Hamburg’s Sites secures Savage 61 Back Yard Brawl win
Kody Sites picked a good time to get back to victory lane in the roadrunner division.
Sites would take the lead on lap 10 of the 25-lap event to go on and score his fourth win of the season on Friday night as he picked up $661 for the win in the Back Yard Brawl 25-lap feature on Savage 61 night, the title sponsor for the full-fender division.
Other winners on Friday included Craig VonDohren in the make-up Steel & Metal Service Center 358 feature from May 12 while Ryan Godown won the regularly scheduled feature in thrilling fashion.
Also taking checkers on Friday night were Matt Stangle in the U.S.S. Achey sportsman and Chris Heller in the No Sweat Service Group street stocks.
The track is back in action on Friday, June 16 with sportsman, roadrunners, street stocks, Blast From The Past Vintage Cars and the Kim’s Kreations Mechanics Race and the makeup Enduro Dash 50. The gates will open at 5:30 with racing at 8:15. Admission is $10 and kids 12-and-under along with active military with a valid ID are free.
A multi-groove track made for exciting racing all night and the roadrunners took advantage of it early in the night in their lone extra-distance race of the year.
Kyle Wingle and Shawn Mulhall traded the lead on the opening lap several times before Mulhall surged past the polesitter just before the got to Turn 1 to complete lap 1 of the race.
Third starting Shon Elk moved around Wingle for the runner-up spot on lap 3 as a three-car battle ensued for the lead. Elk then moved in on Mulhall to battle for the top spot before the first caution of the race came out on lap 11 for a spin.
Mulhall maintained the top spot on the restart while eventual winner Sites have moved into third.
A four-car battle for the lead took place on lap 12 as Mulhall, Sites, Elk and Chris Holland where noseto-tail for several laps.
Sites would move around Mulhall for the lead on lap 17 on as Munhall’s night would come to an end four laps later when he lost the drive shaft.
Andy Fayash was the big mover of the night coming from 11th to third on the lap 21 restart. He then battled Terry Kramer for second while Sites was pulling away.
The final caution came out on lap 22 which gave Fayash as shot at the lead as he stayed with Sites over the final three circuits but came up a quarter-car length short at the line and settled for second.
Kramer held on for third with Mike Reichert and Wingle rounding out the top five.
Sixth through 10th were Jim Kost, Fred Everly, Dustin Wolfgang, Jeremy Rock and Nate Hill. Heats for the roadrunners were won by Elk and Kost.
“We’ll put that check on the wall,” Sites said. “That was a good race. This car wasn’t the best that it has been before but we got the job done. The top of the race track was real good so that’s where I needed to be. The car didn’t have drive like it usually does and we have to get that back.”
In the 358 modified make-up feature, VonDohren cashed down race leader Ryan Godown on lap 13 and passed him on the backstretch to go on and score his second win of the season.
“The top was pretty good but we got a good run on the bottom and got by Billy (Pauch Jr.) and Jeff (Strunk) early in traffic and I knew it was going to be tough,” VonDohren said. “
VonDohren started 12th in the feature and had moved into the runner-up spot on lap 13.
Godown held on for second with Rick Laubach, Billy Pauch Jr., and Jeff Strunk rounding out the top five.
Sixth through 10th were Ryan Grim, Ray Swinehart, Kevin Beach, Ryan Krachun and Shawn Fitzpatrick
In the regularly schedule feature, Godown shook off some bad luck and two straight did not finish to open the season as he scored his first win of the year in the 25-lap feature event.
Godown closed in on Brett Kressley over the final few laps was using lapped traffic to get by him when the lapped car didn’t hold it’s line and cost Kressley the race as Godown passed him in the final 100 feet of the race to win at the line by .165 seconds.
Kressley held on for second with Strunk, Pauch Jr., and Beach rounding out the top five.
Sixth through 10th were Laubach, VonDohren, Krachun, Tim Fitzpatrick and S. Fitzpatrick.