|
|
|
|
|
ECKRICH BECOMES FIFTH WEST LIBERTY WINNER OF THE YEARWest Liberty Raceway Denny Eckrich became the fifth driver in the five events held in 2001 to claim a NASCAR Weekly Racing Series Late Model checkered flag at the West Liberty Raceway on Saturday May 12th. Dan Chapman and Jeremy Thompson each took home their first wins of the season in the Modified and Hobby Stocks, while Matt Gilchrist took the lead over all drivers with his third victory in the Pro Stocks. Starting eleventh, Eckrich escaped a grinding second lap crash when Rusty Zook spun in the first corner, collecting the cars of previous winners Steve Johnson and Tom Cannon as well as Brian Morgan, Matt Furman and Lee Seydel. No injuries were reported, but all cars involved were heavily damaged and finished for the evening. Kurt Stewart paced the field when racing resumed, ahead of Kurt Kile, Brian Harris, Bobby Sexton and Eckrich. Immediately going to work, Eckrich worked his way into third before the second and final yellow flag on lap five. Utilizing the double file restart, Eckrich advanced from third into the lead on the restart by sweeping underneath Stewart in the third turn. With the lead unchallenged for the remaining twenty laps, everyone's attention turned to fifteenth place starter Brian Birkhofer's charge to the front. Racing with defending track champion Gary Webb through traffic, Birkhofer took the third spot away from Dave Eckrich on lap 21 but found himself a full straightaway behind the leader and unable to close the margin. Dave Eckrich held on for the fourth position ahead of Webb, Harris, Kile and Skip Frey. Starting on the front row but falling back at the start, Dan Chapman chased down leader Terry Walker by riding the rim of the flat half-mile racetrack to take the lead on the twelfth lap. Robbie Verbeck used the opposite approach by hugging the bottom of the track to make it a three car battle for the lead for a few laps, taking the lead for at least a full circuit before falling back into the second spot. Walker held on to third, well ahead of Scott Megonigle and Richard Steadman. In the most exciting race of the evening, Matt Gilchrist emerged on top of a three car dogfight in the Pro Stocks. Brian VanDusen took the early lead but relinquished the lead to Chad Simpson on the fourth pass by retiring to the pits with mechanical failure. The resulting yellow flag set up a three way battle on the restart between Simpson, Gilchrist and John Maher that lasted for the final ten laps. Simpson kept his car on the cushion around the top of the racetrack with Maher committed to the bottom while they raced side-by-side for the lead. Gilchrist planted himself on Simpson's rear bumper but in third place until the tenth lap when he moved his car down a lane and alongside the leaders, creating a three-abreast fight for the lead. The middle proved to be the fastest route as Gilchrist emerged with the lead two laps later, cruising to his third victory in five weeks. Maher held on for second while Andy Eckrich nipped Simpson for third at the line. Point leader Jeremy Thompson posted his first Hobby Stock feature win of the year by starting in the twelfth position and running down early leader Matt Bodman. Bodman slipped underneath pole sitter Jarrod Collins on the second lap, but was unable to open up much of a lead before Thompson charged his way to the front to first challenge for the lead on lap four. Taking the lead one lap later in the non-stop race, Thompson planted his car on the cushion to post the easy win ahead of Bodman, Stan O'Brien, Matt Fulton and Dave Wada. Racing action continues for all four divisions of NASCAR Stock Cars at the West Liberty Raceway this Saturday night, May 19th. Hot Laps are scheduled for 6:30 pm with racing to follow. For more information, please contact Simmons Promotions at 563-744-3620 or on the internet at www.SimmonsPromotionsInc.com. For raceday updates and instant results upon completion please call your local McLeod USA InTouch directory category #3740 or #3741. True Value Hardware Night Late Models DNQ MILLER TIME MODIFIEDS PRO STOCKS BOMBERS |
|
