Late Restart Gets Ron Silk Back to Victory Lane at South Boston
Former NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Champion Wins South Boston 150
SOUTH BOSTON, Va. — One last restart was all Ron Silk needed.
The Norwalk, Connecticut, driver lined up to the inside of Burt Myers with 18 laps to go in the South Boston 150 at South Boston Speedway, and the veteran took advantage of his opportunity to get back to the top.
Silk captured his first NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour win since May of 2016 by taking down the checkered flag in the second race of the season. It was the 11th career win for the 2011 series champion, and his first in his first start at the Virginia oval.
RACING-REFERENCE: South Boston 150 Race Results
“It’s always good to win,” Silk said. “Last year, we had some good finishes, and the guys have been working hard and building toward this. Hopefully we can keep being competitive going forward.”
Silk started third, and although he ran at the front of the pack for much of the early stint, pitting for tires put him back in traffic. It forced him to slice his way back to the front.
He passed Kyle Bonsignore for second, and was starting to run down Myers for the lead, but a caution with 24 laps to go set him up in perfect position to make a move on Myers, who hadn’t pitted for tires. He drove the No. 85 Stuart’s Automotive Chevrolet to the point and never looked back.
“I got a good launch and tried to the hook the bottom through turns one and two to keep up the speed,” Silk said. “I was really loose on the first run, but I knew once we pitted and changed tires we would be in pretty good shape.”
Chase Dowling, who made his first start of the season driving for veteran Jamie Tomaino, moved around Myers on the late restart, but couldn’t chase down Silk. The second-place effort for the Roxbury, Connecticut, driver was his fifth career runner-up finish.
“We spent time this winter putting the car together, and obviously we are really happy with it,” Dowling said. “We unloaded fast and just tweaked throughout the day.”
Jimmy Blewett finished third, scoring his second podium in two races, and positioning himself second in the championship, just one point off Doug Coby. Kyle Bonsignore was fourth Saturday and Myers finished fifth.
Chris Pasteryak was sixth, followed by Patrick Emerling, Doug Coby, Timmy Solomito and Craig Lutz.
The South Boston 150 will air on NBCSN on Wednesday, April 3, at 6 p.m.
The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour returns to the track on April 7 as part of the 45th annual Icebreaker weekend at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park.
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour-South Boston 150 Results
Saturday
At South Boston Speedway
South Boston, Va.
Lap length: 0.4 miles
(Start position in parentheses)
1. (3) Ron Silk, Norwalk, Conn., Chevrolet, 150 laps, 67.395 mph.
2. (2) Chase Dowling, Roxbury, Conn., Pontiac, 150.
3. (14) Jimmy Blewett, Howell, N.J., Chevrolet, 150.
4. (9) Kyle Bonsignore, Bay Shore, N.Y., Toyota, 150.
5. (7) Burt Myers, Walnut Cove, N.C., Chevrolet, 150.
6. (11) Chris Pasteryak, Lisbon, Conn., Chevrolet, 150.
7. (19) Patrick Emerling, Orchard Park, N.Y., Chevrolet, 150.
8. (10) Doug Coby, Milford, Conn., Chevrolet, 150.
9. (13) Timmy Solomito, Islip, N.Y., Ford, 150.
10. (23) Craig Lutz, Miller Place, N.Y., Chevrolet, 150.
11. (5) Matt Swanson, Acton, Mass., Chevrolet, 150.
12. (24) Woody Pitkat, Stafford, Conn., Chevrolet, 150.
13. (12) Blake Barney, Lakewood, N.J., Chevrolet, 150.
14. (8) Anthony Nocella, Woburn, Mass., Chevrolet, 150.
15. (29) Sam Rameau, Westminster, Mass., Chevrolet, 150.
16. (4) Jon McKennedy, Chelmsford, Mass., Chevrolet, 150.
17. (1) Tommy Catalano, Ontario, N.Y., Chevrolet, 150.
18. (18) Dave Sapienza, Riverhead, N.Y., Dodge, 150.
19. (26) Ken Heagy, Calverton, N.Y., Ford, 147.
20. (28) Walter Sutcliffe Jr., East Haven, Conn., Chevrolet, 147.
21. (32) J. B. Fortin, Jr., Holtsville, N.Y., Chevrolet, 126, power steering.
22. (20) James Civali, Meriden, Conn., Chevrolet, 117, electrical.
23. (25) Wade Cole, Hartland, Conn., Ford, 110, handling.
24. (27) Melissa Fifield, Wakefield, N.H., Chevrolet, 100, handling.
25. (6) Justin Bonsignore, Holtsville, NY, Chevrolet, 93, power steering.
26. (17) Eric Goodale, Riverhead, N.Y., Chevrolet, 50, engine.
27. (21) Timmy Catalano, Ontario, N.Y., Chevrolet, 49, engine.
28. (15) Rob Summers, Manchester, Conn., Chevrolet, 42, overheating.
29. (30) Jeremy Gerstner, Wesley Chapel, Fla., Chevrolet, 27, overheating.
30. (22) Frank Fleming, Mount Airy, N.C., Chevrolet, 26, accident.
31. (31) Kyle Ebersole, Hummelstown, Penn., Chevrolet, 26, accident.
32. (16) Calvin Carroll, Newton, N.J., Chevrolet, 26, accident.
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 0 hours 53 minutes 25 seconds
Margin of Victory: 1.407 seconds
Fastest Qualifier: T.Catalano (103.979 mph, 13.849 seconds)
Caution Flags: 5 for 27 laps.
Lead Changes: 2 among 3 drivers.
Lap Leaders: T. Catalano 1-59; B. Myers 60-132; R. Silk 133-150.
Standings: 1. D. Coby, 83; 2. J. Blewett, 82; 3. B. Myers, 78; 4. P. Emerling, 77; 5. C. Pasteryak, 77; 6. J. McKennedy, 72; 7. A. Nocella, 68; 8. R. Silk, 67; 9. K. Bonsignore, 67; 10. B. Barney, 62.
Sources: Jason Christley/NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications
2019 South Boston 150
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour race number 2 of 2
Saturday, March 30, 2019 at South Boston Speedway, South Boston, VA
150 laps on a .400 mile paved track (60.0 miles)
Time of race: 0:53:25
Average speed: 67.395 mph
Pole speed: 103.979 mph Cautions: 5 for 27 laps
Margin of victory: 1.407 sec
Attendance: n/a
Lead changes: 2
Glossary 2019 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour results / 2019 standings
Fin St # Driver Sponsor / Owner Car Laps Status Led Pts
1 3 85 Ron Silk Stuart’s Automotive (Kevin Stuart) Chevrolet 150 running 18 47
2 2 99 Chase Dowling s and s (Cheryl Tomaino) Pontiac 150 running 0 42
3 14 21 Jimmy Blewett Gershow Recycling / Blewett Recycling (Joseph Bertuccio) Chevrolet 150 running 0 41
4 9 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance / Snap-On Tools (Kyle Bonsignore) Toyota 150 running 0 40
5 7 1 Burt Myers Vestal Buick GMC (Eddie Harvey) Chevrolet 150 running 73 41
6 11 75 Chris Pasteryak Dawley’s Collision & Custom (Charles Pasteryak) Chevrolet 150 running 0 38
7 19 07 Patrick Emerling Sahlen’s (Jennifer Emerling) Chevrolet 150 running 0 37
8 10 2 Doug Coby Mayhew Tools / Dunleavy Truck & Trailer (Mike Smeriglio III) Chevrolet 150 running 0 36
9 13 16 Timmy Solomito RB Ent (Eric Sanderson) Ford 150 running 0 35
10 23 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply (Russell Goodale) Chevrolet 150 running 0 34
11 5 3 Matt Swanson Cape Cod Copper / USNE, Inc / WOW Media (Jan Boehler) Chevrolet 150 running 0 33
12 24 82 Woody Pitkat Horton Avenue Materials (Danny Watts Jr.) Chevrolet 150 running 0 32
13 12 14 Blake Barney Atlantic Sprinkler (Richard Barney) Chevrolet 150 running 0 31
14 8 92 Anthony Nocella Nocella Paving / K and D Associates / Airgas (Anthony Nocella) Chevrolet 150 running 0 30
15 29 06 Sam Rameau * Racechoice.com (Randy Rameau) Chevrolet 150 running 0 29
16 4 77 Jon McKennedy Curb Records (Mike Curb) Chevrolet 150 running 0 28
17 1 54 Tommy Catalano Catalano Motorsports (Amy Catalano) Chevrolet 150 running 59 28
18 18 36 Dave Sapienza Sapienza Enterprise (Judy Thilberg) Dodge 150 running 0 26
19 26 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood (Robert Pollifrone) Ford 147 running 0 25
20 28 78 Walter Sutcliffe, Jr. Last Minute Racing (Steven Sutcliffe) Chevrolet 147 running 0 24
21 32 34 J.B. Fortin * John’s Tree Removal / John’s Fuel Oil (Nicole Fortin) Chevrolet 126 power steering 0 23
22 20 79 James Civali EME Ind / VP-Race Fuels / Body Armor / Walker (Susan Hill) Chevrolet 117 electrical 0 22
23 25 33 Wade Cole Perf. Engines / Kendall Oil (Wade Cole) Ford 110 handling 0 21
24 27 01 Melissa Fifield TBD (Kenneth Fifield) Chevrolet 100 handling 0 20
25 6 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications Inc. (Kenneth Massa) Chevrolet 93 power steering 0 19
26 17 58 Eric Goodale GAF Roofing (Edgar Goodale) Chevrolet 50 engine 0 18
27 21 45 Timmy Catalano * Catalano Motorsports (Amy Catalano) Chevrolet 49 engine 0 17
28 15 64 Rob Summers Dell Electric / Luminre Electric / Rocky’s Pl (Mike Murphy) Chevrolet 42 overheating 0 16
29 30 55 Jeremy Gerstner C. P. Ward, Inc. (Dawn Gerstner) Chevrolet 27 overheating 0 15
30 22 40 Frank Fleming Autobynelson / W Smith Trucking / Perkins & A (Frank Fleming) Chevrolet 26 crash 0 14
31 31 5 Kyle Ebersole Ebersole Excavating (Bob Ebersole) Chevrolet 26 crash 0 13
32 16 25 Calvin Carroll Power with Prestige / Cruising w / Betty (Joe Carroll) Chevrolet 26 crash 0 12
Rookie drivers are denoted with an asterisk.
Caution flag breakdown:
Condition From
Lap To
Lap # Of
Laps Reason Free
Pass
1 16 16
17 20 4 #51 accident turn 3 #01
21 26 6
27 31 5 #25,40,5,18,55,34 accident turn 3 none
32 55 24
56 61 6 #79 accident turn 3 #34
62 83 22
84 89 6 #78 accident turn 3 #18
90 125 36
126 131 6 #78 accident turn 4 #92
132 150 19
Percent of race run under caution: 18.0% Average green flag run: 20.5 laps
Lap leader breakdown:
Leader From
Lap To
Lap # Of
Laps
Tommy Catalano 1 59 59
Burt Myers 60 132 73
Ron Silk 133 150 18
Points standings after this race:
Rank Driver Points Diff
1 Doug Coby 83
2 Jimmy Blewett 82 -1
3 Burt Myers 78 -5
4 Patrick Emerling 77 -6
4 Chris Pasteryak 77 -6
6 Jon McKennedy 72 -11
7 Anthony Nocella 68 -15
8 Ron Silk 67 -16
8 Kyle Bonsignore 67 -16
10 Blake Barney 62 -21
11 Matt Swanson 60 -23
12 Craig Lutz 58 -25
13 Woody Pitkat 57 -26
14 Dave Sapienza 55 -28
15 Eric Goodale 53 -30
15 Ken Heagy 53 -30
17 Justin Bonsignore 52 -31
17 Timmy Solomito 52 -31
19 Frank Fleming 48 -35
20 Tommy Catalano 47 -36