Stock rookie Austin Blais, just up from SYRA and making a name for himself. Blais jumped to the lead at the outset as Gannon got by Craig Pianka and into second. Gerard Berthelette vaulted to third behind him. Scott Serydynski, Pianka and Rey Lovelace followed. But Serydynski spun out of turn four.
On the lap six restart, Gannon was past Blais after a brief side-by-side. On the next lap, Lovelace came up to debate this issue, to be replaced by Paul Lallier on lap 14. Lallier hounded Gannon to the finish, winding up a couple of seconds back. Bobby Bettencourt got by Lovelace for third going into lap fourteen, leaving Rey in fourth. Scott Bruneau completed the top five.
As Lallier clung to second through the second half of the 25-lapper, Bettencourt moved in behind Lovelace as Lallier moved him back on a lap 12 restart after Dan Solomon spun Manny Dias and both retired to the rear of the field. Out of the box, Gannon continued in the lead while Lallier relieved Lovelace’s grip on second. Bettencourt was coming on underneath Bruneau and Crystal was getting under Blais to Bruneau’s bumper. By lap 14, it was Gannon, Lallier, Bettencourt, Lovelace, Bruneau and Serydynski. Bettencourt was knocking on Lallier’s back door but could not pass. Lovelace pulled in behind Bettencourt and Crystal began working under Bruneau.
1) Ed Gannon III 2) Paul Lallier 3) Bob Bettencourt 4) Ray Lovelace 5) Scott Bruneau 6) Crystal Serydynski 7) John Hanafin 8) Scott Serydynski 9) Gerard Berthelette 10) Austin Blais 11) Jimmy Belmont 12) Manny Dias 13) Craig Pianka 14) Randy Moretti 15) Ian Savard 16) Andy Johnson 17) Dan Solomon 18) Doug Rioux19) Chris DeMoura 20) Ray Negley 21) Steve Potter
Sources: Kevin Boucher/Seekonk Speedway PR