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HAGGENBOTTOM WINS ONE FOR JAMES CAMPBELL JR. AT NEW EGYPT
Posted by: | CommentsNew Egypt, NJ...... Mike Haggenbottom who hails out of Levittown, PA visited victory lane at New Egypt Speedway for the second time this season, and for the tenth time in his 305 sprint car career, making him the most winningest driver in the division at the speedway. Haggenbottom led all 20 laps of the co-sanctioned TSRS/NERS 305 sprint car feature surviving the multi-cautioned event over Adam Carberry, Eddie Wagner, Dave Brown Jr. and Jeff Geiges.
Haggenbottom dedicated his win to fellow racer and friend James Campbell Jr. who passed away Friday night at Williams Grove Speedway in an on track accident while racing his self-owned 410 Sprint Car.
“We lost a very good friend last night, and I just want to dedicate this win to Jim, his brother Sean and their families during this heart-breaking time,” a very emotional Haggenbottom stated.
There were 23 sprint cars signed in to the pits Saturday night, with three heat race wins rewarded to Bryant Davis, Rick Stief and John Barnett. The top ten cars who qualified out of the heat races were subjected to a 10 car invert, placing veteran drivers Kevin Nagy and Mark Bitner on the pole for the A-Main.
When the initial green flag waved, Kevin Nagy jumped out front and took control of the lead heading into turn one. Before the first circuit was completed, the first caution would be displayed for Samantha Lieberman, who came to a stop in turns one and two.
The field would be brought back to their initial starting positions with Nagy and Bitner restarting the field until another caution was displayed for a “false start”. Both pole sitters would be put back a row for jumping the start by TSRS officials.
Mike Haggenbottom and Adam Carberry would now acquire the front row, with Haggenbottom taking command of the lead heading quickly into the first turn, ultimately never looking back. As Haggenbottom led Carberry, who was soon to be passed by a determined Mark Bitner and Kevin Nagy on lap three, another caution would bring the field back together a lap later, closing the three-quarter straightaway length lead the Belmont Garage number 24 had on his competitors.
“We’ve been having a stumbling issue with our motor this year, and restarts are something that I don’t like to see right now,” commented Haggenbottom. “I knew Mark and Adam were behind me, and I was a little worried about them coming around me on the starts, so I just tried to hit my marks right to get the job done”.
As Mike maintained his lead, clearly showing that he was going to be unbeatable even with the engine issues he was dealing with, the battle in the top five was heating up, with cars going three wide at times to make advancements for positions.
Mark Bitner, who restarted fourth after being put back two spots for the faulty start in the begin of the feature, was on a mission after claiming his first 305 Sprint Car feature win of the season last week and was the only driver to give Haggenbottom a run for his money, making an attempted pass on the number 24 after the lap four restart.
“We weren’t the best car for the first few laps but as the track blew off the car came to us. We lost some momentum after we went low to pass Mike, so we lost it there, but battling for second with Adam was pretty good until our drive shaft broke,” explained Bitner. “I think the surface here has improved a lot, but the new shape does take away from the “racing” aspect. It’s just difficult to race hard with guys when there’s one groove to race on”.
At half way to go, and both Mark Bitner and Kevin Nagy now in the pit area after mechanical issues sidelined them, the top five consisted of leader Mike Haggenbottom, Adam Carberry, Dave Brown Jr., Rick Stief, and Eddie Wagner who made his way into the top five after starting back in fifteenth. Mike Haggenbottom would once again take grasp over his lead, with everyone else settling into position behind him.
“With seven to go, my motor started breaking up, even running by myself under the green flag runs, and I’m not sure if it was because my water temperature was hot, but it just wasn’t good. The cautions came out just in time before I would hit lapped traffic, but I started getting nervous when the motor started breaking up under power, coming out of the corners,” expressed Mike. “We’ve changed everything. Motors, fuel lines, fuel pumps, mags, we even changed the spark plugs before we went out for the feature! We just can’t figure it out, but thankfully, the car handles flawlessly so that it can make up for it”.
In final five laps remaining, Tommy Carberry went to the top groove to pass Rick Stief for fifth, and then attempted to take fourth from Wagner, but he could not make it stick, so he slipped back into line to try again in the next corner. Jeff Geiges would then take fifth from Carberry on the bottom of turns three and four, while Eddie Wagner pressured Dave Brown for third. Coming for the checkered flag, Wagner would come off of turn four low, drag racing Brown to the start-finish line to come home with a “photo finish” third place run.
“The track was really racy tonight, it was probably one of the best tracks I have ever raced on here at New Egypt and I am pretty happy with the new layout,” says Wagner, who owns three career feature wins at Bridgeport Speedway, but is still searching for his first New Egypt Speedway win. “My motor was running a little too hot for my liking, so I was trying to take it easy so that I would not over work and over heat the engine, but I feel that if I were to start in the top five I definitely would have had a shot of winning tonight. There was nothing different that I could have done to make my car run any better because it was on point tonight.”
Feature Finish (20 Laps): Mike Haggenbottom, Adam Carberry, Eddie Wagner, Dave Brown Jr., Jeff Geiges, Tommy Carberry, Rick Stief, John Barnett, Joe Lord, Gabe Fox, Karl Fryer, Scott Frack, Joe Kay, Samantha Leiberman, Harris Kohen DNF: Stefanie Palmai, Chris Allen Jr., Bryant Davis, Mark Bitner, Kevin Nagy, Ryan Cox, Tim Tanner, Keith Anderson
NOTES: James Campbell Jr. was honored in numerous ways Saturday night at New Egypt Speedway by drivers, fans, the Tri-State Racesaver Series as well as the Speedway officials all throughout the night. Drivers were gifted decals in memory of Campbell to place on their cars, courtesy of Bruce Bowen of Bowen Signs, and they also tied red, white and blue streamers to their cars bringing Campbell’s colors to the speedway for one last time. A missing man formation was carried out before the start of the feature, on the wave lap fans were asked to display a three and one using their hands in place of waving to the drivers to honor Jim and his number 31 Sprinter. Jim’s very close friend Sean Kirkpatrick was honored with the duty of waving the green flag at the start of the 305 Sprint feature event. A “sea of blue” took over the pit area, as drivers and crew members wore the color to represent and remember the “nice guy” whom they lost tragically the night before.
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“TNT” TIM TANNER GETS FIRST WIN OF THE SEASON AT BRIDGEPORT
BRIDGEPORT, NJ... Tim Tanner Jr., of Doylestown PA, won his first victory of the season Saturday night at Bridgeport Speedway, finally breaking the bad-luck streak that has been haunting him this past year. Tanner, who started on the outside pole, grabbed the lead on lap three, and fled quickly from the rest of the field, showing all that he was the man to beat that night. Mike Haggenbottom and Adam Carberry who were putting on a show battling for the runner up spot, finished second and third, while Eddie Wagner and Tommy Carberry rounded out the top five.
“I didn’t really see anybody after Rick Stief, but I was just running as hard as I could, hoping that we could come out on top this time. I just lost my Grandfather last week, and it’s been a real tough time for me,” said an emotional Tanner during his victory lane celebration. “I spent forty years with him, and everyone knows that I started racing here at Bridgeport with him when I was just 18 years old, and the car was just flawless because he was riding in the cockpit with me tonight”.
Rick Stief and Tim Tanner Jr. set the pace for the 20 lap event, and Stief took the initial lead entering the first turn on the bottom, with Tanner entering right alongside him on the top.
“I tried to get around Rick on the outside, but there was just nothing up there, so I said to myself ‘We’re not going to try that again!’ After that I just tried my hardest to get my car to run on bottom, and when the car finally stuck, we were just amazing, it took off like a rocket ship,” stated Tanner about his early exchange for the lead on lap three.
Once the Tanner Bros. Dairy Store number 18 gained control over the top spot, he took off running, increasing his lead by over a straight away over second place running Adam Carberry, who inherited the position from Stief on lap seven. For 9 laps, Tim Tanner ran a smooth, consistent line around the inside perimeter of the race track, keeping a large distance between him and the rest of the field.
“I have never really had the opportunity to lead here at Bridgeport with a Sprint Car, but when the car is out in clean air it just feels so amazing. On Tuesday night, when we ran against the 360’s, we learned some things and we changed the set-up and it seemed to help us out here a lot for tonight,” explained Tanner.
Tim caught up to lapped traffic by the half way point, but even the slower traffic was no threat to Tim, who maneuvered nicely through the field, still maintaining that nice low line around the track. On lap twelve, just passed the half way mark, Zack Burd brought out the first caution after spinning in turn 2.
With the field now bunched back together, Tanner’s massive lead was potentially up for grabs, with hard charging Adam Carberry and Eddie Wagner, a two time victor this season at the 5/8th mile oval, sitting closely behind. Once again however, Tanner took off as the green flag waved, leaving Carberry and Wagner in the dust.
Mike Haggenbottom, who was running in sixth at the time of the caution, advanced two positions on the restart, after dive bombing into turn one, running right through the middle of the race track as all the others went single file into the turn on the bottom.
“We were trying to run the top like we were on Tuesday with the URC car, but that wasn’t working here tonight, so we lost some positions here in the beginning,” explained Haggenbottom. “Finally the yellows started working toward our advantage, and there was something up high going into one and we were able to scoot around everybody up there, and then slip back into line coming off of two”.
Another caution was displayed on lap fourteen for Dave Brown who rolled to a stop on turn four. On the restart, it was like déjà vu, with Tanner taking off and Haggenbottom advancing two more positions, stealing second from Carberry, just as he did to laps before. Carberry did not go without a fight nonetheless, racing Haggenbottom down the back stretch and into turn three with Carberry on the bottom and Haggenbottom running through the middle. The number 24 found some unexpected bite upon exiting turn four that allowed him to pull off the pass, to which he said was “uncharacteristic especially with how dry the track surface was”.
Even with one more caution in the way of Tanner reaching victory lane, it could not stop him from continuing the impeccable performance he was pursuing all throughout the night. When the checkered flags waved, Tim Tanner would take the win over a sixth place starting Mike Haggenbottom who had nothing to pull out of his hat for the winner in the final laps of the event.
“I’d like to thank all of my sponsors, everyone who has stuck by me during the hard times this year,” Tanner said. “All of my sponsors, Tanner Brother’s Dairy Stores, Scarlet Oaks Wholesale Nursery, Champion Tire, Bethman Auto Center, Martelli’s Metal Fabrication, PWD Lubricants, Richboro Beer & Soda, & Adriana’s Italian Restaurant. Everyone chips in at the beginning of the season to help us out and all of my guys that come to the track every week and help me out especially Paul Gold who does all of my engine tuning and adjustments to make this number 18 go fast. I can’t thank everyone enough for all they do”.
Saturday night was the fourth Bethman Auto Center/Champion Tire/Bruce’s Speed Shop/Thayer Performance Poker Series event race. With Tim Tanner winning the race, he was dealt an “Ace” card to go with his three 9’s he earned in previous events before. Mike Haggenbottom received a “King”, and Adam Carberry added a “Queen” card to his hand. The next and last Poker Series event for the TSRS 305 Series will be on Saturday, August 29th. In addition to the winner with the best hand being crowned the Poker Series Champion, Thayer Performance will reward the “lucky” driver with the worst hand, meaning the cards that amount the least valuable, a full set of brand new Hoosier Racing Tires.
The heat race events were won by Keith Anderson and Joe Lord. Bob DeVault, who finished sixth advanced thirteen positions after starting back in nineteenth, won the Bruce’s Auto Body/Thayer Performance Hard Charger award. Along with the $25 cash bonus provided weekly by Bruce’s Auto Body, DeVault earned the TiLube $100 gift certificate courtesy of Thayer Performance.
Feature (20 Laps): Tim Tanner Jr., Michael Haggenbottom, Adam Carberry, Eddie Wagner, Tommy Carberry, Bob DeVault, Ryan Stillwaggon, Joe Lord Jr., Keith Anderson, Zack Burd, Jason Rochelle, Harris Kohen, Joe Kay, Bryant Davis, Pat U’Selis, Rick Stief, Karl Fryer, Dave Brown, Gabe Fox DNS: Samantha Leiberman
BLEWETT BACK ON TRACK; WINS MILITARY HEROES 30 OVER PAUCH AT NEW EGYPT
Posted by: | Comments New Egypt, NJ. .....“Showtime” Jimmy Blewett, of Howell NJ, brought his patriotic red white and blue number 76 to victory lane on Saturday night at New Egypt Speedway for their “Military Heroes 30” July 4th event. Blewett, who captured the lead on lap four, outsmarted Billy Pauch on numerous restarts by choosing the outside lane, proving that he was the man to beat. Sammy Piazza finished third, Neal Williams brought home a fourth place finish and Dominick Buffalino charged from his 18th starting position to round out the top five.
Jimmy Blewett (WoS photo)
In his first race back after a vicious flip occurring a few weeks before, Blewett, who started in the sixth position, made a comeback that was just what he needed to build up the confidence that he was lacking due to the sour season he was experiencing.
“The flip was actually a blessing in disguise believe it or not. We had bought all new chassis this year and the comfort just wasn’t there. We did have one second place finish this year, but after that we could never just get the handle of the car the way that I wanted it. Even that night, the comfort just wasn’t there,” explains Blewett. “With that said, we had bought this car prior to flipping that other car, and it was already for us to use if we needed it. After the wreck, we took some parts off of the wrecked car and put it on this car, and we used the same set up that I used the last time I won here last year, and it actually ran better than the car I won with before!”
When Blewett took the lead over from Chuck Steuer on lap four, Billy Pauch, who started in 11th, was on the move advancing to second on lap six. Blewett held a five car lead over Pauch until lap ten when the caution came out for Andrew Krause who spun his number 27 in turns one and two.
“On the restart, I looked over and seen Billy alongside of me, and I was going to choose the bottom to restart in, but then I said to myself ‘Nah, I aint taking the bottom with him, he’s gonna go to the top!’ So I took the top, and we were able to get him on the restart, and then I realized where I can be better for the next one, and the next one after that. I feel like after every restart, I was able to get better and better jumps on him,” comments Blewett on the skill he acquired that ultimately won him the race.
When the green flag waved, Pauch and Blewett were side by side heading into turn one, and as they were exiting turn two, the number 76 had a better run off the top, pulling ahead of Pauch going down the backstretch.
Ryan Godown, who made moves early in the race moving forward from 16th, took third from PJ Oliver who appeared to have gotten out of shape coming down the front stretch on lap 11. By half way, it was Blewett, Pauch, Godown, Piazza and Williams running in the top five nose to tail, with Jimmy Horton also moving up from way back in the field, was looking to crack into the top five as well.
With five laps to go, Ryan Godown, who seemed as a threat to the leaders throughout the race, brought the final caution out due to a mechanical failure on his E&G Tire & Auto Center number 747 after running majority of the feature in third place. It was later found out that the failure was caused by a broken drive shaft.
The final restart of the night was executed in single file fashion, with Jimmy Blewett hitting his marks right pulling away just enough from Billy Pauch to claim his first victory of 2015.
“This win was good for me. You get to a point where sometimes you doubt yourself, you start to doubt what you’re doing, and right now I have a very small team compared to what I used to have. When the morale gets down with just a little bit of people around, you feel lost,” Jimmy indicated. “I really want to thank my crew, and everybody who came out tonight to support what we’re doing, Brent Tittle who plays a big role in helping me get the cars ready during the week, my buddy Ryan who came out to help me tonight, my nephew John, Kyle Reinhardt for running up north to pick up a car for me when we needed it, and especially my Grandpop. Without him paying the bills, I wouldn’t be able to drive nice cars like these.”
Eric Palmer (WoS photo)
Eric Palmer won the shortened Crate Modified feature over Ryan Simmons, Adam Cox, Tom Princiotta, and Billy Osmun. The feature was cut short due to the class surpassing their time limit because of the numerous cautions that were displayed throughout the race. Palmer claimed his second feature win of the season, and was pressured all during the course of the race by fourth place starting Ryan Simmons.
“We were getting better as the race went on, Eric seemed to be pushing near the end and I drove under him on lap eight in an attempt to go for the lead. We drag raced down the straight away but he seemed to have more gear coming out the corner and he just got me,” commented Simmons, who is looking for his first win of the season.
Dave Brown Jr (WoS photo)
Dave Brown Jr. brought his DCR’s Racing Racesaver number 44 305 sprint car to victory lane for the third time this season, winning two races at New Egypt and one at Grandview Speedway back in May. Brown started on the pole, took command of the lead over second place starting Jeff Geiges, and never looked back, leading Mark Bitner, Rick Stief, Adam Carberry and Mike Haggenbottom across the finish line of the twenty lap feature.
MODIFIED FEATURE (30 Laps): Jimmy Blewett, Billy Pauch, Sammy Piazza, Neal Williams, Dominick Buffalino, Jimmy Horton, David Van Horn, Billy Pauch Jr., Willie Osmun, Chris Grbac, PJ Oliver, Chris Esposito, Chuck Steuer, Chad Barney, Danny Bouc, Doug Oswald, Ryan Godown, Tad Cox, Andrew Krause, Tommy Farrell, John Stangle, John McClelland, Bryan Kuhl, Andrew Bohn
CRATE MODIFIED FEATURE (10 laps): Eric Palmer, Ryan Simmons, Adam Cox, Tom Princiotta, Billy Osmun, Joe Reid, Jordan Cox, Frank Dorry, Matt Carmen, Jeremy Martino, Jarett Rozycki, Brandon Grosso, Mike Carmen, Connor King, Heidi Heddin, Dan Fleming, Dakota Kessler, Scott Hyland, Aaron Weaver, Matt Stangle, George Gareis Jr., Brian Papiez
NERS SPRINT FEATURE (20 laps): Dave Brown Jr., Mark Bitner, Rick Stief, Adam Carberry, Mike Haggenbottom, Jeff Geiges, John Barnett, Ryan Stillwaggon, Jamie Kostic, Joe Lord, Gabe Fox, Karl Fryer, Ryan Cox, Harris Kohen, Erika Palmai Wagner, Zack Burd
“THE NATURAL” ADAM CARBERRY WINS SECOND OF THE SEASON AT GRANDVIEW
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BECHTELSVILLE, PA ....Second generation driver Adam Carberry won his second Tri State Racesaver Series feature of the year on Saturday, June 13th at Grandview Speedway. Carberry’s first win of the season came a few week back at New Egypt when he won the May 9th make-up feature event. The Bensalem PA resident began the race in the sixth starting spot, and quickly took the lead over from Eddie Wagner on lap six, never looking back from that point on. Rounding out the top five was Mike Haggenbottom, Eddie Wagner, Rick Stief and Ryan Stillwaggon.
“We got a win here last year, it seems that we either wreck or win here, but tonight we chose to win,” said Carberry about his usual fortune at Grandview.
There were 26 sprinters on the card for the 25 lap feature event. Three qualifying heat races went to Ryan Stillwaggon, Mike Haggenbottom and rookie racer Joe Kay. This was the second of four appearances made so far that the TSRS sprints are slated to make this season at Grandview, with this being their first ever time being added to the regular Saturday night program.
Eddie Wagner and Tim Tanner Jr. started on the front row with Tanner taking the lead after blasting into turn one and two on the high side. The Bethmann Auto Body number 18 continued to lead Wagner, Carberry, Stief, and Geiges for the first four laps, pulling away by a straight away margin until he came into contact with Samantha Lieberman who spun in turn three and four. Tanner flipped after making contact with Lieberman’s left front tire, bringing the red flag out. Both drivers were okay, but they were unable to continue.
“She just spun, and she didn’t really hold her line. When you spin, you lock you brakes up so you don’t coast down. I don’t know if her engine was still running or what, but she came down about a lane in half, two lanes and I just had now where to go,” described a frustrated Tanner on the situation. “When I realized that she was spinning, I was entering three and I just braced myself because I knew I had nowhere to go”. Tim, who made the transition from Big Block Modifieds to Sprint Cars two years ago, has been a competitive asset to the TSRS series, but this season has been a struggle for him. “I haven’t been able to put it together yet. When my car is good, I can’t seem to get into the redraw to get that good starting spot. And when my car is bad, I end up getting a good starting spot and struggle. What are you going to do though, that’s racing!”.
A single file restart was applied, with Wagner back on the pole leading Adam Carberry, Stief and Brown into turn one. Wagner went to the bottom and Carberry who was making his moves on the top, attempted to pass Wagner coming out of turn two but was unsuccessful due to the number 70 unintentionally shutting the door on Carberry.
“You don’t know anyone’s there until you feel them, I wasn’t far enough next to him (Wagner) anyway so I got out of it and tried it again the next lap and it worked that time,” commented Carberry on the contact with Wagner.
The halfway point was approaching, as was lapped traffic, and Adam Carberry continued to expand his lead by over a straight away over the rest of the field. Two more cautions would challenge Carberry, who perfected his restarts time and time again and after running much of the race on the top of the high banked oval, the bright green number 47 began to work the bottom, continuing to dominate the race.
“To get up to the front I used the top and then I figured at about half way the track would take rubber, and once the track takes rubber that’s pretty much where you got to be to be fast,” he explained.
With the top four cars maintaining their positions, “Mr. Excitement” Mike Haggenbottom made his way to the front, breaking into the top five by lap 15. The fourth and final caution of the night came out for Jeff Geiges, who made contact with the number 70 of Eddie Wagner, jumping his left rear tire after getting a good run going into the first turn, resulting in the Stellitano Heating and Air Conditioning number 77J to spin and hit the turn one wall. Geiges, who made hard contact with the steel outside wall, remained uninjured, but his car could not say the same.
“Two people were going for the same real-estate, that’s all I’m going to say.” Geiges commented shortly.
On the fourth and final restart, Adam Carberry took the green flag and ran away once again, driving in his own time zone for the remaining ten laps of the race. Haggenbottom advanced two spots on the restart after powering hard into turns one and two, now placing him into second over Wagner, Stief and tenth place starting Ryan Stillwaggon. The Belmont’s Garage number 24 was on a mission to catch the leader who was now approaching and dicing in and out of lapped traffic, but was unable to hook on to him for the win.
“This second place is a win for me at Grandview. I probably have about 15 second or third place finishes here. I have never won here, so it would have been nice, but we’ll take the second,” said Haggenbottom. “I liked the top, it was there for the most part of the race, but it went away with about six or seven laps to go. Turn one was not bad, and that helped me on the restart when everyone went to the bottom, but I had to go to the bottom in turns three and four because the top just went away over there”.
Adam Carberry took the checkered flags for the second time at Grandview in his short, but successful racing career. Carberry comes from a large and well known racing family, with his Grandfather Tom being a mechanic on many modified teams back in the 60’s and 70’s, his father Kenny and uncles Tom and Chuck Carberry all former Modified and Sprint car drivers, as well as his cousin Tommy Carberry who also races with Adam in the 305 ranks. He began his career in the 305 sprints four years ago when he was 18 and has won at nearly every track that the TSRS series has raced at.
“I want to thank my crew, my dad, Phil Meisner, Kyle Koellner and my girlfriend Jill for helping me out every week and getting me into victory lane,” thanked Carberry.
NOTES:
Thayer Performance once again provided an added incentive to the customary Bruce’s Auto Body Hard Charger award. The Mercerville, NJ based parts trailer, which is stocked and loaded with Hoosier racing tires, TiLube products, and everything else in-between presented Jamie Kostic with the “Rubber Burning Bonus” right rear Hoosier Racing tire for advancing the most positions in the feature. Kostic advanced eight spots after starting 17th, and finishing ninth.
Adam Carberry set fast time of the feature with a 14.592 lap time, occurring on lap 21.
FEATURE (25 laps): Adam Carberry, Mike Haggenbottom, Eddie Wagner, Rick Stief, Ryan Stillwaggon, Tommy Carberry, Scott Frack, Joe Kay, Jamie Kostic Jon Haegele, Stephanie Stevens-Dodson, John Barnett, Bryant Davis, Brad Franks, Jason Rochelle, Dave Graber, Pat U’Selis, Zack Burd, Jeff Geiges, Dave Brown Jr., David Bonner, Tim Tanner, Tony Smolenyak, Samantha Lieberman
DNQ: Joe Lord
Bruce’s Auto Body & Thayer Performance Hard Charger Award: Jamie Kostic (+8)
Fast Time: Adam Carberry, 14.592
STEFANIE PALMAI WINS HER FIRST CAREER SPRINT CAR VICTORY AT BRIDGEPORT SPEEDWAY
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#99 Stefanie Palmai (WoS photo)
Bridgeport, NJ..... After six years of trying, Stefanie Palmai of Allentown, NJ won her very first feature event Saturday at Bridgeport Speedway with the Tri-State Racesaver Series. Palmai, who has been running with the series since the very beginning, has come very close multiple times with visiting victory lane, finishing as the runner up on many occasions in her career. She led the race wire to wire, out-doing series point leader and three time champion Mike Haggenbottom, third place finishing Jeff Geiges, John Barnett who came in fourth, and Tim Tanner who rounded out the top five.
There were 17 cars in attendance with Mike Haggenbottom and Adam Carberry winning the two qualifying heat races. This was the second Poker Series event of the season for the 305's which is hosted by Bridgeport Speedway and sponsored by Bethmann Auto Center, Champion Tire, Bruce's Speed Shop and Thayer Performance. The driver with the "best hand" at the end of the series will receive a cash prize of $900, with the drivers with the second and third best hands receiving $500 & $350 as well. Ken Jones and Gary Thayer of Thayer Performance, which is located in Mercerville, NJ, decided to up the ante for the driver earning the "worst hand" with a reward of a complete set of Hoosier Racing Tires as well as a $100 TiLube product gift certificate to the hard charger of each Poker Series race.
Rookie John Barnett and Stefanie Palmai started on the front row, with Palmai taking the lead immediately as the green flag waved. On the move was Mike Haggenbottom, who was up four spots to fifth after starting in ninth on lap one.
"On the original start, going into two, somebody got together, and it slowed up the first group of cars, and I just had a run around the bottom," says Haggenbottom about his advancement on the first lap.
The first caution was brought out by Bob DeVault Jr.'s number 10, after his car came to a rolling stop in the first turn of lap one. A second caution was brought out a lap later for Zack Burd who spun in turns one and two. A single file restart was implemented with Palmai bringing the field to the green once again.
Stefanie had a strong lead, pulling a straightaway distance away from second place running Jeff Geiges. Mike Haggenbottom, who was up to third place by lap five worked on Geiges, and exchanged positions with him a lap later. Haggenbottom, now sitting in second, continued to charge to the front, catching Palmai by the halfway point.
“I had no idea how far behind anyone was from me, all I kept thinking was nail the restarts,and just keep the car straight,” explains Palmai about her lead. Stefanie faced a similar situation just two weeks before at Bridgeport, when she led up until the halfway point before Eddie Wagner took the lead from her on a restart. She would end up finishing third in that race. “The track was drying out quick, and I felt the back end of the car get a little loose sometimes, so I was just focused on making my laps as smooth and straight as possible”.
With track conditions becoming drier and the bottom groove seeming to be the place to run, Haggenbottom continued to chase the leader, but was unsuccessful in attempting to pass Palmai who was running around the very bottom of the race track.
“I did not need the yellows because the car was stumbling real badly on restarts. It’s tough here when the track gets to be this way,” explained Haggenbottom. “She had the clean air which was helping her, and at one point she tried to run the top in three and I said to myself ‘Yeah, stay up there!’ But Stef was smart and moved her line back down to the bottom. She did a really good job at hitting her marks from then on”.
With no battle in site, and with heavy concentration, Stefanie Palmai took the checkered flag over a “veteran” top five of Haggenbottom, Geiges, Barnett, and Tanner.
Third place finisher Jeff Geiges, who is a tough competitor of the series, and a driver who also is a “pioneer” TSRS member, won the very first TSRS championship back in 2010 while driving a team car for Tony Pietrofitta along with former teammate and feature winner Stefanie Palmai.
“We started in third tonight, and we had a bit of an incident coming into turn one on the start, and we got shuffled back to seventh but we worked our way back up to third,” says Geiges. “We’ve been struggling during the beginning of the year so we’re happy that we can be competitive a couple of weeks in a row finally”.
During her victory lane celebration, Palmai had a lot of fans, family and crew members who joined her in festivities due to her long awaited feature win.
“This is a really memorable win for me, because it’s not only my first win, but for the first time, I didn’t make my same mistake of losing the race on a restart. It feels especially cool that I beat Mike Haggenbottom who is a three time champion in our series, and Mike is usually one of the harder guys to beat. I appreciate him coming up to me and congratulating me after the race and telling me that he had nothing for me, which makes me feel pretty good! We all have been racing together since the series started, and they are all just great drivers and great people to be around every weekend,” recounts Stefanie.
“I want to thank first and foremost my Dad, my Mom, my sister Erika, my brother Nandi and my Grandpop for just supporting me and working hard to allow me to do this every weekend. I want to thank my crew guys, Anthony DePiano of AFD Performance for building me a killer motor, my crew chief Rich Kraft, Ed Hughes, Henry Seip, Mike Calla from Wheelsofspeed.com, and my boyfriend Tommy Carberry, as well as my sponsors, A Cut Above the Rest Trucking & Excavating, Erb’s Garage, Lawrence Collison, Malik Racing, Medford Speed, Hamill Flooring, E&G Auto Center, and everyone else who pitches in to help us get on the track every week.”
FEATURE (20 laps): Stefanie Palmai, Mike Haggenbottom, Jeff Geiges, John Barnett, Tim Tanner Jr., Adam Carberry, Rick Stief, Bob DeVault Jr., Eddie Wagner, Joe Lord, Tommy Carberry, Jon Haegele, David Bonner, Karl Fryer, Bryant Davis, Zack Burd, Jason Rochelle
Thayer Performance & Bruce’s Auto Body Hard Charger Award : Mike Haggenbottom (+7)
TSRS Race Report
Posted by: | Comments- Tri-State Racesaver Series
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WAGNER BECOMES FIRST TSRS REPEAT WINNER OF 2015 AT BRIDGEPORT SPEEDWAY
Bridgeport, NJ .......Eddie Wagner became the first repeat winner of the Tri State Racesaver Series 2015 season doubling victories at Bridgeport Speedway Friday Night. Wagner’s first win of the season was on May 9th, when TSRS last visited the South Jersey ⅝ mile, and it was also the first feature completed since that night, making Eddie a back-to-back victor. Wagner once again fought three time TSRS champion Mike Haggenbottom off for the victory, with Stefanie Palmai, Dave Brown and Jeff Geiges completing the top five.
There were twenty-four TSRS sprints on the roster for Friday’s race, with three heat race victories going to Dave Brown, Tommy Carberry and Mike Haggenbottom.
#99 Stefanie Palmai #70 Eddie Wagner (WoS photo)
With the magic invert number being eleven, Stefanie Palmai of Allentown, NJ and Eddie Wagner would hold the pole positions. Palmai jumped to the commanding spot when the green flag waved and she held a strong lead on Wagner going down the backstretch on lap one. Chris Allen would advance two positions by lap two, having started fifth and was now up to third followed by Tim Tanner and Brad Franks. By lap five, the top five cars were now spread apart with Palmai holding a half a straightaway lead on Wagner. Mike Haggenbottom, known to always make the race interesting, was advancing quickly from his ninth starting spot and was now sitting in fourth place. As the halfway point approached on lap ten, lapped traffic was now in the sights of the leader Palmai, who was maintaining her strong lead over Wagner, Allen, Haggenbottom and Dave Brown, who also advanced five positions from his tenth place starting spot.
“As I reached lapped traffic, all I was thinking about was maintaining a smooth line and keeping the car as straight as possible. I was trying to read the slower cars in front of me, so that I could see which way they were going, hoping that I could get around them as fast as I could. It’s all about keeping your momentum at Bridgeport, so my main job was keeping my line smooth and fast,” said Palmai about her lead and approaching lapped traffic.
The first caution of the night was on lap ten, when Zack Burd spun his number 5Z in turn four.
On the restart, it was Palmai, Wagner, Allen, Haggenbottom and Brown occupying the top five. Eddie Wagner went for the lead going down the front stretch and into turn one, with Stefanie determined to retain her position, entering high into the first turn alongside Wagner. Exiting the corner, it was Palmai and Wagner drag racing down the backstretch with Wagner ultimately taking command of the front running spot leaving turn four on lap eleven.
On lap twelve, the second caution came out for the number 0 of Harris Kohen. Kohen’s car caught fire due to a hole being put in his oil filter. Kohen was unhurt and exited his car safely.
Wagner led the field to the green, with Haggenbottom lurking closely behind in third. Haggenbottom took second from Palmai and began working on the number 70 for the lead. Mike went to the top of turns three and four in an attempt to advance, but with Eddie holding a strong line coming off the corners low, the 24 car was unable to make the pass. With Wagner running a hard race against the three-time champion, both lanes of the speedway were being used consistently, but the low side seemed to be the quickest way around that night.
“I had a hard time coming off the fourth turn, because it started to slick off, and Eddie was running the bottom, so low to where I couldn’t get under him,” Haggenbottom explains. “With the top going away, I tried everything I could, but it didn’t work out. I’d like to thank my crew, Mach 1 and Speed Equipment Corp. for giving me a good car every week”.
On lap fourteen, Zack Burd spun again in turn four, bringing out the third and last caution of the night.
With the final laps of the feature dwindling down, Wagner restarted the race on lap fourteen. This time, the AC Racing number 70 held the lead, and began to pull some car lengths on Haggenbottom, making it clear that tonight was once again going to be Wagner’s night. With a half a straightaway lead and no sign of any challenge, Eddie Wagner took the checkered flag, followed by Mike Haggenbottom, Stefanie Palmai, Dave Brown and Jeff Geiges. Rounding out the top ten was Chris Allen, Tommy Carberry, Ryan Stillwaggon, Joe Lord, and Brad Franks.
“It’s a lot less nerve racking trying to pass on the last lap, then trying to hold your lead,” says Wagner, who won his last feature after a final lap exchange for the lead over Dave Brown. “I heard Mike, I knew he was close, and after I took the lead from Stef, I heard him for like three laps, and I knew he was there. After that last caution, I just told myself that I was going to drive the car as hard as I could, and if I slipped up and he got by me, it was going to be the end. I made the track as wide as I could, and I just hit my marks. I moved up the straight away, to take his wing speed away, and just did all I could to make it into victory lane.”
Wagner, who has had multiple heart breaking finishes in past years at Bridgeport Speedway explained that the track has grown to be one of his favorites to race. “This place has a little spot in my heart because my family helped build it back in the day. We were actually really bad here when we first started running on the big track, but over the years, we found something. Now Bridgeport is by far my favorite place to run”.
The Tri-State Racesaver Series continues their double header weekend this Sunday at Grandview Speedway for the first time in affiliation with Bob Miller’s “Thunder on the Hill” Series. The TSRS 305 Sprint Cars will run a feature only format, with the top twenty five cars in points attending the invitation only event. Also on the card are 358 Modifieds, ARDC midgets, Sportsman and Legend cars. The main grandstand gates open at 5:00pm, and racing begins at 7:30. Adult admission is $20, ages 6-11 get in for $10, and children under the age of 10 get in for FREE!
For more information, visit our website www.tsrs1.com or our facebook page to get the lastest details on upcoming events.
FEATURE: Eddie Wagner, Mike Haggenbottom, Stef Palmai, Dave Brown, Jeff Geiges, Chris Allen, Tommy Carberry, Ryan Stillwaggon, Joe Lord, Brad Franks, Bryant Davis, Tim Tanner, Keith Anderson, Randy Wilbert, Pat U’Selis, Zack Burd, Harris Kohen, Karl Fryer, Samantha Lieberman, John Barnett, Adam Carberry
DNS - David Bonner, Brendon Poff
HARD CHARGER - Mike Haggenbottom (+7)
FAST TIME - Stefanie Palmai - 20.368
TSRS FEATURE “FOGGED OUT” AT NEW EGYPT – POSTPONED TO MAY 30TH
Posted by: | CommentsNew Egypt, NJ (May 9, 2015)...Due to fog and unsafe racing conditions, the officials of both New Egypt Speedway and The Tri-State Racesavers Series found it necessary to postpone the remaining fifteen laps of Saturday’s feature to a later date, which will be on May 30th, when the TSRS sprints make their return to New Egypt. Before the race was called, Adam Carberry, of Bensalem PA, was leading Gabe Fox, Karl Fryer, Tommy Carberry, and Joe Lord around the Central Jersey oval.
There were twenty-six TSRS/NERS sprints taking part of the “Mother’s Day” race, with three heat race wins going to Tim Tanner Jr, Mark Bitner, and Brad Franks. The consolation event was won by Dave Brown Jr. In honor of Mother’s Day, New Egypt Speedway gifted all of the ladies going into the front gates with a flower courtesy of John Gasko & Sons Farm and Greenhouses in Monroe Township, NJ.
The top eight finishers from each heat were qualified for the invert, allowing Gabe Fox and Adam Carberry to bring the field to the green. Gabe Fox led the first two laps of the feature, until Adam Carberry took over the top spot on lap three, charging hard on the outside. Carberry continued to lead heading into the fourth circuit, gaining over a half a straight away over Fox, with Karl Fryer now pressuring Fox for the second spot.
The red flag was brought out on lap five for Bob DeVault, who flipped violently down the backstretch after making contact with the number 99 of Stefanie Palmai, while exchanging for tenth position. Bob was darting through the field from his sixteenth starting spot, setting his sights on the top ten before the accident. DeVault thankfully walked away unhurt, but the condition of his All-State Auto Glass number 10 sprinter could not say the same. Meanwhile, Jeff Geiges exited his car in a hurry due to a fire occurring in his Hamill Flooring number 77, also walking away uninjured.
When the cars were all pushed off, in an attempt to begin the race again, officials decided to call the race, as the heavy fog settled, making it not only difficult for the drivers to see ahead of them, but it was impossible for fans sitting in the grandstands to see the front stretch.
Kody Kinser, cousin to sprint car great Steve Kinser, made his first start in a 305 sprint car this weekend at New Egypt, piloting TSRS rookie driver Zach Burd’s number 5Z. Kinser, who is a 410 sprint car regular, races primarily out in the Mid-West, made the hike from his Brownsburg IN hometown to race with TSRS after hearing about the popularity of the Series. Kinser commented on the difference between the 305’s and the 410’s, stating that even with the smaller motors, they are not easy to drive. At the time of the “fog-out”, Kody was running in 14th position. Kody is interested in coming back east hopefully this summer for the Jersey Rush in August with his 410 sprint car, also expressing much interest in racing with the Tri-State Racesaver Series again in the near future.
The next race on the TSRS schedule is set for Friday, May 22nd, at Bridgeport Speedway. Visit www.tsrs1.com or our Facebook page for more details on upcoming events.
HEAT RACE #1: Tim Tanner, Tommy Carberry, Adam Carberry, Mike Haggenbottom, Eddie Wagner, Bob DeVault, Dave Brown Jr, Bryant Davis, David Bonner
HEAT RACE #2: Mark Bitner, Joe Lord, Gabe Fox, Stefanie Palmai, Kody Kinser, Joe Kay, Brandon Poff, Sam Lieberman, Harris Kohen
HEAT RACE #3: Brad Franks, Karl Fryer, Rick Stief, Chris Allen, Jeff Geiges, Pat U’Selis, Keith Anderson, Ryan Cox
CONSI: Dave Brown Jr., Bryant Davis, Sam Lieberman, Harris Kohen, Keith Anderson, Brandon Poff, David Bonner, Ryan Cox
RUNNING ORDER ON LAP 5 – TO BE CONTINUED ON MAY 30th – Adam Carberry, Gabe Fox, Karl Fryer, Tommy Carberry, Joe Lord, Mike Haggenbottom, Mark Bitner, Rick Stief, Tim Tanner, Stefanie Palmai, Eddie Wagner, Chris Allen Jr., Dave Brown Jr., Kody Kinser, Brad Franks, Sam Lieberman, Bryant Davis, Joe Kay, Keith Anderson, Brandon Poff, Pat U’Selis, Harris Kohen, Jeff Geiges, Bob DeVault
FAST TIME OF THE NIGHT: Tommy Carberry - 15.264 in Warm-Ups
